Recipe corner: Red lentil, courgette and cheese loaf

I have never been the greatest advocate of yawningly “worthy” food so this recipe is something of a departure for me. Years ago, for reasons lost in the mists of time, D and I decided to detox the Carol Vorderman way and spent a very miserable week eating really bad food. I think that we managed about five days before falling face first into pizza. Ever since, anything like “lentil loaf” which sounds suspiciously like it has been plucked from the pages of a “clean eating” (bleurgh) book has made my toes curl a little bit. Nevertheless, I would commend this particular recipe to your attention because it is, quite simply, delicious. It makes me wonder if I should be a bit more open minded – after all, I’m quite a fan of spiralising vegetables as well – but then I remember back to Carol’s recipe for hummus, which resembled nothing so much as wallpaper paste, and I quickly change my mind.

Anyway, this loaf is utterly brilliant for anyone following the WW Flex programme because lentils and other pulses are now pointed at zero, which means that a slice of this makes a really low point, satisfying meal especially with a bit of salad and perhaps a cheeky hard-boiled egg (also zero point. Everything I eat at the moment, I serve with an egg on the side.) Last time I made it, D fried slices in butter and had them in a sandwich which, he reports, was most excellent. But frying things in butter and eating them with bread is (sadly) not the WW way unless one has run a half marathon and has oodles of points to spare. Behold the loaf in all its glory:



And here, in cross section, with the afore mentioned salad and egg (plus a drizzle of salad cream and another of sriracha). This entire lunch box was 3 Smart Points:



A note on reduced fat cheese. I love cheese. The notion of reduced fat cheese makes me slightly sad. Reduced fat products in general can be awful – and I utterly reject such aberrations as plasticky low fat spreads and “lite” mayonnaise. But I genuinely think for cooking, especially midweek, bog-standard cooking, a decent reduced fat Cheddar will do the job perfectly well in most cases. Pilgrims Choice is fine, as is Cathedral City – I need to try some supermarket own brands and if I come across anything particularly good, I will report back. If you are not counting points then feel free to use whatever cheese you like. A nutty Gruyere might work well with lentils. If you are counting, what I would suggest here (if you are so inclined) is to sub a proportion of the reduced fat Cheddar for a good smoked cheese as it will give the most wonderful flavour to the loaf. I used 50g of a very, very smoky (full fat) cheese and 75g of reduced fat Pilgrims Choice and it still worked out at 2 Smart Points per portion.

Ingredients

175g red lentils
Tsp vegetable Bouillon powder
350ml water
Courgette, grated
120g reduced fat Cheddar, grated
3-4 spring onions, chopped
Tbsp sriaracha (or other hot sauce)
Tsp dried chilli flakes
Squeeze of lemon juice
Egg, lightly beaten

Cuts into 8 decent slices, 2 Smart Points per slice (WW Flex)

Put the lentils in a large pan (big enough, eventually, for all the ingredients), stir through the stock powder and then pour over the water and set over a low heat. Bring the pan to a gentle simmer and then cover and cook for 10-15 mins until the lentils have absorbed the water and formed a thick paste. Mine cooked incredibly quickly and needed a splash more water after just 5 minutes, so it is worth checking regularly.

While the lentils cook, preheat the oven to 180, line a loaf tin (I always tend to use loaf tin liners such as these, but greaseproof paper would do as well) and prep the other ingredients.

Allow the lentils to cool very slightly and then stir all the other ingredients through and pour into the prepared tin. Bake for 45-50 mins until set firm and browning on top.

Pass the hemp...

I seem to be accidentally turning into a health food person.

Exhibit A: the spiraliser.  I love the spiraliser!  It gives me a profound sense of satisfaction to use.  Yesterday, I added spiralised courgettes to my pesto pasta and spiralised carrot to my salad.  I find myself eyeing up items in the fruit and veg aisle wondering what else I can make into pretty ribbons.

Exhibit B:  my lunch today includes nut loaf and lentil crisps.  The latter I only picked up because I liked the sound of the creamy dill flavour, but turns out that I quite like the texture of the crisps themselves - a bit poppadum esque.

Exhibit C: D and I are currently slightly obsessed with spelt bread which we have been purchasing in Waitrose, such that I am researching recipes so that I can make it at home.  It has a subtly, nutty flavour and it ROCKS.

A book deal featuring 100 ways with lentils and tofu much surely be in the offing...

Recipe corner: Cod with Parma ham and spiced lentils

Readers, I have given up.  I am simply going to stop trying to make my photographs of food look good.  I’m just not prepared to spend the time and energy lining up the perfect shot – not to mention the fact that I’m not prepared to eat cold food.  No, instead, I am going to Instagram the crap out of everything and pretend that I am being abstract and arty.  Here, for example, we present “Cod noir”.

Cod Noir

So.  D and I have been together for quite a long time – even if you knock off the year that we spent apart (but still saw each other on an almost daily basis.  We were BAD at being separated).  Anyway, it has been a long time, so it is nice that he can still surprise me.  Recently, he declared that he was going to cook a dish of cod and spiced lentils.  I was dubious.  It didn’t sound like the kind of thing that would particularly float either one of our boats.  I tentatively suggested that he wrap the fish in some sort of bacony product (reasoning that everything tastes better with bacon) and then left him to it, expecting to find it all rather meh.

How wrong I was – dear Reader, this was SUPER tasty.  The salty bacon and the fragrant, deeply savoury lentils are the perfect accompaniment for soft, sweet flakes of lovely fish.  There is spice but very little heat (D suggests upping the chilli content).  And it is very good for you.  I would definitely commend this one to your attention.

If you omit the oil altogether, you save 4pps per portion.  Which is nice.

Ingredients

Tbsp. oil

Tsp. mild curry powder

Tsp. Garam Masala

Tsp. turmeric

2 x thick cod fillet (loins are good for this)

4 x slices of Parma ham

120g dried Puy lentils

Tbsp. oil

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

Red chilli, de-seeded and finely chopped

Red onion, finely chopped

Tsp. ground cumin

Tsp. ground coriander

Chicken stock cube (or pot, which is what we use)

Lemon – zest of whole and juice of half

4 tbsp. low fat natural yoghurt

Pinch of cayenne pepper

Pinch of ground coriander

Handful fresh coriander, chopped

Serves 2, 15 pro points per portion

Preheat the oven to 200.

Cover the lentils with water and bring to a simmer over a medium heat.  Cook for 20 minutes, or until they are tender.

Combine the yoghurt, coriander (fresh and dried) and cayenne pepper and set aside.

After the lentils have had 15 minutes, put an ovenproof frying pan lightly coated with oil a tablespoon of oil over a high heat.  Coat the fish with the dried spices and wrap in Parma ham.  Fry for 2 minutes until the ham has started to crisp up and then transfer the pan to the oven and roast for 5 minutes.

Once the cod is safely confined, turn your attentions to your lentils.  Drain thoroughly and then heat a further tablespoon of oil in a clean pan and put the onion into soften.  After a couple of minutes, add the garlic and dried spices, and, once all of these are cooked you can add the lentils and stock pot and combine thoroughly.  Add the lemon zest and juice and season to taste.

Serve the lentils topped with the cod and a generous dollop of yoghurt.

Recipe corner - partridge with bacon, lentils and parsnip puree

Sigh.  Yet again food photography that makes perfectly decent meals look like....well, slightly nondescript plates full of goo.  Perhaps I need to hire Lesley to be my photographer on a permanent basis.  Or take more time and trouble over the whole endeavour.  The thing is, when I've got to this (indicates upwards) stage, I want to eat!  And Strictly is on pause and I need to find out whether this is finally the week that Abbey trips over her own feet.

Anyway, this was a highly delicious weekend dinner that I thoroughly recommend.  It requires several pans and a bit of time, but pretty much everything can be prepared in advance and then heated through while the meat cooks.  Talking of the meat, I managed to slightly overdo mine (partridge breasts are very small) so I've reduced the cooking time in the recipe below but keep an eye on it if you have a particularly enthusiastic oven.

Ingredients

4 small partridge breasts
2 rashers of streaky bacon
25g butter
Several sprigs of fresh thyme
Salt, pepper

75g dried Puy lentils
Rasher of streaky bacon
Stick of celery
2 cloves of garlic
Tsp olive oil
100ml red wine
500ml (ish) chicken or vegetable stock
2 tsp red wine vinegar
Tsp juniper berries
Bay leaf
Small bunch of thyme
Salt, pepper

3 medium parsnips
250ml skimmed milk
15g Parmesan cheese
Salt, pepper, fresh nutmeg

Serves 2, 21 pro points per portion

For the lentils: Warm the oil through in a large pan (the lentils will cook better if the pan has a big surface area).  Finely chop the celery, garlic and bacon.  When the oil is hot, tip in the bacon and vegetables and cook until the veg are soft and the bacon is golden.  Then add the lentils and stir well to coat in the bacon fat.

Pour in the red wine and bring up the heat to reduce it quickly and furiously.  Lightly crush the juniper berries with the blade of a knife or the back of a spoon.  Add to the pan along with the thyme and the bay leaves and then pour in the stock and the vinegar.  Ensure that the lentils are well covered with liquid - if not, then you can top up with more water.  Season very well and then reduce the heat and simmer for at least 35 minutes until the liquid has all but evaporated and the lentils are tender.  Lentils tend to be variable little creatures so be prepared for it to take longer, and, if the liquid looks to be boiling dry, add a splash more.

For the parsnips: Peel and slice and then put in a saucepan, covered with the milk.  Cook over a very gentle heat.  The milk should be at a bare simmer throughout - any higher and it will catch on the bottom of the pan leading to a nasty burned milk smell in the kitchen and a very long washing up job.  The parsnips need to be falling apart soft - this will take 20-30 minutes.  Transfer the lot to a blitzer along with the grated Parmesan cheese, seasoning and a hefty grating of nutmeg.  Whizz to a smooth puree.  You could then pass it through a sieve if you're feeling extra cheffy.

For the partridge: I would recommend roasting these in a little foil tray - it saves on washing up.  Whatever you use, make sure it is not completely flat or you are liable to end up with melted butter all over the bottom of your oven.

Bring the butter to room temperature and then season well and mash in the thyme leaves.  Smear the butter over the partridge breasts.  Reserving a dab to butter the roasting receptacle.

Cover the bacon rasher with cling film and using a rolling pin (or similar) give it a good bash.  Cut the rashers in half horizontally and drape over the buttered breasts.  Transfer to the roasting tray.  To roast, preheat the oven to 220 degrees and then cook for 25 minutes.  Allow to rest for 5 minutes before serving with the parsnip puree and lentils, drizzled with the melted butter.