Garlic and cheese portabello mushrooms

This is the tastiest and simplest stuffed mushroom recipe I know. Its reliance on plenty of garlic and cheese means it is gooey and unctuous. It also allows me to feel decadent, whilst being relatively healthy as I served it up with just a nice green salad for dinner tonight. Of course, this is also a fantastic main for a Sunday roast, and is also great inside a bun as a burger! - not quite as healthy, but extremely delicious.


What you will need
4 large portabello mushrooms
1 egg
1 clove garlic
1 tea spoon dijon mustard
100g cheddar
A splash of milk
Fresh chives
Paprika


Set the mushrooms in a baking tray and preheat the oven to 200 degrees.


Next, crush the garlic and grate the cheese. Mix these together with the egg, milk, dijon mustard and add the chopped fresh chives. Season with plenty of salt and pepper.


Split the mixture into four and fill/top each of the mushrooms. Sprinkle over a little bit of paprika and bake in the oven for 30-35 minutes until the cheese has melted and the egg has set.

Serve as a starter, or simply with or salad or make it the star of the plate as the main dish accompanied by vegetables and accoutrements (i.e vegetarian stuffing and yorkshires not cooked in animal fat!).

 

Potato latkes with fried egg and spicy yoghurt sauce

Tis (almost) the season to be merry and Gourmandize have been in touch to ask their favourite bloggers whether they can supply a christmas recipe for the 24 days up to christmas. Well, of course I could. Which one was the only issue. So, I was prompted into revisiting some of my christmas meal creations to decide which one I wanted in the Gourmandize christmas countdown.
 

 

As a vegetarian, a turkey was not going to be in the running. Also, I did not want my offering to be just a vegetable side dish. I decided on one of two options then. Either, a fabulous breakfast/brunch option inspired by hanukkah (which began this week) or a fantastic vegetarian main course offering for any time around christmas. The former I made for brunch this morning and so I present here.

 

 

What you will need

3 floury potatoes

1 onion

5 large eggs

3-4 tablespoons flour 

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Plain yoghurt
Harissa paste


Firstly, peel your potatoes and onions. Keep your potatoes from colouring by keeping them in some water if you are not useing them straight away.


Next, finely grate the potatoes and the onion. I actually whizzed mine up in the magimix. When done, strain the potatoes and onion over a sieve to drain all the water, alternatively use a tea towel to squeeze it out.


Return the potatoes to a bowl, season with plenty of salt and pepper and add one egg. Mix together and add the flour to form a batter (itmight look a little bit runny, but the egg and flour are very good at helping to bind the already starchy potatoes.


Heat some oil in a frying pan to shallow fry the latkes. Add a spoonful at a time to the frying pan. You should be able to make 7-8 cakes.


Press down the batter slightly so that the cakes are about a centimetre high. Brown on one side for 5 minutes and then the other side for 5 minutes, or until the potatoes are cooked.

 

Next fry (or poach if you fancy) the remaining eggs. Serve two of the latkes topped with an egg.

 

Dollop a large table spoon of the plain yoghurt on each plate beside the latkes and add a tea spoon of harrissa to the yoghurt. Serve immediately.



 

 

Mushroom and feta tacos

I met old University friends for dinner at Cantina Vinopolis last weekend. Afterwards, we walked around Borough market as it was closing with a glass of pink prosecco. As the market was closing up for the week, many of the stalls were selling off their left produce at a reduced price. This meant that I randolmly picked up some soft corn tortillas on a Saturday night out. Joyfully then, I went about making some easy fresh tacos for a school night dinner tonight. 

What you will need

2 large portobello mushrooms

1 onion
1 red pepper 

1 garlic clove

2 tea spoons ground cumin

2 tea spoons paprika

1 green chilli

1/2 tea spoon chilli flakes

1 tomato 

Fresh coriander

A squeeze of lime juice

8 corn tortillas (warmed)

80g feta

1 avocado

Slice the onion, pepper and mushrooms and fry in some hot oil. Season with some salt and add the ground coriander, paprika, chopped garlic and chopped chillies to the pan to soften the vegetables for 5-10 minutes. You want to retain some bite in the peppers and onions.

Seperately, chop the tomato and toss with the chopped fresh coriander and a squeeze of lime juice.


Heat the corn torillas when ready to serve and then top with the mushrooms filling and the tomato salsa. Crimble over a little bit of feta cheese and add a slice of avocado.

Serve immediately with an extra slice of lime on the side if needed.

Italian style vegetarian sausage and cabbage stew

Its cold outside and as of tomorrow I have just over a week until I'm attending a friend's 40th birthday masquerade party. I want to eat something hearty to fortify myself from the elements; but, I also need to fit into the brand new sequin dress I have bought which I will be teaming with my gold sequin peep toe heels with mask avec feather plumes... Anyway, the point is - I needed something comforting, but low in carb. and fat for dinner tonight.


What you will need
1 onion
2-3 cloves garlic
4-6 quorn (or other vegetarian) sausages
1/2 a cabbage (any will do, I used a green cabbage)
150ml white wine
500ml vegetable stock
300ml water
1 table spoon tomato puree
2 bay leaves
1 tin butter beans
Paprika


Firstly, place the quorn sausages under the grill to brown.


Meanwhile, slice the onions and garlic and soften in a table spoon of oil for 5 minutes. Slice the 1/2 of cabbage thinly  (removing the hard centre) and add to the pan with the softened onion and garlic.


Next, pour over the wine and cook off for a couple of minutes before topping up with the vegetable stock and 200ml more of water. Season with plenty of salt and pepper and stir in the tomato puree, bay leaves and the drained tin of butter beans. Bring to the boil.


When the sausages have browned, slice each into four slices at an angle and add to the pot with the vegetables.

Cover the pan and leave to cook on a low heat for 20-25 minutes until the cabbage has cooked through.


Serve in a bowl topped with grated parmesan and a sprinkling of paprika.

Tricolor spaghetti

Another simple store cupboard dinner, however, one that is really fresh, satisfying and tasty. I like to get the flavours and the ingredients that will be tossed with hot cooked spaghetti ready first. I had also contemplated tossing these flavours through the tricolor gluten free 'pasta' I had bought by accident. Gipsy Spread had some very particular thoughts on that, so we went for the regular spaghetti - although we are both fans of the wonderful, colourful pastas that can be bought on the mediterranean and in specialist shops here.


What you will need
1 tin of artichoke hearts
1/2 an onion
4 sundried tomatoes
1 large handful of black olives
175ml white wine
1-2 cloves fresh garlic
1/2 tea spoon of chilli flakes
1 fresh lemon
Fresh lemon thyme
Fresh basil
Freshy parmesan


Firstly, drain the artichoke hearts and depending on size, slice each heart into four-six pieces. Next, very thinly slice the onion and the garlic. Toss the falvours together, salt and add the juice of the whole lemon.


Next, slice the sun dried tomatoes and the black olives and add to the artichoke hearts, along with the chilli flakes and the fresh herbs.

Finally, get the spaghetti on to cook as per instructions. When cooked, reserve a table spoon of water and drain the rest.


Return the spaghetti to the hob with the fresh white wine and the artichoke and herb mix. Bring to the boil to cook off the alcohol and heat through the other ingredients for 3-4 minutes.

Serve topped with plenty of black pepper and lots of parmesan.

Cantina Vinopolis mk II

I visited Cantina Vinopolis again yesterday. It was for the lunch set menu again for the bargain price of £15. The good news was that the menu had changed and was different. The even better news was that everyone really enjoyed their meals. The restaurant was heaving again and we drank a very nice Italian Merlot with lunch.

There was no simple salad for me on this occassion and the vegetarian dishes showed a bit more technique. I started with the goats cheese tart, whilst my old University pal opted for the chorizo stew. Both were plentiful and mine was delicious. It was the same crumbed goats cheese as last time, with caramelised onions and a pastry base.

My main course was the wild mushroom gnocchi. This came out and looked like perfect new potatoes lightly dressed in a creamy sauce with wild mushrooms. I do enjoy seeing ingredients on my plate which I may also have seen in the market en route. The gnocchi was beautifully fluffy and light and contained a lovely surprise filling of mushrooms as well. Other dishes included the seafood pasta and the braised shin of beed. My friends both thoroughly enjoyed their meals and I received a well deserved pat on the back for my choice of menu and the great value of the meal.

 

One of my friends chose dessert in place of a starter. She decided on the dark chocolate tart, which was large and rich enough for us all to get stuck in. The shared dessert rounded off a good lunch. I am glad to say, the experience second time around outweighed the first and it's just a shame Gipsy Spread wasn't there on this occasion.

Chermoula halloumi peppers with couscous

I took inspiration from Ottolenghi's 'Jerusulam' for dinner tonight; as I had been disappointed by this Saturday's Guardian Weekend which held the promise of street food from him, but did not include a vegetarian option. I went back to the book and found his recipe for aubergine chermoula with bulgar. Hurrah! I get to use my preserved lemons. However, I did not have an aubergine or bulgar wheat, but rather romano peppers and couscous. I was also only cooking for two so have adapted the recipe accordingly and tweaked into my own recipe. Ok, I kind of just took the chermoula as inspiration and pretty much started again.


What is chermoula? It is a spicy north african paste or sauce which can be rubbed onto vegetables for roasting. It is perfect for barbeques on vegetables and grillable cheeses like halloumi!


What you will need
2 Romano peppers
1/2 a packet of halloumi
100g couscous
Fresh coriander
Fresh mint
1-2 table spoons pitted black olives, halved
1 table spoon flaked almonds, toasted
2 spring onions, chopped
A pinch of saffron
1 table spoon lemon juice
4 table spoons Greek yoghurt
Chermoula


Chermoula paste
2 garlic cloves
2 tea spoons ground cumin
2 tea spoons ground coriander
1 tea spoons chilli flakes
1 tea spoons sweet paprika
1 tea spoon freshly grated ginger
2 table spoons finely chopped preserved lemon
80ml olive oil


To make the chermoula, in a small bowl mix the garlic, cumin, coriander, chilli, paprika, preserved lemon, fresh ginger and the olive oil and set aside.

 

Cube the half of halloumi and place into the bowl of chermoula to marinate until ready to cook.

When ready to cook, cut the peppers in half lengthways and evenly stuff with the chermoula halloumi. Place the peppers in a roasting tray and roast in a preheated 200 degree oven for 20-30 minutes until the halloumi has browned and cooked through and and the peppers have softened.


Meanwhile, put the couscous and saffron in a large bowl and cover with boiling water.  Stir in the herbs, olives, almonds, onion, lemon juice and a pinch of salt and plenty of black pepper, taste and add more of whatever you fancy as necessary.

Serve the peppers with a dollop of yoghurt, sprinkle with chopped coriander and finish with a drizzle of oil.


Serve each of the halloumi stuffed peppers beside the couscous and a couple of spoonfuls of the yoghurt.

Tomato and goats cheese gratin

Another weekend and another weekend brunch. We didn't have any eggs, so my plan for turkish eggs (as I did have yoghurt) will have to wait for another weekend. I also still had some of the tomatoes left from the £1 job lot that Gipsy Spread had brought when I was making the chana chaat.


I knew I had a round of goats cheese in the freezer and decided to turn the two in a deliciously light, but comforting Sunday lunch dish of a tomato and goats cheese gratin. Served alongside some home made sour dough bread straight from the oven.


Wat you will need
3 medium/large tomatoes
1 clove garlic
Goats cheese (a log or round)
1/2 tea spoon chilli flakes
A tablespoon of sliced black olives
1 table spoon balsamic vinegar
Fresh lemon thyme


Start by simply, chopping the tomatoes in half and placing in an oven dish cut side up.


Next chop the garlic and slice the olives and split between the tomato half surfaces. Sprinkle over salt and the chilli flakes before drizzling with a little bit of olive oil and the balsamic vinegar. Top with the lemon thyme sprigs and then either a slice of goats cheese over each half, if using a log or either the whole round of goats cheese (which is what I had in my freezer).

 

Bake in a pre-heated oven for 20-25 minutes until the tomatoes have heated through and the goats cheese has browned and softened.

Serve this with some delicious warmed bread to soak up all the tomatoes juices.

 

This is such a delicious dish that belies its simplicity. It's a great dish to prepare in advance if you are having people round for lunch and if you really have to, you could serve with slices of a roasted joint of some sort.

Cantina Vinopolis

Gipsy Spread got membership to the Design Museum as a birthday present this year. Presumably to help inspire his interior design creations. So, we were going to be along the river tonight at the members viewing of the 'My Name is Paul Smith' exhibition. I have also booked a lunch table to go to Cantina Vinopolis with friends next weekend, so I thought, why not also try it out tonight. This way Gipsy Spread also doesn't miss out.


I had made my reservation through toptable and opted for the bargain option of two courses from the set menu for £15.


We arrived and the small Cantina was already heaving with tables and filled up whilst we were dine. I would suggest booking ahead at the weekend.


I reviewed the menu and found there were a couple of vegetarian options for both the starter and the main courses. The starterts were either a tomato soup, or the burrata mozarella salad. I really fancied the salad, so off I went with the vegetables (well salad really) and cheese combination. Gipsy spread went for the calamari which was meant to have chilli in it or with it, but did not seem to materialise, neither in view or flavour.

My burrata mozarella salad was very simple, but the mozzarella was beautifully soft and light and complemented well by the peppery rocket and sweet balsamic glaze. I followed my starter with another cheese salad (the other vegetarian option had been a tagliatelle). This time, it was beautifully fresh beetroot and goats cheese in a nutty crumb. Again, this classiccombination was wonderful with the sweet earthiness of the beetroot offset by the salty and nutty goats cheese. My chosen dishes were simple and let the quality of the ingredients (primarily the cheeses) do the speaking for them. I was therefore happy with my meal.

Gipsy Spread had wanted the pork, but this was not available, so he decided on the duck. When this came, he realised he had not ordered a side of vegetables, so worth keeping this in mind. He also felt that the sauce could have been richer and deeper in flavour to cut through the fatty duck. Without this and any green vegetables, he had found the duck disappointing.

Regardless, I am looking forward to lunch again next week and plan to sample the other vegetarian options if the menu has not changed. I think Gipsy Spread would give it another go and perhaps pick differently next time. This


The wine, of course was also fabulous. We had chosen the  Prosecco superiore Conegliano “Bepindeto" to go with our dinner. It came in a wonderful ridged green bottle and is described as "[a} pale straw-yellow sparkling wine with hints of emerald, compellingly luminous, with a near-endless bead of the tiniest bubbles. A delicate note of fresh-baked bread is the first to emerge, followed by apple, pear and peach, alongside refined impressions of rose petals and acacia blossoms. In the mouth it is fresh and full-flavoured, with an appealing acidity on the finish. Eminently drinkable".


With the wine at the same price as both our meals, this was definitely good value; albeit with some of the food needing to have more kick. It is therefore definitely worth visiting on the 2 courses for £15 offer.

Onion and coriander raita

This is a really easy and fresh accompaniment to many a dish. It is a simple side to Indian food or can help form part of a mezze plate, alongside the usuals of hummous and falafel. We had it on the side of my delicious mossaka stuffed tomatoes for dinner this week.


What you will need
2 tablespoons plain yoghurt
1/2 an onion
1 green chilli
1/2 a lemon
1/2 tea spoon paprika
Fresh coriander


Firstly, finely slice the onion and chop the chilli. Place into a small bowl and season with salt and squeeze over the lemon juice. Leave the onions to soften for 5-10 minutes.

Next, stir in the plain yoghurt and chopped fresh coriander. Top with the paprika and serve.

Sicilian style quinoa and halloumi stew

I'll admit, in the run up to christmas when I expect to be eating and drinking in excess, I am trying to monitor my carb intake. This just means me finding an alternative to the usuals, bread, pasta and potatoes. However today, I had all the ingredients to make a vegetarian version of a Sicilian fish stew, of course, without the fish, but also in my version, I swapped the couscous for quinoa - high in protein. This was also the first opportunity (I don't know why) to use the saffron we bought in Turkey this May.


Gipsy Spread still gets to have some king prawns, but also halloumi. He never likes to miss out on the halloumi.


What you will need
1 onion
2-3 cloves garlic
1/2 tea spoon chilli flakes
125ml white wine
1 tin (400g) chopped tomatoes
1 vegetable stock cube
100g quinoa
200ml water
A pinch of saffron
1 packet halloumi
1/2 lemon zest
Fresh parsly


Start by finely chopping the onion and garlic. Soften these in a little bit of oil for 5-10 minutes. When softened, add the chilli flakes and the glass of wine. Cook for 1-2 minutes until bubbling, then add the chopped tomatoes and water and crumble in the stock cube. Bring to boil then add in the pinch of saffron, and seasoning that is necessary and the quinoa.


Cook the stew ingredients and quinoa on a low-medium heat for 15-20 minutes until the quinoa is cooked.

Whilst the stew is cooking, prepare the lemon zest and parsley. Slice the halloumi and place it on grease proof paper for grilling. Grill the halloumi on a medium heat for 3-5 minutes either side before serving.

When ready to serve,  dish up the hot tomato stew and top with the freshly grilled halloumi, lemon zest and parsley.

Thai lentil soup

It's getting colder and colder and energy prices are creeping higher and higher. There's no better time then for making good use of the humble lentil to provide a deliciously warming and cheap nutritional hit. The office also seems to be saving money on heating and this is a fantastically satisfying soup to take for a work lunch. It's cheap, high in protein and low in fat, so can also help if you are on the 5:2 plan.


What you will need
200g red lentils
1 onion
500ml coconut milk
2-3 tea spoons Thai green curry paste
500ml water


Finely chop the onion and soften in a little bit of oil. When softened, add the curry paste to the onions and cook off the spices for a couple of minutes. Add the lentils, coconut milk and water. Cook the lentils for 10-15 minutes. Top up with more water for desired consistencey.

Serve garnished with fresh coriander.

Moussaka stuffed tomatoes

I had come home from a draining day of being an assessor for the next generation of bright young things to join the service. I always say it is more painful for me as, like today, I have to experience three interviews and presentations, whilst each of them only has to do one.


I also came home to lots of ends. The end of an aubergine (the other 3/4s had been used in an aubergine parmiagana), the end of the bunch of fresh coriander, the end of the yoghurt, creme fraiche (and a couple of egg yolks)...I think you know where I'm going with this.


I also had a giant bag of tomatoes which Gipsy Spread had picked up as a £1 lot when I had asked him to pick me up one, for the chana chaat we had Friday night for dinner.

So, it was clear. The universe wanted me to make vegetarian moussaka stuffed tomatoes for our dinner.


What you will need
1/2 an onion
1/4 an aubergine
150g quorn mince
2 cloves garlic
125ml red wine
1/2 tea spoon ground cinnamon
1 tea spoon ground cumin
1/2 tea spoon sugar
8 medium tomatoes
2 egg yolks
1 table spoon creme fraiche
50g cheddar
Fresh thyme


Finely chop the onion and garlic and cube the aubergine. Add to some oil, season with salt to help the aubergines soften and cook for 5-10 minutes until done. Add the cinnamon and cumin to the onions and cook for one last minute.


Meanwhile, slice the heads off the tomatoes and reserve. Next, use a small tea spoon to scoop out the flesh of the tomatoes, including the juice and seeds. Remove any hard centres and the chop the rest of the tomato flesh.

Add the quorn mince to the softened aubergines and onions and top with the glass of wine, cook off for a minute then add the chopped tomatoes, more salt as necessary, black pepper and the sugar. Reduce the mix for 10-15 minutes until the mixture is dry.

Whilst the mince and aubergine filling is reducing, you might as well get on with the topping. Mix together the egg yolks with the creme fraiche and cheddar and season.


Add the fresh thyme leaves to the mince mixture and stuff inside the tomatoes.


Seperately mix together the cheese, egg yolks and creme fraiche. Lay the mix out on some greaseproof paper to form the tops of the stuffed tomatoes. The size of my tomatoes didn't allow space for topping, however, if you have large tomatoes, go crazy and place on top of the mince inside the tomatoes. I had to create little 'bechamel' hats, which were cooked seperately for mine.

 

Bake the tomatoes in the oven at 200 degress for 20-25 minutes. Add the egg and cheese mix to the oven after 5 minutes, and cook for 15-20 minutes.

When cooked, plate up the tomatoes and cut out little 'hats' from the baked egg and cheese mix to sit atop the tomatoes. I'm sure, you can do better than me on this!

I served these with some delicious onion and coriander raita. Gipsy Spread also had some white wine and herb poached white fish with his dinner.