healthy Weekday Meal #4 ............{Halloumi with cous cous and kale}

A hit is how I describe this dish. Went down very well in our household and H appreciated the extra protein in the form of chorizo in his version. I didn't miss the chorizo and found this dish really nice and filling. Its  very quick and easy to make which makes it perfect for an evening meal after a long day at work and you could also substitute the couscous for quinona if you so wish, it works just as well.  

Halloumi with Cous Cous and Kale

block of halloumi cut into slices 

around 50g of chorizo, sliced  *OPTIONAL*

50g couscous, made according to instructions (i make mine with stock)

good few handfuls kale, as much as you like!

mustard vinaigrette - i make mine - few glugs of OO, 1 tbsp cider vinegar, 1 clove garlic chopped, 1 tbsp mustard (Dijon or wholegrain) a squeeze of lemon juice and some S&P all shaken up together. but use shop bought if you want 

steam your kale for just a few minutes until the leaves have gone slightly darker but it's not soggy. drain and let cool down slightly. take a pan, if you are cooking the chorizo add them to the pan and cook off for a 5 or so minutes then remove them from the pan. add in the halloumi and then cook that, turning occasionally - if you have used the chorizo then it will just cook in the oils released if not add a tiny bit of oil to the pan. toss the kale, cous cous and a bit of dressing together and place in pan. add the halloumi and chorizo to the top and serve. 

Linking up with Vicky at Honest Mum

Healthy Weekday Meal #1..............{Moroccan Turkey Meatballs with cous cous}

So to shift those pounds that I speak about in my new years resolutions post, I have started on the JuicePlus+ diet where basically you have meal replacement shakes for 2 meals a day with a "clean and lean" meal in the evening... gradually you come of the shakes and the idea is that change your eating habits as you are learning to adapt a more clean way of eating. So I am 2 weeks into this plan and I have already lost 7lbs and I am enjoying coming up with healthy and tasty recipes.

This recipe is great as it packs in loads of vegetables in to the sauce, it's really flavoursome and it turns what would be a rich dish into something much lighter. you could make this dish would pork or beef mince balls but for optimum healthiness I went for turkey. The cous cous is made how i like it which is to always make it with stock but again this is entirely to my tastes...

Moroccan Turkey Meatballs with Cous Cous

250g turkey mince, rolled into around 12 balls (or you can just buy a pack of ready made turkey meatballs)

1 onion, diced 

1/2 red onion, diced 

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped or minced 

1 tsp dried red chilli flakes 

1 carrot, diced

1/2 courgette, diced 

3 large mushrooms, diced

1 tbsp Ras el hanout

1/2 tsp cinnamon

sprinkle of cumin 

2 large tomatoes chopped 

400g chopped tomato (or you could us passatta)

1 dtsp agave syrup (if you don't have this use honey)

olive oil 

125g cous cous 

1/2 stock cube (optional)

1 tbsp sundried tomatoes, chopped

1 dsp sundried tomato oil (from the jar)

put a little olive oil in the pan and then brown of your meatballs - don't worry if they are a little pink in the middle you are going to cook them again a bit later. remove the meatballs and then put the onions in the pan - i tend to add a bit of water here to help soften them rather than more oil. once they have softened add in the garlic and chilli flakes and stir until the garlic becomes fragrant. to the pan add the carrot, courgette and mushrooms along with the remaining spices. after 10 minutes or so add in the tomatoes, 300ml water and the agave syrup. season well. blend the sauce until it becomes smooth(ish) bring the pan to the boil and then drop in the meatballs making sure they are almost submerged in the simmering sauce. turn the pan down low and cover with lid. cook for around 20 minutes covered and 10 minutes uncovered at the end. whilst the meatballs are cooking away make the cous cous however you prefer - i just cover the stock and cous cous with boiling water, put a plate over the bowl so it steams then after 5 minutes of so I fluff it up and add the oil and sun dried tomatoes. serve the meatballs over the cous cous.