Wegan Wednesdays

Last Wednesday, I made a Moroccan chickpea and squash stew. I’d had this recipe earmarked in Hugh F-W’s River Cottage Veg Everyday cookbook for a few months already, and as spring is finally arriving, I thought it was time to leap into action before the stewy days were over.

So, here we go, with a few personal adjustments (for 4 people):

- Fry a chopped onion in sunflower oil until soft, then add a clove of garlic and a stick of celery (both chopped), half a tea spoon of ground pepper, half a tea spoon of tumeric, a quarter tea spoon of cinammon and another a small thumb of ginger, chopped (the recipe calls for ground ginger powder but I’m not a fan)

- After a few minutes add 50g red lentils, a tin of chickpeas (drained), 6 saffron strands, 250 ml of passata, a bunch of chopped parsley and chopped coriander (save some fresh coriander for the end!)

- After 15 minutes, add in the squash cut into big cubes, cover with vegetable stock and cook for 40 minutes. I added some fresh peas too, just 5 minutes before the end.

Hugh suggests adding orzo 10 minutes before the end, but I went more Moroccan and instead served the stew with couscous and harissa. Top with lots of fresh coriander.

That’ll be one to dig out next autumn!