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Winter Warmer Recipes

Written by Helen Scott on Tuesday, 02 December 2014. Posted in Family Life

Keep your family warm with these delicious baked goods, perfect for the winter!

Winter Warmer Recipes

As the winter nears – albeit a mild one compared to the rest of the world – here are some warming wintry dishes, which might appear like classic bakes on the surface, but are secretly healthier than they look!

 

 

Quinoa Stuffed Peppers

Quinoa is the superfood of the grains, packed full of protein, but more importantly, it contains the right balance of nine amino acids, which are usually only found in meats rather than plants. This means that it’s an ideal ingredient for vegetarian diets, not to mention for growing bones.

 

What you need

  • ½ cup quinoa
  • ½ vegetable bouillon
  • ¼ cup pine nuts
  • 2 large bell peppers (red and yellow preferably)
  • 1 tbs olive oil
  • ½ onion diced
  • 1 clove garlic minced
  • ½ courgette diced
  • 1 large tomato, skinned and diced
  • 75g Parmesan cheese

 

Method

  • Preheat the oven to 350°C.
  • Cook your quinoa according to the instructions on the packet. Remember to rinse it first to remove the slightly bitter taste.
  • Put the kettle onto boil, then immerse a large tomato in boiling water in bowl. After 5 minutes, you should be able to remove its skin easily, so do this then dice it.
  • Put your pine nuts in a frying pan and warm them over a medium heat for around 5 minutes until toasted. Remove them and place to one side.
  • Heat your oil in the same pan and fry the onion, courgette and garlic for around 5 minutes until soft, then combine with the tomato, cooked quinoa and pine nuts. Season with salt and pepper.
  • Cut each bell pepper in half from top to bottom, leaving a bit of stalk on each half to preserve its shape. Stuff each half with the veggie quinoa mixture and sprinkle with grated Parmesan. Place the peppers on a greased baking tray and cover with foil.
  • Bake at 350°C for 50 minutes.
  • Serve warm or cold.

 

Serves 4 small children or 2 adults for lunch

 

 

Apple and Ginger Baked with Oat, Flax and Coconut Crumble

Who would have thought that such a delicious dessert could be gluten-free, dairy-free and refined sugar-free?

 

What you need:

  • 6 apples, cored
  • ½ cup of apple juice
  • ½ cup of orange juice
  • 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
  • 1 thumb size piece of ginger, peeled and grated
  • 1 ½ cups of oats
  • 2 tbs of flax seeds
  • ½ cup of desiccated coconut
  • 3 tbs of maple syrup
  • 3 tbs of coconut oil

 

Method

  • Cut your apple into 6 pieces, discarding the core but keeping the skin. Peel and grate your ginger.
  • Place the apples, ginger and cinnamon into a large heavy saucepan with the juices and simmer for 5-10 minutes until the apple pieces are soft.
  • To make your topping, combine your oats, coconut oil, coconut, flax and maple syrup and pulse in a food processor until crumbles emerge.
  • Place your apples in the bottom of a baking dish and scatter your crumble on top. Bake for around 30 minutes uncovered until the crumble topping turns golden brown.
  • Serve with cream, custard or ice cream.

 

Serves 8 - 10 children or 6 adults

 

 

Broccoli and Cauliflower Wholemeal Gratin

Rather than using plain flour to make the traditional white sauce, we use wholemeal flour for added fibre, higher vitamin content and a lower GI (glycemic index). Do expect it to be slightly more runny than usual, however.

 

What you need:

  • 400g broccoli and/or cauliflower
  • 50g butter
  • 2 tbs wholemeal flour
  • 1 pint of whole milk
  • 100g grated cheddar
  • 50g breadcrumbs

 

Method:

  • Wash your broccoli and cauliflower and place florets into a steamer. Steam (or boil) for a few minutes until just tender.
  • To make the white sauce, melt your butter in a pan. Take it off the heat, then add the flour and stir until it forms a paste. Add the milk slowly and turn the heat up high, stirring continuously. When it starts to boil, the sauce should also start to thicken.
  • Once the sauce starts to thicken, turn down the heat and stir through 75g of grated cheese, saving the remaining 25g.
  • Place your steamed veggies in a baking dish and pour your cheesy white sauce on top.
  • Scatter your breadcrumbs on top along with the rest of the grated cheese.
  • Place under a preheated grill until the breadcrumbs brown and the cheese melts.

 

Serves a family of 4 as a side dish

 

 

 

About the Author

Helen Scott

Helen Scott

Helen Scott is the founder of Mango Menus, a HK based website dedicated to the author's passion: food. Her website offers a comprehensive HK food shopping guide, from wet markets to high end organic delivery services, with exclusive deals on groceries for readers. There is also a large collection of healthy recipes using local and seasonal produce, with a growing kids' section ranging from breakfast smoothies to packed lunch planners. Mango Menus also offers a bespoke menu planning service for fussy eaters as well as fine diners (by appointment only).

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