Veganuary Month with Zerlina Mastin

Dinner – Lentil Shepherd’s Pie

Serves 3

150g potatoes (e.g. Maris Piper), 150g sweet potatoes, 1 carrot, 2 cloves garlic, 2 sticks celery, olive oil for cooking, pinch of thyme, 100g mushrooms, 8 cherry tomatoes, 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar, ½ vegetable stock cube, ½ tin lentils, ½ tin chickpeas, pinch of parsley, pinch of rosemary, 1 lemon.

Method:

Clean and chop the potatoes into small chunks. Place the Maris Pipers into a large pan of water, bring to the boil, then simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, or until tender, adding the sweet potatoes after 5 minutes. Drain the water and return to the pan with a little olive oil and a pinch of salt and black pepper. Mash until smooth, then set aside.
Peel and finely slice the carrots, garlic cloves and celery.
Chop the mushrooms and cherry tomatoes roughly, then add all to the pan along with the vinegar and a little oil. Cook for a further 10 minutes, then stir in the vegetable stock cube with 50ml of water, lentils and chickpeas (juice and all), and a pinch of thyme, then leave for 5 to 10 minutes, or until slightly thickened and reduced.
Add the parsley, then transfer to a baking dish
Spread the mash over the top of the lentil mix, and sprinkle with a few rosemary leaves and lemon zest.
Place in the hot oven for around 10 minutes, or until piping hot.
Serve with green leaves or green beans.

Snack – No Bake Granola Bars

Snacks between classes should offer both a good source of dietary protein and healthy carbohydrates. No bake granola bars are ideal in terms of short preparation time, slow release carbohydrates and plant based protein. They can be prepared ahead of time, and when stored in the fridge, will remain fresh for about a week.

Makes 8-10 servings

1 ½ cups of rolled oats, 1 cup of peanut butter, ½ cup dried fruit, 1 cup of mixed nuts (e.g. pistachios. walnuts), 2 tablespoons of flaxseed meal, 3 tablespoons of pumpkin seeds, 1 tablespoon of sunflower seeds, 2 tablespoons of honey, ½ cup of unsweetened applesauce (or pureed banana).

Line a baking pan with parchment paper (approximately 8-8 inch pan)
Mix all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl until thoroughly combined
Press the mixture into the pan, and place in the fridge until set (approx. 3-4 hours).
Cut into bars and serve!
Leftovers can be kept in the fridge for up to a week

Note: a little dark chocolate can be drizzled over the bars before placing in the fridge. The unsweetened applesauce can also be replaced with a fruit puree (e.g. banana puree) or yogurt.

The next Recipe blog by Zerlina will be released on Monday 5th February 2018.