Our Vegetarian Day - Carrot and Coriander Soup and Mushroom Risotto

It wasn't planned, but today Ishbel and I had a vegetarian day, with the above meals.

I had planned to do the risotto yesterday evening but to be honest when I got home from the office after being off for a couple of days having had my Laparoscopy on Wednesday, my tummy has been so sore and I just couldn't be bothered to stand and make anything for myself but did manage to make a little cod, potatoes and veg in a parsley sauce for Ishbel when she got in from work later on Friday evening.... So the mushrooms had to be used today.

So, First up for Lunch - Carrot and Coriander Soup, so simple and quick and tasty

This is just for the two of us and gives us two bowls of soup and two for later, so just increase the quantities if making for more people

2 pints of good chicken or Veg stock 
1 large or a couple of small potatoes peeled and chopped
1 large onion peeled and chopped 
500 grams of carrots washed and chopped
2 to 2 1/2 teaspoons of ground corriander
Bunch of fresh corriander
2 tbls of good veg or sunflower oil
Maggi seasoning optional




Place the oil in a decent flat bottom pan large enough but not to large for the two pints of stock and heat.
Add the chopped onions on a medium heat and fry off for 5 minutes, without browning









Add the chopped potatoes and the crushed coriander and stir for 2 - 3 minutes











Add the carrots, stirring in and cooking for 2 - 3 minutes













Add the stock and bring to the boil.
Place a lid on the pan turn down the heat
and allow to simmer for around 20 mins to cook the carrots (If you want to,you can add Maggi or other taster of choice, or not, at this point)

Remove from the heat and here you can either transfer to a liquidiser or do as I do and just use a wand to liquidise the veg and bob's your uncle....

Whichever way you go, remember IT'S HOT

Chop up some fresh coriander and add to the soup

Serve with a couple of sprigs of coriander
and crusty bread, enjoy


Total prep and cooking time: 35 - 40 minutes

And for supper later in the evening - Mushroom Risotto

Again, this is just for the two of us and gives enough for two decent sized bowls of Risotto. I should point out that I usually use some dried porcini mushrooms and fresh parsley, but I forgot to get both today, so this is just with plain old chestnut mushrooms.....

What you'll need 

1 onion, roughly chopped 

2 cloves of garlic, crushed 

500 grams od chestnut mushrooms sliced 

1/4 pint of dry white wine 

2 pints of veg stock

Parmesan Cheese

2 handfuls of Aborio Rice 

2 tbls of Olive oil

1 oz of good unsalted butter 

Place the oil in a pan and heat on a moderate setting Add the onions and the garlic Don't brown the onions.  Sweat down until soft 

Add the mushrooms and cook until Browned and turning soft  

Add the rice and stir into the onion, garlic and mushrooms coating all of the rice in the oil

Add the wine and cook off allowing the rice to absorb all of the liquid.  This also burns of the alcohol in the wine.  Start adding the stock a ladle full at a time and allow this to be absorbed by the rice, before adding more stock.  Continue doing this until the stock is used and the rice is bulging.

To give it the creaminess of a risotto, add the butter and stir into the risotto.  I would also add the porcini mushrooms and a handful of chopped parsley at this point but had none so didn't.........

Serve, grating some parmesan for me, but not for Ishbel, and enjoy                                                                Total Prep and cooking time 40 minutes 

So, if you fancy a meat free day, which isn't a bad way to enjoy your day, have at it my friends, if you try them and you like them, why not come back and leave a comment, always glad to hear from you 

One Pan Leg of Lamb and Veg

Family here today, so another quick recipe for you.

Whole leg of Lamb
Whole pack of Chantenay carrots washed and trimmed
4 Leaks washed trimmed and sliced
4 baby swede washed pealed and quartered
4 Parsnips washed and pealed
1Bunch of celery chopped into pieces and don't forget to shred and add the celery leaves too
As many (as large) boiling potatoes as you want
couple of shallots peeled and cut in two
1 Bottle of white wine



Brown the leg of lamb of in a roasting dish on all sides
Add the bottle of wine and burn of the alcohol.  Using the wine bottle add 1 btl of water and same again in good chicken stock.
Add all the vegetables and bring to the boil on the hob turn off immediately
Cover with oven foil and place in the oven at 100 - 130 degrees for 2 1/2 hours

Remove foil from  roasting dish and return to oven turning oven up to 150-180.

place in centre of table and let the family dig in, the meat just falls from the bone and the veg are lovely and tender.  Serve with fresh crusty bread to mop up the liquor.

Shannon preparing the veg

Ready for you Grand Dad

Ready to go in the oven 

Where's my dinner

I said WHERE'S MY DINNER

Ready to serve

Doesn't last long 

I'm just too pretty 

Chilli, Garlic and Ginger Seafood Medley with Pasta

Seafood, we all love this in the family Ishbel and I, the kids and the grand kids, whether it is fish shrimp or crustacean, can't get enough of them at times.  Paella, curried, with sauce, without sauce, Fish Pie with mashed tatties and some melted cheese on top , with salsa and salad, with pasta, with new potatoes, serve it any which way and it will be devoured.

So, today is my wee easy recipe for seafood medley or 'fruit de mere' with chilli, garlic and ginger and tossed in pasta.

You need a good quantity of fresh seafood, need to sort that out depending on how many you are serving, but this recipe is for two, when the grand kids arrive the quantities go up from two to six around the table but when it is Mollie, you always need to add a wee bit more for miss piggy particularly the squid and scallops!

I like to prepare my pasta early and then when cooked plunge it into a pan of ice cold water, and then all you need to do is reheat it when the seafood is ready. So with that out of the way I can concentrate on preparing my herbs, etc.


1 red chilli
1 good sized piece of ginger
2 good sized garlic cloves
1 Lemon un-waxed
Tomatoes
Courgette (Zuccini) and Olives are optional
1 large glass of good white wine
Big bunch fresh parsley
Salt and Black Pepper
500 grams of assorted seafood from the fish counter (if you can't get fresh I do use frozen but thoroughly thawed out before using it)



Slice and de-seed the chilli, but if you like a bit of heat keep some of the seeds
Peel and grate the ginger
Slice the tomatoes in half
Grate the lemon peel
peel and crush the garlic
Chop the parsley finely

                                                                             

If using the olives, slice in half
Lop of the ends of the courgette and discard slice into circles then 1/4 the circles into decent sized chunks

Sweat the olives courgettes and tomatoes down in a little unsalted butter, these take the longest to cook. Medium heat for about 5 to 7 minutes but don't over cook don't want to the courgettes to turn mushy, still like them firm but cooked.

Add the glass of wine to a second hot pan  and add the seafood.

Stir in the ginger, chilli and garlic and the grated lemon  reduce the heat.   Squeeze in juice from half the lemon.  Remember seafood only takes a few minutes to cook.  It needs to be cooked through but not turning to rubber.  Add most of the chopped parsley, you could also have used fresh coriander instead for this, but keep some back for sprinkling over the finished dish

Oh, just before you add the seafood you should have drained the already cooked pasta and have another pan of boiling water on the go.

The seafood should just be about ready as the shrimp change colour to the nice deep pink that you all know.  Take it of the heat it will continue to cook

Drain the pasta and add to the seafood.  Take your pan with the courgettes, olives and tomatoes, and add this to the pasta and seafood.  toss the whole lot, using utensils in the pan and not literally and serve  with crusty bread.

Enjoy






Total Prep and cook time Time: 20 - 25 mins

Pasta first Cook: about 12 mins

Pasta reheat: in boiling water 1 - 2 minutes, no longer. You can of course just cook the pasta as you are prepping every thing as long as you time it right to drain and get  it into the pan with the seafood before  it turns to rubber and remember the hot pasta added to the seafood will add to it continuing to cook, that's why it is important as well not to over cook the seafood in the pan.

herb prep time: 10 minutes

Seafood cook time: depends on quantity and size of pan, so always use a large pan so that the seafood is not piled on top of itself so that the heat gets to every morsel evenly and at the same time.  My rule of thumb is as the shrimp just begin to turn pink - heat off  and let if finish in the hot liquor and when the hot pasta is added.

Glass of white wine added to pan

Chopped chilli

Ginger to be grated 

Crushed Garlic and grated ginger 

Lemon rind and courgettes