A student from Nottingham has created a range of recipes using common ingredients supplied by food banks, which are prepared using just a kettle and microwave, in a bid to help families create healthy and filling meals.
University of Nottingham third-year student Sophie Conant studies dietetics and has developed 12 recipes that use only cans and packets after identifying the need for these while volunteering at a local food bank.
Sophie said: “When I handed a parcel to a lady at the food bank she looked in and said: ‘I don’t know what to do with all this as I only have a microwave and kettle, how am I going to cook for my children?’ It made me realize that there is a need for some form of guidance for people to help them get the most out of the food they are given and as a dietetics student I had the skills to try and do this. “
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Sophie was helped by some other students to prepare meals that could be prepared just using the kettle or the microwave. Some of the dishes they made include shepherd’s pie, creamy mushroom pasta, sausage casserole, Mexican rice and risotto. Only one of the recipes, chickpea burgers, needed a stove.
“By combining ingredients and introducing preserved vegetables or fruit, we were able to boost the nutritional value,” added Sophie, “A good example of this was when we took a Pot Noodle, which is not very nutritious on its own, and added hot dog sausages and canned vegetables to increase volume and nutrients.”
All the recipes are laid out in a recipe booklet, ‘Easy Budget Meals’, with step-by-step instructions and pictures to make them easy to follow. They will be distributed free of charge in food banks in Nottingham and Loughborough.
Jane Musson, Assistant Professor of Dietetics at the University of Nottingham, said: This is such a great example of how the skills we teach here can be applied to help improve health and nutrition. Sophie undertook this project alongside her studies and spent much of her own free time developing these recipes. We are really proud of what she and her fellow students have achieved.”
Sophie adds: “I’ve really enjoyed this project and hope it helps people, some of the dishes we were able to make surprised me and I’ll definitely be using them myself as cost effective and nutritious meals.”
The recipe booklet can also be downloaded here: Easy Budget Meals
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