From breakfast to dinner, we have got you covered !! For this month’s blog I have collaborated with my sister who is an expert in the cuisine field and cooks exquisite dishes. I guess creativity runs in the family. Together we are going to share some of our top recipes & food ideas, aiming at getting your taste buds buzzing by the end of this article.
Since my travelling plans have been delayed for a while, I decided to take you on a flavourful journey of some pretty tasty food. In addition, this article should give you a hint on how you can create a meal plan for a whole week, some food hacks on how you can avoid wasting food & lastly how you can prepare nutritious & delicious food without spending lots of money. Since everyone is stuck inside I invite you to channel your inner Gordon Ramsey !!
Sometimes one finds it difficult to think of new delicious dishes to cook everyday. Problem solved !! A meal plan is the perfect solution. It
Saves you time : meal prep done ahead can save you resources later, you make only one single run to the grocery for almost a whole week.
Money saver : Helps you make use of all your food better, avoid buying excessive amounts of groceries which most of the time you already had or do not need.
A way of how you can clear your fridge from leftovers
To create a meal plan start by :
- Opening your fridge and kitchen cupboards
- See which fruit and/ or vegetables are ripe or on the verge of going bad.
- See which foods you need to use first & play around with the ingredients to create a meal or two for every day for a whole week.
You’ll be surprised what you are capable to create.
So we have come up with 9 dishes for every time of the day that you feel peckish and in which your stomach is likely to begin to grumble for some appetizing food. All these recipes are tried & tested. Some recipes we have found online while the great majority we have come up with ourselves. You can mix & match these plates at your own leisure to create your perfect meal plan of the week. So here we go ....
Breakfast
Berry Bowl Ingredients : Plain cereal, vanilla yogurt, strawberries, frozen raspberries & blueberries, sunflower seeds
Banana & strawberry smoothie bowl Mix together in a blender 1 frozen banana, some frozen strawberries, frozen vanilla yogurt, a few tsps milk.
Place some oats at the bottom of a bowl & pour the mixture in.
Add some walnuts & pieces of dark chocolate at the top.
A bowl of grains Ingredients : 2 types of cereals, walnut yogurt, cashew nuts, sunflower seeds, dried cranberries
Strawberry oat jar Ingredients : Oats, strawberry yogurt, strawberries, dried cranberries, sunflower seeds, walnuts, crushed pieces of dark chocolate
Banana, chocolate & peanut butter oat jar Ingredients : Oats, chocolate & hazelnut yogurt, 1 banana, a few teaspoons of peanut butter, walnuts
Apple & kiwi oat jar Ingredients : Oats, kiwi & vanilla yogurt, 1 diced kiwi, 1 diced apple with a sprinkle of cinnamon powder, sunflower seeds
Berry cereal balls Ingredients : 1 cup of plain cereal flakes, dried berries, dried cranberries, pumpkin seeds, oats , light vanilla yogurt.
Mix all the ingredients together.
Use the oats to help it absorb any excess yogurt.
Use a spoon to form the balls or bars.
Put in the fridge.
Chocolate & peanut butter oat balls Ingredients : 1 cup of oats, 1 spoon peanut butter, walnuts, sunflower seeds, pieces of dark chocolate, shredded coconut, light vanilla or coconut yogurt.
(Procedure same as above.)
Oatmeal pancakes Ingredients :
3/4 cup +1 tbsp wholemeal flour
6 tbsp oats
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
3 tbsp honey
1 tsp cinnamon
1 cup + 2 tbsp milk
2 tbsp oil
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
Servings : 7-8 pancakes
Mix the dry ingredients & pour in the wet ingredients. Mix until the mixture to form a batter. If the batter is a bit runny add some flour.
Let the batter sit in the fridge for 10-15 mins.
Lightly grease a medium pan. When the pan is hot, drop small quantities of the batter. Then flip the pancake using a spatula.
Serve with honey, blueberries, raspberries, strawberries or melted chocolat or peanut butter, banana.
Useful tips :
The jars can be prepared overnight.
The pancakes can be used both as breakfast or as desserts with a side of ice cream (mentioned further below)
Lunch
Pea soup Ingredients : Onions, garlic, marrows, peas. (You can also include any green vegetables you happen to have that are very ripe & you want to use quickly)
Heat the olive oil in a large pan & cook the onion & garlic until softened.
Add the peas & all the vegetables.
Bring slowly to boil then reduce the heat & simmer for 15 minutes.
Puree using a food processor until smooth.
Return to the pan, heat gently & then season. You can garnish with a hint of cooked bacon pieces.
Ginger soup Ingredients : Carrots, red lentils, ginger, pumpkin, garlic, sweet potato, fresh chilly or dried chilly.
Procedure followed same as above.
Bulgar wheat salad Ingredients : low fat Greek yogurt, walnuts, apples, basil, mint sun dried tomatoes, tuna
Cold pastaPreferably use wholemeal pasta. With regards to ingredients, check what ingredients you have in stock.
Some examples :
red kidney beans, fresh tomatoes, mozzarella, baby spinach, mint leaves, olive oil, onions, olives.
onions, grated carrot, bell peppers, corn & peas, olives, fresh tomatoes, red kidney beans, tuna (optional).
Tuna & walnut pastaIngredients : Chopped onions, garlic, bell peppers, walnuts, olives, capers (optional), tuna, mint leaves.
Heat the olive oil in a large pan & cook the onion, garlic & bell peppers together with walnuts until softened.
Add the tuna, capers & olives.
Add the white sauce. ( One can make white sauce by dissolving a spoon of cornflour in a cup of cold milk)
Drizzle some curry, mixed spice oregano, salt & pepper & let the sauce cook slowly on low heat.
Mix the sauce with boiled pasta of your choice.
Garnish with fresh mint leaves & some Parmesan cheese.
Eggs benedict, avocado & salmon on toast Ingredients : Toasted brown bread , avocado paste (1 mashed avocado, olive oil, salt & pepper, garlic powder, sesame seeds), smoked salmon, poached egg.
Eggs benedict with bresaola on toast Ingredients : 1 slice wholemeal, poached egg, spinach, tomato, bresaola
Baked tortellini with Maltese sausage Ingredients : Chopped onions, garlic, grated carrot, smoked bacon, Maltese sausage, frozen peas, mushrooms, tortellini.
Heat the olive oil in a large pan & cook the onion, garlic, grated carrot, peas & mushrooms. Add the chopped bacon & sausage.
Add the white sauce. ( One can make white sauce by dissolving a spoon of cornflour in a cup of cold milk)
Drizzle some curry, mixed spice oregano, salt & pepper & let the sauce cook slowly on low heat.
Mix the sauce with partially cooked tortellini & pour in a greased baking tray. Add some Parmesan cheese on top & bake for around 30 mins.
Sunflower seeds & ginger chicken strips Ingredients : Chopped onions, garlic, chopped ginger, grated carrot, sunflower seeds, walnuts, chicken strips.
Heat the olive oil in a large pan & cook the onion, garlic, chopped ginger, together with the walnuts & sunflower seeds until softened.
Add the carrots & chicken strips. .
Useful tips : These can be used to fill up wraps, to make a salad or as a main course with a side of vegetables & potatoes.
Dinner
Grilled salmon Fresh salmon marinated with fresh lemon juice, grated fresh ginger, chilies, dill, and sesame seeds. Grill for 20 mins
Grilled pagella fish Fresh Pesto made from mint, basil, olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper. All ingredients are placed in a food processor until smooth.
Pour some fresh pesto on top and grill for 15 mins.
Grill some vegetables to serve as a side plate.
Octopus pasta Boil the octopus in a pot of hot water.
Prepare fresh pesto using the same ingredients & procedure as the one used for the pagella fish.
Once the octopus is ready, give it some crisp by cooking it in a hot pan with olive oil, fresh garlic & some white wine.
Add fresh tomato sauce to the mixture.
Add the pesto to cooked spaghetti & serve with the sauce .
Burritos Prepare fresh tomato sauce.
In another pan prepare fresh mince beef, onion, garlic, mushrooms, peppers, chilly peppers, curry, dried cumin, sweet paprika and fill a wrap.
Place wraps in a dish and pour the puree tomato sauce and some cottage cheese on top
Grill in the oven for 15 mins.
Angus beef burgers Ingredients : Minced beef, dried herbs, chopped onions, 1 egg, truffle oil.
Servings : 8 burgers.
Mix all the ingredients together.
Divide the mixture into 7-8 portions.
Take each portion & flatten them to take the form of a burger.
Put in the fridge for 30 mins.
Useful tips : If you have more portions then you are going to use, you can freeze them for another time.
Pizza Ingredients for the pizza dough : 1 kg all purpose flour, 2 + 1/2 cups water, 2 + 1/2 tsp instant yeast, 3 tsp fine salt, 1/3 softened margarine
Sieve the flour & put all the ingredients together except the water.
Work the ingredients with your hands or with a mixer, adding the water bit by bit.
Place the dough on the table and knead it.
Put the dough in a bowl with a drizzle of olive oil on top, not to form a scorch.
Leave it to rest & rise for one hour.
Meat balls Ingredients : minced beef, oats, garlic, herbs, sesame seeds, chopped parsley, worcester sauce, olive oil.
Mix all the ingredients together.
Grab a spoon & form medium-sized balls.
Drizzle some olive oil, salt& pepper & bake in the oven for 15-20 mins.
Serve with a side of vegetables of with pasta.
Stuffed peppers Ingredients : Minced beef, garlic, onions, grated carrot, mushrooms, boiled egg, couscous, bell peppers
In a hot pan with olive oil, cook the minced beef, garlic onions, mushrooms until softened.
Prepare the cooked couscous by adding some herbs, olive oil, worcester sauce & add the it to the mixture & boiled eggs.
Half the bell peppers & remove the seeds.
Use the prepared mixture to fill the peppers and bake in the oven.
Useful tips :
You can prepare extra filling mixture & use it as a salad for lunch.
The bulgar wheat salad (mentioned above) could also be used to fill up the bell peppers.
Honey & lemon marinated chicken breast Marinate the chicken breast in a mixture of lemon juice, a few tbsp honey, olive oil, salt & pepper, oregano, garlic granules or fresh garlic, rosemary. Leave for 2-3 hrs.
You can either grill the chicken breast in a pan or BBQ or bake in an oven with some vegetables at the side.
The leftover marinate could be used as a sauce.
Useful tips : Chicken breast could be used either as a main course or cut in strips & used in salads or wraps/sandwiches for lunch.
Dessert & tea nibbles
Banana bread Adopted from :
Chocolate & peanut butter brownies Adopted from :
Banana, chocolate & peanut butter cupcakes Adopted from :
Strawberry & yogurt cake Adopted from :
Moist lemon cake Adopted from :
Chocolate cupcakes Ingredients : 1 cup self raising flour, 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1/4 cup light brown sugar, 1/2 cup chopped dark chocolate, 1 egg, 5 tbsp milk, 1/4 cup lightly salted melted butter.
Servings : 16 cupcakes
Sieve the flour, cocoa powder & baking powder into a bowl. Stir in the sugar & chocolate.
Beat the egg in a separate bowl & stir in the milk & melted butter.
Using a mixer or a large spoon mix the 2 mixtures together until fully combined.
Divide the mixture into 16 mini silicone muffin cups on a baking sheet.
Bake in a preheated oven, 400 degrees F, for 15 mins until risen & firm.
Can be coated with Betty Crocker icing or left plain.
Berry & yogurt ice cream Ingredients : frozen strawberries, raspberries & blueberries, 1 tub frozen light strawberry yogurt, 2 tbsp sugar, chocolate chips
Mix & crush everything in a blender.
Banana & peanut butter ice cream Ingredients : 1 frozen banana, 2 tbsp chunky peanut butter, 2 tbsp honey/ sugar, nuts (optional)
Mix & crush everything in a blender.
Carrot & pineapple cake Adopted from :
So that is all for today ! We hope we have opened your appetite & got you foodosed along the way. DM our page or Instagram account if you come across any difficulties. We are happy to help. If you try these dishes, send us a snapshot of your dishes or tag us. See you next month for another dose of goodness !!
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