There are few soups that are actually hearty enough to be considered a meal, but this is one that can definitely be placed in that category. The tomato and red pepper soup recipe is truly delicious, but more than that it is filling and the kids will love it.

A great idea is to prepare this dish and then throw in some extra vegetables, just to make sure that they are getting as much nutrition as possible. It can also be served cold with sandwiches for dipping and grilled cheese sandwiches go particularly well with this recipe.

Ingredients (Serves 4)

• 2 large red bell peppers
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 sticks celery, trimmed and chopped
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 600 ml fresh vegetable stock
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 x 400 g cans plum tomatoes
• salt and pepper
• 2 spring onions, finely shredded, to garnish
• crusty bread, to serve

1. Preheat the grill to hot. Halve and deseed the bell peppers, arrange them on the grill rack and cook, turning occasionally, for 8 to 10 minutes until softened and charred.
2. Leave to cool slightly, then carefully peel off the charred skin. Reserving a small piece for garnish, chop the bell pepper flesh and place in a large saucepan.
3. Mix in the onion, celery and garlic. Add the stock and the bay leaves. Bring to the boil, cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat.
4. Stir in the tomatoes and transfer to a blender. Process for a few seconds until smooth. Return to the saucepan.
5. Season to taste and heat for 3 to 4 minutes until piping hot. Ladle into warm bowls and garnish with the reserved bell pepper cut into strips and the spring onion. Serve with crusty bread.

“If you prefer a coarser, more robust soup, lightly mash the tomatoes with a wooden spoon and omit the blending process in step 4.”

For a quick and delicious dessert recipe that is also healthy, try the chocolate cheese pots recipe. It calls for low fat yogurt, vanilla, egg whites, and other nutritious ingredients. The only ingredients that are not particularly healthy are the icing sugar and chocolate powder, but we all need a break sometimes.

This is an ideal dessert to serve to guests when entertaining, and goes perfectly with a glass of white wine or champagne. Of course the kids are going to love this recipe but so will all the grownups and it is definitely one that will become a favorite after the first time it is made.

Ingredients (Serves 4)

• 300 ml low fat natural fromage frais
• 150 ml low fat natural yogurt
• 25 g icing sugar
• 4 tsp low fat drinking chocolate powder
• 4 tsp cocoa powder
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 2 tbsp dark rum (optional)
• 2 medium egg whites
• 4 chocolate cake decorations
• pieces of kiwi, orange, banana, strawberry and raspberry, to serve

1. Combine the fromage frais and yogurt in a mixing bowl. Sift in the sugar, drinking chocolate and cocoa powder and mix well. Add the vanilla essence and rum, if using.
2. In another bowl, whisk the egg whites until stiff. Using a metal spoon, fold the egg whites into the fromage frais and chocolate mixture.
3. Spoon the fromage frais and chocolate mixture into 4 small china dessert pots and leave to chill for about 30 minutes. Decorate each chocolate cheese pot with a chocolate cake decoration.
4. Serve each chocolate cheese pot with an assortment of fresh fruit, such as pieces of kiwi, orange, banana, whole strawberries and raspberries.

“This chocolate mixture would make an excellent filling for a cheesecake. Make the base out of crushed Amaretti di Saronno biscuits and egg white, and set the filling with 2 tsp powdered gelatin dissolved in 2 tbsp boiling water. Make sure you use biscuits made from apricot kernels, which are virtually fat free.”

Middle Eastern food is tasty when done in the right way. It is actually one of the least loved foods in North America but a large reason for this is because few people actually know how to properly make these dishes.

One that is not only easy to prepare but delicious as well is the stuffed vegetables middle eastern Style recipe. This is a great dish to make for kids who just will not eat their vegetables because they definitely will want to when they see this meal in front of them. It uses a variety of nutritious vegetables such as tomatoes, zucchini, and bell peppers.

Ingredients (Serves 4)

• 4 large beefsteak tomatoes
• 4 medium courgettes (zucchini)
• 2 orange bell peppers
• salt and pepper
• warm pita bread and low fat hummus, to serve

Filling

• 225 g cracked wheat
• ¼ cucumber
• 1 medium red onion
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander (cilantro)
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh mint
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tsp cumin seeds

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C. Cut off the tops of the tomatoes and reserve. Scoop out the tomato pulp, chop and place in a bowl. Season the tomato shells, then turn them upside down on kitchen paper.
2. Trim the courgettes and cut a V shaped groove lengthwise down each one. Finely chop the cut out courgette flesh and add to the tomato pulp. Season the courgettes shells and set aside.
3. Halve the bell peppers. Leaving the stalks intact, cut out the seeds and discard. Season the bell pepper shells.
4. To make the filling, soak the cracked wheat according to the instructions on the packet. Finely chop the cucumber and add to the reserved tomato pulp and courgette mixture.
5. Finely chop the red onion, and add to the vegetable mixture with the lemon juice, herbs, olive oil, cumin and seasoning and mix together well.
6. Mix the wheat with the vegetables and stuff into the tomato, courgette and bell pepper shells. Place the top on the tomatoes, transfer to a roasting tin and bake for 20 to 25 minutes until cooked through. Drain and serve.