Fruit & Vegetables news

• Weetabix pays tribute to late CEO Ken Wood

  14-09-2018 17:23
  
  The company’s former chief executive died on 7 September at the age of 67.
  
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• Squash, chilli & Brussels sprout spelt bowl

  17-12-2019 10:13
  A healthy and colourful warm spelt salad dressed with a zingy citrus dressing. Riverford's slow grown and hand harvested Brussels sprouts are used in two different ways - roasted and raw. Roasting intensifies their flavour and natural sweetness; raw adds crunch and freshness.Adding three whole garlic cloves into the spelt may seem a hefty amount, but the flavour mellows considerably as they cook.
  
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• Lemon & caper beef escalopes with celeriac

  06-12-2019 14:29
  Simmering and frying celeriac imparts aromatics from the water and controls the browning in the pan. Finishing it with butter helps it colour and adds a nutty flavour. Try using a sharp knife to peel the gnarly roots, a veg peeler should do for the rest
  
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• Baked celeriac with spiced quinoa, kale & hazelnuts

  22-10-2019 12:35
  You can roast a celeriac in chunks, but it can go a bit mushy. Baking it whole takes a bit longer, but the flesh stays firm as the heat and salt draw away moisture. Cut into steak-like pieces, it makes for a toothsome centrepiece. Although this dish seems complete, it is perfect as part of a veggie or vegan Christmas dinner with all the trimmings – the quinoa will cope with a good vegan gravy. You may want to remove the cardamom pods and cinnamon before mixing everything together; some peo
  
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• Vegan christmas pudding & pear mess

  22-10-2019 12:23
  The viscous water from tinned chickpeas has enough body to be whisked into a foam, allowing the most unlikely of desserts to become vegan. You need to invest some good time for whisking to ensure that the meringues don’t collapse in the oven. The smaller the meringues you make, the more stable they tend to be.
  The pears are easy to prepare ahead of time. If you have perfectly ripe pears you could do this recipe without poaching them first. The chocolate sauce needs to be made just before s
  
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• Smashed potatoes with onion & sage

  22-10-2019 12:17
  A twist on traditional roasties. Squashing the spuds creates lots of edges and surface area that will crisp up in the roasting tray. We’ve added sage and onion, reminiscent of a classic Christmas stuffing.
  
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• Rice pudding with roast apple compote & boozy prunes

  22-10-2019 11:53
  Wipe away grim memories of school dinners; this rice pudding is a luxury affair. And yes, the skin is the best bit, to be fought over, not feared! We’ve invited it to the Christmas table with spiced apples and boozy dried fruit. Blistering the apples in the oven deepens the flavour and sweetness; apart a pinch of spice, they need nothing else.
  
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• Scrambled tofu on toast with tomatoes & spinach

  22-10-2019 09:36
  Unlike scrambled eggs, where low and slow is best, you want to cook your tofu on a galloping heat. It tastes all the better if it gets a little colour in the pan.
  Far from being strong and pungent, black garlic has a deep, savoury taste. If you want to mimic real scrambled egg, you can also use black salt; it isn’t always easy to find, but has a sulphurous, eggy taste to it.
  
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• Potato & mushroom persillade with poached eggs

  22-10-2019 09:24
  It may look simple, but the key to this dish hangs on a few precise elements. The potatoes need to be more waxy than floury, to hold their shape when frying, and you need to remove as much starch and water as you can to get them to brown well. It also pays to cook the mushrooms and the potatoes separately as it is difficult to get colour on either if the pan is too crowded. The persillade is brought to life by the heat of the pan at the end; this takes the raw edge away from the garlic, and open
  
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• Kefir pancakes with baked plums

  22-10-2019 09:14
  Based around a traditional Russian recipe called oladi, these kefir pancakes have a slight sour tang that works perfectly with sweet fruit. The baked plums are a brilliant partner in late autumn, but the pancakes would happily pair with strawberries and soft summer fruits when the sun is shining.
  
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• Keffir pancakes with baked plums

  22-10-2019 09:14
  Based around a traditional Russian recipe called oladi, these kefir pancakes have a slight sour tang that works perfectly with sweet fruit. The baked plums are a brilliant partner in late autumn, but the pancakes would happily pair with strawberries and soft summer fruits when the sun is shining.
  
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• Bircher overnight oats

  22-10-2019 09:01
  Bircher oats can best be described as a cold, fruity porridge. The oats and apple are steeped in liquid overnight, plumping and softening. It means that breakfast can be pulled, fully formed, from the fridge in the morning. You can add a little extra milk before serving, depending on your preferred consistency. Top with whatever fresh fruit is at its best. If you forget to soak the mix overnight, you can still get a similar result by soaking for 20 mins or so in the morning; it won’t have
  
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• Mushroom, lentil & red wine wellington

  21-10-2019 16:47
  An ideal veggie centrepiece to your Christmas feast. The cooking is simple and speedy, but you need to give the filling time to cool - it makes working with the pastry much easier. If practical, it’s worth getting all the elements ready the day before. It gives them time to cool, leaving you to just wrap and bake on Christmas morning. It’s easily made vegan by using vegan pastry and brushing the top with a little oil in place of the egg.
  
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• Pear, parsnip & red cabbage slaw

  21-10-2019 16:41
  A selection of raw winter veg. Treat it as a slaw over the festive period, serve it as a salad alongside cold cuts, or extend into a quick lunch by adding some cooked lentils and toasted nuts to the mix. If you put it anywhere near roast beef, then consider adding a dab of horseradish.
  
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• Carrots & clementine in a bag

  21-10-2019 12:37
  A theatrical technique that seals in the flavour and lets the veg cook in its own moisture. You’ll need baking parchment and 3 bulldog clips. You could use a dash of mulled cider instead of water.
  
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• Portobello mushroom ragù & spaghetti

  17-10-2019 11:32
  This is a vegan take on a traditional Italian ragù. The earthy portobello mushrooms add depth and a wonderful savoury flavour. This sauce can also be used in other recipes, like a lentil and mushroom pie, or stuffed roasted squash.
  
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• Courgette & sheep cheese pasta with gremolata

  17-10-2019 10:00
  Given a low heat and a little time, courgettes collapse into a chunky mass, good for whizzing into soups or piling on toast. Here they’re combined with sheep’s cheese and a splash of water to create a simple, creamy sauce.Gremolata is a vibrant Italian garnish with three easy ingredients; parsley, lemon zest and garlic. Preserved lemons add a twist here. You only need the rind, as the flesh is bitter when preserved. The rind is sweeter and saltier than fresh lemons; add a little, tas
  
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• Root vegetable & borlotti cobbler

  14-10-2019 10:05
  A cobbler can be a sweet or savoury dish, with a pastry or dumpling baked topping. Our winter version is packed with seasonal roots and nutty borlotti beans, and uses a cheese and herb cobbler dough. Spring greens add a flash of colour for the side dish. Root veg tends to vary in size so we’ve listed the chopped weight.
  
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• Mediterranean traybake with garlic tortillas

  11-10-2019 19:37
  Roasting vegetables really brings out their flavour, especially with the added garlic and rosemary. Garlic tortillas to dip into the rich tomato sauce complete this vibrant vegan plateful. Try making this with other veg spending on the season; squash, new potatoes, courgette, or aubergine would all work well too.
  
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• Gnocchi & seasonal greens with brown butter

  11-10-2019 15:13
  Brown butter is a thing of beauty. It involves cooking the milk solids in the butter to achieve a nutty caramel taste. You can add it to any recipe that requires melted butter for a more complex and interesting flavour; anything from hollandaise sauce to cupcakes.People too often cut away and waste the stalks when cooking Calabrese broccoli. They are just as delectable as the main floret. The trick is to cut your florets with a long tail of stalk still attached. Trim the stalk so that it cooks a
  
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• Honey baked quinces

  11-10-2019 13:03
  Quinces tend to vary in their cooking time, depending on size and age. If you have the time and patience, a long, slow roast in the oven assures a tender result and deep sienna colour. They can be problematic if cooked in a cake or pudding, as the dessert can rise or set before the fruit begins to yield. Better to serve them on the side, with plenty of the sweet syrup from the roasting pan. Ideal with a simple Madeira cake or baked custard.
  
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• Quinces poached in white wine

  11-10-2019 12:34
  The spices echo the fruit’s own fragrance, but aren’t essential; you could simply use the wine and sugar. These are ideal served as part of a dessert or used in a savoury context, alongside some roast pork or salty cheddar.
  
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• Provençal baked mackerel

  10-10-2019 20:09
  The Mediterranean diet is supposedly one of the healthiest in the world. Luckily, it’s also one of the tastiest! This colourful representation is a real treat - try with a glass of rosé for that South of France holiday feeling.
  
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• Moroccan carrot & chickpea bake

  10-10-2019 19:19
  This is a baked take on a tagine-style mix of spiced vegetables, chickpeas and tomatoes. Any leftovers can be easily reheated the next day. Instead of wheat couscous, we’re packing in an extra portion of veg by using cauliflower couscous, making this gluten free as well.
  
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• Roast leek and pain de sucre warm salad

  10-10-2019 16:40
  This recipe was sent to us by one of our customers, Paul from London, who noticed that we didn't have Pain de Sucre recipes on our website. As he's come up with his own rather tasty salad, he thought our other customers might enjoy it too. Thank you Paul!The recipe for this warm salad was inspired by the classic French dish of chicory, Roquefort and walnuts. The potatoes are not essential but make the dish a more substantial meal and Marfona are an ideal variety. Caws Cenarth Perl Las is the per
  
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• Lentil dhal & tarka fried onions with spinach

  10-10-2019 15:59
  Frying the onions and spices separately and adding to a dhal at the end of cooking is a technique known as ‘tarka’. Cook your onions on a higher heat than feels normal, so they take on a golden colour. Cook the lentils on a low heat; too hot and they will stick to the base of the pan as they absorb water and thicken. Curry powder can be quite mild but, if you’re unsure how spicy you’d like it, add two-thirds then the rest halfway through cooking, to taste.
  
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• Courgette & lentil bake

  10-10-2019 11:50
  Like pasta sheets in a lasagne, slices of courgette separate a protein-enriched tomato sauce. Depending on the size and shape of your dish, you may need to do a little patchwork with the courgette slices so they completely cover each layer of lentils.Instead of a standard white sauce, we’ve opted for a rich ricotta topping. If you have the time, allow the bake to sit for 10 minutes or so before tucking in; the topping sets and firms up a little as it cools.
  
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• Chard & white bean winter minestrone

  10-10-2019 10:42
  There are no strict rules for a minestrone; as a veg-based stew, it can track the seasons. Where the debate comes is whether it should contain pasta, rice or pulses. All are justified; we’ve chosen mild, creamy cannellini beans for this wintery version. Rather than cooking the garlic and rosemary into the dish, you’re chopping it finely and adding it raw as a garnish at the end. Raw garlic can be quite potent, so add as much or as little of the clove as you’d like, to taste.
  
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• Moroccan spiced lamb pie with courgettes

  09-10-2019 19:11
  Try to find proper, all-butter pastry and avoid the supermarket ones if you can. Make sure it is cooked through; check the bottom and if it needs longer in the oven, turn the heat lower and give it a few more mins. The residual heat should cook it through without burning the top of the crust. Cook your courgettes in batches if your pan isn’t big enough to fit them in a single layer. Keep them warm in the oven while you fry the next batch. As there are chilli flakes in the pie, add fresh ch
  
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• Mirin glazed carrots & crispy tofu

  09-10-2019 18:21
  In this Japanese inspired recipe, you cook the carrots in mirin, a sweet rice wine. The liquid cooks away to almost nothing and reduces to a shiny glaze. Only add a splash more water if it looks like the carrots will completely dry out before the 10 mins of cooking. Once the lid is off, you want the carrots to catch on the edges and take on some colour; it all adds to the flavour.
  
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