Potato and leek bake with sweet garlic broccoli

Okay. Even the lovely people at Riverford Farms have admitted we've waded through a lot of leeks this winter. I reckon this is their last hurrah for a good half year or so in our house... in fact I risk some kind of insurrection otherwise. Seasonal eating, eh? Actually there are some leek recipes I could still hurl in - like vegan leek pancakes, which are quite fab. Anyway this bake is yummy and, as ever, leeks repay patience, so the longer you can let this crisp up and bake through, the better. If you don't have pine kernals to hand, hurl in some sweetcorn and you'll get away with it.

Ingredients

Potato and leek bake

3 medium sized leeks, washed, trimmed and sliced

4 small to medium potatoes, peeled and sliced thinly

2 cloves garlic, sliced

Tablespoon of fresh, chopped parsley

Tbsp pine kernals

Freshly grated nutmeg

Sea salt

400 ml vegetable bouillon or stock

2 Tbsp olive oil

Sweet garlic broccoli

4 or 5 heads of purple sprouting broccoli

5 or 6 stalks of flat beans

1 clove garlic, mashed

100ml vegetable stock

Tbsp soy sauce

Tsp mirin or syrup

2 tsp Sesame oil

Method

Pre heat the oven to 200 degrees Centrigrade. Pour a glass of wine. Switch on Radio 4. Switch off again if it's the Moral Maze. Otherwise, crack on. 

First of all get those leeks good and clean. A top tip here is to chop the straggly bits of the deep green tail off, then slice them down the middle, almost as far as the base, and then fan them under running water to get all the dirt out. Much easier. Then peel and slice the spuds.

This dish is all about layering, so get all the ingredients ready and prepared, and then use a little of the olive oil to line the bottom of a medium-sized baking dish.

Start with a sprinkling of the sliced leeks, then a layer of the thinly-sliced potatoes. On top of this sprinkle some of the parsley, garlic and, sparingly, the nutmeg and sea salt. Add a some of the pine kernals, and you're ready for the next layer. Again start with leeks, then add the other ingredients. Keep on and do 3 or 4 layers in a similar fashioning, seasoning in between, and if you can, finish with a potato layer.

Next, pour the bouillon or stock over the mixture, and leave it for a minute or so to soak through, then drizzle the remainder of the olive oil over the bake, before baking in the oven for around 30-40 minutes or until golden brown on top.

Now... for the broccoli. Simply mix the garlic, stock, soy sauce, mirin and sesame oil and leave to one side. Make sure the stock is good and hot as it takes the edge off the garlic. Steam the beans and broccoli lightly, and then toss in the sauce. If you have them, sprinkle with some sesame seeds so it looks pretty.

Roasted leeks with tofu & mustard mashed potatoes

Right, if you do nothing else in the next week, roast some leeks in olive oil until they're crispy, sweet and delicious. Tonight's dinner was a bit of a triumph, mainly because of the playful, crunchy, delicate strands of roasted leek that played across the plate. Total winner. Also a great 'new best friend' for our roasted cubes of tofu. Roasting tofu is fabulously easy, low fat, and results in lovely, crispy bits of yumminess that are miles away from the mush that some people may have suffered.

Alongside the Leek + Tofu super combo we did a 'pimp my mashed' tonight round our gaff with mashed potatoes combined with steamed kale and dijon mustard. Quite lovely.

And we had some mushy peas. We're not ashamed. We like them. A lot.

Ingredients:

Roasted leeks with tofu

450g tofu
One large leek
2 tbsp olive oil
Garlic salt or mixed herbs
Black pepper

The mustard mash

750g potatoes
130g kale
Tbsp marg
1/2 cup soya milk
2 tsp Dijon

And...

One tin of mushy peas
Malt vinegar

Method:


Coat a baking tray with half the olive oil, and pre heat the oven to 175 degrees centigrade. Cube the tofu into 2-3 cm cubes and arrange on the baking tray, then sprinkle with garlic salt and black pepper. Pop into the oven and set the timer to 20 minutes.

Meanwhile slice the leeks lengthways into quarters, and then half the long strands of leek so they don't become to unwieldy once on the plate. Wash thoroughly - there's always a lot of muck in a leek - and then toss in the other half of the olive oil.

When the tofu's gone for 20 minutes, remove from the oven and sprinkle the strands of leek across the tofu, mixing it in a little. Return to the oven and let roast for a further 15 minutes or until the leeks and tofu are looking golden and crispy.

While all that roasting is going on get the mustard mash ready. Peel the potatoes, and then boil them until soft. If you've got a steamer like mine, boil 'em at the bottom, and use the upper tier for the kale. Steam the kale, only for ten minutes or so, and set aside. When the potatoes are softened, drain and pound with a potato masher. Still using the masher, introduce the margarine and then the soya milk. Finally mix through the mustard. You're done.

To serve:

The kale, mash and mustard mix and the leek and tofu roast work great together but we threw in a tin of mushy peas... Beautifully green and silly amidst the lightness of the tofu and leeks. We also dashed a little malt vinegar over said peas. Well you have to, don't you?

The Great Baked Potato Rescue

"Eyes bigger than your belly" was a common accusation levelled at me growing up, so with a crushing inevitability I always make to much food. This includes baked potatoes. Last night I coupled up some Lebanese Lentils with a baked potato that had been languishing in the fridge for a few days. It was a hit - and dead simple.

Ingredients:

One cooked baked potato
Rapeseed oil
Salt and pepper

Method:

Carefully slice the potato into 5-10 mm wide slices (try not to let them fall apart)
Fry in the oil on a low or medium heat - take your time as this works better if cooked slowly
Season on each side with salt and pepper as you cook

Serve:

As I did, with some light and lemony like a salad or similar... Unless you've got a hangover in which case this would be bob on with vegan sausages, mushrooms, beans etc etc etc...