Cauliflower and Parsnip Soup

This soup is the result of my love for cauliflower, the fact that it's really high in vitamin C (and I have a cold) and the lack of cauli recipes out there, save the cheese variety. I thought I'd give it a go and the result was a really creamy texture and taste, with a very flavoursome topping that contrasts well with the subtle cauliflower.

All the soup ingredients are white to keep the colour, so I avoided even pepper and stock and made sure that nothing coloured in the pan - so a low heat in the initial stages is essential.

Ingredients:

for the soup:

Low fat cooking spray

1 onion, chopped

1 tsp crushed garlic

Salt

3 small parsnips, peeled and chopped

1 medium - large head of cauliflower, chopped and any brown bits discarded

1 bayleaf

1 litre of boiling water

for the topping:

Low fat cooking spray

1/2 a small leek (the green end), sliced

6 mushrooms, sliced

1 tsp chilli ( I used the prepared stuff in a tube as it has all the juices t permeate)

1 tsp lemon juice

salt and pepper

2 large sundried tomatoes

Handful of rocket

Paprika

Freshly ground black pepper

Parsley to serve

To make:

1) Heat a pan over a low heat with some cooking spray and add the onions. Cook them very gently and stir constantly to stop them browning. When translucent, add the garlic and salt and a little water to stop sticking.

2) Add cauliflower and the bayleaf and the rest of the water. Bring to the boil, then turn down and simmer for half an hour to make sure everything is really soft.

3) Blend the soup in a blender until smooth, return to the pan and keep on a very low heat, stirring every now and again.

4) Add leeks to a small frying pan with a little cooking spray and stir fry until cooked. Add mushrooms, chilli, lemon juice and seasoning, and stir fry until the mushrooms are browning. Add the sundried tomatoes and rocket and toss until combined and the rocket has wilted.

4) Pour soup into bowls and sprinkle with paprika, place some of the topping on top of each bowl and finish with freshly ground black pepper and parsley.

Served 2/3

Sweet Potato and Bean Soup

This recipe is ridiculously easy to make. I wanted to make muffins as well this evening, so made a dinner that could literally just be thrown together and left.

It's pretty much a Jill Dupleix recipe (my mum sent it to me ages ago from one of her recipe books and I've found it online http://www.jilldupleix.com/recipes/rec067.php), I've just upped the spice a bit.

There is a really nice amount of heat to this, and the flame orange colour of the soup and the red of the paprika reinforces the spicy taste.

Ingredients:

4 medium - large orange fleshed sweet potatoes, cut into small pieces

5 cups of boiling water or veg stock (I crumbled a stock cube over the veg and added water on top)

Salt and pepper

400g can of white beans, rinsed (I used cannelini beans. Butterbeans would also be good and Chickpeas would give a more Moroccan taste)

1 heaped tsp curry power (I used medium heat)

1 heaped tsp ground cumin

Plain soy yoghurt (or dairy if you prefer)

Paprika to sprinkle

A small handful of parsley, chopped

To make:

1) Put the sweet potatoes, stock or water and salt (not too much) and pepper in a pot. Bring to the boil, then turn down to simmer. I left it for about half an hour while I made muffins.

2) When the potato is very soft, take off the heat and add the spices and 1/2 the can of beans, stir well.

3) Either transfer to a blender or use a stick blender to get a smooth soup. I prefer using a stick blender as there's no fuss with transferring and you don't need to wait for it to cool.

4) If you have used a blender, return to the pot and add the other 1/2 of the beans. If it's too thick for your liking, add a bit more boiling water to achieve the consistency you like, bring the soup back to a gentle simmer.

5) Pour into bowls and top with a couple of spoonfuls of yoghurt, a sprinkling of paprika and some parsley. Serve with mini naan breads if desired.

So easy, so healthy, yet so delicious and very visually appealing.

I would say served 4 with bread, but this served 2 very big bowls (with one having a second bowl) without bread.

Comfort Stew

Today was the first seriously Autumn day in London. It rained, was getting dark as I walked home from the station and I even wore tights. So it was the perfect evening for a filling stew; hearty, warming, tasty and packed with veges. This stew is the dinner equivalent of slipping on a giant knitted jumper, tracksuit trousers and ugg boots. Cosy.

You can play around with the variety of veg in this. It's nice to have different colours and cut them in a range of ways (cubes, strips, rounds etc).

I am very much a cook-by-sight and then taste person, not so much a stickler for measuring. But I have, for the sake of my blog, tried to measure everything out. The ingredients list looks hideously long, but it's really just this and that from the spice cupboard. The time is all in the prep - once it is in the oven, the time is yours!

Ingredients:

For the stew's sauce

2 tsp vegetarian gravy powder

1 c boiling water

2 Tbs flour

1 Tbs tomato paste

Salt

Pepper

1 tsp dried mixed herbs

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp worcestershire sauce

1 tsp soy sauce

1 tsp balsamic vingar

The body of the stew

1 medium onion, sliced lengthwise

1 small / medium leek, sliced

3 vegetarian sausages, cut into chunks on the diagonal

A splash of soy sauce

1 large garlic clove

1/2 tin of any beans you like (I used borlotti for the stew pictured, but mixed beans, chickpeas or any white bean are also perfect)

1 red capsicum, sliced lengthwise

1/3 head of cauliflower, cut into florets

1/3 head of broccoli, cut into florets

1 large carrot, cut into rounds

1 medium sweet potato, cubed

3 mushrooms, sliced

400g tin of chopped tomatoes

A large handful of basil

For the cous cous

1 cup cous cous

About 1 1/2 cups of boiling water

Salt

Pepper

Lemon juice

A big handful of parsley, chopped

To make:

1) Mix sauce ingredients together - first the gravy granules and water, then add flour and mix well. Add the the rest of the ingredients and combine.

2) Lightly fry the leek, onions and sausages with the first measure of soy sauce.

3) Cut all veges and add them to a casserole dish with a lid. Add the cooked onions, leek and sausages.

4) Pour the sauce over the veges along with the tomatoes.

5) Cook at gas mark 6 for about an hour, taking out to stir occasionally (about 3 times).

6) Make the cous cous when the stew is almost ready. Put cous cous in a bowl, add boiling water, cover and leave for about 10 minutes. Taste it to make sure it's cooked through, and if not, add a touch more water and leave to stand again. Be really careful not to add to much. Add salt, pepper, lemon juice and parsley and combine with a fork.

7) serve the meal sprinkled with parsley.

Serves about 4 or tastes great the next day if you have left overs.

Lemon and Dill Salmon Fishcakes

These fishcakes are real comfort food. Great in either summer or winter, they play host to a range of different flavours that all centre around the salmon. The addition of the boiled egg makes them more than a little reminiscent of a fish pie.

The crunch of crumbs and the creaminess of potato makes for a delicious meal that skips the added fat of many potato based recipes. These can be fried or baked, but I find the best(not to mention lowest fat) results from grilling.

Salmon is so, so good for you, both inside and out. Because this recipe flakes the fish, you can buy the cheaper off cuts from supermarket like Sainsbury's. If you eat fish, I'd really encourage you to encorporate it in your weekly menus.

Ingredients:

2 large potatoes (about 250g each)

4 Tbs soy yoghurt

2 Tbs soy milk

Salt

Pepper

1 tsp dried dill

Juice of 1/4 lemon

1 tsp wholegrain mustard

1 1/2 tsp sweet chilli sauce

2 spring onions, finely chopped

low fat cooking spray

1 small onion, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

1 egg

200g salmon, chopped into chunks

1 Tbs soy sauce

1 tsp lemon juice

1 tsp honey

A handful of parsley, chopped

To make:

1) Peel and chop the potatoes and bring to the boil in a pan of salted water. Turn the heat down to a rapid simmer and cook about 15 min or until tender.

2) When cooked, drain potatoes, transfer to a large bowl and mash. Add the soy yoghurt and milk, 1 Tbs at a time, mashing in between until you get a smooth, creamy texture - but not too sloppy. Add salt, pepper, dill, first measure of lemon juice, wholegrain mustard, sweet chilli sauce and spring onions. Mix well.

3) Use the potato pot to boil your egg, about 8 minutes for a hard boiled egg. When it's ready, cool in a bowl of cold water and then peel and chop.

4) While your egg cooks, gently fry onions and garlic in a little low fat spray in a small pan, making sure they turn translucent and don't burn. Add to the potatoes and mix.

5) Pan fry the salmon with the honey, soy sauce and 2nd measure of lemon juice. Cook on a high heat so all liquid thickens and the fish is well coated and cooked. Flake the salmon gently with a fork. Add to the potatoes with the parsley and egg and mix well.

6) Prepare a baking tray with low fat spray to prevent sticking. Pour some crumbs into a bowl and shape handfuls of the mixture into patties. Cover in the crumbs and pat gently in between your hands to make the crumbs adhere. Place each cake on the baking tray.

7) If you have time, leave the cakes in the fridge to solidify a little, if not, go straight to step 8 (which is exactly what I did for the ones pictured).

8)Grill about 15 minutes on the first side, or until golden. Turn and grill 10 mins on the other side.

Serve with salad, lemon wedges and a choice of condiments like sweet chilli sauce, tomato sauce, or tartar sauce.

This made 8 fish cakes and served 2, one hungry boy and one not quite so hungry girl.

Sunday brekkie - healthy eggs bene

This is a vegetarian, low fat alternative to Eggs Benedict. Obviously it doesn't have Hollandaise sauce, but personally I find this too rich anyway. The soft cheese adds creaminess for those who would like it, or a little soy / natural yoghurt would serve a similar purpose.

Eggs are high in protein and spinach is rich in antioxidants and fibre.

Ingredients:

2 eggs

2 English Muffins (split)

Low fat cooking spray

4 mushrooms

3 large handfuls of baby spinach

Salt and pepper

A little low fat soft cheese if you like

Chopped parsley

To make:

1) Bring a pot of water to a simmer to poach the eggs.

2) Chop the mushrooms into fairly thin slices. Heat a small pan with a little low fat cooking spray and add mushrooms.

3) Put the muffins spilt side up under the grill. They'll take about 3 minutes.

4)Add eggs to water. If you are using the traditional poaching method make sure that water is at a very slow simmer and add about 1tsp of white vinegar before adding the eggs. Personally, I use silicone egg poachers - you just crack the egg into them and pop them in the boiling water where they float. Easy. I like my eggs very well cooked, but about 3 minutes will see an egg that's cooked through the white with a runny yoke. Perfect to my partner's taste.

5) Add the spinach to the mushrooms at the very end, cook until it's just wilted.

6) To assemble, spread a little of the soft cheese on the muffin if desired (I left this off my one as I don't eat dairy) and top with the mushrooms and spinach to cover the muffin. Slide the egg on top and sprinkle with chopped parsley and some freshly ground black pepper.

7) If you are very hungry, you can serve 2 eggs per person and double the veg (my partner always has 2) or the remaining halves of muffin can be had with a sweet topping, like marmalade, to finish off the breakfast.

Serves 2.

P.S, if you are interested, from my calculations, each 1/2 muffin with the veges and egg, no cream cheese, is 3 Weight Watchers points.