Recipes: Vegetarian dinners

Mushroom, potato & thyme pie

Total time: Ready in 1 hour
Serves: 6



Ingredients
500g Jersey Royals or baby new potatoes
15g Cooks' Ingredients Dried Porcini Mushrooms
1 tbsp olive oil
1 echalion shallot, sliced
500g chestnut mushrooms, sliced
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tbsp chopped fresh thyme
250g block Cooks' Ingredients Shortcrust Pastry, defrosted
Beaten egg, to glaze

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 200°C, gas mark 6. Put the potatoes in a pan of water to just cover, bring to the boil and simmer for 12–15 minutes until just tender. While the potatoes are cooking, pour 150ml boiling water over the porcini mushrooms and leave to soak for 5 minutes. Drain, reserving the liquid, and chop the mushrooms.

2. Heat the oil in a large frying pan and add the shallot, all the mushrooms and garlic. Coo over a medium high heat for 5 minutes until softened. Drain the potatoes and slice thickly. Add to the mushrooms in the pan with the reserved mushroom liquor and thyme. Bring to simmering point, season, then spoon the contents of the pan into a small roasting tin about 28x21x4cm. Leave to cool.

3. Roll out the pastry so that it is just larger than the roasting tin. Lift on top of the mushroom mixture and gently push down the sides, leaving the cut edges facing upwards. Brush the pastry with beaten egg and cook for 25 minutes until the pastry is golden

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Spinach, pine nut & feta filo pie

Preparation time: 20 minutes + cooling
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Total time: 50 minutes + cooling
Serves: 4



Ingredients
50g butter
1 large red onion, finely sliced
450g spinach leaves, washed
½ tsp grated nutmeg
3 medium essential Waitrose Free Range Eggs, beaten
200g feta, crumbled
50g pine nuts, toasted
½ x 145g pot Waitrose Green Pesto With Basil
270g pack Jus-Rol 6 Filo Pastry Sheets

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 200°C, gas mark 6. Heat half the butter in a large pan, add the onion and cook over a medium heat for 3–4 minutes until softened. Add the spinach and cook until wilted. Remove from the heat and add the nutmeg, then leave to cool.

2. Stir the eggs, feta and pine nuts into the cooled spinach mixture with the pesto and season. Line a buttered 20 x 30cm oblong, deep baking tin with half the filo sheets, brushing each with a little melted butter and leaving the edges over the sides of the tin. Spoon in the spinach mixture and spread level. Fold over the edges of the filo sheets to cover the filling and brush with butter. Arrange the rest of the filo sheets crumpled over the filling to cover. Brush with any remaining butter.

3. Bake for 30 minutes until crisp and golden. Serve warm or cold, cut into squares.

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Fennel, red onion and garlic tart

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 40 minutes
Total time: 50 minutes 50 minutes
Serves: 4 - 6



Ingredients
320g pack Jus-Rol puff pastry sheet
150g pack Rians Le Roulé cheese
1 fennel bulb, about 300g, sliced
1 large red onion, peeled and sliced
10 cloves garlic, peeled
6 stalks thyme, leaves only
3 tbsp olive oil
1 lemon, zest and juice
150g feta cheese
50g baby leaf spinach

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 200°C, gas mark 6. Unroll the pastry and cut in half lengthways. Lay both pieces on to a lined baking sheet.

2. Divide the Roulé cheese out between the two strips of pastry and spread evenly, leaving a 2cm border along each side. 3 In a large bowl, toss together the fennel, onion, garlic and thyme, along with 1 tbsp of the oil. Add the lemon zest and half the lemon juice, and season generously.

4. Scatter the vegetables on to the pastry, then bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes until the pastry is puffed and golden.

5. Crumble over the feta cheese and bake for a further 10 minutes.

6. Meanwhile, toss the spinach leaves with the remaining olive oil and lemon juice. Serve the tart with the dressed spinach leaves.

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Carrot, cumin and beetroot crumble

This makes a great vegetarian alternative to roast beef, or serve as a side.

Preparation time: 40 minutes plus cooling
Cooking time: 25-30 minutes
Total time: 70 minutes plus cooling
Serves: 8



Ingredients
250g unsalted butter, chilled
200g plain flour
150g toasted hazelnuts, roughly chopped
1 tsp cumin seeds
4 tbsp demerara sugar
8 raw beetroots
3 tbsp olive oil
4 tbsp balsamic vinegar
12 carrots, peeled and sliced
2 tsp coriander seeds
400ml vegetable stock
Juice of about ½ lemon.

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 200ºC, gas mark 6. Make the crumble mixture by whizzing 200g of the butter with the flour, 50g of the hazelnuts, cumin and demerara sugar in a food processor. Alternatively, rub the butter, flour and sugar together with your fingertips until you get a mixture like coarse breadcrumbs, then stir in the nuts and cumin. Set aside.

2. Place the beetroot whole into a saucepan of boiling water and boil for 7-10 minutes. Remove, leave until cool enough to handle then peel with a small knife (wear gloves to stop your hands going pink). Cut each beetroot into 8 wedges and place in a roasting tin with the oil and balsamic vinegar. Season, cover tightly with foil and roast for 15 minutes until soft but still with a little bite.

3. Melt the remaining butter in a small saucepan and, when foaming, add the carrots and coriander seeds along with the stock. Cover and cook for 10 minutes until the carrots are soft. Pour the contents of the saucepan with the carrots into a blender and whizz until smooth (add a little water if it seems too dry). Season and add a squeeze of lemon juice.

4. Place the beetroot in an ovenproof dish with any cooking juices. Scatter over two-thirds of the remaining hazelnuts and spoon over the carrot purée. Add the crumble topping, scatter with the last of the hazelnuts and bake, uncovered, for 25-30 minutes until golden.

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