Tuesday, 26 April 2016

Protein Paella!





Ingredients

Chicken breast: 500g


King Prawns, raw: 450g


Coconut oil ( Try Lucy Bee ): 2 tbsp


Short-grain brown rice or Arborio rice (cooked): 4 cups


Low-salt chicken broth: 2 cups


Red onion, sliced: 1/2


Roma tomatoes, diced: 2


Frozen peas: 200g


Lemon juice: 1 lemon


Garlic paste (or minced garlic): 1 tbsp


Smoked paprika: 1 tbsp


Saffron threads: 1/2 tsp


Sea salt: to taste


Pepper: to taste


Fresh parsley: to garnish



Directions
  1. Cook rice according to the instructions on the packet and set aside. To save time and space in the kitchen, I use a rice cooker.
  2. Chop raw chicken breasts and shrimp into small pieces.
  3. Set a cast-iron skillet on medium-high heat and add 2 tbsp coconut oil. Once it's melted, add red onion and garlic paste. Stir with a wooden spoon and cook until the edges of the onion have browned.
  4. Toss in raw, chopped chicken breasts and cook until the chicken is 75 percent done. Don't be alarmed if some parts of the chicken are still pink.
  5. Toss in raw shrimp and stir with wooden spoon or spatula. Cook until the shrimp is about 75 percent cooked.
  6. Add paprika and a pinch of sea salt and pepper. Stir.
  7. Add in cooked rice and diced tomatoes. Stir and reduce heat to medium.
  8. Pour in the chicken broth and add saffron. Allow the contents to simmer, and gently stir.
  9. Allow everything to cook for about three minutes. If you'd like to, add fresh lemon juice.
  10. Add frozen peas and stir. Allow the paella to simmer for about five minutes, then garnish with freshly chopped parsley.

Nutrition Facts : 
Serving size: 1 serving
Recipe yields: 6 servings
Amount per serving
Calories 401
Fat 8 g
Carbs 41 g (5 g fiber)
Protein 41 g

Wednesday, 13 April 2016

Beefy Burger! Rival GBK with your own creation!


This bad boy will give you a tonne of protein! Get grilling!
Ingredients
Directions
  1. In a bowl, combine beef, onion, garlic, oregano, Worcestershire sauce, oats and egg whites.
  2. Form mixture into burger patties and then place on a grill for 5-6 minutes per side or until no longer pink inside.
  3. Remove and serve on top of a whole wheat burger bun.
  4. Top with spinach leaves, tomatoes, pickles, low-sugar ketchup and mustard. (sauce makes 4 servings)
Nutrition Facts

Serves  2
Amount per serving 
Calories 445
Total Fat 19.75g
Total Carb 22.25g
Protein 40.75g

Gains Packed Ginger-Grilled Salmon

This little beauty will knock your socks off, try serving with some broccoli, spinach and brown rice for a healthy and tasty dinner!
Ginger and salmon blend together perfectly. You'll enjoy the flavor almost as much as you will the health benefits!



Ingredients
Directions
  1. Combine ginger, garlic, soy sauce, orange juice in a bag.
  2. Add the salmon and onions to the bag and let sit a few hours to marinate, flipping the bag after 1.5 hours.
  3. Cook salmon on grill until it flakes easily with a fork.
  4. While cooking, brush salmon with any excess marinade.
  5. When done, sprinkle with orange rind and serve.
Nutrition Facts 

Serving Size: 3 Servings
 
Amount per serving
Calories 159
Total Fat 5g
Total Carb 5.2g
Protein 21.5g

Tuesday, 12 April 2016

Moroccan Style Chicken, red pepper & almond traybake

 



Chicken, red pepper & almond traybake

Chicken, red pepper & almond traybake





Prep Time: 15 mins 
Cooking time: 40 mins
 
Serves 4
A tasty one-pan roast chicken supper with lemon, cumin, paprika, coriander and other North African flavours




Nutrition: per serving

  • Fat 20g
  • Carbs34g
  • Protein 34g



Ingredients

  • 500g boneless, skinless chicken thigh or breast if preferred
  • 3 medium red onion, cut into thick wedges
  • 500g small red potato, cut into thin slices
  • 2 red pepper, deseeded and cut into thick slices
  • 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
  • 1 tsp each ground cumin, smoked paprika and fennel seeds
  • 3 x tsp Olive Oil
  •  zest and juice 1 lemon
  •  50g whole blanched almonds roughly chopped
  • 170g tub 0% Greek yogurt, to serve
  • small handful parsley, or coriander, chopped, to serve

Method

  1. Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Place the chicken, onions, potatoes and peppers in a large bowl and season. in another bowl, mix together the garlic, spices, oil, and lemon zest and juice. Pour this over everything and spread the mixture between 2 baking trays.
  2. Roast for 40 mins, turning over after 20 mins, until the chicken is cooked through. Add the almonds for the final 8 mins of cooking. Serve in bowls with a big dollop of Greek yogurt and some chopped parsley or coriander.

Chicken - Simple, Zesty and Rammed with Protein!


Ingredients
Directions
  1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees C
  2. Coat a baking pan with low fat spray and then place chicken in pan.
  3. In a separate bowl, combine honey, orange juice, and lemon juice. Pour over chicken.
  4. Cover pan with tin foil and bake for 10 minutes.
  5. Remove pan from oven to flip chicken, and then return it to the oven for another 10-15 minutes.
  6. For a full meal, pair chicken with green vegetables and, depending on your carbohydrate needs, a starch - Brown rice, or wholemeal pasta
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 2 Servings
Amount per serving
Calories 369
Total Fat 1g
Total Carbs 10g
Protein 80g

Spinach and Pepper Frittata - Veggie Options!!

Protein packed veggie option, and will last for a decent while in the fridge!

22 grams of protein in each serving!!



Ingredients

5 large eggs
300g tub low-fat natural cottage cheese
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
15g finely grated Parmesan
225g frozen leaf spinach, thawed, squeezed and finely chopped
2 roasted red pepper (not in oil), torn into strips
Generous grating of nutmeg
100g whole cherry tomato


Method

 Heat oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Line a 20cm sandwich tin with a single sheet of baking paper if your tin has a loose bottom.

 Beat the eggs in a large bowl with the cottage cheese, garlic, half the Parmesan, the spinach, peppers, nutmeg and some black pepper.

Tip into the tin, top with the tomatoes and sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan.

Bake for 40 mins until set all the way through and starting to puff up.

Cut into wedges and serve hot or cold.

Will keep for 3-4 days in the fridge.


Lean Beef Spinach Meatball Pasta - Meaty and Mighty!

Tasty, quick,cheap, and healthy: Make up a big batch by doubling or tripling the ingredients to freeze or prep for the week! Serves one!

Ingredients

 Meatballs:
200g lean ground beef ( leanest possible - use 5% fat)

Handful shredded raw spinach
Half a sliced red onion
1 tbsp minced garlic
 1/2 tbsp cumin
 Sea salt and pepper, to taste

For pasta:

60g wheat spinach pasta, if you cant find this use wholemeal
Pasta Sauce - Look for low salt ( Sacla do a good one) - 200g
2 handfuls of spinach
5 cherry tomatoes
1 tbsp low fat parmesan cheese

 Directions:

 Set oven to 200 c / 180 fan assisted

For added flavor, saute the red onions in a skillet using spray olive or coconut oil.
Mix together ground beef, chopped raw spinach, red onion, garlic, and spices.
Mix thoroughly using your hands until the spinach is completely mixed into the meat.
Form two or three meatballs of roughly the same size using your hands.

For accuracy, you can use a food scale to weigh and measure each portion.
Place meatballs on a baking sheet and bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes.
Cook pasta and stir in tomatoes, spinach, and cheese as desired.

Mix in cooked meatballs and enjoy!

Nutrition Facts Amount per serving Calories 468 Total Fat 6g Total Carbs 50g Protein 51g

Note - Use Turkey mince for an even leaner option

Monday, 11 April 2016

Energy-boosting chicken and kale pasta


I found this one in Men's Health - credit where due!

It is really good as it gives you  protein, the right amount of carbs and the vitamins from the kale and orange....its pretty tasty too!



 Serves: 2
Preparation time: 5 mins
Cooking time: 15 mins

Benefit: Burn fat / Protein load
1155 calories (Per serving) 95g protein 154g carbohydrates 27g fat (2g saturated)

Ingredients:

350 g pasta
2 big handfuls of kale
2 cubed chicken breasts
2 crushed garlic cloves
2 juiced oranges
2 tbsp wholegrain mustard

Method

Boil the pasta according to the pack instructions, and, 3min before the end, throw in the kale.

Fry the chicken for 10min, adding the garlic for the last 2min.

Drain the pasta, add the chicken then work in the juice and mustard.

Tip - Try adding some nuts - Almonds or cashews to get the good fats and a little more protein!

Enjoy!!!

Note:  The Kale leaves contain vitamin K, which strengthens your bones!

Tuesday, 5 April 2016

In the beginning....

I have started this blog as part of my journey into becoming a fully accredited personal trainer, while hopefully also being a source of assistance and support outside of my client base.

I have always loved sport, rugby, running, boxing, virtually any sport interests me, but I spent the bulk of my 20's dipping in and out of sport, and never fulfilling any potential as my love for partying and the good life always came first.

I had started taking my health and fitness more seriously, but had a huge light bulb moment when my beautiful son Corey was born in May 2015.

Corey's arrival made me think a great deal about many aspects of my life, it raised some serious points such as...

- I want to be around for him for as long as I can
- I want to be a positive role model
- I want to show him how you can pursue your dreams and make them a reality

 After taking a little time to consider how I could best achieve the above, I realized that I have never felt more positive, more excited or more alive than when I exercise, and am eating with discipline.

Once I had decided to follow that path, then I figured if I could inspire people and take them on their own positive journeys, then this could work for me as a career I could truly love.

I am taking my courses because I need to be fully qualified in order to legitimately hand out advice and plan for others success, but trust me when I say that I study constantly, either methods, nutrition or mental techniques to ensure I can provide trustworthy and up to date information.

I am going to use this blog to mainly provide nutrition and recipe tips, while lots more information can be found about me, and the personal training aspects of what I do on my website - www.bearpt.co.uk

 I look forward to helping and any recipes you have that the blog could benefit from do send them my way!

Win or Learn!