Mushroom Chilli with Lime

Lately, I've been pondering a lot about the meaning of life! I think Douglas Adams and Monty Python have already had a few stabs at it. There's a lot of talk about it, quotes about it but has anyone actually defined it?

"Life is rather like a tin of sardines-we're all of us looking for the key." Alan Bennett 

So has this anything to do with Mushroom Chilli with Lime? Absolutely!

If this meaning involves giving your body the best possible food, which in turn will keep you healthy then yes, its all part of the meaning of life, for me anyway. And it fuels the brain and gives more time for procrastinating and thinking of what the hell am I really doing here.

Hey, this is getting a little heavy. 

I need to add more value to what I am doing in my later years, so it is time to get all my jobs done, things I have put off for a while, then I will have some breathing space. I have made a huge list and I am going to work through this over the next couple of months. That painting job, family history, the garden project, the photography project, the collage, that mandala etc etc.

With all that accomplished it will be time to plan the rest of my life...................!

So to start off this rather eventful week, I offer you this delicious, easy to make, flavoursome, low calorie recipe (around 200 calories). It's full of fibre, protein, vitamin C and D, B6, Riboflavin and Niacin. 

Can you beat that?

MUSHROOM CHILLI WITH LIME

INGREDIENTS

500g mushrooms, sliced thickly
400g can of kidney beans, washed and drained
1 brown onion, chopped finely
2 cloves garlic diced
1 tablespoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground chilli or chilli flakes (more if you want it really hot)
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons smokey paprika
salt and pepper
400g can chopped tomatoes
4 tablespoons olive oil
handful fresh coriander, chopped
juice of 1/2 lime

Lime dressing
1/4 cup  light sour cream or Greek yoghurt
ime zest and juice 


Make the lime dressing first. Zest the lime and juice it. Keep the juice and the zest seperate.  Put the zest, 1/4 cup of Greek yoghurt and half the juice into a small container and stir to incorporate. Now set aside.

In a large frypan add oil and bring it up to temperature. Lower the heat and add all of the spices and cook, stirring for 2 minutes. Do no allow the spices to burn or they will be very bitter.

Next, add the mushrooms. Cook relatively high so the mushrooms colour up but do not release juices. Throw in the chopped garlic and keep stirring, making sure that everything is covered in the oil and spices. 

Time to add the washed beans and tomatoes. Stir in 2 tablespoons of chopped coriander and season with salt and pepper. Lower the heat and simmer uncovered for approximately 25 - 30 minutes until the sauce has thickened. Make sure you stir often to avoid burning.

Add the juice of half of the lime and stir in. When you are ready to serve, sprinkle the top with more chopped coriander and a few dollops of the lime dressing.

Serve with salad, rice, quinoa, cous cous, bread or just eat by itself.

Lentil, Mushroom and Brussel Sprout Strudel

My mother had no formal training as a chef yet she cooked for a large number of people for a long time. She became 'famous' locally for her steak and kidney pies, Yorkshire puddings and roast meats.

As a child we always had plenty of food on the table, vegetables my father grew; beans, peas, cabbages, potatoes and with butchers in the family even during hard times we ate well. Our neighbour handed over bruised apples from his tree and with my rhubarb (found on an old allotment and brought home for dad to plant) we ate fabulous crumbles with custard for dessert.

But my mum was a lousy vegetable cook; Over cooking was something she was accustomed to from her childhood. Carrots with a little bite were 'under done', runner beans with a 'squeak', were 'not cooked properly'. So for me to become vegetarian from a relatively young age, seemed somewhat odd.

I have memories of sprouts cooked in boiling water for ever, until they were just a load of mush and served proudly with Sunday roast and lashings of gravy. If you have similar memories then I know what you are thinking! Brussel Sprout Strudel - no way!

Although my childhood sprouts weren't OK,  I haven't been discouraged from eating them but I cook them very differently to my mum and I love experimenting with sprout recipes. My love of sprouts and lentils gave me the inspiration for this recipe. Add mushrooms and it makes perfect sense, to me anyway. 

The lentils are strong and firm and with the butteriness (if indeed that is a word) of the sprouts, they just melt in your mouth.

I am pretty sure that most people who like to cook have some recipes where the ingredients are just completely absurd. And I bet that once you tell people what's in the dish, they seem surprised that they go together so well. 

This is that kind of recipe. Don't be scared now, just give it a go and you might surprise yourself. 

  LENTIL, MUSHROOM AND BRUSSEL SPROUT STRUDEL

Serves 4 people

225g Brussel sprouts

1 x 425g can lentils

200g can/jar of roasted red peppers

125g mushrooms, chopped

1 brown onion, finely sliced

2 cloves garlic minced

1 tablespoon olive oil

20g butter

50g Parmesan cheese finely grated

3 tablespoons breadcrumbs

Filo pastry about 12 sheets

salt and pepper

20g extra butter for the filo pastry

Sauce

1 cup white wine

1 - 2 tablespoons flour

1 knob of butter

1 cup stock or a stock cube and water

Steam/ cook  Brussel sprouts until almost tender. Remove and set aside.

In a large frypan add olive oil and 20g butter and cook onions and garlic on low until they are soft and just starting to brown. This will take around 15 minutes.

Add mushrooms, brown for a few minutes then add roasted pepper. Cook uncovered, stirring often for about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. 

Chop the sprouts in half and ad these to the pan and cook for a further 5 minutes, stirring and seasoning as you go.

Remove from the heat and place them in a bowl and set aside.

Using the same pan, make the sauce. Add the butter, flour to make a rue then add cup of white wine and stock and cook, stirring until the sauce thickens.

Cook the sauce for a couple of minutes then return the vegetables to the pan and mix until they are well coated. Now take them off the heat and allow to cool before making up the strudel.

Once the vegetables have cooled, it's time to make the strudel. 

Melt the extra butter in a microwave container. Take one piece of filo pastry and using a pastry brush, brush butter over the surface. Don't take too long or the pastry will dry out. Now sprinkle over a little cheese and breadcrumbs and add another layer. Repeat until you have 4 pieces of filo on top of each other.

Take half the mixture and place it in a line along the long side of the pastry, leaving a little pastry free at the ends to tuck in. Now fold the ends over the mixture and roll up like a big sausage roll.

Repeat this with 4 more sheets of filo and mixture. You should make 2 strudels out of this mixture. Lastly brush the tops of the strudels with any remaining butter. Place them on a baking tray lines with baking paper and bake in a preheated oven 190º/375º for 20 - 30 minutes until the pastry is nice and brown.

 Serve with a salad or two or your favourite vegetables and a dollop of chutney or pickle.

On Holiday! Collecting Recipes!

It has been a very busy few weeks and I am sorry I haven't posted many recipes. Basically although I have been trying to get myself ready for my walking trip, I have also been trying to shake off a really bad cold which has laid me low for the last few weeks and I think it will be another week before I start to feel a whole lot better.

This isn't good news because tomorrow I am heading out to Singapore on my first stop to UK. I can't wait to feel the warmth and humidity in Singapore, because I think that's what my body needs right now to help it heal quickly.

I will not be posting for 5 weeks or so, but I wanted you to know that I will be collecting a whole of of new food ideas while I am away and hope to be able to share when I return.

So wish me luck on my 350 km walk! and  hope the legs holds out.

I am leaving you with some pics of UK I took last year. See you soon!