Christmas is nearly upon us! Last year, you seemed to really enjoy my collection of 50 vegetarian Christmas dinner recipes , so I thought I'd put together another collection for you, to make sure that your vegetarian Christmas dinner is just as satisfying as the meaty version could ever be!
Flicking through it I found many things I wanted to try. The dishes are different enough not to be boring, but not so outlandish to put you off. And there is no requirement for any odd ingredients you wouldn't find in the shops of a reasonable sized town.
I might mention and rate a few of the things I have made so far. First were Carrot and Coriander Fritters with Halloumi and Sweet Lemon Dressing (P146). This was tasty enough but not I felt worth the faff. I'd score it 3/5. I probably won't make it lemon dressing however, fantastic for all sorts of salads, I'd score a 5/5. I will have a jar of that sitting in my fridge all summer.
Next up was the Quick Soda Bread (Page 130) which I was quite skeptical about. This is the only recipe for Irish soda bread I have ever seen that involved rubbing in butter and adding sugar. Its getting on to being a scone mix rather than a bread one. My doubts were dispelled though when it came out of the oven – delicious! 4/5 score. I've made three of these loaves in just over a week and expect this to be a recipe I return to again and again.
After that I tried the Chilli and Crushed Walnut Rigatoni (P166). This was quite magnificent. A definite 5/5 and one to go into my regular repertoire. It involves a small number of ingredients simply combined to stunning effect. Anybody could impress with this recipe I am sure. I have found a useful variation is to substitute half the walnuts for finely chopped fried mushrooms.
Update: I now also highly recommend the No-Knead sourdough loaf you make in a casserole dish (p134), and the celeriac and butter bean veloute with chermoula dressing (p16). Both 5/5. In fact I have found that chermoula dressing to be a godsend. It is marvellous drizzled on virtually any soup, it makes a great salad dressing when added to a bit more oil, and a spoonful swirled in will save any underperforming curry. If you aren't strictly vegetarian, you'll also find it a terrific marinade for fish before grilling, baking or griddling.
