Turkish Carrot and Lentils

Based on a Diana Henry recipe.  Diana uses 50% more carrot and gives 25 min cooking time but I find it takes a bit longer to get the lentils cooked - about 40 minutes (probably depends on the lentil type)

Serves 4

• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, cut into slim crescent moon-shaped slices
• 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 ½ tsp coriander seeds, crushed
• 1 tsp cummin seeds
• ½ tsp chilli flakes
• 125g Puy or green lentils
• 4 carrots, cut into rounds (not too thickly)
• 2 tbsp tomato puree
• Pinch sugar (optional)
• 275ml water or vegetable or chicken stock
• Salt and pepper (if you’re using chicken stock you won’t need much salt)
• 2 tbsp chopped herbs (parsley or dill or a mixture)
• Good squeeze of lemon and a bit of extra virgin olive oil to finish

• Heat the olive oil in a heavy-bottomed pan and saute the onion until it’s soft and pale gold. Add the garlic and spices and cook for another two minutes. Add everything else – except the herbs, lemon and extra virgin olive oil – and bring to the boil. Immediately turn the heat right down and cook gently for about 40 minutes. 
• The liquid should have been absorbed by that stage (add a little water if you need to. You don’t want the lentils to burn but you do want all the liquid to have disappeared by the time the lentils and carrots are tender). Keep a close eye on the lentils – they can go from just right to mushy in a matter of minutes. The lentils should retain their shape. If they get soft they're still fine - edible - but you lose structure and that makes the dish a bit flat.
• Add the herbs, some lemon and extra virgin olive oil and taste – you might want to adjust the seasoning. This is when you really 'make' this dish, when you add the lemon and extra virgin olive oil and check the seasoning. These final adjustments can take this from bland to exceptional.
• Serve warm or at room temperature with a bowl of Greek yoghurt (stir some crushed garlic into it if you want to).

Emergency Microwave Cake

 

Ingredients

• 30g butter
• 1 large egg*
• 30ml milk
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 50g granulated sugar
• 50g flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• Tiny pinch of salt

• Instructions

  • Microwave the butter it until just melted.

    Whisk in the egg

    Stir in the milk, vanilla, almond and sugar.

    Add the flour, baking powder and salt.

    Whisk the batter until smooth..  It can be kept in the fridge for up to a couple of days at this stage.

    When ready to serve, divide batter into 3 ramekins.

    Microwave for 1 minute and 20 seconds

    Top with whipped cream and fresh berries or just have it with strong coffee.

    
    

Baked Leeks and/or Cauliflower in Cheese Sauce

 

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 4 medium leeks, halved lengthways  (and/or cauliflower florets) 
• 30g butter
• 4 tablespoons plain flour
• 350ml whole milk
• 50g strong cheddar, grated
• 1/2 tsp minced garlic
• salt and (lots of) pepper

Method

• Grease an oven dish and lay leeks (cut side up) in a single layer
• Melt butter, stir in flour until smooth.  Gradually stir in milk over a high heat, whisking all the time and then add the cheese, garlic and salt & pepper
• Pour sauce over the veg and bake for 30 mins at 200C.  

Walnut Cake (Claudia Roden)

 

Fast, simple, light, delicious dessert.  There is no flour so is it a cake at all? No matter, the fusion of walnut and orange flavours is very Mediterranean.  Make sure the nuts are fresh as they have a tendency to spoil with age.

It's a very thin cake  - about 2cm

Serves 4-6

• 200 g walnuts
• 3 large eggs
• 200g caster sugar
• grated zest of 2 medium oranges
• icing sugar for dusting

Method

• Preheat oven to 200C.  Grease a 24cm round non-stick cake or tart tin with a removable base with butter or oil .
• Grind walnuts in a food processor - not too finely
• Whisk the eggs and sugar until pale and thickened.  Add the orange zest and fold in the walnuts until well mixed.
• Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake until firm to the touch.  Claudia says about 40 mins but more like 20 mins in my experience
• Leave to cool before removing from the tin. Dust with icing sugar before serving

Spiced Lentil & Carrot Soup

 

An RTE Recipe

Ingredients

·         1 tbsp Coconut Oil

·         2 celery stalks, diced

·         2 cloves garlic, minced

·         1 medium onion, diced

·         400g carrots, diced

·         140g red lentils

·         2 tsp cumin

·         3 tsp smoked (or plain) paprika

·         1200ml hot vegetable stock

·         1 tbsp Glenisk Natural Yogurt

·         Salt & Pepper

Method

1.    Heat a teaspoon of coconut oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat.

2.    Add the garlic, celery and onion to the pan, reduce the heat and allow the vegetables to sauté.

3.    Once the onions and celery become translucent, add the carrots and allow to sauté for about 5 minutes.

4.    Mix the spices and lentils through and heat gently for about 3 minutes.

5.    Add the vegetable stock and bring the pan to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cover with a lid for about 20 minutes until the lentils have absorbed the stock and plumped up

6.    Remove from the heat and blend the soup with a handheld blender or food processor to your preferred texture.

7.    Serving suggestion: topped with a dollop of yogurt & sprinkle of smoked paprika served with slice of Oat & Seed Yogurt Loaf.

Balsamic Glazed Red Onion

 

Ingredients

• For the onions
• 4 medium red onions (c. 1kg total)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar 
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano
•  Salt and black pepper
• For the glaze
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• Salt and black pepper
• 
  
• Method

1. Prepare the onions:

   Preheat the oven to 200C. Slice off any straggly roots from the onions, leaving the firm root centers intact. Cut the onions in half from tip to root. Peel off the skins until all the papery layers are removed. Cut each half into 4 wedges, slicing through the root so that the wedges stay intact.
2. Pack onions into baking dish:

   Pack the onions as tightly as you can into a 1 to 1 1/2 litre baking dish (225mm round or oval, 200mm square).

   Sprinkle the olive oil, balsamic, 1 tablespoon of the oregano, salt, pepper evenly over the top. 

   
3. Roast the onions:

   Cover the baking dish with foil and roast the onions for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and continue roasting the onions uncovered for 30 minutes more.
4. Make the glaze:

   In a bowl, whisk the balsamic, mustard, salt, and pepper. Gradually whisk in the olive oil.
5. Pour the glaze over the roasted onions and return the dish to the oven:

   Continue cooking another 10 minutes, or until the onions are very tender when pierced with the tip of a knife.

6. Serve

7. Sprinkle the onions with the remaining 1 teaspoon oregano before serving

Smokey Fish Pie

 

Everyone has favourite fish pie recipes. This one is mine

4 generous portions

Ingredients

• 900g potatoes,  peeled and diced
• 25g butter
• 4 spring onions, roughly chopped (or 1 regular onion finely chopped)
• 1 tbsp sunflower oil
• 2 garlic cloves finely chopped
• 1 large carrot, cut into matchsticks
• 2 celery stick, finely chopped
• 300g smoked coley or haddock, skinned & bones and cut into chunks
• 300g firm white fish (hake, cod, haddock) skinned & bones and cut into chunks
• 75g butter
• 75g plain flour
• 500ml warm milk
• 100g cheddar cheese, grated
• 3 anchovy fillets
• salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

• Preheat the oven to 200C
• Boil or steam the potatoes until tender, drain and mash with 25g butter and stir through the spring onions
• Heat the sunflower oil in a frying pan and gently sauté the garlic, carrots and celery until tender.  Remove to a high-sided baking dish with the fish chunks
• Melt the 75g of butter in a saucepan over medium heat.  Add the anchovies and break them up then stir in the flour and whisk in the warm milk until it boils and becomes thick. Stir in three quarters of the cheese and season with salt and pepper
• Pour the sauce over the fish and vegetables.  Gently spread the mashed potatoes over the top and sprinkle over the remaining cheese.
• Bake in the oven at 200C for 35 minutes