The Salad Factory

A place for recipes and foody things.. If it’s natural and delicious, we want it on here!

Cheaters easy Hummous:

A ridiculously easy recipe packed full of protein and good fats, hummous is a firm favourite with my family. If you want to go the really low sodium route, boil your own chickpeas (after soaking overnight) and use Lo-salt or a salt substitute. I prefer using coarse ground himalayan salt or natural sea-salt..

Ingredients:

1 can cooked chickpeas, rinsed and drained.
1 large organic lemon (juice thereof )
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 1/2 tablespoons tahini (ground sesame seed paste)
water
salt to taste

Method:

Put all the ingredients in a bowl and add about 1/3 of a cup of water. Blend using a handheld blender, adding more water, lemon juice or salt according to your preference of taste and consistency. Once you have a smooth paste, enjoy with warmed pita breads and some olives or serve with new baby potatoes and home made mayo. Also delicious mixed with a ripe avo and used as a spread or dip.
Tastes even better the day after. Keep refrigerated.

Cheesy Beetroot.

A sneaky and delicious to get kids to eat veggies:-). For those which are lactose intolerant and watching their wheat, use soya milk and buckwheat flour as replacements for the milk and flour used here. It tastes just as good with sunflower oil but olive oil is much healthier.. I like to steam the veggies..

Ingredients:

4 large beetroots, cooked and chopped into chunks
1 medium head of broccoli, cooked and broken into florets

For the sauce:

100mls olive oil (extra virgin)
1/2 cup flour
1 1/2 cups milk
grated cheese (mozzarella or white cheddar, even crumbled Feta)
salt and pepper to taste.

Method:

Prepare the sauce by heating the olive oil, add the flour and mix till a paste is formed, remove from heat while doing this if necessary. Add the milk bit by bit till the right consistency is reached. Add salt and pepper and some of the cheese.
In an oven proof dish put the steamed veggies and cover with the cheesy sauce, sprinkle the rest of the grated cheese on top and put in the oven to melt cheese and brown the top.
Serve hot with wholewheat noodles or wheat-free noodles. Perfect winter food for the kids!

Spicy Butternut soup.

A real winter warmer, this one is not for the faint-hearted! Packed full of warming ingredients, it helps to boost the immune system and keep the sniffles at bay.

Ingredients:

1 large butternut, chopped into chunks, no need to peel if organic and properly washed.
1 onion
3-6 cloves garlic (you decide:-) )
2-4 red chillies (ditto)
a small bit of grated ginger (between 1/2 tsp and 1tsp)
3 carrots chopped into chunks
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley.
1 flat tablespoon curry powder.
1 teaspoon brown sugar or honey.
extra virgin olive oil.
veggie stock powder.
salt and pepper to taste.
cream.

Method:

Lightly fry the onion in extra virgin olive oil, add the butternut and carrot, cover with water and bring to the boil. Simmer until butternut is almost tender. Add chopped garlic, parsley, curry powder, chillies, honey/sugar and ginger. When butternut is soft, blend everything together using a hand held blender. Add veggie stock and salt and pepper to taste.
Leave to stand for 20 min and then slowly reheat till just warm enough to eat.
Serve with a swirl of cream and some warm rolls.
Perfect for when you feel a cold coming on or you just feel like a bit of a cleanse .

Granola:

Great long term energy food for breakfast and absolutely delicious with fruit juice, soya milk or yoghurt as a topping!

Ingredients

3 cups oats
3 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup honey
2 pinches salt
2 tablespoons cinnamon
1 cup seedless raisins
1 cup sunflower seeds/flaked almonds/pumpkin seeds or a combination of all three.
½ cup linseeds.

Method

Melt butter and honey together with salt, add oats and mix till covered. In a separate pan, lightly toast the seeds and nuts. Mix oats, seed mix, raisins and cinnamon together and leave to cool. Serve with live yoghurt or after soaking overnight with soya milk and grated apple. (Lela recipe:-))

A place for recipes and foody things.. If it’s natural and delicious, we want it on here!

Cheaters easy Hummous:

A ridiculously easy recipe packed full of protein and good fats, hummous is a firm favourite with my family. If you want to go the really low sodium route, boil your own chickpeas (after soaking overnight) and use Lo-salt or a salt substitute. I prefer using coarse ground himalayan salt or natural sea-salt..

Ingredients:

1 can cooked chickpeas, rinsed and drained.
1 large organic lemon (juice thereof )
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 1/2 tablespoons tahini (ground sesame seed paste)
water
salt to taste

Method:

Put all the ingredients in a bowl and add about 1/3 of a cup of water. Blend using a handheld blender, adding more water, lemon juice or salt according to your preference of taste and consistency. Once you have a smooth paste, enjoy with warmed pita breads and some olives or serve with new baby potatoes and home made mayo. Also delicious mixed with a ripe avo and used as a spread or dip.
Tastes even better the day after. Keep refrigerated.

Cheesy Beetroot.

A sneaky and delicious to get kids to eat veggies:-). For those which are lactose intolerant and watching their wheat, use soya milk and buckwheat flour as replacements for the milk and flour used here. It tastes just as good with sunflower oil but olive oil is much healthier.. I like to steam the veggies..

Ingredients:

4 large beetroots, cooked and chopped into chunks
1 medium head of broccoli, cooked and broken into florets

For the sauce:

100mls olive oil (extra virgin)
1/2 cup flour
1 1/2 cups milk
grated cheese (mozzarella or white cheddar, even crumbled Feta)
salt and pepper to taste.

Method:

Prepare the sauce by heating the olive oil, add the flour and mix till a paste is formed, remove from heat while doing this if necessary. Add the milk bit by bit till the right consistency is reached. Add salt and pepper and some of the cheese.
In an oven proof dish put the steamed veggies and cover with the cheesy sauce, sprinkle the rest of the grated cheese on top and put in the oven to melt cheese and brown the top.
Serve hot with wholewheat noodles or wheat-free noodles. Perfect winter food for the kids!

Spicy Butternut soup.

A real winter warmer, this one is not for the faint-hearted! Packed full of warming ingredients, it helps to boost the immune system and keep the sniffles at bay.

Ingredients:

1 large butternut, chopped into chunks, no need to peel if organic and properly washed.
1 onion
3-6 cloves garlic (you decide:-) )
2-4 red chillies (ditto)
a small bit of grated ginger (between 1/2 tsp and 1tsp)
3 carrots chopped into chunks
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley.
1 flat tablespoon curry powder.
1 teaspoon brown sugar or honey.
extra virgin olive oil.
veggie stock powder.
salt and pepper to taste.
cream.

Method:

Lightly fry the onion in extra virgin olive oil, add the butternut and carrot, cover with water and bring to the boil. Simmer until butternut is almost tender. Add chopped garlic, parsley, curry powder, chillies, honey/sugar and ginger. When butternut is soft, blend everything together using a hand held blender. Add veggie stock and salt and pepper to taste.
Leave to stand for 20 min and then slowly reheat till just warm enough to eat.
Serve with a swirl of cream and some warm rolls.
Perfect for when you feel a cold coming on or you just feel like a bit of a cleanse .

Granola:

Great long term energy food for breakfast and absolutely delicious with fruit juice, soya milk or yoghurt as a topping!

Ingredients

3 cups oats
3 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup honey
2 pinches salt
2 tablespoons cinnamon
1 cup seedless raisins
1 cup sunflower seeds/flaked almonds/pumpkin seeds or a combination of all three.
½ cup linseeds.

Method

Melt butter and honey together with salt, add oats and mix till covered. In a separate pan, lightly toast the seeds and nuts. Mix oats, seed mix, raisins and cinnamon together and leave to cool. Serve with live yoghurt or after soaking overnight with soya milk and grated apple. (Lela recipe:-))