Leek potato & spinach soup

Hello first day of spring ! Soup is something I will be eating less this season especially when the sun comes out, but for now here is a hearty and nutritious bowl of soup ..... 

Ingredients:

300 gr sliced leek
600 gr white potatoes
2 cloves garlic
olive oil
3 cubes frozen spinach
salt and pepper or 1 stock cube

garnish: yogurt, avocado,
ground flax seeds, bread,
olive oil


In a large pot pour in 3 - 4 Tbsp olive oil.
Add the leek followed by the potatoes ( peeled and cubed ).
Stir in the minced garlic and pour in 1 .3 litre of hot water.
Bring it to boil, reduce the heat and put the lid on.
Cook the soup for 15 minutes, add salt and pepper as well as the spinach.
Cook for further 5 minutes.
Cool it down for a bit before you liquidise the soup. 
I use an electric stick blender.
Serve for dinner as a first course or a light lunch.

note: add any other veggies such as cauliflower, celeriac or broccoli stalks.... 

Thanks for reading! I would appreciate any comments or suggestions from you.

Kids friendly chili

Chili no carne has finally got a well deserved place on our menu. I have been playing with different ingredients for a long time and now the search is over, I've got the right formula  ✔
So, no kidney beans or any other big size beans, no celery, sweet potato or butternut squash ....

Ingredients:

serve 5-6 people

1 diced onion

2 cloves garlic

2 diced carrots

200 gr green lentils

1 tin chopped tomato

half pack chili mix

1 tin black beans or 200 gr cooked black beans

1 green bell pepper 

1 mug rice 

fresh salad ( tomatoes, cucumber, avocado, red cubbage, parsley )

In a large cooking pot heat up a splash of olive oil, add the onions, garlic and carrots and stir for 5 minutes. Add the lentils ( they don't need soaking overnight but it's better so soak them at least an hour ).

Pour in about 400 ml hot water, put the lid on and cook everything on a low temperature for 40 to 50 minutes.

Now sprinkle the chili powder mix , add the tomatoes ( I blitz them in a blender for smooth texture ) , beans and cook for further 30 minutes stirring every now and then.

Ten minutes before it's cooked add the green pepper cut into long strips.

I don't add any salt or pepper because the chili mix is already salty.

In the meantime cook your favorite rice.

Chop all veggies for the salad. Season with some olive oil and lime juice. 

Serve as you wish .......

note: sometimes I use baked beans if I have no black beans . Simply pour the whole tin of baked beans into a colander and wash it under the cold water.....

I use this chili mix because it's very mild

  

Chickpeas & veggies soup with rainbow salad

When I was a little girl my parents used to add vinegar to the soup we used to eat as a starter. Oh, I remember now very clear how much I used to hate the taste of it, I would cry or even throw a tantrum until my soup was replaced by a fresh non-sour bowl of soup. Guess what ? I now love adding vinegar to my soup and I buy unfiltered apple vinegar so the taste is as authentic as can be. My father used to make his own apple vinegar from our own apple tree so we were spoiled with taste. Now days any nutritionist will tell you to eat something sour just before you eat your meal to kick start the acids in your stomach so your food is easily digested and you don't get bloated. It can be a Tbsp of vinegar in a little water or it can be a handful of rocket leaves or it can be a bowl of sour soup ☕   I am contributing with this recipe to my fellow blogger veghog, she is promoting " cheap eats week " and I think this soup is very much on budget !!!

Ingredients:

1 onion or 1 leek, sliced

2 carrots, sliced

1 parsnip, sliced

leftover broccoli stalks

1 can of chickpeas

vegetable stock 

olive oil

pepper

handful of pasta 

handful of polenta 

parsley 

In a big cooking pot splash some olive oil and add the vegetables. Let them sweat on a medium heat with lid on for about 15 minutes.

Add 1 litre of stock + more, depend of how much vegetables you have, as well as the chickpeas.

Cook on medium heat for 20 minutes and add the pasta shapes. Cook for further 5 - 10 minutes before you add the instant polenta ( you don't have to, I just fancied thicker soup ) 

Adjust the taste, add some fresh parsley.

For the salad, grate some beetroot ( mine is golden ) and carrot, slice some purple cabbage, add some chopped red pepper and fresh parsley.

Season the salad with olive oil, vinegar and salt.

The bread dipped in the soup on the photo is this one 

Harisa aubergines bake

I love aubergines, I grow up picking a fresh aubergines from our garden, those days we used to eat seasonal vegetables only. My mum was very creative in the kitchen, she still is, she was preparing aubergines in many different ways which were all delicious. Recently I discovered this recipe and so far it's my favorite because frying process is not in a game so it's easy to digest ... If you are auber-lover, this is must try dish ..

Ingredients:

(serve 4 )

1 onion

2 cloves garlic

300 gr short-grain brown rice

800 ml vegetable stock

salt and pepper

**************************************

2 aubergines 

2 Tbsp harisa paste

olive oil

2 - 3 fresh tomatoes cut into cubes

fresh parsley

thick Greek style yogurt to serve

First, slice the aubergines lengthwise. With the tip of a knife, score the flesh in a diamond cross pattern.Spread the harisa paste on the top.

In a big casserole dish heat up 3 Tbsp of oil, add the onion and saute for 10 minutes or so. Add the minced garlic and the rice ( pre-soaked in cold water for at least 2 hours ).

Mix it up, add the stock and place the aubergines on the top.

Put the lid on and cook the rice and aubergines on a low temperature for 20 minutes. Make sure the aubergines are kind of floating. 

If your casserole dish in ovenproof you can just take the lid off, sprinkle tomatoes on the top, season with salt and pepper and place it in oven for 40 minutes on 180 C .

Otherwise, transfer the rice to a ovenproof dish carefully transferring the aubergines ( at this stage they will be soft ) and sprinkle the tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper.

The first 20 minutes keep the lid on of use a foil.

Remove the lid / foil and bake for 20 more minutes until everything looks yummy.

Sprinkle some chopped fresh parsley and serve with yogurt.

note: the harisa paste I was using had already oil and salt in it, that's why I didn't add much on the aubergines.

Some harisa pastes are in a tube and they are quite tick and oil free, if you use this kind of harisa mix it up with tablespoon of hot water and oil as well as salt. 

Buckwheat and courgette balls with pasta sauce

We absolutely love spaghetti with tomato based sauce. I usually make the sauce using RED LENTILS and other yummy ingredients but this time I enriched the sauce with these little balls made of courgettes and I add some leftover cooked chick peas. Grated cheese on the top is compulsory.....

Ingredients:

1 onion, diced 

1 big carrot, grated

2-3 Tbsp oil

1 tin of chopped tomatoes + 200 gr chopped fresh tomatoes

salt

pepper

dry oregano 

pinch of brown sugar

pinch of chili flakes

3-4 minced garlic cloves

2 handful cooked chick peas

fresh basil

**********************************************

for the courgette balls:

1 medium size green courgette, about 150 gr

1 egg

50 gr buckwheat flour

1 tsp baking powder

little salt and pepper

fresh basil leaves, torn apart

**************************************************

500 gr wholewheat spaghetti 

+ 

cheese for topping

+ 

more fresh basil leaves

+

good olive oil 


Heat 2-3 Tbsp of olive oil in a saucepan on a medium to low heat and add the diced onion. Cook until soft. Add the carrots and continue cooking.
Add the tomatoes, salt, pepper, sugar, chili flakes and oregano.
Bring to simmer for about 45 minutes. Add the minced garlic and fresh basil right in the end of the cooking as well as the balls and the cooked chick peas.
In the meantime make the courgette balls:
- grate the courgette in a small mixing bawl, add the rest of the ingredients and stir well.
Heat 2 Tbsp of oil in a medium size frying pan . 
Using two teaspoons, form a ball shapes and drop them in the frying pan.
Fry them on medium to low temperature until they get a nice and deep colour.
Place them on a kitchen paper to get rid of some excess oil before you add them to to sauce.
Cook the spaghetti according to the packet and add them to the sauce. At this stage I always drizzle some good olive oil.
Serve immediately with some garlic bread on a side and green leaves salad.....