Month: February 2020

(Healthy) Corned beef hash – budget winter comfort food for under £1


Corned beef hash

Traditional Corned Beef Hash recipes are often high in fat but this clever alternative from the Hairy Dieters comes in at less than 250 calories per serving! Celeriac is used instead of potatoes and only 200g of corned beef is required instead of the larger 340g cans.

Will you notice a difference compared to the more traditional version? Well, yes, probably. Does it still taste great regardless? Yes, absolutely, and at less than a quid per portion to make what’s not to like?

The Hairy Dieters suggest having this for brunch, but it will work equally well as a nourishing evening meal on those cold winter evenings. If you love this dish, why not try another of their comfort food classics – Pan Haggerty Lite. Continue reading “(Healthy) Corned beef hash – budget winter comfort food for under £1” →

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Pasta with clams and bacon


Clams

I’ve never been a huge fan of Italian food. I can take or leave pizza and I’ve never understood how some restaurants justify charging upwards of £15 for a bowl of pasta. It’s ironic then that going on a healthy eating plan has enabled me to fall in love with simple, tasty Italian pasta dishes that are quick and economical to cook.

Pasta with clams and bacon from the third instalment of the Hairy Dieters series has become one of my favourites. The photo above might not scream ‘eat me now!’, but don’t let that put you off, the flavour combinations in this recipe are divine and I’d urge you to try it.

Disclaimer: my local supermarkets aren’t posh enough to stock clams so I substituted them for cockles which worked a treat. Clams, cockles or even mussels – see what works for you. But whatever you use, don’t forget to save 50ml of the liquor when draining them as adding this back into the pan makes this sumptuous dish even more yummy.

Can’t get enough of healthy pasta dishes? Check out Pollo Pasta with Pesto, Smashed Up Chicken, Pasta Puttanesca and Tagliatelle Carbonara. Continue reading “Pasta with clams and bacon” →

Prawn pasta salad


Prawwwwns

Quick pasta salad dishes are perfect for mid-week lunchboxes to take to work and are a healthier and cheaper alternative to caloric supermarket equivalents. This Prawn Pasta Salad recipe is tucked away towards the back of the Hairy Dieters’ second book and is one of my favourites.

It’s so simple to put together and you can have it ready in under 20 minutes. Do remember to use ‘light’ mayonnaise as using full fat versions will bump the calories up. Fancying something more up-market to show off to your work colleagues? Then Posh Prawn Cocktail is for you, my friends. Continue reading “Prawn pasta salad” →

Crushed Berry Layered Yoghurt – perfect on a ‘5:2’ day


berry yoghurt

If you’re following a ‘5:2’ diet plan, you’ll know how difficult it can be to eat breakfast, lunch and dinner within a limit of 600 calories on a ‘2’ day. So what are your options? Skip breakfast and struggle through until lunchtime, invariably reaching for the snack jar around 11am, or try and get something light and healthy inside you first-thing?

A piece of fruit is always an option but if, like me, you love yoghurts why not combine both options by having Crushed Berry Layered Yoghurt from Justine Pattison? You can pick up cheap bags of frozen mixed fruit from supermarkets which are great to have on stand-by for busy mornings and it means you’re not wasting any fresh produce either – just take out what you need. Of course, you could just buy some ready-made yoghurts, but some can be higher in sugar and calories than you think so I prefer to make my own.

I like to use ramekins for these fruit-topped yoghurts and keep them in the fridge, where they’ll last for 3 days. If you’re a fan of this simplistic health-kick, check out Justine’s Without the Calories – Quick and Easy book where you’ll also find a recipe for Cherry and Chocolate Chip Muesli. Continue reading “Crushed Berry Layered Yoghurt – perfect on a ‘5:2’ day” →

Spanish-style chicken bake


Spanish chicken

The Hairy Dieters’ Spanish-style chicken bake may take over an hour to prep and cook but the flavoursome juices from the chicken thighs, chorizo, tomatoes and garlic, combined with the smoked paprika and oregano, make this a joy to devour once ready.

Do take the time to ensure the chicken and new potatoes are cooked through and tender, and it’s also worth taking the trouble to drizzle the chorizo juices over the chicken as part of the final stage of cooking. The end result is a fabulous, colourful plate of food that doesn’t resemble being on a ‘diet’ at all.

But you might want to leave consuming the whole pieces of garlic if you’re going on a ‘hot date’, or better still, cook this for your ‘date’ and get them to scoff the garlic with you. Sharing is caring ha ha! Continue reading “Spanish-style chicken bake” →

Baked eggs with chorizo filling – brunch treat for 73p per serving!


Baked eggs with chorizo

How do you like your eggs? Poached, scrambled or fried? Have you ever tried them baked? If not, you should try baked eggs with chorizo filling from the Hairy Dieters for a tasty brunch treat for under a quid per serving! You only need a small amount of chorizo and basil to generate some really delicious flavours, topped with the egg and a sprinkling of cheese.

The only problem I have with this recipe is that one serving is not enough, so invariably I end up skipping breakfast and indulging in two of these pots of delight for just shy of 400 calories. Hey, who’s counting? ;-).

You’ll find this recipe in the Hairy Dieters third health eating cookbook – Good Eating, where they also provide an additional baked eggs recipe featuring spinach and mushrooms. Check it out, but do take care when lifting the ramekins out of the oven as they will be very hot! Continue reading “Baked eggs with chorizo filling – brunch treat for 73p per serving!” →

Pork and black bean stew with salsa


Pork and black bean stew

Pork and black bean stew from the Hairy Dieters’ ‘Fast Food’ book is an absolute low-cal triumph on a traditional fatty Brazilian dish. But even more so because it manages to get my fussy teenage son to eat polish (kabanos) sausage and salsa, despite him ‘hating’ peppers, tomato and coriander. And yet he’ll wolf down this meal for fun – what a result!

The Hairy Dieters do a cracking spicy pork with chorizo one-pan dish in their second book which I haven’t got round to featuring yet on this blog, but I think I slightly prefer this pork bonanza as it tastes sublime, particularly with the salsa accompaniment, bulked out with the fibre from the black beans.

If you get the pork, bacon, onion and sausage chopped in advance you can rustle this up in about 20 minutes. What are you waiting for?? Continue reading “Pork and black bean stew with salsa” →