Simple Mutha Supper!

For this post I want to keep it real. I'm talking about quick, healthy, easy meals with a few simple ingredients that taste like a hug feels. Or something.

Here are three...and a half recipes for you to try this weekend. Perfect for something super fast and healthy to set you up for a night out, or to rustle up before a night in front of the telly.

Please let me know what you think or how they worked out for you.

I'm not one for measuring and weighing every little thing so just go with it. Experiment. Live life on the edge. I like the sense of danger. It makes me feel alive.

Celery cashew soup
Don't judge it till you've tried it.

Glug of olive oil or similar
1 cup cashew nuts
2 heads of celery, chopped
1 potato, peeled and chopped
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 spoon Bouillon powder or other veg stock
1 mug of soya milk or alternative
flat leaf parsley, chopped (if in doubt, just chop it)
Nutmeg, salt and black pepper to taste.

Method:

Heat the oil in a large pan and with the lid on, on a low heat, sweat the potato, celery, onion and garlic for about 10 minutes. Give the pan a shake every few minutes so nothing sticks and burns.

Throw in the cashew nuts and sweat for a further 2 mins. Then add enough boiling water to cover the veg and stir in the veg stock.

Simmer for about 1/2hr until everything is nice and soft. Blitz the soup in a food processor until smooth. Then add the milk and season with the nutmeg (freshly grated is best), salt (taste the soup first as some veg stocks can be very salty!) and pepper.

Stir in the chopped parsley and serve! Ta daa!

I like this with toasted spelt bread. But that's just how I roll.

Variation:

To make a deliciously creamy, vegan spinach soup, swap the celery for spinach. Omit the parsley though! Also, adding a fennel bulb to this recipe is delicious. You can also use the fennel tops in the soup and on top as a garnish.

Courgetti with avocado pesto and stir fried tofu

This meal is insanely tasty and so simple you'll be asking yourself why you didn't think it up. But you didn't and I did. You're just going to have to live with that.

I bought my Spiralizer from Amazon. I've managed to add bits of my fingers to the ingredients a few times so just be careful!

Serves 2.

Coconut oil or other fryng oil
1 slab of tofu cut into squares. keep it chunky

For the marinade:
Teryaki sauce
juice of 1 lime
1 green chilli, sliced

For the pesto:
1 ripe avo, mashed
Juice of 1/2 lemon or 1 lime
Handful fresh basil leaves, roughly chopped

2 courgettes, spiralized!
2 cloves garlic, sliced
1 inch chunk of ginger, sliced into matchstick kinda size

To serve:
Pine nuts gently toasted in a dry frying pan
1/2 a lime



Method:

Melt enough coconut oil in a frying pan to cover the base generously.
Gently fry the tofu chunks with the chilli, sliced garlic and ginger, turning frequently, until golden brown.

In a wok gently stir fry the courgetti in coconut oil for a few minutes until they soften.

Meanwhile, mash up all the pesto ingredients together and mix it with the courgetti in the wok.

Drain the tofu on kitchen toil and discard the garlic and ginger. It will most likely be burnt.

Plate up, scatter with pine nuts and squeeze that lime!

Shove it in yer gob! Yummy.

Spaghetti alla Olivia

I made it, so I named it. Plus my name is basically Olive in Italian.

Serves 2.

Ingredients:

Spaghetti. obviously.
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup black olives
1 tablespoon capers
Extra virgin olive oil
1/2 bag of rocket

Avocado pesto from previous recipe. I would use the juice of 1 lemon rather than lime though.

Grated vegan cheese to top. I like the almond one with this recipe. Available in Planet Organic or another well stocked health food store.

Method:
Cook pasta. Bung everything together. Done,

I drizzle the spaghetti with olive oil before adding anything else as I like it extra lubricated!

Hope you enjoy these meals as much as I do. If in doubt, add lemon or lime juice to EVERYTHING as it makes food taste AWESOME!

If you enjoyed this post please follow me on Instagram for more food porn and bite sized ideas!

Eat well. Xx

Flavour Fiestaaa!

I am having a love affair. It's with a hot, spicy and colourful lover called Mexican food. Now, I'm no Thomasina Miers, although I could be found stuffing my chops with fish tacos and other delicious delights in Wahaca last night, but there's something so wonderfully simplistic about Mexican food that anyone can have a go at recreating or reinventing classic dishes at home.  There's a certain magic combination of ingredients that turns up to the party time and time again and always delivers. Spicy, fun, easy to socialise with and always so colourful and attractive. The perfect guest! These key ingredients are avocado, peppers, lime, chilli, coriander, garlic, salsa, cheese, beans and of course the corn tortillas and nachos. I disregard meat (except fish) as I don't eat it or cook it. I'm also not a fan of dairy. I'm not vegan myself but many of the meals I cook are. I am pescetarian and I eat organic, free range eggs. I avoid dairy for ethical and health reasons. I'm happy to answer questions on this if you feel the need to ask.

I have always avoided vegan "cheese" as I don't like to eat food that has an ingredients list as long as my arm. I also try to limit my soya intake. I was recently given a new vegan cheese to try which is made from coconut fat. Now being a coconut freak I was happy to try it. It also only has six ingredients. OH MY GOD! It is amazing. It grates, melts and tastes like......CHEESE!

I have progressed from the "build your own" boxed meal kits available in supermarkets and moved onto a more rustic, experimental formulation. The recipes you will find here are very simple and fool proof. Nothing fancy. Just honest and wholesome. I do recommend washing it all down with (100% blue agave) tequila however. Unless you're working or driving. Please drink responsibly. Coincidentally, it was National Tequila Day recently. As if I needed a reason to drink it. I would suggest that one day is not enough to celebrate such an ingenius invention as tequila, and we should extend the celebration to a week, or even better, a month. Vote for me!

What's not to love about Mexican food? There's something about the combination of the staple ingredients and flavours that makes my toes curl with pleasure and against my better judgement,  stuff one more bulging fajita into my greedy gob before moaning about how full and fat I am. Oh well.

I like to use corn tortillas. You get 13 in this pack and they will last in the fridge for a week once opened. Just seal them with a food clip or an air tight box.














So, to cooking.....


Vegan quesadillas with chunky guacamole and spicy potato wedges with garlic mayo...

Serves 2/makes 8 quesadillas

2 ripe avocados
1 clove garlic, crushed
About 8 cherry tomatoes, quartered
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
Juice of 1/2 lime
Fresh coriander, chopped
pinch salt and fresh ground black pepper
Large chunk of cheese (vegan or dairy), grated

Sweet Potato wedges:
Slice a sweet potato into wedges, toss them in a bowl with oil and smoked paprika until they are covered in it. Put on a baking tray in a hot oven (about 180 degrees) for about 30mins until soft and lovely looking.

Crush a clove of garlic and mix with 2 tablespoons of mayo. Job done.


Mix all the ingredients except the cheese (and obviously not the sweet potato wedges or mayo) together in a bowl. Chop the avocado into chunks rather than mashing it.

Spoon the filling onto one half of a tortilla and top with the grated cheese. Fold the other half over it. Place into a hot, dry frying pan and heat gently for a few minutes each side. Remove and cut the quesadilla in half. Serve with a hot salsa and a cold beer.

Veggie tacos

Real tacos are not the crisp, dry, shrapnelling monstrosities found in the afore mentioned box kits. They are soft corn or wheat tortillas that resemble little boats filled with tasty morsels. Be adventurous with your fillings. The only limit is your imagination. Dirty.

I recently made very simple bell pepper, spinach, mushroom red onion and vegan almond cheese tacos for a light supper. Served with a very chunky guacamole. Sometimes simple is best.

Veggie Huevos Rancheros-2 ways!

The first time I made this dish I wanted to keep it very simple. I didn't use a tin of tomatoes as it was just for myself. Instead I added a handful of cherry tomatoes cut in half.

For one:
tablespoon of cooking oil such as rapeseed
2 eggs (organic, free range)
1 Red bell pepper, sliced
Handful cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 red onion, sliced
1 green chilli, chopped or sliced
small bunch coriander, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste

To serve:
2 corn tortillas
1/2 avocado
Chunk of cheese, grated
1/2 lime
Coriander, chopped
Hot sauce of choice

Fry the onion, pepper and chilli in a pan until softened, Add the cherry tomatoes and cook for a few minutes. Make two holes in the mixture, add a teaspoon of oil in each hole and gently add the eggs. cover the pan with a lid and fry for a few more minutes. Flip your eggs if you don't like them runny! There are no rules set in Aztec stone here!

For huevos rancheros for two, omit the cherry tomatoes and use a can of chopped or plum tomatoes instead. Use a whole onion and two bell peppers of different colours, and four eggs. Wacky, huh? You may want to stick the pan under a hot grill for a few minutes to cook the eggs on top.

Warm the tortillas in a dry frying pan and plate up! Sprinkle grated cheese on first or over the mixture and then place the avocado slices on last. Season as you wish and squeeze fresh lime over the glory that is the riot of colour on your plate! Bueno!

Three Bean Chilli with home-made guacamole and corn tortilla chips.

I made this for a dinner party recently. Two of my guests were meat enthusiasts but said they didn't miss the meat at all. It is hearty, rich and satisfying.

1 red onion, sliced
3 cloves garlic
2 fresh chillies (1 red, one green) sliced
2 bell peppers (red and green) sliced
1 can each of kidney, pinto and black beans, drained and rinsed
2 cans chopped tomatoes
2tsp smoked paprika
Dash of Worcester sauce
Table spoon bouillon or other veggie stock mixed in about 200ml hot water.
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

In a large pan, heat 2 tablespoons of cooking oil and add the peppers, chillies, onion and garlic. Stir occasionally and cook for about ten minutes or until they have softened. Add the three varieties of beans and chopped tomatoes. Season with the salt, pepper, paprika. Then add the veggie stock and Worcester sauce. Stir it all together and leave to simmer on a low heat for about 1/2 an hour. Stirring every 10 minutes or so. You don't want a burned bottom!

Guacamole:
2 ripe avocados, mashed or chopped chunky if preferred
about 8 cherry tomatoes, quartered
1 clove of garlic, crushed
1 small handful coriander, chopped
finely chopped 1/4 red onion
1 green chilli, finely chopped
juice of 1 lime
Salt and pepper to taste

Smash the lot around in a bowl until the ingredients know each other a bit too well.

Serve the chilli with brown rice, guacamole and tortilla chips and a sprig of fresh coriander, for pretty.

Frozen Margarita

I couldn't imagine having all this deliciously spicy food without anything cool and refreshing to wash it all down with.

Per person:
35ml 100% blue agave tequila
25ml or juice of one lime
15ml agave syrup
2 cups ice

Place all ingredients in a blender and blitz!

Salty rim? Run a segment of lime around the outside of the glass rim and then rotate it in a bowl of salt till the salt sticks to the glass.

Equally as delicious served on the rocks and not frozen.

CHEERS!