Mushroom Stroganoff

I like mushrooms and I like creamy things, so mushroom stroganoff is a winner. Any mushrooms will do, but the darker, stronger ones are best, and if you have any dried mushrooms in your cupboard you can add those for extra flavour. I served mine with spring onion and pea mash, but it also goes well with jacket potatoes, rice or pasta.


Mushroom Stroganoff

Serves 2

Takes 25 minutes


300g mushrooms

An onion

150ml red wine

150ml stock (or mushroom soaking water if using dried mushrooms)

2 cloves of garlic or one heaped tsp of minced garlic

3 tbsp single cream or soured cream

1 tsp dried thyme

Around 1tbsp paprika

1 tbsp Mushroom Ketchup or Worcestershire-style sauce

1 tsp of cornflour, mixed with a little cold water to form a paste


* Chop the onion finely, slice the mushrooms and heat some oil in a large pan over medium heat. Toss the mushrooms in the paprika until coated.

* Put the onions and garlic into the pan and cook for 5 minutes until softened.

* Add the mushrooms and thyme and cook for a further 5 minutes until starting to reduce.

* Pour in the wine, stock, cornflour and Mushroom Ketchup, bring to the boil whilst stirring, then simmer for a further 5 minutes or until reduced to your liking.

* Stir in the cream last, but do not heat afterwards otherwise it (single cream) will curdle.

Note: If you are using dried mushrooms, follow the packet instructions to rehydrate then add with the rest of the mushrooms.

Sausage casserole

Started eating before remembering to take a picture!


January is upon us, the end of the festive season has come and I'm sure many of us are looking to food that's comforting but not too rich on an already over-taxed stomach. This recipe is heavy on veg and flavour but light on fat and stodge, making it a great supper for post holiday-excess. I did cut corners a bit, as my favourite flavour for casseroles comes from packet soup, the kind you make in a cup with boiling water, rather than the traditional stock+tomato paste. I'll add an alternative though, for those who want to make it properly (or can't find any packet soup).


Sausage casserole

Serves 4 or can serve 6 if served with potatoes or bread.

Takes 1hr 15 minutes in total, including a lot of chopping.


2 packs of vegetarian sausages

2 trimmed leeks

2 large carrots

2 eating apples

4-5 sticks of celery

4-5 portabella mushrooms

800ml of water mixed with a tomato-y packet soup (I used Heinz vegetable)
- [alternative - use 800ml stock mixed with 2 heaped tsp tomato paste, 2 tsp herbs of your choice such as savory or thyme, 2 tbsp savoury sauce such as worecester]-

2 cloves garlic

2 tsp dried savory

If available, a packet of herbs for sausage casseroles is a nice addition, such as the Schwartz brand. This gets added to the liquid.


* Chop everything that looks like it needs chopping! All the veg needs to be in pretty small pieces, and the sausages I generally cut into 4 pieces. Heat some oil in a large pan.

* Fry the sausages until they are cooked (check the packet - usually 10 minutes or so) then put aside.

* Fry the leeks, garlic and savory for a few minutes until the leeks are soft but not brown.

* Add the mushrooms and the sausages again cook for 5 mintues.

* Chuck in everything else besides the liquid and fry for a further 10 minutes. If you haven't made your soup/stock yet then make it now.

* Pour in the liquid and bring to the boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat and simmer for 40 minutes.

Roasted vegetable pasta with ricotta

Since the 11th I seem to have disappeared into a Skyrim-sized hole, and my allotted computer time has been eaten up by playing, rather than writing. But here's an easy, rustic and nutritious pasta dish to fll yourselves with in the long winter nights. Your choices of vegetables goes here, I used the classic mediterannean style.


Roasted vegetable pasta with ricotta

Serves 4

Takes about 40 minutes


2 small aubergines

2 courgettes

250g button mushrooms

2 orange peppers

330g dried pasta (I used shells)

A 250g bag of baby spinach leaves

A ready mix of spices to sprinkle onto roasted vegetables (I used Schwartz mediterannean chicken spices. If you can't get anything like it, use some herbs de provence with some paprika and dried garlic)

250g rictotta cheese

Extra virgin olive oil for roasting and dripping on the pasta to stop it from sticking

A dash of balsamic vinegar

Preheat the oven to 200C if fan, 220C conventional


* Chop up the veggies into inch-sized chunks while the oven is preheating.

* Put some olive oil into a roasting tin and chuck the veggies in, stirring to ensure they are well coated.

* Sprinkle herbs/spices on top, toss for an even coating, then pop in the oven for around 30 minutes.

* In the meantime boil the pasta according to package instructions. Set aside when done and toss with a bit of oil to stop it sticking.

* When the veggies are done, take them out and first stir the spinach into the pasta. Then stir in the vegetables evenly, then dollop the rictotta on top and mix well.

* Drizzle with a bit of balsamic vinegar and season if you only used herbs on your veggies.

Healthy veggie ramen

I have recently found out that American ramen is different to English ramen. We here in Britland call American ramen "supernoodles". For us ramen is just standard noodles in soup (although ramen noodles are best). I used Blue Dragon ramen noodles, and they were perfect. This soup is very dependent on the soya sauce and other condiments for flavour, as well as using the right kind of noodle. First attempt I tried with rice noodles, and it wasn't that good. Oh, and big pan alert!



Veggie Ramen

Serves 4

Takes 30-40 minutes


Ramen noodles in amounts as recommended on the packet (if using standard noodles, take about half the amount you would for a normal stir fry)

A crown of broccoli, chopped into florets

500g bag of fresh baby spinach

250g Shiitake mushrooms, chopped

300g silken tofu (the ready cooked kind) sliced into small pieces

8 Spring onions, sliced thinly

2.5 pints of good vegetable stock

8 tbsp soy sauce

2 tablespoons of other condiment, such as mushroom sauce, vegetarian worcestershire sauce, fish sauce if you eat fish. If you can't fnd any of these, then more soy sauce will do fine

4 tbsp Mirin

I didn't feel this recipe needed garlic or chilli, but add to taste if you like things spicy.


* Cook the noodles according to instructions, drain and refresh with cold water and set aside

* Bring the stock, soy sauce, condiment and mirin to the boil, then simmer gently for 5 minutes

* Add the broccoli to the pan and simmer for 5 minutes

* Add the mushrooms and simmer for another 5 minutes

* Stir in the spinach until wilted, then stir in the tofu and spring onions. Leave for another couple of minutes so it's all warmed through.

* Divide the noodles into serving bowls and ladle the soup on top.

Plain Mushroom Soup

A basic mushroom soup. I made it chunky simply because I could not fit the blender into the pan, and clumsy as I am (and lazy), am averse to pouring it to blend in a food processor. This probably affected the flavour, making the broth blander with intense mushroomy hits when you chomp a piece of mushroom; it's up to you how you do it. It's big pan time!


Mushroom soup

Serves 4-5

Total time taken around 40 minutes


500g strong, tasty mushrooms, such as chestnut or portobello, wiped clean

1 pint milk (full fat is best)

1.5 pints of stock

1 onion or 2 large escallion shallots

A couple of teaspoons of thyme (optional)

4 generous tbsp plain flour

Oil or butter for frying

Salt for seasoning


* Chop the onion and put aside, because you'll need room for all the shrooms

* Chop the mushrooms as small as possible

* Heat some oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. When heated, add the onions and fry for a few minutes

* Add the mushrooms (probably in batches) and cook until the final lot is reduced, about 5 minutes after the last fresh pieces are added.

* Add the flour, stirring in so any lumps dissolve, until the mushrooms are well coated. Add the thyme, if using.

* Pour about half the stock in and stir until thickened. Add salt.

* Follow this with half the milk, stirring as you go, followed by the rest of the stock and milk.

* Simmer for about 20 minutes.

* At the end blend if desired.

Wild mushroom rice

A quick and tasty accompaniment to any meal, it has a variety of interesting textures and flavours. Any mushrooms can really be used, although a selection of different types would be best. I get bags of frozen wild mushrooms from Waitrose, but most supermarkets have at least two or three varieties. Don't forget to look in the dried section for porcini mushrooms! (those must be soaked ahead of time - check packet)


Wild mushroom rice


Serves 4

Cooking time varies hugely according to what mushrooms you use, but say about 20 minutes


500g - 600g wild mushrooms

2 x 250g packets of ready-cooked rice such as Tilda or Uncle Ben's.

200g cream cheese or creamy goat's cheese

Fresh chives, chopped

Fresh Tarragon, chopped

4 thinly sliced garlic cloves (Or I used Lurpak garlic butter with a couple of teaspoons of Bart's garlic paste)


* Cook the mushrooms according to which type you chose with the garlic until they are nearly done

* Stir in the ready rice, stir fry for a couple of minutes

* Add the chives and tarragon and stir well, taking the opportunity to season with salt and pepper if required

* Leave to cook on a medium heat for about 5 more minutes

* Stir in dollops of the cream cheese, and serve it either fully melted or still in gooey lumps


I served my rice with Quorn sausages.

Mushroom and Ricotta nut bake

To start off, I thought I’d let you know what I cooked for the centrepiece for Christmas dinner. It’s a special kind of nut bake which we only ever have on Christmas day, thus it is always highly anticipated. It's a lot more moist than your average nut roast, and extremely tasty. The nuts, mushrooms and onions are best chopped in a food processor. Expect to make a mess with the breadcrumbs and chopped nuts. I always make a mess anyway!

Mushroom and Ricotta nut bake

Serves around 6

Allow at least an hour for the whole thing, cooking time is around 45mins.

2 large onions, finely chopped

1 crushed garlic clove or a teaspoon of minced garlic

200g mushrooms, finely chopped

300g cashew nuts, finely chopped

200g fresh white breadcrumbs

A whole standard tub of ricotta cheese (this is usually around 235 - 275g)

1 tsp of dried thyme (I like a little more as thyme is my favourite herb)

½ tsp of ground nutmeg

2 tsp soy sauce

Salt and black pepper for seasoning

Olive oil for frying

Oven at 180C (350F)

*Fry onion and garlic in the oil for a few minutes until softened, then add the mushrooms and cook for a further 5 or so minutes, stirring occasionally.

*In a large (Large!) bowl stir together the breadcrumbs, cashew nuts, thyme, nutmeg and then mix in the ricotta.

*Add the mushroom and onion mix along with the salt and pepper and soy sauce and stir thoroughly until it looks evenly distributed.

*Spoon the mixture into a greased 1L cake tin (I used 9”, though I think I would have preferred 8” for a thicker bake).

*Bake for 40-45mins.

Note: You can also add some fresh cranberries as a layer in the middle or on the top.