As someone on a healthy diet, you might be staying mindful of what you eat – but that can be difficult when Easter Sunday arrives.
But don’t worry, you can still enjoy all the festive goodies thanks to this list of healthy holiday recipes, courtesy of the South African Mushroom Farmers’ Association.
These nutritious dishes are so good, your entire family will enjoy every single bite without even realising the whole meal is wholesome.
Roasted mushroom, fennel, and grape salad
Serves: 4
Ingredients
4 medium fennel bulbs
500g pink grapes, seedless
500g white button mushrooms, sliced in half
1 tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, finely minced
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp Dijon mustard
300g mixed leaf lettuce of choice
A handful of Italian parsley leaves
A handful of fennel fronds, for garnish
Salt and crushed pink peppercorns, to taste
Olive oil, for cooking
Method
Preheat the oven to 200˚C, fan on.
Slice the fennel bulbs into chunky thick slices.
Arrange the slices on a large baking tray in a single layer.
Drizzle a little olive oil over the fennel and season well with salt and pepper.
Roast for about 25 minutes until the fennel is very tender and golden.
Remove the fennel from the baking tray and keep it at room temperature.
(If your oven is large enough you can roast all veg simultaneously)
Using scissors, slice grapes into small bunches.
Add the grapes to the baking tray and season with a little salt and pepper.
Bake for 10 minutes until just blistering.
Toss mushrooms in a bowl with olive oil, garlic, red wine vinegar, and Dijon mustard.
Season lightly and mix well.
Add the mushrooms to the roasting tray of grapes and continue to roast together until the mushrooms are tender and the grapes are soft and juicy. About 7 minutes.
Allow mushrooms and grapes to cool slightly to avoid making the lettuce wilt.
To serve
Combine lettuce and parsley on a serving platter.
Tuck the roasted fennel amongst the leaves.
Dot the roasted grapes in little bunches all over the salad and finish with the mushrooms.
Drizzle over a little of the roasting juices as a dressing.
Garnish with pink peppercorns and fennel fronds and serve warm.
Baked mushroom brown rice
Serves: 4
Ingredients
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, diced
1 ½ cups long-grain brown rice
2 ½ cups water, boiled
1 tsp salt
500g mixed cultivated mushrooms, sliced into similar-sized big chunks
1 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 bunch of fresh thyme sprigs
Salt and pepper, to taste
Micro herbs, to serve
Lemon wedges, to serve
Method
Preheat the oven to 180˚C.
Heat the olive oil in a 26cm saucepan with a lid or buffet casserole.
Add the onion and cook until soft.
Add the rice and coat in the onion and olive oil.
Pour the boiling water into the dish and sprinkle over a teaspoon of salt.
Stir briefly just to mix and then cover tightly with aluminium foil.
Place the pan lid on top to ensure the seal is tight.
Bake in the oven for 50 minutes.
While the rice is baking combine the mushrooms in a bowl with olive oil, garlic, soy, balsamic, and thyme. Season lightly and mix well.
After 50 minutes, remove the lid and foil from the rice.
Fluff the rice with a fork.
Spoon the mushrooms on top of the rice and turn the oven up to 200˚C.
Bake mushrooms on top of the rice for 10-15 minutes until mushrooms are tender and juicy.
Zest the lemon over the entire dish and squeeze over some lemon juice.
Top with micro herbs and serve family style in the pan on the table.
Serve with lemon wedges on the side and enjoy!
Braised kale and cabbage with miso mushrooms
Serves: 4
Ingredients
Braise
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 heads of green baby cabbage, sliced
1 bunch kale, stems stripped & leaves sliced roughly
375ml chicken or vegetable stock
Mushrooms
2 tbsp red miso paste
± 2 tbsp hot water
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp soy sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced and mashed into a paste
Pinch of chilli flakes
400g portabellini mushrooms, whole
Salt and pepper, to taste
Olive oil, for cooking
Method
Preheat the oven to 200˚C.
Using a very large sauté pan, (the veg will cook down) heat a drizzle of olive oil.
Add the onion with a pinch of salt and cook until soft.
Add the garlic and cook until fragrant.
Add the cabbage and sauté until it begins to soften then add the kale.
Pour in the chicken stock and simmer gently to braise the veg until very tender and juicy.
Season to taste.
Mix miso paste and hot water in a medium-sized bowl until smooth.
Add the sesame oil, soy sauce, garlic, and chilli flakes. Mix well.
Using a pastry brush, brush the mixture all over the portabellinis.
Place on a baking tray and bake for about 7 minutes until tender, depending on their size.
When the kale and cabbage are beautifully soft and the stock has reduced, plate them onto a serving platter. Top with the sticky roasted miso mushrooms.
Serve as a fabulous side dish or a vegetarian main along with some whole grains or legumes.
