Black Bean, Jalapeño and Mozarella Quesadillas

From New Vegetarian Kitchen, Nicola Graimes, Duncan Baird, 2011.

It felt like a Mexican evening so quesadillas seemed the answer.

I took out a large frying pan and heated up a little olive oil. A chopped onion then went in until softened. I then added a chopped garlic clove, some chopped jalapeño chilli and a red capsicum, seeded and cut into slices. These were sautéed for a while longer to soften the capsicum a little though not for it to lose some crunch. Now in went a tin of black beans, drained and rinsed. I used a fork to crush these a little as they mixed with the other ingredients and heated through. The mixture was tasted and seasoned.

I now grated some mozzarella cheese. While it was not stated in the recipe I think by the description that they were calling for buffalo mozzarella. I just had normal and actually felt this would work better in a quesadilla.

I laid out two small tortillas and sprinkled mozzarella on them. Now I added the mixture from the frying pan, leaving a little space on the edge. Some more mozzarella was sprinkled over this and another tortilla placed on top. Olive oil was brushed over the surface.

These then went into the oven under the grill for a few minutes and were then carefully turned to grill the other side.

They were served with a fruit guacamole and a tomato salad. I always enjoy a good quesadilla and these were quite good ones. They had a pleasant touch of chilli heat and the mix had a spiciness to it that was enjoyable. The drawback was that being cooked under a grill had over crisped the tortillas. The next time I make them they will go in the frying pan the way I generally cook them.

Taste: ✔✔✔

Ease of cooking: ✔✔✔✔

Tomato Salad with Basil Cream Dressing

From The Vegetarian Option, Simon Hopkinson, Quadrille, 2012.

Simon Hopkinson’s book is interesting in that he, not a vegetarian, considers that there are vegetable dishes that in themselves are complete and perfect without the need for the addition of any meat. This book is his collection of those vegetarian dishes that meet that criterion: perfect without meat.

This was the most simple of dishes: Two tomatoes were sliced and laid out on a plate. The dressing was made and dribbled over.

The dressing was made by mixing cider vinegar, a little warm water and some salt. These were stirred until the salt had dissolved, when a touch of cream, some olive oil and a pinch of sugar were added. These were beaten until well mixed. Some chopped basil was added.

Obviously this dish depended on the tomatoes being richly flavoured and perfectly ripe. The dressing was tangy with a smooth richness from the addition of the cream, an ingredient I don’t usually add to dressing.

Taste: ✔✔✔✔

Ease of cooking: ✔✔✔✔

Fruit Guacamole (Guacamole con frutas)

From Truly Mexican, Roberto Santibañez, John Wiley, 2012.

I wanted something to go with quesadillas so settled on this fruit guacamole. It sounded a little unusual but somehow I rather liked the idea of combining fruits with chilli and a bit of salt.

I had bought a little roasted flaked coconut so did not have to roast my own as per the recipe. The remainder of the recipe was just to chop and mix. Into the mix went a little less than a quarter of a finely chopped white onion, a finely chopped hot red chilli, salt, half a peach peeled and chopped, 8 white grapes and 8 red grapes quartered and a handful of pomegranate seeds.

An avocado was now cut into small pieces and added to this mixture. It was all tossed well with a fork and the avocado squashed lightly to combine the ingredients a bit more. It was now ready.

I did enjoy this guacamole. The chilli heat and the salt seemed to add a wonderful tang against the mildness of the avocado and the sweet flavours of the fruits. One to have more often and one to try out with other fruit combinations.

Taste: ✔✔✔✔✔

Ease of cooking: ✔✔✔✔✔

Spicy Beetroot, Leek and Walnut Salad

From Jerusalem, Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi, Ebury Press, 2012.

A new Yotam Ottolenghi recipe book! I could not resist it despite the fact that it is not just a vegetarian cookbook though it does have many recipes that are vegetarian. His recipes always seem to work and have heaps of flavour. This new book centres around the cuisine of the various peoples that live in Jerusalem and concentrates on trying to present authentic dishes, though with the occasional modification.

I needed a salad to go with a potato and leek pie so chose this recipe which also featured leek.

Firstly I wrapped some beetroot in foil and baked them in the oven until they were done.

Leek was cut into 10cm lengths and simmered gently in a little water for about 10 minutes. They then went under cold running water to stop the cooking process, after which they were left to dry.

A dressing was made of chopped walnuts, a chopped garlic clove, some chilli flakes, cider vinegar, a little walnut oil, salt and olive oil. It called for tamarind water also but after mixing it all and tasting it I was pleased with how it was without. The dressing was left to infuse.

The beetroot was cut into wedges and placed in one bowl. The leek lengths were cut into three and placed in another bowl. The dressing was divided and mixed with the contents of the two bowls. Coriander was chopped and added to both bowls.

At serving time half the beetroot was placed on the plate, followed by some rocket leaves, then half the leek. This was repeated. Finally pomegranate seeds were sprinkled over.

Apart from the leek, this was a very enjoyable salad. Made to use the leek, it was the leek that was disliked and, after a couple of attempts to eat it, was taken off the plate and rejected. It was a little overpowering but, more than that, stringy and unpleasant to eat.

Taste: ✔✔✔

Ease of cooking: ✔✔✔✔

Potato, Leek and Smoked Cheese Pies

From More from The Accidental Vegetarian, Simon Rimmer, Mitchell Beazley, 2012.

We seemed to have a surplus of leeks so I headed to the recipe books to find things to do with them. I was tempted by this recipe as I always enjoy a good pie.

First a short pastry was made, wrapped in cling film and placed into the refrigerator until I was ready for the next stage.

Two reasonably large potatoes were peeled, cut up into cubes and boiled in salted water until cooked.

I chopped an onion, sliced two leeks and chopped a garlic clove. These were put into a frying pan and seasoned. They were then cooked until soft. Though butter was called for as a frying medium I used olive oil.

When the potatoes and the onion mix were cool they were mixed together. About 200g of smoked cheese was now grated and mixed with the vegetables. A tablespoon of Dijon mustard also was stirred in.

The pastry was now rolled out and placed into individual pie tins. In went the filling and a pastry lid went on. An egg wash now completed the task before they went into a 200ºC oven for 20 minutes.

This was a richly savoury pie, filling but ever so tasty. I am generally happy with cooking from recipes by Simon Rimmer. This is one to remember for future occasions.

Taste: ✔✔✔✔

Ease of cooking: ✔✔✔✔

Green Soup

From Veg Out, MQ Publications, 2003.

In Veg Out this was called ‘Glorious Green Soup’. I thought I’d just settle for ‘Green Soup’. I was not sure whether the name meant the colour or the taste. Actually, on reading a little further I found that it meant the full-of-goodness flavour. I still settled for plain green.

A chopped onion was added to the pot with a little olive oil and sautéed for a few minutes to soften it. Then a large potato, peeled and cut into pieces, went in for a few more minutes. I then added 600ml water and a stock cube, brought the mixture to the boil, then simmered it until the potato was cooked.

While the potatoes cooked I finely sliced about a quarter of an iceberg lettuce, and sliced up the head of a bunch of watercress. This went into the pan when the potatoes were cooked, was brought to the boil again and then simmered for about 5 minutes. I let it cool a little and then used the stick blender to puree the soup.

A little milk was added and the soup was seasoned. A few leaves of basil were chopped and added. The soup was heated up but not boiled before serving.

Well, I think it was appropriate to leave out ‘glorious’. It was a pleasant soup. Peppery watercress is always a favourite and this one came with an underlay of the mild iceberg lettuce. The recipe called for Romaine or Cos lettuce and I think this may have been better having a little stronger flavour. Nevertheless it all went down well.

Taste: ✔✔✔

Ease of cooking: ✔✔✔✔

Schiacciata with Grapes

From My Italian Heart: Recipes from an Italian kitchen, Guy Grossi, Lantern, 2005.

To make this recipe you need to begin with a pizza dough. The one in this book is a very simple one to make. Into the KitchenAid went 10g of dried yeast. I then added a cup of just warm water, a pinch of salt and about a tablespoon of olive oil. The mixer, fitted with a dough hook, was started on the lowest speed. When the yeast was dissolved it was time to add the flour.

I used a good 00 flour, two cups’ worth. It seemed an easy recipe to remember: one cup of water to two cups of flour. This was now churned for about a quarter of an hour until the dough was well formed. I placed a tea towel over the bowl and left it to rise for an hour.

It rose really well. I took out a 30cm pizza tray, oiled it and pressed the dough in until it covered the base. Black grapes were now pressed into the surface, it was given a sprinkling of salt and olive oil was dribbled over. It now went into a 180ºC oven for 20 minutes when it seemed to be done.

I really enjoyed this. It was like eating a fresh focaccia bread laced with the occasional pop of sweet grape. Had more than one slice.

Taste: ✔✔✔✔

Ease of cooking: ✔✔✔✔