Qorma-e-Maash

This recipe is adapted from Sally Butcher's 2011 book "Veggiestan".

I made up a spice mix, and then made the casserole.  I used vegetables which I had in the fridge, others could easily be substituted.

The spice mix is HOT, so my advice, if you would like to make something similar is to treat it with caution.  The spice mix would also be good for a chicken casserole.

So, ...

Baked potatoes

Stab potatoes with a fork, and coat lightly with olive oil - these were huge, so 20 minutes in the microwave, then 1 hour in the oven.

Mung bean casserole

Olive oil
Chopped onion
Qorma-3-Maash spice mix
Carrot
Red pepper
Turnip
Mung beans - 2 handfuls
Stock/water
Kale
Tomatoes


1.  Sautee the chopped onion in the oil, until it is softenned.
2.  Add no more than 1 tbsp spice mix .... this will be quite hot ...!
3.  Add prepared root veg and stir in.  Add chopped pepper.
4.  Chuck in the mung beans and cover with stock or water.  Simmer for about 30-40 minutes.  Add more liquid if it looks like it is getting dry.
5.  When the mung beans are cooked - (squash them between your fingers) - add about 4 chopped tomatoes and some shredded kale (I think spinach would be more authentic, but I had kale).  Simmer for about another 10 minutes.
6.  Serve - we had baked potatoes, but you could put potatoes in the casserole and serve with rice or bread.

Red rice and mung beans, ratatouie(ish) and roast butternut squash

The veg box comes on a Tuesday - Sunday and Monday can get "interesting" - today became mediterranean with a little bit of moroccan and caribbean chucked in for good measure.

red rice
mung beans
fried onions
parsley
oregano
cinnamon

olive oil
butternut squash
red onion
garlic
rosemary
caribbean seasoning

onion
olive oil
red pepper
yellow pepper
aubergine
tomatoes
mixed herbs
black pepper
red wine

1.  Cook rice and simmer mung beans.
2.  When cooked, take off the heat and save until ready to serve.
3.  Five minutes before serving heat up with a little olive oil, with fried onions, sprinkle of cinnamon and chopped herbs.

4.  Peel and chop butternut squash
5.  Put into roasting tin with chunks of red onion, cloves of garlic, salt, caribbean seasoning and olive oil.
6.  Roast for about 45 minutes.

7.  Sautee chopped onion in olive oil.
8.  When onion is a bit soft and loads of garlic and diced pepper, aubergine and tomatoes.
9.  Splosh in wine, mixed herbs and seasoning.
10.  Simmer for about 30 minutes.

Really very nice!  Loads left of course.

veg box victory

The veg box doesn't come until Tuesday - and there was an odd mixture of stuff - a cucumber, some celery, a red pepper, a courgette, a red cabbage, a white cabbage, a black radish, two teeny tiny carrots and a bulb of garlic - so this is what I came up with - with olive oil, vinegar, rice, mung beans, tinned tomatoes spices and herbs from the cupboard.  I was impressed (and full now).

Four dishes - rice and mug beans, "ratatouie", Tzatziki(ish) and crispy slaw.

Rice and mung beans

1.  Cook rice - I did the start off on hob, bring to boil then lid on and let settle in gentle oven until you are ready approach - but what you need is cooked rice.
2.  Cook mung beans - they take about 30 minutes boiling from scratch - or zero minutes if you open a tin - I boiled mine with a bay leaf, and then drained them.
3.  In a splash of olive oil heat mustard seeds and cumin seeds, then add rice and lentils and mix together with a pinch of cinnamon and salt and pepper.

Crispy slaw

1.  Shred cabbages (about equal amounts).  Julienne carrot and radish.
2.  Splash on olive oil, a spoonful of cider vinegar and a sprinkle of berbere spice (sumac, thyme and toasted sesame seeds mostly)
3.  Toss, put in fridge for flavours to meld and cabbage to soften very slightly.

"Ratatouie"

1.  Chop red pepper and courgette, soften in olive oil.  Add crushed garlic.
2.  Add tin of chopped tomatoes, italian herbs and a splash of water.
3.  Simmer until veg are soft - season.

Tzatziki(ish)

1.  Crush a clove of garlic, add splash of olive oil, splash of cider vinegar and pinch of oregano (or mint if you have it).
2.  Finely chop cucumber.
3.  Mix cucumber and dressing, add 8 big spoonfuls of natural yogurt
4.  Season to taste and stick it in the fridge until ready to eat.

All elements were very tasty - they all went with 2 of the other 3 dishes! all in all a success.
 

Mung bean casserole

Tasted much better than it looks, honestly!

Mung beans
2 leeks
olive oil
garlic
spicy seasoning (I used a middle eastern/persian - ish mix)
bay leaf
potatoes
carrots
cauliflower
mushrooms
tin of tomatoes
chard

brown rice

1.  Simmer mung beans for about 30 minutes.
2.  Soften chopped and washed leeks in olive oil.
3.  Add spices, garlic and bayleaf, stir.
4.  Add other vegetables (not chard yet) and enough water to cook.
5.  Cover and simmer.
6.  5 minutes before serving chuck in mung beans, tomatoes and shredded chard.

Scoff.  Really healthy, really delicious.