Warmer weather, tasty food... recipes for the 17th of August

Warmer weather, tasty food... recipes for the 17th of August

By Rose Newburn

Warmer weather, tasty food... recipes for the 17th of August

This tasty and colourful meal-in-one is  spiced cauliflower, chickpea and hazelnut with avocado.  It's super simple to make - you toss the cauliflower, chickpeas and hazelnuts with oil and spices, then roast them in the oven. Cube the avo, make some delicious lemony-tahini dressing then gently fold the avo through the roasties, and drizzle wtih the dressing... a very satisfying meal! this one is Vegan, dairy and gluten free.

You may have made these before, but Pakora are a new thing for me! This version has a light batter made from chickpea flour, spices and water; the veg - in this case cauliflower and onion, but you could try different things - are sliced then coated in the batter and shallow fried. With a non-stick pan the amount of oil you need is small while still giving that crispy fried finish. Is very yum, and fun to make. The Pakora are Vegan, dairy and gluten free.

The Kumara and Quinoa with lime and walnut dressing takes under half an hour to cook. It uses red quinoa (just for something different) so the quinoa will take a little longer to cook - about as long as the kumara will take to roast up in the oven which is handy. Gives you time to make the dressing... and then you're all set to go. The flavour profile is built up with cumin and lemon and parsley; there are walnuts roughly chopped in the salad and finely blitzed in the dressing... the Kumara and Quinoa salad is Vegan, DF and GF

The Potato and Chard gratin is very simple to make and stacks in loads of flavour. Thinly sliced potatoes are layered in an ovenproof frypan, then you add a layer of minced garlic and shredded onionweed tops, some S & P. Add veg stock (gently), cover and simmer until the potatoes are nearly done. Add a layer of shredded leafy greens, cover and simmer until those are wilted; add a fistful of grated cheese if you wish, and a sprinkle of pumpkin seeds, then pop under the grill until bubbly and the seeds are toasted. As you can see, easy.. also delicious. Also Vegan, dairy and gluten free. 

I actually made these Venison and blue cheese meatballs at the Night Shelter one evening without telling people what was in them... Everyone enjoyed them very much. I still didn't tell them about the blue cheese... The meatballs have grated cauliflower, oregano and egg as well as the cheese so they're light as well as tasty. These are great with mash or colcannon (An Irish version of mash with stir-fried cabbage and leek folded through). They are GF only.

And finally a North African chicken and peanut stew. Some of the peanuts are blitzed into a creamy base for the stew and some are left to provide crunch. There's chilli and ginger, bayleaves and peppercorns  for depth of flavour and heat; onion, carrot, tomato and kale for vegetable content. The chicken and peanut stew is both dairy and gluten free and is a very good shout for a midweek dinner - serve with good bread. Done. 

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