This soup came about as a bit of a fridge forage and I think it’s my favourite of this years soup season so far, you can omit the nduja if you wish to keep it vegetarian it will still be incredibly punchy and spicy and more importantly warming from the cold outside.
Spicy nduja, pepper and pasta soup
Sopa de Fideo
This is a very easy soup to make using store cupboard ingredients and spices, kids will also love it as it’s not too far removed from spaghetti in tomato sauce. Fideo is a Mexican pasta, but you can use vermicelli or other thin straight pasta, even spaghetti broken up into 1-inch pieces, omit the chicken if you want a vegetarian option.
Nasu Dengaku – Sweet miso glazed aubergine
This classic Japanese dish such as many classic dishes do has many variations, traditionally made with sweet white miso but can also be made with standard white or red miso with the addition of a little brown sugar, whichever you use you will love this flavourful, umami laden hearty dish.
Prawn and spinach risotto
We do love a risotto, it’s pleasurably soothing and relaxing to make and the rich, creamy result is perfect comfort food, all that’s required is some patience for stirring, a bowl and a spoon. There is no cheese in this recipe but feel free to indulge and don’t be afraid to use extra virgin olive olive when frying the vegetable base, if Italians can use it for cooking them so can you.
Miso pickled mushrooms
This recipe is adapted from a book called ‘Ferment pickle dry’, I have made these many times, the recipe is very flexible and adaptable and can be made to suit your taste palate. These are as the book states a crossover between Japanese miso-pickling and European vinegar-pickling. You can eat them as an accompaniment to a cocktail, as part of a Asian inspired feast, an addition to salads or whenever you simply want salty, spicy, sweet, acidic umami party in the mouth and don’t waste the liquid, it’s great to use as a dressing.
Roast celeriac and king oyster mushroom salad with halloumi and walnut pesto
Salads aren’t just for lazy summer days, enjoy this hearty bold autumnal salad either as a small starter, side or indeed as a stunning vegetarian main. The idea for this ensemble is from dirt candy, a vegetarian cookbook from a vegetarian restaurant in New York. There are a number of elements to building this salad so preparation is key to pulling it all together at the end and you need to be very good at multi tasking so read the instructions first.
Boozy luxurious mushrooms on toast
Earthy thyme and oyster mushrooms, combined with sweet marsala and crème fraiche come together for an indulgent treat. I’ve also added dried morels here but you can easily exchange these for porcini or other dried wild mushrooms or leave them out completely and use all fresh mushrooms, the ingredients here are very flexible, choose your booze and choose your indulgence and away you go.
Oyster mushroom pakoras
Pakora’s are essentially fritters deep fried in oil, they can be made with one vegetable or a mixture so don’t be afraid to experiment not only with the vegetable but the spices involved in the batter. This is a small batch of batter, perfect for a starter for two, it can easily be doubled, I’ve used large oyster mushrooms here but you could use any mushroom, sliced king oyster, portabella and even whole button mushrooms.
Barley and vegetable soup
We love soups in winter and this is a nourishing comforting bowl to warm the soul. Feel free to make it vegetarian by using vegetable stock and make it vegan by using vegan cheese, use beef stock instead of chicken if you have a preference, I’d even go as far as saying use Oxo or Bisto if that’s your choice.
I’ve used some basic vegetables here, onions, garlic, carrot and leek so again you can add or swap using whatever veg you have in at the time.
NOTE: Prep time doesn’t include soaking the barley
Carrot, lentil and miso soup
Autumn through to winter always gets us craving for a bowl of soup, miso is an ingredient we have embraced the past few years and always have some in the fridge, it sits happily there for ages and it’s very good for you. The inspiration here came from a book called ‘Miso Tasty’ by Bonnie Chung and it will teach you every thing you need to know about Miso.