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| Recipe of the week... ... Vegan moussaka |
Ingredients:
1 onion, 2 garlic cloves, 400g tin chopped tomatoes, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, 1
large aubergine, 1 large courgette, 390g tin green lentils in water, 1 beef
tomato, 70g pack rocket leaves, 350g frozen butternut squash, 1 tablespoon
dairy-free spread, 1 tablespoon wholemeal flour, 300ml dairy-free milk, cooking
oil, salt and pepper.
Serves:
4 hearty portions.
Time
taken: 90 mins (1-hour prep and ½ hour in oven)
Hi
readers,
How
are you all today? Are you managing okay, getting back into the swing of real
life after the four-day weekend??
For
sure – it was a struggle this morning when my alarm went off this morning! And
I had to dress in clothes fit for public view. And pack a lunch and get my bum
out the door and in the car for work. Bit of a shock to the system.
That’s
a lot first thing, for someone who’d just got used to watching Hook in bed
wearing lounge gear, eating an Easter bunny and knitting the morning away. Life
had just peaked aaaaand now it’s back to normal again.
But
what a great weekend! The best I’ve had in years. How was yours, readers??
--
My
weekend leads me to make 3 recommendations for you, readers…
Stonehouse
Court Hotel
I
went on a mini break away this weekend and had a very special time at the
Stonehouse Court Hotel. This was my first real trip with my boyfriend and we
were both so pleased with the service and our stay at this hotel near Stroud,
in the Cotswolds. The staff couldn’t do enough to accommodate us – they were
lovely! The bed was extremely comfy. And the food and the wine… I’ll be talking
about for a very long time. We had a wonderful stay.
Painswick
We
weren’t on our mini break for long but wanted to see as much of the Cotswolds
as we could and make good use of our time there. A friend’s Lonely Planet guide
for the UK recommended a trip to Painswick, a historical little village not far
from where we were staying. And it was worth the visit. Crumbling graves in the
churchyard, tiny streets packed with old stone houses and views of the countryside
all round. Very quaint and English! And good food for the imagination.
Almond Dream
We
ended the weekend back home, parked on the settee with our feet up in front of
the telly. I treated us to a tub of Almond Dream Non-Dairy Salted
Caramel Ice Cream Alternative –
a revelation. Neither myself or The Vegan have had much experience with nice
creams, but I can vouch for this one. It tastes pretty fine. And just like ice
cream – I’d never have known, readers. Worth the price tag in my eyes, as an
occasional dairy-free treat.
--
RECIPE TIME
Here’s
the recipe for you, readers, in just 15 simple steps…
Recipe: Vegan
moussaka
Ingredients:
1 onion, 2 garlic cloves, 400g tin chopped tomatoes, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, 1
large aubergine, 1 large courgette, 390g tin green lentils in water, 1 beef
tomato, 70g pack rocket leaves, 350g frozen butternut squash, 1 tablespoon
dairy-free spread, 1 tablespoon wholemeal flour, 300ml dairy-free milk, cooking
oil, salt and pepper.
Method:
1.
Prepare yourself for a serious session in the
kitchen! I’m thinking – crack a window wide open, pour a cool drink, set some chilled-out
music playing at a calming volume, stop trying to multi-task, turn your phone
on flight mode, clear your head.
2.
Right. Now, when you’re ready, begin with some
veg prep. Thinly slide your onion and your beef tomato. Slice your aubergine
lengthways into 6, same for your courgette. Crush your garlic clove, open your
tin of tomatoes. Open your tin of lentils, drain and rinse.
3.
Heat the grill to high and line a large baking
sheet with foil.
4.
Heat a splash of cooking oil in a large
saucepan over a medium heat, add the onion and garlic and cook for 5 minutes
until they soften slightly.
5.
Then, add the tomatoes, oregano and 150ml
water. Stir together and season with salt and pepper. Leave simmering for 15
minutes.
6.
While your pan simmers, brush the aubergine
and courgette on both sides with cooking oil and lay the slices out on the
baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper, then grill for 5 minutes on each
side until tender and golden.
7.
Once the veg have grilled, set aside. Boil a
kettle and heat the oven to 200C.
8.
For the topping, pop your butternut squash in a
sieve and steam on a hob (using a saucepan of boiling water, with the sieve
balanced over it, and a pan lid covering the sieve) for ten or so minutes until
tender.
9.
Add the lentils to your main saucepan and stir
into the tomato sauce, then leave to simmer for ten minutes.
10. In a third
saucepan, melt the dairy-free spread over a medium heat. Stir in the flour to
make a paste and then whisk in the dairy-free milk. Simmer, stirring, for a few
minutes. Then remove from the heat.
11. Once your
squash has steamed, remove from the heat and mash until quite smooth (a few
lumps here and there are fine).
12. Stir your
milky mix into the mashed squash until well combined, and season with salt and
pepper.
13. Spoon half
the tomato sauce into a deep baking dish, top with half the sliced tomato, and
then cover with sliced courgette. Spoon the second half of the tomato sauce in,
top with the rest of the sliced tomato, and then cover with sliced aubergine.
14. Spoon your
squash topping over the aubergines until entirely covered. Season with salt and
pepper and carefully transport into the oven, to bake for half an hour.
ChefBeHere Top Tip: I’d
use this half an hour break to first clear up the chaos you’ve made in the
kitchen! Maybe wipe round the surfaces and do your dishes, then set the table?
Once that’s sorted, top up your drink and put your feet up for a bit – you’ve done
good.
15. Finally, remove
from the moussaka from the oven once golden brown and crisp on top. Spoon out
between four plates and serve with rocket. Tuck in!
--
What
do you reckon, readers? Does this recipe take your fancy? Would you try your
hand at a vegan moussaka? I highly recommend! If you have the time and energy…
and enough pans!
Give
this recipe a go – if you commit to a proper session in the kitchen, then you’ll
have a proper vegan tea to enjoy. This dish is filling, nutritious, colourful.
And the squash in the topping gives it a colour which could almost fool you
into believing it’s got cheese in it! It hasn’t – there’s no cheese inside.
But, still, this is exciting for vegans.
I
enjoyed the food and thought it probably tasted all the better for all the
effort we’d put into the cooking. I’m a beginner when it comes to cooking with
lentils and so was impressed that we pulled off a lentil dish, without
incident. All in all – a success!
Please
let me know how you get on in the kitchen, readers, if you give this recipe a
try. Let me know your thoughts on the food and please share any tips you have a
for tweaks to the recipe! Wishing you every success with your moussaka, my
dears.
Mash
safely,
Hayley
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