Banana bread
Mix and match... Combine any number of vegetables with cheese and pasta for a delicious and nutritious dinner.
Snacks
Snacks are an opportunity to get nutrients into hungry children - base them on minimally processed food like wholegrain breads, fruit and vegetables, cheese, yoghurt, or nut butters.
Frozen fruit and home-made paddle pops
A healthier alternative to commercial ice blocks. Freeze washed grapes in an airtight container. Make paddle pops using juice, passionfruit or other fruit pulp, flavoured yoghurt or, if you're making a smoothie, increase the quantity and use the extra for paddle pops.
Fruit plate with yoghurt dip
Cut up slices of fruit melon, apple slices, diagonal slices of banana and serve with a small bowl of yoghurt for dipping.
Avocado ricotta whip
Mashed avocado is a terrific spread for bread either by itself or with added flavours like a little cumin or tamari. Its also good mixed with fresh ricotta for a creamy dip or spread that keeps its fresh pale green colour for about 24 hours.
Cranberry banana bread
A lovely moist bread that uses up overripe bananas (store in a sealed container in the freezer until you need them). Quick and easy - you mix everything in a food processor.
3 ripe bananas
Hald a cup brown sugar
3 eggs
85ml milk
85ml olive oil
2 cups plain flour
3 tsp baking powder
1 cup dried cranberries
Heat oven to 150C. Beat bananas, sugar and eggs in a food processor. Add milk and oil, then the dry ingredients. Mix on a lowish speed so you don't break up the cranberries. Bake in a greased loaf tin for 70 to 90 minutes, check after about 70 minutes.
Fruit muffins
This is a simple recipe that works keep a stash of home-made muffins in the freezer to use for snacks and packed lunches.
2 cups SR flour
Half a cup brown sugar
1 and a half cups fresh or dried fruit (we used a mix of frozen blueberries and chopped apple)
1 cup natural yoghurt
1 egg, beaten
2 tbsp olive oil
cup of milk
Heat oven to 180C. Mix dry ingredients and fruit together. Mix oil, egg and yoghurt together in a separate bowl. Mix wet and dry ingredients together (don't over mix); stir in the milk.
Pour into a 12-cup muffin pan lined with muffin cases. Bake for 20-25 minutes.
Crunchy granola
2 cups traditional rolled oats
Two thirds of a cup crushed hazelnuts
1 cup flaked almonds
Half a cup of raisins, sultanas or chopped peaches
One third of a cup of honey
Mix oats, nuts and fruit with the honey in a bowl and spread on a baking sheet. Spritz with light olive-oil spray and bake at 150C for 20 to 30 minutes. Dont let this over-bake or it'll taste burnt check it every 10 minutes and give it a stir. Serve with yoghurt or milk and fresh fruit. (This can also
double as an afternoon snack.)
Baked risotto
1 and a half cups Arborio rice
600ml vegetable or chicken stock
1 chopped onion (If you're in a hurry, snipping shallots with scissors is faster than peeling and chopping an onion)
Olive oil
400g can tomatoes
1 x 185g can Sirena pesto tuna (Add more tuna than this if you want it depends on how fishy you want it.)
1 cup frozen peas
Half a cup pine nuts
Optional: grated parmesan, pepper, chopped parsley or chopped basil to stir in at the end before serving.
Preheat the oven to 200C. Cook onions in olive oil until soft, then add the rice and stir for a minute or so. Add the peas, stock, tomatoes (and any other chopped vegetables you fancy) and cook until it simmers. Add the tuna. Transfer to a baking dish and cover with a lid (or foil) and bake until the rice is cooked about 30 minutes. Serve with a salad. It's worth presenting salads in different ways using interesting containers and prettying up the vegetables e.g. julienned carrots or ribbons of raw zucchini (just peel strips off the zucchini with a vegetable peeler).
Vegetable cheese pasta
While the pasta cooks, steam your choice of mixed vegies until just tender (not soggy) e.g. cauliflower and-or broccoli, broken into very small florettes, peas, sliced zucchini, carrots, celery, green beans. When everything is cooked, toss it together with a little olive oil and cheese and fresh parsley if you have it.
The mix of vegetables and flavours will depend on your kids for older ones you can add snipped shallots, basil, olives and maybe baby spinach leaves before serving. If time is short, steaming vegies takes only minutes.
But you can also roast small cubes of sweet potato and zucchini in a hot oven in about 20 minutes (get them started before you cook the pasta) or pre-roast them at the weekend and add them to the warm pasta. Serve with steamed corn cobs on the side.
Spanish omelette
For four people you need 6-8 organic or free-range eggs, beaten (with a little salt if you use it)
Olive oil
1 onion (or snipped shallots)
Your choice of chopped vegetables
Fresh herbs if you have them
Heat the oil in a large frying pan and cook the onion until soft. Add the other vegetables and cook until soft. Add the beaten egg, spreading it across the pan and cook on medium heat until its almost set. As it cooks, draw the mixture in from the edges of the pan so you get an even thickness. Put the pan under a pre-heated grill for a couple of minutes until the omelette is firm. Slice into wedges to serve.
Sweet potato chips
These also make a good snack. Get them cooking before you start the omelette they'll take about 20 minutes. Chop sweet potato into thin batons. It's quicker if you just scrub, rather than peel sweet potato (peeling also sacrifices some nutrients) - up to you. Brush with olive oil, sprinkle with sesame seeds (optional) and roast at 200C for 20 minutes.
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