Tag Archives: vegetarian

leek, onion & potato soup

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When I was at the market the other day I saw some nice looking leeks and suddenly thought I’d like to try making potato and leek soup. To be honest, I don’t even know if I’d ever had potato and leek soup before, but on a wintry weekend it sounded like just the thing. So after going through a few online recipes I did my usual mashup and it turned out great, with a lovely smooth texture, total comfort food (and even better the next day). Some of the recipes I saw added cream after blending but I wanted to keep it “lighter” and it was quite filling as it was.

Ingredients and instructions below…
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mushroom stroganoff

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Way back in July 2021 while scrolling through Instagram I came across this video by Hotel Los Castaños in Ronda, showing them making a mushroom stroganoff. I immediately thought about my portobellos in the fridge that were probably close to the “use it or lose it” stage, so I decided that I was going to make mushroom stroganoff too. Then I also checked out a few recipes online as I never have cream (used in the video) and saw that sour cream is more usual in a stroganoff. I never have that either, but I have found that straining greek yoghurt for an hour or so using a melitta coffee filter makes a more than acceptable substitute. Los Castaños added chopped spinach to theirs at the end of the vid, which I thought was an excellent idea, though I found out later that fresh parsley is the usual addition. Having neither of those at the time, I tossed in a handful of arugula and it turned out great.

Since then I have made roughly a gazillion different versions of this but somehow have never got round to publishing any of them here (though many have ended up on my azahar Instagram hashtag #thestroganoffvariations. I’ve made it with different meat options (chicken, meatballs, sausage, bacon, beef) and vegetable combos (spinach, arugula, courgette, parsley, cilantro) with portobellos being the one constant ingredient, along with the onions and garlic.

I’ve also served it in various ways, on fat egg noodles, spaghetti, penne or fideos, with roasted or mashed potatoes, and even on crusty toasted bread. As you can tell, it’s quite a versatile dish if you’re not too concerned about making AN ACTUAL STROGANOFF 😉 (in which case it’s probably best to google “authentic beef stroganoff recipe”).

I think what’s happened is that MY stroganoff has turned out to be a bit like a risotto bianco, which you can use as a base and just add whatever the heck you want. Which, as is often my case, whatever happens to be hanging around in the fridge. So yeah, it’s not a classic or even remotely authentic, stroganoff recipe. But damn it’s always good. And so here is the basic mushroom version and hey, just have some tasty fun with it.

Ingredients and instructions below…
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pistachio pesto

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I don’t know how these things happen but I can start off a day feeling fairly normal and with a “to do” list of things of thing I want to take care of, and then remember that a few weeks ago someone mentioned pistachio pesto on Twitter and then I’m suddenly lost down a google pesto rabbit-hole. This is followed by an immediate desire – nay, OBSESSION – to make this dish NOW (last time this happened I think it was lamb faggots). Anyhow, after a quick trip to the supermarket to get some pistachios and basil I was in business.

It was also a chance to use my lovely marble mortar and get a bit of a work out at the same time. Previous times making normal pine nut pesto I’ve used a small blender and the result was fine, but I wanted to see if using this traditional method made a difference. And you know what? I think it’s a close call but in future I am going to use the mortar & pestle because the individual flavours were more apparent. I used my friend Anna’s pesto recipe as a base, and looked at a few other recipes online that used pistachios instead of pine nuts, and the result was pretty damn tasty.

Update! Was out of pistachios today and fancied some pesto, used toasted almonds instead and the result was fabulous. Toasted cashews also work! FYI.

Ingredients and instructions below…
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spinach hummus

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I was at a friend’s restaurant the other day and saw that they had spinach hummus on the menu and, although we didn’t try it that day, I decided to try it at home as soon as possible. So here it is. It’s actually just a riff on my basic hummus recipe with a bit more garlic and, of course, spinach. Also, after linking to that original recipe (posted in 2009), I am reminded that I really need to update those photos!

Ingredients and instructions below…

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manchego cheese croquetas

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It seemed like a good idea to make croquetas on a rainy afternoon, as they are a bit labour intensive and I wasn’t going anywhere. Plus, it had been a long while since I’ve made croquetas, so wanted to be sure I still knew how. I should say that I have a different idea of croquetas than the average Sevillano (and many Spaniards in general) in that I like mine to taste of something other than bechamel. There are many points of view about what constitutes the “perfect croqueta” and I actually don’t care that much. The ones I like best are full of flavour, soft and creamy on the inside and with a good solid crunchy outside. Anyhow, today I opted for cheese croquetas, which in the end is like making a thick cheese sauce, breading and frying it. Which is amazing! My recipe has maybe three times the cheese as I’ve seen elsewhere – you can decide how cheesy you want them.

Ingredients and instructions below…
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espinacas con garbanzos 2

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I’ve already posted a nice recipe for espinacas con garbanzos here, a very traditional version, and it’s delicious. But it turns out that I almost never make this dish the same way twice and the other day I looked up a few more recipes, got confounded by some that add tomato (wut) and then made this version, which is kind of what I’ve been doing for a while, except this time with added ground almonds (game changer!). So here it is. Oh, and as I didn’t have any bread in the house I used some olive oil regañas (kind of a cracker, and as they were already baked with olive oil I didn’t have to fry them). I like using the baby spinach because then you don’t have to boil anything and the spinach comes out much brighter and tender, and (I think) has more flavour.

Ingredients and instructions below…
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lemony yoghurt poppy seed cake

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My first cake in probably 35 years! Don’t ask what got into me. I just remember scrolling through Twitter one night (when I should have been asleep) and this caught my eye because I had recently, and inexplicably, bought some poppy seeds. I don’t know what I was thinking (re: poppy seed purchase). Perhaps that I would try some kind of savoury biscuit with them? Anyhow, this recipe also appealed because LEMONS. And it also looked like something nice to have for breakfast.

Full disclosure. I don’t really like cake. Or sweet things in general. I mean, I don’t hate them, I just don’t seek them out, let alone make them at home. I think I stopped baking sweet things back in Toronto, where my Christmas shortbread was legendary. If you were lucky enough to be my friend back then, you know exactly what I mean. But even many many years before that, when I would bake this or that, I always cut down the sugar, often as much as by half. And guess what? The finished product was always perfectly sweet, at least for my taste.

Off piste ramble… I also remember back then that diet soft drinks were the same drinks with half the sugar. And they tasted way better to me. Then they came up the cancer-inducing artificial sweeteners that made the drinks taste way too sweet. That was also when I stopped drinking soft drinks (late 1980s?).

Anyhow, in this case I cut the sugar by a third, from 225 grams to 150 grams. I also used greek yoghurt instead of regular plain yoghurt. I suppose sour cream would also work well. And can I tell you? I was so thrilled with the result. My plan was to make it as a “breakfast cake” option and it was perfect. Tasty, lemony, not too sweet, lovely and moist with a bit of a crust. Also POPPY SEEDS. So hell yeah, will be making this a lot now.

Ingredients and instructions below…
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tzatziki

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So I hadn’t made tzatziki in probably, ohhhh, 35 years? But it got suddenly hot in Sevilla (42º) and it seemed like a nice fresh snack to have on hand. I used to always make this with plain greek yoghurt but since discovering the joy that is labneh, I decided to use that instead, though you need to plan ahead as the labneh needs a day or so in the fridge. Worth it if you have time as it gives the tzatziki a lovely creamier texture. I also prefer “half peeling” the cucumber (see pic below) as the skin can sometimes be a bit too chewy. And fresh herbs are a must. I did try a version with dried dill and… meh.

Ingredients and instructions below…
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garlicky spinach & feta (with optional bacon)

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I first thought of this as a way of using up some almost off baby spinach, and I happened to have some feta and plenty of onions and garlic, so this is what happened. Since then I’ve been having it on toasted breads of various types, but you can also use it as a stuffing for grilled mushrooms or chicken breasts (kiev style). And while this started off vegetarian as an open-faced sandwich on toasted “chapata cristal”,  later on I tried it with crispy bacon added to the mix and turned it into a fabulous grilled sandwich on sourdough rye. As you can see, it’s pretty versatile.

Ingredients and instructions below…
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hasselback potatoes

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I have only made hasselbacks once before now, a few years ago, and it was a disaster. They took forever to prepare and while painstakingly slicing the the potatoes I cut through most of them. Plus someone had told me that the best way to prepare them was to put a sliver of cold butter between each slice (lies! lies!), making it the most time consuming (and frustrating) food prep ever.

Well, clearly I didn’t do enough research because I have since come across several recipes that mention THE SPOON and also that any ol’ kind of fat is fine, so I have opted for a 50/50 blend of melted butter and extra virgen olive oil. One thing I’ll do differently next time (and so should you) is only use half the fat at first and spoon over the rest after about half an hour in the oven, so avoid the butter getting too browned. They still turned out great but I was basting with the very browned fat at “half time” and think it’s better to add it fresh at that point. Also, best to use potatoes that are close to the same size. I was working with what was left of my “lockdown potatoes” .

I am SO going to make these again (and soon) because they keep well in the fridge for a few days (bring them back to room temp and then quickly reheat in the oven). You can also add different toppings, like cheese, garlicky bacon bits, whatever. I mean, they’re potatoes. Everything is great with them. Someone on Twitter told me that they call these “armadillos”, which I think is an even better name for them.

Ingredients and instructions below
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