Satisfying Autumn Eats – Plant Based Frittata

As nights draw in and the day for the clocks going back in the U.K looms closer, home becomes ever more important;  particularly for those of us in the UK living under the most stringent covid-19 restrictions. Having a more introverted personality, the restrictions aren’t so much of a burden for my beloved and I, we have regular contact with family and many of our pastimes being out in the open and enjoying nature – pubs notwithstanding.

We have been using our time in a variety of creative pursuits, my beloved is back at his art and I am enjoying having the time to write and cook without the distractions of life. I have been particularly busy in the kitchen this week coming up with new recipes that are filling, comforting, mindful of my dietary restrictions but also make the best use of our veg box.

I have really been enjoying the veg box. It being a ‘get what you’re given’ scenario it has re-ignited my love of cooking. It’s not that I’m reinventing the wheel or anything but simply adapting recipes in my repertoire to include ingredients from the veg box. I had a lot of fun this week experimenting with my chickpea frittata recipe -see below- in which I used summer greens, leeks, garlic and various spices. The end result was much more delicious (even if I do say so myself) than my original recipe – even my beloved, who is wary of certain veg (because they taste too ‘green’) was rapturous over it.

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The joy of this recipe is that it is gluten and dairy free and is filled with tasty seasonal produce.

For the Frittata batter you will need:

1 ¾ cups of gram flour (chickpea flour)
1 tsp of baking powder
1 tsp of garlic granules
1 tsp of cumin
¾ tsp of caraway seeds
½ tsp salt
1 ¾ cups of water

For the filling you will need:
1 Leek
3 good sized leaves from summer greens (stalks removed) cut into narrow strips
3 cloves of garlic (grated)
5 mushrooms cut into chunks
25 grams of dairy free butter plus extra to add by eye as you sauté the filling. (vegetarians can use dairy butter if they desire)
1tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp celery salt
dash of olive oil

Melt butter in a study skillet (preferably one with a lid) add a dash of olive oil to prevent your butter burning. Sauté the leek until soft then add garlic, greens, cumin seeds, ginger and celery salt. When the greens are soft add mushrooms, cover with a lid and turn the heat right down.

I add additional butter as needed, You don’t want your filling swimming but you don’t want it to burn either. When the mushrooms have cooked turn off the heat, preheat your oven at 180 degrees C.
Prepare your batter by sieving your gram flour into a mixing bowl. Add the other dry ingredients and sir through the flour. Add 1 cup of water and start to whisk using either a manual balloon whisk or an electric hand whisk until smooth. Add the remaining 3/4 cup of water slowly, your aiming for a smooth batter with a similar viscosity to a Yorkshire pudding or pancake batter.

Add your sautéed veg and sir through. Pour your mix into a well greased silicone or ceramic quiche dish and bake for around 45 to 50 mins . To check that your frittata is cooked slide in a metal skewer or knife, if the knife comes out clean it is done.

The frittata can be eaten warm or cold with a delicious side salad or lightly steamed vegetables.

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