Super foods recipe: spring greens stir-fry with ham and toasted almonds

Quickly stir-fry leeks, cucumber and snow peas with lime zest, heart-friendly toasted almonds and lean ham for a super-quick light dish, great with couscous.

With high levels of cholesterol-lowering monounsaturated fats, almonds are especially good for keeping the heart healthy. They are also rich in essential vitamin E, an important antioxidant that may help to fight the free radical damage that can eventually lead to cancer or heart disease.

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 12 minutes

Serves 4

• 375 ml (1½ c) snow peas
• 50 ml (¼ c) slivered almonds
• 2 leeks
• ½ cucumber
• 225 g (½ lb) lean cooked ham
• 30 ml (2 tbsp) olive oil
• Grated zest of 1 lime
• 4 lime wedges, to garnish

1. Put the snow peas in a large frying pan and add just enough boiling water to cover. Return to a boil, cover and cook over high heat for one minute until the snow peas are bright green and slightly puffed. Drain and set aside.
2. Roast the almonds in a dry frying pan over medium-high heat for two minutes. Shake the pan frequently so the nuts cook evenly and do not burn. Transfer to a plate.
3. Slice the leeks. Peel the cucumber and cut it into one-centimetre-wide (1/2-inch-wide) sticks. Cut the ham into 2.5 centimetre (one inch) strips. Add the oil to the frying pan and stir-fry the leeks over medium-high heat for 3 minutes. Add the lime zest and cucumber and cook for another five minutes, or until the leeks are reduced and the cucumber is soft.
4.  Stir in the snow peas, ham and almonds and stir-fry for one minute to heat through. Serve garnished with lime wedges.

• Sugarsnap peas make a good substitute for snow peas. They are more substantial and often have a fuller flavour.
• Try pastrami or smoked pork loin, chicken or turkey as an alternative to the ham.
• For a vegetarian meal, leave out the ham and add 125 millilitres (1/2 cup) frozen soybeans or shelled lima beans in step 3. Use cashew nuts instead of almonds.

Carefully zest the lime using a zester and you can use the leftover lime, minus the zest, as a garnish rather than buying two limes. Do not cook the snow peas for too long or they will get soft and turn a dull green colour. They should be bright green with a crunchy texture. Air-dried, uncooked ham, such as westphalian, prosciutto, parma or serrano, is not recommended for a stir-fry.

Nutritional information: 300 calories, 21 g fat, 4 g saturated fat, 7 g carbohydrates, 21 g protein, 5 g fibre.