Gemma Spring is in the air and we have been cooking fresh, bright dishes that lift our mood at dinnertime. In the week I want to cook a quick and healthy family meal. Something I can bring to the table with minimal fuss. This dish is our go to when we want to a eat meat-free meal that isn’t pasta.
This recipe evolved over time, it is actually a mix of two recipes.
- Nigel Slaters Lokanta stew which is a dish my husband started cooking a few years ago. It is another quick and healthy meal for the family though it is absolutely nothing like a stew.
- A roasted herb and halloumi veg traybake that I have been making for many years and we usually serve with pitta breads and hummus.
The two recipes came together one day when I was looking to reduce the temptation of having bread with dinner. The addition of the butter beans and green beans are stollen from Lokanta stew. This makes the dish a more satisfying and complete meal on its own.
Feeding small children
At the moment our children like food like this because it is bright and full of flavour. Though I would add that we don’t expect them to eat it. Instead we encourage them to eat the bits they like and try new things. If they don’t eat any of it we would offer some supper/fruit etc. I want to be clear about that because people often ask me about the children eating the same as us and how we do it. No two days are the same, children change their mind from one meal to the next. Overall our kids eat really well. But somedays they don’t eat the food I make and we are OK with that.
They are exposed to lots of choice and we give them autonomy over what they eat. This can be hard if we weren’t given that same autonomy as children. For me I think bigger picture about what they eat on the whole. Dinner time for us is a largely a happy time, sometimes that means the kids eat a spoonful then go for a dance in the kitchen before the next one. Our dinner table is alive and reflective of our values around food and family culture. There’s lots of noise and energy at our table and that is how we like it. I tend to make meals where the children can serve themselves from the centre of the table. I find they try more things this way.
Making this meal your own
You can add courgette, carrots, sweet potato broccoli etc. I am always open to using whatever is in and to hand. The quantities aren’t massively important in this recipe either. If you have an extra pepper throw it in, if you can’t get any tomatoes – use turnips LOL! This recipe was born out of a bit of experimentation, it is lovely just as it is but I like the idea of you making it your own too.
I use my magic bullet kitchen express to make the herb dressing. You can read my review about this small but mighty, affordable food processor. If you want to do this by hand, my suggestion is to shred the coriander and chop your garlic as fine as you can. Then mix in a bowl with the rest of the ingredients.
quick and healthy family meal
So, as another school terms starts and we edge in to Q2. As the nights get lighter and hopefully we can spend more time outdoors. I would encourage you to give this quick, healthy family meal a go. It takes less than 30 minutes and the washing up is kept to a minimal too!
Halloumi, lemon & herb traybake
Equipment
- food processor you can make this recipe without a food processor but it may take a bit longer
Ingredients
Ingredient list 1
- 1 red onion chopped
- 1 white onion chopped
- 3 bell peppers cut in to big chunks
- 2 tomatoes quartered
- 250 g halloumi cut in to big chunks
Ingredients list 2
- 200 g green beans topped and tailed
- 5 cloves garlic
- large handful coriander leaves on the stem
- 1 lemon rind and juice needed
- 1 can butter beans
- olive oil
Instructions
- Prepare your veg and halloumi. This is about speed so don't be precious about size/shape
- Add the ingredients list 1 to a roasting tin or ovenproof dish
- Cover with olive oil and roast on 180ºc fan for 10-15 minutes or until starting to brown
- Meanwhile in a pan of boiling water simmer your green beans for 3 minutes and then remove immediately and leave to drain
- In your food processor add your garlic, coriander and lemon rind then process until finely chopped.If you are doing this by hand with a knife be sure to shred and chop the coriander and garlic as finely as possible
- Add the juice of 1 lemon and a good glug of olive oil and give it all a mix with a spoon. Do not use the food processor for this
- When your veg and halloumi is starting to brown, remove it from the oven and add 1/2 of the lemon and herb dressing followed by the butter beans and green beans. Give it all a good mix and put it back in the oven for another 5-10 minutes
- Once you are happy that your traybake is nicely roasted remove it from the over, add the second 1/2 of the dressing and give it all good mix then serve immediately.
