Beef and Lentil Rissoles / Buttermilk pancakes

A couple of recipes I'm going to try in the near future - I found them in a low-gi cookbook at a friends house :

beef and lentil rissoles

1/2 cup (100g) red lentils
400g lean minced beef
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1/2 small capsicum, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 tsp dried mixed herbs
1/3 cup tomato sauce
1 egg, lightly beaten
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
about 1/2 cup (70g) unprocessed oat bran

1. Cook the lentils in a saucepan of boiling water for about 20 mins or until soft; drain well.
2. Combine the lentils with the beef, onion, capsicum, garlic, herbs, sauce, egg and pepper in a bowl; mix well.
3. Add enough oat bran to form a burger consistency. Shape the mixture into 24 rissoles and place on a lightly greased baking tray.
4. Bake in a hot oven (220c) for about 40 minutes, or until cooked through, turning halfway through cooking time. Alternatively, cook the rissoles in a non-stick frying pan over medium high heat or until browned and cooked through.

Makes 24 small rissoles.
234kj, 4g carbs, 2g fat, 1g fibre


Buttermilk Pancakes

1 cup (100g) 1-minute oats or unprocessed oat bran
2 cups (500ml) buttermilk
1/2 cup (75g) dried fruit medley, chopped
1/2 cup (75g) plain flour, sifted
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp bicarb soda
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 tsp margarine, melted
low fat milk, optional

1. Combine the oats and buttermilk in a bowl and let stand for 10 minutes.
2. Stir in the dried fruit, flour, sugar, bicarb, egg and margarine; mix thoroughly. Let stand for up to an hour.
3. After standing, add a little low fat milk if the mix is too thick.
4. Heat a non-stick frying pan and grease lightly. Pour in about 3 tablespoons of mix, cook over moderate heat until bubbly on top and lightly browned underneath. Flip and brown on other side. Repeat with remaining batter.

I've only made these with the oats, not the oat bran and also omitted the fruit medley. They are very light and fluffy with a nice consistency due to the oats. Serve with some stewed fruit and low-fat plain or vanilla yoghurt.