VEGETARIAN MAIN DISHES

Cannelloni

Preparation time: 35 minutes	Give the vegetarian in your life this instead of lasagne and they’ll thank you with all their heart! Thanks to the creative wife of a health-conscious (and hungry) GP for passing on this recipe.
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Fruit/veg per serving:	Ingredients (serves 4) dried cannelloni tubes or lasagne sheets • 8 For the filling: ricotta cheese • 250 g tub frozen chopped (not leaf) spinach • 200 g, defrosted nutmeg, powdered or freshly grated • ½ level teaspoon vegetable oil • ½ tablespoon spring onions • 2–3, finely chopped For the sauce: onion • 1 garlic • 1–2 cloves, peeled and crushed chopped tomatoes • 1 tin (400 g) tomato purée • 1 tablespoon bayleaf • 1 dried oregano or mixed herbs • 1 teaspoon black pepper • to taste parmesan cheese, grated • 25 g

You will need a medium-sized, ovenproof dish.

For the filling mix the ricotta cheese with the spinach, spring onion, nutmeg, and black pepper to taste. Put aside while you prepare the rest of the dish. This stage can be done up to 24 hours in advance and the mixture kept covered in the fridge until needed.

Next make the sauce. In a medium saucepan, cook the onion in the oil over a gentle heat for 5 minutes or until soft. Add the garlic, tinned tomatoes, tomato purée, herbs, bayleaf and black pepper and cook for about 10 minutes. Remove from heat. Discard the bayleaf before using the sauce.

Fill the cannelloni tubes with the filling mixture. If using lasagne sheets, soften them first in boiling water for about 5 minutes, then use to wrap round the filling to make your own cannelloni tubes.

Take care not to overcook the lasagne as this will make it hard to handle.

Spread half the tomato sauce over the base of the ovenproof dish and place the filled cannelloni tubes on top. Cover with the remainder of the sauce, then sprinkle the parmesan cheese over the dish.

Bake in a pre-heated oven at 180ºC/Gas Mark 4 for about 20 minutes or until lightly browned and bubbling.

Serve with a green salad or freshly cooked green vegetables.

Homity pie

Preparation time: 30 minutes	This is a variation on the classic vegetarian dish. It is served without the pastry lining and uses mature cheddar to help keep the fat content to an acceptable level without compromising taste.
Cooking time: 25 minutes
Fruit/veg per serving:	Ingredients (serves 4) potatoes (desirée or maris piper work best) • 2 medium (approx 350 g) onions • 3 medium (about 450 g), chopped garlic • 4 cloves, crushed vegetable oil • 3 tablespoons mature cheddar cheese • 80 g, grated semi-skimmed milk • 90 ml fresh parsley • 1 bunch, chopped black pepper • to taste

Preheat the oven to 220°C/ Gas Mark 7

Boil or steam the potatoes until tender. Finely chop the onions and garlic and, in a non-stick pan, soften in the oil over a low heat. Combine the potatoes and onions; mix in the remaining oil, parsley, half the cheese, milk and season well with black pepper.

Place in an ovenproof dish. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the pie, and bake in the oven for about 25 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with some freshly cooked cabbage, carrots, broccoli or preferred vegetable.

Handy hint: Stir in some frozen peas to the mixture before cooking for a colourful and nutritious addition to the dish.

Hot vegetable wraps

Preparation time: 20 minutes	Try this for a quick and tasty low-fat lunch or supper dish. The chilli helps boost the flavours of the vegetables without salt, but you can leave it out if you prefer.
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Fruit/veg per serving:	Ingredients (serves 4) tortilla wraps • 4 vegetable oil • 1 tablespoon courgettes • 2 medium carrots • 2 red pepper • 1 onion • 1 medium garlic • 1 clove fresh green or red chilli • 1 small (or use ¼–½ teaspoon chilli powder) tinned chopped tomatoes • 1 small tin frozen sweetcorn • 80 g (or small tin, drained) cheddar cheese • 30 g, grated low-fat fromage frais • 200 ml tub spring onions • 2, chopped black pepper • to taste

Preheat the oven to 200ºC/Gas Mark 6.

Cut the courgettes, carrots and red pepper into large matchsticks, roughly 3 cm long. Finely slice the onion, garlic and chilli.

In a non-stick pan, heat the oil and stir-fry these vegetables for about 5 minutes – they should still retain some bite.

Warm the tortillas according to the packet instructions. Divide the vegetable mixture between the four tortillas and roll each one up around the portion of vegetables to make the wraps.

Place the wraps in a lightly greased, shallow, ovenproof dish. Mix the chopped tomatoes with the sweetcorn and spread over the wraps. Sprinkle with the grated cheese. Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes or until the cheese is melted and bubbling.

Mix the fromage frais with the chopped spring onion and black pepper to taste. Serve a generous spoonful with the hot wraps, along with plenty of green salad.

Handy hint: The wraps are available in many grocers and supermarkets. They range in salt content so try to choose wraps from the ‘healthy eating’ ranges, or those with a maximum of 0.3 g sodium per 100 g.

Cook’s tip:

You can top the cooked vegetables with some shredded cooked chicken in the wraps if you prefer.

Lentils with spinach

Preparation time: 15 minutes	This tasty and nutritious store-cupboard standby shows how a few well-chosen flavours liven up some very basic ingredients without the need for salt.
Cooking time: 35–40 minutes
Fruit/veg per serving:	Ingredients (serves 4) onion • 1 medium, finely chopped garlic • 2 cloves, finely chopped vegetable oil • 2 tablespoons carrots • 200 g, diced celery • 120 g, diced dried green and/or brown lentils • 200 g water (or low salt stock) • 600 ml tinned chopped tomatoes • ½ tin ground black pepper • ½ teaspoon fennel seeds • ½ teaspoon dried thyme • 1 teaspoon frozen spinach • 200 g balsamic vinegar • 1 tablespoon boiled brown rice • 600 g

In a large non-stick saucepan, sauté the onion and garlic in the oil until soft. Stir in the carrots and celery and cook for a further 2 minutes. Add the dry lentils, water and tomatoes, along with the herbs /seasonings.

Bring to the boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 15–20 minutes. Add frozen spinach. Bring back to the boil and stir to mix thoroughly. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for another 10–15 minutes until the lentils and carrots are tender.

Stir in the vinegar. Serve with brown rice, chappatis, pitta bread or fresh bread.

Pizza pronto

Preparation time: 20 minutes plus 30 minutes proving time Cooking time: 10 minutes Fruit/veg per serving:

Think you shouldn’t be eating pizza on your healthy diet? Well think again. This one is quick, easy, filling and really tasty but lower in fat or salt than many you might buy in the shops. If you have a breadmaker, follow the manufacturer’s instructions for the base but cut down the salt and add the dried herbs as below. If you only have white flour, cut the water by 20 ml. If time is really tight, use a bought pizza base, a slice of bread, a halved English muffin or pitta bread. Then add your healthy topping.

Ingredients (serves 4) strong white flour • 200 g strong wholemeal flour • 200 g dried fast-acting yeast • 1¼ teaspoons caster sugar • 1 teaspoon dried oregano or mixed herbs • 1 teaspoon salt • ¼ teaspoon olive oil • 3 tablespoons warm water • 220 ml For the topping: tomato paste • 4 tablespoons garlic • 4 cloves, finely chopped dried oregano or mixed herbs • 2 teaspoons fresh mushrooms • 100 g onion • 1 medium, finely sliced low fat mozzarella cheese • 250 g dried crushed chillies • 1 pinch per pizza (optional)

You will need two large, well-greased baking trays.

Combine the flour, yeast, sugar, herbs and salt in a large bowl. Stir in the oil and the water, making sure that the water feels warm but not hot. Use your hands to combine to a soft dough, adding a little more flour if it is too sticky.

On a well-floured surface, knead the dough for 10 minutes in total.

Divide the dough into four pieces and roll out each piece into a circle, approximately 20 cm in diameter. Sprinkle the dough, rolling pin and work surface with flour as required to stop the dough sticking.

Transfer the pizza bases to the baking trays and spread each with a tablespoon of tomato paste. Sprinkle with the garlic and dried herbs. Top with the sliced mushrooms and onion and, lastly, the sliced mozzarella.

Leave in a warm place, out of draughts for 30 minutes to allow the dough to rise. Pre-heat the oven to 220°C, Gas Mark 7.

Bake the pizzas for 10 minutes or until browned and the cheese is bubbling. Serve with a mixed leaf salad. If you like your pizza spicy, sprinkle with some dried crushed chillies to boost the flavour.

Handy hint: If you want to reduce the potassium content of the pizza, use drained, tinned chopped tomatoes in place of the tomato paste. You can also use tinned, sliced mushrooms instead of the fresh mushrooms, or omit altogether.

Other topping ideas:

•Sweetcorn, green and red pepper, sliced fresh green chillies or dried crushed red chillies, cottage cheese and a sprinkling of grated cheddar.

•Spinach, ricotta cheese and pine nuts.

•Frozen mixed roasted vegetables (available from most supermarkets).

•Sliced tomato, fresh basil leaves, low-fat mozzarella.

Quick lentil curry

Preparation time: 15 minutes	Quick, healthy, tasty and easy – what more could you ask for?
Cooking time: 30 minutes Fruit/veg per serving:	Ingredients (serves 4) olive oil • 1 tablespoon ground cumin • 1 teaspoon ground turmeric • 1 teaspoon garlic • 1 clove, crushed pumpkin/butternut squash • 300 g, peeled and cut into chunks new potatoes • 100 g, quartered chopped tomatoes • 400 g can brown lentils • 400 g can, drained fresh coriander leaves • 1 teaspoon, chopped

Heat the oil in large pan. Add the cumin, turmeric and garlic, then cook for 1 minute. Stir in the pumpkin, potatoes and chopped tomatoes. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes.

Add the lentils and cook for further 5 minutes until the potato and pumpkin are cooked. Add coriander and serve with basmati rice, chapattis, pittas or other bread for a speedy meal.

Roasted vegetables with bulgar wheat

Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 30–40 minutes	This is inspired by a vegetarian barbecue dish of a friend and colleague who is a great cook (see below). The bulgar wheat is an easy low GI accompaniment which is worth trying, but you can serve the vegetables with pasta shapes, couscous or just bread if you prefer.
Fruit/veg per serving:	Ingredients (serves 4) pepper, red, yellow or green,   seeds/stalk removed • 1 large courgettes • 1 large aubergine • 1 medium red onions • 2 fresh herbs   (rosemary, oregano or thyme) • a large sprig garlic • 5 cloves, peeled olive oil • 1 tablespoon bulgar wheat • 300 g fresh basil leaves • 2 tablespoons

You will need a large ovenproof shallow dish or roasting tin.

Preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas Mark 6.

Cut the peppers into chunks and thickly slice the courgettes. Cut the aubergine into 1 cm dice. Slice each red onion into about 8 wedges.

Put all the vegetables, the herbs and whole garlic cloves in the ovenproof dish. Drizzle over the olive oil and toss to coat all the vegetables. Roast in the oven for about 30–40 minutes, stirring to turn the vegetables once or twice during the cooking time so that they cook evenly.

Meanwhile prepare the bulgar wheat according to the packet instructions.

Stir the roasted vegetables with all the cooking juices into the cooked bulgar wheat. Stir in the basil immediately before serving.

Cook’s tip: This can make a great vegetarian barbeque dish. Keep the peppers and courgettes whole, thickly slice the aubergine lengthways and half the onions. Brush with olive oil and cook the vegetables over the barbecue. Peel the peppers and then cut all the cooked vegetables into bite-sized chunks. Then stir into the bulgar wheat with some crushed garlic and a large handful of basil and/or rocket leaves. Drizzle with some more olive oil and balsamic vinegar.