5:2 Fast Diet Time: Quinoa and Soya Burgers with the World's Easiest Carrot Salad.

 

It’s certainly been a while since I posted and I've got a fair amount saved up to write, there’s a trip to Seville full of vegetarian delights, a recipe for a tasty vegan cous cous salad made for an impromptu BBQ and a secret bakery found in a back alley of Cardiff. Unfortunately the charger to my camera appears to be broken so no pictures.

Well, thank goodness for the iPhone, whilst the pictures aren't as good they are certainly passable so I can share my dinner this evening with you all. Lucky really since it was a rather tasty 5:2 fast diet-friendly recipe.

It’s been a hectic weekend and I was in the mood for a burger this evening, only one problem… it’s a fast day. Once I’d done away with the bun, the calorie laden ketchup and mayo and egg in the burger I found it was possible to make the meal for a mere 155 calories.

If you aren't vegetarian and would normally turn your nose up at a burger lacking meat then think again (or perhaps call these patties to avoid comparison). These aren't a meat substitute; they are a completely different dish.

As for the carrot salad, even if you don’t make the whole recipe you should definitely try this exceptionally easy and marvellously moreish side. My friend Megan James made something resembling this for me one evening and this simplified low cal version is an excellent 5:2 staple. If you’re not fasting then take a leaf out of Megs’ book and throw in some desiccated coconut.

5:2 Diet Recipe: Quinoa and Soya Bean Burgers (75 calories per burger - approx)

Makes 6-8 burgers - Calories in the total recipe… 528.

70g Quinoa (258)

100g Frozen Soya Beans (145)

50g Breadcrumbs (198)

100g Red Onion (40)

10g Green Chilli (6)

10g Garlic - 1-2 cloves (15)

50g Carrot – finely grated (21)

100g Spinach – wilted and roughly chopped (23)

1tsp Paprika (14)

1tsp Ground coriander (14)

1tsp Dried thyme (14)

1tsp Black pepper (13)

 

1. Cook the quinoa in boiling water for 20 minutes and drain.
 

2. Cook the soya beans in boiling water for 3 minutes, drain and put in a food processor with the onion, chilli and garlic. Whizz up until you have a coarse mixture.
 

3. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl
 

4. Now it’s time to form your burgers. You can do this by hand by simply moulding the mix into a pattie, keeping a bowl of water on hand to help stop the mixture from sticking to your fingers.
 

5. The alternative is the burger maker. I love mine, making burgers is time consuming so being able to make and store these is an ideal solution made possible by the wax discs that keep them separate in the freezer. Just follow the instructions on the box, most of them are fairly self-explanatory, you just fill and squash.
 

6. Spray some low cal oil into a hot frying pan and cook the burger on both sides until it’s nicely browned.

5:2 Diet Recipe: World's Easiest Low Cal Carrot Salad

(28 calories per serving)

Serves 2 (56 cals for the whole recipe)

80g Carrots – coarsely grated (33)

10g Sweet Chilli Sauce (19)

15g Fresh Coriander – roughly chopped (3)

1tsp Lime Juice (1)

1. Combine in a bowl.
 

2. Enjoy

Served up with a few slices of tomato, cucumber and radish and a dollop of low fat yoghurt, this fresh and tasty plate satiated my ravenous appetite completely.

An example of cooking from scratch that really isn't difficult or indeed too time consuming. An ideal post for the Made With Love Mondays Challenge (even better that I made it on a monday).

 

FOR MORE 5:2 FAST DIET RECIPES CLICK HERE

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