Exclusive pre-publication. TV and radio presenter Rani De Coninck shares 3 recipes from her cookbook: “Make the spaghetti pie a day in advance” | To eat

Instead of ‘What are we eating today?’, TV presenter Rani De Coninck (52) asksherself the question ‘What are we eating this week?’ It brought about adifferent dynamic in her family and in her pantry. Thanks to meal prepping,everything goes according to plan and there is never a lack of food on thetable. She shares 3 recipes from her book ‘Rani’s Goed Plan’ to successfullymeal prep herself this week.

Together with food stylist Elise Van de Poele, Rani De Coninck made a cookbookfull of recipes that will easily get you through the week. She has alreadyshown Flanders in an episode of ‘Over Eten’ about how healthy fish is, andthat she carefully thinks out what she is going to eat and is already makingthe necessary preparations for it. Now she bundles some handy recipes in’Rani’s good plan’ to make it work herself.

Okonomiyaki: Japanese pancakes with cabbage

Okonomiyaki from Rani’s Good Plan © Wout Hendrickx

Preparation time: 20 minutes _ _For 4 persons

Ingredients

For the pancakes

• 350 g green cabbage • 1 thick carrot • 3 spring onions • 1 clove of garlic • 150 g flour • 3 eggs • 150ml water • sunflower oil • pepper and salt

For the dressing

• 4 tbsp soy sauce • 1 tbsp walnut oil • 1⁄2 tsp chili flakes • 1 lime

That’s how you make it

First make the dressing: mix the soy sauce with the walnut oil, the chiliflakes and the juice of 1 lime with 2 tablespoons of water.

Chop the green cabbage very finely.

Peel the carrot and coarsely grate. Cut the spring onions into fine rings.Peel and crush the garlic. Mix the flour with the eggs, water and 2tablespoons of sunflower oil. Stir the vegetables through this mixture andseason with plenty of salt and pepper. Heat a dash of sunflower oil in afrying pan and spoon a ladle of the mixture into the pan. Spread the mixtureinto a pancake.

Fry over a low heat until golden brown on one side, turn over and let it cookslowly for a few minutes again. Bake all the pancakes, cut into pieces andserve with the dipping sauce.

Can be eaten warm, lukewarm or cold.

Tip from Rani : These pancakes are the perfect lunch, a refreshingafternoon snack or a surprising snack!

Oven tray with carrot, couscous, halloumi

Oven tray with carrot, couscous and halloumi from Rani's GoedPlanOven tray with carrot, couscous and halloumi from Rani’s Goed Plan © WoutHendrickx

Preparation time: 20 minutes Oven time: 35 minutes For 4 persons

Ingredients

• 1 sweet onion • 800 g carrots • 2 cloves of garlic • 1 tsp garam masala or baharat • 1⁄2 tsp chili flakes • 1 tsp curry powder • 1 handful of raisins • 350 g couscous • 500 ml vegetable stock • 1 Berloumi or halloumi • handful of flat-leaf parsley • olive oil • pepper and salt

That’s how you make it

Preheat the oven to 185°C.

Peel the onion and cut into strips. Peel the carrots and cut into strips.Halve the longest ones lengthwise.

Peel and crush the garlic. Mix the onion, garlic and carrots with 4tablespoons of olive oil, the garam masala, chili flakes, curry powder and apinch of salt. Place in a large baking dish and place in the preheated oven at185 °C for 25-30 minutes, until the carrots are tender and lightly goldenbrown. Remove the baking dish from the oven. Scoop everything out and setaside.

Pour the raisins, couscous and stock into the baking dish. Stir well and putin the oven for 5 minutes. Remove from the oven, mix the carrots and onionwell with the couscous and let everything rest covered for 5 minutes.

Heat a dash of olive oil and fry the Berloumi or halloumi in slices briefly.Serve the couscous with the Berloumi and coarsely chopped parsley.

Tip from Rani : Try replacing the carrots with sweet potato, parsnip orkohlrabi, whichever is best.

Spaghetti pie

Spaghetti cake from Rani's GoedPlanSpaghetti cake from Rani’s Goed Plan © Wout Hendrickx

Preparation time: 15 minutes Oven time: 35 minutes For 4 persons

Ingredients

• 250 g chestnut mushrooms (or regular) • olive oil • 100 g smoked bacon cubes • 500 ml ready-to-use tomato sauce of your choice (ThinkTomato, arrabbiatasauce…) • 350 g spaghetti •1 chicken stock cube • 3 eggs • 120 g ricotta or fresh cream cheese • 150 g ground mozzarella • nutmeg • pepper and salt

That’s how you make it

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Cut the mushrooms into fine cubes. Heat a dash ofolive oil and fry the bacon cubes and mushrooms until golden brown.

Add the sauce and season with salt and pepper if necessary. Boil the spaghettiwith the stock cube until al dente, drain and let drain.

Beat the eggs with the ricotta or fresh cream cheese and half of themozzarella. Season with nutmeg, salt and pepper. Mix the spaghetti with thetomato sauce and pour everything into a greased oven dish. Pour over the egg-cheese mixture and sprinkle with the remaining mozzarella. Place in thepreheated oven for 30-35 minutes.