A Beetroot, Feta & Quinoa Salad

I have a tremendously healthy salad recipe for today. One that we had last night and has left me vitalised! Low fat, high in protein and fibre and so very tasty. I felt so good eating it and I still have some left over for lunch.

Perfect for a summer’s evening with a cheeky glass of crisp white wine if you want 😉 I’ll be experimenting and creating more salads this season. Can’t wait to share them with you all.

I will be serving some @ Angie’s Fiesta Friday Party

Have a terrific day! Much love D x

INGREDIENTS

1 cup quinoa
1 raw peeled and grated beetroot
3 spring onions finely sliced
1 big tomato roughly chopped
1 tin roseca/borlotti beans rinsed & drained
Feta cheese crumbled (low fat)
Handful of sunflower seeds
1tbsp olive oil
Juice of half a lemon
1/4 tsp garlic granules
Salt to taste

METHOD

Put the quinoa to in a small saucepan and cook upon instruction. I tend to cook it like pasta. Bring the water to a boil and then simmer for 15 to 18 minutes. Drain and set aside

In a large bowl add the rest of the ingredients in order according to the pictures. Leaving the beetroot til the end..ish. This way you cab minimize the addition of the deep pink colour to the salad

Crumble in the feta last and fold in

Serve alone or with some buttered whole grain pitta bread

I will be serving some @

A Vibrant Halloumi & Quinoa Salad

Quinoa is one of my favourite grains   I wanted to make a vibrant colourful and extremely tasty salad dish as the sun is out here in the UK and wanted something fresh and light to keep me going all day.  This particular recipe has done exactly that! I have not had to snack on anything since I had it at lunch and I’ve just finished my dinner so it really works!

A few steps to prep and then just to mix all together, voila!  You have your healthy salad for the day.

INGREDIENTS

1 small cup quinoa cooked
Halloumi pan fried and diced
1 medium cucumber diced finely
2 tomatoes diced
4 spring onions slice
1 tin sweet corn drained
Baby spinach sliced
Salt to taste
Cayenne pepper
1 tsp cumin & coriander powder
Lemon juice to taste

METHOD

I fry the halloumi cheese by thinly slicing and then placing into a hot non stick pan with olive oil.  Fry off on both sides until golden brown

Place all the ingredients into a large bowl.  Mix thoroughly so everything is fused together

Ready to serve…How simple was that?

Protein Chapatis

Ok…So these looks like normal chapatis?!  Soft fluffy Indian flatbreads. To a point they are and then I was sneaky and blitzed some cooked QUINOA in my NutriBullet! And blended to a pulse

Add it to the mix of flour a little sunflower and boiling hot water to firm a dough.  Cooked them on a flat griddle and voila protein filled quinoa hidden into our daily bread…

Loving my NutriBullet!!!

Quinoa with Spinach & Balsamic Glazed Tomatoes

This has to be my most favourite quinoa salad dish to date! Last night we wanted something really light and healthy and this ticked all the boxes. Recently you may be noticing that I have been creating a lot of Mediterranean recipes. I just love the flavours and am probably secretly craving the sun, sea and sand!
A taste of the Med will hopefully keep me going! Until I get there!

An excellent vegan dish also, just leave out the feta and use an alternative if you wish. The balsamic vinegar helps mingle all the flavours and really brings out the sweetness in the juicy cherry tomatoes. I need to go buy some more quinoa today to make some more. Have a stunning day! Much love D x

INGREDIENTS

150g baby spinach
12 asparagus spears chopped
16 cherry tomatoes halved
1 tbsp olive oil
1 garlic clove minced
½ tsp salt or to taste
½ tsp dried oregano
Dash of Balsamic vinegar
1½ cup pre cooked quinoa
Feta cheese (optional)

METHOD

• Heat up the oil in a deep pan with the garlic on a medium heat. Once the oil is hot add the asparagus and cherry tomatoes

• Season with the salt and oregano. Stir fry so that everything is coated in oil. Lower the heat and cook for 5-8 minutes until the asparagus is tender

• Splash in a little Balsamic vinegar and mix well. Place the fresh spinach on top of the cooked asparagus and tomatoes and turn off the heat

• This way the spinach will wilt a little but largely remain soft and fresh. Leave to sit for 10 minutes

• Place the quinoa in a large mixing bowl, mix in the asparagus, tomatoes and spinach. Making sure you get all the juices and dressing in

• Combine well and serve warm with some crumbled feta cheese

Sneaky Mums & Their Recipes!

So it’s official! I am like my mum and we are exactly the same!! Both of us were very cheeky and sneaky today in getting our children to eat goodness as they are unwell. One big child, being me and my little ‘un. My mum made me an extremely spiced ginger tomato soup to help my cold and I made chapati flat bread with broccoli and cauliflower to get vegetables into my youngest!

It worked, the soup was so refreshing and allowed me to breathe again properly after days of being blocked up. Whilst my little one munched away on the green chapati not knowing that he was eating lots and lots of vegetable goodness! Worked out for both parties!….

INGREDIENTS

1 small broccoli in florets
1 small cauliflower in florets
1 clove garlic minced
½ tsp grated ginger
1 tbsp soft cream cheese
2-3 tbsp sunflower oil
200g chapati flour
1 level tsp salt
1 level tsp garam masala
1 heaped tsp cumin & coriander powder
Flour for rolling
Butter for spreading

METHOD

Boil the cauliflower and broccoli until tender.  In a food processor put the boiled florets with everything except for the flour

Whizz into a thick paste, will look a bit like a pesto, gradually add the flour to form a soft dough

Heat a non stick frying pan on a medium heat

Take about a tablespoon and a half of dough, roll into a ball, dust in some flour and gently roll out into a flat round approximately 6 to 7 cm

Place into the frying pan, wait for a minute or so until it bobbles, turn over and cook until both sides have a few brown spots. Make sure the flatbread is cooked all the way round

Serve with a little melted butter

I’m taking some over to Angie’s Fiesta Friday Party!

The Perfect After Gym Soup!

My younger brother came over today to spend time with myself and my 2 little boys. He had already planned in his gym session as the gym is close by. So I took this perfect opportunity to cook up a protein filled soup with plenty of vegetables and lots and lots of vegetable stock, for hydration and quinoa for protein.

The feedback was great, he found that it replenished his strength well and was a quick fix to fill him up but wasn’t too heavy. I found that it relieved my headcold really well. Most likely was the potent healing garlic, that works a treat for me everytime!

Give it a go friends and let me know how you get on…Have a beautiful day, evening…Much love, D x

P

INGREDIENTS

1 large courgette grated
1 large carrot peeled and grated
1 clove garlic minced
½ cup quinoa
600 – 700ml vegetable stock
1 tsp dried coriander powder
1 tbsp sunflower oil
½ tbsp butter
2 tbsp cornflour dissolved in half a cup of water
Salt to taste
Chilli flakes to garnish optional

METHOD

Heat up the oil and butter together, gently place in the grated carrot and courgette into the deep saucepan.  Sauté for 2 to 3 minutes until soft

Season with the coriander powder and salt.  Pour over the vegetable stock, cornflour solution along with the garlic.  Bring to a boil

Slow the heat down to a gentle simmer and stir in the quinoa.  Cover and cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally

Serve up hot with chilli flakes to garnish

A Springtime Quinoa Salad For “The Heritage Cook”

I had the honour to write for Jane Evans Bonacci’s blog the Heritage Cook and my recipe for “Asparagus, chilli & lemon quinoa salad” has been featured, whilst Jane attends to some blogging business.

Jane’s lovely blog is where in her words you will find ” Traditional comfort foods, gluten-free options, and healthy alternatives merge with today’s food trends to give you hundreds of recipes to choose from on The Heritage Cook!”  So come along friends check out my refreshing gluten free quinoa dish and many of Jane’s yummy recipes too…

Hope you’re all having a tremendous Tuesday. Have fun! and I will see you soon….Much love D x

Quinoa Uttapam with Leeks and Cherry Tomatoes

Not only am I sneaking vegetables in this super loaded uttapam recipe but also my infamous new friend “Quinoa”. This way we get good vegetable and grain intake!

I replaced the usual onion with leeks, so the flavour wasn’t compromised but enhanced and the juicy cherry tomato added a certain buzzy tang! Yummmm!
I used a packet mix for the batter, which makes this dish even more simple to make. One for my top ten for children’s favourite meals.

Hope all of you are having a stress free day! Do try these out and let me know…until the next time…Much love, D x

INGREDIENTS

1 dosa flour packet, made upon instruction
2 tbsp natural yoghurt
10 cherry tomatoes halved
2 leeks sliced
1 small cup of pre cooked quinoa
2 garlic cloves minced
Sunflower oil to shallow fry
Chilli optional

METHOD

Mix the dosa flour upon instruction in a large mixing bowl but leave the batter a little thicker than instructed

Add in the garlic, leeks, tomato, quinoa and yoghurt Combine well

Meanwhile preheat a large non stick frying pan with about half a tablespoon of oil on a medium heat

Pour in 2 small ladlefuls of batter into the pan. Reduce the heat to low and allow to set well and then turn over. Ensure both sides are cooked and are golden brown in colour

Repeat for the rest of the batter

Serve with a mint yoghurt chutney