Crab Linguine

A yummy recipe I came up with in order to use up some crab meat I had in the cupboard.

Serves 2

Extra Easy - 0 syns, HEXa

Ingredients
1 tin of Chunky Crab Meat
Half a Red Chilli, finely chopped
2 Garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 Spring Onions, chopped
Handful of Tenderstem Broccoli
60g Parmesan, grated
150g Spaghetti/Linguine/Vermicelli 
1 tbsp Pasta water
Frylight
Salt & Black Pepper

Method
1. Cook your chosen pasta according to the packet instructions.
2. Fry the spring onion and broccoli in a frying pan sprayed with frylight until the broccoli has slightly softened. Add the garlic and chilli and fry for 2 minutes.
3. Add the crab meat to the pan and fry for a further minute.
4. Drain the pasta, reserving 1 tbsp of the pasta water and put back into the saucepan. Add the reserved pasta water and half of the Parmesan, along with the spring onion, garlic, chilli and seasoning and combine.
5. Dish into two pasta bowls and sprinkle over the rest of the Parmesan and serve.

Creamy Smoked Salmon & Broccoli Pasta

Here's something I threw together after needing to use up some smoked salmon. A really tasty and quick dish packed full of Super Free.

Serves 1

Extra Easy - 0 syns, part of HEXa

Ingredients
80g Dried Fusilli Pasta
Couple of slices of Smoked Salmon, torn into strips
Handful of Tenderstem Broccoli
Half a Courgette, sliced and halved
Half a Red Onion, sliced
Half a Carrot, grated
40g Philadelphia Light (HEXa)
20g 0% Greek Yoghurt
A Squeeze of Lemon Juice
Salt & Black Pepper
1 tbsp Pasta Cooking water
Frylight

Method
1. Cook the pasta according to the packet instructions. Halfway through the cooking time, add the broccoli to the saucepan and cook until tender.
2. Fry the courgette, grated carrot and red onion in a frying pan sprayed with frylight until soft.
3. Mix the philadelphia with the greek yoghurt and season.
3. Drain the pasta and broccoli, reserving 1 tbsp of the cooking water, and put back into the saucepan. Add the onion, carrot, courgette, smoked salmon, philadephia mixture and cooking water to the saucepan and combine. Season with black pepper and squeeze over the lemon juice.

Chicken & Bacon Pasta Bake

I had some leftovers to use up and so created this tasty pasta bake.

Serves 2

Extra Easy - 0 syns, HEXa

Ingredients
200g Dried Fusilli Pasta
250g Passata
100g Fat Free Fromage Frais or 0% Greek Yoghurt
2 Chicken breasts, sliced
2 Bacon rashers, fat removed and sliced
1 Red onion, sliced 
1 Red Pepper, sliced
1/2 Courgette, sliced and halved
1 Garlic clove, finely chopped
60g Reduced Fat Cheddar, grated (HEXa)
Mixed Herbs
Salt & Black Pepper
Frylight

Method
1. Cook the pasta according to the packet instructions.
2. Add the vegetables and garlic to an ovenproof dish and spray with frylight. Cover with the mixed herbs and season. Put into a hot oven at 200C for 30 minutes or until the vegetables are soft.
3. Season the chicken and fry in a frying pan sprayed with frylight, along with the bacon, until cooked through.
4. Meanwhile, mix the passata and fromage frais (or greek yoghurt) in a bowl and season. Add the cooked chicken and bacon and coat with the sauce.
5. Add the cooked pasta to the ovenproof dish containing the vegetables. Pour over the tomato and chicken mixture and combine with the pasta and vegetables until everything is covered with the sauce. Sprinkle over the grated cheese and season. Bake for 15 minutes and serve.

Basil Pesto

A recipe I found on the SW site that I've tweaked slightly. It's a non-oily pesto recipe that's a perfect accompaniment to pasta. It's 1.5 syns per portion or free if counting the parmesan towards your HEXa.

Serves 4

Extra Easy - 1.5 syns per portion or HEXa

Ingredients
50g (ish) fresh Basil leaves
100g fat free Fromage Frais
50ml Vegetable stock
2 Garlic cloves, roughly chopped
4 tbsps grated Parmesan cheese (6 syns or HEXa)
Mixed Herbs
Salt & Black Pepper

Method
1. Put all of the ingredients into a food processor and blast until it resembles a thin paste.
2. It's a simple as that!

N.B. If you like a bit of spice, add half a small roughly chopped red chilli to the food processor with the rest of the ingredients.

Sausage Meat Pasta

One of my friends at Uni used to make this for us as it's a cheap and easy recipe. The ingredients may not sound like much but they make for a very delicious pasta dish and the sauce is packed full of Superfree!

Serves 2

Extra Easy - 1 syn per portion

Ingredients
4 Weight Watchers Pork Sausages (0.5 syns each)
2 carrots, peeled and grated
1 onion, sliced
1 can of Chopped Tomatoes
150g dried Fusilli
Frylight
Salt & Black Pepper
Mixed Dried Herbs

Method
1. Remove the sausage meat from it's casing and set aside.
2. Fry the onion in a deep frying pan until soft and add the carrot and fry for a few minutes until the carrot has softened.
3. Add the sausage meat and fry until it has started to brown.
4. Add the chopped tomatoes, seasoning and mixed herbs.
5. Leave to simmer, stirring occassionaly, for 30 minutes or until the chopped tomatoes have reduced and the mixture has thickened.
6. Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to the packet instructions. Distribute the pasta between two bowls and spoon the sausage meat on top. Serve with 20g grated reduced fat cheddar as part of your HEXa.

Chilli & Garlic Prawn Linguine

This is a dish you always see on menu's at Italian restaurants so I thought I'd give it a try at home. The best thing is that you can put as much or as little chilli in it as you like.

Serves 2

Extra Easy - 0 syns

Ingredients 
225g grey King Prawns
Carton of Passata
1 Red Chilli, finely chopped
1 Garlic clove, finely chopped
1 Onion, sliced
1 courgette, sliced and then halved
150g dried Linguine, Spaghetti or Parpadelle
Salt & Black Pepper
Frylight

Method
1. Cook the pasta according to the packet instructions.
2. Fry the onion and courgette in a frying pan, sprayed with frylight, and cook until soft.
3. Add the garlic and chilli and fry for one minute, and then add the passata and season well. Cook until the passata has reduced and thickened.
4. Add the prawns and cook until they turn pink.
5. Divide the pasta into two bowls and top with the prawns and sauce. Top with grated parmesan as part of your HEXa.

N.B. For added indulgence add 125ml dry white wine before adding the passata. Add 2 syns per portion.

Carbonara

Here is a firm favourite in my household that I found in an old copy of Slimming World magazine. It uses up your HEXa choice but I use slightly less than the advised daily amount so feel free to boost it up to your full allowance of 30g per person if cheese is your thing. Definitely one of my favourite dishes!

Serves 2 

Extra Easy - 0 syn, HEXa

Ingredients
150g dried Spaghetti
2 Eggs, beaten
40g grated Parmesan (HEXa)
4 slices of Bacon, fat removed, cut into strips
1 Red Onion, sliced
1 Courgette, sliced
Handful of Mushrooms, any variety, sliced
1 Garlic clove, finely chopped
Frylight

Method
1. Cook the spaghetti according to the packet instructions.
2. Meanwhile, prepare your vegetables and fry in a frying pan sprayed with Frylight until cooked.
3. Add the bacon and garlic to the cooked vegetables and fry until the bacon is cooked through.
4. Drain off the spaghetti and return to the saucepan. Add the eggs and half of the parmesan. Season with salt and black pepper.
5. Add the bacon mixture to the pasta and mix well.
6. Transfer the pasta to two bowls and cover each with the remaining parmesan. Enjoy!