The following recipe is a heart warming, comforting meal ideal for those cold, cold winter days like we are currently experiencing in Australia.   It’s packed full of protein with lentils, cannelini and chickpea / garbanzo beans and is rounded off with a good chug full of a nice Italian Chianti just for some oomph!

The only problem with this dinner is being able to stop eating it!  The deepness and sweetness from the tomatoes makes you want to have another bite just to saviour the taste in your mouth.

It’s not your typical casserole with chunks of vegetables – I’ve only added mushrooms, one of my favourite vegetables – but you can certainly add your own favourites in.

I challenge you to try this and stop yourself from going back for seconds!

Serves:

• 6-8 or half if you go back for seconds!

Ingredients:

• drizzle olive oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tab vegetable “beef style” stock
• 1 tsp white pepper
• 2 tsp garlic mince
• 1/2 red onion diced
• 2 tbs tomato ketchup
• 3 tbs tomato paste
• 1 – 1.5 cups of a deep red wine (I used a Chianti)
• 1 tsp rosemary dried
• 1 can cannelini beans
• 1 can lentils
• 1 can chickpeas / garbanzo
• 250 grams mushrooms roughly chopped
• 250 grams beef style chunks (faux meat)
• 1 cup water

Dumplings

• 1 cup SR flour
• enough milk to make a sticky dough
• 2 tbs butter or margarine
• pinch salt
• pinch pepper

Instructions:

1. In a cassoulet or pot, place your onions and garlic in some olive oil.  Allow to soften.
2. Place in the spices and seasoning with the stock, adding in the red wine, tomato ketchup and paste.  Mix well.
3. Place in the beans and beef chunks, stirring and allowing to boil.
4. Reduce the heat and place your mushrooms in with the water.  Stir to mix the water through.
5. Allow to simmer for twenty minutes.
6. Mix all the ingredients for the dough together.  Add enough milk to allow for a sticky batter (it will roughly be around the same a cup).
7. Using a spoon, dollop your dough into the casserole and pour the gravy over the dough.
8. Place the lid on and cook for another five to ten minutes.
9. Serve hot straight away with a nice Chianti!

The following recipe was inspired by last month’s Delicious magazine that had a Indian feature.  It’s a beautiful curry dish using your own roasted spices to make the meal.  The recipe that inspired this was the “Coconut Lamb Curry.”  I’ve swapped a few of the ingredients and used fake meat for the beef.

The great thing about this dish is it is totally vegan (mock meat must be vegan) and it’s absolutely delicious – perfect name for the dish and magazine!

If you’re after a spicy warm dish, certainly give this one a try…

The photo will be posted in the next couple of days…

Serves:

• 4-6

Ingredients:

• 1 tbs margarine or butter
• 500 grams mock meat pieces (I used beef)
• 1/2 onion thinly sliced
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1/2 tsp ginger mince
• 2 tbs pickled chilli
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 400 grams chopped tomatoes
• 2 cups vegetarian beef stock
• 1/2 cup light coconut milk
• 2 tbs dried coriander
• 1 tbs cumin seeds
• 1 tbs fenugreek seeds
• 1 tbs white mustard seeds
• 3 cardamon pods
• 3 cloves
• 1/2 cinnamon quill
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• olive oil for frying

Instructions:

1. Place the coriander, cumin, fenugreek, mustard, cardamon, cloves, cinnamon, turmeric and nutmeg into a pot and dry fry until warm.
2. Take out of the pan and grind it down to a powder, using a mortar and pestle.
3. Brown the onion in the oil and butter mixture.
4. Mix in the powder, spices and herbs, allowing to mix in with the onion.
5. Add in your mock pieces of meat and allow to thaw out and brown.
6. Pour in the tomato and stock, letting it boil.
7. Simmer for 30 minutes.
8. Pour in the coconut and allow to simmer for another 10 minutes or until the gravy starts to thicken.
9. Serve with some steamed basmati rice.

^{(Image: Picatta served with Porcini Polenta)}

I absolutely love polenta!  I love it in the morning with some honey and milk, love it hardened into fries and just love the mashy version you can serve savoury!  This version of polenta is no exception!  The porcini mushrooms, give a beautiful flavour to the polenta and combined with parmesan, I DARE you to try and stop eating this!  I know I had a lot of difficulty.

Vegans: Use vegan parmesan and vegan margarine instead for a tasty alternative!

Serves:

• 3-4

Ingredients:

• 10 grams dried porcini
• pinch salt
• pinch white pepper
• 1/2 tab vegetable “chicken” stock
• 1/2 cup polenta
• 1.5 tbs butter
• 1-2 cups of water +
• (optional) handful grated parmesan cheese

Instructions:

1. Break the porcini into pieces and place in some boiling water for ten minutes (the longer, the better).
2. In a pot mix in your salt, pepper, chicken stock.
3. Add the liquid with the porcini to the polenta.
4. Mix in the butter and extra water and allow to boil on high.
5. When it begins thickening up, begin to stir thoroughly for ten to fifteen minutes. If it becomes too stiff, add some more warm water and keep stirring.
6. Turn the heat off  and mix through your parmesan (if you want it) now.
7. Serve immediately, as it stiffens when cold.

^{(Image: Picatta served with Porcini Polenta)}

After watching my mother eat her way through a real Chicken Piccata and liking everything apart from the fact it was meat, I decided to come up with an alternative.  Piccata is generally made with real chicken that is basted in a sauce of capers, butter and white wine.  Whilst the some people use cream also, I think I prefer it without.

The extra “Chicken” pieces can be used as a burger for leftovers.  It’s got a great flavour and combines soy beans, tofu and gluten flour to get a protein combination.

The sauce is quite delicious with the “chicken” and is basted over it to soak the flavour through.  Whilst the sauce here is for two, you can easily double or reduce the recipe to serve for others at dinner parties.

The piccata is served with a porcini infused polenta, which I will post the recipe for later this week.  I definitely recommend having it with the polenta!

Vegans: Replace the butter with a vegan alternative or olive oil, and you can treat yourself to this one also!

Makes:

• 10 “chicken” pieces
• sauce for 2

Ingredients:

Chicken

• 250 grams firm tofu
• 4 heaped tbs gluten flour
• 400 grams soybeans
• 1 cup oats
• 1 tsp chicken salt
• 5-6 tbs rice flour
• 2 tbs soy sauce
• 1 tsp white pepper
• 1 tsp rosemary

Sauce

• 2 tbs capers
• 1 tbs butter
• 1/2 cup white wine

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 210 degrees C or 410 degrees F.
2. In a jug, mash the tofu and soy beans together.
3. Mix in the liquids and spices.
4. Add the dry ingredients.  If it is a little too wet still, add an extra tablespoon of rice flour.
5. Mould into a chicken fillet shape and place on an oiled tray.  Repeat until there’s no more mixture.
6. Place the tray in the oven and cook 10 minutes each side.
7. In a small fry pan, mix all the sauce ingredients and allow to thicken.
8. Add a couple of “chicken” pieces and grabbing a teaspoon, tip the pan to a side.
9. Grab some of the sauce and pour over the top of the pieces.
10. Repeat for a couple of minutes before serving, pouring the sauce on top.