homemade – #ThisGirlEats

RECIPE: Homemade Chocolate Banana Oat Bars | #ThisGirlEats

Serves: 4 (makes four bars)
How much does it cost? This recipe cost me less than 25p per person.
What are the benefits? This recipe is very high in antioxidants and fibre but low in salt.

The idea from this recipe sprung from two things: laziness and forgetfulness.

It’s been waaay too hot in the mornings lately to do… Well, anything! It’s definitely too hot to sit down to my usual breakfast, a bowl of steaming porridge. In fact, I can barely be bothered to peel myself off the sticky leather sofa to make a cup of tea, let alone sort out food! I need something to just grab ’n’ go, so that’s where the laziness comes in.

Now, as for being forgetful, I’m always in charge of the shopping list and sometimes I get so carried away creating all these recipes that I miss out the basics. Most recently I forgot to get cereal bars, an essential part of our speedy packed lunches which are sorely missed alongside our jam sandwiches. 🤦‍♀️

The solution? Make my own version! These chocolate banana oat bars are so easy to make, even the kids can get involved (although things might get messy!). They can be rustled up with pretty basic ingredients and, best of all, they’re really yummy! Make a batch so you can just grab one whenever you fancy, perfect on the go. With these, you know exactly what goes into them – just five simple ingredients! Easy peasy.

There’s a lot of nutrition packed into these little bars; bananas are one of your five a day 🍌 oats help lower blood sugar 🥣 honey is a wonderful natural sweetener 🍯 And the chocolate spread? Well, that’s just for fun! 🍫

INGREDIENTS
8 tbsp Plain Oats
2 Bananas
1 ½ tsp Clear, Runny Honey
1 tsp Chocolate Spread
3 tbsp Milk (or Milk Alternative)

So, this is how I did it…

1. Grab a bowl and mix together most of the ingredients – the oats, honey, chocolate spread and milk.

2. Add the banana, mash like crazy with a fork and stir into the mixture until everything is well combined.

3. Lightly grease a baking tray, or line with greaseproof baking paper, and divide the mixture into four bars on the tray.

4. Cook on 180°C for around 30 minutes, or until the bars have firmed up.

RECIPE: Gooey Mixed Bean & Rice Quesadillas | #ThisGirlEats

Serves: 1
How much does it cost? This cost me less than £1.25 per person.
What are the benefits? This recipe is great for vegetarians, bursting with loads of fibre and packed with protein, too.

Got a big appetite but looking for something low maintenance and healthy?

Same. Literally every day.

Finding something that 1) curbs my cravings, 2) isn’t too demanding, and 3) is good for me, can be so hard. It’s like some mythical being, a legend told in days gone by.. is it even possible, we wonder?!

Yes, yes it is! These quesadillas are super filling (hello carb heaven! 🌯), really easy to create (hello microwave 👩‍🍳) and are vegetarian friendly (hello environment! 🌱) What’s not to love?!

INGREDIENTS
2 Wholemeal Tortilla Wraps
70g Brown Rice
1/2 Cup Low Fat Grated Cheese
200g Mixed Beans in Tomato or Chilli Sauce
1/2 Bell Pepper, Chopped
1/2 Medium Onion, Chopped

SEASONING
To make this recipe really zing, throw as much seasoning at it as you possibly can! Dried coriander, salt and pepper can go in with the rice as it cooks, and some dried garlic flakes, chilli flakes and a touch of paprika can go in the pan with the onion and peppers to give the whole thing a kick.

So, this is how I did it…

1. Cook the rice according to packet instructions (I’m lazy and use the microwave, takes about 30 minutes).

2. Heat the beans – again, according to instructions (and again, I’m lazy, so I nuke them in the microwave). Stir these into a bowl with the cooked rice.

3. Throw the chopped pepper and onion into a hot frying pan with a little cooking spray and fry until they soften, then stir these in with the beans and rice to make a chunky, yummy filling.

4. Lay a wholemeal tortilla flat in a dry pan and spread the bean, rice and veg evenly, leaving small gap between the mixture and the edge of the tortilla. Sprinkle a hefty dose of cheese – don’t worry, I won’t judge – on top.

5. Heat until the cheese begins to go all gooey and melty and delicious, then lay another tortilla over the top. Kinda like a sandwich! Quickly pop the pan underneath the grill and cook until the top tortilla crisps up.

RECIPE: Valentine’s Day Special – Spaghetti & Meatballs | #ThisGirlEats

Serves: 2
How much does it cost? This cost me less than £1.25 per person.
What are the benefits? With the tomato sauce and onions, this provides one of your five a day as well as plenty of protein and is low in salt.

The OG of romantic meals, spaghetti and meatballs made its debut as the number one cutesy couples meal in the Disney classic Lady and the Tramp. Remember the moment when bourgeoisie spaniel Lady fell for loveable mutt Tramp over a plate of spaghetti… we can all relate, right?

It’s the perfect Valentine’s meal, so if you’re looking to impress that someone special with a cosy night in and a home cooked dinner, hun this is the one. It’s pretty easy; everything can be prepped, chucked in a couple of saucepans and left to cook, and the ingredients are nothing fancy. Surely you can take half an hour out of your night for your one and only bae. 💕

There’s lot of nutritional benefits to this recipe, including the fresh sauce with tomatoes and onions, wholewheat spaghetti and low fat mince. And anyone who is worried about eating a big bowl of pasta (which you shouldn’t be!) it doesn’t really matter when you’re gonna be working it off later tonight, if ya know what I mean…

INGREDIENTS
250g Lean Beef Mince
1 Medium Onion
200g (half a tin) Chopped Tomatoes
200g (half a carton) Passata
150g Wholewheat Spaghetti

SEASONING
Throw in a decent handful of dried basil, salt and pepper when mixing the mince and onions so your meatballs have plenty of flavour (you could even add some chilli flakes for an extra kick!) and don’t forget to add some garlic flakes, mixed herbs, salt and pepper to the tomato sauce as it cooks.

So, this is how I did it…

1. In a large bowl, smush together the mince and a handful of the chopped onion with some seasoning until everything is mixed in. It’s a gross job, but someone’s gotta do it!

2. Shape the squishy mince mixture into eight balls (pfft, the innuendo writes itself…), add to a hot frying pan spritzed with cooking spray and brown them off on a medium-high heat for a few minutes – try not to burn, it ruins the effect…

3. Pour half a tin of chopped tomatoes and half a carton of passata into a saucepan with the rest of the chopped onion, add the browned meatballs and whack it on a medium heat for, oh, say, around 15 minutes or so. Don’t forget to season!

4. Around the same sorta time, cook the spaghetti in a pan of salted boiling water according to packet instructions – usually takes around 12 minutes.

5. Leave things to cook. Go make yourself look pretty or something 💄 By time you come back, it’ll all be ready to be served, just in time for your loved one to walk through the door and be pleasantly surprised!

RECIPE: Carrot And Coriander Soup | #ThisGirlEats

Serves: 2
How much does it cost? This cost me less than 50p per person
What are the benefits? This recipe is suitable for vegans, gives you 1 of your 5 a day and is rich in antioxidants.

It’s getting cold. I hate it when that happens. I mean, I love hot chocolate, the sound of rain, dressing gowns and all the other lovely things that come with winter, but I hate being cold.

Luckily, this new recipe is the perfect solution to those days when you seem to have a constant chill and can’t sniffling into your Kleenex ❄

I gave this a go because it’s my favourite flavour of soup and I’ve always wanted to try my hand at creating my own version. I made this to stretch for two servings, but it’s really simple to make for more or less – just adjust the amount of water and add a couple more carrots!

A bowl of this soup is high in fibre, antioxidants and vitamins from the carrots, plus it’s a wonderfully low fat, low carb option, if that’s something you’re looking for. It’s cheap too, with the ingredients only setting me back around 35p per person.

INGREDIENTS
3 Small Carrots, Chopped
1 Medium Onion, Chopped
1 Vegetable Stock Cube
0.75 Litres Boiled Water
Dried Coriander

SEASONING
Obviously coriander is kind of an essential one for this recipe! Other seasoning you will need to add is some dried garlic, salt and black pepper.

So, this is how I did it…

1. Because I wanted something that tasted rich and warming, I melted some butter in a pan for this recipe before throwing in the chopped carrot and onion. However, you can just use oil or cooking spray and it’ll taste just as good.

2. Fry the carrot and onion few minutes on a high heat before turning down and adding garlic, salt, pepper and a load of dried coriander.

3. Pour in the boiling water and dissolve a vegetable stock cube into the pan before leaving the simmer for 15 – 20 minutes.

4. I’ve only got a small hand blender, so I left the pan to cool a little before blending everything together. If you’ve got a full-sized stand-alone blender, you can pour it all in there straight away and whizz it to your heart’s content. Either way, blend until no chunks are left.

5. For a last little zing of flavour, pour into a bowl and sprinkle a touch more black pepper and dried coriander once it is in a bowl before serving.

6. Reheat on the hob or in the microwave if it’s cooled down too much during blending.

Tips & Tricks

Honestly, this basic soup recipe will work with any vegetables you’d like use, with pretty much exactly the same method – soften whatever veggies you choose, pour in the stock, simmer, blend and serve!

I would absolutely recommend batch cooking this because it reheats brilliantly and makes a lovely lunch the next day too.

I used dried coriander here simply because pretty much all of my herbs and spices are dried, but you don’t have to – fresh if brilliant if you’ve got it!