100G of green lentils
2 tbsp of chopped coriander
1 beef tomato chopped
½ teaspoon of chopped chilli
Juice of 1 lime
1 small red onion chopped
Salt & Pepper
Rinse the lentils then bring to the boil in cold water for about 30 minutes, drain and allow to cool. Mix the lentils with the remainder of the salsa ingredients and season and chill in the fridge.
350g Leeks
350g Potatoes
600ml Chicken or vegetable stock
25g Butter
1 Medium Onion
100ml Single cream
Salt & Pepper
Trim, wash and roughly chop the leeks. Peel and dice the potatoes. Peel and finely chop the onion.
In a large pan melt the butter. Add the onion and leek and sauté for 5minutes until soft but not browned. Add the potatoes and stock.
Bring the pan to a simmer for 20 minutes. Blend the soup in a food processor until smooth. Return the soup to the pan to reheat and add the cream and season with the salt & pepper.
This makes 2 or 3 meals and will keep in the freezer.
You can change the root vegetables in the recipe to suit your own taste.
Stew
1kg Stewing Beef or topside
Sunflower or groundnut oil
4 Carrots
3 Sticks Celery
3 cloves garlic, crushed
2 Medium Onions
2 Parsnips
2 Leeks
1 Celeriac
5 Bay leaves
Thyme fresh or dry
2 tbl tomato purée
2 tbl Olive oil
2 tbl Plain flour
2 tbl Honey
1 tsp Salt
1 Bottle Red wine
250ml Beef stock
Dumplings
100g Self raising flour
50g Beef suet
4/5 tbl cold water
Salt & Pepper
Preheat the oven to 170c or Gas 3
Wash and peel the vegetables and cut in rough 2cm large chunks.
Trim the fat from the beef and cut into roughly 2cm cubes. Heat the sunflower oil in a large pan or casserole over a high heat and brown the beef. Remove the beef and oil from the pan and allow to drain.
Add the olive oil to the pan over a medium heat and add all the vegetables and stir while cooking for 5 minutes. Add the thyme, bay, garlic and tomato purée to the pan and stir well. Put the beef in the pan and add the plain flour and stir well. Pour the whole bottle of win into the pan and increase the heat. Add the salt and enough beef stock to cover the pan contents. When the stew starts to simmer and thicken cover and cook in the oven for 4 to 6 hours
Remove the pan from the oven and stir a couple of times during cooking.
Taste the stew and correct the seasoning. If the wine gives a bitter after taste add the honey to correct this.
To make the dumplings combine the flour, suet, salt & pepper. Add enough of the cold water to make a dough. Divide into 6 or 8 even size balls and place on the top of the stew to cook for 45 minutes.
Large bunch watercress
500ml Chicken or vegetable stock
50g Streaky bacon or pancetta
1 medium onion
1 large potato
Salt & Pepper
2tbl Olive Oil
Wash and trim the watercress. Peel and dice the potato.
Peel and chop the onion and slice the bacon or pancetta into lardoons.
Put the onion and bacon or pancetta into a pan with the olive oil and cook for 5 minutes over a medium heat until the onion is soft but not browned.
Add the watercress, potato and stock to the pan and bring to a simmer for 20 minutes.
Blend the soup until smooth, season with salt and pepper. Add a little more liquid if the soup is to thick.
200g Shelled walnuts
100 to150ml Olive Oil
40g Grated Parmesan
1Tsp Salt
0.5Tsp ground black pepper
Add the walnuts, parmesan, salt and pepper to a blender
Blend to a paste then slowly pour in the oil with the blender running.
Serve with pasta or as a garnish for soup.
