We know they're good for us and now this tempting cookbook gives us more ways to enjoy our greens.
Like most of us, Texan-turned-Brit Rachel de Thample cannot give up eating meat. But, like most of us, she knows that reversing the ratio of meat-to-veges in our diet is better for our health, our wallets and for the planet. Rachel's day job is writing and researching about the ethics of food sourcing and creating weekly seasonal recipes for British organic vege supplier Abel & Cole, so she has packed her recipes with easy, and seasonal, ways to enjoy meat sparingly and increase the vegetable quotient. The welcoming photographs and recipes gently nudge, rather than lecture us, to eat up all our veges, cleverly update everyday side dishes (tomatoes and mint, peas with spring onions and lemon, beans and black olives) and whizz up fresh summer soups. A handy guide to sorbets and fruity puddings will satisfy our sweet tooth, with a clean conscience.
This lamb burger dish uses only 50g of meat per person - best quality of course - and almost half of the daily recommended portion of vegetables. But at this time of year, feel free to add more.
Lamb burger with roasted aubergine and pistachio mayonnaise
Aubergines have a hearty, meaty texture and work beautifully with lamb, especially when they've developed a smoky flavour after roasting.
Makes 4 burgers
1 aubergine
Olive oil
Sea salt and freshly
Ground black pepper
2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 red peppers
200g minced lamb
1 onion, finely chopped
1/2 tsp each ground cumin, ground coriander and ground cinnamon10 cardamom pods, seeds ground
Pinch of chilli powder
4 Tbs breadcrumbs
3 Tbs black olives, finely chopped
A handful of fresh mint
4 nice bread rolls, halved and brushed with olive oil
A handful of salad or lettuce leaves
For the pistachio mayo
3 Tbs shelled pistachios, lightly toasted
Sea salt and black pepper
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
1 ripe avocado, flesh scooped out
1/4 tsp honey
3 Tbs olive oil
1 Preheat the oven to 200C/gas mark 6. Halve the aubergine and rub the insides with olive oil, a pinch of salt and half the garlic. Make three or four diagonal slices, about 1 to 2cm deep, across the flesh of each aubergine half. Do the same in the opposite direction. Grind a bit of pepper over the top, place on a roasting tray and pop into the oven for about 30 minutes, or until really tender right the way through. Add the whole red peppers in a tray alongside the aubergine.
2 Once cooked, set the peppers aside to cool, and put the aubergines in a blender and whizz to a fine puree, or finely chop them, skin and all, until you have a fairly fine paste. You can do this a day in advance if you're feeling really organised.
3 Add the chopped aubergine to the lamb mince along with the onion, spices, breadcrumbs, chopped olives, remaining garlic and mint. Mix thoroughly and shape into four patties.
4 Let the burger patties rest while you make the pistachio mayo. Blitz the pistachios in a food-processor or pound with a pestle in a mortar, with a pinch of salt, until you have a smooth, peanut butter-like paste. Add the avocado, honey and oil, and whizz until smooth and creamy. Taste and add more salt and pepper, if needed. Drizzle some olive oil over the top. Refrigerate until needed.
5 Prepare the red pepper by tearing it into 1cm-thick ribbons, removing skin, seeds and stem. Set aside.
6 Heat a frying pan over a medium-high heat. Add a splash of oil, let it warm, then carefully place the burger patties in the pan. Cook for 5 minutes, or until nicely browned on each side. If needed, press the burgers back into shape as they cook.
7 As soon as they're cooked, pile them into the dry burger buns to rest. The buns will act like little sponges to soak up all those lovely juices. Serve the burgers with a dab of the pistachio mayo, the roasted red pepper ribbons and a handful of leaves.
* Reproduced with permission from Less Meat, More Veg: 150 delicious recipes for the carnivore with a conscience, by Rachel De Thample, with photography by Peter Cassidy. Published by Kyle Cathie, distributed in New Zealand by New Holland, RRP $39.99.
Be in to win this cookbook
We have one copy of Less Meat, More Veg to give away.
To enter the draw, email your contact details to life@nzherald.co.nz with "Less Meat More Veg" in the subject line by noon on Thursday, February 3.
