Light. Quick. Easy. Zesty.

So the days of summer are over. But that doesn't mean that the days are cold and grey. They sure seem to start out that way, but there are still surprisingly warm temperatures that don't lend themselves to hearty soups and casseroles. Which is where a warmed salad-y type meal is perfect. Lots of fresh stuff. Plenty of zest. Filling noodles. And a few veg.

cellophane noodles for 2 (rice/tapioca/bean)

a tablespoon or two of peanut or sesame oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2cm fresh ginger, grated

125g firm tofu, cubed

8 medium sized cup mushrooms, in thin slices

1 carrot, cut into matchsticks

2 teaspoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons LIGHT soy sauce (Thai/Vietnamese/Japanese). A heavy soy sauce such as Chinese masks these flavours rather than enhancing them

large handful fresh bean sprouts

5 spring onions, chopped

juice of 1/2 a lime

2 tablespoons finely sliced fresh mint (don't underdo the mint)

1/2 tablespoon rough chopped fresh coriander (don't overdo the coriander)

Put the noodles on first so they are ready to go. Follow the packet directions. This dish only takes a few minutes to cook once the chopping is done.

Fry the garlic and ginger in the mildly heated oil.

Turn the heat up to medium high and seal the tofu in the oil. It should be nice and golden all over.

Then add the mushrooms, carrot, sugar, salt and LIGHT soy sauce.

Stir fry until the veges are done.

This step is important: Remove the pan from the heat.

Mix in the bean sprouts so they become warmed through.

Let the dish cool somewhat (attend to the noodles?) and then mix in the herbs, spring onion and lime juice. You are almost aiming for a warm salad as opposed to a hot meal. The herbs shouldn't really shrivel up when they're mixed in.

Heap your cooked and drained noodles into mountains in bowls and then heap the vege mix on top.

Makes a meal for 2.

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More vegetarian cookbook goodies

Need help with conversions? Download this handy dandy pdf of cooking conversion charts for every cooking measuring system I could find. It should make your life easier.

Want to check out more vegetarian dinner recipes? They're all in the Table of Contents.

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Easy. Versatile. Long life. Moreish.

Number one besto pesto. Be warned it tends to attract pesto monsters. Or make monsters of those who didn't even know they had monstrous tendencies. They even try to run off with your jars of pesto. Like the one pictured. Let's name this one Richie.

3/4 cup minced basil (about 30g)

3 cloves garlic (minced)

1/2 cup parmesan cheese (57g)

1/4 cup crushed nuts (pine nuts, almond or walnut)

1/3 - 1/2 cup olive oil

Thoroughly mix everything together in the order given.

Put in a clean lidded container, a glass jar is ideal, and keep in the fridge. Some like their pesto fresh but I like to let the flavour develop over a couple of days before use if possible. Makes a great gift or husband catcher.

Makes 3/4 cup of pesto. 
Note, garlic under oil is ideal conditions for botulism. It's rare but extremely nasty. Commercially made pesto is treated to prevent this but the treatment required is not possible in a home kitchen. To be safe, keep this pesto frozen. Freeze into portions in an ice cube tray and pop out into a freezer bag. 

Unusual. Easy. Minty. Aromatic.
 

Food painting artwork

30x30cm oil on canvas. I've explored and blended all the lovely purpley and other colours that the eggplant gives in soft light. There's two eggplants in this painting...

You know how sometimes you first hear of someone's favourite sandwich, say peanut butter, banana and honey. And your instant reaction is, 'YUK!' And somehow, you are convinced against your better judgement to try it. Just one incy wincy tiny bite. And it's nowhere near as bad as you imagined. In fact, it's quite good. Well that's a bit like seeing the ingredients for this recipe. They don't look promising. You're unlikely to have tried this combination before. But it's actually delicious. I promise.

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 onions, chopped, sliced or diced

1 large eggplant (aubergine), cut into small cubes

2 pinches salt

2 cups vege stock

1 cup arborio rice

3/4 cup or about 220g cooked chickpeas

4 tomatoes or about 200g, roughly chopped

1 teaspoon ground allspice

1 teaspoon brown or raw sugar (if you use white sugar make sure the teaspoon measure is a level not rounded one)

2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint

Saute onion in oil until appealingly edible.

Add the eggplant and salt and cook until softened. A few spoonfuls of the stock will help here too.

Stir in the rice until it is as coated with as much oil as possible.

Add all the other ingredients.

Cook just below a simmer with the lid on for 15-20 minutes or until the rice is done.

Serves 2. I think. Feel free to update me if necessary.

Tangy. Hearty. Warming. Chunky.

Food painting artwork

30x30cm gouache on canvas. Inspired by the Campbells tomato soup cans of the very famous Andy Warhol.

When I was little and went to the football with my dad, we always seemed to end up taking a thermos of tomato soup with us. It was revolting tinned stuff that I wouldn't usually enjoy eating but after sitting in the cold for an entire afternoon, it was just wonderful. This tomato soup recipe is just as hearty and delicious and doesn't require the eater to be damp and hungry for it to taste great. And it's an easy way to use up some of those gazillion tomatoes that have grown over summer.

1/2 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon butter

1 onion, diced small

3 bay leaves

3 whole cloves

2 teaspoons dried tarragon

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tablespoon sugar

4 cups or 1L medium to strong vegetable stock

1kg fresh tomatoes, diced small

1-2 cups cooked, tinned or fresh (but not dried) beans such as borlotti, haricot, cannellini etc

black pepper to taste

All the ingredients need to be finely chopped as there is no pureeing. This is a chunky soup.

Melt the butter and oil together.

Saute the onion in the oil and butter until soft.

Add all the other ingredients.

Simmer very gently for an hour with the pot lid on.

Remove the bay leaves (and cloves if you can find them).

Serve with cracked black pepper.

Makes 4-6 bowls.

Aromatic. Easy. Warming. Spiced.

Food painting artwork

30x30cm gouache on canvas. My defining memories of chai tea involve sitting in a very hippy tent with a random shaped returnable mug of warming spicy chai and having equally random conversations with total strangers who each had a different shaped returnable mug. Hence all the various mugs in this picture.

If you love chai tea and always wanted a solid recipe to use at home instead of buying the stuff in the packets, here it is. And this one is free of caffeinated black tea, too.

Lightly boil together for about 20mins:

3 cups water

10cm cinnamon

8 cloves

4 cardamom pods

up to 2.5cm fresh ginger, sliced and peeled (peeling helps stop the scum that unpeeled ginger generates when boiled)

up to half a teaspoon grated nutmeg

Then add one cup of milk or soy milk and heat through.

Pour into mugs and sweeten with honey to taste.

The spices can be used up to 3 times. Obviously the tea is weaker each time.

Don't try and use ground spices. They just make a revolting sludge.

This will make enough for 2 cups.