Water Kefir - getting started with live grains.

So, making your own water kefir can all seem a bit daunting - like it's some kind of exclusive club?

Well, fortunately the process is actually really easy, and there are lots of places and people out there full of information! Not only that, you're getting your own fantastic and refreshing probiotic drink for a fraction of the price of buying expensive little bottles of drinking yoghurt full of additives.

As I happily share my surplus grains (when I can find people to share them with, living in the UK!), I've just put together this little post to help those starting out with live grains - once you get going, you'll find it's simple and you just need to drain the kefir water from your grains once every day or two (depending on the ratio of grains to water and sugar and the temperature of where they're stored) - you can tell when the kefir water is ready, as it no longer tastes sweet.

So, first things first - what equipment do you need, and which ingredients?

Pork Vindaloo Curry - Thermomix method

A fiery curry, popular in Goa which is packed full of flavour

Although it's not the hottest of all the curries, vindaloo is known as being notoriously hot - however, the chilli is just one dimension of the flavours of a vindaloo.

Some versions have cubed potato in them, although this is not traditional and I tend to think that if you're serving it with rice and/or flatbreads and potentially other dishes, potato is unecessary.

Serves a generous four or modest six (or more with other dishes) from 209 calories per serving. For the non-Thermomix version, click here.

Pork Vindaloo - with Skinny Suggestions

A fiery curry, popular in Goa which is packed full of flavour

Although it's not the hottest of all the curries, vindaloo is known as being notoriously hot - however, the chilli is just one small part of the flavours of a vindaloo.

Some versions have cubed potato in them, although this is not traditional and I tend to think that if you're serving it with rice and/or flatbreads and potentially other dishes, potato is unecessary.

Serves a generous four or modest six (or more with other dishes) from 209 calories per serving. All the flavours of the classic fiery Goan dish of pork with vinegar and garlic, with the option to cut the calories right down for fast days. If you’re confident handling meat, you could buy a whole leg of pork, de-bone and cube it, and add the bone to the curry along with the meat for extra flavour (removing before serving).

Easy Cheesey Vegetable Slice with Buckwheat (includes Thermomix instructions)

Put together in minutes, a tasty versatile dish which is good hot or cold, for dinners or snacks

This is essentially a crustless quiche, with the flour in the egg mixture instead of in a pastry base making it extremely simple to put together, healthier, and easier to hold if you're having it as a snack - perfect for snacks, lunchboxes and picnics!

Courgettes, peppers and spring onions are favourites in this household which I always have to hand, and there's always a tin or three of sweetcorn in the cupboard so this is very convenient for us and it's meat free too. Using a food processor means the whole thing is ready to go into the oven in just a few minutes, making it incredibly convenient. It was inspired by Jo Whitton's mini impossible quiches which were suggested to me when I was wracking my brains for nutritious snacks to put into my daughter's packed lunches (found in 'Quirky Cooking' which is an excellent Thermomix cookbook, particularly for those with food allergies - and you can find her fantastic blog here), but this is a quicker (read lazier and more in a rush?!), more budget-friendly, vegetarian version without grains. I use buckwheat in mine but there's no reason you can't use plain gluten free flour, or even just plain (or wholemeal) wheat flour if you're not cooking gluten / grain free.

I baked this specifically to be gluten free and lunchbox friendly - and it will make a good 20 portions at 77 calories each (in case you're tempted!) as a side / with other savoury things to eat (I cut 10 rectangles from each dish - but then cut some of these in half to fit into lunchboxes, two a portion). If you're making this for dinner, it's more likely to serve 6-8 people with sides.

One Minute Banana, Date and Buckwheat Loaf (includes Thermomix instructions)

A deliciously moist and filling fruit loaf, perfect with a mug of tea, or in packed lunches for a wheat free, gluten free refined sugar free treat.

So, recently I've been trying to come up with filling yet healthy savoury and sweet snacks that I can make, bake and freeze in portions to add to my childrens' lunchboxes to sustain them throughout the day at school. Of course, that's not to say that this isn't also a great treat for grown-ups too... (It is, it is!!)

I'm not the world's biggest fan of bananas or dates on their own, but this was really tasty with the addition of a couple of spices - and also, most people would be hard pressed to guess that it wasn't made from wheat (there's no reason you can't substitute wheat flour, or spelt if you're not cooking gluten free and you want to, you may just need to slightly adjust the amount of liquid added. If cooking gluten free, ensure your buckwheat flour is certified gluten free).

Having an abundance of dried fruit in the cupboards, and several bags of buckwheat flour (which I'd put into a cheese and vegetable quiche/flan-type thing that had turned out nicely the day before - recipe to follow, of course), when I noticed three bananas starting to go a bit freckly, I decided to wing it, and see if I could actually bring them all together in cakey unity - and as luck would have it, it turns out I could so I'm sharing the recipe with you too! (And also so I can make it again - or even better, give the recipe to someone else not a million miles away to make, when we run out!).

So, without further ado, the recipe. If you're using a normal food processor, just blitz all the ingredients (except for the raisins) together until combined with the dates being relatively finely chopped, and then fold in the raisins by hand until evenly distributed throughout the mix. It will probably just take a bit longer than 30 seconds to combine and chop everything for the first stage.

Makes 12-16 slices (I cut each slice into two halves for lunchboxes, to give 24+ portions - I might even work out the calories later to see how it lies in the land of treats!)

Skinny San Choy Bau (Chinese Pork in Crispy Lettuce Wraps)

A delicious Chinese classic that's the perfect starter to a Chinese meal or can make a low fat, low carb lunch.

I don't care to admit just how many years ago it was I first experienced San Choy Bau, but it was definitely love at first bite - the unusual combination of hot and juicy minced pork packed full of delicious Chinese flavours wrapped in a refreshingly crisp leaf of lettuce was a crunchy, tasty surprise!

Over the years the ingredients I've included have evolved, especially as the availability of oriental ingredients has become more accessible and diverse, although every ingredient here (bar one optional ingredient which can be substituted) should be easily sourced from most peoples' local supermarkets.

Serves four as a main, with accompaniments (e.g. rice, noodles, cauliflower rice, zero noodles etc.) or other dishes, or four as a light meal on its own - or serves up to eight as a canapé/starter. The cooked meat freezes well too, and can be re-heated and served with noodles or rice with a splash of extra stock and a little soy sauce or tamari to taste. If you would like the Thermomix version of this recipe, click here.

Calories: 290 per main serving if made with pork (274 if made with chicken) and split between four people.