Spring Greens Gratin with Vegan Soul

I made this Potato Gratin with Spring Greens at the weekend.  The recipe made a good portion and served us during the working week as well.  The recipe comes from Vegan Soul Kitchen.  I had not planned on making this winter gratin, looking more favourably at some of the other belly warming recipes, but when I found myself with some spring greens that I described in a  previous post as winter greens, I wondered what to with it.  I haven't been fancying seasonal cabbage or broccoli, so spring greens have been arriving in our grocery shop the past few weeks and I have to say I have not mind eating it, though I have to admit I have had to be more creative with it, than just steaming it and then smothering in garlicky warm oil. 

So stumbling on this recipe whilst flicking through the Vegan Soul Kitchen one evening was good.  Its not a dish that you just knock up, it has processes and it takes a little love and time, so I recommend making this at the weekend, when you may have more time to potter in the kitchen.    

I really liked the spice coating on the potatoes which was made up with chilli flakes, chilli powder, oregano, thyme, sea salt and some olive oil.  Baked until just tender.  

Here the potatoes are layered, then topped with garlicky Spring greens, then the layers are repeated, before the panko breadcrumbs are sprinkled over, some non dairy milk is poured over  first and then allowed to bake until crisp and golden.  

I have a hard copy of Vegan Soul Kitchen cookbook and followed the recipe word for word , so won't republish it here, but if you do-not have a copy of your own or cannot find it at your local library, you can find the original recipe for  Roasted Potato and Mixed Greens Gratin From Vegan Soul Kitchen by Bryant Terry here.  Scroll down on this peek  preview into the contents of his cookbook and you will find the recipe on p122 . The only changes I made were very minor and served more as substitutes rather than an adaptation, I used soy milk in place of rice milk and I used spring greens in place of the collard greens and mustard greens. However, if the lovely Mr Terry does stumble upon my blog and grant me permission to post the recipe on my blog, then I am more than happy to do so - until then...if you are interested in this cuisine, then try and get your mitts on the cookbook.  I have his new book Afro-Vegan on my wish list. 

Chocolate Habenero Black Turtle Bean Chilli

Another one pot dish and one that relies on store-cupboard ingredients, except of course for the chocolate habenero chilli that I picked up when I was in the big city a few months back, around the same time when I picked up dried marigold petals for my vegan Sweet Potato Chocolate Cake.  I had not intended to buy any dried chillies, let alone Chocolate Habenero but whilst staring at spice filled glass jars it just seemed to leap out at me and I was tempted.  

It does have subtle chocolate undertones, and an earthy and spicy chilli kick , but and here is the but, it did not blow me away as I had expected.  My chilli tolerance is quite high, my reasoning - I am of South Asian heritage and chilli runs through my veins - but I found this particular brand of chocolate habenero chilli was not overly spice hot.  The only thing that I can think was that the chillies were, perhaps on the shelf too long and therefore may have lost its vava voom, still the home-made chilli was very, very nice and I would a happily make it again. 

This was just going to be a straight-forward Black Bean Chilli made simply with black turtle beans so called because of the black shiny dark shell like appearance, but I also decided to throw in some winter greens (such as sprout heads, but any type of kale will do), and a can of sweetcorn for colour. It worked out lovely giving more body and texture to the dish.  

So far, we have had this dish with plain boiled Basmati rice.  D suggested that this would be good as an Enchillada filling, I agree but I don't have any tortilla wraps, so it will be more rice or perhaps even potatoes.  

I am sharing this recipe with Elizabeth's Kitchen Diary who hosts No Waste Food Challenge and  January's edition of My Legume Love Affair #79 which was created by Susan of The Well Seasoned Cook.  It is now run by Lisa of Lisa's kitchen who happens to be this months host too. 

Winter Greens Shepherds Pie

D has been wanting me to make vegetarian Shepherds Pie for the past month, I have been putting it off for one reason or another, well today with the blustery wind keeping us firmly indoors he finally persuaded me to make one.

I was going to make one of my old fashioned tried and tested Shepherds Pie or Shepherdess Pie recipes made with beans and lentils, but he expressed that he didn't want one made with lentils and beans, as we have been feasting on lots of pulse based dishes recently such as the Black Eyed Pea and Lemon Hot Pot and Red Kidney Bean Schnitzels.  

The only issue I had with this was that we haven't been out to the shops to stock up on fresh vegetables, so I was having to make do with what we had in our kitchen cupboards.  And there seems to be an awful lot of dry ingredients: flours, grains and beans.  Well, I kept hush and just got on with it and decided the vegan Shepherds Pie base was going to be made with soya mince which I often use for my Mexican Tamale Pie.  And yes I know soya mince is a legume, but minced up D is none the wiser.  Shu.  Lets keep it hush between us.  

Winter Greens Shepherds Pie part covered with mashed potatoes

Another thing, this particular Shepherdess Pie is made with shredded winter greens not peas which is traditional simply because I did not have any in the freezer either, so I had to make do with what I had, He was beginning to be a bit of a grump about it, saying it wouldn't be the same without peas. 

Verdict, he really loved it.  It was very, very paprikarey, yes I was a little heavy handed with the smoked paprika!  

Radish Leaf and Root Tart

Its supposed to be Summer, but it been raining most of June with the skies being dominated by haunting grey clouds, so to inject a little colour into our lives I made these Radish Tarts. 

Not only is it pretty, it is also frugal as I've used both the radish greens (tops) and the root.

In the past I've made the most of my turnip greens: making soups, South Asian style Turnip Greens 'Saag' and tarts, so why be wasteful with homegrown radish greens.  Eating radish greens is not new to me, as I do remember my mother making dishes with it, but its been a while. 

For those of you unfamiliar with the taste of radish greens, I would describe the flavour as bitter, a cross between nettle and watercress.  Unfortunately, the leaves on my brightly coloured radishes were a little too mature for a radish salad, but they were good enough to cook with.

I made these tarts in 4 individual tart tins, but for the recipe below I've given instructions to make one big Radish Tart that can be sliced and shared.  I also made my own shortcrust pastry, but please feel free to use store bought.

I am submitting a slice of this Thrifty Radish Tart to Chris from Mele Cotte for this week’s Weekend Herb Blogging (WHB) #289. WHB is overseen by Haalo from Cook Almost Anything.

Radish Leaf and Root Tart
For the shortcrust pastry to line a 8 - 9 inch round tin
Serves 4 - 6
Ingredients
225g plain flour
½ teaspoon salt
125g butter
3 tablespoons water
Method for shortcrust pastry
Add flour and salt to a bowl. Add the butter then rub it into the flour with your fingertips, lifting the mixture out of the bowl to incorporate as much air as possible as this will make the pastry light. Continue until the mixture looks like fine breadcrumbs, then add the water a little at a time and use your fingertips to press the mixture together and form a dough. Put the dough on a lightly floured surface and knead rolling out the dough, into whatever shape you want – a round, oval or rectangle. Blind bake in a hot oven at gas mark 6 for 20 minutes.
For the filling
About 20 radishes with green tops in tact
2 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, sliced
2 – 3 cloves garlic, crushed
Salt and pepper to taste
150ml single cream or milk
1 egg
Method
Remove the green tops from the radish, wash thoroughly and mince. Slice the radishes in half and set aside.
Heat the oil and gently fry the onions and garlic in oil until very soft, then add in the minced greens and sauté in pan with lid until soft, stir from time to time to prevent from sticking. Season to taste and turn off heat.

When cool evenly spread into the pastry case and carefully arrange the sliced radishes on top.
Now whisk together the cream or milk with the egg and a little seasoning. Pour over the radish filling.

Bake in oven gas mark 5 for 30 – 35 minutes. Enjoy warm or at room temperature.

Turnip greens saag

I know turnip greens are not to everyones taste, and they were not to mine either. But the thrifty individual in me wanted to create another dish out of them, rather than consign them to the compost bin. So a few days ago, I decided to a a cheats version of saag with the turnip greens pickings from last weekend. Saag can be made with any green leaf vegetable.
Here is the recipe if you find yourself with some turnip greens that have gone to seed and are thinking 'mmm what can I make with it?'. If you don't fancy this recipe, You could also try and make soup with it. I minced 250g of the turnip greens, added some salt and 4 small green chillies and then covered it with enough water. Bring it to the boil, then turn it down low to simmer for two hours, yes two hours. Occasionally topping off with more water to prevent it from drying out. Once the turnip greens are thoroughly cooked, pretty much turned to mush. Turn the heat up and cook off all the liquid. When the pot is nearly dry, turn off and cool. Once cooled, mash thoroughly or blend in a liquidiser.

Now do the tarka (tempering). You will need 100g full fat butter, 2 minced garlic and 1/2 small onion, finely sliced. Once golden and sizzling, add the blended turnip greens to the tarka and mix thoroughly till warmed through. Turn off and serve with plain naan bread, roti or paratha.

Even though this was not the authentic way of cooking saag, the final result was spot on, really rich and creamy. It was so good that I actually think my mother would be quite proud of me.