With the days getting colder and the nights longer, a good nutritional meal is even more essential to keep our bodies strong and colds at bay.

Here are some of the healthy and hearty winter warmers our Owners will be preparing this winter.

Winter Vegetable & Lentil Soup

When it’s cold outside, treat yourself to a healthy homemade vegetable soup, packed with immunity-supporting vitamin C and four of your 5-a-day.

Serves 2

Ingredients

85g dried red lentils
2 carrots, quartered lengthways then diced
3 sticks celery, sliced
2 small leeks, sliced
2 tbsp tomato purée
1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
3 large garlic cloves, chopped
1 tbsp vegetable bouillon powder
1 heaped tsp ground coriander

Directions

1. Tip all the ingredients into a large pan. Pour over 1½ litres boiling water, then stir well.
2. Cover and leave to simmer for 30 mins until the vegetables and lentils are tender.
3. Ladle into bowls and eat straightaway, or if you like a really thick texture, blitz a third of the soup with a hand blender or in a food processor.

Fairly Fat-Free Fruit Loaf

Natural fruit sugars are present in the dried fruit, so there is no need to add any other sugars or sweeteners. No fat is needed as the dates keep it nice and moist. Along with the wholemeal flour, the ingredients provide a slow release of energy and even some vitamins and minerals.

Ingredients

340g/12oz mixed dried fruit
170g/6oz chopped dates
2 oranges
A mug of hot brewed tea
340g/12oz wholemeal flour
1 egg

Directions

1. In a mixing bowl, stir the fruit with the zest and juice of both oranges. Pour in the hot tea and leave covered overnight to soak in a cool, dry place.
2. The next day add in all the other ingredients and mix together. Pour into a greased/lined loaf tin.
3. Turn your oven on to gas mark 2/150°C/300°F and bake the cake in the middle of the oven for about 1½ hours until the sides start to shrink from the side of the tin and a knife comes out clean from the centre of the cake.
4. Leave to cool and slice like a loaf.

Little Beef & Mushroom Pies

Treat yourself to these healthy beef and mushroom pies – they’re ideal for entertaining or freezing. As well as being tasty, they deliver 5 of your 5-a-day

Serves 4

Ingredients

30g dried porcini mushroom, finely chopped
1 tbsp vegetable bouillon powder
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 medium baking potatoes, cut into chunks (475g)
1 small celeriac, peeled and cut into large chunks (500g)
½ tsp ground white pepper
2 tsp rapeseed oil
2 large onions, halved and sliced
400g 5% lean beef mince
125g baby chestnut mushrooms, halved if large
2 tsp chopped sage
25g stilton, crumbled (optional)
320g spinach or chard
320g frozen peas

Directions

1. Tip the dried mushrooms, bouillon and vinegar into a bowl and pour over 400ml boiling water. Boil the potatoes and celeriac together for 18-20 mins until very tender, then drain and leave to steam-dry. Mash with the white pepper.
2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large, deep, non-stick frying pan and fry the onions for 10 mins, stirring occasionally, until golden. Add the mince and fresh mushrooms and fry for 5-10 mins until the mince is browned. Tip in the dried mushroom mixture and the sage, then half-cover the pan and simmer for 20 mins, stirring occasionally, until thickened.
3. Spoon the mixture into four 175ml pie dishes and top with the mash and stilton, if using.
4. If eating straightaway, heat the grill to high. Put the pies on a baking tray (in case they bubble over) and grill for 5 mins. To make ahead, leave to cool completely, cover and freeze for up to three months. Reheat in the oven until piping hot. Wilt the spinach in a pan or the microwave and cook the peas following pack instructions. Serve the pies with the veg on the side.

Microwave Mini Lemon Sponge Puddings

Something sweet after dinner is always a comfort on a colder evening, and it is healthier if you can make it yourself from fresh ingredients. This dish is quick and cheap to make, and any left over puddings can be put in the fridge or freezer for another day.

Serves 4

Ingredients

50g softened butter
50g caster sugar
1 lemon, zest and juice
1 large egg
50g self-raising flour
3 tbsps of lemon curd (or other jam as preferred)
Custard, cream or creme fraiche to serve

Directions

1. Grease individual ramekin dishes or small tea cups. (Make sure they are suitable for use in the microwave).
2. Beat the softened butter, sugar and the grated zest of the lemon with one teaspoonful of lemon juice until light and fluffy, then beat the egg lightly and add slowly to the mixture.
3. Add sifted flour slowly and beat until absorbed.
4. Spoon the mixture into the dishes – do not fill above half way as the mixture rises very quickly and is very hot. Cover with a loose lid or cling film and microwave for 70 seconds.
5. Once the 70 seconds is over, let the pudding stand for 10–20 seconds before testing if it’s spongy (the heat transfers with time so it might not seem cooked straight away). To test, carefully press with a finger to see if spongy. If it isn’t, try another 10 seconds but do not microwave for too long or the sponge will harden.
6. Turn the sponges out onto plates and spoon the lemon curd or jam over the top.
7. Serve on its own, with hot custard or a little cream or creme fraiche.

Did you try a recipe?

We would love to hear from you, so we can share it in the next edition of our new Court Circular!

Email [email protected] or send your handwritten notes or material to us via your Court Manager.