Chop, bake and wrap. That’s all it takes to make this delicious high-protein halloumi wrap recipe. Only 20 minutes of prep time is needed—even less if you’re a dab hand with a kitchen knife—and then 20 minutes in the oven.

The recipe is taken from Myprotein’s first recipe book Protein Plates, which contains 60 recipes from Myprotein’s extensive online library, all of which are high in protein. It also has a substantial serving of carbohydrates which is the other essential macronutrient to consume post workout (you can find out why from registered associate nutritionist Georgina Camfield’s guide to what to eat after a workout). This recipe is also packed with veg, making the wraps an ideal healthy option to have in your gym bag to wolf down after a lunch-break workout.

For an even quicker halloumi recipe, try one of our favorite Joe Wicks recipes, 10-minute halloumi tacos with peri-peri mayo.

High-Protein Halloumi Wrap Recipe

Ingredients (Makes Four Wraps)

• 3 bell peppers, sliced 
• 1 courgette, thinly sliced 
• 1 red onion, sliced 
• 1tbsp extra virgin olive oil 
• 1tsp salt 
• 1tsp oregano 
• 200g halloumi 
• 200g hummus 
• Splash of water 
• 4 wholemeal tortilla wraps 
• Baby spinach or salad leaves

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C.
2. Place the pepper, courgette and red onion on a baking tray and sprinkle with oil, salt and oregano. Mix with your fingers or a spatula to make sure everything is evenly coated, then cook in the oven for 10 minutes. 
3. Meanwhile, slice the halloumi about a centimeter thick and set aside. 
4. Place the hummus into a small bowl and loosen slightly with a splash of water—this makes it easier to spread evenly. 
5. When the vegetables have been in the oven for 10 minutes, add the halloumi to the tray. Return to the oven to roast for a further 10 minutes. 
6. Warm the tortillas in the microwave for about 20 seconds. 
7. Spread around 1-2 tablespoons of hummus onto a wrap, then add a quarter of the roasted veg, halloumi and a handful of spinach or salad leaves. Make a tight wrap by folding over two opposite sides of the tortilla first, and then rolling up from the bottom. Repeat to make 4 wraps in total. 
8. Slice diagonally into halves and either wrap in foil or place into a container.

Nutritional Information

Calories 467

Protein 21g

Fat 25g

Carbohydrates 35g

Flapjacks may have a reputation as a sweet treat, but dive into the nutritional stats and you can easily start to justify them as a smart source of energy for high-intensity and endurance activities. Add in some protein, as in this quick-and-easy protein flapjack recipe, and you get an all-rounder that’s convenient to eat after a workout, and the perfect alternative to protein bars if you’d rather have a home-made high-protein snack.

The recipe uses whey protein powder and if you don’t already have a tub of the stuff handy, check our round-up of the best protein powders. You can use any flavour of whey protein you fancy for the flapjack, but remember you’ll also be adding honey to the mix so this may be an occasion when the otherwise unpalatable unflavoured option works.

It only takes 25 minutes to whip up a batch of these protein flapjacks. For other foods that can help you build muscle, read our guide to high-protein foods.

Protein Flapjacks Recipe

Ingredients

• 120g rolled oats
• 100g Meridian peanut butter
• 60g whey protein powder
• 125-150g skimmed milk (almond milk and other % fat milks can be used instead but weights may vary)
• 15g acacia honey

Directions

• Place whey and oats into large bowl; mix together
• Add milk and peanut butter and mix together until evenly mixed
• Add honey and stir evenly through mixture
• Line a baking tray with grease proof paper and drizzle a touch of coconut oil 
• Spread mixture onto paper (1-3cm thickness)
• Place in fridge for 30 minutes
• Pre-heat oven to 190 degrees C (gas mark 5)
• 10-12 minutes in oven
• Remove, slice and leave to cool

Nutritional Values

• Protein: 85g
• Carbohydrate: 110g
• Fat: 55g

To create a more calorific protein flapjack, simply use a mass-gainer style protein powder instead of whey, opt for full fat milk, top with a nut butter and add a handful of blueberries to the mixture.

Thanks to ldnmuscle.com for the recipe.

More High-Protein Snack Recipes

• The World’s Easiest Peanut Butter Bar Recipe
• Make This Macadamia, Pumpkin Seed And Fudge Protein Bar Recipe
• Step Up Your Snacking Game With This Salted Chocolate Protein Balls Recipe

We’ve taken a shine to WW, the company formerly known as Weight Watchers, recently. When we asked one writer to review the WW app, he ended up losing 10kg in four months.

We like it even more now we’ve heard about WW’s features for people affected by diabetes – that’s about 20% of people in the UK, if you include those with prediabetes. If someone with Type 2 diabetes joins WW, their PersonalPoints will be set up to encourage them to eat foods that will have less of an impact on their blood sugar, such as lean protein, legumes and healthy fats.

There are also plenty of diabetes-friendly healthy recipes to try, like these two from the Everyday Cookbook by WW, shared exclusively with Coach. The first, tzatziki turkey burgers with courgette fries, swaps a bread bun for lettuce, and the combination of herbs, tangy pickled onion and tzatziki makes sure it’s still packed full of flavour.

Fair warning: the second recipe requires an air fryer. If you don’t own one already, you may well be persuaded to buy one once you feast your eyes on the spiced corn ribs.

Tzatziki Turkey Burgers With Courgette Fries

429 calories per portion

Ingredients (Serves Four)

• 45g wholemeal bread
• 500g turkey breast mince
• 150g light feta, crumbled
• ½tbsp dried mint
• ½tbsp dried oregano
• ½tbsp cumin seeds
• 40g pitted black olives, finely chopped
• 1 small red onion, thinly sliced
• 2tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1tbsp agave syrup
• 3tbsp plain flour
• 750g courgettes, cut into batons
• 1tbsp olive oil
• 4-8 large lettuce leaves

For the tzatziki

• 200g fat-free natural Greek yogurt
• 150g cucumber, deseeded and grated
• ½tbsp dried mint

Method

1. Blitz the bread into crumbs in a food processor, then put in a mixing bowl with the turkey, mint, oregano, cumin seeds, olives and half the feta. Season and mix everything together well, then shape into four patties.
2. Mix the red onion, vinegar and agave syrup in a small bowl and set aside. In another small bowl, mix the tzatziki ingredients and season to taste.
3. Preheat the oven to 220°C/200°C fan/gas mark 7 and line a large baking tray with baking paper. In a large mixing bowl, whisk the flour with 3tbsp of cold water to make a smooth batter, then season well. Add the courgettes and toss to coat, then spread them out on the baking tray and bake for 10 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a nonstick frying pan over a medium-high heat. Add the patties and cook for two to three minutes each side until golden. Turn the courgette fries over and put the patties on another baking tray. Bake the courgettes and patties for 10-15 minutes until the patties are cooked and the courgette fries are crisp. Season the fries to taste.
5. Drain the onions and add some of the pickling liquid to the tzatziki to taste. Wrap the patties in lettuce leaves and serve topped with the tzatziki, the remaining crumbled feta and the red onion, with the courgette fries on the side.

See related

• Olympian Michelle Griffith-Robinson On How Prediabetes Can Affect Anyone
• How To Find Out If You Have Prediabetes And What You Can Do About It
• Six Myths About Diabetes To Be Aware Of

Spiced Corn Ribs

239 calories per portion

Ingredients (Serves Two)

• 2 corn on the cobs (about 130g each)
• 1tbsp sunflower oil
• 1½tsp smoked paprika
• 50g fat-free natural Greek yogurt
• ½ lime, zested and juiced

Method

1. Carefully slice the bottom off each corn cob so it stands flat. Stand one cob up on its cut end, insert a very sharp knife into the centre of the top of the cob and carefully slice the cob in half lengthwise, using a see-saw motion. Repeat with the other cob.
2. Put each cob half on a cutting board, cut-side up. Cut through the core lengthways, so you slice each half into two or three “ribs”. Each rib should be roughly three to four corn kernels wide.
3. In a large bowl, combine the oil and paprika, then season well. Add the ribs and use your hands to toss them in the oil mixture until evenly coated.
4. Preheat the air fryer to 200°C. Arrange the corn ribs in the basket, in a single layer if possible. Air-fry for 8-10 minutes until the ribs curl and the kernels are golden – if you want them crisp, cook them for the full 10 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, combine the yogurt with the lime zest and juice, and season to taste with freshly ground black pepper. Serve the corn ribs drizzled with the yogurt dressing.

Veganuary encourages people around the world to try going vegan for January. There are many reasons why you might choose to go vegan, but this year the organisation behind Veganuary is throwing the spotlight on how a vegan lifestyle can reduce your environmental impact with an advert featuring Bigfoot.

According to a recent YouGov survey of just over 2,000 British people, a record 34% were interested in trying a vegan diet. “As more people become aware of the incredible impact our food choices have on the health of our planet, attitudes towards eating vegan are changing,” says Toni Vernelli, Veganuary’s head of communications. “It is incredibly exciting to see one-third of Brits are interested in trying a plant-based diet, something that would have been inconceivable just a few years ago.”

Going vegan – even for a month – brings a new set of challenges. How do you keep your diet varied, nutritious and interesting? Sign up to join the free Veganuary challenge and you’ll have access to plenty of free recipes, resources, inspiring daily emails and support from others undertaking the challenge.

We can help, too. We have expert advice on what you should know about a vegan diet, as well as tips for planning a vegan diet so Veganuary doesn’t leave you hungry. We’ve also got plenty of delicious vegan recipes, including five of our favourites below and if the cooking gets a bit much, turn to these vegan recipe boxes and healthy meal delivery services.

Vegan Recipes

Chickpea omelette

This high-protein vegan omelette – the recipe comes from The Vegan Athlete’s Cookbook – is made with chickpea (gram) flour, a brilliant egg substitute for vegans because it is rich in protein, fibre and iron. See the recipe

Vegan burrito

This satisfying bean and veg burrito from Naturally Stefanie by Stefanie Moir is full of punchy flavours and plenty of protein to ensure you’re not hungry an hour later. It’s easy to make and easy to demolish for lunch or dinner. See the recipe

Tropical chia pudding

Pep up your breakfast with this make-in-advance tropical chia pudding from Chef Day Radley of the Vegan Chef School. Chia seeds are high in protein and this breakfast dish is packed with flavour thanks to the coconut, lime and cinnamon. See the recipe

See related 

• Does The Vegan Diet Have Advantages For Amateur Athletes?
• Chef Day Radley’s Top Tips For Easy Vegan Breakfasts
• Allplants Review: An Exceptionally Tasty Vegan Meal Delivery Service
• The Best Vegan Protein Powders To Help Your Body Recover After A Workout

Smoky aubergine veggie chilli

This veggie chilli recipe from the WW Veggie & Vegan cookbook takes just 40 minutes to make and delivers on the flavour front as well as ensuring you get your five-a-day. See the recipe

Spiced parsnip, sweet potato and lentil soup

As comforting as a hug and perfect for a cold January day, this punchy spiced soup recipe comes from My Vegan Year: The Young Person's Guide To Going Plant-Based by Niki Webster. See the recipe

There’s a reason that the queue for the office microwave always gets out of hand in the winter – nothing warms the cockles on a frosty day like tucking into a hearty soup at lunchtime. And soups don’t get much more comforting than this broccoli and stilton recipe, which is as tasty as it is healthy, packing in plenty of veg into each portion.

It’s also very easy and quick to make, so set aside 15 to 20 minutes to make a big batch of the stuff one Sunday and sort yourself out a couple of healthy midweek lunches. Best served with crusty bread, we reckon.

Ingredients

• 1tbsp olive oil
• ½ onion, 
diced
• 1 garlic clove, 
crushed 
• 250g broccoli, 
cut into florets
• Handful 
of spinach
• 150ml vegetable stock
• 1tbsp stilton, crumbled
• 1tbsp toasted almonds
• Salt and pepper to season

See related 

• A Seriously Tasty Lentil Soup Recipe
• Healthy, Spicy Tomato Soup Recipe

To make

• Heat the oil in a pan over a medium heat.
• Add the onion and garlic and cook until the onion is softened.
• Add the broccoli, spinach and stock, and bring to the boil.
• Remove the mixture from the pan and blend until smooth.
• Serve with the crumbled stilton and toasted almonds on top.

Nigel Mitchell is a sports nutritionist who has spent decades advising the very best on how to fuel their training to maximise performance, with his Rolodex of clients including British Cycling, Team Sky and British Athletics.

Nigel knows his onions, then – and all his other vegetables and foodstuffs. So when he tells you that mixing tuna and baked beans and throwing them in a pitta is a great meal, pay attention because it’s advice coming from the very top.

“When you say sports nutrition, people tend to think of supplements, but actually a recipe as simple as beans, tuna and pitta covers most of your nutritional needs,” says Mitchell. “It provides high-quality protein, omega 3 fats, complex carbohydrates, B vitamins and a host of other micronutrients.”

The recipe is taken from Mitchell’s new book The Cyclist’s Cookbook: Food To Power Your Cycling Life, which is laden with accessible recipes to help people power their cycling, or indeed any other sport.

We particularly liked this recipe because it is so simple, and uses ingredients many of us will already have stashed in the cupboard or freezer.

“I use this one a lot when I have been away for a few days and get home and have nothing fresh in the house,” Mitchell writes in the book. “I always keep a packet of pitta bread in my freezer for just such emergencies.”

Ingredients (Serves One)

• 1 (67g) wholemeal pitta bread
• ½ can (210g) reduced-sugar baked beans
• 1 small can (72g) tuna in spring water

Method

1. Pour the beans into a bowl and mix in the tuna. Heat in the microwave for about 60 seconds (they do not need to be piping hot).
2. Cut the pitta bread across the middle and, using a knife carefully, open the pitta like an envelope. Scoop a good spoonful of the beans and tuna into each half of pitta.
3. If you have a toaster with wide slots, you can put the filled pitta in it and toast for about three minutes or place under a grill, again for about three minutes on each side.

See related

• How To Nail Sports Nutrition On A Budget
• How To Fuel For A 100-Mile Sportive

Nutritional Information

Nigel Mitchell’s book The Cyclist’s Cookbook: Food To Power Your Cycling Life (GCN, £16.99) is out now

Winter is almost here and many of us are heading back into the office, which can only mean one thing – the fight for microwave access at lunchtime is about to get fierce as everyone tries to heat up their soup.

That fight should not deter you from eating soup, of course, and if you’re on the hunt for a new recipe to brighten up your lunchtime this winter then we enthusiastically suggest trying this spiced parsnip, sweet potato and lentil soup recipe.

The veg-filled recipe is taken from My Vegan Year: The Young Person's Guide To Going Plant-Based by Niki Webster (£14.99, Welbeck Children’s), which is available to pre-order now. 

Ingredients (Serves Four)

For the soup

• 1 large red onion, finely chopped
• 2tbsp olive oil
• 1tbsp curry powder
• 1tsp smoked paprika
• 3 garlic cloves, sliced
• 2 parsnips, cubed
• 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cubed
• 200g red lentils, rinsed
• 1.4 litres veg stock
• 3 tomatoes, sliced
• Big pinch of sea salt to taste
• Pinch of black pepper
• Pinch of red chilli flakes
• 3tbsp coconut cream or plant-based yogurt alternative

For the croutons

• ½ baguette or 2 slices of chunky bread
• 3tbsp olive oil
• 2tbsp nutritional yeast
• ½teaspoon salt
• 1tsp garlic powder
• Pinch of black pepper

To serve

• Plant-based yogurt alternative
• Chilli flakes

See related

• This Broccoli And Stilton Soup Recipe Is The Ideal Healthy Winter Lunch
• Healthy, Spicy Tomato Soup Recipe
• A Seriously Tasty Lentil Soup Recipe

Method

For the soup

1. Add the oil to a large frying pan and heat to a medium heat. Fry the onion for eight to 10 minutes until soft and caramelising.
2. Add the curry powder and paprika, and stir to combine. Add in the garlic and stir for another few minutes.
3. Add the parsnips, sweet potato, tomatoes, lentils and stock. Cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes until the lentils are tender.
4. Add the coconut cream, salt, pepper and chilli to taste.
5. Blend with a hand blender to your desired consistency, but it’s best if you leave some texture in the soup.
6. Serve, topped with the croutons (below), plant-based yogurt and chilli.

For the croutons

1. Preheat the oven to 180℃.
2. Mix the oil, nutritional yeast, salt and garlic powder in a large bowl.
3. Toss the bread in this mixture. Use your hands to get all the bread coated.
4. Transfer to a baking tray and bake for 10-15 minutes, until golden brown and crispy.

We’re not going to judge you if the only time you ever consider buying a pumpkin is to carve it for Halloween, but you should know that the flesh is as tasty as any other squash (at the least ones grown for eating, not carving) – and it’s the star of this dish from dairy-free brand Cocos Organic.

The recipe comes in two parts. The first explains how to make a yellow curry paste you can store to use for multiple curries, and the second tells you how to use your paste to make a Thai yellow curry.

Thai Yellow Curry Paste Recipe

Ingredients

• 3tbsp coconut oil
• 1 onion, roughly diced
• 8 garlic cloves, peeled and halved
• 30g ginger, peeled and cubed
• 1 large red chilli pepper or 2-4 small Thai red chillies, to taste
• 1tsp sea salt
• 1tbsp ground turmeric (or 18g fresh turmeric, peeled and cubed)
• 1tbsp mild curry powder
• 1tsp ground coriander
• 1tsp ground roasted cumin (or ground cumin)
• 1 lemongrass stalk (18g), bashed and chopped
• 3tbsp fresh coriander, roughly chopped
• 1 kaffir lime leaf or zest of 1 lime

Method

1. Heat the coconut oil in a nonstick pan.
2. Add all the ingredients except the fresh coriander and cook for five to eight minutes until soft and fragrant.
3. Add to a food processor with 70ml of water and the fresh coriander. Blitz into a smooth paste.
4. Store in the fridge in a sealed container for up to one week or in the freezer for up to three months.

See related 

• It’s Pumpkin Season So Try This Pumpkin Pasta Recipe
• A Hearty Pumpkin Soup Recipe To Eat While You Admire Your Jack-O’-Lantern
• Make This Sweet Potato Vegetarian Curry Recipe To Mark Plant Power Day

Thai Yellow Curry Recipe

Ingredients (Serves Four)

• 1tbsp olive oil or coconut oil
• ½ small onion, sliced
• 300g pumpkin, peeled and cubed
• 125g baby corn, halved lengthways
• 80g mange tout, sugar snaps or green beans
• 2 carrots, peeled and sliced in rounds
• ⅓ cup Thai yellow paste (half of the above)
• 400ml can coconut milk

To serve

• Empty listCocos Organic coconut milk yogurt alternative
• Lime juice
• Fresh coriander
• Rice
• 50g toasted cashews

Method

1. Heat 1tbsp of oil in a nonstick frying pan.
2. Add the onion, carrots and pumpkin, and cook until just tender, about six to eight minutes.
3. Add the curry paste. Stir to combine and cook for one minute.
4. Add the coconut milk and stir again. Bring to the boil, then lower the heat to a simmer. Cook for 10-15 minutes until the curry has thickened and the veggies are cooked to your liking.
5. Season to taste and add a squeeze of lime.
6. Serve with rice, coriander, toasted cashew nuts and coconut yogurt alternative.

When you don’t have the time to cook, the answer can be to do it as slowly as possible. Just chuck all your ingredients in a slow cooker, walk away then return hours later to find the main bit of your meal is ready to go.

In his book Cook Slow, Masterchef’s Dean Edwards has created 90 recipes for slow cookers, all of which can also be made with conventional ovens. We’ve picked out three that are delicious, healthy and, most importantly, easy to make.

Cook Slow: 90 simple, chilled out, stress-free recipes for slow cookers & conventional ovens

£4.72 Buy now

Spanish Chicken Slow Cooker Recipe

Ingredients (serves four)

• 1-2tbsp olive oil
• 4 skinless chicken thighs (approx. 500g), bone in
• 2 onions, sliced
• 100g chorizo sausage, cubed
• 3 garlic cloves, crushed
• 4-5 thyme sprigs, leaves picked
• 1 heaped tsp smoked paprika
• 400g can chopped tomatoes
• 200ml boiling chicken stock
• 100g green olives, pitted
• 1 red pepper, diced
• 1 green pepper, diced
• 1tsp caster sugar (or to taste)
• 2tbsp chopped flat leaf parsley
• Salt and pepper

Method

1. Heat the oil in a large heavy-based pan over a medium heat. Add the chicken thighs and cook until golden – this will take three to four minutes. Put into your slow cooker along with the rest of the ingredients apart from the olives, sugar and parsley, and use only 200ml of the hot stock. Cook on the low setting for seven hours.
2. Before serving, season with salt and pepper, then add the olives and sugar to taste. Finally, stir through the parsley, saving some for garnish, and serve with boiled rice or sauté potatoes.

Roasted Butternut Squash Tagine Slow Cooker Recipe

Ingredients (serves four)

• 1 large butternut squash, peeled and diced
• 1-2tbsp olive oil
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 5 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 thumb-sized piece of fresh root ginger, finely chopped or grated
• 1tsp smoked paprika
• 1tsp ground cinnamon
• 1tsp ground coriander
• 1 heaped tsp harissa paste
• 1tbsp tomato purée
• 500g tomato passata
• 400g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 100g dried apricots, finely chopped
• 200ml vegetable stock
• 1tbsp honey (or to taste)
• Salt and pepper

Method

1. If time allows, roast the squash first. Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4. Place the squash in a bowl, drizzle with some oil and season with salt and pepper. Scatter onto a baking tray and roast in the oven for 30 minutes.
2. Add all the ingredients apart from the honey to your slow cooker and season with salt and pepper. Add the butternut squash and stir to combine. Put the lid on and cook on the low setting for six hours or for four hours on high.
3. Add the honey to the tagine to taste. Serve with herby couscous and a dollop of natural yogurt that has been spiked with harissa.

See related 

• The Best Slow Cookers To Buy In 2021
• How To Use A Slow Cooker To Make Healthy, Hearty Recipes

Slow Cooker Vegetable Lasagne

Ingredients (serves four)

• 1-2tbsp olive oil
• 200g mushrooms, trimmed and sliced
• 2 red peppers, finely diced
• 1 onion, finely diced
• 4 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1tbsp dried oregano
• 500g tomato passata
• 150ml vegetable stock
• 1tbsp tomato purée
• 3 courgettes, thinly sliced lengthways
• 200g parmesan cheese, grated
• 1 tomato, thinly sliced
• Salt and pepper

White sauce

• 50g unsalted butter
• 50g plain flour
• 600ml milk

Method

1. Heat the oil in a frying pan over a high heat. Add the mushrooms and fry for six to seven minutes until golden, then set aside. Cook the red peppers, onion and garlic in the same pan for five minutes. Sprinkle in the oregano and give it a good stir, then add the passata, 150ml of stock and the tomato purée, and then return the mushrooms to the pan. Bring up to a simmer and cook, uncovered, for 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Meanwhile, griddle the courgette slices on a ridged pan for one to two minutes on each side, until charred. Set aside.
3. To make the white sauce, melt the butter over a medium heat, then whisk in the flour and cook for two to three minutes. Gradually pour in the milk and continue whisking until thickened and smooth. Season well with salt and pepper
4. Spoon a layer of the mushroom mixture into your slow cooker. Top with a layer of the griddled courgettes, then some of the white sauce, then sprinkle over some of the grated Parmesan. Repeat until all these ingredients have been used up, but make sure you finish with a layer of white sauce scattered with cheese. Then add a layer of tomato slices, pop the lid on and cook on the high setting for four hours.

Cook Slow by Dean Edwards is published by Hamlyn, £14.99. Photography by Ria Osborne

Buy on Amazon | £14.99

Cook Slow: 90 simple, chilled out, stress-free recipes for slow cookers & conventional ovens

£4.72 Buy now

Buy on Amazon | £14.99

Normally we’d entertain you with a witty introduction, but this time we’re going to give you four reasons why you need to make this dish.

1. Eggs are a fantastic source of protein, which is in the white, and heart-healthy fats, which are in the yolk. They also contain a treasure trove of vitamins: 10% of your RDI of vitamin D is found in an egg yolk, along with vitamins A, B6, B12, E and K.
2. Peppers are a fantastic source of vitamin C: weight for weight they contain more than oranges! Vitamin C is an antioxidant, and is also essential for the formation of collagen, a type of protein that keeps skin tight and looking young.
3. Garlic is high in immune system-boosting compounds that destroy any nasty invaders, as well as anti-inflammatory agents that reduce the physical damage caused by stress, pollution, exercise and general day-to-day living.
4. The dish is delicious.

One-Pan Mexican-Style Eggs Recipe

Ingredients (Serves Four)

• 100ml British rapeseed oil
• 3 red peppers, finely diced
• 1 red onion , peeled and thinly sliced
• 4 plum tomatoes, cut into wedges
• 8 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
• 1 jalapeño pepper, halved lengthwise
• 12 fresh basil leaves
• 2tbsp fresh marjoram leaves
• 1½tsp chilli powder
• 1tsp smoked paprika
• 120g ricotta cheese
• 4 large eggs
• Salt
• Ground black pepper

To make

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/gas 6.
2. Heat the oil in a large heavy saucepan over medium heat. Add the diced red peppers and red onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and just beginning to brown.
3. Add the tomato wedges, garlic, jalapeño pepper, basil, marjoram, chilli powder and smoked paprika to the saucepan. Reduce to a low heat and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are very soft and liquid is thickened.
4. Season with salt and pepper and discard the jalapeño.
5. Transfer the veg mixture from the saucepan to a shallow baking dish. Using the back of a spoon, make four evenly spaced divots in mixture. Spoon a dollop of ricotta cheese into each divot and then crack one egg into each.
6. Bake in the oven until the egg whites are almost set but yolks are still runny.
7. Serve the spiced baked eggs with granary toast. The yolks will continue to cook as the dish sits, so serve right away if you prefer your eggs soft.

Adam Gray is a Michelin-starred chef and a champion of ethically and sustainably sourced food. He has been the head chef at award-winning restaurants including Rhodes Twenty Four, Skylon and Bourne and Hollingsworth in London.

More Breakfast Recipes

• Have a cracking breakfast with this eggs Florentine recipe
• Kick-start your weekend with this Turkish eggs recipe
• Five quick, healthy and delicious breakfast wraps

The food industry has become obsessed with protein in the past few years and there are good reasons for that. It’s important for maintaining and building muscle mass, and like fibre it keeps you feeling full for longer than other macronutrients.

It is not the be-all and end-all though, as we were reminded of when speaking to Anita Bean about her new sports nutrition recipe book The Vegan Athlete’s Cookbook. Bean talked us through the evidence that shows the performance advantages athletes achieve from a vegan diet, which come down to higher consumption of plant nutrients and improvements to the gut microbiome. And that’s coupled with the fact that you can get all the protein you need from plants – if you know what you’re doing.

“It’s true to say that most plant foods have a lower protein content than animal-derived foods,” says Bean, “but I wrote the book to dispel the myths surrounding vegan diets, including that vegans can’t get enough protein. The book shows people how they can get enough protein from a plant-based diet. All the main meal recipes in the book contain a minimum of 20g of protein, which is the magic number all athletes aim for.”

To get you started, Bean has shared three recipes. 

Chickpea Omelette Recipe

If you thought egg-based dishes like omelettes were off the menu on a vegan diet, then think again! With a few adjustments, it is perfectly possible to recreate your favourite breakfast dish. This omelette is made with chickpea (gram) flour, which is widely available from supermarkets. It’s a brilliant egg substitute for vegans because it is rich in protein, fibre and iron. I have filled the omelette with tomatoes and spinach, but you could add chopped red onions, mushrooms, red peppers or peas.

Ingredients (Serves One)

• 60g chickpea (gram) flour
• ¼tsp salt
• ⅛tsp baking powder
• Pinch of turmeric
• Pinch of paprika
• Pinch of nutritional yeast flakes
• 125ml plant milk alternative (any type)
• A small handful of chopped fresh herbs (eg parsley, chives or basil) or 1tsp dried mixed herbs

For the filling

• 2tsp olive oil
• 6 cherry tomatoes, halved
• A handful of baby spinach

To serve

• ½ small avocado, peeled, pitted and sliced
• Pinch of chilli flakes

Method

1. Whisk together in a bowl the gram flour, salt, baking powder, turmeric, paprika, yeast flakes and milk alternative until smooth. Add the herbs, stir to combine, then leave to stand for a few minutes.
2. Meanwhile, make the filling: heat 1tsp of the olive oil in a non-stick frying pan over a medium heat, add the tomatoes and cook for a few minutes. Add the spinach, then remove from the heat and set aside.
3. Wipe out the frying pan and heat the remaining oil over a medium heat. When hot, pour in the batter and tip the pan so it spreads out thinly over the base. Cook gently until the top sets and bubbles appear on the surface. Spoon the filling on to one half of the omelette, then fold the other half over using a spatula. Press down with the spatula to seal it and cook for another minute.
4. Slide the omelette on to a plate and serve with avocado slices and a sprinkle of chilli flakes.

Nutrition per serving: 463 calories | 20g protein | 22g fat (4g saturates) | 40g carbs (8g total sugars) | 11g fibre

Spiced Chickpea Pilaff With Almonds And Coconut Yogurt Recipe

This tasty combination of rice, chickpeas and almonds is an ideal pre-exercise meal that will sustain you through your workout. Chickpeas are nutritional powerhouses, packed with carbohydrate, protein, fibre, B vitamins, iron, zinc and magnesium. They are the perfect nutritional complement to rice, balancing out the shortfall of essential amino acids and raising the overall quality of protein. Carrots and butternut squash are both rich in beta-carotene, while green peppers and peas are loaded with vitamin C. Almonds add additional protein, healthy fats, calcium and vitamin E. Substitute pecans or cashews if you prefer. If you don’t have all the individual spices, then use 2tbsp of mild curry paste instead.

Ingredients (Serves Two)

• 1tbsp light olive or rapeseed oil
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• ½ green or red pepper, deseeded and chopped
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 2cm piece fresh root ginger, grated
• 1tsp cumin seeds
• 1tsp ground cumin
• 1tsp ground coriander
• 1tsp garam masala
• ½tsp turmeric
• ¼tsp dried chilli flakes
• 1 large carrot, diced
• ¼ butternut squash (approximately 250g), peeled and cut into 1cm cubes
• 100g basmati rice
• 300ml hot vegetable stock or water
• 400g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 25g sultanas
• 75g frozen peas

To serve

• 25g almonds, toasted and crushed
• Small handful of finely chopped mint
• 2tbsp coconut yogurt alternative

Method

1. Heat the oil in a large non-stick pan, and fry the onion and green pepper over a gentle heat for five minutes. Add the garlic, ginger, cumin seeds and the remaining spices, and continue cooking for one minute.
2. Add the vegetables and rice. Mix until coated in the spices, then add the vegetable stock or water, chickpeas and sultanas. Stir well, bring to the boil, then reduce the heat, cover and simmer for about 10 to 12 minutes until most of the liquid has been absorbed and the rice and vegetables are tender. Make sure the mixture does not boil dry; add extra water, if necessary. Add the peas for the last three minutes of cooking.
3. Serve topped with the almonds and chopped mint, and a spoonful of coconut yogurt alternative.

Nutrition per serving: 652 calories | 23g protein | 18g fat (2g saturates) | 91g carbs (25g total sugars) | 18g fibre

Super-Seedy Bars Recipe

I wanted to create a snack bar that delivered maximum possible nutrition plus fantastic taste and here is the result: super-seedy, crunchy, nutty, heavenly bars that are high in fibre, omega-3 fats, protein, B vitamins, vitamin E, magnesium, iron and zinc. Nuts and seeds are real powerhouses of nutrients, and therefore form the basis of these bars. They team beautifully with dark chocolate, which packs a hefty polyphenol punch. Perfect after exercise or any time you want a nutritious treat.

Ingredients (Makes Eight Bars)

• 125g mixed seeds (any combination of sunflower, pumpkin, sesame and flaxseeds)
• 100g mixed nuts (any combination of almonds, cashews, brazil nuts and pecans), roughly chopped
• 25g ground flaxseed
• 25g rolled oats
• 1tsp vanilla extract
• ½tsp cinnamon
• 75ml golden, agave or maple syrup
• 50g dark chocolate (at least 70% cocoa)

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/fan 160°C/gas mark 4. Meanwhile, line a 900g loaf tin (18 x 6cm) with baking paper.
2. Place the seeds, nuts, flaxseed and oats in a large mixing bowl. Add the vanilla extract, cinnamon and syrup and mix. Spoon into the prepared tin. Press down firmly, making sure there are no gaps, and bake for about 30 minutes until lightly golden but not brown around the edges. Take out of the oven and press down again using a large spoon. Allow to cool completely.
3. Break the chocolate into small pieces, place in a microwavable bowl and heat on full power for two to three minutes, stirring at 30-second intervals, until almost molten. Stir again and leave for a few moments until completely melted. Alternatively, place the chocolate pieces in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of gently simmering water, and heat until the chocolate starts to melt, then stir until completely melted. Drizzle over the cooled nut mixture.
4. Pop the tin in the freezer for the chocolate to set. Once cooled, cut into eight bars. They will keep in an airtight container for up to seven days.

Nutrition per bar: 266 calories | 8g protein | 18g fat (4g saturates) | 16g carbs (12g total sugars) | 4g fibre

Recipes taken from The Vegan Athlete’s Cookbook: Protein-Rich Recipes To Train, Recover And Perform by Anita Bean (Bloomsbury, £16.99). Out now

Even though it’s the simplest of foods, for some reason cooking rice is a bit of an art, which can put a lot of people off making the stuff. But whether you’re wary of it or you’re looking to zhuzh up your plain boiled basmati, it’s time to introduce some nice rice to your life. The Rice Association has celebrated National Rice Week (13th-19th September, but you knew that already) by pulling together ricey recipes from a host of leading chefs.

You’ll find the full range of recipes on the Rice Association website, but the one that caught our eye was the baked Mexican rice with beans and greens, topped with a mango salsa, from Niki Webster at Rebel Recipes. It’s full of veg and beans, and pretty easy to prepare – anytime you see “combine all the ingredients” near the start of a recipe you know you’re in for a relatively easy ride. It also cooks the rice in the oven which, in our experience at least, is the most foolproof way of getting rice right.

Ingredients (Serves Four)

For the rice

• 650ml vegetable stock (or boiling water)
• 250g long grain rice, rinsed well
• 1 can black beans, drained
• 40g greens (eg asparagus/broccoli/spring greens), chopped
• 3 spring onions, sliced
• Salt and pepper, to taste

For the tomato sauce

• 1 red onion, sliced
• 1tbsp olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves, sliced
• 1tbsp smoked paprika
• ½tsp chilli powder or chipotle powder
• 1tsp ground cumin
• 1tsp oregano
• 5 tomatoes, chopped
• 3tbsp sun-dried tomato paste

For the mango salsa

• 1 mango, peeled and sliced into cubes
• Fresh coriander and mint, shredded
• Juice of 1 lime
• Pinch of sea salt flakes and chilli flakes

See related

• Finish Veganuary On A High With This Spinach, Sweet Potato And Raisin Biriyani
• Kedgeree-Style Rice With Smoked Haddock And Green Beans Recipe
• The Best Vegan Recipe Box And Meal Delivery Services

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180℃/gas 4. Combine all the rice ingredients in a casserole dish and stir. Cover tightly with foil, then bake for 15 minutes.
2. In the meantime, fry the onion in the olive oil on a medium heat for eight minutes.
3. Add the garlic and spices and stir to combine. Add the chopped tomatoes and sun-dried tomato paste and simmer for six minutes until the tomatoes have started to break down.
4. Remove the rice from the oven and add the tomato mix to the rice. Stir to combine, then bake for a further 15 minutes or until the rice is tender.
5. Make the salsa by adding all the ingredients to a bowl and mixing to combine. Serve with the baked rice.

If you’re aiming to improve your gut health through your diet, there are a couple of key targets you should try to hit each week. The first is to eat enough fibre, and the second is to vary your sources of fibre and nutrients by eating at least 30 different plant foods per week.

Hitting both targets is good for more than just your gut health. It will benefit you in all sorts of ways, bringing a variety of essential vitamins and minerals into your diet.

It’s also relatively easy to hit both targets once you get into the habit. While eating 30 different plant foods in particular might sound tricky, you can easily tick off between five and 10 of those in one meal if you plan it right.

This overnight oats recipe, for example, contains at least nine plant foods (more if you go wild with the chopped fresh fruit). The recipe, which has been created by Dr Joan Ransley for Love Your Gut Week, obviously also contains oats, which contain two types of dietary fibre. It’s the perfect way to start a gut-healthy day, and takes just 15 minutes to prepare the night before. The oats will also last in the fridge for up to three days, so you can make a few servings at once.

Banana And Coconut Overnight Oats

Ingredients (Serves Four)

• 100g oats
• 15g chia seeds
• 300ml semi-skimmed milk
• 100g plain yogurt
• 40g walnuts
• 40g dates, pitted and roughly chopped
• 1 banana, peeled and chopped into small cubes
• 30g coconut flakes
• 60g chopped fresh fruit (eg apples, blueberries, strawberries)
• 30g nuts (eg chopped almonds, pecans)
• 10g maple syrup (optional)

Method

1. Place the oats, chia seeds, milk, yogurt, walnuts, dates and banana in a large bowl. Add 20g of the coconut shavings and mix well. Cover the bowl and place it in the fridge. It will be ready to eat after two hours but can be left in the fridge overnight (hence the name) and eaten the next day. Oats and chia seeds are very absorbent and will continue to soak up milk for several hours. Add more milk or water to the overnight oats if you think they have become too thick.
2. Serve the overnight oats with a mixture of chopped fresh fruit, the remaining coconut flakes and a few chopped nuts. Add a drizzle of maple syrup if you like.

For more recipes visit loveyourgut.com

More About Gut Health

• Treat Your Gut To This Chicken Schnitzel And Salad Recipe
• Improve Your Diet With These Foods That Are Good For Your Gut
• Are Fermented Foods Good For You?
• High-Fibre Foods To Help You Lose Weight And Get Healthier

Protein shakes and coffee are probably the two drinks most beloved by gym-goers of all stripes. Coffee to perk you up pre-workout and a protein shake to refuel your muscles afterwards. Two excellent drinks and a pairing that can be combined into one all-conquering summer superdrink. Just use this iced coffee recipe from David Templer.

“Enjoy this iced coffee drink as an afternoon pick-me-up or drink it 30 minutes before your workout to give you a boost while packing in the protein,” says Templer.

The recipe below suggests using vanilla flavour protein powder, but Templer says mocha or chocolate powder would work too. Read our recommendations of the best protein powder to discover which brand we think makes the best-tasting chocolate powder.

If this doesn’t hit the spot, browse these 23 protein shake recipes for more inspiration.

Iced Coffee Protein Shake Recipe

Ingredients (Serves One)

• 30g vanilla whey protein powder
• 300ml milk (of your preference, Templer recommends coconut or unsweetened almond milk)
• Coffee

Method

1. The preparation starts the night before. Make a regular hot coffee (as strong as you like) and then pour it into an ice tray. Pop the coffee in the freezer overnight so it turns into ice cubes of coffee. Make a lot if you want to enjoy iced coffee all week long.
2. Mix 30g of vanilla whey protein powder with 300ml of your choice of milk and give it a shake until the protein and milk have blended together. Use milk that’s at room temperature if possible so the coffee ice cubes of melt sooner.
3. Pop your coffee cubes out of the tray and into a glass, then pour the milk mixture over. Top it up with normal ice if needed or if you want a weaker coffee.

Nutritional Info

Calories 174 Protein 30g Carbs 26g Fat 5g

*Using 300ml coconut milk

Throwing a salad together is a great option when you’re in a hurry or it’s the height of summer, especially if it’s full of nutrient-rich ingredients that will supplement your training. 

Bresaola And Peach Salad Recipe

This bresaola and peach salad recipe has been provided by chef Karol Gladki.

Ingredients (Serves One)

• 150g of bresaola
• 1 peach
• Handful of rocket
• 2tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1tbsp sherry vinegar
• Ground pepper to taste

Method

1. Slice the peach. 
2. Mix the slices with the bresaola and rocket. 
3. Add the olive oil, sherry vinegar and ground pepper to season.

Parma Ham And Bresaola Salad Recipe

Ingredients (Serves One)

• ½ peach
• ½ red onion
• 50g Parma ham
• 25g bresaola
• 50g mixed rocket and watercress
• 1tbsp olive oil
• 1tbsp balsamic vinegar

Method

1. Slice the peach into segments and the red onion into rings. 
2. Toss with the ham, bresaola, rocket and watercress. 
3. Dress the salad with the olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

Calories 359kcal, protein 29g, fat 23g, carbs 14g.

Salmon And Prawn Salad Recipe

Ingredients (Serves One)

• ¼ cucumber
• ¼ onion
• 100g prawns, cooked
• 60g salmon flakes
• 2 handfuls of spinach leaves
• 2tbsp Greek yogurt
• 1tbsp mustard
• 1tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 lemon slice

Method

• Slice the cucumber and dice the onion. 
• Toss with the prawns, salmon and spinach leaves. 
• Mix the Greek yogurt with the mustards and dress the salad with it. Serve with a lemon slice.

Calories 265kcal, protein 37g, fat 7g, carbs 15g.

Vegetarian Bean Salad

Ingredients (Serves One)

• 2 eggs
• ½ red chilli
• Handful of baby plum tomatoes
• 100g chickpeas
• 100g kidney beans
• 10g coriander
• 1tbsp guacamole

Method

• Boil the eggs for ten minutes, leave to cool, then shell and halve them. 
• Thinly slice the chilli and halve the tomatoes, then toss then with the eggs, chickpeas, kidney beans and coriander. 
• Top with the guacamole.

Calories 448kcal, protein 29g, fat 17g, carbs 41g

If you’re looking to improve your diet, two changes that are pretty much guaranteed to help are to increase the amount and variety of vegetables you’re eating, and to ensure you have a portion or two of oily fish on your weekly menu.

This dish from Green Chef, one of the best recipe boxes, will help on both counts. The miso glazed salmon is paired with tenderstem broccoli, mangetout and peppers for a delicious dinner that contains two portions of your five-a-day.

Ingredients (Serves Two)

• 15g miso paste
• 2tbsp tamari sauce
• 2 salmon fillets
• 150g tenderstem broccoli
• 1 bell pepper
• 150g mangetout
• 1 garlic clove
• 1tbsp maple syrup
• 1tsp black sesame seeds

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 220°C/200°C fan/gas mark 7. In a large bowl, combine the miso paste and half the tamari. Pat the salmon fillets dry with kitchen paper. Add the salmon fillets to the miso marinade and ensure they’re fully coated. Make sure to wash your hands and equipment after handling raw fish.
2. Cut the larger tenderstem broccoli florets lengthways. Halve the pepper and discard the core and seeds. Slice into thin strips. Slice the mangetout in half lengthways. Peel and grate the garlic (or use a garlic press).
3. Place the salmon fillets on a lined baking tray with a drizzle of oil. Spoon any remaining marinade over the salmon. Bake on the top shelf of the oven for 14-16 minutes, or until cooked – the fish is cooked when it is opaque in the middle.
4. When the salmon has been in the oven for six minutes, heat a large frying pan on a high heat with a drizzle of oil. Add the tenderstem broccoli and pepper. Cook for two to three minutes until starting to char. Add the mangetout to the pan and cook for a further two to three minutes. If you’d like to, season with salt and pepper.
5. Add the garlic and sauté for one minute to soften. Remove the pan from the heat and pour in the maple syrup and remaining tamari. Stir to coat.
6. Divide the stir-fried maple veggies between two plates. Top with the salmon fillets, drizzling over any remaining marinade and sprinkling the black sesame seeds over the salmon.

More Salmon Recipes

• Tom Kerridge’s Cajun Salmon Recipe Is A Delicious Low-Calorie Dinner
• How To Cook Pan-Roasted Salmon
• Eat This Moroccan Salmon Recipe Because We All Need More Oily Fish In Our Lives
• The Simplest Grilled Salmon Recipe Imaginable

Drinking protein powder mixed with water can become quite monotonous, even when you’ve chosen using our guide to the best protein powders – most of us can only afford to buy one flavour at a time after all. But all you need to turn your protein powder into a tasty treat is a blender and a little creativity – and while you’ll have to take care of the former yourself, the latter is supplied free here in the recipes from professional athletes, PTs and nutritionists.

Many of the recipes use milk instead of water, and although this will increase the calories you’re consuming, it may help to increase both muscular size and strength after a gym session. Research suggests that taking protein with carbs during the post-workout window hastens muscle recovery thanks to a faster replenishment of glycogen stores.

As well as peanut butter and other nut butters – which add an extra protein hit, healthy fats and a delicious creamy taste – fruit is widely used. Obviously fruit is good for you, but don’t fool yourself into thinking you’re knocking off multiple portions of your five-a-day in one glass. Blending releases sugars from the fruit, so advice from the NHS cautions that no matter how much fruit you throw in or how much you drink, it only counts as one portion a day.

If you like the idea of freestyling but also like to keep a close eye on your macros, the Nutribullet Balance blender comes highly recommended. Scales are built into the base and you can tell a partner app what you’re adding so it’ll calculate the calories and other nutritional information. The beaker comes with a protein shaker top so you can blend, screw on the lid and throw it in your gym bag for later.

Read on for recipes that cover every type of situation and every time of day.

1. Chocolate And Peanut Butter Recovery Shake

This shake is the first of two recipes from double Olympic taekwondo champion Jade Jones, who is an ambassador for Optimum Nutrition.

“I usually make this smoothie straight after a training session because it contains whey, which is a fast-digesting protein that helps to support muscle recovery ready for my next workout,” says Jones. “The protein from the peanut butter and the yogurt helps to rebuild and repair the muscles too, and it tastes great.”

Just make sure you’re working as hard as an Olympic champion would because this shake contains 556 calories, along with a healthy 48g of protein and 59 of carbs.

• 100g natural low-fat yogurt
• 1 scoop of Optimum Nutrition 100% Gold Standard Whey Chocolate Peanut Butter
• 1 large banana
• 100g blueberries
• 200ml milk
• 1tbsp peanut butter

2. Morning Super Greens Smoothie

“I tend to have a super greens smoothie just before my morning workout because it’s jam-packed with goodness and feels like the perfect way to kick-start the day,” says Jones.

Blend together the below for a fruit and veg-filled shake that’s loaded with useful vitamins and minerals. At 414 calories with 39g of protein, 30g of carbs and 14g of fat it’s certainly got enough in it to fuel a workout.

• 100g natural low-fat yogurt
• 1 scoop of Optimum Nutrition 100% Gold Standard Whey Unflavoured
• 200ml almond milk
• 1 kiwi fruit
• ½ banana
• ½ medium avocado
• 1 handful of spinach
• 1 handful of kale

3. Fighting Fit Shake

This simple shake recipe comes from former pro boxer and Pure Brand Nutrition ambassador Tony Bellew. All you have to do is blend the below for a nutty, chocolatey treat that also contains a healthy portion of fruit.

• 1 cup chocolate almond milk
• 1 cup plain almond milk
• 1 scoop Pure Brand Nutrition Genesis19 Belgian Chocolate protein powder
• ½ frozen banana
• ¾ cup frozen mixed berries
• 1tbsp peanut butter

4. Breakfast Shake

If you don’t have time for a sit-down breakfast, then this high-protein smoothie, which also contains good fats, fibre and a ton of vitamins and minerals, will keep you fully fuelled until lunch. “This fruity breakfast beverage contains cashew nuts and cinnamon, which can help stabilise blood sugar levels and prevent hunger pangs to give you a sustained release of energy all morning,” says personal trainer and Multipower ambassador Anthony Nyman. The yogurt and whey powder increase the protein content, while the pineapple and blueberries are packed with antioxidants and other health-boosting compounds.

• 200g Greek yogurt
• 50g pineapple, roughly chopped
• 30g blueberries
• 1 scoop of whey protein isolate
• A handful of cashew nuts
• A pinch of cinnamon
• Water, to taste

5. Pre-workout Protein Shake

If you want to have the best workout possible, make sure you give your muscles all the fuel they need to perform to their maximum potential for the duration of the session. That’s what this performance-boosting smoothie helps to do, if you drink it an hour before training. The oats provide a steady stream of carbs for fuel while the protein powder will provide the amino acids that prevent too much muscle breakdown and encourage new muscle growth. “The banana in this creamy shake provides plenty of potassium, which helps to support muscle function during exercise,” says nutritionist Clare Baseley (forgoodnessshakes.com). Coconut water is high in other electrolytes to aid hydration and muscle contractions.

• ½ a banana
• A handful of porridge oats
• 1 scoop vanilla whey protein
• 1tbsp flaxseeds
• 330ml coconut water

Chill all the ingredients in the fridge, blend them until smooth, then sprinkle some desiccated coconut on top and drink immediately.

6. Recovery Citrus Shake

After a hard training session your body is crying out for high-quality protein to repair damaged muscle tissue so it can grow back bigger and stronger. But your body needs more than just protein to recover quickly. “In addition to plenty of muscle-building protein, this citrusy and refreshing smoothie also contains vitamin A-rich carrots to help support your immune system which can be weakened by long and intense training,” says chef Dee Chauhan.

• ½ a carrot, peeled and sliced
• ½ an orange, peeled and chopped
• ¼ of a cantaloupe melon, peeled and chopped
• 1 scoop whey protein powder
• 125ml cashew nut milk
• 50ml water
• A handful of ice

7. Muscle-Building Shake

Aiming to build muscle mass? Then you need to be eating more of the right kind of calories from carbs, fats and protein, which will give your body the energy surplus it needs to add size faster. “Upping your calorie intake with healthy ingredients is crucial if you’re trying to add size, which is why this smoothie features nutritious and calorie-dense ingredients like dark chocolate and coconut milk – as well as a good serving of fast-acting whey protein,” says nutrition specialist Scott Baptie (foodforfitness.co.uk).

• 20g dark chocolate (85% cocoa)
• 100ml coconut milk
• 25g scoop whey protein isolate
• Pinch of cinnamon
• 1 banana
• 50g porridge oats, soaked in 100ml of water for five to 10 minutes

8. The Incredible Bulk Vegan Shake

If you’re looking for a plant-based shake, you can simply substitute the whey protein used in most of the shakes on this page for a vegan protein powder, though there are a few with other ingredients you’ll also need to switch out. Or you can just enjoy one of these two vegan shake recipes created by the good people from Starks Fitness. The recipes feature Starks Fitness’s own vegan protein powder, but any plant-based vanilla protein will work.

Blend these ingredients for a fruity and refreshing shake that tastes a little like a Twister ice lolly. Sold!

• 200ml coconut milk
• 1 scoop SF Nutrition Vegan Madagascan Vanilla Protein
• Handful of spinach
• 50g pineapple
• ½ a banana
• ½ a lime

9. Wonder Berry Vegan Shake

This filling shake uses almond milk as well as vegan powder to keep it plant-based, with blueberries and strawberries thrown in to add flavour and antioxidants.

• 200ml almond milk
• 1 scoop SF Nutrition Vegan Madagascan Vanilla Protein
• 20g blueberries
• 20g strawberries
• ½ a banana
• 1tsp flaxseeds

10. Super Strawberries Protein Shake

One regular strawberry contains 20% of your RDA of recovery-improving vitamin C, which is why this recipe contains five.

• 1 scoop of strawberry whey protein
• 5 strawberries, stalks removed
• 400ml milk
• 1tsp vanilla extract
• Water, to taste

11. Power Latte Protein Shake

Trade your normal morning coffee for a bonus hit of calcium-heavy almond milk and insulin-regulating cinnamon.

• 1 scoop of vanilla whey protein
• 100ml chilled coffee
• 300ml almond milk
• 1tsp cinnamon
• Water, to taste

12. Punchy Chocolate Peanut Protein Shake

Like liquid Snickers in a glass (but a lot healthier) with high levels of heart-healthy monounsaturated fat.

• 1 scoop of chocolate whey protein
• 400ml milk
• 1tbsp peanut butter
• 2tsp cocoa powder
• Water, to taste

13. Fruit Fusion Protein Shake

Winter’s the best time of year to enjoy seasonal citrus fruits, when their levels of health-boosting vitamin A are highest.

• 1 scoop of plain whey protein
• 1 orange, peeled
• 400ml pineapple juice
• 1 banana, sliced
• Water, to taste

14. Berry Blast Protein Shake

• 1 scoop of strawberry whey
• Handful of blueberries
• Handful of raspberries
• 200ml milk
• Water, to taste

15. Energy Banana Protein Shake

One banana contains 25% of your RDA of brain-boosting vitamin B6.

• 1 scoop of vanilla whey protein
• 400ml coconut milk
• 2tsp honey
• 1 banana, sliced
• Water, to taste

16. Blue Flu Fighter Protein Shake

• 1 scoop of strawberry whey
• Handful of blueberries
• Handful of blackberries
• 2tsp manuka honey
• Water, to taste

17. Healthy Honey Protein Shake

• 1 scoop of vanilla whey protein
• 2tsp manuka honey
• 1tsp vanilla extract
• 400ml coconut water
• Water, to taste

18. Green And Lean Protein Shake

• 1 scoop of chocolate whey
• 2tsp supergreens
• Handful of kale
• 1tsp flaxseed oil
• Water, to taste

19. Big Breakfast Protein Shake

This morning milkshake has four different sources of bulk-building protein.

• 1 scoop of vanilla whey
• Handful of porridge oats
• 1tbsp Greek yogurt
• 400ml almond milk
• Water, to taste

20. Great Grape Protein Shake

The grapes are a great source of vitamin C, potassium and manganese and the berries contain plenty of antioxidants, while chia seeds deliver an extra hit of protein.

• 2 scoops vanilla flavour protein powder
• Handful of purple grapes 
• Handful of blueberries
• 1tsp dry chia seeds
• 1tsp flaxseed oil
• 120ml of water

21. Oat-Some Energy Protein Shake

Anything with bananas and oats is going to be packed with energy making this the perfect pre-workout, energy boosting concoction. As well as energy this shake will help to prevent muscle cramping and sustain your blood sugar too. 

• 2 scoops banana or vanilla-flavoured protein powder
• 2tbsp of rolled oats
• 2 bananas
• 240ml of unsweetened almond milk 
• 120ml of cold water
• ¼tsp of cinnamon
• 1tsp of honey
• 4 ice cubes

22. Chocolate And Peanut Butter Protein Shake

Who doesn’t like chocolate and peanut butter together? As well as being a decadent mixture of two milkshake favourites, this recipe is actually good for you. The peanuts are full of good stuff including protein, folate, vitamin E and manganese.

• 2 scoops of chocolate protein powder
• 1 banana
• 2tbsp of good-quality peanut butter (the less sugar the better)
• 240ml of unsweetened almond milk, skimmed milk or soy milk
• Ice cubes to taste

23. Peachy Green Protein Shake

A nutrient-rich breakfast smoothie. It’ll come out green and may look fairly unappetising but it will start your day off the right way with a hearty serving of fruit, veg and protein.

• 2 scoops vanilla protein powder
• Handful of frozen pineapple
• ½ a banana
• 2 handfuls of kale
• ½ a frozen peach
• 240ml of unsweetened almond milk

More Protein Shake Recipes And Accessories

• This Iced Coffee Protein Shake Recipe Is The Ultimate Summer Drink For Gym-Goers
• A Plant-Based Protein Shake Recipe that Works for Vegans
• Protein Shakes Explained
• The Best Protein Shakers To Buy
• The Best Smoothie Makers

Eating more vegetables is one of the easiest and most straightforward ways to improve your health. It’s a bit of advice relevant to everyone and it’s one of those rare bits of health science no-one contests. Of course, it’s well known that only a minority of us eat the recommended minimum of five portions of fruit and veg a day, and that’s supported by a recent piece of consumer research of 2,000 people commissioned by Tesco which found 9% of UK adults only eat vegetables once a week or less.

We won’t go into the why here (don’t get us started), but instead we’ll ask: what should we do about it? Tesco has made a great start by having its health ambassador Jamie Oliver create quick and easy recipes which contain at least two of your five-a-day.

The below recipe for roasted tomato and feta toast caught our eye because it looks like a fancy pizza baguette. At just 485 calories per serving there’s also space for an extra topping or two while still staying within Public Health England’s 400-600-600 calorie rule.

The recipe takes next to no time to prep, but requires a couple of hours in the oven (pro tip: slow-roasted veg is a shortcut to delicious sweetness). If you’re working from home, get it going during elevenses then enjoy the aromas as you finish your morning’s work.

You can find Oliver’s recommendations for easy ways to eat even more veg on the Tesco Real Food website.

Roasted Tomato And Feta Toast (Serves Two)

Ingredients

• 1 yellow pepper
• 360g salad tomatoes
• 1tsp dried oregano
• 50g feta cheese
• 1 small baguette (200g)
• 1 clove of garlic
• A few sprigs fresh basil
• Balsamic vinegar, for drizzling (optional)

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 150°C/gas mark 2. Deseed and thinly slice the pepper. Halve the tomatoes and place them cut side up in a roasting tray (25x30cm), poking the pepper in around them. Season with a small pinch of sea salt and black pepper, sprinkle with the oregano and rub with 1½tbsp of olive oil.
2. Break the feta into large chunks and add to the tray, then roast for two hours until the tomatoes and pepper are sticky and soft.
3. Ten minutes before the end of the cooking time, slice the baguette in half lengthways and then again widthways and place directly on the bars of the oven to toast.
4. Transfer the toasted baguette to serving plates or a board and rub with the cut side of the garlic clove. Spoon over a little of the cooking juices, then top with the roasted tomatoes and peppers, crumble over the feta and scatter over the basil leaves. Drizzle with a little balsamic vinegar, if you like, and serve.

More Recipe Ideas

• Four Tasty-As-Heck Healthy Packed Lunch Ideas
• These Bento Recipes Make Fantastic Packed Lunches For Work
• Spice Up Your Lunch With This Burrito Jar Recipe

The simplest way to take part in National Vegetarian Week, which runs from 10th to 16th May, is to eat a vegetarian diet for those seven days. However, we know that if you’re not used to it, switching to a vegetarian diet while still enjoying tasty and healthy meals isn’t that easy. So we’ve picked out a range of great vegetarian recipes below to get you on your way.

Before that, though, let’s talk about the Veggie 123 Challenge, which is the new way to take part in National Vegetarian Week this year. The first bit we’ve already talked about – eat a vegetarian diet for a week. The second part is to nominate two other people to join in the challenge, and the third is to donate £3 to the Vegetarian Society charity, which is currently raising £15,000 to send packages to food banks around the UK.

“I think the Veggie 123 challenge is a great way of getting people to try some new foods and meals that they wouldn’t normally eat,” says registered nutritionist Anita Bean. “I’m looking forward to experimenting more with tofu, which I don’t tend to eat very often. There are some delicious ways of using it in curries, noodle dishes and burgers that I am keen to try.”

You can join the Veggie 123 Challenge on the Vegetarian Society website. Now on to the recipes, starting with a great one from Bean herself.

Five Great Vegetarian Recipes

1. Cocoa and almond energy balls

This simple snack is ideal for keen sportspeople looking for some fast fuel before a workout. It’s from The Runner’s Cookbook, by Anita Bean, which is full of great meal ideas for active people. See the recipe

2. Roasted cauliflower tacos

If you’ve never been convinced by the merits of roasted cauliflower, we promise this recipe will change your mind. This recipe also explains how to make your own salsa and guacamole – essential life skills in our book. See the recipe

3. Spinach, sweet potato and raisin biriyani

Whip up a batch of this sweet and spicy dish early in the week and you’ll have a delicious, hearty meal ready to heat up for a few days afterwards. The biriyani is full of both flavour and healthy ingredients like veg, lentils and raisins, so it will put you well on your way to your five-a-day as well. See the recipe

See related

• Make These Hoisin Tofu Burritos To Celebrate National Vegetarian Week
• Why You Should Go Part-Time Vegetarian
• The 22 Best Vegetarian Sources Of Protein

4. Vegetable skewers

We’re hoping for sunny weather during National Vegetarian Week, and if it comes to pass you can take advantage with this great barbecue recipe. These vegetable skewers are super-easy to make, with no real cooking skills required aside from the ability to chop vegetables. See the recipe

5. Herby stew

Just in case the sun doesn’t appear, here’s a hearty stew recipe from the foodies behind BOSH! It’s packed full of a variety of herbs, plus beans, lentils and plenty of veg. It’s another one you can make a big batch of, so you’ll have quick meals on hand when required. See the recipe

The idea of eating healthier and losing weight has got a bad reputation, with the assumption that you’ll have to go cold turkey on eating for enjoyment. That’s codswallop – as anyone who has devoured a cold turkey sandwich with avocado and mayo on wholemeal will know. Cold chicken in a pitta is also good, and that just so happens to be one of the most popular recipes on Noom.

Noom is an online programme that uses the psychology of behaviour change, one-on-one coaching, education and perhaps most importantly very tasty recipes to help people eat healthier, as well as losing some weight along the way if they fancy it.

“Our role is not to tell you what to eat, but to empower you in making educated decisions for yourself,” says Alex Sizer, who is a registered dietitian in the US and a Noom coach. “Noom’s dietary advice encourages awareness, portion control, mindfulness and moderation over restriction so that all foods can fit into a healthy balanced diet.”

One way Noom informs your food choices is by helping you set a reasonable daily calorie intake. It then introduces the concept of calorie density, categorizing foods into a traffic light system according to how many calories a set weight of food contains.

“Foods that are less calorically dense – less calories and more volume – are categorised as green, where foods that are more calorically dense – more calories and less volume – are categorized as red,” says Sizer. “Noom encourages, but doesn’t require, you to choose foods that keep you feeling full, while still successfully staying within a calorie deficit to promote weight loss.

“If you follow Noom’s guidance, a typical day’s diet will reach your ideal calorie range without going too far over or under. You’ll be encouraged to balance your food choices in a distribution of 30% of daily calories from green foods, 45% from yellow foods, and 25% from red foods.”

That’s the science-y bit, but what does that look like in practice? And more importantly, what could you eat tonight (a question we’re always pondering)? Sizer pointed us towards three of the most popular recipes with Noom users (see below), but made it clear that you won’t be forced into a “three square meals a day” straitjacket. “While some individuals may strive for three meals per day, others may be grazers and eat small frequent meals. Possibly you’re more of a ‘two meals per day with a few snacks in-between’ type of eater. Or maybe you work night shifts, and eat your primary meals through the night. We recognise that everyone has their own unique background and their own unique schedule, meaning a typical day’s food intake really depends on you!”

If you’re tempted by the approach, or the recipes below and want more, Noom is offering a 14-day trial for £1.

Breakfast: Banana-Apple And Nut Oatmeal (Serves One)

Ingredients

• ¼ cup quick cooking oats
• ½ cup skimmed milk or almond milk
• ¼tbsp flaxseeds
• ½ medium apple, diced
• 1tbsp walnuts, chopped
• ½ banana, peeled and sliced
• 1tbsp honey

Method

1. Combine oats, milk, flaxseeds and honey in a microwave-safe bowl. Cook in a microwave for 1½ minutes (you may need to adjust depending on the microwave).
2. Stir the mixture, top with walnuts, apples and bananas. Serve hot.

Try a 14-day trial of Noom | £1

Lunch: Chicken And Avocado Pitta Pockets (Serves Four)

Ingredients

• 500g cooked chicken breast, cut into small pieces
• ¼ cup grated reduced-fat cheddar cheese
• ¾ cup diced avocado
• ½ cup bell peppers, seeded and chopped
• ½ cup celery, chopped
• ½ cup cucumber, chopped
• ½ cup carrots, peeled and shredded
• ½ cup cauliflower, finely chopped
• ¼ cup red onion, chopped
• 6tbsp balsamic dressing
• 4 wholewheat pittas, halved

Method

1. Toss the chicken, cheddar and vegetables with the dressing. Fill each pitta half with approximately ¾ cup of the mixture.

Try a 14-day trial of Noom | £1

Dinner: Turkey Cheddar Tacos (Serves Four)

Ingredients

• 1 cup shredded cooked turkey breast
• 2tbsp drained pickled jalapeño
• 1tbsp fat-free mayonnaise
• 2tbsp fresh chopped coriander
• Zest and juice of 1 lime
• 4 6in/20cm fat-free flour tortillas
• 1 cup shredded lettuce
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered
• ½ cup grated reduced-fat cheddar cheese

Method

1. Combine the turkey, pickled jalapeño, mayonnaise, coriander, lime zest and lime juice in a medium bowl.
2. Warm a large nonstick frying pan over a medium-high heat. Add the tortillas, one at a time, and warm until crisp and dark brown in spots, about one minute on each side.
3. Top each tortilla with ¼ cup of the turkey mixture, spreading it almost to the edge. Top with ¼ cup of lettuce, about ¼ cup of tomatoes and 2tbsp of the cheddar.

Try a 14-day trial of Noom | £1

More of us are eating vegan meals than ever before, but making them is a different matter. For the uninitiated, vegan cooking is littered with proverbial banana skins. Take breakfast for instance. A fruit salad sounds like an easy solution, but no. “Don’t get up in the morning and just have a fruit salad because by nine o’clock you will be hungry again,” says chef Day Radley. “Fruit will give you that energy boost, but you need to add in nuts or oats for sustained energy, to keep you fuller for longer.”

If you’re eager to know more, you’ll be delighted to know Radley is sharing her expertise to know Radley is sharing her expertise through the Vegan Chef School. As well as teaching aspiring pro chefs, Radley has launched an online course for home cooks, with the next group starting on 1st April.

The course costs £140 and covers seven areas including easy meals, one-pot dishes, delicious desserts, tasty tofu and – drumroll please – healthy breakfasts. We asked for Radley’s advice on preparing healthy morning meals and she gave us plenty of ideas along with three recipes from the course.

Make It The Night Before

If you’re partial to a lie-in, or aren’t the most decisive in the morning, you’ll be pleased to know there are plenty of make-in-advance vegan breakfasts like overnight oats and chia puddings. “You can make them the night before and then in the morning your breakfast choice has already been made,” says Radley. “You just need to grab it from the fridge! Try soaking oats with grated apple, raisins and a pinch of cinnamon. You can even pop it in a Tupperware box to eat on the way to work.” For a more exotic flavour hit, try making her tropical chia pudding with coconut and lime.

Tropical Chia Pudding Recipe (Serves Two)

Ingredients

• 1 medium banana
• 2 large dates (Radley uses medjool, which are soft – if yours aren’t soft, soak them in just-boiled water for 10 minutes)
• Zest of ¼ lime
• 120ml water
• ¼ cup (4tbsp) ground almonds (or coconut flour)
• 1tbsp chia seeds
• 2tbsp desiccated coconut
• ½tsp cinnamon

Method

1. Put the banana, dates, zest and water into a jug or bowl. Use a hand blender to blend till smooth.
2. Add the ground almonds and mix well.
3. Add the chia seeds and mix again. Pour this into two bowls or glasses.
4. To make the topping mix the desiccated coconut with cinnamon. Scatter on top of the puddings.
5. Leave the puddings in the fridge to thicken for at least one hour, or overnight.

Eat Fruit And Nuts Before A Morning Workout

For a pre-workout breakfast that won’t weigh you down, whip up a fruity bliss bowl the night before, such as Radley’s mango berry bliss bowl with mango purée, raspberries and ground nuts. It thickens overnight into a mousse-like texture. The fruit delivers an initial boost and the nuts will give you sustained energy.

Mango Berry Bliss Bowl (Serves Two)

Ingredients

• 30g cashew or brazil nuts
• 1 mango, around 200-300g
• 40g frozen or fresh raspberries, plus a few for the top
• 1tbsp ground flaxseed

Method

1. Using the chopper attachment of a hand blender (or food processor) blend the nuts until they are crumbs.
2. Cut and peel the mango, roughly chop it, add to the chopper (or food processor) and blend.
3. Add 40g raspberries and the flaxseed, blend once again.
4. Spoon into two glasses, ramekins or cups.
5. Break the remaining raspberries into pieces and put on top of the desserts.
6. Allow to rest overnight.

Use Tofu Or Soy For A High-Protein Breakfast

In search of protein-based vegan breakfasts? “A tofu scramble is an amazing way to start the day,” says Radley, “if you’ve got time to make it.”

For mornings when you’re in a rush, a thick smoothie with soya yogurt offers a filling, protein-rich start to the day. “I know bodybuilders are always on the search for sources of protein, and soya yogurt is one of the few sources of vegan protein that doesn’t have any carbs in it.”

See related 

• Expand Your Pancake Day Recipe Repertoire With Vegan Mushroom Crepes
• Finish Veganuary On A High With This Spinach, Sweet Potato And Raisin Biriyani
• Vegan Chef Gaz Oakley’s Tips For Cooking Great Vegan Food

Treat Yourself With Pancakes

At the weekend, whip up some vegan pancakes for an indulgent breakfast. They’re tasty and, as long as you add toppings like fruit and nuts, healthy too.

Vegan Crepes Recipe (Serves Two)

Ingredients

• 80g potato starch or tapioca flour
• 80g gram flour
• A pinch of salt
• 200ml plant milk
• A little oil

Method

1. Heat a frying pan on a medium heat while you make the batter. Put the flours and salt in a jug or bowl and mix well. Add a third of the milk and mix, getting rid of the lumps. Add more milk, mix again and keep repeating this process until all the milk is incorporated.
2. Pour a small amount of oil into the pan and tilt the pan so the oil covers it. Pour some batter into the pan and tilt the pan again, so you get an even thin coating of batter.
3. Fry for a few minutes on a medium heat. Flip over, add a little more oil if needed and fry for another few minutes. Serve immediately with toppings of your choice.

We’ll freely admit that our pancake day can be a little basic. Once a huge batch of pancakes is made, the energy required to make intriguing fillings as well often goes missing, so we end up sticking to an unimaginative mix of lemon juice and sugar, chocolate spread, and just way too much cheese.

This year we’re going to make the effort, though, and so should you – and this vegan mushroom crepes recipe from the Avant Garde Vegan Gaz Oakley, which features in health and fitness app Oro, is top of our to-try list. Oakley’s original recipe uses brandy, but the Oro version shared with us uses apple juice instead. Essentially you’re adding a bit of sweetness and getting any flavoursome bits which have stuck to the pan into the sauce. Yum!

Ingredients (Serves One)

• 45g buckwheat flour
• 120ml non-dairy milk alternative
• ½tsp baking powder
• 1tbsp fresh chives, chopped
• 150g mushrooms, sliced
• 1tsp garlic powder
• ½tsp chilli flakes
• ½tsp tarragon
• 120ml vegan cream
• 1tbsp vegetable oil
• 24g mixed salad leaves
• 25ml apple juice
• Salt and pepper to taste

See related

•  Vegan Chef Gaz Oakley’s Tips For Cooking Great Vegan Food
• Healthy Pancake Recipes For Pancake Day Or Pancakes Every Day
• Great Veggie And Vegan Recipes On Instagram

Method

1. In a mixing bowl add the flour, baking powder, salt, pepper and chives, then mix well.
2. Pour in the non-dairy milk and whisk everything together until it’s a smooth, thin consistency.
3. Preheat a large non-stick pan over a medium heat and add a touch of vegetable oil. When the pan is hot, ladle in enough batter to cover the base of the pan. I use the back of my ladle to spread the batter out.
4. Cook the crepe for around two minutes on each side, and use a palette knife to help flip it over. Repeat the process until you've used up all the batter.
5. While the crepes are cooking, preheat another non-stick pan over a high heat. Add a little oil, followed by the mushrooms, garlic, chilli and tarragon. Sauté the mushrooms for three to four minutes, stirring often.
6. When the mushrooms are golden, glaze the pan with apple juice, scraping any bits from the bottom of the pan and stirring them into the sauce.
7. A minute after adding the apple juice, add the vegan cream and seasoning.
8. Let the creamy mixture come to a simmer for a minute, then serve.
9. Fill your crepes with plenty of the mushroom mixture and some salad leaves.

If you’ve never made energy balls before, the first thing to tell you is that you will be amazed at how easy they are. The second thing is that they’re something everyone should try making at least once, because when you realise how quick and simple they are to make, you may never go back to shop-bought snacks again.

As long as you have some kind of sticky binding agent in the mix, you can pretty much go nuts with the rest of your ingredients. And indeed nuts are a common pick, thanks to being high in energy and protein – and very tasty to boot.

If you’re using energy balls to fuel your exercise, then a sugary ingredient is also key, and sticky fruits like raisins or dates are ideal. This recipe comes from Raisins South Africa, which represents raisin producers in the Cape, so – as you’d expect – it recommends South African raisins. But once you’ve made your first few batches of balls, you can start looking beyond recipes and picking out your own ingredients.

Ingredients (Makes 10 Balls)

• 150g South African raisins
• 50g ground almonds
• 50g whole almonds
• 4tbsp crunchy or smooth almond or peanut butter
• 2tbsp maple syrup
• 30g mixed seeds (eg sesame, pumpkin, sunflower, linseed, chia)

See related

• Fuel Your Workouts With Tom Kerridge’s Apricot Flapjack Energy Balls Recipe
• Step Up Your Snack Game With This Cocoa And Almond Energy Balls Recipe
• Goodness Gracious, Great Energy Balls of Fire!

Method

1. Put 100g of the raisins into a blender or mini processor and blitz until very finely chopped. Tip these into a bowl and add the remaining raisins and ground almonds.
2. Blitz the whole almonds in the blender or food processor until finely chopped. Add to the raisin mixture with the almond or peanut butter and maple syrup. Mix thoroughly, using your hands or a fork, then shape and roll the mixture into 10 balls.
3. Heat a frying pan, then add the seeds and cook over a medium heat for about a minute, shaking the pan often. Tip into a bowl and leave until cooled. Roll the balls in this seed mixture. That’s it! Keep them a sealed box or bag in the refrigerator and eat within a week.

Biriyani works perfectly as a hearty and comforting winter dish – which is perhaps odd since its roots are in the Indian subcontinent, which does tend to differ in climate to the UK in the winter.

Its hearty comfort cannot be denied, though, and we thoroughly recommend making a load of this veggie biryani and feasting upon it for days to come. The recipe comes from Raisins South Africa, a body representing about 1,000 raisin producers in the Cape region, and naturally includes raisins of the South African variety along with sweet potatoes. The sweetness of those ingredients complements the Indian spices beautifully, and if you want an extra kick you can always add more chilli.

Ingredients (Serves Four)

• 500g sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into small chunks
• 1 large red onion, sliced into thin wedges
• 2tbsp olive or vegetable oil
• 150g basmati rice
• 1tsp cumin seeds
• 30g pine nuts
• Generous pinch of garlic salt (or regular salt)
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 80g South African raisins
• 400g canned green lentils in water, rinsed and drained
• 2tsp medium curry powder
• 50g young spinach leaves

To serve

• 4tbsp dairy-free yogurt
• Fresh coriander sprigs
• Thinly sliced red chilli

See related

• Make This Sweet Potato Vegetarian Curry Recipe To Mark Plant Power Day
• Spice Up Curry Night With This Healthy Chicken Korma Recipe
• What To Do If Veganuary Has Left You Hungry All The Time

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/gas 6.
2. Put the sweet potatoes and red onion into a large, deep roasting tin. Add the oil and toss to coat. Transfer to the oven and roast for 20 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, cook the rice according to packet instructions, rinse with cold water and drain well.
4. Add the cumin seeds, pine nuts and garlic salt to the sweet potato mixture. Season with black pepper and return to the oven for five minutes.
5. Tip the raisins, cooked rice and lentils into the roasting tin and stir in the curry powder. Add the spinach leaves and stir them through the mixture. Return to the oven for a further 10 minutes until heated through. Share between four serving plates and serve topped with yogurt, coriander sprigs and red chilli.

Whether you’re a lifelong vegetarian or vegan, or trying out a plan-based diet for the first time, Tex-Mex food should be a regular part of your weekly menu. That’s because it’s easy to swap protein-packed beans for the meat in dishes like burritos, fajitas and tacos.

However, hitting the beans hard every time can start to get old, so if you’re looking for a new spin then consider roasted cauliflower. This cauliflower taco recipe is delicious and easy to make, and either serves four, three, two or one, depending on how many of the 12 tacos you want to keep to yourself.

The recipe is from Saskia Gregson-Williams, a former ballet dancer who now runs an online workout studio and vegetarian recipe resource called Naturally Sassy.

Roasted Cauliflower Tacos Recipe

Ingredients (Serves Four)

For the tacos

• 1 small cauliflower head, chopped into bite-size pieces
• 1tbsp coconut oil, melted
• 1tsp ground cumin
• 1tsp chilli powder
• 1tsp smoked paprika
• ½tsp garlic powder
• ½tsp black pepper
• ½tsp sea salt
• ½ head purple cabbage, shredded
• 12 small corn tortillas

For the corn salsa

• 2 cups cooked sweet yellow corn, cut off the cob
• 2 small tomatoes, seeded and diced
• ½ cup red onion, diced
• 1 jalapeño, diced
• 2tbsp chopped coriander
• Juice of 1 lime
• ½tsp salt

For the guacamole

• 2 avocados, peeled and pitted
• Juice of 1 lime
• 1 garlic clove, minced

See related

• Great Veggie And Vegan Recipes On Instagram
• Make This Sweet Potato Vegetarian Curry Recipe To Mark Plant Power Day
• Joe Wicks’s Lentil Bolognese Recipe Is An Absolute Winner

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 200℃/gas 6. Divide the cauliflower between two large baking trays. Add the coconut oil, cumin, chilli powder, paprika, garlic powder, black pepper and salt. Toss to combine. Roast until golden brown and tender, about 20 to 25 minutes.
2. While the cauliflower is roasting, make the corn salsa. Place all the ingredients in a large bowl. Stir to combine well. Place in the refrigerator until ready to use.
3. To make the guacamole, mash the avocados in a medium bowl. Stir in the lime juice and garlic.
4. To serve, warm the corn tortillas in the microwave. Fill with roasted cauliflower and top with corn salsa and guacamole. Garnish with shredded purple cabbage and additional fresh coriander if desired. Serve with lime wedges.

Slow cookers really come into their own during the colder months, when we turn to warming stews and soups to ward off the chill in the air.

This beef stew recipe comes from the TerriAnn 123 Diet Plan, and it’s pretty much as simple as they come as long as you have a slow cooker in your kitchen. After 15 minutes of prep and frying the ingredients, flick the switch on your cooker and leave the stew to it, coming back to a winter feast several hours later.

Ingredients (Serves four)

• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 celery sticks, finely chopped
• 2tbsp rapeseed oil
• 3 carrots, halved lengthways and cut into chunks
• 2 bay leaves
• ½ pack thyme
• 2tbsp tomato purée
• 2tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 2 beef stock cubes or 1 stock pot
• 900g beef for braising, such as skirt
• 2tsp cornflour (optional)
• ½ small bunch parsley, chopped

Method

1. Fry the onion and celery in one tablespoon of the oil over a low heat until they start to soften – about five minutes. Add the carrots, bay and thyme, and fry for two minutes, then stir in the purée and Worcestershire sauce.
2. Add 600ml boiling water, stir and tip everything into a slow cooker. Crumble over the stock cubes or add the stock pots and stir, then season with pepper (don’t add salt because the stock may be salty).
3. Clean out the frying pan and fry the beef in the remaining oil in batches until it is well browned, then tip each batch into the slow cooker. Cook on low for eight to ten hours, or on high for four hours.
4. If you want to thicken the gravy, mix the cornflour with a splash of cold water to make a paste, then stir in 2tbsp of the liquid from the slow cooker. Tip back into the slow cooker, stir and cook for a further 30 minutes on high.
5. Stir in the parsley and season again to taste. Serve with mash.
   

More Slow-Cooker Recipes 

• How To Use A Slow Cooker To Make Healthy, Hearty Recipes
• Three Healthy Slow Cooker Recipes

When told a meal is good for your gut, you’d be forgiven for assuming it’s full of live bacteria – the kind you’d find in yogurt and other fermented foods. However, maintaining good gut health doesn’t just mean quaffing kombucha and scoffing sauerkraut. You’ll do the healthy bacteria in your gut the world of good by eating enough fibre and getting that fibre from diverse sources.

To that end, try this chicken schnitzel and salad recipe, one of many high-fibre meals created by Dr Joan Ransley for Love Your Gut Week, which in 2020 runs from 21st to 27th September. It’s full of fibre and also benefits the gut in other ways, while being pretty darn healthy all round, partly because you bake rather than fry the schnitzel.

Green lentils contain fibre and galacto-oligosaccharides, which act in concert to promote the growth of good bacteria in your large intestine. Also included is fennel, which again contains fibre as well as fructo-oligosaccharides, which nourish healthy bacteria to help them thrive in your gut.

That all sounds good right? And it only takes 45 minutes to prep and cook the dish. Enjoy.

Ingredients (Serves Four)

• 4 125g skinned chicken breasts
• 2tbsp olive oil
• 100g wholemeal bread, crusts removed
• Small bunch of parsley
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 lemon
• 1 medium free range egg, lightly beaten

For the salad:

• 1 small crisp lettuce, leaves torn into small pieces
• 1 small fennel bulb, thinly sliced
• 10 radishes, thinly sliced
• 100g canned green lentils, drained and rinsed
• 1tbsp virgin olive oil

See related

• This High-Fibre Meal Plan Is About As Healthy As It Gets
• Try This Miso Aubergine Recipe From The Gut Doctor’s Eat Yourself Healthy Book
• 5 Gut Health Myths, According To The Gut Health Doctor

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/gas mark 6
2. Using a chopping board designated for raw meat, take one chicken breast at a time, cover with a piece of baking paper and then use a rolling pin to beat the chicken until it is about 1.5cm thick all over. Place the chicken breasts on a lightly oiled baking tray.
3. Tear up the bread and place in a food processor with the parsley and garlic. Process for 30 seconds or until the bread has formed breadcrumbs and the parsley and garlic are finely chopped. Empty the breadcrumbs into a bowl. Cut the lemon in half lengthways. Zest one half of the lemon and add it to the breadcrumbs. Add the egg and mix well. Press the breadcrumbs on the chicken breasts to form a coating. Drizzle with the remaining olive oil.
4. Place the chicken in the oven and cook for 15 minutes or until the breadcrumbs are golden brown. To check the chicken is cooked, cut through a piece to check there is no pink showing and the flesh is tender.
5. Meanwhile, prepare the salad. Place the torn lettuce pieces, sliced fennel and radishes in a serving bowl. Scatter in the green lentils. Add the olive oil and a squeeze of lemon juice and toss the ingredients together. Serve on the side with the baked breaded chicken breasts.

If you think about it, what is lettuce if not nature’s pancakes? You’ll be trading in the leafy vegetable for pancakes in this hoisin turkey recipe, so really do try and think about that.

The recipe has been created by Joe Wicks for Gousto as part of his new range of Lean In 15 recipes. The series of fast, healthy meals is split into high-carb and low-carb, and this is one of the low-carb options best saved for days when you’re not particularly active and don’t need to refuel.

“Think duck pancakes, but we’re making them super-lean!” says Wicks. “You’ll fill lettuce cups with turkey mince, pan-fried in sweet hoisin sauce. Add fresh cucumber, spring onion and carrot to serve.”

Ingredients (Serves Two)

• 1 garlic clove
• 15g fresh root ginger
• 1 spring onion
• ½ cucumber
• 2 little gem lettuces
• 2 carrots
• 40g hoisin sauce
• 1tbsp soy sauce
• 1tbsp rice vinegar
• 250g turkey breast mince

See related 

• EXCLUSIVE: Joe Wicks’s 20-Minute Harissa And Tomato Chicken Recipe
• Joe Wicks’s Diet And Cooking Tips
• Gousto Review: The Easiest Recipe Box Service
• The UK’s Best Recipe Boxes

Method

1. Grate the carrot. Peel and finely chop (or grate) the ginger. Peel and finely chop (or grate) the garlic.
2. Slice the cucumber into discs. Slice each individual cucumber disc into matchsticks. Trim and finely slice the spring onion.
3. Remove 12 leaves from the little gem lettuces and set aside. Shred the inner cores.
4. Heat a large, wide-based pan (preferably non-stick) over a medium-high heat with 1tbsp vegetable oil. Once the oil is hot, add the turkey mince with a pinch of salt and cook for three to four minutes, or until starting to brown, breaking it up with a wooden spoon as you go.
5. Once the turkey has browned, add the chopped garlic, ginger and grated carrot and cook for a further one to two minutes or until fragrant and cooked through.
6. Add the hoisin sauce, rice vinegar and soy sauce to the pan and give everything a good mix up.
7. Remove from the heat and add the shredded little gem lettuce, cucumber matchsticks and sliced spring onion to the hoisin turkey mixture and stir it all together – this is your hoisin turkey filling.
8. Load the little gem lettuce leaves with the hoisin turkey filling.
9. Bosh!

If you’re a regular subscriber to recipe box services then you will probably be well acquainted with harissa, since delicious spicy paste is a favourite of companies like Gousto and HelloFresh.

However, you might never have ventured to use it outside of those deliveries and that’s a shame, because harissa paste is now fairly easy to find in supermarkets and can even be made at home if you’re feeling adventurous. Whether you prefer to buy or make your harissa, you’ll need some for this tasty chicken recipe from Joe Wicks.

The recipe has been created by Wicks for Gousto as part of his new range of Lean In 15 recipes. The range, which doesn’t exclusively stick to 15-minute meals but is made up of speedy, simple recipes, includes high- and low-carb options. This one is high in carbs and is ideal to help you refuel on active days.

Ingredients (Serves Two)

• 125g cherry tomatoes
• 1 large chicken breast fillet
• 80g trimmed fine green beans
• 15g pumpkin seeds
• 1 chicken stock cube
• 32g tomato purée (about 2tbsp)
• 120g couscous
• 20g harissa paste
• 80g natural yogurt

See related 

• Our 35 Favourite Super-Fast Meal Ideas From Joe Wicks
• Joe Wicks’s Chickpea Kofte Pitta With Sweet Potato Fries Recipe
• Joe Wicks’s Lentil Bolognese Recipe Is An Absolute Winner
• EXCLUSIVE: Joe Wicks’ Four-Week Fat Loss Workout

Method

1. Boil a kettle and chop the chicken breast into small, bite-sized pieces. Chop the green beans in half. Roughly chop the cherry tomatoes.
2. Heat a splash of olive oil in a large, wide-based pan (preferably non-stick with a lid) over a medium-high heat. Once hot, add the chopped chicken and green beans, and cook for three to four minutes or until the chicken has browned all over.
3. While the chicken is browning, add the couscous to a heatproof bowl. Crumble in half the chicken stock cube and add 200ml boiled water, cover and set aside.
4. Dissolve the remaining chicken stock cube in 100ml boiled water. Stir in the tomato paste and harissa paste – this is your harissa stock.
5. Once the chicken is browned, add the cherry tomatoes and harissa stock to the pan. Cook, covered, for five to seven minutes or until the chicken is cooked through (there should be no pink meat), the sauce has thickened and the tomatoes are starting to break down. Season with a generous grind of black pepper.
6. Fluff the couscous up with a fork. Serve the harissa and tomato chicken with the couscous on the side. Dollop on some natural yogurt and sprinkle over the pumpkin seeds.
7. Bosh!

If you don’t already know, let us be the ones to break it to you that skewers are the perfect summer food. They’re incredibly easy to prepare, they can be adjusted to suit all dietary preferences, and they can either be cooked on the barbecue or switched to the oven if the rain clouds suddenly roll in on your garden party.

This recipe for vegetable skewers with a lemon juice and herb rub comes from fitness app Results Wellness Lifestyle (available on the App Store and Google Play). The RWL app contains over 600 recipes to help you eat healthily, with all diets catered for: this vegan recipe is also free from nuts, gluten and dairy, for example. It takes 30 to 45 minutes to make, and requires no culinary skills beyond the ability to chop vegetables. Have at it.

Ingredients (Serves Four)

• 1 yellow pepper
• 1 red pepper
• ½ an aubergine, peeled
• 1 courgette
• 1 red onion
• 16 cherry tomatoes
• Juice of ½ a lemon
• 1tbsp olive oil
• 1tsp dried mixed herbs
• Salt and pepper

See related 

• Expand Your Dinner Repertoire With This Red Pesto Fish Skewers Recipe
• Win Your Next Barbecue With This Vegan Burger Recipe
• Become A Meat-Free BBQ Master With These Veg-Grilling Tips

Method

• Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas 5 and soak the skewers in water before using. This will stop them from burning in the oven.
• Cut the peppers in half and scoop out all the seeds.
• Cut all the vegetables into around 2cm chunks, leaving the tomatoes whole. Add to a bowl.
• Squeeze the lemon juice over the vegetables, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle over the mixed herbs.
• Finish with a little salt and pepper. Using your hands, toss and mix everything together.
• Divide the ingredients evenly between eight skewers (two skewers is one portion).
• Place the skewers on a baking tray and roast in the oven for 20 minutes. Turning halfway through cooking.
• Once cooked, transfer the skewers to a serving plate and sprinkle with a few fresh herbs if you have them.

Per serving: 100 calories, 2.99g protein, 10g carbohydrates, 4g fat

Risotto is one of those dishes that seems a lot harder to make than it really is, and although attention is required to ensure you have enough stock in the pan at all times to cook the rice, it’s a knack that’s quickly acquired.

It’s a knack that’s worth acquiring too, because risotto is absolutely delicious and you can easily tinker with the recipe to include all your favourite things.

Registered nutritionist Pixie Turner (RNutr) created this risotto recipe for Discover Great Veg, a campaign committed to helping you use more leeks, kale, spinach and cavolo nero in your cooking. The recipe is duly loaded with healthy green veg, providing two of your five-a-day. You can find plenty more recipes that involve that veg quartet on the Discover Great Veg website. Spoilers: leeks and sausages are paired in a number of recipes.

The vegetarian recipe involves five minute of prep and 25 of cooking, and you can also easily make it vegan by leaving out the cheese and butter, in which case Turner recommends being extra generous with your final drizzle of olive oil.

Ingredients (Serves 2)

• 1½tbsp olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
• 80g leek, diced
• 1 vegetable stock cube with 500ml boiling water (plus extra water if needed)
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 200g risotto rice
• 1 courgette (250g), coarsely grated
• 150g cavolo nero, leaves left whole or finely sliced
• 50g grated vegetarian hard cheese (optional)
• 50g unsalted butter (optional)

See related

• Joe Wicks’s Lentil Bolognese Recipe Is An Absolute Winner
• These Vegetarian Traybakes Are Tasty, Healthy And Unbelievably Easy To Make
• The Fastest Vegetarian Stir-Fry Recipe We’ve Ever Come Across

Method

1. Heat 1tbsp of the olive oil in a wide pan over a medium heat.
2. Gently cook the leek for around five minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. In the meantime, make the stock.
4. Add the garlic and risotto rice to the pan and heat through, stirring continuously for one minute.
5. Add half the stock and stir thoroughly. Set a timer for 15 minutes (or the recommended cooking time on the rice packaging minus two minutes).
6. Cook the courgette separately in the remaining olive oil to remove any excess moisture, then add to the risotto pan when the timer says ten minutes to go.
7. Stir the rice continuously to avoid it sticking to the bottom of the pan – turn down the heat if necessary.
8. Any time the rice gets too dry, add a little more stock, but not too much at a time. If it bubbles too much, turn down the heat a little.
9. Add the cavolo nero when the timer says five minutes to go.
10. When the timer goes off, taste test the risotto. It should be al dente, not completely soft. If it’s ready, turn off the heat and add most of the cheese and the butter, stirring in gently until deliciously creamy.
11. Serve immediately, adding a sprinkling of cheese and a final drizzle of olive oil onto each individual plate.

Right now you are just ten minutes away from eating halloumi tacos. OK, maybe that’s an exaggeration – you need to be in your kitchen armed with the specific ingredients for it to be true – but hopefully it drives the point home that this delicious recipe really doesn’t take long to make.

The recipe has been created by Joe Wicks for recipe box delivery service Gousto, so if you want to avoid having to shop for the ingredients involved you can order it as part of a package from the Gousto website. We do recommend stocking up on the ingredients though, because once you give this a go it’s sure to become a staple of your weekly menu.

Ingredients (Serves Two)

• 1 lime
• 2 spring onions
• 2tsp smoked paprika
• 1tsp dried oregano
• ½tsp dried chilli flakes
• 1 avocado
• 200g halloumi cheese
• 15ml cider vinegar
• 6 seeded tortillas
• 30ml mayonnaise
• 150g can of sweetcorn
• 1tbsp olive oil

See related 

• Joe Wicks’s Lentil Bolognese Recipe Is An Absolute Winner
• Joe Wicks’s Chickpea Kofte Pitta With Sweet Potato Fries Recipe
• Take Your Time Over This Tandoori Cod Burger Recipe From Joe Wicks’s 30-Minute Meals
• Joe Wicks’s No-Bake Protein Brownies Recipe
• Our 35 Favourite Super-Fast Meal Ideas From Joe Wicks

Method

• Add the mayonnaise, smoked paprika, oregano, chilli flakes and cider vinegar to a small bowl. Add the olive oil, 1tbsp water and a pinch of salt. Give it a good mix – this is your peri-peri mayo.
• Drain the sweetcorn. Slice the spring onion finely. Cut the lime in half and cut one half into two wedges.
• Add the drained sweetcorn and chopped spring onion to a bowl. Add the juice of the lime half (save the wedges for later) and a pinch of salt and give it a good mix – this is your sweetcorn salsa.
• Cut the avocado in half lengthways, around the stone. Remove the stone using a teaspoon. Scoop the avocado out of the skin using a spoon and slice it finely, lengthways.
• Cut the halloumi into 12 slices. Heat a large, dry, wide-based pan (preferably non-stick) over a high heat. Once hot, add the halloumi slices. Cook for one to two minutes on each side or until golden.
• Put the seeded tortillas on a plate. Put the plate in the microwave and cook for one to two minutes, or until warmed through.
• Add the golden halloumi to the warmed tortillas. Top with the sweetcorn salsa and sliced avocado. Drizzle over the peri-peri mayo and serve with lime wedges on the side.

Joe’s 10-Minute Halloumi Tacos With Peri-Peri Mayo is available to order on this week's Gousto menu

Photograph: Lizzie Mayson

Before Greggs were wowing the good people of this country with sausage rolls that were both vegan and widely regarded as delicious, the foodies behind BOSH! were doing it for other traditionally meaty fare – burgers, lasagne, chilli and more – through wildly popular videos on social media and recipe books.

Henry Firth and Ian Theasby, are staying one step ahead of Greggs with their new cookbook, which focuses on the healthy side of vegan food, often by tamping down the fat content – Gregg’s vegan sausage roll, for the record, is high in both fat and saturated fat.

We don’t expect this healthy turn to mean the dishes will be any less flavourful: our experience of the previous cookbook, BISH BASH BOSH!, is that the BOSH! guys expertly call on herbs, spices, rich ingredients like yeast extract and simple culinary techniques to fill the flavour void left by the absence of animal fat.

While we’re digging into the new BOSH! Healthy Vegan this week for a forthcoming review, the duo have shared this winter warmer for you to try. As long as you don’t skip any ingredients we wager this will match any meat-based stew.

BOSH! Hearty, Herby Stew Recipe

Ingredients (Serves Two)

• 3 echalion (banana) shallots (about 100g)
• 2 large garlic cloves
• 2 carrots
• 1 celery stick
• 8 sprigs fresh thyme
• 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
• 4 fresh sage leaves
• 250g new potatoes
• 400g canned green lentils in water
• 400g canned cannellini beans in water
• 200g cavolo nero
• 15g fresh parsley leaves
• 1 lemon
• 1½ tbsp olive oil
• 50ml white wine
• 250ml vegetable stock
• 500ml water
• 1 bay leaf
• 2tsp Dijon mustard
• 1tsp yeast extract (eg Marmite)
• 2tbsp nutritional yeast
• Salt and black pepper

See related

• A Week’s Worth Of Mouth-Watering BOSH! Recipes To Try
• The Best Vegan Cookbooks
• The Best Vegan Recipe Box And Meal Delivery Services
• The Best Healthy Cookbooks For Improving Your Diet

Method

1. Prep the ingredients. Peel and finely dice the shallots, peel and grate the garlic, peel and finely chop the carrots, trim and thinly slice the celery, pick the thyme and rosemary leaves from the sprigs and finely chop, and thinly slice the sage leaves. Slice any larger potatoes so they are all a similar size. Drain and rinse the green lentils and cannellini beans. Remove the tough stems from the cavolo nero and shred the leaves. Roughly chop the parsley and halve the lemon.
2. Heat the olive oil in a large pan over a medium heat. Add the shallots, carrots, celery and a pinch of salt to the pan and cook, stirring, for four to five minutes.
3. Add the garlic and stir for one minute. Add the thyme and rosemary and stir for a further minute. Add the wine and simmer for one minute.
4. Add the vegetable stock, water, bay leaf and mustard and bring to a gentle simmer. Add the new potatoes and cook for 12-15 minutes until the potatoes are tender, then taste and season to perfection with salt and pepper.
5. Add the lentils and cannellini beans to the stew, along with the juice of half the lemon, and simmer for three to four minutes.
6. Add the cavolo nero, sage, yeast extract, 10g of the parsley and stir for two minutes. Taste the stew, check the tenderness of the potatoes and season again with salt and pepper.
7. Ladle the stew into bowls, squeeze over lemon juice to taste, and season with salt and pepper if needed. Sprinkle with the nutritional yeast and the remaining parsley and serve immediately with crusty wholemeal bread.

BOSH! Healthy Vegan: Over 80 Brand New Simple and Delicious Plant Based Recipes from the Sunday Times Bestselling Vegan Cook Book Authors.

£8.99

Buy now

Curry night comes around at least once a week for many of us in the UK, but despite eating it so frequently we rarely spread our wings beyond the traditional “anglicised Indian” approach, aside from the occasional diversion to Thailand for a green or red curry.

This Malaysian-style curry recipe from Tom Kerridge will help you expand your curry repertoire. It has subtler flavours than the traditional fiery Indian curry, and it’s also full of protein, making it ideal for regular gym-goers looking to build muscle.

The recipe is taken from Kerridge’s new book Lose Weight & Get Fit (Bloomsbury Absolute, £22) and the main ingredient is lean stewing steak, which is not only high in protein but also very low in saturated fat compared with other cuts of beef.

Ingredients (Serves Four)

• 650g lean stewing beef
• 1tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 litre fresh beef stock
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 2 star anise
• 2 kaffir lime leaves
• 150ml canned coconut milk
• 1tbsp tamarind paste
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the spice paste

• 8 shallots, quartered
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled
• 2 dried chillies, stalks removed
• 2 long red chillies, deseeded
• 2.5cm piece fresh ginger, diced
• 2.5cm piece fresh galangal, diced
• 2 lemongrass stems, coarse layers removed, chopped
• 1tsp ground turmeric
• 1tsp salt

To finish and serve

• 500g cooked brown rice (freshly cooked and drained, or 2 pouches)
• A handful of coriander leaves
• 1 long red chilli, finely sliced

Method

1. Prepare the spice paste. Put all the ingredients into a food processor and blend until smooth, adding a splash of water if needed.
2. Cut the beef into 2.5cm cubes.
3. Place a large non-stick saucepan over a high heat and add the oil. When hot, add the spice paste and cook, stirring, for one minute or until fragrant.
4. Add the beef and cook, stirring, for five minutes until starting to brown.
5. Add the stock, cinnamon, star anise and lime leaves. Bring to a simmer, cover and cook gently for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.
6. Remove the lid and cook for a further 20 minutes or until the sauce is thickened and the beef is tender. Meanwhile, if using a packet of rice, cook according to the packet instructions.
7. Increase the heat, stir in the coconut milk and tamarind paste and cook for a further five minutes. Meanwhile, if using pouches of rice, heat up according to the packet instructions.
8. Season the curry with salt and pepper to taste and discard the cinnamon stick and star anise. Divide the rice and curry between warmed bowls and top with coriander leaves and chilli slices.

If you want to save a serving or two for later, let the curry cool then freeze in portions. Defrost fully overnight in the fridge, then reheat in a pan over a medium heat until hot all the way through.

See related

• 3 Mouth-Watering High-Protein Meal Recipes
• Spice Up Curry Night With This Healthy Chicken Korma Recipe
• Make This Sweet Potato Vegetarian Curry Recipe To Mark Plant Power Day

Nutritional Information

Per serving: 613 calories, 66g protein, 19g fat, 42g carbohydrates, 3g fibre

Lose Weight & Get Fit (Bloomsbury Absolute, £22) is out now. Photography by Cristian Barnett.

Buy Lose Weight & Get Fit on Amazon | £22 (currently reduced to £11)

If you’re new to a vegan diet it’s not always easy to come up with satisfying, healthy dishes that stick to plant-based ingredients alone. Fortunately, there are few things more satisfying to eat for lunch or dinner than a burrito – and it’s very easy to make a terrific vegan burrito, as this recipe from the book Naturally Stefanie by Stefanie Moir shows.

The book is full of vegan recipes, workouts and other advice to help you live a healthy life, whether you’re vegan or not, and this burrito recipe is a great example. It’s chock full of veg and beans, and packed with extra flavour thanks to the spices used. Gym regulars will also be pleased to know that there’s plenty of protein too, so it makes a great post-workout meal, while everyone will be delighted to learn that it’s simple to make. That is, aside from the tricky moment you try to wrap it up and realise you’ve tried to cram in way too much filling.

“In my humble opinion, few things in life beat wrapping up all your favourite foods in one giant tortilla,” says Moir. “Comfort food at its best. Great for lunch and dinner, and perfect when you’re out and about, too.”

Ingredients (Serves Two)

• 2 tortillas
• 1 red bell pepper, sliced
• 100g brown rice, cooked
• 1 can black beans in water, drained and rinsed
• 60g pickled red cabbage, chopped into long slices
• ½ red onion, diced
• 75g sweetcorn
• 1½tsp paprika
• 1½tsp cumin
• 1½tsp chilli powder
• 40g jalapeños or chillies, chopped
• Guacamole

See related

•  The Best Sources Of Protein For Vegans
• The Best Vegan Cookbooks
• The Best Vegan Recipe Box And Meal Delivery Services

Method

1. Add the onion, pepper, black beans, sweetcorn and jalapeños to a preheated, non-stick pan and fry for two to three minutes until lightly cooked but still a little crunchy.
2. Add the paprika, cumin and chilli powder to the pan and mix well, ensuring the beans and vegetables are evenly coated in the spices.
3. Layer each tortilla with cooked rice, vegetable black bean mix, pickled red cabbage and a big dollop of guacamole. Wrap and gorge.

Buy Naturally Stefanie on Amazon | £16.99 (currently reduced to £11.05)

Chickpeas are one of the most underrated ingredients around. They count towards your five-a-day, are low in calories and fat but pack in a hefty amount of fibre and protein, and assuming you opt for the canned rather than dried variety, they’re incredibly easy to cook with too. Just drain and tip a can into your favourite curry, stew or soup.

Alternatively you can mash them up and make delicious patties, as in this recipe, which comes from Joe Wicks’s new range for recipe box service Gousto. Pop the patties in a pitta – fun to say and fun to do – and serve with sweet potato fries and homemade raita for a satisfying and healthy dinner.

Ingredients (Serves Two)

• 15g fresh root ginger
• ½ cucumber
• 20g mango chutney
• 2 carrots
• 80g natural yogurt
• 1tsp nigella seeds
• 1 400g can chickpeas
• 10g coriander
• 50g baby leaf salad
• 400g sweet potato
• 20g mint sauce
• 1 lemon
• 1tbsp curry powder
• 2 wholemeal pittas
• Olive oil
• Salt

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/gas mark 7. Drain and rinse the chickpeas. Peel (scrape the skin off with a teaspoon) and finely chop or grate the ginger. Slice the lemon into four wedges. Top, tail, peel and grate the carrots.
2. Add the drained chickpeas to a food processor along with the curry powder, chopped ginger, coriander (including the stems), ½tsp salt and 1tsp olive oil. Blitz until almost smooth, then add the grated carrot and pulse for three seconds until all the carrot is incorporated.
3. Divide the mixture into four and shape into patties – these are your chickpea kofte patties. Line a baking tray with baking paper, drizzle with 1tsp olive oil and place the patties on it. Sprinkle over half of the nigella seeds and press them gently into the patties. Cook in the oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden.
4. Meanwhile, cut the sweet potato (skin on) into chips and add to a large baking tray with a drizzle of vegetable oil and a generous pinch of salt. Mix it all together, then cook in the oven for 20 minutes or until the fries are tender and starting to crisp.
5. While the fries are cooking, finely dice half the cucumber and grate the remainder. Squeeze the water out of the grated cucumber, then add to a bowl along with the natural yogurt, mint sauce and a pinch of salt and mix to make your raita.
6. Add the diced cucumber to a bowl along with the baby leaf salad, juice of one lemon wedge and the remaining nigella seeds.
7. Once the kofte patties are almost done, add the wholemeal pitta breads to the tray with the sweet potato fries and cook for a minute or two until warmed through. Carefully slice in two halves before serving.
8. Put dollops of raita into the pitta pockets, then fill with the kofte patties and a spoonful of mango chutney. Serve with the sweet potato fries, cucumber salad and remaining lemon wedges on the side.

See related 

• Gousto Review: The Easiest Recipe Box Service
• Joe Wicks On Why You Should Avoid Crash Diets
• Joe Wicks’s Lentil Bolognese Recipe Is An Absolute Winner
• Take Your Time Over This Tandoori Cod Burger Recipe From Joe Wicks’s 30-Minute Meals
• Our 35 Favourite Super-Fast Meal Ideas From Joe Wicks

Nutritional information: 614 calories, 9g fat (of which saturated fat 2g), 105g carbohydrate (of which sugars 30g), 25g fibre, 25g protein, 2g salt

Energy balls are a brilliant healthy snack, one-upping energy bars purely by having a more fun shape – they’re easier to toss up in the air and catch in your mouth for one. They’re also incredibly easy to make yourself if you have a food processor and some kitchen scales, saving a decent wodge of money in the process.

Start with this terrific recipe from Michelin-starred chef Tom Kerridge’s new book Lose Weight & Get Fit (Bloomsbury Absolute, £22). The balls are full of dried fruit and fibre-rich oats, and pack in bundles of flavour as well. It’ll take you no time at all to whip up a batch of 20 balls – and you can then chill or freeze them to have to hand whenever you need a tasty energy hit.

Ingredients (Makes 20 Balls)

• 200g dried apricots, roughly chopped
• 100ml boiling water
• 50g dried apples
• 50g raisins
• 100g rolled oats
• 50g desiccated coconut
• 150g almonds, toasted
• 1tsp ground cinnamon
• 1tsp almond extract
• 1tbsp vanilla extract
• Grated zest of 1 lemon
• 2tbsp honey

Method

1. Place the dried apricots in a heatproof bowl and pour on the boiling water. Cover and leave to soak for ten minutes.
2. Put the rest of the ingredients into a food processor. Drain the apricots in a sieve over a bowl to save the water. Add the apricots to the food processor and pulse until the ingredients are well combined. If the mixture is too dry, add a little of the apricot water and pulse again.
3. Divide the mixture into 20 balls, each a little larger than a golf ball, and roll each ball well so they’re evenly sized.
4. Place on a tray and refrigerate for an hour before eating. Store any uneaten energy balls in the fridge and eat within ten days. If you want to keep them for longer, freeze them on a baking tray so they don’t stick together, then transfer to a rigid container. Defrost in the fridge.

See related 

• Step Up Your Snack Game With This Cocoa And Almond Energy Balls Recipe
• Goodness Gracious, Great Energy Balls of Fire!
• Tom Kerridge’s Cajun Salmon Recipe Is A Delicious Low-Calorie Dinner

Nutritional Information

Per ball: 124 calories, 3g protein, 12g carbohydrates, 6g fat, 3g fibre

Lose Weight & Get Fit (Bloomsbury Absolute, £22) is out now. Photography by Cristian Barnett.

Buy Lose Weight & Get Fit on Amazon | £22 (currently reduced to £11)

It’s a myth that low-calorie meals need to be bland and boring. One way to pack a meal full of flavour is to raid the spice rack, which is what Michelin-starred chef Tom Kerridge has done in this salmon recipe. As well as being delicious, it clocks in at just 552 calories per serving, but the chunky amounts of protein and fibre will ensure your stomach is as satisfied as your taste buds.

The recipe comes from Tom Kerridge’s new book Lose Weight & Get Fit, which is chock full of tasty meals and snack ideas to support a healthy, active lifestyle.

Ingredients (Serves Four)

• 4 skinless salmon fillets (120g each)
• 250g (1 small head) broccoli
• 1-cal sunflower oil spray
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the Cajun seasoning

• 1 heaped tsp ground cumin
• 1tsp garlic granules
• ½tsp hot smoked paprika
• ½tsp cayenne pepper
• ½tsp dried oregano
• ½tsp dried thyme
• 1tsp flaky sea salt

For the dirty rice

• 1tsp olive oil
• 1 onion, finely diced
• 2 garlic cloves, sliced
• 1 red pepper, cored, deseeded and finely diced
• 1tbsp tomato purée
• 1tsp dried oregano
• ½tsp dried thyme
• 200ml fresh chicken stock
• 400g can black eye beans
• 500g cooked brown and wild rice (freshly cooked and drained or 2 pouches)
• 4 spring onions, finely sliced

To serve

• 4 spring onions, finely sliced

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/Fan 180°C/Gas 6.
2. For the Cajun seasoning, mix the ingredients in a small bowl. Pat each salmon fillet dry with kitchen paper and then sprinkle with the seasoning on all sides. Leave to marinate while you prepare the broccoli and dirty rice.
3. Line a baking tray with a silicone mat (or spray with oil). Cut the broccoli into bite-sized florets, season with salt and pepper and spread out on the tray. Cook on a high shelf in the oven for 12 minutes or until the broccoli is lightly charred and cooked through.
4. Meanwhile, for the rice, heat the oil in a large sauté pan over a medium heat. When hot, add the onion and cook for four to five minutes until softened. Add the garlic and cook for two minutes, then add the red pepper and tomato purée and stir well. Add the oregano, thyme and stock and bring to a simmer.
5. Drain the black eye beans and add to the pan with the cooked rice. Cook for another five minutes. Season well with salt and pepper and stir through the spring onions.
6. Heat a medium non-stick frying pan over a medium heat. Spray the salmon fillets a few times with oil then place in the pan. Cook for two to three minutes on each side or until lightly charred and cooked through.
7. Spoon the rice into four shallow bowls or containers, and add the broccoli and salmon. Serve at once, with lime wedges, or cool then seal and keep in the fridge. Eat within two days, either cold or reheated.

See related 

• Low-Calorie Dinner Recipe: Turkey Meatballs With Tagliatelle, Chilli And Tomato
• How To Cook Pan-Roasted Salmon
• Stop Calorie Creep And Lose Weight With This Easy-To-Remember Rule Of Thumb

Nutritional Information

Per serving: 552 calories, 41g protein, 17g fat, 55g carbohydrates, 9g fibre

Lose Weight & Get Fit (Bloomsbury Absolute, £22) is out now. Photography by Cristian Barnett

Buy Lose Weight & Get Fit on Amazon | £22 (currently reduced to £9.99)

What we in the UK know as spaghetti bolognese may not be authentic Italian ragù, but a survey showed Brits eat around 670 million portions of spag bol a year – and we have no problem with that, because it’s got plenty of good stuff in it – and it’s tasty. This version, put together by Michelin-starred chef Adam Gray, is stuffed with protein-rich beef and bacon to fuel your muscles and carb-heavy wholemeal pasta to top up your energy after a workout. If you want to increase the protein content even more, use this high-protein spaghetti bolognese recipe which swaps the beef for turkey.

Ingredients (serves 2)

• 500g lean minced beef
• 4 rashers of smoked streaky bacon, finely diced
• 2 400g cans of chopped tomatoes
• 10 cherry tomatoes, halved
• 2 onions, peeled and diced
• 2 carrots, peeled and finely diced
• 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely diced
• 2 sticks of celery, trimmed and finely diced
• 1 sprig of fresh rosemary
• 1 medium red chilli, seeded and finely diced
• 75g Lancashire cheese, grated
• 2tbsp tomato purée
• 2tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1tbsp rapeseed oil
• 250g wholemeal spaghetti

To make

• Heat the oil in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan over a medium heat and fry the bacon until golden brown
• Reduce the heat slightly and add the onions, carrots, celery and garlic. Strip the leaves from the rosemary sprig and add them as well. Stir and cook for six to eight minutes until softened
• Increase the heat slightly, add the beef and stir until browned.
• Stir in the canned tomatoes, tomato purée, cherry tomatoes and chilli and simmer for around 40 minutes, stirring occasionally. 
• Cook the spaghetti in boiling water according to packaging instructions, then drain.
• Add the Worcestershire sauce to the bolognese and serve on the spaghetti, with Lancashire cheese sprinkled on top. 

The idea that a low-calorie dinner can’t be tasty or filling is truly ludicrous, but just in case someone in your life is still peddling that nonsense, sit them down and serve them up a plate of this delicious Chinese chicken fried rice. Even when you add the sesame marinade it comes in under 500 calories per serving, and given that each serving also contains 44g of protein you can be sure you’ll be full afterwards as well.

It takes about 50-55 minutes to prep and cook the recipe, which comes from The Ultimate Performance Cookbook by Nick Mitchell (£14.40) – a book full of tasty meals that are all under the 500-calorie mark.

Ingredients (Serves Two)

• 2 chicken breasts, in sesame marinade (ingredients below)
• 2 eggs
• 150g cooked brown rice (uncooked weight 75g)
• 2 spring onions, sliced
• ½tsp garlic powder or 1 clove of garlic, grated
• 10ml sesame oil
• ½tsp soy sauce
• 100g petit pois
• 1 red pepper, diced
• Sea salt and black pepper, to taste

Sesame marinade

• 2tbsp sesame seeds
• 3tbsp soy sauce
• 2tbsp sesame oil
• 1tsp Szechuan peppercorns
• 1tsp Chinese five spice
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 100ml water

See related 

• Low-Calorie Dinner Recipe: Turkey Meatballs With Tagliatelle, Chilli And Tomato
• 5 High-Protein Recipes To Help Improve Your Diet
• 3 Mouth-Watering High-Protein Meal Recipes

Method

1. Cook the brown rice in a pan for 30-35 minutes. Cover with a lid for the final five to ten minutes, then drain.
2. At the same time, roast the marinated chicken in the oven at 170°C for 25 minutes.
3. Heat the sesame oil in a wok or frying pan.
4. Add the spring onions, red pepper and garlic, and gently sauté.
5. Pull apart the chicken with two forks and add to the pan. Add the cooked and drained rice, and stir, keeping the heat low. Season to taste.
6. Push the mixed rice to one side of the wok and crack the egg into the remaining space.
7. Allow the whites to cook as though making an omelette, then stir into the mixture so it separates like scrambled eggs.
8. Season again, add the petit pois and continue stirring until cooked. Serve with stir-fried green vegetables such as tenderstem broccoli and sugar snap peas.

Nutritional Info

Chicken fried rice: 418 calories, 43g protein, 14g fat, 30g carbohydrates

Sesame marinade: 40 calories, 1g protein, 4g fat, 0.3g carbohydrates

Buy The Ultimate Performance Cookbook on Amazon | £14.40

In the last few years the gut has emerged as a surprise headline-hogger, reportedly holding the key to everything from weight loss to happiness. While we wouldn’t believe everything we read in the news, we would believe a dietitian. Lo and behold, dietitian Dr Megan Rossi has written a new book. Eat Yourself Healthy is published this week and goes into great depth explaining what we do know about the gut and how it has a far greater impact on you and your health than you might expect.

The book also includes plenty of science-backed strategies for identifying and trying to solve or ease the gut problems a lot of us struggle with, like bloating or IBS. But it also has some straightforward advice for making your diet more gut-friendly – spoilers: eat the widest possible range of vegetables, fruit, nuts and seeds – as well as recipes to help broaden the dietary fibre you’re sending to your gut to keep the microbes there happy.

This miso aubergine recipe will also keep your tastebuds happy, since it spotlights some of the best ways to make veg extra flavourful – charring, roasting, marinating and topping everything off with a dressing – so you can look forward to varying your diet rather than resenting the limp, overboiled portion of broccoli taking up space on your plate.

See related 

• Expert Advice On How To Nail The High-Fibre Diet
• High-Fibre Foods To Help You Lose Weight And Get Healthier
• This High-Fibre Meal Plan Is About As Healthy As It Gets

Chargrilled Miso Aubergine With Sweet Potato Wedges (Serves 2)

Ingredients

• 1 large aubergine, cut into four lengthways
• 1 large sweet potato (approx 300g), cut into thin wedges
• 150g cherry tomatoes
• Rocket
• Olive oil

For the marinade

• 1½tbsp miso paste
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 2tsp sesame oil
• ½ a Medjool date, stirred into a paste with 1tbsp hot water

For the tahini dressing

• 1tbsp tahini
• 1tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• Juice of ½ a lemon
• ½ a garlic clove, crushed

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 190°C/170°C fan/gas mark 5.
2. Place an oiled griddle pan on a high heat and chargrill the aubergine slices for two minutes on each side, or until brown char lines are formed.
3. Place the miso marinade ingredients in a small bowl with 1tbsp water and combine.
4. Place the tahini dressing ingredients into another small bowl with 1tbsp of water and combine.
5. Transfer the aubergine to an oven tray lined with baking paper and pour over the miso marinade. Using your hands, massage the marinade into the flesh, then bake in the oven for ten minutes.
6. Place the sweet potato wedges in a microwave-safe dish with a little water in the bottom, put the lid on and cook on high for four minutes to soften.
7. Pat the wedges dry, then toss them and the tomatoes in 2tsp olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
8. Add the wedges and tomatoes to the tray with the aubergine and cook for a further 15-20 minutes, or until the wedges are crisp on the outside.
9. Serve the aubergine, wedges and tomatoes with rocket or other leaves. Drizzle over the tahini dressing.

Buy Eat Yourself Healthy on Amazon | £16.99 (currently reduced to £12.96)

There are a lot of complicated and expensive supplements available these days, and the magical results they promise mean that you might assume that all elites are chugging down all manner of advanced nutritional beverages every time they break a sweat.

It was, therefore, refreshing to learn that Laura Muir – winner of the 1,500m at the European Championships and top medal prospect for the 2020 Olympics – makes her own recovery smoothie, and that it contains just four ingredients that can be bought in any supermarket. Even the really small ones at petrol stations.

“I often make my own smoothie,” Muir told Coach at the launch of the Nike Joyride running shoe. “It’s just semi-skimmed milk, a bit of Greek yogurt, honey and a banana. Or sometimes I use berries instead of a banana. I just shove it all in a NutriBullet.”

In terms of amounts, Muir does it by eye – basically if your blender is overflowing you’ve probably put too much in. It’s a tricky recipe to get wrong. And as for when she uses it, Muir saves the shake for the tough runs on her training plan.

“I would use this after any big session,” says Muir. “Usually I do track sessions on Monday and Wednesday, then a hilly grass session on Saturday. I have the smoothie straight afterwards, or even sometimes during my warm-down.”

See related

•  The Best Smoothie Recipes
• Team GB Star Laura Muir’s Top Running Tip
• The Best Smoothie Makers

So there you go. You can make your own elite-level recovery drink for your running in under a minute using any blender and a bunch of cheap ingredients that you may well have in your kitchen already. We’re not promising that it will spur you on to set national records and win all the golds that Muir has amassed, but if your body is getting the nutrients it needs to adapt and improve after your hard training runs, it might well help you shave a few seconds off that parkrun PB.

One of the other key parts of Muir’s recovery routine is similarly low-tech, but this time is undoubtedly less enjoyable to replicate.

“I usually ice a lot of the time as well,” says Muir. “I do a ten-minute ice bath, quite often just a bucket to my knee. I have my own bucket I cart around everywhere. I fill it full of ice and do that for ten minutes.”

We’ll stick to the smoothie for now.

We are almost 100% certain that just after your first mouthful of juicy steak, corn with just a touch of char, rich avocado and a little fire from the chilli you’ll find yourself saying “thanks, Chris”. Because credit where credit’s due: Chris Hemsworth has introduced the extensive talents of the team behind his superhero-franchise worthy body to you and us through his health and fitness app, Centr. That team includes chef Sergio Perera, who’s behind this taco-tastic recipe and who works with Hemsworth on his meal plans when he’s preparing for films.

A subscription to Centr gets you a personalised training and nutrition plan, although even if you dial down all the customisable settings to the bare minimum it still requires a lot of commitment. That means a lot of workouts and mobility sessions – six days a week – and a lot of not-that-easy-to-come-by ingredients in the meal plans. Centr’s methods all stack up though, and if you want to make a serious lifestyle change and become radically healthier, you could do a lot worse.

This recipe, on the other hand, does not take a lot – of time, that is, or ingredients you have to Google and then find a health store to buy them. It’s also indicative of the diet approach in the app – when there’s meat it’s top-quality, there’s plenty of veg, and there are fewer carbs than you’re probably used to.

If you want something healthier and tastier than sausages and burgers to cook on the barbecue during what looks like an extended period of hot, dry weather in the UK, then we don’t think you can do much better than this.

See related 

• Centr Review: We Followed The Chris Hemsworth Fitness App For Two Weeks
• The Workout Plan Chris Hemsworth Used to Play Thor
• Thor workout: Age of Ultron

Smoky Steak Tacos Recipe

Ingredients (serves two)

For the tacos

• 1 corn on the cob
• 2tsp olive oil
• 400g scotch fillet steak
• 3tsp smoked paprika
• 4 small corn tortillas, warmed
• 4tbs Greek yogurt
• Salt and pepper, to taste

For the salsa

• 2 medium tomatoes, diced
• ½ avocado, diced
• ½ red onion, finely diced
• 1 bunch of fresh coriander, roughly chopped
• 2 small red chillies, deseeded and chopped
• 1 lime, juiced

Method

• Preheat the grill to high heat.
• Rub the corn with half the oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill for ten minutes, turning every few minutes until it is cooked and some kernels are charred. Cool slightly and strip the kernels from the cob.
• While grilling the corn, rub the steak with remaining oil and season with paprika, salt and pepper. Grill for two to three minutes each side for medium rare. Rest in a warm place covered loosely with foil for ten minutes, then slice thinly against the grain.
• Meanwhile, combine the salsa ingredients and season with salt and pepper. Toss lightly with the cooked corn kernels.
• Divide the steak between the tortillas and top with salsa and yogurt to serve.

Sergio Perera is a featured expert on Chris Hemsworth’s fitness program, Centr, available from the App Store or centr.com

 Photography: Anett Velsberg-Tiedemann

In the West, many people have heard the term bento without really knowing what it is – something to do with sushi, maybe? In fact, bento simply refers to a packed meal: many workers take a single-portion, home-made meal packed in a bento box to the office every day, and bento is also a popular take-out food in Japan, sold everywhere from convenience stores and train stations to high-end delis. Many traditional restaurants serve bento only during lunchtime, often in a wood or lacquered bento box.

Bento culture has a long and diverse history in Japan. Records show that people were eating portable, dried rice as early as the fifth century. When the tea ceremony culture developed around the 12th century, elaborate lacquer wares to hold food – similar to today’s bento boxes – started to appear. By the 1600s, the upper class were eating food brought in lacquer boxes while enjoying cherry blossom viewing parties.

Ever since then, bento has been a part of Japanese culture. People ate makunouchi bento, an upscale mixed bento, at the intermissions of plays in the Edo period (1603–1867). Lower-ranked samurai, who made less money, brought their own bento lunches to work to save money, just like Japanese “salarymen” today.

Below you’ll find a selection of recipes for our book, Simply Bento, that will help you to make quick, tasty and healthy bento meals at home.

Chicken Teriyaki With Shishito Peppers

Prep time 1 minute Cook time 12 minutes

This chicken teriyaki can be quickly cooked in a frying pan. The shishito peppers are sautéed in the pan with the chicken toward the end of cooking, so a main dish and a side are prepared together. Shishito peppers may be hard to find in the UK (if you have a local Japanese grocery, lucky you) but bell peppers are a decent substitute. And you can buy ready-made teriyaki sauce but there’s nothing to beat the authentic, home-made version.

Ingredients (serves two)

• 1tbsp soy sauce
• 1tbsp sake
• 2tsp sugar
• 1tsp mirin
• 1tsp vegetable oil
• 2 skinless, boneless chicken thighs
• 4-6 shishito peppers

Method

1. In a small bowl, combine the soy sauce, sake, sugar and mirin. Set aside.
2. Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook for four to five minutes. Flip the chicken, reduce the heat to medium, and continue cooking on the other side. Add the peppers to the same pan and cook and stir for three to four minutes.
3. When the chicken is cooked through, add the teriyaki sauce to the pan and cook until the sauce is reduced and the chicken is coated in the sauce.
4. Cut the cooked chicken into 1.5cm slices and serve with rice.

Quinoa Salad

Prep time 5 minutes Cook time 18 minutes

Quinoa originated in South America but has become a wildly popular grain around the world because of its health benefits. Quinoa’s mild flavour means it goes well with most other foods, and here it’s mixed with a red wine vinaigrette as well as green beans, pistachios, and dried cranberries, making for a satisfying lunchtime salad.

Ingredients (serves two)

• 85g dried quinoa
• 180ml chicken broth
• 10 green beans
• 1tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and black pepper, to taste
• 3tbsp pistachios, coarsely chopped
• 3tbsp dried cranberries

Method

1. Wash the quinoa in a large bowl, changing the water three times.
2. Add the quinoa and broth to a medium saucepan, and heat until boiling. Cover and cook over medium heat for ten to 12 minutes, until the liquid is absorbed.
3. Meanwhile, in a separate pot, blanch the green beans for two minutes and cut into 1.5cm pieces.
4. In a small bowl, whisk together the vinegar, oil, salt, and pepper to make the vinaigrette.
5. Combine the cooked quinoa, green beans, pistachios and cranberries, along with the vinaigrette.
6. Serve with chicken breast or another protein source of your choice.

See related 

• Four Tasty-As-Heck Healthy Packed Lunch Ideas
• Five Salad Jar Ideas That Make Great Pack Lunches

Sautéed Asparagus With Lemon And Butter

Prep time 7 minutes Cook time 3 minutes

Ingredients (serves four)

• 24 spears asparagus
• 1tbsp butter
• Salt and black pepper, to taste
• 2tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• Lemon zest, for garnish

Method

1. Blanch the asparagus for one minute and drain. Trim the woody part from the bottom of each spear, then cut each spear in half.
2. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the asparagus and cook, stirring, for one minute. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove from the heat and add the lemon juice. Garnish with the lemon zest.

Yakisoba

Prep time 7 minutes Cook time 3 minutes

Yakisoba is stir-fried noodles with meat and vegetables seasoned with yakisoba sauce, which is similar to Worcestershire sauce. It is usually topped with aonori (dried green seaweed flakes) and benishoga (pickled red ginger). Yakisoba noodles are sold at Japanese or Asian markets in the refrigerated section, sometimes with packets of powdered “sauce”. You can use that or bottled yakisoba sauce, also available at Japanese markets.

Ingredients (serves four)

• 1tbsp vegetable oil
• 120g pork mince
• 60g shredded carrot
• 50g bean sprouts
• 3 spring onions, cut into 5cm pieces
• 2 150g packets yakisoba noodles
• 60ml water
• 60ml yakisoba sauce
• Salt and black pepper, to taste
• Aonori and benishoga, for topping

Method

1. Heat the oil in a medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the ground pork and cook for one minute, stirring a couple of times.
2. Add the carrot, bean sprouts and green onions, and stir for a few seconds. Add the noodles and water, cover and steam for one minute.
3. Loosen the noodles, season them with a little salt and pepper, and stir in the yakisoba sauce. Stir-fry for 30 seconds, or until any remaining liquid is gone. Remove from the heat.
4. Top with the aonori and benishoga.

Cauliflower Fried Rice

Prep time 7 minutes Cook time 8 minutes

Cauliflower fried rice is just like fried rice, except the rice is replaced with crumbled cauliflower florets. This is a great dish if you’re limiting your carbohydrate intake.

Ingredients (serves two)

• Around 200g cauliflower florets, crumbled
• 1tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 150g pork mince
• 75g frozen mixed vegetables
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• ¼tsp salt
• Pinch white pepper
• 2tsp soy sauce
• 2 spring onions, thinly sliced
• Benishoga (pickled red ginger), for garnish

Method

1. Chop the cauliflower into very small pieces.
2. Heat the oil and garlic in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the pork and cook until browned.
3. Add the cauliflower and stir-fry for a couple minutes, until tender. Add the mixed vegetables and cook for one minute, then add the beaten eggs. Keep stir-frying until the eggs are cooked. Season with the salt, pepper, and soy sauce. Finally add the green onions and stir for a few seconds.
4. Top with the benishoga

Extracted from Simply Bento: Delicious Box Lunch Ideas For Healthy Portions To Go by Yuko and Noriko (Race Point Publishing)

Buy on Amazon | £13.88

In our minds, no healthy cooking repertoire is complete without a go-to veggie chilli. You can pack it with enough veg to hit your five-a-day in one sitting, and ramp up the flavour with all sorts of spices. Furthermore, it’s easy to cook extra portions of this kind of meal to store in the fridge or freezer – and it tastes just as good when reheated as it did the first time around.

If you don’t have a chilli in your apron pocket already, give this recipe from the new WW Veggie & Vegan cookbook (£8.95) a whirl. It’s vegan-friendly, takes 40 minutes to make and packs even more veg by including cauliflower rice in the serving suggestion. You can buy cauli rice ready-made in microwaveable packages these days, or blitz up a cauliflower at home using a food processor (fast, easy) or a grater (slow, hard).

Ingredients (serves four)

• Calorie-controlled cooking spray
• 1 small red onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1tbsp tomato purée
• ½tbsp ground cumin
• ½tsp mild chilli powder
• 1tbsp sweet smoked paprika, plus extra to serve
• ½tbsp dried oregano
• 2 large aubergines, cut into 1½cm pieces
• 400g can chopped tomatoes
• 400ml vegetable stock, made with 1 stock cube
• 400g can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• Grated zest and juice of ½ lime, plus lime wedges, to serve
• 500g cauliflower rice
• 100g plain soya yogurt, to serve
• Small handful fresh coriander leaves, to serve

See related 

• These Vegetarian Traybakes Are Tasty, Healthy And Unbelievably Easy To Make
• Make This Sweet Potato Vegetarian Curry Recipe To Mark Plant Power Day
• The Best Vegan Cookbooks

Method

1. Mist a large nonstick pan with cooking spray and set over a medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook for six to eight minutes until soft. Add the garlic, tomato purée, spices and oregano, and cook for another two minutes.
2. Stir in the aubergines and cook for one minute, then add the chopped tomatoes and stock. Stir to combine, then bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 20 minutes, until the aubergine is tender.
3. Add the kidney beans and the lime juice, then season to taste. Simmer for another five minutes, until the beans are warmed through.
4. Meanwhile, mist a large nonstick frying pan with cooking spray and set over a medium heat. Add the cauliflower rice and cook, stirring, for five minutes until tender.
5. Put the yogurt in a small bowl and sprinkle over the lime zest and extra paprika. Serve the chilli with the cauliflower rice, yogurt and lime wedges, with the coriander scattered over the top.

Cutting back on meat, as we all know, is a great move for the environment – and if it means you’re upping the amount of vegetables on your plate it’s good for your body as well. But without the right knowhow, it can be one seriously boring dietary move.

Luckily, if you’re armed with an Instagram account, it doesn’t have to be that way. Hidden between the videos of small dogs falling over and pictures of beautiful people staring meaningfully into the distance, the ’Gram can introduce you to a thousand creative ways to make a plate of meat-free deliciousness. Here are five to get you started.

TheVegSpace’s Marmite And Chilli Quarterpounder

Since the founders of the Vurger Co explained how to make one of their Auburgers at home, we thought we were set for a veggie burger recipe for life, but this outrageous invention has turned our heads. Marmite? Rice?! TheVegSpace’s super stack looks and sounds like a thing of beauty.

Get the recipe

DollyAndOatmeal’s Assorted Tacos

If there’s one problem with meat-based meal prepping, it’s that you’re limited to eating it within two days or face the ever-increasing risk of food poisoning. Not so with this cabbage and brussels sprout kimchi, which takes takes three days to ferment, and is served with a dairy-free crema that won’t spoil before the kimchi is ready. Once the waiting is over it takes next to no time to pull together, making it ideal for lunch on the go, a quick meal when you’re back late from work or – our preference – a post-pub booze soaker-upper.

Get the recipe

Joe Wicks’ Veggie-Stuffed Peppers

Stuffed peppers aren’t exactly a new idea – it’s a recipe non-veggies turn to all too often when there’s a vegetarian on the dinner party invite list. But here’s eternally excited Insta-God Joe “The Body Coach” Wicks proving the classics don’t always have to be crushingly dull.

See related 

• Our 35 Favourite Super-Fast Meal Ideas From Joe Wicks
• Make These Hoisin Tofu Burritos To Celebrate National Vegetarian Week

MyNewRoots’ Loaded Pizza

This one’s more for inspiration than a bona fide recipe, but if you need a reminder that vegetarian pizza toppings don’t have to be confined to spinach and ricotta, here it is: caramelised onions, olives, dried tomatoes, garlic sautéed mushrooms, balsamic augbergine, massaged kale, fresh courgette, goat’s cheese and fresh thyme. And if you need a little help to pull this off, here are point-by-point instructions for the dough, red sauce and how to cook it in an oven, on a barbecue or even a fire pit.

LifeOfAVegetarian’s Red Veg Curry

Minimum effort, maximum awesome. Make a massive pot of LifeOfAVegetarian’s red curry, batch it up and thank us later in the week when you get in from your gym sesh with a growling belly that wants feeding fast.

The biggest barrier to maintaining a healthy diet can be time and convenience. That’s something chef Patrick Drake seems to have clocked a good while ago. Drake set up the 60 Second Chef online cooking course to help people cut down on the time it takes them to whip up a healthy and tasty meal. He is also one of the founders of recipe box business HelloFresh, which makes the whole process of preparing healthy and tasty meals even easier by delivering all the ingredients for specific dishes to your door.

Drake’s shared plenty of recipes with Coach over the years, but we went back to this one the other night and were reminded of how straightforward it is to make – not to mention how delicious. Versatile too: we went for frozen sweetcorn over peas, and gave it the bursting burrito treatment with a wholemeal wrap we had to hand.

Drake used to teach this nutrient-packed recipe to Chelsea FC youth players to help them learn some basic techniques (we guarantee you’ll boil and shred chicken again), as well as to make enough so that they’ve got tasty, nutritious leftovers for lunch for the next day or two.

It’s a bit different from the most common batch-cooking recipes, which generally revolve around making vast pans of chilli con carne or curry and then freezing them. (Not that there’s anything wrong with a vast pan of chilli con carne.) So make it tonight and enjoy it again at lunch tomorrow – one of the best things about this dish is that it doesn’t need to be warmed through, making it ideal for people who don’t have access to a microwave at work.

Mexican Sweet Potato Jumble with Shredded Chicken, Peas and Roasted Onion

Ingredients (serves four)

• 350g sweet potato
• 1 red pepper
• 1 green pepper
• 1 medium red onion
• 1tbsp Mexican spice (a mix of cumin, paprika, chilli powder, oregano and more)
• 1 cup peas (around 150g)
• 1 400g can black beans
• 2 chicken breasts
• Handful of spinach leaves
• 2tbsp chopped fresh coriander
• 4tbsp feta cheese, crumbled
• 2tbsp olive oil
• Juice of 1 lime
• Greek yogurt, to serve

See related

• Learn to Cook Online with the 60 Second Chef Patrick Drake
• HelloFresh Low Calorie Recipe Box Review
• A Recipe Book You’ll Use Every Day: HelloFresh Recipes That Work
• Rescue Your Valentine’s Day By Rustling Up This Easy Recipe

Method

1. Preheat your oven to 220°C/gas mark 7 and bring a pan of water to a gentle simmer.
2. Wash the sweet potato (don’t peel it) then chop it into 1cm cubes. Peel the onion and chop it through the root into eight wedges. Remove the core from the peppers and chop into chunks.
3. Toss the onion, sweet potato and peppers in the olive oil and the Mexican spices, then roast on the top shelf of the oven for 20-25 minutes or until crisp at the edges.
4. Simmer the chicken breasts in the water for 15 minutes or until cooked through.
5. Drain and rinse the black beans in a colander and chop the coriander.
6. When the chicken is cooked, remove it from the water. Simmer the peas in the water for five minutes, then drain and set to one side.
7. Shred the chicken using two forks - you want it to be separated into strands.
8. In a bowl mix the roasted vegetables, chicken, peas, black beans, coriander, spinach, feta and a good squeeze of lime juice. Serve in bowls and top each serving with a dollop of Greek yogurt.

We know what you’re thinking. Tofu in a mousse. That sounds… odd? Although, come to think of it, how many of us could truly be sure that all mousses aren’t made with tofu? The mousse is one of the more mysterious desserts, after all.

Anyway, putting aside whether all mousses are made with tofu or not (they’re not), let’s explain why there’s tofu in this mousse. Simply put, tofu is an excellent non-meat protein source. It contains 12g of protein per 100g, a solid stat that means tofu makes the list of our favorite high-protein foods.

In combination with the chocolate protein powder also in the recipe, tofu makes this mousse quite the muscle builder, with 26.2g of protein in every serving. Furthermore, the dark chocolate in the recipe contains flavonols that are thought to protect against the cellular and tissue damage caused by intense training. In short, whether you save this mousse for dessert or have it as a post-workout snack, it’s going to be doing your body a lot of good.

There is some bad news to consider too – it is a chocolate pudding after all – starting with the fact that the mousse contains 294 calories per serving. There’s also 32.5g of carbs in each portion, so keep an eye on your overall calorie intake to make sure your mousse-break isn’t a mousse-take in terms of busting your macros for the day.

Ingredients (Four Servings)

• 175g dark chocolate (approx 80% cocoa solids)
• 350g soft tofu
• 1 scoop chocolate protein powder (see best protein powders if you need help choosing one)
• Juice and zest of two oranges
• Grated orange zest and chocolate (to serve)

See related

• High-Protein Snacks: Quick And Easy Protein Hits
• Sort Out Your Snacking With This Peanut Butter Protein Balls Recipe

Method

1. Melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of simmering water, stirring occasionally. Allow to cool slightly.
2. In a food processor, blend the melted chocolate with the tofu, protein powder, orange zest and juice until smooth and creamy.
3. Spoon into four dishes and chill in the fridge until set. Decorate with a little orange zest and grated chocolate.

Nutritional Information (Per Serving)

Calories 294
Protein 26.2g
Fat 6g
Carbohydrate 32.5g

Given that a gyro is usually made by carving chunks off a tower of rotating meat it might not be your first thought for a vegetarian meal. However, all that’s required to turn the recipe meat-free is a little imagination, and this mushroom-based gyro is no less satisfying than the original.

The recipe comes from BISH BASH BOSH!, the second vegan cookbook from Henry Firth and Ian Theasby – the men behind BOSH!, which dishes up recipe videos on all your favourite social media platforms.

To make this dish you’ll need a grater, a couple of frying pans, four squares of parchment paper and a clean tea towel. Emphasis on clean there – you’ll be squeezing cucumber chunks in it so don’t just grab the one you used to mop up your spilt coffee this morning. We recommend doubling up on the tzatziki so you have a ready supply of the stuff left in the fridge for future meals and don’t have to sacrifice another tea towel.

Ingredients (Serves Four)

For the gyros

• 2 red onions
• 2 garlic cloves
• 400g shiitake mushrooms
• 3tbsp olive oil
• 2tbsp red wine vinegar
• 2tsp dried oregano
• 1tsp dried thyme
• 1tsp dried rosemary
• ½tsp smoked paprika
• ½tsp sugar
• 1tsp salt
• 1 large tomato
• ½ head baby gem lettuce
• 4 pitta breads (roughly 20cm in diameter)

For the tzatziki

• ½ cucumber
• 1½tbsp salt
• 1 lemon
• 1 small garlic clove
• 4 fresh mint leaves
• 10g fresh dill
• 200g thick coconut yogurt
• a drizzle of olive oil
• salt and black pepper

Method

• Peel the cucumber and grate it into a bowl. Sprinkle over the salt and stir to coat. Set aside for 15 minutes.
• Peel and thinly slice the onions. Peel and grate the garlic. Cut the mushrooms into 1cm-thick strips.
• Place a frying pan over a medium heat and pour in 2tbsp of the olive oil. Add half the sliced onion and fry for three to four minutes. Add the garlic and stir for two minutes. Add the remaining olive oil. Tip in the mushrooms, mix well and cook, stirring, for three to four minutes. Add the vinegar, oregano, thyme, rosemary, paprika, sugar and salt. Fold everything together and cook for seven to eight minutes. Reduce the heat to low and keep warm, stirring occasionally.
• Tip the cucumber into the middle of a clean tea towel, gather up the edges and squeeze out the excess water. Put the strained cucumber back into the bowl. Cut the lemon in half and squeeze over the juice of one half, catching any pips in your other hand. Peel the garlic and finely grate it into the bowl. Finely chop the mint leaves and dill and add them to the bowl. Pour over the yogurt and mix everything with a spoon. Taste and season with more lemon juice, if necessary, plus salt, pepper and a drizzle of olive oil.
• Thinly slice the tomato and shred the lettuce.
• Place the second frying pan over a medium heat and gently warm the pita breads in the pan for a minute on each side.
• Lay the squares of parchment paper on a clean surface and put a pita on each one. Spread with a generous helping of tzatziki. Top with the lettuce, tomato slices, an equal serving of the mushroom mixture and the rest of the sliced onion. Wrap your gyros up in the parchment paper and serve immediately.

Buy BISH BASH BOSH! on Amazon | £11.99

More Vegan Recipes

• A Week’s Worth Of Mouth-Watering BOSH! Recipes To Try
• Joe Wicks’s Lentil Bolognese Recipe Is An Absolute Winner
• 3 High-Protein Vegan Recipes From The Vegan Athlete’s Cookbook
• Vegan Recipes To Help Make Veganuary Delicious

Smoothie bowls are a great choice for breakfast for two main reasons. One is that you can pack them full of healthy fruit, then top them off with more healthy fruit. The other is that they look absolutely dynamite on Instagram, if that’s something you’re concerned about.

On both counts, the key to their success is using the right ingredients – and then to really ensure social media success, you need to work on your topping arrangements. Arranging nuts and berries into symmetrical lines is a popular choice, but don’t be afraid to aim for something more original.

This recipe from the coconut connoisseurs at Vita Coco uses plenty of berries to create a picture-perfect pink hue, and then provides an extra portion of your five-a-day by adding more berries on top. Remember that the smoothie itself can only count as one portion no matter how many berries you cram in your blender, so adding some whole fruit to the topping is a smart idea.

The recipe conveniently uses frozen fruit, which is a helpful reminder that having a freezer full of berries and bananas to throw in your blender means you’re never more than 30 seconds away from a healthy and delicious smoothie.

Walnuts are used as a topping in the recipe, providing a handy protein hit along with healthy unsaturated fats and other vitamins and minerals. Feel free to sub in your nut of choice, though, and also consider some seeds as another great way to boost the benefits of your breakfast.

Ingredients (serves one)

Smoothie bowl base

• 65g frozen raspberries
• 50g frozen blueberries
• 1 frozen banana, chopped
• 250ml coconut milk
• 1tsp coconut oil

See related

• Start Your Day With This Smoothie Bowl Recipe And Breeze Past Your Five-A-Day
• The Best Smoothie Recipes
• The Best Smoothie Makers

Topping

• Crushed walnuts
• Desiccated coconut
• Fresh blueberries
• Fresh raspberries

Method

• Blend the base ingredients in a blender until smooth. Add more milk or frozen berries as required until you get a thick consistency.
• Transfer the smoothie into a bowl and add your choice of toppings. We’ve gone for walnuts, coconut, blueberries and raspberries. Extra points for interesting designs. Eat immediately, as if you’ll be able to resist.