Dover sole, vegetable rice and spinach and kale with toasted pine nuts

I am trying to cook more fish in my household. I totally recommend the book, 'Japanese women don't get old or fat'. In it she talks about the benefits of the Japanese diet and eating fish several times a week. Japanese people have the world’s highest expectancy, with men living to be 78 and women’s average 85. Even though there are high levels of pollution, stress, smoking and drinking, they still outlive the rest of the world. Why is this? If you’ve lived for any length of time in Japan, you know that it’s all about the diet. The Japanese diet has changed in recent years, but it’s still among the healthiest in the world, and one of these reasons - is the amount of fish consumed. So what better reason than to try my dover sole recipe.

This recipe is for Dover sole, spinach & kale with vegetable rice topped with toasted pine nuts.

Dover sole:

In a large frying pan melt a tbsp of butter, add 2 fillets of fish (I used Dover sole, but cod, plaice, haddock and salmon would be nice too). After a few mins add some seasoning, I used a sprinkle of fish seasoning, but some lemon or lime zest and juice would work well too. It's cooked when white fish is white and not opaque, about 8-10 mins. Serve with some toasted pine nuts 

Vegetable rice 

In a frying pan, add a little olive oil - about a tbsp, when hot,  add some veg, what ever you may have hiding in the freezer or fridge. I used some frozen stir fry veg and  some frozen mixed veg - of peas, sweetcorn, chopped green beans and carrots. Frozen veg is great to keep for a simple and quick supper like this.

Stir until cooked, add some cooked rice, you can add a beaten egg if you wish, add a little light soy sauce. A sprinkle of chopped spring onion would finish it off nicely.

Kale & spinach

In a large saucepan add a little olive oil and a clove of chopped garlic, add some chopped kale and a large handful of baby spinach. Put the lid on for a few mins until wilted. Turn off the heat.

Enjoy

Check out: japanese-diet

japanese-diet

Vegetable lasagne

A tasty way to get the children to eat more veggies. There are many ways to make this, using jars, packet mixes or all from scratch, I slightly cheated with a packet cheese sauce!  It's also nice with 3 leeks and a pack of chestnut mushrooms.

In a large frying pan cook your veggies, whatever you have hiding in the bottom of the fridge. I used 2 sliced red peppers, a sliced leek, 3 sliced courgettes and half a chopped aubergine. During cooking I added a tin of chopped tomatoes, freshly ground black pepper and a sprinkling of chilli flakes (leave out if you don't like spicy).

Pour half into a lasagne dish, top with a layer of lasagne sheets (dried is fine), top with cheese sauce and some torn up buffalo mozzarella. Repeat with another layer of vegetables, lasagne sheets, cheese sauce and mozzarella.

Cook at around 220 degrees for 20-30 mins until brown and bubbling. Can be frozen in smaller portions once cooled . 

Lovely served with a green salad.

Slow Cooker Vegetable Curry

I'd recommend a slow cooker to any busy parent, I know the idea of cooking something for 4-8 hours may seem like a waste of time. But personally I find it a life saver! I put the dinner on when the little people are having their afternoon nap. Then when I've finally put them to bed, tidied up their mess, the last thing I want to do is start cooking, which is why the slow cooker works so well! It's great for meat eaters, you could put on beef casserole in the morning and it would be lovely and succulent by the evening. 

However my husband doesn't eat red meat - and I'm not keen on chicken, therefore I mostly do veggie meals, and finding veggie recipes for slow cookers isn't that easy. Check out my stuffed peppers in the slow cooker. Stuffed peppers

Here is my vegetable curry recipe:

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 tsp cumin seeds (use powder if not available)
• 1 onion. sliced
• 2 curry leaves (not always so easy to find in a supermarket - I have some growing in the garden which i had found in a garden centre.
• 1 in piece of fresh ginger, finely chopped
• 2 fresh red chillies, deseeded and chopped
• 2 tbsp curry paste (any according to your preference, I used tikka
• 2 carrots, sliced
• 1 cauliflour, cut into florets
• 3 tomatoes, peeled and chopped
• pinch tumeric
• 250mls hot vegetable or chicken stock
• 85g frozen peas
• 115g mangetout

My slow cooker fry's, if yours doesn't you may want to use a frying pan first. 

• Heat the oil in the slow cooker on fry setting.
• Add cumin to the pan, if using seeds, when it start popping add the curry leaves and then the onion slices. 
• Stir for a few minutes until the onion has softened.
• Add the ginger and chillies and cook stirring occasionally for a minute
• Stir in the curry paste, cook and stir for a few minutes
• Add the cauliflower and carrots, cook for 5 mins 
• Add the tomatoes, turmeric and season with salt and pepper if required
• Cook for a few minutes, then add stock and bring to the boil
• turn to slow cooker setting, low, medium or high, depending on how quick you need it. I found 2 hours on high was works, but probably best 5 hours on low for the best flavour
• I added the mange tout and peas near the end of cooking, as I found that the mange touts wilt and they both lose their colour.

Here are how I served it for my 11 month old and my 2.5 year old, went down very well.

Check out my stir fry veg rice: stir-fry-vegetable-rice-

Stir fry vegetable rice - great for little people

My favourite food is rice, I should have been born in a different continent - I could eat it all day and all night. 

This is a very quick and easy dinner for little people - and full of healthy veggies.

I made a large batch of rice in the rice cooker (I actually have a slow cooker/ rice cooker in one - fab for making family meals).

In a pan cook some stir fry veg - I usually have a pack in the freezer, or any veg will do (carrot sticks, peas, sweetcorn, courgette sticks, mange tout). Add rice, and some soy sauce if you what, bear in mind soy sauce is high in salt, but you can get low sodium versions. If it's for a very young child, I'd leave out the soy sauce. 

Easy Yummy Fish Pie

It's cold outside, so thought I'd make something warm and tasty for dinner. I don't actually measure anything, I'm once of those throw it all in the pan cooks and hope it all works out. It did on this occasion, but didn't a few days ago when I put too much bicarbonate in my cookies!

Anyway this easy fish pie:

Poach some fish, I used a small skinless boneless fillet of salmon and 2 skinless fillets of cod. Cut into bite size peices and cooked in a pan with a little butter and covered with milk. Cook about 10 mins. Can also use a pack of fish pie mix.

I peeled and chopped into medium sized pieces about 4 large potatoes. Boil for about 20 mins until soft. Drain water, mash with a little butter, pepper if you like (I don't add salt to anything, but you can if you wish), and a little milk to bind. When the fish is cooked I threw in a couple of handfuls of frozen mixed veg - peas, sweetcorn, carrot and chopped green beans, and some pepper. Cook for about 5 mins.

Pour mixture into a large dish and top with potato. I added a little more pepper and sprinkling of grated cheese.

Cook at about 200 degrees until brown and bubbling - about 20 -30 mins.

Lovely served with a green salad.

Great for the whole family including little people 

Rosh Hashanah Apple Challah

I attempted to use the recipe from shiksa in the kitchen, sadly she is much more of an expert than I am, but I gave it ago, it looked fab on the table and tasted great. Also the thing with making your own bread, is that you know how much salt and things are in it! 

 http://theshiksa.com/2012/09/13/apple-honey-challah/

I didn't use her ingredients, I used my old faithful bread machine challah recipe and added one peeled, cored shredded apple.

http://jsavvymums.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/homemade-bread-machine-challah.html

Ingredients 

• 2 tsp dried yeast or a 7g sachet
• 200ml warm water
• 500g white bread flour
• 2 tbsp runny honey
• 2 eggs
• 60g unsalted butter
• egg glaze made with 1 egg yolk beaten with 1 tbsp water
• to deocrate poppy seats or a sprinkling of sugar

Method 

Throw everything in bread pan, turn on dough setting - mine takes 1hr15. 

When complete, I tried to follow the link above to plait it, not as easy as it looks, think i need another go! but it didn't look too bad.

• Using a pastry brush glaze with the egg glaze
• sprinkle with poppy seeds or sugar, I did sugar as it was for Rosh Hashanah
• Cook at 200 degrees for 45 mins or until the bread sounds hollow when tapped

Yummy Homemade Pizza - Perfect toddler food

I've made pizza many times for hubby and friends - it's great for a cheap and easy dinner party. For adults I normally make the dough (in my trusty bread machine), then roll out 4 pizza bases and put loads of toppings in to bowls, and when the guests arrive they can make their own. It normally turns into a competition between couples - very amusing.

This time I made small pizza bases, topped with pizza topping (i also use pasta sauce sometimes), and grated cheese. Oven cook until crispy - about 10 mins.

To make large pizzas (dough can be frozen):

• 500g bread flour (i used 50:50 wholemeal and white)
• 60ml Oilve oil
• 360ml Warm water
• Pinch of salt
• 7g yeast

Throw into a bread machine, put on dough setting, split into 4 and roll flat, then add toppings.

Spicy Coconut Salmon Anniversary Dinner

It might not look exactly appetising, but I promise, it is very yummy, I will try to do again, and take better pictures, I'm still new to this blogging malarky!

I do find salmon a little boring, and then I came up with the idea (I know its going to sound strange) to sprinkle chilli flakes and desiccated coconut on the salmon and then grill! It's magic!

I served it with salad leaves sprinkled with balsamic and olive oil, boiled new potatoes and griddled baby courgette and asparagus. Oh and a large mushroom, topped with boursin cheese and chilli flakes (yes my staple seasoning), which I cooked in the oven for 30 mins.

I think its reasonably healthy and very tasty.

Hope you like it

No Cook Ricotta Courgette Rolls

I have never made these before, and now I have just tasted one, I am actually very impressed. They would make great canapés or a dinner party starter, maybe served on a bed of mixed leaves with some smoked salmon. No cooking required as they are marinated in balsamic vinegar which softens the courgettes.

Ingredients 

• 1 courgette would serve 2 people as a snack or several people as a starter
• a tub of ricotta
• juice of half a lemon
• a handful of basil leaves
• I used chilli flakes as i like things spicy, but pine nuts would also be delicious 
• balsamic vinegar
• olive oil

Method

• chop ends off the courgettes
• slice very thinly using a peeler
• drizzle a tbsp of olive oil and balsamic onto a platter
• lay the courgette slices one by one on the platter 
• then drizzle with more olive oil and balsamic
• place in fridge covered for at least 20 mins and up to 6 hours
• Mix the ricotta lemon juice, basil leaves, chilli flakes and pine nuts if using
• season to taste 
• next take one courgette piece and at one end place a tsp of the mixture and then roll from one end to the other 

They can be placed in the fridge until needed.

Vegetable Samosas

I know it's been a little while since I posted, children are very time consuming!

But I just had to share these fab homemade vegetable samosas.

Made with peas, sweetcorn, red onion and feta cheese, with a sprinkling of tikki seasoning and wrapped in filo pastry.

Reasonably healthy as baked in the oven and so yummy ! 

Both my 2 year old and hubby love them, and they're perfect for a picnic, or a summers evening dinner. My daughter has hers with steamed veg and new potatoes and hubby and I are going to have ours with some tabbouleh, which by the way I've never made before ! 

Passover Seder Night

I unfortunately do not have many photos from some of the dinner parties that I have hosted, but I do have these ones, (prior to blogging) and wanted to share. 

These were took from our Passover festival earlier this year, where I hosted a Seder night for 8 family members including myself and hubby (plus our 2 little ones). 

The green place cards are just card I bought from hobby craft and on the other side is a Passover colour in sheet which I  downloaded from the internet. I thought it would keep the younger people amused, but strangely it was the older ones who loved it. It became a bit of a competition with the older members of the family, especially the grandparents!

I cooked vegetable soup to start (suitable for a macrobiotic guest and kosher for passover!), then fish platter (smoked salmon and fish balls served on 2 large salad platters),  then roast chicken, roast veg, roast potatoes, steamed veg, followed by fresh fruit and kosher for passover ice cream, and plenty of wine!

You may also like:

homemade-bread-machine-challah

I came across this great page on pininterst for passover activities and ideas

holidays-passover