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 Spicy Meatballs

This recipe was derived from a magazine article I read but after completing the recipe completely I felt both the meatballs and sauce had too much spice. So after some careful adaption I came up with the recipe below with a rich tomato sauce that emphasises the spicy flavour of the meatballs and compliments the dish to perfection. Its great with toasted bread or just served on a bed of rocket or for those die hard meatball fans you can for sure match this with spaghetti! Another good thing about this recipe is that you can make the meatballs in advance and refrigerate them until you are ready to cook them, making them even more tasty the next day.

NB: Spicy meaning not hot but full of delicious spices for a powerful meatball mouthful.

Serves 2-3 approx.

Meatballs Ingredients:
• 500g lean steak mince
• 1tspn each garam masala, ground cumin, ground turmeric and ground coriander
• 1 large finely diced white onion
• 1 tbspn each chopped fresh basil and coriander
• 1 egg
• Sea salt and ground black pepper to season 
• Olive oil for frying

Cheats Tomato Sauce Ingredients:
• 350g jar of Lloyd Grossman Tomato and Basil sauce
• 1 can chopped cherry tomatoes (or normal chopped tomatoes)
• 2 cloves crushed garlic
• 1/2-1tspn chilli powder (to your liking)
• 1/2 a small handful of chopped fresh coriander and basil (keeping some extra for garnish)
• salt and pepper to taste

• Rocket and ciabatta or garlic bread to serve.

Method:
• For the meatballs, combine all the ingredients (except the oil) in a bowl and mix together with your hands to create a smoother mixture
• Create 15-20 small sized balls by rolling a handful around in your hands (set aside on a plate)
• Heat the oil in a frying pan over a low to medium heat, fry the meatballs in small amounts until browned all over, being careful not to overcrowd them. (Try not to turn them too much as this may cause them to crumble)
• Once the meatballs are all cooked add the Lloyd Grossman Tomato and Basil sauce to the pan 
• Add the chopped tomatoes, garlic and chilli and stir to combine
• Add the chopped basil and coriander and stir through, simmer for 5-10 minutes on a low- medium heat 
• Remove from the heat and serve on a bed meatballs on a bed of rocket
• Garnish with freshly chopped coriander and basil and salt and pepper
• Serve with sliced toasted ciabatta or garlic bread (and a large glass of red!)