Seasoning series: pesto

 

Good with pasta, fish, chicken or even mix through yogurt as salad dressing, this recipe is about tasting as you go. You may like more lemon or more pepper or more salt it's entirely up to you!

1 pot/large packet fresh basil

1tbsp grated Parmesan (1syn)

1tsp extra virgin olive oil (2 syns but syns vary so please check!)

1small clove garlic, 

Juice of half a lemon,

Generous pinch of salt and pepper

2tbsp water

Blend together and keep in the fridge for up to 5days, replace the fresh garlic with a pinch of garlic granules to last 10-14 days 

spinach and 'ricotta' lasagne

This is my take on spinach and ricotta, the most important step is trying to get moisture out of quark, if you have cheesecloth use that or when salted leave in the bowl and pour away as much excess moisture as possible!

you will need a lasagne dish (use whatever you have, a bowl or rectangular dish or anything you have)
lasagne sheets (dried)
2 pots of quark
2small red onion finely diced
1 large clove of garlic or 2 medium
salt and pepper
a bag of frozen spinach (thawed out, squeezed from excess water and roughly chopped)
2 tins of chopped tomatoes
2 sticks of celery
2 carrots
2 egg yolks or 1 egg
4tbsp grated parmesan (4 syns)

starting with the quark, add 1.5 pots to a bowl and stir in a generous pinch of salt, if you can leave the bowl at an angle for at least an hour or even over night.

meanwhile you could either finely dice the vegetables or use a food processor.
process one onion with half the garlic to make a puree. add to a pan and cook until most of the moisture is gone, and a generous pinch of salt and pepper and add the spinach, again cooking till there is no moisture, move to the side and cool completely.

process your other onion, the other bit of garlic, celery and carrot until finely minced and fry off in a pan with fry light until they soften, add in the tomatoes (here you could add in some dried basil and some fresh parsley) cook down and season to taste.

pour off the excess moisture from the quark and stir in the spinach and onion mixture.

starting with a layer of tomato sauce layer it into your dish then a layer of lasagne sheet then the spinach mixture, layering until you have no spinach or tomato mixture left.
leave a blank layer of lasagne sheets on top of the dish.

mix together the remaining quark with the egg, 3 tblsp of water the parmesan and a pinch of black pepper and evenly layer over the top of your lasagne.

cover with foil and put in your oven at 180oC for 40 minutes, remove the foil and cook for a further 20 minutes.

crab linguine

Sorry for not posting in a few days i have been off track as i've not been well.. so heres to the first proper meal back on plan. I am a pasta/carbaholic.. and i love crab so here is a simple crab linguine that is simple but easy to impress with!

serves 4

500g linguine, spaghetti.. whatever the heck you want!
i used asda frozen crab claws as you get a lot of meat but 2 tins of lump crab meat in brine will do (just drain off the water)
2 large tomatoes, deseeded and chopped into small pieces.
zest and juice of a lemon
4 tsp of olive oil
1/2 grated clove of garlic
(chilli is nice but personally i prefer this dish without chilli.. you could always add half a desseeded chilli finely chopped)
generous pinch of salt and pepper
about 200g fresh rocket to serve.

cook the pasta -2 minutes of the cooking time to make it perfectly al dente.
meanwhile save some of the pasta water and mix in the olive oil, lemon, garlic, salt and pepper.
drain the pasta and add back to the pot with the pasta water mixture and tomatoes
.
coat the pasta in the flavour then add in the crab meat, stir lightly trying to not break it up too much.
to serve just dish the pasta up then add the rocket to the top of the pasta, this is the way they do it in italian restaurants and it works really well, almost like another seasoning to the crab and pasta dish and brings out the flavour of the crab, along with the lemon!








(image courtesy of bbcgoodfood until i make this again... as i was too hungry to think about a photo sorry!)

crispy garlic chicken

This really adds something to a salad or is a good way to start a curry as the cornflour keeps the meat nice and moist!

4 large bone less skinless chicken thighs, cut into small 1 or 2 cm cubes.
1/2 tsp garlic granules
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp mixed white and black pepper
1 tbsp cornflour (1 syn)

mix all together in a bowl ensuring the chicken is coated all over with the cornflour garlic mixture
set for at least 20 minutes.

get a frying pan nice and hot with low calorie spray and lay the chicken in an even layer.

let cook for 1 minute then flip and cook for a further minute.

keep tossing the chicken until it is cooked through.

leave the chicken to rest for a couple of minutes as it helps the meat to relax and reabsorb its juices.

it just adds something to a plain salad, my little sister said they taste like chicken nuggets!

All in one beef 'pot roast' (slow cooker)

Tender juicy beef, vegetables, potatoes and a gorgeously comforting onion gravy, what could be better?

We start with 1kg of lean beef (use what you can afford! it doesn't actually have to be a joint or anything!)
3 large onions sliced thinly
(i use chesnut mushrooms in mine too, usually about 6-7 sliced thin but i saute them in a frying pan with some low cal spray before adding them to the slow cooker! just put them under the beef with the onions)
1 bay leaf
1tbsp cornflour (1syn)
4 large carrots chunked up
4 potatoes chunked up
generous pinch of dry thyme and rosemary.
200ml beef broth
1 bay leaf
generous pinch of salt and pepper.

lay the onions in the bottom of the slow cooker and place the beef on top.
mix the beef broth with the cornflour, bay leaf, rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper and pour over the beef and onion. put the carrots and potatoes on top.
cover and cook for 6 hours on high or 8 on low.
i usually just boil some broccoli and green beans to go with it but i dont see why you couldnt also add that to the slow cooker!

I hope you like this dish i would love some feed back!

Speedy risotto

I will be uploading videos soon and this will be the first recipe video i upload in a long time onto youtube at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4ururmkHVMaRmnB7aVAOcA

so i know i would be shot if in italy so i am sorry to any italians reading this!!

so we start off with a low syn microwave rice (the one i have is currently syn free)
but any ole packet will do! serving 2 people or 1 hungry person!

you will need about 100ml of stock
salt and pepper
2 tbsp parmesan (2 syns)
your packet of rice
and i am going with mushrooms in this! a good few handfuls of sliced mushrooms
your base is a finely diced onion and a grated garlic clove and obviously the rice!

So we start by softening the onion in a frying pan with low cal spray.
Add your mushrooms and cook to your liking (you could use any veggies you want or chicken, ham etc)
Add in your rice and stir fry for 3-5 minutes. Add in your stock and stir. cook for 2 minutes, remove from the heat, stir in the parmesan and a generous pinch of pepper and adjust for salt (bearing in mind that the parmesan is salty)
I like to serve mine with a big handful of spinach on top.

I hope you enjoy!

broccoli bake

greens are hard to get into children at the best of time, let alone adults. you know why? you boil the heck out of it!
This italian style broccoli pasta bake is creamy, savoury, garlicky and full of goodness.
4-6 people

1 broccoli head chopped finely (or briefly whizzed in food processor), grate up that stem it is packed full of goodness!!
300g dry pasta
2 large cloves garlic
salt and pepper
quark (no certain amount)
4 tbsp FRESHLY grated parmesan cheese (1 syn per tbsp)
fry light olive oil (if you have sunflower oil that is ok)
1 red onion finely diced
100ml unsweetened almond milk (1/2 syn)

cook your pasta for 6-7 minutes ( i know it doesnt seem long but it will be going in the oven)
meanwhile fry off your onion on low heat with fry light until softened, turn up the heat, add the garlic and broccoli, coating it in the onion and garlic, add a splash of water and cook for 5 minutes.
remove from the heat and stir the broccoli through the pasta with the parmesan, milk and 2-3 tbsp quark with a generous pinch of salt and pepper.
put in an oven proof dish and bake for 10 minutes at 20
0oC alternatively you could let it cool wrap it up and freeze for up to 6 months. just take out and bake for 40 minutes at 180oC.

My ultimate comfort food: carbonara

I cannot even fathom where to begin in explaining this low syn, delicious dish! Comforting, creamy, savoury and only 2 syns a portion? what.. the.. heck?
This is my twist on carbonara, it is closely related to the traditional version, this is (i think) a rather big portion so you could probably split it between 2 if serving with a side salad (or veggies) and some form of meat!

Now, i know i am likely to get lots of questions about the 'raw egg'. The raw egg you add, is cooked by the heat of both the pasta and heat of the pan, if you are that worried add a little water or stock, top with cheese and bang it in the oven for a good 15 minutes at 200oC for a delicious mac and cheese!

You will need:
150g pasta of your choice (if you are baking do not use spaghetti etc)
2 slices of fat removed bacon (chopped into smallish dice)
5 medium mushroom (white mushrooms or the brown chestnut mushrooms will do (if you can get a bag of mixed mushrooms around mid autumn why not turn this from a carbonara to a creamy mushroom carbonara?)
100g small cut broccoli florets.
1 egg
2 tbsp grated parmesan (1 syn per tbsp)
salt, pepper

Start by getting your pasta on the go with the broccoli, (while you are doing this get a large frying pan hot with fry light) but cook it for 2 minutes less than it says on the packaging.
While your pasta is cooking, fry your bacon until it is crispy with fry light.
Add the mushrooms and cook until softened.
By now your  pasta should be cooked. use a slotted spoon or tongs to move the pasta from the water directly to the pan with the bacon in, stir and add a good pinch of salt and pepper. (keeping the pan on the heat.
crack an egg into a cup, add the parmesan and whisk well. turn the pasta off the heat, pour in your egg and stir constantly until the sauce thickens (if it is too thick add a little more of the pasta water)
You are done and ready to serve.

This is great if you have picky kids who refuse to eat broccoli because it breaks up completely and coats the pasta. If your kids do not like mushrooms, just omit them and add a couple of handfuls of peas :)

I hope you enjoy this quick recipe. I will post again soon my lovelies! :)

Tray bake posh fish and chips

OOOH yes.. the fish and chips. well i say chips, mine are usually random cuts of potato that go crispy and delicious. I so need to have this for dinner again soon!

Serves 4 people
4 pieces of fish (your choice what you use!
25g of semolina ( 4 syns)
1 tbsp reduced fat pesto (1.5 syns)
salt and pepper
zest of one large lemon
As many potatoes as you wish, cut into whatever shape you want.
4 onions, cut into wedges (optional)
(i usually serve mine with mushy peas and salad but its your choice entirely)

Put the potatoes on a lined oven tray with the onions spray with fry light and a little salt, put in the oven at 180oC for 30 minutes.
After the 30 minutes. pat your fish dry, in a cup mix your pesto with salt, pepper and the lemon zest. brush each fish with the pesto and press it into the semolina (or sprinkle it over preference again)
Place on top of the potatoes and cook uncovered for 10 minutes, check the fish, depending on the thickness you may need more time, or sometimes less time.
I know you dont exactly get a lovely crisp batter but you still get a little crisp and a punch of flavour from the topping!
(alternatively you could leave out thepesto and without patting the fish dry you could pat on the semolina salt and pepper)

i hope you enjoy!

Pasta primavera

I was in tesco yesterday and i saw some asparagus and it reminded me of my favourite ever pasta dish.. Pasta primavera! Full of fresh veggies and basil (or in our case low fat green pesto, i find the tesco own brand is the best!) This dish is great with fish or chicken or just on its own with a side salad! AND Low in syn coming in at 4 syns for the whole lot and it will serve 4-6 people (and its a hit with the kiddies or to freeze!!)

you will need
500g pasta of your choice
half a head of broccoli cut into small florets
1 pack of asparagus (trimmed and cut into bitesize pieces)
200g trimmed and chopped green beans
200g frozen peas
1 leek finely sliced
2 tbsp reduced fat green pesto (3 syns)
2 tbsp quark
1tbsp grated parmesan cheese (1 syn, this stuff is my pride and joy in the kitchen)
salt and pepper to taste
First, cook your pasta, look at the packet instructions and cook for 2 minutes less than it says on the pack. (this is crucial)
While the pasta is cooking add in the broccoli to the pasta.
While the pasta is cooking mix together the quark, pesto, parmesan, a pinch of salt and pepper and some of the cooking water. This is crucial for making the pasta creamy. Save some cooking water trust me!
2 minutes before the end of cooking time add the asparagus and peas to the boiling pasta.
Drain the pasta (again remember to save some cooking water!!!!)
while the pasta is draining, in the pan you boiled your pasta in, lightly fry the leeks. When they become soft and translucent add the sauce, stir, cooking for 30 seconds, add some more pasta water then the pasta, stir, thoroughly coating the pasta and the job is done!

YUM YUM YUM :') i love this dish i hope you do too!