Donate a recipe

Not a complete meal, but a selicious accompaniment to a moroccan casserole that was made at a friend's house a few weeks ago:
Pomegranate Salsa

Fruit of one ripe pomegranate
2 spring onions
One lime
A handful of fresh mint leaves
A couple of tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

Scoop the fruit of the pomegranate into a dish, ensuring all remnants of white pithy stuff is discarded.
Chop spring onions and add.
Add juice of the whole lime to the dish also.
Finely shop the mint up and add.
Add the oil, and stir it all up beautifully.
Voila, a quick, colourful and flavoursome accompaniment to anything you like! We had ours with couscous and a chicken lemon and coriander casserole....delish!

Breakfast filling stick to your ribs cold weather brekky...sustains for hours..

1 or 2 tablespoon oats
1 tablespoon quinoi
1 teaspoon oat or rice bran
few chopped nuts
few sunflower/pumpkin seeds
cooked with water or soy milk

cooled down with a tub flavoured yogurt, and honey if desired.

Hmm....... not sure if this counts time wise? Lentils need an overnight soak or a few hours. Could be left in morning prior to work then cooked. Tell me off if I'm out of time!! 😀

250-300g lentils (pre-soaked, see above)
1 chopped onion
2 chopped carrots
2-3 medium potatoes chopped

Bring lentils to the boil in pan of water. Have a kettle of boiling water to hand to top up as necessary. Add veg and bring back to the boil. Turn down to a simmer. Test veg after 15-20 mins. I add a pinch of salt but you can adjust to your taste. Black pepper if you want but I find seasoning a personal choice.
This is an easily adapted recipe to include most veg that is in the kitchen! Leeks, beans, peas whatever you like.

vegan stew

Here's my attempt at this recipe challenge !

Vegan Stew (serves 2)
1 green pepper
1 red pepper
1 yellow pepper (the colour makes no difference to the flavour but makes it look more colourful on the plate)
2 tbsp veg oil
2 cloves garlic
4 ripe tomatoes
1 small aubergine
sea salt to taste
pinch cayenne pepper
6 tabs water
5/6 oz cooked brown rice

Brown rice normally takes about 40/45 mins to cook but you can speed it up as follows. Before you go to work in the morning put the rice in a pan/bowl and cover with boiling water. Cover the pan/bowl and leave to stand for at least 6 hours. When you want to cook it, drain it well, cover with fresh water and cook as normal - should take about 20/25 mins.

1. Drain soaked rice, cover with fresh water and put on to cook.
2. Slice the onion and peppers thinly. Saute them in the oil until soft(about 5/10 mins quicker if you keep the pan covered)
3. Crush the garlic, chop the toms, dice the aubergine, add to the pan and cook a few mins longer.
4. Add seasoning then water. bring to the boil then lower heat. Cover and simmer for about 10 mins (if it starts to dry out, add a bit more water).
5. Drain the cooked rice and stir in. Mix well
6. Serve and eat.

I would normally leave the cayenne pepper out but liven it up with a bit of soy sauce but I think that would count as "processed"? :confused:

Salmon Kebabs

A great simple recipe from March's StoryBox, for four People:

- 4 salmon steaks
- 1 lemon
- 3 tablespoons teriyaki sauce
- 2 tablespoons sesame seeds
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 4 wooden kebab sticks
Instructions:
1. Cut the lemon in two and squeeze one half. In a bowl, mix the teriyaki sauce with a teaspoon of lemon sauce.
2. Cut the salmon into 2cm cubes. Marinate the cubes in the sauce for an hour. Turn them over from time to time.
3. Push the salmon cubes onto the kebab sticks. Sprinkle all over with sesame seeds.
4. Heat the oil in a frying pan. Put the kebabs in the pan and cook for 10 minutes, turning regularly. Serve with lemon slices.

Hi,

Can we add your recipe to the donate a recipe thread?

Thanks,
Myarka

Hi Myarka, please do, that would be lovely!

Hi Myarka, please do, that would be lovely!

I've now merged the threads 🙂
Myarka

Enough low fat greek yoghurt or low fat creme fraiche, whatever takes your preference, in a bowl to cover however many......

chicken breasts
an inch of grated fresh ginger
crushed clove of garlic
quarter tea spoon of chilli powder
1 teaspoon of mango chutney, this takes some of the heat and adds a lovely sweetness. A quick stir! make sure chicken is coated.

Bung on a baking tray in oven! I serve with lots of salad and jacket spud.
Also great on the BBQ, taste delicious....belly is rumbling now!

Takes a little longer than 30 mins but you can prep it for next days tea!

Parsnip and apple soup.

knob of butter
3-4 parsnips peeled and diced small
1/2 bramley peeled, cored and diced
1 1/2 pts stock
1/2 tsp dried sage
1 clove
seasoning
a blob or two of cream / fromage frais

Soften parsnip and apple in the butter, add stock, with sage and clove and simmer for 20 mins(ish) or until parsnip is done. Remove clove. Liquidise and season, then add cream or fromage frais and reheat.

V nice, even if I do say so myself.

Enough low fat greek yoghurt or low fat creme fraiche, whatever takes your preference, in a bowl to cover however many......

chicken breasts
an inch of grated fresh ginger
crushed clove of garlic
quarter tea spoon of chilli powder
1 teaspoon of mango chutney, this takes some of the heat and adds a lovely sweetness. A quick stir! make sure chicken is coated.

Bung on a baking tray in oven! I serve with lots of salad and jacket spud.
Also great on the BBQ, taste delicious....belly is rumbling now!

Takes a little longer than 30 mins but you can prep it for next days tea!

Variation on a theme:

Per chicken breast:

approx. 1 tbsp. plain yogurt,
ditto olive oil,
and a half to one teasp. each of powdered cumin and Harissa paste or rub.

Mix all together and coat chicken. Then leave to marinate in fridge for a couple of hours before baking in a not-too-hot oven.

For veggies, this also works just as well with Quorn pieces, only needs a shorter cooking time.

Nice with cous cous + some raisins and pine nuts. I soak the raisins with the cous cous so they're nice and juicy. 🙂

Holistic

Vegetarian Lasagne
I had to add this recipe because me and the family had this last night and it was delicious. The kids were even asking for seconds, which doesn't happen very often!

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F

2. Add the olive oil to a pan and heat. Then add the onion, cooking it for 3 mnutes on medium heat.

3. Add the garlic, cooking for another 1 minute.

4. Add the courgettes, sweet potatoes, mushrooms, tomatoes and tomato purée. Allow the mixture to boil then reduce the heat and let it simmer for 5 minutes.

5. Add the sugar and the salt and pepper to flavour the vegetables.

6. Grease the base of a lasagna dish with olive oil. Cut the lasagne sheets to fit the dish, before using a few to make the bottom layer.

7. Add a thin layer of sauce before continuing to build up the lasagna: a layer of lasagna sheets followed by a layer of sauce. USe the ricotta cheese to fill one layer in the middle of the lasagna.

8. Sprinkle the top with Parmesan cheese. Then bake for 30 minutes.

Happy eating! A x

Sounds yummy anna!

Thanks Clarice, hope you enjoy 🙂 Anna x

I've never tried making a Guacamole before but it sure looks fun and easy to make!

For four People, you will need:

- 1 packet of tortilla chips
- 2 ripe avacados
- 1 smal tomato
- 1/2 onion
- 1/2 lemon
- 20 sprigs of coriander
- salt and pepper

Instructions:
1. Boil a pan of water. Stick the tomato firmly onto a fork and dip it in the water for a minute. Peel it and remove the seeds.
2. Squeeze the half-lemon. Pull the coriander leaves off their stalks. Peel the half-onion. Chop the onion and tomato into small pieces.
3. Cut the avacados in half. Remove the stones. Scoop out the flesh with a spoon and place in a salad bowl.
4. Add the tomato, onion, lemon juice and washed coriander leaves. Mix together. Add salt and pepper and serve with tortilla chips!!!!!!

Red Lentil and Hijike soup

I've been making the most amazing soups recently. I made this one this morning, my own invention.

Red Lentil and Hijike Soup

Part One: fry all of these in a little oil in a large saucepan (which has a lid):

1. an inch of ginger, chopped finely
2. 3 cloves garlic, chopped finely
3. 3/4 tsp each of the following: sea salt, dried chilli flakes, dried mixed herbs, roasted paprika
4. a punnet of cherry tomatoes
5. a red onion, finely chopped

Part Two: add a litre of water to the above, then add the following, cooking until they are cooked (er... obviously!):

1. 1 cup of red lentils
2. small handful of dried hijike seaweed

Part Three:

When the above is cooked add 2 bunches of chopped spring onions (I think you call them salad onions, or scallions?? in the UK). Cook until they brighten up.

Part Four:

Pour over a bowl of half a cup of finely chopped firm tofu, a healthy pinch (maybe a tablespoon?) of sea-salad (seaweed) and a tablespoon of lecithin granules.

Heavenly.

Ava x

I've been making the most amazing soups recently. I made this one this morning, my own invention.

Hi Ava,

I'm great fan of "souper" healthy soups and there are so many we can easily make.

Thanks,
Myarka.

I made the most amazing Pumpkin Stuffed with Rice, Sage, Peanuts last night. Lovely:

Pumpkin Stuffed with Brown Rice, Sage and Peanuts

1. Before you start cook one cup of brown rice.
2. Remove the seeds from a small pumpkin (or here in the UK you call them 'squash'). Make sure to keep the 'lid' - the bit of the pumpkin you cut off so that you could access the seeds.
3. Heat the oven to 200C.
4. Chop up half a cup of peanuts.
5. Chop up an onion, 2 cloves of garlic and half a fresh chili, and fry in a little oil.
6. When the above is cooked mix this with the brown rice, half a teaspoon of dried sage, a generous teaspoon of miso paste (or a stock cube if you aren't on the anti-candida diet 😉 ), and the chopped peanuts.
7. Press the mix into the pumpkin, put the 'lid' bit of the pumpkin on but wrap it in a bit of tin foil for 3/4 of the cooking time, otherwise it burns. Alternatively cover the hole of the pumpkin with tin-foil and put the 'lid' on the baking tray alongside the rest of the pumpkin.

It takes about 40mins to cook.

Ava x

Low-Cost Recipe Challenge!

Hello everyone,

I'm currently living on a pretty tight budget, as I'm saving up with the hope of coming to the UK to work (under the Youth Mobility visa scheme). However, I also love good cooking and experimenting with new recipes. I have several low-budget recipes already, but I'd love to expand my repertoire. (Not least because once I get to England - if it's as expensive as everyone says - I'll probably still be on a tight budget!)

So here's the challenge: can you please share some recipes that are gloriously inexpensive AND taste great (and are healthy!)??? I'd be hugely grateful for anyone's help!

I tend to eat mainly vegetarian food, although I have meat occasionally, preferably fish or chicken. No dietary restrictions, except I don't like prawns or shellfish and can't stand honey (it's a taste thing, not an intolerance). Other than that, just about anything goes. Oh yes - preferably recipes that will provide several servings and/or can be frozen for later, to be even more economical.

So, if you are a master of low-cost cuisine... fire away!!

Love, Charis

Hi there and welcome 🙂

There are some great low buget ones at studentr ecipes.

[url]Student Recipes - Cheap lasagna recipe[/url]

If you plan living very cheaply add bread, pasta, rice, potatoes, noodles,cereals and other starchy carbohydrates to your diet.

Hi Charis,

I've merged your thread with the Donate a recipe thread, because it answers your question, and it would be good if folks can continue to add to it.

Myarka

My Famous Meatballs

I have people come to stay pre-book these for the first night!

I use either turkey mince or beef mince

1 packet of mince
1 onion chopped
few tablespoons of olive oil
4 tsp dried parsely
1 tsp dried oregano
pinch of chilli if liked
salt and pepper
1 large clove garlic
1 tin chopped tomatoes or passatta
1 tbsp tomato puree
1 slice bread made into breadcrumbs
2 good handfuls of grated fresh paremsan

To make
1. fry onion in half the oil.
2. whizz bread in processor with herbs, tip onto plate.
3. push cheese through processor to grate, tip onto same plate.
4. whizz garlic and then add the mince and briefly whizz for a few seconds to break it up (do not overwork it).
5. Tip in plate of breadcrumbs, herbs and cheese and whizz briefly until it just combines.
6. Tip fried onions onto plate.
7. Add remaining oil and as that is heating up start making small balls of meat mixture (we like ours quite small like a small walnut), and place in oil, adding more balls until pan is full. by that time it is time to turn them over to brown evenly.
8. take them out and brown the remaining balls.
9. put the pre-browned balls and onion into an ovenproof dish if baking in oven or back into the pan if cooking on the stove.
10. add tomatoes and tomatoe puree and salt and pepper, cover and cook gently for 40 minutes.

when finished the sauce should be thickened and glossy, if not take the lid off for final 5 minutes.

serve with pasta of your choice and a sprinkle of paremsan and twist of pepper to finish, a few basil leaves if being posh.

This serves about 5 generous portions (approx 7 meatballs per portion), we eat 3 and freeze the rest.

Hi Charis,

I've merged your thread with the Donate a recipe thread, because it answers your question, and it would be good if folks can continue to add to it.

Myarka

Well, maybe not in all cases... much as I love salmon steaks (as per arewenearly's post), there's no way I can afford them just now!! 😀

Love the look of some of the other ideas on this thread so far. Here's one of my own favourites:

Potato and Leek Soup
In a large saucepan, fry 1 chopped onion and 3 sliced leeks in about 3 tbsp butter or oil, until soft and just starting to brown. Add 8 potatoes, sliced about 1 cm thick, and about 4 cups (1 litre) of vegie or chicken stock as preferred. Bring to boil and simmer, covered, until potatoes are soft - about 10 mins. Then mash up the potatoes with a hand-held blender, or just a good old potato masher, till the soup is the consistency you want - chunkier or smoother. Add about 200 ml pure cream (or to taste) and season with salt and pepper. Heat again without boiling. Garnish with snipped chives or sliced spring onions if you like, and serve with bread. Makes at least 6 serves! A delicious comfort food, especially when the weather gets cold.

Hi there and welcome 🙂

There are some great low buget ones at studentr ecipes.

[url]Student Recipes - Cheap lasagna recipe[/url]

If you plan living very cheaply add bread, pasta, rice, potatoes, noodles,cereals and other starchy carbohydrates to your diet.

Louisa, this looks excellent!! (And yes, I do eat lots of those starchy foods.) Thank you!

This is mine and the kids' favourite at the moment:

Warm chicken or beef salad

Cut chicken breast or thin frying steak into strips. In a freezer bag put 2 tblsps plain flour, 2 tsps sweet (or smoked) paprika, ½ tsp sweet chilli powder (you can use more & add cayenne pepper if you like a little more zing), 2 tsps provencale herbs. Shake the bag to mix then add the meat and shake well to coat. Add more flour & spices if some of the meat isn't covered. if you have excess powder in the bag, don't worry as it makes nice crispy bits when you fry the meat.
Tip the contents of the bag into a frying pan or wok with a little olive oil and fry for a few minutes until cooked through.

Mix up a honey mustard dressing as follows: 2tbsps runny honey, 1 tbsp dijon mustard, 2 tblsp apple cider vinegar, 3-4 tblsp Olive oil. Mix well and taste. Add honey, mustard or oil according to taste.

Prepare plates with salad leaves (spinach, watercress, lettuce etc...), shredded carrot, sweetcorn, chopped beetroot, sliced tomatoes or cherry tomatoes. Scatter the cooked meat over the salad and drizzle with the honey mustard dressing 🙂

Vegan Cherry Coconut Cheesecakes

Ingredients

Base:

• 1/4 cup sunflower seeds (or nuts of choice)
• 1 Tbsp coconut flour
• 1/2 Tbsp coconut oil
• 1/2 Tbsp granulated stevia
• 4 cherries or 1 Tbsp Beetroot for colour

Prepare:

[LIST=1]

Filling:

• 1 cup raw cashews (soaked overnight, rinsed and drained)
• 1-2 Tbsp chopped fresh cherries
• 1 cup desiccated coconut
• 1/3 cup granulated stevia
• 1/4 cup coconut water
• 1 tsp coconut essence
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• Pinch of salt

Prepare:

[LIST=1]