2019-11-01 In The Moment

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1

In a large saucepan, sauté the leek

or onion in the olive oil with a pinch of

salt, uncovered, until the vegetables are

soft and transparent.

2

Add the pumpkin and carrot and

sauté until the vegetables start to

sweat. Add the bouillon powder, turmeric,

garlic, bay leaves and tomatoes and stir.

Add the wine and let the mixture boil.

3

Next, add the lentils, kombu and

1 litre (4 cups) water. Turn up the heat,

cover and bring to the boil. Then, lower

the heat and let simmer for about 25–30

minutes or until the lentils and vegetables

are completely tender.

4

Remove the bay leaves, then use a

handheld blender to purée the soup

and make it smooth and creamy.

5

Add lemon juice, a few grinds of

black pepper and the umeboshi

vinegar to taste and stir. You can add

more hot water if the soup seems too

thick. Ladle into bowls to serve.

Ve l v e t y

pumpkin & red

lentil soup

This golden vegan soup

is the perfect prepare-

ahead, seasonal start to

your festive meal, rich with

winter squash and lentils

METHOD

Recipe reproduced

with permission

from The Flexitarian

Cookbook (Ryland

Peters & Small,

£ 1 4. 99 ), out now.

INGREDIENTS

SERVES 4

70g (½ cup) chopped leek (white

part) or onion

4 tbsp olive oil

200g (12⁄3 cups) peeled and

seeded pumpkin wedges cut into

3-4cm (1¼-1½in) chunks

120g (1 cup) carrot cut into 2.5cm

(1in) pieces

1 tsp vegetable bouillon powder

¼ tsp ground turmeric

4 garlic cloves, crushed

2 bay leaves

3 dried tomato halves, chopped

2 tbsp vegan white wine

150g (¾ cup) dried red lentils,

washed and drained

7cm (2¾in) strip of kombu

seaweed

squeeze of lemon juice

1 tbsp umeboshi vinegar

salt and freshly ground

black pepper

Calm Christmas

We’ve got something for every guest

in our selection of delicious starters,

as not only are all of these recipes

vegan, they’re gluten-free too.

For a warming bowl you can make

in advance, there’s velvety pumpkin

and red lentil soup. If canapés are more

your style, sweet potato ‘toast’ and

aubergine bruschetta are both simple

enough to be made just before serving

with minimum prep.

For a refreshing entrée you can

make the day before, no-cook rice

paper rolls are a crunchy, colourful

option (and great fun to make with

kids). Finally, sweet and fragrant

maple and cinnamon roasted walnuts

will keep your guests going while you

get the mains in the oven.

starters