All That I'm Eating

Recipe ideas for budget meals, everyday cooking and a little indulgence. Travel inspiration and restaurant reviews too.

Broccoli Stalk and Sesame Soup

By 14 Comments

Ingredients for broccoli stalk soup

If you’re chopping the florets off the broccoli and throwing away the stalk you’re missing out. The stalk has that delicious broccoli flavour and can be used in so many ways. My broccoli stalk and sesame soup recipe is one of the things I like to use the stalks for but you can also chop them finely and add them to stir fries, pasta dishes and roasted veg.

Ingredients

You will need (for four portions):

  • Oil for frying
  • 1 onion, roughly chopped
  • 1 celery stick, roughly chopped
  • Broccoli, a mix of stalks and florets around 350g
  • 1 garlic clove, roughly chopped
  • 400ml hot vegetable stock
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
  • Sesame oil for drizzling

Method

Start by adding a little oil to a large saucepan over a medium heat.

Add the onion and celery to the pan and fry for five minutes until the vegetables are starting to soften. read more

Smoked Bacon and Kale Soup

By 11 Comments

There’s something special about watching the steam rise from a hot bowl of soup after you’ve been working in the garden all morning; you just know it’s going to fill you up. My smoked bacon and kale soup came about simply to use up some ingredients in the kitchen. I cooked up enough for six portions so there’s plenty in the freezer for a wet and windy day. We have rather busy weekends and when lunchtime comes it’s nice to stop, take some time and eat something nourishing. read more

Spinach and Potato Kofta Curry

By 22 Comments

Spinach and Potato Kofta Curry

I love koftas in a curry. More often than not they are lamb based and I wanted to try and make a vegetarian version. My spinach and potato kofta curry came about because I wanted the main part of it to be roughly based on saag aloo. This is a bit more effort than some of my other recipes, but, I’ve made double batches of both the koftas and the sauce and frozen them so I can have it again with no effort at all!

ingredients

You will need (for four portions):

For the koftas:
  • 600g potatoes, peeled and diced
  • Oil for cooking (I use rapeseed)
  • 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
  • 2 tsp cumin seeds
  • Pinch turmeric
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 4 large garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
  • Thumb size piece ginger, peeled and finely chopped
  • 1 chilli, finely chopped
  • 5 nuggets frozen spinach (you can use fresh, wilt it and chop it before using)
  • 2 tsp garam masala
  • Salt and pepper
  • Salt and pepper
For the sauce
  • 2 large onions, sliced
  • 4 large garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
  • Thumb size piece of ginger, finely chopped
  • 1 tsp ground fenugreek
  • Oil for cooking (I use rapeseed)
  • 1 chilli, finely chopped
  • 1 tsp cumin seeds
  • 1 tsp ground coriander
  • 1 tsp turmeric
  • 1 tsp garam masala
  • Salt and pepper
  • 200ml water
  • 75ml double cream (you can leave this out or use a plant based alternative to make it vegan)
  • Small handful fresh coriander, roughly chopped

method

For the koftas

Put the potatoes in a saucepan and cover them with cold water. Bring the pan to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer the potatoes for 8-10 minutes, or until they are cooked. read more

Easy Vegetable Lasagne

By 18 Comments

Easy Vegetable Lasagne after baking

There’s a very good reason why this is an easy vegetable lasagne: there’s no béchamel! One of the things I love most about lasagne is how comforting it is, all those layers of pasta and sauce, so I didn’t want to miss any of that by cutting out a few steps. It’s still creamy and cheesy but only uses one sauce. This is such an easy recipe and you can use whatever vegetables you have to hand.

ingredients

You will need (for four portions):

  • 1 onion, roughly chopped
  • 1 aubergine, roughly chopped
  • 2 peppers (whatever colour(s)) you like, seeds removed and roughly chopped
  • Handful cherry tomatoes, halved
  • Any other vegetables you like, such as courgette, carrot, etc. prepared and roughly chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed but left whole
  • Olive oil for cooking
  • Salt and pepper
  • 600ml passata
  • 200ml crème fraîche
  • 1 tbsp red pesto
  • 25g Parmesan, grated

Method

Start by preheating an oven to 180C.

Put all of the prepared vegetables onto a baking tray and drizzle over enough oil to give everything a light covering. Add a little salt and pepper and give everything a good mix with your hands. read more

Oat and Raisin Cookies

By 23 Comments

Oat and Raisin Cookies close up

I had such a craving for some proper oat and raisin cookies. Ones which are crispy on the outside and gooey in the middle and about the same size as my face. I’ve tried several recipes in the past and they’ve tended to be not quite what I’m after in my perfect cookie. Until now. If you’re after a healthy cookie I wouldn’t read on any further.

ingredients

You will need (for 10 cookies):

  • 225g unsalted butter, softened
  • 200g light brown sugar
  • 50g caster sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 190g plain flour
  • 1 tbsp bicarbonate of soda
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 240g rolled oats
  • 140g raisins

Method

I made these in a food mixer but you can make them with an electric hand whisk, or by hand if you prefer. read more

Store Cupboard Shortbread

By 16 Comments

Shortbread in tin

I often find that I buy nuts or seeds to make something particular and I get left with a few grams of them here and there. That’s where my store cupboard shortbread comes in. This year I am attempting to use up ingredients in my cupboards and I thought I would start by using the last few dregs of cocoa powder and some leftover hazelnuts; I am so glad I did.

Ingredients

Makes 12 pieces of shortbread:

  • 175g plain flour
  • 1 tbsp cocoa powder
  • 50g caster sugar
  • 150g butter, softened
  • 50g chopped nuts, chocolate or seeds

Method

Grease a loose bottomed tart tin, mine was 20cm. Preheat an oven to 160C.

Add all of the ingredients to a bowl or food mixer and beat together until you get a ball of dough. read more

Creamy Lentil Pasta Bake

By 22 Comments

Creamy Lentil Pasta Bake with cheese topping

You know those small pasta shapes you can buy which are ideal for minestrone? Well, it turns out they make a really good pasta bake. I found this out by accident when making my creamy lentil pasta bake and looked in the cupboard to find only teeny tiny bows to hand. This is a seriously tasty and very filling vegetarian pasta bake which is crammed full of veg with a little added double cream for a touch of weeknight luxury.

Ingredients

You will need (for two plus leftovers):

  • 180g pasta
  • 250g cooked puy lentils
  • Handful grated cheese, cheddar or Parmesan both work well

For the creamy tomato sauce

  • 1 small onion, finely chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 1 pepper, finely chopped
  • Olive oil for cooking
  • 600g tomato passata
  • 1 tbsp sundried tomato paste
  • 3 nuggets frozen chopped spinach (you could use fresh that has been wilted and chopped)
  • 150ml double cream
  • Salt and pepper

Method

Start by making the sauce. Get a saucepan onto a medium heat and add the onion with a glug of olive oil. Fry gently for 10 minutes. read more

Mince Pie Crumble Bars

By 20 Comments

Mince Pie Crumble Bars, out of the oven

In my perfect world, a mince pie would be 70% pastry, 30% mincemeat. It’s not that I don’t like mincemeat I just don’t like too much of it. That’s where my mince pie crumble bars come in. A thick layer of buttery shortbread, a spiced mincemeat middle and further crumbly shortbread on the top. Let’s be honest, it’s mostly biscuit with a hint of Christmas. Perfect.

Ingredients

You will need (for 12 mince pie crumble bars):

  • 300g softened butter
  • 100g sugar
  • 400g plain flour
  • 1 small jar mincemeat

Method

Grease and line a baking tray or dish. The one I used was approximately 20cm x 30cm. Preheat an oven to 170C. read more

Christmas Meal Plan

By 12 Comments

At Christmas there are four things that I like to do: eat, go for walks, play games and watch festive television shows. I do like to plan ahead and this year is no different with my Christmas meal plan. With a plan in place there’s no last minute rush to the shops for those forgotten ingredients and no blank looks when someone says “What’s for dinner?”. With a little bit of careful planning, some batch cooking and a few shortcuts I am looking forward to a relaxed festive break. read more

Exploring the Lake District

By 18 Comments

Walking in the Lake District

Exploring the Lake District has been on my list of places to go for ages! I can’t believe how long it has taken me to get it booked and head up there. We went in November, certainly not the warmest time of year to go, but I would argue it’s one of the prettiest. The trees are all turning orange and although it’s cold, it’s not icy cold. Anyway, cold hands are just an excuse to get a hot chocolate.

We were based near Windermere and Bowness-on-Windermere, a convenient 10 minute walk from either town. There is so much to do whether the weather is sunny or raining and we visited several different places offering different activities. Below are some of my highlights and top places to visit. You can find other ideas for things to do on this guide too! read more

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