Lifestyle Choices

We hear so much in the media today about what to eat, what not to eat, how much exercise we need to take weekly, the best way to do things how to save money and more often than not we are bombarded with adverts for things to spend our hard earned money on.

I have always lived a simple life, and I have always tried my best to make the most of the things I have. My parents brought me up to look after and treasure things that are important to me and not just to throw something out because it may not be the "in " thing anymore.

I have been trying to make some healthier life choices this year and have lost over 30lbs and have been trying to fit some regular exercise into my life. I still have a long way to go, but it will be worth it. I like to follow (well, most of the time!)the slimming world eating plan. So hopefully all the food pictures will be from tasty things I have made from the plan. This is one I made a while ago and it was really tasty, you would never know you were on a health kick.






Slimming world Green Day Cannelloni

225 g spinach
150 g pot Quark
150 g pot low fat cottage cheese
3 garlic cloves
zest of 1 lemon, finely grated
6 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
1 tablespoon parsley, chopped
1 egg yolk
salt
pepper
12 cannelloni tubes
500 g passata
1 tablespoon artificial sweetener
2 tablespoons chives, chopped
1 tablespoon parmesan cheese, grated


Preheat oven to 200c/400f/Gas6.

Blanch spinach in boiling water for 30 seconds, drain and place in a bowl.

Mix together the quark and cottage cheese.

Crush 1 clove of garlic and stir into the mixture with the lemon zest 1/2 the basil, the parsley and the egg yolk. Add the mixture to the spinach, season to taste and combine. Spoon mixture into tubes and place in an oven-proof dish.

Crush the remaining garlic and mix with the passata, sweetener and remaining herbs. Season to taste. Pour over the pasta, sprinkle with the parmesan and bake for 20 minutes until bubbling.

Garnish with fresh basil leaves and serve with a salad.