Hummus with Cumin, Paprika and Fresh Coriander

There already is a basic hummus recipe in this blog but I do like this version so much I decided it deserved its own entry.

1 440 ml tin of chickpeas in water
3-4 tbsp tahini
juice of a lemon
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp freshly ground toasted cumin
1/2 tsp paprika
1 garlic clove, squeezed through a garlic press

Drain the chickpeas but catch the liquor. You'll need about one-third of it to ensure the hummus is creamy rather than dry.

Place all the ingredients into the beaker that comes with your hand blender or into the food processor. Whizz and check the flavour.

Chickpea and Vegetable Pan

Today's recipe comes without too many instructions. It was spontaneous, vegan and delicious. Just try it using your imagination. Serve with warm crusty bread, e. g. ciabatta, pasta, potatoes, couscous, millet, buckwheat, rice or... or...

red onion, sliced
aubergine, diced
courgette, cored and sliced
mushrooms, sliced
1 tin chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 tin chopped tomatoes
splash of red wine
sea salt
black pepper
toasted cumin seeds, ground
garlic, crushed
olive oil
chopped parsley or coriander to serve, optional

Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan and start sautéing the onion and aubergine. Once they start browning, throw in the courgette and mushrooms. Add the garlic and seasoning. After a few minutes add the can of chopped tomatoes and the wine. Cover and simmer until the veggies are almost done. Add the chickpeas during the last five minutes. Serve sprinkled with freshly chopped parsley or coriander if at hand.

Mushrooms stuffed with butter beans served with pistachio basmati rice

This recipe can easily be turned into a veggie dish. Just leave out the bresaola and chorizo and season with salt. I served this with pistachio basmati anad a broccoli salad, only this time I used balsamic for the dressing instead of lemon juice and served the salad cold.
(serves 2-4)

1 tin of organic butter beans (no added salt or sugar), drained
1 red onion
1 white onion
3 garlic cloves
5 spring onions
50 g chorizo
4 sices of bresaola, optional
1 heaped tsp. dried oregano
150 ml full bodied red wine
extra virgin olive oil
freshly ground black pepper

4 large flat mushrooms
100 g crumbled feta cheese

1. Peel the mushrooms and remove the stalks. Set aside. 2. Halve and slice the onions, coarsely grate the garlic and slice the spring onions. Halve the chorizo lengthways and slice into 2-3 mm thick slices. Cut the bresaola in half and slice. 3. Heat the olive oil in a heavy saucepan, e. g. Le Creuset, add onions, spring onions garlic, chorizo, bresaola, chopped mushroom stalks, oregano and sautée first over a high heat, then over a medium heat to caramalise the onion and brown the meat. This'll take 10-15 minutes. 4. Add the drained butter beans and mix. Pour over the wine and season with pepper. Cook over a low to medium heat for about 30-45 minutes to infuse the flavours. 5. Fill the mushrooms with the bean mix and place in a lightly oiled baking tray. Cover with tin foil and bake in the oven for 20-30 minutes. Remove the tin foil, sprinkle over the feta cheese and put under the grill for a couple of minutes until the feta has browned.

Pistachio basmati

Chorizo Cassoulet with Cannellini Beans

This is a wonderful warming autumn dish which I served with a warm broccoli salad. If you're vegetarian and leave out the chorizo just add a little salt. If you want to leave out the wine, you can optionally add a tablespoon of balsamic.

100 g chorizo, halved lengthways and sliced
1 onion, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 leek, finely sliced
1 can organic cannellini beans (without salt or sugar), rinsed and drained
300 g potatoes, peeled and diced
1/2 small Hokaido pumpkin, diced
1 carrot, peeled, cut lenghtways and sliced
500 ml tomato passata
8-10 sage leaves. finely sliced
2 bay leaves, rolled up and secured with a cocktail stick extra virgin olive oil
freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp hot Hungarian paprika
1/2 glass of full bodied red wine
optionally soured cream for serving

1. Sauté the onion, garlic, leak, sage and chorizo over a medium heat until the veggies are soft.

2. Add the potatoes, carrot, pumpkin, beans, bay leaves and mix well. Then add the passata and wine, if used. Season with pepper and paprika.

3. Bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook for 30-60 minutes. The longer it cooks the more intense the flavours.

4. Serve with the warm broccoli salad or a crunchy green salad.

Spinach soup with tahini and chickpeas

Normally I don't add salt to soups as I find that there is enough salt even in the reduced salt vegetable stock powder I usually use. However, the stock for this soup was home made without added salt.

500 g fresh spinach, washed
1 tin of organic chickpeas, drained
2-2.5 l vegetable stock
2 heaped tbsp of unsalted tahini
1 onion, finely chopped
2-3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 large handfuls of fine wholemeal oat flakes
extra virgin olive oil
freshly ground black pepper
sea salt
dried herbes des Provence

1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan and sauté the onion, garlic and herbs over a low to medium heat for about 5 minutes until softened but not browned.

2. Add the stock, oat flakes, tahini and half of the chickpeas. Season with pepper and salt and bring to the boil. Simmer for about 10 minutes until the oat flakes have softened.

3. Add the spinach and let it wilt. Then check the seasoning and blend.

4. After blending, check the seasoning again, add the remaining chickpeas and heat through.

Home-made baked beans

These taste a lot nicer than shop-bought baked beans and you have control over the amount of sugar you add (if any – I don’t). I make this dish in two different ways: really thick with practically no sauce or with sauce by adding passata.

1 440 g-can of beans, no salt or sugar added, (e. g. Cannelini, black-eyed, )
1 red onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
½ tsp. dried basil
2 tbsp. tomato puree
freshly ground pepper
sea salt
extra virgin olive oil
tomato passata (optional)
Heat the olive oil in a saucepan that can be placed in the oven and sauté the onions and garlic until softened. Add the herbs and stir for a minute, then add the beans and tomato puree. Season with salt and pepper and mix well. Add a little water or (if used) the passata.
Cover with a lid and bake at 200 °C/gas mark 5-6 for 15 – 20 minutes.

Mushrooms Stuffed with Aubergine and Black-Eyed Beans

4 flat mushrooms
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 red chilli, finely chopped
dried herbs (e. g. oregano, basil)
1 tin of organic black-eyed beans
2 tbsp. tomato purée
extra virgin olive oil
freshly ground black pepper
sea salt

1. Wipe the mushrooms and remove the stalks. Coarsely chop the stalks.

2. Using a speed peeler cut a stripe of skin off two opposite sides of the aubergine. Cut the aubergine lengthways in 5 mm thick slices and chop into small chunks.

3. Heat some olive oil in a pan and fry the aubergines and mushroom stalks until they begin to brown. Drain on kitchen paper and set aside.

4. Heat a little olive oil in the same pan and sautée the onion, garlic and chilli until softened. Add the aubergines, and beans. Season with pepper and salt.

5. Using just over half of the vegetables fill the mushrooms.

6. Add the tomato purée to the remaining vegetables and transfer the mix into a roasting tray. Sit the mushrooms on top. Cover with tin foil and bake at gas mark 6/200 °C for 30 minutes or until the mushrooms are cooked.

Serve with mustard mash or warm crusty bread.

Black & Brown Rice with Black Beans

I'd not made this for a while so couldn't figure out why I should cook the brown and wild (black) rice separately as they both take approx. 30-40 minutes. Well, I remembered as soon as the water started to heat up - the wild rice was leaking colour. I'll have to update the photo next time I make this dish.

(serves 4 as a side dish)

50 g wild rice
200-250 g of wholegrain rice
2-3 tbsp. raisins
2-3 tbspl toasted pumpkin seeds
extra virgin olive oil
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 red onion, chopped
2 large garlic cloves, chopped
1 sweet red chilli, chopped
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1 can of organic black beans (no salt or sugar added), drained and rinsed.

1. Pour each type of rice into mug or something similar, then transfer into a saucepan. Add 3.5 times as much cold water and optionally a little salt. Boil for 30-40 minutes until the rice is tender, adding more water if required. Then drain and set aside.

2. Meanwhile cover the raisins with a little tepid water and set aside.

3. Heat some olive oil in a frying pan and sautée the onion, garlic and chilli over a medium heat for a couple of minutes. Then add the cumin and sautée for another minute or so.

4. Next add the beans and season with pepper and salt. Heat through.

5. Combine both types of rice, the drained raisins, the pumpkin seeds and the bean mix.

Delicious hot or cold.

Carrot and Butter Bean Soup

1-1.25 kg carrots, peeled and chopped
3-4 medium-sized potatoes, peeled and chopped
1.5-1.8 l of (low salt, organic) veg stock
2 medium onions, finely chopped
3-4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
dried herbes de Provence and/or 1 large bay leaf
2 tbsp organic tahini
1 tin organic butter beans, drained and rinsed
pepper
olive oil

1. Sauté the onions and garlic until soft, then add potatoes and carrots. Stir until all the veg is coated in the garlic/onion mix.

2. Add the stock, bring to the boil, season with pepper (I don't add salt) and simmer until the veggies are soft.

3. Add the tahini and blend the soup. Then add the butter beans. Return to a very low heat to heat them through.

Lovely scattered with (toasted) sunflower, sesame or pumpkin seeds.

Also works well without the tahini.

Vegetarian Chilli

Serves 8-10.

As with the chilli con carne, I've kept this on the mild side. It can be spiced up by each guest as preferred.

1 fennel bulb (optional), chopped
500 g potatoes, diced
1-2 sweet potatoes, diced
1 small butternut squash, diced
500 g mixed peppers, cut into bite-size chunks
500 g mushrooms, halved or quartered (depending on size)
2-3 carrots, diced
2 large onions, finely chopped
2-3 celery sticks, finely sliced
3-4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2-3 red chillis, finely chopped
2-3 tins of organic kidney beans (no salt or sugar added), drained and rinsed
3 tins of chopped tomatoes (a mix of tomatoes in tomato juice and tomatoes in thick sauce)
250 ml red wine
1 packet of passata (if needed to thicken the sauce)

pepper
salt
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp Hungarian paprika (csemege or csípős csemege)
1 tsp ground chilli powder
olive oil

chopped fresh coriander to serve (optional)

1. Sauté onions, garlic, celery, fennel at a medium to low heat in olive oil for 5-10 nminutes to soften but not brown them.

2. Add the vegetables and sauté for a few more minutes until the vegetables are coated with the oil/onion/garlic mix.

3. Then add tomatoes and wine. Season and cook until the vegetables are soft but not mushy. Check the taste and add more seasoning as necessary.

4. Serve with crusty bread, soured cream, paste of Birds Eye Chillis and optionally, freshly chopped chillis and chopped fresh coriander.

Chilli con Carne

Serves 15-20.

This is a fairly mild (2 chillis) to medium (4 chillis) chilli con carne and caters for different tastes. Those who like it really hot can add additional chillis or paste of Birds Eye Chillis.

1.5 - 2 kg beef mince (or a mix of pork and beef mince, e.g. half and half)
500 g potatoes, diced
2-3 carrots, diced
1 medium sized sweet potato, diced
1/2 small butternut squash, diced
500-750 g mixed peppers, cut into bite-size chunks
3 large onions, finely chopped
1 bulb garlic (or less, to taste), finely chopped
1/2 bunch celery, finely sliced
1/2 fennel, (optional) finely chopped
2-4 red chillis, finely chopped
2-3 tins of organic kidney beans (no salt or sugar added), drained and rinsed
4-5 tins of chopped tomatoes (a mix of tomatoes in tomato juice and tomatoes in thick sauce)
1/2 bottle of red wine
pepper
salt
2-3 tsp ground cumin
3-5 tsp Hungarian paprika (csemege or csípős csemege)
2-5 tsp ground chilli powder
olive oil
chopped fresh coriander to serve (optional)

1. Sauté onions, garlic, celery, fennel tops at a medium to low heat in olive oil for 5-10 nminutes to soften but not brown them.

2. Add the vegetables and sauté for a few more minutes until the vegetables are coated with the oil/onion/garlic mix.

3. Meanwhile brown the mince in a separate frying pan, if necessary in batches, seasoning it with pepper, salt and half the paprika.

4. Add add tomatoes and wine to the veg. Season and cook until the vegetables are almost ready. Now add the meat and cook for a little longer until the veggies ar soft but not mushy. Check the taste and add more seasoning as necessary.

5. Take off the heat, move the lid to allow the steam to escape. Reheat when ready to serve.

6. Serve with crusty bread, soured cream, paste of Birds Eye Chillis and optionally, freshly chopped chillis and chopped fresh coriander.

There's also a recipe for a vegetarian chilli on this blog.

Bean Pot

I can't remember when I came up with this but it's a firm favourite at any time of the year as it can be serve hot or cold. There are actually 2 versions of this dish: one with kidney beans and one with butter beans. I admit that we make the butter bean version a lot more frequently though with the rain lashing against the windows I opted for kidney beans - this variation feels kind of more warming and autumnal today.


version 1:
1 440ml tin of organic butter beans (no added sugar or salt), drained and rinsed
a good gug of dry white wine

version 2:
1 440ml tin of organic kidney beans (no added sugar or salt), drained and rinsed
a good glug of red wine

2-3 medium onions, halved and sliced - you may use ordinary or red onions or a mixture of both
2-3 garlic cloves, finely sliced
extra virgin olive oil
freshly ground black pepper
sea salt
a few sprigs of fresh thyme

1. Heat the oil in a heavy saucepan - I prefer my Le Creuset for this. Add the onions and garlic and fry over a high heat until the onions start to brown. Keep stirring to brown all the onions and to prevent them burning. The Le Creuset's sides also start getting that caramellised look, which will dissolve when adding the wine.

2. Add the wine, the beans,the fresh thyme and bring briefly to the boil. Season with pepper and salt and turn down the heat and cover. At this point, I usually move the saucepan to the smallest gas ring and turn the heat right down.

3. Gently simmer with the lid on for about 45 minutes stirring occasionally.

4. To finish, remove the thyme, check the seasoning and serve hot or cold.

Things you may want to add:
1. A couple of handfuls of coarsely chopped fresh spinach. Just add the spinach when the dish is ready and the heat turned off, it will wilt when mixing it in. This works well for both varieties.

2. With the butter bean pot, I sometimes add the following:
- black olives
- chopped sun dried tomatoes
- anchovies
- halved cherry tomatoes (approx. 10 minutes before the end of the cooking time)

Variation:
Use fresh broad beans, boiled or parboiled if they are quite large, instead of butter beans.

Lentil Paté

440ml tin organic lentils (no added salt or sugar), drained and rinsed
freshly ground pepper
salt
1 garlic clove, crushed
4tbsp extra virgin olive oil (or oil from sundried tomatoes)
4-6 sundried tomatoes, chopped
1tbsp balsamic vinegar


1. Set aside 1/3-1/2 of the lentils.

2. Put remaining lentils and all the other ingredients apart from the spinach in a beaker and purer.

3. Using a fork, mix in the whole lentils and spinach if used.

Variations:
1. Substitute the lentils with a can of mixed beans.
2. Once, blended, fold in a couple of tablespoons of chopped, steamed, fresh baby spinach ensuring that most of the liquid has been squeezed out.
3. Instead of tinned lentils, use a similar quantity of cooked puy lentils.

Hummus

440ml tin of (organic) chick peas (no added salt or sugar), drained
2tbsp of the liquid from the can (optional for a creamier consistency)
2tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2tsp tahini
freshly ground black pepper
salt
juice of a lemon
1 garlic clove, crushed

Put all the ingredients into a beaker and blend with a handheld blender. To serve, sprinkle with some paprika or freshly chopped herbs.

Variations:
1. Leave out the tahini and use 4tbsp olive oil instead.
2. Keep 1-2tbsp chick peas aside, roughly mash with a fork or chop and add to the blend.
3. Blend in 1-2 roasted red peppers, either home-made ones or out of a jar.
4. Chop some fresh herbs, e.g. coriander or even rocket, and mix them in at the end.
5. Use other pulses, e.g. borlotti beans, cannellini beans, mixed beans, black-eyed beans etc.  Beans are creamier than chickpeas, therefore no liquor needs to be added. I also like to rinse them under water to remove the thick liquor they're tinned in.

Pan Panache #1: Mixed veg with chickpeas

We often use whatever is in the fridge and throw it all in our fantastic large pan. So this is the first of my pan panache recipes, this time served with lumaconi pasta.

2 smallish aubergines, diced
2 courgettes, halved and thickly sliced
1 red pepper, sliced
1 yellow pepper, sliced
1 bunch spring onions, sliced
1 440 ml tin organic chick peas, drained (because life is too short to cook pulses)
a couple of tablespoons of olives (because I couldn't be bothered putting them back in the jar)
freshly ground black pepper
sea salt
garlic flavoured extra virgin olive oil

1. Heat some olive oil and add the aubergines. Brown on both sides adding more oil as necessary, then push to the side of the pan away from the heat source.

2. Add more oil and add the courgettes and onions. Brown, then add the spring onions. Turn down the heat to soften the onions and veg.

3. Add the chick peas. Season with pepper and salt.

4. Move to a smaller ring, turn the heat low and cover until the veggies are softened.

Serve with crusty bread, rice, or like tonight with pasta.