My lunches for this week turned out delicious!  I am at that point now where I just “wing” recipes based on the flavours and tastes I enjoy.  I am also trying to experiment with different vegetables to add variety and a range of different vitamins and nutrients.  This is a budget friendly meal that is tasty, has good nutritional values, and is simple to make!

Ingredients:

– 400g Red Kidney Beans
– 400g Brown Lentils
– 500g Turkey Mince
– 1 Tbs Tomato Paste
– 700ml Passata
– 1 Eggplant
– 1 Red Onion
– 1 Zucchini
– 3 Mushrooms
– 1/2 Brown Onion
– 1 Tbs Homemade Vegetable Stock
– 1 Tbs Nutritional Yeast Flakes (optional)
– 1 tsp Paprika
– 1 tsp Cumin
– 1 tsp Marjoram

Finely dice all vegetables (to save time, use a food processor!).
Heat a tablespoon of macadamia or coconut oil in a large frypan.
Add vegetables and stir for a couple of minutes.  Add spices and stock and cook until fragrant.
Add Turkey Mince and stir until browned.  Add Passata & Tomato Paste and cook for 5 minutes.  Drain and rinse lentils & kidney beans and add to pan.  Stir through and leave simmer for 15-20 minutes.

Serve with pasta or rice, or omit and add a side salad.

Makes 11 meals.

Notes:
When choosing ingredients, always check the labels.  Tomato paste, passata, beans and lentils can all have added preservatives and additives.  BUT there is always an option which is 100% real ingredients.

In this instance I used gluten free and wheat free pasta that I had left in the pantry.  Spelt pasta is another favourite of mine.  1/4 of a cup of cooked pasta is a great serving size.  The problem with pasta is that it is usually the main ingredient in dishes.  Carbs in the correct portion are a GOOD thing.

I make my own vegetable stock concentrate by cooking vegetables with a bit of oil and salt and then blending into a puree.  There are also great options of free range, liquid stocks available at Woolworths.