Vegetarian Moussaka

This is a beautiful recipe - it combines a rich tomato-chickpea-lentil stew with a creamy bechamel sauce and roasted potatoes and eggplant.  It is, however, very time and ingredient intensive, although I think it's worth it.  It also makes enough for about 12 - i.e. lots of leftovers!  Adapted from Jamie Oliver.

Ingredients

15g dried porcini mushrooms
2 onions, peeled and diced
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
a handful fresh herb leaves (such as rosemary, sage)
dried oregano
250ml red wine
1 400g can of chickpeas, drained
1 400g can lentils, drained
4 bay leaves
3 400g cans chopped tomatoes
4 eggplants, cut into 1/2" round slices
800g potatoes, cut into 1/4" round slices
750ml milk
5 peppercorns
75g butter
75g flour
150g feta cheese
100g parmesian or pecorino
2 large egg yolks
olive oil
olive oil spray

salt and pepper

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 180ºC/350ºF.  Place porcini in a small bowl and cover with boiling water, then set aside to soak. 
2. Saute onion and garlic in 1T olive oil over medium heat for about 10 minutes, until translucent.
3. Take porcini out of bowl (reserving the water), and roughly chop. At the same time, bring a medium saucepan of water to boil.
4. Add to the onions, along with fresh herbs and 1t oregano, and saute for 30 seconds more, until fragrant.
5.  Add wine, chickpeas, lentils, 2 bay leaves, tomatoes, and porcini water - season to taste, and simmer over low heat for ~1 hour, or until thickened and reduced, stirring occasionally.
6. Meanwhile, parboil potatoes by cooking in boiling water for about 5 minutes, then drain and allow to dry.
7. Place potatoes in large roasting tray, season with oil and a few pinches of dried oregano, and toss to coat evenly.  Spread in an even layer and set aside.
8. Prepare another large roasting tray with olive oil spray, and spread eggplant in a single layer.  Spray top of eggplants, then add another single layer of eggplant, and spray again.  Continue layering eggplant and spray until all eggplant slices are in the tray.
9. Roast potatoes and eggplant in oven for 30-40 minutes, or until golden and cooked through.  Once cooked, set aside.
10. Add butter to a medium-large saucepan, and heat over medium heat - add flour and combine to form a paste, then cook for ~2 minutes, until butter-flour mixture is fragrant and has a slight golden color.
11. Gradually stir in milk, making sure that there are no lumps of flour - add bay leaves and peppercorns, and stir mixture until it is  hot enough that it starts to thicken.
12. Crumble in 50g feta, and stir to combine - set aside.
13. Once the tomato mixture, roasted vegetables, and sauce are done, you can begin to assemble the moussaka: take roasting pan full of potatoes, cover with half the ragù, layer layer half the aubergines on top, and repeat with the remaining ragù and aubergines. 
14. Whisk egg yolks into the béchamel sauce, then gently pour onto the aubergines in an even layer.
15. Crumble and grate the remaining cheese on top, and place in the oven for 35 to 40 minutes, until golden and bubbling. 

Vanilla mascarpone ice cream

I made this ice cream without an ice cream maker - the custard base keeps it from forming ice crystals that are too big.  Adapted from BBC Good Food.

Ingredients

3 large egg yolks
100g golden caster sugar
300ml full-fat milk
250g mascarpone
seeds ½ vanilla pod (or 2 t vanilla extract)

Instructions

1. Put the yolks and sugar into a large bowl, and beat together until pale and thick.
2. Put milk, mascarpone, and vanilla into medium saucepan and bring to the boil, stirring to combine
3. Once just boiling, take off the heat and whisk this gradually into the bowl with egg mix to make a custard.
4. Pour custard back into saucepan, and cook gently for 15 mins, stirring constantly until mix is thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon (approximately 65-70C). Don’t let it boil or the eggs will scramble. 
5. Freeze  custard for approx. 4 hrs in a container, stirring and breaking up the crystals every hour until thick and smooth. 

Tagliatelle with asparagus in a parmesian and creme fraiche sauce

This is a tangy and fresh version of carbonara - the creme fraiche adds a depth of flavor to the dish.  Adapted from The River Cafe Cook Book Green

Ingredients

500g-1kg asparagus, ends trimmed
500g tagliatelle (fresh is ideal)
250g parmesian, grated
1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed
400ml creme fraiche
2 large eggs
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Fill a medium pot halfway with water, and bring to a very gentle simmer
2. Rub the crushed garlic around the surface of a small-medium saucepan, and add creme fraiche, parmesian, and egg yolks
3. Heat small pan filled with creme fraiche on top of medium pot filled with water - stir gently and cook until sauce thickens, about 15-20 minutes (or until sauce reaches around 65C)
4. Bring a large pan of water to boil, and season with 2 tablespoons of salt
5. Prepare asparagus by slicing stems and tips into 1" pieces on the diagonal
6. Cook pasta - read cooking instructions on pasta package, and add asparagus to boiling water so that it cooks with the pasta for the final 3-4 minutes, until both are al dente
7. Drain pasta and asparagus, pour creme-fraiche sauce over and toss to mix