Vegetables & Rice in Miso Broth

My TikTok account is mostly saved recipes (plus veg growing and travel), and recently a series of miso rice dishes.

These recipes seem to cook the rice together with the vegetables, but a quicker option is to use leftover rice and vegetables.

Serves 1

150g High Fibre Brown Rice

Handful of cooked vegetables & pulses.  This bowl had leftover chickpeas, air fryer roasted butternut squash, air fryer roasted kale.  I have made other bowls with fried mushrooms and spinach/Swiss chard.

1 tbsp miso paste

500ml just boiled water

Seasoning/flavouring (optional) - soy sauce, sesame oil, chilli oil, chilli flakes, finely grated garlic, finely grated ginger, kimchi

In a small pan, pour the boiling water over the rice and vegetables.  Dissolve the miso paste into the hot water.  Bring to the boil.  Simmer for two minutes, then serve.

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Cauliflower Alfredo Pasta Sauce

Fettuccine Alfredo is a pasta dish (fettuccine) coated in a rich Parmesan sauce originating in Rome in 1907/8.  Many additions/adulterations have come about over the last century, notably in the US - cream, chicken, salmon, mushrooms.  And now cauliflower.

In our house the cauliflower florets usually get air fried or used in Piccalilli, with the stalk and leaves used in Cauliflower Cheese Soup or Cauliflower Masala Soup.  But the weather is warming up in the UK so I'd thought I'd use the leaves in a pasta sauce.

I added anchovies, reminded of a Bagna Cauda Dip/Sauce, but you can omit these adding more Parmesan, or nuts if preferred 

Serves 4

350g cauliflower stalk & leaves, roughly chopped

1 large garlic clove

1 tbsp Dijon mustard

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 tin anchovies in olive oil, or 100g parmesan, or 40g walnuts or cashews

Parmesan/Grana Padano for serving (optional)

Chopped parsley for serving (optional)

Chilli oil or flakes for serving (optional)

Cover the cauliflower with water in a small pan.  Bring to the boil then cover and simmer for 10 minutes until really tender.  If using nuts, add these to the pan to soften with the cauliflower.

When tender, drain the cauliflower and nuts, keeping the cooking water.  Liquidise the cauliflower and nuts together with the rest of the ingredients in a heatproof container, adding enough cooking water to make a thick hummus consistency sauce.

Serve over pasta, with freshly grated parmesan, parsley, and chilli to taste.

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Egg Foo Yung/Chow Mein

Egg Fu Yung is a Chinese style omelette, popular in American and British Chinese restaurants, usually served with a soy based gravy. 

Chow mein is a Chinese dish of stir-fried noodles with leftover vegetables, meat or tofu, also popular in America and the UK.

I thought I'd combine both Egg Fu Yung and Chow Mein to use up some leftover cooked chicken, and some eggs that needed using.  This recipe would work well with leftover turkey after Christmas.

Serves 4

3 layers medium egg noodles

4 eggs

300g cooked chicken, turkey, pork, beef, or prawns

1 onion, peeled & thickly sliced

1 garlic clove, peeled & sliced

100g frozen peas

1 chicken stock cube

500ml recently boiled water

2 tbsp oyster sauce

2 tbsp soy sauce

1/2 tsp turmeric (optional)

1/2 tsp paprika (optional)

1 tsp sesame oil

2 tbsp cornflour

Vegetable oil for frying 

Cook the noodles according to the packet instructions.  Leave to cool in a pan of cold water.

Heat one tablespoon of oil in a wok over a medium high heat.  

Beat the eggs, and fry in the wok like a omelette for a few minutes so you have a side plate sized disk of cooked egg. Flip the egg over carefully to ensure the egg is cooked through.  Slide the egg onto a plate, chop into bite sized pieces, and wipe the wok out with a piece of kitchen paper.

Heat another tablespoon of oil in the wok over a medium high heat.

Stir fry the onion for 1-2 minutes until it starts to soften or go golden brown.  Add the peas and garlic.

Crumble in the stock cube and melt in the oil and heat.  Add 500ml of hot water, oyster sauce, soy sauce, sesame oil, turmeric and paprika.  Stir well.

Mix the cornflour with two tablespoons of cold water.  When the 'gravy' is boiling, pour in the cornflour mixture whilst stirring to thicken it.

Drain the noodles and add to the gravy together with the meat or prawns, and chopped egg.  Mix well and serve.

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Beetroot Risotto

I peeled one more beetroot than I needed to make Borscht yesterday, so decided to make myself a Beetroot Risotto for dinner.

Most recipes call for roasted beetroot to be added once the risotto rice is cooked.  I neither had the time nor the inclination to roast one solitary beetroot so I added raw beetroot right at the start, hence the orangey rather than purpley red hue to the risotto. 

An additional benefit of cooking the beetroot with rice is that it mellows the earthy taste of beetroot which might make it more palatable to those less sure of beetroot.

Serves 2

180g risotto rice

1 small onion, peeled and diced

1 large clove of garlic, peeled and crushed

500ml hot vegetable stock

50ml white wine (optional)

1 medium raw beetroot, peeled and grated

1 large handful of chopped rainbow chard, shredded or baby spinach (optional)

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

50g crumbled feta, grated parmesan, or extra mature cheddar (optional)

Soften the onion in the olive oil over a medium high heat. 

Once softened and translucent, stir in the rice and garlic and coat the rice grains in the oil.

Stir in the grated beetroot and any chopped chard stalks.

Pour in the wine if using, or roughly 100ml of the hot vegetable stock.  Bring the wine or stock to the boil and turn down to a rapid simmer.

Stir pretty much constantly with a wooden spoon.  Once you can see the bottom of the pan for a few seconds when the wooden spoon is dragged across the centre of the pan, add in another 100ml of stock.

Keep stirring the risotto, and adding more stock when needed, until all the stock has been added.  When you can see the bottom of the pan again, taste the rice to see if it is cooked.  If it is soft like al dente pasta it is cooked. If it is crunchy in the middle of the grain it needs more cooking.

If the rice needs more cooking, add another 100ml of just boiled water from the kettle and keep stirring as before.

If the rice is cooked, stir in shredded chard/spinach and cheese if using, cover, and turn off the heat and leave for 5 minutes to wilt the spinach and melt the cheese.

Serve immediately

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Pumpkin Muffins

We regularly have a coeliac trick or treater visiting us the last few years, so I always make a gluten free treat.  This year I have made Pumpkin Muffins, using gluten free self raising flour rather than self raising flour, and the scrapings from inside a couple of pumpkins we've carved.

Any leftover muffins will be used for grab & go breakfasts, in lunchboxes, or snacks next week.

Makes 12

125ml vegetable or light olive oil

2 large free range eggs

250g pumpkin puree 

100-150g sugar

100g mixed dried fruit

2 tsp pumpkin spice (or 1 tsp cinnamon + 1 tsp ginger)

250g self raising flour

1 tsp baking powder

Make pumpkin purée by simmering 250g of pumpkin in water for 15 minutes.  Drain and liquidise.  

In a mixing bowl, whisk the eggs into the oil, followed by the cooled pumpkin purée, sugar, dried fruit, spices and baking powder.  Mix well then stir in the self raising flour.  This is a quite a wet mixture, so unlike other muffin recipes don't be afraid to mix the flour in thoroughly, as the muffins still rise well having done this.

Divide into 12 muffin cases. Bake at 200C for 15 minutes, until a metal sewer comes out of the central muffins clean.

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Air Fryer Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Oh my, why didn’t I try roasting pumpkin seeds in the air fryer sooner?

I didn’t have room in the oven last night for a tray of pumpkin seeds, so thought I’d try roasting them in the air fryer.  It works so well! 

Rinsed pumpkin seeds

1 tsp extra virgin olive oil

Paprika 

Salt

Rinse the pumpkin seeds to remove as much of the pumpkin flesh stuck to them as possible. I do this by covering them with water and swirling them around with my fingers. Most of the flesh will sink to the bottom of the bowl, leaving clean(ish) seeds floating on top. 

Drain the pumpkin seeds and roast them in the air fryer for 5 minutes at 180 C to dry them a little.

After drying, tip in a small bowl and stir in the olive oil, and paprika and salt to taste.

Return the seasoned seeds to the air fryer and cook for a further 10 minutes at 180C.

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Vietnamese Noodle Soup (Pho)

A little bit of leftover roast pork inspired me to make Pho (apparently pronounced 'fuh', like 'huh' but with an f)

It can be made with chicken, beef, pork, or tofu.  A lot of online recipes suggest homemade stock, and whilst authentic I made it with good quality stock cubes.  Even using stock cubes, the broth still requires a lot of spices.  I note that ready made pho broth is available in UK supermarkets, but no vegetarian option as far as I can see.

Serves 4

1 tbsp vegetable oil
3 shallots or 1 onion, peeled and finely sliced
3 garlic cloves, peeled and finely sliced
1 lemongrass stalk, halved and squashed
2.5cm piece ginger, sliced
3 star anise
1 cinnamon stick or 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp coriander seeds or ground coriander
¼ tsp Chinese five spice
8 black peppercorns
1 tsp caster sugar (optional)
1 tbsp fish sauce
1.5 litres good quality chicken (for chicken or pork pho), beef (for beef pho), or vegetable stock

4 rice noodle nests (I used wheat noodles as I didn't have any other noodles)

A handful of sliced cooked pork, chicken, or beef.  For vegetarians/vegans -a 200g block of sliced tofu, or 
1 large carrot, shredded or peeled into ribbon with a vegetable peeler
8 pak choi or Chinese Leaf leaves, cut into 2cm strips
Large bunch of fresh coriander, chopped
Small bunch of mint, chopped

4 spring onions, finely sliced 
1 red chilli, thinly sliced, or ¼ tsp dried per bowl
1 kaffir lime leaf, thinly sliced (optional)
1 lime, cut into 4 wedges

In a saucepan big enough to take 1.5 litres, fry the onion and garlic in the vegetable oil over a medium high heat for about 5 minutes until lightly brown and caramelised.

Add the stock and the rest of the flavourings.  Cover and bring to the boil, then simmer for 15 minutes.

Whilst the noodles are cooking according to the instructions on the packet, chop/shred all the remaining vegetables and herbs.

When the noodles are cooked, drain and divide between four large bowls.  Divide and arrange the pak choi, carrot, meat/tofu/mushrooms (the mushroom slices can be browned in a non stick frying pan over a high heat to give a little more depth of flavour) on top of the noodles, followed by the coriander, mint, spring onions, chilli, and kaffir lime leaf if using.

Pour the hot stock over the four bowls when the 15 minutes is up, and serve immediately with a quarter of lime to squeeze over.

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Choc Chip Banana Bread Breakfast Muffins

More Grab & Go breakfast muffins for my 17 year old son, which he likes to alternate with Bacon & Cheddar Muffins I posted earlier, as he runs out the door to catch the bus to college.

Makes 12

100ml vegetable or light olive oil

75g sugar (optional)

2 ripe bananas (I freeze overripe bananas rather than throw them away, specifically to make this)

225g self raising flour or gluten free self raising flour

100g porridge oats

100g dark chocolate chips or cocoa nibs

1 tsp baking powder

2 large free range eggs

Put all the ingredients, apart from the chocolate chips/cocoa nibs, into a food processor and whizz until smooth. 

Add the chocolate chips/cocoa nibs and whizz to mix them in evenly. 

Divide the mixture into 12 muffin cases.  I use a generous vintage ice cream scoop, which only made 10 muffins the last time I made them.

Bake at 180C for 20 minutes, turning them through 180 degrees half way through the cooking time, until golden brown.  They are cooked through when a metal skewer comes out clean when pushed into the centre.  If not, cook for a couple more minutes then check again.

Keep in an airtight container for 5 days, or freeze.

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Tofu in Black Bean Sauce

My partner bought a jar of Yeo's Black Bean Sauce last weekend to make Beef in Black Bean Sauce.  He used half the jar, so I used the rest to make Tofu in Black Bean Sauce.

Serves 4

400g firm tofu

300g colourful chopped veggies (carrot, red pepper, green beans)

2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed

1cm grated ginger root

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1/2 250ml jar black bean sauce

2 tbsp Shaoxing wine, or sherry

1 tbsp sesame oil

Take the tofu out of it's packet and place it in a colander with a plate and a few cans on top of that to squeeze as much liquid out.

Chop the veggies into bite sized pieces, and prepare the garlic and ginger.

Heat the oil in a wok over a high heat.  

Crumble in the tofu, but beware, if it is still quite damp it will spit a lot.

Stir fry the tofu for a few minutes then add the ginger, garlic, and vegetables.  Keep stir frying the vegetables for a few more minutes.

Turn the heat down and add the black bean sauce, Shaoxing wine, and sesame oil.  Mix the sauce in well and serve when the sauce is piping hot over cooked rice or noodles.

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Chinese Style Cooked Lettuce

Another recipe to tackle the ongoing lettuce glut at my allotment.  I am now searching the internet for different national lettuce recipes. Today, Chinese Style Cooked Lettuce.

According to Wikipedia, China is the world leader in lettuce production, producing half the world's lettuce.  Lettuce is a symbol of wealth and good luck in China, and served on birthdays, New Year's Day, and other celebrations. Lettuce is always cooked in Chinese cuisine.  It is served as a 'vegetable' accompaniment as I cooked it, stir fried with meat or tofu, or in a soup.

Serves 2

200g lettuce
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed 
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp oyster sauce (or mushroom/vegetarian oyster sauce)
2 tbsp water

Wash the lettuce thoroughly. Most of the US recipes I looked at cooked long Romaine lettuce leaves whole.  I think my lettuce (the seedlings were gifted to me) was a Little Gem before it went to seed.  It was quite tatty and nibbled by pests, and whilst cooking would hide these cosmetic defects, I sliced it to make it more manageable to eat.

Wilt the prepared lettuce for 20 seconds in a pan of boiling water. Drain, reserving 2 tbsp of water, and place in a serving dish.

In the same pan, heat the vegetable oil over a medium high heat. Once hot, tip in the crushed garlic, quickly followed by the soy sauce, oyster sauce and reserved 2 tbsp of water. 

Heat to a simmer, then pour over the cooked lettuce. Serve immediately.    

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Lettuce Soup

Lettuce glut recipes Part 2, Lettuce Soup (Part 1 is Maroulosalata, Greek Chopped Lettuce Salad).

Lettuce Soup can be found in both French and Chinese cooking.  My recipe is based on European/French recipes, using potatoes and cream for a 'velouté' (velvety) soup, and is very simple and quick.

Makes 4 big bowls

1 tbsp light olive oil

1 onion, peeled and diced

250g lettuce, washed and roughly chopped

400g white potatoes, roughly chopped

1 garlic clove, peeled and roughly chopped

1 litre vegetable stock 

100ml double cream (optional)

In a large saucepan, fry the diced onion in the olive oil over a medium heat for a few minutes.  

Stir in the chopped potatoes followed by the chopped lettuce and fry gently for a few more minutes.

Add the vegetable stock and garlic.  Bring to the boil then cover and turn down to a simmer.

After 20 minutes remove from the heat, add the cream, and liquidise. Can be served hot or cold.

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Sweet Potato & Lentil Mulligatawny Soup

Mulligatawny is a curried vegetable soup from the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, taking it's name from the Tamil words for 'pepper' and 'water'.  The traditional Indian version is vegan, but the British of the Raj liked to add chicken or mutton - Mulligatawny with Lamb.

This vegan Mulligatawny is from diabetes.org.uk's recipes, with a few tweaks of mine.

Serves 4 (original recipe suggests 8 servings)

2 tsp olive oil
1 large onion, peeled and diced
1 carrot, diced
1 sweet potato, diced (250g)
400g tin tomatoes
75g red lentils
2 cloves garlic, peeled & crushed

1cm root ginger, roughly chopped (optional)
1 vegetable stock cube
1 tbsp medium curry paste (or powder)
1 litre boiling water
75g brown rice

Soften the onion in the olive oil in a soup pan for about 5 minutes until it starts to brown.

Stir in the carrot and sweet potato (I did not peel either, as the soup is liquidised), and cook for a further 5 minutes stirring regularly.

Add tomatoes, lentils, garlic, stock cube, curry paste/powder and 1 litre of boiling water. Bring to the boil, turn down the heat, cover and simmer for 15 minutes.  I added cooked rice at this stage, not realising the recipe said to add it after the soup had been liquidised, for texture.

Blend the soup with a stick blender or food processor until smooth.

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Curried Bubble & Squeak (Potato Cakes) with Coriander Relish

Got leftover boiled or mashed potatoes, cooked carrots and greens? I thought I'd jazz up Bubble & Squeak with some curry spices and some coriander relish to use up some odd leftovers.

Serves 2

200g potato

Handful of cooked carrot, cabbage, Brussel sprouts etc

1 tsp garam masala or curry powder 

1 tbsp plain or chickpea flour

2 tbsp olive oil for frying

Relish

30g pack of coriander 

1 large garlic clove, peeled and roughly chopped

2 cm ginger, roughly chopped

1/2 tsp hot chilli flakes 

2 tbsp dried mint

2 tbsp apple cider vinegar 

1-2 tbsp water

Mash the potato well, before adding in the finely chopped vegetables and spice.  Do not add any oil or butter as you need a stiff mash that you can shape into four 'burgers' and keep their shape.  Add a little flour to the mash if needed to make it stiffer.

Fry the potato cakes in the olive oil in a non-stick pan over a medium high heat for about 5 minutes each side or until golden brown.

Whilst frying the potato cakes, whizz together all the relish ingredients until you have a pourable, double cream-like, consistency. Add more water and vinegar if needed to get a pourable relish.

Dip the potato cakes into the relish or pour over.

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Homemade Yoghurt

Yoghurt is a fermented food, which are great for gut health and long term health. I'm trying to eat more fermented foods, so thought I'd hunt out my old charity shop yoghurt maker and make some homemade yoghurt which is full of 'good' bacteria. 

Presuming you don't have a yoghurt maker it can be made in a vacuum flask, or insta pot with a yoghurt setting. Slow cookers don't work as they are too hot even on their lowest setting. Trust me, I tried and it didn't work!

10 minutes cooking time, 30 minutes cooling, 10-24 hours fermenting/setting

500ml organic whole milk (If using a yoghurt maker, measure milk by pouring into the container(s). Mine has 5 small glasses taking just under 1 litre of milk)

1 heaped tbsp organic greek yoghurt, or leftover homemade yoghurt

Heat the milk in a small non-stick saucepan over a medium heat, stirring now and then to ensure it doesn’t catch on the bottom of the pan, until it reaches 85°C on a thermometer (I used a meat probe). It should be steaming slightly but not boiling, and small bubbles starting to appear.

Turn off the heat, cover with a lid and leave to cool to 46°C, which takes about 30 minutes.  Stir regularly to prevent a skin from forming.

Mix the yoghurt in a small bowl or yoghurt maker glass with about 3 tbsp of warm milk, then pour back into the pan and whisk well to combine.

Pour into a 500ml flask warmed with mug of boiling water, or yoghurt maker, fasten the lid and leave undisturbed at room temperature or better still and airing cupboard for at least 10 hours.  It can be left for  up to 24 hrs for a thicker texture and stronger flavour. 

If you like it thicker still, it can be strained through a muslin, to make Greek yoghurt. Line a sieve or colander with cheesecloth (or strong paper towels) and place over a large bowl. Pour yogurt into the sieve and place in the fridge. Check every few hours until yogurt reaches your desired thickness.  The liquid that is drained out of the yogurt is whey. This is a great protein and works well in smoothies and soups.

When the yoghurt is set, transfer to a clean container and seal. It will keep in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

I stir 1 tbsp chia seeds, 1 tbsp flax seeds, 1 tbsp mixed seeds, 1 tbsp porridge oats, and a small handful of berries into a small pot of homemade yoghurt for a filling breakfast, stir in fruit compote to made fruit yoghurt, add to curries, make raita with it, and so on.

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Chicken, Sweetcorn, & Egg Noodle Soup

A quick filling soup made with leftover cooked chicken (or Christmas turkey). Vegetarian and vegan alternatives are detailed at the end of the recipe

Serves 4

3 litres chicken stock

3 nests rice noodles 

340g tin of sweetcorn or 1 mug frozen sweetcorn

2cm root ginger

1 large garlic clove

300g shredded cooked chicken

1 egg, beaten 

4 spring onions, chopped

Sesame oil

Chilli Oil

Liquidise the sweetcorn, ginger, and garlic with the water from the tin, or some warm chicken stock to thaw the frozen sweetcorn.

Bring the chicken stock to the boil. Add the liquidised sweetcorn and the noodle nests.  Cover, bring back to the boil, then turn down to a simmer. Cook the noodles according to the packet instructions. I used Aldi Brown Rice Noodles which say take 5-10 minutes to cook, and in the end took 7 minutes.

Stir in the shredded chicken, turn up the heat a little, and bring back to the boil.  When bubbling, dribble over the beaten egg.  Leave for a minute for the egg to cook in the hot soup then divide into four bowls.  

Sprinkle a chopped spring onion over each bowl and drizzle with sesame oil and chilli oil to serve.

A vegetarian version can be made with vegetable stock and grated firm tofu instead of chicken.  And a vegan version can be made with vegetable stock, tofu, and 2 tbsp cornflour mixed with 2 tbsp cold water stirred in instead of egg to thicken the soup a little. 

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Easy Aloo Gobi, Indian Potato & Cauliflower with Green Lentils

Most Indian recipes call for a long list of spices.  We do have these, but I thought I'd make an easy Aloo Gobi with a ready mixed spice blend. I used a spice mix called Chaat Masala as it needed using up (and goes well with potatoes - see Yotam Ottolenghi's Chaat Masala Potatoes), but Garam Masala, or even curry powder would work well.

I also added a tin of green lentils, and some ground flax seeds, for more fibre and to thicken the dish a little.

500g salad or all round potatoes

2 tbsp light olive oil

1 small cauliflower

1 small onion

1 large clove of garlic

1 tbsp chaat masala or garam masala, or 1 tsp hot curry powder

1 can green lentils, including liquid 

1 mug frozen peas

3 tbsp ground flax seeds

Turn the a medium heat on under the olive oil in a large sauté pan and start chopping the potatoes into bite sized piece.  Place the potatoes cut size down in the pan as you cut them.

Once potatoes are all cut and frying gently, cut the cauliflower into similar sized pieces to the potato.  

When you can smell fried potatoes, turn the potatoes over with a slice, make a clearing in the middle of the pan and add the cauliflower.  Cover with a lid whilst you peel and thinly slice the onion.

Flip over the cauliflower and potatoes when you have sliced the onion. Mix the cauliflower into the potatoes and make a clearing in the middle of the pan for the sliced onion. Put the lid back on until the garlic is peeled, sliced and ready to go into the middle of the pan.

Whilst the onion is frying (don't worry if there not much oil left in the pan - browning adds flavour!), sprinkle over your chosen spice and stir every thing together.

Pour in the cooked lentils and their liquid, and another can of water from the tap.  Cover and bring to the boil.

Once boiling add the frozen peas and the ground flax seeds.  Bring to the boil again, this time without the lid.  Once boiling, set a timer for 5 minutes to make sure the potato is cooked (You should be able to push a for into a piece without it feeling hard like uncooked potato. If it crumbles it is definitely cooked!), to cook the peas, and dry the dish out a little.

Serve with chutney and/or extra chilli if wanted.

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Caponata, Sicilian Vegetables

Caponata is Ratatouille's Sicilian cousin.  Apart from the aubergine, ingredients seem to vary. Tomatoes, onion, celery, olives, and capers seem common from recipe to recipe. Courgette, pepper, pine nuts, and raisins (should only be in a cake in my opinion) slightly less so.

2 aubergines

1 courgette

1 red pepper

1 onion, peeled

1 stick of celery

2 large cloves of garlic

4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 can cherry or chopped tomatoes

20 unpitted green or black olives, destoned

2 tbsp capers

30g pine nuts

Can of cannellini beans, black beans, or green lentils (optional)

Chop the aubergine, courgette, onion, and celery into chunky bite sized pieces.

Toss in the olive oil, together with the unpeeled garlic cloves and salt, and bake in a high sided baking dish for 40 minutes at 200C, stirring halfway through the cooking time.

At the end of the cooking time, stir in the rest of the ingredients into the hot baking dish to warm up.  There should be enough residual heat in the baking dish to heat the tomatoes enough. If not, pop back in the oven for 10 minutes.

To make this dish a little more filling (and add more carbohydrate, fibre, and protein) add a can of cannellini beans, green lentils, or black beans.

Eat hot or cold. The flavours of this dish will develop if left to cool overnight.

Caponata can be cooked on the stove, frying the vegetables in the olive oil until browned and they adding the remaining ingredients.

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Singapore Chow Mein Noodles

I ordered Singapore Vermicelli last time we had a birthday Chinese takeaway. So the next time I made a stir fry, I thought I'd try Singapore Noodles.  I prefer rice noodles, but I find them hard to stir fry without going sticky, so this was made with egg noodles

Serves 4

4 layers of noodles

1 tbsp mild curry powder

¼ tsp turmeric

1 tsp caster sugar

1 tbsp sesame oil

3 tbsp low-salt soy sauce

2 tbsp sunflower or vegetable oil

600g sliced stir fry vegetables (if slicing your own vegetables include an onion, and then a rainbow of colourful vegetables - red pepper, carrot, pak choi/cabbage, mushroom, sweetcorn, beansprouts)

250g protein (optional), choose from 200g firm tofu, 2 free range eggs, or 250g cooked prawns

1 red chilli, sliced (optional)

Cook the noodles according to the instructions on the packet.  Leave in cold water once cooked until ready to use.

Mix curry powder, turmeric, sugar, sesame oil, soy sauce and 1 tbsp water in a small bowl.

If using egg, beat the eggs in a mug.  Heat 1 tbsp oil in the wok/large frying pan over a medium high heat. Swirl the oil around when hot, and pour in the egg, cooking it like an omelette.  Turn the egg over after a couple of minutes and cook the other side.  Take out when cooked, chop into bite sized pieces, and leave to one side.

If using tofu or prawns, heat 1 tbsp of oil in the wok. Heat 1 tbsp oil in the wok over a medium high heat. Grate the tofu if using.  When the oil is hot, stir fry the grated tofu or prawns for a few minutes until slightly brown. 

Add another tbsp of oil after you've removed the egg, or when the tofu/prawns have been stir fried.  When hot again, add the rest of the vegetables and stir fry for 3-4 minutes until softened and starting to brown in places. 

Drain the noodles and add to the wok, along with the sauce mixture and egg. Stir-fry for a further 3-4 mins, mixing thoroughly and reheating the noodles.  

Serve with sliced chilli if you like some spice!

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Air Fryer Pain au Chocolat Bread & Butter Pudding

The idea for this came from a day old pain au chocolat discovered the day after we returned from a short break in France.

Serves 1, as I only had one pain au chocolate but could be doubled etc depending on the size of your air fryer

1 pain au chocolat

1 egg

150ml whole milk

2 tbsp double cream or Greek yoghurt (optional)

1/2 tsp vanilla essence (optional)

1 tsp sugar

Slice the pain au chocolat into 1cm thick slices.  

Lay in an air fryer liner.

Beat egg and cream/yoghurt/vanilla essence if using in a mug. Beat in enough milk to fill the mug.

Pour the egg mixture over the pain au chocolat and leave to soak in for 5 minutes or more if you can.

Sprinkle over the sugar and bake in the air fryer for 10-15 minutes at 180C until golden brown on top, the egg mixture is wobbly rather than runny.

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Bavarian Bread Soup

For the first time in 10+ years I burnt 4 sourdough loaves meat for the local farm shop, forgetting to set a timer. Most has now been sliced and frozen, but the hard 'knobby' ends were diced into large croutons and left out to dry.

I had thought about making a Ribollita (Tuscan Bread, Bean & Kale Soup), but a quick google turned up a a new bread based soup to try - Brotsuppe, a Bavarian Bread Soup.

Unsurprisingly for a Germanic recipe, the original recipe is not vegetarian or vegan, using butter, beef stock, cream, and egg.  But it can easily be made vegetarian buy using vegetable stock, or vegan by using olive oil as I did, vegetable stock, vegan cream, and omitting the egg (or liquidising 100g tofu)

Serves a hearty 4-6 (makes 2 litres)

100g cubed brown bread or sourdough

2 tbsp olive oil

1 large onion, peeled & thinly sliced

1 large garlic clove, peeled & crushed

1 heaped tbsp plain flour

1.5 recently boiled water

3 crumbled stock cubes, beef, chicken, or vegetable

100ml dairy or vegan cream

1 egg or 100g tofu (optional)

Fry the bread in the olive oil in a soup pan over a medium heat until golden brown.

Add the onions and garlic and fry as best you can amongst the cubed bread.  After a few minutes stir in the plain flour, followed by the water and stock cubes.  Bring to the boil, scraping the bottom of the pan with a spatula or flat ended wooden spoon. Once boiling, cover, and turn down to a simmer for 20 minutes.

After 20 minutes simmering, liquidise the soup with a stick blender.  Pour in the cream and egg, and liquidise again.  Heat gently, stirring continuously for about a minute for the egg to cook and thicken the soup slightly.

If you don't have a liquidiser, simply stir in the cream and beaten egg (if using) at the end of the cooking time.

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