FINYS FABULOUS FOODS AND FINDS

This fish pie is unusual in that it has a crunchy Filo pastry baked on the top. I have served it with broccoli and a salad of carrots and fresh green peas, and I soaked the broccoli in the gravy from the fish pie! I try to eat fish once a week, as it is healthy however fish is not quite as versatile as chicken!  This is an easy pie to make and is just that little bit different. Serve it with a salad or even baked or boiled vegetables. Preparation Time: 25 minutes Cooking Time: 30 minutes Makes: 3 servings Ingredients Bit of oil ½ leek, sliced 1 clove garlic 3 tbsp flour ¾ cup fish or chicken stock 70 g Philadelphia cream cheese (could use small tubs) 400 g white fish, cut into thick strips Grated rind of lemon Salt and pepper 3 sheets Filo pastry Olive oil spray Instructions Heat a bit of oil in a fry pan or small wok, and add the leek and garlic.  Saute this for about 2 minutes until it has softened. Add the flour and cook 1-2 minutes more. T...

Turkey is a very low fat mince, is extremely cheap to use, and best of all, it has a lovely taste.  It is also very versatile, and I often cook using this mince. It is also an excellent source of protein and good if you are on a low fat diet. You can buy it at all supermarkets nowadays, and I usually buy 500 g, use half and have some always in the freezer. Often when I cannot think what to make for an evening meal, we have turkey balls with spaghetti, which is both easy to make, quick and delicious.  Having them on hand in the freezer is great for an emergency when I don't feel like being creative, or thinking about what to cook! In this instance I made the turkey into a "meatloaf" and as I was having one of my grandchildren here for dinner, I also minced some carrot, and a few other vegetables, which he could not taste.  He is not a good eater, and that is how we get him to eat vegetables - by hiding them in certain foods. I wanted some sort of sauce with this,...

Raw is currently the rage in cooking!  I have made some interesting recipes, though I have to admit some of them have failed! It is not so easy to get the right quantities of ingredients so that the sweet or dessert will not fall apart. I make a lot of bliss balls, as currently I am not eating much with refined sugar in them, and most of these raw desserts have no added processed sugars. This one also has chia seeds in it.  I love the texture of these seeds, and they are so easy to use in a variety of sweets and puddings.  They are also supposedly another of the new "super foods".  Their health properties include such things as Omega-3, antioxidants, fibre, iron and calcium.  They also contain some protein and are versatile in that they can be eaten both cooked or raw.  However they should be added to another food or soaked before eating them. Raw foods are the latest health craze and many of them use obscure ingredients.  However this recipe...

I may "harp" about the 5/2 diet however I was fanatical about it for a few years. Not that I wanted to lose weight - it has other effects which include lowering blood pressure and more.  This worked well for me for a while, however eventually I had to go down to 6/1 as I found I was losing too much weight! Currently this is what I do - I eat my 500 calories just once a week instead of two though it has not had the good side effects that doing it twice had. Anyway this article is not supposed to be about a diet but about food that is suitable for someone who wants to eat healthy, low fat and low calorie food, which this is. The other advantage of this recipe is that I have heard and read that we "should" eat fish twice a week as it also has so many health benefits, the main one being the Omega 3.  Many of us take fish oil supplements to get our Omega 3 however I am a firm believer in eating and getting vitamins naturally rather than taking a pill. On saying...

 Once a week I eat just 500 calories in a day for health reasons.  This is on the 5/2 diet and I do not do it to lose weight. This is a filling meal you could make and still be within your 500 calories for one of your two fasting days. I am always on the lookout for ideas for these days as a salad gets a bit boring after a year or so of being on this diet. This egg white omelette is ideal for this, or if you want an easy, low fat, low calorie meal.  It has approximately 235 calories in the whole meal! You can add whatever vegetables you like, and I have used what I had left in my fridge. I used the spinach that I grow in my garden as this climbing type variety is ideal for cooking or eating in a salad. Preparation Time: 10 minutes Cooking Time: 15 minutes Makes: 1 omelette Ingredients 3 large egg whites A handful of spinach ½ stick celery, chopped fine ½ onion, chopped 25 g Mozzarella cheese (or any tasty cheese) oil, or spray 10 g parsley, chop...

Hello once again, my lovelies! This chicken can be served for dinner in whole breasts, or to look more spectacular, you can serve them sliced and arranged on a plate for everyone to help themselves! There are many recipes which put fruit, nuts and cheese in the middle of rolled meat, and I really enjoy the chicken ones.  This is the first in my series of fillings for chicken, so keep on the lookout for more.  These really impress visitors, even though they are quite easy to make! A beginner just learning to cook that special meal, would have no problems with this recipe - the hardest part is cutting the pocket in the chicken. In this instance, I have used small chicken breasts as I find these rolled chicken delights are tastier with thinner chicken.  I also mainly buy free range or sometimes organic chicken. I have cooked this on the barbecue, however you could also do it in a pan.  I like that "smokey" flavour of the barbecue, so thought I would try it - I...

If you cannot buy fresh fish, tinned tuna is a very good alternative for Omega 3 fatty acid, which supports your heart, brain and eyes. I have mentioned before in my recipes, that we are supposed to eat fish twice a week according to surveys.  I personally do not do this, and I DO use a lot of tinned tuna as I always have a large tin of it in the pantry.  I buy the one in spring water as against the one in oil. I always buy the brand, John West as it is dolphin friendly, and I like their products. They also produce a "light" tuna in spring water, which has less calories than the normal tinned tuna however I do not use this one for cooking. This is a mild, easy to make curry, is a low fat recipe and can easily be used as a "stand-by" when you want an easy meal. Preparation Time:   10 minutes Cooking Time: 15 minutes Makes: 2 servings Ingredients 2  x 105 g tins light Tuna in spring-water 1  x tbsp butter (less if using non stick frypan) ½ x 440...

I like my breakfast and never go without at least cereal to eat first thing in the morning. I also like to have a healthy breakfast, and therefore seek out the lowest sugar content cereals as well as short cut bacon which has almost no fat. I also love semolina and porridge, but as the strawberries are delicious from some shops at the moment, I wanted to incorporate strawberries in with a hot breakfast, and so I decided on rolled oats with strawberries. I never use instant oats as I do not think they taste anywhere near as good as the "real thing", and I also think that cooking oats are nicer on top of the stove as against the quicker way of making them in the microwave. This recipe is both healthy, warming and delicious, and it is so easy to make that even children could make it!  My grandson helped me to make it but he did not want his strawberries cooked, so I made his separate and put the strawberries on top. I also added sliced bananas after I finished cooking ...

This is a dessert which uses barley, which is more often used in soups.  It is mixed with Ricotta and rhubarb making it creamy! The rhubarb tart taste goes very well with the slightly sweet ricotta and barley mix, and it is also low fat and healthy. Preparation Time: 10 minutes Cooking Time: 35 minutes Makes: 4-5 servings Ingredients 100 g pearl barley 250g fresh ricotta 2 tbsp honey ½ tsp almond essence 250g rhubarb, cut into short lengths 5 tsp sugar or equivalent. Method Cook the barley in a pan of boiling water for 25-30 minutes, or until soft, adding more water if necessary. Rinse under cold water, drain well and set aside to cool. Meanwhile preheat oven to 180°C/160° fan forced, and line a baking tray with non-stick baking paper. In a medium bowl, place the ricotta, honey and almond essence.  Beat until smooth and creamy.  Fold in the barley. Place the rhubarb on the tray and sprinkle with the sugar.  Bake for 15 minutes, or unti...

Many of us go on different diets, however I am slim and do not need to go on a diet, so it was with hesitation that I went on this "new beaut" 5/2 diet.  I did this, not to lose weight but for the various health gains it supposedly had. I found this diet worked for these problems however, in my case, I lost too much weight, so eventually I had to stop this diet! I was on the 5/2 diet for several years, and this recipe is one that I used to make on my "fast" days where I could only eat 500 calories for the whole day.  This tuna salad would be about 150 calories - add a boiled egg for another 70 calories, and it is still a very low fat, low calorie meal. It is very quick and easy to make and requires no cooking - and best of all - IT TASTES VERY GOOD - I also sometimes add olives and chilies to taste. A good recipe for one person or double it for more. Preparation Time: 15 minutes Cooking Time: 0 minutes Makes: 1 large serving Ingredients 95 g tin ...

If you are wanting a low fat diet, then this is the way to go - whilst I prefer using the whole egg, using only the whites make this recipe healthy, and with little calories. It is another recipe that I used to make when I was on my 5/2 diet which I went on for the health benefits and not to lose weight.  I often had a problem finding things to eat as a main meal as total for the day was only 500 calories, which is not a lot! As this is an omelette, there are many other variations that you could use as a filling - it just depends on your imagination as to what you could add with the tuna, however tuna is a versatile and healthy fish, and it goes well with many other ingredients. If you are really concerned about calories, you could use less cheese in this recipe and add a bit of salt instead. Preparation Time:  10 minutes Cooking Time:  20 minutes Makes:  1 serving Ingredients 3 extra large egg whites 110 g boiled potatoes 185g tin of low fat Tuna in...

Chickpeas are a healthy product, and as such are a great snack when made this way. They are also good as a snack in between meals, and are full of nutrients.  They are a far better snack than say, potato chips, and they are just as moreish. I like to buy my chickpeas fresh, however  if you want to save time, you could use rinsed tinned ones. If you do use the fresh ones, make sure you soak them overnight in cold water, then drain them and put in a saucepan with water to cover, then bring to the boil over a high heat and cook for about 10 minutes or until tender. Preparation Time:  5 minutes Cooking Time:  35 - 45 minutes Makes:  A quantity Ingredients 1 tin chickpeas, drained, rinsed and completely patted dry 1 tbsp sesame seed oil (or oil of choice) 1 tbsp ginger 2 tbsp sesame seeds 1 tsp paprika Lemon zest from ½ lemon Pinch of cayenne pepper Salt & pepper Method Preheat oven to 200. In a large bowl combine the chickpeas, ...