Oregano Chicken Skewers

Summer calls for swanning around in next-to-nothings, sultry sounds and sipping on colourful cocktails. It also calls for skewered food. Can you hear it? Skeeeeeeeeeeeeee-weeeeeeeeeeeeeeers. Okay maybe that's just me.

These skewers will have you calling out for more though. Even if you aren't swanning around in next-to-nothings. And let me just say, apricots are a very under appreciated fruit. Especially when it comes to skewers. They add a delightful tang to the other ingredients. Try them skewered and wrapped in bacon - it is truly divine.

Oregano Chicken Skewers

Inspired by The Culinary Sherpas

Serves 4

500g skinless boneless chicken breasts
juice from 1 lemon (approx 2 tbsp)
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp salt
4 tbsp plain lowfat yoghurt
8 largeish button mushrooms
4 apricots, pitted and halved
1 tbsp olive oil

1. Cut chicken into bite-sized cubes, then marinate in a mixture of the lemon juice, oregano, garlic, salt and yoghurt. Leave to soak up the flavours for an hour.
2. Thread the chicken, mushrooms and apricots onto skewers and place on a baking tray.
3. Bake at 180C for 20 - 25 minutes until chicken is cooked but still tender.

Nutritional info (per serving): Calories 205.8, Total fat 5.5 g, Saturated fat 1.1 g, Polyunsaturated fat 0.7 g, Monounsaturated fat 3.0 g, Cholesterol 73.4 mg, Sodium 675.4 mg, Potassium 577.0 mg, Total carbohydrate 7.3 g, Dietary fiber 1.3 g, Sugars 5.2 g, Protein 31.4 g

Good source of: Niacin 78.2 %, Vitamin B6 38.6 %, Phosphorus 30.8 %, Selenium 37.3 %, Riboflavin 18.5 %

Spicy Spinach & Corn Enchiladas

Guess who's finally participating in Meat-free Mondays again? Okay, that wasn't a very difficult guess. Okay, how about this one: guess who likes Mexican food?

Again, maybe not the most difficult one to guess. Okay you got me, I don't have much to say about this, except that it was pretty damn tasty and the spinach sauce on top (if I do have to say so myself) turned out to be an inspired choice. 



The reason why I don't have much to say isn't because this dish is blah (FYI - it.is.not.blah.), but rather because I just have a lot of other stuff on my mind at the moment. Such as my super-cool new computer at work. Super-fast, NOT crashing every 5 minutes (like my previous computer) and wrapped up in a sleek black package. And did I mention that I'm now using Windows 7?

No wait, come back!!! I promise I won't be a weirdo, geek, computerN3RD. Okay I can't promise that. You'll have to put up with any future nerdiness that creeps into my posts. 

<< Mwuhahahahahaha!>>

Seriously though, I'll cut the geek quotient of this post by just summarising with - Windows 7 is awesome. Try it, and let me know what you think. Oh, and make some enchiladas to go with your new snazzy computer. The two make a winning combo!

Spicy Spinach & Corn Enchiladas

Makes 7 enchiladas

1 bunch spinach, stems removed
1/2 cup low-fat plain yogurt
salt & pepper to taste
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 medium onion
1 tsp minced garlic
1 teaspoon cajun spice
2 cups cooked sugar beans (or use red kidney beans)
2 corn on the cob, cob part removed
7 whole-wheat tortillas
1 tin (400g) mexican salsa
1 1/2 cups grated cheddar

1. Cook spinach in a little bit of water until just wilted. Remove from heat, drain and puree to a pulp in a food processor. Add yoghurt, salt and pepper to taste, stir through and set aside.
2. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat, add onion and garlic and saute for a few minutes until soft. Add cajun spice and corn, fry another 3 or so minutes, then stir through the beans. Add salt and pepper to taste, then set aside.
3. Now get your tortillas ready and spoon some of the corn/bean mixture onto each one. Top with mexican salsa and a little bit of grated cheese (will use about 1 1/4 cups here) and roll into long sausages.
4. Transfer the rolls to a casserole dish. Spoon the spinach sauce on top and top with the remaining 1/4 cup of cheese.
5. Bake at 180C for about 20 - 30 minutes, until golden brown with cheese melted & bubbling on top.

Nutritional info (per serving): Calories 284.6 , Total fat 13.4 g, Saturated fat 4.7 g, Polyunsaturated fat 0.4 g, Monounsaturated fat 0.7 g, Cholesterol 26.8 mg, Sodium 493.2 mg, Potassium 634.4 mg, Total carbohydrate 29.0 g, Dietary fiber 6.8 g, Sugars3.0  g, Protein 17.3 g

Good source of: Vitamin A 98.1 %, Folate 37.2 %, Manganese 34.7 %, Vitamin C 32.4 %, Calcium 28.0 %

Beef Rogan Josh

Rogan Josh seems to strike fear in the hearts of non-curry afficionados. It's flavourful yes, but it's quite hot. According to Wikipedia Rogan means oil, while Josh refers to heat or passion. So I think it's fair to say that this is as passionate as they come!



It's traditionally made with lamb, but the lamb on offer at the grocery store this week looked pretty dismal, so I chose beef. Still prefer lamb if I have to be honest, but I think the beef makes a nice change. Be warned though, this is not a quick weeknight meal as it requires lengthy simmering for the flavours to blend and the meat to become meltingly soft. But as they say, good things come to those who wait.

Beef Rogan Josh

Adapted from Route 79

Serves 4 - 5

2 tbsp olive oil

2 medium onions, finely chopped

1 tsp minced garlic

1/2 tsp ground ginger

3 tsp garam masala

1 tsp chilli powder

2 tsp ground cumin

2 tsp ground coriander

2 tsp salt

1 tsp turmeric

650g lean beef, cubed

1 tin (400g) chopped tomatoes

1 cup plain low-fat yoghurt

1.  Heat 1 tbsp olive oil over medium-high heat in a large saucepan. Add the onions and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring regularly.

2. Add garlic, ginger and spices to the onions and cook for another 3 - 4 minutes, until onions are soft.

3. Add the rest of the oil, then add the meat, browning it on all sides.

4. When the meat has browned, add the tomatoes, bring to boiling point, then reduce heat and let simmer for 20 minutes, covered.

5. Stir in the yoghurt and simmer another 20 minutes, uncovered for sauce to thicken.

6. Serve with basmati rice or rotis.

Nutritional info (per serving): Calories 309.8, Total fat 12.9 g, Saturated fat 3.4 g, Polyunsaturated fat 0.9 g, Monounsaturated fat 6.9 g, Cholesterol 85.6 mg, Sodium 1268.3 mg, Potassium 933.7 mg, Total carbohydrate 10.8 g, Dietary fiber 1.8 g, Sugars 6.2 g, Protein 37.1 g

Good source of:  Vitamin B12 73.5 %, Selenium 46.4 %, Vitamin B6 45.9 %, Phosphorus 42.7 %, Niacin 35.9 %, Zinc 32.6 %, Riboflavin 26.3 %, Iron 25.4 %, Vitamin C 20.4 %,