Succulent, flavourful smoky paprika garlic chicken has been a hit in my house this week.  It’s especially a huge hit with me because it’s been so easy to prepare thanks to my Crock-Pot slowcooker. Simply pop it on in the morning then enjoy a delicious meal at the end of the day with little fuss or preparation.

This smoky paprika garlic chicken is coated in a simple but tasty herb and spice blend, then served with a yummy yoghurt feta sauce on the side.

With the Crock-Pot Sear & Slow CHP700, you can use the insert over a stovetop so you can sear your meat without creating extra dishes. I seared my chicken thighs first which helps lock in the flavour. This Crock-Pot model also has a cooking timer so you can set this and it will then revert to the ‘keep warm’ function once the cooking time is over.  It’s super handy for those days when you might be running a little late or need to keep it warm for others who are coming home later.

And the good news is you can WIN a CrockPot for yourself too (details to follow…)

Smoky paprika garlic chicken

½ teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried oregano
3 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
Zest from one small lemon
Juice from one small lemon
Salt and pepper
4 skinless chicken thighs, bone in
½ tablespoon olive oil

For the yoghurt feta sauce:

¼ cup Greek yoghurt
Finger sized piece of feta cheese
¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
2 teaspoons of lemon juice

In a small bowl, add the herbs, spices, salt, pepper and lemon zest.  Mix to combine and rub on the chicken thighs.

Place the Crock-Pot insert on an element over a medium heat.  Add the olive oil.  Once the oil is hot, place the chicken thighs in, ‘good’ side down to sear for 2-3 minutes.  Remove from the element and place the insert in the Crock-Pot.  Flip the chicken thighs so the fleshy side is facing upward.  Squeeze the lemon juice around the chicken.

Turn the Crock-Pot to low and cook for 7 hours.

To make the sauce, crumble the feta and mash with a fork so it is finely broken up. Add the feta and the remaining ingredients into a small bowl and mix well. Store in fridge until dinner is ready to serve
Serve the chicken with a dollop of the sauce along with roast vegetables and some greens.

WIN WIN WIN

I’ve got a Crock-Pot to give away to one lucky reader.  To be in the draw simply comment below with your favourite Crock-Pot recipe. You can check out the Crock-Pot website here for inspiration.

Competition closes 20th June  and winner will be published on this post and notified by email.

CONGRATULATIONS TO VANESSA E!

This post was sponsored by Crock-Pot

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We grew up with plenty of Crockpot meals, and in fact, mum’s Crockpot only just gave up the ghost after more than 20 years of cooking us regular meals. I love the ease and convenience of Crockpot / slow cooker cooking and there’s so much you can do with it – including vegetarian nachos!

Nachos might be an easy dinner but with the Crockpot they are even easier! Created with plenty of vegetables and served with a delicious salsa, they’re a healthier twist on the original.  Black beans and kidney beans provide antioxidants, fibre and plant based protein and are very filling and economical to buy.  The most time consuming part of this recipe is crushing the garlic cloves and chopping the onion!  You can literally make these in 5 minutes before work. Then after work, prepare the salsa and you’re ready for a delicious crowd pleasing dinner.

Even though the ingredients list is fairly long, it’s very simple to prepare.  If you wanted you could even use some premade Mexican seasoning which you can find in the herb and spice area at the supermarket.  Cocoa may seem like a strange addition but it is really delicious in nacho beans and adds a nice richness to it.

Here’s the recipe:

Vegetarian Nachos

Ingredients (serves 4)

2 tins of tomato
1 tin black beans
1 tin kidney beans
4 portabella flat mushrooms, chopped
1 small onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, crushed
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon oregano
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons cocoa
½ teaspoon chilli flakes
1 tablespoon sweet chilli sauce

For the salsa:
2 chopped tomatoes,
6 chopped jalapenos
½ avocado, chopped
1 small red onion, chopped
1 tablespoon coriander, chopped

To serve:
Tortilla chips (I used Mission Mexican brand)
Sour Cream or Greek yoghurt
Lime wedges

Method:

Add one of the tin of tomatoes to the Crockpot.  Drain the second tin of tomatoes and add this too. Draining the second tin stops the bean mix from being too wet.

Drain and rinse the beans and add this to the Crockpot along with the mushrooms and onion.  Sprinkle over the herbs, spices, cocoa, and chilli flakes.  Stir in the sweet chilli sauce and mix to combine the ingredients. Sweet Chilli Sauce isn’t very Mexican but it adds great flavour.

Turn the Crockpot to low and leave for 6-8 hours.  Cooking the bean mixture in the Crockpot really allows those delicious Mexican flavours to develop, but because everything is cooked you can eat it before this if you want.

Serve with the salsa, tortilla chips, sour cream, lime wedges and garnish with coriander.

This post was sponsored by Crockpot

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When I had to eliminate dairy for Elise’s food allergy, probably the one thing I missed the most was yoghurt.  As an alternative, I learnt to make my own coconut yoghurt.  I became a bit of a coconut yoghurt connoisseur and tried a few different flavours as well as learning how to make coconut yoghurt for myself. If you’re wondering how to make coconut yoghurt, the good news is it’s pretty easy once you know how.  A coconut yoghurt recipe is super simple and you only need two ingredients coconut milk and probiotics.

Nutritionally, coconut yoghurt is quite different to standard dairy yoghurt.  It’s much higher in saturated fat and energy,  lower in protein and doesn’t contain the calcium, vitamin B6 and vitamin B12 found in dairy yoghurt.  It still contains beneficial probiotics and it makes a nice alternative if you can’t have dairy.

One of my favourite dairy free breakfasts was banana, blueberries, almonds, walnuts and coconut yoghurt.  It is also delicious with this home made granola.

Anyway,  it isn’t cheap hence why I figured out how to make coconut yoghurt.  I did a bit of experimentation and  it’s actually really easy.  I experimented with a few different coconut milks.  Firstly I used Ayam’s coconut cream.  This was super thick and not really yoghurt like because of that.  Then I used a 400ml can of TCC premium coconut milk.  This was nice but a wee bit runny for my liking.  My happy medium was mixing a small can of Tcc Premium coconut milk with a can of Ayam coconut cream.  I also found just using Ayam coconut milk worked well – the tin is quite small so I used almost 2 cans to fill my 400ml jar.

Here’s the recipe for coconut yoghurt (if you can even call it a recipe!)

Method 1: Probiotic Capsule

I used two probiotic capsules for my first batch, then tried another batch with one and they both worked, the batch with one capsule just took a little longer.  These capsules contained a fairly high amount of bacteria (75 billion) so if you were using a lower count, then you’d probably need two capsules. The probiotic I used was this one.

Simply add around 400ml coconut milk to a jar that is the same size as your tin of coconut milk.  I used a 400ml preserving jar.

Gently open the probiotic capsule at the join and sprinkle over the coconut milk.  Shake.

Place lid on the jar and leave at room temperature for approximately 24-48 hours.

Method 2: Coconut Yoghurt

You can use coconut yoghurt as a starter for another batch of coconut yoghurt.  Here’s how:

Simply add two tablespoons of coconut yoghurt to a jar.
Add 1 tin of coconut milk.
Shake to combine.

Place lid on the jar and leave at room temperature for approximately 24-48 hours.

Troubleshooting and tips:

• Taste your yoghurt to test if it’s ready.
• If it doesn’t work with the probiotic capsules it’s likely your probiotics are not active – aka the bacteria are all dead!!
• Make fruit flavoured yoghurt by crushing freeze dried plum slices and mixing this through the yoghurt.  It adds a nice intense flavour.
• The coconut yoghurt will be runny when it’s on the bench but it will thicken up when it’s put in the fridge.
• If you want it thicker, you can buy coconut yoghurt thickener and a coconut yoghurt kit at HealthPost here (affiliate link)
• Sometimes your coconut yoghurt can seperate.  This often happens if the coconut milk you buy has lots of added water.  Sometimes it will seperate if it gets too warm.   Mine did seperate once and I just drained out a bit of the liquid, then mixed it.  It still tasted yummy!

If all else fails, my favourite brand of coconut yoghurt was Raglan Coconut Yoghurt.  I decided to try them all to do a review:

Here’s a wee review of the flavours:

Plain:  Thick and creamy, the plain coconut yoghurt is very versatile. It doesn’t have an overpowering coconut flavour and it has a nice tang.  It contains a small amount of added honey, but the overall sugar content is low (2g per 100g). I used this as a replacement for sour cream as well.

Blackcurrant and vanilla:  I LOVE this flavour.  Tastes great.  That’s all I have to say 🙂

Mango:  This was nice, but the mango flavour isn’t that prominent.  If you’re put off by the turmeric, it gives it colour, but you can’t taste it.

Banana Chai (not pictured):  Personally, I didn’t really enjoy this flavour.  The chai was a bit overpowering for me, and I felt like it had a slightly gritty texture too. If you’re a lover of chai then you may enjoy this.

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