Who said I can’t have it all?
Let’s be honest, no matter how disciplined you are with your diet, we all get tempted by our favourite Spykos meal. Have you heard of Spykos? It is a proudly South African word for soul food that is quick and easy to eat, tastes good but is generally high in calories. It is so popular that we even have a local Spykos franchise!
The problem is that Spykos isn’t great for the scale or my health. For me, weekends are a time to relax and when I’m most vulnerable to indulging in a Spykos meal like ChisaChicken, Bunny chow or a Cheeseburger and fries.
But I have discovered food alternatives that still hit the spot and keep me healthy and feeling great!
Eating a gluten-free diet does not mean giving up fast food options. I can still enjoy Spykos that tastes great, is and doesn’t compromise my health or my calorie intake.
Eating gluten-free will cause you to eat more organic, unprocessed foods such as fruits, vegetables, legumes and lean meats. These diet changes are often healthier and lower in calories which equal fewer centimetres. So, I have ditched the Double Cheeseburger and Fries and built my own delicious Spykos alternative. So I CAN have it All!
My Spykos burger reimagined:
PREP: 15 Minutes
COOK: 40 Minutes plus chilling
SERVES 6
Nutrition per serving:
- Kcal 388
- Fat 17g
- Saturated 5g
- Carbs 36g
- Sugars 7g
- Fibre 5g
- Protein 23g
- Salt 0.6g
FOR THE BURGER
- 1 Tbsp. olive oil
- 1 Red Onion, finely chopped
- 500g lean minced beef
- 1 Egg
- 12 gluten-free crackers, crushed to fine crumbs
- 2 tsp. chilli paste or powder (Optional)
- 2 tsp. Garlic paste
- 1 tsp. each Carbsmart Tomato Sauce and if you like it hot but sweet add Carbsmart Sweet Chili sauce
- 2 tbsp. gluten-free plain flour
- Substitute buns for lettuce
- Toppings of your choice (relish, chutney)
METHOD
- Heat the oil in a frying pan and fry the onion for about 5 mins or until soft. Leave to cool slightly. When cool, put the onion in a large bowl with the mince, egg, crushed crackers, chilli, garlic, tomato sauce, sweet chili sauce, mix well to combine. Divide the mince into 6, roll into balls and flatten each into a nice fat burger.
- Put the flour on a plate, dab each burger to the flour on both sides, then transfer to a baking tray. Wrap with cling film and pop in the fridge for a couple of hours.
- Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. To make the fries, place the sweet potato on a baking tray and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with Paprika, season, then give them a good shake or shuffle around with your hands to make sure they’re well coated. Roast for 30-40 mins depending on how crisp you like them. Make sure you give them a good shake a couple of times to ensure they cook evenly.
- When the fries have been cooking for 10 mins, drizzle the burgers with a little olive oil and put them in the oven to cook with the fries for the remaining 20-30 mins, flipping them halfway. Serve the burgers in lettuce with your choice of toppings, and a good helping of sweet potato fries on the side
FOR THE SWEET POTATO FRIES
- 5 Sweet potatoes, slice into fries
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 1 tsp paprika
METHOD
- Preheat oven to 500 degrees.
- Slice the sweet potatoes into fries
- Place sweet potatoes on a sheet pan and then cover tightly with foil. Bake for 10 minutes on the top rack.
- After sweet potatoes have steamed for 10 minutes, take them out and toss with olive oil and a generous sprinkle of salt. Roast for another 10 to 15 minutes uncovered, giving them a shake midway through. When done give them another sprinkle of salt and then enjoy dipped in ketchup. Enjoy these crunchy oven-roasted sweet potato fries as a side to anything or just on their own!
The choice is yours. I have tried it and I am living proof that this works! To date, I have lost 20 kilograms!
