Quick, easy, healthy pie: Pork and potato pie

I bet you didn’t think that pies could be either quick, simple or healthy.  This one doesn’t use pastry so that does help on all those fronts.  This one uses cubed pork in a tomatoey sauce topped with sliced potatoes.  Great for dinner during the week.  Just throw together and shove in the oven.

I did have a recipe for this, but I can’t seem to find it now.  I was sure it was a reader recipe on BBC good food, but maybe I was wrong. However, it’s really simple so I should be able to do it from memory.

 

Pork and potato pie

Serves 2

• 3 medium potatoes, peeled and sliced
• 2 tsp oil
• 250g boneless pork, cubed
• 1 tbsp plain flour
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
• 3 sprigs of rosemary, finely chopped
• 1 pepper chopped into squares, or carrots chopped and/or celery, or mushrooms sliced (whatever you have)
• 1 tin tomatoes
• 200ml beef or chicken stock
• 1 tsp worcester sauce
• salt and pepper to taste

1. Preheat the oven to about 190 degrees celsius
2. Boil the potatoes until cooked but still firm in boiling water (about 10 minutes).  Drain and rinse under cold water
3. Meanwhile heat the oil in a pan.
4. Toss the pork in the flour and shake off the excess.
5. Fry the pork in the oil until browned on all sides.
6. Add the onion and garlic, turning down the heat and cook until the onion is softented.
7. Add the rosemary and whatever vege you’re using and cook for a further couple of minutes.
8. Add in the tomatoes and stock, and bring to the boil.
9. Then simmer until you have a good saucey consistency.
10. Add in the worcester sauce and then salt and pepper to taste.
11. Tip the pork sauce into a baking dish and layer the potatoes on top
12. Cook in the oven for about 20-25 minutes until the potatoes are golden (or you can do under the grill, it’s quicker.  Until they’re browned, but I think the oven makes them taste nicer)
13. Serve and enjoy 🙂

 

 

Cheap and easy: pasta puttanesca

I’ve already blogged about puttanesca with prawns, as a good diet friendly dish, and it certainly is.  This is a slightly different version.  Cheap, just as easy, because it uses tinned sardines.

The prawn version is here https://mrsjacksoncooks.wordpress.com/2011/03/01/sweet-pepper-and-bacon-pasta-2/

I have used tinned sardines before, but I don’t like the bones in them.  Every recipe I’ve found previously always says, leave them in, they’re small and good for you, you don’t notice them.  I do.  I don’t like them!  This was the first recipe that said take them out, and said how to (although I probably could have figured it out, having something that tells you how, takes the guesswork out of it).  Most puttanesca recipes use anchovies but I’m not a fan of them, so this recipe works much better for me.

It’s a post by Jack Monroe on the Guardian.  I like Jack Monroe.  Her recipes are alwayseasy, and often use stuff that’s in the cupboard.  I met her through working for Oxfam, and like her honesty and grittiness, and of course, the easiness of her recipes.  Her recipe is here http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/apr/16/jack-monroe-spaghetti-alla-puttanesca-recipe 

As always, I’ve adapted it.  I used macaroni because that’s what I had in.  You can use whatever pasta you like.  Spaghetti is good too.  I do normally use capers, however, I had run out this last time, so added in juice of one lemon, which worked well too.

Pasta puttanesca

Serves 2

• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled & crushed
• 1 chilli, chopped
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 tin tomatoes
• 1 tin sardines
• 150g dried pasta of your choice
• 1 tbsp capers, chopped, or juice 1 lemon
• 20 large olives (I used green), pitted and sliced
• Handful of chopped fresh basil
• salt and pepper to taste
• handful of parmesan (optional)

1. Boil the pasta until al dente.  Remove and drain, and set aside (if the pasta is done much before the sauce, you may want to add some oil to it to stop it sticking)
2. Meanwhile, put the oil in a pan on a medium heat.
3. When warmed, add the onion, garlic and chilli and cook until the onion is softened.
4. Remove the bones from the sardines by slicing down the back and opening and removing easily as they’re all in one piece.  Chop up the sardines.
5. Add the tomatoes to the pan, breaking them up with the spatula or spoon.  Bring to the boil and then simmer for 5 minutes.
6. Add the sardines, capers or lemon juice and continue simmering until you have a good saucey consistency.
7. Then add the olives and basil in.  Taste and add seasoning as needed.
8. Stir through the pasta until combined.
9. Turn into bowls and scatter parmesan over the top if using.
10. Enjoy the healthy, easy goodness

Summer curry: Goan fish curry

So, since we moved, my weight has been a bit up and down like a yoyo.  It’s all to do with finding a rhythm at the gym now, and also avoiding the biscuits at work.

This week I’m recommitting to the gym and trying to be healthier.  Many people think curries aren’t healthy, but they can be, and this is a good example of one.  Using fish as well, means it’s a lot lighter and good for summer eating.  At 238 calories per serving this is a great healthy dinner.

I do find that fish isn’t the cheapest thing to buy, but you can get good deals.  Our local co-op often has meat discounted towards the end of the day, and the haddock I got was one such example.  I also got prawns as they were reduced too, but you can leave them out as they can be expensive.

You can use any firm white fish for this – pollack or coley would work well and are often a lot cheaper.

This is a delicious curry and really simple to make.  No making pastes, and just use ground spices. I found it on trusty BBC Good Food but from a reader and not the usual chefs.  I served with boiled rice, but naan or chappatis would be good too.

http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1121651/goan-fish-curry

Goan Fish Curry

Serves 2

• 1 tsp sunflower oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 long green chillies, deseeded and thinly sliced
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• 4cm piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated
• 1tsp ground cumin
• 1tsp ground turmeric
• 1tsp garam masala
• 1tsp ground coriander
• 1 cardamom pods, seeds only
• 1 bay leaf
• 4-5 mushrooms, quartered (you can add whatever vegetables you like)
• 70ml reduced fat coconut milk
• 400g chopped tomatoes
• 250g skinless haddock or any firm white fish cut into chunks
• Juice of half a lime
• 12 raw prawns (I used cooked king prawns as couldn’t find uncooked)
• 1tbsp fresh chopped coriander

1. Heat the oil in a large frying or sauce pan.  Add the onions and cook until browned.
2. Next add the chilli, garlic, ginger and dried spices, and mushrooms cooking for a further minute, until the spice aromas fill the kitchen.
3. Add the coconut milk and tomatoes.  You may need to add some water here
4. Bring to the boil then reduce to a simmer for about 5-10 minutes, or until thickened slightly.
5. Add the fish chunks and cook for about 10 minutes until cooked through (add the prawns after 5 minutes if they’re raw)
6. Add the cooked prawns and the coriander, and lime juice and cook through for a couple of minutes.
7. Serve with boiled rice and enjoy the light fish with spicy flavours

 

Living in the big smoke: Moroccan lentil chicken tagine

So, I’ve decided to start blogging again.  I know, it’s been a while.  More than a year in fact.  And it’s been a tumultuous year.  We moved to London, for my job.  I’m now working for Oxfam and absolutely loving it.  But chatting to the government is aided by being near them, and so we moved.Upped sticks, lock stock and barrel.  Sold our lovely home in Manchester and have now bought a new house in South London.  And it’s very lovely too, remarkably similar in fact.  Just a bit smaller and significantly more expensive!

But as we settle and start to feel comfortable again, making a home and finding comfort in homeliness has come back to us, and hence the blog.  I’ve never stopped cooking and perhaps my cooking has become simpler, quicker and more frugal as I find ways to make money and time stretch further in a city that demands so much and also is so absorbing.

I wonder if too, this blog may also become about eating and drinking in London – whether at home or out and about…we’ll see.

But I start with a very easy and cheap meal and pretty quick meal.  It’s delicious and something you can leave cooking whilst you do other things.  It’s a chicken lentil one pot tagine.  I quickly discovered the joys of Brixton market, including their very good and cheap halal butchers.  But if you’re without a market, then chicken legs are often much cheaper anyway, or get a whole chicken and cut it up.  I used boneless, skinless thighs as the recipe states, but you can use bone in and skin on ones, or thighs and drumsticks, just cook for a bit longer and use less oil when browning the chicken as there’s more fat in the skins which will release when you cook it.

The recipe is here http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1860/moroccanstyle-chicken-with-lentils

As always, I adapted it.  I used raisins instead of apricots, but you can leave them out all together if you like, and I added in olives and peppers.  But you can use whatever you have really.  I also cooked it in a tagine pot, but you can use a casserole dish or a heavy bottomed saucepan too.  The advantage of a tagine is it’ll cook it much quicker.

Moroccan lentil chicken tagine

Serves 2

• 2 tsp olive oil (or any oil really)
• 4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
• 2 tsp cumin
• 2 tsp coriander seeds, crushed
• 2 tsp sweet or smoked paprika
• 1 onion, sliced
• 1 pepper, sliced
• 15 large olives
• 50g red lentils (washed and drained)
• 1 tin chopped tomatoes
• 300ml chicken stock (you may need more if not using a tagine)
• 1 tbsp tomato puree
• 1 cinnamon stick, broken
• handful of sultanas or raisins
• juice of half a lemon
• handful of chopped fresh coriander or mint

1. Mix together the dried spices with the oil and rub over the chicken
2. Heat the tagine on the stove and add the chicken thighs, until browned on all sides.
3. Remove the chicken and turn down the heat.
4. Add another tsp of oil and fry the onions until softened
5. Add the garlic, tomatoes, stock, cinnamon, pepper, lentils, lemon juice and raisins to the tagine
6. Cook for about 30 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through and the lentils have absorbed the liquid.  You can also put in an oven if preferred at this point, but it’ll need longer to cook.
7. You may need to add more stock if it becomes too dry, or leave the lid off towards the end if too liquidy
8. 5 minutes before the end, add the olives.  And check the salt level.  Add some if needed.
9. Just before serving, stir through the coriander or mint

And voila, easy peasy moroccan chicken that’s healthy, cheap and pretty quick to make.

 

 

Totally delicious low calorie flapjacks

Having put on quite a bit of weight over the past few months due to my life being a bit chaotic and unpredictable, I’ve decided to try and be healthier and lose a few pounds.

But I need to wean myself off the sugar and carbs slowly as I’m not up for shock tactics. So I thought if I could make flapjacks that are low in refined things and sugar and high in energy boosting things then it would be a good start to cutting down.

I found this recipe here http://cakeincardiff.wordpress.com/2012/10/29/low-calorie-flapjacks/ I’ve heard lots about the hairy bikers diet book – think I’m going to have to get sometime. I do like the Hairy Bikers, their recipes are very doable.

I made 16 flapjacks and adapted the recipe slightly. I worked out that each square has 88 calories so it’s a great diet snack as it’s under the 100 calorie mark, high in fibre and energy boosting oats, low in sugar, got a bit of fruit in it and even some nuts for protein.

And I’ve tried them – they’re delicious, so easy to make – I put it all together in about 5 mins and then shoved it in the oven until cooked. Requires virtually no equipment and you can adapt it anyway you like – use honey instead of maple syrup, substitute some oats for rice crispies, put in any dried fruit and nuts that you like, use any juice you want…and the bonus is – no sweetener in sight – this doesn’t feel like a diet snack. On top of that – these are really purse friendly. Even if you don’t have the ingredients in stock, they’re not expensive to buy – all these ingredients are in most supermarkets’ value ranges – just adapt to whatever you can find.

Cranberry & hazelnut flapjacks

16 squares

• 200g rolled (porridge) oats
• 300ml orange or apple juice
• 2 tbsp maple syrup, honey or golden syrup
• 60g dried cranberries (or apricots, dates, mixed peel – any dried fruit)
• 60g raisins (sultanas, currants, whatever)
• 30g hazelnuts, toasted and chopped (or any nuts)

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsius
2. Put the juice and syrup in a pan and heat until it starts to simmer.
3. Add in the oats and mix well until completely combined (there shouldn’t be juice left it should be absorbed)
4. Take off the heat and add in the fruit and nuts.
5. Mix well to combine then turn into a greased baking tray. Push it all out until it fills the corners of the tray and then push down hard so its very compacted (fingers are good for this).
6. Bake in the oven for about 40 minutes or until golden and crispy on top.
7. Remove from the oven, cut into squares whilst still warm (I used a pizza roller thingy but I knife will do). Leave to cool in the tin.
8. Turn out and enjoy the fruity chewiness without feeling guilty 🙂

Moussaka

As I’m writing this, I’m making a cake for a good friend’s birthday. I’m having problems with the biscuit layers and just hoping that a bit longer in the freezer will sort them out! I’ll be posting that recipe on here too, have no fear – there is so much sugar and chocolate in it, whatever happens it will definitely taste good (I’ve tried the mixture – just to be sure I don’t kill anyone!).

But Moussaka – the reason for this post and not tomorrow’s one. I love this. It’s delicious, healthy, super simple to make, can be made in batches and eaten for the rest of the week or makes a great casual dinner that looks great, tastes great and doesn’t have you tied to the kitchen all night.

There’s no carbs in this so it’s perfect for those of you on low carb diets or no carbs in the evening diets. It’s low fat and lean proteins too. It has 513 calories per serving in it, so it makes a great dinner meal.

I got this from my Greek recipe book, which you can find here http://www.amazon.co.uk/Perfect-Padded-Cookbooks-Greek-Love/dp/1445422387/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1366456152&sr=8-1&keywords=love+food+greek+cookbook

If you’re veggie you can easily substitute the mince for quorn or lentils, or if you’re wanting a more economical moussaka, or a change from the norm, you can do half mince and half lentils.

Moussaka

Serves 4

• 1 tsp oil
• 2 onions, finely sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 400g tin of tomatoes (chopped or plum)
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
• salt & pepper
• 2 eggs
• 300ml low fat natural yoghurt
• 1 tbsp grated parmesan

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsius
2. Thinly slice the aubergines and dry fry in a large pan on a high heat until browned on both sides. Spread them out in the pan – you may need to do this in batches. Set aside.
3. Heat the oil in the frying pan and on a medium heat, fry the onions and garlic together until softened but not browned.
4. Add in the mince, turning up the heat and browning it, breaking it up with the spatula.
5. Add in the tomatoes, and season to taste. Bring to the boil and then simmer gently for about 20 minutes.
6. Whisk together the eggs and yoghurt, with some seasoning.
7. When the mince is cooked through stir through the parsley
8. Place half of aubergine slices in the bottom of a baking dish in a single layer.
9. Pile the mince mixture on top and then layer the remaining aubergine on top to cover it.
10. Pour over the egg mixture covering the aubergine and sprinkle the parmesan on top.
11. Cook in the oven for about 20-30 minutes until cooked through and golden on top.
12. Serve immediately and enjoy memories of your holidays.

Lamb stew with garlic bread crust

I found this in my cook in boots cookbook by Ravinder Bhogal. I had previously ignored it because of the garlic bread crust and I wasn’t eating bread. However, my problems with yeast and bread seemed to have cleared up so I’m eating it again, and so glad to be able to eat anything again.

This was delicious, healthy, hearty and very simple to make. It does need a couple of hours so it’s probably not a midweek thing, although you could make the stew the day before and just finish off in the oven on the day.

It has 560 calories per serving, depending on how much you want. The recipe says 6 servings, however, I don’t know if it was because we were hungry (we hadn’t eaten much all day) or we’re just greedy pigs, but we ate most of it and there’s probably only enough for 1-2 more portions so for 3-4 people. The calories are based on it being for 3 people.

Even so, even if you’re watching the calories, this is a good one. Lots of protein, some comfort carbs, plenty of vege and no extra sneaky things to up the calories for no reason. You could just make the stew and serve with potatoes or have a mashed potato crust instead if you prefer.

It’s also very cheap and the stew itself is freezable, so it’s a great family friendly meal.

Lamb stew with garlic bread crust

Serves 4

• 500g diced stewing lamb
• 1 tbsp plain flour
• 2 tsp oil
• 1 leek, cut into thick rounds
• 3 celery sticks, cut into chunks
• 1 turnip, cut into 8ths
• 1 large chilli, cut into rounds
• 100g pearl barley
• 500ml chicken or lamb stock (plus extra water)
• 2 sprigs fresh rosemary or 1 tsp dried
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 garlic bread baguette (or make your own)

1. Heat 1 tsp of oil in a casserole dish (that’s flameproof, or use a saucepan)
2. Toss the lamb in the flour and discard the excess flour.
3. Fry the lamb in the oil on a high heat until browned on all sides. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
4. Turn the heat down to medium, add the remaining oil if needed and fry the leek, turnip and celery until softened and starting to brown – about 10 minutes.
5. Return the lamb to the pan along with the pearl barley, bay leaves, rosemary and chicken stock.
6. Stir well, bring to the boil and then simmer gently, covered, for about 1 hour, or until the lamb is tender. Check occasionally and top up with water as needed.
7. About 15 minutes before the stew is cooked, preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsius.
8. Prepare the garlic bread baguette.
9. When the stew is cooked, top with sliced garlic bread baguette to form a crust and bake in the oven for about 20 minutes or until the bread is cooked and crispy.
10. Serve immediately and enjoy 🙂

92 calorie individual apple pies

Since getting back from Ibiza I’ve really been trying to be good and get back into being healthy. The problem is, I’ve been depressed and craving sugar, and so I’ve ended up in front of the vending machine far too many times. In an attempt to rectify that, whilst not going totally cold turkey I found these fantastic pies.

They fill the craving hole whilst not ruining your good intentions and they are delicious, and super simple to make. You literally need an oven and that’s about it.

Our neighbour has an apple tree and many of his apples have ended up in our garden, some a bit worse for wear but still edible. So I thought it better to cook them down with a bit of sugar (I actually used sweetener, you can’t taste the difference). Then I added some strawberries that were very cheap in the supermarket but also a bit worse for wear and needed cooking. Both the apples and strawberries were very sweet so didn’t need much sweetener, just a bit to bring out the juices. I added a squeeze of lemon too.

And filo pastry is the best for pastry if you’re watching your weight, it’s a lot lighter than other pastries. I used olive oil spray instead of melted butter between the sheets. I honestly couldn’t tell any difference.

I made about 15 triangles. They’ll easily keep in a box for a few days and are great for taking to work for lunch or a snack.

Apple and strawberry pies

Makes about 15

• 5-6 eating apples or 2 baking apples, cored and chopped
• 125g strawberries, hulled and halved (or use strawberry jam)
• 2 tbsp splenda or other sweetener
• 4 sheets filo pastry
• oil spray
• 1 egg beaten

1. Heat the oven to 200 degrees celsius
2. Place the apple and strawberries with the sweetener in a saucepan on a medium heat, stiring occassionally until they break down and release their juices. Add a bit of water if its too dry. This takes about 10-15 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.
3. Carefully remove the filo pastry sheets from the package onto a clean, dry surface, one at a time. Spray the top of each one with 3-4 sprays of oil spray before placing the next sheet on top of it. Spray the top of the 4th sheet.
4. Cut into thirds, lengthwise.
5. Place a tablespoon of the apple and strawberry mix in the middle of the top third of pastry, towards the left end. Fold the corner of the pastry diagonally across to make a triangle and cover the mix. Cut along the edge which meets the pastry and press along the edges to seal. Place on a baking tray sprayed with oil spray. Brush with the beaten egg, pressing down the edges as you go. Repeat until all the pastry and mixture is used up.
6. Bake for about 20 minutes until cooked through and golden on top.
7. Remove from the oven, allow to cool, and then eat with a nice cup of tea, feeling your cravings subside.

Cheap and healthy meals: lentil and mince enchiladas

I do like enchiladas and they’re pretty healthy any way you do them, but I also love lentils, so the opportunity to add them to enchiladas couldn’t really be missed (I have made them the standard chicken or beef strips instead in the past). Lentils give you lots of great protein without the calories and make mince beef go further – which is why its cheap, because lentils cost virtually nothing.

I found the original recipe here, but more or less just made this up as I went along. And they were delicious. I think you can add more or less whatever you like to this recipe. Make it with just mince (combine the lentil and mince quantities), add peppers, add tomatoes, add whatever you like, or leave it all out. Use tinned tomatoes instead of passata – but add tomato puree too. Whatever. You can use flour or corn tortillas too. Get creative!

My recipe is 612 calories for 2 tortillas is 612 calories. So it’s still not super low in calories but is fine for dinner if you’ve been good in the day.

http://thirty-quid.blogspot.co.uk/2010/07/beef-and-lentil-enchiladas.html

Lentil and mince enchiladas

Serves 2

• 50g lentils (I used red as these cook fastest)
• 1 tbsp oil
• 1 onion
• 150g beef mince (I used lean steak)
• 1/2 tin sweetcorn
• 200ml passata
• 75ml beef stock
• 2 tbsp fajita seasoning (or make your own)
• 1 tbsp chopped jalapenos (or use fresh chillis instead)
• 2 tomatoes, chopped
• salt & pepper
• 4-5 tortillas (I used corn)
• 4 tbsp herby soured cream
• 50g cheddar cheese, grated

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees celsius.
2. Boil the lentils in water until soft and mushy. Drain and set aside.
3. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a pan and add the onion. Cook on a medium heat until translucent but not browned.
4. Add the mince, turning up the heat and frying until browned, breaking lumps up with the spatula.
5. Add in the jalapenos, sweetcorn, fajita seasoning and tomatoes. Cook out for a couple of minutes.
6. In a bowl combine the passata and beef stock.
7. Add 2/3 of the passata mix to the pan, mixing well.
8. Add in the lentils and 1/3 of the cheese and give it another stir.
9. Remove from the heat. Take a tortilla and fill the middle with the mix (I find a couple of spoonfuls usually does it).
10. Roll and place with seam downwards in a rectangular baking tray or dish. Repeat until all the tortillas are filled.
11. Pour the rest of the passata mix over the rolled tortillas and then dollop the soured cream over. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese.
12. Place in the oven for about 20 minutes until cooked through and the cheese is melted and golden.
13. Carefully remove from the pan with a spatula and serve (with a green salad perhaps?)
14. Enjoy 🙂

Simple summer salad: Courgette and chickpea salad

I got a vege box from one of the farm delivery places – they were doing an offer – and they sent it with a load of recipes, some of which look quite good. This particular company is called Riverford and are local to Manchester, in case you’re interested. So I thought I’d give one of the recipes a go. This salad is so simple and very tasty and can be put together in about 15 minutes. It’s about 400 calories too, so it’s great for a low fat, low carb lunch to keep you going til dinner.

The salad is just lovely, summer on a plate, and even better if you can enjoy in the garden – which we did. But even if you can’t the simple zesty flavours just conjure up summer.

The original recipe uses beans – haricot or borlotti – but I didn’t have any so I used chickpeas instead. It worked very well with chickpeas and I’m sure is tasty either way.

Courgette and chickpea salad

Serves 2 (as a main)

• 2 courgettes, peeled into ribbons
• 1 tin chickpeas, drained
• 10 cherry tomatoes, halved
• 100g lettuce, cut into ribbons
• zest & juice of 1/2 lemon
• small handful of basil leaves, roughly chopped
• 1 garlic clove, roughly chopped
• 50ml olive oil
• salt & pepper

1. Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a griddle pan, or head the grill and griddle the courgettes until softened and browned in spots
2. Put the chickpeas, lettuce and tomatoes into a bowl together.
3. Blitz the lemon juice & zest, oil, basil and garlic in a blender or mash it in a pestle and mortar into a dressing. Season to taste.
4. Add the courgettes to the chickpeas and tomatoes and pour over the dressing. Toss to combine and serve immediately
5. Enjoy the lovely summer flavours 🙂