NOW AUTUMN has made its presence known – whether you welcome it or not – the afternoons are growing darker earlier and the temperature is slipping by the week. So salads and small plates are not quite sufficient sustenance for the season.

It’s hard to trot into the kitchen during these long cold evenings post-work and spend an hour or more juggling pans and making dinner.

So here are a couple of comforting, one-pot, no-fuss recipes that you can whip up in a couple of minutes without the need to be tied to the stove or oven. Both vegetarian options, these are filling, full of flavour and perfect for leftovers too, so you can already have tomorrow’s lunch or dinner made at the same time! 

Warm Broccoli, Kale & Butter Bean Salad with Ranch Dressing

Serves 2, or 4 as a starter

• 1 large floret of broccoli, stalk removed
• 1 medium-sized white onion, sliced
• 100g curly kale
• 1 can (400g) butter beans, drained
• 100g frozen peas (or fresh)
• Salt & Pepper
• Knob of butter
• Squeeze of lemon juice (optional)

Homemade Ranch Dressing:

• 3 tbsp of mayonnaise
• 1 tbsp sour cream
• 1 clove of garlic, smashed and pulped
• 2 tsp dried mixed herbs
• Juice of 1/4 lemon
• 1 tsp dijon mustard
• salt and pepper

1. Begin by preparing the broccoli rice. Simply cut the broccoli floret into small chunks and place in a food processor, and pulse until it resembles rice grains – depending on the amount of broccoli you may need to do this in stages. Place in a bowl and leave to one side.
2. Melt the butter in your pot on a medium heat and sweat down the onion until it becomes soft and translucent, which will take about 5 minutes. Avoid browning. You want them to be sweet in flavour, not burnt, crispy and acrid.
3. Add the kale on top of the onions and stir around as it begins to wilt and soften. Then pour the drained tin of butter beans on top and allow to cook, frequently stirring for about 2 minutes. Then take the bowl of broccoli rice and add to the pot. This takes about 2 minutes as well to cook, stirring often. Leave to one side, off the heat while you prepare the dressing.
4. For the dressing, stir the mayonnaise and dijon together with the sour cream and garlic until combined, then thin to desired pouring consistency with a little water. Add the herbs, lemon juice and season to taste.
5. Serve the broccoli rice with kale and beans with a squeeze of lemon juice, salt & pepper and the dressing either poured over just before you eat or served on the side.

GastroGays GastroGays

Quick, One-Pot Mushroom Stroganoff

Serves 2-4

• 250g chestnut mushrooms, thinly sliced
• 200g button mushrooms, cleaned and kept whole
• 350g large mushrooms, sliced
• 1 medium-sized leek, washed, end trimmed, halved and sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, sliced
• 1 medium-sized white onion, sliced
• 1 tbsp dried mixed herbs
• 3 tbsp sour cream
• 3 tbsp single cream
• A handful of fresh thyme leaves
• Salt and pepper

1. Sweat the sliced onion and garlic, all sprinkled with some salt, in a little rapeseed oil in a large frying pan or pot on a medium-low heat for about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally so as not to brown but to go translucent.
2. Add in the leeks and allow to sweat for another two minutes.
3. Add the sliced large mushrooms and turn the heat up to medium-high, stir every so often to allow the mushrooms to release their juices and cook through. Then, add the sliced chestnut mushrooms.
4. At this point, you can add some vegetable stock to begin making the sauce for extra flavour but this is not essential. Add the whole button mushrooms and sprinkle the mixture with a tablespoon of flour, stirring through and cooking out for a minute or so. Introduce the herbs to the pot and season generously.
5. Remove from the heat and stir through the sour cream and single cream until warmed through and thickened. Top with the thyme leaves.
6. Serve with steamed rice or a side of your choice.

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