No cook, no fuss – perfect for when life gets super busy as it always does!
Just grab:
- store bought hot smoked salmon
- avocado
- raw coleslaw mix
- baby spinach
and place on a pumpkin chive GF bread roll. Tasty!
Tag: healthy dinner
Vegan Pumpkin Soup
Warms the soul as well as the belly!
Ingredients (serves 2-3)
- 200g butternut pumpkin
- 4 large carrots
- 125g can coconut cream
- 4 fresh sage leaves
- 1 sprig fresh rosemary
- 1 litre vegetable stock
- Chives to serve
Method
- Preheat the oven to 200*C and roast the pumpkin and carrots until soft and golden. Allow to cool slightly.
- Place the roasted pumpkin and carrot, sage, rosemary, stock and coconut cream in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Alternatively, place the mixture in a large bowl or saucepan and blend with a stick blender until smooth.
- Serve hot with chives on top.
Lemon quince Pterodactyl wings
Now, I know this is not my normal kind of recipe, but if these make dinner easy and delicious for anyone else who’s busy like me then I’ll be happy!
These enormous turkey wings were cooked in my brand new oven, and what can I say, I’m impressed!
Ingredients
- Turkey wings (about 800g which was 5)
- 2 tablespoons lemon infused olive oil
- 2 tablespoons quince paste
Method
- Preheat the oven to 170*C.
- In a bowl, mix the lemon olive oil and quince paste together. Spread the mixture on top of the turkey wings.
- Wrap the turkey wings all together in a parcel of baking paper (so that the quince doesn’t burn) and bake until cooked through (about an hour). Allow to rest before serving with your favourite greens!
Pumpkin Poulet Patties
These are based on my turkey rissoles, and make for some great chicken burgers (although they’re just as tasty on their own too!).
Ingredients (makes 8 large patties)
- 500g chicken mince
- 1 small piece sourdough
- 1/4 cup quinoa flakes
- 100g pumpkin
- 1 egg
- herbs: 2 sprigs dill, 4 sprigs parsley, 6 tarragon leaves
Method
- Preheat the oven to 200*C and line a baking tray with baking paper.
- Chop the pumpkin into small pieces and roast until soft (~ 20 minutes). Leave the oven on.
- Place the bread in a food processor and process into crumbs. Add the mince, egg, herbs and pumpkin until combined, then stir in the quinoa flakes.
- Heat a large fry pan over medium heat with a small amount of olive oil. Roll 2-3 tbsp of mixture into balls and drop onto the pan, squishing with the back of a spatula. Lightly brown both sides of the patties, then remove from the pan, place on the oven tray and return to the oven until cooked through (~ 15-20 minutes). Serve hot or cold.
Served above with a beetroot and cauliflower dip (essentially my lemon beetroot hummus but with roasted 1/2 head small cauliflower instead of chickepeas).
Best Ever Veggie Patties
What do you get when you mix protein-rich chickpeas, nutty LSA and a tasty range of vegetables from the market? Some of the best veggie patties I’ve ever made!
Ingredients (makes 12)
- 100g pumpkin
- 100g sweet potato
- 1/2 small head broccoli
- 150g baby spinach
- 1 x 400g can chickpeas
- 1/2 cup LSA (linseed, sunflower seed, almond meal)
- 1 large egg
- herbs from the garden – sage, thyme, parsley, chives, tarragon
Method
- Preheat the oven to 200*C and line a baking tray with baking paper.
- Chop the pumpkin and sweet potato into small pieces and roast until golden and soft (approximately 30 minutes).
- Place the roast pumpkin and potato, broccoli, spinach, chickpeas and herbs into a food processor and process until combined. Add the egg and LSA, and mix well.
- Heat a large frypan over medium heat with a small amount of olive oil. Roll 2-3 tablespoons of mixture into balls, place onto the pan and flatten with the back of a spatula. Lightly brown both sides (don’t cook all the way through).
- Transfer the patties to a lined baking tray and bake until firm (approximately 30 minutes). Serve as veggie burgers, as part of a buddha bowl, or as a delicious snack straight from the fridge!
Roast Pumpkin and Eggplant Bake
This is one of my favourite meal-prep dishes ever, and I have been known to exist off it when I’m on a week of night shift. This is vegetarian soul-food at it’s finest – packed full of veggies and unbelievably tasty, plus easily adaptable to suit the vegans, dairy-free and coeliacs among us!
Ingredients (serves 4)
- 250g kent pumpkin
- 1 large eggplant
- 1 tin of diced tomatoes
- 4 fresh basil leaves or 2 tsp dried basil
- 1 clove of garlic or 1 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 cup salt-reduced stock (use either veggie or chicken – use a gluten free stock to make this coeliac friendly!)
- 1 yellow capsicum
- 2 large carrots
- 150g bag of baby spinach leaves (can also substitute for green kale)
- shredded mozzarella for sprinkling on top (portion dependent on how cheesy you like it, can be substituted for dairy-free cheese instead)
Method
- Preheat the oven to 200*C. Slice the pumpkin into 1cm thick slices and place on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Bake until just soft (about 20 minutes – continue the rest of the recipe in the meantime!).
- Prepare the sauce: Place the tomatoes, stock, garlic and herbs into a mixing bowl and stir until well combined. If you like your sauce thicker, you can also add 1 tbsp tomato paste or substitute the tinned tomatoes for passata instead.
- Prepare the rest of the veggies: Slice the eggplant width ways into discs. Dice or slice the capsicum into small strips. Also slice the carrots length ways into small discs.
- In an oven-proof baking dish, start by laying down a layer of eggplant slices. Top with the spinach leaves, then a layer of pumpkin, followed by the capsicum and carrots, then half the sauce and a small sprinkle of cheese. Repeat the process with another layer of eggplant, then spinach, pumpkin, capsicum and carrot, with the rest of the sauce spooned over the top and sprinkled with cheese to your liking.
- Bake until the eggplant is soft and the cheese on top is golden brown (about 20-30 minutes). Allow to cool slightly before serving.
Note that even when it has been cooked, the eggplant skin can be a little tough to slice, so go slowly with a big knife! Also feel free to experiment with different types of cheese – I have used combinations of Jarlsberg, Edam, feta, mozzarella, ricotta, goats cheese and provolone with great success!
Vegan Mushroom and Cauliflower Soup
Soup-er easy, nourishing, heart-warming and vegan – it’s just like a big hug in a bowl!
Ingredients (serves 4)
- 250g mushroom cups
- 1 small whole cauliflower
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 litre stock of your choice (vegetable if you’re vegan, chicken if you’re not)
- 150g shimeji or enoki mushrooms
- brown rice to serve
Method
- Preheat the oven to 200*C. Chop the cauliflower and the mushroom cups into small pieces of roughly equal sizes. Leave the shimeji mushrooms whole. Spray the vegetables with olive oil, and roast on a lined baking tray until the mushrooms are squishy and the cauliflower is browning / crispy around the edges (approximately 15-20 minutes).
- Cook the brown rice as per directions on the packet.
- Place the roasted mushroom cup pieces, cauliflower, garlic and stock in the blender, and blend until smooth. Top with the brown rice and shimeji mushrooms. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Fig and Feta Salad
It’s hard not to love the epic combination of roast pumpkin, fresh figs and creamy feta cheese!
Ingredients (serves 2)
- 4 cups spinach
- 4 figs
- 100g feta cheese
- 1/4 small pumpkin
- 1/2 small cauliflower
- 1 small head broccoli, stem removed
- vinaigrette of your choice
Method
- Preheat the oven to 180*C. Slice the pumpkin and cauliflower into small pieces and spray with olive oil. Place on a lined baking tray and bake until soft and slightly golden.
- Leave the broccoli raw and break the florets into small pieces. Cut the figs into small pieces.
- To assemble the salad, place the spinach on the bottom and top with the pumpkin, cauliflower, broccoli and figs. Crumble the feta over the top, then drizzle over the vinaigrette.
Oats and Cheesecake 