Healthy Turkey Breast Fillet Burger with Cranberry and Port Sauce

Turkey breast fillet is laid on a toasted bread roll and topped with cranberry and port sauce

Burgers are of course normally made from minced or ground meat of one type or another but there is nothing to say that a whole piece of meat, as in this instance, can not be used instead. Using a whole piece of meat means that you know your burger is 100% meat with no additives and a fresh bread roll is much healthier than the more traditional salt and sugar saturated burger bun. Cranberry sauce is a traditional accompaniment to turkey and the port definitely gives it an extra edge, while the salad accompaniment can be of any composition of your choice.

Ingredients per Person

1 4oz turkey breast fillet
1 tbsp plain/all purpose flour
Salt and pepper
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1oz unsalted butter
2 or 3 large lettuce leaves
1/4 red onion
1 soft bread roll
1 tsp cranberry and port sauce

Pan frying the floured and seasoned turkey breast

Directions
Put the vegetable oil and the butter in to a small, non-stick frying pan and gently melt the butter over a medium heat. Scatter the flour on a plate and season with salt and pepper. Pat the turkey breast in the flour on both sides and lay it in the pan to fry for three to four minutes each side or until done.

Lettuce and red onion is sliced for simple salad

Wash and dry the lettuce and roll in to a cigar shape before slicing. Slice the onion. Season the lettuce and onion, mix together and lay on one half of your serving plate.

Bread roll is halved for toasting

When the turkey breast is cooked, turn off the heat and push the pan off the heat to let it rest for a few minutes. Cut the bread roll in half and lightly toast the halves on both sides.

Toasted roll and salad are plated

Lay the toasted roll on the plate beside the salad and the turkey breast on the bottom half. Spoon on the cranberry and port sauce.

Turkey breast fillet is laid on toasted bread roll

The burger can either be served open or the top can be laid in place.

Top is placed on roll and turkey burger and salad is ready to serve

Dolcelatte Cheese Salad with Wheat, Spelt and Rye Bread

Dolcelatte cheese is served on fresh wheat, spelt and rye bread with a simple salad

Dolcelatte is a sweetish, creamy Italian cheese, very different to most everyday cheeses and well worth trying if you are unfamiliar with it. It is served here on a slice of wheat, spelt and rye bread, which I would normally toast to serve with a dish of this type. The bread was so fresh, however (still warm when I bought it) that it would have seemed almost criminal not to serve it as it was. The salad leaves are a combination of spinach, rocket (arugula) and chard but you can of course buy and serve the salad of your choice.

Dolcelatte cheese salad ingredients

Ingredients (Serves Two)

2 slices of fresh wheat, spelt and rye bread
2 generous handfuls of salad leaves of choice
3" piece of cucumber, cut in to segments
1 medium tomato, cut in to segments
4 to 6 slices of dolcelatte cheese (approx 4oz)
Salt and pepper
6 to 8 pitted black olives, halved
2 tsp freshly chopped chives to garnish

Salad leaves are carefully rinsed under running cold water

The salad leaves should always be washed under running cold water, even where the packet tells you they have been prewashed. Don't take any unnecessary risks. Shake them dry and lay them on a serving plate with the slice of bread alongside.

Wheat, spelt and rye bread and salad leaves are plated

The tomato and cucumber could be sliced if you prefer but in this instance both have been cut in to segments.

Cucumber and tomato are roughly chopped for salad

Lay the tomato and cucumber on top of the salad leaves and the slices of cheese on top of the wheat, spelt and rye bread.

Dolcelatte cheese is laid on wheat, spelt and rye bread

Season the salad with salt and pepper and lay the olive halves on top of the cheese. Scatter with the chopped chives and serve.

Halved black olives are laid on dolcelatte cheese

Pan Fried Pollack Fillet with Spicy Potato Wedges

Simply fried pollack fillet is served with spicy potato wedges and peas

Pollack is a close relation to the Atlantic cod and presently a sustainable alternative to its widely threatened cousin. Although the reputation of pollack may not be great, it is absolutely delicious when cooked in an appropriate way and is also a lot cheaper to buy than cod. Essentially, pollack can substitute for cod in just about any recipe and like most types of fish, it should be cooked as fresh as possible. The pollack this piece of loin fillet came from was caught on rod and line on a boat out of Dunbar, near Edinburgh, and given to me to enjoy that very same day. While to many this may seem more like a dinner recipe than one for lunch, it is fairly quick to make and really helps set you up for the rest of the day. It's also of course perfect for a weekend lunch.
 

Pollack fillet and baking potato form basis of this meal

Ingredients per Person

6 to 8oz fillet of pollack
1 medium baking potato
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tsp hot chilli powder
Salt and black pepper
2 tbsp plain/all purpose flour
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Little bit of butter
2 tbsp frozen peas
Lemon wedge and freshly chopped parsley to garnish

Unpeeled potato is chopped in to wedges

Start by getting your oven on to preheat to 400F/200C. Wash and dry the potato but don't peel it. Cut it in half lengthways and then cut each half in to quarters to form wedges.

Chilli powder and salt is mixed with vegetable oil for spicy potato wedges

Pour the vegetable oil in to a bowl and stir in the chilli powder and a good half teaspoon of salt to form a paste. Add the wedges and carefully stir them around to evenly coat them in the oil. Lay the wedges in a single layer on a baking tray and pour over any remaining oil in the bowl. Cook for thirty-five minutes, turning half way through cooking.

Spicy potato wedges ready for the oven

Scatter the flour on a plate and season with salt and pepper. I cut this particular piece of pollack in half to make for easier frying but that's not essential. Pat the pollack on both sides in the flour and shake off the excess.

Pollack is patted in seasoned flour before being shallow fried

Pour the olive oil in to a small, non-stick frying pan and add about a half ounce of butter. Put on a moderate heat until the butter is melted.

Butter and oilve oil are used to fry the pollack

The cooking time for the pollack will vary depending upon the thickness of the fillets but around three minutes each side is likely to be required. You should be able to see it cooking up the way from the side, so this should help you to judge.

Pollack fillets are added to the frying pan

Put the frozen peas in to boiling water when the pollack is turned. They will need to simmer for about three minutes.

Drain the potato wedges on a plate covered with kitchen paper before assembling your meal and garnishing with the parsley and lemon wedge, if required.

Parsley and a lemon wedge provide the garnish for the pollack and spicy potato wedges

Quick and Easy Chicken, Mushroom and Rice Soup with Garlic Toast

A simple soup of rice, mushrooms and chicken, served with garlic rubbed toast

Soup is something which very often takes several hours or even overnight to make properly. Where you get in to the habit, however, of keeping some fresh stock in your freezer and perhaps have some leftover chicken to use up, a delicious soup such as this one can be prepared literally in minutes rather than hours.

Weighing out the rice for the soup

Ingredients (Serves Four)

2 pints fresh chicken stock
4oz basmati or long grain rice
6 medium closed cup mushrooms
Chicken meat from two whole legs or approximately 4oz
Small bunch flat leaf parsley (reserve four small sprigs to garnish)
4 thick slices of farmhouse bread
1 clove of garlic, peeled and lightly crushed
Sea salt and black pepper to taste

Mushrooms are moderately thinly sliced

Directions

Pour the stock in to a large soup pot and put it on the heat to reach a simmer while you prepare the remainder of the ingredients.

Rice and mushrooms are added to the hot stock

Wash the rice in a sieve under running cold water to remove the excess starch. When the stock is simmering, add the rice and the mushrooms. Bring the liquid back to a simmer and stir well with a large wooden spoon. Continue to simmer for ten minutes.

Two whole chicken legs provide the meat for the soup

The easiest way by far to remove the chicken from the bones is by hand. Try to do so that each piece is a reasonable bite size.

Chicken meat is picked from the bones

When the rice and mushrooms have been simmering in the stock for ten minutes, add the chicken pieces and the very roughly chopped parsley. Stir well again and simmer for five more minutes.

Flat leaf parsley

The four slices of bread should be toasted golden on both sides. Rub the top of each slice with the crushed garlic clove.

Bread is cut to make garlic toast

Taste the soup and season as required. Ladle the soup in to serving plates or bowls, garnish with the parsley sprigs and serve immediately with the hot toast.

A final sprig of parsley garnishes the soup for service

Refried Leftover Pulled Pork and Oyster Sauce Sandwich

Refried pulled pork and oyster sauce is added to a bread roll, garnished with some coriander and served with pork scratchings

The basis of your lunch on any given day can very often be determined by leftovers from the previous night's dinner. This is sensible, preventing waste and saving money. Ideally, however, you want to find easy ways of altering the leftovers slightly so that you are not simply eating a smaller version of the meal you enjoyed the previous evening. This can often be done very effectively by using seasonings and other sundry ingredients you have available in your fridge, store cupboards or larder.

This creation is extremely basic, extremely quick to prepare - and absolutely delicious. If you don't fancy the idea of oyster sauce with pork, you could easily use hoisin sauce, soy sauce, or any other sauce you have available.

Ingredients per Person

4oz leftover pulled pork
1 tbsp oil for frying
1 tbsp oyster sauce (or sauce of choice)
1 soft bread roll or burger bun
Packet of pork scratchings or crisps/potato chips of choice
Coriander/cilantro to season

Pulled pork is added to some hot oil in a frying pan

Directions

Put the oil in to a small, non-stick frying pan and bring it up to a medium heat. Add the pork and the sauce and stir fry for a couple of minutes on a high heat until the pork is fully heated and has a slightly crispy coating.

Oyster sauce is added to the pulled pork

Cut your roll or bun in half and lay the two halves on a plate with the pork scratchings.

Bread roll and pork scratchings are plated, ready for the pork

Carefully spoon the pork on to the bottom half of the bread roll.

Refried pulled pork is spooned on to the bread roll

 
Scatter the coriander/cilantro over the pork, put the top of the roll in place, serve and enjoy.

Coriander or herb of choice provides final touch to pulled pork sandwich

Red Leicester Cheese and Red Onion Toastie

Red Leicester cheese and red onion toastie is served with a simple salad

A toastie is both an incredibly simple and versatile creation. While they can of course be made in dedicated sandwich toasters and probably look better when they are prepared this way, it is just as easy to make them under an overhead grill or broiler. This red cheese and red onion toastie was made from and accompanied by ingredients I already had to hand in the house, so they can also be a great way of using up odds and ends to prevent them from going to waste.

Salad ingredients are variable but here I have used lettuce, tomato and spring onion

Ingredients per Serving

1/2 small cos lettuce
4 or 5 cherry tomatoes
1 spring onion/scallion
2 slices of bread
2oz Red Leicester cheese or similar
2 or 3 slices from half a peeled red onion
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Sliced basil leaves to garnish

It's easier to prepare and plate your salad before you make your toastie

Start by preparing your salad. Roughly shred the lettuce leaves, half the tomatoes and slice the spring onion. Season with salt and pepper and mix together. Lay the salad on one half of what will be your serving plate.

Red Leicester cheese and red onion is sliced

Toast one slice of the bread on one side only. Separate the onion slices in to strands and lay them on the untoasted side, followed by the slices of cheese. Toast to melt the cheese and at the same time, toast the second slice of bread on one side.

Red onion is laid on the untoasted side of a slice of bread

Red Leicester cheese is placed on top of the red onion

Season the toastie with black pepper before you place the untoasted side of the second slice of bread down on top of the cheese, pressing lightly to seal, and slice in half diagonally.

Cheese is melted over the onion under the grill or broiler

Plate the toastie with your salad and scatter over the sliced basil immediately before service.

Toastie plated with the salad ready to be garnished and served