Tales from a Veggie Kitchen

A baked gnocchi dish adapted from a recipe I collected at Waitrose. With the spinach and broccoli it gives a green, healthy hit and the tomatoes offset that nicely with their salty tang. You could use another creamy cheese if you don't fancy ricotta and add another strong cheese on top instead of Parmesan.


Gnocchi Al Forno

Serves 4

Takes around 30-35 minutes


400g chopped spinach (frozen is ideal)

800g gnocchi

250g ricotta cheese

A crown of broccoli

Several sun-dried tomatoes to taste

A handful of fresh basil leaves, torn

4 tbsp breadcrumbs

4 tbsp Parmesan cheese

Salt & pepper


* Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan. Chop the broccoli into florets and defrost the spinach. If not using frozen, then wilt the spinach gently then whizz in a blender. Frozen is easier though!

* Boil the broccoli for 1 minute, then add the gnocchi and boil for 2 more minutes, then drain.

* In the meantime mix together the ricotta, spinach, sun-dried tomatoes, basil and 1 tbsp of the Parmesan.

* In a large, oven-proof dish mix the spinach mix with the gnocchi and broccoli and smooth down. Season with the salt and black pepper.

* Sprinkle the breadcrumbs and the rest of the Parmesan evenly over the top. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden.

I have to include this here, as it was so yummy that everyone should try it. Apologies for the weak picture, my dad has yoinked my camera for a while, and my phone doesn't cope well with our bad lighting. It shows the salad nicely though.

http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/4716/creamy-courgette-lasagne

Don't be fooled by the name, there's no actual cream in it. The creaminess comes from ricotta, which I adore, which is stirred in to the courgette mix before assembling the lasagne.

I added a pint of white sauce because I like saucy pasta which added to the creaminess and also increased the moisture content. It also allowed me to get away with using less cheese than I would normally on the top (the recipe is very skimpy on the cheddar, in my opinion). I also added some basic dried mixed herbs to the courgette mix, as I felt the need for a little extra layer of flavour.

I would also recommend that it serves 6 rather than 4 if you add a couple of pieces of garlic bread and a bit of salad each. I served it as 4 with a salad of baby spinach, 2 beetroots and an orange pepper and I was stuffed 2/3 of the way through. Of course I still ate it all, and because there's a large amount of veggies the stuffed feeling wears off pretty quickly.

I must say that this is one of my favourite dishes. If you're not a fan of fake meat then you can't go wrong with this lasagne, especially if you get a good quality tomato sauce.

Since the 11th I seem to have disappeared into a Skyrim-sized hole, and my allotted computer time has been eaten up by playing, rather than writing. But here's an easy, rustic and nutritious pasta dish to fll yourselves with in the long winter nights. Your choices of vegetables goes here, I used the classic mediterannean style.


Roasted vegetable pasta with ricotta

Serves 4

Takes about 40 minutes


2 small aubergines

2 courgettes

250g button mushrooms

2 orange peppers

330g dried pasta (I used shells)

A 250g bag of baby spinach leaves

A ready mix of spices to sprinkle onto roasted vegetables (I used Schwartz mediterannean chicken spices. If you can't get anything like it, use some herbs de provence with some paprika and dried garlic)

250g rictotta cheese

Extra virgin olive oil for roasting and dripping on the pasta to stop it from sticking

A dash of balsamic vinegar

Preheat the oven to 200C if fan, 220C conventional


* Chop up the veggies into inch-sized chunks while the oven is preheating.

* Put some olive oil into a roasting tin and chuck the veggies in, stirring to ensure they are well coated.

* Sprinkle herbs/spices on top, toss for an even coating, then pop in the oven for around 30 minutes.

* In the meantime boil the pasta according to package instructions. Set aside when done and toss with a bit of oil to stop it sticking.

* When the veggies are done, take them out and first stir the spinach into the pasta. Then stir in the vegetables evenly, then dollop the rictotta on top and mix well.

* Drizzle with a bit of balsamic vinegar and season if you only used herbs on your veggies.

This was something I could get along with!

http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1089638/buildyourownbruschettas

Simple and easy enough to make, although I always dislike washing up blenders. The toppings were delicious, although I think I used a little too much lemon. The amounts were fairly decent, but I could have used a bit more of the ricotta and walnut.

I also used a jar of roasted pepper meze instead of the tomatoes, and this helped extend the meal a bit. I found it just enough to fill, with room for ice cream afterwards.

This recipe makes a colourful, light, and visually impressive meal which I will defnitely make again. It is, however, heavy on the purse and the arms when you carry it from the shops. Oh well, can't have everything.

This is a quick and easy thing. I used ready-cooked packet rice, the ones you're supposed to heat in the microwave, but I am of the opinion that this dries out more in the oven than freshly boiled rice, so use whichever you prefer (or is easier). I used sweet pointed red peppers, which contrast nicely with the flavours and textures of the rice mix.


Stuffed peppers with rice, ricotta and dill

Serves 2

Takes around 30 mins in all


2 peppers, deseeded and sliced in half lengthways if using long ones

200g ricotta cheese

A good handful of fresh, chopped dill

1 packet of ready cooked rice, or 250g of freshly boiled rice

2 medium-sized escallion shallotts, or the equivalent size in plain onions

Preheat the oven to 180C


* Fry the onions for 5 minutes over a medium heat or until softened

* Add the rice and fry for a further 5 minutes, making sure the grains are evenly
oiled and cooked

* Add the dill and stir through

* Stir in the ricotta and spend some time really mixing it in so it sticks in the rice and leave until the mixture is warmed through

* Line your peppers on a baking tray, stuff them with the mixture and place in the oven for 10-15mins

I served these with a hunk of rustic bread and butter.

To start off, I thought I’d let you know what I cooked for the centrepiece for Christmas dinner. It’s a special kind of nut bake which we only ever have on Christmas day, thus it is always highly anticipated. It's a lot more moist than your average nut roast, and extremely tasty. The nuts, mushrooms and onions are best chopped in a food processor. Expect to make a mess with the breadcrumbs and chopped nuts. I always make a mess anyway!

Mushroom and Ricotta nut bake

Serves around 6

Allow at least an hour for the whole thing, cooking time is around 45mins.

2 large onions, finely chopped

1 crushed garlic clove or a teaspoon of minced garlic

200g mushrooms, finely chopped

300g cashew nuts, finely chopped

200g fresh white breadcrumbs

A whole standard tub of ricotta cheese (this is usually around 235 - 275g)

1 tsp of dried thyme (I like a little more as thyme is my favourite herb)

½ tsp of ground nutmeg

2 tsp soy sauce

Salt and black pepper for seasoning

Olive oil for frying

Oven at 180C (350F)

*Fry onion and garlic in the oil for a few minutes until softened, then add the mushrooms and cook for a further 5 or so minutes, stirring occasionally.

*In a large (Large!) bowl stir together the breadcrumbs, cashew nuts, thyme, nutmeg and then mix in the ricotta.

*Add the mushroom and onion mix along with the salt and pepper and soy sauce and stir thoroughly until it looks evenly distributed.

*Spoon the mixture into a greased 1L cake tin (I used 9”, though I think I would have preferred 8” for a thicker bake).

*Bake for 40-45mins.

Note: You can also add some fresh cranberries as a layer in the middle or on the top.