Summer Strawberry Pots

by Lou Robbie

Strawberry season is just the best in Ireland. There’s the smell of fresh cut grass in the air and the gentle hum of bumble bees busy and all the kids are out on their bikes making the most of the summer days. On warm days all everyone wants is cool fuss free snacks just like this one. They can be eaten out on the step so there isn’t a minute of fun to be missed!

We are treating these special Irish strawberries simply with sugar and lemon to draw out the delicious vibrant red syrup. Strawberries love vanilla so add a hint to the creamy base.

The window is short for our organic strawberries this year so get them while you can.

Lou 🙂

Ingredients: makes 2 pots

  • 10 ripe strawberries
  • 1 heaped teaspoon icing sugar
  • juice 1/2 lemon
  • 150g ricotta cheese
  • 100g greek/plain yoghurt
  • 1-2 tablespoons honey or maple syrup
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
  • mint to garnish- baby leaves, finely chop them if they are big

Method:

  • Step 1: Finely slice the strawberries and add them to a bowl, sprinkle over the icing sugar and squeeze the lemon juice, mix with a spoon, leave to macerate for 10 minutes.
  • Macerating means that the sugar draws the juice, to make a syrup, from the strawberries while adding sweetness and flavour from the lemon.
  • Step 2: In a separate mixing bowl add the ricotta, yoghurt, honey and vanilla, mix well. Spoon this into the 2 glasses.
  • Step 3: Top with the macerated strawberries and top with torn or baby mint leaves.

Carrot & Broccoli Salad (4 ingredients)

by Lou Robbie

The summer is a busy time juggling work, child care, holidays and making the most of the long sunny days. It’s great to have a few super quick salad recipes that take minutes to make but are top on taste!

This is my mothers signature salad. She gets requests for it when we have family get togethers. Its perfect for lunch with soda bread or for supper with some boiled eggs.

Next time you have some Irish organic carrots and broccoli in your veg box give this a go.

What’s your favourite raw vegetable in a salad? Let us know if the comments.

Lou 🙂

Ingredients:

  • 1 small head of broccoli
  • 3 carrots
  • 3-4 tablespoons mayo (regular or vegan)
  • ⅓ cup salted or roasted peanuts
  • Pinch black pepper

Method:

Step 1: Chop the broccoli florets into bite sized pieces, add them to a mixing bowl. You can chop or grate the stalk too, or keep it to chop for a stir fry.

Step 2: Grate the carrots, add them to the broccoli.

Step 3: Season with a pinch of salt and pepper then mix in the peanuts and mayo. Taste it and then transfer into a serving bowl.

Enjoy with a selection of salads and bread.

Air Fryer Honey Roast Carrots w/ Whipped Feta

by Lou Robbie

Carrots are super versatile, economical and tasty! Carrots as a kid were boiled and boring but roasted with a bit of sweetness and spice they make a delicious sharing dish. We are hitting all the flavour profiles with this plate, sweet carrot, salty feta, bitter toasted pumpkin seeds and sour notes from the lemon zest!!! Try it out and get your taste buds tingling.

Serve up as a tasty snack, have it with a green salad or with some toasted sourdough..yum.

Try it soon and let us know what you think.

Lou 🙂

P.S. If you don’t have an air fryer simply roast the carrots with oil, s & p, for 15 minutes @ 180ºC then add the honey and cumin and roast for another 5 minutes.

Ingredients: serves 4 as a side dish

  • 500g carrots (about 5 medium)
  • 1 tablespoon honey or maple syrup
  • 1 heaped teaspoon ground cumin
  • 2 teaspoons oil
  • pinch salt and pepper

For the whipped feta

  • 150g feta
  • 100g greek yoghurt
  • 1/2 lemon zest
  • pinch black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil

Plus 80g toasted pumpkin seeds

Method:

  1. Scrub and peel the carrots
  2. Chop into 4 long pieces and add them to a mixing bowl and toss in oil, salt and pepper.
  3. Add a 1/4 cup of water to the bottom of the air fryer basket. Place the carrots on the rack and air fry for 15 minutes at 180ºc, shake half way through.
  4. While the carrots cook, make the whipped feta, simply add all the ingredients to a mixer and blend until really smooth. I used my Ninja smoothie maker, any small powerful blender will work.
  5. Back the carrots after the 15 minutes are up, drizzle over the honey and sprinkle the cumin, give the carrots a shake and cook for a further 5 minutes at 200ºc.
  6. When the carrots are done, toasted the pumpkin seeds in the air fryer for 5 minutes at 200ºc.
  7. Pour the whipped feta into a bowl, pile the carrots on top and scatter the pumpkin seeds over both.

2 Ingredient Chocolate Mousse (Chocolate & Butternut Squash)

by Lou Robbie

Chocolate mousse with hidden butternut squash, we couldn’t wait to try this one!! An indulgent chocolate mousse that is made mostly of healthy stuff sounds too good to be true.

This one pass the test with my kids and the butternut squash went undetected! The mouse is delicious on its own but if you want to give it a lighter texture try folding whipped cream through it, this is how I served it to my kids.

TIP: For a really tasty mousse its important to use a good quality chocolate.

Will you try it?

Lou 🙂

Ingredients:

  • 700g raw butternut squash – peeled and cubed
  • 400g good quality chocolate, chopped (you can use your favourite milk or dark chocolate)
  • Serve with a dusting of cacoa powder, whipped cream or cremé fraichê and toasted hazelnuts or almonds, banana or raspberries would be delicious too

Method:

  1. Peel, deseed and cube the butternut squash. Put it in a medium sized pot cover with cold water. Put on the hob, bring to a simmer and cook until completely soft, 20-30 mins.
  2. Melt the chocolate in a microwave or on a double boiler on the hob.
  3. When the butternut squash is cooked, strain and add to a blender along with the melted chocolate.
  4. Blend until silky smooth.
  5. Pour into a large bowl or individual bowls. Leave to cool on the worktop then transfer to the fridge to set for at least 4 hours, overnight if possible.
  6. Dust with cocoa powder and serve!

Cauliflower Fritters

by Liz Child

These curried cauliflower fritters are simple to make but taste absolutely incredible! We love them with a lime, coriander and yoghurt dip for lunch, or they make a spectacular side to a homemade curry. The batter is made with chickpea flour, so nutritious and with a gorgeous savoury crunch, it’s the perfect way to elevate the humble cauliflower. Give these a try and let us know how you get on.

Liz x

Ingredients

  • 1 mug chickpea flour
  • 1 tbsp curry powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • black pepper to taste
  • 3/4 mug water
  • 1/2 a cauliflower, finely chopped
  • vegetable oil for frying
  • 1/2 pot natural yoghurt
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 lime, zested and halved
  • a large handful of fresh coriander
  • flakey salt to serve

Method

  1. In a large mixing bowl, whisk the chickpea flour, curry powder, salt and pepper with the water. You should be left with a smooth, fairly thick batter. You can add more water if it needs.
  2. Chop up the cauliflower (include any leaves) and stir through the batter to evenly coat the pieces.
  3. Heat up a couple of cm of vegetable oil in a deep frying pan to shallow fry the fritters in. While it is heating, get a plate ready with a piece of kitchen paper to drain the fritters on after frying. You can also make the dip now too. Zest the lime into the yoghurt and squeeze in half the juice. Cut the other half of the lime into wedges to squeeze over the fritters later. Chop up the coriander and stir through the yoghurt with a little salt and pepper.
  4. Now the oil should be hot and you can fry the fritters in batches. Use a serving spoon to dollop the batter into the hot oil. After a few minutes, when golden brown, carefully turn the fritters and fry the other side. Careful not to splash hot oil on yourself us you turn the fritters. Use a spatular and a spoon to turn and lower the fritters without splashing.
  5. Remove the fritters when they are cooked and place on the kitchen paper to drain. Then keep frying in small batches until all the mixture is used up.
  6. Serve sprinkled with flakey sea salt and lime wedges. Dunk in the yoghurt and enjoy!

Chickpea Omelette

by Liz Child

A simple mixture of chickpea flour, water and seasoning makes a really delicious batter that can be used to make egg free omelettes. Have you tried it yet? Delicious and so nutritious! Chickpea flour is high in protein, fibre and lots of vitamins and minerals. Stuff it with sautéed veggies and fresh herbs and you’ll be in brunch-heaven. Really you can make this recipe by eye and stuff it with whatever veg you like, but as a guide, here’s what I did to make two.

Liz x

Ingredients (makes 2)

  • 70g chickpea flour
  • 100ml water
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • a handful of chopped dill
  • 1 chopped scallion
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 6 chestnut mushrooms, sliced
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/2 a courgette, sliced into ribbons with a peeler
  • 2 large handfuls of spinach
  • 1 tomato, sliced
  • 2 tsp butter for cooking the omelette

Method

  1. Start by whisking the chickpea flour with the water into a smooth batter. Season with a pinch of salt, a grind of pepper and a handful of chopped herbs and half the chopped scallion. Stir in 1 tbsp of good olive oil to enrich the batter. Set to one side while you prepare the filling.
  2. In a non-stick pancake pan, sauté the mushrooms with the other tbsp of oil and a pinch of salt and pepper. Add the garlic powder to the pan once the mushrooms start to sweat. Add the courgette strips and spinach and stir fry for a couple of minutes until the spinach has wilted. Move the filling off the pan into a bowl and put the pan back over a medium heat.
  3. Now melt a tsp of butter in the pan and pour in half the batter. Swirl and cook the omelette slowly until it is set. Then put half the filling on half the omelette and arrange half the tomato slices on top. Fold the omelette and serve with a sprinkle of scallions.
  4. Repeat with the other half of the batter and fillings and enjoy!

Veggie Irish Stew Pie

by Liz Child

This is ultimate comfort food, and the perfect dish for a family feast. Our veggie version of the classic Irish stew is hearty with beans and lentils. Chunks of sweet root veg and meaty mushrooms simmer in a broth of bouillon, dried mushrooms and bay leaves. We’ve taken the potatoes out of the stew and put them on top in the form of colcannon. This pie is so so delicious, packed with healthy veg and heaps of flavour, you’ll be coming back to this again and again and again.

Liz x

Ingredients (serves 6)

For the stew:

  • 2 tbsp vegetable bouillon powder
  • 1 tsp dried mushrooms 
  • 3 bay leaves
  • 1 liter just-boiled water 
  • a little oil or butter for sautéing 
  • 2 onions, roughly diced
  • 3 carrots, cut into chunks
  • 3 celery sticks, sliced
  • a couple of parsnips or a 1/4 of a celeriac, cut into bite sized chunks
  • 200g chestnut mushrooms, halved
  • salt & pepper to taste
  • 1 tin cooked lentils, drained
  • 1 tin cooked beans, drained
  • 3 tbsp cornstarch, mixed with enough cold water to make a slurry

For the colcannon:

  • 10 or so potatoes, boiled
  • 150g kale, thinly sliced
  • 3 scallions, thinly sliced
  • butter, salt & pepper to taste 

Method

  1. Gather and prepare the vegetables, get the potatoes into salted water to boil and turn the oven on to 200C to warm up. Pop the kettle on.
  2. Pour a liter of boiling water into a jug with the bouillon powder, dried mushrooms and bay leaves. Stir well, this is your broth.
  3. Then, in an oven and hob safe pot, sauté the chopped onion, carrot, celery, mushrooms and parsnips/celeriac with the oil and a little salt and pepper. Stir over a medium-high heat for around 7 minutes or until the vegetables take on some colour and start to soften and reduce. Now add the broth, beans and lentils to the pot and simmer the stew for around 10 minutes.
  4. Meanwhile make the colcannon. Once the potatoes are boiled, tip the sliced kale into the pot and let it boil for just a minute. Drain and mash the potatoes and kale together with plenty of butter. Stir in the scallions and season to taste with salt and pepper.
  5. The stew should be ready, now it will just need thickening. Pour the cornstarch slurry into the stew and stir over the heat until the stew has thickened up. Then top with the colcannon and run a fork over the top to even it out and rough it up.
  6. Bake it a hot oven until the top has browned and crisped up a little and the stew is bubbling. This should take around 15-20 minutes if you get it in the oven whilst still hot. Enjoy!

Blood Orange Sorbet

by Liz Child

All you need to make this sorbet is ONE ingredient, blood oranges (plus a freezer and a food processor). We are obsessed with blood oranges at the moment. Have you tried one yet? They are only around for a short season each year, so don’t miss out! They are a little sweeter than your usual oranges, with a stunning raspberry twist. Having that gorgeous purple/red hue is a sign of anthocyanin, a really powerful antioxidant which is brilliant for heart health. This sorbet makes a stunning palette cleanser between courses if you are cooking up a fancy feast, otherwise it is just a delicious, healthy dessert. No need for added sugar and it still feels like a luxurious treat!

Liz x

Ingredients

  • Blood oranges

Method

  1. Peel blood oranges and place the segments on a tray or plate which fits in your freezer. Freeze overnight or until solid. Remove from the freezer around 15 minutes before you need to serve the sorbet. It is best served directly from the blender.
  2. Put the frozen segments into your food processor with the S blade attachment. Blend until it turns into sorbet. At first it will look grainy and like it is not going to work. Don’t give up. Stop the machine a few times to scrape down the sides and keep blending. After a while the sorbet will turn creamy and smooth. Stop before it gets too juicy/melted.
  3. Working quickly now, scoop the sorbet out of the processor into a tub. Press it down and smooth it out with the back of the spoon. Dunk an ice cream scoop into a cup of hot water, then scoop out large balls of sorbet and enjoy!

Scandi-Style Seedy Crackers

by Liz Child

These crackers are the best vehicle for a sliver of cheese or a savoury spread! Full of nutritious seeds, golden and toasty from the oven and perfectly thin and snappy. You’ll be making these again and again. This recipe is naturally gluten free, plant based and so so easy. A great way to ensure you are getting all the benefits of seeds – the omegas, the healthy fats and fibres… Any crumbled bits in the bottom of the jar are delicious sprinkled over a soup or salad too. Enjoy!

Liz x

Ingredients

~ use an espresso cup to measure for ease, or the amounts in grams below:

  • 1 cup sesame seeds (100g)
  • 1 cup flax seeds (100g)
  • 1 cup sunflower seeds (100g)
  • 1 cup pumpkin seeds (100g)
  • 2 cups rice flour (200g)
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2 cups boiling water (350ml)
  • 2 tbsp good oil (eg extra virgin olive or cold pressed rapeseed)

Method

  1. Measure the seeds, salt and rice flour into a mixing bowl and mix well.
  2. Pour in the boiling water and oil and mix with a wooden spoon into a thick, sticky mixture. You may wish to add an extra splash of water if the entire contents are not incorporated into a sticky dough.
  3. Allow the mixture to rest for 30 minutes, the seeds benefit from absorbing some water. Meanwhile, find 3 large baking sheets and 4 sheets of baking parchment. Turn the oven to 175C.
  4. Line the baking sheets with the parchment. Divide the sticky, seedy dough between the 3 trays. Spread the dough out into a very thin, even layer, one tray at a time. The easiest way to do this is with the 4th piece of baking parchment. Lay it on top of the dough and use your hands to squish the dough out as evenly as you can. You can also use a rolling pin to help. The crackers should be no thicker than the pumpkin seeds.
  5. Carefully peel off the parchment on the top and use it to repeat the flattening/spreading process with the other two trays. Then get the trays in the oven.
  6. Bake for 30 minutes or until the crackers are browned and dried out. Allow to cool before carefully snapping them into shards and storing in an airtight container. Enjoy within 3 to 4 weeks.

Masala Omelette

by Liz Child

This is up there with one of our top 5 breakfasts. It is so delicious and incredibly nutritious, I urge you to give this recipe a go. We replaced the eggs in this classic Indian breakfast with a chickpea flour batter here to keep it plant based. Chickpea flour has been used in Asian cuisine for hundreds of years, it is also full of fibre, protein and many vitamins and minerals. Such a useful ingredient, we also use it to make fritters, socca bread and to bind falafel and bean burgers – have you tried cooking with it yet? We stock an organic bag which you can add to your next fruit and veg order.

Liz x

Ingredients (per omelette)

  • 60g chickpea flour
  • 150ml water
  • large pinch of salt
  • chilli flakes to taste (or even better, use chopped fresh green chilli)
  • 1/4 tsp ground turmeric
  • 1/2 tsp garam masala (or any Indian spice blend you like)
  • 1 salad tomato, finely chopped
  • 2 tbsp finely chopped red onion or scallion
  • 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh coriander
  • 1 tsp good oil for frying (we use rapeseed)
  • 1 flatbread (we used tortilla bread here)
  • 1 tbsp mango chutney (or any Indian chutney you like, or natural yoghurt)

Method

  1. Whisk the chickpea flour and water together into a smooth batter. Then add the salt, chilli, turmeric and garam masala and whisk again.
  2. Stir in the tomato, onion and coriander. Meanwhile, heat up a pancake pan over a medium heat.
  3. Warm the flatbread on both sides in the dry pan, place on a plate. Then pour in the oil, swirl to coat the pan evenly. Pour the masala omelette mixture into the pan and swirl or spread in out with a spoon into a thin layer.
  4. Be patient and let the omelette cook slowly until it is set and golden on the bottom and almost dried out on top. You should notice small bubbles forming and popping. Carefully loosen the omelette from the pan and flip with a spatular.
  5. The second side should only take a minute. Spread the bread with the chutney then flip the omelette out on top. Roll up and enjoy whilst hot!