Breakfast

  • Fried/poached eggs with ham + spinach + kale
  • Or Fruity Coconut Breakfast Bowl
  • Fruit: Orange or apple

Lunch

  • Frittata or Courgette, Bacon & Tomato Slice with paleo coleslaw + salad
  • Or baked sweet potato with grated carrot/celeriac/paleo coleslaw + salad + avocado or tuna + paleo mayo

Dinner

  • Main: Steak with lemon and thyme served with rocket salad + sweet potato or celeriac chips
  • Pudding: Peach or plums

Fruity Coconut Breakfast Bowl – 5 minutes to prepare

Serves 1

Ingredients:

  • 200ml coconut yogurt (The Coconut Collaborative do a natural one which you can buy in Waitrose or Sainsbury’s or CoYo brand)
  • Handful of berries such as blueberries, raspberries, strawberries
  • A selection of goji berries, sliced almonds, desiccated coconut, berries for the top

Method:

  1. Blend the coconut yogurt with the berries and add the mixture to a bowl.
  2. Sprinkle with the goji berries, sliced almonds, desiccated coconut and some fresh berries.

Paleo Crunchy Coleslaw – lasts 3-4 days in the fridge (without the mayonnaise dressing)

Ingredients:

Use varying amounts of cabbage and carrot depending on how much you would like to make.

  • Chopped red cabbage (strips)
  • Chopped white cabbage (strips)
  • Carrot grated
  • One white onion
(or 3 salad/spring onions
for a milder taste)
  • Salt & pepper
  • Olive oil mayonnaise – see recipe in “Preparation Recipes”

Method:

  1. Mix all the vegetables together in a large bowl.
  2. Add the salt, pepper and the desired amount of mayonnaise and mix thoroughly.
  3. To keep for 3-4 days DO NOT DRESS the vegetables with mayonnaise, until you want to eat the coleslaw (or the night before). This will prevent the vegetables from going soggy.

 

Courgette, Bacon and Tomato Slice – lasts for 3 days in the fridge

This ‘slice’ is essentially a frittata with the addition of a little flour, which has been baked in the oven to give a compact, sliceable shape. The flour is optional, as the dish will set perfectly well without it, but it does act as a carrier for the baking powder, which is there to add a little air to the finished dish, creating a less dense product. If you would prefer to omit the flour, also remove the baking powder from the recipe.

The slice can be cooled and refrigerated, and will keep for up to 3 days. It is delicious as part of a picnic or packed lunch.

Serves: 4 to 6

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Cooking time: 35 – 40 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 1 x standard 500g (approx. loaf tin
  • 1 x sheet baking parchment
  • 10g butter (for greasing)
  • 3 large courgettes, roughly grated
  • 250g smoked streaky bacon, cut into small strips
  • 1 medium onion, finely chopped
  • 1 garlic clove, crushed
  • 2 large, ripe tomatoes, beef tomatoes are good
  • 1 tbsp. fresh thyme, chopped, or 1tsp dried thyme
  • 8 free-range eggs, beaten
  • Olive oil
  • Sea salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 25g coconut flour
  • 2 tsp. baking powder

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 180ºC. Grease the loaf tin with a little butter and line its base with greased baking parchment.
  2. Gently fry the onion, garlic, and bacon in a little olive oil until the onion becomes translucent and the bacon begins to crisp a little. Transfer to a bowl and leave to cool for 10 minutes.
  3. Once cooled, add the grated courgette, thyme, eggs, and – if using – the flour and baking powder.
  4. Season well with salt and pepper, and fold everything together to combine.
  5. Cover the bottom of the baking tin with a layer of sliced tomato. Spoon half of the courgette mixture over the top, and then add another layer of sliced tomato. Spoon the remaining courgette mixture into the tin, and top with a final layer of sliced tomato.
  6. Place in the preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the tip of a knife can be pushed into the centre of the mixture and remain clean when removed.
  7. Allow to sit for five minutes before turning out and slicing. Serve with a fresh green salad.

 

Nigella’s Steak Slice with Lemon and Thyme

Serves 2

Ingredients:

  • 2 x 2.5 cm thick grass-fed steak
  • 5 stalks thyme
  • 2 cloves garlic (bruised)
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  • Zest and juice of 1 lemon
  • Salt & pepper

Method

Instead of marinating the meat before cooking, you marinate it after; it really does keep it extraordinarily tender. Please feel free to play around with the herbs, such as oregano rather than thyme.

Place the thyme leaves, garlic, oil, lemon zest and juice, and salt and pepper in a wide, shallow dish.

The very best way to cook steaks is in a frying pan. Season the steak on both sides with freshly milled black pepper but no salt yet, as this encourages the juices to come out.

It is important to have the pan as hot as you dare, so it has to be one with a thick, solid base. Place the pan over direct heat turned to high and let the pan become very hot before you add just the smallest amount of oil or fat – about 1 teaspoon. Let this become shimmering hot. Add the steak.

Use a tablespoon to press gently on the surface of the steak, so that as much as possible is kept in contact with the heat of the pan.

For a steak 1 inch (2.5 cm) thick, allow 1½-2 minutes on each side for rare; 3 minutes on each side for medium; and about 4 minutes on each side for well done.

For a fillet steak 1½ inches (4 cm) thick, give it 5 minutes on each side for medium; 1 minute less each side for rare; and 1 minute more for well done. Timings will vary because the thickness of steaks differs, so you need to test.

Turn the steaks over at half-time – the cooked side will look crisp and crusty.

Once the steak is cooked, place it in the dish of marinade for 4 minutes a side, (keep covered with a double layer of foil and a tea towel to keep it warm) before removing it to a board and slicing thinly on the diagonal.


Sweet Potato Chips

Ingredients:

  • 2 large sweet potatoes
  • 2 tbsps. of coconut oil (melted) or olive oil
  • Sea salt
  • Ground black pepper
  • Optional: any seasoning of your choice – i.e. paprika, cumin, cinnamon, mixed herbs, Italian seasoning or all spice.

Method:

  1. Preheat the oven to 190°C/375F/Gas mark 5 and cover a baking tray with greaseproof paper.
  2. There is no need to peel the sweet potatoes as their skin crisps up extremely well, so simply cut it in half, and then cut each half into chips of even sizes. If you prefer your sweet potato chips with no skin then peel first before chopping into chip shapes.
  3. Arrange the chips on the prepared baking tray and toss them in the coconut or olive oil, pepper and salt. If you want to season further then add your choice of seasoning now, however plain chips are just as delicious.
  4. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, remove and turn each chip before returning them to the oven for a further 10-15 minutes.
  5. Check your chips – if they are still tender in the centre but browned at the edges, they’re fit for consumption. Simple, quick and delicious!