veg stock – Food That We Make

Green bean, chickpea and fresh tomato minestrone.

hannahnicklin — Thu, 01 Nov 2012 23:31:23 +0000

I always thought minestrone was a meat-y taste, and I didn’t have much hope for a veggie version (vegan, in fact), but, it turns out, TOTES WRONG. This was amazingly minestroney-y. Proper stuff. Might be to do with the marmite modification, but still, that brill mix of really substantial pasta and veg, protein from the chickpeas, and the slightly brothy watery stuff that is instant comfort-taste to me. highly recommend, this, and keeps throughout the week pretty well if you don’t mind slightly swollen spaghetti.

Serves: 6 | Prep: 10 mins | Cook: 30 mins
Nutritional info: 227 kcal, 35g carbs, 7g fat, 8g protein

Ingredienty:

Prep: get the stock boiling. Chop the onion, cube the tomatoes, crush and chop the garlic, break up the spaghetti, drain the chick peas, chop up the beans into 1-2cm pieces.

Get a big pan, put the oil and onion in it. Soften the onion. I have illustrated this in case you are uncertain.

Add garlic. Fry for a couple of minutes more.

Add everything that isn’t the rocket.

Bring to the boil, simmer for 15-20 minutes, until pasta is done.

When the spaghetti is cooked, stir through the rocket. Season to taste. Serve.

How easy?

Cauliflower and Leek Risotto

hannahnicklin — Thu, 01 Nov 2012 23:05:31 +0000

ECONOMY DRIVE TIME. So a month into freelancing and it turns out unpredictable money is SCARY. Especially just before Christmas. The stuff it allows me to do is totally worth it, but I’m also starting to try and really reduce food spend. Just until I have some goddam reserves built up. So, enter a phase on Food That We Make of cheap things. But still tasty. Always tasty. First up, a super simple leek and cauliflower risotto. The rice, cauliflower and leeks all cheap cheap cheap. A little bit of cheese goes a long way, and cheap cooking wine will last a long while for it. I still didn’t scrimp on fresh parsley, though. It lifts the flavour too much to take out. So yeah, big amount, good flavour, very filling. My version makes the cauli quite smooshy, and I like the melty cauli style, but if you like your brassicas firm, then remove all stalkage and add with 15-20 minutes to go.

Serves: 4 | Prep Time: 10 mins | Cook time about 30-40 mins
Nutritional Info: 593 kcal, 74g carbs, 25g fat, 15g protein

Ingredients pic!

weigh everything out, slice the leeks thinly, crush and chop the garlic, break the cauliflower into florets, taking off the thickest bit of the stalks. Set the stock on to boil. Heat the oil in a well big pan.

Add the garlic, leeks and cauli and soften over the heat for 5-10 mins

Add the risotto rice, stir through and cook for about 2 mins until the rice is slightly glossy

Add the wine, stir until absorbed

If you’re not in a mega rush like I was, add the stock a bit by bit until absorbed and the rice is al dente. If in a massive rush add it all and hope it’s the right amount. Reduce for about 2o-25 mins

When it’s reduced, add the butter and parmesan, stir through for a couple minute more

Then add the parsley, season to taste (loads of black pepper) and serve. Voila:

‘Mazing Mushroom Soup

hannahnicklin — Mon, 06 Aug 2012 18:15:12 +0000

This is not a cheap recipe. Please do not make a cheap version of this recipe. Please go out and invest in one of the tastiest soups EVER by buying at least 4 types of mushrooms. Mushrooms that actually taste of something. If you put white mushrooms in this I will send the soup police around to your house and no one is seen again after the soup police are sent to ‘deal’ with them and in the same week Covent Garden Soups release a new ‘seasonal’ variety which is coincidentally red-coloured. Also, just totally make this, it’s ridiculously tasty. Based on a Jamie Oliver recipe, I think, but with soya cream and things. Vegan if you use a butter substitute, too. FYI the mushrooms I used in this were: Shiitake, Portabella, Chesnut, Oyster, Porcini, Maitake, Hon Shimeji and Shiro Shimeji. The posher sounding ones all come in the Sainsbury’s ‘selected for flavour’ taste the difference box. The mushrooms probably cost about £5-6. TOTALLY WORTH IT.

Prep Time: 10 mins | Cook Time: 20-40 mins (depending on patience) | Servings: 4
Nutritional Info: per serving: 178 kcal, 10g carbs, 35g fat, 7g protein

Ingredients:

First up, cover the porcini in boiling water and leave to hydrate. Then put the olive oil in a large pan, heat, then chuck in all the sliced mushrooms, fry quickly for a minute or so…

Then add the onion, butter, garlic, and thyme, season, stir together, cook for a few minutes until the mushrooms start to sweat

Then chop and add the rehydrated porcini, and add the soaking liquid (strained if you’re fussy about grit)

Cook down until most of the liquid has evaporated, then add the stock, simmering for 10-20 minutes more.

Nearly there! Roughly blend the soup with a hand blender. Season to taste.

Add most of the the parsley and all the cream, and blend a bit more. Then add the last bit of the roughly chopped parsley, stir through.

Serve! Eat. Die of TASTY.