The Secret Ingredient: Family Cookbook

The Secret Ingredient: Family Cookbook Sally Bee Bestselling author, home cook, heart-attack survivor and busy mum of three Sally Bee turns her attention to family cooking.Sally Bee’s fourth book.At the time of writing this book, Sally is hurtling towards an anniversary that she has mixed feelings about. At the age of 36 Sally had three heart attacks in a week. This summer it will be nine years since Sally died. And nine years since she came back to life.Sally is a living miracle and it is her diet that keeps her fighting and strong. She knows better than anyone how to incorporate healthy eating into your daily life. In her bestselling debut The Secret Ingredient she shared clean and healthy versions of the classic dishes we all love. Now she shows you how to create affordable and simple healthy recipes all the family will adore.Sally believes the best way to keep your family healthy is to serve everyone the same food – food that tastes good, looks good and does you good. Whether it’s a super quick midweek Bolognese packed full of goodness or tasty Thai prawn skewers, an easy guilt-free chicken pie, delicious oatmeal cookies or a healthy take on your favourite takeaway classics.Sally knows better than anyone, when you’re feeding the family day in, day out, you want simplicity, speed and lots of great taste and health benefits. In this beautiful new family cookbook, she offers over 100 new recipes that deliver a healthy lifestyle and a happy home life.Alongside the recipes, there are tips on how to get your children involved, and lots of straightforward advice of how to change your eating habits. Sally’s plans are realistic and easy-to-follow, offering everything you need for a balanced approach to your family’s health. Dedication (#ulink_4bf55062-c116-5348-8d0e-9895a2c36092) I want to dedicate this book to my darling husband Dogan, who I love more than ever and I’ve always loved him a lot. And to my children and my Dad, we are a little family but everyone’s got a big heart. I also owe a lot to some of my most precious friends. Heather, who always keeps me grounded and comes with me to cooking shows and TV studios and is constantly telling people that SHE was the one who passed Home Economics at school – not me! Thanks for that Heather – I can always rely on you to big me up – not! To Anna, who is forever placed firmly in my heart and who helps me to look at the world with a different perspective even if I don’t want to. To gorgeous Mermaid Mel, the strongest, toughest most feminine heroine on the planet. I also dedicate this book to my great new friend Chrisp and his wonderful family. It doesn’t matter how long or short a time you have known a person, there are angels that walk this planet and Chrisp you are one of them. Contents Cover (#u9e55cab1-22ea-5e2d-810b-a0faff22cd0f) Title Page (#litres_trial_promo) Dedication (#ulink_3702f4eb-a94b-59f9-88d6-ade1bf94dfc5) Introduction (#ulink_395b4b68-e2ec-59dd-8783-a5dea9afe0d8) Brunches & light lunches (#litres_trial_promo) Family meals (#litres_trial_promo) On the side (#litres_trial_promo) Sally’s Saturday night fakeaway (#litres_trial_promo) Sinless sweets & drinks (#litres_trial_promo) List of Recipes Acknowledgements Copyright About the Publisher Introduction (#ulink_b9d764a4-7c55-5681-a5e5-647a10960622) I love mealtimes in my house. We live in a very modest little home and the kitchen is most definitely the heart of it. We have just built a new island in the middle of the kitchen and we are all like bees to a honey pot around it. There is always some music on somewhere, someone usually playing guitar, my daughter and her friends singing, dancing and talking non-stop! Lots of laughter, too much giggling and silliness, homework, spilt milk on the homework, heated debates, wrestling between boys, dogs eating the cat food and cats eating the dog food. Shouting, laughing, loving, crying – it all happens in my lovely little family kitchen. The thing that always surprises me is how quiet, all of a sudden, everything becomes when a meal lands on the table. Silence. Just while everyone takes the first bite, and then the hubble bubble starts again and we talk over each other, at each other, for each other. It’s chaos, but it’s our chaos and we all appreciate just how lucky we are. For those of you who may not be aware, let me take you on a quick guided tour of my story so far. At the time of writing this book, I’m hurtling towards an anniversary that I have mixed feelings about. I’m not sure if I should be celebrating with champagne and a cake or be in hiding in a darkened room. This summer it will be nine years since I died – and nine years since I came back to life. I was 36 years old when my life took this dramatic turn. One moment everything was just as it should be, taking care of my three babies, being supermum, whizzing from toddler groups to mums’ groups. The next minute my whole life got turned upside down, never to be the same again. This nine-year anniversary is particularly pertinent to me because I remember so well lying in my hospital bed, in shock, in pain, no breath, hooked up to wires and bleeping monitors. I whispered to one of the cardiologists at the time to ask if I was going to survive. He looked down at his shoes and shook his head. They had performed an emergency procedure the night before and had seen the damage my heart had sustained during my three long and painful heart attacks. They had called my husband into the operating theatre to say his goodbyes to me. After a couple of weeks recovering in hospital I remember having a heart-to-heart with one of the doctors. I needed to know how long I would live. I needed to make arrangements and plans and make sure my babies were going to be OK. It was clear that they were surprised that I’d survived the attacks. They were amazed I had survived the night. It was a miracle that I had survived two weeks. I asked about the next ten years… pushing my luck, I knew, but determined to face everything head on. The doctor smiled to me and said, ‘Sally, if you can survive 10 years after all this, you can survive forever!’ At 36, I wasn’t your typical heart patient, and while recovering I remember looking around the coronary care ward and feeling out of place. A nurse came to talk to me about life after a heart attack and gave me leaflets about what I could and couldn’t do. These leaflets bore no resemblance to my life at home whatsoever. Washing up my cup and saucer was fine, they said, I could also smooth down my bedspread to make my bed and should try to resume sexual relations – no more stressful than watching a TV comedy, apparently! But this was advice for heart patients in their 70s, 80s and 90s. Smoothing down the bedspread? How would I manage just this when I had three children at home wanting to have ride on the super-king-sized flying-carpet-quilt whenever I made the bed? It was a valuable lesson for me, medicine often sees patient as a cut out, with everyone put on the same plan as the person before them. I realised that if I had any chance of regaining my normal life then I would have to rewrite the leaflets to make them apply to me. This went for healthy eating too. Very quickly after my heart attacks I realised that when I ate healthy, nutritionally-packed food, my body reacted in a positive way. But if I didn’t take care with what fuel I fed my body, I would very quickly begin to lose any of the precious energy I had and start to feel poorly again. It’s important that every member of the family bends and shapes their diet to suit their age and lifestyle. If you are super busy and energetic, flying here and there, you will need to eat more and more often. If you are sitting at your desk most of the day and don’t get to move around so much, you’ll need smaller portions and lighter meals. So if you are hoping to gain good health through healthy eating, make sure the recipes you choose match your lifestyle and your taste. The Secret Ingredient Family Cookbook has recipes that are suitable for everyone in the family. Whether you have time to plan and cook or need speedy dishes that can be super quick to prepare, you are sure to find something that pleases your taste buds and matches your lifestyle and that of your family. Food to feed your emotions Emotionally, my recovery after my heart attacks was very tough and, as crazy as it sounds, food played a part in my emotional recovery too. It took about a year to start to recover properly but eventually me and my family became strong and happy again. To begin with I was afraid of absolutely everything. I was afraid to laugh, cry, love, feel anger, feel passion; I was just a quivering mess of worry and fear. Gradually, with the help of my darling family and my precious friends, I started to rebuild the old Sally. I had to get strong again, physically and emotionally. I had no strength, no spare breath. If I walked up the stairs to read my boys a story before bed, I would have to lie down at the top of the stairs for 10 minutes to get my breath back before I could speak to them. I had also lost all my confidence that everything would be OK. The future was bleak for me, or so I thought. I was grieving the loss of my health and used to look at my family, thinking I wanted to do absolutely everything possible to make their lives wonderful, yet I didn’t even have the strength to simply pick up my baby and cuddle her tears better. Luckily for me, and for them, I had this little flickering flame, a little sparkle somewhere deep down inside me that kept tickling me and prodding me and refused to give up. As each day passed, it grew a little more until eventually it had no choice but to burst out of me like fireworks from the ground, filling me again with all my hopes and dreams and plans for the future. I tell you, I grabbed hold of that sparkle and have been running and jumping with it ever since. Every morning, when I wake up, I am alive therefore I am happy. I believe that life is all about balance. A balanced diet feeds your heart, body and soul. No one can live forever on cottage cheese salad and an apple. We all need variety, treats and food that feed our soul. I learnt that over time and I hope that this is one of the things you will gain from this book. All the recipes are developed with great health in mind. Some have some ‘treat’ ingredients and this is absolutely fine as long as these ingredients are balanced with health-giving foods. Don’t worry, they are! A few years ago, reaching the 10-year milestone was for me a mirage that was far beyond my grasp. But now I look forward to celebrating my nine-year survival anniversary – if only so that I can then start the year-long planning for the big celebration on my tenth anniversary! That doctor was right. If I can survive 10 years after all I went through, I can survive forever. Being a healthy eater has empowered me to get my life back. Take that, heart! You can do it! I get so frustrated when I hear about this diet, just eating cabbage or another diet, eating standing on your head. It’s crazy, it’s upsetting and it’s not healthy or sustainable. Healthy eating is all about balance. I give talks to school children and like to ask them which is healthier – a big plate of broccoli or a big plate of chocolate? Of course they love to scream at the top of their voices that the big plate of broccoli is healthier! But that’s not strictly true. I explain to them that if you only ever ate broccoli you would get a tummy ache, be rather stinky and would be missing out on all sorts of nutrients, let alone flavourful delights that come from variety. Of course it’s OK to enjoy a bit of chocolate, as long as you have had a nutritious meal beforehand. Meal matching Meal matching is quite simply matching the food you eat to your activities. For example, if I am sitting at my desk for most of the week, writing, I don’t need lots of spare energy, but I do still need lots of good nutrients to keep my brain sharp. A full eight hours writing a day is not physically draining but it sure makes my brain hurt! In this case I would go for a light breakfast and lunch, consisting of fish or chicken with a delicious salad (no soggy lettuce leaves in sight I might add!) or some roasted vegetables. This would nourish me but not make me sleepy during the afternoon when I’ve got my editor breathing down my neck wanting finished work. I would then probably only need another light meal at around 6pm, as sitting all day at a desk doesn’t use many calories. If, on the other hand, I am having a busy week, rushing around from one event to another, needing lots more energy to keep me active throughout the day, I would go for a slightly heavier breakfast that would keep me going longer, such as porridge and fruit. I would make sure I had plenty of nuts, raisins and fruit in my bag for on-the-go snacks and I would try and make time for a more substantial lunch. This is especially important if I thought I wouldn’t get a decent evening meal at an appropriate time. Night-time meals While you are planning your meals, it is really essential that you listen to your body and take note of what it’s telling you. Do you have trouble sleeping? Is this because you have a large meal too late at night or because you haven’t eaten enough throughout the day and are actually hungry? The general rule is to have your last meal of the day no later than 7pm. If we treat 10pm as a usual bedtime, this gives your system three hours to break down the food you’ve eaten, and allow you to sleep well. However, you may not be such an early bird and you might stay up until 11pm or midnight, in which case, you will probably become peckish before bed. DO NOT hit the biscuit tin or the Pringles pot, instead have a slice of brown toast, with a little butter or low-fat hummus about 20 minutes before you go to bed. This will take away any hunger pangs and will give you a sedative effect to help you sleep. Because your body has to step up its metabolism to break down the bread, it will make you sleepy. This is especially true if you’ve been following a low-carbohydrate diet. These diets are good for giving you energy, but they can make you a bit ‘fizzy’ and unable to sleep, so taking a slice of bread at this time will definitely help you enter the land of nod! Feeding the kids Children who eat a healthy diet from birth are much better equipped to eat well throughout their lives and will have a reduced risk of health conditions as they grow up. Children gain a taste for the things they eat often so if you give your children healthy foods right from the beginning, they will develop a liking for those foods and continue to want them as they grow. Teaching them early is important and so is getting them to listen to their bodies. My children know what it feels like to be healthy. To know this and understand what it means provides a fabulous tool which will hopefully help them make good healthy choices independently. At home my children have healthy home-cooked food without additives. This, to them, is completely normal. If they then go elsewhere and have processed food which is usually high in salt and fat, they immediately know they feel different. They talk about being too thirsty (because of the salt) and the fact that drinking to excess makes them feel bloated. One of my sons, who’s energetic to say the least, has real problems concentrating and staying calm after a processed meal. This is simply because he reacts badly to the additives included in processed food. So my children do understand and feel the immediate effect of healthy and unhealthy food. I try to explain that balance is the key. It’s perfectly fine to enjoy a delicious dessert as long as it follows a healthy nutritious meal and isn’t eaten every day. Looking back to when my daughter was around eight months old, I remember sitting her in a high chair next to her little friend, Tom, who was the same age. Tom’s mum gave him some specially prepared vegetable pur?e, mashed banana and baby breadsticks. I gave Lela a slice of home-made pizza! Shock! Horror! Well, actually no, I was very happy to give this to Lela. I have never given us adults and the children different food. I don’t understand how a parent can give their weaning baby the best, most natural, unprocessed food, but sit their other children down in front of the devil’s food that is chicken nuggets and chips! I was able to let Lela, at eight months old, suck all the contents off the slice of pizza, because I had made it and I knew exactly what was on it and in it. I had made the bread base, with no preservatives and no added salt, and on top I’d put tomato passata, sliced mushrooms, peppers, sweet onions and herbs. All good natural stuff that I was happy for every member of my family to eat. Obviously Lela didn’t have a full set of gnashers, but she was able to suck off all the good bits and then gum the pizza base to death! I must also point out that there was nothing wrong with Tom’s food either, but as a mum of three I wanted to spend my time making food that everyone could eat. So, the final word here is to treat all your family with the same respect. If you wouldn’t eat it, don’t give it to others. And if you have fed your baby the best of everything at the beginning, don’t stop doing it once they grow a little. Affordable good health I have a few simple rules that I apply when developing healthy family dishes. The food has to taste good, look good and do us good. It also has to be affordable and simple to make. I love to get into a good complicated recipe book every now and then, but quite frankly, when I am feeding the family day in, day out, I want simplicity and speed and, of course, great health benefits. So, I’ve said this many times before. We all know the principles of eating a healthy diet, but actually translating that into a plate of food that is quick and easy to prepare, healthy, affordable and delicious, is quite a challenge. None of my recipes use particularly expensive ingredients. They are all really easy to follow – trust me, I get lost if there is too much text to plough through. Learn how to ‘Shop Smart’. Buy things when they are on special offer, especially fish! Make friends with your local fishmonger or fish-counter manager at your supermarket as he will be able to advise you on what is the best buy of the day. Please be assured that the pizza delivery man couldn’t give two hoots about your health or the health of your bank balance. The great news is, healthy food doesn’t have to be expensive, it just takes a little extra thought and planning. My top tips for feeding a family • Never give children separate food to yours! We all need great nutrition; the kids might just need their meals slightly less spicy and cut up smaller! • Serve a big jug of iced water on the table – discourage sugary drinks. They shouldn’t be necessary at meal times. • Always have chopped-up fruit on the table to nibble on in between courses. • Take the salt pot off the table! In fact, throw it away! • When encouraging younger children to eat, make a wall chart with stickers and get them to have a competition to see who can eat the most portions of fruit and vegetables. Also have a reward at the end of the week if they’ve done really well. My kids would eat anything for a sticker! • Ensure that there are vegetables served with every meal. My children aren’t allowed a meal without veggies on their plate and if they don’t like the flavour they mix it in to hide it. Vegetables do not have a strong flavour anyway, so there is really no excuse. • Think about portion sizes, especially for children. Are you overloading the plate? A portion should be the same size as your hand. If you are a big guy, with big hands, that is your portion size. If you are five years old with a teeny hand – this is your portion size. Easy! • I am a strong believer in sitting down together as a family to eat. I know this isn’t possible for everyone at every meal, but try to do it as much as you can. Not only does this make meal times more fun, it will also encourage everyone to eat properly if there is a reason to sit at the table, share the news of the day, and take your time. I always eat less when I am sitting and chatting at the table as I digest properly and wait to see if I’m full up rather than continuing to eat anyway! Let your kids cook for you I have a fabulous system in my home that I wholeheartedly recommend. At the time of writing this book my children are 14, 11 and 9 years respectively. Once a month each of them is responsible for cooking the whole family a meal. The choice is entirely theirs and they have to research the recipes, write out the shopping list, prepare, cook and serve the meal. It’s great fun, and they really enjoy planning for it. If they need help, they can shout, but they usually read the recipe carefully and want to surprise us all with the meal. This not only teaches them the lifelong enjoyable skill of cooking, it also gives them an amount of control of what they want to eat. I am usually pleasantly surprised as they often pick a really healthy dish, without any input from me and will explain to me what the healthy ingredients will do for me! I love this… it’s obviously what I do to them at every mealtime! ‘Isn’t this butternut squash soup delicious boys? This will give you loads of energy for kung-fu tonight, and Lela, this will make your skin beautiful!’ The Secret Ingredient Family Cookbook will help you, at a glance, feed your family the healthiest food possible. You’ll see that many of my savoury dishes begin with onion, garlic and extra-virgin olive oil. This is because this little tasty combination is a great health giver. It is proven that when heated together these three ingredients help to lower blood cholesterol. I have included a few recipes that include red meat, but not too many. Try to keep red meat to once or twice a week as this gives you the protein you need but won’t overload you with the wrong kinds of fat. Always cut off all visible fat from any meat and try to buy quality. If you can’t afford good-quality meat that can have its source traced, then miss it out all together and add more pulses, beans or rice. I always get lots of requests for vegetarian food, there are vegetarian dishes dotted throughout the book and many other recipes that can omit the meat. So please take time, if you are vegetarian, to take a good look through. You’ll also notice a great chapter called Sally’s Saturday night fake-away. We all love the convenience and excitement of take-away food but sadly it is often among the unhealthiest food you can eat. I hope my dishes will tempt you to fake it with your own healthy versions. I don’t list the calories contained in my recipes as this isn’t the top priority when feeding a family. As long as all ingredients are fresh and as natural as possible, and a balance of dishes are eaten, this is a sustainable healthy diet for a family. I prefer to count calories on the way out rather than the way in – in other words, go for a walk after dinner if you are able. And finally… I see feeding my family a healthy diet as important as medication from the doctors, fitting smoke alarms, teaching kids to cross the road safely and not talking to strangers. As the main cook in the house, I have to be the healthy body monitor. That doesn’t mean it’s my responsibility to do all the work, but it is my responsibility to direct proceedings and ultimately to ensure that my family eats and lives well. It doesn’t matter who puts their hand up to be the ‘healthy body monitor’ in your household, as long as someone does! Feeding your family a healthy diet is important for their future health, but it’s also important for today. Young children need energy from the right kinds of food. They need small regular meals that entice them with their eyes. Teenagers, in my experience, are always starving! My eldest son is now 14 years old and could easily eat me out of house and home. Food for teenagers needs to be filling but highly nutritious. I find that if I explain what each ingredient will offer my son – i.e. build muscles, keep skin clear, make his brain work faster – he is more likely to decide to like it. This is also part of the battle; I am amazed by how many children come around to our house and say they don’t like something before they’ve even tried it. Kids have busy lives. Mine seem to be busier than me these days, and struggling with colds and bugs makes life pretty miserable. By eating a healthy and balanced diet and practising good handwashing, it’s possible to keep everyday bugs to a minimum. Healthy food contains antioxidants that help fight bad cells. This is very important for us in later life, as these antioxidants can potentially fight off cancer cells, but in early years they can keep a child happy and bug free. The healthier your children are, the quicker they can fight off bugs and colds. The healthier you are as an adult, the more energy you will have, and the stronger your system will be if ever a trauma like mine comes your way. I truly hope nothing like this ever comes your way – but, if it does, the best feeling in the world is knowing that you did everything possible to ensure you survive and continue to flourish. Enjoy, folks, and much love from Sally Bee x Meal matching is a great way to enhance your health. If you are having a quiet afternoon, or planning a larger evening meal, a light lunch is perfect. In this chapter you’ll find soups, salads, enchiladas and eggs amongst lots of other speedy and light delights. Eggs are fabulous as a quick and healthy light meal and you do not absorb the cholesterol from them. Doctors now recommend one a day for a healthy diet! Mexican Butter Bean Hash This is a very simple, fun and filling weekend brunch dish – with a bit of a kick! Serves 4 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil 1 medium onion, peeled and chopped 4 lean rashers of bacon, all visible fat cut off and chopped 2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed 2 x 400g (14oz) tins chopped tomatoes 1 x 400g (14oz) tin butter beans, drained freshly ground black pepper 4 preserved jalape?os, chopped slurp of Tabasco sauce, to taste 4 fresh eggs 1 Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas mark 6. 2 Heat the olive oil in a large non-stick frying pan over a medium heat. Add the chopped onion and fry for 4–5 minutes. 3 Next, add the bacon, garlic, chopped tomatoes and butter beans. Season with freshly ground black pepper, the chopped jalape?os and Tabasco sauce and stir together to combine. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10–15 minutes. 4 Now transfer the mixture to a shallow baking dish and pop in the oven for 20 minutes until bubbling and all the flavours have fused together. Take out of the oven and make 4 scooped holes in the mixture. 5 Break in the eggs and pop back into the oven for a further 6–7 minutes or until the eggs are cooked. Serve for breakfast with a big chunk of nutty bread. Delicious! Chunky Salmon Chowder I am such a huge fan of soups. They are an easy way to boost your vegetable intake and it’s so easy to get children to try different flavours if they are dunking a lovely chunk of nutty bread into a bowl of soup… usually mine! This is a delicious warming soup that is full of flavour yet very light. Salmon provides the protein, while the potato gives you a ready source of vitamin C, and the lentils make this heart-healthy and filling. I really like adding lentils to soup, not only because of the health properties but also because it makes them much more filling – crucial when feeding hungry teenagers! Serves 4 2 skinless salmon fillets 500ml (18fl oz) low-salt vegetable stock 700ml (1? pints) skimmed milk 2 sprigs of thyme 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil 2 leeks, sliced 2 tbsp plain flour 1 large white potato, peeled and diced 75g (3oz) red lentils 80g (3oz) bunch of fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped freshly ground black pepper 1 Place the salmon in a large saucepan and pour over the stock and milk, drop in the sprigs of thyme, and bring the liquid to the boil. Cook for 2–4 minutes. 2 Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large heavy-based frying pan, add the leeks and cook until softened. Stir them occasionally and don’t let them brown, as this is a pale-coloured chowder. Stir in the plain flour. 3 Remove the salmon from the stock and set aside. Add the stock and milk mixture to the leeks and stir in to blend in the liquid, then add the potato and lentils. Leave to cook for 30 minutes or until the potato is tender and the lentils are soft. Remove the thyme sprigs. 4 Finally, flake the salmon into meaty chunks and gently stir into the chowder, not letting them break up, along with the parsley and freshly ground black pepper and serve. Spicy Sweet Potato Soup Butternut squash and sweet potatoes are roasted with a blend of delicious spices. This is a superfood superhuman soup with a high-octane flavour. Healthy eating has never tasted so good. Serves 6 1 tbsp fennel seeds 2 tsp cumin seeds 2 tsp coriander seeds 2 tsp dried oregano ? tsp dried crushed chillies ? tsp whole black peppercorns 1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil 4 sweet potatoes 1 medium butternut squash, washed 1 large onion, peeled and chopped 1.5 litres (2? pints) low-salt chicken stock 1 Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas mark 6. 2 Put the fennel, cumin, coriander, oregano, chillies and black peppercorns into a mortar and with the pestle crush the flavourings to a coarse powder. Add the crushed garlic and 1 tablespoon olive oil and blend everything to a paste. 3 Peel the potatoes and chop into 2cm (?in) chunks, and do the same with the butternut squash (there’s no need to peel it). Now tip the squash and potatoes into a shallow baking dish and, using your hands, smear the spice paste over the vegetables to evenly coat. Cook in the oven for 30–40 minutes until nice and tender and just beginning to colour. 4 While the vegetables are roasting, in a large saucepan set over a medium heat, heat the remaining oil and saut? the onion for 3–4 minutes until softened and translucent. Do not allow to colour. 5 Once the butternut squash and potatoes are done, put them into a blender or food processor along with half of the chicken stock and whiz until smooth. Put the remaining stock in the baking dish and use it to de-glaze the tin. Pour these juices and the stock into the soup to ensure you have every last scrap of flavour. Stir well and serve. A Note on Spices Because healthy eating means we can’t rely on fat, salt and sugar to flavour our food, spices are hugely important. Take a look at your spice rack and throw away any that are out of date. Replace them with delicious aromatic new ones and never be afraid to be experimental! Pale Courgette and Mint Soup The onions and ginger along with the watercress add an extra layer of nutrition with their antioxidant properties. The watercress also gives a peppery flavour that makes this soup one of my favourites. If you can get hold of courgette flowers, float one on top of each bowl of soup – it looks wonderful as a dinner party starter! Serves 2–4 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil 1 mild Spanish onion, peeled and finely chopped 1cm (?in) fresh ginger, peeled and grated 3 large courgettes, diced into 1cm (?in) squares 1 litre (1? pints) low-salt vegetable stock 1 handful of fresh mint leaves 1 large handful of watercress freshly ground black pepper 1 Heat the olive oil in a large non-stick pan and saut? the onion for 3–4 minutes until starting to soften. Add the grated ginger and cook for a further 2 minutes. 2 Now add the diced courgettes and the stock and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer gently for 4–5 minutes or until the courgettes are tender. 3 Remove from the heat and ladle two-thirds of the soup into a blender. Add the mint and watercress and blend until totally smooth. 4 Return the smooth soup to the pan with the still-chunky soup, return to the heat and season with freshly ground black pepper. Serve in large soup bowls with a courgette flower floating on the top. Edible when washed! Roasted Red Pepper Soup Red peppers, tomatoes, shallots, garlic and chilli are all heart-healthy ingredients, especially when they are heated in a little olive oil. They taste pretty good too! Serves 4–6 4 large red peppers, cut into quarters and deseeded 4 large tomatoes, halved 4 shallots, peeled and cut in half 3 garlic cloves, peeled but left whole 1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped 2 tbsp olive oil 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar 1 tsp dried thyme 750ml (1? pints) low-salt vegetable stock 1 Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas mark 6. 2 Place the peppers, tomatoes, shallots and garlic into a roasting tin and scatter with the chopped chilli. Drizzle with the olive oil and balsamic vinegar then sprinkle with the thyme. Roast for 30–40 minutes or until the vegetables are softened and lightly charred, turning halfway through cooking. Remove the peppers from the roasting tin, put them into a large saucepan and set aside. 3 Next, pour half of the vegetable stock into the roasting tin and set over a low heat. Stir and scrape with a wooden spoon to remove all the roasted scrummy bits from the base of the tin. 4 Now pour this mixture and the rest of the vegetable stock into the pan with the peppers. Set over a medium heat, bring to a gentle simmer then take off the heat and, using a hand blender, whiz the soup until lovely and smooth. Reheat and serve. Sally’s tip If you want to make this into a creamy soup, feel free to add a swirl of low-fat cr?me fra?che. Baked Potato with Healthy Toppings If I was stuck on a desert island, the one food I would choose to take with me would be a potato. Potatoes have certainly had a bad press of late thanks to the low-carb craze. Well, as much as I agree with cutting down on carbohydrates at some points in the day, I do not agree with cutting them out altogether. Carbohydrates are essential to our growth and wellbeing, especially when feeding a family. Potatoes are, in my opinion, the perfect source of healthy carbs as they are rich in vitamin C (good for keeping your immune system healthy), potassium (good for healthy blood pressure) and offer good fibre, especially when eaten with the skin on – and eating good fibre positively promotes weight loss. They are also not too expensive, so why wouldn’t you fill up on a delicious, nutritious spud? One of the easiest and healthiest quick meals or light bites is a jacket potato. This is great for all ages, affordable and if you take care with your toppings, it’s seriously healthy too. To prepare your baked potato, preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas mark 6. Wash your potato and prick it 2 or 3 times with a fork. Bake in the oven for 50–60 minutes depending on the size. You can tell when the baked potato is cooked as the skin will be lovely and crisp but the inside soft when you squeeze it. If you’re in a hurry, you could start the cooking off in the microwave following the manufacturer’s instructions and then crisp up in the oven for 10 minutes. Don’t be tempted to lather huge globs of butter or cream onto your baked potato, as this is obviously NOT a healthy way to eat. Overleaf are some delicious examples of my favourite toppings, feel free to swap and change and be as imaginative as you like. Keep everything low fat and always serve with veggies or salad to make a balanced meal. Enjoy! Each of these mini recipes serves 1 Curry-spiced Topping 1 tablespoon fat-free natural yogurt mixed with 2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley and ? teaspoon mild curry powder. Tomato Pesto Topping 1 tablespoon shop-bought green pesto mixed with 1 chopped plum tomato. Creamy Horseradish Topping 1 tablespoon reduced-fat sour cream mixed with ? teaspoon prepared horseradish. Creamy Chive Topping 1 tablespoon low-fat cottage cheese and 2 teaspoons chopped fresh chives. Tex-Mex Topping 1 tablespoon refried beans, 1 tablespoon prepared tomato salsa and 1 teaspoon chopped fresh coriander. Coleslaw Topping Mix together 6 tablespoons fat-free cr?me fra?che, ? teaspoon Dijon mustard, 2 tablespoons low-fat mayonnaise, ? white cabbage, shredded, 2 carrots and ? onion, both finely sliced. Fruity Booty Topping Mix together fresh pineapple chunks, a diced apple with 1 tablespoon raisins and 2 tablespoons fat-free cr?me fra?che. Butter Beans and Tuna Topping Mix together half a 185g can of drained tuna fish in spring water, a 215g can of butter beans, drained with the juice of 1 lemon and 2 tablespoons low-fat mayonnaise. Roasted New Potato and Beetroot Salad Beetroot is a rich source of potent antioxidants and nutrients that are crucial for cardiovascular health, helping to keep the muscles strong and to build stamina, so perfect encouragement for busy teenagers to eat it. Beetroot doesn’t lose its health benefits when cooked and pickled, so add a beetroot to a dish whenever you get the chance! Serves 4–6 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil 500g (1lb 2oz) new potatoes, cut in half ? tsp celery salt 1 tsp garlic powder 3 sprigs of rosemary or 1 tsp dried rosemary 100g (3?oz) rocket leaves 1 handful of toasted walnuts, roughly chopped 400g (14oz) pickled baby beetroot, cut in half seeds from 1 pomegranate (optional – don’t be put off making this salad if you haven’t got a pomegranate – this is really just for garnish, it makes it look very posh!) 1 Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas mark 6. 2 Drizzle half the olive oil over the new potatoes in a roasting tray, rub them with your hands to evenly coat, then sprinkle over the celery salt and garlic powder. Top the potatoes with the rosemary and roast in the oven for 35–40 minutes until crisp and golden, turning them halfway through cooking. 3 Meanwhile, simply combine all the other ingredients in a large shallow serving bowl. When the potatoes are done, tip them into the salad and toss everything together. Serve warm. Juicy Prawn and Watermelon Salad I find watermelon addictive in the summer months and I also find that it’s perfect for keeping the children going when tea is on the way but not quite ready yet! Speaking of the kids, this is a great one to get them in the kitchen. It’s very quick and easy, but teaches them about gorgeous flavour mixing. Remember that you don’t absorb the cholesterol from the prawns into your bloodstream. Serves 4–6 1 medium watermelon, cut in half and flesh removed 350g (12oz) cooked tiger prawns Конец ознакомительного фрагмента. Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес». 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