Waitrose

Beetroot, Chickpea and Walnut Falafels

~ louisehad ~ 1 Comment

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Beetroot is having its moment in the sun again with its glorious pinkness and deep earthy flavour. You just can’t move without bumping into a recipe using beetroot. This one from the August 2017 Waitrose magazine is perfect for a summer’s day; it’s light, healthy and pink! I did adapt the recipe slightly by adding very generously heaped teaspoons of the coriander and cumin. I also added 2 teaspoons of pomegranate molasses and a tablespoon of lemon juice, just to liven up the flavour of the beetroot. I used blue cheese when building up the flatbread which worked really well, but goat’s cheese or feta would also do the job!  You can find the original recipe below.

 

Ingredients

400g can chick peas, drained
220g beetroot, peeled and coarsely grated
100g walnut pieces
25g pack flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped
25g pack mint, roughly chopped
½ small red onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin

 

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Method

1. Preheat the oven to 190˚C, gas mark 5. Line a baking sheet with baking parchment. Put all the ingredients except the oil in a food processor. Season and pulse until everything is finely chopped and beginning to clump together.

2. Take tablespoons of the mixture to shape into about 20-24 small patties. Space them out on the lined baking sheet, brush lightly with oil and bake for 20-25 minutes until lightly browned. Leave to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before taking them off with a spatula. Serve on their own or with Greek yogurt or hummus, fresh coriander, shredded lettuce, cheese, sliced tomatoes and flatbreads or pitta, if liked.

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Rhubarb and Spelt Muffins

~ louisehad ~ Leave a comment

Muffins with rhubarb

As a child, I remember eating raw sticks of rhubarb from the garden dipped in sugar. I still have a love of rhubarb, but I’m not sure if I could handle it raw. I saw this recipe in Waitrose Magazine (February, 2016) and just loved the pinkness of the rhubarb. I was intrigued by the spelt flour in this recipe and thought it made the muffins sound healthy. However, it turns out that the benefit of spelt flour is that it made the muffins easier to digest. I made then anyway and they were a huge success. These muffins may look pink and sweet, but the contrasting tartness of the rhubarb makes them a clear winner for me.

 

Ingredients

 

60g unsalted butter, melted and cooled

150ml buttermilk

1 egg, beaten

½ tsp vanilla extract

2 clementines, zest

85g plain flour

100g spelt flour

½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

80g golden caster sugar

120g rhubarb, cut into 0.5cm slices

2 tsp demerara sugar

Muffins with rhubarb

Directions

  • Preheat the oven to 18o degrees/160 fan/gas mark 4
  • Line 8 holes in a 12-hole muffin tin with paper cases.
  • Combine the melted butter, buttermilk, egg, vanilla and clementine zest in a small bowl.
  • Put the flours, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda  and caster sugar in a large bowl, then pour in the egg mixture. Fold together until combined, there should be no pockets of  flour, but it should still look lumpy.
  • Fold through most of the rhubarb, keeping some back for the topping.
  • Divide the mixture evenly between the paper cases, topping each with some of the reserved rhubarb, then scatter over the demerara sugar.
  • Bake for 25-30 minutes, until risen and golden; a skewer inserted into the centre should come out clean.
  • Remove from the tin and cool on a wire rack before serving.
  • Rhubarb and spelt muffins