starters and main courses
mediterranean chicken
serves 4 as a main course
energy Kcal per 100g: 75
fat (g) per 100g: 2.6
preparation time: 10 minutes
cooking time: 20 minutes
Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large saucepan, add 4 chicken breasts (boneless & skinless) and cook until golden brown.
Remove from the pan. Slice 1 aubergine, courgette and yellow pepper, add to the pan and stir-fry for 3-4 minutes.
Return the chicken and pour over one 475g of low-fat tomato & basil pasta sauce. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Serve with your favourite pasta.
salad nicoise with warm tomato & basil
serves 4 as a starter - 2 as a main course
energy Kcal per 100g: 96
fat (g) per 100g: 5
preparation time: 35 minutes
Cook 350g new potatoes for 10-15 minutes, adding 225g fine green beans (halved) 3 minutes before the end of the cooking time. Drain well.
Add 475g sun-ripened tomato & basil and leave to cool slightly.
Hard boil 4 eggs, shell them and cut into quarters.
Place the potato and green bean mixture into a large bowl and gently stir in 12 black olives (optional), 200g tuna and 50 anchovies (optional).
Serve immediately, garnished with the eggs.
cheesy baked bean hotpot
serves 2 as a starter - 1 as a main course
energy Kcal per 100g: 135
fat (g) per 100g: 2.8
preparation time: 5 minutes
cooking time: 10 minutes
In a small saucepan, place 200g of baked beans in tomato sauce, 100g of chopped tomatoes, 50g of green or red bell peppers finely chopped, 1 tsp ready-made crispy onions, 1 tsp chopped chives, 1 tbsp of Worcestershire-style sauce or brown sauce and 10g of grated low-fat Cheddar cheese. Heat gently, stirring frequently, until the cheese has melted and the other ingredients are hot and tender. Season to taste.
Meanwhile, rinse 50g of spinach leaves, shake dry and put them in a large saucepan with a pinch of salt. Cover and cook over a moderate heat for 3-5 minutes or until the spinach has wilted.
Remove the lid, raise the heat and add a little grated nutmeg. Cook stirring often, until the juices have evaporated from the pan and the spinach is relatively dry. Season to taste.
Arrange a bed of spinach on a serving plate and top with the cheesy baked beans.
'corned beef' hash
serves 4 as a main course
energy Kcal per 100g: 390
fat (g) per 100g: 4.5
preparation time: 10 minutes
cooking time: 5-10 minutes
In a HOT large non-stick oven-proof dish layer1 diced pre-cooked (in a pan of hot water soak the potato slices until soft - about 10 minutes) small-medium potato evenly, then 1 diced bell pepper, red, green, yellow or a combination, 2 cups of imitation bacon bits, ½ cup of chopped onion or instant dried chopped onion (available at supermarkets), a pinch of ground black pepper, a layer of veggie bacon strips and a final layer of potato, and then pour over 4 tbsp of soy sauce mixed with 2 tbsp of tomato ketchup. Cook at medium heat, turning and mixing to keep from burning, until evenly browned, about 5 minutes.
If your non-stick dish is sticking, before adding any ingredients but when hot, spray a one-second blast of non-fat oil and then wipe surface with a paper towel, leaving only a fine layer of spray on the dish.
Serve hot with ½ tin of baked beans.
hearty and healthy vegetable soup
serves 8 as a starter - 4 as a main course
- it's a good idea to make double and freeze for later
energy Kcal per 100g: 98
fat (g) per 100g: 0.5
preparation time: 10 minutes
cooking time: 40 minutes
In a large pan over a medium heat, heat 2 tsp of olive oil. Add 1 chopped onion and ½ a head of cabbage cut into 2 inch pieces and sauté until tender, about 5 minutes.
Add 2 carrots cut into 1 inch pieces, 2 celery stalks cut into 1 inch pieces, 1 courgette cut into 1 inch pieces, 4 small red potatoes (with skin) cut into 1 inch pieces and 200g of fresh mushrooms sliced and simmer for 5 minutes.
Add 6 tomatoes peeled, seeded and diced, 700ml of vegetable stock, ½ oz of fresh chopped basil, 1 tbsp of fresh thyme chopped, ½ tsp of salt and ¼ tsp of ground black pepper.
Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer until the potatoes are tender, about 30 minutes.
