Banana & Raisin Bread

A bit of baking on the menu today to ease you into the new week! This banana and raisin bread is light and moist and delicious with a cuppa. Great served on it's own, even better with a little low fat butter on top. The loaf will keep perfectly for a couple of days if stored in an airtight container or biscuit tin. 

Lentil Dahl

Lentil Dahl is a simple Indian dish made with lentils, onion, garlic and ginger delicately spiced with cumin, coriander, turmeric, cinnamon and cayenne. It goes very well as a side dish with grilled fish, chicken or meat. 

Alternatively, you could add some additional cooked veg such as steamed broccoli or cauliflower or some cooked prawns or smoked fish to the dahl to make a main meal.

Braised Lamb & Wholemeal Cream Cheese Dumplings

Lovely lamb on the menu today! This lamb dish combines braised lamb, simmered gently with vegetables and seasonings, then finished off in the oven with wholemeal dumplings and mozzarella cheese.

The wholemeal dumplings go great with this dish and are a great alternative to mash or pasta. They really fill you up and have a surprisingly 'meaty' consistency that goes well with the veg.

Arancini - Crispy Risotto Balls

Arancini is a rustic Italian dish that's a great way to use up any left over cooked risotto rice. In my version, a little low fat cheese is hidden inside a ball of cooled risotto rice, coated in breadcrumbs and gently pan fried so the outside crisps up, while the cheese inside melts. Perfect as a starter, they are great served with a little Tomato Pesto or pasta sauce on the side for dipping.

Also, this post is the 100th recipe I've posted on the site. Since it's been set up in February, over 2,500 unique visitors have viewed more than 5,000 page impressions and I'd like to thank you all for your support and encouragement. Here's to the next 100!

Pan Fried Nut Crumbed Pork

Pan fried pork on the menu today! In this recipe the pork is dipped into a mix of breadcrumbs, ground nuts and herbs to give it a delicious crust. The crust seals and protects the pork inside and allows it to cook gently in the pan. Great served with some steamed veg, it also works very well with some Whole Wheat Pasta and a stir in sauce like Tomato Pesto.

The pork in the post was provided by Bord Bia - Irish Food Board at the food blogger event organised with The Good Mood Food Blog- Donal Skehan last week. Prior to the event, Bord Bia sent pork packs to Irish food bloggers, but I was unable to get mine as we were out of the country for a few days. Big thanks to Maeve Desmond from Bord Bia who arranged for me to get some choice cuts from GMIT butchery lecturer Pat Conway's handiwork to make up!

Sundried Tomato & Olive Wholemeal Pizza

Delicious healthy pizza on the menu today. The classic combo of sundried tomato and olives served over tomato sauce with melted cheeses.

This pizza base recipe is made with half white and half wholemeal flour to keep it on the light side. You could easily add a little more veg or some chopped cooked meat if you want to make the pizza go a bit further. 

Smoked Trout with Creamy Pasta

Smoked trout is a great standby product to have in the fridge. It's fully prepared and can be added to cooked pasta or rice to make a great dinner or simply added to salad or served with Wholemeal Bread for a filling lunch. It's also very good for you as it's a great source of Omega 3 oils and is full of vitamins.

Supper Satisfaction was out and about yesterday at an event for the Irish food blogging community organised by Bord Bia - Irish Food Board & The Good Mood Food Blog- Donal Skehan. They very kindly arranged some samples from Irish food producers including the fantastic smoked trout used in today's recipe which was provided by Goatsbridge Premium Irish Trout.

Wholemeal Bread

A bit of baking on the menu today! This wholemeal bread recipe is kept light by using a mixture of white and wholemeal flour.

While perfect for finger sandwiches, it's a good idea to have some soup in the house when baking this loaf as it's simply perfect for dunking!

Spicy Bean Burgers

These veggie burgers are a great combination of veg, breadcrumbs and mixed beans. Fantastic served on a bun with a little low fat mayo and ketchup, they also go great served with some thai sweet chili sauce on a bed of Brown Rice as a main meal. 

Alternatively, they also work with Wholemeal Wraps, Wholemeal Pitta Breads or Flour Tortillas as a filling lunch.

Banana & Bran Muffins

These banana and bran muffins are a light and very moist, yet surprisingly filling. Ideal as a breakfast on the go, or a great top up your daily fibre later in the day.

You could easily increase the fruit content by folding in some fresh blueberries or blackberries to the completed mixture. A handful of chopped nuts would also work, but make sure to count the extra calories if you are watching your weight. 

Oriental Salad Dressing

The weather does seem to be getting a little better. Well it's warmer, if not quite sunnier at least and salads will soon be on the menu again! 

This recipe is a light oriental salad dressing that can be thrown together in no time. Fantastic with a mixed leaf salad, the dressing also goes great poured over Soba / Buckwheat Noodles. It would also work as dipping sauce served along side Vegetable Spring Rolls, Wontons or Oriental Meatballs. 

Sesame Egg Fried Noodles

Egg fried noodles are a big favourite from the takeaway, but can contain lots of oils and calories. This recipe uses spray oil to keep the calories down, but still retains the traditional taste.f

This dish can easily be padded out with additional veg such as blanched broccoli, asparagus or mange tout to make it go a bit further. You can also add cooked chicken, prawns or ham. 

Potato Rosti

Potato rostis are a great alternative to mashed or boiled potatos. They go great with chicken or fish and can be impressive if entertaining.

The secret to making great rostis is to remove as much liquid as possible from the potato onion mix and not poking around too much when it's in the pan! 

Fajita Seasoning

Most of the large supermarkets offer fajita seasoning packets. Many are quite expensive and tend to contain lots of salt and flavour enhancers to make them last longer. This simple mix tastes great and can be kept in an airtight container for a couple of weeks.

The mix is just sprinkled over cubed chicken and fried with peppers and onions to make  fajitas. Add a little boiling water to the pan when the veg and chicken are cooked. This can be served with Wholemeal Wraps or Flour Tortillas or over Brown Rice. 

Pasta & Beans

I've mentioned before that we try to have at least one veggie meal a week. A vegetarian, if not quite a vegan option is a great way to cut the calories, save a little money, not to mention saving the planet!

This pasta and beans dish is a great one pot supper that requires minimum effort. The veg can easily be chopped before hand and cooked off when needed.

Lamb Tagine

Lamb Tagine on the menu today. A tagine is the name given to an earthenware dish that is used in North African cookery and the meals made in them. This take on a tagine is done on the the hob with lamb and vegetables simmered gently, spiced with cinnamon, cumin and chili powder, then sweetened slightly with a little honey.

This dish is great served with Brown Rice or Lemon & Coriander Couscous. 

Aubergine & Tomato Bake

This Italian vegetable bake is a delicious mix of cooked aubergines and ripe tomatoes, baked in the oven with parmesan cheese.

Ideal as a light meal, or great as a starter. It can easily be assembled before hand and popped into the oven when needed.

Chicken & Sweetcorn Soup

Another lighter soup on the menu today. One of the favourites from the takeaway, Chicken & Sweetcorn soup is a delicious simple soup that's a great way to use up left over chicken. Turkey would work well too.

Raisin & Oatmeal Scones

These raisin and oatmeal scones are very light to eat, yet are surprisingly filling and will keep you full for a good couple of hours. Ideal for a quick breakfast they also work well as a mid-morning snack.

Great served on their own, they are even better sliced in half with some low fat butter and sugar free jam.

Focaccia Bread

Italian Focaccia bread on the menu today. This classic Italian flat bread is a lighter alternative to garlic bread. It combines the great Italian flavours of roasted tomatoes and fresh rosemary.

Focaccia bread is an ideal accompaniment to almost any Italian dish, but works very well when there's lots of sauce to be mopped up!

It's hard to pin down what Focaccia actually means in Italian. It seems to relate to the word 'centre' though. Let me know if you know better!

Salmon Quiche

A quiche needs a crust! Many recipes for low fat quiche advocate making one without a crust resulting in a soggy eggy mix with no base. This recipe does have a crust, albeit a thin one. To keep the calories down, the base is made with a mix of plain and whole meal flour that's bound together with low fat butter and cold water.

The secret to making good pastry is work quickly and don't over handle the mix!