Christmas caters to one’s carnivorous side and, seriously, who can blame us when stray turkey legs, pigs in blankets, stuffing balls and slabs of baked ham are always in arm’s reach? But now it’s January, it’s time to reacquaint my diet with the dreaded ‘v’ word – VEGETABLES.  

I always love unwrapping cookbooks under the tree and usually spend Christmas morning sticking post-its on the recipes I plan to test out. Father Christmas obliged my tradition with ‘eat’ this year, Nigel Slater’s saffron-coloured tome packed with over 500 fast dinner recipes. Almost all have a diminutive list of ingredients and are exactly what you feel like cooking after a long day at work (paprika-dusted potato wedges with gorgonzola sauce anyone?). It also has plenty of interesting veggie options. I felt particularly virtuous last Saturday so decided to try a bolognaise made with puy lentils. With only carrots, onions and vegetable stock to flavour the ragu, I thought it might be slightly bland with all its earthy goodness and certainly no substitute for the mince version. But it tasted remarkably like a typical bolognaise and, except maybe dhal, is the most appetising lentil recipe I’ve discovered to date.

Feeling encouraged by my lentil experiment, I decided to make a vegetable stew (pictured) for this week’s packed lunches. The recipe couldn’t be easier; just fry your vegetables until soft, add tinned tomatoes and boil down to a thick consistency. With its cherry tomato sauce of onions, yellow peppers, courgettes, watercress and flageolet beans, the stew was just sweet enough and had a lovely combination of soft and crunchy textures. Seeing as it’s served with griddled chunks of halloumi, I added a teaspoon of paprika (harissa would be even better) when I was frying my veg to make those Mediterranean flavours really sing. To turn the dish into a more substantial dinner, try serving with fluffed-up couscous or bulgur wheat.

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