If after the non-stop festive celebrations and sluggish Betwixtmas period, wellbeing and healthy eating have sprung back to the top of your agenda, then introducing some new recipes to your roster is an easy place to start.
The global platform for health and weight management, Noom's new book 100 Healthy, Delicious, Flexible Recipes for Every Day is based on the psychology of behaviour change and our relationship with food.
They're easy to make, don't take more than an hour and are nutrient dense, so are great for staving off those pesky winter bugs as well. Think: lots of fresh veggies, whole grains, protein-rich legumes, leaner chicken and beef, and seafood.
You can create the full number of servings as a way to batch cook — they're all designed to be easily portable so you can attempt to keep up work pack lunches — or feed the whole family.
Here's 3 recipes to try as an alternatives to some familiar favourites.
Broccoli & Orzo Risotto
Traditionally, the Italian dish risotto is made with arborio rice, a short grain that requires extended cooking and stirring. It’s delicious, but time-consuming. This lighter version is faster, less calorically dense, and tastes just as decadent!
Serves four, takes 30 minutes
Ingredients:
750ml vegetable broth
300g fresh broccoli, finely chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 shallots, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, crushed
100g orzo pasta
125ml dry white wine
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil, plus more for serving
60g finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, plus more for serving
1 teaspoon unsalted butter
¼ teaspoon salt, plus more for seasoning
Pinch of grated nutmeg
Freshly ground black pepper
Method:
1. Prepare the broth: In a medium saucepan, bring the broth to a low boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and keep warm.
2. Steam the broccoli: Place the broccoli in a microwave-safe dish, add about 125ml water, cover, and microwave on high until the broccoli turns bright green and stems are crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Drain.
3. Sauté the shallots and orzo: Heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the shallots and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant and slightly translucent, 2 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring constantly, 1 more minute.
4. Add the orzo and stir until coated and shiny, then add the wine and cook, stirring, until mostly evaporated, 1 to 2 minutes.
5. Make the risotto: Add the warm broth, about 125ml at a time, stirring constantly while cooking, waiting until each broth addition is fully absorbed by the orzo before adding more (3 to 4 minutes between additions). As the orzo cooks, it will release its starch and become creamy.
6. Cook the risotto for 14 to 15 minutes, adding about 600ml of the broth; only add the remaining broth if the risotto looks dry or stiff. Taste the pasta. It should be firm to the bite but not hard in the centre.
7. Finish and serve the risotto: Stir the broccoli into the risotto, then add the basil, Parmigiano-Reggiano, butter, salt, and nutmeg. Continue to cook, stirring, until just warmed through, 1 to 2 minutes. Season to taste with additional salt, if desired.
8. Divide the risotto among 4 bowls and garnish with additional basil and cheese, and grind some fresh pepper on top. Serve hot.
Nurtritional information (one serving): Calories 398, Total Fat 11.6g 18%, Saturated Fat 5.3g 26%, Trans Fat 0.2g, Cholesterol 20mg 7%, Sodium 685.6mg 29%, Total Carb 56g 19%, Dietary Fibre 5.3g 21%, Sugars 5.9g, Added Sugars 0g, Protein 14.2g 28%, Vitamin D 2.1mcg 1%, Calcium 216.1mg 22%, Iron 6.2mg 35%, Potassium 326.7mg 9%.
Prawn & Chicken Gumbo
Serves 8, takes 1 hour
Gumbo is a classic thick Louisiana soup filled with seafood, sausage, chicken (or some combination of those), and lots of veggies in a rich liquid. This particular gumbo has some traditional elements, like filé powder (a thickener of powdered dried sassafras leaves). It skips other traditional ingredients, like okra (feel free to add, if you’re a fan). If you’re gluten free, you could substitute a gluten-free flour, such as brown rice or cassava flour, for the wholemeal flour.
Ingredients:
75g wholemeal flour
250ml skimmed milk
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, finely diced
6 celery stalks, finely diced
1 large green pepper, de-seeded, cored, and finely diced
115g spicy chicken sausage, cut into thin rounds
5 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons salt-free Cajun seasoning
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
1.5 litres low-sodium chicken broth
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons long-grain rice
350g (or 400g, if frozen) small (36–40 count) prawns, thawed if frozen, cleaned, tails removed
300g shredded cooked skinless white-meat chicken
1 tablespoon filé powder (optional)
4 spring onions, green part chopped
Handful of chopped fresh parsley
Hot sauce, for serving (optional)
Method:
1. Make the roux: Place the flour in a medium dry frying pan and cook over medium heat, frequently stirring and shaking the pan so the flour covers the bottom of the pan in a thin layer, until the flour is golden and toasty, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl to cool for 5 minutes.
2. Whisk the milk into the flour until the flour is dissolved and there are no lumps.
3. Sauté the ingredients: Heat the olive oil in a large heavy-based saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, pepper, and sausage and cook, stirring, until the onion is softened but not caramelized, 7 to 8 minutes.
4. Add the garlic, Cajun seasoning, and smoked and sweet paprikas and cook, stirring, 1 additional minute.
5. Make it soup: Add the broth and salt, bring to a boil over high heat, whisk in the roux, return to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium and continue cooking, stirring frequently, until the soup thickens, about 10 minutes.
6. Stir in the rice, return the soup to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the liquid darkens and thickens, about 25 minutes.
7. Turn the heat up to medium-high and add the prawns and chicken. Cook, stirring frequently, until the prawns turn pink and the soup is heated through, 5 to 7 more minutes.
8. Serve the gumbo: Stir in the filé powder, if using. Stir in most of the spring onion greens and most of the parsley, then divide the soup among 6 bowls. Garnish each with some of the remaining spring onion greens and parsley. Serve with hot sauce, if desired.
How to make a roux: Pronounced ROO, this soup starter is traditionally a combination of equal parts flour and fat. But we’ve broken with tradition to lighten up the roux. Our version is so easy that you might find you want to add a roux to all your soups!
Just put about 75g flour in a small dry frying pan over medium- high heat. Stir and shake the pan constantly until the flour turns golden brown. Be careful not to let it burn. When it’s nicely tanned, remove it from the heat and whisk it into skimmed milk (or unsweetened nut, soy, or rice milk), then whisk that into your soup. As your soup simmers, it will thicken and get creamy and yummy. So easy, and much lighter than the butter bomb that is traditional roux.â¨
Nutritional information: (1 SERVING = 330ML) â¨Calories 218, Total Fat 5.5 g 8%, Saturated Fat 1.3 g 7%, Trans Fat 0.0 g, Cholesterol 88.8 mg 30%, Sodium 642.9 mg 27%, Total Carb 17.8 g 6%, Dietary Fibre 2.1 g 8%, Sugars 4.1 g, Added Sugars 0 g, Protein 24.6 g 49%, Vitamin D 17.1 mcg 4%, Calcium 143.9 mg 14%, Iron 2.1 mg 12%, Potassium 513.3 mg 15%
Fudgy Two-Bite Brownies
Serves 12, takes one hour (including cooling)
Once these brownies have cooled completely you really can’t even taste the secret ingredients, but if you dig in while they’re still warm you might get some hints of the beans. It’s not bad, but they’ll be more chocolatey if you can resist them straight out of the oven (the struggle is real)!
Ingredients
175g peeled and cubed raw sweet potato
40g dark chocolate (at least 70 per cent cacao), chopped
175g black beans, drained and rinsed, then drained again
50g coconut oil
40g plain or rice flour
3 tablespoons unsweetened plain or vanilla almond milk
3 tablespoons lightly packed dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons caster sugar
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
½ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt Flaky sea salt, for garnish
Method:
1. Prepare the sweet potato: Preheat the oven to 190°C. Lightly coat 24 cups of a mini muffin tin with cooking spray.
2. Place the sweet potato in a small saucepan, add about 2.5cm of water, bring to a boil over high heat, cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer until the sweet potato is tender, 12 to 13 minutes.
3. Drain well, cool, then mash into a paste.
4. Prepare the brownie batter: Place the chocolate in a small bowl and microwave on high, stopping to stir every 30 seconds, until melted and smooth, about 1 minute 30 seconds.
5. Add the mashed sweet potato and melted chocolate to a food processor along with the beans, coconut oil, flour, almond milk, brown sugar, caster sugar, cocoa powder, vanilla, baking powder, and salt. Process, stopping and scraping down the sides of the processor bowl if necessary, until very smooth, 30 to 45 seconds.
6. Bake and serve the brownies: Using about 1 generous tablespoon batter for each brownie, evenly divide the batter among the muffin cups and bake until the tops are crackled and shiny, 30 to 35 minutes.
7. Move the pan to a wire rack and cool completely to allow the centres to set before releasing them from the tin, about 30 minutes.
8. Garnish the brownies with the flaky sea salt, if desired, and serve at room temperature, or refrigerate and serve later.Note: These brownies will keep, in a sealed container, in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Nutritional information for two brownie bites: Calories 118, Total Fat 6.3 g 10%, Saturated Fat 4.9 g 25%, Trans Fat 0.0 g, Cholesterol 0.0 mg 0%, Sodium 122.5 mg 5%, Total Carb 14.8 g 5%, Dietary Fibre 2.6 g 10%, Sugars 6 g, Added Sugars 0 g, Protein 2.3 g 5%, Vitamin D 0.0 mcg 0%, Calcium 35.9 mg, 4%, Iron 1.0 mg 5%, Potassium 132.8 mg 4%.
