Food bloggers and restauranteurs Kate Allinson and Kay Featherstone have much to celebrate. Their brand new cookbook Pinch Of Nom sold 210,506 copies in the first three days on sale, making it the UK’s fastest-selling non-fiction book ever.
It’s no mean feat. The book has even pipped Jamie Oliver’s cookery books to the post in terms of popularity – the naked chef previously had the best first-week sales for a cookery book with Jamie’s Italy, which sold 155,000 copies in December 2005.
Pinch of Nom, which is also the name of their blog, features recipes to help people lose weight healthily and is compatible with both Weight Watchers and Slimming World diets.
The pair started their food blog three years ago and it is now reportedly the UK’s most visited food blog in the UK. Since they began their weight loss journey, Allinson has lost five stone while Featherstone has lost seven, the BBC reported.
Want to see what all the fuss is about? HuffPost UK has been given access to three recipes from the brand new book. Perfect for dinner tonight.
Shakshuka
This North African dish is quite simply a tomato-based stew made with onions, garlic and peppers, with eggs poached in the mixture. It’s a home comfort-style meal that’s easy on the calories with a slight chilli heat. Serve it with some new potatoes and green vegetables, or just on its own as a light meal.
Prep time: 10 mins
Cooking time: 25 mins
242 kcal per serving / Vegetarian / Gluten-free / Serves two
Ingredients
- low-calorie cooking spray
- 1 onion, sliced
- 1 red pepper, deseeded and sliced
- 1 yellow pepper, deseeded and sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped or grated
- ½ tsp ground cumin
- ¼ tsp mild chilli powder
- 1 x 400g tin chopped tomatoes or cherry tomatoes
- pinch of granulated sweetener
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 100g spinach
- sea salt and freshly ground
- black pepper
- handful of chopped fresh parsley or coriander
- 4 medium eggs
Method
Spray a large frying pan with some low-calorie cooking spray and place over a medium heat.
Add the onion and peppers and cook for 4–5 minutes until they have started to soften. Add the garlic and continue cooking for 4–5 minutes. (This should take 8–10 minutes in total.) Add the cumin and chilli powder and stir for a minute or so, then stir in the tomatoes, sweetener and lemon juice. Cook for a couple of minutes, stirring occasionally.
Stir in the spinach, then turn the heat down to low, cover and cook for 5 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Sprinkle half the parsley or coriander over the tomato mixture, then make four wells in the mix and crack an egg into each one. Sprinkle the eggs with some salt and pepper, cover with a lid or foil and simmer over a low heat for 8–10 minutes if you like your eggs runny, or a bit longer if you prefer them firmer.
Remove from the heat, sprinkle with the remaining parsley or coriander and serve.
Super Simple Chicken Curry
Occasionally, the craving for a good Indian dish is overwhelming. We would all love to have the opportunity to create curry pastes and spice mixes from scratch. At times though, we just need a quick, easy, go-to curry recipe that can be created in minutes. This is one such recipe. Wonderfully tasty, but so quick to put together, it’ll become a regular evening meal in no time.
Prep time: 5 mins
Cooking time: 30 mins
181 kcal per serving / Gluten-free / Serves 4
Ingredients
- low-calorie cooking spray
- 1 large onion, sliced
- 450g chicken breast (skin and visible fat removed), diced
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed
- 400ml water
- 3 tbsp curry powder
- 1 tbsp ground turmeric
- 1tbsp tomato puree
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
To serve (optional)
- Samosas
- cooked rice
Method
Spray a large frying pan with low-calorie cooking spray and place over a medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 2 minutes until softened slightly, then add the diced chicken to the pan and cook for 5 minutes until browned.
Add the garlic to the pan and cook for 1 minute, then add all the other ingredients. The water should just about cover the chicken – you may need a little more or less depending on the size of your pan.
Leave to simmer gently for 20 minutes.
Turn the heat up and boil the curry for another 5 minutes, stirring frequently to ensure it doesn’t catch on the bottom of the pan – this will reduce and thicken the sauce slightly.
Serve the curry with your choice of accompaniment.
Tip: This curry recipe works well with lean diced lamb (all visible fat removed), too.
Veggie Burgers
You can’t beat a good veggie burger. The very best of them are substantial and tasty and, if you’re a meat-eater, you don’t even miss the meat. This is one of those great burgers. The addition of a small amount of Parmesan gives them a fantastic sharp, rich taste. Serve with a large salad and enjoy!
Prep time: 15 mins
Cooking time: 10 mins
118 kcal per serving / Vegetarian / Gluten-free (use gluten-free buns) / Serves 4
Ingredients
- 220g medium potatoes, peeled and diced
- low-calorie cooking spray
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 medium carrot, grated
- 50g green beans, trimmed and finely chopped
- 50g cauliflower florets, finely chopped
- 50g broccoli florets, finely chopped
- 50g frozen peas
- 50g sweetcorn kernels (tinned and drained, or frozen)
- handful of fresh parsley, chopped
- 30g Parmesan (or vegetarian hard cheese)
To serve (optional)
- 4 wholemeal burger buns
- lettuce leaves
- sweet potato rostis
Method
Cook the potatoes in a pan of boiling salted water until soft, then drain well and mash with a hand-held masher or fork.
Spray a large frying pan with some low-calorie cooking spray and place over a medium heat. Add the garlic and all the vegetables (except the peas and sweetcorn) and cook for 5 minutes, stirring so they don’t start to colour. Add the peas and sweetcorn and cook for another 2–3 minutes.
Mix the mashed potato and vegetables together in a bowl, then stir in the chopped parsley and Parmesan.
Divide the mixture into four equal pieces, and form each piece into a burger shape. (You can freeze the burgers at this point for cooking on another day. Thoroughly defrost the burgers before cooking.)
Spray a frying pan with some low-calorie cooking spray and place over a medium heat. Add the burgers and cook for 5 minutes or until they are golden brown on the bottom, then turn them carefully and cook for another few minutes. When the other side is golden brown, remove from the heat and serve the burgers on their own, in a wholemeal roll packed with salad, or with sweet potato rostis (recipe featured in the book).
Pinch of Nom: 100 Slimming, Home-Style Recipes by Kate Allinson and Kay Featherstone, Amazon, £10 (Bluebird, Hardback £20; eBook £16.99)
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