Healthy Food for a Crowd: Mains

Following on from last week’s blog with starters and nibbles, this week I’ll be sharing recipes you can use as main courses. And as before, the recipes are all easy to prepare for a crowd, making them ideal for get-togethers with family and friends.

Not only are these recipes delicious, but they’ll also help keep your hormones in balance. So let’s take a look at the recipes you can create as the main attraction!

Chilli con carne

Serves 8

Ingredients

• 2 onions, finely chopped
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 2 tsp smoked paprika
• 2 large carrots, grated
• 4 sticks celery, chopped
• 500g lean mince (beef, chicken, pork)
• 2 red peppers, chopped
• 4 tbsp tomato paste
• 800g passata
• 800g (2 tins) red kidney beans, drained
• 250g cherry tomatoes, halved
• 200g baby spinach
• 1 red chilli (or more, to taste), finely chopped
• 1 bunch fresh coriander, chopped

Instructions

1. Gently fry the onion, carrots and celery for 3 mins until softened. Add the spices and mince, and cook through for 5 mins until the mince is browned.
2. Add the peppers, tomato paste, passata and beans. Pour over 2 cups of water. Simmer over a low–medium heat for 30 mins until thick.
3. Season with ground pepper and a little salt, add the cherry tomatoes.
4. Fold in spinach and coriander just before serving.
5. Eat with brown rice or quinoa.

Chicken & Squash Tagine with Feta & Mint

Serves 6

Ingredients

• 4 chicken breasts
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 2 onions, 1 roughly chopped, 1 sliced
• 100g tomatoes
• 50g ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1 tbsp each ground cumin, coriander and cinnamon
• 1 large butternut squash, deseeded and cut into big chunks
• 600 ml chicken stock
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 100g dried cherries

To serve

• 1 small red onion, finely chopped
• 100g feta cheese, crumbled
• Handful mint leaves, torn
• Zest of a lemon
• Red onion, finely chopped

Instructions

1. Season the chicken breasts. Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a large pan, then brown the chicken on all sides. Transfer the chicken to a plate.
2. Whizz the chopped onion, tomatoes, chopped ginger and garlic cloves into a rough paste.
3. Fry the sliced onion in 1 tbsp olive oil in the pan until softened, then add the turmeric, cumin, coriander and cinnamon, and fry for 1 min more until fragrant. Add the paste and fry for another few mins to soften. Return the chicken to the pan.
4. Add the squash, chicken stock, and red wine vinegar. Bring to a simmer, then cook for 30 mins until the chicken is cooked through.
5. Lift the chicken out and stir in the dried cherries. Continue simmering the sauce to thicken while you shred the chicken into bite-sized chunks.
6. Stir the chicken back into the sauce and season. Garnish with a mix of the finely chopped red onion, lemon zest, mint leaves crumbled feta cheese.
7. Serve with cauliflower rice.

Black rice, squash & chickpea salad

Serves 8

Ingredients

• 95g black rice
• 80g wild rice
• Flaked sea salt
• 1 medium butternut squash, peeled, seeds removed, cut into pieces
• 100ml olive oil
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 50ml red wine vinegar
• 2 teaspoons honey
• 2 spring onions, thinly sliced
• 2 pomegranates (seeds only)
• 400g tin chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 1 bunch parsley, roughly chopped
• 50g roasted pistachios, chopped

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 220C˚. Cook the black and wild rice in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender – about 35–40 mins. Drain and rinse. Spread out on a rimmed baking sheet and let cool.
2. Meanwhile, toss squash with 50ml oil on another baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper. Roast for about 20 to 25 mins, tossing part way through cooking, until golden brown and tender. Leave to cool.
3. Whisk the vinegar, honey and remaining oil in a large bowl. Add the rice, squash, spring onions, pomegranate seeds, chickpeas and pistachios. Season with salt and pepper and toss to combine.

Aubergine Bake

Serves 8

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 large onions, finely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, crushed
• 4 x 400 g tins chopped tomatoes 300g quinoa
• 2 tbsp tomato purée
• Large handful fresh basil, chopped
• 4 medium aubergines, cut into chunks
• 100g Parmesan, grated

Instructions

1. Heat half the oil in a large pan over medium heat and gently fry the onions for 10 mins, until softened. Add garlic for the last 2 mins.
2. Add tomatoes, quinoa, tomato purée and 600ml just-boiled water. Simmer for 20min, until quinoa is tender. Stir through most of the basil.
3. Meanwhile, heat the remaining oil in a separate pan and fry. the aubergine for 15 mins, until softened. Do this in batches if you need to. Add a splash of water if the pan looks dry.
4. Preheat grill to medium. Empty quinoa mixture into a large ovenproof dish. Top with the aubergine, then sprinkle over the Parmesan.
5. Grill for 3-5 mins until piping hot and golden. Garnish with remaining basil and serve immediately.

Roasted cauliflower with chickpeas & pomegranate

Serves 6

Ingredients

• 1 medium cauliflower, cut into florets
• 1x 400g tin chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp chilli powder
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 pomegranate, seeds only
• 2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 200C˚. Place cauliflower florets and chickpeas in a large bowl. Add the garlic powder, cumin, paprika, chilli powder, and salt.
2. Drizzle with olive oil and fresh lemon juice. Toss in the spice mix until the cauliflower and chickpeas are well coated.
3. Place on a large baking sheet and bake for 45 mins or until the cauliflower and chickpeas are slightly crisp.
4. Remove from the oven and add the pomegranate seeds and fresh parsley. Serve immediately.
5. Alternatively, allow the cauliflower and the chickpeas to cool completely, then combine with the remaining ingredients.

Spinach, avocado & pomegranate salad

Serves 6

Ingredients

• 200g bag fresh spinach
• 2 medium avocados, sliced
• 1 pomegranate (seeds only)
• 50g sunflower seeds
• 1 medium sweet potato

For the dressing

• Juice of a lemon
• 90ml olive oil

Instructions

1. Chop the sweet potato into chunks and boil in a medium pan of salty water for 10 mins, or until just tender. Drain, rinse under cold water (to prevent them cooking further), drain again and set aside.
2. For the dressing, combine the lemon juice and olive oil and whisk with a little salt and pepper.
3. Arrange the spinach and avocado on a plate. Toss with the dressing. Slice the chunks of sweet potato. Sprinkle over the pomegranate and the sunflower seeds.

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