Suzanne Mulholland - The Batch Lady: Healthy Family Favourites: Over 100 delicious, easy recipes from a Sunday Times best-selling author, perfect for creating healthy meals that feed the whole family

TO EVERYONE WHO STRUGGLES DAILY WITH HAVING TO GET
A MEAL ON THE TABLE, AND IS FOREVER ANSWERING THE
QUESTION, WHATS FOR DINNER?. THIS BOOK IS FOR YOU,
MAY IT GIVE YOU SOME WELL-DESERVED RELIEF.

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First published in Great Britain by HQ

An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd 2021

Text Copyright Suzanne Mulholland 2021

Suzanne Mulholland asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work. A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

Hardback ISBN: 9780008373245

eBook ISBN: 9780008373269

Photography: Haraala Hamilton

Food styling: Sam Dixon, Rosie French & Rosie Ramsden

Prop styling: Sarah Birks

Design & Art Direction: Georgina Hewitt

Editor: Nira Begum

Editorial Director: Kate Fox

Project Editor: Daniel Hurst

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publishers.

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• Page numbers taken from the following print edition: ISBN 9780008373245

Or, for those who know me from my first cookbook, The Batch Lady, Welcome Back!. Either way, whether youre a seasoned batcher who is familiar with my method or someone just dipping their toe into the world of batching for the first time, Im thrilled to have you! And, for those new batchers, Hello and welcome to the world of batching I promise its going to revolutionise your time spent in the kitchen!

So, a second cookbook! Who knew? I loved writing The Batch Lady, although as it was my first book, I was very nervous to see if people understood the concept and enjoyed the recipes. The good news is that I shouldnt have been worried and its been amazing to see all the photos, messages and emails being sent in by everyone who has been getting their batch on and telling me how much more time they have to do the things they love now that theyre not shackled to the kitchen night after night.

My first book was packed full of hearty recipes that were sure to be hits with the whole family. The focus was on filling your freezer (and your belly!) with tasty food that could be on the table with as little fuss as possible. So, whats different this time round? Ive kept the focus on family cooking at the heart of this book and, as before, each meal serves 46 and can be scaled up or down to suit the size of your household. (Plus, if you do end up with extra, thats just another meal that can be on standby in the freezer to save you cooking on another night!)

The one key difference is that these recipes have more of a focus on health. When putting food on the table for my kids, making sure that I am providing a balanced plate of food is always at the front of my mind, but as a mother and wife whos responsible for getting a family meal on the table, I am often pulled between trying to feed everyone in the house the same thing and trying to eat healthily. My children, who seem to grow taller by the day, need a nutritionally dense diet containing a good range of healthy fats. My husband and I, both in our mid 40s, cant match their metabolisms, so need to keep more of an eye on what we eat. With that in mind, the recipes in this book offer the same comforting family favourites, but with twists and tricks to make them just that little bit healthier.

Each recipe contains both family and lighter serving suggestions, so you can easily cater for everyone sitting around the table. While the kids might opt for rice and naan bread with their curry, the adults might prefer cauliflower rice and a dollop of yoghurt instead. Elsewhere, Ive made simple substitutions to ingredients and methods of cooking that wont impact on taste or nutritional value, but are kinder on calories; for example, baking instead of frying or using turkey mince instead of beef.

If you are watching your calories, I have included a breakdown of the calorie and carbohydrate content of each meal at the top of page, so that you can easily factor those in when planning your meals. In this way, I hope that you can cater for your entire family and rest assured that, as well as being tasty, everyone is getting a well-balanced plate of food that ticks all the boxes for their individual nutritional needs.

Over the last year, I have tested these recipes night after night and have truly loved the headspace and freedom of knowing that I can eat a healthy, calorie-controlled diet, while also feeding the whole family a meal that gives them everything they want and need. I no longer have to worry about cooking two separate meals, and with the power of batching, I can have it all ready-made in advance of the week ahead to free-up my precious evenings to do the stuff I really enjoy.

As life gets ever busier, it can be hard to find time for the things that really count. As many of us deal with busy schedules, mounting work stress or feel the pull of the purse strings, planning our weekly meals can feel like an impossible task. My hope is that this book will take all that stress away with meals that are economical, waste-free, healthy, can be made ahead and, most importantly, taste great.

Believe in the batch!

To people who have never batch-cooked before, planning your meals ahead and cooking in large quantities can seem like a lot of work, but the truth is that cooking in this way is a massive time-saver. With this book, you have the added benefit of knowing that the food you are preparing is also healthy, balanced and ticking all of the nutritional boxes for you and your family, which will give you back both time and headspace to spend on the things you love.

Batching is, quite simply, the act of making more than one meal at a time. Its a great way of saving time and money and you dont need to have any specialist equipment, or even a large freezer. My first book,