A few people were asking about this dinner from my food diary yesterday so I decided to pop it up on the blog for you. I love stirfry because you can really bulk it out with colourful fresh veggies for a huge dinner that’s easy on Smartpoints. The salmon is lightly dusted with Chinese 5 Spice & Red Chilli Flakes before oven baking it to keep it incredibly moist & soft. This serves 1 but can be doubled up if serving 2. It’s 13 Smartpoints (or 7 Smartpoints on No Count due to noodles not being free but you could certainly serve it with brown rice instead and it would be 2 Smartpoints on No Count). Continue reading
Tag Archives: chilli
Gorgeously Glossy & Healthy Chilli Con Carne
Why not start January off on the right note with this Gorgeously Glossy & Healthy Chilli Con Carne. These types of meals lend themselves tremendously well to healthy eating, it’s only when you start adding packets or jars that they soar in Smartpoints. Chilli is the ultimate winter comfort food & is very versatile as you could serve it with a Jacket Potato, in a Wrap or with Homemade Tortilla Nachos either. This version is just 6 Smartpoints for the Chilli & 6 Smartpoints for the Rice. If you use Wholegrain Basmati it’s entirely free on the No Count Plan. It serves 4. I hope you’re having a wonderful Saturday Night! Continue reading
It’s a Spice Bag Hun!
It’s a Spice Bag Hun! Lush! This was just voted Ireland’s favourite takeout dish and it’s easy to see why with spicy crispy fried chicken, golden chips and colourful veggies, my kitchen smells divine! yummy. The real version comes in at a whopping 1,200+ calories. But with this healthy version you don’t have to worry about it damaging your waistline. This rolls in at an amazing 9 Smartpoints or 2 Smartpoints on No Count (9 proproints or 2pp on filling and healthy) and serves 4 hungry people. The perfect weekend comfort dinner. It really is a delicious replica takeaway recipe that is well worth making. I know some people refer to them as a ‘fake away’ but I just can’t do it! the word alone makes my skin crawl! – that and the word ‘scrumptious’ or ‘zero heroes’ when referring to fruit & veg *shudder* Anyway, I digress call it what you will, I thoroughly enjoyed it and my kitchen smells gorgeous whilst cooking it and I hope you enjoy it too. Here’s the skinny: 
500g chicken fillet
800g peeled potatoes
1 red, yellow and green pepper finely sliced
1 red onion finely sliced
60g dried semolina
15g cornflour
1 egg
2 tsp chilli flakes
1 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp chinese five spice
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
Black pepper 
Pre-heat the oven to 200c. Dice the chicken into nugget sized pieces. Cut the peeled potatoes into chip shapes. Place the chips on a plate and microwave for three minutes. Spray the chips well with spray oil and place in the oven on a mesh chip tray or on a baking sheet sprayed with oil and bake for 30 minutes. Place a baking tin in the oven for the last five minutes of the chip cooking time to heat through. Meanwhile mix all the spices together in a small bowl. Mix the semolina and corn flour together in a separate bowl. Whisk the egg in another bowl. Place three quarters of the spices into the semolina mix and mix well. Pre-heat a large nonstick frying pan sprayed with oil. Dip the chicken pieces into the egg and lightly coat in the semolina mixture. Place in the frying pan and cook for 5 to 6 minutes each side until golden brown. Remove from the pan and set aside. Re-spray the pan with sprayoil and fry the peppers and onions until soft approximately 5 minutes. Remove the preheated baking tin from the oven and combine the chips breaded chicken and vegetables and sprinkle over the reserved remaining spices mix gently and well. Return to the oven for an extra five minutes of cooking time. If you like it hotter feel free to add extra chilli flakes, cayenne or slice a fresh red chilli & fry with the veggies. Serve immediately whilst hot and enjoy! 
Spiced Chilli Meatballs with Homemade Balsamic Tomato Sauce & Tagliatelle
I cannot tell you how much I love tucking into a big bowl of pasta, it’s so comforting & filling & it really is such a substantial meal. Meatballs are like little bites of heaven, so flavourful & satisfying and really easy to throw together, I oven bake mine for the added healthy factor, there’s not much fat in 5% mince but any that there might be drains out & is left in the baking tray & not in your tummy! I gave these Meatballs a spicy little twist to give them a kick, I hope you enjoy! This is 11pp or 1pp on F&H if you use wholewheat pasta & it serves 4. 
For the Meatballs:
454g Lean 5% Steak Mince
1 Red Onion Finely Diced
1 Tsp Red Chilli Flakes
½ Tsp Smoked Paprika
1 Tsp Dried Oregano
Small Handful of Fresh Parsley Chopped
1/8th Tsp Mustard (the tip of a teaspoon)
1 Tsp Tomato Puree
½ Tsp Garlic Granules (or 1 clove fresh garlic crushed)
1 Slice of Calorie Controlled Wholemeal Bread torn into very small pieces
Salt & Black Pepper to season
For the Homemade Balsamic Tomato Sauce:
500g Passata (Use more if you like lots of sauce)
2 Shallots finely diced (Use ½ a white onion if desired I happened to have shallots)
1 Clove of Garlic Crushed
½ Tsp Smoked Paprika
1 Tsp Balsamic Vinegar
1 Sweetener or 1 Tsp of Sweetener
1 Tbsp Tomato Puree
Small Handful of Fresh Parsley Chopped
To Serve:
240g Dried Tagliatelle or Wholewheat pasta if following F&H (220g Cooked portion of white pasta per person or 195g cooked portion of Wholewheat per person)
40g Freshly Grated Parmesan (10g per person) 
Mix all the ingredients for the Meatballs together in a large bowl, lightly & form into 16 medium sized Meatballs (try not to compact the meat too much when mixing or forming the balls or the meat will be dense). Place in an oven proof dish or on a baking tray sprayed with spray oil & bake in a preheated oven at 200c for approximately 25 minutes or until cooked through. Meanwhile prepare your pasta according to packet instructions (make this just before serving try not to make it in advance & leave it draining or it will go stodgy on you). Make the sauce by lightly frying the shallots in spray oil over a medium heat in a medium sized pot for approximately 3 to 5 minutes until softened. Add the garlic & fry for a further 30 seconds to a minute. Add in the rest of the sauce ingredients (except the fresh parsley) & season with Salt & Pepper. Simmer the sauce over a low heat for 20 to 25 minutes while the Meatballs are cooking. Remove the Meatballs from the oven when cooked & pop them into the sauce now add your fresh parsley. Quickly drain your pasta & portion it out. Serve with the sauce & 4 Meatballs per person sprinkled with the Parmesan. Enjoy! 
Gloriously Tacky Taco Fries for a Saturday Night
What more can I say! Sometimes you just crave tacky junk food akin to the type you might buy out of the side of a chipper van at 3am after a few shandys, a guilty little treat. Well these have all the flavour factor & absolutely none of the guilt! This is a Slimming World recipe but it comes in at a mere 11pp or 4pp on F&H a fraction of the damage the real deal might inflict but the exact same taste. Serves 4 Hungry People. 
800g Potatoes Chipped
160g Grated Reduced Fat Cheddar Cheese
A 450g Pack of 5% Fat Steak Mince
1 Red Onion Diced
1 Red Pepper Diced
1 Tin of Plum Tomatoes
1 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
1 Beef Stock Cube
1 tsp Paprika
1/2 tsp Cumin
1/2 tsp Chilli Powder
1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Cayenne Pepper
1 tsp Dried Oregano
1/2 tsp Sweetener
For the Taco Sauce:
3 tbsp Lighter than Light Mayo
3 tbsp Fat Free Natural Yoghurt
2 tbsp Tomato Ketchup
1 Clove Garlic Crushed
1/2 tsp Cayenne Pepper
3 tbsp Water
Place the chipped Potatoes on a plate & microwave for 3 minutes. Spray with oil & place in a preheated oven at 200c for 25 to 30 minutes or until browned & cooked through. Meanwhile fry the Onion & Red Pepper in a lightly sprayed pot for a few minutes to soften. Add the mince & cook until brown. Add in all the herbs & spices & stir through. Crumble over the stock cube & add the Worcestershire Sauce. Throw in the tinned Tomatoes & chop them through with a sharp knife. Simmer on a low heat for at least 20 minutes (I simmered mine for an hour as it just improves with time) I threw in some chopped fresh Coriander at the end before serving to try & add some sophistication to this culinary masterpiece but let’s face it this is pure take out food so leave it out if you have none knocking around. Mix all the Taco Sauce ingredients together well until smooth. Assemble your chips, top with mince, sauce & cheese & Enjoy because this is pure unadulterated gorgeousness on a plate! 
Chilli Egg with Spinach & Feta on Toasted Buttermilk Soda Bread
Weekends are made for cooked breakfasts & eggy ones in particular! 6pp & 4pp on F&H. Here’s the Skinny:
Fry sliced chilli & 2 spring onions for a few minutes in sprayoil. Remove the chilli & some of the spring onions for garnish. Wilt a good 2 handfuls of spinach with the remaining spring onions & squeeze out any excess water. Season well with salt & black pepper & crumble in 10g of Feta. Remove from heat & keep warm. Meanwhile lightly toast a slice of buttermilk soda under the grill & fry an egg to your liking. Place the bed of spinach, spring onions & feta onto the toasted bread & top with the egg, black pepper & the garnish of chilli & spring onions & Enjoy! I hope your Saturday is Fabulous!
Skinny Jeans and the Inbetweens 