BURN BLACK Blog

23Aug/100

Meat Free Mondays #4.

There hasn't been one of these blog entries in a while and the simple explanation is purely because I'm no longer vegetarian.  Yes I do feel guilty for not sticking with it (I really did try) and lecturing won't make me feel any better either (I despise Veggie lecturers / PETA morons - I always have).  I will probably go back to vegetarianism at some point as it seems to be the dietary trend that I've subconsciously followed since I was 12 or 13 (where I'll be veggie for anything between 4-6 years then I'll start eating meat again for a year or so and then switch back for another 4-6 years).  It still works out that I've been veggie for over a third of my life (I'm 31) and that still, in my opinion has to count for something.

Anyway moving on.  My boyfriend and I made this relatively simple and delicious pasta dish recently.  Super easy, super tasty and relatively cheap as chips to make.  I was tempted to say that this would be a nice summer dish but our British summer seems to have ended, as usual, prematurely (booooo).

Fusilli Mediterranean Style

Ingredients for 4 persons:

*  320 grams of fusilli pasta.
*  200 grams of buffalo mozzarella (we just used normal mozzarella).
*  30 pachino tomatoes (we substituted these with cherry tomatoes).
*  2 cloves of garlic.
*  4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil.
*  A handful of minced fresh parsley.
*  A handful of capers.
*  Some red pepper (we think the chef used crushed chilli flakes in the video so this is what we used).
*  The juice of 2 lemons.
*  A pinch of salt.

Hope you enjoy.

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28Dec/092

Meat Free Mondays #2.

It's been a while since I last posted for which I apologise but in between work, decorating and getting ready for Christmas I've had little time to indulge in blogging.  I have however been wanting to make Borscht for a while and today after going to my local Tescos for some Parsnips and feeling like I'm coming down with cold thought it best to make it, especially with it being a MFM.  I know a lot of wine isn't considered vegan and it's traditionally served with sour cream so this is one purely for the veggies I'm afraid.  If you’re following the Weight Watchers program this works out at 0.5 points a bowl, with the sour cream it's 1.5 (I used ASDA's Good For You low fat version).

Red Borscht

Overall I'm of the conclusion that this wasn't worth the hassle.  I spilt red wine all over my kitchen, scalded my hand whilst sieving the veg and to me it tasted as if it were missing something.  I normally prefer my soups to be thicker.  I also found the waste of veg a bit too much so recycled it all in a broth (I just added it all into a big pot with more water, a tin of chopped tomato, a bucket load of herbs and dried chilli and two handfuls of bulgar wheat) and to be honest I prefer that to the Borscht.  Maybe I've done something wrong but I doubt I'll be cooking this again.  I hope you have better luck with it if you do decide on trying it however.

Ingredients

  • 1 celeriac
  • 2 carrots
  • A handful of fresh parsley
  • 1 leek
  • 1 onion
  • 1 large parsnip
  • 4 red beetroots
  • 10 black peppercorns
  • 2 grains of pimento (or allspice)
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 glass and a half of red wine
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • juice of 2 lemons
  • salt and pepper

Instructions

Put a pan with 3 pints of water on the boil.  Peel and chop the celeriac, carrots, leek, onion and parsnip, wash them and add to the pan.  Simmer for 20 minutes.

Peel and thinly slice the beetroot and place in a separate pan with the peppercorns, pimento (I had none but found this as a good substitute) and bay leaves. Simmer, uncovered, in 1 pint of water for 30 minutes.

Sieve the vegetable and beetroot stocks and combine the clear liquids, discarding the vegetables. Return the borscht to the heat. Add the red wine, lemon juice, salt and pepper, sugar and garlic. Simmer for 20 minutes.  Serve with Sour Cream.

Preparation time: Around 60 minutes.

Serves: 6

2Jun/080

Once you pop…

Yeah I'm a bit of a sicko at times but this not only made me laugh but also made me think "that's actually pretty cool". It'll save on funeral costs if anything.

In other news if I've done ok then by the end of this week my many years at higher education will finally draw to a close. Too say I'm pretty nervous is an understatement.