What’s for dinner?

13th March 201913th March 2019
by thefoodwife

This week we’ve been revisiting some recipes from The Food Wife so here are some ideas to help you with some meal planning for the week ahead. All are gluten-free (or easily adaptable).

At the weekend we had some friends round for dinner and I went for the low prep, no fuss chicken and potato tray bake with peppers and artichokes, served with a large green salad. It meant I could minimise my time in the kitchen and maximise my time socialising! We also had some of the marinated olives to nibble on with drinks before hand which I had set marinating the night before so they were full of flavour.

We’ve also had a firm favourite midweek, simply defrosted from the freezer and reheated; the yellow split pea daal. We had it with nutty brown basmati rice and some blanched green beans. So healthy and nutritious but utterly delicious too!

Another freezer staple was ragù; stirred through pasta it makes a really quick and satisfying meal. And also with pasta we’ve had the creamy spinach and pea pasta making a 15 minute meal perfect for a week night.

Lunch times have been soup-focussed and the sweet potato and butternut squash Thai coconut soup has been spicing up lunchtimes.

New to the menu was a Thai-inspired beef and noodle salad. Fresh flavours making the most of leftovers as I used left over roast beef and green beans from a family roast on Sunday.

The Food Baby has not been forgotten. At the start of the week I had a mammoth cooking session making batches of toddler-appropriate food. My main aim has been to try and get as much fruit or vegetables into him without him realising, as he appears to be able to identify and reject anything obvious at 20 paces. A batch of baby oaty ‘carrot cake’ cookies have gone down well with half being popped in the freezer for another time. I also made a big batch of veggie curry fritters, although I split the vegetables and batter and did half with the curry powder, and the other half with a teaspoon of smoked paprika and 100g grated cheese. Each batch made seven good size fritters which have been popped in the freezer for future dinners.

Hopefully our week’s meal plan has offered you some inspiration for all the family, catering for a variety of different diets, including gluten-free, dairy-free, vegetarian and vegan. If you haven’t already, why not sign up to The Food Wife Newsletter at the bottom of the homepage, to ensure you get every recipe each week, direct to your email.

(BLW) Sugar-free Blueberry Muffins

30th January 201930th January 2019
by thefoodwife

Makes 12

Recently, trying to get the Food Baby to eat any fruit has been quite a mission. Quite a change from just a few weeks ago. In fact, his recent teething has sometimes made him not want to eat anything much. These however went down very well, he devoured three in about 10 minutes and I was comforted to think he’d had both banana and blueberries.

All the sweetness here comes from the fruit, with no added sugar (although if you are making these for yourself then you may well want to add some; try 50g in step 1). There is some nice texture from the addition of oats and if you want to make these dairy free, simply use a suitable milk replacement.

Ingredients:
1 large ripe banana, mashed with a fork
50g rolled oats
125g self-raising flour
60g blueberries, dusted in a little flour
120ml milk
60ml vegetable oil
1 large egg, beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract

Step 1: Combine the banana, oats and flour in a bowl. Add the blueberries.

Step 2: Separately mix together the wet ingredients and then fold gently into the dry ingredients.

Step 3: Spread equally between a 12-hole muffin tin, lined with cases.

Step 4: Bake at 200c for 20 minutes and leave to cool on a wire rack.

Whilst still warm these will stick to the cases, but should peel off cleanly once cool.

Once cool, store in an airtight container for a couple of days (or pop in the freezer).

Coconut and Fruit Oat Crumble Cookies

3rd January 20193rd January 2019
by thefoodwife

Makes approximately 18 cookies

These cookies aren’t overly sweet and so are a good option for little ones. They have a soft, crumbly texture and are packed with oats and coconut. They could be made gluten-free by exchanging the plain flour for a gluten-free variety.

They are quick to make so are useful to have in your repertoire if you have some unexpected guests and want to offer something with a cup of tea!

Ingredients:
100g oats
100g plain flour (gluten-free if required)
100g softened butter
50g soft light brown sugar
50g dried berries/sultanas
50g desiccated coconut
1 large free range egg
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Step 1: Mix all ingredients together until you have a combined soft dough.

Step 2: Roll into 18 equal-sized balls and spread on one large (or two smaller) lined baking sheets.

Step 3: Use the back of a fork to press the top of the cookie so it becomes flattened (these don’t really spread as they cook so you only need to leave a little space between each one).

Step 4: Bake in a pre-heated oven at 180c for 12-15 mins until golden.

Step 5: Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a wire rack.

BLW Tuna and Sweetcorn Cheesy Quesadillas

21st November 201821st November 2018
by thefoodwife

Makes 1

This has become a favourite lunch for the Food Baby in our house. He likes to carefully pick out the sweetcorn and eat them and then munches his way through the rest of it. I use a tuna in spring water as brine is too salty and those in oil make it far too greasy. You can make this with any good melty cheese, we’ve tried it with cheddar, Red Leicester and most recently the Spanish cheese, Tetilla.

Ingredients:
Spray oil
2 mini tortilla wraps
50g (melty) cheese (grated or sliced)
1/3 tin of tuna in spring water, drained
1 tbsp tinned sweetcorn, drained

Step 1: Heat a non-stick frying pan on a medium heat and spritz on some oil.

Step 2: Place one tortilla flat on the pan and add half the cheese. Top with the tuna and sweetcorn, sprinkled evenly, and finish with the remaining half of the cheese. Add the second tortilla and spray the top with a little more oil.

Step 3: Use a spatula to press the quesadilla and when the underside is toasted and firmed up, use the spatula to carefully turn the quesadilla over. Cook for another couple of minutes until the underside is browned.

I cut this into six pieces so it can be easily held by little hands and just make sure that before you serve the cheese isn’t too hot to eat!

BLW Mini Baked Omelettes

24th September 201824th September 2018
by thefoodwife

Makes 6

These are protein packed and great for breakfast, lunch or dinner for your little one. You can change the filling (here I’ve used tomato and cheese) but always keep the same quantity of egg to make six. You can always scale up; use four eggs to make 12 omelettes and increase any additional ingredients.

Ingredients:
2 large eggs, beaten
Splash of full fat milk
1/2 tsp paprika
30g grated cheese
1 tbsp chopped parsley
1 medium/3 small tomatoes (about 60g in total), finely chopped

Step 1: Mix together all of the ingredients in a jug.

Step 2: Oil six holes of a muffin tray (I drop a little vegetable oil into each one and then run my finger around until coated).

Step 3: Pour equal amounts of your egg mixture into each of the six oiled muffin holes.

Step 4: Bake in a preheated oven (200c) for 15 minutes.

Step 5: Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Store in the fridge or freezer.