Short on time, but desperate for some existentially-redefining delicious food? Well dear reader, look no further, for these seriously-yum & super-easy-to-make ROCKET ROLLS are precisely what you’ve been looking for. Search your feelings, you know this to be true. They look so pretty & are guaranteed to impress all possible guests with their colourful, versatile & healthy ingredients. They are also the perfect lunch to take to work, given how neat and filling they are. Aside from that delectable sauce, the ingredients are all pretty healthy, consisting mainly of fresh veggies and herbs – they combine to deliver a proper knockout flavoursome punch! When it comes to the dressing, it has quite a rich essence and therefore you don’t actually need to use that much of it. The rolling of the rice sheets can demand some dexterity, but frankly by the third one, you’re guaranteed to get the hang of it. Click MORE to see the full recipe – I hope you love them as much as I do! (more…)
The humble spud may have originated in the Andes 7000 years ago, but it features heavily in today’s Swedish diet, and is a mainstay in many of the recipes in my recent book Fit In 3. When Love Potatoes reached out to ask me to craft a delicious, healthy breakfast recipe using potatoes, I was delighted to oblige, and dipped into my deep bench of spud dishes! The potato isn’t just an incredibly versatile ‘hero ingredient’ (think roasted, baked, mashed, steamed, crisped, wedged/chipped etc), but it packs significant health benefits. Each one is loaded with flavonoids and carotenoids (whose antioxidant activities to help reduce the risk of chronic diseases), vitamin B6 (to enable enzymatic reactions and promote cellular renewal, as well as the production of serotonin in the brain and healthy heart function) and a unique type of ‘resistant starch’ that may help regulate blood sugar and improve the digestive health. They’re satisfying (their latin name solanum tuberosum literally means comforting tubers!) so you stay fuller for longer, and actually contain more potassium than a banana (which helps to regulate blood pressure and protect against the likes of stroke) or indeed any other fruit or vegetable. They’re also affordable, and always on hand as they’re grown throughout the year – the leading vegetable crop in the world. This recipe is for a delicious Breakfast Potato Frittata with Mushroom, Spinach and Italian Herbs – it’s quick and easy, requiring limited kitchen skills, packs a serious nutritional punch and will keep you full until lunch time! Click MORE for the full recipe and video ‘how to’… (more…)
‘Can pizza ever be healthy?‘, you may be wondering, as I also did once upon a time. But being a normal human being, I absolutely adore the occasional pleasure of a salty, thin, crispy pizza with fresh basil and authentic Italian ingredients topping it off! However it’s a rare treat as I know a large pizza can easily amount to 1000+ calories, and relatively empty ones at that. SOLUTION TIME!Amazon challenged me to whip up something summery and healthy but with an indulgent touch, as part of their #NowItsSummer campaign, and I picked up that gauntlet with gusto; Pizza it was to be! In this post, I’ve experimented with a ‘healthier’ dough-base equivalent in the form of cauliflower and sourced my own high-quality toppings to complement it. The production process was a total blast, and the result is way tastier and easier-to-make than it sounds – plus it forms a delicious crust foundation to house the topping of your choice. For me, that’s anchovies (deliciousness plus the added benefit of some omega fatty acids and protein), some low-fat-high-protein cheese, some flax, tomatoes and veggies, some fresh basil and rocket, and we’re in business! Click MORE to get the full recipe and whip up something special for the next time you have some friends round!
Turmeric is all the rage these days, having successfully captured the zeitgeist of hipster nutrition. It appears in all sorts of places from lattes to protein shakes. I propose something altogether different today; in order to help you channel your inner trend-follower whilst enjoying a superbly tasty and healthy dish, here’s a quick and easy fish recipe using turmeric and saffron to give it some unexpected flavours, AND alluring colours. The turmeric and saffron enrobe the fish in a wonderfully rich yellow hue whilst the sweet flavours work beautifully with the savoury fish. Colourful plant foods are superb for our health because of their phytochemical properties (plant pigments) and turmeric is an extremely concentrated example of exactly that. It offers a disproportionate suite of health benefits due to the presence of curcumin, the yellow pigment. Mainly that curcumin’s benefits range from potent anti-inflammatory properties to areas of heart health and cognitive function. This dish is quick and easy to make and really doesn’t require much by way of kitchen skills. Click MORE to get the ‘how to’…
It’s February already, which in England means that statistically, it’s raining 60% of the month and the average temperature is a mere 5 degrees. So it’s cold, it’s wet, and the lack of sunshine adds insult to injury! Amidst this gloom, what could be better than a piping hot, hearty home-made soup to defrost your cold body?! This fool-proof recipe is one of my absolute go-to dishes which is both homely and comforting, and delivers all the nutrients your body will need to fight the effects of winter. The lentils are a supreme source of vegetable protein, not to mention that it works out to be a mere 25p per serving, and even if you ‘luxe’ your soup, you’ll struggle to spend more than £1.00 per serving. Click more to discover how quick and easy this classic winters recipe is, and up your soup game today! (more…)
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Introducing the runner up to ‘champion superfood’ Quinoa… it’s Spelt, a weird cross between emmer wheat and goat’s grass. I picked some up the other day at the lovely Daylesford Organic in Notting Hill (there’s one in Selfridges too). The spelt is easier to digest than many other wheats, because of its brittle gluten structure. It can be an aleternative for some people with a wheat intolerance though it’s not gluten free (unlike quinoa). But just like quinoa it’s high in protein (10g per 100g vs 15g in quinoa), low in sugar (1.3g per 110g vs trace in quinoa), has plenty of fibre (7.4g per 100g vs a mere 3g in quinoa) and is mercifully low in fat (1.1g per 100g, of which saturates 0.2g, vs quinoa at 2g). As a tasting note, it’s quite nutty, mildly chewy, pretty neutral in taste, but decent for adding texture to a dish.
SO I put it into practise, with my high-protein, high-fibre, low-fat, low-sugar vegetable dish – pictured above! Aside from spelt, I’ve added:
– broccoli (full of vitamin C and antioxidants for immune health, dietary fibre to aid digestion, and vitamin A for healthy vision, as well as other minerals like manganese, calcium, iron, magnesium, selenium, zinc and phosphorus)
– carrots (rich in dietary fibre to aid digestion, vitamin A as above, and to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease)
– leeks (rich in antioxidants to promote immune health, and calcium to condition muscles and strengthen bones)
– pine nuts (contains plenty of vitamin E to maintain skin by protecting it from free radicals – whilst its fairly high caloric content is mostly from fat, (hence why I only used half a 100g bag) it’s rich in mono-unsaturated fatty which also helps to lower cholesterol in the blood)
– chilli powder (for a metabolic boost, and a flavoursome kick!)
If you find you want even more flavour try adding a vegetable stock to the boiling water. However try to pick a stock that’s relatively low in salt. I made it for friends and they loved it thankfully. The below recipe serves c. 4 people.
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