Vegetarian Cottage Pie
Posted: Tuesday, January 24th, 2012 at 1:33 pm
The lentil, vegetable and mushroom base in this recipe is tasty and filling but low in fat.
WW Points: 10 Total - Serves: 4
Ingredients
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 1 red onion, chopped
- 200g carrots, finely diced
- 1 stick celery, finely diced
- 2 garlic cloves, finely diced
- 250g chestnut mushrooms, chopped
- 400g can Chopped Tomatoes
- 1 tbsp tomato puree
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 400g can Green Lentils, drained and rinsed
- 300g sweet potato (peeled weight), cut into even-size pieces
- 300g potato (peeled weight), cut into even-size pieces
- 1 tbsp reduced-fat creme fraiche
- 100ml water if the mixture is a bit dry
- dash of Henderson’s Relish
- 1/2 tsp of balsamic vinegar
- 2 tsp Marigold vegetable stock powder
- salt and black pepper, to taste
Method
- Preheat the oven to 200C
- Heat the oil in a pan and cook the onion and garlic over a medium heat until soft.
- Add the carrots and celery, and stir well. Cover and cook over a low heat, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes.
- Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until the juices run.
- Increase the heat and cook, stirring often, until the juices evaporate.
- Add the tomatoes, tomato puree, thyme and lentils, Henderson’s, balsamic vinegar, stock powder, and the water if needed. Simmer, stirring occasionally with a spoon, for 15 minutes.
- Transfer the mixture to a baking dish.
- Cook the sweet potatoes and potatoes until tender.
- Drain and mash with the creme fraiche.
- Put on top of the mushroom and lentil mixture.
- Bake for 20-30 minutes.
Wild Rabbit and Prune Casserole
Posted: Sunday, January 15th, 2012 at 3:37 pm
Serves: 3/4
WW Points: 8
Ingredients
- Boned flesh of a wild rabbit
- 2 onion shallots, sliced
- 10 soft Agen prunes, sliced in half
- 1 large stick celery chopped
- 1 large carrot, peeled and chopped in largish chunks
- 10 chestnut mushrooms thickly sliced
- 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
- 500ml chicken stock
- 50ml dry white Vermouth
- 2 sprigs of thyme
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tsp flour
- salt and pepper
- 10 sprays 1cal olive oil
Method
- Heat a non-stick saute pan and add 5 sprays of oil. Gently saute the shallots and garlic until soft a slightly browned. Add them to a casserole dish.
- Dust the rabbit in the flour and a little seasoning and brown them in 5 more sprays of oil. Add them to the casserole.
- Pour the Vermouth into the saute pan and reduce, picking up all the residue from the pan.
- Add to the liquid from the saute pan to the casserole, with the carrots, celery, prunes, bay leaf and thyme.
- Mix well and add the chicken stock. It should just cover the contents. If not add a little hot water.
- Cook at 170c for 1.5 hours untill the rabbit is tender.
Oven Baked Herbed Vegetable Crisps
Posted: Monday, January 9th, 2012 at 12:54 pm
These crunchy homemade crisps are worth waiting for when you fancy something savoury. They’re great served along with soup for a light meal.
WW Points: 1 per cup.
Ingredients
- 10 spray(s) Cooking Spray, Calorie Controlled
- 2 medium Courgette, sliced crosswise into ½ cm slices
- 2 medium Parsnip, peeled and sliced crosswise into ½ cm slices
- 2 medium Sweet Potato, peeled and sliced crosswise into ½ cm slices
- 4 medium Carrots, Old, Raw, peeled and sliced diagonally into ½ cm slices
- 1 teaspoons Salt, or to taste
- 1 teaspoons (as purchased) Oregano, dried
Instructions
- Preheat oven to Gas Mark ½/130°C/250°F. Coat 2 large baking trays with cooking spray.
- Arrange vegetables on prepared baking trays. Coat vegetables with cooking spray and season with salt and oregano.
- Roast for 1 hour and then rotate trays. Roast for 1½ to 2 hours total, or until crisps are crunchy and dry.
- Notes
- To keep crispy, store in an airtight container or storage bag for 3 days. To re-crisp already cooked crisps that have gone soft, cook on a baking tray for 10 minutes at Gas Mark ½/130°C/250°F.
Game terrine
Posted: Thursday, October 27th, 2011 at 3:26 pm
Ingredients
- selection of lean game meat, about 1kg/2¼lb in all
- oil or fat, for frying
For the forcemeat
- 500g/1lb2oz sausage meat
- livers from all the game, finely chopped
- 2 handfuls fresh white breadcrumbs
- 1 egg
- 3 tbsp parsley, finely chopped
- few sprigs of thyme, leaves removed and chopped
- 5-6 juniper berries, crushed in pestle and mortar
- 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- splash of brandy
- splash of red wine
- salt and pepper
To line the dish
- 300g/10½oz streaky bacon, flattened with the back of a knife
Preparation method
- In a large mixing bowl combine the sausage meat and the chopped livers from the game.
- Next add the breadcrumbs, egg, parsley, thyme, juniper berries and garlic. Then the wine and brandy, season with the salt and pepper and mix everything together thoroughly, preferably with your hands.
- Cut the game meat into roughly same-size strips, about 2 fingers thick.
- In a heavy-based frying pan heat the fat or oil and fry the game pieces for 2 minutes until nicely browned.
- Line a loaf tin or ceramic terrine dish with the stretched rashers of streaky bacon. Add a layer of forcemeat followed by a layer of game meat, then a layer of forcemeat followed by another layer of game meat. (If you like, you can put the same kind of meat in each layer, ie a layer of rabbit, a layer of pigeon and then a layer of pheasant).
- Fold the exposed strips of bacon over the top of the terrine and cover well with kitchen foil. If your terrine dish has a lid on it so much the better.
- Place the terrine dish in a roasting tin half-filled with hot water. Cook in the oven at 160C/325F/Gas 3 for approximately 1½-2 hours. Test with a skewer to see if it is cooked, if the skewer does not come out of the terrine piping hot then it is not ready.
- For the best possible texture and easy slicing, your terrine should be pressed as it cools. Find a piece of wood or plastic that fits snugly inside the terrine dish and weigh it down with a brick or two. (Another similar size dish or loaf tin with a brick inside often does the trick, but wrap it in cling film if you’re using a tin.) Leave the terrine until completely cold for several hours or overnight.
- To serve the terrine, slice it thickly with a very sharp knife, put on a plate with a small salad of lightly dressed green leaves and a blob of good fruit chutney. Serve with hot toast.
Nigel Bardens Sticky Toffee Pudding
Posted: Tuesday, October 11th, 2011 at 3:21 pm
Serves 4 most generously or 6 who will want more!
Prep time 20-30 mins Cooking time 30-40 mins
Ingredients
Method
First boil & then weigh the water (weighing is a lot more accurate than using a measuring jug!
Carefully add the chopped dates & bi-carbonate of soda (use a large container as the bi-carbonate of soda will make the water fizz up) & leave to soften for around 10 mins.
Using the paddle/beater attachment of your mixer, cream the butter & golden caster sugar until they lighten slightly in colour (approx 5 mins).
Add the vanilla seeds (or extract if using) & turn the mixer down to its slowest speed.
Sift & add the self raising flour followed immediately by the eggs, gradually add the date water mix. Beat for 2 mins then using a spatula scrape down & gradually increase the mixer speed to around medium until the mixture is evenly mixed (the mixture will be a loose thick pourable batter-like texture-do not be tempted to add any more flour!)
Pour the mixture into a buttered & floured 8x8x2.5 inch deep square baking dish & bake at 180C or 375F, gas mark 5 (170C for fan ovens) for 30-40 mins – a knife inserted should come out clean!
Meanwhile place the double cream, black treacle, de-seeded vanilla pod & dark soft brown sugar in a pan, stirring occasionally, bring to the boil & switch off heat.
As soon as your pudding comes out of the oven pour over around half of the toffee sauce onto the pudding (having removed the vanilla pod) & place under a pre-heated grill on highest heat to toffeefy the top (cheffy types use a blow torch if desired)
Serve with the accompanying sauce & a simple vanilla ice cream, lightly whipped or clotted (optional damson gin!)