January's Feel Good Food Challenge

I started this recipe challenge last year in order to create a place for great recipes that are good for us in terms of their nutrition content and health benefits, but not at the expense of taste. The idea was to create a collection of recipes for the foodies out there that can't face the thought of strict diets, or calorie counting, but want to make sure that the food they are eating has the best possible benefits to their health. In short, foodies like me!

As we step over the threshold of 2014, many of us will be making a note in the front cover of our shiny crease-free new diaries of our New Year's Resolutions, and once again, "Lose Weight" tops the charts in terms of the most popular resolution (and unsurprisingly, the most broken resolution too). Many will turn to the latest celebrity diet trends, and quit shortly after because of their inflexible rules, bland and monotone tastes, and often expensive elements. 

So for this month's Feel Good Food, I'm hosting a free for all in terms of ingredients, and ask only that the theme for recipes is;

TASTY AND INEXPENSIVE

Let's create an awesome recipe bank of breakfast, lunch, dinner and snack options that promote a healthy diet, packed with flavour, without breaking the bank. Ooo and feel free to share your New Year's resolutions too! Mine is to start my own business! 

As always, the challenge rules are;

• Each month the new challenge will be announced on the 1st of the month, and recipes should be submitted by midnight on the 28th. 
• You can enter as many recipes into each challenge as you like, the more the merrier. Existing posts are welcome, as long as they contain the chosen ingredient and have been updated to include a link back to this challenge.
• Recipes can be your own or someone else's, but if you do use an existing recipe please credit the source.
• Posts must contain the Feel Good Food logo above, be tagged with Feel Good Food, and contain a link back to this site. 
• You can add your post using the linky tool at the bottom of this post, or alternatively email me a copy of the URL link to kickatthepantrydoor@gmail.com so that I know it is there, and I can include it in the round up at the end of the month. 
• If you are on Twitter, tweet me the link at @ThePantryDoor1, using the hashtag #FeelGoodFood and I will retweet as well. 

August's Feel Good Food Round Up: Ginger

I chose Ginger for this month's Feel Good Food not just because of its amazing nutritional properties, but because it comes in so many different forms that I knew we would get a really varied range of dishes entered, and my goodness you all didn't disappoint! We have cakes, crumbles and sweet treats, curries and tagines, chicken, pork and seafood dishes as well as some great veggie options, and even a chutney! Thanks to all who took the time to link in, I promise your tastebuds will be tingling when you've finished reading this!

Vegetable and Chickpea Tagine

The first entry is from a challenge newcomer The Flaming Potato. I'm so pleased that they chose Feel Good Food as the first challenge to enter, and this Vegetable and Chickpea Tagine looks mouthwateringly delicious, packed with all kinds of healthy ingredients not to mention a good helping of fresh root ginger. 

Crystallised Ginger Biscuits

Our second entry came from Ros at The More Than Occasional Baker, this time with crystallised ginger in these Crystallised Ginger Biscuits. I love the added square of chocolate on top of the biscuits, which Ros says is her favourite part!

Sticky Ginger and Chilli Chicken

This is one of my posts, a Sticky Ginger and Chilli Chicken made using Mackays Spiced Ginger Preserve to make a sticky glaze for the meat - really quick and really tasty this one!

Mango Curry Chickpea Salad

Janet from The Taste Space entered this tantalising Mango Curry Chickpea Salad. This is also such a quick and easy recipe, with deep spices and sweet mango, all wrapped up in crisp lettuce leaves, perfect for a hot summer day.

Red Kidney Bean Burger

Elizabeth of Elizabeth's Kitchen Diary never fails to tempt me with her fabulous photography, and this Red Kidney Bean Burger is no exception! Packed with beans, cheese, potato and all sorts of amazing spices, you definitely wouldn't miss the meat in these!

Sticky Ginger Cake

Caroline over at Caroline Makes sounds like the perfect journey companion, especially as she took the time to prepare these Sticky Ginger Cake squares to take on a long journey! Adapted from a Nigella recipes, these cakes look lovely and moist and packed full of flavour.

Gingersnaps

Elizabeth from The Law Students Cookbook took her disappointment in a packet of store-bought Gingersnaps, and turned it into these beauties! These gingersnaps are gingery but not to hot, and crisp but not break-your-teeth hard. They sound perfect to me!

Four awesome recipes now from Eat Properly that really showcase the versatility of ginger across a range of dishes, both sweet and savoury. Check out Spicy Quadruple Ginger Cupcakes, Prawn and Sweet Potato Curry, South Indian Style Chicken Soup, and Slow Cooked Crispy Chinese Belly Pork - there's plenty here to plan a three course dinner around ginger! Thank you so much for taking the time to link back these great posts from the archives, that Chicken Soup is right at the top of my bookmarks!

Spiced Banana Nut Muffins

A sweet treat now in the form of Spiced Banana Nut Muffins from Jenny at What Jenny Baked. Originally made for a healthy addition to a BBQ, I imagine that these would also make a great breakfast on the run, or be just perfect with an afternoon cup of tea.

Sweet Chilli Chutney

The lovely Ness over at Jibber Jabber posted this fab Sweet Chilli Chutney on behalf of her Mum, dubbed the Chutney Queen! This is a really fruity recipe, utilising a punnet of nectarines that needed using, and a great accompaniment to all these summer BBQ's as demonstrated above.

Ginger Peach Crisp

A second great entry next from Caroline Makes, this scrumptious Ginger Peach Crisp with fresh peaches and an almond crumble topping this is perfect pick me up food.

Oaty Ginger and Plum Crumble

Another yummy crumble now from Shaheen over at Allotment to Kitchen this time with fresh plums in this Oaty Ginger and Plum Crumble. There's s good dose of stem ginger in this recipe, and I love the rolled oat crumble topping for some extra texture and goodness.

Chocolate and Ginger Pecan Pie

Laura from I'd Much Rather Bake Than... linked up this awesome Chocolate and Ginger Pecan Pie, just wow! I'm so glad I've found her blog, and will absolutely be trying this recipe over the autumn months!

Sticky Ginger Lemon Drizzle Cake

Last but by no means least, Kat from The Baking Explorer linked up with this beautiful Sticky Ginger Lemon Drizzle Cake. The zingy combination of lemon and ginger sounds perfect, and I can just imagine tucking into a slice of this cake with a steaming mug of tea and savouring every mouthful.

Thanks again to everyone who linked up this month and provided this amazing list of tasty dishes. Check back on the 1st September to find out what ingredient I eventually settle on (all suggestions are welcome below if there are any special ingredients you'd like to see in the future?)