On the hunt for some nutritious and delicious meals? The Slimming Foodie has got you covered with these two mouth-watering pasta recipes, perfect for anyone looking to maintain a healthy lifestyle
Eating healthy doesn't mean sacrificing taste. If you're looking for flavourful and satisfying meals that won't derail your diet, then look no further than The Slimming Foodie.
"Packed with healthy ingredients and bursting with flavour, these dishes are the perfect addition to your healthy eating repertoire"
Packed with healthy ingredients and bursting with flavour, these dishes are the perfect addition to your healthy eating repertoire. Whether you're trying to lose weight or simply looking for a healthier way to eat, give these recipes a try and see how delicious healthy can be!
Light lemon, smoked salmon and pea spaghetti
A light and summery pasta dish; the sauce is ready in the time it takes the pasta to cook.
Prep time: 3 minutes
Cook time: 12 minutes
Credit: The Slimming Foodie
Ingredients
- 350g spaghetti
- 250g frozen peas
- finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
- 4 tablespoons half-fat crème fraîche
- 15g Parmesan cheese, finely grated
- 180g smoked salmon, cut into strips
- salt and pepper, to taste
- handful of parsley leaves, to serve
Method
- Cook the spaghetti in a large pan of boiling water. After seven minutes, add the frozen peas to cook with the spaghetti.
- When the spaghetti is cooked, drain it, reserving a little of the cooking water.
- Put the drained spaghetti back into the pan and add the lemon juice, crème fraîche, Parmesan, smoked salmon and salt and pepper, plus a little of the reserved pasta water. Stir everything together thoroughly.
- Divide between four warmed plates or bowls and scatter with the lemon zest, parsley and freshly ground black pepper.
Note: If you want to increase the vegetables in this, add 125g asparagus spears, woody ends trimmed away and sliced into 1cm lengths, to cook with the spaghetti at the same time as the peas.
Sausage meatball orzo
Simple sausage meatballs always go down as a treat with my children, while adding easy-to-eat orzo and haricot beans with simple flavours turns them into a great, balanced meal.
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes
Credit: The Slimming Foodie
Ingredients
- 500g lean minced pork (5 per cent fat)
- 1 tablespoon Italian-style mixed dried herbs
- 1 carrot, grated
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- spray oil
- 200g orzo pasta
- 400g can of haricot beans, drained and rinsed
- 600ml hot chicken stock
- 2 celery sticks, finely chopped
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 2 tablespoons tomato ketchup
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon fennel seeds
- 2 large handfuls of kale leaves, coarse stalks removed, roughly chopped
Method
- To make the meatballs, mix the pork, dried herbs, carrot, baking powder and ¼ teaspoon salt in a bowl. Use your hands to shape the mixture into walnut-sized balls (roughly 3cm in diameter). As you make them, place them directly into a large sauté or frying pan, off the heat, which has been sprayed with a little oil.
- Put the orzo and haricot beans into a saucepan, pour over the hot stock and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent the orzo from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
- Place the sauté pan containing the sausage balls over high heat and start to fry, add the celery, onion and garlic, reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally.
- After the orzo has been cooking for 15 minutes, tip the entire contents of the pan into the sauté pan and carefully mix everything together (try not to break up the meatballs).
- Add the ketchup, thyme, fennel seeds and kale to the pan and stir together. Simmer gently for another five minutes before serving.
Per serving: Calories 473 | Fat 8.7g | Sat Fat 2.6g | Carbs 55g | Sugars 8.1g | Fibre 6.2g | Protein 40g | Salt 3.6g
The Slimming Foodie in Minutes by Pip Payne, published by Aster £20 Hardback.
Read more: 2 Healthy slow cooker recipes to try
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