Zingy Veggie Bolognese

This is a quick and very tasty veggie alternative to the usual mincemeat-based Bolognese which goes well with pasta as well as providing a good lasagne filling.

What you need

• 1 medium sized shallot or onion, finely chopped
• 2 + cloves of garlic, pressed
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1-2 tbsp Tandoori spice mix or paste
• 1 medium-sized parsnip, chopped brunoise size (very small like mince)
• 1 carrot chopped brunoise size
• 1 small fennel, chopped brunoise size
• 150 ml good red wine
• 1-2 veggie stock cubes
• 300-400 ml tomato passata
• salt and pepper

optionally

• a handful of mushrooms, chopped brunoise size
• 1 handful of walnuts, chopped brunoise size

What you do

1. When you put on the water for the pasta, sauté the onions and the garlic in the olive oil with the tandoori spices.
2. Add the vegetables brunoise and sauté a little longer.
3. Add the wine and the veggie stock cubes. Allow the wine to soak into the veggies.
4. Mix in passata and the stock cubes and leave to simmer until the pasta is ready.
5. If using, add the mushrooms and the walnuts about five minutes before serving and season to taste.
6. Place the pasta on a pre-warmed plate, sprinkle liberally with parmesan or pecorino romano, cover with a goodly portion of Bolognese. On the top, as is tradition, place a small knob of butter.

Chickpea, Bean and Vegetable salad

This is a very tasty summer dish, which can be prepared in advance. In fact the longer the vegetables are allowed to sit in the dressing, the better this dish tastes.







 

What you need

• 400 g of drained chickpeas (if you want to make them fresh, boil them in the pressure cooker for 20 minutes in plenty of water and a bit of oil and if you like a tsp of baking soda, then let the pressure drop by itself; saves soaking and all that)
• 3 to 400 g of green beans, cut to a manageable size
• 1 small fennel, cut in half, then sliced thinly
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 yellow pepper, diced
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 or 2 red chilies, without pips and cut into tiny pieces
• 2 cloves of garlic, pressed
• 1 sprig of rosemary, chopped
• 1 handful of flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• salt, pepper, optionally cajun spice (see earlier recipes)
• white balsamic vinegar, olive oil

What you do

1. Heat the olive oil, add the onions and the fennel, stirfry briefly, then add the chickpeas and the green beans.
2. Stir over a medium fire until the beans have softened a little, then add the yellow pepper.
3. Keep stirring until the vegetables are soft but still have bite (about 15 min)
4. Prepare the dressing: mix the garlic with the herbs, the balsamic vinegar and the olive oil; season to taste
5. Mix the vegetables with the dressing and leave for at least one.
6. Serve lukewarm or cold with some freshly baked bread.

Salmon Fillet Strips on a Vegetable Bed

This dish resulted from two seasonal occurrences: the appearance of fresh vegetables, carrots, fennel and spring onions in the market, and the fact that our somewhat decrepit freezer needs defrosting when the weather gets warmer; our kind neighbours offer its contents temporary asylum, alas not spatially limitless, which is why we decided to dispose of the frozen salmon fillets…

This dish is quite nice as a starch-free meal, but it works well with basmati rice.

What you need

• 400-500 g salmon fillet (without skin), cut into strips
• salt, pepper, Cajun spice mix, fresh herbs (tarragon and dill taste very pleasant, if you like it a bit less subtle, try lovage and coriander)
• 2-3 spring onions, thinly sliced (about 2mm)
• 1 leek, sliced without tough green leaves 
• 2-3 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
• 2 medium sized carrots thinly sliced
• 1 small fennel, cut three times lengthwise and then thinly sliced, with the greens
• 2 tblsp olive oil
• 2 tblsp fish stock powder or vegetable stock
• 80 ml dry sherry

What you do

1. Season the salmon and sprinkle with the herbs. Ensure that the grill or salamander is hot.
2. In an ovenproof cast-iron pan, heat the oil and sauté the spring onions and the garlic (ideally to a crispy consistency.
3. Add the rest of the vegetables, and sauté without letting them colour. They should still have plenty of bite.
4. Sprinkle with stock powder and drizzle the sherry over the mixture.
5. Lay the salmon strips on top of the vegetables so they are heated from below. When you watch them you will see how the colour of the cooked salmon, a turn lighter pink slowly rises. When they are done about half-way up, put the dish under the grill, keeping an eye on it not getting too dark (this should take about 5 minutes tops). This ensures that the salmon is hot but still juicy on the inside.
6. Season the vegetable bed to taste and add perhaps a bit more sherry or water if it looks too try.
7. Serve immediately (as the salmon cools down fast) perhaps with a squirt of crema di balsamico on the plate or over the fish.