Date Slice - Cheap Tuesday Recipe

Ingredients:

• 2 Cups of dates - chopped
• 1 Cup of Water
• 1/4 cup of Honey
• 1 tablespoon of sugar

• 1/2 Cup of Brown Sugar
• 1/4 Cup of Apple Sauce
• 1/2 Cup of margarine

• 1 & 1/3 Cup of whole wheat flour
• 1/2 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda
• 1 & 1/2 Cups of Rolled Oats
• 2 tablespoons of cinnamon

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C and line a 20 x 30 cm baking tray with baking paper and/or  canola spray
2. In a saucepan place the dates, water, honey and teaspoon of sugar and over a medium heat cook and stir for approximately 10 minutes or until the dates have absorbed all the liquid. allow to cool to room temperature
3. Mix the margarine, brown sugar and apple sauce with electric mixer until well combined
4. Sift in flour and bicarb soda - stir until well combined, and then add in rolled oats and cinnamon and mix well
5. Press half the oat mixture into the lining baking tray
6. Spread date mixture evenly over the top
7. finally, place or crumble the remaining half of the oat mixture over the top so dates are completely covered
8. Bake for 35 - 40 minutes or until golden brown, cut into slices and enjoy!

xxx

Mad moroccan veggie patties - Cheap Tuesday Recipe

I kind of winged this recipe and it worked out so thats always promising! Veggie patties are a great healthy and cheap alternative to meat patties.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup cooked quinoa
• 1 400 g can of chickpeas
• 1 onion diced (I used purple onion)
• 2 carrots grated
• 2 potatoes grated
• olive oil
• 1 tbsp of minced garlic
• 1 1/2 tbsp of morrocan spice (or try cumin & curry powder if you don't have)
• 1 tbsp of mixed herb
• 1 cup of plain flour
• 1 large egg
• pinch of salt and pepper
• seasame seeds sprinkled on top of patties before cooking (optional)

note: next time I think I would add some breadcrumbs

Method:

1. Drain and wash chickpeas, and then mash/ blend  with tsp of olive oil to a smoothish texture
2. squeeze excess moisture out of the carrot and potato and then add to chickpea mixture
3. lightly fry the onion, garlic and herb/ spices for around 3-4 minutes and allow yto cool a bit before added them to the mixture
4. Add in quinoa, flour, egg and salt & pepper and mix, using hands to combine the mixture
5. Mixture was quite sticky so this is where I would add some breadcrumbs next time. Roll 6-8 balls depending on the size you want, and sprinkle some sesame seeds on the top.
6. In a frying pan, fry the patties in some olive oil (push the balls into a patty shape with spatula) cook until brown on both sides continuously turning and until pattie in cooked all way through! Approx 15 min
7. Serve with salad and buns or if you're feeling extra creative use large (oven-cooked) mushrooms as the bun for an ultimate veggie burger.

Enjoy xxx

Feel good Chicken Soup (Cheap Tuesday Recipe)

Winter is definitely around the corner, and as much as I have tried to avoid it the dreaded 'Common Cold' has struck me down over the weekend. So this is exactly what I felt like - a healthy feel-good soup to warm me up and make me feel better! And it cheap and easy to make!! This is another one that cost me less than $10 to make (not including pantry staples)

Serves 6

Ingredients:

• 500 g Chicken Thigh (or breast) diced
• 1 Brown onion
• 2 tsp of minced garlic
• 2 tbsp of olive oil
• 1 L Chicken Stock, salt reduced
• 1 packet of chicken noodle soup ( makes up to a 1 L solution)
• 3/4 cup of pasta
• 2 Carrots, diced into chunks
• 2 Potatoes, diced into chunks
• 3 Celery stalks, diced
• 1-2 tsp's Mixed herb and pepper
• I topped my soup with some spring onion

Method:

• Place large soup pot on stove (medium/high temp) and cook the onion and garlic in the olive oil for about 2 mins
• Add in the chopped up vegetables and herbs, stir and cook for 5 min, stirring often
• Pour in chicken stock and chicken noodle soup mix, bring soup to boil and then allow to simmer for 10-15 min
• Add in diced chicken and cook for further 10 minutes
• Add in pasta last and cook for a further 8-10 minutes or until pasta is tender and chicken and vegetables cooked through!
• Ladle into bowls and add chopped spring onion or herbs on top, and serve with a nice toasted bread!

*Tip from my mum: If you have left over soup the next night, a great way to change it up a bit or if more liquid is needed; add a tin of tomato soup and its corresponding water gives the soup a whole new flavour!

Enjoy xxx

Home made Muesli Bar Slice

This is a quick and easy recipe, and easily adapted to what you have in your own pantry! next time I would like to add pumpkin seeds. Omit nuts if for primary school kid's lunch box. Great way to save money on pre-packaged muesli bars and they are so yummy!

Ingredients:

• 1 and 1/4 cup rolled oats
• 1/4 cup plain flour  
• 3/4 cup of chopped dates or dried fruit preference (sultanas, dried apricots, craisens etc)
• 3 tablespoons of chia seeds
• 1/4 cup of sesame seeds
• 1 cup of mixed chopped nuts
• 1/4 cup of shredded coconut
• 1/4 cup of dark choc chopped

• 1/4 cup of milk
• 1 egg

• 2 tablespoons of brown sugar
• 60 g butter or margarine or coconut oil
• 1/4 cup of honey

Method:

• Preheat oven to 180*C
• Place all the dry ingredients except for the brown sugar in a bowl and mix together
• Place the brown sugar, butter and honey in a separate bowl and place in microwave for 1 minute
• Then add the brown sugar mix to the dry ingredients and mix
• Finally, add in the milk and egg and mix again
• Line a laming ton dish with baking paper and grease the edges. Place mixture in, and cook in oven for 15 minutes
• Once cooled, slice and enjoy xxx

Chicken Rice Paper Rolls - Cheap Tuesday Recipe

Makes around 16 rice paper rolls

I have always wanted to make rice paper rolls but always thought it would be to difficult, I now know just how easy it is! and a great healthy alternative! Perfect for dinner parties, healthy lunches and kid friendly (get the kids involved in making there own). This time I made chicken ones but will try prawn and tofu as ingredients in the future.


Ingredients:

• 1 or 2 Chicken Breasts
• 1 tbsp of oil
• 1 tsp of minced garlic
• 1 packet of rice paper (22cm diameter)
• approx 100 g of vermicelli rice noodles
• 2 carrots chopped into thin slices
• 1 medium red capsicum chopped into thin slices
• 1/2 a zucchini chopped thinly
• bean sprouts (I used about 1/2 can)
• 16 mint leaves (1 per roll)
• 32 coriander leaves (2 per roll)
• optional: 1 red chili sliced thinly
• soy sauce
•sweet chili sauce

Method:

• Place the vermicelli rice noodles in a bowl with boiling water and cover for 5 minutes until noodles are soft. Drain and cut noodles into shorter lengths. Set aside for later.
• Cook chicken in fry pan with oil and garlic until cooked through and no longer pink. Chop up into small pieces.
• In a bowl of hot water place 1 piece of rice paper in for 30 seconds and then transfer to damp plate or towel. place the chicken, noodles, and vegetables in the middle of the rice paper.
• Roll the rice paper rolls according to packet (they have a easy to follow diagram)
• Serve with sweet chili or soy sauce

Enjoy xxx

Pumpkin & Sweet Potato Soup - Cheap Tuesday Recipe

Pumpkin & Sweet Potato Soup

This is a great recipe coming into the colder months, very easy to make and cost me only $10 for ingrediants (minus the spices, oil and garlic which i already had) 

Serves 6 

Ingredients:

• 1 Kg of Pumpkin ( I used Kent)
• 1/2 Kg of Sweet Potato
• 1 tbsp of olive oil
• 1 Large Onion (chopped finely)
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 1 L of chicken or vegetable stock
• 2 tsp of cumin
• 1 tbsp of Italian/ mixed herb
• 1/2 of chopped spinach leaves
• drizzle of low fat thickened cream or sour cream to serve

Method:

• Cut the pumpkin and sweet potato up into roughly 1-2 cm cubes (remembering that the smaller the pieces the less time they will take to cook), also chop onion.
• In a large pot fry the onion  in the olive oil until soft, then add in garlic and spices and cook for extra minute.
• Add in the pumpkin, sweet potato, spinach and stock. Bring to the boil and then simmer for 30 minutes or until vegetables are soft and break apart easily.
• Turn heat off and cover soup, allowing to cool a bit before blending it.
• I used a kenwood hand blender, which made it a lot easier and less messy as I could just blend the soup while it was still in the pot!
• Serve soup with a drizzle of cream and some nice crusty bread.

Enjoy xxx

Quinoa Pancakes - Cheap Tuesday Recipe

This weeks recipe had to be based on whatever I had in the pantry and fridge as I am poor with a capital P! So with a bag of Quinoa sitting in my cupboard I decided it was a great opportunity to use this protein-filling alternative to grains and rices.

 Quinoa is actually pronounced KEEN- WAH,

A few reasons why quinoa could be a great addition to your next shopping trip include:

• It contains 10-18% protein and contains all the essential amino acids (which is a great option for non- meat eaters).
• It is rich in insoluble fiber, so good for the digestive system.
• It is a gluten-free option for those who suffer from intolerance or Celiac's disease.
• Quinoa contains minerals such as iron, calcium, potassium and magnesium.

Quinoa Healthy Pancakes

Adapted this recipe from a recipe on fitsugar.com

Serving: 6-8 Pancakes

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup of cooked quinoa
• 3/4 cup of plain flour
• 2 teaspoons of baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 2 Eggs
• 1 tablespoon of margarine 
• 1/4 cup of almond milk ( I used Almond Breeze- 98% Fat free and unsweetened)
• 2 1/2 tablespoons of honey & bit extra for serving
• 1 banana (to top when serving)

Method:

1. Mix quinoa, flour, baking powder and salt in one bowl, and in a separate bowl whisk together eggs, margarine, milk and honey until smooth
2. Combine the two mixtures and whisk until smooth
3. Lightly coat a non-stick fry-pan with margarine or butter and heat to medium temperate
4. Drop one or two scoops of batter into the frying pan (I used a soup ladle) and cook on one side until bubbles appear on the top ( Around 2 minutes)
5. Flip pancake and cook until underneath is brown ( Another 2 minutes)
6. Serve with a drizzle of honey and cut up banana

Easy and Healthy alternative to Sunday Breakfast this Weekend :)

Cheap Tuesday Recipes and Fun Fact Fridays

How can it only be Tuesday? Feels like the whole week drags and then the weekend is gone before you can even say hello!
Well from now on I will have something to spice up both your Tuesdays and Fridays. I am going to commit to post a budget-conscious recipe every Tuesday and trust me as a poor uni student I know how important a cheap tuesday meal can be (and no I am not referring to dominoes pizza, put down the take away menu!!). I will also post a fun fact every friday in regards to nutrition- This week I will discuss Acne and how changes in nutrition and lifestyle can improve your skin. Now to people who know me- committing to writing twice a week will test my organisational skills but blogging will be a great way for me to further my nutrition knowledge and I continue to study it and share the cool tips and fun facts that I learn along the way!

This weeks recipe was an absolute hit over the easter holidays and its deceptive healthiness will trick even the stubbornest of kids!

Chocolate Kidney Bean Surprise Cupcakes!

Now you're probably all think kidney beans in muffins hows that work? But trust me you can not even taste the beans, great for people who have a sweet tooth but are trying to be healthy. This recipe however is only cheap if you already have some of the ingrediants in your pantry. I adapted this from a recipe given to me at university from NADSA.

Prep time: 15 minutes or less

Makes: around 20 cupcakes

Ingrediants:

• 1 or 2 cans of red kidney beans (drained and rinsed) - I used two
•  a few tablespoons of water to help with blending the beans
• 2 and 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
• 6 tablespoons of cocoa powder
• 6 tablespoons of margarine
• 1 cup of brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon of baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda/ baking soda
• 4 eggs
• pinch of salt
• 70 to 100g of dark chocolate (around half a block or less depending own taste)
• optional: finely grated dark chocolate to decorate cupcakes

Method:

• Preheat oven to 170°C
• Line muffin trays with your cupcake/ muffin cups
• Blend kidney beans with the 2 tablespoons of water and 1/2 tablespoon of vanilla until a nice smooth texture (about 2 minutes)
• In seperate bowl mix the eggs, vanilla extract, margarine and sugar with and electric mixer on medium until all mixed
• Then add the kidney bean mixture in and mix for another 1-2 minutes
• finally add in the cocoa powder, bicarb soda and baking powder and mix until all combined
• At this point you can either chop up the dark chocolate and mix it through with the other ingrediants or as I chose to do, put a square in the middle of each cupcake for a little surprise! ;)
• spoon mixture into the muffin cups and bake for 15 minutes
• and once cooled grate any additional dark chocolate over the top of the cupcakes

They are a great healthy and moist cupcake that was enjoyed by range of age groups at our family easter celebrations

Enjoy xoxo

and feel free to comment any suggestions or email me at nutritiononabudget1@gmail.com for any queries etc

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Mini Quiche Recipe

Easy Mini Quiches!

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Makes: 12 mini quiches

Ingredients:

4 Eggs

1 1/2 Cups of Low Fat Milk

3 Tablespoons of melted Margarine or butter

1/2 of wholemeal self-raising flour (or gluten free flour substitute of your choice if need)

1 1/2 Cups of grated reduced fat cheddar cheese

2 Cups of fillings of your choice

( I used 1 cup spinach (chopped finely), 1/2 cup of ham pieces and 1/2 of mushrooms (chopped finely)

Method:

1) Preheat oven to 180°C

2) Grease a 12 piece muffin dish with butter or margarine

3) Whisk eggs quickly and then add milk, margarine and flour and whisk together

4) Fold in cheese and fillings

5) Pour into muffin tin compartments ( I found that using a big soup ladle spoon helped to pour consistent amounts into each

6) Bake for 15 minutes or until set

:) xxx