Healthy Mexican Chicken Stew (and Spicy Sweet Potato Wedges)

This is one of my favourite recipes. It's super quick to make, so makes a perfect midweek meal if you've been working late but still want something nutritious. It's also pretty versatile in terms of how to serve it: on it's own as a meaty stew/soup, with rice or cous cous, in a wrap like a fajita, on jacket potato, ladled over pasta... the list goes on. The recipe also doesn't use any oil/fat (but you can, if you want).

I came across a similar recipe, but modified it for our palate by adding a few additional ingredients. I've stated these below.

You will need (recipe listed serves 4):

• Enough chicken for 4 people (I'd suggest 400g chicken breast, or mini fillets).
• 400g tin chopped tomatoes
• 1 tbsp of chipotle chili paste (I used Sainsbury's on this occasion, but Old El Paso, Discovery, Asda and Tesco all have their own variations - I love Asda's Chipotle and Lime version).
• 1-2 cloves garlic, finely chopped or minced.
• 1 red onion
• 1 lime sliced into wedges (to serve)
• Optional: 1-2 chilies of your preference (I use finger chilies) finely chopped, handful of fresh baby or plum tomatoes, 400g tin kidney beans (in salt water, or chilli sauce if you want it even spicier), 1 tsp smoked paprika and sour cream/creme fraiche/yoghurt (to serve).

Method

3. Add the chicken to the mixture and simmer with the lid on

4. Shred the chicken and return to the mixture

1.  Slice the red onion. In a medium sized saucepan lightly fry the onion on a low heat until softened. I dry fried, hence no oil, but you can add a splash of oil if you wish.
2. Add the chopped garlic, the finely chopped chilies (if using) and the handful of fresh tomatoes (if using) together with 1 tbsp of the chipotle chilli paste. Stir and let cook together for a minute. I usually add some salt and pepper at this point.
3. Add the tin of chopped tomatoes to the mixture and stir. Place the chicken breasts/mini fillets into the saucepan and cover in the sauce. The finer the chicken breasts are sliced, the quicker it will cook. Place a lid on the saucepan and leave the pan to simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. When the chicken has cooked through, take the breast pieces out of the sauce and shred using two forks. Stir the chicken back into the mixture and add the kidney beans and the smoked paprika (if using). Keep the mixture on heat, with the lid off.
5. The mixture should be nice and thick, but it may require a splash of water as it reduces. Previously, I've added about 1/2 tin of water (using the tinned tomato tin) to the mixture. You may wish to add more water if you want a more soupy dish. If you want to put it in tacos or wraps, hold off from adding any more water. Turn the heat up and serve when piping hot.
6. Serve as desired. As mentioned above, it's quite versatile. My preference is serving with sweet potato or in a wrap with some rocket and a dollop of sour cream.The fresh lime squeezed over the mixture just before serving adds a sharp tang to the sweet spicy mixture.
7. Note: if you're making this recipe for two and have the tin of chopped tomatoes left over, add them with half an onion and a chilli (if desired) to a pan and cook with a tsp of honey and a tsp of balsamic vinegar and you have a really useful tomato sauce - great with pasta, added to the base of a bolognaise or chilli (if you add the remaining kidney beans).

Sweet potato wedges

I absolutely love sweet potato as it makes a delicious mash, wedge or jacket potato. It's also great added in chunks to a curry. As I use it a lot, I tend to keep a bag of it in the freezer, cut into (skin on) wedges. It makes an easy fix for adding a complex carbohydrate to a meal. For this recipe, the wedges can be made once the chicken has been added to the mixture and left to simmer (stage 3, above).

To make the wedges (featured below), you will need:

• Half a large sweet potato per person, cut into wedges
• 1-2 tbsp polenta
• Splash of olive oil
• Optional: smoked paprika

Method:

1. Add the wedges to a pan of hot water and boil for 5-10 minutes (until a fork can go through the flesh).
2. Drain the wedges, and add to a hot frying plan containing a splash of olive oil. Coat the wedges in the oil and sprinkle over the polenta. Toss the wedges around the pan. 
3. Preheat an oven to 180 degrees centigrade (see my page for conversions here) With the frying pan on a low heat, stir the wedges occasionally until they have a browned slightly.
4. Put the wedges on a baking tray (lined with parchment or tin foil).Sprinkle on the paprika (if using) and place in the top of the oven for another 5-10 minutes, turning once.
5. The wedges are ready to come out of the oven when they are browned, but not burned. The polenta adds a slight crunch to the wedge and gives it that restaurant texture, but it's not essential to the recipe.

I served my stew with a tortilla wrap, a few wedges and a rocket salad dressed with grated parmesan, olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

Sorbets and Ice-Cream

I don't have an ice-cream maker,  when I read a magazine which feature recipes for gorgeous sounding ice-creams and sorbets I'm always disappointed that the instructions require an ice-cream maker.

I've nothing against purchasing one, but for me I think it'd be a gimmick purchase that would soon gather dust. So, I set about experimenting with some recipes I'd previously come across, and created 3 gorgeous ice-creams/ice-cream style eats. Two of which are almost entirely fruit and are great for those who are on a diet but want something for a dessert.

The first I discovered when I subscribed to Olive magazine. Or perhaps it was my friend's Good Food Magazine - either way, we got pretty excited about the idea of making ice-cream from a banana! It's so easy, and ready immediately!

Banana "ice-cream" (serves 4)

6 bananas (chopped into 1-2 cm rings, and frozen)
4 tbsp milk (* or a soya/almond/coconut milk, for taste or diet specific)

Take the bananas from the freezer, throw them into a blender/food processor and whiz with the milk. The bananas take on the consistency of soft-scoop ice-cream. You could add a little bit of cinnamon, or some honey, or peanut butter - anything that tastes good with bananas. Serve immediately.

EDIT: I've since realised you can do this with virtually any fruit, and to make it suitable for specific diets or intolerances, try using soy milk or an alternative (I've used Alpro Almond Milk). For a quick tropical ice-cream, I used frozen pineapple and some coconut milk. Adding a splash of rum to the mixture, I created an instant pina colada!

Coffee No-Churn Ice-Cream

This is something which caught my eye on Nigella's Nigelissima, and it seemed pretty easy so I thought it was worth a try. Again, simple ingredients and it didn't take long at all...

284ml condensed milk
300m double cream
2 tbsp espresso powder (I used 2 tbsp of Millicano, sieved, instead)
2 tbsp espresso liqueur (I used a 'single serving' sized Tia Maria)

It couldn't have been simpler - simply whisk all the ingredients together until you get soft peaks, and then fill an airtight tuppaware container. Because of the alcohol it doesn't set completely solid, so you can serve it straight from the freezer.

I liked the texture of the ice-cream, but I personally felt it left a slightly strange lining on my tongue, which I think was from the frozen condensed milk. I can't quite explain it. It wouldn't stop me from making it again though!

However, in my bid to find the best ice-cream that didn't require a blender, I stumbled across a Mary Berry recipe which created the best ice-cream I've ever tasted (except for the delicious ice-cream you find in Tuscan gelaterias!). It's a simple recipe, which created the most perfectly light and creamy ice-cream. My parents and brother didn't believe I'd made it (and were only convinced because I served it from a re-used tuppaware container that didn't always contain ice-cream!).

No churn ice-cream

300 mls double cream
4 eggs, separated
100g caster sugar

Optional extras: fruit puree (made from blending the fruit of your choice in a blender/food processor), 3 tbsps of chopped dark chocolate (or melted chocolate to swirl in),  3 tbsp of raisins soaked in 50ml rum, vanilla extract/vanilla pod, a chopped chunk of stem ginger with some of the syrup... the list is endless!)

Whisk the double cream until soft peaks form. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites until they form stiff peaks (as if you're making meringue). Slowly add the caster sugar to the egg whites, so that the mixture retains its stiff peaks but becomes glossy. Once all of the sugar has been added, dollop in the whipped cream and the eggg yolks (I added one at a time) and whisk the ingredients again until they are all combined. The trick with this recipe was to retain as much air as possible, so you don't want to over-whisk it.

I added a tsp of vanilla essence and some chopped cystallised ginger, as I wanted a vanilla ice-cream but with some sweet ginger chunks to complement the theme of my dinner. Pour the mixture into a container and freeze.

To serve, take the ice-cream from the freezer and leave at room temperature for about 5 minutes, then scoop and enjoy! I'll be experimenting further with this recipe to see how I can adapt it to feature other flavours.

Mango Sorbet

If you're not a fan of ice-cream, or you need something with fewer calories (as is often the desire of women like me who want a pudding, but don't want the guilt!) I strongly suggest getting your hands on some kesar mango pulp.

I'm fortunate enough to live in a multi-ethnic area, so tins of mango pulp and coconut milk are in abundance, which is great given my preference for spicy asian cuisine.

For this sorbet, you need:

850g tin of kesar mango pulp (or 2 large mangoes, peeled, stoned and blitzed in a food processor)
90g caster sugar

The process is simple - blend the mango (or pulp) in a food processor with the caster sugar. Once blended, pour into a container and place in the freezer.

I was keen to add a slight kick to mine, so I added one chopped and de-seeded finger chilli, and about 1 tsp of grated root ginger before I blitzed it in the blender - the pieces of chilli and ginger got much smaller and more dispersed. I then grated in some fresh lime zest.

Once frozen, take out of the freezer and spoon it back into a food processor and blitz again until smooth then replace in the freezer. This avoids any ice-crystals forming in the mix and makes for a smoother, tastier sorbet. Because of the chilli, ginger and lime, it served as the perfect dessert after a curry.

The final product of my mango sorbet and ginger ice-cream: