Tuesday

Ingredients (1 portion)

• 40 g porridge oats
• 200 ml semi-skimmed milk
• 15 g raisins
• ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
• Pinch of salt

Method

1. Put the oats, milk, raisins, cinnamon and a pinch of salt in a large microwave-safe bowl. Use a bigger bowl than you think you need, because porridge rises as it heats.
2. Microwave on high for 2 minutes, then stir. Microwave for another 1 minute, until thick and creamy.
3. Leave it for 1 minute so that the raisins plump up, stir, and eat. On the hob, cook it in a pan over a medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring.

Why it is a healthy start

Oats are a whole grain and the fibre in them keeps you full for hours. The raisins sweeten the porridge naturally, so no sugar is needed.

Swaps

Half milk and half water. A chopped apple or banana stirred in. A spoonful of plain yoghurt or peanut butter on top.

Ingredients (1 portion)

• 1 wholemeal pitta bread
• 1 small tin tuna in spring water (about 145 g)
• 60 g frozen sweetcorn
• 30 g plain Greek-style yoghurt
• 20 g baby spinach
• Black pepper

Method

1. Put the sweetcorn in a bowl, cover it with boiling water from the kettle and leave it for 2 minutes, then drain. This thaws and warms it without any cooking.
2. Drain the tuna and flake it with a fork in a bowl. Stir in the sweetcorn, the yoghurt and plenty of black pepper.
3. Warm the pitta in the toaster for 30 to 60 seconds until it puffs, then cut along one long edge to open a pocket.
4. Tuck the spinach into the pitta, then spoon in the tuna mixture. To take it with you, pack the filling separately and fill the pitta just before eating.

Why it is a healthy lunch

Tuna in spring water is almost pure protein with no added oil, and swapping mayonnaise for yoghurt keeps the dressing light. The wholemeal pitta and sweetcorn add fibre.

Swaps

A chopped tomato or some cucumber in the pitta. Tinned mackerel or a boiled egg in place of the tuna. Use two slices of wholemeal bread if you have no pitta.

Ingredients (1 portion)

• 2 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 200 g)
• 120 g chickpeas from a tin, drained and rinsed (half a tin; Wednesday uses the rest)
• 200 g chopped tomatoes (half a 400 g tin; Thursday uses the rest)
• 1 small onion
• 1 carrot
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• ½ tsp smoked paprika
• ½ reduced-salt vegetable stock cube
• 200 ml boiling water
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 60 g couscous
• 80 ml boiling water, for the couscous
• Salt and black pepper

Prep ahead (about 10 minutes, any time that day)

1. Trim any hard fat from the chicken and cut each thigh into 4 or 5 pieces, about 3 cm. Peel and finely chop the garlic. Mix the chicken with the garlic, half the cumin, the paprika and a pinch of salt in a bowl, cover it, and put it on the bottom shelf of the fridge. Wash your hands, the board and the knife.
2. Peel the onion and chop it small. Peel the carrot and cut it into small cubes, about 1 cm. Put them in a covered container in the fridge.
3. Open the tin of tomatoes, spoon half (200 g) into a small bowl for tonight, and put the other half in a covered container in the fridge for Thursday. Do the same with the chickpeas: measure out 120 g for tonight, and put the rest in a covered container for Wednesday.

At dinner time (about 5 minutes of work)

1. Heat the oil in a saucepan with a lid over a medium-high heat. Add the onion and carrot and cook for 3 minutes. Add the chicken and cook for 3 minutes, turning, until it is pale gold on the outside.
2. Stir in the remaining cumin, then add the tomatoes and chickpeas. Crumble in the stock cube, pour over the 200 ml of boiling water, and add pepper. Bring to a simmer.
3. Put the lid on, turn the heat down to a steady simmer and leave it for 12 minutes, stirring once, until the chicken is cooked and the sauce is thick. Add a splash of water if it gets dry.
4. About 8 minutes before the end, put the couscous in a heatproof bowl with a pinch of salt. Pour over the 80 ml of boiling water, cover with a plate and leave for 5 minutes. Fluff it with a fork.
5. Cut into the largest piece of chicken to check that it is white all the way through with no pink, and that the juices run clear. Spoon the couscous into a bowl and pour the stew over the top.

Why it is a healthy dinner

Chicken thighs stay juicy in a stew, and the chickpeas add fibre and make the 200 g of chicken go further. The tomato sauce and carrot give two vegetables, and the dish needs only 1 tsp of oil.

Swaps

A handful of baby spinach stirred in at the end. Rice or a baked potato in place of the couscous. A pinch of chilli flakes. A spoonful of plain yoghurt on top.