Don't Say Never Trust A Skinny Cook: 'Light' Butter Chicken

Author's note: This was first published back at the beginning of 2015 and my photography and food styling skills have improved dramatically since then, so I thought it was time to update! These images are the result of a highly enjoyable lunch. Keep checking back to see more favourites updated with mouthwatering images. 

Don't Say Never Trust A Skinny Cook: Spaghetti and Meatballs

The weather has been great recently and I'm making the most of it with recipes like this mediterranean chicken and my light butter chicken but sometimes, no matter the weather, I just want spaghetti and meatballs. You could make this and pretend that you're in Lady and the Tramp with some extra long spaghetti (like this (sadly out-of-stock) packet from Firebox.com - I love their descriptions!) or you could just enjoy it with a glass of kir, as I did. The other good thing about the weather is I'm going to the gym more regularly, funny how the lack of rain and wind makes me more included to venture out!

Don't Say Never Trust A Skinny Cook: Bhindi Masala

I'm sorry about the radio silence - things have been a bit hectic recently, but I'm now back in Manchester and ready to give you a new recipe for Don't Say Never Trust A Skinny Cook. Yesterday *the day before yesterday now*, I had a couple of friends over for a meal so that we could all catch up after our holidays and before exams. I decided to make light murgh makhani and naan for us but then I realised that there weren't really any vegetables in the meal so I thought I'd find some okra to cook. Well, the only place I knew sold okra was in the centre of town but I didn't want to go there and so I searched high and low along Oxford Road for some to no avail. Fortunately for the okra plan (unfortunately for my timings) my phone had an issue, causing me to go it to town to get it fixed so I was able to buy okra. This curry is the result of that search. Bhindi means okra, in case that's not obvious!

Don't Say Never Trust A Skinny Cook: Cod With Parma Ham And Roasted Veggies

So, this is another Hairy Dieters recipe and I have to admit that I didn't make it myself (mum did) but it tasted delicious and I need something to post for you today! I chose the recipe as one that I wanted to cook over the next few weeks whilst I'm at home. I'm hoping to stockpile some completed blog posts so that you all have something to read whilst I revise for my exams in May. I was in London this weekend, which is why mum cooked, and I had an amazing time - check back in a few days to see what I was up to as I post about Borough Market, the amazing meal I ate at Polpo, and Minyi and mine's now traditional trip around all of the food halls in London! 

A very full but bright plate!

Don't Say Never Trust A Skinny Cook: Teriyaki Salmon

I'm sorry this is a couple of days late but it's for a good reason - I had an essay to write and a pop-up shop to run and I'm pleased to say both were successful. The shop was on Monday and after a very long day (I had to get up at 6:15 - the horror!) I'm pleased to say we raised just shy of £1,100 to Teenage Cancer Trust! My next post will either be a frittata for next Monday's Don't Say Never Trust A Skinny Cook or it'll be about my trip to London (tomorrow 'til Sunday) and the amount of food I eat on it! One of my friends was highly entertained when I showed her my to do list and after a lot of food shops and restaurants there was "a museum" with a question mark after it!

Don't Say Never Trust A Skinny Cook: Thai Red Curry

I've been wanting to make red curry for a while but have never gotten round to it as I wasn't sure what to put in the dish other than not wanting duck. Recently I got the Hairy Bikers diet book as it was part of a deal on Amazon and I couldn't spot another book I wanted in a hurry (it was 3 for £10). Well, I'm so glad I got it - the recipes are amazing and food that I'd want to eat regardless of the fact that it's healthy and good for me. They counted calories to lose weight so that's the only nutritional info given but you can see just by glancing through the ingredients that there's nothing bad in it. They say that this recipe is 286 calories without rice (50g of uncooked basmati rice is 176 calories so the total calories in the dish is 462), which is nothing short of miraculous for a thai curry. What's even more miraculous is the fact that it tastes incredible and very similar to regular thai curries, I might have to give my green curry the same treatment next time. For once, I don't think I've made any changes to the recipe, it's pretty much perfect just the way it is. Actually, i've changed the cornflour to water ratio as it's like concrete - whatever you do don't leave it alone before it goes in the curry or your spoon will be stuck!

Don't Say Never Trust A Skinny Cook: Boeuf Bourguignon (No Mushrooms!)

So, the title says no mushrooms but you can add 250g of button mushrooms (according to my mother chestnut mushrooms would be wrong). You're probably also wondering how Boeuf Bourguignon can be healthy, well that is because (again, according to my mother) the only bad bits in it are the flour and red wine! Whilst you don't use much of one you do use a lot of the latter (no prizes for guessing which) and it makes it taste so good. I was sceptical about making this as I don't really like stews but Liam wanted it and I said I'd give a mushroom free recipe a go. I'm glad I did - it was filling and yummy in equal measures. The recipe is based off Olive magazine's Skinny Beef Bourguignon, which apparently only has 281 calories per portion, though I suspect that doesn't include the potatoes they suggest you serve with it.

Obviously, you're probably dubious about making this on a weeknight, and I'm not going to suggest you make it to eat tonight, rather that you make it tonight and eat it tomorrow as the flavour will only get better. It's probably 40 minutes in total of hands on work and it just sits is the oven for a couple of hours, which is where the magic happens and the beef becomes meltingly tender and the flavours meld together in perfect harmony. It might look slightly odd when you take it out of the fridge tomorrow (beef stock tends to do that) but pop in back in the oven and it'll sort itself out.

Don't Say Never Trust A Skinny Cook: Brown Rice With Lentils And Caramelised Onions

My mum took me to get my hair highlighted at Daniel Galvin once as a treat, although that treat did turn into a regular occurrence for a few years! Each time the appointment was over lunch, so we ate in the salon, where the menu was all terribly healthy and at the first visit I wasn't keen on any of the options but I had to eat something! That something turned out to be rice and lentils with greek yogurt and delicious caramelised onions as it seemed the most innocuous choice. I'm glad I chose it as it's yummy. Even though I no longer get my hair done there, I can still eat it, as one day was brave I asked mum to ask for the recipe! Duly armed I began to make it at home, although it was never as good because until recently I didn't know how to caramelise onions, but they're so easy to make and it tastes so good, plus it's filling and healthy! I tend to eat this on its own, nevertheless I sometimes have it as a side and add peas and sausages, as in  the photo. However you eat it, it's warming and easy to make. No hovering over the stove, just occasional checkups and you'll probably have leftovers to take into work in a thermos the next day.

Don't Say Never Trust A Skinny Cook: Korean Stir-Fry

Well, it's been a busy week and this week promises to be even busier, though I've almost finished another post so I'll put that up on Wednesday or Thursday. I had a self defence class last Wednesday and learnt that if anyone tries to choke me they'll have no chance - my neck retreats like a turtle's as soon as anyone gets near. On a more serious note, whilst I hope that I never ever have to use the skills that I'm learning, it's good to know what to do just in case. On Saturday, I went to Glamorous restaurant to eat dim sum (I'm missing Singapore's food (and heat)) with a couple of friends, and purchased Fuchsia Dunlop's book Every Grain Of Rice, which I'm excited to try recipes from. Upcoming, I have another self defence class, a trip to the city art gallery for my WW1 poetry class, lots of lessons and excitingly, I have two mega events. The first, on Thursday, is an event at Harvey Nichols here in Manchester to celebrate Chinese New Year with a tasting menu and cooking demonstrations by Ching-He Huang, and the second is that my mum is making a flying visit on Friday to see The Lion King, drink cocktails and eat more dim sum!

Don't Say Never Trust A Skinny Cook: Spanish Chicken

How are you all? University classes start up again for me today, and I'm really excited about my modules this semester. One module is called Identity and Power and is about French colonialism, another is named Culture and Conflict, covering first world war poetry, a book by Georges Perec about WW2 and then the war in Algeria makes up the third conflict that we study - it will be really interesting to learn about the world wars from a French perspective as up until now I have only studied in as part of the English GCSE and A level curriculum. My final module (ignoring the compulsory grammar one) is about careers and business management, which will hopefully be interesting and useful in the "real world"! As such meals are being planned in advance again, so there should be no shortage of interesting recipes for the blog, like this one that I'm sharing with you today. My current plan for meals next week involve a "light" katsu curry (see next Monday's Don't Say Never Trust A Skinny Cook), a lentil dish and the old favourite (with a homemade paste), thai green curry.

Don't Say Never Trust A Skinny Cook: Harissa Chicken With Lemony Veg Couscous

I finished my exams the other day! Now I just have to forget the wordplays I used to remember my translation theorists' ideas (Venuti was interested in the visibility of translators, and Schleiermacher was all about moving the reader to the text and vice versa) as they all very helpfully (other than the poetry translators) matched their theories to their names. Sadly these exams have lead to me just cooking my failsafe recipes, like my easy tomato sauce and the delicious leek and bacon pasta bake (sadly neither with homemade pasta) so I had difficulty in finding time to test a new recipe for this series, until I flicked through the recipes I'd noted from this months foodie magazines and discovered one from Delicious. which uses harissa, a paste that I've been interested in using for a while but didn't know how. I have changed the recipe in places and opted for chicken rather than cod, as it was easier to get hold of in a hurry.

Don't Say Never Trust A Skinny Cook: Butternut Squash Mac And Cheese

Cheesy but healthy

So, this is the first of my themed posts, Don't Say Never Trust A Skinny Cook, that showcase healthier meals. I'm rarely on a diet as such, because I've learnt that I'm never going to be supermodel skinny, and nor do I want to be, but I do want to be healthy. That comes from eating well and exercising. I have a gym membership that I actually use and I love the idea of eating well 80% of the time and indulging 20%, although it's more 50/50 for me at the moment, but at least I'm trying! Once a week, on a Monday, I will post a healthy recipe for you to try mid-week, it will either involve ingredients that you can pick up in your local shop or that you'll already have at home. Please let me know in the comments what you think of the recipe and if this will help you aim for that 80/20 goal!

Saving space - the pasta and and squash cook in one pan

January is the last time of year that you want to start a diet as it's so cold and gloomy, but it's the time that most of us do. This dish is comfort food turned healthy, I've already posted one recipe about mac and cheese that was a gorgeous cheesy blowout. This recipe has the name but uses butternut squash instead of white sauce and you can tailor the amount of cheese to your tastes (mine probably had more than it should!). It tastes very similar to the unhealthy version though, as it's so creamy. Thanks to the squash it has one of your five a day, and you could serve it with salad to add more. I know the temptation with these sorts of recipes is to add some meat to it but try to resist the temptation - I added pancetta originally and it was too salty and just didn't work with the creamy sauce. If you have to have some then maybe use this as a side dish and cook pork or chicken separately?

Still Alive And Cooking

Red velvet cupcakes

Hmm, it's been ages since I last posted and for that I apologise. I've spent most of the last week huddled up on the sofa, tissues and lemsip to hand, watching food network and Gilmore Girls reruns. I have, however, still been cooking, though somewhat half heartedly. Also, on Friday, I had an early 21st birthday party (less than a month until I actually turn 21!) at Cloud 23 in Manchester, where we had a cocktail masterclass that was So. Much. Fun!!! As well as the excitement/illness I've also had a few essay deadlines but they are no more! Unfortunately it's now procrastination, I mean, exam revision time.

My 21st

I have a list of recipes that I need to share with you over the next week or so: if I get my act together I'll write them tomorrow and set them to post a day at a time, so keep checking back - I'll set them for 11am each day so you have something to look forward to. The recipes include: macarons; red velvet cupcakes; fougasse (a type of French ciabatta that I made for a uni food evening); pizza; more bread; the ever promised and half written about chicken and cashew nuts; and pork potsticker dumplings.