Chickpea Salad

Chickpea Salad

Dressing:
15ml wholegrain mustard
15ml red wine vinegar
45ml olive oil
30ml honey
a pinch of salt

2 x 400g tins of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 small red onion, finely chopped
200g feta cheese, cut into small cubes
1 large English cucumber, cut into small cubes
40g parsley, chopped

For the dressing:
Add the mustard and red wine vinegar to a small bowl.
Drizzle in the olive a little at a time while whisking. Keep going until the olive oil is incorporated.
Add the honey and a pinch of salt and whisk again. Set aside.

Add the chickpeas, chopped onion, feta, cucumber and parsley to a salad bowl and mix together.
Drizzle the dressing over the salad and give it another good mix before serving.

White Bean Soup

White Bean Soup

30ml olive oil
30g butter
4 cloves of garlic, minced
3 x 400g cans of cannellini beans
500ml vegetable stock
5ml finely chopped rosemary
5ml finely chopped thyme leaves
sourdough croutons to serve

Place a saucepan on medium-high heat, add the olive oil and butter and wait for the pan to heat up.
Add the garlic and stir-fry for 1 minute.
Drain 2 of the cans of beans and add the beans to the saucepan.
Pour the third can of beans, liquid and all, into a liquidiser and blitz until smooth.
Add to the saucepan.
Pour in the stock and add the rosemary and thyme.
Grind over some black pepper and stir together.
Bring the soup to a boil, turn the heat down and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring every now and then.
Taste the soup and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper.
Serve piping hot with freshly made croutons.

Aubergine Flatbread

Aubergine Flatbread

60ml olive oil
1 x 400g can chickpeas, drained
150g – 200g aubergine, cubed
3 cloves of garlic, minced
5ml sumac
lemon juice
pomegranate seeds
8 – 10 small flatbreads, about 8cm diameter

Pour the olive oil in to a pan and set it over medium to medium-high heat.
Add the chickpeas, aubergine cubes, garlic and sumac and cook for about 10 minutes, until the aubergine is soft.
Take from the heat and roughly mash together so that you have mashed chickpeas with texture.
Smear the mixture on to the flatbreads, drizzle with lemon juice and sprinkle over some pomegranate seeds.
Serve as a canapé with drinks.

Aubergine with Sesame Dressing

Aubergine with Sesame Dressing

12 baby aubergine OR 2 large aubergine, cut into 2cm thick slices
30ml olive oil
250ml greek yoghurt
45ml tahini paste
2 cloves of garlic, minced

Slice the aubergine in half and score the flesh.
Brush the olive oil on the scored side and either grill over an open fire or in a very warm pan until cooked and slightly charred.
Arrange the aubergine on a serving plate.
Add the yoghurt, tahini paste and garlic to a small bowl and mix together. Smear the tahini paste against the side of the bowl and scrape it off again so that it mixes through the other ingredients.
Serve the sesame dressing on the aubergine at room temperature.

Chicken and Sweet Corn Soup

Chicken and Sweet Corn Soup

This is a nutritious soup and is perfect to make with cooked, left-over chicken.

2 chicken breast fillets
1,5l chicken stock
10ml sesame oil
2,5ml ground ginger
1 x 375g can of sweet corn
30ml cornflour
2 eggs
a handful of chopped chives
one packet baby corn

Place the chicken breasts in a saucepan set over medium-high heat and cover with 1 litres of the stock. Add a pinch of salt and cook until the chicken is done.
Remove the meat, but keep the stock.
Shred the chicken into large strips by pulling it apart with two forks.
Top up the chicken stock so that you have 1 litre again.
Add the sesame oil, ginger powder and sweet corn and bring to a boil.
Add the shredded chicken and bring the mixture to a simmer.
Add the cornflour to a small bowl and pour in about 60ml of the stock from the saucepan.
Stir to make a runny paste.
Drizzle the cornflour into the saucepan in a thin stream while stirring continuously.
Add the eggs to a small bowl and whisk together.
Add a spoonful of the stock in the saucepan to the eggs and whisk again.
Now, slowly drizzle in the egg while stirring.
Remove the soup from the heat, add the corn and chives and serve immediately.

Broccoli-Cheddar Soup

Broccoli-Cheddar Soup

60ml butter
1 onion, chopped
60ml flour
750ml vegetable stock
1 head of broccoli, chopped into small pieces, stems included
1 large carrot, finely diced
500ml milk
750ml grated mature cheddar cheese

Add the butter to a large saucepan set over medium-high heat and wait for it to melt.
Add the onion and cook for 5-10 minutes until soft.
Sprinkle the flour over the onion and cook for 2-3 minutes, while stirring.
Drizzle in the stock while whisking continuously.
Season with salt and black pepper.
Now add the broccoli and carrot, bring the mixture to a boil and reduce to a low simmer.
Cook for 20 minutes, stirring every now and then.
Pour the milk into the mixture and stir to blend.
Decant about two thirds of the mixture into a blender and blitz until smooth.
Pour back into the saucepan and wait for the soup to come back to a low simmer.
Add the cheddar and stir through until melted.
Serve the soup piping hot with a crusty bread.

Guava Breakfast Bowl

Guava Breakfast Bowl

about 500g guavas, peeled
500g sugar
granola/muesli
vanilla yoghurt

Add the sugar and 2 litres of water to a large saucepan, set over medium-high heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved.
Add the guavas, wait for the water to come to a boil and then turn dow the heat to a low simmer.
Cook for about 30 minutes.
Turn the heat off and leave the guavas in the liquid to steep overnight.
Remove the fruit from the liquid and slice into o,5cm thick slices.
Now layer granola, yoghurt and guava in a glass.
Enjoy and be healthy!

Cucumber Avo Salad

Cucumber Avo Salad

500g cucumber (about half an English cucumber)
2 avocados
30ml lemon juice
2 salad onions, finely sliced
chilli flakes

Peel the cucumber in alternating strips in its length.
Take out the seeds with a teaspoon, cut into bite-sized pieces and put it in a colander set in your sink.
Sprinkle 5ml salt over, toss together and leave to drain for about 20 minutes.
Slice the avocado in half, remove the pip and scoop out the flesh.
Cut in to 1,5cm cubes.
Add the avocado to a mixing bowl, sprinkle over the lemon juice and season with salt and black pepper. Stir to combine.
Shake the cucumber pieces in the colander to get rid of any moisture.
Add to the avocado.
Add the sliced salad onions and mix again.
Now stir the salad vigorously until the avocado breaks down a bit.
Taste the salad and adjust the seasoning with salt, pepper and lemon juice.
Scatter over some chilli flakes and serve.

Thick Chicken Soup

Thick Chicken Soup

If you need to speed things up in the kitchen you may make this soup with store-bought stock and rotisserie chicken.

45ml olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
a small bunch of salad onion, chopped
1 clove of garlic, minced
1l chicken stock
2 eggs
60ml fresh lemon juice
375ml cooked rice
500ml cooked chicken breast, shredded

Place a saucepan on medium-high heat and add the oil, onion and salad onion.
Cook until the onion is soft and translucent.
Add the garlic and stir-fry for 1 minute.
Pour in the chicken stock and season with salt and pepper.
Bring the mixture to the boil, turn down the heat and leave to simmer.
Add the eggs, lemon juice and 60ml of the rice to a blender.
Blend until smooth.
Keep the blender running and slowly pour in 250ml of the hot stock.
Now pour this mixture into the stock mixture in the saucepan while stirring.
Add the rest of the rice and the shredded chicken.
Simmer the soup for 10 minutes, on a low heat (do not let it boil) until thick.
Spoon into bowls and serve immediately.

Edamame Hummus

Edamame Hummus

This spread or dip is packed with protein as edamame beans are green soy beans. Enjoy it on toast, crackers, as a dip or stirred into roasted veg.

250ml edamame beans, thawed
30ml tahini paste
30ml lemon juice
30ml olive oil
1,2ml salt
2 cloves of garlic, minced
30-60ml water

Add all the ingredients to a food processor and blend for one minute.
Add the water a little at a time and keep blending until the hummus is smooth and creamy.
Taste the hummus and adjust the seasoning – often it needs a pinch of salt and some lemon juice.
Serve on crostini or crackers as a canapé or simply spread on toast.