Vegetarian Chili

Lately I've been trying to cut down on my meat consumption in a bid to be a bit healthier for summer. I also like the challenge of having to adjust my existing recipes to work without beef or chicken. In doing so, I've been really impressed with the vegetarian meat substitutes available in the supermarkets around me. I'll definitely be popping back to try some more of them soon!

Vegetarian mince

Celery and Onion

Defrosted mince soaking up the stock

For this chili, I used Quorn's mince. I really think it's a great option because it's so similar to actual beef mince. Sam said if I hadn't told him, he wouldn't have noticed a difference... pretty high compliment! In a bid to make it further resemble normal mince, I popped it in a pan with a little water and a beef stock cube and left it to soak up the stock. Because of that step, I wouldn't say this is technically a vegetarian dish but you could easily skip it or use a vegetarian approved stock cube instead.

Peppers and garlic join the pot

Adding the mince

Everything ready to simmer 

Because I'm using the vegetarian mince, I upped the veggies and spices to help make it tastier. The mince has a slightly softer texture than beef so I topped it with some extra celery to give it a little crunch. I also made a quick pico de gallo and added some olives, green onions and cheese. Delicious! Finally, I'm putting 20 minutes as the cook time but the longer you leave it to simmer, the better!

Finished dish!

Prep TIme: 10 min

Cook Time: 20 min

Serves: 4

Ingredients: 

300g Quorn mince

1 beef stock cube

100ml water

2 sticks of celery, chopped

1 onion, chopped

3 cloves of garlic, chopped

1 bell pepper, chopped

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp chili powder

2 tsp chilies, chopped

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp paprika 

1 can chopped tomatoes

1 can red kidney beans, drained

Toppings: pico de gallo, sour cream, green onion, olives, and celery. 

Method: 

In a small sauce pan, add 100ml of water and the beef stock cube. When the stock is ready, add the Quorn mince and stir to defrost and allow the stock to coat the mince. 

In a larger pan, saute the celery, onion, garlic and bell pepper in a splash of olive oil. When the vegetables have softened, add the mince and spices and cook over medium heat until the spices are fragrant. Finally, add the tomatoes and beans, and leave to simmer for at least ten minutes. Top with cheddar cheese, sour cream, salsa, green onions, olives and celery. Enjoy! 

Baked Falafel

Last week, I popped over to Borough Market with my lovely friend Charlotte, who was on a flying visit to the UK. It was amazing to see her after nearly five years! Plus, she was keen to visit sites around London that I might otherwise overlook because I'm so focused on my studies etc. Borough Market is definitely one of those places. It's really close to my house and yet I never go. Part of the reason for that is that the last few times I'd been, it had been crazy crowded. At 5'2, I don't do great in crowds and I really hate being constantly jostled. However, it seems they've undergone a bit of a renovation and it felt MUCH more roomy even though we're heading into the tourist months. While there we grabbed a spot of lunch and my falafel wrap was so delicious I decided to give it a go at home.

Ingredients

Chickpeas going in...

Chickpeas, onions and garlic

I've never made falafel before but it was super easy (if you have a food processor). I also decided to pop them into the oven instead of frying as a nod to trying to eat healthy. They were a bit more crumbly than the ones you'd get in a restaurant and I think that might be due to the lack of frying. Still, they were pretty tasty!

Ready to whirl!

Ready to roll

Ready for the oven!

We served these up with a beetroot salad (ready-made by Tesco haha), pickles, a tomato and olive salad, yogurt and hummus mixed with sriracha. Basically, I wanted to have all the elements of my Borough Market wrap without the bread and I think we succeeded! My broiler was acting up so I skipped the final 5 minutes which meant that my falafel didn't get that nice brown color but they were still delicious and I can't stress how easy this recipe is! I didn't change anything critical in the recipe from Generation Y Foodie, except that I used canned chickpeas because that was what I had on hand and increased the garlic. I also completely forgot to include the flour and noticed zero difference in the final version... oops!

Tasty dinner!

Recipe via www.generationyfoodie.com 

Prep Time: 2 min

Cook Time: 15 min

Serves: 5

Ingredients: 

1 1/2 cups chickpeas, drained

1/4 cup of water

1 medium onion, quartered

5-7 cloves of garlic, peeled

1/2 cup fresh parsley

Zest and juice of half a lemon

1 tsp black pepper

2 tbsp flour

1.5 tsp cumin

1 tsp coriander

1 tsp baking powder

olive oil cooking spray

Method: 

Preheat the oven to 375F / 190C.

Whirl all the ingredients in a food processor until they are evenly chopped and the mixture has the consistency of cornmeal. Spray your baking sheet with olive oil cooking spray and roll the falafel mixture into golfball sized mounds. Place the falafel on the baking sheet and spray with the cooking spray. Bake for fifteen minutes. Next, turn on the broiler and leave for five minutes. Enjoy! 

Easy Oatmeal Berry Smoothie

When it comes to smoothies, I've been itching to try making my own for ages. However, I was always a bit nervous about trying it in a normal, low end blender because I thought the consistency might come out kinda weird. This proved to be completely untrue and I am now enjoying this tasty treat as I write this! The smoothie comes together ridiculously quickly and with  a little prep work the night before would be a tasty breakfast option especially if you have to eat and run! With 250 calories, it might not be the most robust meal but would definitely make a great snack later in the afternoon as well.

Strawberries de-stemmed and quartered

Frozen raspberries

I chose raspberries and strawberries for two reasons: 1) they're what I had on hand already and 2) they're some of the best low GI fruits you can find. I'm not a nutritionist by any means but apparently the lower the GI level, the less of an insulin spike/sugar crash you'll get later on. This also helps to keep energy levels even. Adding the oatmeal helps to make the smoothie a bit more satisfying.

Milk and ground oatmeal 

To prepare the oatmeal, I just popped it in my mini chopper (because I was worried my blender wouldn't get it to a nice consistency) until it resembled flour and had been all broken up. I made a cup of oatmeal this way so that I would have enough for several smoothies. I've stored them in a leftover pickle jar in the cupboard and I think they'll be ok for a few weeks.

Oatmeal after a whirl in the mini chopper

Everybody into the pool!

Seriously, this could not be simpler. It's literally a drop and mix kind of recipe. If you've been hankering after a cool and easy summer treat, this is definitely the recipe for you! I prepped my strawberries by removing the stems and quartering them the night before just so that they would be ready to use. Delicious!

Finished delicious smoothie

Prep Time: 2 min

Cook Time: 1 min

Serves: 1

Ingredients:

1/2 cup diced strawberries

1/2 cup frozen raspberries

1/4 cup ground oatmeal

3/4 cup semi-skimmed milk

1 tbsp honey or to taste

Method:

Pop everything in the blender and mix until it reaches your preferred consistency. Enjoy!

Fromage Fort

This recipe comes as a result of the end of holiday scrounge to use up leftovers that I mentioned in the previous post. I had seen a version of this dish on Smitten Kitchen ages ago and been itching to give it a try. It's the perfect way to use up what's in the fridge since any type of cheese will work fine. All you need are a few bits of cheese to use up and a splash of white wine and you're set!

Possibly the world's worst photo of such a delicious dish!

Usually, you would pop all the cheese into a blender or food processor to mix it up but we didn't have one so I improvised with the microwave. This meant that I had to set the mix aside to set since it was pretty watery at first. It also meant that we had a nice intermediate fondue-esque stage that was a happy accident. Basically, any way you make this will be delicious! I had some cheddar slices to use up so I chopped them finely but grating any hard cheese would also be a good idea. I was very pleased with this and will definitely give it a go the next time we have leftovers from a wine and cheese party! I served it with veggies (again, using up leftovers!) but a baguette would also work perfectly. Finally, the amounts in the recipe below are not specific since it will depend on what you have to use up! Feel free to substitute any cheese you have on hand... I'm debating giving this a go with some leftover Yarg, Keltic Gold and Cornish Blue that I brought home with me... 

Prep Time: 10 min

Cook Time: 5 min

Serves: Many

Ingredients: 

Brie, with the rind cut off.

Cheddar, grated

Blue Cheese, crumbled

Splash of white wine

Method: 

Mix the ingredients in a bowl and microwave in 20 second intervals, mixing between each microwave session, until you reach the desired consistency and the different cheeses have been incorporated. 

Tortilla Pie

Hello lovely readers! I know I haven't been posting very much this past week but I have an excellent reason for my absence: I've been on holiday in gorgeous Cornwall! We had an amazing time filled with beautiful scenery, tasty food and good friends. It was pretty hard to leave yesterday (both figuratively and literally since it took us over ten hours to get home!) but I'm glad I've got the weekend now to prepare for a pretty busy upcoming week. This was a recipe I made while trying to use up leftovers in order to try not to waste too much on our last night at the house. We had made tacos earlier in the week (perfect dish for a big group!) and therefore we had a lot of the seasoned beef leftover. After searching "how to use leftover taco meat" on the internet I came across recipes for tortilla pie. I'd never even heard of this dish before but it seemed like a tasty option!

Stunning cliffs near our house!

Finished tortilla pie

SInce I was relying on leftovers I ended up taking quite a few liberties with the different recipe versions I found online. However, the end result confirmed my suspicion that Tex-Mex is incredibly forgiving. Basically, if you have cheese, you're good to go. I paired this with a quick and simple olive salsa (again, trying to use up bits and bobs in the fridge). If you aren't an olive fan, feel free to ditch them! Also, you will note that the recipe below calls for 8 slices of packaged cheese... and yes, I'm referring to the awful/delicious versions that you top hamburgers with if you're feeling lazy. Obviously, feel free to skip them! I normally don't buy that cheese but again, I was using what we had on hand. Don't judge me! Finally, I'm guessing with the ingredient amounts here based on the size of our dish but this could easily be whipped up with whatever leftovers you had and a smaller pan!

Simple olive salsa

Final dish!

Prep TIme: 15 min

Cook Time: 15 min

Serves: 8

Ingredients: 

6 flour tortillas

800g seasoned taco meat

250g cheddar cheese

300ml sour cream

8 packets of pre-sliced hamburger cheese

2 onions, chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 red bell pepper, chopped

250g cherry tomatoes, chopped

1 bunch of coriander, chopped

5 spring onions, chopped

1 handful of olives, chopped

1 -2 limes, juiced 

1/4 cup of jalopenos, chopped

Method: 

Preheat oven to 400F/200C.

In a large pot on the stove, heat a splash of oil over medium heat and begin to saute the chopped onion. When the onion is starting to soften, add the red bell pepper and saute for a minute. Next add the garlic and saute gently for two minutes or until it becomes fragrant. Finally, add in the leftover taco meat and leave until it is reheated, stirring frequently. It should be a bit juicy so if it's a bit dry, add a splash of water. Leave over a low heat while you prepare the rest of the dish.

Mix the sour cream and 3/4ths of the cheddar cheese in a bowl and set aside. 

Prepare a baking dish by spraying or buttering the bottom and sides. Lay two tortillas on the bottom, overlapping slightly to fit. Next add half the taco meat mixture, spreading evenly around the dish. Top this layer with 4 slices of the pre-packaged hamburger cheese, tearing them to evenly distribute around the dish. Next add another layer of tortillas by laying another two tortillas onto the cheese. Spread the sour cream and cheddar cheese mix on top of these tortillas. Add the remaining taco meat onto the sour cream and top with the remaining four slices of pre-packaged cheese. Finally, layer the two remaining tortillas onto the cheese and top with the remaining grated cheddar cheese. 

Bake for 15 minutes or until the cheese on top has melted and is beginning to crisp. 

For the salsa: mix the cherry tomatoes, spring onions, olives, jalopenos and coriander in a bowl and drizzle with the juiced limes. Set aside to let the flavors mingle. Enjoy! 

Lunchables: Tuesday

For Tuesday's lunch, I really struggled to find the energy to make something. I've been ill with a sore throat and general flu-like symptoms since Sunday so combined with teaching I'm exhausted! However, I really wanted to keep up the lunch blogging so I poked around in my cupboards for something relatively easy to throw together. The result? Moroccan inspired couscous!

Sizzling Halloumi

Browning Halloumi

I'll admit, I may have been slightly heavy handed with the Cayenne pepper so my lunch is definitely packing a punch! However, I'm hoping using the little pot for some yogurt to have along side will help to temper the heat. I also sauteed some Halloumi quickly and added that in to help bulk it up a bit. If you had leftover roast lamb or chicken this would be really tasty to have along side! I split the sauteed vegetables into two servings because I haven't been very hungry while I've been ill but I'm listing it as a single serving recipe since I think it's a pretty normal portion size.

Veggies getting started in the pan 

Spices going in

Finally, I'm listing the spice amounts as dashes because it will depend on your preference. Feel free to throw in any other spices you like! If you don't have Halloumi in your local shop, feta might be a nice substitute. If using Halloumi, make sure to keep it a light golden color because over cooking will make it rubbery.

Ready to be added to the couscous

Boxed and ready for lunch!

Prep Time: 5 min

Cook Time: 15 min

Serves: 1

Ingredients:

Olive oil

3 slices of Halloumi cheese, 1 centimeter thick

1/2 a small onion, roughly chopped

1/2 cup zucchini, chopped

1/2 cup yellow bell pepper, chopped

2 chestnut mushrooms, chopped

1 handful of raisins

Dash of ground coriander

Dash of cayenne pepper

Dash of ground cinnamon

Dash of allspice

Dash of cumin

1/4 vegetable bouillon cube

Splash of water

30g couscous

Yogurt to serve along side

Method:

Add a splash of olive oil to a medium sized pan and place over medium heat. Carefully lay the Halloumi cheese slices into the oil and leave until golden brown on both sides. Meanwhile, prepare your vegetables. When the Halloumi is ready, remove from the pan and set aside. In the same pan, add the vegetables and saute until softened. When almost ready, add the spices and the raisins and saute for 2 minutes. Next add a splash of water and crumble the bouillon cube into the mix and leave until the water has been absorbed by the vegetables.

For the couscous, boil a kettle of water. Place 30 grams of couscous in a bowl and pour the water over until it's just above the level of the couscous. Cover with a plate and set aside for 10 minutes. When ready, mix with the vegetables, top with the Halloumi and pop into your lunch container. Enjoy! 

Lunchables: Monday

This week I'm trying out something new for the blog. Since I'm working every day as a teaching assistant, I'm hoping to take my lunch in with me. Should be a good opportunity to use my fancy new box! I'll be posting each day's offerings here so stay tuned!

My new lunchbox!

Very handy having the cutlery included

Monday's lunch was a quick and easy stir fry. When I made dinner yesterday, I kept a small portion aside for a no-brainier lunch. Simple!

Love the little pot for sauces/dressings

Ready to go!

Prep Time: 5 min

Cook Time: 15 min

Serves: 1

Ingredients:

1/2 cup aubergine, sliced into bite size pieces

1/2 cup zucchini, sliced

1/2 a small red onion, sliced

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 tsp garlic

100g ready to cook rice noodles

Coconut oil

Olive oil

Soy sauce

Method:

Add a half a teaspoon of coconut oil to a large sauté pan over medium heat. Place the slices of aubergine into the pan and sauté until browned and soft. Add a bit of olive oil if needed. Next add the zucchini and onion and cook until soft. Stir in the garlic and ginger and sauté for a minute or two until the garlic is fragrant. Next toss in the rice noodles and mix with the other ingredients. Add a dash of soy sauce and toss to coat. Enjoy!