Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday...

Sorry I've been missing in action this week. It's my last week at my current job, so although I am cooking - cooking away in fact, I just haven't quite gotten it together to blog it up. So here's a recap of the first half of the week.

Monday: pasta puttanesca, for two

Wholewheat linguine, 1 can of chopped tomatoes, 1/2 can of chopped black olives, 1 tsp olive oil, salt and pepper, and capers (if you have them - I didn't this time).

With 100 g of pasta, the sauce, and a generous fresh side salad (spinach, tomatoes, portobella mushrooms, cucumber, balsamic dressing), the calorie count comes to just under 500.

I've made a similar one before: see here

Tuesday: bulgur wheat with aubergines and mint

I bow before the greatness that is Nigel Slater. His Kitchen Diaries are truly a culinary bible. It makes me so happy to sit down with his book at the beginning of each month, year after year, to get inspiration for the next thirty or so days. Each time, something new takes my fancy

I wasn't sure at first how this would qualify as a winter recipe, but it completely works. It's rich and nutty. My only quibble with the wonderful Nigel is his (over)use of oil. To fry the onions and aubergine, he calls for six - count 'em, six! - tablespoons of oil. I used two, and a splash of stock (which you'll be using later anyway, so it's not inconvenient).

As it's January, I used drained chopped tomatoes in place of whole ones. Instead of pine kernels (what are they?) I used pine nuts. The mint, a surprise touch, was absolutely perfect. I would absolutely do this again, but next time, I'll spoon a bit of harissa on the side. And healthy too: Nigel says it serves 2, but it likely serves 4. A serving and a half (my size) comes to about 500 calories. Fab!

Wednesday: Chorizo, leek and butter bean stew

Now, I know chorizo's not the healthiest meat at the deli, but it is so delightful. On a cold night, its rich, warm spicy tones ooze satisfaction. Paired with leek, our winter staple, and creamy hearty beans (butter beans or flageolet beans work fab), you can't go wrong.

(serves 2)

125 g chorizo

1 large onion, sliced

2 cloves of garlic, sliced

1 can of butter or flageolet beans, drained

1-2 leeks, sliced lengthways and then chopped

1 pint of chicken broth

a large handful of parsley

3 tbsp creme fraiche

Slice the chorizo thinly and add to a med-hot saute pan. Add the sliced onions and saute gently for about five minutes. Add a splash of broth to prevent burning.

Add the leeks and garlic and stir fry for another three minutes. Again, add stock if necessary.

Add about 2/3 of the beans, reserving the other 1/3. Then add the stock in increments, to make sure the mixture bubbles away. Once all of the stock is in, bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer for about 10-15 minutes. Season well.

Puree the reserved beans with a hand blender or food processor and add to the mixture. Chop the parsley in the food processor too and set aside.

After 15 minutes, remove from the heat and stir in half of the parsley and all of the creme fraiche.

Ladle into two separate shallow bowls and top with the rest of the parsley. Serve immediately.

Calories: 575 per serving. And I'm warning you, it's gorgeous! The only way you might want to bulk it up would be by adding spinach leaves - they would work well.

So what's on for Thursday (my last day on the job!)? Well, I'm allowing myself a free day, a splurge day, whatever you want to call it. So it's going to be Taco Night at our place, with no worries of calories. I'll get back to those on Friday. See you then!