EACH WEEK, WE ask a home cook about the dishes they’ve been whipping up of late. The kind of food you don’t need a recipe for, from quick snacks to empty-the-fridge dinners.
This week, Avril Healy (@thelittlebigfoodie) shared the five healthy recipes she goes back to time and time again.
“I spend my day thinking about what I’m going to eat next,” she says.
I love to make quick, healthy and affordable meals.
From classic cottage pie to an Indian-style curry, below are five of Avril’s fail-safe recipes…
1. Mediterranean-style chicken casserole: This dish is full of flavour and it’s aesthetically pleasing with all of its wonderful colours. I love to cook this for parties or when I have a group of friends or family over as it’s a meal that anybody will fall in love with, it’s easy to make and as it’s all cooked in one pot it makes it an easy and quick clean up!
To make it, dice chicken fillets, garlic, onion, courgette and pepper. Add a tin of chopped tomatoes, chicken stock, a bit of red wine and some seasoning and herbs before placing all ingredients in an ovenproof dish and cook for one hour on gas mark 5/190C. Serve with lemon cous cous and hasselback potatoes.
2. Roasted garlic and vegetable pasta: I like to have at least two meat-free days a week to do my fair share for the environment. This dish is easy to make and low in cost, making it perfect for a student budget or a large family who are cutting down on food costs.
To make the sauce, chop your vegetables and put some garlic, two punnets of tomatoes, half a courgette, one red pepper, three red onions, a dash of red wine and balsamic vinegar, half a fresh chilli and some seasoning and into an oven-proof dish, cover with tin foil and cook for 50 minutes on gas mark five/190C. Serve with wholemeal pasta.
3. Indian-style chicken curry: I love this dish as it’s quick and easy to make, the ingredients are always in the press and it’s loved by all my family!
To make it, dice an onion, some garlic and chilli, a green pepper and four chicken fillets. Fry the chicken pieces in 2 tbsp of butter. When chicken is browned, remove from pan and add the onions, chilli and garlic. Fry off until golden and soft and add in some curry powder and stock, ensuring you stir it well to avoid any lumps. Add back in the chicken, a tin of chopped tomatoes and your pepper. Simmer for half an hour and serve on a bed of rice with warm naan or wholemeal pita bread.
4. Creamy cottage pie: This meal is perfect for a winter’s evening as it is hearty and reminds me of my childhood. I have made this version a unique one by adding butter, milk, scallions, salt and pepper to my mashed potatoes along with some white vintage cheddar for that extra creamy taste!
5. Apple, cinnamon and berry oat crumble: I love this recipe. The buttery oat crumble adds a crunchy texture, while the berries and apple add a natural sweetness which brings out the warm spice of the cinnamon.
For the berry and apple mix, add three apples, 1 tsp cinnamon and some brown sugar to a pot. Add the juice of half a lemon and three tbsp water and cook until the apple is soft but not completely mashed. Towards the end, add a punnet of blackberries and half a punnet of blueberries. For the crumble, mix 75g cream flour, 75g oats, 75g brown sugar, 75g butter and 1tsp cinnamon together until it resembles breadcrumbs.
Place the berry mix into an oven proof dish, top with the buttery crumble and bake for 40 minutes on gas mark 5 until the crumble is golden. Serve with your choice of clotted cream, vanilla ice cream or creamy custard and enjoy!
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