Sue’s Cook Book

This is a great meal as it is quick, filling, low fat, uses only one pan and uses up leftover meat from a roast - perfect for a Monday night when making dinner is such an effort (or is it only me?!).  You’ll need a large pan or stock pot.

 Serves 2-4 depending on appetite

Meat choices - leftover chicken/beef/lamb or half pack of chicken mince shaped into small balls OR tofu can be used if vegetarian

1.5 litres of veg stock  

dash of fish sauce

dash of soy sauce

2 tablepoons sweet chilli sauce

2 garlic cloves crushed

2 cm ginger finely grated

whatever veggies you like - I normally use:

finely sliced red and green pepper (julienne) handful of each

finely sliced carrot (julienne) handful of each

1 finely sliced courgette (julienne)

good handful of mushrooms finely sliced

rice noodles - allow 50g (2oz) per person

1 tablespoon cornflour mixed with a little water

Make veg stock with boiling water and pour into pan and bring to the boil.  Add the fish, soy and sweet chilli sauce and then add the veggies and stir.  Then add your chosen meat and let it simmer for a couple of minutes.  The snap the noodles in half and add to the pan.  Give it a good stir and let it simmer for 5 mins.  Have a taste - season and add more fish/soy/chilli sauce if desired. Try a bit of noodle - if cooked add the cornflour mixture and stir until soup thickens.

Serve in large bowls and enjoy!

This a a great way to make salmon more interesting and to make a little salmon go further (it’s very expensive here in Australia!) It’s also quick and easy and full of flavour. Ideally you will need a large saute pan with a lid, but a wok will do.

Serves 4

2 salmon steaks sliced in half lengthways

2 cloves garlic crushed

1 red chilli finely sliced

2 cm piece of ginger finely grated 

 a good handful of finely sliced carrot (julienne)

1/2 red pepper finely sliced (julienne)

1/2 yellow pepper finely sliced (julienne)

a good handful of mange tout (snow peas) trimmed and sliced in half diagonally

1 tablespoon curry paste 

1 can reduced fat coconut milk

1 handful of fresh coriander roughly chopped

Lightly spray pan with oil and then add all vegetables and stir.  Let the vegetables cook for a few minutes and then add the curry paste and the coconut milk.  Give it a good stir and add salt and pepper to taste.  Allow the sauce to bubble and then place the salmon steaks on top of the sauce and put lid on.  The salmon will only take about 5 minutes to cook. When the salmon has turned pale add the coriander and stir.  Taste again and add more curry paste/salt and pepper if needed.

Serve on a bed of basmati rice with a wedge of lime - heavenly!

I have discovered these in the shops in the past month or so and thought - ‘what a fab idea!’ and decided to make them myself to make them even lower in fat and much cheaper too!

Serves as many as you like - adapt as needed 

Allow 1 wholemeal pitta per person

Spray oil

Flavourings:

1 tablespoon dukkha - ground up in a pestel and mortar

or

1 tablespoon cajun spice

or

1 tablespoon mixed herbs

Switch the oven onto 200 degrees (no need to pre-heat for ages).  Cut the pitta bread into bite size pieces and place onto a baking tray spreading them out evenly.

Spray very lightly with oil then sprinkle with your chosen flavouring and season with salt and pepper.

Cook for about 15-20 mins and then check on them - you want them to be lightly browned and dried out - it’s a good idea to turn the oven off and leave them in the oven for a further 10 mins. 

When done, tip them into a bowl and serve with a homemade dip such a guacamole, tzatziki or tomato salsa - fantastic and guilt-free!

This is a great meal with only one pan to wash up, it looks very colourful and has so much flavour - fab for entertaining as it just takes care of itself in the oven.  It is also very easy to adapt to more than 4 people.

Serves 4

2 large orange sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks

1 red, 1 green and 1 yellow pepper cut into chunks

2 courgettes, sliced 1cm thick

1 large red onion, cut into chunks

4 skinless chicken breasts

4 teaspoons red pesto

4 slices parma ham

Pre-heat oven to 200/180 fan forced. 

Pour a little olive oil or spray a little olive oil spray into a large oven tray and place in the oven.  Prepare all vegetables as above. 

Place the sweet potato into the tray and cook alone for 15 mins.  Take out of the oven and give it a shake - then add the other vegetables and shake in the pan.  Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

In the meantime, spread each chicken breast with pesto and then wrap a slice of parma ham around each breast.

Place the chicken breasts on top of the vegetables and bake for a further 30 mins or until juices run clear in the chicken and the vegetables are cooked.

To serve, remove chicken and place to one side.  Divide the vegetables evenly onto 4 plates, place chicken on top and serve with sauce on the side if desired (see below).

Easy Tomato Sauce:

1/2 pint passata

1 oxo vegetable stock cube

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Place passata in a small pan and crumble in oxo cube and add salt and pepper.  Heat up gently and have a taste - add a little sugar if needed (makes a real difference!) Serve in a sauce boat.

Serves 4 as a starter

A great starter, as you can get everything ready beforehand and just put it together when you are ready - so excellent for entertaining.

I like to use a ‘health grill’ or griddle pan to cook the chicken to give it the griddle lines but it’s not essential if you don’t have one :0)

 2 chicken breasts sliced

2 garlic cloves crushed

50g or 2oz pine nuts

4 tablespoons parmesan shavings

4 good handfuls of mixed leaves or rocket

4 teaspoons of bottled green pesto

4 tablespoons white wine vinegar

Mix the chicken slices with the crushed garlic and a little olive oil and add some salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Cover the bowl with cling film and and put in fridge until ready.

Heat a frying pan on a medium heat, add the pine nuts and shake the pan gently until they are lightly browned.

Make parmesan shavings with a vegetable peeler and wash and dry your preferred salad leaves.

Mix together the pesto and vinegar and add a little olive oil.  Season with salt and pepper and have a taste - adjust to your preference (e.g may need more pesto or vinegar).

Heat the health grill/griddle pan cook chicken on both sides.  Whilst it is cooking, arrange the salad leaves into the centre of 4 plates.

Once the chicken is done, arrange onto the salad leaves. Sprinkle with the toasted pinenuts and then scatter the parmesan shavings on top.

Drizzle with the pesto dressing and dot some around the outside of the salad.

Delicious!

450g or 1lb dried mixed fruit

350 ml hot black tea

100g or 4oz glace cherries quartered

75g or 2 1/2oz sugar

380g or 14oz self-raising flour, sifted

1 large egg

Soak the dried fruit overnight in the tea. 

The next day, pre-heat oven to 160/140 for fan assisted. Line and lightly grease a 2lb loaf tin.

Mix all ingredients together and place into tin.  Bake for 2 hours and turn out of tin when cooled.

I know I’ve said it before but this cake is so easy to make and it’s a great idea to make two at the same time as you can have one to eat and one to freeze for another time - it cooks great in a round 20cm tin too.

5 ripe bananas mashed (approx 475g)

2 beaten eggs

6oz or 150g brown sugar

4 oz or 100g sultanas

8oz or 200g self-raising flour

Pre-heat oven to 180 or 160 fan assisted.  Line and lightly grease a 2lb loaf tin.

Mash bananas and add eggs, sugar and sultanas, then mix in sifted flour.

Pour mixture into loaf tin and bake 1 hour 15 minutes.

Leave loaf to cool in tin and then turn out.

 This cake is again so easy and so moist you’ll never guess it’s low fat!

Makes 12

10 oz / 290g self-raising flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

4 1/4 oz or 120g soft brown sugar

2 1/4 oz or 66g white choc bits

4oz or 115g frozen blueberries

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

1 egg

200 ml milk

100ml cooking oil

Preheat oven to 200/180 fan assisted. Grease a 12 hole muffin pan or use 12 muffin cases and place in muffin tin.

Sift flour and baking powder into a bowl and add brown sugar smoothing out any lumps. Add choc bits and frozen blueberries.

Whisk together egg, milk, vanilla essence and oil and add to dry mixture and stir until just combined.

Spoon batter into muffin tray/cases. Bake for 10 mins and then reduce the oven to 180/160 fan assisted and bake for a further 10 minutes until muffins are firm and just golden.

Cool for 5 mins and then turn out and cool on wire rack.

Delicious and quick and easy to make!

Also very easy to change the ingredients - for example instead of blueberries use white and milk choc bits and chopped nuts and add a tablespoon of cocoa powder.