Black Bean and Butternut Squash Chilli

This is a really delicious meat-free alternative to a chilli con carne, absolutely packed with flavour and texture, and really versatile too!

With a fortnightly (wonky) veg box having become a regular occurence in our lives, I'm finding myself coming up with lots of new things to cook to use up the vegetables that we're sent (which are pretty much a surprise on the day we receive them), which is a great way to stop yourself from falling into a culinary rut!

I'd really got into roasting sweet potatoes with cumin seeds for a bit of crunch, and had sweet potato and butternut squash to use up, and thought it would be nice to stick them in the oven to roast while prepping the rest of dinner, and thought they would be really nice to add into a bean chilli, along with some peppers (which I quite like to add into my ordinary chilli con carne from time to time, to give it a bit of a twist).

So this was the end result, cooked with my usual blend of spices for a chilli, and one that's definitely going onto the meat free regulars - it's so tasty and filling!

Served with my spicy cornbread, rice, grated cheese, sour cream and coriander

You can decide whether to use squash or sweet potato or a mixture, depending on what you've got in, and also use your favourite beans - you'll get a tasty result at the end whatever you use!

Served in tortillas with sour cream, fresh tomato, avocado, lightly pickled onions
and some sour cream mixed with lime juice, topped with coriander and chillies

Serves 10-12 portions (recipe easily halved) from 155-187 calories a portion using butternut squash (depending on whether a tenth or a twelfth) to 190-229 calories a portion using sweet potato. Why not have a wedge of homemade spicy cornbread on the side - it's quite easy to make, and also very filling! My recipe is here, from 116 calories for a wedge.

Easy Ham and Cannellini Bean Soup (Gluten and Dairy Free)

A tasty, healthy soup that you can throw together for a nutritious light meal

Well, this was going to be ham and lentil soup, until I realised that my dried red lentils weren't actually gluten free (my daughter can't eat gluten) and I had to think of a quick substitute as things were already cooking away and I didn't want to waste my precious ham stock from cooking the Christmas ham (Knorr stock cubes are good too if you don't happen to have your own ham stock lying around)!

Luckily there are always various tins of beans in the cupboard here, so I substituted some cannellini beans in part of the broth so she could eat it, and put the lentils in the remainder (next blog!) for the rest of the family. You don't have to use cannellini beans, you could use butter beans, haricot or any other mild and creamy tasting white bean. It turned out really tasty, so I thought I'd share the recipe!

Serves four to six, from 93 calories per serving for a smaller portion (six smaller portions at around 250g each, or four larger portions at around 400g each - exact weight depends on how much liquid has evaporated overall) or 139 calories for a larger portion.

Blueberry, Lime and Coconut Cloud Pudding - Grain, Gluten and Dairy Free (includes Thermomix instructions)

A delicious, soft and fluffy dessert with a secret ingredient that might surprise you!

I do enjoy experimenting in the kitchen at times, and it is nice to take flavours which work well together, and then try to use them in different contexts. Blueberry, coconut and lime (or you can use  lemon) are a really complementary partnership of flavours and textures, which crop up in various different forms together.

A mini-portion!

In this dessert, the fluffy texture of the body of the coconut lime pudding contrasts nicely with the bursts of flavour from the blueberries, and the toasted coconut on top.

If you want to freeze it in portions, then cool and chill it first for a couple of hours, to firm it up before cutting into portions. It is definitely best eaten hot (and can be quickly microwaved to re-heat in a few seconds, if you use one!), but I have also been known to send a small piece each from the freezer wrapped up as a lunchbox treat for my children!

You will ideally need a food processor to blitz up the beans (yes, beans, the secret ingredient I mentioned!), therefore you may as well use it for the other stages of the recipe too.

Serves: 16 modestly-sized dessert portions or cut larger or smaller as desired!

Calories: 209 calories per portion as above, or cut into 20 smaller servings at 168 calories each. [Calories in square brackets after ingredients]

Raspberry Bakewell Magic Bean Cake (or Cherry Bakewell) - includes Thermomix method

Easy to make, moist and delicious, NO taste of beans (no, really!), and incredibly versatile.

And if you just can't decide whether to go for raspberry or cherry, the beauty of this is that you can make it half and half!

Cherry Bakewell on the top tier, Raspberry Bakewell below (all cooked in the same cake tin).

Moist and almond-y, this makes a great traybake cake and you'll have fun getting people trying to guess what the 'secret ingredient is'! (They won't).This would also be excellent with plums, apricots, nectarines or peaches (cut into quarters or eighths, depending on the size of the fruit) when they're in season, as stone fruits all go really well with almond flavours. The type of fruit you use will dictate how dense the cake is, and what kind of rise you get - e.g. cherries naturally sink towards the bottom and the top rises more, whereas raspberries sit on the top, weighing the cake down more and giving you a more dense, moist result - more of a 'slice' (as you can see above). This is best made in a 9 inch / 22.5cm square tin (or rectangular tin of a similar area).

Cherries to the left, raspberries to the right!

 Another great bonus of this cake, is that not only is it gluten free and grain free, you can also make it dairy free if you want, by using coconut oil (the solid white variety, preferably extra virgin) instead of butter. It's good as a hot dessert too, and needs less cooking time for this (see method).

 This cake gives you 16 portions from 210 calories per serving; or cut into 20, for 168 calories per portion.

If you wish to bake it as a round cake in a smaller,, taller tin, pour in half of the batter, scatter the raspberries over that (I'm not sure I'd recommend trying this with cherries), then pour the rest of the batter on top and adjust the cooking time accordingly. Alternatively, bake as individual little cupcakes / muffins and reduce the cooking time to around 20 minutes - pushing the raspberries into each muffin (or even stir into the mix) before baking rather than leaving them on top. [Calories in square brackets below]

Coconut and Lemon Magic Bean Cake (includes Thermomix method)

So, travelling beyond the original dark and decadent chocolate 'Magic Bean Cake', here is a more summery version...

Moist and zingy, with little crunches from the coconut and a slightly crumbly texture - if you love lemon cakes, you will love this and you'll have fun getting people trying to guess what the 'secret ingredient is'! (They won't).

Another great bonus of this cake, is that it's gluten free, grain free and nut free (coconuts are seeds, see here for more information regarding allergies and make sure you check with anyone with a nut allergy), and you can also make it dairy free if you want, by using coconut oil (the solid white variety, preferably extra virgin) instead of butter!

I find that because the cake is so rich and moist, you don't need much - between four of us, we only managed to demolish a quarter at the first sitting, having a couple of modest slices each. It's gorgeous served with fresh raspberries, blackberries or strawberries and a dollop of Greek yoghurt, whipped cream or creme fraiche - maybe with a little lemon curd swirled in if you're being naughty!

I'd say this serves 16, if you cook in a ring tin and cut into slices about 1.5 to 2cm (as in photo) and have a couple or so per serving. 188 calories for a 16th of the cake serving on this basis. Or if you just want a little treat, have the one small slice instead of two, for 94 calories! Alternatively, bake as individual little cupcakes / muffins and reduce the cooking time to around 20 minutes - you could even push a few raspberries into each muffin before baking, and sprinkle with a little extra dessicated coconut. [Calories in square brackets below]

Magic Bean Cake

So, the mysterious and legendary 'Magic Bean Cake' has landed...

Dark and decadent, rich, moist and deeply chocolate-y, if you love chocolate, you will love this. It's a real keeper, and you'll have fun getting people trying to guess what the 'secret ingredient is'! (They won't).

This cake is a bit of a sensation - there are versions everywhere now. I originally started off with a version from the Australian Thermomix recipe community (there's even more than one there!) and wanted to convert it and share my version with my friends who don't have a Thermomix or similar (this method also includes the Thermomix instructions in italics - ignore anything in italics if you're not using a Thermomix).

I find that because the cake is so rich and moist, you don't need much - between four of us, we only managed to demolish a quarter, having a couple of modest slices each. It's gorgeous served with raspberries, blackberries or strawberries and a dollop of whipped cream, creme fraiche or thick and creamy yoghurt (we had it with home-made yoghurt made with creamy milk from Jersey cows and little wild strawberries picked from the back garden - yum!), and would be to-die-for with some dark cherries, especially if just simmered down a little with some of their juice and a little sugar... the possibilities are endless (see tips for more ideas and flavours for cooking the cake)!

I'd say this serves 16, if you cook in a ring tin and cut into slices about 1.5 to 2cm (as in photo), and have a couple or so per serving. 160 calories for a 16th of the cake serving on this basis. Or if you just want a little treat, have the one small slice instead of two, for 80 calories! [Calories in square brackets below]

Cheat's Frijoles di Olla (Mexican 'Pot' Beans) and Frijoles Refritos ('Re-Fried Beans')

If you can't get hold of dried black or pinto beans, then use tinned in this quick cheat's version!

Save on the hours of soaking and boiling, by using pre-cooked beans and cooking them in a little of their own liquid with onions and garlic until the alliums are cooked out and the sauce thickens.

Serve topped with a dollop of sour cream (or dairy free substitute, or half fat Creme Fraiche, or even Greek yoghurt if you're counting calories) and Fresh Mexican Salsa, as a side dish, or use as a vegetarian filling for tortillas and tacos with the sour cream and salsa and some grated cheese and shredded lettuce or Napa cabbage. These were lovely served alongside my Chicken in Chipotle Chilli Sauce.

If you want to add to the authenticity of the flavour and texture, you can add a further tablespoon of lard to the beans while they're cooking, but I haven't included this in the recipe. For 'Re-Fried' beans, see Notes at the bottom. You could also cook them in an earthenware pot if you have one suitable to go on the hob, which is how they would be traditionally cooked in Mexico.

Serves six, 110 calories per serving.

Southern-inspired Green Beans with Bacon

The flavours of green beans and bacon really compliment each other, and this is a nice way to cook them in the style of a Southern braise, but keeping the texture of the beans intact.

We served these braised, with trout in a lemon butter and new potatoes first time around, and then we served them with my American-style Pot Roast Brisket of Beef second time around (cooked differently, as in this method), along with my Spinach and Mushroom Gratin, for Sunday Dinner.

This makes six small side servings (with other sides, 30 calories each) with a roast dinner, or three servings as a single side (60 calories each) with a lighter meal.

Salt Cod Stew, with Chickpeas, Spinach and White Beans

So, having put up my Salted Chillies recipe, I was reminded of my Salt Cod Stew recipe which we had last night, re-heated from the freezer (which it does rather well!).

The best thing about this dish, is that you don't have to buy salt cod and soak it overnight - you can make this with fresh cod, using my easy method of salting and cooking it, which takes just over an hour and gives you tender, moist, subtly salty cod flakes!

It also makes enough for six to eight people (or many more if serving as a selection of tapa), stretching an expensive fish a long way, and... freezes well!

So, why not have a go?

Potaje de Garbanzos, Judías Blancas, Bacalao y Espinacas
(Chickpea, White Bean, Salt Cod and Spinach Stew)

Serves six as a hearty meal, eight as a lighter meal, and probably a good dozen as tapas! Freezes well, so you can portion it up for future meals in small bags.  347 calories per serving between six (261 calories between eight, 174 between twelve).

Don’t be put off by the idea of salt cod – it’s really easy to make the equivalent to de-salted salt cod (Bacalao), with just an hour’s salting, and 30 minutes soaking and it’s delicious! Use any combination of chick peas, butter beans and white beans you fancy, as long as they add up to around 850g cooked weight.