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Posts Tagged ‘Healthy’

Italian Vegetable Soup

Posted in Food, Healthy, Pasta, Soup, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , on 21 February 2011| 1 Comment »

We had this every day last week for lunch and it was so tasty we didn’t get sick of it one bit. The pasta makes it really filling and the beans add a creamy texture, add Parmesan and sugar and you get a touch of tomatoey sweetness but really savoury at the same time. Sound strange? You’ll have to trust us and try it for yourselves.

Italian Vegetable Soup – serves 8

  • 2 onions, chopped
  • 2 carrots, chopped
  • 4 sticks of celery, chopped
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 tbsp sugar
  • 4 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 2 tbsp tomato puree
  • 2 bay leaves
  • a few sprigs of thyme
  • 3 courgettes, chopped
  • 400g can of butter beans, drained
  • 400g can of chopped tomatoes
  • 1.2 litres vegetable stock
  • 100g Parmesan, grated
  • 140g small pasta shapes – we used orecchiette
  • small bunch of basil

Gently cook the onions, carrots and celery in oil in a large saucepan for 20 minutes or until soft. Splash in a bit of water if they start to stick.

Add sugar, garlic, tomato puree, herbs and courgettes. Cook for 4-5 minutes on a medium heat.

Add beans, tomatoes and stock and simmer for 20 minutes (you can freeze it at this stage if you want).

Add half the Parmesan and all the pasta and simmer until your pasta is cooked.

Sprinkle basil and the rest of the Parmesan over to serve.

Tasty!

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Chinese side dish: Broccoli with Cashews & Oyster Sauce

Posted in Asian, Food, Healthy, Side dish, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , on 15 February 2011| 4 Comments »

Stir-fried broccoli with cashews & oyster sauce – serves 6

  • 1 tbsp sunflower oil
  • 100g unsalted cashews
  • 2 heads broccoli, cut into small florets (we cut up the stalks too)
  • 3 tbsp oyster sauce, or more if you like

Heat a little bit of the oil in a wok and toast the cashew nuts until they start to turn golden. Tip them out of the pan, then add the rest of the oil.

Stir-fry the broccoli for a couple of minutes until it turns bright green. Add a splash of water, then cover with a lid and steam for about 4 minutes or until the stems are tender – watch that it doesn’t dry out!

Push the broccoli to the side of the pan and pour the oyster sauce into the other side. Bring to the boil and stir into the broccoli. Toss in the cashews and serve with Chinese food (we had spring rolls and prawn toast).

Original recipe from BBC Good Food.

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Healthy Egg and Chips

Posted in Food, Healthy, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , on 2 February 2011| 4 Comments »

We realise that we’ve been cooking lots of healthy stuff lately, but please don’t think that what we post is tasteless – if it doesn’t work, or IS tasteless, we don’t post it. This was really good and just as satisfying as the fried version. Only 5 ingredients in this one and we had all of them in the cupboard already.

Oven egg and chips (to serve 2)

  • 450g floury potatoes, cut into thick chips – we used Roosters
  • 2 garlic cloves, sliced
  • 4 fresh rosemary sprigs
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 eggs (or 3 if you have a greedy person)

Preheat oven to 220C/gas 7/fan 200C.

Tip the chips into a roasting tin (non-stick if you have it) and scatter the garlic and rosemary leaves over. Drizzle with oil, season well and toss to coat.

Roast for 35-40 minutes until just cooked and golden – give the tin a shake every now and again.

Make gaps in the chips and break your eggs into the gaps.

Put back in the oven for 3-5 minutes or until your eggs are cooked.

Wine suggestion: we mention below that eggs can be hard to pair with wine. I think we’d go for a glass of cold beer with this instead.

 

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Smoked fish cakes with poached eggs

Posted in Fish, Food, Healthy, Wine, tagged , , , , , on 1 February 2011| Leave a Comment »

It’s another healthy one but not lacking in flavour at all. Haven’t had eggs for ages so poached eggs were a nice treat on the top. Don’t think we’ve ever had mushrooms in a fish cake but they definitely added good flavour and texture so we’ll throw a few in next time too.

Smoked fish cakes with poached eggs (serves 4)

  • 250g potatoes, peeled (and halved if big)
  • 300g smoked haddock
  • 100g button mushrooms, thinly sliced
  • 1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
  • 1-2 tbsp plain flour
  • 2-3 tbsp sunflower oil
  • 4 medium eggs
  • cooked frozen peas, to serve

Boil the potatoes for 10 minutes until tender but firm. Put the haddock on top, flesh side down, then cover and simmer gently for 4-5 minutes.

Remove the fish, roughly flake and get rid of any skin and bones.

Drain and roughly mash the potatoes, and season.

Dry-fry the mushrooms in a non-stick pan until golden.

Mix the mash, mushrooms, fish and parsley together in a bowl and leave to cool.

Shape the mixture into four fish cakes with floured hands.

Heat the oil in a non-stick pan and gently fry the cakes for 6-8 minutes, turning once.

Meanwhile, poach the eggs and cook your peas.

Top the fish cakes with the eggs and serve the peas on the side.

Original recipe from BBC Good Food.

Wine Suggestion: eggs can be difficult to pair with wine but we had a glass of easy-drinking lemony sauvignon blanc from Bordeaux which did the trick nicely.

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Healthy satay stir-fry

Posted in Food, Healthy, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , , , on 26 January 2011| Leave a Comment »

This tasted way too good to be this healthy but it’s true and we have the calorie count to prove it (286 if anyone’s interested). Can all be thrown together in 15 minutes tops which is great on a week night.

Satay stir-fry to serve 4

  • 3 tbsp crunchy peanut butter
  • 3 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 300g pack straight-to-wok noodles
  • 1 tbsp oil
  • thumb of fresh root ginger, finely chopped
  • 300g pack stir-fry vegetables (we used M&S aromatic mix and added some sugar snap peas and sliced red chilli)
  • handful of basil leaves
  • 25g roasted peanuts, roughly chopped

Mix the peanut butter, chilli sauce, 100ml water and soy sauce to make a smooth satay sauce (it will look a bit gross but don’t panic it works in the end).

Put the noodles in a bowl and pour boiling water over them, stir to separate and drain.

Heat the oil in a wok, then stir-fry ginger and the harder bits of veg for 2 minutes. Add the noodles and the rest of the vegetables and stir-fry on a high heat for another minute or two or until just cooked.

Push the veg and noodles to one side of the pan and pour the sauce into the other side, tilting the wok. Bring the sauce to boil and then mix everything together. Sprinkle basil and peanuts over to serve.

Eat and then lick the bowl.

Original recipe from BBC Good Food.

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Hands up who still has Turkey in their freezer!

Posted in Food, Healthy, tagged , , , , on 19 January 2011| Leave a Comment »

We still have some even after this – so expect another turkey post next week. We were finding it hard to get excited about cooking more turkey until we caught a whiff of this cooking. It tasted so good that Jono had to restrain himself from having two dinners (he just had one and a half in the end). It’s another healthy one too.

Turkey, tomato and coriander curry to serve 3-4 (or less if Jono is over)

  • 1 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
  • small knob of ginger, grated
  • 2 tbsp of balti curry paste (we like Pataks)
  • 400g of leftover turkey, shredded
  • 310ml vegetable or chicken stock
  • 2 ripe tomatoes, chopped
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 3 tbsp natural yogurt
  • 25g fresh coriander, chopped

Heat oil in a medium pan and cook the onion until softened. Stir in garlic and ginger and cook for 30 seconds before adding curry paste; stir for another 30 seconds.

Add turkey, stock, tomatoes, cinnamon and a big pinch of salt. Bring to a simmer and cook gently for about 10 minutes.

Turn off the heat and stir in the yogurt and coriander.

Serve with steamed basmati if you want it to look like our pic.

Wine suggestion: we actually had an off-dry Pinot Gris from New Zealand and it went perfectly (Te Mara from Central Otago) or you could have any off-dry aromatic white like Riesling.

 

 

 

 

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White Beans with Tomatoes and Garlic

Posted in Food, Healthy, Vegetarian, tagged , , on 18 January 2011| 2 Comments »

This takes no time at all and is a really wholesome weeknight side dish. We paired it with barbecued chipolata sausages and sautéed savoy cabbage and it really hit the spot.

Serves 6 (officially: though we had a portion each for dinner and then a little each for lunch the next day with slices of Pesto Chicken)

  • 2 Shallots, finely chopped
  • Olive Oil
  • 2 cloves Garlic, finely sliced
  • 250g Cherry Tomatoes
  • 1 sprig Thyme, leaves picked
  • 2 x 400g tines of Cannellini Beans, drained and rinsed
  • 4 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
  • 1 bunch Basil, torn

Cook the shallots gently in a little olive oil. After a bit add the garlic and cook until both are soft.

Add the tomatoes and thyme and turn the heat up; fry until the tomatoes are heated through and just starting to collapse. Add the beans and balsamic and season. Heat the beans through for a few minutes and then stir in the basil.

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Garlic, Thyme & Lemon Chicken

Posted in Chicken, Food, Healthy, tagged , , , on 12 January 2011| 2 Comments »

Super easy and quick: this was on the table in under 15 minutes and tasted great! It’s also another healthy recipe for all of you January dieters (us included!). This serves two people.

  • 2 skinless Chicken breast fillets
  • 1 clove of garlic, crushed
  • Thyme leaves from 2 sprigs
  • Olive oil
  • 1.5 lemons – 1 juiced and half cut into wedges
  • 2 slices of crusty bread, toasted (we used ciabatta)
  • rocket to serve

Make a cut in the side of each chicken and open them up like a book. Cover in cling film and flatten out evenly with your hands.

Mix garlic and thyme with 2 teaspoons of olive oil and spread over the chicken.

Heat a non-stick frying pan and cook the chicken for 2 minutes on the first side and 1 minute on the other. We needed to do them separately as our frying pan wasn’t big enough for two (and the pan is big). Put both chicken breasts back in the pan when done, pour over the lemon juice and season well. Make sure you turn them over to pick up the pan juices and tasty bits.

Serve each chicken breast on a slice of toast and top with the rocket and a wedge of lemon.

Wine suggestion: something lemony like an unoaked Semillon or a Gavi di Gavi (unfortunately we just had a glass of water)

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Super Healthy Veggie Balti

Posted in Food, Healthy, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , on 11 January 2011| 7 Comments »

This is exceptionally filling, very tasty and virtuous to boot. The recipe below says it is to feed four but we reckon it’d feed six; and we’re greedy!

Vegetable Balti – serves 4-6 (takes about an hour and a half to make).

  • 1 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 1 large onion, thickly sliced
  • 1 large clove garlic, crushed
  • 1 eating apple, peeled, cored and chopped into chunks
  • 3 tbsp balti curry paste (we like Patak’s)
  • 1 medium butternut squash, peeled and cut into chunks
  • 2 large carrots, thickly sliced
  • 200g turnips, cut into chunks
  • 1 medium cauliflower, broken into florets
  • 400g tin chopped tomatoes
  • 425ml hot vegetable stock
  • 4 tbsp chopped coriander, plus extra to serve
  • 150g pot low-fat natural yoghurt

Heat the oil in a big pan, add the onion, garlic and apple and cook gently, stirring now and again, for about 5-8 minutes. Stir in the curry paste.

Throw in the vegetables and add the tomatoes and stock. Stir in 3 tbsp of the coriander. Bring to the boil, turn the heat to low, and cook with a lid on for half an hour.

Take off the lid and cook for another 20 minutes until the vegetables are soft and the liquid has reduced a bit. Season with salt and pepper.

Mix 1tbsp coriander into the yoghurt. Serve the curry in bowls, drizzle over some yoghurt and sprinkle on a bit of coriander. Serve with the rest of the yoghurt and warm naan breads. Enjoy.

Wine suggestion: Have a beer instead.

Find the original recipe on BBC Good Food.

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Coriander Halibut and Carrot Pilaff

Posted in Fish, Food, Healthy, tagged , , , , , , on 5 January 2011| 5 Comments »

To be honest we thought this would be a little bland (mostly as the look is a little light in the magazine photo – bland colours = bland flavour). We were wrong and we felt even more virtuous as it is a total diet dish; the flavours burst in every morsel.

To serve 4 (easily halved):

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 4 skinless halibut fillets, about 175g each (or cod)
  • 2 tbsp chopped coriander
  • zest and juice of 1 lemon
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 2 tsp cumin seeds
  • 2 large carrots grated
  • 200g basmati rice
  • 600ml vegetable stock
  • a handful of frozen peas

The rice and fish cooks at the same time so get everything ready first.

Heat the grill to high, then line with double thick foil and curl up at the edges so you don’t lose all the juice. Brush lightly with oil and put the fish on top. Sprinkle over the coriander, lemon zest and juice and drizzle with a bit more oil. Season with salt and pepper, then grill for about 10 minutes or until the fish flakes (keep an eye on it as it might cook quicker than this depending on how thick your fish is).

Meanwhile, heat the rest of the oil in a pan, add onion and cumin and fry for a few minutes. Stir in the carrots and then the rice until glistening. Add stock and bring to the boil. Cover and cook gently for 5 minutes, then add the peas and cook for another 5 minutes.

Serve the fish on top of the rice. Enjoy.

Original recipe is on BBC Good Food.


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Asian-spiced fish with mushrooms

Posted in Fish, Food, Healthy, tagged , , , , , , , , on 13 December 2010| Leave a Comment »

Believe it or not … this is actually a delicate, white fish (hake) and not a badly burnt chop as the picture might imply. We blame a wonderfully rich and dark soy sauce (yum scrum) but if you use a lighter soy sauce like Kikkoman it may be more pleasing to the eye!

We made this because we haven’t had proper fish (ie. not shellfish) for a while and we’re trying to cook healthily  for a few days before Christmas takes over.

Asian-spiced fish with mushrooms (serves 4 – we halved the fish and mushrooms but not the sauce and served with rice for 2)

  • 25g butter
  • 4 tbsp soy sauce
  • finely grated zest of a lime
  • 1 mild red chilli, thinly sliced in rings
  • 4 x 175g firm white fish fillets, skinned and boned (we used hake)
  • 200g mixed mushrooms, trimmed but left whole or at least chunky
  • coriander leaves to serve
  1. Heat the oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Melt the butter in a little pan, then stir in the soy sauce, lime zest and chilli. Tip this into a shallow (non-metallic) dish and add the fish, splashing it well in the marinade. Set aside for about 10 minutes.
  2. Take the fish out of the marinade and put it on a baking tray. Toss the mushrooms in the marinade and scatter them around the fish, drizzling the rest of the marinade over the top. Roast for 6-8 minutes, until the fish is cooked and the mushrooms are sizzling. Scatter with coriander and serve with rice or noodles.

(Original recipe from Ainsley Harriot – not someone we often cook from).

If you are serving rice you could try Jono’s foolproof rice cooking method which he got from Madhur Jaffrey:

For 4 people:

Combine 300ml long-grain/basmati rice with 500ml water. Add 10g butter and bring to the boil. Cover tightly (we use tinfoil and a lid), turn heat to very very low, and leave it be for 25 minutes. Turn off the heat and let it rest for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork and serve. Perfectly cooked rice!

Jono and Julie

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Roasted beetroot with watercress & horseradish apple sauce

Posted in Healthy, Side dish, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , , , on 5 December 2010| Leave a Comment »

This is the first of three side dishes which we served with a delicious baked ham (scroll down to see the other dishes and final result).

If you are having guests between now and Christmas we highly recommend this tasty menu (much of which can be prepared in advance). We served this up on a Friday night after work, as part of the Irish Foodies Christmas Cookalong,  and it was entirely hassle free.

We boiled the ham and roasted the beetroot the night before.

Menu to serve 8:

  • Ginger beer & tangerine glazed ham
  • Roasted beetroot with watercress & horseradish apple sauce
  • Chilli & tangerine braised lentils
  • Roasted cauliflower with garlic, bay & lemon

Roasted beetroot with watercress & horseradish apple sauce (to feed 8 as a side dish)

1kg raw unpeeled beetroot

2 apples, peeled and chopped

1 tbsp sugar

2 tbsp cider or red wine vinegar

6 tbsp freshly grated horseradish

4 tbsp soured cream

watercress

  • Heat oven to 180C (gas 6). Leave the beetroot whole – wash and pat dry.
  • Wrap individually in foil and roast until tender (1-2 hours depending on how big they are). Cool in the foil before peeling.
  • Heat a small frying pan and toss in the apples with the sugar and a tbsp of water. Cover and cook until mushy. Remove from the heat, add the vinegar and whizz in a food processor (or use a hand blender).
  • Stir the horseradish and sour cream into the sauce and season with salt.
  • To serve, cut the beetroot into wedges, put in a bowl and mix with the sauce. Serve on a bed of watercress.

Click here for original recipe from BBC Good Food.

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Quick n tasty!

Posted in Food, Healthy, Shellfish, Soup, tagged , , , , , , , on 30 November 2010| 2 Comments »

After a long day … made even longer by cold weather and snow delays … a simple and tasty soup that is all about freshness and flavour.

 

 

 

 

Quick prawn noodle soup (for one)

  • Boil 85g thick rice noodles for about 6 minutes or until al dente, then drain.
  • Put 500ml hot chicken or vegetable stock in a pan with a tsp of fish sauce, the juice of 1/2 a lime, a star anise & a pinch of sugar.
  • Bring to the boil and add the noodles and a handful of small raw prawns.
  • Warm through, then pour into a bowl and top with a handful of mint and coriander leave and some chopped red chilli.

(We don’t like talking about calories too much but this is only about 250 calories a bowl and has no saturated fat – we felt very good (and full) after eating it).

Click here for original recipe on BBC Good Food.

Jono & Julie

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A tasty carrot soup

Posted in Food, Healthy, Soup, Vegetarian, tagged , , , , on 24 November 2010| 1 Comment »

We actually make soup almost every week but rarely put them on our blog… not sure why but perhaps we’ll stick them up more often.

Here’s what we’ll be eating for lunch for the rest of the week:

Honeyed Carrot Soup (makes a big pot full)

  • Melt 2 tbsp butter in a big saucepan.
  • Add a big sliced leek and cook for a few minutes until starting to soften.
  • Add 800g of roughly chopped carrots, 2 tsp clear honey, a pinch of chilli flakes and a bay leaf and cook for another couple of minutes.
  • Pour in 2.5 litres of vegetable stock, bring to the boil, and simmer for half an hour.
  • Whizz the soup until smoothish and season.

Find the original recipe here: http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/4852/honeyed-carrot-soup

Julie

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Cheap and healthy tuna and couscous

Posted in Fish, Food, Healthy, tagged , , , , , , on 24 November 2010| Leave a Comment »

We were up in Belfast for the weekend which always means over-indulgence and I then flew to Birmingham for a conference and ate very boring and fatty food – what a waste!

This was a much needed healthy dinner and yet again I had succumbed to M&S reduced tuna steaks (I just can’t help myself when it comes to food bargains!).

This reads fairly dull but actually it was really tasty. I’m not a big fan of red onions (like I usually poke them out of a salad) but the way these are macerated with the lemon juice really takes the sting and sharpness out of them.

Highly recommended for when you feel like something healthy and tasty (or if you have to use them cheapo tuna fillets you bought).

I found this recipe in another of my old BBC Good Food magazines.

Hot mustard tuna with herby couscous (serves 4 though we halved it very successfully)

  • Put a finely sliced red onion in a little bowl with the zest and juice of a lemon and some seasoning – leave to soak for about 5 minutes to soften the onion a bit.
  • Put 250g of couscous into a large bowl and pour over 400ml of hot vegetable stock, cover with cling film and leave for 10 minutes.
  • Season 4 tuna steaks, brush with 1 tbsp olive oil, then pat 2 tsps of English mustard powder over them.
  • When the couscous is ready, add a bunch of roughly chopped flat parsley and 2 tbsp of capers to the onions – give it a good stir before mixing into the couscous with a fork.
  • Heat a griddle pan and sear the tuna steaks for a minute on each side (more if you don’t like it rareish).
  • Serve with lemon wedges.

Julie

Original recipe can be found here: http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/4839/hot-mustard-tuna-with-herby-couscous

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