Pretty in Pink Beetroot Hummus

You might have noticed that I haven't posted anything in about a month. Reason being that I got ill, I was literally on the floor. I have never felt that exhausted for that long, ever. In addition to exhaustion I had a chest infection which meant I had to give up and take antibiotics. They really helped and slowly I started to recover.
So, forgetting this sad "oh poor me.." story, let's get back to the important stuff. Food!
During that month I had to find meals that were nutritious, but did not need any effort to make, as I simply did not have the strength.
And so this BEETROOT HUMMUS came into my life.
It's tastier to roast the beetroot yourself (better do it with its skin on to retain nutrients), however if you are in a rush you can buy the organic cooked ones.
This hummus is sweet and creamy, in addition to providing you with a protein punch thanks to the beans and tahini.
I had it with falafel for dinner, and vegetables sticks as a snack, but it's super versatile: you could cut a cucumber in thick round slices, and add a dollop of the hummus on top as a fresh and healthy canapé at a party for example. Or use it with some greens and sweet potatoes in a wrap for lunch.
Go crazy!

INGREDIENTS
1 can butter beans
1 medium roasted beet
3 tbsp olive oil 
1 heaped tbsp of tahini
juice of 1 lemon
salt and pepper to taste

All you have to do is roast the beetroots in the oven at 200C for about 30-35 minutes till slightly soft (unless of course you have the already cooked ones). Let cool and peel them, before popping all ingredients in a food processor and whizzing it up for a minute. Not bad ah?

Enjoy your bank holiday,

Love.x

Foodolina

WOKIT baby, WOKIT!

This is a place I discovered just before Christmas, my flatmate Patch swore to me I would have loved it and boy, was he right.

I as a little sceptical on my way there, Patch said they did stir-fries and I thought it would just be another Wagamama.. I was wrong.

Wokit is just in front of Borough Market, it's cosy and colourful inside. Just a couple of regular tables at the back, and two high ones with tall stools just next to the cooking area. And that's the great thing, you can see everything that's happening, it's all out there, right in front of your eyes for you to take  in: the fresh ingredients you can choose from, and the fabulous smells from the different types of dishes being sautéed just next to your table.

They have anything you might need, gluten free noodles, vegan options such as tofu if that's what you want. If not, then you can add some delicious salmon, beef, duck, pork and chicken...

But what I loved the most were the noodles, oh wow the noodles! I was looking for a gluten free option and decided to try the buckwheat and sweet potato noodles. Absolutely incredible, trust me, light and tasty.The stir fry comes with a mix of vegetables ( carrot, garlic, ginger, beansprouts, cabbage and spring onions) to which you can add some extra one from their menu. You add your source of protein,  I chose salmon, and a miso coriander dressing. Yes, you also choose your dressing people! You create a stir fry that is perfectly tailored just for you.

The prices are affordable and the portion is large. I couldn't finish mine, but Patch was very happy to finish it for me. Kind man.

Take a look at their menu and start drooling. Then get yourselves down there and enjoy every single bite, you'll be back for more. I know I will.

This is where you are headed:

Borough Market

3 Stoney Street

London, SE1 9AA

Tel: 0207 74032111

Happy Monday!

xxx

Love,

Foodolina

The "Baby it's cold outside" soup

The other day it was pretty chilly and miserable outside and all I could think about as I was shivering on the train platform, was how much I wanted to curl up on the couch with a hot, heart-warming and delicious bowl of soup while watching one of my favourite movies..

As soon as I got home I turned on the fairy-lights in the living room and headed straight to the adjacent kitchen to get cooking.. My evening Jazz playlist on and I was ready to get started.

This recipe, as most of the ones you'll find on this blog, is very easy and quick to prepare. If it's already 7.30pm and I had a double shift...I don't really want to wait over 40 minutes to eat...

And this is how long this soup takes, 40 minutes. It gave me time to have a shower, get in my comfy clothes and choose which movie I wanted to watch: Crazy Stupid Love. Go on, judge me..

In your warm bowl of goodness you'll find a protein source from the legumes and immune boosting action of garlic, onion, ginger and turmeric (the last two are also anti-inflammatory ingredients. Boom.)

Anyway, let's get to it!

INGREDIENTS

1 CAN OF COOKED CHICKPEAS (you could easily have the dried ones and soak them the night before if you planned this in advance. Soaking legumes will make them easier to digest).

1 CUP OF DRY LENTILS ( I love Puy lentils but I only had regular green ones so I used those, however if you can choose...Go Puy all the way. And you should soak these too if you can but this soup was not planned...)

1 CHOPPED RED ONION (you can also use white ones)

1 CHOPPED GARLIC CLOVE

1 THUMB SIZED PIECE OF PEELED AND CHOPPED GINGER ROOT

1 HANDFUL OF CHERRY TOMATOES CUT IN HALF

1 TBSP OF BOUILLON POWDER

1/2 LARGE BAG OF SPINACH

1 TBSP EXTRAVERGIN OLIVE OIL (plus a swirl to add raw as a topping)

1/4 TURMERIC POWDER

1/4 GROUND CUMIN POWDER

SALT AND PEPPER TO TASTE (use Himalayan or sea salt as regular processed table salt won't get you any useful minerals...)

NOW GO AND DO IT...

Turn the heat on to medium and start boiling some water in a kettle on the side. In a pan add the oil, onion, garlic and ginger till soft. Add turmeric, cumin, salt and pepper and mix everything up. Cook for a further minute before adding dry lentils, tomatoes, bouillon and hot water. Bring to the boil and then down to a simmer for about 30/40 minutes (check the cooking time behind the pack of your lentils). Then add your chickpeas and cook for 5 more minutes before adding the spinach and cooking for a further minute. Done.

Pour in your favourite bowl, add a swirl of olive oil and go curl up on your couch. Keep warm and enjoy.

Love,

xxx

Foodolina

Speedy Quinoa with roasted cod, fresh tomatoes and capers

When I work long hours and I come home around 8pm, the last thing I want is spending ages cooking dinner so I always try and find the quickest way to prepare a meal that will be both delicious and nutritious.. This recipe was a happy discovery one night when I didn't have much left in the house except for some leftover cooked quinoa (I like to cook a batch of it on Sundays and just add different ingredients during the week for a "take away" lunch), two medium tomatoes, garlic and some capers. Plus, I remembered I had one piece of frozen cod left in the freezer (ideally you want to defreeze it beforehand but I was desperate). 

Here's how I did it: with my coat still on I turned the oven on at 180C . Placed the cod in the tray with a squeeze of lemon, some olive oil, paprika and herbs (but you can use anything you've got, only herbs, only paprika, only lemon...), and put it in the oven with my timer on for 20 minutes.

Quickly undressed and put PJ's on (yes, I know, I'm a sexy beast...) then, with 10 min left on the timer I washed and sliced the tomatoes and popped them with a couple of chopped garlic cloves and a little oil in a pan. Medium heat and just stir them once, add some salt, pepper and about two minutes before the end, add your capers.

Now, cod was ready, fresh tomatoes cooked, all you need to do is assemble! I added the quinoa and cod directly to the pan with the tomatoes and mixed everything on low heat for 1 minute, maybe less because I was really hungry.... DONE.

It was a comforting meal, full of flavour and packed not only with proteins from both quinoa and cod, but also the phytochemical lycopene from the tomatoes (great for cardiovascular health and also skin). Finally, and you have read this before on my blog as I use it a lot, Garlic! Natural antibiotic, contains sulphur and is therefore really helpful for your liver!

All of this goodness in 20 minutes. That's right.

Now you go and do it.x

Buckwheat noodles with the best fresh tomato sauce

I LOVE TOMATOES. Maybe it's because I'm Italian but beautifully ripe tomatoes are delicious and smell just like summer, they take me back to my childhood summers spent in Puglia with my family.
It's kind of hard to find some really good ones here in England but when I do, I feel really lucky and want them in my kitchen straight away!
These days, I'm trying to reduce the amount of gluten in my diet just because I always feel so much better and my tummy is nice and flat when I do that, sure, I cannot resist sourdough pizza from Franco Manca sometimes, but in general, I try to keep gluten to minimum amounts.
Lately I discovered buckwheat noodles (see a recipe for a summer buckwheat noodle salad here), and since I have been craving spaghetti this week, I  used these beauties instead of regular pasta. Together with quick fresh tomato sauce, it tasted incredible without the bloat and heavy after dinner feeling. Score!
It's a very quick dinner to prepare and you get lovely fiber and magnesium from buckwheat, plus the fresh tomato sauce provides you with lycopene which has antioxidant properties. Enjoy!x

INGREDIENTS
1 pack buckwheat noodles
1 tbsp coarse pink Hymalaian salt

For the sauce:
1 pack (4 or 5) ripe vine tomatoes thinly sliced
4 cloves of garlic chopped small
2 tbsp extravirgin olive oil
a pinch of organic coconut palm sugar (you can use regular sugar if you don't have it but start thinking about                                                               substituting it, coconut palm sugar it's sweeter but doesn't upset your                                                              blood sugar levels as much due to it's low glycemic index)
a pinch of salt
some ground pepper
4 or 5 chopped fresh basil leaves

METHOD

Pop all the ingredients for the tomato sauce in a small pan, except for the basil, and let it cook over medium to low heat for about 10 minutes stirring  every now and then.
After 10 minutes add your noodles to boiling water (noodles generally take 5 minutes) and add the basil to the sauce stirring it in.
Drain noodles and add to the pan with the sauce so everything mixes in real nicely.. Time to serve!
Buon Appetito.x

Summer Salad

We've had a few hot days lately here in London and when the weather is so summery, my body screams for fresh foods. I wanted to make a quick salad  to satisfy my cravings but I also needed to pack it with gorgeous ingredients that were delicious and really good for me!
And so my summer salad was born.
It has some of my favourite things in it such as sweet potatoes and red and yellow peppers.
I also added some cannellini beans for protein and chopped one small avocado to add healthy fats.
On top of everything, this salad ended up being so colourful, it made happy just looking at it!

Here we go: serves 1
1 bag of organic mixed salad
1 small avocado chopped
1 sweet potato chopped (with added paprika, cinnamon and dried herbs OPTIONAL)
1/2 red pepper sliced
1/2 yellow pepper sliced
1/2 can cannellini beans (rinsed)
1 handful of pumpkin seeds

DRESSING
Extrvirgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar to your taste and a sprinkle of Pink Himalayan salt (or sea salt)

I used one oven tray lined with baking paper for both sweet potato and peppers, just place them on opposite sides. Just pop the pepper slices on the tray (make sure you washed the peppers first!). as for the sweet potato, once you chopped it, sprinkle some paprika, cinnamon and mediterranean herbs with a little salt (at least that's what I do, but you can just keep it simple and add some salt,pepper and a little bit of dried herbs if you prefer), add 1tbsp of extravirgin olive oil and add to the tray. Bake at 180C for about 30 min.
That was the hard part, now you just put all the ingredients together and sprinkle with pumpkin seeds!
Buon Appetito.xxx

The salmon post

I have always loved salmon. Smoked, steamed, roasted, in a pie...  So I started looking for fresh wild Alaskan salmon. And I quickly realised that 1) on that supermarket counter, fish should have looked and smelled insanely fresh but it really, really didn't 2) it quickly became too expensive a craving for me to keep up.

Then I enrolled in nutritional therapy and found out that frozen fish,which I feared for years because I thought there were some weird chemicals added to it ( probably something I heard my mom's friends talked about years ago in Italy...), is actually fresher than the fish you find on the counter. 

I  decided to give it a try and soon realised it was the best thing I could ever buy. Not only it tastes delicious, looks and smells fresher, but it is also incredibly cheaper! I buy my Alaskan wild salmon from Sainsburys, it's £4.50 for 5 fillets, which means that I can now have my Omega3 fatty acids ( good fats that your body cannot produce) 3 times a week and still have two fillets left for the week after. You can find Omega3 fats in many types of oily fish like mackerel, sardines, salmon and ideally you want to eat them 2-3 times a week. I stick to salmon because I tried both mackerel and sardines and they do not agree with me but if you do like them then definitely switch between the three, ideally the smaller the fish the less amount of mercury in it. 

Having said that, there will always be some kind of big or small health issue with food or drinks so my advice is to eat what you enjoy but always be mindful.Life is too short not have salmon.

For some reason this frozen salmon seems to cook better as well, I am pretty lazy in the kitchen so food needs to be healthy, very tasty and quick to prepare. 

The way I love to cook my salmon is with a sprinkle of Hymalaian salt, a little ground pepper, Mediterranean dried herbs ( my faithful grandmother's mix) and a slice of lemon on top. Then I wrap it in loosely in a foil parcel and pop it in the oven at 180c for 11 minutes. in the meantime I can prepare a side salad or steam some greens. It's perfectly cooked every time. I suggest you give it a try.xxx

Ingredients

1 fillet Alaskan wild salmon

1 slice of lemon

Salt and pepper

Mediterranean dried herb mix ( or any other dried herbs you'd like)

Method

Turn the oven on at 180c, 350F, gas mark 4.

I quickly rinse the salmon under gently running water for 2 seconds just to make sure it's nice and clean without any small dirt bits from when it was caught or cut. Pop it in the foil sheet and sprinkle with salt,pepper and the herbs and top with a lemon slice.

Fold the sheet of foil so that the borders of the two longe sides touch and gently close them together so steam won't come out. it basically needs to create a hot steam pocket for your salmon. 

If you do have a steamer at home that would be even better, you could just put the salmon in there with the veggies as well and have a complete dinner in one move! Also, a steamer would be healthier than the foil to use. I'm planning to buy a wooden one soon. If you do not have it please don't worry, foil will work great!

Place the parcel in the oven for 11 minutes and done! 

Just make sure you keep your lovely face away from the foil when you unwrap it, so you won't be hit by the hot steam :)))

Serve on a plate with your favourite greens.xxx

Butternut Squash a' la Kitty.x

This recipe is dedicated to my friend Kitty, one of the loveliest girls I know.
She seems to like butternut squash so this one's for her.
I love autumn, the colours, the new beginnings, Halloween..So many incredible reasons to be smiling, but mostly : IT'S SQUASH SEASON!!! All the wonderful shapes and sizes and colours at the farmers market bring me so much joy...And believe it or not, this year was the first time I actually roasted my own squash. I know, it's crazy.But we just moved to this wonderful new house with a proper oven in our cozy kitchen  and I thought the time had finally come.
So I went and bought two lovely  delicata squash and made some autumnal magic..now, this is a recipe that you can prepare even if you have a superbusy life I can assure you, all I have been doing for the past three weeks is working on my essay but these beauties were roasting while I studied, the sauce took 10 min to cook and the polenta about 1 min.Not bad ah?
Give it a try and you won't regret it. Happy Autumn to you all!!!

INGREDIENTS

2 small delicate squash
1 cup of gluten free instant polenta ( but you can use regular one)
3 organic tomatoes
10 small organic chestnut mushrooms
A little pic
A pinch of nutmeg
A drizzle of extravirgin olive oil

Preheat your oven at 190c, gas mark 5, 375F.
Wash the outside of your squash, cut the top and bottom and place it vertical on a cutting board and slice it in half  lengthwise.Make sure it's nice and stable before you make the cut and put your weight on it. Scoop the seeds out from both halves, sprinkle with a little nutmeg and place with the inside part facing down on a roasting tray. Cover the tray with foil to keep the heat inside and make the squash delicious and soft then go back to study ( in my case..) or do anything else you need to.
Your squash will need about 40 minutes.
10 minutes before taking them out of the oven, dust and slice your mushrooms,wash and slice your tomatoes and put everything in a pan with a little olive oil and salt and pepper on a medium heat.just stir the vegetables every now and then and in 10 minutes your sauce will be ready!

2 min before your sauce is done just boil water in the kettle and then use 1 mug and a half of boiling water and add to that half a mug of polenta while storing slowly, add salt and pepper.

Take the squash out, turn them with the inside part up and add a little polenta and the tomato and   muhrooms sauce on top of that.
Serve ideally with some lovely greens as a side. Buon Appetito!

Xxx

Valentina

Quinoa Stuffed Round Courgettes

Every Sunday morning I head to the Brixton Farmers Market to do my weekly grocery shopping.
I love it there, I can always talk to the farmers and be sure my veggies won't be covered in nasty pesticides.
Last week I found some beautiful round courgettes which I had never tried so I was seriously excited and got the three prettiest ones!
I also bought some lovely cherry tomatoes and an aubergine and here's what I did when I went in my kitchen...x

INGREDIENTS
3 Medium/Large Round Courgettes (I had 2 Green and  a gorgeous Yellow one)
1 Pack Cherry Tomatoes cut in half or quarters
1 Small aubergine chopped in small cubes
2 Garlic Cloves chopped teeny tiny
Feta Cheese to crumble on top
Dried Mediterranean herbs
1/2 Cup chopped walnuts
1/2 Cup Quinoa
Olive oil
Salt and Pepper to season

Preheat the oven at 180 C, gas mark 4, 375 F.

Wash your courgettes then pat them dry.
Cut the top off but don't throw it away! It's going to become their little hat :)
Scoop out the inside of the courgettes, chop it and keep in in a bowl to the side.
Drizzle the inside and outside part of these little veggie bowls and season with salt and pepper before placing them in the oven with their tops on for 30 minutes.

In the meantime, rinse your quinoa and pop it in boiling water (remember to put some coarse salt in it) for 10 minutes.
As the quinoa cooks you can  grab a pan,  drizzle with extravirgin olive oil and add garlic, tomatoes, aubergines and the inside of the courgettes. Cook on low/medium heat for 15 minutes stirring every now and then, should it become too dry while cooking just add a little water.
When the quinoa is ready, drain it and leave it to cool.
By this point your kitchen should already be smelling heavenly and your pan should be filled with soft delicious veggie mix. Add the quinoa and walnuts to it, mix it up for a minute and take off the heat.

When the 30 minutes have passed take your courgettes out of the oven and move them face down on a plate layered with some kitchen towels to absorb the extra water that will have collected inside them.
Time to stuff them!!!!
It's all about layers baby. First some crumbled feta on the bottom, then some quinoa filling, then more feta and filling again and top up with a little more feta on top.
Place under the grill for about 5 minutes (or just till your feta goes a little golden), then take these beauties out and add their little hats before serving.

Cute and delicious, hope you'll love them as much I did.x

Corn Penne with Cherry Tomatoes and Courgettes (Gluten Free)

Last night both me and Patch got home relatively late and hungry so I whipped up something fresh and satisfying in 20 min flat!
I had some leftover courgettes from the farmers market, garlic (always a staple in our home and possibly the most powerful natural antibiotic out there!), then all we had to buy were cherry tomatoes.We got a £1 bag from Sainsburys as we were low on money but if you can, do get some bright red juicy ones possibly from a farmers market. I also got my "stash" of corn pasta from my last trip to Italy and penne were our choice for dinner.
This dish was so good we literally cleaned our plates!

RECIPE (serves 2)

1 pack of fresh cherry tomatoes chopped in quarters (just to let you know, I also chopped 1 medium organic tomato that was left in my fridge and needed to be eaten)

2 cloves of garlic chopped in teeny tiny pieces

2 small courgettes cut in 4 lenghtwise (picture below) and then thinly sliced

1-2 tbsp Extravirgin olive oil

salt and pepper to season

1 pack Penne Gluten Free Corn Pasta (the brand I used is called Le Veneziane)

Get a pan , pop in all the ingredients (except the pasta!) and turn the stove on to medium heat.
Cover with a lid and stir every now and then for 20 min.

As the sauce is cooking and your kitchen is filling up with a gorgeous smell,  put some salt in a pot and bring water to a boil ( to speed up the process is boil my water in a kettle and then add it to the pot so when I turn the heat on it boils straight away. Lazy much?), add your pasta of choice in and cook according to instructions on the packet.
I always try a bit of pasta about 1 or 2 min before the time ends just to double check if it's ready before the instructions said.
Once your pasta is cooked, drain it, add it to the pan with your vegetables and mix well.
I normally keep some of the boiling water should the pasta get a bit dry when drained but in this case, probably because of the water content of both vegetables that's released during cooking, I really didn't need to.
You can add some parmesan cheese if you wish.
Sit down and enjoy.x

Summer Bruschetta

Since coming back from Italy last week, I cannot believe how lucky we've been with the weather here in the UK! How wonderful is it to wake up every single morning and see the sun shining outside? 

It makes me jump out of bed full of energy and with a big smile on my face, it really makes all the difference.

This also means that me and Patch have finally had the chance to make the most of our garden again (which I'll admit after a very wet summer last year and an incredibly long winter this year does look a bit like a jungle) eating and chatting with friends under this blue blue sky.

The first lunch we had was a quick but super tasty one. 

We had walked all morning under the sun and were feeling a bit lazy by lunchtime so I had to make sure we could enjoy something easy to prepare but colourful and delicious. 

Enter the Summer Bruschetta.

This is a variation on an "almost classic" bruschetta I prepared on a shoot we did in Tuscany in June (recipes from that wonderful experience will come out soon)..

The result was absolutely fantastic so here's the simple recipe for all of you to enjoy!

SUMMER BRUSCHETTA (serves 2)

1 Loaf of Bread (you can choose your favourite but we got a round stonebaked Sourdough and used half of it to make 4 perfectly sized bruschettas)

3 Big juicy tomatoes chopped 

Half a red onion chopped really small

2-3 tbsp extravirgin olive oil

2-3 tbsp balsamic vinegar

salt and pepper to season

A few pimiento olives cut in half (but you can also use plain green or black, it'll work equally well)

Half a block of Halloumi, cut in 4 slices (grilled)

Very Simply start with a medium sized bowl and add the tomatoes, onions, salt, pepper, olive oil and vinegar.

Mix everything together then cover with a lid or some foil and pop into the refrigerator to marinate (NB: ideally you'd want to leave it for at least 30 min to 1hour to let the favours mix really well and become deliciously intense but we were starving and 15 min worked just fine).

Cut your loaf into 4 thick slices and grill them, quickly grill the halloumi but keep an eye on it (you don't want it to melt..). All you need to do now is assemble!

Get your favourite plates out, pop the bread on, followed by the marinated tomatoes and halloumi (I broke it into pieces and sprinkled it a bit here and there) and add the little olives last.

Then, take a spoonful of the juice from the bowl that had the tomatoes mix and pour it on top as a final touch.

Time to eat!x

PS: This recipe can also be done on a grilled gluten free bread for any specific diet needs ;)

Quick Superfoods Healing Soup

Yesterday I had my final exam at uni after a month of constant hardcore revising every single day and working in between. Needless to say, as soon as the exam was over and the adrenaline was gone, all the stress, worrying and crazy energy that had being pumping in my whole body for 30 days hit me pretty hard and I suddenly started feeling really run down. That didn't stop me from heading to the farmers Market to buy some gorgeous organic kale and strawberries obviously, but even after a power nap in the afternoon I still felt pretty awful. We went to meet some friends I hadn't seen in way too long which made me feel better as laughing always helps when I'm ill, but when I finally got back home I knew I needed to eat something nutritious and soothing but didn't have the strength to cook at 10.30pm..
And then it hit me.
I had Kale! I had my stash of quinoa in the pantry and and my always faithful vegetable stock.

INGREDIENTS
2 Large Kale Leaves chopped really small
1/3 cup of rinsed quinoa
1tbsp Vegetable stock
Hot water (about 2 1/2 cups depending on how much broth you want)
2 small pinches of Hymalaian or sea salt (optional)
1tsp Extravirgin Olive oil to drizzle on top (optional)

Still with my coat on I put the kettle on and a small pan with some stock in it. Rinsed 1/3 of a cup of quinoa and added it to the pan then covered it with hot water and 2 small pinches of Hymalaian salt (you can also use regular sea salt).Then quickly rinsed my two big leaves of Kale and chopped it teeny tiny and added that too.I know if you over boil vegetables you lose those nutrients in the water but i was going to drink up all of that broth so no problem!
15 min, my hot, delicious, light dinner was ready and I was already in my PJs.
I poured it into a big bowl and drizzled some extravirgin olive oil on it(my mom taught me to do this every time before i have a soup and it just makes it so much tastier) and off I went under the covers all snuggled up in bed.
Feeling much better today.

PS: Just to let you know Kale is incredibly good for you, it's an Anti-inflammatory food, it's high in Fiber, Iron, Antioxidants and Vitamins K, A and C.
Oh, should that not be enough for you it has also got Calcium.
And quinoa (which I've become addicted to), is not only a Gluten Free seed (even though it looks like a grain), but it's a great source of Protein!

So there you go. 3 Ingredients of which 2 are Superfoods. 15 Minutes and your health in a bowl is served.x

The "Everything's gonna be alright" Risotto with Butternut Squash

 It's on days like today that I wish I had a dog to welcome me home with his cute funny face, ready to go for a walk in the park helping me to forget all the bad things that happened during the day..
But alas, I have no dog (sad music in the background).. So I'm turning to comforting yet nutritious food instead.
Enter the Butternut Squash Risotto.
This creamy, soul healing comforting bowl of goodness takes only 20 minutes to prepare and it's bound to bring a smile of happiness and joy on the first bite.
It's inspired by the awesome pumpkin risotto my mom makes but here it's easier to find butternut squash so I used that. And I'll tell you more, I used to have mixed butternut squash and sweet potato together but now I just use the first one and the result is a lighter, creamier risotto that I could eat over and over again.
And I love its happy bright orange colour of course!

INGREDIENTS
2 cups of chopped butternut squash
( I buy the pre chopped one and chop it even more)
1 cup arborio rice
1tbsp vegetable stock
2 peeled garlic cloves
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper to season
2 pinches of nutmeg
Boiling water

 Start with oil and garlic in a pan on medium heat till the garlic is browning a bit.
In the meantime put the kettle on and chop your butternut squash.
Get your rice and rinse it.
Once the garlic is ready, pop the butternut squash and rice in and mix so they are covered in garlicky oil.
Add salt and pepper and the vegetable stock and mix again.
Then add the water till it covers everything and bring to the boil before lowering the heat to a simmer.
From now on, what you want to do is check and stir every now and then, adding water if you notice that the mixture is becoming too dry.
After 15 minutes (my rice takes about 20 min. to cook but check the instructions on your package), I start squashing the pieces of softened squash against the sides of the pan with a wooden spoon and then stir, by the end of this process everything has become creamy and orange!
That's when I add my nutmeg, stir again, taste to check if I need more salt and pepper and if the rice is cooked of course.
When you stir the rice and see a creamy consistency, not watery (in Italy we call the right consistency ALL'ONDA, onda means wave in italian because when you stir the risotto it should look like a velvety wave), then it's done!
You can add parmesan if you want but as you know I haven't been a fan of dairy lately so I take mine without and it tastes so incredible anyway..

So nothing left to do but cuddle up on the sofa with your bowl of risotto and relax.
Everything's gonna be allright.x

Carrot & Courgette Fritters

Today marks the end of Vegetarian Week, during which I have been able to test different recipes including the one that made it to this post.
I'm really trying to use up all of my leftovers lately cause I used to waste way too much food, so on Thursday evening I looked online for a meal that would include some mixed veg and eggs..I found many veggie fritters recipes but in a way or another I always needed to change a few ingredients so decided to make up my own.
In my fridge I still had a bag of beautiful organic carrots from the Islington Farmers Market, 1 courgette, some spring onions, parsley and two eggs. And that's how the magic happened.
When sauteeing or frying I'm now using coconut oil instead of olive oil as it isn't as damaged or chemically altered by heat as olive oil is.
Also coconut oil smells fabulous and contains lauric acid which strengthens the immune system.
Not bad  right?
The fritters came out really good, colourful and super tasty. I think I made at least 12 which meant two whole dinners with a side salad each.  Yummy dinners + money saved=  awesomeness.
So here's the recipe which, as I'm posting it today (Sunday), you can easily make tomorrow evening as your Meat Free Monday dinner baby!

INGREDIENTS (please choose organic when possible)

2 Large Eggs, beaten
1 Courgette, grated
2 Carrots, grated
1 Tbsp Nutritional Yeast (for a cheesy flavour without dairy plus mine is fortified with vitamin B12!)
1 Handful of chopped parsley
3 Spring onions, finely chopped
Salt & Pepper to season
1 Tsp coconut oil for frying
4 heaped Tbsp of gluten free flour or whole wheat flour ( I used gluten free)

Grate your courgette, carrots (I'm lazy so I let the food processor with grater attachment do the work) then put them in a colander and push them down to drain any extra liquid.
Finely chop your spring onions and parsley.
Put your vegetables in a bowl, add the remaining ingredient and mix well.

Spoon the coconut oil in the pan and turn on the stove to medium heat than start adding spoonfuls of the mixture (I managed to fit 4 spoonfuls at a time in my pan) and lightly push on top of each to form a patty.

Leave it 4-5 min. on each side or till they become golden, then transfer to a plate on top of kitchen paper (to absorb extra oil) and once the first layer is full add and extra sheet and pop the second batch on etc...

How easy is that? I made everything in 20 minutes. And so will you. Enjoy your dinner.x