Paprika sweet potato wedges with feta mint yoghurt

Paprika sweet potato wedges with minted feta yoghurt

Gavin Wren Main Dishes, Recipes, Side dishes, Spreads & Dips, Vegetables, Vegetarian

Back at the wheel. I’m back! Although you probably hadn’t noticed, I’ve been away for a little while. Not away ‘away’, but away from the blog. And what’s the event that has caused me to temporarily desert (mmmm, dessert) my beloved blog? Surely it must be something awful, heartrendingly terrible or existentially disastrous to pry my frantic fingertips from the surface of my keyboard? The good news is that nothing bad has happened. It was …

Baba Ghanoush aubergine dip

Baba ghanoush – the food of the gods

Gavin Wren Recipes, Side dishes, Spreads & Dips, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian

Ambrosia is an often overused word, hastily thrown around with levity to elevate the status of a particular food. It’s a very serious word (to me, anyway) which means ‘food of the gods’, and religious denominations aside I try to be reserved in it’s use simply out of respect. So, it’s with a certain amount of reticence that I’m considering using it in the description here. Baba Ghanoush, Mutabal or Moutabal, are some of the …

Harissa herb aubergine with bulgur

Harissa and herb aubergine with bulgur

Gavin Wren Main Dishes, Recipes, Salads, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian

If I had to describe this dish in one sentence, I’d say it’s like listening to opera whilst doing circuit training in a tutu. Now, taken literally, you could assume that this dish makes you feel like an utter idiot, which is not my intention. But if you look beyond that superficial lunacy, at the component elements, they all represent something within the dish to give you an idea of it’s characteristics. The harissa is …

Griddled asparagus with preserved lemons

Asparagus with preserved lemons

Gavin Wren Recipes, Side dishes, Starters, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian

Today’s recipe is so simple, it’s hard to think of a reason not to try it. If you were already planning to cook some of the lovely fresh asparagus that’s in season at the moment, then this simple addition adds a cheery extra dimension yet almost no extra work. And if you can’t get preserved lemons, even though the ‘cooks selection’ at many supermarkets now stock, they’re incredibly easy to make, so you could have …

Spicy avocado sweeet potato

Spicy avocado sweet potatoes

Gavin Wren Main Dishes, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian

I’ve got a secret to tell you. I don’t know whether to be embarrassed about this or not, but I’ve been eating baked sweet potatoes at least once a week for a very long time. They’ve become my default, simple, go-to, easy dinner of choice and I’m not even beginning to get bored of them. One of the very first recipes that was never put on this blog for you was about baked sweet potatoes. …

How to make vegetable stock

How to make vegetable stock

Gavin Wren Basic Ingredients, Food Techniques, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian, Writing

Vegetables boiled in water. Yep, that’s all it is, easy peasy. Making your own vegetable stock at home is one of the fundamental kitchen processes that you just have to do now and again. It’s so easy, it doesn’t use up much time and it’s basically impossible to overcook. And if you have left over vegetables, peering over the edge of the compost, it’s a super efficient use of them before they go. Now, although …