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Family meals don’t need to mean hours in the kitchen or a mountain of washing-up. These crisp chicken nuggets are a healthier homemade favourite that kids absolutely love, while the lamb lollipops are fun and surprisingly simple; the stuffed pitta pockets, meanwhile, are perfect for lunches, after-school dinners or eating on the go. Above all, all three dishes are built for real family life: quick, full of flavour and designed to make mealtimes a little easier and a lot more enjoyable.
Lamb lollipops with mint yoghurt dip and pickled cucumber (pictured top)
This delicious recipe is a firm family favourite, and it’s ready in no time. Children love anything on a stick, especially when they get to dip it into a creamy yoghurt sauce. You can cook these in the oven, if you prefer – they won’t be quite as golden or crisp, but they’ll still taste lovely.
Prep 10 min
Cook 25 min
Serves 4
For the lamb lollipops
4 tbsp dried barberries, or finely chopped dried cranberries or sour cherries
500g lamb mince
1 egg
1 tsp ground allspice
¾ tsp ground cumin
¾ tsp baharat spice mix, or ras el hanout or shawarma seasoning
1½ tbsp tomato puree, or ketchup
Flaky sea salt
For the yoghurt dip
200g thick kefir yoghurt, or greek yoghurt
2 tsp dried mint
2 tsp sumac (optional)
For the cucumber
1 medium cucumber, skin on, shaved into ribbons with a peeler
2 tbsp cider vinegar
2 tsp maple syrup
1 tsp yellow mustard seeds (don’t worry, they aren’t hot)
Mix all the cucumber ingredients and a half-teaspoon of flaky sea salt in a serving bowl, then set aside. Stir and toss a few times if you can before serving, so the cucumber gets properly coated in the liquid. You can keep or discard the liquid when you serve.
Soak the barberries in two tablespoons of just-boiled water for a few minutes, then drain. Mix all the lamb lollipop ingredients in a medium bowl with three-quarters of a teaspoon of flaky sea salt, until well combined. Divide and shape into 12 thin oval cylinders (see picture top), each weighing about 50g, pressing them tightly together to compact them.
Put a large, nonstick saute pan on a medium-high heat. Once hot, add six of the lamb lollipops and dry-fry for seven to eight minutes, turning a few times, until golden all over and cooked through. Transfer to a plate and keep warm while you repeat with the remaining lollipops.
While the lamb is cooking, make the dip. Put the yoghurt in a small, wide serving bowl, sprinkle with half the dried mint and half the sumac, if using, and stir. Top with the remaining dried mint and sumac, if using.
Push the lamb on to wooden sticks and serve with the yoghurt dip and cucumber ribbons alongside.
Chicken nuggets with celeriac fries
This is a great way to use up cooked chicken, transforming leftovers into quick, easy, delicious and minimally processed nuggets. You could use two chicken breasts instead of the thighs, but they have much less flavour. The nuggets can be made in advance, stored in the fridge, or even frozen for an effortless meal. And even if you’re not usually a fan of celeriac, these golden fries might just change your mind. If you want to mix things up a bit, add chopped fresh herbs (two tablespoons of chives, say, or a tablespoon of thyme leaves) and/or ground spices (a teaspoon of ras el hanout, Cajun seasoning, chicken seasoning, etc) to the chicken nugget mixture before blitzing.
Prep 15 min
Cook 20 min
Makes 14-16, to serve 4
For the nuggets
6 cooked skinless, boneless chicken thighs (about 400g), roughly shredded
2 medium eggs
2 heaped tbsp cream cheese (55g)
Flaky sea salt
3 tbsp ghee, or a mixture of unsalted butter and olive oil
Ketchup, to serve (I make my own low-sugar one)
For the celeriac fries
1 celeriac
3 tbsp ghee, or unsalted butter, melted
Flaky sea salt
Heat the oven to 220C (200C fan)/425F/gas 7. Start by making the celeriac fries. Trim off the top and bottom of the celeriac, then carefully shave off the skin. Cut the celeriac in half, then into thin slices. Stack a few slices on top of each other and cut into thin batons/sticks, about 5mm thick, then repeat with the rest of the celeriac slices.
Put the celeriac fries on a large baking tray, drizzle with the melted ghee and toss to coat. Spread them out into a single layer and roast for 15-20 minutes, stirring once halfway through for even cooking, until crisp and golden (the exact cooking time will depend on the thickness of the fries). Sprinkle with flaky sea salt before serving.
While the fries are cooking, make the nuggets. Weigh the shredded cooked chicken to ensure you have 400g, because too much or too little will affect the consistency. Put the chicken, eggs and cream cheese in a food processor or blender, add a half-teaspoon of flaky sea salt, then blitz until smooth and soft. If the mixture seems a bit dry, blitz in another egg or a little more cream cheese.
With wet hands, shape the chicken mixture into 14-16 nuggets (roughly a tablespoon per nugget); it will be soft, but that’s normal. You can chill or freeze the nuggets at this point.
Put the ghee in a large, nonstick frying pan on a medium-high heat, then fry the nuggets in two batches, turning carefully, for about a minute on each side, until golden and crisp.
Serve hot with the celeriac fries and some ketchup.
Middle Eastern-style pitta pockets
Inspired by a chicken recipe in Sami Tamimi and Tara Wigley’s book Falastin, these delicious and quick-to-make pitta pockets are perfect for busy evenings or summer picnics. Whether enjoyed warm or at room temperature, they’re a convenient and nutritious option for feeding a crowd, as food on the go or as a tasty midweek family meal. To keep these dairy-free, omit the feta and soured cream. Children love eating food like this with their hands, which also means less washing-up for you.
Prep 10 min, plus cooling
Cook 20 min
Rest 20 min
Serves 6-8
For the filling
3 carrots (220g), peeled and roughly chopped
3 garlic cloves, peeled
400g tin chopped tomatoes
500g lamb mince
20g fresh coriander
65g rocket, or spinach leaves
2½ tsp baharat, or ground cumin
2½ tsp ground coriander
½ tsp ground cinnamon
80g feta, crumbled (optional)
Flaky sea salt
To finish
6-8 shop-bought pitta (depending on their size – the ones I use are 16cm x 12cm)
2 tbsp olive oil
3 tomatoes, grated and skin discarded (optional)
200g soured cream (optional)
Heat the oven to 200C (180C fan)/390F/gas 6, and put an ovenproof rack on a large baking tray.
Put the carrots and garlic in a food processor and blitz until finely chopped. Add all the remaining filling ingredients except the feta (if using), and two and a half teaspoons of flaky sea salt, and pulse again to combine. Stir in the feta, if using.
Using a serrated knife, carefully cut open each pitta bread horizontally along one long edge, keeping the opposite edge intact. Divide the raw filling between the pitta pockets, pushing it in so it forms a thin, even layer. Put the stuffed breads on the rack (the rack prevents the pittas from sitting in the juices from the filling while they’re cooking and turning soggy). At this point, you can put them in the fridge for a few hours until you are ready to eat.
To cook, brush the top of each pitta with olive oil, then transfer the tray to the oven and bake for 15 minutes, until the meat is fully cooked and the bread is crisp on the outside.
Remove, leave to cool for 20 minutes, then cut each one in half with a serrated knife.
Serve warm, to be eaten with your hands, or wrap in greaseproof paper to make them portable. Enjoy them dipped into grated fresh tomato mixed with soured cream for extra flavour, if you like.
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These recipes are edited extracts from Family: Healthy, Simple Recipes for Everyone, by Claudine Boulstridge, published by Bluebird at £26. To order a copy for £23.40, go to guardianbookshop.com
