Category Archives: Starters

Butternut Squash Risotto & Crispy Sage Leaves

09 Monday Mar 2020

Posted by in Food for One, Main Courses, Starters, Vegan, Vegetable Dishes

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For 1 portion

150 grams butternut squash

olive oil

1 small or 1/2 larger onion – finely chopped

1 clove garlic – finely chopped

60 grams risotto rice

2 tablespoons white wine

300 – 400 ml vegetable stock

salt and freshly ground black pepper

20 small sage leaves

Cut the butternut squash into small cubes.

Heat a couple of tablespoons of oil in a saucepan and add the butternut squash. Cover and braise slowly until slightly browned and nearly cooked.
Remove from the pan.

Heat more oil in the pan and add the garlic and onion. Gently fry until transparent. Add half the butternut squash and mash to break it up a bit.

Add the rice and stir in to coat the rice with the other ingredients. Warm through for a couple of minutes.

Add the wine and stir in.

Add enough vegetable stock to just cover the rice and add a pinch of salt if your stock is not already salted.

Cover the pan and turn down the heat to a slow simmer to cook the rice. Check the pan every five minutes or so to see if the risotto is getting too dry, adding stock as needed.

When the rice is almost cooked, stir in the rest of the butternut squash. Check the seasoning of the risotto and add salt and pepper as needed. Cook gently for another five minutes then turn off the heat and leave to rest for five minutes.

Heat 3 or 4 tablespoons of oil in a small pan and when hot add the sage leaves. Fry for three or four minutes until crisp.

Serve the risotto with the sage leaves strewn over.

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Spicy Buckwheat Pancakes with Cool Tomato Relish

08 Saturday Feb 2020

Posted by in Starters, Vegetable Dishes

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I love plain buckwheat pancakes for breakfast with a fresh fruit salad, but sometimes it’s nice to have a more spicy start to the day so these spiced up pancakes with a fresh tomato relish fit perfectly.

This amount makes enough pancakes for 6 servings

125 grams buckwheat flour

1 level teaspoon baking powder

1 heaped tablespoon garam masala spice

1 fresh red chilli – finely chopped

1 spring onion – cut in thin slices

pinch of salt

1 egg

275 ml vegetable stock

Olive oil for frying

Mix all the dry ingredients together with the spring onion and chillis.

Break the egg into the stock and mix well.

Gradually add the liquid to the dry ingredients to make a smooth batter.

The batter can be used straight away but improves if kept in the fridge for a day or two, so if you don’t use it all at once the rest can be kept very well for another day.

Heat oil in a small frying pan and when hot pour in a small cupful of batter. Fry until golden before turning over and frying the other side.

For the tomato relish simply cut a well flavour tomato into dice and season with salt a finely chopped fresh coriander leaves.

Strozzapreti with Tomato Sauce

07 Friday Feb 2020

Posted by in Food for One, Main Courses, Starters, Vegan, Vegetable Dishes

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Strozzapreti, meaning ‘priest strangler’ as it is reputed to be enjoyed so much and in such quantities by the holy fathers that it chokes them, is a rolled pasta that goes very well with this tomato sauce. You can of course use other pastas if you can’t get hold of Strozzapreti.

For 2

120 grams pasta

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 large clove of garlic – finely chopped

1 small onion – finely chopped

1/4 red bell pepper – cut into short slices

2 tablespoons chopped Florence fennel

125 grams button mushrooms – halved and then sliced

200 grams chopped plum tomatoes

2 heaped teaspoons tomato purée

fresh oregano finely chopped plus a few sprigs for garnishing

4 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese if you are making the vegetarian but not vegan version of this dish

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Orange zest

Put salted water with a splash of olive oil on to boil for the pasta, and then cook the pasta according to the timings on the packet.

Meanwhile heat the oil in a frying pan and add the garlic and onion. Fry until translucent.

Add the red peppers and cook for á couple of minutes before adding the fennel and mushrooms. Stir well and leave to cook for five minutes.

Add the chopped tomato, purée and oregano. Cook slowly for 15-20 minutes until the sauce looks thick and richly red.

Season with salt and pepper.

If using the Parmesan cheese, add most of it now leaving a little to sprinkle on top of the pasta and stir into the sauce letting it melt.

Once the pasta is cooked but still with a little bite, drain from the water and add it to the sauce. Stir to mix.

Serve in shallow bowls with a grating of orange zest and a few sprigs of oregano to garnish. Of course if you are including Parmesan in your dish then add a garnish of grated cheese as well.

The Glass Strawberry

29 Wednesday Jan 2020

Posted by in Main Courses, Snacks and Tapas, Starters, Sweet Things, Vegan, Vegetable Dishes

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To start with – what a fab name for a restaurant! This cafe in Doncaster is one of my must do stops when I visit the town. The food is freshly cooked and super tasty, the service friendly and efficient, and the decor bright and cosy at the same time. You can eat lunch at a dining table or lounge on a comfy sofa with your coffee and cake.

I have my favourite dish that I like to order, The Naked Vegan Burger. Two burgers made from quinoa, beetroot and edename beans, served with yummy sweet potato fries, mixed salad and a pot each of hummus and sweet chutney.

If this is not for you, worry not, the menu has plenty to tempt all tastes – from breakfasts to sizzling pizzas. You can see the full menu on their website – http://www.theglassstrawberry.co.uk

Tofu Scramble with Spinach & Mushrooms

26 Sunday Jan 2020

Posted by in Starters, Vegan, Vegetable Dishes

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This delicious breakfast dish was adapted and cooked for me by Richard from Doctor Rupy Aujla’s recipe for Tofu Scramble. I will now be experimenting with swapping tofu for eggs in all my favourite scramble recipes.

For two servings –

300 grams firm or silken tofu

70 grams mushrooms

3 spring onions

70 grams baby spinach

salt and freshly ground black pepper

A good pinch of mixed herbs

1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric

olive oil / coconut oil

Slice the mushrooms. Any type of mushroom will work in this recipe, shiitake are particularly good.

Drain the tofu and dry well with a clean tea towel or kitchen paper.

Put in a bowl and mash with a fork. Add the turmeric and seasonings.

Put the mushrooms into a frying pan with enough water to come up to just about half way up the mushrooms.

Cook on a medium heat until the water has been absorbed and the mushrooms are cooked to a softness.

Add half a tablespoon each of olive oil and coconut oil and then the sliced spring onions. Fry for two or three minutes to soften the onions.

Add the tofu and gently mix as it heats through.

Once the tofu is warm, add the spinach and continue gently mixing as the spinach wilts.

Serve on whole meal toast drizzled with a little olive oil.

Pickled Salad

14 Tuesday Jan 2020

Posted by in Preserves, Starters, Techniques, Vegan, Vegetable Dishes

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This fresh light salad can be made with many different vegetables depending on the season, I will give you the recipe of exactly what I put in this time, and at the end of the recipe a list of the other vegetables that like this type of marinade. The salad is made in a large glass jar which is put on a sunny windowsill for a couple of days to lightly ferment and tenderise the vegetables. The fermentation also adds to the prebiotic qualities of the vegetables.


50 grams sea salt

20 grams sugar

750 ml water

400 ml cider vinegar

romanesco cauliflower – cut into smallish florets

carrots – peeled and very thinly sliced

radishes – very thinly sliced

Spring onion and garlic – sliced diagonally

mustard seeds

In a large jug, mix the water and vinegar with the salt and sugar. Stir well.

Layer the vegetables in a large jar adding a sprinkling of mustard seeds as seasoning with each set of layers.

Push the layers down to compact the vegetables and then see if you need more layers. Once the vegetables soften they will naturally compact down, so it’s a good idea to firm them down at this stage.

Once the jar is full, add the brine and vinegar, fill to the top of the jar.

Stand the jar in a container to catch any overspill of liquid. You will need to put something in the neck of the jar to weigh down the contents and stop them rising above the liquid. I use a small round plastic container to fit inside the jar neck, and a jar of beans as the weight.

Place the whole contraption on a sunny window sill for 2-3 days to ferment. The vegetables will emit bubbles of gas as they marinade, which will push some of the liquid out over the top of the jar, hence the need to have a container to catch the excess.

Once the bubbling has stopped remove the weight, top up the jar with the overspill liquid and more of the brine mix if necessary. Put the lid on the jar. Wash the outside of the jar.

Leave the salad to continue marinating in the fridge for a couple more days and then it will be ready to eat.

The salad will keep for a couple of weeks, so doesn’t need to be eaten all in one sitting.

Other vegetables that can be used for this salad are: white cabbage, Chinese leaves, red peppers, bean sprouts, cucumber and courgettes, broccoli and white cauliflower. The spice and seasoning can be varied too, I used mustard seeds to complement the cauliflower. Dill is traditional in Eastern Europe, coriander, caraway seeds, fresh herbs, citrus peel. If you want to give the salad a more oriental flavour, then add fresh ginger, lemon grass and chilli….and maybe a splash of Nam Pla. Have a play with flavours and see which ones you like!

Sweetcorn Fritters with Pickled Salad

14 Tuesday Jan 2020

Posted by in Food for One, Main Courses, Starters, Vegan, Vegetable Dishes

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Not much is better than a sweetcorn fritter. They can be made with several types of flour, although I prefer them made with either buckwheat or chickpea four, which add protein to the dish. The addition of onion and garlic gives a more savoury taste to balance the sweetness of the corn, and of course a little finely chopped fresh chilli goes well.


Per person

50 grams flour – buckwheat/chickpea/wheat

90 grams sweetcorn – either cut straight from the cob/ frozen/or tinned – keep any liquid from the tin

10 grams green pumpkin seeds

1 teaspoon finely chopped onion

1/2 teaspoon finely chopped garlic

salt and freshly ground black pepper

oil for frying

Mix the flour with the sweetcorn, pumpkin seeds, and onion and garlic.

Add enough water, including any water from the tin if using tinned corn, gradually to make a thick but spreadable batter.

Season with salt and pepper.

Heat the oil in a frying pan until quite hot then add a tablespoon of the batter to make a smallish fritter. I like to make a trail one to check that the batter is not too thick or thin. If the batter is a bit thin there is no problem adding a little extra flour at this stage to thicken it up. Likewise add a small amount more water if it seems too thick.

When you are happy with the consistency of the batter, go ahead and make several smallish fritters.

When the critters are brown and crispy on one side, turn over and cook the other side. Once done remove and drain excess oil onto kitchen paper.

Braised Lettuce & Peas

09 Thursday Jan 2020

Posted by in Food for One, Main Courses, Starters, Vegan, Vegetable Dishes

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A dish that is so simple but the combination of ingredients tastes better than you would imagine. This used to be a springtime dish that celebrated the first and sweetest peas and lettuce of the season, now with frozen tiny sweet peas and year round lettuce from this warm region of Spain it can be made any time of the year.


Per person

2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil or the same amount of butter

1 spring onion

1/2 spring garlic

1 small lettuce

150 ml small sweet peas

100 ml vegetable stock

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Cut the onion and garlic in diagonal slices

Warm the oil or butter in a shallow pan that has a lid.

Add the onion and garlic and fry for a couple of minutes until translucent.

Cut the lettuce into quarters and add to the pan then add the peas and the stock.

Cover and leave to cook on a low heat for 3-4 minutes.

Carefully turn over the lettuce to ensure even cooking.

Let cook a further 3-4 minutes, by which time the lettuce should be wilted but still with a bit of bite.

Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and serve.

Mushroom Consommé – and making vegetable stock

06 Monday Jan 2020

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Making vegetable stock is easy especially if you have the tougher leaves from your own vegetables or buy them from a market where they are not trimmed down to the cleaner more tender parts. Don’t be rigid about what goes into the stock pot, pea and bean pods are fine, the tough stems of broccoli and cabbage, the sad vegetables in your bin at the end of the week including wrinkly tomatoes and peppers and, failing all that, one of those mixed stew packs will make good stock. I generally like to include onion and carrots, and then whatever else is available, the more variety the better.

The stock for this soup was made with –

the pods from some broad beans

the green tops of a bunch of spring onion and a bunch of spring garlic

the base and tough stems of one of those green cauliflowers with pyramids

the white stems of a bunch of Swiss card

the thick stem of a broccoli

a couple of soft carrots

Wash everything and scrub rather than peel the carrots. Trim dirty ends off then roughly chop everything and put in a large pan.

Pour in boiling water to just cover, bring to the boil then turn down the heat and leave to simmer for an hour.

Don’t add salt at this point as when you come to use the stock you may want to add salty flavourings or reduce the stock in which case you would end up with a dish that’s too salty.

Turn off the heat and leave to cool.

MUSHROOM CONSOMMÉ – three servings

1.2 litres vegetable stock

50 grams Fresh enoki mushrooms

1/2 teaspoon marmite

1 teaspoon light soy sauce

2 slices fresh ginger

finely chopped parsley

Put the cool stock in a pan and add the mushrooms and ginger.

Stir in the Marmite and soy sauce.

Leave the soup for at least an hour for the flavours to blend.

Ten minutes before you are ready to serve the soup, bring it slowly to the boil and let simmer for a couple of minutes.

Serve with the parsley sprinkled over.

Grilled Vegetables with Romesco Sauce

20 Friday Dec 2019

Posted by in Food for One, Main Courses, Sauces, Starters, Vegan, Vegetable Dishes

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I love grilled vegetables, especially grilled broccoli. This method of cooking seems to concentrate the flavour of each vegetable. I crush a clove of garlic with some coarse salt with a pestle and mortar, and then add olive oil to make a garlicky oil with which to paint the vegetables.

Romesco Sauce originated in Tarragona, Cataluña and traditionally is served with fish, but can make a great dipping sauce for vegetables. It is slightly spicy, garlicky and almondy.

Per person

  • 35 grams almonds
  • 1 clove garlic
  • olive oil
  • 1/4 teaspoon sweet and sour smoked paprika
  • 1 tablespoon chilli jam
  • juice of 1/2 lemon
  • 1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons vegetable stock or water

Lightly toast the almonds in a thick bottomed pan on a low heat, stirring from time to time until light golden. Remove to the bowl of a small food processor.

Finely chop the garlic and fry in olive oil until golden brown. Add to the almonds.

Whizz these until the almonds are finely chopped

Add the rest of the ingredients except the stock or water, only add a tablespoon of this and whizz the mix again until a thick mayonnaise consistency.

Add a little more stock or water if the consistency is too thick.