I love these little pies they are so easy to make and are a great vegetarian option for a meal or for those ‘meat free’ nights I have once or twice a week.  Not only are they delicious but also nutritious having several different vegetables in them, and  they are also topped with melted cheese for added protein.  You can also add some tinned or stewed lentils for that extra protein dimension.

Try these they are just delicious ♥ 

Ingredients:

• 2 potatoes, peeled & chopped
• 250gms pumpkin, peeled & chopped
• 125gms kumera (orange sweet potato) peeled & chopped
• 1 large carrot, peeled & chopped
• 1 small onion, peeled & chopped
• 50gms butter
• 1 tbsp curry powder
• 1 tomato, chopped
• ½ cup peas (frozen as they cook faster)

Method:

1. Boil potato, pumpkin, kumera and carrot until just tender, drain.
2. Saute the onion in the butter until soft, add curry powder, stir through, and saute 1 minute.
3. Add vegetables to the pan and add a little water and toss through.
4. Add tomato and peas, and cook for 5 minutes.
5. Place in partly cooked pie shells, and sprinkle with grated tasty cheese.
6. Place in a moderate oven until the cheese is melted….yummo!

Pastry – Thaw one sheet of shortcrust pastry, and cut to size and place in greased 2 small pie tins.  Prick with fork and bake a few minutes until partially set.

serves two

Let me know how these little pies turn our for you they are a great staple ♥

Falafel are so easy to make and so much nicer that store bought ones….served with home made hummus (recipe on website) warmed sourdough flatbread (recipe a few posts ago) and fresh tabouli and I'm in heaven …recipe now on the website #falafel #chickpeas #hummus #tabouli #sourdoughflatbread #oliveoil #food #foodpic #foodphoto #foodvideo #foodporn #instapic #instaphoto #instavideo #instagram #askmehow #cookingadvice #cookinglessons

A post shared by Gail (@monrealescookinginspirations) on Jul 21, 2017 at 12:19am PDT

This is a great recipe I’ve taken the video directly from my Instagram page.  Many of my followers loved it ♥

Ingredients:

• 2 cups dried chickpeas – don’t substitute with canned, they are too soft
  1 small onion, roughly chopped
  ¼ cup parsley, chopped
  2 cloves garlic
  1½ tsp chickpea flour
  1¾ tsp salt
  2 tsp cumin
  1 tsp ground coriander
  ¼ tsp black pepper
  ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
  Pinch for ground cardamom
  Vegetable oil for frying (preferably canola)

Method:
1. Put the chickpeas into a large bowl and cover them with cold water, let them soak overnight.
2. They will double in size as they soak, you will have between 4-5 cups of chickpeas after soaking.
3. Drain and rinse the chickpeas well.
4. Pour them in to a food processor along with the chopped onion, garlic cloves, parsley, chickpea flour, salt, cumin, coriander, black pepper, cayenne pepper & cardamom.
5. Pulse all ingredients together until a rough coarse meal forms.
6. Scrape down the sides and process until the mixture is somewhere between the texture of couscous and paste.
7. You wan the mixture to hold together but you don’t want it turning into hummus.
8.Once the mixture is the desired consistency spoon it into a bowl and let refrigerate for an hour.
9.Fill a pan with the vegetable oil, and heat.
10.Roll into balls or patties and fry until golden.

Serve with home made hummus (recipe coming on the website) and freshly made tabouli.
Let me know with a comment below if you really like this recipe.

These delightful shortbread cookies are a favourite, with the lovely crunch from the pistachios and the wonderful tang from the cranberries.  I am often asked to make these and they sell easily at fetes and in cafes which I make them for……and there is no way you can stop at one!

Ingredients:

• 250g unsalted butter, softened
• ½ cup caster sugar
• ¼ rice flour
• 2 cups plain flour
• ¹⁄³ cup pistachio kernels, chopped
• ¹⁄³ cup cranberries (craisins), chopped

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 160°C
2. Cream butter and sugar until light and creamy
3. Sift flours and add to the creamed mixture.
4. Mix well, stir in pistachios and cranberries.
5. Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently to form a soft ball.
6. Cut dough in half and roll into a smooth log shape.
7. Wrap in baking paper and place in the fridge for about 30 minutes.
8. Using a sharp knife, cut the log into ½cm slices.
9. Place on a baking tray and bake for 15-20 minutes or until lightly golden.
10. Cool on trays.

Please let me know if your enjoy this recipe I love feedback ♥