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Veggies bits Mac ‘n’ Cheese

INGREDIENTS

• 500g pasta shapes, such as macaroni or penne. Cook as per packet instructions.
• 500g cauliflower, broccoli or cabbage stems, peeled and cut into small chunks. Peeled cauliflower or broccoli stems are great for this; keep in the freezer until you have enough. Other veggie bits can be included
• 2 tablespoons plain flour
• 40g butter
• 500ml (2 cups) milk of your choice
• [2 bay leaves, 1 onion roughly chopped, lots of pepper, couple of whole cloves, pinch of nutmeg]
• About a cup of grated cheese such as parmesan or tasty, plus 1/2cup extra on top (plant-based cheeses can also be used)
• Some parsley or other herbs that you like or need to use up.
• 2 teaspoons wholegrain or Dijon mustard
• 1/2c fresh breadcrumbs (whizz-up leftover bread and keep in a bag in the freezer)

EQUIPMENT

You will need about a 2 litre ovenproof dishes for this recipe. – or divide into individual dishes’

METHOD

• Chop up the veggies and put into a covered microwave-proof dish with a splash of water. Microwave until tender. Cool and blitz in food processor or in batches in your Nutribullet-type smoothy maker.
• Preheat oven to 180C. Cook the pasta, following packet directions, adding the cauliflower for the last 4 minutes of cooking time, until al dente. Drain and transfer to a large bowl.

Make the bechamel

• Melt the butter in a saucepan and then add flour, stir and cook on medium for two minutes. Set aside.  This is called a Roux and is used to thicken many soups, sauces and gravies.
• Heat the milk slowly with all the aromatics in the brackets. This step is vital to a good bechamel.
• Very gradually add the strained milk to the roux, whisking as you go, to get a smooth paste. Return to the cleaned saucepan and bring to the boil (it won’t thicken unless it reaches a boiling point) reduce to a simmer and cook for at least 10 minutes, stirring frequently.
• Add in the veggie puree, cheese, mustard, any herbs, and other flavourings you like
• Mix into your drained pasta and then into your greased ovenproof dish (greasing is to make cleaning easier). Top with extra cheese and breadcrumbs. Bake until well-browned and bubbly; 20-30 minutes.
• Serve into bowls or keep in fridge for hungry kids and teens to microwave and scoff at their leisure.

A hearty dish of what’s in the garden or in the back of the fridge

This is infinitely variable and will ideally depend on what is in the garden or at least, on what is in season in the shops or market. As an example:

•  1 cup of green beans, stems trimmed
• 1 cup snow peas or sugar snaps or shelled peas. Remove any stringy bits.
• 1 cup zucchini slice into even slices
• 1 cup baby potatoes; boiled until just tender; slice into ~1cm slices
• A handful of mint or other herbs chopped
• 1 bunch spring onions or some spring onion tops from the garden sliced fairly finely You can save the bottom ~10cm of a bunch of spring onions and re-grow them in a jar of water on a sunny windowsill or even plant them directly into the garden.
• 1 bunch flat leaf parsley, chopped coarsely
• 4 really fresh eggs poached
• ¼ cup of butter
• Juice of 1 lemon
• Salt and pepper to taste

METHOD

• Steam, poach, microwave, sauté or stir fry the vegetables. –keep them on the crunchy side.
• Toss the drained vegetables in the butter, stir through lemon juice and herbs.
• Arrange on four plates and top each with a poached egg.
• Omit the butter and try other sauces; go Asian, or Greek or Mexican or whatever. Omit the egg and replace with fried tofu or a sliced spicy sausage or some pan fried fish or chicken

More tips for low carbon cooking

• Use lids on pots and pans to retain heat and enable cooking with less energy
• Keep the fridge closed.
• Choose energy efficient appliances and consider if those appliances are as useful as you think (do you really need a bread maker to stick next to the ice-cream maker, the tortilla press and the crepe maker?)
• Double the cook and halve the energy: Cook double batches of stews, curries, pasta sauces etc, and save half for another time. Using the oven for dinner? –make the dessert a baked item as well, or roast some veggies to go with tomorrow night’s dinner.
•  Boil only as much water as you need for a cup of tea or for cooking vegetables.

Quick Peanut Sauce

Turns a pile of roasted, steamed, or fresh veggies into a meal

INGREDIENTS

• 1/3 c peanut butter
• 1/4 c honey (or other liquid sweetener of choice)
• 1/4 c sesame oil (for that toasty flavour)
• 1/4 c apple cider vinegar or Japanese rice vinegar. -if using one of the stronger rice vinegars from Southeast Asian countries, use less.
• 1 t powdered ginger
• Put it all in a jar and shake to combine. Toss through veggies and serve cold, room temperature or warm.

Notes: The shake method works best with the lid on.

If the peanut butter wont dissolve, microwave the jar of dressing (minus the lid) for thirty seconds and shake again.

Roasted vegetable soup

Use any vegetables that you have available, roasted up to make double use of the oven while baking a cake or pizza or doing a classic family roast. Think along the lines of classic Pumpkin soup and you’ll get the vibe. This is a great way to use up veggies when, individually, there is not enough of each to be of use, but together, they add-up to a meal.  Serves four to six.

INGREDIENTS

• About 650g leftover roast pumpkin (see recipe above)
• 2-3 roasted onions or dice and fry some
• 700ml-1 litre vegetable stock, A few gratings of nutmeg
• Proteins of your choice; leftovers from roasts are ideal or drop in a tub of Silken Tofu.
• 3 tbsp olive or canola oil

METHOD

• Remove any too burnt or dry bits, and tough or papery skin.
• Purée the vegetables in a blender until smooth, then thin with stock until it’s the texture you like.
• Pour into a pot, grate over a little nutmeg and warm through.
• Adjust the seasoning to taste.