Cookery
Try our easy and satisfying recipes packed with flavour – but all under 500 cals per serving!
Lamb and feta meatballs
Zesty preserved lemon and mixed grains lighten up traditionally heavy meatballs.
SERVES 6 PREP 10 mins COOK 20 mins
✱ 400g lamb mince
✱ 250g pack mixed grains
✱ 2tbsp preserved lemon paste
✱ 75g feta cheese
✱Handful flat-leaf parsley, chopped, plus extra leaves to serve
✱ 1tsp dried mint
✱ 1tbsp olive oil, plus extra for frying
✱ 2 fat garlic cloves, crushed
✱ 400g tin chopped tomatoes
✱Head radicchio, separated into leaves
✱ 50g pitted green olives, sliced if large
✱Zest 1 lemon, the lemon cut into wedges for squeezing (optional)
✱Houmous, to serve (optional)
PER SERVING
307 cals, 19g fat, 7g sat fat, 13g carbs
1 In a bowl, mix together the lamb, mixed grains, preserved lemon paste, 50g of the feta, the parsley and mint. Season well. Divide the mixture and roll it into 18-20 balls.
2 Heat a good splash of oil in a large, non-stick frying pan and brown the meatballs all over. Do this in batches if you need to.
3 Remove the meatballs to a plate, wipe out the pan then add 1tbsp more oil, along with the garlic. Heat for 1 min, then add the tomatoes. Bring to a fast simmer, return the meatballs to the pan and then simmer them in the sauce for 10 mins.
4 Serve the meatballs with the remaining feta, radicchio, olives and lemon zest, with the houmous spooned on top of the sauce, if using.
Baked spinach and ricotta conchiglioni
The addition of beans bulks out the sauce with extra fibre and protein.
SERVES 4-5
PREP 20 mins COOK 30 mins
✱ 300g conchiglioni (giant pasta shells)
✱ 400g baby spinach
✱ 250g pot ricotta
✱ 6 basil leaves, plus extra to garnish
✱ 690g jar passata rustica
✱ 400g tin borlotti beans in water, drained
✱ 3 garlic cloves, crushed
✱ ½tbsp balsamic vinegar
✱ 5g Pecorino cheese, grated
✱Salad, to serve
YOU WILL NEED
✱ 35cm-wide oval ovenproof dish
PER SERVING (for 5)
408 cals, 8g fat, 4g sat fat, 56g carbs
1 Heat the oven to 180C Fan/Gas 6. Cook the pasta for 10 mins in a large pan of salted boiling water. Rinse under cold water, then drain and set aside.
2 Meanwhile, rinse the spinach, then add to a pan and let it wilt over a low heat. Put in a colander and, once cool enoughto handle, squeeze out the moisture and roughly chop. Transfer to a bowl, then mix with the ricotta and basil. Season well.
3 Pour the passata and beans into the base of a 35cm oval ovenproof dish, and s
