avocado, courgette, tomato

when you want pasta but also be health-conscious. enjoy.

















80g spaghetti
a medium courgette (250g)
250g cherry tomatoes

1 avocado
2 tbsp olive oil
1 clove of garlic
1/2 cup fresh parsley
2 green onions
juice of 1 lemon
half teaspoon of salt
pepper, to taste

parmesan, to serve

First make the avocado sauce: put everything in a bowl or food processor and blend until smooth.
When ready, start cooking the pasta (put water to boil, cook the pasta, drain).
Slice the courgette to matchsticks.
Put the tomatoes and a good glug of olive oil to a saucepan with a lid. Cook on medium-high heat, moving the saucepan so the tomatoes don't burn, until the tomatoes are burst. When done, add the courgette sticks, cook for a couple of mins. When tender, add the pasta and sauce, combine, pull off from the heat, adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper if needed.

Serve with parmesan cheese.

serves 2

recipe from here, slightly altered.

miso shrimp and bean soup

2 litres chicken / vegetable stock
1 lemongrass stick, crushed
2 cloves of garlic, minced
thumb-size ginger, minced
handful of fresh basil, chopped
a pinch of chili flakes
150g rice noodlesblack pepper
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp sriracha
1 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsp miso paste
250g shrimp
250g green beans
chives / green onions, chopped
juice of 1 lime

Bring the stock to boil. Add lemongrass, garlic, ginger, basil and chili flakes. Simmer for 20 mins.
Meanwhile, cook the noodles according to pack instructions. Drain, set aside.
Add the shrimp, beans and spices to the soup (pepper, sesame oil, sriracha, fish sauce, miso). Cook for another 5-8 mins, until the shrimp is cooked through.
Pull off the soup from the heat, add the rice noodles, chives and juice of lime.

Ideas from here and here.

simple vegetarian lasagne

2 tbsp olive oil
1 zucchini, roughly chopped
250g mushrooms, finely chopped
1 red pepper, roughly chopped
2 big cloves of garlic, finely milled
1 jar of simple tomato pasta sauce (basil, arrabiata, etc)
1 pinch of chilli flakes (skip if using arrabiata)
250ml coconut milk (or regular)
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, roughly chopped
1/2 cup green lentils
1/2 cup water
10 lasagne sheets (approx 170g, I used spinach pasta)
2 cups spinach leaf (fresh or frozen)
1 bunch of fresh basil (I used frozen)
250g buffalo mozzarella, chopped
60g grated parmesan
pesto to serve

soak lentils in a bowl of warm water while you prepare the ingredients.
preheat oven to 170c fan.
in a huge oven-proof skillet (I used round le creuset) fry the vegetables in the oil for 3 mins. add the garlic, fry for 1 more mins. add the tomato sauce, chili if using and milk, stir well. add the sun-dried tomatoes, lentils and pasta sheets, broken to smaller pieces (one by one, to prevent them from sticking together). add the 1/2 cup water, mix together, cover and cook for 15 mins, stirring in every couple of mins.
when ready, mix in the spinach, basil and cheese, and put in the oven (uncovered) for 10 mins.
serve with basil pesto.

recipe from Half Baked Harvest

hazelnut orange muffins

1 ripe banana
20g soft butter
1 egg
2 tbsp agave syrup
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
100g hazelnut flour / ground hazelnuts
1 tsp baking powder
25g cashews
25g candied orange peel
25g dark chocolate

preheat oven to 150c fan.
mash the banana and the butter with a fork. add the egg, agave syrup and vanilla extract, mix well.
add the hazelnut flour and baking powder, mix well again.
roughly chop the cashews, chocolate and orange, add to the mix.
place the mix to muffin caps (half-filling them).
bake for 12 mins. turning the heat up to 170 for the last couple of minutes

makes 6-7 cookies (depending on the addings).