Chickpea and pasta soup

A hearty one-pot meal, this Italian inspired soup has a multitude of flavours from herbs, onion, garlic, celery and lemon juice.

Servings: 2

Ingredients
300 g/ 12 oz cooked chickpeas (about 1 1/2 - 2 cups)
75 g pasta (I used whole-wheat fusilli)
2 sticks of celery, thinly sliced
4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1/2 a medium onion, thinly sliced
2 spring onions, sliced with green and white parts separated
3-4 tablespoons chopped parsley
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon olive oil
about 1/2 teaspoon each salt and black pepper (more or less to taste)
1/2 a lime or lemon for freshly squeezed juice for garnish

Method
Place the olive oil in a large pan, mix in the garlic and dried herbs and place over a low heat. Saute the garlic and herbs for about a minute, then add the onion, celery and white parts of the spring onion and cook for about 7-8 minutes. Add the cooked chickpeas and 1 tablespoon of the parsley and mix to coat well with the other vegetables. Add the pasta, salt, pepper and 3 cups/750 ml water (to save time use boiling water from a kettle or pan). Increase the heat and bring it to the boil, then lower the heat to medium and let it simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes. If the soup is too thick, add a little water and heat through. Stir in a generous squeeze of fresh lime or lemon soup into each serving and serve hot sprinkled with the remaining fresh parsley and the spring onion greens.

Patatas bravas (Crispy potatoes with spicy tomato sauce)

The pairing of tomato sauce with crisp potatoes may be common but this delectable Spanish snack or tapa is far superior to the fast food staples of fries and ketchup. Prepare the sauce while the potatoes bake in the oven so that it is ready when the potatoes are done.

Servings: 2

Ingredients
500 g potatoes cut into 2 cm/3/4 inch dice
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley to garnish (optional)

For the sauce:
400 g fresh tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 onion, roughly chopped
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 dried red chilli
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon cumin powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Method
Preheat the oven to 190°C/ 375°F and place a lightly oiled baking tray in the oven to heat. Coarsely puree the ingredients for the sauce in a blender or food processor. When the oven is hot place the potatoes in the heated baking tray, drizzle over the olive oil, toss well to coat and bake for 45-50 minutes, tossing every 15-20 minutes until crisp and browned. Meanwhile heat the tomato puree in a pan over a medium heat until it begins to simmer. Lower the heat, cover with a large sieve or colander to prevent splashing and simmer for about 40 minutes until the sauce has thickened considerable. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking, taking care that the hot mixture does not splash on your skin. Place an equal amount of potatoes for each serving on a plate and top with half the sauce. Serve sprinkled with chopped parsley if desired.

Mushroom rajma (red kidney bean stew)

Red kidney beans are delicious cooked with tomatoes, onions and Indian spices, with mushrooms adding texture to the stew.

Serves: 4

Ingredients
400 g sieved tomatoes (passata)  or pureed canned tomatoes or about 4-5 medium tomatoes pureed and simmered for 10 minutes (only use fresh tomatoes if they are sweet and flavoursome)
2 cups cooked red kidney beans
2 cups diced mushrooms (I used chestnut mushrooms)
1 onion, diced
1 tablespoon finely chopped ginger
1 green chilli, sliced
1 teaspoon oil
2 teaspoons garam masala
1/2 teaspoon cumin powder
1/2 teaspoon coriander powder
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
a large pinch of fennel seeds
a large pinch of cumin seeds
2 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander
Salt to taste


Chapattis, naan, or other flat-bread, or rice, to serve

Method
Heat the oil in a large pan over a low heat and cook the onion for about 10 minutes until softened and beginning to turn translucent. Increase to medium heat and add the the ginger, chilli, mushrooms and spices and cook for 5-7 minutes until the mushrooms begin to soften and release a lot of liquid. Add the tomato paste and red kidney beans, mix well, cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes, until the sauce has thickened and the vegetables are soft. Add salt to taste. Serve hot sprinkled with chopped coriander, alongside flat-breads or rice.

Miso vegetable noodle soup

A light but substantial soup that is full of crunchy stir-fried vegetables and soft noodles surrounded by a hot, savoury miso broth. The dish contains both soya sauce and miso, both high in sodium so salt is generally unnecessary and I have not included it in the recipe. In fact additional flavouring is minimal as the soup takes advantage of the varied flavours of different vegetables.

Serves: 3

Ingredients

About 1 cup cooked rice noodles

½ a broccoli broken into small florets

1 small carrot, cut into thin long strips

4 spring onions, sliced diagonally

Mushrooms, halved and sliced thinly (I used chestnut mushrooms; if using very small mushrooms there is no need to halve them)

2 handfuls baby spinach leaves

1 teaspoon oil

1½ teaspoon finely chopped ginger

1-2 teaspoons soya sauce (I used tamari which has quite a strong flavour; use a larger amount if using a milder sauce)

For the miso broth:

1 cup/250 ml boiling water

1 ½ tablespoons miso (I used a dark miso so use more if you wish if your miso is light) mixed with ¼ cup/60 ml warm (but not very hot) water

Method

Heat the oil in a wok over a high and stir-fry broccoli, carrot, ginger and mushrooms for about 3 minutes. The mushroom will have begun to soften but other vegetables should be tender-crisp. Add the spring onions, spinach leaves and soya sauce and cook for another 1-2 minutes. 

The soup should be served as soon as possible after stir-frying the vegetables, otherwise they will lose their crispness. Heat the noodles if necessary. To prepare the broth, mix about ¼ -½  cup/ 60-125 ml cool water with the boiling water so that it is still hot but of a drinkable temperature, which will prevent the beneficial probiotics in miso from being destroyed as would happen at a high temperature. Place an equal amount of the vegetables in bowls for each serving and top with a portion of noodles. Pour about ½ cup of hot broth over the noodles and vegetables, stir if necessary and serve immediately.

Colcannon

Somewhat similar to the first recipe of this blog but actually a traditional Irish dish. If you cook the vegetables in the microwave, it is ready within minutes. Milk and nut butter give the potatoes a creamy consistency. Feel free to use any nut or seed butter of your choice except those that have a pronounced flavour like peanut butter. Green cabbage can also be used instead of kale and leeks may be substituted for the onions. Indeed, potatoes or sweet potatoes make an excellent pairing with many green vegetables (see also this recipe and this one).

Serves: 1

Ingredients

2 medium potatoes (I used Désirée potatoes, which have fluffy texture when cooked that is excellent for mashed potatoes)

a large handful of kale, roughly chopped (about 50 g/2 oz)

1/2 a medium onion, thinly sliced

2 teaspoons nut or seed butter (I used coconut-cashew nut butter)

6-8 tablespoons milk (I used almond milk)

Salt and pepper to taste

Method

Microwave the kale in a covered bowl with a few tablespoons of water for on high 5-7 minutes, until tender. If the kale becomes too dry, add some more water and cooked for 2 more minutes. Finely chop the cooked kale. Prick the potatoes well and microwave for 7-8 minutes until soft when pricked or squeeze. Mash the hot potatoes in a bowl with the skins on, adding the nut butter and incorporating it well. Add the milk 2-3 tablespoons at a time, mixing well, until your desired consistency is obtained. Mix in the chopped kale and season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Masala sprouts and tofu breakfast rice

Inspired by both the Indian khichdi, a mix of rice and lentils, and its British incarnation, the traditional breakfast dish kedgeree, which combines curried rice with eggs and fish and parsley. I have added sprouts and tofu to the rice in place of the lentils, and eggs and fish, and coriander instead of parsley as well as flavoured it with both North and South Indian spice mixtures. It is good way to use up leftover rice. 

Serves: 2

Ingredients
3/4 cups cold cooked rice 
1/4 cup cubed tofu
1/4 cup lentil sprouts
1/4 cup onion, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon finely chopped ginger
1/2 teaspoon oil
1 teaspoon sambar powder/South Indian curry powder
1 teaspoon garam masala
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon cumin seeds
2 tablespoons chopped coriander, plus a few sprigs (optional) to garnish
Salt to taste

Method
Heat the oil in a pan over a low heat and saute the onion and ginger for about 5 minutes. Add the cumin seeds and continue to cook until the onions have softened. Add the sambhar powder, garam masala and cook for about 30 seconds, stirring constantly to prevent burning. Immediately add the tofu and sprouts and mix to coat well with the spices. Cook for about 2 minutes. Add 1/4 cup/60 ml of water, increase to medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until the water is absorbed and the sprouts are tender. Add the cooked rice, mix well and cook until the rice is hot. Stir in chopped coriander, add salt to taste and serve garnished with more coriander if desired.

Quinoa, sweet potato and broccoli with creamy pepper dressing

Another quinoa recipe that is very simple to make. It is inspired by the idea of a 'bowl', which generally comprises a few different components served together with a sauce poured on top. Usually there is something in the lines of a grain, a vegetable and a protein. In this recipe there is broccoli, starchy sweet potato and high protein quinoa with a nutty sauce.

Serves: 2-3

Ingredients
2 sweet potatoes
1 broccoli, broken into small florets and with the stems thinly sliced or chopped into small pieces
1/2 cup quinoa
1/2 onion, chopped
1/2 teaspoon oil

For the dressing:
2 tablespoons nut or seed butter (I used coconut-cashew nut butter, other good choices would be plain cashew nut butter, sunflower seed butter, almond butter and tahini - I would not recommend peanut butter in this dish as its flavour would be too strong)
1-1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon vinegar (I used apple cider vinegar but use any of your choice that is not too strongly flavoured like balsamic vinegar)
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground or crushed black pepper
2-4 tablespoons of water

Method

Cook the quinoa according to package directions and drain if necessary. Cook the sweet potatoes by any method of your choice (I microwaved them), peeled and cut into 2 cm/ 3/4 in chunks. Prepare the dressing by mixing the pepper and lemon juice with the nut or seed butter until creamy. Add the vinegar and mix well. Dilute to a desired consistency, adding a little water at a time. It should be pourable with a spoon but not too thin as it would sink to bottom of the bowl. Heat the oil in a pan over a high heat and stir-fry the onion for 2-3 minutes. Add the broccoli and stir-fry for about 5 minutes, until the broccoli is tender crisp. Reheat the components if necessary and divide the quinoa, sweet potato and broccoli between the bowls for each serving. Serve drizzled generously with the dressing.