Meera Sodha’s vegan recipe for aubergine fesenjan

Posted on February 9, 2019 by Simonperry

This recipe is from Meera Sodha’s book Fresh India. You’ll need a food processor to grind the walnuts.

Prep 10 min
Cook 30-35 min
Serves 4 as a main

120g walnuts
4 medium aubergines (1.2 kg)
Rapeseed oil
Salt and ground black pepper
2 large red onions, peeled and thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
1½ tbsp brown rice syrup
¾ tsp chilli powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tbsp pomegranate molasses
250ml hot vegetable stock
Seeds from 1 pomegranate
1 handful fresh coriander, roughly chopped

Heat the oven to 200C (180C fan)/390F/gas 6 and line a large baking tray with lightly oiled foil. In a food processor, blitz the walnuts to a fine crumb.

Cut the aubergines into 5cm x 2cm batons, toss in a bowl with a little oil to coat, season lightly, then transfer to the prepared tray and roast for 25 minutes, until meltingly soft.

While the aubergines are roasting, make the fesenjan sauce. Put three tablespoons of oil into a large frying pan over a medium heat and, once hot, add the onions and fry for 12 minutes, stirring regularly to ensure they don’t catch.

Add the garlic, fry for three minutes, then stir in the brown rice syrup, chilli powder, cinnamon, half a teaspoon of salt, a teaspoon of ground black pepper, the blitzed walnuts and the pomegranate molasses. Pour in the stock and cook for about eight minutes, until the sauce comes together.

When the aubergines are tender, pour the sauce into a serving dish. Arrange the aubergines on top, scatter over the pomegranate seeds and coriander, and serve with steamed basmati rice.

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/food/2019/feb/09/vegan-fesenjan-recipe-roast-aubergine-pomegranate-walnut-sauce

Photograph: Louise Hagger/The Guardian. Food styling: Katy Gilhooly. Prop styling: Jennifer Kay.

Recipe: Yotam Ottolenghi’s Bulgur with tomato, aubergine and preserved lemon yoghurt

Posted on August 19, 2018 by Simonperry

Bulgur with tomato, aubergine and preserved lemon yoghurt

Just look at all the pantry staples made with tomatoes – tinned, paste, passata, sun-dried and more – each a variation on the bright-red theme. It’s that desire to capture summer in a jar, tin or tube that provides cooks with some of their snappiest tools for layering tomatoey flavours. Yes, there’s nothing quite as glorious as a perfectly ripe, raw tomato, but in cooking, adding all its derivatives into the mix opens up a world of creatively fine-tuning sweetness, acidity and freshness.

This is made of three components – roasted aubergine, bulgur with tomato, and yoghurt sauce – all of which adorable on their own. Together, however, they make a truly memorable main.

Prep 15 min
Cook 45 min
Serves 4 as a main (It also works as a side dish, in which case these quantities will serve six to eight.)

2 large aubergines (500g net weight), cut into 3cm chunks
100ml olive oil
Salt and black pepper
2 onions, peeled and finely sliced
3 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
1 tsp ground allspice
400g cherry tomatoes
1 tbsp tomato paste
250g bulgur wheat
200g yoghurt
1 small preserved lemon, pips discarded, skin and flesh finely chopped
10g mint leaves (about 1 tbsp) finely shredded

Heat the oven to 220C/425F/gas 7. Put the aubergine in a large bowl with four tablespoons of oil, half a teaspoon of salt and a good grind of pepper. Mix, then spread out on a large oven tray lined with greaseproof paper and roast for 30-35 minutes, stirring once halfway, until the aubergines are caramelised and soft. Take out of the oven and leave to cool.

Meanwhile, put three tablespoons of oil in a large saute pan for which you have a lid and heat on a medium-high flame. Once hot, fry the onion for eight minutes, stirring a few times, until caramelised and soft. Add the garlic and allspice, fry for a minute, stirring continuously, until the garlic is aromatic and starting to brown, then add the cherry tomatoes, mashing them with a potato masher to break them up. Stir in the tomato paste, 400ml water and a teaspoon of salt, bring to a boil, turn down the heat to medium-low, cover and cook for 12 minutes. Add the bulgur, stirring it in so it’s completely coated, then turn off the heat and set aside for 20 minutes, so the bulgur can absorb all the liquid.

In a medium bowl, mix the yoghurt with the preserved lemon, half the mint and an eighth of a teaspoon of salt.

Divide the bulgur between four plates and serve with the yoghurt and aubergine alongside and a sprinkling of the remaining mint.

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/food/2018/aug/18/yotam-ottolenghi-tomato-recipes

Stuffed, baked Lumaconi pasta

Posted on July 9, 2018 by Simonperry

Alas the only picture of this dish would be of two empty plates smeared with sauce and watched over by two burping, sated diners. It looks nice and it tastes great and if you want to see what it looks like then get off the computer and get into the kitchen. Now dammit!

This needs to be baked in a lidded dish large enough to lay out the pasta at the bottom of the dish. Assume 6 pieces of pasta for each person and test the dish size by laying out the right amount of pasta straight from the packet.

Ingredients (Serves two as a main meal)

1 tin chick peas (or approx 2.5 cups of home cooked chickpeas)
1 tin tomatoes
Lumaconi pasta or other large pasta that can be stuffed. About 6 pieces each
1 large carrot, grated
half a cup of celery, finely chopped
1 medium eggplant
1 large zuchinni
1 medium onion, crushed (put it through the garlic press. WARNING – onion juice squirted in your eye hurts)
3 to 4 large cloves of garlic, crushed
1 tbl spn light miso
1 cup of white wine
1 to 2 cups of water or stock
olive oil
1 tspn paprika
1/2 tspn smoked paprika
1/2 tspn cumin
1/2 tspn cayenne pepper (or more to taste)
cracked pepper
tamari sauce
handful of fresh parsley, chopped
sprig of fresh rosemary, chopped
2 or 3 fresh bay leaves

Method

Lightly saute the chickpeas in a closed saucepan with a splash of olive oil with the garlic, onion, paprikas, cumin, and cayenne. Take off the heat and mash. Add a generous splash of tamari and the carrot, mix thoroughly and set aside until cool enough to handle the mix
While the chickpea mix is cooling pour a generous splash of olive oil in the bottom of the baking dish. Put the oven on to warm. Chop the eggplant and zuchinni into large chunks. Chop the celery and the herbs, have a glass of wine, go feed a bird some seeds and whistle to them a bit. They’ll think you’re mad and pity you for not having wings but the gift of some seed to eat will see you good.
Stuff the Lumaconi pasta with the chickpea mix and lay out the pasta at the bottom of the oiled baking dish. If there is any mix remaining just add to the dish.
Top the pasta with the chopped herbs and the bay leaves
Add the zuchinni, eggplant, and chopped celery. Add the miso and a generous grind of pepper
Cover with the tomatoes
Add the wine and water/stock
Bake covered in a prewarmed medium oven for about an hour. Check about the 40 minute mark to make sure it is not drying out. If so add more water/stock.

Courgette and Aubergine Stroganoff

Posted on June 24, 2018 by Simonperry

A very hearty tomato stew, thickened by cashew cream. Is it Stroganoff? Strictly not of course, but then again sometimes a close brush with reality is all we need to anchor ourselves to the thin crust of sanity.

The day this dish entered our damaged and seemingly deranged world the overnight air had frozen the heavy dew on the roof at Ridgesong and long, thin tongues of ice slid off the eves as the morning sun broke weakly threw the heavy mist. Brrr….. At that, my little lovely, is what a fire is for!

Serve with Garlic Bread. Enough for two for a hearty stomach full.

Ingredients:

2 medium courgettes
1 medium aubergine
a fistful of green beans
1 small onion
lashes of garlic
1 tin tomatoes, or equivalent of fresh
1 medium red capsicum (roasted)
a BIG dab of sweet miso
some white wine
about 1/2 litre of stock
1 cup of cashews, soaked for at least four hours in a cup of boiled water
1 cup of chickpeas
lots of rosemary from the garden, chopped
lots of parsley from the garden, chopped
2 to 3 tspns of hot cayenne
4 to 5 tspns of sweet paprika
1 tspn of smoked paprika
1 tspn of ground black pepper
1 tspn of ground cumin
a generous pour of olive oil

To make:

wizz the cashews with the liquid to cashew cream and reserve
Barmix the onion, garlic, tomatoes, capsicum, miso, and wine. Use some of the stock too if needed
chop the aubergine, courgette, and beans into big chunks
lightly saute the spices to release the flavours
add the vegetables, chickpeas, herbs, wine, stock, and sauce
simmer for hours on a low heat (preferably on top of the lovely warm fireplace). The vegetables should be well cooked but not mushed
stir through the cashew cream
serve with garlic bread and red wine

Penne Pasta Bake

Posted on July 1, 2014 by Simonperry

It’s not spaghetti tempehgnese. It’s not lasagne. It is pasta based though – and it cooks in the oven (mostly). Woo hoo…it’s Penne Pasta Bake.

Here’s who you need to bring to the party:

1 cup of uncooked penne
Half a medium aubergine, chopped into large chunks
Half a medium cauliflower, separated into large florets
One small onion; halved into hemispheres then quartered and separated (basically you want big chunks)
More garlic than is socially acceptable; roughly chopped.
1/2 cup of your favourite (destoned) olives
1/4 cup of sun dried tomatoes, diced
3/4 cup of marinated artichokes (if whole artichokes then cut them into quarters))
1 and 1/2 cups of cooked chick peas (or a standard sized can)
A spring of fresh rosemary, chopped
A small handful of fresh parsley, chopped
Ground black pepper
Miso (or your favourite vegetable stock)
Olive oil
1/2 cup white wine (plus extra for you)
1/2 cup of pine nuts
1/2 cup of capers (optional)

Here’s what you know you want to do:

Start preheating the oven (220c) and while doing so lightly toast the pine nuts (now this will challenge your multi-tasking skills won’t it!?! There is nothing quite as disappointing as singed pine nuts)

Cook the penne according to the manufacturer’s instructions but for half the time.

Meanwhile, saute the onion and garlic over a low heat in an ocean of olive oil. At the last moment add the pepper then remove from heat.

Throw the cooked mix into a deep, lidded oven-proof pot (take the lid off first or you’ll make an awful mess).

Add the parsley and rosemary.

Once the pasta is cooked, drain about a cup of the liquid back into the saucepan you cooked the onion etc in and reserve the rest of the liquid. Add the miso to the saucepan and dissolve in the cup of pasta water and the white wine.

Layer in to the oven proof dish in the following order; the pasta, the fresh herbs, the aubergine, the chickpeas, the olives, artichokes and sundried tomatoes (and chopped capers if using) and the cauliflower.

Pour the miso stock over and then drizzle very generously with olive oil.

The level of the water should be a centimetre or two below the cauliflower i.e. the florets should be exposed. If you need more liquid to achieve this level use some of the reserved pasta water; discard what you don’t need.

Bake, covered for 30-45 minutes.

Just before serving mix through the pine nuts (no…I hadn’t forgotten them!)

Handy Tip

For the first 15 minutes after putting the meal in the oven crank the temperature up, I mean really crank it. This will get the party started (especially if you’ve had a few glasses of that white wine) and much reduce overall cooking time. After 15-20 minutes reduce the heat to 220c. A gentle word of advice from experience; much sadness results from forgetting to turn the over down from FURNACE and back to 220c.

Greek Moussaka

Posted on November 27, 2012 by Naomiperry

I found this recipe a while ago, and bookmarked it. I knew that one day soon I would think to myself, hmmm, I feel like cooking something different today. And today was the day. I am often happy to cook meals that I have cooked many times before, as they involve little thought, unlike Veghead, who much prefers something new and exciting to come from the kitchen. The original recipe I found on the blog of Carol J. Adams, who was given the recipe by Shirley Wilkes-Johnson, apparently a vegan who had been around for a very long time. I changed the recipe around a little bit, due to our preferences, and reduced the amounts significantly as there were only two of us eating it, not ten.

Ingredients:

1 medium to large eggplant, stem end cut off and sliced into 1/2-inch slices
3 medium potatoes, sliced into 1/2-inch slices
1 tab extra virgin olive oil
1 small or 1/2 medium chopped onion
1 inch slice of red capsicum, chopped
120g mushrooms, chopped or quartered
1/2 can diced tomatoes
1/2 cup passata (recipe called for 1 tab tomato paste but we didn’t have any)
here the recipe calls for 1 package ground beef style veggie meat (I have no idea how much that is as the recipe is American). I used chickpeas, 1 or 1 1/2 cups, which are yum, unlike the sound of that fake meat.
2 tabs fresh parsley
1/2 tspn cumin powder
1/4 tspn salt
1/4 tspn black pepper
1/8 tspn each cinnamon and nutmeg

Bechamel sauce ingredients:

1/4 cup raw cashews
1 1/4 cups water
1 tabs cornstarch
a couple of thin slices of onion, finely chopped (the recipe called for powdered onion, but why would you bother)
1/2 tspn salt
1/8 tspn pepper

What to do:

Preheat oven to 204.4 repeater degrees celsius (this is the metric conversion of 400 fahrenheit). 205 degrees is probably OK. Place the eggplant and potato slices on well oiled baking trays and brush them with more oil. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes.

While the eggplant and potatoes are roasting, sauté onions, capsicum and mushrooms in olive oil over medium high heat for about 5 minutes or so.

Stir in tomatoes and passata until mixed. Add chickpeas and the herbs and spices.

In an oiled baking dish, add a layer of eggplant slices, then a layer of potato slices. Add a layer of the chickpea mixture then cover with potato slices, then the rest of the eggplant slices.

To make the Béchamel sauce, blend all the ingredients together and bring to a low boil, stirring constantly until the mixture thickens. Pour sauce over eggplant.

Bake at 176.667 degrees celsius for about 30 to 35 minutes. Allow to stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Leftovers are good the next day. This statement is actually written in the recipe but I think that is so obvious that it doesn’t need to be said at all.

Harissa beetroot and aubergine

Posted on April 3, 2009 by Simonperry

The VegHead exceeded government guidelines on the consumption of alcohol last night. Thursday was, therefore, a “slow” day. Earlier in the week, prior to this unfortunate slip in decorum, The VegHead and SheWhoMustBeFed had earmarked Thursday dinner as Beetroot and Aubergine Sri Lankan Curry night, on account of having a particularly nice looking aubergine (tight, dark flesh and firm to the touch) as well as two precooked (and un-vinegar-ed) beetroots in the fridge. However, come dinnertime both comfort food and ease of preparation was called for. Thus, I introduce to you “the lazy version” of the curry. Total cooking time is not much more than the time it takes for the aubergine to cook through.

Needing (serves two):

2 cooked beetroots (not preserved in vinegar or salt), cubed
1 medium aubergine, cubed in a chunky sort of way
1 cup of cooked butter beans
a few thin slices of onion
2 tablespoons of harrisa paste (or more or less to taste)
olive oil
generous handful of chopped fresh coriander
1/3 cup of coconut milk

To do:

sauté the aubergine, beans, onion, and paste in a generous splash of olive oil
once the aubergine is cooked, add the beetroot (adding the beetroot later in the cooking process ensures that you end up with some colour variation in the meal. Add it too early and everything just ends up purple. As the beetroot’s already cooked, you’re really just warming it up and getting it coated it spice)
just before serving, mix through the coriander and the coconut milk

Serve with mashed potato a.k.a. “comfort food”

Its a hing thing

Posted on February 7, 2009 by Simonperry

Hing is the Indian name for asofetida, which together with a big, fat, grated root of fresh turmeric is the spice that gives the most to the flavour of this chick pea curry. Many recipes have asofetida thrown in to the hot oil at the beginning of cooking, together with the other dried spices and chillies. However The VegHead finds that its flavour is overcome and lost if this is done, and prefers instead to sprinkle a little in once most of the cooking has been done.

Friday’s are the principal shopping day for the VegHead larder, and so Thursday nights tend to be “whatever is left” night. A shiny black-skinned aubergine begged to be eaten, and a pile of orange sweet potatoes just cried out to be culled somewhat. These, together with the big jar of chick peas in the fridge formed the basis for dinner.

The Thursday night larder:

1 medium aubergine – cubed
1 medium sweet potato – cubed
1 cup of cooked chick peas
1 small onion – diced
2 cloves of garlic – chopped
2 medium tomatoes – chopped
1 chilli – chopped
1 thumb sized turmeric root (substitute 2 teaspoons of turmeric powder if unavailable)
1/2 teaspoon of cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon of coriander seeds
small pinch of fenugreek seeds
2 cardamom pods
1 clove
1/2 teaspoon of asofetida powder
1 tablespoon of miso (or substitute vegetable stock)
sunflower oil
water
corn flour (or other thickening agent)

To do:

dry roast the spice seeds for 10 minutes or so, then grind to a powder with a mortar and pestle
roughly mash the chick peas with a “potato masher”
fry the dried spices, chilli, onion and garlic over a low heat for a few minutes (if using powdered turmeric add at this stage too)
add the chick peas, sweet potato, and aubergine. Mix thoroughly and cook covered over a low heat for several minutes
add the tomato and miso, and enough water to cover. Bring to a steady, low simmer and maintain until the sweet potato and aubergine are tender but not mushy
if using fresh turmeric root, grate and add now (best to only grate fresh turmeric root just before using or it browns quickly through oxidisation). Also add the asofetida powder. Simmer for another few minutes.
thicken the sauce. The easiest way to do this is to scoop out the vegetables into a bowl using a slotted spoon, leaving just the sauce in the pan (off the heat). Then spoon out a little of the sauce into a small bowl, add a little corn flour, and mix all the lumps out with a fork. Then add the corn flour mix back into the rest of the sauce in the pan, and mix through thoroughly over a low heat. Then add the vegetables back in. This might sound fussy but it ensures a lump-free thickening experience at the expense of two extra bowls and a slotted spoon in the washing up.
bring the saucepan back to a low simmer
serve with rice or idli

Never be mean to an aubergine

Posted on February 5, 2009 by Simonperry

Never be mean to an aubergine
Even if they’re not your scene.
Their gorgeous purple hue
Can on the branch split in two.
A single stem with mirrored parts
A passionate purple kitchen heart.
A whimsical, unexpected treat
Clearly nicer than eating meat.

Chick Pea and Brinjal with tumeric and methi leaves

Posted on January 25, 2009 by Simonperry

This recipe relies pretty heavily on you having some fresh Turmeric Root. Though turmeric root is the source of the more common dried turmeric powder, it has a subtly different flavour. Turmeric root should is best grated on a ceramic ginger grater, just before you need to add it to the dish – it oxidises very quickly and then the bright orange turns a rusty brown.

The act of grating turmeric root is also recommended for anyone who wishes to go to an X-Files themed fancy dress party as The Cancer Man. It is incredibly staining, and even if you immediately wash your hands your finger tips will be left with an orange tinge reminiscent of a 2 pack a day habit for a day or so. It is quite a cheerful colour actually and will serve as a happy remembrance of a lovely meal even as you sit the next day in yet another interminable business meeting getting a numb arse, and an earache from all the corporate nonspeak.

Ingredients:

a small onion, thinly sliced
2 baby brinjal (aubergine), cut into thin wedges. It is best not to cut the brinjal until just before you need it, as the cut flesh quickly oxidises and turns brown.
1 cup of cooked chick peas
1 small tomato, chopped
2 teaspoons of cumin seeds
1 teaspoon of coriander seeds
1 teaspoon of dried black peppercorns
1/4 teaspoon of fennel seeds
3 cardamom (seed) pods
1 clove of garlic, chopped
6-7cm (approx) long turmeric root, grated
1 cm (approx) of ginger root, grated
tablespoon of light miso paste (or similar vegetable stock source)
1 cup (approx) of methi leaves
(up to) 1 cup of water
vegetable oil

Zee making:

de-pod the cardamom seeds from the pods, and then dry roast together with all the other dried spice seeds for 5-10 minutes. Then grind to a course powder in a mortar and pestle.
saute the spices, together with the onion
add the chickpeas, tomatoes, miso paste, garlic, grated ginger and water and simmer for ten minutes on a low flame
add the brinjal and the grated turmeric root continue to simmer for a minute or two. The brinjal should best be still a little crunchy. Simmer longer however if that is not to your taste.
stir through the methi leaves and serve

* Image of turmeric root sourced gratefully from www.food-info.net

Spicy aubergine dip

Posted on December 10, 2008 by Simonperry

A VegHead reverse engineering of an oft ordered entree from our favourite local Moroccan restaurant (Al Fassia – in Windsor). Al Fassia serves this on a bed of finely chopped lettuce, the fresh green of which offsets the brilliant red of the dip in a dramatic manner. If you choose to do it that way, do not spoon the aubergine dip onto the lettuce until just before you serve, or the leaves will wilt and stain.

What goes in:

One medium sized aubergine
One medium tomato, finely chopped
A few thin slices of onion – finely chopped
One small crushed clove of garlic
Two tablespoons of harissa paste
Juice of half a medium lemon
Olive oil

The making:

Quarter the aubergine lengthways. Holding the skin against your hand, grate the flesh (use the medium to large holes on your grater)
Saute the aubergine, onion and garlic in olive oil. Do not allow to stick.
Add the harissa paste and continue to cook for another minute or two
Add the tomato and tomato
Simmer until the juices from the tomato have mostly evaporated
Stir through the lemon juice

Serve warm with toasted pita bread (can therefore be made ahead of time)

Broad bean and aubergine tagine

Posted on December 9, 2008 by Simonperry

Very tired last night after a busy weekend so this was perfect. 10 minutes to prepare, about an hour and a quarter to cook…