Winter Vegetable Soup with dumplings

INGREDIENTS

• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 celery stick, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 600g root vegetables, such as carrots, parsnips, swede, turnips, celeriac and potatoes, sliced or diced
• 150g beetroot (100g peeled and diced, 50g grated)
• 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 tsp dried thyme or 2 sprigs of fresh
• 50g barley
• up to 1.5 litres vegetable stock
• 1 tsp Marmite
• 2 leeks, finely sliced
• 100g kale, shredded
• sea salt and black pepper

Dumplings

• 150g self-raising flour
• 75g butter or vegetarian suet
• 1 tsp caraway seeds (optional)
• 1 tsp dried thyme

To serve

• finely chopped dill or parsley
• dollops of mustard or horseradish

METHOD

1. Heat the oil in a saucepan or a flameproof casserole dish. Add the onion and cook gently over a medium-high heat until it starts to take on some colour. Add the root vegetables, including the diced beetroot, but not the grated, and continue to cook, stirring regularly, for another 10 minutes until they start to reduce in volume.
   

2. Stir in the garlic, thyme and barley and cook for another couple of minutes. Pour in 1.2 litres of the stock and season. Bring to the boil, then turn down to a fast simmer. Stir in the Marmite (the heat will melt it off the spoon) and partially cover the pan with a lid.

3. Simmer for about 20 minutes until the vegetables start to soften. Add the leeks and kale. Continue to cook until the barley is swollen and slightly al dente and the vegetables are tender – this should take 15–20 minutes. Add more liquid if the soup gets too thick.
   

4. Meanwhile, make the dumplings. If you want the dumplings firm and lightly browned, preheat the oven to 200°C/Fan 180°C/Gas 6, or you can just steam them on top of the soup.

5. Put the flour into a bowl and add the butter or suet. Rub in the fat, then season well. Add the caraway seeds, if using, and the thyme and just enough water to make a slightly tacky dough. Divide the dough into 8 pieces and roll into balls.

6. Stir the grated beetroot into the soup. Drop the dumplings on top of the soup and either put the pan in the oven for about 15 minutes until the dumplings are puffed up and lightly browned, or cover and leave to simmer on the hob for 15–20 minutes. Garnish with dill or parsley and serve with dollops of mustard or horseradish.

Veggie Enchiladas

INGREDIENTS

Sauce

• 3 green peppers, cut in half
• 6 jalapeos or mild green chillies, left whole
• 6 garlic cloves, unpeeled
• bunch of spring onions, trimmed
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• zest and juice of 1 lime
• 100g cucumber (or 100g tomatillos or green tomatoes)
• bunch of coriander
• sea salt and black pepper

Filling

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 red onions, finely chopped
• 1 red pepper, deseeded and finely diced
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 400g can of pinto beans or red kidney beans, drained
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp ground allspice

To assemble

• 8 corn tortillas
• 200g soured cream
• 150g vegetarian Cheddar cheese, grated

To serve

• lime wedges
• coriander leaves
• any leftover soured cream
• 
  
• METHOD

• Preheat the oven to 220°C/Fan 200°C/Gas 7. For the sauce, place the peppers, chillies, garlic and spring onions on a large baking tray and drizzle them with oil. If using tomatillos or green tomatoes, add them too. Roast for 20 minutes, then start checking for doneness. The vegetables will cook at different rates – you want them collapsing down a little and charring. The spring onions will take the shortest time. When all the vegetables are charred in places, remove from the oven.

• Reduce the oven temperature to 200°C/Fan 180°C/Gas 6. Put the green peppers in a bowl and cover with a plate. Leave to steam until cool enough to handle, then remove the skins. Remove the seeds from the chillies and squish the flesh out of the garlic. Roughly chop the spring onions.

• Put all the vegetables into a food processor with the remaining sauce ingredients and plenty of seasoning. Pulse until you have a coarse, fairly liquid sauce. Set aside.

• To make the filling, heat the oil in a sauté pan and add the onions and red peppers. Cook gently over a medium heat until the onions are soft and starting to take on some colour. Add the remaining filling ingredients along with 50ml of water and plenty of seasoning. Simmer until piping hot, then gently mash the beans so some of them break down. Remove from the heat.

• To assemble, put a small ladleful of the green sauce in the base of an ovenproof dish. Lightly toast each tortilla on a dry frying pan, then add a tablespoon of the filling. Top with a teaspoon of soured cream, then roll up and place in the dish. Repeat with all the tortillas, making sure they don’t quite touch, then pour over the remaining green sauce. Sprinkle over the cheese, then bake in the oven for about 30 minutes until the tortillas have browned round the edges and the cheese is bubbling.

  Serve with any remaining soured cream, lime wedges and some fresh coriander.

Dairy Free Brownies

 

INGREDIENTS

• 275ml plant-based milk, any sort
• 150ml groundnut or walnut oil
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tbsp ground flax seeds
• 60ml hot water
• 125g plain flour
• 125g cocoa
• ½ tsp baking powder
• 100g light soft brown sugar
• 75g caster sugar
• ½ tsp salt
• 150g vegan chocolate chips
• 100g nut butter, any sort
• METHOD

• 1-Preheat the oven to 180°C/Fan 160°C/Gas 4. Line a 20 x 20cm brownie tin with baking paper or brush with cake-release spray.

• 2-Whisk the milk, oil and vanilla extract together in a bowl and set aside. Mix the ground flax seeds with the hot water and leave to stand for 5 minutes. Whisk all the remaining ingredients, except the chocolate chips and the nut butter, together in a separate bowl.

• 3-Beat the flax seeds into the wet ingredients, then add the dry mixture and fold in as gently as you can. Add the chocolate chips.

• 4-Scrape the mixture into the prepared tin. Dot spoonfuls of the nut butter all over the batter, then swirl it through, using the tip of a knife. Don’t mix it up too much!

• 5-Bake for 20–25 minutes until the brownies have just set. Leave to cool completely, then cut into squares. If you want them extra fudgy, put them in the fridge for several hours. Otherwise transfer to an airtight container.