Recipes
Nut Croustade with Roasted Winter Veg
January is almost over and the memories of Christmas are fading fast. What a weird one it was! It seemed to be split between households full of food with suddenly no visitors and unexpectedly stay at home households with no food!
If you still have left over root vegetables lurking somewhere (and of course, the Christmas nuts) then this is the recipe for you! This is a vegan version (for Veganuary), but if you also have cheese to use up it works just as well – grate a little both into the crumb and on to sprinkle on top.
This is what I call a thinking-outside-the-box vegan recipe where the protein element forms an integral part of the dish in the crumb – not the usual meat substitute and 3 veg!
Serve with a jacket potato, home-made tomato sauce (tomatoes from a can is fine) and a green salad. You will need a 23cm flan tin or 4 x 13cm ones.
Ingredients
For the Croustade
- 155g Breadcrumbs freshly made from 2/3 day old bread
- 125g of mixed nuts broken into crumbs in a processor
- 50g Coconut Fat
- 1Tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
- For the topping
- 650g mixed root vegetables (carrot, parsnip, celeriac, squash & sweet potato are all good)
- 3 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 clove of garlic, crushed and finely chopped
- a few sprigs of sage or thyme
- 1medium leek (about 85 g) cleaned and cut into 1 cm pieces
- 1½ Tablespoons cornflour
- 250ml non dairy milk
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 Tablespoon nutritional yeast flakes
To Garnish
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 2 Tablespoons chopped parsley
Directions
Set the oven to 195ºC.
Wash the root vegetables and peel where necessary, you should have about 520g.
Blanch the carrots in a pan of boiling water for about 2 minutes as they will take longer to cook.
Cut all the roots into chunks about 1 cm and put them in an ovenproof tray, sprinkle with the garlic, herbs and 2 Tablespoons olive oil. Turn the veg in the oil and roast in the oven for about 35 minutes, until the are soft and beginning to caramelize.
Whilst the veg are roasting, make the croustade.
Rub the coconut fat into the breadcrumbs with your fingers and when incorporated, mix in the other ingredients. Reserve about one third of the mixture and tip the remaining two thirds into the flan tin, pressing down to form an even layer.
Bake for 20 minutes on a shelf under the vegetables, remove from the oven and set aside.
Sauté the leeks in the remaining olive oil on a low heat until they are soft. Mix the cornflour in a mug with a little of the non dairy milk to form a paste, then incorporate the rest of the liquid. Pour this into the pan with the leeks and stir continuously until it has thickened.
Season with the salt and pepper to taste.
All these steps can be done up to a day in advance and refrigerated until needed.
To assemble, fold the roasted veg into the leek sauce and spread over the base.
Sprinkle with the remaining third of the croustade mix, leaving it loose on top and sprinkle with the nutritional yeast flakes and the extra olive oil.
Bake in a hot oven for 20 – 25 minutes until the top is golden.
To make the garnish, mix the olive oil, lemon juice and chopped parsley together. Serve this with the croustade.
To serve, put a mound of black rice on a plate with a few slices of squash leaning on it. Pile the chickpea curry in the front and garnish with the ginger, chilli, coriander and a squeeze of lemon juice.
Now just see if you can spot that witch!
Christmas Muffins
These muffins are full of Christmas flavours – fruit, spice, and orange but are lighter than the traditional Christmas pudding and a lot quicker to cook! They can be served instead of the pudding or cake or can be eaten for breakfast on Christmas morning. The fruit really does benefit from at least 24 hours soaking but you can speed things up a bit by mixing all the ingredients and wazzing in the microwave for 30 seconds. This does help to plump the fruit up and absorb the flavours of the spices. I quite often soak double the quantity as it will keep over the Christmas period in a closed container in the fridge and a spoonful will perk up all sorts of things – left over red cabbage, sliced brussel sprouts, glazed carrots in the veg line and of course, its handy for making more muffins!
Ingredients
- zest of ½ an orange
- 80g raisins
- 25g cranberries (I used the ones pre-soaked in apple juice)
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 3 Tablespoons brandy
- 30g dark brown sugar
- 250g SR flour
- 5 teaspoons doves baking powder
- ½ teaspoon bicarb powder
- 100g castor sugar
- ½ teaspoon mixed spice
- juice of an orange
- 150ml milk (approx)
- 75 g melted butter
- 1 large egg
Directions
The day before cooking the muffins (see note above), place the raisins, cranberries, spices and the brandy in a small bowl. Bring a small saucepan of water to the boil and add the orange zest. Simmer for 5 minutes, drain and refresh with cold water. This removes any bitterness in the rind. Drain thoroughly and cut into the most narrow strips you can. Add to the bowl and cover, shaking from time to time to mix all the lovely flavours and to make sure all the spirit is absorbed by the fruit.
When you are ready to cook preset the oven to 210°C and line a muffin tin with paper cases. Mix the dark brown sugar into the spiced fruit.
Combine the flour, baking powder, bicarb, spice and castor sugar in a large bowl. Mix the milk and orange juice in a measuring jug, topping up to the 200ml mark with milk. Beat the egg lightly and add to the jug. Pour in the melted butter, give it a quick stir and pour into the dry ingredients, lightly mixing everything together. I find a large fork best for this as the mixture is quite stiff and the fork helps to smooth the lumps out without beating it too much.
When everything is mixed, put into the paper cases with two teaspoons – the cases should be about ¾ full. Put a heaped teaspoon of the fruit mixture in the centre of each and place in the hot oven. After 10 minutes, turn the oven down to 200°C and cook for a further 8 – 10 minutes when they should be risen and golden brown. Test they are cooked with a toothpick, which should come out clean when inserted into the spongy part. Serve with cream or brandy butter if you like.
Macaroni Cheese with Tuna and Sweetcorn
November Comfort Food
It seems you can’t walk into a café or pub these days without a version of Mac’n’Cheese on offer and its even available as a ready meal! I must admit there is something quite alluring about the creamy sauce coating pasta, a lovely one dish meal to eat by the fire or watching TV. It really is an easy dish to make and I love “bakes” as putting the oven on warms the kitchen and the smells pervade throughout the home – a real test of comfort food.
I can’t remember exactly where this version came from – I’ve been cooking it since the kids were small and has proved a winner over time. It has endless possibilities of course, layering anchovies or roasted strips of red pepper over the top pizza style for one, sliced tomato perhaps or even dotted with “salad seaweed” such as dulse. Its also quite good to finish up any soft cheese, crème fraiche etc., just reduce the amount of milk a little to compensate. I like to use a mixture of grated cheese as well – it just depends what you have in the fridge. One of the red cheeses gives great colour to the sauce and parmesan sprinkled on the top makes a slightly crusty finish. Serves 2 or 3.
Ingredients
- 175g elbow macaroni (gomitini)
- 135g onions
- 1 Tablespoon Olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- 50g cornflour
- 650ml milk
- 160g tin tuna in olive oil (sustainably fished)
- 140g sweetcorn from a can
- 1 Tablespoon chopped parsley
- 150g cheese, grated
- salt and black pepper
Directions
Bring a pan of water to the boil and add the gomitini. Turn the heat down to a simmer and cook for 8 minutes (the pasta should not be cooked all the way through). Place a cup in the sink and drain the pasta in a colander over the cup to catch some of the pasta water. Remove the cup from the sink and run the pasta under cold water to stop further cooking. Shake well and leave to drain.
Finely slice the onions and sauté in the olive oil until they are transparent. Crush the garlic and add to the pan. Stir and fry for a few minutes then add the dried oregano and 250ml of the reserved pasta water. Simmer until the onions are cooked through – most of the water will evaporate.
Whilst they are cooking, mix the cornflour with half the milk in a small bowl. It helps to do this with a hand blender to make sure it is well incorporated and also this would be the time to add any other bits of soft cheese etc. (see above). Add the rest of the milk to the bowl.
Return to the pan with the onions. Add the can of tuna with all the oil and break up the lumps. Add the sweetcorn. Place over a low heat and add the milk mixture. Gently stir this mixture until it thickens and then remove from the heat.
Add half the pasta then two thirds of the cheese and stir well. You may need to do this in the pan you originally cooked the pasta in. Add the remaining pasta, stir and season with the salt and pepper. Pour this into an oven-proof casserole, sprinkle the parsley on top and cover with the remaining cheese. Place into a preheated oven at 185ºC for approximately 20 – 25 minutes until the top is golden and bubbly. Serve with a green salad.
Black Chickpea Curry with Squash and Black Rice
Autumn has come in all its glory. I love the colours of the leaves and the few last rays of sunshine before the winter. It is also the time of bountiful harvests, the last of the summer tomatoes and time to harvest squash and apples. Squash are so much more interesting to eat than the pumpkins usually associated with the end of October. But that apart, we have two new products that are just ideal for Halloween food – Black Chickpeas and Black Rice! I can just imagine a witch flying over the “moon” crescents of the squash in the picture…………
Black chickpeas have a more fibrous coating than the normal ones which makes them more suitable for canning – no chance of them going mushy under pressure! They also have a better nutrition profile.
The black rice is now grown extensively in Italy although it originated in China where it was known as the “forbidden rice”. The colouring is due to flavonoids in the rice and has a nutty flavour.
I do like to make my own curry sauces but it does take some time for the spices to mingle and to reach the right consistency. This time, after the initial frying process, I put the whole lot in a slow cooker for 8 hours and then in the fridge for use the next day. This could easily be doubled up and the surplus frozen for future use. I think it actually does taste better the next day.
Ingredients
- 1 tin black chick peas
- 200g onions
- ¼ bulb garlic
- 1” knob of ginger
- 2 Tablespoons of oil
- ½ stick celery
- ½ small carrot
- A green chilli slit
- 300g tomatoes
- 170ml water
- 400g squash
- Black pepper
- 165g black rice
- To garnish – ½ Lemon, coriander leaf, green chillies & ginger julienne
Spices
- 1½ teaspoons cumin seed
- 1” stick cinnamon
- 2 cloves
- 2 cardamom
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 teaspoon dried fenugreek
- 1 teaspoon red paprika
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- 1½ teasp. ground coriander
- ½ teaspoon tumeric
- ½ teaspoon salt
Directions
First make the sauce. Chop the onions finely and sauté in the oil. Peel and chop the garlic and ginger and add to the pan, stirring for a few minutes more. Add the whole spices and the bayleaf. When the onion begins to colour add the ground spices, turn them a few times and add the water. Chop the tomatoes, carrot and celery and add them, with the green chilli. Cover and simmer over a low heat until the vegetables are all cooked (see above). Remove from the heat and allow to cool a little. Set aside a ladleful (removing any tomato skin) fish out any whole spices, and blitz the rest. Add the reserved ladleful back in to give a bit of texture.
Meanwhile, put the rice in a bowl and cover with boiling water. Leave it to soak for at least 30 minutes, preferably 1 hour. Drain and rinse with cold water shaking off as much water as possible.
Preheat the oven to 195°C. Cut the squash into crescents about 1½ cm thick at their widest. Grease an oven proof tray and lay the squash slices on it. Brush with a little oil and make a few turns of black pepper over them. Roast for 40 minutes.
Drain and rinse the black chickpeas.
Put the drained rice in a saucepan with 600ml of water. Bring to the boil, covered and then turn the heat down to a simmer. It should take 30 – 35 minutes to cook and absorb all the water. Keep an eye on it as it gets near the end of the cooking time. Add salt to taste and turn off the heat. Leave to rest for 5 minutes in the covered pan.
When you are ready to serve, reheat the sauce and add the chickpeas. Cook for 5 minutes to thoroughly heat through. Adjust seasoning if necessary. Add a knob of butter (or coconut cream from a block if vegan) to give it a glossy shine.
To serve, put a mound of black rice on a plate with a few slices of squash leaning on it. Pile the chickpea curry in the front and garnish with the ginger, chilli, coriander and a squeeze of lemon juice.
Now just see if you can spot that witch!
Courgette and Basil Pakoras with Tomato Chilli Jam
One of the vegetables that is normally in full swing in July are courgettes – not so this year (2021)! The cold spring and the low light levels in May and June have meant that the poor plants have just sat there, hardly growing at all. This is usually a time when all efforts to pick them young fail and there are always a few that escape. However with the recent appearance of the sun and the increase in temperatures they have sprung into full production at last.
I made this from 2 that had grown too large and had formed seeds inside. I cut them into quarters lengthways and removed the seeds and the woolly bits in the centre and just used the firm flesh. The original weight of the courgettes was 535g from which I gleaned 375g of usable flesh. After the water had been removed (see instructions), it only weighed 165g!
This quantity will make about 15.
Courgette and Basil Pakoras with Tomato Chilli Jam
Ingredients
375g courgette flesh
1 Tablespoon salt
15g basil
50g gram flour
½ teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon tumeric
½ teaspoon ground coriander
½ teaspoon whole cumin seed
½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
75g Greek yoghurt
1 Tablespoon olive oil
I teaspoon black onion seeds
1 clove garlic
275g tomatoes
½ teaspoon salt
40g sugar
chilli flakes to taste
Approx. 500ml sunflower oil for deep frying.
Coarsely grate the courgettes and place in a large bowl. Add the salt, mix well and leave for at least 30 minutes to draw out the water.
Mix the gram flour, spices, bicarb and Greek yoghurt together in a bowl that will be large enough to take the courgette flesh as well.
Meanwhile, make the tomato chilli jam.
Peel and core the tomatoes and chop roughly.
Finely dice the clove of garlic.
Heat the oil in a small saucepan and when it is hot, put in the black onion seeds. When they begin to sizzle, put in the garlic. Stir and fry until the garlic starts to take on colour. Lower the heat and add the chopped tomatoes carefully, as the hot oil will spit. Cook until the tomatoes have softened, stirring and mashing them with the back of a spoon. Add the salt, sugar and chilli flakes and cook until the mixture has become thickened and syrupy. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.
Return to the courgettes. Rinse all the salt out of them under running water, drain and rinse again. Put in a muslin bag (or a thin clean tea towel) and squeeze until all the liquid has gone. Unwrap and place in a sieve, just to make sure there is no excess water left – it will make the batter too runny.
Coarsely chop the basil.
Place a small saucepan on the heat and add the oil to heat up. Fold the courgettes and the basil into the batter making sure it is all mixed together and the courgettes are coated all over.
Take a teaspoon of the mixture and shape it with another teaspoon. Slide it into the hot oil. Repeat 3 times and fry the pakoras until golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon onto a dish lined with kitchen paper. Repeat this process until all the mixture is used up. It is important not to overcrowd the pan otherwise they will be soggy or worse still, the temperature of the oil will drop and they will not hold together!
Serve hot or cold with the jam as a dipping sauce.
Asparagus and Broad Beans in a Cashew Nut Sauce
The winter of 20/21 seems to have been the longest EVER and the spring has been so cold! Now, with the easing of lockdown, there is a sense of relief and, as ever, the relentless passing of the seasons heralds this renewal. The new spring veggies are particularly welcome at this time and the vibrant flavours truly remind one of new beginnings.
The origins of using cashew nuts in a sauce is largely Asian (as in korma) but many cultures use nuts as a creamy non-dairy base with or without other flavourings – think pesto, muhamara, tarator etc. I have not used stronger flavours here – it is all about the veg after all!
Asparagus and Broad Beans with a Cashew Nut Sauce
Ingredients
1 bunch asparagus
1kg broad beans
1 Tablespoon finely chopped spring onions
100g cashew nuts
100ml water
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Rock salt
A few chilli flakes
Olive oil for drizzling
Soak the cashew nuts in boiling water for 2 hours to soften them.
Put them in the container of a hand blender with the 100ml water and blend until smooth. Add the olive oil and lemon juice and blend again. Add salt to taste.
Shell the broad beans; there should be about 200g. Bring a small quantity of water to boil, there should be just enough to cover the beans. When the water is boiling, add the beans, cover and bring back to the boil. Simmer for 1 minute and then drain. Plunge the beans into a bowl of cold water to stop them cooking and leave for 2 minutes then drain and set aside.
Cut the woody stalks from the asparagus and rinse under the tap. Place in a glass dish with a lid and microwave for 2 minutes. It is possible to steam them if you prefer, but it is hard to get the stalks cooked without ruining the tips. Leave to rest for 5 minutes.
When you are ready to serve, place a table spoon of the sauce on each of 2 or 3 plates and sprinkle some of the spring onions on it. Arrange the asparagus on top followed by the broad beans. Top with the remaining spring onions and chilli flakes if using and drizzle with olive oil. Serve immediately.
Roasted Cauliflower, Sweet Potato and Chickpeas with Tahini and Yoghurt
Cauliflowers have been particularly successful this season; there has been a plentiful supply of lovely creamy heads. Although Cauliflower Cheese remains one of my all-time comfort foods, I love this combination of roasted cauliflower and chickpeas, tempered with sweet potato and punctured by pomegranate seeds.
Salmon With Cucumber Relish
Tastes of Summer!
A crisp tasting cucumber relish to compliment a lightly spiced fish dish makes for the quintessential flavours of summer. Each 125g fillet can be served with new potatoes and a green salad as a main dish. It can also be served on toasted sourdough or cooked mini filo cases as a starter, topped with the cucumber relish. Serves 2 as a main, 4 as a starter
Veganuary Heart of the Home Stew
Veganuary is here!
As I write Storm Brendan et al has been and gone – there is wind and rain a plenty! Here in North Devon we know all about this in the winter months. It’s time to snuggle up and make this comforting plant based stew. The trick here is to make layers of flavour within a single pot; the long cooking time of the pulses gives ample opportunity for this.
Tomatillos
We started growing these in 2014. Tomatillos or tomate verde are a member of the same plant family as tomatoes but are more closely allied to the “Cape Gooseberry” or Physalis. When the husks are removed, they look like a green tomato, but the inside is full of seeds and they have a bitter-sweet, tangy flavour.
Romanesque Cauliflower Sauce
This is a quick and easy sauce to serve with pasta or with crusty bread Its delicious served with a garnish of toasted flaked almonds or grated pecorino or try it with both if your are feeling indulgent!
Blackberry and Pear Torte
Although late summer heralds shorter days and a return to school and work, there is still some time to enjoy some summer treats and blackberries are one of them!
Padron Peppers
Padron Peppers – “some are hot and some are not” Rumour has it that these little green peppers were brought to the Galician town of Padron in the 16th Century from Mexico. The peppers have brought a certain fame to this parish and there is a fiesta to celebrate them.
Fish Kitchari
Mitch Tonks came to Appledore book festival to talk about fish and his new book. Mitch runs the hugely successful seafood restaurant “The Seahorse” in Dartmouth. He is passionate about fish cookery and using fresh local ingredients.
Salmon and Coconut Curry
Mean Molly – Food for mind and body! This is a lightly spiced recipe with many variations, common in southern India and south east Asia. The name is derived from “moilee” – a stew with coconut and “meen” – fish. Somewhere along the line this got christened Mean Molly in our house. However there is nothing mean about this dish – its packed with nutrients for the heart, brain and general well being.
Leek, Sweetcorn and Black Bean Soup
This warming soup/stew is a real storecupboard treasure, quickly prepared in 15 – 20 minutes. With the addition of some cooked rice or noodles it would make a satisfying main dish for 4.
Golden Glow Soup
As the leaves on the trees change from green to yellow, orange and red and are finally dispelled by a few sou’ westerlies, I begin to think of warming bowls of soup. The tomatoes and summer veg are at an end – it is the season of golden squash, carrots and other root vegetables.
Felafel
These felafel are made throughout the middle east using either dried large broad beans or chick peas. However, we are now selling a British grown bean called Fava and it is these that I have used for this recipe. It is most important to use dried beans, not already cooked ones as these will not hold together.
Quinoa and Avocado Salad
Finding a healthy lunch on the go or to eat at work can be difficult but with a little planning it’s easy to take your own. I have combined the super-nutritionally-loaded quinoa and avocado to make this nourishing and tasty salad. Quinoa has a prep and cook time of about quarter of an hour so it takes no time to do the night before, making it an ideal ingredient to have ready in the fridge for healthy snacking.
Swiss Chard and Chickpea Curry
Due to the extraordinary weather in February when temperatures soared we are lucky enough to see a few green shoots in the garden. The Swiss Chard or silver beet is one of those appearing now and how welcome it is! I think it is a universal type of plant that grows where nothing else is sprouting as there are recipes to use it all over the Mediterranean, the Middle East and the Asian subcontinent.
