Courgetti in a Creamy Bacon & Vegetable Sauce

I've been trying to adhere to a 1200 calorie count in a bid to shed the last stone of baby weight and just live an overall healthier lifestyle since 1st January and so far so good.

Allowing myself weekend treat meals and alcoholic beverages works well for me but sometimes I really crave the more comforting mid-week meals such as pasta.

To make up for this I have been experimenting with courgetti and butternut pasta - both to some success and here is the recipe for a creamy, yet low fat bacon, leek, mushroom and pea 'pasta' using courgetti or courgette pasta that I just love and that really ticks the comfort food box for me. Also it gives me the chance to use my spiraliser - win, win.

If you haven't got a spiraliser; you can buy courgette pre-prepared from the likes of M&S, Tesco and Sainsbury's but the fresher the courgette the better for it to hold it's shape a bit.

The below is enough for two people and each portion comes in at 380 calories.

Courgetti in a Creamy Bacon & Vegetable Sauce

Here's how:

• 2 courgettes
• 1 small onion
• 1 clove garlic
• 2 rashers smoked bacon
• 100g mushrooms
• 100g peas
• 2 leeks
• 2 tbsp half fat crème fraiche
• 30g Grana Padano cheese
• Pinch black pepper
• Small handful fresh parsley (flat or curly is fine) 
• 1 tsp coconut oil

Firstly spiralise the courgette on the finest setting to be left with spaghetti like spirals of courgette and set aside for the moment.

Add the coconut oil to a non-stick pan and place on the lowest heat setting.

Now peel and very finely dice the onion and garlic and allow to soften.

Chop the bacon into very small pieces and add to the pan.

Now slice the leeks and mushrooms and once the bacon is almost cooked through, add to the pan.

After a few minutes add the peas and cook for a further two minutes.

Now add the crème fraiche and the Grana Padano and stir. Season here and cook for a further five to ten minutes.

In the meantime, chop the parsley, ready to stir through before serving.

Now add the courgetti to the pan and stir through. You want to heat this through, but for it to remain in shape and not become to floppy - essentially for it to still have some bite.

Now remove from the pan and stir through the parsley before serving. Enjoy!

Courgetti with Meatballs

During the fat-fighting, healthy eating regime one thing I have really missed is pasta.

Pasta is usually a mainstay in our weeknight meals when I'm at work as it makes for such quick and easy meals so I've been experimenting with courgetti or courgette pasta as an alternative and this one is delicious with hearty meatballs and a quick homemade sauce.

I used Tesco Finest Beef Meatballs here as this was mid-week and they are absolutely fine but obviously if making the meatballs from scratch, the calorie count will go up or down accordingly. I also added a luxurious 10g Grana Padano grated over the top of the finished meal too, which you could leave out if you don't have the spare calories left / this would shed X calories.

The below serves two with each portion coming in at around 464 calories and this can all be cooked in the one pan too which saves on the washing up. 

Courgetti with Meatballs

Here's how:

• 2 100g courgettes
• 1 white onion
• 1 green pepper
• 200g fresh tomatoes
• 1 garlic clove
• 1 red chilli
• 10g coconut oil
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tbsp tomato puree
• 12 meatballs (I used Tesco Finest Beef Meatballs) 
• 20g Grana Padano 

Firstly use a spiraliser to make the courgetti - I have a Linea one from House of Fraser and use the middle setting for this which makes more of a tagliatelle shaped courgetti. If you don't have a spiraliser, no problem, use a vegetable peeler and make thin ribbons of pasta instead. Now set aside.

Add the coconut oil to the pan and place on a gentle heat.

Now peel and crush the garlic and dice the white onion and add to the pan. Slice the chilli and also add to the pan.

While these are softening, chop the green peppers and tomatoes which will make the basis of your sauce and set aside for the minute.

Now add the meatballs to be pan and allow to brown on each side, turning them with a wooden spoon or spatula. Once they are lightly browned, add the tomatoes and peppers, tomato puree, paprika and oregano and give a good stir.

Cook gently for twenty minutes which will allow for lovely, tender meatballs and add the courgetti for 1-2 minutes at the end. 

Courgetti with meatballs

Dish up on two plates or bowls and add the cheese on top if you're having. Enjoy!

Meat Free Monday: Spinach, Ricotta and Courgette-Pasta Lasagne

Healthy eating and sticking to a daily 1200 calorie count has its ups and downs. Weight is slowly but surely coming off of me, but my hungry, greedy little mind craves comfort food.

This recipe was born of one too many late-work finishes and wanting something substantial, filling and utterly delicious to look forward to for dinner - that ticked the comfort food box too.

By substituting the usual lasagne pasta sheets for ribbons of courgette instead, over 350 calories were saved overall and the below, which serves two comes in at 425 calories a portion. I must stress this low calorie portion is only realistic if you stick to the ingredient weights below.

This is a great vegetarian dish for a Meat Free Monday; however, if cooking for vegetarians, swap the Grana Padano cheese for another hard cheese that is suitable for vegetarians. Also if you're not keen on spice, simply omit from using the chilli flakes in the ricotta mix - but I love the added heat they bring - plus spicy chilli speeds up the metabolism. Win, win.

Also you can of course make your own tomato and basil sauce but I made this last night at 8pm after a long day and so used a hack - a jar of Lloyd Grossman's sauce - incidentally dinner was on the table in 30 minutes.

Meat Free Monday: Spinach Ricotta and Courgette-Pasta Lasagne

Here's how:

• 250g ricotta
• 1 tsp dried chilli flakes
• 1 garlic clove
• Nutmeg to taste
• 1 350g jar of Lloyd Grossman's Tomato & Basil Sauce (or alternative) 
• 150g spinach
• 2 medium courgettes
• 60g Grana Padano or alternative hard cheese
• 1 tomato
• 1 Light Olive Oil spray

Firstly make the ricotta sauce by adding the olive oil spray to a pan on a medium heat. Crush the garlic and add to the pan with the dried chilli flakes. After a couple of minutes add the ricotta and two thirds (40g) of the cheese use a wooden spoon to mix till the consistency gets slightly wetter and moveable. Grate over a generous amount of nutmeg, season with black pepper to taste and a pinch of salt and set aside off the heat.

Now cut the ends off of the courgettes, then using a vegetable peeler, create thin ribbons of courgette, lengthways.

Now it's time to assemble the lasagne. Start by placing a couple of spoonfuls of the tomato sauce at the bottom of your dish and spread with the back of the spoon. Next place a third of the spinach on top scattered to cover the dish. Now it's for the courgette ribbons, ensure every bit of spinach is covered so your end result is clear, beautiful, vibrant layers. 

Courgette Pasta layer of lasagne

The ricotta mixture needs to go on top of the courgettes and as they are obviously a lot flimsier than pasta sheets, I found the best way to get an even spread to cover all of the courgettes, was to use a pastry brush. You want to layer up three times, so use a third of the ricotta mix. Now top with another couple of tablespoons of the tomato sauce and then repeat till you have three layers.

For the topping, simply finely slice a tomato and place across the top then scatter the remaining 20g of cheese all over.

Place into the oven for 20-25 minutes or until the cheese has melted and tomato sauce is bubbling. Remove from the oven and leave to stand for a few minutes before cutting and serving. Enjoy!

Spinach Ricotta and Courgette-Pasta Lasagne

Courgetti Bolognese

I finally got a spiraliser at Christmas and am quickly becoming addicted to it. I have made a range of courgetti or courgette pasta/noodles with the likes of a skinny carbonara, with spicy prawns or with a simple tomato and basil sauce and these have all been great. For me though, whenever I diet, my body seems to crave my favourite comfort foods and Spaghetti Bolognese is up there so it was inevitable I would create a skinny version.

The below is the recipe to make enough for four portions of Bolognese and then I spiralise a 100g courgette for myself (18 calories), whereas my partner would have around 75g whole wheat spaghetti (255 calories), so you can the huge difference in calories right there. If I were to be exercising later or needed a carb fix I mix up my courgetti with 25g whole wheat spaghetti but for January, at least, I’m leaving the pasta out. I also omit from adding pancetta or bacon to cut down the calories some more.

One portion of the below, with the 100g spiralised courgette and an indulgent 15g grating of either mature cheddar or Parmesan comes in at 415 calories and it’s incredibly filling and utterly delicious. I made this for two friends last week who really enjoyed it too. I do use 1 tbsp olive oil as it just wouldn’t feel like an authentic Bolognese without it – but if you’re keen to cut the calories even more, omit from using and simply dry fry.

Finally this dish benefits from low and slow cooking – I try to cook for three hours as then it becomes rich and delicious, and let’s face it deliciousness isn’t something we always associate with diets and healthy food, but if you are pushed for time or trying to throw this together mid-week, then reduce the cooking time to forty minutes (any less and you won’t get the intensity of flavour).

Courgetti Bolognese

• 400g lean steak mince
• 1 tin chopped tomatoes
• 2 tbsp tomato puree
• 2 carrots
• 100g celery
• 1 onion
• 120g mushrooms
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 tsp dried oregano
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• Pinch salt
• Pinch black pepper
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 glass Chianti or another Italian red wine
• 1 chicken stock cube topped up with 100ml boiling water
• Your choice of courgetti or spaghetti (I use 100g courgetti for me, 75g whole wheat spaghetti for my partner)
• 1 more clove garlic
• Mature Cheddar or Parmesan (approx. 15g per person) - optional

Firstly add the olive oil to a non-stick pan and place on a low heat.

Finely dice the onion and garlic and add to the pan to gently sauté. Whilst these are softening and flavouring the oil, peel the carrots, then either dice finely or grate and set aside. Finely slice the celery and mushrooms too and also set aside for the moment.

Now add the mince to the pan and allow to brown, mixing with a spatula throughout to prevent it sticking together. Season at this point and also add the cinnamon as this gives the meat a lovely depth of flavour (a lovely Greek Yiayai or Nanny gave me this tip when I was working in Corfu a few years back).

Once browned add the celery, mushrooms and carrots and allow to cook for two minutes, turning to try and coat each piece in the flavoured oil. Now add the tomatoes, tomato puree and red wine and chicken stock, season again to your taste and give a good stir. Now pop the lid on and cook for up to three hours, stirring every five to ten minutes and making sure it’s on a really low, gentle heat.

To make the courgetti as flavoursome as possible I firstly dry fry the remaining garlic clove in a clean pan for a minute, then add the courgette and cook for approximately 1 minute, tossing it as you go.

Now to plate up – you can either dish up your courgetti (or spaghetti if using) and then spoon your portion of Bolognese on top in the traditional British way (as I have in the picture) or you can mix it all together which will distribute the wonderful flavour of the meat sauce and avoid any dry courgette moments. Enjoy.

Pesto Topped Salmon with Half and Half Green Pasta

This meal is absolutely delicious and perfect on hot summer evenings with a crisp glass of white. It works well for weaning tots too (minus the wine). It uses a good glug of the Walnut and Basil Pesto for both the salmon and through the half and half pasta.

On that, I use just 25g wholemeal spaghetti per person (less for little madam) and 50g courgette or courgette pasta. You can actually buy this ready made in Tesco now if you aren’t in possession of a spiralizer. You could also finely slice a courgette or use a vegetable peeler to make ribbons, then slice into spaghetti-like strands.

Here I’ve used peas and green beans to up the vegetable content as well as the courgette of course, but other vegetables could work just as well – experiment.

Although a little pesto is stirred through the pasta mix, I find it essential to flavour the oil and pan before cooking courgette, so made a base here with garlic, a leek and a couple of celery sticks – but if you’re in a hurry you could just use the pesto. The sauce base takes no time at all and can be prepared whilst the salmon’s in the oven.

Here’s how:

• 2 salmon fillets
• 3 tbsp Walnut and Basil Pesto
• 1 tbsp breadcrumbs or crumbled cracker
• 50g wholemeal spaghetti
• 100g courgetti
• 2 celery sticks
• 1 leek
• 1 clove garlic
• 100g green beans
• 100g peas
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• Seasoning to taste (don’t use salt if preparing a weaning dish)

Firstly switch the oven on to 180 degrees and fill and boil the kettle.

Place the salmon fillets into an oven-proof dish. Spread 1 tablespoon of Walnut and Basil Pesto on top of each fillet. Scatter over some breadcrumbs and wait for the oven to warm up thoroughly. Then place inside the oven for 18 minutes or until cooked through and the breadcrumbs have gone golden brown.

Place the pasta on to cook, according to packet instructions and steam or boil the peas and green beans then drain and leave to one side.

Meanwhile peel and crush the garlic and add to a pan with the olive oil on a low heat to flavour the oil.

Very finely slice the leek and celery and add to the pan with the garlic and allow to soften.

Just before the salmon is cooked, add the courgetti to the pan with the garlic, leeks and celery and allow to cook through for 2-3 minutes.

Drain the pasta and add to the pan with the courgetti etc and stir through 1 tbsp of the pesto. Drain the peas and green beans and add to the pasta mix, stirring through.

Remove the salmon from the oven and allow to rest for 1 minute.

Dish up the pasta and place the salmon on top. 

Cheat's Courgette Carbonara

This is a lovely dish I created last week to fulfil my craving for pasta carbonara. I'm currently undertaking a self-titled '30daysfit' challenge, during which I'm aiming to shed some weight, up my fitness levels and cut down on some of the many naughty's in my current diet. Carbs are a real problem for me and I've cut down dramatically, but certain days call for a fix of what you love and this dish was born of that.

The 'pasta' is actually courgette ribbons, thinly sliced with a vegetable peeler and I think they resemble Italian 'pantacce' pasta. You could of course use 'courgetti' spiralised courgette if you prefer too and cook in the same way as below.

The sauce isn't authentic I'm afraid, but it delivers on the rich, creamy moreishness that one might associate with Carbonara.

The below makes just enough for one person and comes in at 319 calories so is perfect for most diets.

Here's how:

1 tbsp creme fraiche
1 rasher lean smoked bacon
50g mushrooms
1/3 of an onion
1 clove garlic
1 small courgette
10g Cheddar
Drizzle of oilvio or something similar
Salt & black pepper

Firstly use the vegetable peeler to create the courgette ribbons and set to one side till later.

Finely dice the onion and mince the garlic and add to a pan on a low heat with the drizzle of oil.

Chop the bacon into small pieces and once the onion and garlic are softened add to the pan and gently cook.

Slice the mushrooms and once the bacon is cooked through add these and the courgette to the pan - gently fry for a minute or two, this is all that you need.

Add the creme fraiche and stir with a wooden spoon adding seasoning as you combine everything.

Grate in the 10g cheese and then plate up and enjoy.