Bean burgers

July 21, 2015January 7, 2021 ~ 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.

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

July 19, 2015March 3, 2020 ~ Corrie ~ Leave a comment

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.

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

Summer coriander potato salad

July 4, 2015January 29, 2020 ~ Corrie ~ 3 Comments

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.

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.

Mum’s red pepper lasagne

June 28, 2015November 24, 2024 ~ Corrie ~ 7 Comments

Big news everyone… I HAVE A MAN COMING TO DINNER! Yes mum, an actual man, with a pulse and a head and everything. Although, if he has a weeping abscess on his leg, lets hope he keeps that information to himself, unlike my last date.
Was it a mistake to mention I had a food blog? Probably. Presumably his exceptions will be sky high, so that’s good. AGGHHH! What the hell am I going to cook him and what if it goes horribly wrong?! I’ll forever be known as ‘the food blogger who can’t cook and can’t kiss’… Not that I’m a bad cook or a bad kisser, in fact I’m an excellent kisser so not sure why I said that.
Anyway, I need to cook something safe, something I know and something I can prepare in advance to stop me getting frazzled like Robin Williams in Mrs Doubtfire. I don’t want to burn my tits.
Lets bring out the big guns, my mum’s tomato and red pepper lasagne. Now then, this aint no a regular lasagne, there’s no béchamel or mince, just a simple sauce of cooked down tomatoes and peppers. This was a week night staple in the Heale household throughout my childhood, until my mum had to give up dairy (selfish woman). Luckily my dad heroically stepped up and managed to cobble it together occasionally for my brother and I, thank god. In fact, it was the only thing my dad could cook apart from a jacket potato.
Over the years I’ve managed to cook it entirely from memory for all kinds of people, all of which have loved it. The sauce is easy to make but quite time consuming, so I recommend you make it the day before. Wish me luck! :S

Mum’s red pepper & tomato lasagne
Serves 6 / Hands on time 30 mins / Total 2 hour 10 minutes / V ❄
You’ll need: Rectangular oven-proof dish 22cm x 28cm and foil
9 dried lasagne sheets
24 tomatoes, cut into eighths
2 red peppers, de-seeded and finely chopped
1 tbs dried oregano
1 tbs dried basil
1 tsp sea salt
1 tbs extra virgin olive oil
300g mild/medium strength vegetarian cheddar, grated

Method
1. Slice off the core and roughly chop each tomato into eighths and put in a large pot, over a medium heat with a tbs of extra virgin olive oil. Meanwhile, de-seed and finely chop the peppers and add them to the tomatoes. Sprinkle over the dried herbs, a tsp of salt and mix well.
2. Bring to the boil (you may have to dig down to the bottom to see the juices bubbling away). Put the lid on and cook the sauce down for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the lid and continue to simmer for a further 30 minutes stirring occasionally. Meanwhile grate the cheese.
3. Preheat an oven to 200°C/180°C fan/400F/gas mark 6. Once the sauce has thickened, take off the heat and start assembling the lasagne.
4. Oil the oven dish and start layering. Begin with a layer of pasta sheets (feel free to break the pasta sheets to fit your dish if needs be). Cover the lasgane sheets with an even layer of sauce (3 ladles worth) and top with an even sprinkling of cheese. Continue to layer like this a couple more times before topping with the last layer of cheese. Season with salt and pepper and cover loosely with foil (ensure the foil isn’t touching the cheese – you don’t want the cheese to stick and peel the whole top layer of the lasagne off).
5. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes before removing the foil and cooking for a further 10 minutes to brown the cheese a little. Leave to stand for 5 minutes before serving with a simple green salad.

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 before cooking. Wrap the lasagne well in 2 layers of cling film and 1 layer of foil. Defrost fully before baking.

Spicy carrot & lentil soup 3 ways

June 21, 2015January 29, 2020 ~ Corrie ~ 2 Comments

Woke up feeling old, obese and poor. Something must be done before I turn into Kirstie Alley, a plus size Scientologist who married her cousin… At least she was married though right? Not that I want to marry my cousin, although he is very nice but unfortunately he’s already married… Look, I don’t want to marry my cousin! We’re getting off topic.
I think that’s enough talk of incest for one Sunday, lets talk about carrots. I always seem to end up with a ton of carrots in the fridge at the end of the month, so this soup is really good at using them up. Also, this recipe isn’t just cheap, it’s low fat, so this time next week I expect to look less like Kirstie Alley and more like Miranda Kerr please, thank you.
Although, eating the same old soup for lunch everyday makes me want to kill myself at the best of times, so I’ve managed to adapt the recipe throughout the week to help change things up a bit. I’ve made 3 of my favourite variations to try and keep it as exciting as possible (well, as exciting as lentil soup can be).

Spicy carrot & lentil soup 3 ways
Serves 4 / Hands on time 15 mins / Takes 35 mins / V Vn* ❄🌶
You’ll need: Hand blender or food processor
1 tsp rapeseed oil
1 large white onion, peeled chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
¼ chilli flakes
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp turmeric
8 carrots, peeled and roughly chopped
4 handful of red lentils
1.5 litres vegetable stock, I use 2 Knorr stock pots
Additional extras: Sweet potato, a couple of free range eggs, fresh spinach, chickpeas and greek yogurt

Method
1. Add a tsp of oil to large heavy bottomed pot over a medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and sweat for 5 mins with the lid on, adding a dash of water if necessary. Add the cumin, turmeric and the chilli flakes and continue to cook for a further 2 mins adding another dash of water if needed.
2. Add the peeled and roughly chopped carrots and cook for a further 5 mins before adding the stock and the lentils. Season well with salt and pepper and bring to the boil. Reduce to a simmer for 20 mins.
3. Take the soup off the heat and blitz with a hand blender or food processor. Top with your chosen toppings and serve

Variation 1: Add a boiled egg, a chopped red chilli and some chilli flakes.
Variation 2: In a frying pan, heat a tsp of oil before adding a drained can of chick peas along with a crushed garlic clove. Add 100g of spinach one handful at a time and cook down. Season well with salt and pepper with every handful. Serve on top of the soup
Variation 3. Chop a sweet potato into wedges and toss in a tsp of oil. Place on a baking tray, season well and sprinkle with chilli flakes. Roast in an oven at 200°C/180°C fan/400F/gas mark 6 for 30 mins. Serve the cooked wedges on top of the soup with Greek yogurt.

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 – The base soup is vegan Gf – I use Knorr vegetable stock pots because they are gluten free but other stock pots/cubes may not be. Always check the label. Please substitute wholewheat pasta for a gluten free alternative.
❄ The soup is suitable for home freezing once cooled. Consume within 3 months.

Smoky mixed bean chilli

June 13, 2015September 7, 2023 ~ Corrie ~ Leave a comment

It’s been 25°C in London this week, so naturally I thought I’d make a nice bowl of refreshing chilli – good one.
I’ve got a bit of a love hate relationship with chilli as it’s often the rubbish vegetarian option I get offered in pubs. Time and time again, it’s a sad, watery can of tinned tomatoes with a few beans floating in it – often reminds me of what you see splattered on pavements outside bars and kebab shops after a night out – mmm, appetising.
However, my version is robust, bold and sexy. So forget nights out, let’s have a night in and curl up with a bowl of the good stuff.

Smoky mixed bean chilli
Serves 4 / Hands on time 20 mins / Total time 45 mins V Vn Df Gf ❄🌶
1 tsp rapeseed oil
½ red onion, chopped
1 medium carrot, grated
1 tbs tomato purée
1 large or 2 tomatoes, roughly chopped
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
1 can chopped tomatoes
1 can of black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can of kidney beans, rinsed and drained
2 tsp smoked paprika
½ tsp chilli flakes (leave out if you like your chilli mild)
1 tsp Marmite
½ vegetable stock pot, I use Knorr
1 corn on the cob, kernels removed or 1 small can drained
28g fresh coriander, chopped
1 lime, cut into wedges

Method
1. Fry the onion in the oil over a medium heat until softened (add a dash of water to help the onion steam and cook faster). Meanwhile, peel and grate the carrot and put to one side. Once the onion has softened, add the garlic, smoked paprika, tomato puree and the chilli flakes and give it a good stir. Add a dash more water and cook for a couple more minutes.
2. Drain and rinse the beans, before adding them to the pot along with the tinned tomatoes, fresh tomatoes and grated carrot.
3. Add the stock pot along with the Marmite and give it a good stir before seasoning and bringing to the boil.
4. If using fresh corn, remove the kernels by standing the sweetcorn on its head and running a sharp knife carefully down the sides slowly (the kernels can tend to go everywhere, so proceed with care). Add to the chilli.
5. Turn the heat down and simmer for 20 mins (now is a good time to roughly chop the coriander). Remove from the heat, stir in the coriander and squeeze over the juice of a lime. Serve either on the top of a baked sweet potato, with rice, guacamole and good dollop of sour cream.

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
Gf – I use Knorr vegetable stock pots because they are gluten free but other stock pots/cubes may not be. Always check the label.
❄ – Suitable for home freezing. Consume within 3 months.

LOW FOD MAP Adaptation:
1. Replace red onion for 1 tbs garlic oil and handful of chopped spring onion tops
2. Swap all beans and corn for 1 can of lentils in water and 1 can of chickpeas (drained and rinsed well)
3. Leave out fresh tomatoes
4. Add 150ml water (if a little dry)

Quorn for thought…

May 30, 2015June 6, 2015 ~ Corrie ~ 1 Comment

I don’t really know much about Quorn, I know it’s some sort of protein from a fungus which sounds a bit rank actually, but I’d have given my right arm for it when I was a kid. My massive ugly veggie burger, disintegrating and staring at me on the BBQ next to all the other uniform beef burgers. “Errrr, what’s that? It looks like a poo” my friends would squeal, “yeah, it tastes like one too” I would think to myself, before running off to eat my embarrassing burger without anyone else noticing it’s freakish appearance. I like to think that Quorn was invented for tortured vegetarian kids like myself.

Spaghetti Quorn bolognese

May 30, 2015January 29, 2020 ~ Corrie ~ Leave a comment

So Quorn, hmm. Not really sure how I feel about it if I’m honest, but it works really well in this dish, mainly because I adapted it from a meat recipe. When I was a child, I used to get furious bolognese envy. I’d look over at my best friend Philippa, shovelling forkfuls of cascading spaghetti into her mouth, flecked with delicious, oily meat and cheddar cheese. I would then woefully look down at my plate – a lone soggy stuffed pepper staring up at me and I would wish I was dead… Okay so that’s perhaps a little dramatic, but I wanted to create a decent alternative to bolognese that would make little Corrie very happy. I now cook it all the time and everyone loves it, it’s cheap, easy if a little time consuming – I tend to make it on a lazy Sunday. Enjoy

Spaghetti Quorn bolognese
Serves 4 / Hands on time 30 mins / Cooking time 1-2 hrs / V ❄
You’ll need: A hand blender/food processor, oven-proof cooking pot with a lid.
1 tsp olive oil
1 white onion, peeled and roughly chopped
2 medium carrots, peeled and roughly chopped
2 celery sticks, roughly chopped
350g Quorn mince
150ml semi-skimmed milk
150ml vegetarian white wine
1 can plum tomatoes
¼ tsp nutmeg
Large handful of black olives in brine, drained
300g wholewheat spaghetti
100g vegetarian Italian hard cheese or Parmesan*
Handful of fresh basil leaves
Extra virgin olive oil

Method
1. Preheat an oven to 160°C/140°C fan/325°F/gas mark 3. In a large oven-proof pot, on a medium heat, sweat the onion, carrot and celery in the oil, adding a dash of water if needed to help them steam. Cook for 5-8 mins.
2. Once soft, take off the heat and roughly blend the vegetables with a hand blender or food processor. Return to the heat and add the mince and the milk. Cook for a 3 mins or until the milk has absorbed, and add the tinned tomatoes. Break the plum tomatoes up with a spoon and add the white wine, olives, nutmeg and a generous sprinkle of salt and pepper.
3. Put the lid on a jar and slow cook in the oven for up to 2 hrs, stirring halfway through.
4. Remove from the oven and serve stirred through spaghetti and topped with torn fresh basil and a sprinkling of cheese and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.

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
❄ This bolognese is suitable for home freezing once cooled. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
* Parmesan (Parmigiano Reggiani) is always made using animal rennet, therefore it is not vegetarian. Substitute for Italian hard cheese if applicable.