Two noodly soups!

I have had a real thing for noodles recently - particularly Clearspring brown rice udon noodles which are soooo good!

This first picture is just a basic noodle soup - I stir fried some pak choi, chilli and beansprouts then added some noodles which I had already cooked (about 80g dried to serve one) and some stock and soya sauce. It was so fresh and light and tasty!

This rather ugly looking photo is a Thai green baby aubergine soup - I went to the Asian supermarket on the Ormeau Rd and, among many other things, got curry paste, baby aubergines, pak choi and bean sprouts. I stir fried these with some Thai green curry paste (NB check for fishy ingredients) then added some stock, half a tin of reduced fat coconut milk and, as above, some noodles which I cooked separately. YUMMY!!

Smoked tofu and radicchio

This was inspired by my Italian sister who makes a lasagne using radicchio and smoked cheese. I use it as a lasagne filling or as a pasta sauce but it is also good on its own.

Fry some onion and garlic in oil or fry spray then add a chopped small radicchio, some diced smoked tofu (I use Taifun - I eat half of it before it reaches the pan!) and a tin of cherry tomatoes. Simmer until all cooked - easy!

Mushroom gigantes

I really wanted Gigantes but had no tomatoes. I had mushrooms to use up. So I married the two! I fried mushrooms, onions and garlic in a little olive oil then added lots of oregano and a pinch of cinnamon. Mixed with two tins of beans and baked in the oven. Yums!

Beetroot paella

I had a couple of small beets to use up and had a craving for rice so I invented this. It is so easy to make. Simply dice an onion and some garlic and fry in a little oil or fry spray. Dice your beetroot as small as you can (no need to peel!) and add to the pan. Then add 120g paella rice, a pinch of saffron and about 6-700ml veg stock. Simmer until cooked, adding more liquid if needed. When it's done, add a tbsp of lemon juice and lots of fresh parsley. The colour is amazing!

A4R Quinoa kale and white bean stew

Sorry for the very dark picture! This is the quinoa, kale and white bean stew from Appetite for Reduction. I used red pepper instead of carrots as I needed to use one up. The herb blend is really delicious - this is a keeper!