Tomato Risotto & Basil Pesto

by Liz Child

When we have a glut of tomatoes, this is one of our family favourite, summer suppers. The kids especially love this risotto and I love giving them a generous spoon of pesto. It’s so full of goodness – healthy fats and protein from the seeds and olive oil, antioxidants and vitamins from the fresh greens. Make your own pesto (follow one of our recipes here) or buy a handy jar (here). Tomato and basil is an unbeatable flavour combination. Did you know we sell organic risotto rice in compostable bags?

Liz x

Ingredients (serves 4)

  • 2 small or 1 large white onion, finely diced
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • 6 large tomatoes or a bag of cherry tomatoes, roughly diced
  • 6 sundried tomatoes, sliced
  • 1 mug of risotto rice
  • 1 large glass of white wine
  • 2-3 mugs of vegetable stock/bouillon
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • pesto to serve
  • fresh basil leaves to serve

Method

  1. In a large, heavy bottomed pot, sauté the onion with the olive oil until soft and golden. Over a medium heat, this should take around 8-10 minutes.
  2. Now add the garlic, tomatoes, sun dried tomatoes and a big pinch of salt and pepper. Sauté and cook down for another 5 minutes.
  3. Add the mug of rice and the glass of white wine. Stir until most of the liquid has been absorbed.
  4. Then add a ladle of the stock, stir and cook until most of the liquid has been absorbed. Keep repeating this step until the rice is cooked through. Taste a grain every now and then and stop adding stock when you are happy with the consistency. Adjust the seasoning as needed at the end too with some extra salt, pepper or maybe a squeeze of lemon?
  5. Serve in bowls and top each bowl with a generous spoon of pesto and some fresh basil leaves. Enjoy as it is or with a simple salad

Ratatouille

by Liz Child

Ratatouille is a classic one pot celebration of summer vegetables. Although it’s a simple recipe, with humble ingredients, it’s all about timings and getting the vegetables cooked just right. Spongey, undercooked aubergine is the reason many people don’t like it. Aubergine should be silky and soft, and almost melt in the mouth and then it’s absolutely stunning! Serve with some good bread and a glass of red. We often add a drained tin or two of white beans or lentils to this summer stew to boost the protein and make it an even heartier meal.

Why not make a double or triple batch and get some in the freezer for a busy day? You could even blend some for a quick summery soup or a flavoursome pasta sauce.

Liz x

Ingredients (serves 4-6)

  • 4 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 aubergine
  • 2 courgette
  • 2 red pepper
  • 4-6 tomatoes (or 12 cherry tomatoes, or a couple of tins of chopped tomatoes)
  • 6 cloves of garlic – peeled and diced
  • 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • basil to taste

Method

  1. Pre-heat your oven to 200C.
  2. Chop the aubergine and peppers into bite sized pieces. Put them in a deep roasting dish and drizzle with the olive oil.
  3. Season well with salt and pepper, mix with your hands to evenly coat the vegetables in the seasoning. Then put the dish in the oven to roast for 20 minutes.
  4. After 20 minutes, remove the dish from the oven and add the courgettes and tomatoes, also cut into bite sized pieces.
  5. Add the garlic, red wine vinegar and a little more salt and pepper. Mix well and return to the oven for another 20 minutes or until everything is well cooked.
  6. Stir through lots of freshly torn basil and serve in bowls with fresh bread. Or it’s lovely with pasta or potatoes. Bulk it out and add protein with a drained tin of white beans or green lentils.

Basil & Hemp Heart Pesto

by Liz Child

Everyone loves pesto! It’s so fragrant, fresh and delicious. I always make sure I have a few jars in the cupboard (we sell these organic ones) for those days when we need a meal in a hurry. Pesto pasta has got to be the best ‘fast-fakeaway’ right? And it’s not just for pasta! Pesto is brilliant in a sandwich or wrap, it’s also gorgeous tossed through steamed greens, boiled new potatoes or as a dressing for a hearty bean or lentil salad. Swirl a spoon through some mayo or hummus for the best dip ever!

But, I also love making my own pesto! It’s so easy to do and you can adapt the ingredients to whatever you have on hand. It’s also a brilliant way to avoid food waste as it makes fresh herbs last longer. Don’t chuck those herb stalks either! They are just as delicious as the leaves and blend up into perfect pesto!

Liz x

Ingredients (makes about a 250g jar of pesto)

  • 1 clove of garlic
  • 1 bunch of basil – stalks and all – sub with other fresh herbs or even spinach/kale/rocket…
  • 3 tbsp or so of nutritional yeast (or use any cheese you like)
  • the juice of 1/2 a lemon or more to taste (or use a tbsp of my preserved lemon puree recipe here for extra low-food-waste points)
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • extra virgin olive oil – enough to blend the ingredients into a loose sauce
  • 8 tbsp or so of hemp hearts (alternatively use any nuts or seeds you have)

Method

  1. Add the ingredients to a blender or food processor and pulse into a loose sauce.
  2. Taste and adjust the seasoning as needed with more salt, nutritional yeast, lemon, olive oil etc.
  3. Store in a clean jar in the fridge and use within two weeks.
  4. To make it last longer, top with a little layer of olive oil. You can also freeze the pesto in portions if you won’t use it in the next two weeks.

FAST FAKEAWAYS – Pizza Night

by Liz Child

A couple of minutes to put together and just 10-15 minutes to bake. Way faster than a takeaway pizza, cheaper, and dare I say it, more delicious? Tailor your pizza exactly to your taste with our easy pizza bases (we sell gluten free ones too), sauces, olives, pesto, vegetables and selection of cheeses (including vegan cheeses). This is also the perfect fun meal to make with kids.

Add the ingredients to your next organic fruit and veg order from us and give yourself a night off. We deliver to every address in Ireland. Liz x

Ingredients

Watch the easy method here or read on below.

Method

Preheat the oven to 200C fan. Get a couple of baking sheets ready and line with baking paper for ease.

Open the pizza bases and place them on the baking sheets.

Spread with three heaped tbsp of tomato sauce on each pizza base. Add some dollops of pesto for little herby flavour bombs.

Scatter over your favourite pizza toppings – olives, roasted vegetables, cheese – then pop the pizzas in the oven until hot and bubbling and just starting to take on some colour. Around 10-15 minutes.

Serve slices with torn fresh basil leaves, a fresh salad and glass of organic wine for the perfect Friday night fakeaway!