These recipes are part of the beach body diet weight loss programme

These are quick to make and absolutely delicious. You can freeze half of the mixture (one burger), or cook it all and have leftovers the next day, even cold. The herb salad is enough for one portion, and the chickpea mash will keep for another meal or snack (for example, serve with a large salad for lunch the next day, or with crudités as a snack).

For the burgers
¼ medium onion
Small handful of mint leaves, finely chopped
200g lean, minced turkey
Squeeze of lemon juice
½ tsp ground cumin
½ tsp ground cinnamon
1 tbsp soy sauce

For the chickpea mash
1 400g tin cooked chickpeas
1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tbsp olive oil

For the herb salad
Large bunch of parsley
Handful of mint leaves
3 cherry tomatoes
1 spring onion
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 tsp olive oil

To make the burgers, peel the onion and grate it into a large bowl. Add the remaining ingredients and mix well. Wet your hands a little and form the mixture into two generous burgers or four smaller ones.

To make the mash, drain and rinse the chickpeas (if you prefer it warm, boil the chickpeas in water). Put in a bowl and simply mash with the parsley, soy sauce and olive oil.

For the herb salad, finely chop the parsley, mint, tomatoes and spring onions and mix in a bowl with the lemon juice and olive oil.

Cook the burgers on a barbecue or under the grill for 4-5 minutes each side, until cooked. Serve with 1 tbsp chickpea mash and the salad.

Easy roast fish

This takes no time to prepare and is bursting with flavour. Serve with a large portion of baked courgettes and aubergines, which you can cook in the oven at the same time, or a mound of steamed spinach.

68 cherry tomatoes
4 spring onions
5-6 black olives
2 cloves of garlic
1 tbsp olive oil
A few dashes of Tabasco sauce
Juice of ½ lemon
Zest of 1 lemon, grated
One 125g fillet of fish (your choice)

Preheat the oven to 200C/390F/Gas Mark 6. Put the tomatoes, spring onions, olives, garlic cloves (in their skins), olive oil and Tabasco in a large dish and bake for 20 minutes. Add the lemon juice and zest, then the fish. Swish the fillet on both sides to coat in the flavours. Put the dish back in the oven for 15-20 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fillet, until cooked.

Smart fact: Turkey is rich in tryptophan, which the body can turn into serotonin, the mood-elevating, calming neurotransmitter. Other sources are chicken, fish, eggs, oats and nuts.

ALTERNATIVE DINNERS

Moroccan-style beans Soften a chopped medium-sized onion in a saucepan with 1 tsp cumin seeds, 1 tsp ground coriander, a few cardamom pods and 2 crushed garlic cloves. Add a can of tomatoes and 2 cans of mixed beans. Simmer for 20 minutes. Eat about a third with steamed broccoli and have the rest cold with green leaves or warmed up another night.

Sweet baked pork chop Bake a pork chop (all fat removed) in the oven, sprinkled with black pepper and thyme (fresh or dried), on a sliced apple (cored) and a little water. Serve with warm leftover chickpea mash and steamed broccoli.

Seafood cakes In a food processor, mix 1 garlic clove, 1 chopped, thin slice of fresh ginger, 1 deseeded fresh chilli (optional) and 125g white fish and prawns, tossing in chopped fresh coriander at the last minute. Form into 2 cakes and bake on a tray lined with greaseproof paper for 15 minutes. Serve with a large salad of shredded cabbage, carrot and beansprouts, dressed with lime juice, soy sauce and a dash of sesame oil.

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