Showing posts with label pineapple. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pineapple. Show all posts

Wednesday, 22 June 2016

Vegan Dhansak Soup & Chapatis

Vegan Dhansak Soup & Chapattis


This soup is a random variation of veggie dhansak, using pretty much what I had in the cupboard! 
I didn't use measurements as I am more of a throw it in the pan sort of wimminz when it comes to soup, so any measurements are aprox (more or less to taste).

Spicy Dhansak Soup


Ingredients:

  • Red Lentils
  • 1/4 Pineapple
  • 2 Bay Leaves
  • 1 heaped teaspoon marmite ( or just use a stock cube - I ran out!)
  • 2-3 teaspoons Madras Curry Powder (possibly more - measurements out the window)
  • 1 Green Chilli ( I would have put more in but it was the last one :( )
  • 1 Onion
  • 1 small bag of carrots
  • Salt & Pepper to taste
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • Handful of Coriander Leaves
  • Oil for frying

Method:

Chop and fry the onion and garlic, then add the chopped carrots. When the onions and garlic and translucent, add finely diced pineapple and chilli. Then add the curry powder and red lentils, add a little more oil if it starts sticking to the bottom. Pour in hot water to cover a few inches above the mixture and turn the heat up. Add the marmite and bay leaves. When the soup starts to boil, turn down and cover with a lid. Leave for aprox 15-20 minutes then check to make sure soup isn't burning (lentils can stick to the bottom super easily). If all the water has gone add another couple of cups of hot water. At this point add the coriander leaves and taste to see if it needs any salt and pepper, and then season to taste. I used a hand blender to whizz my soup up, then serve :)

Alternative soup for fussy 4 year olds:

As my daughter doesn't like spice or most things, I made her a plain lentil soup in another pan. 
I used red lentils, carrots, a little  marmite (add a little stock cube if you have some), then just boil until lentils are cooked. This seems to be the only way she will eat lentils!!

Chapatis

I used a recipe online for the Chapattis, having never made them before! My partner brang home a bag of bread flour which had been slightly damaged so I decided, having a small amount of energy to make Chapatti's with Esme :) Esme enjoyed pretending to be Mary Berry whilst making these!

Recipe from: http://allrecipes.co.uk/recipe/20005/wholemeal-chapattis.aspx

Ingredients:
(Makes 4)

125g Wholemeal Flour
1 pinch of salt
1 tablespoon of Olive Oil
60ml Water

Method:

  • Sift together flour and salt (I missed the sift bit - just threw it in the bowl!)
  • Stir in the oil and water
  • Knead until dough like - add extra flour/water if necessary
  • Flour up a flat surface - a board/table etc.
  • Cut your kneaded dough into 4
  • Either stretch out the dough until very thin or use a rolling pin - actually no idea where our rolling pin is so Esme stretched them out thin
  • Heat frying pan on a med-high heat, I added a tiny bit of oil at this stage.
  • When hot, cook a Chapati for around a minute or two on each side - until a little golden (taste test to make sure it is cooked). Continue until all Chapatis are cooked.
  • Serve with soup!! Yumzords!!
Here is a video of my daughter Esme scoffing said foods!!:




Tuesday, 10 March 2015

Stuffed Butternut Squash with Tomato Chickpea Sauce Recipe




Stuffed Butternut Squash with Tomato Chickpea Sauce Recipe

OH MY GOSH I seem to have acquired an actual working oven!! This is wayy too exciting for me, life without an oven isn't impossible, just makes life a little more difficult. Plus having to fry everything isn't the most healthy way to live!!
I have been ridiculously busy today, toddlers are really amazing, but exhausting! If you still have a toddler running around, trying to sleep in the cupboards or taking things out the fridge, giving them a few tasks to do with this will keep them occupied and be pretty helpful! Anyway, FOOD!

What you need:

1 Butternut Squash
Punnet Mushrooms
Basil
1 Onion
2 - 3 Cloves Garlic
1 Tin Chick Peas
Carton of Passata (or tin of tomatoes)
Cherry Tomatoes (optional)
Bag of Spinach
10 olives
Salt/Pepper
1 tsp chilli powder 
Olive Oil

What you need to do:
  • Preheat the oven at 180 degrees
  • Slice the Butternut Squash in half, scoop out the seeds with a spoon
  • Lattice (make grooves across and down the flesh) but very lightly (treaadd lightly)
  • Drizzle olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and put in the oven for 45mins - 1 hour (depending on how big it is - check with fork for softness!)
  • MEANWHILE... (in another universe)
  • Chop mushrooms finely.. I got my daughter Esme to chop them with a blunt knife, and then went over with them with a sharp one. Alternatively throw them in the food processor.
  • Chop 3-4 leaves of Basil and 3/4 bag of Spinach finely, then 1-2 large cloves of garlic, and the onion, as finee as you possible can!! Try to chop the olives, if your 3 year old doesn't try to eat them all.
  • Fry up the onion, garlic, olives and mushrooms with a slug of olive oil. Put to the side
  •  In another pan, fry 1 clove of garlic, empty a tin of chick peas and the passata, and stir. Add the chilli powder, cherry tomatoes and 3-4 leaves of basil (roughly tear up), cook on low heat, then turn off.
  • If you have time, put your feet up for 10 minutes! I went for a run, like a crazy person.
  • Check the butternut squash, if getting softer, move onto next step
  • Turn on the heat to the mushroom mixture, add the spinach and basil, and heat for a few minutes.
  • Once wilted, scoop into the hollow parts of the squash, and bake for another 10-15 minutes
  • Heat the tomato sauce through, place onto plate with extra spinach if you fancy :)
  • Serve, eat YUM! I added seeds and nutritional yeast to mine, but then I am obsessed with nutritional yeast.

Extra Puddingy part!:

I spotted a discounted pineapple at my local co-op, so I thought it was only fitting to do something with it. Spending hours making a roasted butternut squash didn't leave a lot of time to cook anything else. So I just threw something together:

All you need is: 1 Pineapple, Coconut Cream (just buy coconut milk in a tin, scoop the cream off the top - I bought quite a few of these on offer for 3 for £2), Sweet Freedom or syrup of your choice, Coconut oil (not required, just tasty!)

What you need to do is: Cut the pineapple into rings (or just buy ones in a tin!), prepare a baking dish with a little coconut oil. Place the pineapple rings on the dish, add a little sweet freedom/maple syrup/anything and bake or grill for 5-10 mins. Add the coconut cream and voila! Pudding! 





Time to zzzz
 Hannah x