Vegetable Lasagne

This lasagne makes a tasty, satisfying meal, good enough to convince even the most vegetable-shy meat-eaters to get some of their five-a-day...

Makes 1 large or two smaller lasagnes (serves 6-8)

FOR THE FILLING:  

4 medium carrots, peeled and finely chopped* 

Handful of green beans, finely chopped*

250 g punnet of mushrooms, finely chopped*

1 red pepper, finely chopped*

1 Spanish onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tablespoon Marmite

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 small tetrapak (210 g) tomato frito/passata

Salt and pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium courgette, sliced lengthways

* (I use my Magimix food processor with the metal blade, giving it a few pulses to get a finely chopped consistency)

FOR THE TOPPING:

2 tablespoons salted butter

2 tablespoons plain flour

250 ml ± milk

180 g grated cheese

1 egg, beaten 

1.  Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large frying pan, fry the onions until softened. 

2.  Add the garlic and fry for a further minute or so. 

3.  Add the chopped pepper and fry, stirring, until softened. 

4.  Remove all from the pan to a bowl, set aside.

5.  Heat the remaining oil in the frying pan, add the mushrooms and cook, stirring, to sweat down. Remove to a sieve to drain, reserving juice.

6.  Add the chopped carrot and chopped beans to the frying pan, stirring for a couple of minutes to soften. 

7.  Add the Marmite, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce and about half a cup of water. Stir, then cover and simmer gently for 5 minutes. 

8.  Add the tomato frito/passata, stir well and cover. Simmer gently for a further 5 minutes. Season to taste.

9.  Steam or microwave the courgette slices until just softened.

10.  For the topping, melt the butter in a saucepan, add the flour to make a roux. 

11.  Gradually add the milk and cook until thick. 

12.  Remove from heat, stir in the cheese to melt. Season to taste. Allow to cool slightly, then beat in the egg.

13.  Preheat the oven to 180°C fan. In a suitable ovenproof container, layer the filling mix, courgette slices and a spoonful of cheese sauce, repeating until you've used up the filling and courgette slices, and ending with a layer of cheese sauce. 

14.  Bake in the centre of the oven for ½ hour or until nicely browned.

Fruity Lamb Filo Spiral

Baharat is an aromatic & peppery spice mix of paprika, coriander, black pepper, cumin, cinnamon, cayenne, cloves, nutmeg and cardamom. It imparts a fragrant heat to this fruity lamb pie.

(Serves 6)

1tbsp sunflower oil 

450g lamb mince 

2 tsp Baharat spice blend 

25g dried apricots, sliced 

25g dried cranberries 

25g flaked almonds + 1 tbsp extra, reserved 

Zest and juice of a small orange 

100g butter, melted 

1 pkt ready-to-use filo pastry

1.  Preheat the oven to 180°C and butter a 25cm loose-bottomed cake tin.

2.  Heat the sunflower oil in a pan, add the lamb mince and fry, stirring, over a medium-high heat for about 5 minutes or until nicely browned all over.

3.  Stir in the Baharat spice and cook for a further minute.

4.  Stir in the apricots, cranberries, almonds and zest of the orange, then add the orange juice and reduce heat to medium, cook for 5 minutes, stirring, until the liquid is reduced and the fruit is plump. Remove from heat.

5.  Lay out a single sheet of filo pastry with the short edge towards you. With a pastry brush, paint three lines of melted butter across the sheet, one top, one bottom and one middle.

6.  Spread a heaped tablespoonful of meat mix in a line about 2 cm in from the pastry edge closest to you. Roll up the pastry away from you to form a sausage shape.

7.  Lay the filo sausage, seam side down, into the edge of a buttered loose bottom cake pan, and repeat the rolls, filling the spiral to the centre.

8.  Brush with remaining butter and sprinkle on the reserved tablespoon of flaked almonds.

9.  Bake in the middle of the oven for about half an hour until golden and crispy.

10.  Allow to cool in the tin for 5 minutes before removing.

Serve hot or cold.

Rocket & Walnut Pesto

This delicious pesto is so versatile - I use it stirred into pasta, mixed with mayonnaise as a salad dressing, stirred with tuna for a sandwich filling, spread on rice cakes for lunch - the possibilities are endless!

  

200g walnuts

100g rocket

250ml extra virgin olive oil

60g Parmesan

2 cloves garlic

Juice of a lemon

1.  Coarsely grate or shave the Parmesan and coarsely chop the garlic. (If you have time, roast the walnuts in a dry frying pan for five minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from pan and allow to cool.)

 2.  Add the walnuts, rocket, Parmesan, garlic and half the olive oil to the bowl of a food processor (metal blade).

3.  Whizz, scraping down the sides, until the walnuts and rocket are finely chopped.

4.  Add the remaining olive oil and lemon juice and whizz, scraping as necessary, until you get the texture you require.

5.  Store, covered, in the fridge for up to a week.

Marion's Lemon Fluff Cake

A delightfully easy recipe from my good friend, Marion.

Cuts into 8-12 slices

115g (4 oz) digestive biscuits

60g (2 oz) butter

1 level tbsp castor sugar

150 ml (¼ pt) crème fraîche

175g (6 oz) tinned condensed milk

Finely grated zest of 2 unwaxed lemons

Juice of 2 lemons

1. Crush the biscuits, melt the butter in a pan and add in the sugar. Blend in the crushed biscuits and mix.
2. Put the mixture in an 18 cm (7") pie/flan dish and press in with the back of a spoon. Bake at 150°C (300°F) for 8 minutes. Take out and leave to cool.
3. Mix together the creme fraiche,  condensed milk and lemon zest. When mixed, SLOWLY add the lemon juice, a few drips at a time, mixing well.
4. Pour the mixture into the biscuit case and chill for 12 - 24 hours for best results.

You can decorate the top of the cake with cocoa powder, grated dark chocolate, lemon slices, kiwi slices, anything you fancy.

Keeps well in the fridge for up to a week.

Aubergine, Mince and Courgette Bake

Serves 4

1 kg aubergines

5 cloves of garlic, crushed

1½ tsp cumin

1 tsp salt

1 tsp paprika

½ tsp cayenne pepper

3 tbsp olive oil

½ cup water
350g pork and beef mince
2 medium onions, chopped
2 medium courgettes
250g mushrooms, sliced
1 medium beefsteak tomato, diced
100g Mozzarella cheese, torn into small pieces
60g Parmesan cheese, grated
1 medium egg
125g pot natural yogurt
Salt and pepper, nutmeg, fresh parsley

1.  Chop the aubergine into 1 cm cubes. Place in a saucepan with the garlic, cumin, salt, paprika, cayenne pepper, olive oil and water. Cover and cook on a medium heat for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, adding a little more water if necessary.

2.  Heat a large, lidded frying pan or wok over a medium-high heat, add the mince to the pan and dry fry to release the fat. Once the meat is nicely browned, add the onions and cook until softened.

3.  Meanwhile, cut the courgettes lengthways into slices about 4-5mm thick. Heat a frying pan or grill pan and cook the courgette slices for one or two minutes either side until lightly coloured and softened. Remove from heat and set aside.

4.  Add the mushrooms and tomatoes to the meat and cook, stirring, for a couple of minutes. Add in the aubergine mixture and stir well. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer for half an hour, stirring a couple of times. Do not add extra water, the sauce should be thick.

5.  Preheat the oven to 190°C. In a medium mixing bowl, mix the mozzarella, parmesan, yoghurt and egg together and season well with salt and pepper.

6.  In a large casserole dish layer half the aubergine meat mixture, cover with a layer of sliced courgette, then the remaining aubergine meat mixture and a final layer of sliced courgette. Spoon over the cheese mixture and add a grating of nutmeg.

7.  Cook, covered, in the oven for about 45 minutes, then uncovered for 15 minutes until nicely browned on top.

Serve with a sprinkling of freshly chopped parsley.

Pasta and Red Cabbage Bake (V)

This recipe from my friend, Sophie, is too good not to share...

Serves 4

8oz (240g) pasta tubes/macaroni
2oz (60g) butter

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, crushed

1tbsp chopped fresh thyme or 1 heaped tsp dried

1lb (450g) red cabbage, chopped

3oz (90g) sultanas

2oz (60g) toasted pine nuts

6oz (180g) grated cheddar cheese 

1.  Preheat the oven to Gas Mark 6/200°C/400°F.

2.  Cook the pasta in boiling water until al dente. Drain and set aside.

3.  Melt the butter in a large frying pan and sauté the onion, garlic and thyme for about 3 minutes until softened. 

4.  Add the chopped red cabbage, sultanas and pine nuts. Season to taste. Cover and cook for 10 minutes or until the cabbage has softened.

5.  Stir in the pasta then transfer the mixture to a shallow ovenproof dish. 

6.  Top with the grated cheese and bake for 20 minutes until golden.

Lemon Truffles

A little treat for Christmas...

The citric acid is essential to add a sharpness that balances out

the sweetness of the white chocolate and cream.

Makes 20 - 22 truffles

for the truffle:

360g good quality white cooking chocolate, chopped
Zest and juice of 2 large lemons 
6 Tbsp butter
6 Tbsp whipping cream

for the coating:

½ cup granulated sugar
A few drops of yellow gel food colouring (optional)
½ - 1 tsp citric acid

1.  Melt white chocolate, cream and butter in a large bowl over a pan of boiling water and stir until a smooth runny ganache is formed.

2.  Add lemon zest and juice and stir well to incorporate.

3.  Allow the chocolate to cool until you’re able to roll spoonfuls into rough balls.

4.  Add a few drops of yellow gel food colouring to the sugar and blend well until the sugar is evenly coloured (optional).

5.  Prepare the coating by mixing the yellow sugar with citric acid in a wide flat bowl.

6.  Roll each lemon truffle in the sugar and transfer to a tray. Refrigerate overnight.

7.  Once the truffles are nice and firm, roll again in the palms of your hands to smooth into even balls.

Keep in a closed box in the fridge.