Summer black bean salad
We’ve been living on this all summer – spicy and delicious, it’s super easy to put together earlier in the day then you get to just pour it into a bowl and enjoy it for dinner.
health consciousCategory
Carrot & sweet potato soup
I made this impromptu soup today and it was so lovely; thick, creamy, rich, full of vegies yet surprisingly low in calories.
Spicy pumpkin & date muffins
I know, I sound like a complete knob asking people to use organic stoneground unbleached freshly milled plain flour but the reason for that is that I accidently purchased some online, thinking it was just regular old plain flour. Anyway, if you manage to get your hands on it, it’s a lovely, healthy flour which[read more…]
Sweet potato & split pea dahl
I love nothing better than a bowl of spicy, hearty dahl and warm naan bread – comfort food at it’s best. This one has some sweet potato in it, just to sweeten things up a bit.
Chicken white bean soup with ginger & chilli
It’s the time of year for chicken soup! Here in Queensland we’ve gone from the longest, hottest summer to sudden and very icy cold temperatures and this soup cheered me right up recently. It’s said that chicken soup has magical healing properties and I do feel that’s true, however in order for this to happen[read more…]
Swedish sandwich cake
I’ve always wanted to make one of these as I’m a huge sandwich fan and I love all things Swedish and Scandinavian. I haven’t made it exactly as you would a traditional smörgåstårta, as I wanted to use ingredients I had already. However, I tried to think of traditional Swedish things while putting it together; making one layer with a fish[read more…]
Sticky date raw muesli
I know toasted muesli is super popular and I really like it myself, but there’s just something so wholesome about raw muesli. Combined with dates, spices and golden syrup, this muesli has a nutty, chewy texture and is reminiscent of sticky date pudding. Because of the dates, this is quite high in sugar, so you could think of[read more…]
Spicy cold noodle salad with watercress & fava beans (broad beans)
Who’d like some fava beans and a nice chianti? haha, anyway. This lovely little green number with noodles, nutty, crunchy broad beans and fresh watercress is easy to whip up for a quick lunch.
Easy spicy tuna & vegetable fried rice
This is a super easy, fast and delicious recipe for fried rice using a few tinned and frozen things. I love it because I usually have most of the ingredients around and can just throw it together.
Spicy lentil & vegie soup
So in the interests of being healthy this January due to some questionable food choices recently, I made a pot of lentil soup! Lentil soup will always be one of those comfort foods for me; this one’s thick, hearty, spicy and was brilliant with toasted, buttered sourdough. [read more…]
Tuna pasta salad
Normally my salads are low carb affairs but I do enjoy a sort of retro pasta one. And I really liked this – I mean I love pasta so no surprise there, but the dressing is one of the best things about this – creamy with a hint of lemon, it goes perfectly with the tuna, comforting pasta and crunchy[read more…]
Vegetarian sushi bowl
This tastes just like sushi! I have no hope of being able to make actual sushi, although I love it, so thought this would be an easier option. I loved this cute, healthy lunch!
Orange almond mini loaves
I made some sweet little orange loaf cakes at the end of winter, using whole oranges. So not surprisingly, they’re Intensely orange flavoured, bitter/sweet and super soft. I added a bit of almond essence for a stronger almond flavour but if you’re not into that, leave it out or add vanilla instead. They are a teeny bit[read more…]
Curry puffs
So I made these cute, tasty little curry puffs yesterday. The filling is spicy/sweet and surrounded by crispy puff pastry; dipped into tomato sauce, they made for a brilliant afternoon snack with a beer.
Chilli hummus
I eat buckets of hummus and always have some in the fridge. Nothing wrong with buying a tub but making it is so simple. Make it soon! This one is spicy and rustic and if you have it with heaps of carrot and celery sticks, you get most of your daily vegies in one hit then[read more…]
Salmon en Papillote with chilli, ginger & miso soba noodles
I eat a lot of salmon as is evidenced by the recipes on this blog (it’s so convenient and healthy), so I’m always looking at different ways to cook it. I really love this Asian inspired recipe with spicy/salty flavours. The salmon is best cooked until just rare in the middle and once it’s placed[read more…]
Sweet chilli labneh (or labna)
As mentioned in an earlier post, I made some labneh! It’s very easy and sort of exciting seeing how it firms up. I added a heap of chilli flakes and some honey which made it subtly sweet with a nice bite and it’s creamy texture is perfect on crackers as a snack with some wine or with bread for a quick[read more…]
Stir fried chilli basil chicken & cashew omelet
I love a good curry! Especially with chicken and cashews. So this is an easy, delicious dish I made recently with stir fried, spicy chicken, basil and cashews but in an omelet; much lower in carbs than a rice dish and with spicy, delicious flavours. You can whip this one up in 20 minutes or so for a fast and[read more…]
The best sandwich ever
Haha no, it really is! I tried labna (labneh) cheese the other day (a bit late on the bandwagon I know but I couldn’t get my hands on it until recently) and it’s so gorgeously creamy and rich. We had some for lunch recently with oven roasted cherry tomatoes, fresh basil and toasted multigrain sour dough and I just want to[read more…]
Spicy lentil & sweet potato cottage pie
I love my lentils and beans and things and this dish is something I make quite regularly in colder weather. It’s a hearty, spicy, vegie packed cottage pie with French lentils; I prefer French lentils as they keep their shape and have a nice bite to them. Lentils are a brilliant sub for meat and even carnivores don’t miss[read more…]
Three bean chilli con carne
Just a quick post today to say I made a vegetarian chilli based on this one, packed full of beany goodness. It’s great for freezing and quick lunches and dinners, is vegetarian and vegan friendly and uses tins and things from the cupboard so is very economical and easy to put together. Oh and this chilli cheese[read more…]
New Orleans red cabbage coleslaw
I love a good coleslaw and I’m always always looking for ways to use red cabbage (if I have to sauté cabbage in butter one more time ..). So I found Nigella’s New Orleans coleslaw recipe in one of my many cookbooks recently and remembered how delicious it looked when I spotted it ages ago. [read more…]
Fennel & apple salad
Fennel is a vegetable in the carrot family which is perfect for salads; it has a slight aniseed flavour which is very subtle and palate cleansing. I had this pleasingly crunchy salad on it’s own while Ant had some oven baked chicken alongside. I think it would also go really well with Atlantic salmon. It has quite sweet,[read more…]
Fig, honey & salted pistachio raw muesli
I know, I know, I posted a granola recipe a couple of weeks back but have I ever said on here how much I love salted pistachios? I’m a little bit obsessed actually. Give me a big bowl of dry roasted, salted pistachios and I’ll sit on the lounge happily shelling and eating them like[read more…]
Spicy chickpea, chicken & baby kale salad
I love me a chicken salad, it’s the one thing I make or order from cafes quite regularly. This one is a little different though; spicy roast chickpeas give the salad a lovely crunch and flavour. The crisp salad, herbs, flavoursome chicken pieces with a bit of parmesan made this a lovely lunch last week. I stuffed[read more…]
Ginger spice & apricot toasted oat clusters
I whipped up a deliciously spicy, crunchy, cold weather inspired toasted muesli a while back, just from ingredients I had on hand. It’s not full-on ginger in flavour, just enough to give a sweet, warm flavour however if you’re a real ginger fan, add a bit more fresh or ground ginger to the recipe. This is nice[read more…]
Baked sweet potatoes with spicy lemon chickpeas
You guys, these are so good! And you might think lemon and sweet potato are an odd pairing but actually, the zesty lemon works really well with the sweet, creamy potato, particularly with spices. This is a bit of a fancy take on the baked potato with topping I usually make, and it made for a hearty,[read more…]
Soft & fluffy wholemeal blueberry oat streusel muffins
These rustic muffins are relatively healthy and wholesome and I gave them a fluffy texture by using wholemeal cake flour (basically just cornflour added to plain wholemeal – makes for a really soft crumb but with added fibre and such). These are packed with blueberries and a bit spicy with a light crunchy topping; they’re just the thing for morning tea.
Roast winter vegetable & herb pasta
This caramelised vegetable, hearty pasta dish with fresh herbs and salty cheese is so easy; just roast some vegies and toss through cooked pasta and fragrant garlic oil. Serve with lots of cheese and crusty bread!
Lentil salad with toasted walnuts & feta
I spotted an easy, tasty looking lentil salad some time back by David Lebovitz via Ann’s blog. This is simple, healthy, full of flavour and easy to whip up for for work lunches, particularly if you already have the cooked lentils in the freezer, as I did.
