Salad days

The sun is out, the sky is blue, there's not a cloud to spoil the view. To quote a line in a Buddy Holly song. Its still spring but it feels like summer this week as we have this glorious weather here in the Cotswolds.

Although summer weather makes you want to eat salad, there is no reason not to eat salad all year round. I do. Salad has changed out of recognition in my lifetime. I remember as a child eating my mums salads which were usually Lettuce, a tomato (cut up), a piece of cheese, radish, beetroot, a dollop of salad cream and if you were lucky a spring onion or maybe a slice of quiche.  

Salads today are so different and so tasty and you don’t have to wait for the temperature to reach the 90s to eat one either. We eat a much more varied diet now than we did back in the 60s & 70s when I was growing up. This enables us to have salad alongside a main dish, be it pizza, a pie, falafels etc, dishes that were not really on our radar back then.

I thought I would give you a tasty salad you might like to try courtesy of our friends down at Lunchbox London.

Baby kale & roasted aubergine bruschetta with tahini  

A Moroccan-style snack or canapé with warming spices  

                                         Time 30 mins                           serves 1

Ingredients

• 1 tsp (heaped) of Garlic Granules, Mixed Italian Herbs, Cumin and Chilli Flakes
• 1 Handful of Florette Baby Kale
• 1 Bruschetta Loaf (cut into chunky slices)
• 1 Red Onion (finely sliced)
• 1 Large Aubergine (cut into 1cm thick rounds)
•  4 Beef Tomatoes (finely sliced)
• 1 Lemon (juice).

    For the Yogurt Dressing:

• 2 tbsp Crème Fraiche
• 2 tbsp Tahini
• Squeeze of Lemon
• 2 tbsp of Chopped Parsley

Method

1. Slice the aubergine into 1cm circles, cover with the dried herbs and spread out over a baking tray. Drizzle well with vegetable oil and season. Roast for 30 minutes in a 200 C oven until soft and crisp.
2. Meanwhile. mix the yogurt dressing ingredients together and set aside.
3. Add the lemon and a splash of oil to the chopped onion and set aside to soften the flavour.
4. Once the aubergine is nearly there, brush the bruschetta with oil and griddle or roast until toasted and coloured.
5. Mix the kale through the onion and lemon.
6. Serve the aubergine and tomato stacked on the bruschetta with the kale on top and a generous drizzle of the yogurt dressing.    

Moroccan Chickpea & Aubergine soup

Moroccan Chickpea & Aubergine soup

A frugal soup that is very warming and utterly delicious. A great soup in the autumn and winter.

Ingredients

• 2tbsp cold pressed rapeseed oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 4 cloves of garlic finely chopped
• 1 large mild red chilli, finely diced

• Spices
• ½ tsp turmeric:
• ¼ tsp ground cinnamon:
• 1 tsp ground cumin;
• 1 tsp Paprika;
• ¼ tsp ground white pepper.

• 1 Aubergine cut into rounds then 1cm dice
• 5-6 sun dried tomatoes, finely sliced
• 1x400g tin of chopped tomatoes
• 1x400g tin of chickpeas
• 500ml vegetable stock
• Large handful of chopped coriander, stalks and all
• A handful of mint leaves, picked from the stalks and shredded
• Salt & Pepper to taste

Cooking method

1. In a saucepan, heat the oil and then add the onions and garlic and cook over a medium heat for 6-7 minutes stirring occasionally until golden and softened

2. Add the diced chilli and then the spice mix, stir well until combined.

3. Chop the aubergine and add into the spiced oil, turn around well in the pan until coated with the spices.

4. Add in the sun dried tomatoes, tinned tomatoes, chickpeas and vegetable stock. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes

5.  Finally check the seasoning, add salt and pepper if required, add the fresh herbs and serve

Taking a dip

Baba Ghanoush

A cold Sunday afternoon in February and not wanting to venture out I checked out what was in the fridge and to my delight I found an Aubergine. I fancy some dips and TV today. Aubergine fits the bill exactly. so Baba Ghanoush it is with toasted Pitta. 

This makes about 6 servings as a dip      10 mins prep 30-35mins cooking

Ingredients

• 1 large or 2 medium Aubergines
• 1 or 2 peeled garlic cloves
• 2 tbsp Tahini
• 2 glugs of olive oil 
• Juice of a lemon
• a pinch of paprika

1. Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F/gas 5. Prick the aubergines all over with a fork.

2. If you want a smoky flavour, you can char-grill them on a gas flame. Place the aubergine down as if it were a saucepan, right over the flame, keep turning frequently with tongs. Continue this until the skin blisters all over – it should take around 7-10 mins.

3. Transfer to an oven dish or baking tray and bake for 30 mins. If you skip the char-grilling, add 5-10 mins onto the oven cooking time. Remove from the oven when the skins are all wrinkled and let them stand and cool for about10 mins.

4. Cut aubergines open. Scrape out the flesh. Cut up any big chunks. Discard most of the skin – although a few bits will add to the smoky flavour.

5. Mash the garlic and a good pinch of salt, with a pestle and mortar, or crush against the chopping board with a rolling pin. Mix with tahini, olive oil and lemon juice until smooth.

6. Add the aubergine, mash and mix with a fork, Check for seasoning. You can use a food processor, though I prefer the chunkier version using a fork.

7. Spoon into a dish, sprinkle with paprika and a drizzle of olive oil. 

 You can serve with toasted pittas or add to a sandwich

Who am I

Who am I

Well my name is Dave, I live on the edge of the Cotswolds with my partner who has been a vegetarian most of her life. So until 10 months ago I did eat meat although this had been becoming less and less through the time I had been living with Charlotte.

Charlotte being a great cook had introduced me to fantastic vegetarian food, foods that I had never dreamed that I would eat as growing up I was less than enthusiastic about veg! Charlotte never once objected if I ate meat in here company but all our home meals together were vegetarian. Straight away I was noticing how tasty these meals were, far tastier than my meat meals that I was used to. One other great benefit was that as well as loosing weight I was felling a whole lot better so on March 9th 2014 I ate my last meat meal when I took my father to a Chinese restaurant for his 91^st birthday. I had disappointed myself because I had already gone three months without meat.

That disappointment helped me make up my mind and to this day I can say I am now vegetarian.

Dinner tonight is a fantastic Potato and Mushroom curry .

One pot Mushroom & Potato Curry

An easy curry  that takes about 10 mins prep time and around 20 mins cooking
Serves 4

 

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp Oil
• 1 Onion roughly chopped
• 1 Aubergine (trimmed & chopped into chunks)
• 250 g Button Mushrooms
• 2-4 tbsp of curry paste (depending how hot you like your curry)
• 150ml Vegetable stock
• 400ml can of coconut milk
• Chopped coriander to serve

Heat the oil in a large saucepan; add the onion and the potato.

Cover and cook on low heat for 5 mins until potatoes begin to soften.

Add the aubergines and mushrooms and cook for a further 3-4 mins

Stir in the curry paste and pour In the coconut milk and the stock, slowly bring to the boil, then simmer for around 10 mins or until the potato is tender.

Stir through the coriander and serve with rice or naan bread