Healthy Recipes For A New Year!

This is a “sprouting broccoli and leek gratin”…from a terrific cookbook I was told about – and how did I happen upon it?

My friend Jo Tracy is having a recipe share on her blog as well as her FB page – called the BKD Cookbook Club, which is a place to share recipes and talk food – and you can find here:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/2318373691845074

Here’s what she posted to get me thinking in a healthy way:

“This month we’re reviewing/talking about/cooking from books with a healthy eating theme. I’m not necessarily talking diet books (although they absolutely qualify and often have great recipes) but more those that are healthy by accident rather than design – if you know what I mean.”

This is one of the cookbooks she offered up for consideration:

Here’s how Author Mark Diacono describes the “sprouting broccoli and leek gratin” dish:

“This simple, delicious delight is welcome on all but the hottest days of high summer. It’s also highly adaptable – a real family favourite that’s quick, nutritious and satisfying. While you can cook this in a deeper dish, a wide, shallow dish gives just the right mix of creaminess to crunch ratio. Serve with a high pile of leaves dressed just with olive oil.”

Let’s get cooking!

Here are the ingredients:

• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp finely chopped fresh rosemary
• 250ml double cream
• 500g leeks, trimmed and sliced into 3cm-4cm pieces
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 500g sprouting broccoli, thick stalks trimmed
• 50g hazelnuts, finely chopped
• 35g parmesan, finely grated
• flaky sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a bowl, stir in the chopped garlic, rosemary, what Mark calls a “good tweak of salt and pepper”, then pour in the cream and finish the mix.

Place the leeks in a single layer in a baking dish, drizzle with the olive oil, season with salt and pepper and roast for 15-20 minutes until cooked through and beginning to colour in places. 

you add the sprouting broccoli to a pan of boiling salted water and cook for just 1 minute. Drain well.

Here is a video that shows what’s next:

As you saw, arrange the cooked broccoli on top of the leeks, pour over the seasoned cream and scatter evenly with the hazelnuts and parmesan. Season with a little salt and pepper. Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes until bubbling and golden in places.

Here is the result!

As you see, I had two small baked potatoes on a plate as well as some salmon, and this was the perfect dish to go alongside them!

The dish was delicious, and the creamy sauce is on the bottom, so you can dredge or dip as much as you want: but the top is all broccoli and parmesan with the walnut nuttiness!

I found the dish a different way to enjoy broccoli, and of course the leeks were delicious as well!

I put together a short video of the entire process – enjoy!

As I said, Jo has a terrific FB page and website where these recipes will live, and she kicked this off with a review of a new cookbook called “From The Veg Patch”:

She shares several fresh dishes that are delicious – see her review here!

I also cooked recently from Carol’s latest cookbook as well:

I made her “Thai Penang Chicken Curry” and loved it as well!

See that recipe here:

As for Carol’s “A – Z Of World Cuisine” – here’s one of them I shared that celebrated Jamaican cuisine!

Back to this healthy start to 2025: this is all part of a great new series by my blogging foodie friend Jo, who before this new year and new cooking series, shared a bunch of great recipes from Nigella Lawson’s Christmas cookbook!

See her recipes here!

Jo also has a Facebook page just for the fun of sharing recipes – see it here!

https://www.facebook.com/groups/2318373691845074

I love to try recipes from other people, and to share food stories and recipes as well, like this one:

I cooked Robbie Cheadle’s terrific Cape Malay Fish Curry dish and loved it – see the recipe here:

I am sharing and storing all of these recipes here!

It’s your site for all things food – if you like what you see, please click on my link and follow this blog as well!

https://biteeatrepeat.com

Once again, big thanks Jo for hosting this latest recipe project!

If you like the story, share it with friends on social media! 

Categories: Bite Eat Swallow, Bite! Eat! Repeat!, Chef memoirs, Cookbooks, Eat This!, Food, Food Writing, Recipes, Wacky Food

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