Easy, puy-sy! Lentil, Coconut and Butternut Squash Bake

My final year at University is demanding; the days are long with lots of required extra reading and all of this whilst writing my dissertation. So when it comes to my evening meal I want my meals nutritious, wholesome, economical (student budget and all) and quick. My auntie, months and months ago, introduced me to Honestly Healthy's recipe for Puy lentil, Coconut and Goat's Cheese Bake and it has remained a firm favourite ever since. However, I felt the recipe didn't make enough as I like to cook a large batch for a few nights dinner so I have increased the amounts slightly.

Serves 4.

Ingredients
250g Puy lentils
500g Butternut squash, diced
3 tbsp Olive oil
2 garlic Cloves
400ml Coconut milk
80g Goat's Cheddar, mature cheddar works just as well

Method
Cook the lentils according to the packets instructions. Drain and set aside. If you're like me and hate the faff of cutting up a butternut squash, buy the prepared version. Waitrose sell a prepared butternut squash in their frozen section. Place the diced butternut squash on a baking tray, drizzle with olive oil and bake until tender t around gas mark 5, 190°C electric, 170°C electric fan. Leave the oven switched on. Meanwhile thinly slice the garlic and sauté in a large pan until soft. Stir in the lentils and coconut milk and simmer for 5 minutes. Pour into a baking dish and bake for 15 minutes. Remove, sprinkle over your grated cheese and return to the oven for another 10 minutes until everything is bubbling away nicely and the cheese and started to turn golden. Serve with whatever greens you fancy such as watercress.

Mac'n'Cheese Toasted Sarnie

So simple so why put up a post? Well this isn't going to be just the recipe, but also explaining the root of the inspiration. A month ago on a whim and an empty stomach, my friend and I thought we'd see what all the fuss was about at the Dalston Street Feast.

"The food market that knows how to party."
- Time Out London

It certainly lived up to expectations; it was food, fun and cocktail heaven. The only problem was knowing where to eat first! Amazing vendors such as Bill or Beak, Rola Wala, the Meringue Girls and a whole lot of other dribble worthy places made an appearance over this 22 week long market. What really stood out for me were the Grill My Cheese offerings. Artery clogging overload commenced when we ordered a portion of their Buff Tings; buffalo wings with a perfectly tangy blue cheese sauce. It was the Baby Got Mac that really did it for me..Oh holy mother of cheese it was good. Basically macaroni cheese stuffed between slices of bread, but grilled to perfect, cheesy ooziness perfection. I just had to have it again, but now I've returned back to Harper Adams University in Shropshire, I felt it was slightly over the top to drive the 5 hour round trip to get my fix, so here is my interpretation.

You'll see I posted a recipe for Macaroni Cheese recently with chorizo, but please feel free to experiment with anything and let me know what crazy concoctions you create.

Ingredients
2 door wedge slices from a Sourdough loaf
Butter
A generous slap of left over macaroni cheese 
Extra grated cheese for good measure

WARNING THIS IS NOT FOR THOSE WHO WANT TO GET IN THAT TIGHT OUTFIT FOR WORKS CHRISTMAS DO! OVER INDULGERS ONLY!

Heat up the macaroni cheese you intend to use for a couple of minutes to ensure the end toastie is hot all the way through. Butter the outside of one bread slice and start to fry, butter side down, in a pan over a medium heat. Sprinkles half of the grated cheese on the frying slice of bread, then carefully load the macaroni cheese and spread over evenly. Sprinkle the rest of the cheese on top of the macaroni cheese. The cheese as it melts will help everything stick together for when you have to flip over the toastie. Now butter one side of the remaining bread slice and place on top of the cheese butter side up. Continue frying for around 5 minutes, checking that the bread hasn't started to catch and burn. Now it’s time to flip this baby over..careful does it! Fry on the remaining side until golden and crispy then enjoy!

Click on the link for more information about upcoming Street Feast events http://www.streetfeastlondon.com/

Also check out http://grillmycheese.co.uk/welcome/ for some serious cheese toastie inspiration.

The Moseley Macaroni Cheese

I've called this The Moseley Macaroni Cheese, as the recipe belongs to my lovely Uncle Dave. Whenever I have the opportunity, I love visiting my auntie and uncle who live in Blandford Forum, Dorset. They are both wonderful chefs who favour the simple approach to food. Nothing in their fridge contains the words 'reduced', 'artificial' or 'diet'. Instead they believe eating food in its natural and wholesome form, the key is to eat in moderation. They like to keep dinner a surprise, yet I can always guarantee The Moseley Macaroni Cheese will make an appearance in all of its scrumptious and cheesy glory.

This is the ultimate comfort food and food-hug.. a fug!

Serves 4 modest portions or 2 greedy guts!

Ingredients
(Apologies for the mix in measurements, blame Uncle Dave)
2:5 ozs of plain flour
2:5 ozs of butter
1/2 pint of full fat milk
8 ozs of grated cheese; 2 oz for sauce and 6ozs for the top. I use a mix of mature cheddar and red Leicester.
200 g of finely chopped chorizo* (optional)
200 g of macaroni
1 large tomato sliced (discard both ends to avoid chewy bits)

 Preheat your oven at gas mark 6, electric 200°C or fan 180°C. Cook the macaroni according to the packet instructions, drain and return to a large pot. Gently melt the butter and slowly whisk in the plain flour over a medium heat, continue to stir for a further minute or two. Gradually add the full fat milk and stir in until it is a nice consistency - not too thin and not too thick. Add a couple of ounces of grated cheddar to the sauce and the chorizo. Pour the sauce over cooked macaroni, mix well. Place mixture into a rectangle 24cm pie dish - I use my trusty Falcon enamel tin. Slice large tomatoes and place on top and cover with 6 ozs of grated cheese. Oven cook at gas 6 until for around 30 minutes or until the top is bubbling and done to your choice.
Serve with sliced beans or whatever greens you fancy.


*You can make many variations of macaroni cheese. Instead of chorizo, why not add tinned artichoke hearts and diced cooked bacon. It even tastes blooming marvellous just plain.


Unlikely there will be leftovers, but in my next post see the recipe for Mac'n'Cheese toasted sarnie.

Chilli Sin Carne

The United Nations have declared 2016 as the International Year of Pulses (IYP) in the effort to encourage more people to incorporate pulses into their diet. Pulses, in all of their nutritious forms, are a wholesome and inexpensive way to enrich your diet. I love them so much that I've decided to base my final year HRP on them! Here is a scrummy vegetarian recipe that will warm the cockles of your heart in those colder nights to come.

Serves 6 big portions.

Ingredients
1 medium onions, peeled
2 cloves of garlic, peeled
1 medium leek, trimmed
1 long fresh red chilli
1 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoons ground cumin
1 tablespoons ground coriander
1 tablespoons smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoons dried oregano
2 tablespoons tomato purée
250 g dried green lentils
1 x 400 g tins of red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 x 400 g tins of black beans, drained and rinsed
1 x 400 g tins of chopped tomatoes
500ml vegetable stock
Sea salt
Black pepper , freshly ground

Finely chop the garlic, onions, leek and chilli and place into a large heavy-based pan (like a Le Crueset). Fry with the oil, over a medium heat for around 5 minutes, or until softened. Add your spices and dried herbs, then fry for 2 minutes. If this looks dry and starts to catch, add in a few splashes of water to loosen up. Stir in the tomato purée and cook for a further 2 minutes. Stir in the green lentils, beans and chopped tomatoes, then pour in the vegetable stock. Bring it all to the boil, reduce to a low heat and let it simmer away for at least 1 hour, or until reduced and thickened, stirring every 15 to 20 minutes. Season to your preference. I serve mine with rice, sour cream, grated cheese and wedges of lime, but it’s also delicious on a slow baked jacket potato.

To find out more about IYP follow the link  http://www.fao.org/pulses-2016/en/