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We thought we’d embrace the new year  with some delicious, nutritious recipes:

One-pot meals

Winter is a great time to cook up some easy one-pot recipes. Here are a couple of our favourites:

Vegetable stew

INGREDIENTS: 400g can cannellini beans, drained, rinsed; 1 large butternut squash, peeled, seeds discarded, cut into 3cm chunks; 3 fennel bulbs, trimmed, cut into 6 wedges; 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus extra to serve; 2 tins of chopped tomatoes; 2 onions, thinly sliced; 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced; 2 tsp fennel seeds; 1 tsp coriander seeds, crushed; 4 celery stalks, sliced 2cm thick; Pinch of chilli flakes (optional); 4 bay leaves; 4 thyme sprigs; juice and pared zest of 1 lemon; 250ml vegetable stock; 310ml red wine, 4 bunch flat-leaf parsley, chopped; 1/4 bunch dill, chopped

METHOD

Heat the oven to 200°C.

  1. Place butternut squash and fennel in a roasting pan. Drizzle over half the olive oil and season to taste. Tumble everything together, cover loosely with baking paper or foil and roast for 30-40 minutes, turning once or twice during cooking, until the vegetables are nice and tender.
  2. Meanwhile, heat a large cast-iron casserole dish over a medium heat. Add the remaining 2 tbs olive oil and, when it’s hot, add the onion, garlic, fennel seeds, coriander seeds, celery, chilli flakes, if using, bay leaves, thyme, pared strips of lemon zest, and some salt and pepper. Stir the vegetables as they soften, for about 10 minutes, taking care they don’t burn. When they are sweet and tender, add the chopped tomatoes and stir well.
  3. Add the cannellini beans, the roasted fennel and squash, stock and red wine (if using). Bring to a simmer and cook for 45-50 minutes, stirring gently every so often, until you have a nice thick, rich sauce and the vegetables and beans are meltingly tender. Alternatively, use a slow cooker to reduce cooking costs.
  4. Once the stew is cooked, remove from the heat and add the lemon juice, parsley, dill and salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle over some olive oil to serve.

Crispy Balsamic Chicken

INGREDIENTS: 60ml plus 3 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil,1 tbsp. balsamic vinegar; 1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves; 1 tbsp freshly chopped rosemary; salt; freshly ground black pepper; 4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs; 6 whole peeled garlic cloves, ends trimmed; 1 lb brussels sprouts, ends trimmed and halved or quartered, if large; 2 tbsp freshly grated Parmesan, for serving.

METHOD

  1. Preheat oven to 200°C. In a large bowl, whisk together 60 ml of oil, the balsamic vinegar, thyme, and rosemary and season generously with salt and pepper. Add chicken thighs and toss to coat.
  2. Heat a large oven-safe dish or pan over medium-high heat. Add 1 tbsp oil and sear chicken thighs skin-side down until crispy, 2 to 4 minutes per side. Transfer chicken to a plate.
  3. Add remaining 2 tbsp oil to your dish or pan. Add whole garlic cloves and brussels sprouts and season with salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat until fragrant and deeply golden, about 10 minutes.
  4. Return chicken to the pan and nestle in brussels sprouts. Bake in oven until chicken is cooked through and brussels sprouts are tender, approx 15 minutes. Garnish with Parmesan before serving.

Warming soups

Soups are one of the easiest meals to batch book. Simply serve these delicious recipes with some crusty bread for a warming and filling meal.

Creamy lentil and pumpkin soup

INGREDIENTS: 1 tbsp olive oil, plus 1 tsp; 2 onions, chopped; 2 garlic cloves, chopped; approx 800g chopped pumpkin flesh, plus the seeds; 100g split red lentils; ½ small pack fresh thyme, leaves picked, plus extra to serve; 1 litre hot vegetable stock; pinch of salt and sugar; 50g crème fraîche, plus extra to serve

METHOD

  1. Heat the oil in a large pan. Fry the onions until softened and starting to turn golden.
  2. Stir in the garlic, pumpkin flesh, lentils and thyme, then pour in the hot stock. Season, cover and simmer for 20-25 mins until the lentils and vegetables are tender.
  3. Meanwhile, wash the pumpkin seeds. Remove any flesh still clinging to them, then dry them with kitchen paper. Heat the 1 tsp oil in a non-stick pan and fry the seeds until they start to jump and pop. Stir frequently but cover the pan in between to keep them in it. When the seeds look nutty and toasted, add a sprinkling of salt and a pinch of sugar, and stir well.
  4. Whizz the cooked pumpkin soup mixture with a hand blender or in a food processor until smooth, then add the crème fraîche and whizz again. Taste for seasoning.
  5. Serve with a spoonful of crème fraîche, a few thyme leaves and the toasted seeds scattered on top.

 Veg soup with cheesy toasts

Ingredients: 1 leek chopped small; 2 carrots chopped small; 1 garlic clove finely chopped; 1 potato chopped small; 1 tbsp finely chopped fresh rosemary; ½ tsp sugar; 410g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed; 3 tbsp chopped fresh parsley; 2 x cans chopped tomatoes; 425ml/¾ pint vegetable stock

For the toasts: 8 slices of baguette, cut on the diagonal; 1 garlic clove , cut in half; 50g edam finely grated

METHOD

  1. Put the vegetables into a large saucepan with the garlic, rosemary, stock and sugar. Season well, stir, bring to a simmer and cover. Cook gently for 15 minutes or until the vegetables are just tender.
  2. Preheat the grill to high. Whizz the tomatoes in a food processor or blender until smooth, then tip into the vegetables with the chickpeas and parsley. Gently heat through, stirring now and then.
  3. For the toasts: rub both sides of the bread with the garlic. Grill on one side until golden, turn the bread over, cover with edam and grill until it’s bubbling. Serve at once with the piping hot soup.

Delicious dessert

Seasonal fruit including apples, pears and blackberries are delicious eaten raw, but are also perfect for baking into a treat.

Apple sponge pudding

Ingredients: 275g cooking apples, peeled, cored and chopped; 2 tbsp soft light brown sugar; 175g butter, softened, plus extra for the bowl; 175g caster sugar; 3 large eggs; 175g self-raising flour;

2 tsp vanilla bean paste; 1 tsp ground cinnamon; ½ tsp ground ginger; a pinch ground cardamom;
2-3 tbsp whole milk; 50g golden syrup; 2 eating apples, peeled, cored and cut into wedges

METHOD

  1. Simmer the cooking apples, brown sugar and 3 tbsp of water in a pan for 5-8 minutes or until the apples break down into a purée. Remove from the heat and cool. Butter a 1.2-litre heatproof pudding bowl.
  2. Beat the butter and caster sugar in a bowl with an electric whisk until pale and fluffy. Add the eggs, adding 1 tbsp of flour in between each, then fold in the remaining flour, vanilla, all the spices and the cooled apple purée. Add the milk to loosen the batter so it falls off the spoon.
  3. Pour the syrup into the bottom of the basin and arrange the eating apple wedges on top. Spoon in the sponge batter and top with a sheet of baking paper, followed by foil, then secure with string.
  4. Put an upturned saucer or trivet into a large lidded pan, and put the basin on top. Top up the pan with just-boiled water until it comes halfway up the basin, put the lid on the pan and simmer over a low heat for 2 hours 30 minutes, topping up the water if needed.
  5. Check the pudding is cooked by inserting a skewer into the middle – if it has any wet mixture, steam for another 20 minutes and check again.
  6. Remove the foil from the steamed sponge, and invert onto a serving plate to serve with a generous covering of custard.

We hope these recipes help stir up some cold weather cooking inspiration – enjoy!

Sources:

Autumn vegetable stew recipe – Recipes – delicious.com.au

https://www.delish.com/uk/cooking/recipes

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes

https://www.olivemagazine.com/recipes/collection/best-ever-baking-recipes-using-apples/

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