Love Bites Baked and Stuffed Squash

This recipe was inspired by a colleagues bolognaise-stuffed squash at work one day. This is a  healthy, meat-free meal that is super filling and packed full of goodness. Just don't get put off by the shape of the squash!

INGREDIENTS

• x1 butternut squash
• Olive oil, salt and pepper and oregano
• 100g quinoa
• 1/2 each coloured peppers (red, orange and green)
• 70g kale
• 1/2 a small red onion, diced
• 2 tbspns toasted pine nuts
• 100g feta
• small bunch of parsley for garnish
• juice of half a lemon

METHOD

1. Heat the oven to bake at 200 degrees
2. Halve the squash and scoop out the seeds with a spoon 
3. Place the squash on a baking tray, skin side down and sprinkle with olive oil, salt and pepper and the oregano
4. Bake in the oven for 40 minutes - 1 hour depending on the size of your squash
5. Slice the peppers into 1cm thickness and bake with the squash about five minutes before you remove the squash

1. While the squash is baking, cook your quinoa according to the packet instructions (alternatively you can also use pre-cooked quinoa)
2. Cook the kale for a couple of minutes with a small amount of water in a covered microwave safe dish, blanch with cold water and drain, then roughly chop
3. Slice the red onion and dice the peppers once they are removed from the oven
4. Combine the quinoa, kale, peppers, red onion, crumbled feta and toasted pine nuts with the lemon juice
5. Once the squash is cooked through (check by piercing the squash with a knife - if it goes through smoothly it is cooked) remove from the oven and spoon the quinoa mix into the hole and down the neck of the squash
6. Garnish with salt and pepper and parsley. 

Love Bites Seasonal Green Salad

This vege salad was inspired by a recipe by the vege master himself Ottolenghi. The beauty of this salad is that you can add any green vegetables into it that are in season which makes it very versatile (tendersteam broccoli, edamame beans, and courgettes are good alternatives). It is a great accompaniment to any meat especially fish (see pics below) or served as a main by itself. Each veg creates an exciting texture to the dish and the pop of colour from the chilli and black onion seeds makes this salad a sure must go to for Spring.

INGERDIENTS

Green Salad:

• 200g bunch of asparagus, sliced lengthwise or at an angle
• 200g round beans, trimmed and left whole
• 1/2 cup frozen peas, 
• 3 spring onions, thinly sliced
• 70g fresh baby spinach leaves
• 1/2 red chilli, finely diced
• 1 small bunch of fresh coriander leaves
• 2 tspn toasted sesame seeds
• 1 tspn black onion seeds (or nigella seeds)
• Salt and pepper to season

Dressing:

• Juice of one lemon
• 1/2 tsp sesame oil
• 1 tbspn good olive oil

METHOD:

• Blanch the asparagus and beans separately in boiling water (asparagus for 2-4 minutes so still al dente, and beans for approx. 5 minutes), once removed place into a bowl of ice cold water
• Add the frozen peas to the boiling water and cook for 2-3 minutes, remove and drain
• Drain the asparagus and beans and combine with the peas, spring onion, chilli, spinach and the coriander leaves
• Combine the dressing ingredients and serve over the salad
• Sprinkle the onion seeds and toasted sesame seeds on top

Love Bites Aubergine Parmigiana

This dish is an Italian favourite in Love Bites style. Very easy to assemble and looks and tastes delicious. A nice alternative to lasagne without the pasta and full of your five plus a day!  Feel free to add more layers as you wish but this recipe was just perfect for two. 

A sure winner for some warming comfort food, yum! 

INGREDIENTS

• 1 aubergine sliced widthways in about .5cm slices
• 1 courgette sliced widthways .5cm slices
• 1 300g jar of Lloyd Grossman tomato and basil sauce
• 1 ball of mozzarella 
• 100g feta 
• 1/3 cup of fresh bread crumbs
• 2 tbspns toasted pine nuts
• 1 handful of basil leaves

METHOD

• Heat the oven to 180 degrees
• Lightly fry the aubergine and courgette slices On a medium heat in a fry pan on both sides
• Remove from the heat and layer the aubergine in the bottom of a medium sized lasagne dish 
• Pour over half the tomato sauce mixture and layer over the courgette
• Tear over half the mozzarella and feta then layer with another layer of aubergine and courgette if you have some left over. Repeat with the sauce and cheese, top with the bread crumbs, half the basil leaves and pine nuts
• Cook the Parmesan in the oven for 20 minutes until the aubergine and courgettes are cooked through. You can test this by pricking a knife through the centre of the dish. 
• Remove from the beat sprinkle with the remainder pf basil leaves and serve with a side salad.

Love Bites Chicken Pesto Courgetti

Spiralising is the most recent foodie fad that has taken over Love Bites Kitchen. I am truly obsessed with it! The art of spiralising is basically to cut/slice/dice vegetables into circular shapes, the most popular being noodles, and the most common vegetable being courgettes - and then more commonly referred to 'courgetti'. To elaborate more on the utensil and more recipes, Food for Thought will follow with a dedicated post in the next few weeks, but for now this tasty dish was my third spiralling attempt and I really nailed it! So here you have it -  the first of many Love Bites Courgetti recipes:

INGREDIENTS

• 2-3 Courgettes
• x2 Chicken escalopes
• 1 Cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 Handful of thin asparagus stalks, cut into thirds
• 2/3 Punnet of store brought pesto (or your own if you have time)
• A handful of rocket per person
• Salt and pepper to garnish

METHOD

• Bring a pot of water to the boil
• Place the courgettes into the middle of the sprialiser and continue to turn the machine creating courgetti - see images below, continue to do this to all courgettes

• Rub 1tbspn of pesto into the chicken
• Fry the chicken for 2-3 minutes each side until cooked through, after a minute add the asparagus and tomatoes, once the chicken is cooked, set aside and turn off the heat on the vegetables
• Place the courgettes into the boiling water and cook for 1-1.5 minutes (Be careful to not overcook as it will fall apart)
• Drain well and stir through the rest of the pesto and the rocket
• Slice the chicken into 1cm sized slices
• Gently stir through the chicken, asparagus and tomatoes into the courgette
• Garnish with salt and pepper and grated parmesan

Love Bites Sausage and Lentil Stew

This recipe was inspired by one I saw in the delicious. Magazine over the Winter/Autumn months. I incorporated the recipe to what I had in the fridge and pantry and it still came out a winner. It's the perfect comfort food for a Winter's evening or some good healthy stew for anytime of the year. Mix in any sausages you like (just adjust the cooking time) and would also be as delicious with some fresh spinach leaves whipped through the lentil mixture. Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS

1 packet of sausages of your choice (I used x8 chipolatas)
1 cup puy lentils (or 1 packet of pre cooked lentils)
Olive oil for cooking
1 medium white onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 carrot, finely chopped
1 celery stick, finely sliced
2 rashes of bacon, finely chopped
2 heaped tspns smoked paprika
1 400g can chopped tomatoes
1/2 cup white wine (more to taste if necessary)
1 1/2 cups chicken stock (use a oxo cube and boiling water)
Chopped parsley and salt and pepper to garnish

METHOD

• Heat the oven to 180 degrees and cook the sausages on fan grill for approx 20-25 minutes (pending how big they are)
• Cook the lentils as per packet instructions (or bring to the boil in a pan of water for 20 minutes until al dente) Drain and set aside
• Heat a lug of oil in a pan on a medium heat
• Add the onion, garlic, and fry for a minute
• Add the carrots and celery and cook until soft
• Add the bacon and fry for a further 5 minutes
• Stir through the paprika for one more minute then add the canned tomatoes and wine to the mixture until the sauce has thickened and reduced
• Add the drained lentils into the sauce and stir through
• Serve with the sausages over the stew and garnish with salt and pepper, and plenty of chopped parsley.

Variation: you can add 1/2 cup of peas to the mixture for a colourful and tasty alternative.

Love Bites Healthy Vege Nachos

We were after a quick healthy fast-food style dinner one Sunday evening and this is what I whipped up. A meat-free, vege-inspired healthy version of nachos - one of our fave dishes. This version is much lighter, healthier, and with the same fullness of flavour and spice of regular nachos. You can even make it dairy-free without adding Greek yoghurt or sour cream. 

This dish is just as tasty and a lot better on the waistline! 

Serves 2

INGREDIENTS
3/4 packed of corn chips (I used Dorritos Original)
x1 400g can of mixed beans (cannelini, kidney, chickpea etc)
x1 300g jar of hot salsa (I used Dorritos Hot Salsa)
x1 small red chilli, finely chopped
1/2 195g can of sweet corn (drained)
x1 small finely diced red onion
1/2 diced avocado (can use more if desired)
x1 cup quartered cherry tomatoes (or finely diced 2 large tomatoes)
x1 handful of fresh coriander roughly chopped
x1 clove of garlic, crushed
juice of half a lemon
natural Greek yoghurt or sour cream if desired


METHOD

• Heat the oven to 200˚ on fan bake
• Spread the corn chips evenly on a large rectangular baking dish
• Empty the contents of the can of beans into a medium sized sauce pan and stir over a low-medium heat for 2-4 minutes (do not over cook)
• Drain the corn and put into a mixing bowl, add the chopped tomatoes, onion, garlic, avocado, half of the chilli, half the coriander and lemon juice - mix to combine and set aside
• Drain and rinse the beans and put back into the pan, add the jar of salsa and rest of the chilli, stir and heat through for a further 2-3 minutes
• Remove the bean salsa mix from the heat and pour over the corn chips
• Place in the oven for 5 minutes until corn chips are heated through
• Spoon over the fresh corn salsa, (top with Greek yoghurt or soured cream if desired) and sprinkle over the remainder of the coriander and dig in!

Love Bites 'The Med' Lamb Salad

I love throwing things together, and this recipe is no different. Inspired by a Greek salad on a cold and wet winter's London night, the mix of hot pan-fried zucchinis and lamb with the fresh Greek salad really create a warming embrace of each other. 

The result: a quick, attractive, no carb, hot lamb salad of goodness. 

Serves 2-3

INGREDIENTS:

x2 Lamb rumps (fat removed)

x1 Pinch of cumin

1/4 Tspn dried rosemary leaves 

x2 Shakes of Garlic Italian spice mix (I use Schwartz)
Olive oil for frying

x1 Clove of garlic sliced and crushed with a pinch of sea salt

x1 Zucchini sliced 0.5cm thick

x1/2 Red onion thinly sliced

x1 Cup cherry tomatoes halved

x2 Thickly sliced jarred peppers 

125g Feta cheese, cubed

1/3 Cup whole Kalamata olives

100g Rocket

METHOD

1. In a bowl marinate the lamb rumps in cumin, rosemary, and spice mix and set aside
2. Slice the salad vegetables
3. Heat the oil in a fry pan on a low to medium heat
4. Add the garlic and zucchini's and fry for 2 minutes on each side (till slightly browned but not mushy) set aside
5. Turn the heat up to medium on the pan and add the lamb
6. Fry for approximately 3 minutes on each side till nicely seared (time pending on how you like your meat cooked)
7. Arrange the rocket, onion, tomatoes, zucchini, olives and peppers in a large bowl
8. Remove from the pan when cooked to your liking and slice
9. Add to the salad and sprinkle with the cubed feta
10. Enjoy with lemon juice for a healthy dressing or balsamic vinegar 

Love Bites Grilled Salmon & Garden Vege Medley

This dish is a true Love Bites recipe; one dish, super fast, healthy and adaptable to how you want it. You can use a range of green veges or what ever is in season, throw it in the oven and voila! A healthy, low carb, meat and veg option that's a sure winner.

Serves 2

INGREDIENTS:

x2 Salmon fillets
x1 Juice of a lemon
x1 Bunch of fresh asparagus
x1 Head of broccoli cut into individual trees
x1 Bunch of fresh round beans
1/2 Cup kalamata olives (de-pipped)
x1 Sprinkle of chilli flakes
x3 Bunches of cherry tomatoes still on the vine

METHOD:

• Blanch the green vegetables by boiling a pot full of water, dropping the veges into the pan for a minute then removing and immediately plunging into cold water. This enables the veg to hold the nutrients and colour whilst cooking
• Spread the veges on the bottom of a baking tray
• Squeeze half of the lemon over the veg
• Add the salmon fillets and bunches of cherry tomatoes on top of the veg
• Sprinkle over the chilli flakes and the other half lemon
• Place both lemon husks into the dish and cook for 20 minutes at 200 degrees
• Use the sauce at the bottom of the pan to sprinkle over the salmon when serving (or alternatively see variations below)

Variations: Make a salsa verde as different sauce, alternatively serve with brown rice or boiled potatoes for some more substantial meal.

Love Bites Zesty Zuchinni Penne

This recipe was inspired by a pasta dish I had at Carluccio's an Italian chain restaurant here in the UK. The dish was so simple but tasted so fabulous that I had to attempt to re-create it Love Bites style. 

Super quick for a lunch dish or light dinner but a sure winner every time. 

Serves 2

INGREDIENTS:

Enough fresh or dried penne pasta for two people (whole wheat is good
1 grated zucchini
1 small fresh chilli deseeded and finely chopped
Zest and juice of one lemon
2 cloves garlic crushed
Fresh spinach leaves 
Parmesan and good quality olive oil to garnish

METHOD:

• Cook the penne as per packet instructions 
• Heat a lug of frying oil in a pan over a low to medium heat 
• Sauté the garlic and chilli and add grated zucchini cook for a further few minutes
• Once pasta is cooked drain then add the zucchini mixture to the pasta (Tip: hold on to a bit of the pasta water to nourish the pasta sauce) 
• Add in lemon juice, zest and spinach and stir to combine
• Serve into dishes and sprinkle over the parmesan and garnish with an extra lug of the good quality oil