Chunky Vegetable and Pearl Barley Broth

It might be May but imho it's still freeeeeeeezing cold! This bowl of nourishing loveliness will soon warm the cockles of your heart tho :)

For 4 portions you need:
1 onion, chopped
3 leeks, finely sliced
5 potatoes, peeled and diced
3 sticks celery, sliced
3 carrots, sliced
1/2 cup pearl barley
1.5 litres veggie stock
2 tbsp oil

Sautee the veggies in the oil for 10 mins. Add the stock and barley. Simmer for 20-30 mins till everything is cooked. Serve with bread. Simples.

Labour (well OK then, tomato) Soup

Apparently the finished article looks a bit too LibDem, but I blame my crappy iPhone camera for that. And the carrots. It tastes lovely tho :)



For 4 portions you need:
3 sticks celery, sliced
2 carrots, sliced
1 onion, diced
2 tins plum tomatoes
1 litre veg stock
2 tbsp hendersons relish
2 tsp rice vinegar
salt and pepper
1-2 tsp sugar
3 tbsp olive oil
Bread to serve it with

Begin by sauteeing the celery, onion and carrots in the oil. After about 5 mins add the remaining ingredients and bring to the boil. Simmer for 10-15 mins till the carrots are cooked and then blitz. Reheat and serve with bread. Scrummy.

Asparagus with Poached Egg

Spring is finally sprung! The first of the new season British asparagus was delivered in our riverford veg box today and never having been someone to resist temptation it was scoffed in this simple recipe as a starter. My only complaint was that there wasn't enough!!

For 2 people as a starter you need:
1 bunch asparagus
2 eggs
bread and butter
salt and pepper

Snap the asparagus and wash. Lay in a steamer and steam for 2-3 mins till tender. Meanwhile poach 2 eggs (you do know how to do that don't you??!). Lay the asparagus on a plate, top with the egg and season. Serve with buttered toast on the side. Glorious!

Quinoa Salad with Greens (v)

A variation on the puy lentil and quinoa salad, but different enough to warrant its own entry. This is another vegan salad that makes a perfect lunch :)

For 2 portions you need:
1 cup quinoa
2 cups water
1 leek, finely shredded
2 tsp vegan stock powder
2 tbsp each of mirin and soya sauce
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1/2 packet purple sprouting broccoli
1 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
1 pack marinated tofu chunks/ 1/2 pack marinated tofu block

Begin by placing the leek, quinoa, stock and water in a pan and bringing to the boil. Cook, covered, for 10mins, add the broccoli and then turn off the heat and leave to steam for 20 mins. Add the remaining ingredients before placing into tubs for lunch the next day.

Watermelon and Haloumi Salad

A lovely summer lunch or supper dish which is really refreshing on a hot day. Alternatively crank up the heating and shut all the windows and you might be able to recreate the temperatures needed in the UK to make this work as it should...

For 3-4 portions you need:
1/4 watermelon, deseeded and cut into rough chunks
1 packet haloumi, patted dry and cut into thickish slices
2 tbsp olive oil
1 red onion, sliced
juice 1 lemon
handful fresh mint, roughly chopped
salt and pepper
Salad leaves

Cook the haloumi until softened and nicely browned. Meanwhile place the lemon, mint and onions into a bowl to allow the onion flavour to be mellowed by the juice. Add the melon and oil and mix gently. Place the salad leaves on a plate, arrange the watermelon and onion salad on top and finish with slices of the hot, browned haloumi. Delicious!

Puy Lentil and Quinoa Salad with Semi Dried Tomatoes (v)

A vegan powerhouse of a lunch this. And mighty tasty too ;-)

For 2 generous lunch portions you need:
1/2 cup puy lentils
1/2 cup quinoa
1/2 tub semi dried tomatoes
2 tsp vegan stock powder
1 onion, diced
1 clove garlic, crushed
juice 1/2 lemon
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper
1 tbsp balsamic syrup
1/2 bag purple sprouting broccoli

Place the garlic, onion, lentils and quinoa in a pan with 2 1/2 cups water and the stock powder. Bring to the boil and simmer for 15-20 mins till the lentils are tender but still have bite and the quinoa is cooked.

Meanwhile roughly chop the broccoli, stalks, leaves and all. Once the lentils and quinoa are nearly done (so after about 10-15 mins) add the broccoli to the pan with a lid and steam cook until everything is tender. Remove from the heat and add the remaining ingredients. Season to taste. Place in a tub and leave to marinate overnight before scoffing at work the next day and making all your work colleagues green with envy mwahahaha...

Buttermilk Scones

After a disastrous batch of scones using a Rose Elliott recipe a few weeks back, I have returned to my favourite recipe; Nigella's Lily's scones. But I used buttermilk this time for the first time. I was a bit suprised by the consistency of this as it's like thin yougurt. I'd expected something thinner. But it worked, and the scones were amazingly light. They needed longer than normal to cook (40 mins for some of them) but they were the best I have ever made. In my humble opinion ;-)

For about 20 scones you need:
325ml buttermilk
500g plain flour
2 tsp baking soda
4.5 tsp cream of tartar
75g butter, cubed
1 egg, beaten (for the egg wash)
1 spoon sugar (to sprinkle on the top before baking).

Place the flour, soda, tartar and butter in to a food processor and blitz till combined. Add the buttermilk and form it into a dough. Roll out the dough to a thickness of about an inch and cut into scones. Place on a flour dusted baking sheet and brush with egg wash and then sprinkle over with sugar. Nigella says to squish them together but she's wrong as they don't cook evenly so make sure you spread them out. Bake for 15-40 mins (keep an eye on them) till risen, golden brown and cooked. Eat with lashings of clotted cream and strawberry jam. Feel very very fat.

Creamy, Garlicky Mushroom Pasta

An odds and sods meal using up the last of the veg box on a Friday...

For 2 portions you need:
200g pasta
250g mushrooms, thickly sliced
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1/3 pack boursin cheese
100ml white wine
2 leeks, finely shredded
Olive oil
Parmesan to serve

Saute the leeks and garlic and mushrooms in the oil for about 15 mins till tender. Deglaze the pan with the wine and then add the boursin. Heat through to melt. Meanwhile cook the pasta. Drain the pasta, and toss through the sauce. Serve topped with some fresh parmesan.

Vegetable Paella (v)

Well not really paella I guess if you're a purist, but certainly a tasty rice and vegetable dish which Lex scoffs down!

For 4 portions you need:
200g white rice (I used a mix of long grain and basmati)
800ml vegetable stock
100ml white wine (I used cava)
salt and pepper
1 large onion, finely diced
3 cloves garlic, crushed
2 small leeks, finely sliced
1 can sweetcorn, drained
2 carrots, finely diced
1 green pepper, diced
2 tomatoes, quartered
1 lemon, quartered
pinch saffron
1 tsp paprika
2 tbsp olive oil

Begin by sauteeing the carrots, onion and leeks in the oil. After about 10 mins add the paprika and rice and coat in the oil. Add the wine and garlic and reduce the wine till it's all bubbled away. Add the saffron to the stock and then add this to the pan. Bring to the boil and then simmer for about 20 mins until the rice is cooked. About 10 mins before the end of the cooking time, add the remaining veggies and season well. Serve garnished with tomatoes and lemon.

Cherry and Almond Cake

This is a Nigella recipe from Domestic Goddess. It's a cynch to make, but tastes SO divine, travels well and lasts well too. You can also freeze it and defrost a slice at a time for lunchboxes.

For about 10-12 slices you need:
225g butter, softened
250g self raising flour
200g glace cherries, washed, dried and cut in half
175g caster sugar
3 eggs, beaten
2 tsp almond essence
100g ground almonds
6tbsp milk
4 tbsp flaked almonds

Begin by creaming together the butter and sugar. When fluffy add the eggs, almond essence and milk and mix thoroughly. Add the flour and almonds. Finally add the cherries and mix well. Scrape the thick batter into 2 lined 2lb loaf tins. Scatter each loaf with 2 tbsp of flaked almonds. Bake in a moderate oven (180 degrees) for 40 mins or so until the cake is cooked, risen and golden brown on the top. Slice and enjoy.