5:2 Diet & Family Friendly Vegetable Curry

It's been a long old week (on Tuesday I thought it was Thursday) and it feels like the kids have been off school forever. Two weeks of Easter holidays plus a week beforehand where they took it in turns to be ill adds up to a Mum whose eardrums are about to burst. We've not done a lot this week, husband has been off work with a bad knee, Jack has Impetigo and Hanna has had a routine hospital appointment so trips out have involved sitting in NHS waiting rooms.

Today there wasn't anything exciting in the fridge for dinner and I didn't fancy one of my usual fast day stir frys, and instead wanted something hearty and warming, but not soup. I decided to chop up the veg that was left and throw it in the slow cooker for a curry that we could all eat as I couldn't be bothered with making two different meals. I weighed all the vegetables as I added them into the pot and calculated the calories. The total calories of all the ingredients added up to around 472 (I wasn't too sure about the spices) so if you wanted to you could cook up a batch of this and munch your way through it the whole day if you're doing the 5:2 diet. Alternatively you could add a big spoonful of peanut butter, for a whopping additional 272 calories, and share it with the family. The peanut butter not only adds extra flavour but it also thickens the sauce - I often add the odd teaspoonful to a stir fry (not the 5:2 ones though).

If you're doing Weight Watchers I'm pretty sure that if you leave the peanut butter out it would be a no point curry.

5:2 Diet & Family Friendly Vegetable Curry - serves 4

1 onion (94g) - 36 cals
1 1/2 courgettes (269g) - 48 cals
mushrooms (161g) - 26 cals
1/2 small Butternut squash (226g) - 101 cals
2 Green peppers (208g) - 62 cals
Carrots (226g) - 77 cals
1 can chopped tomatoes (400g) - 90cals
1 tsp Garam Masala - 5 cals
1 tsp ground coriander - 5 cals
1 tsp ground cumin - 5 cals
1/2 tsp turmeric - 3 cals
1/2 tsp chilli powder - 3 cals
1/2 tsp paprika - 3 cals
1 tsp garlic paste - 4 cals
1 tsp ginger paste - 4 cals
1 heaped tbsp of smooth peanut butter (44g) - 272 cals

Total : 744 cals / 186 per portion (1/4)

• Chop all the veg into small pieces
• Add all the spices along with the ginger & garlic paste to a small bowl & mix to a paste with a little hot water
• Add everything to the slow cooker with 1/4 empty can of boiling water and give it a good mix
• Cook on high for a few hours until everything is cooked to your liking
• Stir in the peanut butter before serving

I had mine with cauliflower rice, whilst everyone else enjoyed it with Basmati rice and home-made Naan bread...

and this little man couldn't get enough of it, and ate the lot, including thirds of naan bread!