Spinach Powder and Polenta Crispy Coated Tofu

Spinach Powder mixed with dry polenta makes a lovely coating for tofu

Back in February we went to Brighton and I bought some Spinach Powder from ‘The Spice Shop’. I’ve been thinking of simple ways to incorporate it into my cooking and I decided to use it in a polenta coating for tofu first. I didn’t find that it has an over powering taste of spinach but it just adds a lovely bright green colour and adds interest to an otherwise quite bland tofu.

By coating soft tofu in dry polenta before griddling it creates a deliciously crispy coating. If you can’t find spinach powder then you could substitute it with mixed dried herbs or even spices such as paprika (served with chips!).

Spinach powder and polenta could be a great coating for anything including fish and tofu!

This recipe idea is vegan, gluten free and low fat. It is also inexpensive because you only use a small amount of ingredients for the coating.

The method is really simple, mix 2 tablespoons of polenta with 1 tablespoon of Spinach powder and some salt and pepper and spread it out on a plate or a board. Slice and press your tofu then lay it in the powder coating and using your hands rub the polenta all over the tofu.

Heat a hot griddle pan, spray your tofu with some oil and lay your tofu on to the hot pan. Cook for 2-3 minutes on each side turning every minute or so to stop it burning.

I served mine with some paprika stirfried peppers, tomatoes and onions stirred into spaghetti pasta. I felt that the earthy spinach would suit a more rustic dish rather than a stir fry. It would be lovely served on top of a roasted vegetable salad or served in a wrap with peppers and hummous.

I really enjoyed using the spinach powder and I have a few more ideas for the rest of the bag so you’ll be seeing it appear a bit more on here I also bought a beetroot powder so I’m excited to give that a go too!

ps I’m watching Masterchef UK as I write this, it’s so inspiring seeing all of the different flavour combinations!

Broccoli, Radish and Lemon Pasta

Chilli flakes and plenty of black pepper and a spice kick

I love a good simple pasta dish, my favourite weekend lunches include quick, easy and veggie packed stir fries, noodle salads or pasta. It would be a lie to say I don’t buy jars of sauces for convenience every now and then but I do prefer the fresh flavours of a home made dish like this lemony broccoli pasta.

During the week breakfast is definitely my favourite meal of the day, I have a morning routine which involves waving Scott off to work (usually still in my pyjamas at this point!), making a cup of tea, catching up on my ‘guilty pleasure’ tv such as 90210 or Buffy the Vampire Slayer whilst having breakfast, then I get ready and finally I do a quick tidy up before I leave for work. When I tell people they always think I’m crazy because I get up so early but I genuinely wouldn’t have it any other way. It’s my time for myself to wake up and relax before a busy day.

At the weekend I am still an early riser but I find that lunchtimes are my “me time” because I usually have chores/ blogging/ cooking to do first thing in the morning and only once I have got them done can I then relax. Making lunch is my way of winding down and enjoying some peace and quiet. This is why I like meals which are simple and make me feel healthy and happy.

Radishes are my favourite salad veggie at the moment!

Weekends are also my main blog cooking time so meals are made up of either practise rounds of recipes or the finished photographed dish. Yes, sometimes it’s gone cold but I enjoy sitting down to a blog worthy plate of food, I mean lets admit, even food bloggers don’t present every single meal as if its about to be photographed. Most evening meals are just piled on the plate

Anyway on to the recipe! This has been a staple go to lunch for quite a while and one day I decided it was too good to not be shared. It started off as a lazy lunch to just clear out the fridge, I happened to have wilting broccoli and radishes left so I used them but now I purposefully make sure I have these items in.

Its not a saucey pasta but that doesn’t mean it’s not packed full of flavour. Similar to my Courgette Pasta recipe this pasta relies on fresh produce being lightly cooked to bring out its best flavours. I use lemon and olive oil as a dressing and chilli flakes, garlic and plenty of black pepper to add depth of flavour. I’ve done this as a recipe for 1 because me and Scott eat very different things at the weekend so I am used to cooking lunches for one. Just grab a handful of this and that and you can make some great solo dinners!

Serves 1

Vegan, gluten free, dairy free, soy free, bad things free!

40g dry gluten free pasta
3-4 broccoli florets
2-3 radishes
1 garlic clove
1 lemon. Zest and juice
1 tblspn organic olive oil plus extra for frying
Black pepper
Chilli flakes

Boil the pasta for around 8-10 minutes until cooked, then drain but reserve a few tablespoons of the cooking water.

Whilst the pasta is cooking heat some olive oil in a pan. Slice the radishes thinly, crush the garlic and cut the broccoli florets into around 6 smaller florets. Stir fry the broccoli, garlic and radish until they start to brown then take off the heat and stir in the olive oil, juice of 1/2 lemon and 2 tablespoons of pasta cooking water.

Mix in the cooked pasta and serve on a plate with the lemon zest, chilli flakes and plenty of black pepper.

What’s your go to lunchtime recipe? Do you eat differently at weekends than during the week? More or less healthy?

Rizopia Organic Brown Rice Pasta – Gluten Free Product Review

I actually bought this product a long time before considering going gluten free because I wanted to find something for Scott’s lunches so that he could still have pasta but a healthier version. This brand is called Rizopia, they make all different types of pastas such as spaghetti, fusilli, wild rice pasta, lasagna sheets etc and I found it in my local health food shop.

Image Source – http://www.goodnessdirect.co.uk (click on image to go to website)

Rizopia have a  Zero Tolerance Allergen Free Policy: No Wheat, No Gluten, No Dairy, No Nuts, No Egg, No Fish, No Soy. This means this pasta is pretty much suitable for anyone, unless your allergic to rice! It tastes just the same as pasta, especially once you’ve added your chosen pasta sauce! We couldn’t tell the difference in taste.

We could definitely tell the difference in texture though as once cooked rice pasta is a bit chewy and you can’t achieve the same al dente feel that you can with normal pasta. I found that if you cook it for around 30 minutes then it becomes less chewy and much softer. Also you have to rinse it well, similarly to rice, as I found that it was quite starchy after cooking.

Scott decided he didn’t like it but I have carried on eating it because I think it’s just as nice as normal pasta and it is perfect for when I fancy pasta now I am on my gluten free diet.

Uncooked Brown Rice Penne Pasta

I think the price was a little steep, I paid £4.95 for 500g, which compared to £1.68 for 500g of normal pasta in the supermarket is really expensive however I have found it a bit cheaper online for around £3.95 for 500g which is a bit better. Plus I guess you pay for quality of ingredients and the fact it is organic.

I will definitely be trying different types of gluten free pasta, the one thing I was very aware of when starting this was that I did not want to swap “real” bread and pasta etc for “free from” products which had just replaced the wheat and gluten with chemicals. I was drawn to this pasta because it had very natural ingredients (Brown rice, rice bran and water) and I liked that it was organic.

Cooked Brown Rice Penne Pasta

What gluten free brands have you tried before? What one item (ie bread, pasta, cake) can you simply not live without on your gluten free diet? For example I have not bothered trying gluten free bread yet but I really want some gluten free biscuits

Pumpkin and Greens Lasagna with Butterbean sauce: Meat Free Monday

Remember back to my post about cheese alternatives I mentioned using white beans such as butter beans to create a mock cheese sauce? Well this recipe is a great example!

Two layered vegan lasagna

This lasagna has been a work in progress for a while but I think it is now good enough to be showcased! I love the idea of a very neat lasagna with two defined layers, here we have one layer of roasted pumpkin and onions in a tomato sauce and the second layer is a leafy greens and courgette layer in a creamy butter bean sauce.

Even better is that I used this beautiful pumpkin that my mum bought home from her garden in France for me -

I have made mine so that the top layer of pasta is a little chewy and browned however if you like yours softer then simply add more sauce to the top! The best thing about this recipe is that you kind of build it up in the lasagna dish as you go, the first layer of pumpkin is roasted in the dish, tomatoes are added and it’s put back in the oven, then you create the layers on top! I have done some step by step photos for you below!

I love colourful food!

The other thing I love about using butterbeans in the sauce is how firm the sauce becomes, its creamy and delicious but also sliceable! and it goes perfectly with the green veg, I’d be tempted to make just that again with some rice as a nice comforting dinner.

Serves 6

450g Peeled Pumpkin (1 small pumpkin or enough to cover the bottom of your dish)
1 Onion
1 Garlic Clove
1 tblspn Chilli Powder
1 Can Tomatoes
2 Courgettes
1 Stick Celery
Large Bunch Spinach|
1 Can Butterbeans|
240ml Soya Milk (1 Cup)
8 Lasagna Sheets (I used the spinach variety)

Peel and cut up the pumpkin into large chunks, roughly all the same size. Roughly chop the onion and put into a lasagna dish with the pumpkin and a drizzle of vegetable oil and the chilli powder.

Pumpkin, Onion and Spices – The way a lot of my recipes begin!

Roast in an oven heated to 200c for 20 minutes uncovered. Take it out of the oven and add crushed garlic, the canned tomatoes and a little seasoning, stir to combine everything then add back into the oven for 10 minutes. This forms the base layer of your lasagna.

Canned tomatoes added to create the sauce

While the lasagna is in the oven blend the butterbeans and milk together and put to one side.

In a frying pan heat a little oil and add the thinly sliced celery and courgette and fry until softened, add a splash of water if it starts to brown too much. Add 3/4 of the butterbean sauce and spinach to the frying pan and simmer for 10 minutes. You leave the other 1/4 of butterbean sauce in the blender until the lasagna is assembled as it will be poured over the top.

Spinach pasta!

To assemble place enough lasagna sheets to cover the tomato pumpkin mix. A little bit of over lap is ok but not too much! Press the sheets down unto the sauce a bit.

Butterbeans are the base of this creamy sauce

Top the lasagna sheets with the creamy greens and spread out to form an even layer. The sauce will soak into the lasagna sheets making it lovely and soft after cooking.

More Spinach pasta then more sauce to finish!

Add more pasta sheets to cover the green vegetables layer and pour over the rest of the sauce. At this point you need to press the top lasagna sheets down so that all corners are covered by the sauce. This means they will go soft and not burn.

Once cooked the butterbean sauce firms up abit, the top pasta goes slightly chewy and the middle pasta goes beautifully soft! Serve with a nice green salad or some steamed brocolli and green beans! This recipe also freezes well so is a great one to make in advance for the week/ month ahead.

Lovely cooked lasagna!

Summer Courgette Pasta: A recipe revisited

Ok so here is another “fix that dish” post, to be honest it has been really fun going over old recipes and giving them a new lease of life. I am still enthusiastic about the ingredients and the ethos of the recipes, it’s just now, after a year of blogging and learning about food and being inspired by the freshness of vegan dishes, I would execute the recipes differently!

For this week I am focusing on my courgette pasta dish which was created because we had an overload of courgette’s and I really wanted to make something very simple, quick and easy. This pasta dish was basically a “throw it all in” dish and it’s delicious.

26th August 2011

13th August 2012

The changes I made to this dish are minimal but they make a big difference, such as keeping a few of the ingredients raw to add a real summery freshness (and added vitality) to the dish that was perhaps missing before. I swapped onions for spring onions and used green courgettes instead of yellow but that was purely down to what was available rather than any big notion of health or flavour enhancement.

The juices from the tomatoes and courgettes make the pasta ‘saucey’ enough to not be dry and the soft mushrooms add another texture. I personally just love the flavour of all of these vegetables together but if you insist then a spoonful of pesto mixed into this tastes great!

Make sure you have really nice ripe tomatoes as the dish really depends on them being sweet, juicy, soft and full of flavour. If you’ve refrigerated your tomatoes then take them out a few hours before making this!

Serves 2 as a main meal

1 Large Courgette (from the garden) or a couple of courgettes from the supermarket. Green or yellow are fine! – grated
1 Garlic clove – crushed
Large handful Mushrooms – sliced
1 Lemon – zest and juice
Sprinkle of Chilli Flakes
2-3 large ripe tomatoes or 4-5 plum tomatoes – chopped roughly
Spring Onions – finely sliced
Black Pepper
Drizzle or Spray of Olive Oil
Cooked pasta (roughly 75g dried pasta each)

Once the courgette has been grated place it inbetween a clean tea towel or some layers of kitchen paper and squeeze out the excess liquid. Heat some oil in a large frying pan and add the courgettes and stir untill they start to cook down (around 3 minutes), add the garlic, lemon zest, chilli flakes and mushrooms and continue to cook untill the mushrooms have wilted. This shouldn’t take too long and as soon as it’s done take off the heat and stir in the cooked pasta and fresh tomatoes. The heat of the sauce and pasta will soften the tomatoes further.

Serve into pasta bowls and then sprinkle over the sliced spring onions, squeeze of lemon and a good grind of black pepper.

You could top with grated parmesan or stir in a dollop of pesto if you are serving this to guests, but if you are just after a quick, healthy, fresh lunch then this is perfect!

I have submitted this post to the Presto Pasta Nights event, see the round up at the end of each week here at Bricole blog! x

Tomato and Chilli Pantry Pasta: Meat Free Monday

For this weeks Meat Free Monday recipe I would like to direct you all to the lovely Jennifer’s blog “Down Home South Jersey” where she featured a recipe I made for her Pantry Pasta Challenge! Make sure you have a good browse over there as there is so much to read and see! Here are a few photos to get you in the mood for some good hearty pasta!

Thanks for setting an inspiring challenge and also for featuring me Jennifer Your a star!

Seriously Simple Tomato and Fennel Pasta Sauce: Meat Free Monday

Sometimes I just really want a nice simple dinner which can be whipped up in no time and is still healthy. This usually means making a pasta dish! The flavours in this dish are so perfect for the nice summer weather we’ve been having over the weekend as the sweet apple juice brings the tomatoes to life and the slight tang to the fennel and its seeds help liven up the sauce!

A while ago a friend of mine had said how she couldn’t believe that people didn’t make their own pasta sauces as it’s so easy, and I felt a bit guilty because I often buy pasta sauce and when I did make it, it would just be a can of tomatoes with some basil and garlic in it! So I decided to experiment with flavours and textures and I think the key to this recipe is being patient with the onions and getting them really soft before adding the tomatoes. It makes for a more silky smooth sauce rather than being too chunky!

Theres not really much else to say about this dish other than here is the recipe:

This will make a big batch which will serve around 6-8. It is freezable so you can make a big amount and then save the left overs for a nice easy meal another day.

1 Onion
1 Fennel
2 Garlic Cloves
1 tspn Fennel Seeds
2 cans Chopped Tomatoes
2 tablespoons Apple Juice
Pinch Chilli Flakes
1/2 Lemon (juice)
Salt and Pepper
Spray oil or olive oil

Finely chop the onion and fennel and add to a saucepan with some spray oil. Cook them on a low heat for around 2-3 minutes then add the crushed garlic cloves and the fennel seeds. Continue to cook, stirring often, on the low heat untill the onion and fennel is soft and translucent.

Add the canned tomatoes, apple juice, lemon juice, chilli flakes and a pinch of salt and pepper.

Simmer the sauce untill the tomatoes have reduced and thickened.

Cook pasta of your choice and then stir the sauce into the drained cooked pasta. Serve with a bit of salad.

Walnut and Parsley Pesto

Since my mum bought back the big bag of walnuts from France I’ve been playing around with ideas for recipes with them and this is one of my favourites! I love pesto and have never tried any other varieties so I decided to combine two flavours I love and I think go well together – walnuts and parsley! It was also an excuse to use some more wedding cheese which has been grated and in the freezer for a good few weeks!

Makes a small jar full:

20g Flat Leaf Parsley
20g Walnuts
20g Parmesan
1 small Garlic Clove
5-6 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
squeeze Lemon Juice
Black Pepper

In a blender add the garlic clove and the chopped walnuts and blitz untill fine and almost the consistency of breadcrumbs. Place onto a chopping board and pile the parsley on top, using a big knife finely chop the parsley (mix it all up as you chop so you are combining the ingredients together on the board). You could do this in the blender but I really like the slightly rough texture you get from working it with a knife.

Put it all back into the blender and add the cheese and 3 tablespoons of oil. Blitz a few times just to mix it all up and combine the cheese with the herbs. Add another 2-3 tablespoons of oil to create a loosened sauce texture, season with a little black pepper and a squeeze of lemon juice, taste and add a little more lemon if needed.

Put into a bowl or jar and keep in the fridge for a week or so.

This is nice to serve on cooked pasta, added to a cheese toastie, stir into leek and potato soup or as I’m going to do in a later post – add it to your croutons in a soup!

This is a lovely variation on the classic pesto – will have to try some different herbs and nuts now! x x

Veggie Packed Macaroni and Cheese: Meat Free Monday

This recipe is loosely based on a tuna pasta bake my mum used to make us when we were younger, it had loads of veg, a white sauce and a breadcrumb topping and it was delicious!!

Serves 6-8 (a good one for the freezer!)

180g Sprouts (around 8 sprouts)
140g Broccoli (around 10 florets)
140g Carrots (1 Carrot)
100g Shallots (3-4 shallots)
2 Garlic Cloves
300g Macaroni
Large handful breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon Dried Basil
1 teaspoon Dried Thyme
¼ teaspoon dried Chilli Flakes
300ml Soya Milk
1 Teaspoon Margarine
100g Cheddar
1 Teaspoon Plain Flour
Salt and Pepper

To prepare your vegetables: Peel the Sprouts and cut into quarters.Slice the shallots and carrots. Cut the broccoli into small florets and crush the garlic.

Preheat the oven to 200c

Steam the sprouts, broccoli and carrots untill soft (you can boil them but steaming retains all the goodness and flavour). As the vegetables are cooking put your macaroni on to boil in a pan of hot water for around 10-12 minutes or untill cooked, once cooked drain in a sieve and put to one side.

In a frying pan add some olive oil then fry the shallots and garlic for 3-4 minutes, then add the steamed veg and seasoning and let the veg brown a little. Then take the pan off the heat and stir the vegetables into the cooked macaroni and transfer all of the combined pasta and vegetables into a large lasagna dish.

In a small saucepan make the white sauce by heating the milk and butter in a pan, then add the flour and whisk untill the flour is combined and not lumpy. Add the cheese and keep stirring over the heat untill the cheese is melted. Season the white sauce and mix it into the pasta and vegetables, spread the mixture out so it covers the bottom of the lasagna dish and is level on top.

To make the breadcrumbs put a toasted slice of bread into a blender and add the dried basil, dried thyme and chilli flakes. Blitz untill you have herby breadcrumbs and then sprinkle these over the top of the cheesy pasta/ veg combination in the lasagna dish.

Put in the oven (uncovered) at 200c for around 10 minutes then serve with a side salad!

Photo: Prepared vegetables

Open Mushroom Lasagna

A while ago I cooked my husband a creamy mustard chicken dish and for myself I made a similar dish but with big slices of field mushrooms and Philadelphia instead of cream. It was delicious but just looked like a big grey mess to be honest! I was annoyed because it tasted so good, so I came up with this idea of how to make it look pretty – open lasagna.

I practised the mushroom sauce a few times untill I had created a simple version of my first attempt (which had too many ingredients to really fit into the ethos of veghotpot).  I have also come up with my own twist on a white sauce as I wanted to find an alternative to cheese and milk, two things I can’t really eat, so I have used blended cauliflower which I have to say added a lovely seasonal flavour and it makes this dish super healthy!

Apart from a little bit of pan juggling this was really easy to make and it looks so impressive on the plate. In fact it’s one of the prettiest main courses I’ve made so far so I was really happy that I had the opportunity to cook it for my mum when she was staying with us.

Serves 2

2 Leeks
2 Large Field Mushrooms
2 Garlic cloves
1 teaspoon Dried Thyme
Small bunch parsley
8 florets of Cauliflower
250ml Vegetable Stock
2 tablespoon Extra Light Philadelphia (or a cream cheese of your choice)
2 teaspoon Wholegrain Mustard
4 Spinach Lasagna sheets (or of course normal if you have them)
Large handful wild mushrooms (these can be expensive so just buy enough to garnish your dish)
Teaspoon Butter or Margerine

In a large frying pan heat some oil and soften the finely sliced leeks, then add the thickly sliced mushrooms and the crushed garlic cloves with a splash of vegetable stock and reduce down on a medium heat for 5 minutes. Give it a stir every few minutes to stop it sticking to the pan.

Finely chop the stalks of the parsley and add to the pan with half the chopped parsley leaves, black pepper and thyme and cook for a further 2-3 minutes. Take the pan off the heat and put to one side.

Steam or boil the cauliflower untill soft, then puree with a little stock untill smooth. Then put it back into a saucepan with 240ml stock, the Philadelphia, wholegrain mustard, seasoning and a sprinkle of thyme. Simmer on a medium heat for 5-10 minutes and let it thicken slightly.

Pour most of the cauliflower sauce into the frying pan with the mushrooms but reserve some of the cauliflower sauce to pour over the lasagna at the end.

Saute the wild mushrooms in a little butter (I use butter here because it brings out a delicious flavour in the mushrooms, plus we can have one naughty element!).

Boil the lasagna sheets (a little oil in the water will help them not stick) untill soft but still al dente. Drain them and then cut each one in half and put to one side (these will heat up again once the sauce is added so don’t worry)

Make sure you warm your plates up for this dish (I do mine in the microwave but check your plates first). Place a sheet of lasagna in the middle of each plate and then layer the mushroom mix and pasta so each person has 4 squares of pasta. Have your top layer as pasta not the mushroom mix so you can then pour the reserved sauce over the top layer and place your wild mushrooms on top of this. (see my photo at the top)

sprinkle with a some chopped parsley leaves and a touch of black pepper.

This looks so impressive, perfect for a dinner party or family gathering