Harissa Prawn Orzo

Serves 4 = 7sp per serving on BLUE and PURPLE, 8sp on GREEN

Ingredients

1 onion, peeled and finely diced

3 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped

1 courgette, washed, woody ends cut off and grated

240g orzo, dry

½ tsp salt

1 vegetable stock cube, made up with 500ml boiling water

80g frozen peas

3 spring onions, finely sliced

3 tsp harissa paste

30g parmesan, finely grated

Handful of fresh mint and coriander, roughly chopped

Pinch of crushed chillies (if you like it spicy)

1 lemon, zest and juice

360g raw jumbo king prawns (I buy the frozen ones in Aldi, make sure they are defrosted before use)

Method

Spray a large frying pan (or wok) with 1kal and add the onion. Fry on a medium heat for 4-5 minutes until the onion starts to soften (add a little water if the pan starts to get dry). Add the garlic and courgette and fry for another minute or two.  Add the orzo, stir through and then add the vegetable stock and salt. Bring to the boil and then reduce to a simmer for 10-12 minutes until the orzo is cooked through and the water has evaporated. Add the peas and spring onions to the pan a few minutes before the orzo is cooked (reserve a few spring onions to dress the dish at the end). If the water dries up completely before the orzo is cooked, add a little more water. If the pan is still watery when the orzo is al dente, bring the heat to high to simmer off the liquid quickly (be careful to keep stirring every now and then so the orzo doesn’t stick to the pan).

Once the orzo is cooked and is no longer watery, turn off the heat and stir through the harissa, parmesan, mint and coriander (and the chillies if you are having them). Season with salt and pepper to taste. Leave to rest while you cook the prawns.

In a separate frying pan, spray with 1kal, add the prawns, season with salt and pepper and the lemon zest. Fry for a few minutes until pink and cooked through (this won’t take long at all). Remove from the heat.

Finally add the juice of ½ the lemon to the orzo. Stir and then portion up. Top with the prawns, reserved spring onions and serve with a small slice of lemon per person.

Enjoy!

The post Harissa Prawn Orzo first appeared on Slimming Kitchen Secrets.

This recipe is the perfect January recipe to get you kick started for the new year. It has the lovely comforting warmness that any winter dish needs, but the crab, chorizo and chilli combo bring a lovely fresh and vibrant flavour to the dish. Using orzo instead of risotto brings the cooking time right down so it can be made much more quickly if you are in a rush. If you can’t get a hold of fresh crab meat, tinned crab meat will work just as well. Most supermarkets have samphire these days and for such an easy ingredient to cook, it brings a lovely fresh crunch to the dish. If you can’t get a hold of any samphire I would add a handle of frozen garden peas to the dish ten minutes before it’s finished so that it keeps a nice green burst.

Crab, Chorizo and Chilli Orzo with Samphire

Serves 2 = 11sp each

Ingredients

1 x white onion, peeled and finely diced

2 x garlic cloves, peeled and finely minced

1 x red chilli, finely chopped (and deseeded if you don’t like it too hot)

40g chorizo, peeled and sliced into half moons

1 tbsp tomato puree

125ml white wine

120g orzo, dried

½ litre vegetable stock (made with 1 vegetable stock cube)

125g cooked white crab meat

Large handful of parsley, finely chopped

Juice of 1 lemon

Small pack of samphire

1 tsp lurpack lightest

Method

1. Take a large saucepan and pop onto a medium heat. Spray with 1kal and add the onions. Fry for 4-5 minutes until the onions start to soften (add a little water if the pan gets dry).

2. Add the garlic, chilli and chorizo and fry for another minute until the oil from the chorizo starts to release. Then add the tomato puree, fry for another minute and then add the wine.

3. Simmer the wine for a few minutes until the wine reduces and then add the orzo, stirring in.

4. Add half the stock so that it covers the orzo turning down to simmer.

5. Keep adding the stock until the orzo is cooked (it usually takes 12-15 minutes). Once the orzo is cooked and the stock is absorbed, add the crab meat and season to taste. Toss the crab meat through the orzo until it is warm.

6. Add the parsley and juice of 1 lemon and then take off the heat. Leave to rest for a minute while you cook the samphire.

7. Boil the samphire in another pan for 2-3 minutes. Drain and pop back into the same pan with the butter. Let the butter melt with the heat of the pan and toss through the samphire.

8. Serve the orzo in a bowl topped with the samphire.

9. Enjoy!

The post Crab, Chorizo and Chilli Orzo with Samphire – 11sp first appeared on Slimming Kitchen Secrets.

The result was delicious. The meatballs are so tasty and flavoursome and the orzo is lovely and rich and smooth. This is a great recipe to make for kids (if you omit the crushed chillies and wine) as it’s an easy one pot dish with lovely simple flavours.

Ingredients

Serves 4 = 10sp per serving (Flex)

For the Meatballs

1 pack of Heck Chicken Italia Sausages (I got mine in Tesco but you can order them on their website too!)

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 spring onions, finely chopped

1 slice of day old bread (or fresh bread toasted), whizzed into breadcrumbs

Pinch of crushed chillies

Salt and pepper

For the Orzo

1 red onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

200g orzo, dried

Small glass of white wine (125ml) (Optional)

½ tsp paprika

Pinch of crushed chillies

2 tbsp sundried tomato pesto

400g tin chopped tomatoes

1 chicken stock cube made up with 400ml boiling water

80g frozen peas

1 tbsp parmesan

To serve

2 spring onions, finely sliced

1 tbsp parmesan

Method

Squeeze the sausage meat of the skins and pop into a large mixing bowl. Add the garlic, spring onions, breadcrumbs, crushed chillies and salt and pepper and give a good mix so it is well combined.

Roll the meat mixture into 16 smallish meatballs. Spray a large frying pan with 1kal, pop onto a medium heat and fry the meatballs for 5-7 minutes until nicely browned on the outside. Remove from the pan and pop onto a plate to one side.

In the same frying pan, spray again with 1kal and add the red onion, frying for 5-6 minutes until soft. Add a splash of water if the onion looks like it is drying out. Add the garlic and fry for another minute and then add the orzo, stirring in until well combined. Fry for another minutes and then add the wine. Simmer until reduced by half and then add then paprika, crushed chillies, pesto, tomatoes and 200ml of the chicken stock. Add the meatballs back to the pan. Simmer on a low heat for 12 minutes. Stir regularly and when it looks like the orzo has absorbed a lot of the water, add a little more chicken stock bit by bit. You should use all the stock after around 12 minutes. Once the orzo and meatballs are cooked through, add the peas and simmer for another 2 minutes until they warm through.

Remove from the heat and stir through 1 tbsp parmesan.

Serve in a pasta bowl and top with spring onion slices and a little more parmesan.

Enjoy!

The post Chicken Meatballs with Sundried Tomato Orzo – 10sp first appeared on Slimming Kitchen Secrets.