RECIPE TIME.... Sunday dinner for veggies!

My household may consist of a bunch a vegetarians, but I don't mind saying, we do love a family Sunday dinner as much as anyone.  With all the usual trimmings. Crispy roast potatoes with rosemary, creamy mash (I like to mix it up with spinach, but recently I've taken to making carrot and potato mash since my teen daughter decided she doesn't like cooked carrots anymore), peas (with a little garden mint) and a home made onion gravy.  

This recipe evolved yesterday as I was making a nut roast.  I wanted to make the main feature protein rich and nutritious, as I've been feeling a bit neglectful of my family's diet (and probably my own).  Nut roasts can often be a little dry, so I've tried to counter that with plenty of succulent vegetables, and replacing half the amount of nuts with chestnut mushrooms, and half of the breadcrumbs with quinoa.  When I tasted the filling, it felt like it needed something sharp to cut through the sweetness of the veg and the earthiness of the nuts and mushrooms.  Hence the Cheshire cheese, but you could use any tangy cheese such as feta or perhaps stilton. Don't be put off by the savoy wrapping.  I simply removed the thick part of the lower stem, and blanched it in the potato water.  Be generous with the overlapping layers to ensure it holds together. 

CASHEW & QUINOA VEGGIE ROAST

Ingredients - serves 6

150g cashews, lightly toasted

100g quinoa (or couscous)

1 red onion, diced, pref 1/2 cm pieces

1/2 courgette, diced 

1 carrot, diced

1 leek, finely sliced

5 chestnut mushrooms, diced

1 thick slice of brown/seeded bread

1 free range egg (or use silken tofu if vegan)

120g Cheshire cheese (or feta, Lancs, blue etc)

Savoy cabbage, 6 outer leaves, trim thick stalk end

Oil or butter for frying & greasing

Salt & white pepper for seasoning

1 tbsp fresh or 1/2 tsp dried herbs, I used fresh thyme & marjoram

To prepare:

1. Grease a loaf tin with butter or oil.  Heat oven to 190 degrees.
2. Add onion, courgette, carrot, leek & mushrooms to pan with a little oil or butter, and cook for 8-10 mins until vegetables are soft.
3. Simmer quinoa for 4-5 mins in veg stock (or hot water with a smidge of marmite).
4. Toast cashews in a pan, then blitz in food processor into small pieces.  Avoid blitzing into a powder or you will lose the texture.

5. Blitz bread into crumbs.
6. Blanche cabbage leaves in hot water for 2 mins and set aside.
7. Mix the vegetables, nuts, breadcrumbs and egg (or tofu if using).  Add fresh or dried herbs and season to taste with salt and white pepper.
8. Line the loaf tin with the cabbage leaves, using five large leaves to cover bottom and saving one leaf to seal the top.
9. Half fill the loaf tin with mixture, firmly pushing down with back of spoon to ensure shape.

10. Crumble the cheese over the filling. Then add remaining filling on top, again pushing down to make a firm shape. If you're vegan, omit this layer and add squeeze of lemon to veg mixture.
11. Fold over edges of cabbage leaves to cover top of roast, and then layer final leaf over top and tuck into sides.
12. Cover loaf tin with foil and place on baking tray.
13. Bake in over for 15 mins, then turn over, foil side down on tray, and continue baking for another 10-15 mins.
14. Remove from oven, turn right way again and remove foil lid.  Turn onto chopping board and remove tin.

Hope you enjoy it!  Here's to family time :0)

Recipe for Roast Cauliflower, Broccoli & Pasta Fondue

RECIPE TIME!  Roasted cauliflower, broccoli and pasta fondue with a pumpkin seed crust.  This is a fairly quick and easy dish to prepare.  I find it's very popular amongst children and teens, but then the fondue sauce gives a slightly more ‘grown up’ feel to the dish too. 

It came about as a result of my indecision between making macaroni cheese or cauliflower cheese.  You can use different combinations of cheeses, but I do love the classic combination of gruyere and emmental.  I try to include seeds in recipes sometimes as they are a great source of nutrients for anyone's diet, especially veggie's.

Ingredients – to serve 4-6

•  1 medium cauliflower
• 1 medium broccoli head
• 300g penne or rigatoni pasta
• ½ bottle dry white white
• Clove of garlic (optional)
• 200g Gruyere
• 200g Emmental
• 1 tsp English mustard
• 50g Sainsbury vegetarian Italian hard cheese
• Small handful of pumpkin or mixed seeds
• 2 slices of brown bread (preferably a little stale)

Method

1. Heat oven to 220 C.
2. Break and trim cauliflower and broccoli into large florets, drizzle with olive oil and a little salt and roast in the hot oven for 10 mins.
3. Meanwhile, bring add pasta to pan of boiling water and cook until al dente, about 8 mins.  Drain water and then return to large pan and set aside.
4. Rub the sides of a small pan with the garlic clove (if using), then add white wine and bring to boil.  Simmer until reduced by one third.
5. Grate gruyere and emmental and add to simmering wine, along with mustard.  Heat gently and stir until wine and cheese are well combined.
6. Blitz brown bread slices in mixer to create breadcrumbs.  Bread can be grated if you don’t have a food processor.  Mix breadcrumbs with finely grated parmesan or vegetarian Italian hard cheese.
7. Add roasted vegetables to pasta pan, mix together and then add fondue sauce and stir to combine well. Check seasoning and add salt and white pepper to taste. Turn out mixture into large baking dish, ensuring even arrangement of cauliflower, broccoli and pasta.
8. Layer breadcrumb mixture over top and then sprinkle with pumpkin or mixed seeds.
9. Bake in hot oven, 200 C, until top is golden and crispy.

Enjoy :0)

Another family favourite recipe from our house…

We love a good vegetarian lasagne in our house.  I don’t think you can better the homemade versions.  I think the dish benefits from being left overnight and baked the following day.  This recipe is what we’re having for dinner tonight.  It can be made without the aubergine, and the puy lentils can be substituted for soya mince or similar product.  I know I often include fresh herbs and you can substitute with dried ones if needed.  But I would encourage you to grow these herbs yourself if you can.  Of course, you can make your own pasta too, but I tend to leave that kind of thing to my MasterChef pal Sara Danesin.

There is nearly always enough to make a second lasagne, which I always freeze.  For busy working families, nothing quite beats homemade ready made food in the freezer!

Recipe for Roasted Aubergine & Puy Lentil Lasagne

Ingredients:

12 large tomatoes

250g puy lentils

2 aubergines

4 cloves of garlic

1 carrot, diced

1/2 stick of celery, diced

1 large onion, diced

1 red pepper

Dark soy sauce, 1-2 tbsp

Vegetable stock, 2 pts, good quality vegetable bouillion works best

Small sprig of fresh thyme

Handful of fresh marjoram

1 bay leaf

Black pepper, white pepper & sea salt

300ml milk

2-3 tbsp plain flour

40g butter

100g grated strong cheese

1 packet of good quality lasagne pasta

Method:

1. Saute ½ onion and one clove of crushed garlic in olive oil until softened.  Add puy lentils, sauté for further minute then add 1 1/2 to 2 pints of stock and simmer until lentils are fully cooked and soft.  Add further stock as needed.  You are aiming for them to absorb most of the liquid without leaving too much broth. 
2. Remove hard core of tomatoes and place whole on baking tray, along with 3 garlic cloves. Roast on high heat until well roasted and starting to blacken. Blitz with handblender. Set aside.
3. Remove ends and slice aubergines lengthways, approx 1.5cm thickness.  Drizzle with olive oil and salt and pepper.  Roast on high heat until golden brown and soft. Set aside.
4. Saute remaining onion, carrot, red pepper and celery, then add cooked lentils, soy, bay leaf and fresh marjoram.  Add half of the blended tomato sauce (or as much as you want).  Bring to simmer and check seasoning.
5. Heat butter in small pan, add pinch of salt and plain flour and cook to make roux.  Then slowly add milk, whisking all the time until reach a creamy consistent sauce.
6. Layer some sauce in bottom of large deep baking dish and cover with pasta.  Then layer over lentil and tomato mix, followed by layer of roasted aubergine, allowing the aubergine to overlap to create nice thick layer. Add another layer of lentil mix and then top with another layer of pasta, and on top of pasta pour creamy béchamel sauce. Sprinkle top with cheese and salt and pepper.
7. Bake in medium hot oven at 190 C for 30-40 mins until bubbling and top is golden brown.