Spicy root vegetable soup

This makes about 5 servings, which work out at 4 ProPoints each (more of ProPoints shortly).

300g potatoes, peeled and chopped
4 leeks, chopped
2 rashers bacon, chopped
3-4 carrots, peeled and chopped
500g parsnips, peeled and chopped
1 head of celeriac, peeled and chopped
5 cloves garlic, crushed
Approximately 1400ml chicken (or vegetable, but I liked chicken) stock - made with cubes or concentrate, for this soup, is fine
1 tbsp medium curry powder
half a tsp smoked paprika
half a tsp cumin
1 small tub of Total 0% yogurt

It's so eeeeeeeeeeasy - just stick all your vegetables and the bacon in and sweat down, then add all the stock and spices and bring it up to the boil. Turn it down to a simmer, cook through til tender and blend. Add the yogurt, stir in well, and enjoy!

Husband soup

So...okay, not actually containing any real husband, but Chris came home from work the other day and said, do you know, your soups stop conversations in the hospital staffroom? I gave him the Eyebrow, but apparently, there is a standard pause in conversation when he removes his reheated lunch from the microwave, followed by someone asking what it is today. So far he's been happy enough with whatever I've whipped up with what we've got in the fridge, but yesterday he had a specific request: something really tomatoey. So, without further ado, here it is: tomato and lentil soup for Chris, aka Husband Soup. I reckon there's about five portions here, so it'd be 3.5 Points per serving.

2 medium onions, roughly chopped
4 sticks celery, roughly chopped
1-2 red bell peppers (depending on size), chopped roughly
3-4 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
2 x 400g-ish cartons sieved tomatoes/passata
1 tube tomato puree
approx 1400ml water (cold, from the tap!)
1 tbsp chopped parsley
1 tsp italian seasoning
2 tbsp parmesan cheese, grated (optional, but it makes SUCH a difference)
1 tsp sugar
BIG pinch salt
generous seasoning with black pepper
300g red lentils

Very simple, this; soften the onion, garlic, celery and bell pepper well in your pan, and then add everything else except the lentils. Cook it all down together and then blend it smooth. All you do then is add the lentils and cook them through, and behold! Husband soup. Alternatively, as I am doing at the moment, you can transfer it to the slow cooker at the point of adding the lentils, and leave it for however long you need to :)

Autumnal stew of pork with black beans and squash

With the cold weather heading our way and the nights drawing in, this is what's going to be in the pot tonight. It could probably feed three, but to be honest we will both have been running around a lot today and I'm always starving in this weather, so let's say it serves 2 at 6.5 Points each.

1 acorn squash, peeled, deseeded and hacked into chunks
3 smallish courgettes, diced
1 red pepper, diced
2 smallish onions, diced
1 can chopped tomatoes in juice
5 cloves of garlic, crushed/smashed/smooshed
3 lean pork leg steaks (not very big)
1 carton of Sainsbury's organic black beans in water, drained
2 tbsp tomato puree
1 tsp dried chipotle powder
1 tsp dried ancho powder
shake of bittersweet smoked paprika
pork stock cube if you've got it (that's your call)
If you're feeling like something a bit different, a peeled, cored and diced Granny Smith
If I'm feeling frisky I might pop in one of the whole dried pasilla chilis I've been hoarding from The Gringley Gringo (who also incidentally make the most awesome chipotle chutney).

So, off we go.

Sort your squash out first, peeling it and deseeding it and chopping it into manageable lumps. That needs to go into a roasting tray with a few squirts of olive oil and a sprinkle of sea salt, and into the oven at 180 while you do everything else. You need to check it and give it a bit of a shake every 10-15 minutes and the idea is that you add it into the pot with the rest of the ingredients towards the end of cooking so it doesn't all fall to mush.

When that's on the go, start with your pork; cut it into small pieces and add it to your pan with a spray of oil. Leave that to start browning. When it's getting there, add the onion and garlic and let it all cook down gently together so everything is golden brown and soft; when it's there, add the pepper and courgettes (and any dried whole chilis and the apple if you're using them), put the lid on and let it simmer.

After about ten minutes, when everything is softened, add the tomatoes, puree, beans, stock cube and spices, give it a good stir and then let it all cook down til it's how you like it. When it's nearly there and your squash is roasted til it's soft and starting to catch a bit round the edges, add the squash to the mix and serve - enjoy!

If you are in need of extra ballast this will go really well with some brown rice (say 60g each - about 3 Points), or perhaps even a couple of wraps? (WW do them for 1 Point each, but they don't currently do wholewheat, which doesn't suit me too well.)

Low GI banana bread

I made this this evening to use up some bananas that were about to go from black and squidgy to dangerously out of date. Therefore I just had to improvise with what I'd got in the cupboard but do you know, it's come out really well!

Makes 8 very generous portions at 3.5 Points a go. You could get two slices out of one of these portions though.

Quarter of a cup of vegetable/nut oil; I used almond but I bet hazelnut is nice
4 medium bananas, squashy to the point of splodgy, mashed
2 medium eggs, beaten
225g wholemeal flour (SR)
2 tsp baking powder
1 cup of PerfectSweet (xylitol, in granulated form)
LOTS of cinnamon ;)
generous splodge of vanilla extract (I used this from VanillaBazaar)

So, um...you just add the wet ingredients to the dry, stir it into a batter and pour it into a loaf tin (mine's silicon so not even any greasing or flouring needed). Bake at 180 in the middle of the oven for about 45 minutes, and check it as you go. Nice!