Category: easy vegetarian recipes

Jamie’s chocolate nutty bites

~ Corrie ~ 2 Comments

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Sorry I’ve been a little neglectful food chums, I’ve been on holiday… Okay so I haven’t been on holiday but I’ve been extremely busy sunning myself in pub beer gardens with my boyfriend. Yes I now have a boyfriend, and yes he is real, and yes he is called Jamie, and yes he plays the harmonica. Now enough with your incessant questions!

Anyway, now the weather’s decided to be a bum-hole, I thought I’d cheer us all up with something lovely and chocolatey – like these chocolate bites Jamie made me a few weeks ago. I loved them so much, I decided to try and pass them off as my own at my friend Rosie’s baby shower. Good job I did, as without them I would have turned up completely empty handed. I know this sounds stupid but I didn’t know you were supposed to bring gifts to a baby shower. I’ve seen enough American TV to know better but thankfully I was able to hide behind the chocolate until I could redeem myself with a trip to Kath Kidson the following week. Phew!

Jamie’s chocolate nutty bites
Makes 1 slab / Hands on time 20 mins/ Total time 20 mins + 2 hours to chill / V Gf
You’ll need: Electric Hand whisk, 18-20cm round flan or cake tin
300g Green & Black’s Organic 70% Dark Chocolate 
3 egg whites
3 tbs runny honey
200g ground almonds
50g hazelnuts
100g walnuts
200g icing sugar

Method
1. Line a flan or cake tin with cling film. Melt the dark chocolate in a large heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water.
2. In medium bowl, separate the whites and discard the yolks and whisk with an electric whisk for 2 mins – you just want to break them up rather than whisk them to a peak. Add the honey and whisk once more to incorporate.
3. Fold in the ground almonds with a large metal spoon and mix to a paste. Fold in the nuts,  stir in the icing sugar before very gently folding in the melted chocolate.
4. Pour the mixture into the tin, fold the cling film over the mixture and press everything down until smooth. Refrigerate for a minimum of 2 hrs.
5. Remove the clingfilm and slice into bite sized chunks. Sprinkle with icing sugar and serve with a cup of tea. 
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If you’ve had a go at making any of my recipes, I’d love to hear from you. Follow me now @corrieheale and tag your recipe pictures using #corriesrabbitfood.

 

V– Vegetarian    Gf– Green & Black’s Organic 70% dark chocolate is gluten free but some other brands may not be. Always check the label.

 

Mum’s warm rice salad

~ Corrie ~ Leave a comment

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Since when did I become poor and obese? Okay so maybe I’m not obese but my body has sneakily put on 5lbs behind my back, RUDE! So, as I can’t afford to buy nice new fat clothes, my only option is to go on a diet… Sigh. It’s not like I sit around all day squirting cream into my mouth but I have perhaps been overindulging a tad more than usual. Unfortunately, this means that we shan’t be dining on butternut squash gnocchi with brown butter this week my little blogging chums. Instead, we have a low fat, poor man’s menu starting with my mum’s rice salad…

… Oh stop crying, it’s for your own good!

Mum’s warm rice salad
Serves 6 / Hands on time 25 mins / Total on time 25 mins / V Vn Df
1 tsp rapeseed oil
1 cup of brown basmati rice
100g toasted cashews
1 small red onion, peeled and diced
4 sticks of celery, chopped
1 red pepper, de-seeded and diced
12 cherry tomatoes, halved
3 handfuls baby spinach
1 lemon, juice and zest
1 tbs extra virgin olive oil
4 tbs soy sauce
1 avocado, peeled and chopped

Method
1. Put one cup of rice in a saucepan and follow the packet instructions.
2. Place a large non-stick saucepan over a medium to high heat. Once hot, toast the cashews for a few minutes keeping them moving in the pan until they’re golden. Pour into a bowl, put to one side and add 1 tsp of oil into the pan. Over a medium heat fry the chopped onions for 10 mins until soft, stirring occasionally.
3. Meanwhile, chop the celery, red pepper and half the cherry tomatoes, put to one side. In a small bowl, make the dressing by combing the zest and juice of the lemon along with the extra virgin olive oil and the soy sauce.
4. Once the rice is cooked, allow to cool for a few minutes, use this time to peel and chop the avocado. Transfer the warm rice to a large bowl along with the onions. Add the raw vegetables and including the spinach and pour over the dressing. Mix and serve immediately.

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If you’ve had a go at making any of my recipes, I’d love to hear from you. Follow me now @corrieheale and tag your recipe pictures using #corriesrabbitfood.

V– Vegetarian    Vn– Vegan    Df– Dairy free.

 

Green minestrone

Green Minestrone
~ Corrie ~ Leave a comment

new

Poor and fat week is coming to a close my follower chums but fear not, here’s one more jolly slimming and jolly cheap recipe to send you on your way… I would write more but I’m tired and can’t be bothered.

Green minestrone
Serves 6 / Hands on time 30 mins / Total time 40 mins / V Vn ❄
1 tsp rapeseed oil
1 medium white onion, finely chopped
2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
3 celery sticks, finely chopped
8 leaves of savoy cabbage or 2 handfuls or kale, roughly chopped
1 leek, roughly chopped
¼ tsp salt
1.5 litres vegetable stock, I use 2 Knorr stock pots
75g orzo pasta or bashed pasta
30g fresh basil
2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
Vegetarian Italian hard cheese or Parmesan* grated to serve (optional)
Drizzle of extra virgin olive oil to serve
Bread to serve (optional)

Method
1. In a large, saucepan of heavy bottomed pot, sweat the chopped onion, leek, carrot, celery and 1/4 tsp of salt in the oil along with a dash of water over a medium heat for 20 minutes until soft.
2. Add the stock, season with pepper and bring to the boil. Once boiling turn the heat down and simmer for 15 mins. Add the pasta and continue to cook for 10 mins.
3. Meanwhile, in a mini blender or food processor, blitz the fresh basil, chopped garlic and 8 tablespoons of the vegetable soup water together until you have a watery green liquid. Add this to the soup and give it a good stir. Finally add the cabbage or kale and cook for a further 5 minutes.
4. Ladle into bowls, sprinkle with cheese (optional) and finish with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Serve with bread and butter.

Green Minestrone
Green Minestrone

If you’ve had a go at making any of my recipes, I’d love to hear from you. Follow me now @corrieheale and tag your recipe pictures using #corriesrabbitfood.

 V– Vegetarian     Vn – Vegans forgo the cheese
* Parmesan (Parmigiano Reggiani) is always made using animal rennet, therefore it is not vegetarian. Substitute for Italian hard cheese if applicable.
❄ The soup is suitable for home freezing once cooled. Consume within 3 months.

 

Spinach & chickpea couscous

~ Corrie ~ 1 Comment

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Look, I know I just did a couscous recipe but like I said in my previous post, I’m poor and a bit fat so give me an effing break… Also, I appear to only have a giant bag of couscous in my cupboard so I should probably try and make some sort of dent in it. Anyway, if I find myself becoming bored of couscous, I can always try and feed some to my new housemate, a small disgusting mouse I’ve decided to call, Vince. He moved in last week while Max the dog was on holiday, not cool. So not only do I have my poverty and fatness to contend with, but now I have to try and evict Vince if I’m ever to coax my terrified boyfriend out of the bedroom.

Anyway enough about Vince, lets talk couscous. I went to Barcelona on my 20th birthday with my first boyfriend who ended up stealing all my stuff – but that’s another story. Anyhoo, there wasn’t much I could eat out there but one restaurant made me a sautéed chickpea and spinach dish which I remember thinking looked rubbish but was actually really delicious. It’s a little weedy by itself though so I’ve put it with some couscous and feta. If you’re feeling frisky you can try topping it with a poached egg… I hope you don’t mind if I don’t though, the realisation that I went to Barcelona over 10 years ago just made me feel sick… Vom.

Spinach & chickpea couscous
Serves 2 / Hands on time 20 mins / Total time 20 mins / V 
1 tsp rapeseed
80g couscous
150ml vegetable stock, I use ½ Knorr stock pot
½ onion, peeled and chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
¼ tsp chilli flakes
½ tsp turmeric
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
200g fresh spinach
2 spring onions, chopped
100g feta, crumbled
Extra virgin olive oil to (to serve)

Method
1. Pour the couscous into a big bowl and cover with stock. Give it a brief stir with a fork before covering with cling film. Put to one side.
2. Add a tsp of oil and to a large frying pan or heavy bottomed pot over a medium heat. Add the onion, garlic and chilli and soften for 5-10 mins, adding a dash of water to help them steam. Once softened, add the turmeric and  cook for 2 mins before stirring in the chickpeas. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Start adding the spinach a handful at a time, allowing it to wilt before adding another, adding a dash of water to aid steaming if necessary.
4. Once the spinach has wilted season well with salt and pepper and put to one side to cool slightly.
5. Remove the cling film from the couscous and rake with a fork until the nice and loose. Add the warm chickpea mixture to the couscous and give it a good stir. Finely chop the spring onions and incorporate them into the couscous. Stir through the feta and serve with a good drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.


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If you’ve had a go at making any of my recipes, I’d love to hear from you. Follow me now @corrieheale and tag your recipe pictures using #corriesrabbitfood.

V– Vegetarian

 

Herb & rocket couscous with feta

~ Corrie ~ Leave a comment

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First of all, couscous is nothing like quinoa so stop that! Couscous is semolina granules made from crushed durum wheat. No one knows what quinoa is.
Anyway, I LOVE couscous, especially for lunch so I make this recipe quite a lot. It’s also cheap which is good because I appear to have misplaced all of my money. I swear I used to have some.
Right I won’t bang on, it’s Friday night and we should all be out frolocking and getting jolly drunk. However, I’m the sado who stayed in to write her blog, watch The Office and drink hot chocolate like a reclusive old bint – my evening was actually rather pleasant until I thought the apron hanging up on the kitchen door was a ghost.

Herb & rocket couscous with feta
Serves 4 / Hands on time 20-25 mins / Total time 20-25 mins / V
You’ll need: Food processor, cling film
150g couscous
200ml vegetable stock, I use ½ a Knorr stock pot
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 tsp rapeseed oil
¼ tsp cumin
¼ tsp salt
30g fresh coriander
20g fresh mint leaves
1 tbs extra virgin olive oil
2 handfuls walnut pieces, chopped
3 spring onions, finely chopped
200g vegetarian feta cheese, crumbled
40g rocket
Extra virgin olive oil to serve

Method
1. Measure out the couscous and place in a large bowl. Pour over the vegetable stock and give it a mix with a fork – make sure all the couscous is fully covered. Cover with cling film and put to one side.
2. In a small frying pan, fry the onions in a tsp of oil over a medium to low heat for a few minutes – add a dash of water to help the onions steam. Once a little softened, sprinkle over the cumin and salt. Stir before covering with a lid and leave to sweat on a low heat for 10 mins.
3. Meanwhile, put the coriander (including any stalks) into a food processor, along with the mint leaves (stalks removed). Add 1 tbs of extra virgin olive oil and blitz until you have a rough paste.
4. Remove the cling film from the couscous and start raking the top layer with a fork to loosen the grains. Continue to rake until you have a light fluffy bowl of couscous. Add the herb paste and incorporate into the couscous still using the fork to distribute the herbs evenly.
5. Add the onions, walnuts and the spring onions to the couscous and give it a good mix before incorporating the rocket a handful at a time. Finally crumble in the feta, season well with salt and pepper and serve drizzled with extra virgin olive oil.


Herb & Rocket Couscous with Feta

If you’ve had a go at making any of my recipes, I’d love to hear from you. Follow me now @corrieheale and tag your recipe pictures using #corriesrabbitfood.

V – Vegetarian

 

Bean burgers 

~ Corrie ~ 2 Comments
Cannellini & Gruyere Burgers
Cannellini bean burgers

Let’s be honest, the veggie burger hasn’t always had the best reputation. A knobbly eyesore precariously balanced on the edge of a barbecue and twice the size of everything else. Why are veggie burgers always so big? There is literally no bun on this earth (or at least in Sainsbury’s) that could accommodate such unnecessary proportions.
Also, most veggie burgers look like they’ve already made it half-way through the digestive tract before they’ve even made it onto the barbecue – my dad used to joke ‘you should just cut out the middle man and throw it straight down the toilet’ (haha, good one dad)… Although mine are no exception – someone even took to Facebook to comment that my burger looked like a ‘dried up old dog turd’. Bit harsh but I hear you.
But that is the nature of the veggie burger, it’s mushed up beans squashed between two buns and you know what, it may look like a something you might find at the bottom of a monkey cage but it doesn’t half taste good – especially covered in melted cheese.

Bean burgers
Makes 2 large or 4 small / Hands on time 30 mins / Total time 50 mins / V Vn Df ❄🌶
You’ll need: A hand blender or food processor, baking paper
1 tsp rapeseed oil
1 medium onion, peeled and finely diced
2 garlic cloves, peeled and diced
½ tsp smoked paprika
¼ tsp mild chilli powder
1 can of kidney or cannellini beans
3 wholemeal burger buns
50g bread crumbs (roughly an extra bun)
To serve (optional)
Your choice of vegetarian cheese, sliced red onion and tomato, Dijon mustard, ketchup, finely chopped gherkins and lettuce.

Method
1. In a small frying pan, fry the onions, garlic, smoked paprika and chilli powder in the oil over a medium heat. Add a dash of water, season with salt and pepper and sweat down for 10 mins with the lid on.
2. To make the breadcrumbs, tear up one of the burger buns and blitz in a food processor until you have chunky breadcrumbs. Put to one side.
3. Rinse and drain the beans before pouring into a large bowl. Season well with salt and pepper and add the roughly chopped coriander. Blitz with a hand blender or food processor until you have a firm paste. Preheat an oven to 220°C/200°C fan/425°F/gas mark and prepare a small baking tray with baking paper.
4. Mix in the softened onions and the breadcrumbs until you have a firm, moist mixture. If making 2 large burgers, scoop up half the mixture with your hands and mould into a round patty. Place directly onto a baking tray and repeat with the second burger. If making 4 smaller burgers, divide the mixture into 4.
5. Place the burgers on a lined baking tray and bake for 10 mins before flipping over and cooking for an additional 10 mins. Once cooked, top with slices of cheese and bake for a further 5 mins or until the cheese has melted. Place each burger in a buttered bun along with your desired relish and salad.

Cannellini & Gruyere Burgers

If you’ve had a go at making any of my recipes, I’d love to hear from you. Follow me now @corrieheale and tag your recipe pictures using #corriesrabbitfood.

V– Vegetarian    Vn – Vegan      Df– Dairy free   🌶– Spicy

❄ The burgers are suitable for home freezings before cooking. Wrap well in a few layers of clingfilm or store in an airtight container in the freezer. Add 5 minutes to cooking time if cooking from frozen. Consume within 3 months. 

 

Butternut & coconut curry

~ Corrie ~ Leave a comment

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When I went to Thailand a couple of years ago, I became a bit scared of coconuts. The locals told me that the most common death on the Island, was ‘death by fallen coconut’. I remember thinking, I can’t allow a coconut to be the thing that kills me, how embarrassing! So I spent the rest of the month constantly looking up and walking into trees/beach huts/local children etc. Managed not to die in the end though so that was good.
Anyway, I’m a little reluctant to call this a ‘Thai’ curry, as I’m not really sure what constitutes a ‘Thai’ curry.  Hmm… Anyway, I like to freeze half of mine so there’s plenty for me to defrost and eat when I roll in drunk after a night out. Standard.

Butternut & coconut curry
Serves 4 / Hands on time 15 mins / Total time 1 hour 15 mins / V Vn Df ❄🌶
1 can chopped tomatoes
1 can full-fat coconut milk
1 can chick peas, drained and rinsed
Knob of fresh ginger, grated
2 tsp red miso paste
1 tbs light soy sauce
¼ chilli flakes
1 lemongrass stork, bashed
300g butternut squash, peeled and chopped into chunks
1 aubergine, chopped into chunks
Handful of fresh coriander, roughly chopped
Brown basmati rice to serve

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 200°C /180°C fan/400F/gas mark 6. Put the chopped tomatoes, coconut milk, miso paste, soy sauce, grated ginger, chilli flakes and bashed lemon grass into a large pot and bring to the boil. Meanwhile, wash and drain your chickpeas and put to one side.
2. Once bubbling, add the chopped butternut squash and the aubergine before putting the lid on a-jar and cook in the oven for 30 mins.
3. Carefully remove from the oven, add the chickpeas, replace the lid a-jar and cook for a further 30 mins.
4. Once cooked, remove from the oven and leave to rest for 5 mins. Meanwhile chop the coriander. Carefully fish out the lemon grass stork, stir in the coriander and serve with brown basmati rice.

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If you’ve had a go at making any of my recipes, I’d love to hear from you. Follow me now @corrieheale and tag your recipe pictures using #corriesrabbitfood.

V– Vegetarian    Vn– Vegan   Df– Dairy free    🌶– Spicy
❄– Suitable for home freezing once cooled. Store in an airtight container and consume within 3 months

 

Halloumi salad with honey & mustard dressing

~ Corrie ~ Leave a comment

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Oh you’re vegetarian? That must mean you love halloumi… Well actually yes, yes it does but that being said, I’m not a huge fan of eating it off a stick or sandwiched between a couple of burnt bits of courgette. Surely we can do better than that? Actually, while we’re on the subject, I just want to say that I think grilled vegetables are horrible! There I said it. So you can take your tasteless vegetable stacks and your boring vegetable skewers and throw them to the monkeys of London Zoo.
Anyway, my favourite way to eat halloumi is straight from a hot pan into a cold salad, the salad helps cut through the saltiness of the cheese making it dangerously moreish. I’ve been known to shamelessly eat an entire packet in one day. It always starts off in a salad but later I’ll fry it and put it on toast. Then I will fry even more of it, forget the toast altogether and just eat it by itself, alone, in a dark room like some sort of giant mouse woman.
Oh and I hate monkeys, so not sure why I mentioned them earlier, they don’t deserve any air time… Look, I just don’t like their little human hands okay? Let’s move on…

Halloumi salad with honey & mustard dressing
Serves 2 / Hands on time 10 mins / Total time 10 min / V
You’ll need: Non-stick frying pan
1 avocado, peeled and sliced
2 medium tomatoes, cut into eighths
¼ red onion, peeled and finely sliced
½ red pepper, de-seeded and diced
Chunk of cucumber, peeled into ribbons
½ bag of mixed leaves
Handful of black olives in brine, roughly chopped
100-150g halloumi, thickly sliced
Dressing
½ tbs of extra virgin olive oil
1 tbs of balsamic vinegar
½ tsp of dijon mustard or wholegrain mustard
½ tsp runny honey
Pita bread and humous to serve (optional)
Extra virgin olive oil to serve (optional)

Method
1. Chop the vegetables and place in a large bowl. Season well with salt and pepper and mix in the salad leaves. Put to one side.
2. To make the dressing, mix all the ingredients in a bowl until combined and pour directly over the salad. Give it a good toss.
3. Finally, fry the halloumi slices in a large non-stick pan until golden on both sides. Divide the salad into bowls, top with the halloumi slices and serve with humous, pita bread and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.

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f you’ve had a go at making any of my recipes, I’d love to hear from you. Follow me now @corrieheale and tag your recipe pictures using #corriesrabbitfood.

V– Vegetarian

 

Lighter blueberry muffins (mofns)

~ Corrie ~ 1 Comment

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I call muffins ‘mofns’ because I think it’s funnier. Also, it’s what I call my dear housemate/life partner Isabelle. I made these mofns in an attempt to cheer her up after her moron boyfriend broke up with her last week. She didn’t eat any of them in the end, turns out not everyone feels the need to binge-eat after a break up like I do… So I ate most of them on her behalf – I’m a good friend like that. The rest sadly went in the bin because I accidentally got drunk and left them out in the sun. So, not an overly successful baking experience but the mofns I did manage to eat, were very nice and relatively guilt-free – if you don’t slather them in butter like I do…

Lighter blueberry muffins (mofns)
Makes 12 / Takes 35 minutes / V ❄
You’ll need: 12 muffin cases, muffin tin, electric whisk
250g self-raising flour
1 ½ tsp baking powder
50g light unsalted butter
75g caster sugar
1 Punnet blueberries
½ lemon, juiced
2 large eggs
235ml semi-skimmed milk
½ tsp sea salt flakes

Method
1. Preheat oven to 160°C/140°C fan/325°F/gas mark 3.
2. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Add the butter and with your fingers rub it into breadcrumbs. Add the sugar and blueberries before putting to one side.
3. Whisk the eggs, milk and lemon juice together in a separate bow with an electric whisk. Add the wet mixture to the dry and fold until just combined – be careful not to over fold, the mixture can be a little lumpy.
3. Fill the 12 muffin cases with roughly 3tbs of mixture each and bake in the oven for 20-25 mins. Leave the mofns to cool for 10 mins in the tin. Serve warm spread with butter or leave to cool fully. Will keep for 3-4 days in an airtight container.


If you’ve had a go at making any of my recipes, I’d love to hear from you. Follow me now @corrieheale and tag your recipe pictures using #corriesrabbitfood.

V– Vegetarian   ❄– Suitable for home freezing once baked. Wrap individually in clingfilm and freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost the night before and enjoy for breakfast the next morning

Summer coriander potato salad

~ Corrie ~ 3 Comments

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My best mate Philippa and cousin Rose go mad for this potato salad. Philippa sneakily stocks her fridge with all the ingredients so I can make it for her every time I visit – cheeky mare. Rose on the other hand, is less subtle, she simply throws a tantrum at family barbecues when she realises I haven’t made it. So it must be good!

I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with mayonnaise due to a rather traumatic experience. I once got covered head to toe in mayonnaise by accidentally dropping a bucket (yes a bucket) of Hellmans on the floor when I was a waitress. I tried scooping it up with kitchen towel but kept slipping and falling over in it, truly revolting. It took me a while before I could face eating it again – nothing worse than horrible hard boiled potatoes, swimming in a sea of mayonnaise. So, enjoy my lighter version and enjoy the praise you will undoubtedly receive. You’re welcome.

Summer Coriander Potato Salad
Serves 4 as a side / Hands on time 15 mins / Total time 30 mins / V Gf
1 kg of new potatoes, halved
2 tbs mayonnaise, I always use Hellman’s
½ red onion, peeled and finely diced
1 garlic clove, crushed
30g fresh coriander, roughly chopped
1 tbs butter
1 tsp of Dijon mustard
Salt and pepper
Extra virgin olive oil

Method
1. Bring a large saucepan to the boil seasoned with salt. Slice the potatoes in half but keep the smaller potatoes whole. Simmer for around 20 mins.
2. Meanwhile, finely slice the red onion as thin as you can and roughly chop the coriander. Crush the garlic and put to one side.
3. Once the potatoes are cooked, strain and submerge them in cold water for a couple of minutes to cool them down. Drain and put to one side to dry a little. Ideally you want them to still be warm but not hot.
4. Put the potatoes back in the saucepan and start adding the ingredients in stages, seasoning between each stage. Start by adding the butter until melted and season. Next add the mustard, crushed garlic and mayonnaise. Mix again (being careful not to break up the potatoes) and season. Add the red onion along with the coriander and give it another stir and season. Finally drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and top with a good grind of black pepper.


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If you’ve had a go at making any of my recipes, I’d love to hear from you. Follow me now @corrieheale and tag your recipe pictures using #corriesrabbitfood.

V – Vegetarian.