Tuna and egg salad

This is very simple to make, but satisfying enough for dinner for 2. It is a variant on a Nicoise salad, but does not have any potatoes in it.

Ingredients

For the salad

4 hard boiled eggs, sliced
1 Tin of tuna in oil, drained
Half a jar of black olives, pitted
Lots of rocket, enough to make a thick layer in the bowls before you put the other ingredients in
4 tomatoes, sliced

Optional ingredients for the salad: 

Capers, green olives, anchovies, toasted pine nuts

For the dressing

Olive or cold pressed rapeseed oil
Balsamic vinegar, good stuff is better as its flavour dominates this dressing. You don't need much
1 tsp english mustard
Salt and pepper

Instructions

Get a jar with a screw top lid on it. A clean jam jar is fine, but a screw top plastic food storage container is better. Pour in about 1 cm deep of oil. Add the mustard and salt and pepper. Pour in some balsamic vinegar. Less than half the quantity of oil should do the trick. Close the lid and give it a good hard shake.
Line the serving bowls with rocket. Arrange the other ingredients on top. Drizzle the dressing over.

Green lentils with smoked coley and cabbage

This is a good filling main meal. It requires some chopping to get it started, but cooks away on its own without requiring any of your attention.
This serves 2 adults and takes about 50 minutes in total.

Ingredients

200g Green lentils - I got mine in Dunnes Stores
1 litre of vegetable stock - Marigold is good, but any that is not full of rubbish will do
3 Carrots, finely chopped
1 Onion, finely chopped
3 Sticks of celery, finely chopped
1 Tbsp of Olive oil
2 smoked back rashers, chopped
4 bay leaves
200g approx of smoked Coley
About 5 leaves of green cabbage, stalk trimmed out and discarded

Instructions

Heat the oil in a thick bottom pot. Add the bacon and vegetables and cook for about 20 minutes on medium. Stir occasionally to stop it sticking. Add the lentils, stock and bay leaves. Bring to a simmer and cook covered for about 25 minutes until the lentils are almost done. Cut the cabbage into strips and cut these cross ways - this just makes it easier to eat without scalding your chin. Add the cabbage and fish to the pot and push them down beneath the surface of the liquid. Cover again for about 10 minutes. Ladle into bowls and serve with a good drizzle of extra virgin olive oil on top.

Hot Smoked Mackerel Pate

This is really simple and only has a few ingredients. These packets of hot smoked mackerel are very versatile. It's not really a pate as the fish is just mashed with a fork. You can blend it for a smoother paste if you prefer, but it is not necessary. Delicious as part of a weekend lunch.

Ingredients

1 Packet of Hot Smoked Mackerel - Aldi
1 tbsp of horseradish sauce
1 tbsp of crème fraiche

Instructions

Peel the skin from the mackerel and remove any small bones. Flake it into a bowl. Add the horseradish sauce and crème fraiche and mix the whole lot thoroughly.

Serve with some tomatoes on a bed of rocket.

Provençal Style Salmon with Chard

There are lot of different protein sources that you can add to this basic sauce to make a delicious low carb dinner. It works great with meat balls for example. The quantities here are for 2 people.

Ingredients

3 Carrots, finely chopped
1 Onion, finely chopped
4 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
Handful of baby sweetcorn, cut into 1 cm pieces
Handful of pitted black olives, cut in half
2 tbsp of capers
A small tin of anchovies in oil
2 Tins of tomatoes
1 Red pepper chopped small
2 Salmon darnes
4 bay leaves, dried are fine
Black pepper
Oregano, I used dried
Butter, about the size of 2 walnuts
1 tbsp of olive oil for cooking
Small bunch of chard, central rib trimmed out an shred the leaves

Method

Heat the oil and butter in a thick based pot over a high heat. Once the butter is bubbling add the onions, carrots, baby sweetcorn, red peppers and garlic. Give everything a good mix to coat in oil and butter and put the lid on. Lower the heat right down. This is basically a type of mirepoix, but with extra vegetables. Give this about 40 minutes stirring occasionally to allow the vegetables to soften. Then add the olives, anchovies in their oil and capers and cook for another 10 minutes or so. Then add the rest of the ingredients except the salmon. Give everything a good stir and put the lid back on. Once the carrots are soft it is ready for you to add the salmon and chard. Mix the chard in first and then place the darnes on the surface of the sauce and spoon the sauce over them so that they are covered. Put the lid back on for about 10 minutes. Check that the salmon is done and ladle into bowls to serve.

Ingredient Sources

I got the salmon darnes in Aldi for € 3.99 for a pack of 2. We have had these before and they are excellent. Almost everything else if from Aldi too.
The chard is from the garden.