If there was one thing I noticed when spending time with my family this summer, it’s that many of them don’t have a moment to themselves, so when it came to tea time, it was usually a quick ready meal that they bang in the oven or microwave, job done.

I decided to show them some recipes that they could try that were quick, easy & cheap, that could be made from scratch, but take less time than heating a “tv dinner” in the oven.

My nan really took to it and has been trying to replicate some of the stir fry and pasta dishes.  I even introduced her to Alpro Vanilla Yoghurt, which was to die for, especially mixed with some blueberries and rasperries (quick tip, put your rasperries in the freezer and serve them frozen, adds a little zing to the dessert!).

So I’m going to keep with the same theme and try to share some quick to make meals (many can have left overs which will provide a healthy lunch the next day! – so bonus time and money saved!)

Last night we opted for a nutrient packed salad, it was filling and quite seriously delicious, even if I do say so myself!

Avocado, Sweet potato and Bulgur Wheat Salad

Ingredients

1 cup uncooked bulgur wheat

1 large sweet potato

1 red pepper, chopped

1 large avocado, diced

1/2 cup chopped clack olives (I used fresh, but if you have a jar, rinse the olives first)

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1/4 cup fresh coriander roughly chopped

10- 12 cherry tomatoes halved

Spring onion for garnish

Freshly ground pepper

Directions:

1. To cook the bulgur wheat, take one cup of dry bulgur and combine with 2 cups of boiling water, set on a medium heat, bring to the boil (stirring) then turn off the heat and leave to sit, for 15-20 minutes, then fluff with a fork

2. Once the bulgur is cooking,  peel the sweet potato and dice into small squares about ½ inch square, cover with water and bring  it to a boil, turn the heat down and cook until tender which took about 15 minutes. Drain and allow to cool slightly.

3. Once the potatoes are done, the bulgur will also be ready,  so toss together the bulgur, sweet  potatoes, olives, red pepper, avocado and coriander.

4. Whisk the lime juice and chili powder together and pour over the salad, season with black pepper and sprinkle the spring onion and cherry tomatoes over the top.

This served the both of us as a main meal.  Sorry about the photo, Martin had already started to tuck in when I remembered to grab the camera!

I was trying to replicate the great superfood salad I had at La Tasca Restaurant and I found a recipe here, but a quinoa version, Martin isn’t a big fan of quinoa which is why I opted for bulgur instead.