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Vegetable Noodles

This is a super doper quick but nutritious weekday meal that makes perfect cold leftovers for lunch the next day. Yum!

For 4-6 portions you need

1 packet fine egg noodles

1 onion, sliced

1 carrot, sliced

1 red pepper, sliced into strips

½ cup frozen sweetcorn

½ cup frozen peas

1 packet quorn chicken style chunks

4 cloves garlic, sliced

1” fresh ginger, grated

½ cup soya sauce

1 tsp sugar

¼ cup water

1 tbsp oil

Begin by frying the onion and carrots in the oil for 2-3 mins. Add the quorn and cook for a further 3 mins.

Whilst these are cooking add the noodles to boiling water and cook for 2 mins (or as directed on the packet). Drain and refresh with cold water to prevent them over cooking and sticking.

Add the remaining vegetables to the pan and cook for 2 mins. Add the drained noodles, soya sauce, water and sugar to the pan and toss thoroughly. Cook for 2 mins until everything is piping hot. Serve with sweet chilli sauce.

Easy Coleslaw (v)

Very quick and easy to make if you have a food processor, this coleslaw gets better with age so make it 1-2 days beforehand if you have time.

For 6-8 portions you need

1/2 white cabbage

1 onion

2 carrots

6 tbsp mayo

Shred the cabbage and onion then grate the carrot. Mix in the mayo. Told you it was simple. 

Moroccan Cous Cous Salad (v)

We had a BBQ last weekend. After a week of glorious, warm and sunny weather we picked the one day it was freezing cold and the guests had to borrow socks and jumpers and blankets! The food made us happy tho :) This salad is so simple to make but tastes great and goes with anything!

For 6-8 portions you need
1 cup cous cous
2 cups boiling veg stock
1/4 cup dried currants
1 finely chopped red onion
1 finely chopped small bunch fresh coriander
1/2 finely chopped small bunch mint
2 tsp moroccan spices e.g. ras el hanot
3 tsp pine nuts and sunflower seeds toasted in a frying pan
2 tbsp olive oil

Place everything about from the pine nuts and sunflower seeds in a large bowl and cover with clingfilm until the cous cous is rehydrated. Fluff up with a fork and then sprinkle over the seeds and pine nuts.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

I love soft, squidgy cookies, especially when they have peanut butter in them. This recipe is from the Hummingbird Bakery cookbook.

For about 30 cookies you need
225g softened butter
200g soft brown sugar
200g caster sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla bean paste
240g crunchy peanut butter
340g plain flour
2.5 tsp bicarb
75g chocolate chips

Begin by creaming the butter and both sugars together until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Add the vanilla and peanut butter. Once these are combined add the flour and bicarb and mix until a soft dough forms. Mix in the chocolate chips.

Place dessertspoon mounds onto a lined baking sheet, ensuring they are well spread out. Bake in a 170 degree oven for about 10 mins until cooked and lightly browned.

Leave to cool for a few mins before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Delicious with a glass of milk or a bowl of vanilla ice cream.

Ben and Jerry's French Vanilla Ice Cream

I used to have an ice cream maker but tbh it was a bit rubbish. I recently bought another, more expensive one and have been trying out new recipes that didn't need cooked egg custards as a base. This recipe is fabulous - it's so quick and easy to make but it tastes amazing. It uses American cups but don't let this put you off, it's easy to convert if you don't have any cups to measure with.

For 1 quart of delicious ice cream you need
2 large eggs
3/4 cup vanilla sugar
1 cup milk
2 cups double cream
2 tsp vanilla bean paste

Whisk the eggs until light and fluffy (about 3-4 mins). Slowly add the sugar and keep whisking. Mix in the milk, cream and vanilla. Transfer to a pre-chilled ice cream machine and churn for 30-40 mins. Finish the freezing process in the freezer.

Thai Spiced Lentil and Butternut Squash Soup (v)

This quick but oh-so-tasty soup is based on this recipe. I had butternut squash to use up, along with some yellow thai curry paste and only 150ml coconut milk. The results were delicious and nicely filling for a working week day dinner. We had home made garlic bread along side to bulk it out a bit more. And poor old me gets to eat the leftovers for lunch today. It’s hard life ;-)

For 4-6 portions you need

1 tbsp oil

1 onion, roughly chopped

3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

1 inch fresh ginger grated

1 butternut squash, peeled and diced into 1cm chunks

½ cup red lentils

150ml coconut milk

1 litre vegan stock

2 tbsp thai yellow curry paste (this isn’t too spicy and uses turmeric to colour the paste yellow which also gives an earthy background note to the soup)

Sliced red chilli and chopped fresh coriander to serve

1 tbsp soya sauce

1 tbsp fresh lime juice or fish sauce if not vegan

24 hour risen garlic bread to serve

Begin by sweating the onion in the oil for 5 mins. Add the garlic, ginger, squash and curry paste and cook for a further 5 mins. Tip in the lentils then add the coconut milk and stock. Bring to the boil then reduce heat and simmer for 15 mins until the lentils are cooked.

Blitz the soup until velvety and smooth. Add the soya sauce and lime juice or fish sauce. Serve in warmed bowls topped with the fresh zingy chilli slices and chopped coriander.

24 Hour Risen Garlic Bread (v)

I love baking bread, especially now I know that leaving it to rise slowly in the fridge not only makes it a lot easier to control and ensure it works, but it also tastes divine. The recipe below was supposed to make two meals worth of bread but, er, we ate most of it in one go because it was so tasty.

For 2 garlic breads that will feed 3-4 each you need

500g plain flour

7g dried yeast

½ tbsp. sugar

½ tsp salt

2 tbsp olive oil

300ml water

3-4 cloves garlic, crushed

2-3 tbsp olive oil

Simply place everything in a bowl and mix till it forms dough (I use my kenwood). Tip into an oiled bowl, cover with oiled clingfilm and leave to slowly rise in the fridge for 24 hours. Gently shape into ovals and top with olive oil and crushed garlic. Bake in a hot oven for 20 mins and then scoff. Feel utterly smug you have home made bread on a weekday work night. 

24 hour pizza dough (v)

I’ve long read about slow proving of dough – where you leave it to rise slowly in a cool environment – but until now I’d never done it. However the imminent expiry of a pack of quorn pepperoni inspired me to try it out. I mean, how else would I have been able to put home made pizza on the table by 6pm when I don’t get home from work until 5.15pm?! The dough was a triumph. Chewy and tasty and easy to work with. I’ll definitely be doing this again.

The dough recipe below makes a LOT of pizza but as I planned to eat it up over the next few days for lunch this wasn’t an issue. If you don’t want to feed the 5000, or be eating it for days afterwards, either freeze the dough you don’t use or make a half recipe.  

For 4-5 pizzas you need

1kg plain flour (don’t worry about it being strong or 00 or whatever, bog standard plain flour is just fine)

14g dried yeast, the sort you don’t need to reactivate in water first

1 tsp salt

1 tbsp sugar

600 ml water

4 tbsp olive oil

Place everything into the mixing bowl of a food mixer with a dough hook and leave the machine to knead for about 10 mins or until the dough has become elastic and pliable. Alternatively work out your frustrations by mixing by hand.

Turn the dough into an oiled bowl (I just use the kenwood bowl to save on washing up!) and cover with oiled cling film. Leave in the fridge for 12-48 hours until you need to use it. When you’re ready to use it, knock back gently and then cut off and shape the dough you need. If you want to freeze the dough, cut into portions and wrap and freeze. Leave to defrost thoroughly before using.

Shape into pizzas and top with whatever you fancy. Bake in a hot oven for 20 mins or so until risen, crispy and delicious.

'Chicken' Noodle Soup (v)

An unbelievably quick and easy recipe, perfect for warming and cheering you up after a long working day.

For 3-4 people you need

3 nests noodles (egg if not vegan, rice or soba otherwise)

Veggies of your choice: I usually use 1-2 carrots, thinly sliced, ½ cup frozen peas, ½ cup frozen sweetcorn, chinese leaf shredded

1 onion, sliced

3-4 cloves garlic, sliced

2 inch piece of ginger, finely grated

Fresh coriander, roughly chopped

50ml soya sauce

1.5 litres veggie stock

Either some quorn chicken chunks, tofu cubes, marinated tofu strips etc

To serve: hot chili sauce (Econa is my fave!); sesame oil, soya sauce

Place everything in a large pan and cover with the stock. Bring to the boil and simmer for 3-4 mins until the protein element is hot, the noodles are cooked and the veggies are al dente. Serve topped with the chilli sauce, chili flakes, chopped coriander and anything else you fancy J

Vegetable Paella with Spicy Tomato Sauce (v)

I'm not sure this is authentically paella because it uses easy cook short grain rice. But it's easy and quick to make and is the first recipe/rice combo I have found that actually works without producing a claggy sticky mess or under cooked rice. It's also vegan and a brilliant way to boost your veg intake. It's based on a Rose Elliott recipe for Red Beans with Brown Rice and Vegetables in her fabulous New Complete Vegetarian Cookbook (p246).

For 4 portions you need
Paella
2 onions, chopped
4 tbsp olive oil
350g easy cook short grain rice
1 tsp tumeric
850ml veg stock
salt and pepper
A mix of vegetables e.g. we used 1 large carrot, diced, 2 sticks celery, sliced, and a pack of stir fry tenderstem broccoli, baby sweet corn, mange tout and pak choi.
1 can drained kidney beans

Spicy Tomato Sauce
1 can tomatoes
1 clove garlic
1 tsp sugar
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper
1 tsp dried chilli flakes

Start by sauteeing the onion, carrots and celery in the oil, covered. I like to use a large lidded non stick frying pan for this recipe.

After about 10 mins add the rice and garlic and stir well. Add the stock and beans and bring to the boil. Cover with a lid and leave to simmer for 10 mins. Stir then add the broccoli and corn and cover again for a further 5 mins. Check the rice is done and if it is, add the remaining veg and take off the heat and leave covered to steam for a final 5 mins.

For the sauce put everything in a pan and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 5 mins. Puree in the pan with a stick blender and leave to one side.

Serve the finished rice with the tomato sauce. Leftovers are delicious cold or used as a stuffing for peppers etc.

Tropical Fruit with Butterscotch Sauce

Who says that eating fruit has to be puritanical all the time ;-) This simple butterscotch sauce is great for dipping your fruit in when you’re fed up with being a saint all the time.

For 4 portions you need

50g butter

75g soft brown sugar

100ml double cream

Tropical fruit of your choice, we used mango, papaya and pineapple.

Put the butter, sugar and cream in a pan and heat gently until the butter has melted. Allow to boil gently to reduce slightly, but take care not to let the sauce catch or burn. Serve on the side as a dipping sauce or just tip the whole lot over your bowl and enjoy J

Vegetable Chow Mein

This is a cheat recipe really seeing as it uses ready made sauce and pre-cooked noodles. But we all need a 5 min dinner some nights of the week don't we..

For 3-4 portions you need
1/2 pack quorn chicken style chunks
2 packs ready cooked egg noodles
1 pack stir fry veg
2 packs plum sauce or any other chinese style sauce
1 onion
1 tbsp vegetable oil

Yes, this really does involve you having to prepare an onion to begin with. Sorry.

Slice the onion and add to the wok with any harder veggies e.g. broccoli or carrot. Stir fry for 2-3 mins and then add the quorn chunks and the rest of the veggies. Stir fry for a minute then add the noodles and the sauce. Cover with a lid and toss about to ensure everything gets covered in the sauce. Tada, serve and scoff. A speedy and filling but good for you supper.

Double Bean Burgers with Mango Chilli Salsa (v)

I really fancied a bean burger for dinner last night. Not like the horrid mushy ones you get in Burger King, but a nice, solid and healthy treat with a zingy salsa on the side. The recipe I came up with was inspired by this Jamie Oliver one. It's a doddle to make with a food processor and we managed to get sat down and eating within 30 mins, a win for a working week day eve.

For 4-6 burgers you need
1 can drained black eyed beans
1 can drained chickpeas (tbh you can use whatever beans or lentils you have to hand)
1 onion
1 tsp each ground cumin, coriander, oregano
1/2 tsp chilli flakes
salt and pepper
about 1/2 cup fresh breadcrumbs (I always keep some in the freezer from the scrag ends of bread we haven't eaten)
1 egg or 1/4 cup water with 2 tbsp veg oil if you're vegan
Large handful of fresh coriander
Zest of a lemon
Oil for shallow frying
Barms for eating the burgers in and whatever condiments you fancy (ketchup, mustard, mayo etc)

Mango Chilli Salsa
1 ripe mango, diced
1 thai chilli finely sliced
2 tbsp each fresh mint and coriander, roughly chopped
Juice of a lemon
4 spring onions, finely sliced

Put everything apart from the breadcrumbs into a food processor and blitz until half pureed and half chunky. Tip into a bowl and mix in the breadcrumbs. You should have a mix that is able to be formed into burgers. if it's too wet add a little flour. If it's too dry add a little water. Form into 4-6 patties and leave in the fridge to chill for 5 mins.

Make the salsa by mixing everything together.

When you're ready to cook the burgers, put a little oil into a pan and then fry the burgers on a medium heat for 10 mins on each side until nicely browned. Serve in a barm with some home made sweet potato wedges and the mango chilli salsa.

Apple Crumble Cake

There's no photo for this as [1] it was New Years Eve and I was drinking so forgot and [2] it all went so quickly I didn't get a chance! Suffice to say it was a delicious addition to the shared table of food and would be equally yummy cold or warm with custard or ice cream.

For 8-10 slices you need
Crumble topping
115g self-raising flour
1 tsp each freshly ground nutmeg, ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves and ground mace
85g butter
85g caster sugar.

Cake
450g cooking apples peeled, cored and thinly sliced
175g self-raising flour,
1 tsp baking powder,
1 tsp each freshly ground nutmeg, ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves and ground mace
115g vitalite,
115g caster sugar
2 eggs

Rub the butter into the flour and then add the spices and sugar and set to one side for the crumble topping.

Beat the vitalite with the sugar and gradually add the eggs and flour, baking powder and spices.

Pour the cake batter into a lined tin and then top with the apple slices. Sprinkle over the crumble and then bake at 175 degrees for 40-50 mins until risen, golden brown and the cake is thoroughly cooked. Leave to cool in the tin then cut into slices and scoff.

Ginger Mirin Tofu (v)

I know I know, new year new food and all that? This isn't that healthy cos it's deep fried but oh my, it's delicious and the perfect antidote to all the rich Christmas food. Well it is for us anyway!

For 4 portions you need
1 pack firm tofu
2-3 tbsp cornflour
60ml light soya sauce
60ml mirin
2cm piece of ginger, finely grated
oil for deep frying

Cut the tofu into bite sized cubes and toss to coat in the cornflour. As it cooks, this gives a delicious light crispy coating to the tofu.

Heat the oil until hot and then fry the coated tofu in batches until crispy and light brown.

Place the soya sauce, mirin and ginger in a bowl. Drain the cooked tofu straight into the bowl and allow it to cool slightly and soak up the flavour. Serve with wilted garlic greens and plain rice for a nutritious meal you can feel smug about all day.

Salted Caramel Tarts

My boyfriend's mother requested these after I'd made millionaires shortbread. It's a simple caramel that is poured into a pre made sweet shortcrust tartlet and then devoured. Highly calorific but utterly delicious.

For 16 individual tartlets or one big one you need
1 tin condensed milk
200g butter
4 tbsp golden syrup
1-2 tsp salt flakes depending on taste
2 packs pre made sweet shortcrust pastry tartlets (I used Morrisons which were yummy).

Place the ingredients, minus the tart cases, in a non stick heavy based pan and heat gently. The key to the caramel is patience. Keeping the heat low to medium, and stirring constantly, heat it gently until all the butter is melted. Continue to stir and heat until it comes to the boil and then still stirring keep going until it's thickened and turned a dark golden brown colour. This takes about 15-20 mins in total. Beat in the salt flakes and then carefully pour into the tart cases and leave to set.

Quorn and Lentil 'Beef' in Ale Stew

Autumn is for eating hearty stews that warm you to the cockles of yer tum. And one of the things I miss most about not eating meat is a rich, warming beefy stew that's been cooked for hours and hours. But despair not, if, like me, you're a bad meat craving veggie, this stew will satisfy the most beefy of cravings and leave you with a warming internal hug. The dumplings are the crowning glory for warm doughy loveliness and soak up the yummy juices as it all cooks away. Simple and quick to prepare, it's also ready in less than an hour.

For 4-6 portions you need
For the stew
1 pack quorn steak strips
1/2 cup brown lentils
1 bottle good stout (about 500ml)
500ml veg stock
1 onion chopped
2 field mushrooms, diced
2 tbsp tomato ketchup
salt and pepper
1 tbsp oil
3-4 carrots, cut into large chunks

For the dumplings
100g self raising flour
50g veg suet
1 tsp dried mixed herbs
cold water to mix

Begin by frying the onions, carrots and mushrooms in the oil for about 10 mins until the onions are softened and the juices have run from the mushrooms.

Add the lentils, quorn, beer and stock and bring to the boil. Season and add the ketchup. Cook for about 20 mins until the lentils are cooked.

Mix the dumpling ingredients together and form into 8 balls. Place on top of the bubbling stew mixture and cook for 20 mins. Serve with mash and curl up in front of the fire!

Chocolate Cointreau Torte aka orgasm on a plate

This is the recipe you need to make when you want something simple to make but drop dead gorgeous in yer mouth. It's ridiculously simple to make but it tastes amazing. It's based on St Delia's Chocolate truffle torte.

For 10-12 portions you need
300g plain chocolate
150g milk chocolate
600ml double cream
75ml liquid glucose
75ml cointreau
100g amaretti biscuits, crushed

Begin by melting the chocolates and glucose together in a bain marie. Leave to cool for 5 mins.

Whip the cream to floppy, no more. If you go to soft peaks the torte will be too difficult to mix and loose the wonderfully soft texture you want.

Line a 23cm springform tin with baking paper and oil the base and sides. Sprinkle over the biscuit crumbs.

Once the cream is whipped, mix half of it into the chocolate, then mix in the rest of the cream. Mix thoroughly then scrape into the tin. Cover and chill for at least 2-3 hours. Best served with fresh fruit or lashings and lashings of single cream.

"Millie's" Cookies (soft squidgy cookies)

These cookies are ridiculously easy to make but they taste AMAZING. You can alter the additions with whatever you fancy or have to hand. I am in use up my store cupboards before we move mode at the moment so we had macadamia nut, cranberries and white chocolate and plain chocolate chip for the boy who refused the extra addition of ginger or apricots, boo.

The recipe is adapted from this one.

For about 36 cookies you need
250g butter, softened
250g caster sugar
200g soft light brown sugar
2 tsp vanilla bean paste
450g self raising flour
2 eggs

For the macadamia, cranberry and white chocolate cookies you also need
75g chopped macadamia nuts
75g dried cranberries
100g white chocolate chunks

For the plain chocolate chip cookies you also need
100g plain chocolate chips

Begin by creaming the butter and sugars in a free standing mixer for 3-4 mins until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and eggs and mix thoroughly. Add the flour and mix well.

If you're making just one sort of cookie then add your chosen additions to the dough and work in thoroughly. If, like me, you wanted to do more than one sort simply halve the dough and add your ingredients to each bowl, mixing well.

Onto lined baking sheets, place spoonfuls of the dough, well spaced apart. You don't need to squish them down as they'll do this naturally as they cook.

Bake at 175 degrees for 10 mins until they are starting to go a light brown colour. Leave to cool for 2-3 mins on the tray before attempting to remove as they will be VERY soft. Leave to cool for a further 5 mins or so then try not to eat an entire batch in one afternoon. They freeze well and retain their chewiness upon defrosting. Nomtastic.