Monday 14 January 2013

Healthy recipes with minimum effort and maximum flavour



Easy to make, diet-friendly and delicious. What more could you want? This is my latest article for the fabby fab fab studentbeans.com:



"Healthy eating. If that slightly depressing phrase conjures up sad images of lettuce, strange green juices and bland brown mush then this is the article for you...

These recipes all require minimum effort (like, seriously little effort) and are low in calories and fat, but are so delicious that you won't be able to notice. What's more, they're all student-friendly ingredient-wise, so no more of that "Oh, but all I can afford is pasta with cheese on top" nonsense, thank you very much.

We've got you covered with options for breakfast, lunch and dinner; veggie or meat; sweet or savoury; so there's no excuse to give up your New Year's health resolutions (well, not yet anyway). And not a lettuce leaf in sight.



1. Hearty Chicken, Leek and Chickpea Stew

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Serves 4, about 291 calories per portion

Ingredients

1tbsp olive oil
1 leek, thinly sliced into rings
2 carrots, sliced
1 garlic clove, crushed
400g (14oz) chicken breast, diced
1-1.3 litres chicken stock
75g broccoli, cut into florets
1 x 410g tin of chickpeas
A few handfuls of frozen peas

Method

Heat oil in a large pan and fry the leek, carrots and garlic for 5 minutes until starting to soften. Turn up the heat and add the chicken, then cook for 3 minutes until the chicken is browning. Add the stock and broccoli. Bring to the boil, cover and simmer for 5 minutes or until the chicken and vegetables are cooked. Stir in the chickpeas and peas and heat through for a couple more minutes.


2. Super Healthy Stir-Fry

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Serves 2, about 389 calories per portion

Ingredients

1 tbsp olive oil
2 diced chicken breasts
3 chopped cloves of garlic
1 pack of stir-fry veg (or chop all your own if you have the time)
2 tbsp reduced-salt soy sauce
200g rice noodles

Method

Drop the rice noodles in a pan of boiling water and leave to simmer. Meanwhile, heat the oil, and add the chicken and onions. Stir-fry for a few minutes until the chicken is turning golden, add the veggies, and stir-fry for another 2 minutes before adding the soy sauce. Stir for a further 30 seconds and check the chicken is cooked. Drain the rice noodles, then mix into the stir-fry and serve.


3. Ultimate Detox Green Soup

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Serves 2, about 99 calories per serving - yes, really.

Ingredients

½ tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, crushed
½ bunch spring onions, chopped
1 courgette, sliced
1 potato, peeled and diced
500ml vegetable stock
140g bag of watercress and spinach

Method

Cook the spring onions and courgette in a large pan with the garlic and olive oil until softened. Add the potato and cook for 2 minutes then tip in the stock, season well and simmer until potato is tender. Add the leaves, simmer for a minute then whizz until smooth with a blender or in a liquidiser.


4. Homemade Bircher Muesli Breakfast Bowl

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Serves 1, about 360 calories

Ingredients

40g porridge oats
1 handful sultanas (or other dried fruit, chopped)
100ml (ish) apple juice
100g fat-free natural yoghurt
A few almonds, chopped
Handful berries
1 banana, sliced
½ tsp ground cinnamon OR a squirt of runny honey (or both!)

Method

The night before you want to eat your muesli, measure the oats and sultanas into a bowl, and pour just enough apple juice on top that it’s all covered. Wrap the bowl with cling-film and leave to soak in the fridge overnight. In the morning, top with the yoghurt, almonds, fruit and cinnamon/honey and dig in."


For the rest of the article and more scrummy recipes, click on through to the studentbeans site here. Happy healthy eating, kids!



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