Cheap, simple, nutritious. Use this to make a spag bol, lasagne, a base for chilli or cottage pie.
Serves 6 – it’s worth making in this quantity to freeze if not needed in one sitting.
Ingredients
3 tbsp olive oil
2 onions, finely chopped
3 carrots, finely chopped
3 celery sticks, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, crushed
500g bag dried red lentils
2 x 400g cans chopped tomatoes
2 tbsp tomato purée
2 tsp each dried oregano and thyme
3 bay leaves
1l vegetable stock
Method
Heat the oil in a large saucepan and add the onions, carrots, celery and garlic. Cook gently for 15-20 mins until everything is softened. Stir in the lentils, chopped tomatoes, tomato purée, herbs and stock. Bring to a simmer, then cook for 40-50 mins until the lentils are tender and saucy – splash in water if you need. Season.
Serve immediately. Alternatively, cool the sauce and chill for up to 3 days. Or freeze for up to 3 months. Simply defrost portions overnight at room temperature, then reheat gently to serve.
It’s Not Easy Being Green
Ingredients
1 apple
1 kiwi
1 handful frozen spinach
1 slice melon
5cm chunk of cucumber
1 pear
2cm chunk of ginger
1 cup water
Method
Put all of the ingredients in a blender until smooth. Pour over ice to serve.
Green Smoothie
Ingredients
2 cups fresh spinach
2 cups water or dairy free ‘milk’
1/4 medium pineapple
1 mango
1 frozen banana (chopped into chunks)
Method
Blend the spinach and water/ milk until smooth. Add the other ingredients and blend until smooth.
Quick-Pickled Cucumbers with Rice Vinegar
Ingredients
1 cup rice wine vinegar
1 cup water
3/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon Kosher salt
4 cups thinly sliced Japanese or English cucumbers (about 3 Japanese or 1 English)
Method
Combine vinegar, water, sugar, and salt in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Remove from heat. Add cucumber slices and stir. Cover with a clean kitchen towel or a double layer of heavy duty paper towels, pressing down until towel is saturated with liquid and in direct contact with the cucumbers. Let rest 10 minutes, then transfer cucumbers to a sealable container. Top up with liquid and discard the rest. Store in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.
From http://www.seriouseats.com/
Butternut Squash and Chickpea Stew
Ingredients (serves 6)
2 tbsp oil (sunflower, olive or rapeseed all work well)
2 large onions (diced)
3 fat cloves garlic (crushed)
1 celery stalk (finely sliced)
1 tsp. black pepper
1tsp. turmeric
½ tsp cinnamon
½ teaspoon ginger
100g red lentils
1 large can chickpeas (400g) drained and rinsed well
1 tin chopped tomatoes (400g) (or chop your own – it’s easy)
1 medium butternut squash, peeled and cut into large cubes (about 1”)
1.2 litres veg stock
50g small pasta
Method
Heat the oil in a large saucepan (medium heat). Add onions and fry until just turning golden. Turn heat down to low and add garlic, celery, pepper, turmeric and ginger. Cook for a couple of minutes.
Add lentils, chickpeas, tomatoes and cook on a low heat for 15 minutes.
Add butternut squash and stock. Cover and simmer gently for 30 minutes. Add pasta and simmer until cooked. Keep an eye on this, small pasta shapes cook quickly.
Season with salt and pepper.
Lentil and Pearl Barley Winter Salad
Ingredients
100g brown lentils
100g pearl barley
1 onion
3 cloves garlic
1 tsp. medium curry paste
1 tsp. cumin seeds
1 green chilli (de-seeded)
Splash of lemon juice
Splash of oil
Method
Finely chop the onion, chilli, garlic.
Heat the oil in a large saucepan.
Add the chopped vegetables, curry powder, cumin – cook for a couple of minutes.
Add enough lemon juice to make a thin paste.
Add the lentils and barley and toss in the paste to cover.
Add enough water to cover the lentils and barley.
Bring to the boil, then turn down to a simmer. Keep an eye on the pan, you may need to top the water up as it cooks to stop the lentils from sticking.
Cook for around 30 mins, or until the water has evaporated and the lentils are cooked but not soft.
Add salt and pepper to taste.
Serve with finely sliced celery, grated cheese (optional) and carrot, chopped beetroot and a splash of balsamic vinegar.
Vegetable Layer Bake (serves 6)
Thinly sliced potatoes (2 large)
2 onions (sliced)
4 cloves garlic (crushed)
4 mushrooms (sliced)
1 400g tin butter beans (rinsed)
100g frozen sweetcorn
100g brown lentils
Enough gluten free vegetable stock to cover
A knob of butter
Mixed herbs
Black pepper
Preheat the oven to Gas 3
Prepare all the vegetables.
Layer up the ingredients in a large casserole in this order:
1/3 of the potatoes
½ of the onion
½ the mushrooms
½ tin butter beans
½ the sweetcorn
½ the lentils
Mixed herbs and black pepper
Repeat, and finish with a final layer of potato.
Add enough stock to cover, pop on a lid and place in a preheated oven (gas 3 ) for 1 hour.
Take off lid and bake for a further ½ hr.
*You can make this dish vegan by leaving out the butter*
