bacon, tomato and pasta

This is really easy to make and syn free.

I used:

pasta,
tin of tomatoes
bacon
garlic
basil
chilli flakes
mushrooms
pepper
onion.


cook the pasta how you normally would.

Fry, onion, garlic, mushrooms, pepper and bacon together. once cooked, add the tin of tomatoes, basil and chilli flakes.

once all cooked add to pasta

Fruit Cake

I love fruit cake so was glad when i came across the following recipe on the slimming world website.

I do need o keep an eye on it while it's cooking as mine took just over an hour to cook.

Ingredients

• 110g non-soak prunes, stoned and chopped
• 275g mixed dried fruit
• 50ml brandy or rum
• 175g plain flour
• 1 level tsp baking powder
• 50g glace cherries
• 50g mixed peel, chopped
• 1 level tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 level tsp mixed spice
• Pinch of salt
• 50g dark Muscovado sugar
• 2 eggs, beaten
• Grated zest and juice of 1 orange
• Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon

Glazed Fruit and Nut Topping

• 1 level tbsp low-sugar apricot jam
• 2 tbsp brandy
• 28 glace cherries
• 8 pecan nuts, shelled
• 12 almonds, shelled

Method

1. Put the prunes and mixed fruit in a large bowl and pour over the brandy or rum. Mix together and leave to soak for a few hours, or overnight.
2. Preheat the oven to 170°C/150°C Fan/Gas 3. Sift the flour and baking powder into a large mixing bowl and stir in the glacé cherries and mixed peel. Add the spices and salt and stir in well so that everything is lightly coated with flour.
3. Stir in the sugar and then beat in the egg with a wooden sppon. Add the soaked fruit, together with the soaking liquid, and the zest and juice of the orange and lemon. Mix well together. If the mixture is too stiff, you can thin it down with a little more lemon juice.
4. Spoon the cake mixture into a lined 18cm square tin and smooth the top of the cake. Bake in the preheated oven for about 2 hours, or until s skewer inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean. If the cake is browning too much, cover it with some greaseproof paper while it cooks.
5. Let the cake cool in the tin, then remove and wrap in greaseproof paper and foil. Store in a cool, dry place until you are ready to decorate it with the glazed fruit and nut topping.
6. For the glazed fruit topping
   
   Put the apricot jam and brandy in a small saucepan and heat gently, stirring with a wooden spoon until well blended.
7. Brush a little of the apricot glaze lightly over the top of the cake. Arrange the cherries and nuts in an attractive pattern on top and then brush them with the remaining glaze.
8. When the topping is cold, tie a pretty festive ribbon around the sides of the cake and then store in a tin or airtight container in a cool place. The topping will stay fresh for several weeks.

fried rice

For this I used;

Rice
onion
mushroom
garlic
ginger
soy sauce
oyster sauce

quorn chicken and veg curry

I used:

quorn chicken pieces

onion

pepper

tin of tomatoes

2 table spoons of korma paste

dried coriander

garam masala

dried cumin

Tomato puree

put in the slow cooker and cooked on high for a couple of hours

Jamaican Chicken

Ingredients

• 4 spring onions, chopped
• 4 level tsp clear honey
• 2 red chillies, deseeded and chopped
• 2 tsp wine vinegar
• ½ level tsp allspice
• ½ level tsp garlic powder
• ¼ level tsp turmeric
• 1 level tsp chilli powder
• 1 level tsp paprika
• 1 tsp dried rosemary
• Salt and ground black pepper
• 4 x 225g/8oz skinless chicken quarters

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C Fan/Gas Mark 6.
2. Put the spring onions, honey, chillies and vinegar in a blender and blend well. Stir in the allspice, garlic powder, turmeric, chilli powder, paprika, rosemary and seasoning.
3. Cut the chicken quarters in half and place them in a shallow non-metallic dish. Spread the spicy paste over the chicken pieces and set aside in a cool place to marinate for at least 10 minutes.
4. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, or grill until the juices run clear and the chicken is cooked with a golden brown crust. Serve with a crisp salad or Free vegetables.

a take on Ferrero Rocher

I love ferrero rochers and this cheat version is great.

I used 200g of milk chocolate and 10 ryvita.

It made 36 and works at of 2 syns each

butternut squash soup

I love soup when it's cold. Butternut squash soup is one of my favourites.

I used:

2 butternut squash
1 onion
1 pepper
2 carrots
1.5 litre of water
stock cube
salt
pepper

put all on to a pan and cook for about 45 min

lentil soup

Right so when i make lentil soup I don't go with measurements I just kind of guess and it's all ways worked out fine.

so I use;

lentils
carrots
onion
stock

put all in to a pan and boil for about 45 min. I then blitz it.