Mustard-Stuffed Chicken

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes

Serves 4

125g ball mozzarella , torn into small pieces
50g strong cheddar, grated
1 tbsp wholegrain mustard
4 skinless boneless chicken breast fillets
8 smoked streaky bacon rashers


1. Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Mix the cheeses and mustard together. Cut a slit into the side of each chicken breast, then stuff with the mustard mixture. Wrap each stuffed chicken breast with 2 bacon rashers - not too tightly, but enough to hold the chicken together. Season, place on a baking sheet and roast for 20-25 mins.


Tip:
If you want to use less bacon, stretch out four rashers using the back of a knife to make each one longer and thinner. Wrap just one around each chicken breast as before.


Make it veggie:
Cheesy baked mushrooms: Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Mix the mozzarella and cheddar with 1 tbsp pesto, then spoon into the hollows of 4 portobello mushrooms. Place on a baking tray and roast for 15 mins or until the mushrooms are softened and the cheese is bubbling.

Nutrition per serving:
367 kcalories, protein 49g, carbohydrate 0g, fat 19 g, saturated fat 10g, fibre 0g, salt 1.93 g

Mexican Minced Beef Cobbler

Makes 2 meals, each serving 8
Takes 1 hour to make and 20 minutes in the oven

8 tbsp sunflower oil
4 medium onions, finely chopped
8 garlic cloves, crushed
1½ tsp crushed dried chillies
4 tsp freshly ground cumin seeds
1 tsp cayenne pepper
2kg lean minced beef
6 tbsp tomato purée
1 tbsp light muscovado sugar
2 tsp dried oregano
600ml beef stock, hot
400g can chopped tomatoes
4 roasted red peppers from a jar, drained
2 x 400g cans red kidney beans in water, rinsed and drained

For the spicy polenta cobbler:
400g plain flour
2 tbsp baking powder
2 tbsp soft brown sugar
½ tsp salt
½ tsp crushed dried chillies
175g polenta
125g Cheddar, finely grated
2 medium eggs
350ml milk
4 tbsp sunflower oil
50g butter, melted


1. Heat the oil in a large pan, add the onions and garlic and cook for 10 minutes, until lightly browned. Add the chillies, cumin and cayenne and fry for 2-3 minutes. Add the beef and cook over a high heat, breaking up with a wooden spoon as it browns. Add the purée, sugar, oregano, beef stock and tomatoes, bring to the boil, then simmer for 25 minutes, until reduced and thickened.

2. Finely chop the peppers and stir into the meat with the kidney beans. Season, then spoon into 2 x 2.75-3-litre shallow, oval ovenproof dishes.

3. Make the cobbler. Sift the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt into a large mixing bowl and stir in the chillies, polenta and 100g grated cheese. Beat the eggs, milk, oil and melted butter together and stir into the dry ingredients.

4. Drop 8 spoonfuls of the mixture around the edge of each dish, about 2.5cm apart, and sprinkle with the remaining grated cheese.

5. To freeze, cool, then cover 1 dish with cling film and freeze until firm. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw for 24 hours in the fridge, then bring up to room temperature.

6. To cook, preheat the oven to 220°C/fan200°C/gas 7. Bake for 20 minutes, until bubbling and the topping is puffed up and golden.

Nutritional Information

Per serving:
590kcals
30.7g fat (10.5g saturated)
40.2g protein
43.9g carbs
8.3g sugar
1.8g salt

Nicoise Salad with Bacon and Cheesy Croutons

Serves 4
Ready in 25 minutes

Small ciabatta loaf, torn into pieces
3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
25g fresh Parmesan, grated
6 rashers streaky bacon, chopped
100g trimmed fine green beans
1 cos lettuce, cut into bite-size pieces
4 ripe tomatoes, cut into wedges
Large handful of pitted black olives
4 eggs, hard-boiled
1 bottle French dressing, to serve

1. Preheat the oven to 220°C/fan200°C/gas 7. Put the ciabatta into a roasting tin, add the oil and turn to coat. Scatter over the cheese, season with pepper and mix. Stir in the bacon. Cook for 15 minutes, turning halfway, until golden. Drain on kitchen paper.

2. Meanwhile, add the beans to a saucepan of boiling water. Cook for 2 minutes, then drain and plunge into a bowl of cold water to cool. Drain again and set aside.

3. Divide the lettuce between 4 plates. Top with the green beans, tomato wedges, olives and cheesy ciabatta croutons with bacon. Season. Peel and cut the eggs into wedges and scatter over the salad. Drizzle with some French dressing to serve.

Nutritional Information

Per serving:
736kcals
58.6g fat (12.6g saturated)
21g protein
33.1g carbs
8.4g sugar
3.1g salt

Potato and Halloumi Bake

Serves 2-3

1 large sweet potato, the orange-fleshed American variety
1 large Desiree potato or other red/firm potato
1 red onion
1 yellow pepper
1 red pepper
Half a head of garlic
4 tablespoons olive oil
Black pepper
125g halloumi cheese, sliced as thinly as you can
Oven proof baking dish, 25 x 15cm

1.Preheat the oven to 200C/ gas mark 6.

2.Cut the sweet potato into rough 4 cm cubes and the Desiree slightly smaller (2.5cm) as the sweet potato will cook more quickly. Halve the red onion then cut the half into 4-6 segments, discarding any tough outer skin. De-seed the peppers and cut into 2.5 cm squares, and separate the cloves of garlic.

3.Put everything into a large roasting tin or whatever you want to use (it should be big, otherwise use two dishes) and, using your hands, give the vegetables a good coating of olive oil. Season with black pepper, but no salt as the cheese will make it salty (and anyway, the salt will make water leech out).

4.Cook for 45 minutes, by which time the vegetables should be cooked through and here and there tinged with brown.

5.You'll need to turn the oven up to maximum, or light the grill for the endgame: so place the thinly sliced cheese on top of the bake, and put it back in the very hot oven or under the grill until the cheese has melted and turned slightly brown on top, about 5-10 minutes. Serve straight out of the roasting tin.

Chicken and Pumpkin Cannelloni

Preparation time: 1 hour
Total cooking time: 2 hours

Serves 6

Difficulty: Medium

500g (1lb) butternut pumpkin, with skin and seeds
30g (1oz) butter
100g (3½oz) pancetta, roughly chopped
2 teaspoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, crushed
500g (1lb) chicken thigh fillets, minced
½ teaspoon garam masala
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
150g (5oz) goat's cheese
50g (1¾oz) ricotta
375g (12oz) fresh lasagne sheets
1 cup (100g/3½oz) grated Parmesan

Tomato sauce

30g (1oz) butter
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 x 425g (14oz) cans chopped tomatoes
¼ cup (7g/¼oz) chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
¼ cup (60ml/2 fl oz) white wine

1. Preheat the oven to hot 220°C (425°F/Gas 7). Brush the pumpkin with 10g (¼oz) of the butter and bake on a baking tray for 1 hour, or until tender. When the pumpkin has cooked and while it is still hot, remove the seeds. Scrape out the flesh and mash it with a fork. Set aside to cool.

2. Add another 10g (¼oz) of the butter to a heavy-based frying pan and cook the pancetta over medium heat for 2-3 minutes. Remove from the pan and drain on paper towels.

3. In the same pan, heat the remaining butter and the olive oil. Add the garlic and stir for 30 seconds. Add the chicken in small batches and brown, making sure the chicken is cooked through. Remove from the pan and set aside to cool on paper towels. Reduce the oven temperature to moderately hot 200°C (400°F/Gas 6).

4. Combine the pumpkin with the pancetta and chicken in a bowl. Mix in the garam masala, parsley, goat's cheese, ricotta and some salt and black pepper. Cut the lasagne sheets into rouht 15cm (6 inch) squares. Place 3 tablespoons of the filling at one end of each square and roll up. Repeat with the rest of the lasagne sheets and filling.

5. To make the tomato sauce, melt the butter in a heavy-based pan and add the garlic. Cook for 1 minute, then add the tomato and simmer over medium heat for 1 minute. Add the parsley and white wine, and simmer gently for another 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

6. Spread a little of the tomato sauce over the bottom of a 3 litre capacity ovenproof dish and arrange the cannelloni on top in a single layer. Spoon the remaining tomato sauce over the cannelloni and sprinkle with the Parmesan. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the cheese is golden.

Nutrition per serving
Protein 44g; Fat 26g; Carbohydrate 55g; Dietary fibre 6.5g; Cholesterol 113mg; 2670kJ (638kcal)

Note:
You can use instant cannelloni tubes instead of the lasagne sheets. Stand the tubes on end on a chopping board and spoon in the filling.