Food, glorious food!
Super Quick Low Fat Carbonara
Simon’s Super Quick & Easy
Low Fat Carbonara
(15 minutes, Serves 2)
- As much and whatever pasta as you like, usually 150g Spaghetti for two
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- Spray oil
- 3-4 slices reduced fat ham, chopped
- 2 medium eggs, beaten
- 25-50g reduced fat parmesan or pecorino, grated
- Black pepper
- Sweat the onion until softened but not coloured. If the onion cooks before the pasta take it off the heat and set aside.
- Whilst the onion cooks, put on your pasta and cook it according to the packet instructions until just cooked al dente.
- Quickly drain the pasta in a colander but don’t drain off all of the cooking liquor, return the pasta to the pan.
- Add the onion, ham, eggs and cheese to the pasta and stir lightly to combine.
- The eggs should cook from the heat of the pasta but if they don’t start to thicken put the pot onto the heat briefly. Don’t allow the eggs to begin to curdle and scramble.
- Add black pepper to taste and serve immediately.
Traditionally this would be made with bacon lardons, olive oil and of course full fat cheese but it will be just as tasty made the low-fat way. You can throw in some frozen peas for the last minute of the pasta cooking time if you want to add some veggies.
Chicken, Spinach & Ricotta Lasagne
Chicken Lasagne with Pesto, Spinach and Ricotta
Serves: 4
Ingredients
250g Baby Spinach
250g Ricotta
125g Green Basil Pesto
200g Cooked Skinless Chicken Breast Fillets, sliced thinly
Enough Fresh Lasagne Sheets to cover the base of your baking dish twice
or same amount of Dried Lasagne Sheets soaked in warm water for 15 mins
500g Napoletana Sauce (1 sautéed onion & 3 garlic cloves with 400g tin toms & seasoning)
150g Grated Mozzarella
25g Parmigiano Reggiano, grated
Salt & Freshly Ground Black Pepper
Good Quality Olive Oil
Method
- Preheat the oven to 200ºC, gas mark 6. Place the spinach in a colander over the sink, then pour over a kettle of boiling water to wilt it. Leave to cool then squeeze out all the moisture with your hands. Chop roughly and set aside.
- In a large bowl, mix the ricotta with the pesto until combined then add the chopped spinach and mix again.
- Scatter the base of a baking tin or lasagne dish with half the chicken slices, top with half the ricotta, spinach and pesto mixture, and layer with half the lasagne sheets.
- Pour over a third of the tomato sauce, sprinkle with a third of the mozzarella, then add the remaining chicken and the ricotta mixture. Top with more lasagne sheets. Repeat with more tomato and mozzarella.
- Top with the rest of the tomato, and sprinkle with the last of the mozzarella, the Parmigiano, season & sprinkle with good olive oil.
- Place in the oven for 30-35 minutes until bubbling and golden.
- Serve with green salad leaves.
Pork and Lemon Polpettine
Pork and lemon polpettine
These are gorgeous little balls that we normally serve over steamed white rice. The ingredients list is flexible and sometimes I use this as the basis for pork burgers. I am reproducing this recipe on-line because it has disappeared from the BBC’s archive :-(
Authors: Nigel Slater, "The Kitchen Diaries"
Serves: 2
50 g fresh white breadcrumbs
400 g pork mince
1 lemon
handful parsley; roughly chopped
6 sprigs thyme
2 tbsp parmesan cheese; grated
6-10 (according to taste) anchovy fillets; chopped
flour
To cook:
2 tbsp olive oil
200 ml chicken stock
To serve:
Steamed rice and/or a green salad
Put the breadcrumbs and pork in a mixing bowl and grate in the lemon zest. Halve the lemon and squeeze. Add the lemon juice to the pork with the parsley and the thyme leaves stripped from their stems. Tip in the parmesan and the chopped anchovy fillets. Season with a little salt and black pepper, and mix thoroughly.
Make about 18 small balls of the mixture, using a tablespoon of pork for each one, and place on a floured baking sheet.
Warm the olive oil and butter in a heavy-based pan. Roll the patties lightly in the flour on the baking sheet, then fry them in the oil about 8 at a time, for 4-5 minutes, until they are crisply golden on each side. Lower the heat and leave to cook through to the middle - a matter of 6-8 minutes more. Turn them no more than once or twice during cooking, so they develop a crisp, slightly sticky exterior.
Tip the fat from the pan then pour in the chicken stock. Leave to bubble for 2-3 minutes, scraping and stirring the pan stickings. Let the stock bubble down a bit,
Pile steamed rice onto 4 plates then divide the patties between them and spoon over the juices from the pan.
Serve with a green salad!