Speckled lentils and eggs

1 cup speckled or Puy lentils
half cup dried mushrooms
2 celery stalks
1 onion
1 punnet fresh mushrooms
parsley
3 eggs
vinegar
oil

Soak the dried mushrooms in hot water for a half hour. Then drain, reserving the liquid, and chop. Simmer the lentils in the mushroom water with a bay leaf. Start checking at 20 minutes. They should not get too soft. When they're done, strain them and keep the liquid for soup or something. Chop the fresh mushrooms coarsely. Dice the celery and onion and sweat them in oil. Add the mushrooms and let them brown. Toss together in a big mixing bowl with the lentils, reconstituted mushrooms, some chopped parsley and an oily 3:1 vinaigrette. Hardboil the eggs. Cut them in quarters and arrange on top of the lentils.

Burritos

2 fennel
1 butternut
1 tin black beans
garlic
cumin
coriander seed
cheddar cheese
8 tortillas

1 tin marrowfat peas
1 red chilli
garlic
quarter of a lime
coriander

Peel and dice the butternut. Slice the fennel into fat strips. Toss them together with oil, salt and smoked paprika. Roast in a hot oven for 30-40 minutes until they're slightly charred and the fennel has a nice chew. Simmer the beans with a bit of garlic and some ground cumin and coriander.

Drain the marrowfats but reserve the liquid. Blitz them in the food processor with the other ingredients, adding enough of the pea water to make a guac-like consistency.

Build the burritos with cheese, beans, roast veg, and green stuff. Roll them up snug and they will keep, covered, for a while. To serve, toast them on two sides over medium-low heat in a cast iron skillet with the lid on so that they heat through. They should get light brown and crispy.

Cabbage and barley soup

3 sheets kombu
small handful dried mushrooms
1 tablespoon fennel seeds
1 big onion, chopped large
1 celery stalk, chopped large
fresh ginger, minced
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 big carrots, chopped large
1 teaspoon miso
3 handfuls pearl barley
half a pointed cabbage, chopped large
half a lemon or more

Simmer the kombu and mushrooms in a saucepan to make the broth. In a soup pot, heat some oil over high heat and add the fennel seeds so that they crackle and brown. Before they burn, add the onion and celery and ginger. Remove the kombu from the broth, but leave the mushrooms. When the onions are translucent, add the carrots and the broth. When it comes to boil, add the miso and the barley. When it boils again, add the cabbage. Reduce heat to medium and cook about 20 more minutes, until the barley and the veg are tender. Season with salt and lemon juice.

Pasta primavera

3 big spring onion

3 celery 3 garlic cloves

90 g dried toms

500 mL double cream or cashew cream

1 lemon zest

half a lemon juice

salt and pepper

500 g short pasta 1 packet runner beans (180 g)

1 packet asparagus

small bunch spring greens or kale (200 g)

1 big carrot peeled into ribbons

1 cup frozen peas (200 g)

chopped parsley

parmesan

Sweat the celery and onion in oil or butter in a very big saucepan over medium heat. Add the chopped garlic and a splash of water, then turn heat to low and cover for 5 minutes. Add the cream, tomatoes and lemon. Season well enough for all the pasta.

Put the pasta in a boiling pot of salted water. When the water returns to boil, add the toughest veg. Add each veg sequentially and hope to get everything al dente at the same time. Reserve a cup of cooking water and drain the rest. Toss the pasta and veg in the saucepan with parsley and cheese. Use reserved pasta water to loosen if needed. Check seasoning.

Cashew cream

200g raw cashews
250 mL water

Soak the cashews overnight. Drain them and put them in a blender with the water. Blitz until smooth, adding more water to get the desired consistency. Season with salt and lemon if you like.

Credit to The Full Helping

Besan chilla

120 g chickpea flour
375 mL water
turmeric
paprika
cumin seeds
green onions
chile
salt

Whisk the flour into the water to form a smooth, thin batter. Heat a nonstick pan over medium flame and wipe it with oil. Cook the pancake until the edges pull away from the pan and you can slide a spatula underneath. Flip it and cook two minutes more. Keep warm on parchment paper in the oven. Makes 4-5 pancakes.

Credit to Vegan Richa

Couscous

100 g coucous per person
125 mL boiling water