Blind Paralympic Champion Lora Fachie shares her top five healthy recipes in support of urgent appeal

Following entrepreneur and TV presenter Amar Latif appearance on BBC’s Celebrity Masterchef Wednesday 14 July 2020, (he is the shows first blind contestant), Fight for Sight wanted to share five delicious recipes from our wonderful supporter Lora Fachie.

Blind, three-time world paralympic champion Lora recently took part in the 2.6 Challenge sharing 26 recipes over 26 days. Through collective efforts Fight for Sight raised over £10,000 to help fund pioneering eye research. However, the fundraising efforts of the 2.6 Challenge were a direct result of the cancellation of many mass participation fundraising events such as the London Marathon due to Covid-19. Lora is sharing the recipes to support eye research which has sadly taken a hit during the pandemic, putting at risk future treatments.

Lora said: “I’m happy with who I am and don’t want to change that, what you have never had you do not miss. However, I think it’s much harder to adapt to sight loss as you grow up and it can leave people feeling very isolated. So it’s important to try and prevent this from happening and that’s why I think the work of Fight for Sight is so vital. It’s essential to support them now more than ever as lockdown risks bringing their research to a standstill, just as they are getting close to discovering new treatments.”

The recipes were taken from Lora’s Blindingly Good Food blog and are easy for people with sight loss to make. Lora said: “My aim is to showcase my love for food, what I eat as an elite athlete and how I adapt recipes and cooking techniques in order for me to be able to do them safely.”

Lora was born with an inherited eye condition which also affects her two brothers and her Mum. She lost her sight at the age of five.

Lora said: “My love for food and cooking was only truly ignited in my mid 20’s. I began to research lots of different recipes, challenging myself to try new things and adapting them to be as healthy as possible. This ensured I was getting the right nutrients to enable me to perform at the top level of my sport. I believe that not being able to see what I am eating has enhanced my ability to distinguish tastes and enjoy different flavours and textures. Too many people with disabilities these days lack confidence in the kitchen, but I hope to demonstrate that it is not difficult to navigate yourself around a kitchen to prepare quick and simple, nutritious meals with very little skill involved.”

Below are five delicious recipes that Lora shared with us to help support our urgent appeal. Please donate to help us get our work back on track to continue with our sight saving research.

Brazilian Prawn Stew

• 1 tsp coconut oil
• 1 onion
• 1 chilli
• 1 clove garlic
• 150ml light coconut milk
• 100g green beans
• 200g fresh tomatoes
• 1 bag frozen cooked king prawns approx 225g
• 100g spinach
• 125g basmati rice
• 1 small handful coriander
• 1 tbsp lime juice
• 50g peanuts roasted optional 

• Preheat the oven to 200 degrees celsius and roast the peanuts for 10 minutes. Once cooked leave to cool on the tray out the way.
• Heat the pan over a medium heat and stir the contents occasionally.
• Once the onion has softened after approx 5/10 minutes, pour in the coconut milk and leave to simmer for 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile remove the tops off the green beans and slice them in half. Dice the tomatoes.
• Once the coconut milk is added to the pan, cook the rice by adding it to a pan of boiling water and leave to simmer for 10-12 minutes.
• After 5 minutes is up of simmering the coconut milk add the beans and tomatoes to the mixture.
• Stir and leave bubbling.
• 3 minutes before the rice is ready, add the prawns to the coconut mixture and stir to coat.
• Just before the rice is ready to be strained, add the spinach to the coconut mixture and again stir well.
• Strain the rice and serve.
• Check the prawns are hot all the way through and the spinach has wilted. Season with the lime juice.
• Serve the coconut mixture on top of the rice and then scatter over the coriander and peanuts.
  

Smoked Salmon Pasta Primavera

• 160g dried pasta shapes I use penne
• 200g asparagus spears
• 100g frozen peas
• 100g frozen broad beans
• 200g smoked salmon
• 1 handful fresh chives
• 60g low fat cream cheese
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• salt and black pepper

1. Fill and boil the kettle in order to cook the pasta.
2. Place the dried pasta into a large saucepan and pour over plenty of boiling water.
3. Leave to simmer on the hob for 12 minutes.
4. Meanwhile prepare the asparagus by snapping off any of the woody ends, then slicing into small lengths between 3-5 cm.
5. Weigh out the peas and broad beans.
6. Thinly slice the smoked salmon into strips.
7. With 3 minutes left cooking time on the pasta, add the vegetables to the same pan and continue to simmer.
8. Finely slice the chives.
9. Once cooked, strain off the water and place the pan back on the hob on the lowest heat.
10. Add the smoked salmon to the pan and gently warm through.
11. Add the pasta and vegetables back to the pan and dollop in the cream cheese.
12. Sprinkle over the chives.
13. Mix everything well to soften the cheese and disperse throughout the pasta.
14. Once everything is hot, season with lemon juice, salt and black pepper before dividing between 2 bowls and enjoying.
    
    

Chicken & Mango Stir-Fry 

• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 1 onion
• 1 large piece fresh ginger
• 1 chilli
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 large carrot
• 1 pack tenderstem broccoli approx 180g
• 2 skinless and boneless chicken breasts
• 1 mango
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp lime juice
• 2 sachets straight to wok noodles
• 1 small handful coriander

To prepare:

1. Peel and slice the onion into thin wedges.
2. Peel and grate the garlic and ginger.
3. Thinly slice the chilli.
4. Add the onion, garlic, ginger, and chilli to a wok with the sesame oil.
5. Peel and slice the carrot into matchsticks.
6. Cut the tenderstem broccoli into lengths, similar to the carrot.
7. Destone, peel and dice the mango.
8. Cut the chicken in to bite sized pieces.

To cook:

1. Heat the wok over a high heat and stir the contents frequently. Fry for 3 minutes.
2. Add the chicken and fry for another 2 minutes, stirring regularly.
3. Add the rest of the vegetables and mango and keep frying, stirring regularly for another 5 minutes.
4. With 2 minutes left to cook, pour in the lime juice and soy sauce.
5. With 1 minute left to cook, add the noodles, keep stirring regularly to make sure everything is cooked and well mixed.
6. Before serving shred the coriander and sprinkle over the stir-fry.
7. Divide between 2 bowls and enjoy.

Turkey, Beetroot & Chickpea Keema 

• 1 tsp coconut oil
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp mustard seeds
• 1 onion
• 1 chilli
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 piece fresh ginger or 1 tsp ground
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 300g turkey mince
• 1 tbsp garam masala
• 1 tbsp tomato puree
• 1 tin tomatoes
• 1/2 tin chickpeas
• 200ml chicken stock
• 250g cooked beetroot approx.
• 1 handful red lentils optional
• 1 small handful coriander
• 125g basmati rice

To prepare:

1. Peel and chop the onion into small dice.
2. Thinly slice the chilli.
3. Peel and grate the garlic and ginger.
4. Measure out the stock.
5. Weigh out the chickpeas
6. Have all the spices to hand.

To cook:

1. Add the cumin and mustard seeds to a large frying pan with the coconut oil.
2. Heat over a medium-high heat until the mustard seeds start to make popping sounds, then add in the onion, chilli, garlic and ginger.
3. Fry, stirring regularly for 3 minutes.
4. Add the ground coriander and turmeric and continue to fry for a further 30 seconds.
5. Tip in the turkey mince and break it up with the back of your spoon, keep frying for 1 minute.
6. Lower the heat right down and add the garam masala and tomato puree. Stir well to combine.
7. Tip in the stock and tomatoes, alter the heat in order for the mixture to start simmering.
8. Add the chickpeas and lentils if using and stir to combine. Leave to simmer for 15-20 minutes.
9. Meanwhile, slice up the cooked beetroot into small dice and once it’s prepared, add it to the keema mixture.
10. Then cook your rice by adding it to a pan of boiling water and simmering for 10-12 minutes.
11. With 5 minutes or so left to cook on the keema, shred the coriander and sprinkle it into the pan.
12. Once the rice is cooked, strain it and divide between two bowls. Spoon over the cooked keema and enjoy.

Chorizo, Root Vegetable & Barley Risotto 

• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 chilli optional
• 1 onion
• 1-2 carrots depending on size
• Approx 300g swede
• Half chorizo ring or approx 125g
• 125g barley
• 600ml chicken stock
• 100g baby button mushrooms

To Prepare:

1. Peel and dice the onion, peel and crush the garlic and thinly slice the chilli if using.
2. Add to a large frying pan with the olive oil.
3. Peel and dice the carrot and swede.
4. Remove the casing from the chorizo and cut into bite size pieces.
5. Weigh out the barley and make up the stock.

To Cook:

1. Heat the pan over a medium-high heat and fry the onion and garlic mixture for approx 3 mins.
2. Add the diced vegetables to the pan and fry for another minute.
3. Add the chorizo to the pan and keep frying for another minute.
4. Turn the heat down a touch to medium and add the barley to the pan.
5. Pour in the chicken stock and give everything a good stir.
6. Leave to simmer for 30 minutes stirring occasionally. If the fluid starts to dry up add a little more water.
7. Slice the mushrooms in half and add them to the pan with 5 minutes or so to go.
8. Serve when the grains of barley have softened and doubled in size, and the fluid has nearly all been absorbed.

Lora is sharing the recipes to support eye research which has suffered due to Covid-19, putting at risk future sight saving treatments. Please donate to help us get our research back on track to create a better future for people with sight loss.  

All these recipes and more can be found at Lora’s Blindingly Good Food blog.