Wedding Ideas has teamed up with Slimming World to bring you some Christmas treats that won’t make you feel guilty! Taken from their new book A Slimming World Christmas,here’s a scrumptious starter, main and dessert that will keep your bridal body in check…
Deluxe prawn cocktail
Take your guests’ tastebuds on a trip down memory lane with our stylish version of the retro classic…
Serves 4, ready in 15 minutes
Ingredients:
6 level tbsp extra-light mayonnaise
2 level tbsp tomato ketchup
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
A few drops of Tabasco sauce
1 tbsp lemon juice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
500g cooked and peeled king prawns
Little Gem lettuce leaves
1 tsp smoked paprika, to garnish
Fresh dill sprigs, to garnish
Lime wedges, to serve
Method:
- Mix the mayonnaise, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, horseradish, Tabasco and lemon juice together in a large bowl. Season to taste and stir in the prawns.
- Divide the Little Gem leaves between four cocktail glasses or small bowls and spoon in the prawns.
- Sprinkle with a little smoked paprika, garnish with dill sprigs and serve with lime wedges to squeeze over.
Cheesy gammon, potato and veg bake
This simple bake is a mouth-watering way to use up your leftover gammon joint, sweet vegetables and potatoes – it’s just perfect for the lazy days after Christmas!
Serves 4, ready in 50 minutes
Ingredients:
Large bag of spinach leaves
300g leftover gammon, visible fat removed, cut into bite-sized chunks
Half a bunch of spring onions, finely sliced
400g leftover potatoes, cooked without fat, cut into bite-sized chunks
200g leftover sweet vegetable roast (see pg. 62 in book) or use any other free cooked veg
Small handful of fresh chives
4 eggs, lightly beaten
200g low fat natural cottage cheese
50g reduced fat cheddar cheese, grated
2 pinches of freshly ground nutmeg
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method:
- Preheat the oven to 200°C/Fan 180°C/Gas 6.
- Put the spinach in a heatproof bowl and pour over a little boiling water. Leave for a minute to wilt then tip into a colander and run under cold water.
- Drain and squeeze out any excess liquid then pat dry with kitchen paper.
- Put the spinach, gammon, spring onions, potatoes and roasted sweet vegetables in a shallow ovenproof dish and toss to mix well. Put the remaining ingredients in a food processor and blend until fairly smooth, then season to taste and pour over the gammon mixture.
- Bale for 35 minutes, or until set and lightly browned.
- Serve warm or at room temperature.
Star biscuits
It’s great fun making and decorating these pretty biscuits…and they’re perfect when you feel like a nibble.
Serves 36, ready in less than 30 minutes
Ingredients:
312g plain flour
A pinch of salt
1 level tsp baking powder
1 level tsp ground almonds
113g low fat margarine, suitable for baking
4oz dark muscovado sugar
2 large eggs
5 tbsp runny honey
Method:
- Preheat the oven to 170°C/150°C Fan/Gas 3.
- Place the flour, salt, baking powder, ground almonds, margarine and sugar in a food processor and blend. Slowly add the eggs and honey until the mixture comes together (you may not need it all).
- Dust the work surface with flour, roll out the mixture to about 5mm deep and cut into star shapes using a star cookie cutter. Re-roll and repeat until you have 36 cookies.
- Arrange the stars on two baking trays lined with baking parchment and bake for 20 minutes.
- Remove from the oven, transfer to a wire rack and leave to cool before serving.
Tip: Decorate the cookies with icing, silver balls and glitter sugar for a special touch!
All these delicious and festive recipes are taken from A Slimming World Christmas, which is available from all Slimming world groups at the price of £4.95! To find your nearest Slimming World group, head to their website now or call 0844 8978000.
