Store Cupboard Favourites

(These recipes are taken from the first cooking class is a series of 3 Bùth Bharraigh are doing in partnership with Learning for Fun.)

January has been a month of gales, cancelled ferries and where fresh food has been scarce. Here are a couple of store cupboard favourites, you may have most of the ingredients at home already or you can use the refillery at the Buth and just buy what you need. Living on and island we are used to adapting to what we have so I have put substitutions (in the curly brackets{}) next to the ingredients just incase you can't find what you are looking for in the shops. These recipes are also great at incorporating pieces of fresh food that are needing used up.

Once you have tried these recipes you can then alter them to suit your households tastes.

Red Lentil Dhal, (Serves 4 and costs less than £5)

Ingredients:

2 onions, diced {frozen onion or 2 tbsp of onion powder}

3 cloves of garlic, chopped {garlic in a jar or tube, read instructions for amounts}

1 tbsp ginger, peeled & grated {ginger in a jar or tube, read instructions for amounts}

1/2 tsps of chilli flakes, ground cumin, ground coriander

2 tsps tumeric

1 tsp garam masala

200g red split lentils

tin of coconut milk {1/3 block of creamed coconut or coconut milk powder (if using there you weill need to add extra liquid while cooking)}

tin of tomatoes {fresh tomatoes}

vegetable stock cube

2 handfuls of fresh spinach

If you have a carrot or courgette that is needing used up then you can add after the onions have been cooking for 2-3 mins. If you wished to bulk it up a bit then add a tin of chickpeas (drained) at the same time as the lentils.

This dish also freezes really well so it great for batch cooking and freezing for use another time.

Method:

1. Heat a glug of oil in a large pan. Fry the onion for 5 mins. Add the garlic, ginger and red chilli flakes and cook for a few minutes more.

2. Add the other spices and cook for 1 min

3. Add lentils, tomatoes, coconut milk, stock cube and 500ml of water. Season with salt and pepper. Cook on a medium to low heat for 15-20 mins, stirring often.

4. Add handfuls of spinach and allow to wilt. Serve with rice, nan bread or chapati

You can add natural yoghurt or greek yogurt to take some of the heat out of the dhal.

Once you have tried the recipe then you can alter the next time - too spicy then reduce the amount of chilli flakes. Want it a bit creamer, add more creamed coconut. Make it your own and enjoy - your own family dhal and a special family recipe.

Photos by Katie Denehy

Fruit Sponge Pudding, (Serves 4 and costs less then £5)

Ingredients:

110 g butter or margarine

110 g caster sugar

110 g self-raising flour

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp spice of your choice {mixed spice, ground ginger, ground cinnamon, ground cardamon etc}

500 g Fruit {any fruit: tinned, fresh and frozen, You can use a mix of fruit that is needing used up}

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180℃.

2. Place the fruit into a ceramic/pyrex dish.

3. Cream the butter and sugar together, then add the eggs one by one, then fold in the flour.

4. Finally, stir in the vanilla extract and spice of your choice and mix gently.

5. Pour the cake batter on top of the fruit and spread around with a spoon.

6. Put it in the oven and bake for approx 40 to 45 minutes, or until the cake is golden brown and a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.

7. Leave to cool and serve either warm or cold. Sprinkle with icing sugar before serving if desired.

Photos by Katie Denehy