Kelsey Preciado, 27, the woman behind the Little Bits Of blog, has a knack for making culinary creations that are quick, easy and totally Insta-worthy. So when she told Glamour that her favourite way to make dinner is on a baking tray, we had to know more. “It’s great for weeknights – dinner is just 45 minutes from fridge to fork,” she says. Her go-to formula? Protein + bunch of veg + starch, tossed in a little oil. Try these:
Garlic and tomato chicken with cauliflower ‘risotto’
Serves four
You’ll need:
• 40g almond or wholewheat flour
• 1tbsp dried Italian herbs
• 1tsp salt
• 1 egg
• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 400g cherry tomatoes
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2tbsp olive oil
• 200g packaged cauliflower rice (such as Cauli Rice £1.99 ocado.com, or make your own: cut one cauliflower head into florets and pulse in a food processor until it resembles rice)
• 150g frozen peas
• 1tsp garlic powder
• 50g grated Parmesan
Make it:
1 Preheat oven to 200°C
and line two trays with foil.
2 In a bowl, combine the flour, herbs and ½tsp salt. Whisk the egg in another bowl.
3 Coat the chicken breasts with egg, then flour and place on a roasting tray. Toss the tomatoes, garlic cloves and 1tbsp olive oil on the other side of the tray.
4 On a second tray, toss the cauliflower, peas, remaining garlic and ½tsp salt, and 1tbsp olive oil. Spread in one layer and sprinkle Parmesan over the top.
5 Bake for 25 minutes until cooked through, then serve.
Veggie bake with chickpeas and tahini sauce
Serves four
You’ll need:
• 1 can (425g) chickpeas, rinsed, drained and patted dry• 2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
• 2 fresh beetroots, peeled and diced
• 1tbsp olive oil (plus 1tsp for kale)
• 1tsp garlic powder or 1 garlic clove, minced (plus ½tsp for sauce)
• ½tsp ground turmeric
• 200g chopped kale, stems removed
• 3tbsp tahini
• 1tbsp apple cider vinegar
• Salt and pepper
Make it:
1 Preheat oven to 200°C and line a baking tray with foil.
2 Place the chickpeas, sweet potato and beetroot on the tray and toss with 1tbsp olive oil, 1tsp garlic powder and ½tsp each of turmeric and salt. Roast for 20 minutes. 3 Meanwhile, massage the remaining 1tsp olive oil into the kale. Add to the tray with the roasted veggies and cook for 3 minutes. 4 For the sauce, whisk the tahini, vinegar, 3tbsp water and ½tsp garlic powder in
a bowl and season with salt and pepper. Drizzle over the veggies and serve.
Blackened cod over roasted corn and summer squash
Serves two
You’ll need:
• 175g sweetcorn
• 300g summer squash, chopped
• 300g broccoli florets
• 1tbsp olive oil• ½tsp salt
• 1tsp garlic powder or 2 garlic cloves
• 2 white fish fillets, such as cod or haddock
• 1tsp cajun seasoning
• guacamole to garnish
Make it:
1 Preheat the oven to 200°C and line a tray with parchment paper.
2 Combine the corn, squash, broccoli, olive oil, salt and garlic on the tray and toss to coat.
3 Make sure the veggies are evenly spread and roast for 10 minutes.
4 Place the fish fillets on top of the veg and sprinkle with a pinch of salt and cajun seasoning.
5 Bake for 15 minutes before serving
Follow Kelsey Preciado's recipes on her Instagram, @littlebitsof_realfood
