Wednesday

Ingredients (1 portion)

• 2 slices wholemeal bread
• 1 ripe banana
• ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tbsp plain Greek-style yoghurt (optional)

Method

1. Toast the bread until golden.
2. Peel the banana and mash it with a fork on a plate, until it is a rough purée.
3. Spread the banana over the hot toast, dust with the cinnamon, and add a spoonful of yoghurt on top if you like.

Why it is a healthy start

A ripe banana sweetens the toast completely, so there is no jam or sugar. The wholemeal bread adds fibre, and the yoghurt adds a little protein.

Swaps

A teaspoon of peanut butter under the banana. Sliced apple or a few berries in place of the banana. A pinch of nutmeg or a drizzle of honey.

Ingredients (1 portion)

• 2 slices wholemeal bread
• 30 g mature Cheddar cheese
• 50 g cucumber (about 5 cm)
• 20 g baby spinach
• 1 tsp wholegrain or Dijon mustard (optional)
• Black pepper

Method

1. Slice the cheese thinly, or grate it. Slice the cucumber thinly.
2. Spread the mustard on one slice of bread if you are using it.
3. Layer the cheese, cucumber and spinach on top, add some black pepper, and put the second slice on top. Cut the sandwich in half.

Why it is a healthy lunch

Mature cheese is strongly flavoured, so a small amount goes a long way. The cucumber and spinach make the sandwich fresh and filling, and the wholemeal bread adds fibre.

Swaps

A sliced tomato or some grated carrot. A spoonful of hummus in place of mustard. Use a wholemeal pitta or a wrap.

Ingredients (1 portion)

• 1 portion vegetable and butter bean minestrone from the freezer (one quarter of Saturday's batch, about 350 g)
• 30 g small dried pasta (macaroni, small shells or broken spaghetti)
• 100 ml boiling water
• 2 slices wholemeal bread, to serve
• Black pepper

The night before, or in the morning (1 minute)

1. Take one portion of minestrone out of the freezer and put it in a covered container on the bottom shelf of the fridge, to defrost slowly. This takes about 8 hours, so overnight or from the morning is about right. Never defrost it on the worktop.

At dinner time (about 5 minutes of work)

1. Tip the minestrone into a saucepan and add the 100 ml of boiling water. Bring it to a simmer over a medium heat.
2. Add the pasta, stir, and simmer for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring now and then, until the pasta is tender and the soup is steaming hot all the way through. Add a splash more water if it gets too thick.
3. While it simmers, toast the bread.
4. Season with black pepper, ladle the soup into a deep bowl, and serve with the toast.

Why it is a healthy dinner

Minestrone is mostly vegetables and beans, so this vegetarian dinner is high in fibre and protein and very low in fat. Reheated soup with toast is warming and ready in 10 minutes.

Swaps

A spoonful of plain yoghurt or a little grated cheese on top. A handful of baby spinach stirred in at the end. A splash of olive oil and some black pepper.