Taking Stock

Batches of vegetarian stock go a long way to making all the difference. Use homemade stock in soups, sauces, stews, gravy, risottos and biryani.

A very basic stock would include onions (or another member of the onion family ie leeks/shallots) plus carrots and celery. Then just go ahead and pimp it up. It's so easy to do and, best of all, uses up all your left-overs. Raid your fridge, pantry or vegetable rack. Vegetable leaves, peelings, stalks, tops and trimmings can all be thrown in the pot along with those droopy herbs. Go to the kitchen cupboard and maybe add a bay leaf and some peppercorns or a rinse out of your marmite, ketchup or mustard jar.

Chop everything up. If you have time to sweat off your vegetables in the pan or roast them in the oven before adding to the water they will give even more flavour.  Add hot water to the mixture, enough to cover. Once it comes to the boil, turn the heat down and simmer for up to an hour on a low heat. Strain using a fine colander or sieve.

The liquid is ready to use immediately or can be cooled and refrigerated for a few days or frozen for up to three months in airtight boxes, freezer bags or ice cube trays. Literally stock up on stock!

Take three ingredients

Having always had a herb garden and dabbled with a veggie patch, this year I decided to do a little window sill gardening with tomatoes, chillis and basil. They are, after all, the basis for so many vegan and vegetarian dishes.

Using these three ingredients it is possible to make pasta dishes, gnocchi, risotto, soup, salad, sandwiches, pizza, bruschetta ... the list is endless.

At its simplest, a drop of oil heated in a pan with chopped chilli and some garlic (or you could use  chilli oil you've made previously) to which you add the chopped tomatoes. They will quickly absorb the flavours. Add torn basil to the tomatoes before stirring through cooked pasta. Serve in warmed bowls with a sprinkle of Parmesan substitute and a garnish of fresh basil. Simple perfection.

The three ingredients don't always need to be combined. They can be paired or used alone.
The tomatoes and chillis can be used together in Indian or Mexican cuisine or pair the tomatoes and basil in a Caprese salad.

Peas please

As a child I hated peas, 'though can't for the life of me remember why. Maybe loading the rolling balls onto a fork was too much like hard work. In those days they were served as an accompaniment to meat or fish and potatoes and may have been joined by a few boiled carrots. My father would insist on me having some and I cut a deal with him, agreeing to eat just three.

Now I really enjoy them. There's nothing more satisfying than sitting in the shade, popping the pods and letting the petite little poppets give a satisfying plop into a pan. That is a lot of p's. As they're very palatable I may pop a few in my mouth. Okay, enough already.

Peas are no longer classed as a bit on the side. They can become the star of the show in risotto or ravioli or thrown into curries, baked into samosas, sprinkled in salads or squished in soups. Their favourite friends are mint, lemon and ricotta. 

                            Pea and mint ravioli

The pods can be blitzed to make soup or stock and the shoots add a fresh sweetness to salads or can be used as a decorative garnish.

I should have appeased my dad and eaten a few more! Sorry!