Saturday 26 December 2009

But what do you eat????

Do you ever get asked as a veggie 'but what do you eat?' The answer is obviously 'lots of good stuff!' I find I get asked this even more around Christmas time, I think certain meat eaters think I'll be pulling my cracker over an empty plate. Of course, there is more to Christmas dinner than turkey. Here is a photo of mine to prove we didn't just eat peas!
Roast potatoes, roast parsnips, carrots, broccoli, brussels sprouts, mashed potato, Yorkshire puddings, nut stuffing and lashings of gravy! Enough to cause a post-dinner snooze of the sofa. Hope you are all having very happy holidays!

Friday 4 December 2009

Mon Petit Chou-Fleur...

Mark Twain described a cauliflower as 'nothing but a cabbage with a college education'. I wonder what cauliflowers study?

Cauliflowers are currently being sold at a bargain price of 39p each here! A credit-crunch vegetable if ever there was one. One idea to use up the big stock of cauliflowers was to roast them, with a little green pepper and tomato. Chili flakes & curry powder for bite. Put in the oven for about 20 mins, and om nom nom... a lovely veggie side dish. In these chilly months there is nothing more comforting than the taste of freshly baked bread to dip in piping hot soup. Luckily for me, Tapa is just round the corner, providing a delicious array of breads. Perfect for dipping into a spicy cauliflower soup.

Ingredients:
  • 1 onion chopped
  • 1 head of cauliflower chopped
  • 1 carrot chopped
  • 1-2 teaspoons of cumin seeds
  • 1/2 teaspoon of turmeric
  • 1 teaspoon of curry powder
  • 2 teaspoons harrisa paste
  • a generous squeeze of tomato ketchup
  • 2 pints of veg stock
  • a little oil for frying
Gently fry the onion with the spices, then add the cauliflower and carrot.
Once the onions are soft, the all the veggies are coated with spices, add the stock. At this point add the tomato ketchup & harrisa paste too. Cover and simmer until the cauliflower and carrots are soft. Leave to cool for a little while.
Once cool, blend until smooth. I like a super thick blended soup, but add more stock if the consistency is too thick for you. Reheat & then serve with bread.
Finally, ever wondered what to do with the remaining cauliflower leaves & heart? Donate to a hungry guinea pig called Godber, he will be very happy!