Classic Italian Basil Pesto Pasta

One of the things I love the most about summertime is the abundance of fresh herbs. They not only inject a huge amount of flavour to any dish but they are also super nutritious and rich in vitamins and antioxidants. 

Basil especially is one of my go to herbs and I love to use it in almost all of my summer cooking, think herby summer salads or fresh pasta sauces. It's just so delicious. 

My classic Italian basil pesto pasta is such a dish, the basil brings the whole dish alive and burst with flavour.

INGREDIENDS
serves 4

500g pasta
2 courgette 
225g peas
150g pine nuts
2 handfuls of basil leaves (50g)
4 tbsp olive oil
30g grated vegan parmesan cheese
salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. Place the pine nuts, basil leaves, olive oil and parmesan cheese in a food processor, whiz for about a minute until until all ingredients form a smooth and creamy pesto paste.

2. Cook the pasta in salty water, according to package instructions. 

3. In the meantime while the pasta is cooking, chop the courgette into thin slices and fry in pan with a little olive oil on both sides until they are perfectly cooked and golden brown.

4. Place the peas in a saucepan of cold water, cook them until the water boils and then drain.

5. Finally, once the pasta has finished cooking and has been drained, toss the pasta together with the pesto, peas and courgette

6. Season with salt and pepper and serve with freshly grated parmesan 

Stuffed Pepper With Spicy Harissa Quinoa

These stuffed peppers are a quick and easy meal that’s vegan, healthy, filling and delicious! Peppers always remind me of when I was younger, I remember not really liking them and finding them quite boring. But these days I am in love with them, I love the fresh flavour and sweetness that you get when you bite into a fresh pepper. 

They are also low in calories and exceptionally rich in vitamin C and antioxidants such as carotenoids with give them their vibrant colour, making them an excellent addition to a healthy diet.

In this recipe, I roasted my bell peppers in the oven before stuffing them with some spicy harissa quinoa filling to give them an extra kick and intensify their flavour.

INGREDIENTS

4 bell peppers (2 red and 2 yellow)
200g quinoa 
1 tsp harissa paste
1 can chopped tomatoes
1 onion
2 garlic cloves
50g green pitted olives
olive oil
salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/ Gas 5

2. Cut the bell peppers in halve and remove the seeds but leave the stork on to help the peppers remain their shape. Place on a roasting tray and drizzle with olive oil, season with sea salt. Bake in the oven for 25 minutes.

3. In the meantime wash and cook the quinoa according to the package instruction. It will quadruple in size so make sure you use the correct pan. Drain and set aside.

4. Finely cut the onion and gently fry on a medium heat in some olive oil. After a few minutes add crushed garlic.

5. Next add the chopped tomatoes, harissa paste and halved olives to the pan. Fill the half way with some water and add, let it simmer for a few minutes before adding the quinoa to the sauce. Stir well and season with salt and pepper. If you want your mixture to be a little bit more spicy you can also add another spoon of harissa at this point.

6. Remove the peppers from the oven and carefully fill each half with the filling.

7. Top with some fresh parsley and serve.

Creamy Courgette & Thyme Tagliatelle

Carbs! Over the years, carbohydrates have gotten such bad reputation. So much so that many people like to completely remove this essential macronutrient from their diet in the hope that they will lose weight and stay slim.But this is a misconception, and losing weight should never be achieved by removing one such important food group.

Here is why

• When you limit carbohydrates, you deprive your body of a main source of fuel — and many essential nutrients that you need to stay healthy.

• Carbohydrates are foods that get converted into glucose in our bodies during digestion. Glucose is a main source of fuel for our body and provide energy for our brain and muscles to function.

• FIBRE - is important for your digestive health as well as regulating blood glucose. Refined carbohydrates, such as white rice and white pasta, have had their fiber and nutrients removed. Whole grains, such as brown rice and whole-wheat pasta, have not. Therefore, the glucose from refined carbohydrates can get into the bloodstream faster than the glucose from whole grains.

Bottom Line 

Carbohydrates are a major source of fuel and nutrients for our bodies. They should be part of a healthy diet and play a vital part when it comes to long term sustainable weight loss.

This simple and tasty pasta recipe is a great way to get more veggies into midweek family meals and the courgette goes really well together with thyme in a creamy pasta sauce.

INGREDIENTS

250g wholegrain tagliatelle 
1 courgette
1 small onion 
2 garlic cloves
10g fresh thyme
30 ml soya cream
salt & pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. Fill a large pot with water and bring to the boil. Season the water with salt and cook tagliatelle for 10-12 minutes until soft and al dente. 

2. In themeantime heat a large frying pan with some olive oil and add chopped onion, glently fry on a low heat until soft.

3. Chop the courgette into small pieces and add together with the chopped garlic to the pan and fry for another 5-7 minutes.

4. Once the courgette is cooked use some of the pasta water and add it to the pan to make the pasta sauce. Add the soya cream and fresh thyme and season to taste with salt and pepper, stir well.

5. Drain the pasta and place all the tagliatelle in to the pasta sauce and make sure that all of the pasta gets a good covering of the sauce.

Serve with a sprinkle of vegan or normal parmesan cheese and enjoy.

Beetroot Gazpacho

Since traveling abroad seems like a far distant dream right now, I thought I would bring a little bit of Spanish cuisine into my life, to not completely miss out on those fabulous flavours of summer.

Gazpacho is one of those dishes that is bursting with flavour. At its best, gazpacho is super refreshing and this luscious chilled soup is packed full of fresh vegetables and herbs perfect for those hot summer days when you fancy something cooling and healthy.

While I love the original Spanish tomato gazpacho I thought I would make my own little version with beetroots instead. The earthiness of the beets give the soup a real dept of flavour and go really well together with the cucumber and dill.

INGREDIENTS

3 large beetroots
half cucumber
half red onion
2 garlic cloves
20g fresh dill
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp vegetable stock powder
salt & pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. Half or quarter beetroots and place them in a pot and cover with water and add vegetable stock and salt. Bring to a boil and cook for about 45- 60 minutes, until beets are soft. Chill beets and their cooking liquid.

2. Once beets are cold, slip off their skins using your hands. Slice into smaller pieces and place with 2 cups of the cold cooking liquid into blender, add the half of the chopped onion, garlic cloves, cucumber, salt, pepper, vinegar and the fresh dill. Blend until very smooth. 

3. Taste and adjust salt and vinegar. Place in the refrigerator until ready to serve. When you are ready to serve, drizzle a little olive oil or a swirl of coconut yogurt if you like. Sprinkle with herbs and serve immediately!

Enjoy 

Green Puy Lentil And Roasted Broccoli Salad With Halloumi

I must confess, I have a slight obsession with lentils. No matter whether it is cold or warm outside, you will see me have them on a very regular basis. I just love how versatile they are in the kitchen and how many different kinds of dishes you can create from lentils, salads, soups, casseroles, dahls …. Plus there is all this amazing variety in colours and sizes, that you are bound to find one that you really like and enjoy. Nutrition wise they really pack a punch in its protein and fibre content making them a perfect option when you want to consume less meat and looking to boost your protein intake from plants. 

This very green and healthy salad is one of my go-to summer salads. I love the hearty and warm combination of the lentils and roasted broccoli, together with the freshness of the rocket leaves and tangy lemon dressing.

Topped with the fried halloumi this salad is a sure crowd pleaser and a family favourite.

INGREDIENTS

200g puy lentils
1 medium size broccoli
100g rocket salad leaf
1 tsp bahrat spice ( if you don’t have spice just season with salt)
salt &pepper
1 litre vegetable stock
1 bay leaf
juice of a lemon
2 cloves garlic
olive oil
250g vegan or regular hallumi 

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 220˚C. Place the broccoli and garlic (with skin) on a baking tray and drizzle with olive oil, then sprinkle with baharat spice and sea salt. Roast for 20-25 minutes until tender and charred on the outside.

2. Meanwhile, to cook the lentils place them together with the stock in a saucepan, add a bay leaf and bring to a simmer, then reduce heat to low and cook for 20-25 minutes until lentils are cooked but still retain some bite. Drain.

3. To make the salad dressing remove the skin from the roasted garlic and cut very finely. Then squeeze in the lemon juice, 2tbsp olive oil and salt and pepper, whisk together. Toss dressing through hot lentils, then add roasted broccoli and rocket leafs.

4. Slice the halloumi into 5mm slices and heat olive oil in a frypan over medium heat. Cook halloumi, turning once, for 3-5 minutes until golden.

5. Serve salad warm scattered with halloumi.

Baked Aubergine With Harissa And Yogurt Sauce

BAKE AUBERGINE WITH HARISSA AND YOGURT SAUCE 

Aubergines is a vegetable that can feel quite intimidating to people and they don’t know what to do with it and how to use it in recipes. But in the Middle East this delicious veggie is quite a staple to everyday cooking and rightfully so.  

While it can be eaten raw, aubergine is the most wonderful when it's grilled, baked or braised. The texture becomes soft and creamy saviorness 

Aubergines are rich in antioxidants, specifically nasunin found in aubergine skin - which gives it its purple colour. A potent antioxidant and free radical scavenger, nasunin has been found to protect the lipids (fats) in brain cell membranes. Cell membranes are almost entirely composed of lipids 
Quite an amazing vegetable, huh? In todays recipe is brushed the baked aubergine with some harissa paste to give it even more flavour and depth. Together with the zesty yogurt sauce this dish becomes something of its own and tastes delicious.

INGREDIENTS

2 aubergines
olive oil
sea salt
1 tsp harissa paste
half a cucumber
3 cloves of garlic
25g fresh mint
25g fresh dill
1 tbsp lemon juice
200g almond yogurt or greek yogurt

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat your oven to 200 C/ Gas 6.

2. Cut Aubergines lengthways in half and score the flesh into a diamond pattern, cut about 1 cm deep.

3. Place the aubergine halves in a baking tray cut side up, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt. Bake in the oven for 25 minutes until completely soft.

4. In the meantime prepare the yogurt sauce. Peel the cucumber and garlic. Slice the cucumber into small  cubes, press the garlic through a garlic press and chop the herbs finely, then add everything into a small bowl together with the yogurt. Season with lemon juice, salt and pepper. 

5. Once the aubergines are ready and cooked though, mix in a small bowl the harissa paste with 1 tbsp of olive oil and brush the aubergines gently with the paste.

6.To serve, place two aubergine halves on each plate and top with the yogurt sauce. Garnish with fresh mint.

Enjoy