Entrées/Soups/Dips/Sauces/Snacks (10)

Broad bean pesto from Nat Jurdeczka
vegan, with dairy options, serves 4

• 1 cup broadbeans (pods only)
• 3 tbsp pine nuts
• 5-6 small sprigs sage
• 1 small clove Italian garlic
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 tsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tsp tamari
• 1/2 Eureka lemon
Non-vegan option: add parmesan/pecorino (1/4-1/2 cup depending on taste) and take out tamari.

1. Liberate the little broadbeans from their flannelette slumber inside the pod.
2. Cover with water in a small-medium size pot and boil until soft.
3. Drain and remove/squeeze out inner bean from opaque outer skin.
4. Place with pine nuts, garlic and sage in blender or mortar and pestle and mix/pound until slightly wet and chunky in consistency and the pine nuts are mealy like in form.
5. Add olive oil slowly until consistency is moist without being too wet. (Add parmesan/pecorino if desired)
6. Add balsamic and tamari to desired taste and moisture content.
7. Serve with pasta or spread on toast.
(October 2007)

Gravy, yeah gravy! from Dave "I can't wait for summer" Harris
vegan, wheat-free, serves 1

• 1 tbsp kuzu (wild mountain arrowroot)
• 1 cup water
• 2 tbsps tamari
• 2 tbsps hulled tahini

1. Dissolve kuzu in half the cold water, add tamari, heat slowly in a small pan over a low flame. 
2. Place tahini in a separate cup, slowly adding the rest of the water to form a paste. Add tahini to the pan.
3. Stir gently till desired thickness, adding more water as required.

Try over roasted and baked potatoes and pumpkin or with any seasonal vegetables. Best served on a beach at sunset from a camp fire! Thanks to the Random Co-op Hoppers who gave me this recipe. It made my recent FN Queensland holiday.
(November 2007)

Barszcz Czerwony from Dominika Grossy
(Polish beetroot soup)
vegan, wheat-free

• 2 large beetroots
• 1 vegetable stock cube
• heel of a sourdough loaf
• clove garlic
• 1 tsp salt
• black pepper to taste

1. Slice beetroot, place in a jar, add enough water to cover. add garlic and the heel of a sourdough loaf. Leave at room temperature with the lid on. It will go jelly-like after three days. Stir it, then store in the fridge. This is your barszcz base; it will store for months in the fridge.
2, Pour some of the base into a soup-size saucepan (how much depends on how thick or thin you like your soup), add water, stock, pepper and heat.

OPTIONS: lima beans,* potatoes,* hard boiled eggs,* fresh parsley (*cook before adding to soup)
(December 2007)

Choko steak from Colin Amos*
wheat-free, serves 1

1. Slice a choko lengthwise and steam till cooked through, but still firm
2. Grill with a smear of miso and a slice of cheese on top
3. Add crushed walnuts on top (an addition from Dominika Grossy)

*Colin is one of the co-op's Farmer-Direct farmers from the Comboyne and he grows our chokos.
(February 2008)

Autumn pesto from Genevieve Derwent
The advent of the cooler, wetter weather has helped the herbs and leafy greens in our garden thrive so we've been taking advantage of the abundance with this great pesto.

wheat-free, vegan, serves 2

• 4-5 handfuls mixed greens and herbs – basil, parsley, rocket, nasturtium leaves
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped roughly
• pinch sea salt
• juice of half a lemon
• 2 small handfuls almonds and pinenuts, chopped roughly
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Toast the nuts until golden brown.

1. Roughly tear the greens.
2. In a mortar and pestle, grind garlic with some oil until garlic is well mashed. Add torn leaves and nuts and grind, adding more olive oil as needed. Once it's all ground together, add lemon juice and salt.

Of course, you can whizz it up in a food processor, however, I love the hands-on aspect of the mortar and pestle as it inevitably ends up more chunky and less refined. It's delicious served with roasted or chargrilled vegetables, mixed through pasta or on a slab of Sonoma spelt bread with a dollop of Meredith Chevre.

This pesto stores well in a jar in the fridge with some extra oil for about a week.
(April 2008)

Ribollita from Genevieve Derwent
Ribollita is a Tuscan soup based on beans, bread and cabbage. This version, my adaptation of a Jamie Oliver recipe, uses the wonderful Cavelo Nero (Tuscan Black Kale) we have right now. Cavelo Nero is a great addition to winter stews and soups as it holds its colour and flavour in the face of heat. Perfect for a cold day.

wheat-free, vegan, serves 4-6

• 300g borlotti beans, soaked 8 hours or overnight
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tomato, squashed
• 1 small potato
• 2 red onions, finely chopped
• 2 carrots, finely chopped
• 3 sticks celery, finely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic. finely chopped
• olive oil, generous splash
• pinch ground fennel seeds
• 400g tomatoes, fresh or tinned
• 300g cavelo nero, finely sliced
• 2 large handfuls stale bread, torn into chunks
• sea salt and ground pepper
• 6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1. Add beans to a pan of water with bay leaf, tomato and potato (helps to flavour beans and soften their skins). Cook until tender (may take more than an hour). Drain beans, reserving a glass of the cooking water. Discard bay leaf, tomato and potato.
2. Heat saucepan with 2 tbsp olive oil and add onions, carrots, celery, garlic and fennel seeds. Sweat slowly on low heat for 20 mins till soft but not brown. Add tomatoes, bring to gentle simmer for 5 mins.
3. Add drained beans with the extra water, bring to boil. Stir in the cavelo nero (will reduce). Moisten bread with a little water and stir in. Soup should be very thick but not dry, so add more water if needed. Cook 30 mins till thick and silky.
4. Season with salt and pepper and stir in 4 tbps olive oil before serving to give the soup a delightful gloss.
(May 2008)

Slow-roasted pumpkin seeds from Jo Rose
vegan

1. Rinse seeds and remove all the pulp. Dry seeds on a tea towel overnight.
2. Preheat oven to 120¡C, line a baking tray with foil or baking paper.
3. Toss seeds in olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt, cayenne pepper or any seasonings of your choice until well coated.
4. Bake for 1 hour until golden brown, tossing every 15 mins.
5. Alow to cool.
The cooked seeds can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
(July 2008)

Pumpkin, orange, ginger soup from Jo Rose
vegan, serves 4

• 2 tspns olive oil
• 1 onion, roughly chopped
• 3 cm piece ginger, grated
• zest of half an orange
• juice 1 orange
• 1 kg pumpkin chunks
• 3 cups vegetable stock
• handful chopped coriander and a dollop of yoghurt (optional)

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan
2. Add onion and ginger and cook until soft and nicely fragrant
3. Add orange zest and pumpkin, cook for 3 mins
4. Add stock and juice and cook for 15 mins or until pumpkin is soft
5. Puree soup and reheat until warm
6. Serve with chopped coriander, yoghurt and fresh bread
(July 2008)

Sauteed brussel sprouts with sage and garlic
from Genevieve Derwent

serves 4-6 as a side dish

• 1 kilo brussel sprouts, thinly sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, sliced
• lug of olive oil
• a small handful sage, chopped
• salt and pepper

1. In a large frying pan, to a generous lug of olive oil add garlic and cook on a medium heat until soft.
2. Add sage, sauté a few minutes.
3. Add brussel sprouts and steam with a lid on for a few minutes. Remove lid and add salt and pepper to taste. Cook a few more minutes until the brussels are just getting soft.
(August 2008)

Creamy Corn Soup from Lucy Marinelli
No cooking is required, except for a gentle heating if you like. All amounts can be varied to your taste and preferred consistency.

ingredients and method
1. Blend 250g fresh corn, cut straight from cob with 200g cucumber (with or without peel, depending on variety) till smooth.
2. Add 1 avocado and water until desired consistency.
3. Pour blend (as is or warmed on a low heat) over 2 handfuls finely chopped cabbage/spinach, either raw or lightly steamed.
4. Add an extra sprinkling of corn and a sprig of parsley to garnish.

If you like your soups a little saltier, add a teaspoon of miso dissolved in a 1/4 cup of water at the end and stir through.
(August 2008)