M'chicha Wa'nazi ( Spinach in Peanut Coconut Sauce )

Here's a delicious, simple way to serve spinach. It doesn't look so flash, especially with my typical lack of presentation, but it's very tasty and a great vegetarian comfort food for a rainy day like we've been having so many of. This is dish from Tanzania I found in one of my favourite cookbooks 'World Vegetarian Classics' by Celia Brooks Brown. Firstly, I love that everything I've made from this book has been great, but it also has the benefit of featuring authentic vegetarian dishes, not just adapted meat dishes, so they really stand up on their own. It also doesn't assume you can get hold of every exotic ingredient so provides lots of more easily accessible alternatives.

700g / 1 1½ lb fresh spinach, trimmed and thoroughly washed (or the equivalent in frozen spinach)

1 tsp salt

2 Tbsp / 30g / 1oz  butter

1 large onion, chopped

1-2 fresh red chillies, deseeded if large, finely chopped

½ cup / 70 g / 2 ¾oz roasted peanuts

1 cup / 250g / 8 fl oz coconut cream

Place the spinach and salt in a large saucepan with a lid. Cover and place over medium heat. Use tongs to turn the spinach from time to time, until it is fully collapsed and wilted (or thawed, if using frozen). Drain thoroughly in a colander, then use a potato masher to push out as much moisture as possible. Cool slightly, then chop coarsely.

Return the pan to a low-medium heat and add the butter. When the butter has melted, add the onion and chillies and cook until the onion is soft and translucent.

Puree the peanuts with the coconut cream in a blender until fairly smooth. Pour into the saucepan, add a good pinch of salt and cook, stirring, until slightly thickened, about 2 minutes. Stir the spinach through the sauce until piping hot, then serve. Alternatively, reheat the spinach and serve with sauce poured over. This should be eaten with some sort of African mash (see below).

My Mash with what I had on had used potatoes, sweet potatoes and red kidney beans (for extra protein) but the book pairs it with any of three mashes from Africa: 

Irio, a dish from the Kikuyu tribe in Kenya. Irio is essentially mashed potatoes with kidney beans, corn and greens mashed in. 

Matoke banana mash from Uganda: In a saucepan place 4 unripe bananas/plantains (or 10-12 matoke bananas if you can find them), peeled and broken into pieces; 1 large tomato, finely chopped; 1 medium onion, finely chopped; ⅔ cup / 150 ml / 5 fl oz water; and ½ teaspoon of salt. Simmer, uncovered, until most of the liquid has evaporated and the bananas are very soft. Remove from the heat, add 1 Tbsp / 15 g /½oz butter and mash until smooth.

Or Ugali cornmeal mash which is a staple throughout Africa south of the Sahara:

Use a ratio of 1:1½ white cornmeal to water. Combine in a saucepan with salt, bring to the boil and cook, stirring regularly, for 20-30 minutes until creamy but stiff; add butter and serve with stew.

Easy Bean Burgers

 makes 4 - 6 patties but easy to multiply recipe for more.

The recipe says it suits almost any medium to large bean but I've even used brown lentils and it worked fine. I've previously used chickpeas, kidney beans, black beans.... Just have a go with what's in your cupboard! Recipe from 'Veggie Burgers Every Which Way' by Lukas Volger.

1 1/2 cups cooked beans * 

2 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup freshly chopped parsley** 

1/4 cup grated parmesan*** 

2 teaspoons dijon mustard

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Squeeze fresh lemon juice

3/4 cup toasted breadcrumbs, plus more if needed**** 

2 Tablespoons olive oil

*I usually just use a 400g tin of already cooked beans

**this time I used frozen coriander as didn't have enough fresh parsley

***this time I used some grated aged Comte and some generic 'frommage rape'

****Usually I have plenty of stale baguette crumbs (made in blender) but this time I used a mixture of breadcrumbs and rice-cake crumbs whizzed in blender.

1. Preheat oven to 190 degrees C
2. in a mixing bowl, mash the beans using a potato masher or fork (not needed for lentils). Fold in eggs, parsley, parmesan, mustard, salt, pepper, and lemon juice. Fold in the breadcrumbs, adding more if mixture is too loose. Let sit for 5-10 minutes for the crumbs to soak up some moisture. Adjust seasonings. Shape into 4 patties.
3. In an oven-safe skillet or non-stick saute pan, heat the oil over a med-high heat. When hot, add the patties and cook until browned on each side, 6-10 minutes total. Transfer the pan to the oven and bake for 12-15 minutes, until the burgers are firm and cooked through. (May not need this long)

Mushroom and Herb Polenta (vegan)

Recipe slightly adapted (veganised) from 'Plenty' by Yotam Ottolenghi

"When cooking polenta my father always makes much more than he needs. Half of it he serves straight away in the runny state with a flavoursome sauce. The rest he spreads on an oiled surface and allows it to set. Then next day, he cuts out chunks, fries them in olive oil, and serves with a chunky vegetable salad (tomato, cucumber, cos lettuce) dressed lightly with red wine vinegar and olive oil. The dish here uses soft polenta but you may wish to double the quantity to follow my father's idea."

Serves 2

4 Tbsp of olive oil
350g mixed mushrooms, large ones halved
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 Tbsp chopped tarragon
1 Tbsp chopped thyme
1 Tbsp truffle oil (if you have it)
500ml vegetable stock
80g polenta (instant or traditional)
80 g vegan parmesan*
30 g vegan butter or olive oil
1 Tbsp finely chopped rosemary
1 Tbsp chopped chervil
100g decent vegan melting cheese (if available, or skip), cut into 1cm slices
salt and black pepper

Method
Heat up half the olive oil in a large frying pan. Once hot, add half the mushrooms and fry for a few minutes, or until just cooked; try not to move them much to allow them can develop golden brown patches on their surface. Remove from the pan, and repeat with the rest of the mushrooms and oil.

Off the heat, return all the mushrooms to the pan and add the garlic, tarragon, thyme, truffle oil and some salt and pepper. Keep warm.

Bring the stock to the boil in a saucepan. Slowly stir in the polenta, then reduce heat to the minimum and cook, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. The polenta is ready when it leaves the sides of the pan but is still runny. If you are using instant polenta, this shouldn't take more than five minutes. With traditional polenta it could take up to 50 minutes (if it seems to dry out add some more stock or water but just enough to keep it at a thick porridge consistency).

Preheat the grill to high. When the polenta is ready, stir in the vegan parmesan, butter/oil, rosemary and half the chervil. Season with salt and pepper. Spread the polenta over a heatproof dish and top with the vegan cheese, if using. Place under till cheese bubbles / things look golden, not burnt. Remove. Top with the mushrooms and their juices and return to the grill for a minute to warm up. Serve hot, garnished with the remaining chervil.

Spinach and Lentils with Pomegranate Sauce ( ghalieh esfanaj )

"This simple dish from the Caspian coastline of Northern Iran is tangy and delicious. Serve it with a rice pilau and yoghurt." - Arto der Haroutunian. 'Vegetarian Dishes from Across the Middle East'

l cup of dried whole lentils, washed

700g (1 1/2 lb) fresh spinach or 450g (1 lb) frozen leaf spinach

2 Tablespoons of olive oil or vegan butter

1 onion, thinly sliced

1 teaspoon of salt

3 Tablespoons of pomegranate juice

Bring a large saucepan half-filled with lightly salted water to the boil, add the lentils and simmer until tender, about 30-40 minutes. Drain the lentils and set aside.

If using fresh spinach, wash it thoroughly; if using frozen, let it thaw. Squeeze excess moisture out of the spinach and chop it coarsely.

heat the oil in a frying pan and add the onion, stirring frequently until it is golden brown. Add the chopped spinach, stir well and cover the pan. Lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

Stir in the lentils, salt and pomegranate juice, then cover the pan and simmer for a further 20 minutes.

Transfer to a serving dish and serve immediately.

Hot Cross Buns

Homemade Hot Cross Buns are just the best. Even so, I used to buy them at the supermarket or bakery as I was usually busy around Easter time and buying them meant I could eat more of them! Cut in half and toasted then spread with a little butter - a delicious breakfast or afternoon tea.

Here in France they are not Easter fare though. Easter fare also excludes cream-eggs, marshmellow eggs, caramel eggs and just a whole season of chocolate indulgence - the French, at least people I know, seem better at just celebrating with Easter food on Easter weekend and even then, it's more the roast lamb they look forward to than sweet treats (except the kids who do get an Easter Egg hunt). As a vegetarian, I was much more looking forward to the sweet offerings and started looking for my beloved-once-a-year hot cross buns which were nowhere to be found. So, unable to accept cultural difference in this instance, turned to a Kiwi chef whose home cooking, enjoyed by adults and children alike,  my generation thrived on. Thank you Alison Holst for letting me share a Kiwi (originally English?) favourite with my French friends.

I took them to a pot-luck afternoon tea with international and French friends and we ate them still hot from the oven with salted French butter. Superb. The ones I made were not huge - I was running out of time to let them rise again once made into buns - but the texture was still great, not heavy little rocks like my previous attempts (before I found Alison Holst's recipe). Makes 30

Ingredients

2 tablespoons active dry yeast, e.g. Surebake active yeast mixture
2 cups flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1 cup milk, cold
1 cup boiling water
50 g butter, melted
1 egg
1 cup mixed fruit (I prefer just raisins usually but for these used dried mulberries too)
1 tablespoon mixed spice
1 tablespoon cinnamon
3 -4 cups flour

Crosses

1/2 cup flour
2 tablespoons oil
water, to taste

Glaze

2 tablespoons water
1/4 cup sugar

Directions

1. Measure the yeast mixture, flour, brown sugar and salt into a large bowl. Stir to mix and then add the cold milk followed by the boiling water. Stir thoroughly to mix.
2. Leave to stand for 3 minutes. Melt the butter and assemble the rest of the ingredients.
3. Once the 3 minutes is up, stir in the rest of the ingredients except for the flour. 
4. Now add as much flour as need to make a dough just firm enough to turn out on a board and knead. [The original recipe suggests 3 cups. I needed 4.]. 
5. Knead the dough for 5-10 minutes until smooth and satiny and it springs back when you press it with a finger.
6. Oil a large bowl and turn the dough ball in this until it is all coated. Cover the mixture with plastic wrap and leave to stand until it doubles its original bulk.
7. Turn out on a floured board, knead lightly and cut into 30 evenly sized pieces.
8. Form each piece into a ball and arrange the buns in rows in a dish or pan with at least 1 cm between them. A roasting dish works well and takes about 15 buns.
9. Preheat the oven to 220°C/425°F and when ready turn the heat down to 200°C/400°F.
10. Put crosses on the buns.Make a paste of the flour and oil and then add enough water to make a dough that can be forced out of an icing bag. Pipe the crosses on the buns.
11. Put the buns in the oven and bake for about 15 minutes until they brown slightly and feel firm. Remove from oven and glaze with a hot syrup made by heating sugar and water.
12. Cool buns on a rack. Store in airtight containers when cold.

If you want to make a smaller quantity, halve the ingredients except for the egg. You may need more flour.

Pasta with Turnips and Turnip Tops

Turnips, turnips, turnips!
Trying to eat local organic produce throughout the winter has been a challenge. It's been a lot of root vegetables - potatoes, turnips, parsnips, rutabagas, celeriac/jerusalem artichokes, black radishes, and a few I didn't know. Apart from potatoes, not my favourite vegetable selection but I've tried to make the most of it, making root vegetable korma, aligot (French cheesy-garlicky potato puree), roast vegetable salads, soups, and using them as a base of chillies and curries.
Growing up in NZ I never really ate turnips though - we mainly ate potatoes, carrots, kumara/sweet potato and beetroot and I tried to avoid parsnips and yams. My main association with turnips were the children's books 'The Great Big Enormous Turnip' and 'The Hobyahs'.

The Hobyahs storybook video

Not being so keen on building a house out of turnips and quickly running out of ideas for using turnips in meals,  I searched my recipe books for ideas. In 'The Top One Hundred Pasta Sauces' by Diane Seed, I found a recipe from Puglia that used the turnip tops: Orecchiette con Cime di Rape (Orecchiette with Turnip Tops). Vegetables at the market are often sold in bunches with their tops still attached so we can appreciate their freshness and it seems a waste not to use the leaves if there's something yummy we can make with them.  So I've made this nice recipe a few times but also added the turnip roots to use the whole bunch at once. Thanks to some restaurants here in France, I've learned turnips are very nice caramelised, which can be done either by slicing thinly and cooking, stirring, in a pan till they naturally caramelise, or, if using larger chunks like here, adding a bit of olive oil or butter and a little sugar or honey to help things along (sometimes water or vegetable stock is also used).

So here's my combination of the two ideas:

Pasta with Caramelised Turnips and Turnip Tops.

Serves 4 as a main or six as an entree.

Ingredients

500g / 1 lb orecchiette or other short pasta
1 bunch of small fresh turnips with green tops attached
3 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp liquid honey or 1-2 tsp sugar (optional)
salt

4 Tbsp / olive oil (second measure)
5 cloves of garlic
1 or 2 small chilli peppers or 2 tsp / 10ml dried chilli flakes

Method

Cut the tops off the turnips and set the greens aside. Brush the turnips clean in water. Cut into bite-sized chunks. In a frying pan, saute the turnip roots, turning often (8-10 minutes) or steam above the boiling water till becoming tender. Then, in frying pan, add sugar or honey and oil to turnips and cook, stirring now and then, till caramelised - they will be nicely browned in places. Set aside till ready to use.

Now wash the turnip tops and cut into long thin strips. Heat a large pot of salted water (this will be used for cooking first the greens and later, pasta). When water is boiling, plunge in the greens and blanch, making sure not to overcook - they should remain vivid green. Remove greens with a slotted spoon (or you can cook greens in a colander to make removal easier). Keep the water and boil the pasta in it. You may need to add some more water if there was not enough. Cook pasta till al dente.

In another frying pan (or remove turnips to a bowl and clean first pan) heat the second measure of olive oil. Add chopped garlic and chilli pepper, stirring until garlic is golden brown but not burnt.

When pasta is nearly ready, add the greens back into the pan and cook together another couple of minutes. Drain carefully, shaking colander to remove any water trapped in the pasta. Pour the pasta and turnip greens into a large warmed serving dish. Add the caramelised turnips, mix gently then pour over the garlic/chilli oil and stir well. Serve at once.

Pardon my blurry photo and lack of orecchiette pasta

Mushroom Stroganoff

Vegan Mushroom Stroganoff with Cashew Cream

Ingredients

500g sliced mushrooms
1 large brown onion sliced thinly
3 cloves garlic minced
800mls veggie stock
2tsps Dijon mustard
60mls lemon juice
20mls ACV (apple cider vinegar)
2tsps smoked paprika
1tsp thyme
1tsp oregano
40mls olive oil
Pepper to taste
250g dried short pasta like penne or spirals

Cashew Cream

100g raw cashews soaked
100mls water
3tbs nooch

Method
1. Heat oil in a pan to medium high heat then add the onion and garlic and sauté until soft. Add mushrooms and cook for about 3 mins, stirring regularly.
2. Add veggie stock, mustard, lemon juice, ACV, paprika, thyme, oregano and pepper. Bring to the boil.
3. Add pasta and cover, cooking until aldente then allow to cool a little with the lid off. After about 5 mins, add the *cashew cream and serve.

Cashew Cream
*Add all ingredients to a container and I use a stick blender to blend until smooth.