Serves 4
There is now a fabulous selection of ready-made falafel in supermarkets and convenience stores, many of them from Irish producers. Made from chickpeas, falafel are a good source of plant- based protein and are high in fibre too.
Prep 20 MINS
Cook 45 MINS
LOADS OF VEG
FREEZER FRIENDLY
- 1 large aubergine, cut into 2.5cm chunks
- 1 red pepper, cut into 2cm chunks
- 1 yellow pepper, cut into 2cm chunks
- 1 large red onion, cut into 2cm chunks
- 2 small courgettes, trimmed and cut into 2cm chunks
- 3 tbsp rapeseed oil
- 4 tsp red wine or sherry vinegar
- 1 tsp caster sugar
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 mild fresh red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
- 2 x 200g packets of ready-made falafel
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
TO SERVE
warm pittas tomato salsa hummus
Preheat the oven to 200°c (400°F/gas mark 6).
Put the aubergine, peppers, red onion and courgettes in a large roasting tin and season generously. drizzle over the oil and use your hands to mix everything together. roast for 25 minutes, until the veg are tender and just beginning to catch around the edges, tossing once to ensure they cook evenly.
Meanwhile, put the vinegar in a small bowl and stir in the sugar until dissolved. tip in the garlic and chilli and stir again to combine.
remove the vegetables from the oven and drizzle over the garlic and chilli mixture, then toss to combine. nestle in the falafel and roast for another 10–12 minutes, until the falafel are piping hot and the vegetables are nicely charred.
Scatter over the parsley and serve straight to the table with warm pitta and separate bowls of tomato salsa and hummus.
Greek Roasted Vegetables
Serves 4
In Greece this is known as briam and to make it you'll need yellow waxy potatoes such as Charlotte, or any Cypriot varieties will also work well. I find that the organic potatoes tend to be waxy, so that section is a good place to start looking in the supermarket. Try to roughly match up their size to the courgettes to make them easier to layer up.
30 MINS
1½ HRS
LOADS OF VEG
FREEZER FRIENDLY
- 500g waxy new potatoes (see the intro), unpeeled and cut into slices 3mm thick
- 1 yellow or green courgette, trimmed and cut into slices 5mm thick
- 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 2 tsp chopped fresh oregano (or 1 tsp dried)
- 2 tsp chopped fresh rosemary (or 1 tsp dried)
- 4 tbsp olive or rapeseed oil, plus extra for drizzling
- 2 x 400g tins of chopped tomatoes 2 red onions, thinly sliced
- a handful of fresh basil leaves
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
TO SERVE
marinated feta olives
Preheat the oven to 200°c (400°F/gas mark 6).
Put the potatoes and courgette in a large bowl with the garlic, oregano and rosemary. Season generously and drizzle over the 4 tablespoons of oil, then toss to coat evenly.
Pour one tin of tomatoes into the bottom of a shallow round casserole dish that is about 23cm on the base and season with salt and pepper, stirring to combine. Arrange the potatoes, courgettes and red onions in alternating rows, starting at the outside of the dish and working your way into the middle. Stir the second tin of tomatoes into the bowl that you’ve mixed the vegetables in so that it picks up any residue, then spoon this over the top of the vegetables, using a spatula to get every bit.
drizzle the vegetables with a little more oil, then cover tightly with foil and bake for 45 minutes. remove the foil and roast for another 30–35 minutes, until the vegetables are softened and lightly charred and all the liquid has evaporated.
Scatter over some fresh basil leaves and serve straight to the table with separate bowls of feta and olives.