Tapas tea

We fancied a bit of a change, and a bit of a cheer up - with the weather being continuously grim.  So, for the veg dodger pork and chorizo, for the pescatarian garlic prawns … and for the using up of the veg box - potatoes, onion and pepper, creamy cabbage, avocado and radish salad and some manchego … delish.

Olive oil
Onion
Garlic
Yellow (or whichever) pepper
Potatoes
Sherry
Cider vinegar
Pork loin chops
Chorizo
Cabbage
Lemon
Egg
Soya cream (or sour cream)
Little gem lettuce
Radishes
Avocado
Cherry tomatoes
Prawns
chilli flakes

1.  Chop one white and one red onion.  Sautee the white onion in olive oil, add a little crushed garlic.  Then add chopped pepper, sliced potatoes, a splash of sherry, a splash of cider vinegar and some water.  Simmer gently, turning occasionally.
2.  Sautee half the red onion in olive oil, add chopped pork loin chops and chopped chorizo.  Brown a little, then leave to stew gently.
3.  Sautee the other half of red onion, with a little garlic, add shredded cabbage and a little water.   Season and cook until soft, squeeze on juice of half a lemon.  Whisk an egg into cream, add to the cabbage mixture and stir in.
4.  Chop salad vegetables, spritz with lemon juice to stop the avocado discolouring.
5.  Fry crushed garlic, prawns and a little chilli in olive oil.
6.  Serve, scoff ...

Stew and dumplings - vegan stylee

Rain, rain, rain, rain … and cold - and injuries, so we are almost housebound at the mo.  Today demanded serious comfort food - so, vegan butter bean autumnal casserole with DUMPLINGS!!! yay.. and gluten free dumplings at that.  This was a triumph - served with red cabbage braised in apple juice (and flash fried steak for the veg dodger).  This plant based rib sticker stew was a total winner.

For the stew:

Olive oil
onions
garlic
swede
carrots
potatoes
mushrooms
butternut squash
vegetable stock
mustard
tinned tomatoes
butter beans
red cabbage
apple juice
red wine


Dumplings

Self raising flour (gluten free for us)
salt and pepper
olive oil
plant based veg spread (soya margarine for us)
soya milk
parsley

1.  Slowly fry chopped onion and crushed garlic in olive oil.
2.  Prep veg - peel, chop into more or less even sized pieces - all of the veg.  Chucnk into the pan with the onions.  Stir around and then add some stock.  Simmer.
3.  Add a spoonful of mustard and season to taste.
4.  Drain a tin of butter beans.    Add a tin of chopped tomatoes to the pan, follow with a tinful of water - turn it down and simmer for 20 minutes or so … until the veg yield to the tip of a knife.
5.  Make the braised cabbage (optional, obvs … but it goes really nicely)  sweat off chopped onion and crushed garlic, add a splash of apple juice and a splash of red wine - then shredded red cabbage - simmer gently - add more water if needed .. keep simmering and checking water level until done.
6.  Mix self raising flour with a little salt and a grind of pepper, add chopped parsley - drizzle in some olive oil and a knob  of plant based marg - cut the fat through the flour, then add soya milk and mix to a firm dough.
7.  Add the drained butter beans to the stew.
8.  Make the dumplings by mixing the mixture until you can form small balls in your hand - add more "milk" if too dry or more flour if too wet/sticky.
9.  Drop dumplings onto stew … cover … steam,/simmer for 20 minutes
10.  Serve, scoff (fry minute steaks in a hot pan for 5 minutes before serving if necessary!  the veg dodger was happy with good stew, dumplings, cabbage and MEAT)

Cheese and onion pie - gluten free! ta dah!

Once again we were in need of comfort food - and you can't beat pie, chips and beans … the pie needed to be gluten free, and the chips were baby roasties - the beans came out of a tin.  Altogether delicious - totally hit the spot!  The veg dodger didn't complain about lack of meat once.

Gluten free pastry is incredibly crumbly, so roll it out on greaseproof paper to transfer to pie dish and the top of the pie.  Also, be prepared to patch up cracks!

I am lactose intolerant, but know the price I have to pay for cheese … which is why I use soya milk to glaze and seal.

Gluten free flour
Soya spread (or butter)
Salt
Natural yogurt
Dijon mustard
Potatoes
Olive oil
Onions
Cheese (I used cheddar, but Cheshire and Lancashire or a mixture works well too)
Baked beans

1.  Rub the fat into the flour, with a pinch of salt, until it resembles breadcrumbs.  Stir in a spoonful of natural yogurt, a teaspoonful of Dijon mustard and a splash of very cold water.  Mix until it starts coming together in a ball - add a drop more water if it needs it, more flour if it has got sticky.  When it comes together as a ball knead it gently until it is a convincing "ball".  Do not try to knead it much - the paste is very fragile, as it has no gluten which would normally give some elasticity.  Wrap with reusable sandwich wrap/cling film and pop in the fridge for 30 minutes.
2.  Slice onions into half rings, toss them about so they separate.
3.  Grate the cheese.
4.  Cut potatoes into cubes and toss in olive oil, sprinkle with salt.  Roast for 1 hour.
5.  Roll half the pastry onto greaseproof paper, lightly dusted with flour.  Transfer pastry to a greased pie dish,  patch little broken bits where necessary.
6.  Spread a little flour in the bottom of the pastry case (to help prevent the soggy bottom) - add layers of cheese and onions.
7.  Roll out the lid onto greaseproof paper ducted lightly with flour.  Brush a little soya milk around the edge of the base pastry.  Transfer the lid onto the pie - I held it over the top and did a speedy flip over - patch up the gaps and neaten the edge.  Brush the top with soya milk.  Bake for about 40 minutes.
8.  Put beans in oven proof dish and pop in the oven with everything else, to heat through.
9.  Serve, scoff