VICTA Young Ambassadors Harriet and Ibz both have a love of cooking and healthy eating. Here they share some top tips on cooking on a budget and nutritional recipe ideas!

Quarantine cooking tips from Ibz

I’m excited to bring you some fun and healthy snacks to keep you going during quarantine. Although you may be feeling bored and tired, let’s get productive and have some fun and most of all smile (what better way to spend your day than by eating food).

Below are my top 3 fun and tasty treats which are quick and easy to make and the ingredients are not hard to get hold of either!

BERRY SORBET

First up we have one of my fave’s a Berry Sorbet – this delicious guilt free treat is sure to get your tasted buds going, who knew fruits could taste soooo good?

You will need:
2 frozen bananas
A cup of frozen berries
Some milk of your choice
High speed blender or food processor

Method:
1. First add the frozen bananas to your blender add only a splash of milk or alternatively use water and blitz until the bananas have become creamy
2. Add the cup of frozen berries and blitz until an ice cream texture has been made (check every 30 seconds of blitzing)
3. You can top this with chocolate, berries, coconut flakes (go crazy and send us your creations on our Instagram @strivevicta)

BANANA AND OAT COOKIES

The second dish is my special banana and oat cookies. These are high in fibre, protein and essential vitamins and minerals such as magnesium and potassium. These can be eaten as a filling breakfast or a snack.

You will need:
2 ripe large bananas
1.5 cup rolled oats (you can blitz half this mixture to make oat flour and combine the two if you want greater texture)
Optional ingredients:
Chocolate powder
Chocolate chips
Raisins
Chopped nuts
Cinnamon
You can go to town on this

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 180. C
2. Mash the 2 bananas in a bowl really well
3. Add the oats and any other ingredients you are using
4. Stir well until a dough is formed
5. Leave to set in the fridge for 30 mins to an hr
6. Make the mixture into whatever shapes you like I did small circles (you can make one big one if your feeling like a healthy cheeky guilt free big cookie 😉)
7. Bake in the oven between 12-20 mins check every 5 mins
8. Nom nom enjoy!

EVERYDAY SUNDAY SMOOTHIE

My final recipe is a healthy and delicious smoothie perfect for the sunny days we have been having. This is a delicious treat to have, especially being stuck indoors, as a little pick me up.

You will need:
1 banana
1 mango
500ml of either milk or your choice of drink (orange juice) or even water would work
1 peach
5 ice cubes

Method:
Put all of the ingredients in to a high speed blender or food processor and enjoy your lovely treat.

For more recipes you can follow Ibz on social media below:

Instagram: www.instagram.com/ibzblogs
Snapchat: @blinkychef
Facebook page: Living Through The Life Of Ibz  
Twitter: @ibzblogs
Website: livingthroughthelifeofibz.com

Tips on cooking on a budget from Harriet

During this current time period where we are all being advised to stay at home, it is still possible to eat healthy meals on a cheap budget. You don’t even need to go shopping: healthy meals can be cooked by using the ingredients in your store cupboard. Here are some examples of how using the bare essentials can go a long way to keeping you fit and well.

If you love pasta, this can be a fantastic meal in itself. It can be very tasty simply tossed in butter and you can add mayonnaise and put a sprinkling of grated cheese on top. For extra flavour, you can also add tinned tuna or tinned tomatoes and mix it all together. Try cooking some vegetables in with the pasta in the same saucepan, it saves on washing up!

Eggs are a wonderful source of food and protein. If you find it hard to break eggs, you can try boiling some in their shells which works best for me. Boil the egg in a saucepan of simmering water for about five minutes for a soft yolk and approximately eight minutes for a hard boiled egg. If they are hard boiled, it’s easy to tip them out into the sink full of cold water and then let them cool slightly before handling them. When it’s cool enough give the egg a gentle bash on the work surface and then peel it, I particularly enjoy that part! When peeling, I put all the shell on a piece of kitchen roll so that it’s easier to clear it up afterwards. Once peeled, mash the egg with a fork in a deep bowl, add plenty of mayonnaise and dollop it on to wholemeal bread or toast, delicious!

The classic baked beans on toast makes a brilliant nutritious meal. I use a ring pull lever, available from RNIB, to open the tin of baked beans. Once opened, spoon the baked beans into a bowl and warm them in the microwave for about 2 minutes. Remember to put a lid on (such as a small plate or saucer) to prevent them bursting and creating an unnecessary mess in the microwave!  My favourite way to have them is spooned on to wholemeal toast and it’s even better with some cheese on top!

I hope this article has given you some good ideas and inspired you to be creative with the food you already have. If you have any simple cheap meal suggestions of your own, please share them!   

For more ideas visit Harriet’s Blind Kitchen: harrietsblindkitchen.home.blog                       

Follow us on social media for more tips, ideas and conversation!

Twitter: @Strive_VICTA

Instagram: @Strive_VICTA