With winter now in full swing, what better way to warm up after coming in from the cold than with a piping hot dish of red split lentils and potatoes, fresh out of the oven?! Although I also enjoy a hearty bowl of lentil soup, this Red Lentil and Potato Bake, seasoned with thyme and rosemary, is just the thing to warm your bones and satisfy your belly, all without putting too much of a dent in your pocketbook!
As with most recipes that use potatoes, you’ll notice that I suggest just washing them, not peeling. This a trick I picked up from a Canadian friend who assures me that’s the only way to eat potatoes, and the truth is, I have to agree with her! Not only do the potato skins add depth of flavour to the dish, they also contain lots of nutrients and help to keep the nutrients of the potatoes themselves from leaking out as they tend to do during cooking.
What you’re going to need:
What you have to do:
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 1 hour
Serves: 4-6
Difficulty: Easy
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Perfect for when you need a quick and easy, but still tasty and healthy, meal for unexpected dinner guests. This Broccoli and Feta Rice dish is a family favourite that’s sure to please even the pickiest of palettes. I came up with this one summer evening a few years back when we organized a spur of the moment dinner party with some friends we’d invited over for drinks, only to realise that purple sprouting broccoli, cherry tomatoes and feta cheese were quite literally the only things I had in the fridge! After a quick inspection of the cupboards I found a bit of Basmati Rice and inspiration struck! Not much more than 20 minutes later and we were happily stuffing our bellies with this tangy, cheesy delight.
Ever since that day, this has been my “go to” dish for any last-minute meal requirements. As an alternative you can replace the cherry tomatoes with sun-dried tomatoes, preferably the kind that come in a jar with olive oil. If you have the loose, dry kind, be sure to rehydrate them in hot water with a little olive oil before adding them to the mix. Also bear in mind that sun-dried tomatoes are notoriously salty, and when combined with the salty feta cheese it can be a bit much, so don’t add any more salt until the end and always test it first!
What you’re going to need
What you have to do
Preparation Time: 5 minutes
Cooking Time: 20 minutes
Serves: 4
Difficulty: Easy
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One of my favourite meals when I was growing up was a beef and potato stew my mother used to make for us, especially in the winter. It was just the perfect thing for warming your belly and bones after a long day of playing outside in the cold. Naturally, when I became a vegetarian this was one of the first recipes I just had to emulate in a meatless version. Hearty Seitan Stew is the result of a few months of trial and error to get the mix just right. The thick broth, melt-in-your-mouth potatoes and deliciously chewy wheat gluten (seitan) make for a wonderfully filling and satisfying dish that even my unrepentant meat-eating brother can’t help but admit to loving. In fact, even my mother has said she prefers it over her original beef version, although to be honest even I’m not sure I’d go that far!
What you’re going to need
What you have to do
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 1 hour
Serves: 4
Difficulty: Easy
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