Recipes: A Vegetarian Picnic

Now that summer has officially arrived, picnic season is upon us again. 

This quick picnic took me exactly an hour to rustle up from bits and pieces I had in the fridge and freezer, and has the advantage of looking like it was far more effort than it really was to prepare!

Mini Rolls

Most major supermarkets sell a version of these mini rolls and they are perfect for picnics or parties. 

These are filled with:

- Mature cheddar, homemeade chutney, rocket

- Cheddar, sliced pickled shallots and cherry tomato halves

 Grown-Up Butterfly Cakes

- Make the sponge mixture and bake as below.

- Slice off the tops and slice in half.

- Dollop a teaspoon of greek yoghurt and a teaspoon of rhubarb compote onto the base of the cake, then replace the tops sideways-on, as shown.  Sprinkle with icing sugar

 Mini  Morello Cherry Victoria Sponges

- Make the sponge mixture and bake in a square or rectangular tin as below.

- Cut out 6cm circles from the cake with a pastry cutter.

- Sandwich them together with whipped cream (or more greek yoghurt) and morello cherry jam.

Super-Quick Sponge Recipe

This is a very simple way of remembering how to make a sponge without any need for a recipe:

- Preheat the oven to 180°C

- Decide how many eggs to use (3 eggs will make 6 mini-victoria sponges plus 4 butterfly cakes – scale up or down accordingly).

- Weigh the eggs (in their shells) - this is your base measurement. Measure out exactly the same weight of butter, caster sugar and self-raising flour. (Since buying Peyton & Byrne’s British Baking I have been adding 2 tbsp of natural yoghurt to sponge mix, but its not crucial if you don’t have any to hand).

- Tip all the ingredients into a food mixer and beat thoroughly, (or a mixing bowl with a hand-mixer is equally as good).

- Line a square or rectangular baking tray with baking parchment, and put muffin cases into 4 holes of a muffin tin.  Fill each muffin case three quarters full (in order to get a high peak), and tip the rest of the mixture into the baking tray and smooth out.

- Bake for 15 minutes or until the top springs back when pressed gently. (NB the individual cases are likely to need slightly longer than the baking tin – keep an eye on them!)

Recipe: Creamy Cheese and Lemon Ravioli

Our pasta machine doesn’t see the light of day as often as it should, but its always worth the effort when it does.  Making the dough and rolling it out is a bit of a faff, let’s be honest – so I tend to make a job-lot of dough and freeze it in batches wrapped in cling film.  If you don’t have a pasta machine it will be easier to make little balls of dough and then roll them very thinly individually – otherwise you need some serious muscles to get a huge ball of dough thin enough for these delicate little beauties.

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Creamy Cheese and Lemon Ravioli

Ingredients

For the Dough (makes about 35 ravioli)

350g flour (ideally 00 pasta flour, but I used strong white bread flour which worked well)

3 eggs

3 tbsp olive oil

Zest of 3 lemons

Black pepper

 

Filling

300g soft cheese – I used 100g St Agur and 200g Philadelphia, but any combinations of creamy and grated cheeses would work well

Salt and black pepper

 1 egg (white only)

 

To Serve

Knob butter

Lemons (a quarter per person is ample)

Handful rocket, finely chopped

Parmesan-style cheese, grated

 

Method

1. In a food processor, whizz together all the dough ingredients to a crumbly dough.  You may have to add a touch more oil or flour to get the right consistency.  Work by hand until the dough is smooth, then roll into four sausage shapes, wrap in cling film and chill for at least half an hour.

2. Flour each ‘sausage’ of dough well, and process through your pasta machine starting on the widest setting and gradually working down to the thinnest.  Keep the rolled sheets moist under a damp tea towel whilst you’re rolling the rest.

3. Cut circles from each sheet (about 7-8cm, using a pastry cutter or cutting around a glass), keeping them moist under the damp tea towel.  Pull together all the ‘offcuts’ into another ball of dough, and roll and cut this too.

4. Whisk together your choice of cheeses and season well with salt and black pepper.

5. Take one circle, brush the edges with egg white, and place a teaspoon of cheesy filling in the centre.  Place a second circle on top and pinch the edges firmly together leaving a ‘rim’ of about 1cm.

6. Sprinkle a tray or baking sheet with semolina and place the ravioli on it as they are ready. (At this point they can be covered in cling film and refrigerated for up to a day)

7. When ready to cook, bring a very large pan of water to the boil, and cook for 2-3 minutes.

8. Drain, return to the empty pan and toss in the butter and rocket.  Divide between plates and grate over the parmesan-style cheese and serve with a lemon wedge to be squeezed over at the table.

Pickled Shallots

I have a bit of a reputation for my picked onion habit, (antisocial, I know).  So when we had a glut of shallots earlier this year, (from veg boxes rather than our garden), there was only one thing to do with them.

Mature cheddar and finely sliced pickled onions is probably one of my favourite ever sandwich fillings.  And you can also use these on The Ploughman’s Stack. 

I used a recipe from the wonderful Preserved, but here’s a few others that look rather good:

1. Pickled Shallots in Sherry Vinegar from Delia Online

2. Balsamic Pickled Shallots from BBC Good Food

3. Spicy Pickled Onions by Tom Parker-Bowles from UKTV Food

Pickled Shallots

Storecupboard Secrets: Vegetarian Oyster Sauce

I was so pleased to accidentally stumble accross this fab ingredient in the supermarket the other day.  How annoying it is to find so many almost-vegetarian oriental recipes which are finished with a few tablespoons of oyster sauce.

There are now a few companies making a vegetarian version from mushroom extract, (the better quality you can find, the less flavour-enhancers it will contain).

So, armed with this new ingredient, what’s on the menu?

1. Gingery Shitake Noodles from BBC Good Food

Yum! I love noodles and shitake mushrooms, so this is right up my street.

Interesting to see their note: “Whatever you do, don’t cut your noodles – they represent long life!”

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2. Stir Fried Tofu with Vegetables from delicious magazine

I think I had a bad experience with tofu, (probably silken!), some time ago and spent many years thinking I couldn’t stand the stuff.  But then I tried Wagamama‘s tofu and was totally converted.

This is definately Wagamama-style – firm tofu fried quickly at a high heat, and soaked in lots of big flavours.  (It doesn’t taste of much on its own so make sure you give it a lot of flavours to soak up).

3. Open Flower Dumplings by BBC Good Food

These would make fabulous oriental-style finger food for a party, and look like they would be surprisingly healthy as well as tasty.

Whilst they look like a bit of a fiddle, the website promises they are easy to make…. we’ll see!

4. Kale with Oyster Sauce and Toasted Sesame Seeds by Nigel Slater for the Guardian

I love sesame seeds and sesame oil, and this sounds superb – must give it a try next time some Kale arrives in my veg box!

5. Stir-Fried Greens with Oyster Sauce from BBC Good Food

I might have skipped past this recipe from title alone, but doesn’t this picture look good enough to eat?!

Those extra-fine noodles teamed with broccoli and a savoury, spicy sauce are too tempting… I think I know what’s for dinner tomorrow!

Gingerbread Loaf with Creme Fraiche & Boozy Fruit

Its dark brown and pretty hard to photograph, but I’ve rarely been so excited about a cake recipe.  I can’t begin to tell you how gorgeously light but treacley this Gingerbread Loaf is from the new Peyton and Byrne book, British Baking.

It was one of those recipes that all seemed to be going horribly wrong.  It looked illogical, I was convinced there had been a misprint, and nearly threw the mixture away as it was so runny, but decided to shove it in the oven anyway.

And what came out of the oven was nothing short of a miracle.  A gorgeous crisp and sticky crust to a light-as-air spongy,  treacley cake.

It made a fabulous dessert served with a dollop of créme fraiche and some boozy oranges I had preserved a few months previously, but would be equally lovely with a nice cup of tea and a sit down.

A brilliant book, and this recipe alone is worth buying it for, (I’m not on any sort of commission, promise!).

Recipe: Bombay Bites (quick vegan party nibbles)

These little nibbles are morish and incredibly quick and easy to make.  They have just two ingredients, (shop-bought, admittedly), which is ideal when you’re in a hurry.

I made these spicy bites this week for a party which a vegan friend was coming to.  If these need to be vegan make sure:

• the puff pastry is vegan (like standard Jus-Rol puff, but avoid the all-butter stuff.  Most packets are clearly marked these days).
• the filling is vegan (I used Waitrose Bombay Potato which their website confirms is vegan, but their Aloo Gobi Saag isn’t, for instance – if in doubt, check online).

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Quick Bombay Bites

Ingredients

1 packet ready-rolled puff pastry (I used Jus-Rol, which is vegan)

1 tub Bombay Aloo/Bombay Potato (I used Waitrose)

 

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180C.  Unroll the pastry and cut in half lengthways, then cut each half into 5 rectangles.

2. Brush water around the edges of each rectangle, and dollop a teaspoon of Bombay Aloo onto one end as pictured.

3. Crimp all four sides with a fork, (dip the fork in flour if it starts to stick), then trim the edges neatly with a knife.

4. Bake for 15 minutes or until puffed and golden.  Serve warm.

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For the non-vegans I made some of my absolute favourites…. Mini Cheese and Onion Pasties.  This seems to be one of the most popular recipes on the site, so I’ve uploaded some new photos to the post….. click here for the recipe!

Cheese & Onion Pasties

And finally… big thanks for three lovely listings recently:

• Red Magazine Food Editor’s Choice: The Top Vegetarian Food Blogs
• The Vegetarian Society: Veggie Blogs
• Foodies 100: Ten Great Vegetarian Blogs

Recipe: Tenderstem Broccoli and Blue Cheese Tart

This should need no explanation… fresh tenderstem broccoli, creamy filling, Saint Agur cheese, with a crispy, lemony, pine nut and parmesan-style crust.

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Tenderstem Broccoli & Blue Cheese Tart

with a Lemony Pine-Nut Crust

Ingredients

240g Tenderstem Broccoli

1 packet ready-rolled all-butter shortcrust pastry

75g blue cheese (stilton or St Agur would work well), cut roughly into 1cm cubes

3 eggs

160ml double cream

50g pine nuts, roughly chopped

Zest of 1 lemon

50g parmesan-style cheese, grated

 

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180ºC.  Line your tart tin with the shortcrust pastry (mine was 14″ x 4.5″, but a 20-24cm round tin would do fine). Prick the bottom with a fork, and bake blind for 20 minutes.  Remove from the oven, brush the base all over with the white of one of your eggs (saving the yolk for later), and return to the oven for 5 more minutes.

2. Meanwhile, boil the broccoli for 5 minutes until tender but not too soft.  Drain well and leave aside to cool.

3. In a jug, beat the 2 whole eggs plus one egg yolk together, then beat in the cream and half the parmesan-style cheese.  Season generously with salt and pepper.

4. When your pastry case is out of the oven, lay the broccoli in it, and sprinkle over the cubes of blue cheese.  Carefully pour over the eggs and cream mixture, being careful not to let any leak over the sides of the pastry.

5. Bake for 20 minutes, then scatter over the pine nuts, remaining parmesan-style cheese and lemon zest, and bake for a further 10 minutes until firm.