THE HAIRY BIKERS Easy Eats The following recipes have been taken from Si and Dave’s new cookbook based around one-pot recipes. The hearty meals featured in their book are delicious and nutritious and hopefully there will be no fighting about who will be doing the washing up. Just right for Christmas... Turkey and ham C hristmas Casserole This is a great way to use up any leftover turkey and ham at Christmas, or you can substitute chicken at any other time of year. The topping is made from stuffing ingredients and turns out beautifully crunchy and tasty - of course, many of us think the stuffing is the best part of Christmas dinner. A fab festive feast. Serves 4 INGREDIENTS 50g butter 3 leeks, cut into rounds 30g plain flour 100ml white wine 500ml chicken stock 100ml double cream 400g cooked turkey (or chicken), diced 150g ham, diced 2 tarragon sprigs, leaves finely chopped 100g peas, defrosted 6 cubes of frozen spinach, defrosted salt and black pepper Stuffing crust 100g breadcrumbs 1 small onion, grated 100g chestnuts, grated 50g dried cranberries, soaked in warm water (optional) 2 tsp dried sage small bunch of parsley, finely chopped large knob of butter 20 | www.guildfordliving.co.uk METHOD First make the filling. Heat the butter in a large flameproof casserole dish. When it has melted, add the leeks with plenty of seasoning and turn down the heat. Cover the dish with a lid and leave the leeks to cook gently until tender. Stir regularly and try not to let them take on any colour. Stir the flour into the dish to form a roux around the leeks. Add the wine and stir vigorously - it will thicken considerably. Gradually add the stock, stirring constantly, until you have incorporated it all, then add the cream. Fold in the turkey or chicken, ham, tarragon and peas. Squeeze any excess water from the spinach, then stir the spinach into the dish. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper as needed. To make the topping, mix the breadcrumbs, onion, chestnuts, drained cranberries and the herbs, then season with plenty of salt and pepper. Sprinkle this mixture over the top of the filling, then dot with butter. Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes until the filling is bubbling and breaking through the crisp, golden-brown topping. Veggie chilli with cornmeal dumplings We do like a dumpling and these sweetcorn ones are just right with our veggie chilli. There are lots of great flavours here and this is a good filling feast for hungry hordes. Serves 4 INGREDIENTS 2 tbsp olive oil 1 large onion, diced 1 green pepper, diced 1 red pepper, diced 2 celery sticks, diced 2 jalepeño chillies, finely diced 4 garlic cloves, crushed 2 bay leaves 1 tbsp ground cumin 25g red lentils, well rinsed 750ml vegetable stock 400ml coconut milk 1 head of baby spring greens, shredded 2 x 400g cans of black or pinto beans, drained and rinsed juice of 1 lime salt and black pepper Cornmeal dumplings 150g self-raising flour 75g chilled butter, diced 125g fine cornmeal 125g sweetcorn, defrosted if frozen 50ml buttermilk 1 egg 100g vegetarian Cheddar cheese, grated chopped fresh coriander METHOD Heat the oil in a large flameproof casserole dish with a lid and add the onion, peppers, celery and chillies. Cook over a medium heat until the vegetables have started to soften, then stir in the garlic, bay leaves, cumin and red lentils. Season generously with salt and pepper, then pour in the vegetable stock. Bring to the boil and leave for 5 minutes, then turn down the heat and continue to simmer until the red lentils have softened. Add the coconut milk, spring greens and beans and cook until the spring greens are tender and the lentils have collapsed and thickened the sauce. Taste for seasoning and add the lime juice. To make the dumplings, put the flour into a bowl with a pinch of salt. Rub in the butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs, then mix in the cornmeal, sweetcorn, buttermilk and egg. Bring everything together into a firm dough, then divide into 12 pieces. Roll them into balls. Arrange the dumplings over the chilli and cover. Cook over a medium heat for about 25 minutes until the dumplings are well risen and glossy. Serve the chilli with grated cheese and plenty of chopped coriander. The Hairy Bikers’ One Pot Wonders by Si King and Dave Myers is published by Seven Dials in hardback at £22, photography by Andrew Hayes- Watkins
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