Quick and Easy Vegetable Pilaf

This is a recipe I use one those nights when I haven't thought of what to make and want something on the table as quickly as possible.  It's a very flexible recipe and you can use whatever vegetables you have left in the fridge.  As always, I don't use chilli, but if you like it spicy just add a finely chopped chilli at the same time as the ginger.

What you will need:

• 1 small onion or leek (I only had a little bit of leek and so used some spring onions instead on this occasion)
• rice bran or vegetable oil
• about 2 cups of chopped veggies (I used green beans and mushrooms)
• 1 - 2 tsp finely grated ginger
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp garam masala
• 1 cup basmati rice
• 1 cup fairly strong chicken stock
• 1/2 cup water
• salt and pepper
• 1/2 cup frozen peas (an alternative is to use the same amount of drained tinned chickpeas)
• a handful of slivered almonds, toasted 
• fresh coriander

What you need to do:

1. Chop up all your veggies ready to go.

2. Fry onion/leek/spring onions in some oil in a medium sized saucepan until soft and golden.

3. Add ginger and stir for about 30 seconds.

3. Add powdered spices and stir for about a minute.

4. Add chopped veggies (not peas) and stir for another minute.

5. Add the rice and stir to mix through.

6. Add chicken stock and water and stir.  Reduce heat to low and cover saucepan.  Allow to cook for 12 minutes, without removing the lid.

 

7.  While the rice is cooking, run peas under hot water in a sieve to thaw them out.  I find this the quickest and easiest way, but if you'd prefer to blanch them in boiling water that's also fine.

8. Toast almond slivers until golden brown.

9. When the rice is finished remove the lid quickly to check that it looks something like the photo below and that there isn't any water left at the base of the saucepan.  Stir through the peas and re-cover.  Allow to sit for 5 minutes while you rinse and chop the coriander.

10.  Fork through the rice to fluff it up.  You can now stir through the almonds but if like me, you have one person who doesn't like almonds, then you can just sprinkle them over the top with the coriander and some freshly ground black pepper.

There are so many ways to vary this recipe to make use of what ingredients you have.  Zucchini works well as do tomatoes, but as these are high water content vegetables so if you do use them reduce the water from 1/2 cup to 1/3 cup.  You can vary the spices as well to suit your taste.

Vegetarian Minestrone Style Soup

I made a rather exciting discovery in the health food shop recently which has inspired me to create this soup.  The Dr Schar brand of gluten free pasta now have a conchigliette (tiny shells) with a lovely picture on the front of a noodley soup.  My girls thought that the picture was what was in the box and so when I explained it was just pasta we all decided to create something that would look, and hopefully taste, as good.

My finished soup wasn't much like the picture at all to be truthful as it was obviously much more tomato based.  The good news is that the girls loved it and I think it looked pretty good as well.  My late mother in law was the queen of Minestrone soup so I'm not sure what she would make of my vegetarian version, but my husband gave it a 9/10, which for him is about as good as it gets.

What you will need:

• 150 grams of small gluten free pasta shells (or whatever you can find that is similar)
• olive oil
• 1 medium onion
• 1 clove of garlic, crushed
• 2 - 3 shallots (green onions), finely sliced
• 1 large or 2 medium carrots
• 1 stick of celery
• 2 zucchinis (I used some yellow squash as well)
• a handful of fresh oregano
• 2 tins chopped tomatoes 
• 2 tins water
• 1 tsp beef stock
• 1 tin of red kidney beans, or 4 bean mix
• fresh basil to serve
• freshly ground black pepper

What you need to do:

1.  Finely chop the onion.

 2. Heat up some olive oil in a stockpot or large saucepan and fry the onion until soft and slightly golden.  While the onion is cooking, chop the carrots, celery and shallots.






3.  Add crushed garlic and stir for about a minute.  Add shallot, carrot and celery and fry for about 4 minutes.

4. Add the two tins of tomatoes, two tins of water, beef stock powder and mix well.  Bring to a boil.

5. Simmer gently for about 10 minutes.  Meanwhile chop the zucchinis and oregano.

6. Add the zucchini, oregano and kidney beans to the soup and continue to simmer.

7.  Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil and add the pasta.  Cook for about 2 minutes less than the recommended cooking time.

8. When the pasta is ready, drain and add to the soup.

 

9.  Continue cooking the soup until the pasta is just done, probably a few more minutes.

10.  Serve with chopped basil and baby oregano leaves sprinkled on top as well as freshly ground black pepper and a drizzle of good quality olive oil.

Indian Spiced Green Vegetables

Indian Spiced Green Vegetables

Here is a recipe that is one of my favourite way of enjoying green vegetables.  Both my girls love this as well and it's easy and quick to prepare.


You can use any combination of green vegetables, here I am using green beans and peas (frozen).  I have also made this with a combination of beans and asparagus, which is delicious.

You will need:

1. About a cup of raw green vegetables per person, cut into chunks.
2. 1 clove garlic, crushed
3. 15 fresh curry leaves



Step 1

4. 1/2 teaspoon of ground cumin

Method:

1. Prepare the vegetables ready to cook.

2. Heat some oil in a fry pan or wok.

3. Add the garlic and curry leaves and fry over medium heat

Step 3

4. Add the ground cumin and stir until fragrant

5. Add vegetables and stir over medium to high heat.

6. Add a little water and cover, shaking pan or wok, until vegetables are just tender.

Step 6

Finally, serve and enjoy.  You can serve these yummy vegetables as a side dish with other curries, or enjoy on their own.

North Indian Chicken Curry

This North Indian Chicken Curry is one of my absolute favourite non-vegetarian curries. 

I'm not going to pretend it's quick and easy to prepare, but if you feel like spending some time cooking I'm fairly sure you'll agree that the results are definitely worth it.

What you'll need:

Fresh ingredients

Whole spices

• 4 tbsp rice bran or vegetable oil
• 1 large stick of cinnamon
• 7 cloves
• 7 green cardamom pods
• 2 medium onions, peeled and finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon of finely grated ginger (more if you like it spicy)
• 2 cloves of garlic, crushed (double this if you love garlic)
• salt, to taste
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• 2 tbsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp garam masala
• 1 tsp chilli powder (optional, I don't use it)
• 5 medium ripe tomatoes, pureed
• 900g chicken pieces, skinned
• 3 cups water, more if needed
• handful of fresh coriander leaves

Powdered spices

 Method:

1. Heat the oil in a large non-stick fry pan (or saucepan).  Add the whole spices and fry for about 20 seconds until aromatic.

2. Add the onion and cook over a moderate heat for about 10 minutes until golden, stirring often.

3. While the onion is cooking chop up the tomatoes then place in a bowl. Use a stick blender to puree them.

4. Add the ginger and garlic to the pan and cook for about a minute then add salt and powdered spices.  Stir for a further 20 - 30 seconds. 

5.  Pour in the tomatoes and cook over a moderate heat for about 10 minutes, until the liquid int he pan has dried off and you are left with a dry(ish) masala.

6. Add the chicken and brown over moderate to high heat for about 4 minutes. 

7. Add enough water to almost cover the chicken, bring to the boil and then cook over a slow to moderate heat until the chicken is cooked through.  I find the slower it cooks, the better it will taste.  Cooking time will be from 20 to 30 minutes depending on the size of the chicken joints.

8. Just before serving, stir in the fresh coriander leaves.  This dish can be served with rice and a side of Indian Spiced Green Vegetables.

Lemon Sago Pudding

This is a recipe that my mum used to make for us as kids and it's probably the easiest dessert recipe I've ever found.  With the goodness of lemons it's a dessert you don't have to feel bad about eating.

What you will need:

Sago before soaking

• 1/2 cup sago, soaked overnight in 2 cups of water (you can soak for several hours instead but it will then take slightly longer to cook).
  
• 1/2 cup sugar (I use raw sugar)
  
• 1 - 2 tablespoons golden syrup
  
• 1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (usually need about 5 - 6 lemons for this much juice)

Fresh lemons

What you need to do:

1.   Put the sago and soaking water into a saucepan and heat, stirring.  Cook until the balls are transparent.

2.  Take the sago off the heat and immediately add the sugar and golden syrup and stir until mixed through and sugar has dissolved.

3.  Add lemon juice and stir until combined.  At this stage the mixture will still be quite runny, in a lumpy kind of way, but the balls will continue to absorb moisture and the pudding will set in the fridge.

4.  Put into a bowl or individual serving dishes and refrigerate until set.  I usually find that leaving overnight gives the best result.

Lemony Pasta with Vegetables

This recipe is super quick and can be varied to use whatever vegetable ingredients you have in the fridge.  The key ingredient is lemon juice. 

This is a fantastic recipe for vegetarians or vegans.  The spinach is high in iron and eating it with lemon juice, which is high in vitamin C, aids iron absorption.  The kids absolutely love this recipe as well.  If you make your lemon dressing and find it a little sour for children's tastebuds then just add a small pinch of sugar and shake it up.

What you will need:

• Gluten free pasta of your choice
• Olive oil
• Garlic - 1 clove, crushed
• Fresh tomatoes
• Fresh herbs of your choice (I used oregano and basil this time)
• English spinach (or baby spinach leaves)
• Lemon juice
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Pinch of sugar (if required)
• Baby capers

What you need to do:

1. Wash the spinach well, I often soak in water for a short time, to remove all dirt before chopping.

2. Put gluten free pasta on to boil.

3. In a small jar make a dressing of half lemon juice half olive oil and add some salt, freshly ground black pepper and a pinch of sugar if required.  Shake vigorously and set aside.

Oops, I have no idea how to turn this photo around but hopefully it will give you the idea.

 4. Dice tomatoes.  Heat oil and fry garlic and then add tomatoes.

5. Add chopped fresh herbs.

6. Add chopped spinach and stir until wilted.

7. Pasta should now be cooked, drain and return to saucepan.

8. Tip the spinach and tomato mixture into the saucepan as well as the baby capers.  Pour over the lemon dressing and stir until all mixed through.

9. Serve with fresh herbs and ground black pepper.  My husband has grated fresh parmesan on his as well.

This recipe is easy to vary depending on what ingredients you have to hand.  The next day I used gluten free spaghetti, tomatoes, red kidney beans and zucchini to make a similar dish for my girls for lunch.