Pink Juice

It's October which means it's perfectly legitimate to make garish coloured juices under the guise of Hallowe'en themed foodstuffs. In student land, Hallowe'en means one thing: endless fancy dress all-nighters. I can guarantee that after that you're going to be spending a good couple of days in bed surrounded by tissues, netflix and potentially even a bucket (or if you're anything like my housemates the only large cooking pot in the house- chilli con carne is out for a few weeks at least!) You get the idea. Anyway, this year why not combat the onslaught with something more than paracetamol. Our Pink Juice is full of illness-busting nutrients and gets most of your 5-a-day down all in one go. Even better it won't break the bank when you've spent all your money on vodka: it's only a few ingredients that are worth pennies in Lidl!

Ingredients: (Serves 1)

• 2 apples
• 2 carrots
• 1 beetroot
• 1 inch length of cucumber (optional but makes taste even more refreshing) 

NB: you will need a juicer

Method:

• Wash all the vegetables and fruit under the tap. Chop the ends off the carrots and place everything into the juicer. There is no need to cut the top off the beetroot. 
• JUICE! Juice until there are no bits.
• Pour into a glass with ice. 

Smashed Vegetables and Squash

I'm going to be honest with you here...this doesn't look like the most appetizing of things. In fact it's probably slightly reminiscent of baby food...I'm really selling it, I know. But then again, pea soup looks like it's been concocted by some sort of Hallowe'en character yet it's a surprisingly refreshing and popular lunchtime dish. And black pudding just looks completely inedible, yet virtually every northerner insists on including it in their fry up. (I accept this is a less convincing argument- Northerners put gravy on their chips for god's sake. Who thinks of that?!) So what I'm saying is don't judge the food by its looks because it tastes damn good!
Its filling, warming and tasty despite only having 200 calories per serving!

Smashed Vegetables and Squash

Ingredients: (Serves 1)

• 225g butternut squash
• 80g carrot
• 40g leek
• 65g broccoli 
• 65g cauliflower 
• 75ml x 4 boiling water 
• 1 tsp sage
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1/2 tsp marjoram 
• Salt and pepper, to season

Method:

• Pre-heat the oven to 220 degrees celsius. Chop the leek, carrot and butternut squash into evenly sized chunks. You will need to peel the butternut squash and the carrots before cutting. Place on a baking tray sprayed with olive oil spray.
• Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes. Remove from the oven and place the cooked vegetables into a blender. Blend, adding 75ml of boiled water at a time through the blending process. You should need to do this 4 times (75ml x 4) however you may need to do this slightly more or less depending on how well blended the mixture becomes as you go along. If it is struggling to blend add more water. 
• Add the seasoning and blend some more.
• Chop the broccoli and cauliflower into small pieces whilst boiling a kettle. Place the broccoli and cauliflower chunks into a steamer over a pan of boiling water and steam for 8 minutes. 
• Once the broccoli and cauliflower is cooked mix it in with the blended sauce. 

Spinach Omelette

It has taken me a long time to master the omelette. Each time I would season it to perfection, whisk the eggs like a champion (I have the biceps to prove it) and get it to the perfect golden colour. But then, the moment would come to fold the omelette over in half. Each time I would approach this with steely determination. And each time disaster would strike. I'd have pathetic little drabs of omelette hanging off my spatula and my omelette would turn into an unappetising looking scrambled egg dish. You feel so defeated. You feel so feeble. An egg has beaten you. Not this time. Today was the day I finally folded an omelette. A proud moment.

Spinach Omelette 

Ingredients: (Serves 1)

• 2 large eggs
• Dash of milk
• 2 large handfuls of spinach
• Salt and pepper 
• 1 tsp butter

Method:

• Crack the eggs into a bowl and beat until you have a yellow-orange colour. Season the eggs with salt and pepper, add a splash of milk and whisk in. 
• Heat the pan on a medium heat and add the butter. Once the butter has melted add in the spinach and cook until wilted. The spinach will break down a lot, so you may want to keep adding more in if it looks like quite a small amount as it begins to wilt. 
• Once the spinach is wilted spread it out across the pan and then pour in the egg mixture. You may want to add in a little more butter first to prevent the egg mixture from sticking to the bottom of the pan. 
• The omelette is cooked once the bottom has gone a golden brown colour and the top is cooked through but still a little gooey on top. Fold the omelette in half using a wide spatula then serve. 
• Note: if the omelette is quite thick you may want to put the pan under a hot grill for a couple of minutes to finish off cooking the top of the omelette. For extra flavour, try adding cheese or some chopped chilli. 

Low Histamine 'Lasagne'

Craving lasagne but not the waistline to go with it? This recipe tastes just like the real thing but uses sneaky substitutes that cut down on fat. It's also low in histamine and gluten free, although for those who are not low histamine a normal tomato-based bolognaise sauce can be used instead.

Low Histamine Lasagne

Ingredients (Serves 2-3) 

• Pre-made red pepper sauce (click here for link) This recipe uses 1.5 times the amount of sauce and without the sweetcorn. 
• 250g lean minced beef
• 3/4 cauliflower 
• 2 courgettes
• 5 1/2 tbsp ricotta cheese 
• Mozzarella cheese, to sprinkle on top 
• Fresh basil and coriander leaves, to flavour
• Dried oregano, to flavour

Method:

• Preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius. Grate the cauliflower using a normal cheese grater and place on a baking tray. Bake in the oven for approximately 40 minutes, but take out and stir every 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile cut the courgette into thin strips like the picture above. Bake in the oven on a wire rack so that they don't stick, for 30-40 minutes depending on how thin or thick the slices are. They need to be soft to touch. 
• Whilst everything is cooking in the oven, brown the mince on a medium heat. Place into a saucepan and mix in with the red pepper sauce. Chop up the coriander and basil leaves, then add into the sauce along with the oregano, salt and pepper. Flavour to your taste- we used 10 basil leaves, 2 coriander leaves and 3/4 tsp of oregano. Simmer on a low heat for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. 
• When everything is cooked it's time to layer everything up. You will need a deep oven dish. Pour in half of the sauce at the bottom. Then place a layer of courgette over the top to cover the sauce- it should be half of your courgette strips. 
• Then use 3.5 tbsp of the ricotta as the next layer. On top add 3/4 of the roasted cauliflower - you don't really taste the cauliflower it just adds texture. Top with the rest of the sauce and courgette.  
• Add the remaining ricotta on top of the sauce, the rest of the cauliflower and cover with a sprinkling of mozzarella. 
• Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes (until the mozzarella starts to go golden) , again on 180 degrees celsius. 

Low Histamine Breakfast Muffins

These might not be your sausage and egg Mcmuffin but at least with this recipe you won't feel like you're missing out too much. And you can sit there being the smug one knowing that you're getting a fraction of the calories, which means more room for yummy treats later! There's two versions of these muffins, both of which are essentially savoury but one version is slightly sweeter than the other for all the sugar fiends out there- me included.

Low Histamine Breakfast Muffins 

Ingredients: (makes 1 muffin)

Non-sweet:

• 15g uncooked weight of finely chopped pepper and courgette 
• 1 1/2 tbsp strong white flour 
• 1/4 tsp baking powder 
• 15 ml milk, plus extra to brush 

Sweeter:

• 15g uncooked weight of finely chopped pepper and courgette 
• 1 1/2 tbsp strong white flour 
• 7.5 ml water 
• 3/4 tsp caster sugar 
• 1 heaped tsp olive spread 
• 1/4 tsp baking powder 
• Small bit of milk, to brush over the top 

Method:

• Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. 
• Finely chop the vegetables. Fry on a medium heat on a saucepan with olive oil spray for a few minutes until soft. 
• In a mixing bowl mix together all the other ingredients. Then add in 3/4 of the cooked vegetables and mix throughout the dough. 
• Spoon into a cupcake case and brush the top of the dough with a little bit of milk using a pastry brush. Sprinkle the remaining cooked vegetables over the top. 
• Bake in the oven for 20 minutes. 

Green Eggs and Ham

When my sister and I were little some of our favourite bed time story books were the Dr Seuss books, and the best one was always green eggs and ham. Although I was disheartened to learn upon growing into an adult that no, green eggs do not in fact exist, I feel this recipe comes close enough. It's also looks a tad more appetizing than the illustrations in the book...

Green Eggs and Ham

Ingredients: (serves 2)

• 160g tender-stem broccoli 
• 100g finely chopped leek
• 100g diced courgette 
• 1/2 pack of spinach
• 30g honey roast ham 
• 4 eggs
• 2 tbsp crème fraîche
• 1 1/2 tbsp grated parmesan
• Salt and pepper, to season 

Method:

• Pre-heat the grill so it is on a high heat. Finely chop the leek and dice the courgette. 
• Boil some water and in the meantime place a large frying pan on a medium heat with a few sprays of cooking oil. Once the water is boiled add to a separate saucepan with a steamer on top and steam the broccoli for 6-7 minutes. At the same time gently fry the leek and courgette for 5 minutes. 
• Once the courgette has begun to soften add in the spinach and cook until wilted. The spinach really breaks down a lot so its usually a question of throwing in a load of spinach, seeing how much volume there is left once its been wilted, and throw in more if necessary. 
• Add the cooked broccoli and the ham to the frying pan followed by the crème fraîche and parmesan. Stir everything until covered with what should be by now a melting creamy sauce and season with salt and pepper. 
• Crack in the eggs - try and make a slightly flat space to crack them into. Cook the eggs until they are 3/4 cooked then finish off for a few minutes by placing the frying pan under the grill until the eggs are completely cooked. 

Cinnamon Apple Slices

These cinnamon apple slices are a great little snack for when that sweet tooth is nagging at you and you're stood outside the biscuit cupboard trying to resist the little voice in your head saying 'open me'! Withstand those sugar urges and make these instead! Best eaten fresh out of the oven, perhaps served with some natural yoghurt and sultanas.

Cinnamon Apple Slices

Ingredients: (serves 1)

• 1 large granny smith green apple
• 1/2 lemon
• 3 tsp sweetner 
• 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• Sprinkling of nutmeg

Method:

• Pre-heat the oven to 170 degrees Celsius and spray a baking tray with a small amount of cooking oil spray. 
• Slice the apple in half and carve out the core from each half. Slice each half into small strips of apple about half a centimetre in thickness. 
• Squeeze the juice of half the lemon into a bowl and place all the spices and sweetner into a separate bowl. Mix the spices.
• Take each individual slice of apple and dip one side into the lemon juice, then dip that same side into the spice mix so there is just a light brown dusting over the apple.
• Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes until a deep golden brown colour.

The Best Baked Courgettes

It's always hard to eat healthily on a rainy day. It's tipping it down outside and all you want to do is snuggle up on the sofa with a hot drink and bowl of steaming stodge. However these baked courgettes are a great way to get that warm fuzzy feeling inside without the subsequent calorie-induced guilt! This recipe uses the red pepper sauce recipe: see the link at the bottom of the page.

The Best Baked Courgettes

Ingredients: (Serves 1)

• 1 courgette 
• 6 tbsp pre-made red pepper sauce
• 1 handful of grated mozzarella 

Method: 

• Pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius and spray a baking tray with cooking oil spray. 
• Top and tail the courgette and slice in half lengthways. Carve out the middle part of each half to get rid of the seeds.
• Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes. During the last 5 minutes  heat the red pepper sauce in the microwave on a high setting for 4-5 minutes, until piping hot throughout.
• Take out the courgette and spoon half of the sauce over each courgette half. Sprinkle on as much mozzarella as you fancy then stick under the grill for a few of minutes until the cheese has all melted. 

Click here for the recipe for the Red Pepper Sauce

Vegetable Squidges

What do you think of when you think of a 'light summer lunch'? Salad? A measly bowl of soup? An egg white omelette with an assortment of fairly tasteless green ingredients? We're shaking things up a bit. Throw some colour and taste into healthy eating with these vegetable squidges- an assortment of colourful veg gently fried into a bright ball of taste.

Vegetable Squidges (Serves 1) 

Ingredients: 

• 3oz grated carrot (approx 1 carrot)
• 3 oz grated courgette (approx 1/2 courgette)
• 1 oz finely chopped leek 
• 2 oz frozen sweetcorn
• 1 tbsp cornflour
• 1 tbsp plain flour
• 1 tsp olive oil 

Method:

• Grate the carrot and courgette using a normal cheese grater. Finely chop the leek and weigh out the frozen sweetcorn. 
• Place the carrot and courgette onto a piece of kitchen paper and put another piece over the top. Push down gently on the kitchen paper until the excess moisture from the vegetables has been absorbed.
• Place all the vegetables into a mixing bowl and add the flour and olive oil then mix. Separate the mixture into 5 even sections. If the mixture is not binding together much add a bit more flour and oil.
• Spray a frying pan with a little bit of olive oil. Spoon each section of vegetables into the frying pan (not yet on the heat) and squidge into circular flat shapes using a spatula.
• Place the frying pan on a medium heat. Fry for 10 minutes until the vegetable squidges are a golden brown colour on both sides- once the underside is cooked use a fish-slice to turn over and cook the other side. Try not to turn over the vegetable squidges too many times as it may lead to the mixture disintegrating.  As you cook the squidges occasionally press down on the squidge with the back of a spatula for a few seconds to flatten it. You may also need to re-shape the vegetable squidge as it cooks to stop it from falling apart.

Cous Cous and Roasted Vegetables

For anyone trying to diet cous cous is a tasty alternative to rice or pasta and surprisingly filling for such a tiny grain. It also takes no time at all to cook and can be added to a huge variety of ingredients to liven up side salads and main meals. 

Cous Cous and Roasted Vegetables

Ingredients: (serves 1)

• 100g cous cous
• 2 carrots
• 1/2 courgette
• 1/2 leek
• 1 red onion 
• 1 red pepper 
• 1 tbsp olive oil

Method:

For the roasted vegetables:

• Pre-heat oven to 200 degrees Celsius.
• Chop up the carrots, courgette and pepper into 1/2 cm chunks.
• Dice the onion then cut the leek into quarters to form four long strips. Chop along the strips at 1cm intervals. It may look like you have a lot of veg but it shrinks down a lot. 
• Place all the vegetables into a mixing bowl then add the olive oil. Stir until the vegetables are coated then place on a baking tray and roast for 30 minutes. (Note: I'd keep a close eye on the vegetables after about 25 minutes- they can burn very easily) 

For the cous cous:

• Place the cous cous into a saucepan. Boil the kettle then measure out 250ml of water and pour into the saucepan on a medium heat. Constantly stir the cous cous for 5 minutes adding extra tablespoon's of water if it starts to dry out. The constant stirring is key- otherwise it will just stick to the bottom. 
• After 5 minutes all the water should have absorbed and the cous cous will be cooked. If you have added too much water by accident just drain the cous cous in a sieve. 
• Serve and spoon the roasted vegetables over the top.

Notes:

• For a bit more flavour when stirring in the oil add 2 tsps of garlic granules, 1 tsp of chilli granules and a sprinkling of pepper to the chopped vegetables.
• I tend to make huge batches of roasted vegetables then stir in 2 tablespoons of tomato puree once cooked, using the mixture as a filling for wraps and pitta breads with a bit of lettuce and goats cheese or extra mature cheddar. 

Red Pepper Sauce with Courgette Pasta

A massive challenge in the past few weeks has been trying to come up with non-tomato based sauces for pasta. It's even more of a challenge when said person you are cooking for doesn't like lemon or pesto and is limited in the types of creamy white sauces she can have. But finally we've found the money prize! It's a bit of a faff to make but so worth it in the end, and if you make a lot it's easy to store in the fridge or freezer. Even better news is that this recipe is extremely low calorie and bursting with veggie goodness. 

Red Pepper Sauce with Courgette Pasta (under 300 calories per serving)

Ingredients: (Serves 1)

For the sauce:

• 3 red peppers
• 1 leek
• 1/4 cup sweetcorn 
• 1/4 tsp sweetner
• Shredded basil leaves, to season

For the courgette pasta:

• 1 1/2 courgettes 

Method:

For the sauce:

• Pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Place the peppers on a baking tray and roast for 20 minutes. Meanwhile chop up the leek into 1/2cm round circles. Take out after 20 minutes and add the leek. Roast for another 20 minutes, until the skins of the pepper are fairly blackened. 
• Take out of the oven and remove the top, centre and all seeds from the peppers. Then peel the skins off the pepper. Chop pepper into thin strips.
• Add the pepper and the leek into the blender, but keep a handful of the leek to the side. Add in the sweetner and blend until you have a smooth consistency. 
• Pour the sauce into a saucepan and add the rest of the leek and the sweetcorn. Keep on a low heat whilst cooking the courgette pasta.

For the courgette pasta: 

• Cut the ends off the courgette and then use a peeler to peel into thin tagliatelle-esque strips. Peel until you get to the seeds then stop. 
• Bring a saucepan of water to the boil then boil the courgette strips on a fairly high heat for about 3 minutes.
• Drain the courgette then serve. Add the sauce and then season with basil.