Picadillo, or spiced ground meat as its more simply known, is a dish that usually appears in Cuban cuisine. There are many different ways to make Picadillo but its usually made with either beef or pork mince. I’ve used pork mince here as I had it in the freezer.
I’m always on the look out for quick and easy dinner recipes which utilise some of the contents of my store cupboard. This recipe, created when I had some left over pork steaks, is exactly that. Most things in it I usually have in. Popping the ingredients together like this though really gave the pork a whole new lease of life. My OH was worried that it wouldn’t be filling enough given the spiralized veg noodles however I can confirm it really was! If you want to beef it up a bit more, you could also add some spiralized courgette. The flavours are lovely and best of all, the whole thing is ready in less than 15 minutes.
One of my lovely friends got me a bottle of Chimichurri dressing for Christmas and, knowing how nice it was in a steak recipe I previously created, I decided to try and create something new. After asking my OH what meat he fancied, his response was ‘pork, or prawns, or both’ so I decided to give both a whirl. If you are making this at home, feel free to make one or the other. I’ve posted the points for both so you can decide which fits in best with your day – a bit of a pick and mix! If you have the points left you might even fancy both.
I adore pulled pork. It’s one of my favourite ‘cheat meal’s when I eat out. Nothing beats a good dirty burger. Keen to be able to have my favourite treat without the guilt I set out to create my own healthy but flavoursome version of the recipe. Boy, did this one hit the spot. The pork is soft and bursting with flavour, the slaw contrasts nicely with a little spice and most of all, even though the ingredients may look a little daunting, it is exceptionally easy to make!
I have had a few requests for a healthy and tasty carbonara recipe so I thought it was about time I obliged! Now I’m not the biggest fan of carbonara as I find it rather carb heavy and plain so I decided to pump up the taste factor as well as the veg component and the result was delicious and tasted exactly like something you would have in a restaurant. The gorgonzola added a lovely distinctive flavour which both the OH and I really enjoyed but if you don’t like gorgonzola, feel free to replace this with some low fat crème fraiche. This was my first time cooking with kale and I really enjoyed it. It added a lovely texture to the dish and a lovely pepperiness (plus its so good for you!!)
I love fish and when I spotted this little recipe in the Hairy Bikers ‘Eat for Life’ Cookbook, I knew I would have to give it a whirl. The recipe didn’t really suggest any accompaniments that I fancied so I put together some of my own. These, coupled with only a few tweaks to the original recipe made for the most amazing dish. You would never think that this was a healthy ‘diet’ recipe. Amazing!
Following my recipe earlier this week for my festive Mince Pie Bites, next in the Christmas countdown are these delicious little treat which I have made many times as a lighter contribution to a festive buffet.
This delight of a dish involves hardly any cooking and the sauce is so quick and easy (it takes around the same length of time to prepare as the pasta takes to cook). This is one of my favourite recipes as usually when you are trying to find low point pasta meals, you would stick to tomato based pastas as they are lower in points. This recipe however, is a nice low point tomato free alternative. Depending on how hungry I am I sometimes add an extra handful of spinach leaves whole at the end and let it wilt in the heat.
Me and the OH were planning on having a lovely pork stew the other night but, as they do, plans change quickly and I ended up having to cook something up fairly quickly so we could head out earlier than anticipated! I’ve been wanting to try out this stir fry combo for a while so took the opportunity that night and my oh my was it a treat!! The addition of the five spice made for a nice change and I loved it as it took no times at all and was all in the one pan, less dishes!! You can pop any stir fry vegetables with it that you like and even add some bean sprouts to bulk it out if you fancy but I got a fairly hefty bowlful for only 10sp!
I watched a rerun of Jaime’s 15 minute meals the other night and saw the end of him making this dish. It looked delicious and so I thought I would give it a go but when I got a hold of the recipe it was rather plain and boring. Keen to try gnocchi anyway I added a few bits and pieces and changed a few bits round and came up with the below recipe! It was delicious and although you don’t get much gnocchi for your points, it’s a nice change from pasta and adding lots of free veg bulks your bowl out a treat! It’s a perfect dish to make if you are in a rush as the gnocchi itself takes only 3 minutes!