Diabetic Diva Susan with her latest recipe book.

Diabetic recipes are ‘Healthy’ because they have limited amounts of refined sugars and salts so if you want more healthy recipes take a look at her website.
Remember you don’t have to be diabetic to enjoy Susan’s tasty recipes, in fact eating these healthy feasts can help prevent you becoming diabetic so tuck in!

TWIRLY SPAGHETTI & MINCE SAUCE

A family favourite and so easy to make. Rearing beef has a detrimental effect on the environment but this can be made with vegetable alternatives.The mince can be prepared in a batch and frozen for at least 3 months. Good with jacket potatoes, rice, pasta, mock pizza.

Main ingredient: Mince beef or vegetarian alternative, spaghetti Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes Serves 4:

EQUIPMENT
Chopping board
Sharp knife
Can opener
Measuring spoon
Large saucepan with lid
Wooden spoon

For spaghetti
Measuring jug
Measuring spoon
Medium size saucepan with lid
Spoon for stirring

INGREDIENTS
500g lean ground mince beef
½ sweet pepper, roughly chopped
½ onion roughly chopped
1 tin chopped tomatoes
1 jar pasta sauce
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp black pepper
2 tsp dried Italian herbs

METHOD
COOK the mince in a pot stirring with a wooden spoon until it’s brown in colour and no pink bits remain. ADD the onion and peppers and cook for another 3 minutes
NEXT add all the other ingredients and let meat mixture cook until the sauce starts to bubble. TURN the heat down to low and let this cook for at least 20 minutes
SERVE with spaghetti and a salad (even a teeny weeny one would be great) Remember your 5 A Day.

SPAGHETTI
PUT 500ml of water and ¼ tsp salt into a pot
LET it boil
ADD 100g wholemeal spaghetti to the boiling water
COOK for 8 minutes (al dente) cooked still firm
DRAIN and put on a plate
SPOON some mince sauce over
If you like sprinkle grated parmesan cheese over and dried parsley.

Try these
Make mock pizzas using the mince sauce. Slice a wholemeal French roll in 2. Spoon some of the sauce over and about 2 tbsp grated cheese. Grill under hot grill until cheese melts.

Or add red kidney beans, ½ to 1 tsp chilli powder and dried Italian herbs to make chilli.
Here is Susan cooking with some children.

Children love to cook when there's a grown-up to help.

February 14th is a strange time called Valentine’s Day, when a lot of Grown Ups go bonkers and buy flowers and chocolate for their best friends.

This got Peter Parsnip thinking. As usual all his pocket money was spent so this is what he did…

… Peter decided that instead of buying a present he would MAKE one! And for this he thought up a special Valentine’s Day recipe!

This is what he used:

• Bread
• Some oil
• A heap of colourful vegetables (about a small cup full for each tart)
• Some cheese for melting
• Tomato puree
• & a patty tin to bake your tartlets in.

(Should take about half an hour altogether)

Peter drinks his tea & uses the mug to cut out 6 circles of bread, he then flattens them with a rolling pin.

After pressing them into a well-oiled patty tin he chops a heap of colourful vegetables (750g of onions, spinach, peppers etc) and softens them up in a pan with some oil for 10 minutes or so.

When its nicely mushy he plonks it all into the patty tins and adds a little grated cheese, and stands back to admire his work.

‘Something is missing…’ He thinks, like any great chef. And then, ‘Aha!’ he gets it:

Peter thoughtfully squeezes a heart of tomato puree onto the top of the soft veg-filling, and slides the tasty tarts into the oven to bake for 15-20 minutes on a medium heat.

And then what happens? His sister Carla Carrot comes and sticks her nose in. She peers through the glass in the oven door.

‘Oooh are those for me? Oh brilliant! You must really love me!’

‘Of course I do!’ Peter tells his sister, and says to himself, ‘Phew. Lucky I made six of them!’

How do your tartlets look?

Send us a picture via e-mail before they all get eaten.

Basic recipes like Peter’s are perfecto because you can be really creative and add all your own ingredients. 

All the fun of making, and scrumptious eating too! Unless you make a big mess of course… I had a go and things went a bit wrong. Click here to see What Happens When Baking Goes Wrong...

Rice Dishes

Once you get the basics of cooking rice you will be able to create a meal super quick by combining not just the fresh foods that are in season but also making the most of leftovers and your store of tinned, dried or frozen foods. Here is inspiration from some traditional rice dishes.

The Spanish created Paella. It is full of Mediterranean delights; tomatoes, peppers and freshly caught fish if you are by the sea. The rice is often yellow from Saffron (a spice which is made from part of a crocus flower). Sometimes a special pan is used.

The British created Kedgeree a very tasty and filling breakfast by cooking rice with smoked fish, eggs, onions and curry powder. Wow – those are some flavours!!

The Italians created Risotto, the rice is normally creamy in colour and flavour. It often features a couple of flavours some more whacky than others, the internet is full of interesting combinations: Mushroom & Parsley, Pumpkin & Parmesan, Asparagus & Walnut…

A Simple One Pot Meal

• This is for roughly 2 adults and 2 children. If you end up with too much, keep some back for the next day. It will even be delicious cold so you can pack it for lunch.
• 1 mug of rice
• 2 mugs of protein
• Large onion
• 2 mugs of vegetables
• Tbspn Oil
• 3 mugs of water with 1 stock cube. (look for low salt)

We vary our ingredients by what we see is available, seasonal or on offer.

Protein 2 Chicken thighs with meat cut from bone, 300g Sausage, Nuts, 1 tin Butter Beans, 300gFish, 1 tinChickpeas.

Vegetables Peas, Celery,Peppers, Garlic, French beans, Broad beans, Tomatoes, Carrots, Parsley, Courgette.

Method

• Put oil in pan over medium heat and cook meat if using.
• Take meat out and keep to one side whilst you lightly fry chopped onion and any fresh veg you are using
• Add stock and bring to boil.
• Add rice and stir. Keep boiling for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Return the meat to the pan or other protein. Add any frozen veg. Bring back to boil.
• Turn down to simmer for 5 mins.

Serve with a crispy salad

Green Tomato Chutney

Here’s some guidance on how to make 4 courses from your lantern. Every pumpkin is different so add your own flair!

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Spiced Pumpkin Soup

To serve 6. Keeps in fridge for 3 days or frozen.

Put the following in a tray to roast in oven 180 degrees, till soft and golden, about 30mins:

Put the following together and liquidise until desired smoothness:

Place in a saucepan and bring back to the boil

Caramelised Pumpkin Ice Cream or Frozen Yogurt

Serves 4-8. Store in freezer to eat another day

Put the following in a tray to roast in oven 180 degrees, till soft and golden, about 30mins:

Leave the pumpkin to cool then blend:

For a helping hand click on the images below to see when different fruit and veg are in season:

Autumn

Winter (coming soon)

Spring (coming soon)

Summer (coming soon)

Secret Seed Society, child-friendly recipes and tips for growing and cooking with kids for a healthier, happier future.

Have you spent the summer nurturing and tending  your runners?  Well now is the time to get harvesting! But remember to send us a picture of your longest runner bean for our giant bean competition.

Is there a bean long enough for the Giant Bean Competition?

Runner Beans give your plate brilliant colour and taste great! Try them boiled with your roast dinners; stir-fried in oil with garlic, peppers, beansprouts and chicken; or in a warm new potato and mackerel salad.

Spinach

Popeye knew what he was doing when he indulged in these leafy greens. Spinach is bursting with nutritional value. You can chop it up and stir it round in a frying pan with a drop of olive oil. after a few minutes it will have become much more ‘solid’ and reduced in size…delicious in our tartlets recipe with a little bit of cheese.

Courgettes

Another vegetable that is versatile.  Looks a bit like a cucumber but has a whole taste of its own!

Wow! this courgette was yellow! It added colour to our tartlets.

We put it in our tartlets but it is also great in stir-fries or mixed with tomatoes, peppers and onions in a ratatouille. Another favourite is in muffins or cakes.  You could even try it raw with carrot, pepper and celery sticks with a tasty dip to dunk it in.

Berries

Blackberries are bountiful this year, take a walk and pick your own. If you manage not to eat them all before you get home try mixing them into some plain yoghurt for a delicious pud.

Pick Blackberries fresh from the bush for great taste!

Another way to get great flavour from your berries is to cook them in a delicious crumble. When the days are getting darker and the nights colder there’s nothing better than curling up with a nice hot fruit crumble.

Carrots

These are a wonderful colour…normally bright orange but did you know carrots were purple originally? For lots of ideas for making carrot soup see Carla Carrot.

Carrots add lots of colour to other dishes or can be used to make a wonderful soup.

Secret Seed Society, child-friendly recipes and tips for growing and cooking with kids for a healthier, happier future.

Rio Rocket is the latest Seedizen to join Seed City’s Adventures with Vegetables.

Check out his tasty Pizza Recipe with a twist, it helps you to enjoy all your favourite vegetables in one go!

All you need is to grab yourself a Grown-Up and you’re ready to rock!

Utensils:

Chopping board and knife

Pizza tray or round oven-proof dish

Non-stick cooking spray

Flat knife of fish slice for serving

Ingredients:

2 or 3 medium potatoes

4 tablespoons tomato puree

1 bowl of a grated cheese of your liking

2 handfuls of Rocket

Suggested toppings to choose from:

Red Onion                           Asparagus

Beetroot                              Mushrooms

Tomatoes                            Sweetcorn

Ham/Pepperoni                   Red, Yellow, Orange and Green Peppers

Method:

• Step 1:  Turn oven on to 200oC/gas mark 6. Lightly coat tray or dish with cooking oil spray.

• Step 4: Place in the oven and cook for 30 – 40 minutes.

• Step 8: Return to oven and cook for another 10 minutes.

Good luck with your ‘Mission: Eat’ Seed Agents. Don’t forget to e-mail us at fun@secretseedsociety.com and let us know what tasty toppings you use.

For a chance to be the next Seed Agent of the Month you could also send us photos of you eating your Rocking Potato Pizza!

“Hi hi! I’ve looked all over the place but can’t find my eggs anywhere… I’ll have to find something else to use instead. Eggs are used in cooking for lots of things, like making the other ingredients stick together, and making things fluffy. But there are also other ingredients that can be used instead of eggs.

The first thing to do is think what kind of a recipe you are making. Are you making sweet cakes or savoury flippers? You probably don’t want to use any cheesy-tasting or tomato-tasting ingredients if you’re trying to make a chocolate cake.

You can use 1/4 cup of the following ingredients instead of 1 egg:

SWEET:– silken tofu, banana, fruit puree (apple is good), soy yoghurt…

SAVOURY:– silken tofu, mashed potato, tomato puree, rolled oats, cornflour, bread crumbs…

And did you know you don’t have to use eggs to make pancakes and Flippers?

Your MISSION this month is to cook something using one of Chrissie’s Eggs In Disguise… Send us a picture, at fun[at]secretseedsociety.com.

You can try it out with our fun flipper recipe, we can tell you all about Flippers here. . .

Last week was Pancake Day! Also called Fat Tuesday or Shrove Tuesday if you take part in Lent. It’s traditionally a day to eat up all sorts of yummy things in your house that you are promising not to eat during Lent, like chocolate. It’s a long month if you’re giving up your junkiest habit so first of all you need to eat a shed-load of pancakes.

BUT have you ever noticed that pancakes are quite a lot like those tortilla wraps we buy in the supermarkets? In fact they are almost exactly the same!

AND People MAKE and EAT pancakes only one day a year, and BUY and EAT those tortilla wraps all the time.

HOW ODD?! Why only eat such a great food one day out of 365? We must change this silliness once and for all.

But how? …Time for a Seed Agent Mission.

WHAT IF?! We rename pancakes Flippers! Every time we make a pancake we call it a Flipper. Everytime we eat a pancake we call it Flipper. Everytime we see a pancake we call it a Flipper. Soon the world will call pancakes – Flippers!! And then we can eat Flippers ALL year round, and not just on Fat Tuesday.

There’s nothing that can’t be used to fill a flipper, sweet or savoury, hot or cold, the choice is yours Seed Agents! Try some veg-flippers! “Move along old-school lemon and sugar”, “Bye-bye gooey joys of chocolate”, “Hello pongy cheese, spinach and mushrooms!”

Have a go at making your own flippers here and experiment eating them with different fillings. Discover which one you like best!