Tag Archives: Light meal

Light And Tasty Onion Soup With Chickpea Bread

This week we are going to prepare a delicious and easy to make onion soup, served with a wonderful chickpea bread, especially made for this recipe. A meal so light and tasty that it could easily be considered comforting as well as healthy!

This soup is really well complemented by the chickpea bread (see the recipe), which is a good source of proteins and keeps the meal light and nicely balanced! The perfect winter dish to enjoy by the fire!

Enjoy!

Light onion soup (zuppa di cipolle)

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 40 minutes

Ingredients

For 4 servings

1 kg of onions of your choice

extra virgin olive oil

salt and pepper (use plenty, because onions are naturally quite sweet)

Method.

1. Slice the onion and fry them in extra virgin olive oil.

2. Using a large pan, cover the onions with water and cook until tender.

3. With an immersion blender, puree the onions until you get a smooth and creamy mixture.

4. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, season with salt and pepper, then serve with the chickpea bread!

See also the pasta e fagioli recipe (another delicious winter dish!).

Zuppa di leggera cipolle

Tempo di preparazione: 10 minuti

Tempo di cottura: 40 minuti

Ingredienti

Per 4 persone

1 kg di cipolle di vostra scelta

olio extra vergine d’oliva q. b.

sale e pepe (abbondate perché le cipolle sono naturalmente dolci)

Preparazione.

1. Sbucciate e affettate le cipolle, poi fatele soffriggere in olio extra vergine d’oliva.

2. Riempite la pentola d’acqua, fino a ricoprire tutte cipolle; quindi fate cuocere, a fuoco moderato e con il coperchio, per 30-35 minuti.

3. Usando un frullatore ad immersione, frullate le cipolle fino ad ottenere un composto cremoso.

4. Condire con olio extra vergine d’oliva e abbondante sale e pepe. Servite la zuppa calda con del pane di farina di ceci.

Barley And Shrimp Salad In Red Cabbage Leaves

August 13, 2014Appetisers, Dairy-free, High-fibre Food, Low-fat Recipes, Pescetarian, Seafood, Side DishesAppetizer, Grains, Light meal, Low-cal, Pearled barley, Pescetarian, Salad, Shrimps, Side dishSerena @ foodfulife

Barley is a cereal that has been used in dishes for thousands of years. It’s a wonderful and versatile ingredient: it can be used in salads and soups or cooked like a risotto. Today we are going to make a light barley salad with lots of fresh vegetables and shrimps! This colourful salad could be a great side dish for a barbecue or a buffet, but could also be served on its own as a light meal.

Tips.

1. Pearl barley does not need soaking before cooking, it is simply boiled like rice.

2. Wash the barley under running water for a few minutes before cooking it, to remove its natural bitter taste.

3. For this recipe I am using a red Tropea’s onion, a delicious onion variety, available in Italy. If you don’t find it, you can use shallots instead. Shallots and Tropea’s onions are perfect for this recipe because they are naturally sweet and have a pleasant delicate flavour.

Barley and shrimp salad in red cabbage leaves.

5 – 6 red cabbage leaves (medium size)

90 g pearl barley

250 g frozen shrimps

1/2 sweet red Tropea’s onion (or shallots)

1/2 celery stalk, finely chopped

7-8 cherry tomatoes

1 large avocado

the juice of half a lemon

2 tablespoons of fresh parsley, finely chopped

salt and pepper to taste

vegetable broth

Method.

1. Cook the pearl barley in vegetable broth (I used an organic stock), for 40 minutes (the cooking time will vary depending on the variety of barley).

2. Boil some water in a sauce pan, then turn off the heat and poach the shrimps for 3-4 minutes. Drain and set aside.

3. Wash and dry the cabbage leaves. Peel and slice the onion and avocado, then set aside. Wash, dry and cut the celery and tomatoes.

4. Mix all the vegetables (including the chopped parsley) with the cooked barley and shrimps. Serve the salad in cabbage leaves and season with salt, pepper and lemon juice.

Cestini di insalata d’orzo e gamberetti.

5-6 foglie di cavolo rosso

250 g gamberetti surgelati

1/2 cipolla rossa di Tropea (oppure lo scalogno)

1/2 gambo di sedano

7-8 pomodorini ciliegia

1 avocado grande

il succo di mezzo limone

2 cucchiai di prezzemolo fresco, tritato finemente

sale e pepe q. b.

brodo vegetale (uso del brodo fatto con del dado biologico)

Preparazione.

1. Fate cuocere l’orzo perlato nel brodo per 40 minuti (il tempo di cottura può variare a seconda della qualità di orzo).

2. Fate bollire una pentola piena d’acqua, poi spegnete il fuoco e immergetevi i gamberetti per 3-4 minuti. Scolate e mettete da parte.

3. Lavate e asciugate le foglie di cavolo. Pelate e tagliate le cipolle e l’avocado. Lavate, asciugate e tagliate a cubetti il sedano e i pomodorini.

4. Mescolate tutte le verdure (compreso il prezzemolo) con l’orzo e i gamberetti. Servite l’insalata nelle foglie di cavolo e condite con sale, pepe e il succo di limone.

Steamed Prawn and Bell Pepper Kebabs.

January 10, 2014Dairy-free, Gluten-free, Low-fat Recipes, SeafoodAppetisers, Bell pepper, Citronette, Fish, Food, Gluten-free, Healthy, Light, Light meal, Lime, Lime sauce, Low-fat recipes, Parsley, Prawns, Recipe, Seafood, Starter, SteamedSerena @ foodfulife

Today I am publishing my first recipe of the year, after taking a little break.

Bearing in mind that many of you will be on a diet, just like me, after a full-on Christmas feast, I decided to go for a light and delicate starter made with seafood and vegetables . Experimenting in my kitchen, not long ago, I discovered that the delicate flavours of yellow bell peppers and prawns complement each other very well, especially if steamed. This recipe is very healthy and the preparation is quick and easy, however it’s important to get the cooking time right, because if you overcook the ingredients the final result won’t be any good, as the bell peppers will become too soft and the prawns will turn out hard, dry and chewy. In order to avoid this follow carefully the instructions and you’ll have the most amazing prawn kebabs!

Tip. As a light meal, serve the prawn kebabs with steamed basmati rice.

Prawn and bell pepper kebabs.

Ingredients

for 4 people ( for 8 kebabs)

2 big yellow peppers (or 3 small peppers)

450 g prawn tails, to clean

a few leaves of fresh parsley

6 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

3 tablespoons of lime juice

salt and pepper to taste

1. Wash the peppers, remove the core, pith and seeds, then cut them into 2 halves.

2. Wash and peel the prawns. Using a knife, remove the hard parts and the dark vein on the back.

3. Steam the peppers for about 10-15 minutes (external side facing down).

4. Remove the peppers from the heat, peel the skin off using a knife and cut them into small pieces (about 4 cm).

5. Steam the prawns for about 3 minutes.

6. Insert the skewers, alternating pieces of pepper with prawns.

For the seasoning (lime citronette sauce).

1. In a small bowl, mix 6 spoons of extra virgin olive oil with the lime juice.

2. Chop a few parsley leaves finely.

3. Mix all the ingredients together with some salt and pepper.

4. Season the prawn kebabs and serve them warm with the sauce.

Spiedini di Gamberi e Peperoni (cottura a vapore).

Ingredienti

per 4 persone (8 spiedini)

2 grandi peperoni gialli (o 3 piccoli)

450 g di code di gambero (da pulire)

alcune foglie di prezzemolo

6 cucchiai di olio extra vergine di oliva

3 cucchiai di succo di lime

sale e pepe q b

1. Lavate, pulite e tagliate i peperoni in due.

2. Pulite e sgusciate i gamberi, eliminando completamente la buccia e il budellino nero.

3. Fate cuocere i peperoni a vapore per 10-15 minuti (con la parte esterna verso il basso).

4. Togliete i peperoni dal fuoco, sbucciateli delicatamente e tagliateli a pezzetti rettangolari.

5. Fate cuocere a vapore i gamberi per 3 minuti.

6. Infilzate gli ingredienti con degli spiedini di legno, alternando dei pezzi di peperone ai gamberi.

Per la citronette di lime.

1. In una piccola ciotola, mischiate 6 cucchiai di olio extra vergine di oliva con 3 cucchiai di succo di lime.

2. Tritate qualche foglia di prezzemolo molto finemente.

3. Unite tutti gli ingredienti, aggiungendo anche un po’ di sale e pepe.

4. Condite bene gli spiedini di gamberi e serviteli tiepidi, accompagnandoli con il condimento.

Foodfulife

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Tag Archives: Light meal

Light And Tasty Onion Soup With Chickpea Bread

Barley And Shrimp Salad In Red Cabbage Leaves

Steamed Prawn and Bell Pepper Kebabs.

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