Tag: vegetarian

Roasted red pepper and cannellini bean salad with preserved lemon dressing

~ Sophie ~ Leave a comment

A bright, perky, zingy side salad. Pop some grilled halloumi on the side and eat it for dinner.

  • 4 red peppers
  • 1 tin of cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
  • Handful fresh parsley, finely chopped
  • Handful pine nuts, toasted
  • 2 preserved lemons, flesh removed and shell finely chopped
  • 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 tbsp garlic oil (or a minced clove of garlic if you’d rather)
  • Juice of ½ lemon
  • Large pinch of salt
  1. Heat the oven to 180C fan (200C). Line a baking tray with foil and lay the whole peppers on it
  2. Roast for 40 mins, flipping them over halfway through. The skins will blacken and wrinkle. This is fine.
  3. Using tongs, lift the peppers into a large bowl, stick a plate on top and leave until they’re cool enough to handle
  4. Peel off the skins, remove the seeds and white bits, and drain off any liquid
  5. Cut the peppers into 1 cm strips dump into a bowl with the cannellini beans and chopped parsley
  6. Whisk together all the other ingredients and pour over the salad
  7. Toss everything together, taste and adjust the seasoning. Leave to get to know each other for 20 mins and then serve at room temperature

Add other ingredients if they take your fancy – some giant cous cous or farro, some ripe tomatoes would be yum – change the beans (butter beans or chickpeas also v good).

Kisir

~ Sophie ~ Leave a comment

Turkish bulgar wheat salad with tomato, pomegranate and red pepper. A more-ish texture and flavour combination in beautiful tones of garnet, rust and russet.

  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 1 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 tbsp tomato puree
  • 2 large tomatoes, peeled and chopped
  • ½ red pepper, finely chopped
  • 100ml water
  • 200g fine bulgur wheat
  • 1 tbsp pomegranate molasses
  • 1 tsp lemon juice
  • Large handful fresh parsley, chopped
  • Handful fresh mint, chopped (keep a few whole leaves for garnishing)
  • 3 spring onions, finely chopped
  • 1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
  • ½ tsp ground cumin
  • ½ tsp pul biber (Turkish chilli – substitute with a pinch of chilli flakes)
  • 40g walnuts, toasted and roughly chopped
  • 30g hazelnuts, toasted and roughly chopped
  • Salt and black pepper
  • Drizzle of extra virgin olive oil
  • Seeds from ½ pomegranate
  1. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan and cook the onion for about 5 mins until it turns translucent
  2. Add the garlic and red pepper and cook for another minute
  3. Add the tomato puree and stir in, cooking for 2 mins
  4. Add the tomatoes, turn the heat down and put the lid on. Cook for 4 mins then add the water
  5. Bring to a boil, remove the pan from the heat and stir in the bulgur wheat. Put the lid back on and leave to stand off the heat for 10 mins.
  6. Tip into a bowl with the pomegranate molasses, lemon juice, parsley, mint, spring onion, chilli, cumin, pul biber and toasted nuts
  7. Season, stir and put to one side until it has cooled to room temperature
  8. Taste again (try not to eat it all with your hands) and adjust the seasoning
  9. Serve at room temperature – spoon into a wide serving dish, drizzle with a bit of extra virgin olive oil and scatter over the pomegranate seeds and a few mint leaves

Macaroni cheese

~ Sophie ~ 1 Comment

The ultimate comfort food. Categorically not mac n’ cheese.

This dish was a staple of my childhood Friday evenings, playing raucously with friends while our mums got quietly drunk in the kitchen. Always eaten with lashings of ketchup and gherkins, occasionally with the added treat of sliced hotdogs stirred in. And with an inevitable battle over who got more of the crunchy top. Now I like to think I’m slightly more sophisticated (sometimes), but I still love the contrast with the creamy pasta, so I eat it drizzled with chilli sauce or topped with pickled jalapenos. And accompanied by a nice crispy salad on the side.

  • 2 tbsp salted butter
  • 2 tbsp plain flour
  • 1 tsp dijon mustard
  • 400-500ml milk
  • 200g grated cheddar (or to taste)
  • 400g pasta shapes
  • Salt and pepper
  1. In a thick-based saucepan over a low-medium heat, melt the butter then sprinkle over the flour
  2. Stir together until they form a light brown paste (a roux! Tres sophistique) and keeping stirring for a couple of mins
  3. Add the mustard and stir in
  4. Then pour over the milk and either whisk (which gets rid of lumps) or stir constantly right down into the corners until the sauce is thickened and voluptuous
  5. Turn off the heat, add the grated cheese and stir until it has melted in. Taste and season

You can eat this sauce simply mixed into cooked pasta, but to make this into a proper baked macaroni cheese …

  1. Pre-heat the oven to 180C fan (200C)
  2. Cook the pasta in plenty of salted boiling water for 6-7 mins – around 3-4 mins less than usual
  3. Drain it and tip into a ceramic oven dish
  4. Mix through the cheese sauce, top with a bit more grated cheese and bake for 30 mins until bubbling and golden

Simple okonomiyaki

~ Sophie ~ Leave a comment

Not that it’s especially complicated in the first place, but this simplified version of the Japanese cabbage pancake, smothered in condiments, is a quick and easy lunch. And still manages to be a veritable party in your mouth! Crunchy, spicy, savoury, creamy, tangy – it’s the ideal way to use up leftover raw white or sweetheart cabbage. Feeds 2.

  • 3 eggs
  • 3 heaped tbsp plain flour
  • 1 tsp sesame oil
  • 1 tsp soy sauce
  • Large handful of shredded cabbage
  • 1 spring onion, finely chopped
  • 2 tbsp veg oil
  • Mayonnaise, ideally in a squeezy bottle
  • Sriracha chilli sauce
  1. Make a thick batter with the eggs, flour, sesame oil and soy sauce
  2. Mix in the spring onion and cabbage
  3. Heat the oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat and, dividing the mixture into quarters, spoon 4 heaps of the cabbage mixture into the pan
  4. Fry on one side for 2 mins until golden brown (don’t be tempted to mess about with it while it’s cooking)
  5. Then flip them, press down gently and give them another 2 mins until cooked through
  6. Serve them straight away with lavish zigzags of mayo and chilli sauce over the top, and tuck in.

Roast red pepper soup

~ Sophie ~ Leave a comment

Delightful soup, the vibrant colour of a postbox

  • 4 red peppers, halved and de-seeded
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 onions, finely chopped
  • 1 garlic clove, chopped
  • 1 potato, diced
  • 1 tin chopped tomatoes
  • 1 tbsp tomato puree
  • 1 litre vegetable stock
  • 2 tsp paprika
  • Large pinch dried thyme
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • Dash of balsamic vinegar
  • Salt and pepper
  1. Pre-heat the grill to high and place the peppers skin side up on to a baking sheet. Char under the grill until the skin is blackened
  2. Remove from the heat and place in a bowl with a plate on top to steam for 10 mins, then remove and discard the skin and slice the flesh
  3. In the meanwhile, heat the oil in a large saucepan and fry the onion and garlic for 4-5 mins until softened
  4. Add the potato and fry for a further minute
  5. Add the chopped tomatoes, tomato puree, red peppers, sugar, vinegar, paprika, thyme and veg stock
  6. Season, bring to the boil, cover and simmer for 12-15 mins until the potatoes are tender
  7. Use a wand blender to whizz until smooth. Serve with crumbled feta or a spoonful of Greek yoghurt on top

Cheese scones

~ Sophie ~ Leave a comment

Crunchy on the outside, soft and pillowy on the inside, savoury and gorgeous. Makes 12

  • 450g plain flour
  • 6 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tbsp English mustard powder
  • 100g cold butter
  • 250g strong cheddar, finely grated
  • 2 tbsp finely chopped chives
  • 120ml cold milk
  • 100ml cold water
  • 1 egg, beaten with a splash of milk
  1. Heat the oven to 200C fan (220C)
  2. Put the flour, baking powder, salt and mustard powder into a large mixing bowl and whisk together until well combined
  3. Grate in the butter, then rub it in with your fingertips until it looks like breadcrumbs
  4. Add 225g cheese and chives, stir in
  5. Mix in the milk then the water until the dough just comes away from the edge of the bowl. Don’t mix or handle it any more than necessary
  6. Tip onto a floured surface and flatten gently to about 2.5cm thick
  7. Cut out circles with a 6cm cutter
  8. Place on a baking tray and brush with the egg and milk mixture
  9. Sprinkle over the last of the cheese over the top and bake for 12 mins until well risen and golden. Allow to cool slightly on a rack before eating one immediately and then putting two in your pockets for later

If using to top a cobbler (beef and ale stew, chicken casserole, root vegetable stew?), place the scones on top, press slightly into the surface of the stew and bake at 200C fan for 25 mins

Mucver

~ Sophie ~ Leave a comment

Turkish courgette fritters, small and perfectly delicious. Good enough to convert courgette-haters and an excellent start to a Mediterranean feast

  • 2 medium courgettes
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 4 tbsp plain flour
  • 100g feta, crumbled
  • 1 tbsp dill, finely chopped
  • Salt & pepper
  • Veg oil
  1. Open out a tea towel and place a box grater in the middle of it. Grate the courgettes directly onto the tea towel, then gather up the edges around the little mountain of green gratings and squeeze as much liquid out of them as you can
  2. In a bowl, mix all of the ingredients together. It should form a stiff batter
  3. Heat veg oil in a large frying pan and drop in spoonfuls of the mixture. Flatten slightly with the back of a spoon and fry the mucver until they’re golden on each side (keep cooked ones warm on a rack in a low oven as you cook them)
  4. Serve straight away with some plain yogurt on the side

Garlic parsnips

~ Sophie ~ Leave a comment

My mother-in-law’s recipe, extremely garlicky and the very best way to eat parsnips. Seriously, she converted me from roasting them and that’s saying something.

  • 4 parsnips, scrubbed but not peeled, cut into chunky batons
  • 4 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
  • 30g butter
  • Salt and plenty of black pepper
  1. Melt the butter over a medium heat in a saucepan with a lid
  2. Once sizzling, add the garlic and stir fry in the butter for a minute until it turns golden. Don’t take your eyes off it or it’ll burn
  3. Tip in the parsnips, turn the heat down and turn them through the garlic and butter. Season well
  4. Add a splash of water, stick the lid on and cook for about 15 mins, taking the lid off every now and again to stir, check on their progress and hungrily inhale the delicious smell coming out of the pan

Once cooked, they should be soft with crispy, golden edges. Some bits may be more crispy, some may not be golden at all, some may be starting to fall apart completely. This is all fine.

Any leftovers make the most brilliant soup. Just heat through, add a little stock and cream and whizz up.

Indian-spiced masala baked beans

~ Sophie ~ Leave a comment

Baked beans are obviously brilliant as they are, but this takes them up a level! Incredibly quick to make, and spicily delicious on top of almost anything. Thick slices of sourdough toast with a dollop of yogurt perched on top, or a fried egg and a sprinkle of fresh coriander. Or just scoop it up with hot, flaky parathas. Feeds 2.

  • 2 tbsp veg oil
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 1 large garlic clove, minced
  • 2 cm fresh ginger, minced or finely chopped
  • 1 large red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
  • 2 tsp tomato puree
  • Pinch dried chilli flakes
  • 1 tsp ground coriander
  • ½ tsp ground cumin
  • ½ tsp ground turmeric
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • ½ tsp sugar
  • 1 tin Heinz baked beans (I know it shouldn’t matter what brand they are but it does!)
  • 100g baby spinach (if you fancy it)
  1. Heat the oil in a saucepan on low and add the onion, ginger and fresh chilli
  2. Cook for 5 mins, stirring, until golden and soft
  3. Add the garlic and stir in. Cook for a couple of mins then add the tomato puree, spices and salt
  4. Stir until well combined, cooking for another minute
  5. Then add the beans and a couple of tbsp water, and heat through
  6. If using the spinach, stir through at the end until just wilted

Baked onions

~ Sophie ~ Leave a comment

So much more than the sum of its 3 ingredients. A simple concoction that gives rise to a rich, creamy, savoury delight

  • 4 medium/large onions
  • 300ml double cream
  • Large handful of grated parmesan
  1. Pre-heat the oven to 150C fan (170C)
  2. Peel the onions, keeping as much of the root area intact as possible
  3. Pop into a saucepan. Cover with water and bring to the boil
  4. Turn down to a simmer, cover and cook for 15 mins until tender. Lift them out gently and put onto kitchen towel to dry
  5. Cut each one in half lengthways from root to tip and place cut-side down in an ovenproof dish
  6. Pour the cream over the onions, season well with salt and pepper and sprinke over the parmesan
  7. Bake for 25-30 mins until golden and bubbling

Serve over pasta, with a big pile of broccoli or alongside a simple grilled chicken breast