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Ugly vegetable lasagne

Ugly vegetarian lasagne

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Why is it that the best recipes always happen when you’re just wallying about in the kitchen? We basically made this up as we went along and it was a huge group effort with all of us doing bits and pieces. Hence, the general piles of crap all over my kitchen and lack of decent photos, sorry about this. Next time we make it, I’ll pay more attention and take nicer pics, I promise. Still, it was absolutely delicious and definitely our best vegetarian lasagne so far, so it’s well worth sharing, and who cares about posh photos anyway when the food is this good? I could have waited and cut a perfect slice and added a sprig of basil, but hey, this is real life and there was no way we were waiting that long. It might have been named ugly vegetarian lasagne a la ugly super easy vegetable curry, but on this occasion it’s more my fault than the food’s. Don’t blame the lasagne, blame the cook.

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A really autumnal creamy veggie pie

A really autumnal creamy veggie pie

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You know me, I flipping love a pie. I always feel a bit bad for the vegetarians in our household, though, as they miss out on gorgeous, creamy chicken pies and comforting beef pies, and I’ve been toying with different vegetable based pie recipes for a while. One that was quite successful recently was a kind of weird stuffing pie using the same recipe from my vegan Christmas stuffing as a pie filling. But then, I was making a creamy pasta thing the other day with leeks, mushrooms and other stuff, and we were saying how delicious and autumnal it was, and then we realised that it would make an amazing pie filling, and so, the autumnal creamy veggie pie was born (terrible name - I’ll have to work on that). Here’s what I did:

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Masala spiced roast chicken and gunpowder potatoes

Masala spiced roast chicken and gunpowder potatoes

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This masala spiced roast chicken and gunpowder potatoes is a mishmash of three or four different recipes that we’ve seen recently and wanted to try. Jamie Oliver does a chicken roasted over a pan of veg (he puts it on the oven shelf though and just the thought of cleaning it freaks me out), I do this yoghurt marinated chicken a lot but usually with chicken breasts, and the gunpowder potatoes are my favourite side to order whenever I go to Dishoom. They’re like spicy roast potatoes in a lovely dry, green dressing - zingy with lime and packed with coriander and green chilli. YUM. We served it with a bit of roasted broccoli but honestly you don’t really even need that - the veg cooks down into the most delicious accompaniment/sauce.

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Spiced coconut veggie stew and onion fritters

Spiced coconut veggie stew and onion fritters

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Last night, we decided to have a bit of an Indian lockdown feast. For the non-veggies, I did some very easy chicken tikka - chicken breasts marinated for a few hours in yoghurt, lemon, salt, garlic, 1/2 tsp chilli and 1/2 tsp ground coriander, then baked in the oven for 20 - 3o minutes until cooked through and a bit charred on the edges. I also cooked my spiced coconut veggie stew, which I’ve got written in my notebook but don’t ever seem to have published on here (I’m warning you now about these photos - I wasn’t expecting to write about this). We didn’t bother with rice (Charlie bought naan breads from the supermarket) and I made these yummy little onion fritters adapted from a recipe that a lovely (man! I’ll tell you more soon) friend told me about and wow - it was delicious. I wasn’t going to write about it but it was SUCH A FEAST, it needs to be shared. Read more

Turkey tips and timings for Christmas dinner

Turkey tips and timings for Christmas dinner

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I always love writing this Christmas Eve round-up post every year– I’m sure I say pretty much the same thing every year, which is don’t panic! It’s just a big roast dinner, but it’s worth reminding you that it’s your Christmas too, so enlist everyone to help, and do as much as you can before the big day. Here, then, without further waffle, are all my top turkey tips and timings for Christmas dinner. If you’re catering for a couple of vegetarians or vegans, I suggest doubling up on the stuffing (it’s delicious on its own, but you could even squish up some veggie sausages and add them into the mix).

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The best side dishes to accompany your Christmas dinner

Get ahead sides for Christmas dinner

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I feel like there’s so much anxiety around Christmas dinner. I can’t be the only one who has stress dreams about levering a half-frozen turkey into a too-small oven, can I? I’m basically extremely lazy, so for me, anything that I can prep in advance is one more thing that won’t keep me away from a big glass of fizz and some pressie opening on Christmas morning. The good news is that practically everything can be at least partly prepared on Christmas Eve. Here are my top get ahead sides for Christmas dinner.

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Super easy vegetable curry

Ugly super easy vegetable curry

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I am currently poorly. I’m trying not to bang on about it, but I think this is possibly the most rotten I’ve felt in a while. On the upside, it means I’m confined to bed and have had to cancel absolutely every engagement, which is strangely freeing. I’ve had a couple of days where I haven’t been able to eat anything, but as my appetite’s come back, I’ve been craving something really simple and nourishing and it made me think of this curry. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve made it, and every time I make it I think that I really must write up the recipe. Trouble is, it never looks good. Food photography and dark evenings never really mix and - well, it’s just not photogenic. BUT it tastes delicious and a couple of people have asked me for the recipe, and I guess it’s bad to always strive for perfection, so it’s going up anyway. As the name suggests, this super easy vegetable curry is super easy to make. It’s naturally vegan, and basically just a case of chopping loads of stuff and whacking it all in a big pan. It’s such a lovely thing for those times when you’re craving something really soothing and easy to eat, perfect if you’re under the weather or need something warming on a cold night. It’s also fab for using up any leftover veg you have hanging about - the bonus being it’s never quite the same any time you make it. Anyway, enjoy, and sorry for the hideous photos. I promise when I’ve got my energy back I’ll take more pics and make it look a bit prettier.

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Easy fish tacos with corn salsa

Easy fish tacos with roasted corn salsa

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I’m a big fan of easy dinners, especially when I’m busy. Sometimes, like with my mushroom risotto, I like to take my time in the kitchen and really enjoy the process, but others it’s a case of getting something - anything - on the table as soon as possible. I don’t believe, however, that just because you want something easy, it has to be a ready meal. I wrote recently about what I keep in the freezer, and as well as a lot of frozen veg and fruit, there’s also veggie sausages (Linda McCartney are the nicest we’ve tried) and if they’re on spesh, I always grab some of those crispy coated cod fillets (or the big fat Waitrose fish fingers are great too). If you’re on a budget, Lidl do Ocean Trader MSC Certified Chunky Battered Cod Fillets for just £2.49 for 4 decent sized pieces. One of our favourite ways to use them are these easy fish tacos with corn salsa. Ready in as long as it takes for the fish to cook, and with minimal prep too.

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Veggie dinner inspo from Mindful Chef

Veggie dinner inspo from Mindful Chef

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From chatting to people who send me messages every time I post a Mindful Chef dinner on my social media (they’re obviously very popular - I always get a flurry whenever I mention them), it seems that people’s reasons for using a recipe box service can be as varied as the meals themselves. Recently I’ve had chats with people who were stupidly busy at work but still wanted to eat well, people who were trying to kick start themselves into a healthier eating regime, and - increasingly - people who are interested in eating less meat (for whatever reason). Think about it: if you’re planning dinner, most of you will generally have quite a few meat-based recipes that you cook on a regular basis (I would always fall back on chicken breast roasted with veg in the oven, a chilli, shepherds pie, that sort of thing), but if you’re making a change, you don’t have those recipes to hand, so it’s really helpful to get some veggie dinner inspo from Mindful Chef.

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Creamy vegetable bake with a cheesy topping

Creamy vegetable bake

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This is such a good recipe if you’ve got leftovers. In fact, we like it so much that I’ve started deliberately cooking too much roasted veg on Sunday so we can use the leftovers for this one on the Monday. I’m not a vegetarian or a vegan (but did you know that next week, 13th - 19th May is National Vegetarian Week?), but I always try to do a couple of meat free meals a week. If you are, I’m sure you have all your favourite brands/substitutes for things like stock, cheese and cream. I would imagine coconut milk would work okay, but a dairy-free friend of mine has told me that Oatly do an actual crème fraîche substitute. There’s a bit of prep to this recipe, but once you’ve got it down I promise you’ll make it again and again, and probably personalise it too. If you like more sauce, add more stock, or maybe you’d prefer it without the topping. I think it would make a delicious filling for a pie too. The thing I love about this dish is that it’s always slightly different, depending on what you have in the fridge.
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Lentil and vegetable hotpot 3

Lentil and vegetable hotpot

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Although we’re not vegetarians, I try to make several meals a week that don’t include meat, so when Hello Fresh asked me if I’d like to try one of their recipes, I went for the veggie option and chose this lentil and vegetable hotpot. I would imagine this would be really easy to make into a vegan dish by changing the cheese too, so it’s a really good staple supper recipe to have under your belt if you’ve got a houseful of people who all have different dietary requirements. I’ve changed the recipe a tiny bit (we love a bit of spice), but feel free to leave it out or add your own tweaks too. I guarantee this will end up being one of your favourite veggie dinners. These amounts are supposed to serve two but we had a ton of leftovers - just double up if you need to.

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Mexican movie night - with chips and dips!

Mexican movie night - with chips and dips!

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Nothing beats chips and dips and a movie with your favourite people, so when the lovely McCoy’s asked me if I fancied coming up with a few delicious accompaniments to their lush new crispy Mexican tortilla snacks, Muchos, I knew exactly what everyone would love: Mexican movie night! These delicious puffy, crispy, folded half moons are packed with flavour and absolutely perfect for sharing (and dipping), so I laid on a big spread of the different flavour Muchos: Smoky Chilli Chicken, Cool Sour Cream and Onion and Nacho Cheese, and accompanied them with some of our favourite Mexican dips: a fresh, zingy salsa fresca, creamy guacamole and deliciously cheesy warm queso dip. So pile up the Muchos (happily for us, they come in big sharing bags), grab some beers or mix up those Margaritas (fizzy lemon with a sugar and lime zest frosting is perfect for the kids) and settle down for Mexican movie night. To accompany our chips and dips, we’ll be watching Pixar’s Coco, of course, and the completely hilarious Jack Black in Nacho Libre.

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Classic potatoes dauphinoise

Classic potatoes dauphinoise and half price tickets to The France Show

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I adore France. I have so many happy memories, from family holidays in Brittany, my boys scoffing snails and jumping from the pier at Le Val André into the sea, to a gorgeously grown up break at a Chateaux on the Côte d’Azur. Mr E and I are always plotting a redo of our Parisian adventure and, of course, I’ve loved so many wonderful trips to Disneyland Paris. I’m also a huge fan of French cuisine, so when The France Show challenged me to recreate my favourite French recipe, I had a few to choose from. Still, it’s chilly, and comfort food is the order of the day, so what better dish to choose than an indulgent gratin full of cream and butter and heady with garlic: delicious, decadent potatoes dauphinoise. Read more

The best stuffing recipe and other dishes to accompany your Christmas dinner

The best stuffing recipe and other dishes to accompany your Christmas dinner

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I usually do a reeeally big roundup just before Christmas on everything Christmas dinner-related, like timings, turkey, sprouts, etc, but sometimes I think maybe those big posts are a bit difficult to read as you have to scroll for half a mile before you reach the bit you’re really interested in. So this time I thought I’d have a little chat about the best side dishes to accompany your Christmas dinner in a separate, smaller post. I really don’t think you need a gazillion different sides for the big day. I did have a quick Google to see what other people serve with their turkey and apparently if you’re Jamie Oliver that’s anything from creamed spinach to fried rice with kale and some other stuff in it. Of course, it’s totally up to you, but I often feel like it’s best to concentrate on doing two or three things really well - it cuts down the hassle for the cook and keeps your oven a bit less cluttered too. So here goes then with the best stuffing recipe and other dishes to accompany your Christmas dinner.

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Belvoir beef pie with blueberry and blackbcurrant

Beef pie with blueberry and blackcurrant cordial

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So if you’ve been around these parts before, you’ll know that I’ve been working with Belvoir to create some deliciously warming autumnal recipes. It’s been such fun testing, tasting and cooking, and I really think that this beef pie using Belvoir’s Blueberry & Blackcurrant Cordial is my favourite. Of course, now is the perfect time for pies, and we took inspiration from Scandinavian cuisine, which has long embraced the concept of pairing the sweet, flavour-packed berry with savoury meat dishes. The cordial gives a delicious depth of flavour and a background sweetness to this perfect, autumn pie. Serve with piles of creamy mash, and my current obsession: carrots roasted with a little chilli, maple and lime.

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Coconut chilli prawn noodles

Coconut chilli prawn noodles

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I think finding something delicious to cook for dinner midweek is one of my biggest challenges. I love these coconut chilli prawn noodles because the basic recipe can be adapted to suit so many different tastes. If you’re a meat eater, you can swap the prawns for chicken, and if you’re a veggie you can leave them out and add things like mushrooms, sliced peppers and sliced green beans (of course, you can still do that anyway). That’s the beauty of this dish. It’s also fab for using up leftovers as you can basically bung any old thing in and it will still taste delicious. It’s also one of those recipes where most of the ingredients can be kept in the cupboard and/or freezer for when you’ve got nothing in. When I buy red chillis, I’ll often freeze any that I think I won’t use and you can basically grate them straight into the dish. The same goes for ginger too. Here’s the basic recipe:

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