Balls That Once Were Burgers

I love to cook, but sometimes I am also pretty lazy. I also don’t eat “fried” food much – never deep-fried, and minimal oil in any other kind of frying. So when I saw this great looking Cashew & Lentil Patties recipe at Weekend Notes, I really wanted to make it. Loved the simplicity of it, ease of preparation, vegetarian-ness (I can’t quite do it fully, but I can’t cope with lots of meat either), health benefits (nuts! lentils!) and combination of flavours. But then I thought hmmm maybe I could bake this instead, then thought hmmmmmmmmm if I make it as a “burger” then I have to have a side, or make it into a proper burger…..so because I’m feeling lazy, what if I just roll it into balls instead and bake them?

So that’s what I did. I just scoffed myself stupid on these, for dinner, dipping them in sweet chilli sauce. So it was like a main course and I didn’t feel I needed to make any silly old side dishes to go with it!

It worked brilliantly – very impressed with this recipe. Chuck it all in the food processor and roll it into balls – what could be easier than that? And a lot of scope for experimentation – you could add grated zucchini, carrot, feta, haloumi, tahini…..the list goes on.

Makes 28-30 balls.

The only thing I changed was that I thought the mixture looked a bit dry so I added a splash of milk – which in fact made it very sticky – so I probabably didn’t need to do that.

Although I ate this as my dinner, of course it would be perfect finger food for an appetizer. Win-win all the way really.

Happy Fooding!

Still on the Vegetable Crusade….

Chopped veg

With my mountain of vegies to play with, I found this easy Pumpkin & Lentil Curry dish from the 4 Ingredients website – I mean you can’t get much simpler than this really – but I decided than rather than just pumpkin, I’d throw in a variety of vegies, because, well, why the hell not?!!

I was also feeling very lazy, so didn’t even peel the skin off the pumpkin…..

The result was okay, nothing too flash – actually it doesn’t look so great but it tasted better than it looks. A bit stodgy, but healthy and filling.

I’m off to an ANZAC Day picnic today, and yes I probably should have made Anzac biscuits, but I just couldn’t be bothered. I made olive tapenade and a zucchini slice, homemade bread and coleslaw instead.

Happy Fooding!

Luscious Lentil Spag Bog!

OMG this vegetarian spaghetti bolognaise was fantastic! Taste has such great recipes, from a variety of magazine sources and all thoroughly tested with good photos and clear instructions. I make a lot from this site and love the comments people add, to help me decide if I will give something a go or not. I’m always on the lookout for new vegetarian things to try and this fits the bill perfectly – it’s perfect for dinner parties or pot lucks where you need a vegetarian dish.

I did add 2 tiny red birds eye chillies, finely chopped, to the initial sautéed veg mixture, and increased the garlic a tad.

I also halved the amount of dried spaghetti, as I thought mmmm I think 500 gms is a hell of a LOT. I don’t know about you, but I like my pasta to have a real amount of sauce through it, not just 90% pasta with a tiny little blob on it! Halving the pasta quantity was the right decision as it was perfect with 250 gms, and looking at the website’s photo I can’t see how that is 500 gms of pasta unless they doubled the sauce. 250 gms is just right, as with all pasta dishes this is VERY filling – so it will still serve 4-6, depending on whether you have just a bowl of it on it’s own or serve it with salad, garlic bread etc.

I guess you could substitute other types of lentils, but red are perfect in this instance I think, and they cook so quickly, so no need for any pre-soaking/cooking.

As with any pasta dish, sprinkle liberally with freshly grated parmesan cheese if you like…..mmmmmm yum.

Happy Fooding!

Aloo Dhal Curry

This website promotes Australian potatoes (including some varieties that I’ve never heard of!) and every now and then puts out a leaflet of recipes in the supermarket, which is how I came across this vegetarian lentil curry recipe. And, it tastes amazing!!

Below is my tweaked version – mainly I’ve just changed a few quantities to suit my taste or the weight of vegies I happened to have, and of course I upped the garlic lol. I also found it took longer than the stated cooking time, but then I did cut my vegies in quite large chunks so that could be my fault, not theirs.

Anyway, this is lovely and flavoursome, and hearty warming Winter fare for this last burst of cold weather (which I really hope is the last….). Or you can check out my similar-but-not-exactly-the-same Potato & Lentil Curry, a great vegetarian curry standby that is a no-fail easy dinner.

Aloo Dhal Curry

1 brown onion, cut into wedges

4 cloves garlic, crushed

3cm piece fresh ginger, peeled & grated

1 tsp turmeric

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

1/2 tsp coriander seeds, ground

1/2 tsp cumin seeds, ground

2 tbsp olive oil

450 gms potatoes, cut into large dice (leave skin on)

500 gms pumpkin, peeled & cut into large dice

1 1/4 cups brown lentils, rinsed & drained

425 gm can diced tomatoes

2 cups water

cracked pepper, to taste

1 bunch (about 1 cup) fresh coriander leaves, roughly chopped

In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil on medium heat, and saute the onion, garlic, ginger, turmeric, cayenne, ground coriander and cumin for 4-5 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add all remaining ingredients except coriander leaves. Bring to a simmer, and cook on low heat, stirring occasionally, for 45 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

Add coriander and stir through to serve.

Serve with yoghurt or raita and naan bread, if desired.

Serves 4.

Happy Fooding!

Spicy Potato & Lentil Curry

This warming vegetable curry is super easy and quick, and makes a great side dish as well as a main vegetarian dish. If serving as a main, have some naan bread and raita or Greek yoghurt on the side, and you won’t be disappointed. The potatoes will break up easily when it’s done, and in fact you could squish them up quite a bit and make this a great filling for roti or tortillas.

And don’t worry, despite the 2 chillies, it is actually NOT high in heat.

Spicy Potato & Lentil Curry

2 tbsp olive oil

1 onion (any kind), finely chopped

2 red or green chillies, finely chopped

5 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tbsp coriander seeds, ground

1 tbsp turmeric

6 medium potatoes, cut into 5mm slices

2 x 400 gm cans lentils, drained & rinsed

2 cups vegetable stock

100 gms baby spinach leaves

cracked pepper, to taste

Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan, and saute the onion, chill and garlic for 3-4 minutes, stirring often. Add coriander, turmeric and potatoes, and saute for 5 minutes.

Add lentils, stock and cracked pepper, and simmer for 20 minutes or until potatoes are very soft. Add the baby spinach and fold through for about a minute until it has wilted.

Serves 6-8 as a side dish or 3-4 as a main.

Happy Fooding!

Dinner For One

Last night I needed to whip something up just for me, and I had some minced beef in the fridge, so made this up using what I had lying around. Actually I had a recipe for a lamb mince dish using Tasty Bite Madras Lentils, ages ago, and searched everywhere online and in my recipe files (I have LOTS of manila folders stuffed with recipes pulled from magazines or printed from websites), but just couldn’t find it. So I just made it up, and although it’s nothing fancy, it is nice and simple and was quite a tasty bite (haha).

I always have a couple of Tasty Bite vegetable things in my pantry – I find them very handy for an emergency vegie dish that you just zap in the microwave – they’re vegetarian, all-natural so no nasties, and gluten-free as well.

Madras Beef

1 tbsp olive oil

400 gms minced beef

1/2 brown onion, chopped

285 gm pkt Tasty Bite Madras Lentils

2 small tomatoes, roughly chopped

1 tbsp capers, drained

a handful fresh mint leaves, torn into bite sized pieces

Heat olive oil and brown mince and onion. Add all remaining ingredients, bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes.

Serves 1-2

Happy Fooding!

Tomato & Lentil Soup

This simple soup is sure to become a family favourite, and it is light and refreshing enough to be served in Summer as well as cold Wintery days.

Tomato & Lentil Soup

1 tbsp olive oil

4 carrots, peeled & chopped

2 leeks, washed & sliced

2 medium brown onions, peeled & chopped

200 gms dried red lentils

1.5 litres (6 cups) vegetable stock

2 x 425 gm cans diced tomatoes

2 tbsp tomato paste

2 tsp worcestershire sauce

cracked pepper, to taste

Heat oil in large saucepan; add carrots, leeks and onions. Saute for a few minutes, stirring occasionally, until slightly softened. Add remaining ingredients and simmer for about 30 minutes.

Blend with hand-held blender (or blend in batches in a food processor). Reheat and serve.

Serves 6.

Happy Fooding!

Healthy Lunch Time :)

 

Spinach & Red Lentil Soup

 

I am a firm believer in listening to what your body tells you.  If you suddenly get an urge for a bunch of grapes or a major fix of mushrooms, you should go for it (the exception is chocolate – I do try to ignore my inner cravings as much as possible in that regard!).

As well as a brain-strained week back at TAFE, I have had a tough week health-wise, with a virus that has knocked me around quite a bit.  I am on the mend, but last night I felt a major need for baby spinach!  So today, for a nutritious meal that will also give me a few days of leftovers for lunches, I made this soup recipe that is one I make often in Winter.  Of course, it is Summer right now and stinking hot every day, but I don’t care, I just felt I needed it!

Spinach & Red Lentil Soup

2 tbsp olive oil

1 brown onion, finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, crushed

50g tomato paste

7 cups vegetable stock

2 cups red lentils, rinsed

150g pkt baby spinach

2 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp light soy sauce

cracked pepper, to taste

Heat oil in a large saucepan; add onion and cook, stirring for 5 minutes or until soft.   Add garlic and tomato paste and cook, stirring for 1 minute or until aromatic.  Add stock and lentils.  Bring to the boil; reduce heat to low and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes or until lentils are very soft.  Add spinach, lemon juice, soy sauce & pepper to pan and cook for 2 minutes or until spinach wilts.  Serves 6.

This soup freezes well, and it does thicken upon standing, so if you find it is too thick when you reheat it, just add a bit of stock or water.

A dollop of low-fat Greek yoghurt mixed through is also yummy.

And of course, if you can’t get baby spinach you can use regular spinach leaves, roughly chopped.

Happy Fooding!