vegetarian recipes

Cheese & Vegetable Puffs

January 28, 2014 by TheBoyAndMe 15 Comments

These little crackers are a perfect treat as a canape at a party or as a light snack.

Cheese & Vegetable Puffs

Makes: 1 roll of puff pastry makes 6
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 15-20 minutes

Ingredients:

ready-made puff pastry
halloumi, diced
mixed vegetables to own taste: I used asparagus, carrots, baby sweetcorn, broccoli, red pepper
2 tbsp of crème fraîche
a knob of butter
grated cheese

Preheat the oven to 200°C.
Cut the puff pastry into six rectangles and lay them on a baking tray.
Prick the pastry over with a fork in the area where the filling will be placed.
Lightly stir-fry the vegetables and diced halloumi for five minutes in the knob of butter.
Stir in the crème fraîche to the mix and place a large spoonful onto the centre of the pastry rectangles.
Sprinkle some grated cheese on top of the vegetable mix.
Place in the over for 15-20 minutes until risen and golden.

Cheese & Vegetable Puff

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Linking to Recipe Of The Week and Tasty Tuesdays

Carrot Tarte Tatin

September 16, 2013 by TheBoyAndMe 14 Comments

I'm always on the lookout for quick and easy vegetarian recipes to whip up, and this a super-easy one which can be prepared in advance and then only takes 15 minutes to cook through before serving with some fresh green vegetables or salad.

Carrot Tarte Tatin

Serves 4
Preparation: 30 minutes
Cooking Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

600g (1lb 5oz) carrots, cut into 2.5 cm chunks
2tbsp clear honey
25g (1oz) butter
1tsp dill
optional extra: 150g (5oz) paneer, chopped
optional extra: 2tbsp parmesan, grated
350g (12oz) ready-made and rolled puff pastry
plain flour

Bring a large saucepan of lightly salter water to the boil. Add the carrots, bring back to the boil and cook for 10 minutes, until just tender. Drain, toss with the honey, butter and dill, and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/gas mark 6. Spoon the carrots over the base of a 20cm (8 inch) tarte tatin tin or round cake ting with a depth of about 3cm (1.5 inches). Roast in the oven fr 15 minutes or until the carrots are caramelised.
Mix the chopped paneer into the caramelised carrots, and sprinkle 1tbsp parmesan over the top of the mix. This is the point that the tarte can be left covered, to cook through later.
Lay the puff pastry out on a flour worked surface and place the pan on top to draw around it onto the pastry, leaving an extra cm of pastry all the way around the diameter. Place the pastry circle carefully over the carrot (and paneer) mix, and tuck the excess down the sides of the tin to make a border.
Bake in the oven for 15 minutes, or until the pastry is puffed and golden.
Remove the tin from the oven, place a flat plate over the tin and turn over to release the tarte. Sprinkle 1tbsp parmesan over the top of the tarte while it is still sizzling hot, allowing it to melt slightly before serving.

Carrot Tarte Tatin

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This recipe comes from the 'Vegetarian Step-By-Step Cookbook' by Parragon. This easy to use cookbook is a fool-proof recipe book that even the most reluctant cooks could use to create vegetarian recipes. Every recipe comes beautifully laid out with a step-by-step guide accompanied by photographs. I am someone who looks at a recipe and becomes flummoxed by the bamboozling instructions; I tend to look at the ingredients and the finished product and charge ahead. This recipe book takes a nervy cook's hand and holds it gently, leading it slowly down the path to good, wholesome, family food. If I can do it, anyone can.

Vegetarian cookbook

I received this book to try out as a Parragon Book Buddy, my opinions are honest and unbiased.

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Roasted Squash, Red Onion, Spinach & Cheese Tart

July 17, 2013 by TheBoyAndMe 13 Comments

On these balmy Summer evenings, one of my favourite evening meals is quiche, salad and baby new potatoes. Fortunately I was recently sent the new cookbook by Yeo Valley; The Great British Farmhouse Cookbook. With over 100 recipes inspired by the traditions of the British farmhouse kitchen, this beautiful book brings together fresh ingredients and seasonal flavours.

I've decided to have a go at the recipe on page 92, from 'The Veg Garden' section:

Roasted Squash, Red Onion, Spinach & Cheese Tart

Ingredients:

For the filling:
- 2 small red onions
- 375g butternut squash, cut into 2.5cm chunks
- 2tbsp olive oil
- 300g chard or spinach leaves, large stalks removed and coarsely shredded
- 225g well-flavoured cheese, crumbled or coarsely grated (I used 100g of dolcelatte)
- 3 large free-range eggs
- 300ml double cream
- salt and black pepper
For the pastry:
- 150g plain flour
- 75g stoneground wholemeal flour
- 65g chilled butter, cut into small pieces
- 65g chilled lard, cut into small pieces (I am vegetarian so used 130g of butter instead of the lard)

ROasted Squash, Red Onion, Spinach & Cheese Tart

Make the pastry first by mixing the flours in a food processor with the fats and ½ teaspoon of salt, until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add 2 tablespoons of cold water and mix briefly until the mixtures binds together. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead. Roll out thinly and use to line a lightly greased 23cm loose-bottomed tart tin 4cm deep. Prick the base with a fork and refrigerate for 20 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 200°C.
Peel the onions (the original recipe calls for the root end to remain intact, I rebelled and sliced it off), then slice each one from top to bottom to make thin wedges. Put the squash chunks and onions in a roasting tin and drizzle the olive oil over the top (I mixed some olive oil with balsamic vinegar). Season with salt and pepper and toss together. Roast for 20-30 minutes.
Line the base of the pastry case with a circle of greaseproof paper and cover with baking beads. Bake for 15-20 minutes until the edges are biscuit coloured. Remove the paper and beans (once cooled!) and return to the oven for 5-7 minutes until the base is crisp and golden.
Meanwhile, heat a large saucepan over a medium-high heat, add the chard or spinach and cook for 2-3 minutes until wilted (I cheated and put mine in the microwave with a knob of butter for 90 seconds). Tip into a colander and gently press out the excess liquid. Season lightly.
Remove the pastry case from the oven and lower the temperature to 190°C. Arrange the squash, onion, cheese and spinach over the bottom of the pasty case. Beat the eggs and cream together with seasoning. (This is where I changed the recipe slightly; I added the spinach – as I used frozen – to the egg mix which had been blitzed with the dolcelatte.)
Pour over the filling and bake for 30-35 minutes until set and richly golden on top. Serve warm and with buttered new potatoes and mixed leaf salad.

ROasted Squash, Red Onion, Spinach & Cheese Tart

What I particularly like about this book is the huge amount of vegetarian recipes in it, either as a main course or as a light meal. I'll be experimenting with a lot of these easy recipes over the Summer, so expect more posts, particularly the lemon curd & raisin bread & butter pudding, Somerset scrumpy & apple cake, and the spiced pear bakewell! There may be some other savoury dishes as well.

Yeo Valley’s Great British Farmhouse Cookbook is available from all good book shops with a RRP of £19.99. You can buy it here on Amazon for £10.00

Sarah Mayor is the daughter of Roger and Mary Mead, who started Yeo Valley at Holt Farm in 1961 with thirty cows and the odd sheep. Mary opened a tea room and the clotted cream they made for it meant there was lots of skimmed milk left over. So they tried making yogurt… and people seemed to like it. They still do. The Mead family is still living and working at Holt Farm today.

I was sent a copy of this book for the purpose of this review and post. I was also given permission to reproduce the recipe on my blog. My opinion is honest and unbiased.