Small plates, sides & sharing

When we get together and want some food for sharing, we so often reach for rubbish. But you can still stick to your good eating habits and make an impressive platter to enjoy with your friends. These recipes have been designed to be suitable as starters or side dishes, or dishes that can be shared, tapas or mezze-style.

IMMUNE SYSTEM Colds & flu

MENTAL HEALTH & NERVOUS SYSTEM Anxiety, Stress

HEART & CIRCULATION Heart disease, High blood pressure, High cholesterol

DIGESTIVE SYSTEM

Stir-fried satay greens This dish is a total dynamo. I got a well-known BBC radio presenter addicted to it and she now eats it several times a week! When you taste it, I think you’ll know why.

SERVES 1–2

olive oil, for cooking

1 large leek, sliced into thin rings

2 garlic cloves, finely sliced

1 small green or red chilli, finely chopped (if you don’t like it too spicy, you can discard the seeds)

2 handfuls shredded spring greens

about 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce

2 teaspoons honey

2 tablespoons good-quality crunchy peanut butter (no added salt or sugar)

½ teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder

sea salt

Heat a little olive oil in a wide, shallow pan or wok and add the leek, garlic and chilli. Cook for 5–8 minutes over a medium heat, or until the leek is soft.

Add the shredded spring greens and continue to cook until they have softened slightly and turned a brighter green.

Add 2 dashes of soy sauce (about 1 tablespoon), the honey and the peanut butter, and stir well. Sprinkle the Chinese five spice over and stir again. Season with salt, if needed, and serve immediately. It’s great with brown rice or a fillet of white fish.

Edamame beans make a wonderfully zingy dip that’s great as an accompaniment to almost anything, such as vegetable crudités, pitta bread or corn chips – the works! My variation on red pepper houmous also goes with everything, but without roasting the peppers, thereby keeping the nutrients intact.

SKIN Acne, Eczema

IMMUNE SYSTEM Colds & flu

HEART & CIRCULATION High cholesterol

Red pepper and white bean dip

SERVES 2–4

2 red peppers, diced

1 x 400g can cannellini beans, drained

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

sea salt and black pepper

Put all the ingredients, reserving 1 tablespoon of the cannellini beans, into a food processor. Season with salt and pepper and process to make a thick, luscious dip. Stir the reserved beans through the dip and serve with sliced toasted pitta bread, celery sticks, or any other suitably ‘dippy’ ingredient.

HEART & CIRCULATION High cholesterol

REPRODUCTIVE & URINARY SYSTEMS Endometriosis, Menopause, Problematic periods

Edamame dip with chilli and garlic

SERVESC 2–4

200g fresh or frozen edamame (soya) beans, thawed if frozen

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

1 green chilli, finely chopped

1–2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

sea salt and black pepper

Put all the ingredients into a food processor, season with salt and pepper and process to make a smooth dip. Serve with your choice of things to dip.

SKIN Eczema

JOINTS & BONES Bursitis

IMMUNE SYSTEM Colds & flu

HEART & CIRCULATION Heart disease, High cholesterol

DIGESTIVE SYSTEM Haemorrhoids

Purple power salad This does exactly what it says on the tin: it’s purple and powerful! The compounds that make plants purple have many effective properties. I use flaxseed oil for its high omega 3 content. It’s easy to find in your local health food shop, and you could swap it for olive oil if you prefer.

SERVES 2

¼ red cabbage, finely sliced

½ red onion, finely sliced

1 large or 2 small raw beetroot, finely grated

2 tablespoons flaxseed oil

1 teaspoon honey

1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

½ garlic clove, finely chopped

1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds

sea salt and black pepper

Mix the red cabbage, red onion and beetroot together in a large serving bowl. Combine the flaxseed oil, honey and balsamic vinegar in a small bowl. Add the garlic. Stir well and drizzle over the grated vegetables.

Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds and season with salt and pepper. Mix together thoroughly and serve. If you like, you can prepare the dressing in advance and mix it with the vegetables just before serving.

IMMUNE SYSTEM Colds & flu

HEART & CIRCULATION

DIGESTIVE SYSTEM

Dynamite dip This dip has a wonderful, punchy, peppery flavour. It creates a powerful kick for the taste buds and ramps up digestion too!

SERVES 2–4

1 x 400g can butter beans, drained

large handful watercress

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

2 large pitta breads, cut into fingers

sea salt and black pepper

Preheat the grill to medium. Put the butter beans, watercress, garlic and olive oil into a food processor and process to make a smooth purée. Season with salt and pepper.

Put the pitta fingers on a baking tray and toast under the grill for a few minutes, turning once, until crisp and toasted. Serve with the dip.

METABOLIC SYSTEM Diabetes (Type 2)

HEART & CIRCULATION Heart disease

Soft goat’s cheese, red onion and chilli spread Goat’s cheese is lighter and much better tolerated by most people than cow’s milk cheese. Its lovely, tangy flavour gets my mouth watering every time. The added bonus is that the fats in the cheese help with absorption of some of the beneficial compounds in the onions.

SERVES 2–4

125g soft goat’s cheese

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon red wine vinegar

¼ red onion, very finely chopped

½ green chilli, very finely chopped

small bunch fresh parsley, finely chopped

sea salt and black pepper

Put the goat’s cheese in a bowl, add the rest of the ingredients and season with salt and pepper. Stir well until all the ingredients are well combined. Serve with oatcakes or crudités.

SKIN Eczema, Psoriasis

HEART & CIRCULATION Heart disease, High blood pressure

DIGESTIVE SYSTEM Constipation

Roast beetroot wedges with avocado and horseradish This is the most amazing combination of flavours, and is sure to become a dinner-party favourite. It really is a match made in heaven.

SERVES 2–4

4 large beetroot, trimmed but unpeeled, and cut into wedges

2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for drizzling

2 large, ripe avocados

juice of ½ lemon

3–4 teaspoons horseradish sauce

sea salt

Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas mark 6. Place the beetroot wedges on a baking tray, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt. Cook in the oven for 20–25 minutes, or until soft and roasted. Allow to cool.

Peel the avocados. Make the sauce by putting the avocado flesh, lemon juice, horseradish sauce and olive oil into a food processor. Season with salt and blend into a smooth sauce to serve with the beetroot. Great with a substantial side salad or some cooked couscous.

MENTAL HEALTH & NERVOUS SYSTEM Anxiety

HEART & CIRCULATION High cholesterol

DIGESTIVE SYSTEM Constipation

REPRODUCTIVE & URINARY SYSTEMS Endometriosis, Polycystic ovary syndrome, Problematic periods

Garlicky white beans with kale and Parmesan This is the ultimate comfort food for me. It’s incredibly flavoursome, creamy, and just really bakes my biscuit! It’s a doddle to make and is very potent. It works as a simple meal or a side dish with other things, too.

SERVES 4–6

olive oil, for cooking

2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

1 x 400g can cannellini beans, drained

1 x 400g can butter beans, drained

120g curly kale

2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

¼ teaspoon chilli flakes (optional)

sea salt and black pepper

Heat a pan with a little olive oil and add the garlic. Cook over a medium-high heat – this is one of those rare occasions that I encourage you to let the garlic go brown. This gives the dish a unique, smoky flavour.

At this point, add the beans and tear in the curly kale (tear it into small pieces straight into the pan). Season with salt and pepper. Continue to cook for about 7–8 minutes, or until just tender but still crisp.

At this stage, add 1 tablespoon of the Parmesan and stir well. Transfer to a serving dish and sprinkle the remaining Parmesan on top, along with some chilli flakes, if using. Serve immediately.

SKIN Acne, Eczema, Psoriasis

JOINTS & BONES Arthritis

HEART & CIRCULATION Heart disease

DIGESTIVE SYSTEM Crohn’s disease

The beta booster I love the intense, earthy and aromatic flavours in this dish. The squash is ultra-rich in the antioxidant beta carotene, and the fats in the feta cheese actually drastically increase the body’s absorption of the beta carotene.

SERVES 4

1 medium butternut squash

3 garlic cloves

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

¼ teaspoon dried chilli flakes

olive oil, for roasting

small bunch fresh sage, finely chopped, or 1 teaspoon dried sage

200g feta cheese

sea salt and black pepper

Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas mark 6. Halve the butternut squash, scoop out the seeds and discard them. Dice the squash (keeping the skin on) into 1cm cubes. Place these in a roasting tin.

Keep the garlic cloves whole and unpeeled. Bash them with the palm of your hand or the back of a wooden spoon – anything that will partially crush them. Add them to the roasting tin with the squash, and sprinkle over the cumin seeds and chilli flakes. Drizzle some olive oil over, season with salt, and if you are using dried sage, add it at this point.

Roast in the oven for around 20 minutes, or until the squash is soft, starting to brown, and the edges are starting to caramelize. If using fresh sage, sprinkle it over now.

Place the squash in a large bowl and crumble the feta over it, then season with a little black pepper. Serve immediately.

HEART & CIRCULATION High blood pressure, High cholesterol

DIGESTIVE SYSTEM Constipation

Spicy coconut dhal This is a fantastic fusion dish. It has the texture and appearance of a traditional Indian dhal, but the inclusion of lemon grass gives it a Thai-Malay twist, and the end result is a true Asian fusion. Warning – this dish is addictive!

SERVES 3–4

2 fresh lemon grass stalks

olive oil, for cooking

1 large red onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 green chilli, finely chopped

100g red lentils

200ml coconut milk

400ml hot vegetable stock (made with a stock cube or bouillon powder)

small bunch fresh coriander, roughly chopped

1 red chilli, thinly sliced (optional)

1 lime, cut into wedges

sea salt and black pepper

Start by bashing the lemon grass. Use a rolling pin or something with plenty of weight behind it – this will split and bruise the stalk and allow the wonderful fresh oils to seep out of the lemon grass and into the dish.

Heat a little olive oil in a large pan, add the onion, garlic, chilli and lemon grass and cook for 4–5 minutes, or until the onion has softened. Add the lentils and coconut milk and simmer for 3–4 minutes.

Start adding the vegetable stock, little by little. Keep adding the stock until the lentils have softened and partially broken down, which usually takes about 20–25 minutes.

Season with salt and pepper, sprinkle over the coriander and red chilli, and serve immediately with the lime wedges on the side. It’s great with quinoa with some goji berries, fresh coriander and lime juice stirred through it.