All in One Perpetual Spinach, Chickpea Minestrone and Macaroni

Apparently its the coldest April on record in the UK for decades.  And it shows, as i am still filling my hot water bottle up and snuggling it; or mooching about the house in my shawl, hugging me like a big warm blanket. 

On slightly warmer and dryer days, I have still been out in the garden.  The broad beans have been transplanted and so have the peas.  As long as the frost stays away, they should hopefully be okay.  

I harvested some perpetual spinach for dinner; and made this All in One dish of Perpetual Spinach, Chickpea Minestrone with Macaroni for lunch, that served us over two days.  Once in the evening, hot out of the oven and the other day: room temperature for lunch. Its such an easy dish to make, you just add all the ingredients: minced onions, crushed garlic, shredded spinach, chopped tinned tomatoes, macaroni pasta and chickpeas, in a deep dish and then add flavourings: herbs, smoked paprika, salt and pepper. Pour over vegetable stock and then put in the oven to cook and swell.  Stir a couple of times, then serve.

Some of you may recognise this dish as I've made it before with red chard.  The original recipe was adapted from Rukmini Iyer 's The Green Roasting Tin and was made with kale and borlotti beans.  You can find my adapted variation of the recipe here, if you want to make it.    

I  am sharing the All in One dish of Perpetual Spinach, Chickpea Minestrone with Macaroni with  with Soup, Salad and Sammies hosted by Kahakai Kitchen. 

I even made cake - Madeira cake to evoke some warmth, but the recipe i tried from a cookbook on my shelf that will remain unnamed was a bit on the unrisen side.  It tasted alright though. 

Have you been baking? And if so, what?!

Some Green Eats Glamorgan Sausage Rolls and Spanakopita

We have had good weather.

We took advantage of it and between the two of us, did a lot of gardening. 

But let me share these two images with you.  About two weeks ago, D laid down some turf  in front of the greenhouse.  It looks lush, fresh and of course very green. 

If you want to compare and contrast, follow this link to see the slabs.  No ball games or walking on the fresh lawn.  But I am looking forward to walking on it bare feet and sitting down on the grass come warmer days.

So back to the garden right now. 

The purple sprouting broccoli  is coming to an end.  We have mostly been eating the PSB added to Aglio, Olio e Peperonicino.  I think we have enough in the garden, perhaps for one or two more meals, then it will be all gone.  We will definitely be growing them again later in the year. 

Also harvested the last of the leeks. I was pondering what to do with them, but made my mind up after chatting to my nephew who is at University. He was telling me that my blog has become his on-line recipe book and that he's made a load of recipes from it, including Glamorgan Sausages.  

I actually cannot remember the last time i made Glamorgan Sausages at home.  The last time, or thereafter was perhaps when i was running the vegetarian cafe.  

Here are the ingredients for the Glamorgan Sausages: fresh breadcrumbs, cheddar cheese, leeks, mustard, salt and pepper - ready for an egg yolk for the mixing and then shaping.  

To make these Glamorgan Sausages a bit more substantial and more like a sandwich for lunch or a picnic (Yes, i am already imagining eating out on that garden lawn) I encased them in puff pastry.  I liked the way Johanna makes her vegetarian sausage rolls.  And took inspiration from her the last time I made vegetarian Haggis Sausage rolls, they just look far more appealing.  Plus glossed over with egg wash for the golden glean.  The fresh leek flavour was so prominent. 

We also have still have perpetual spinach.   

But it is dwindling now.

I made another Spanakopita. This time the recipe came from Rose Elliot's Vegetarian Cookery (1988) .  I adapted her recipe a little with the inclusion of a sauteed leek, a teaspoon dried dill and a teaspoon raw rice to absorb the liquids.  Everything else was to the book.  I think, should i make spanakopita again, I will make it in a spiral, it's a bit more effort but its far more prettier.

I haven't yet transplanted any of the plants into the ground yet.  I am still a bit nervous about frost, so am holding back for another week. But come next week, they are going out into the earth soil.  Some of the peas are getting straggly and broad beans are ready to be transplanted. 

I am sharing my green harvest and and green eats with Harvest Monday tomorrow hosted by Dave from Happy Acres.  

Mexican Style Black Eyed Beans Soup

I had my vaccination yesterday morning. I took the rest of the afternoon off from work as I was feeling rather nauseated, as well as anxious for a number of reasons, including the fact that i have not gone out for such a long time - only to be surrounded by so many people in one place.  It was anxiety inducing to say the least.  When I got home, i got a blanket and snook under it on the sofa and snoozed for a couple of hours.  I am feeling much better today, but have been taking it easy, which means the garden is neglected again for another weekend.

Anyway, early  in the week, I made this Mexican Style Black Eyed Bean soup. It was after making the Kunde -  Black Eyes Peas and Tomatoes in Peanut Sauce last week and laying my hands on the black eyed peas jar, i thought i'd  make another recipe with them.  

Also its been quite cold here. I am not ashamed to say that i have been cuddling my hot water bottle like a childhood teddy.  

We even had a flurry of snow at one point and although it did not stick.  It was rather beautiful falling.  If you have watched the movie Edward Scissorhands, then that is the snow fall i am referring to, as in fairytale like.

This is a Black Eyed Beans soup with red pepper happens to be vegan, but too tone down the spices, I garnished it with grated cheddar cheese for coolness. To make more of a substantial meal of it, i made cornbread. I remembered the packets of cornbread mix that my American friends brought over a couple of years back.  By the way, i also have Quick Grits and Corns grits too. 

I am sharing this Mexican Style Black Eyed Beans Soup with Soup, Salad and Sammies hosted by Kahakai Kitchen. 

April In My Kitchen

No chocolate Easter eggs in my kitchen. 

But I do have some new things to share.  

Starting with this cookbook 'In Bibi's Kitchen' - The Recipes and Stories of Grandmothers from Eight African Countries that Touch the Indian Ocean. Those of you who follow me, let me remind you this was the only cookbook that was on my Christmas wishlist last year.  D had ordered it, it was out of stock, D ordered it again in January for me; and apparently it got lost in transition - then he tried one more time; and surprise it arrived last week.  It is a mostly meat based recipe book, but i am hoping to adapt recipes to my more plant based diet. 

To show D that i was thankful for his perseverance, in obtaining this publication for me.  I thought I better cook a recipe from it sharpish.  This Black Eyes Peas and Tomatoes in Peanut Sauce called Kunde is actually a vegan recipe.  Kunde is the Swahili word for black eyed peas. It's suggested in the book to eat it with rice, but we just had it as is - like a beany thick soup.  It was lovely; ad to be honest, after eating the Kunde, we were rather full and not in need for more food for the rest of the day. I am also sharing this I am sharing this Soup with Soup, Salad and Sammies hosted by Kahakai Kitchen. 

I am a potato crisp muncher, but we have not had many coming into the house since the pandemic.  D saw these Lea and Perrins Worcestershire Sauce crisps at the supermarket and tempted by the flavours bought some home.  They were pretty good, and yes they are suitable for vegetarians.  

Here is evidence of one of the most popular recipes in our home: Nigella's Double Potato and Halloumi Bakes, except i replace the Halloumi with Feta. I am honestly, making it again as I type this blog post. 

We have an abundance of perpetual spinach still growing well.  Here is some I harvested on Good Friday.  D made me pose with the bowl for scale - to demonstrate the vast amount.  

He was not shy in hinting that we haven't had Spanakopitta for a long while.  He was right, I honestly cannot remember the last time i made a vegetarian Spanakopitta. 

I actually think it may have been when I was running the vegetarian and vegan cafe; and what's worse I cannot remember which recipe I usually base my recipe on.  I flicked through the Greek cookbooks on my shelf and would you believe it, not one of them had a recipe for spanakopita.  I was gobsmacked actually.  

So flicked through some general vegetarian cookbooks and decided a recipe in Good Housekeeping Step by Step Vegetarian Cookbook.  It was good, but not as good as I remembered having made it before.  I just cannot which recipe i made and adapted from which cookbook, but both D and me agreed it had dill and perhaps spring onion.

So i will be making another , especially as D had picked up two packets of filo pastry from the supermarket.  

I should also have held this for scale as the photograph above, does not do the homemade Spanakopitta recipe justice. 

 In the garden we also have purple sprouting broccoli coming on strong too. It stunning actually and gives the garden some colour. 

And i am not fibbing when i tell you, we have had this dish three, maybe four times in two weeks.  Its essentially Aglio, Olio e Peperonicino with PSB.  It's been delicious! This gives me an excuse to also join in with Harvest Monday tomorrow hosted by Dave from Happy Acres.  

Now here is my curve ball.  Some of you may remember a few blog posts back, I said  my garden boots/wellies have worn, so I have ordered a pair of wellies on-line. I knew it was a risk and it proved right.  They did not fit.  Wish you could see my disappointed face. Either my feet are swollen or they are plain old chubby like the rest of me. D said I should have got one size larger for thick socks.  Bit late telling me after placing the order. Good job I dare not order clothing online, no matter how tempted.  Anyway,  because they are so pretty, they are on the windowsill in the downstairs bathroom like a decorative piece.  I asked my nieces over the telephone, if they were in need of new wellies, but both have larger feet than me. 

Onto other things in my kitchen.  Some herbal Teas: Elderberry and Echinacea and Three Ginger. 

Forest Fruits and Tropical herbal tea. 

Finally, some lavender potted up in the trug in the garden.  I'm sharing this blog post withSherry's Pickings who hosts In My Kitchen Series.

Roasted Aubergine Lasagne with Puy Lentils

It was after tinkering with a recipe that I was reminded of  the glass jar full of the king of lentils -  Puy Lentils. 

And wait for it, i haven't eaten aubergine aka eggplant for over a year, or maybe more.  

So it was on our shopping list.  I planned to make Roasted Aubergine Lasagne with Puy Lentils. Then I remembered why, I don't make lasagnes that often and leave it as one of D's speciality's.