Monday
Sweetcorn balls
You'll need:
- 250g Self-raising flour
- 1 tin (410g) Sweetcorn
- 125ml Lukewarm water
- Sunflower oil
Method:
- Sift the flour into a bowl and make a small well in the middle.
- Add the sweetcorn to this and mix roughly.
- Add the water while mixing the sweetcorn into the mixture.
- Use only enough water to form a thick dough.
- Scoop equal sized balls of dough and fry these in a pot of hot oil.
- Wait until the one side of the ball turns brown before turning the ball over to cook on the other side.
- Once the balls are evenly golden brown, remove them from the oil and place onto kitchen towel to cool down.
- Serve with butter and jam with grated cheese, or golden syrup.
Tuesday
Butternut soup
You'll need:
- 3 tbsp Margarine
- 1 Onion, chopped
- 1 Potato, chopped
- 2 cups Butternut, chopped
- 1 tsp Mild curry powder
- ¼ tsp Nutmeg
- 3 cups Chicken stock
- 1½ cups Milk
- Salt and pepper
- Pinch of sugar
Method:
- Melt the butter and fry the onion before adding the potato and butternut.
- Stir-fry over a high heat and add the curry powder and nutmeg while stirring.
- Add the chicken stock, milk, salt, pepper and sugar and simmer for 20 minutes until soft.
- Let the mixture cool down until lukewarm, pour into a blender and blend until a liquid consistency.
- Reheat the mixture and serve.
Wednesday
Butter chicken
You'll need:
- 3 cups Rice
- 1 tin Coconut milk
- 100ml Water
- 4-5 Chicken breasts
- 1 packet Butter chicken spice or paste (mild)
- 125ml Cream or reduced fat cream
- 2 tbsp Olive oil
- Flaked almonds
- Fresh corainder leaves
- Salt
- Pepper
Method:
- Bring the water and coconut milk to the boil in a pot.
- Add the rice and a pinch of salt.
- In a separate pan, brown the chicken in olive oil and flavour with salt and pepper.
- Remove from the pan and place to the side.
- In the same pan, prepare the butter chicken paste according to the directions on the packet.
- Once ready, add the chicken to the mixture and leave to simmer in the pan while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
- Lightly toast the almonds in a little bit of olive oil and chop the coriander leaves roughly.
- Once the rice is ready, add the corainder leaves and dish onto a plate.
- Add the cream to the butter chicken and heat it slightly before also dishing it onto the plate.
- Top the dish off with fresh corainder and the toasted flake almonds.
TIP:
This recipe is an example of how you can take a component from a ready-to-use mixture, like the spices for butter chicken, and use it in a dish that you add nutritional value to. Note that some butter chicken dishes might be too spicy for children. Add a little bit more cream or substitute it for yoghurt if you feel that it might be too strong.
Thursday
Moussaka
You'll need:
- 3 Medium aubergines
- 1 Onion, chopped
- 2 Garlic cloves, chopped (optional)
- 500g Lean beef mince
- 1 tin Peeled tomatoes
- 1 tin Tomato puree
- 3 tsp Sugar
- 100g Butter
- 125ml Flour
- 1 litre Milk
- Fresh parsley, chopped
- Salt
Method:
- Peel the aubergines and cut into wheels.
- Sprinkle with salt and leave for 40 minutes so that the bitter juices can be extracted.
- Sauté the onion and garlic in olive oil and add the mince.
- Cook until the mince has browned.
- Chop the peeled tomatoes and add to the mixture.
- Spice with some salt and pepper and add teh sugar.
- Leave to simmer.
- In a different pot, melt the butter and make a roux by adding the flour little by little while stirring continuously with a whisk.
- Repeat the same process with the milk.
- Try to prevent any lumps from forming.
- Keep stirring over a low heat until the mixture thickens.
- Add salt and pepper and chopped parsley if you like.
- Take an ovenproof bowl and layer the aubergine and mince mixture.
- Start with some meat and follow with the abergine, ending with meat.
- Cover the surface with a layer of white sauce.
- Bake for 30-40 minutes at 180°C.
Friday
Sweet pepper toasts
You'll need:
- 1 Baguette or French loaf
- 2 Red peppers, halved
- 2 Yellow peppers, halved
- 50ml Olive oil
- 50ml Balsamic vinegar
- 1 Onion, chopped
- 250g Mushrooms, chopped
- 2 Tomatoes, chopped
- 2 Fresh garlic cloves, chopped finely
- 2 Rounds Feta cheese
- Flat leaf parsley, salt, pepper
Method:
- Bring a pot of water to the boil.
- Place the sweet peppers in a colander and into the water.
- Cover with the pot's lid and leave to steam for approximately 20 minutes.
- Once ready, cut into strips, place in a bowl and drizzle with the olive oil amd balsamic vinegar.
- Cut the bread into slices of about 1cm each.
- Place them on a baking tray and drizzle with olive oil.
- Grill for 10-15 minutes in the oven at 180°C.
- Once toasted, remove from the oven but do not change the temperature.
- Lightly fry the onion, mushroom and garlic in olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
- Once done, add the tomato to the mixture and scoop on the bread.
- Drape some of the pepper strips on top.
- Lastly crumb the feta on top and sprinkle parsley, salt and pepper.
- Drizzle some of teh oil and balsamic mixture on the toasts.
- Bake for 10-15 minutes at 180°C.
- Serve while still hot.