Melissa Hemsley is a chef, bestselling cookbook author, Fairtrade and sustainability champion and one half of Hemsley and Hemsley sister duo. Indira Naidoo speaks with the world renown Chef and she gives to you a couple of recipes to try at home to Eat Out In.
Tahini Choc Chip Cookies
The vegan version of these are just as delicious, none of us can decide which we love the most. Store these cakey cookies in an airtight container for 5 days. You could warm them briefly in the oven to give them a little crispening boost. The dough freezes well so double up and save half for a rainy day. Just defrost, then slice into portions before putting in the oven.
2 eggs 2 tsp baking powder 4 tbsp maple syrup 2 tsp vanilla extract 150g light tahini
110g smooth nut butter 100g good-quality dark chocolate, broken up into squares, or chips 30g black and/or white sesame seeds A pinch of sea salt
Preheat the oven to fan 170°C/gas mark 5. Line a large baking tray with reusable baking paper.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk the eggs then mix in the baking powder, maple syrup and vanilla extract. Add the tahini and nut butter and mix together until very well combined.
Roughly chop the chocolate (if not using chips) and fold through the batter along with the sesame seeds.
Measure out 16 balls of the cookie batter, roughly 1 tablespoon each, and bake for 10–15 minutes on the lined baking tray (making sure to leave a little room between each one) until the cookies are just set. Remove from the oven, sprinkle with a little sea salt and allow to cool on a wire rack before serving.
Makes 16 cookies, takes 25 mins
Flexi Swap For vegans, replace the 2 eggs with 1 large mashed ripe banana. You can also swap the nut butter for the same amount of a seed butter or tahini for a nut-free alternative.
Fridge-Raid Frittata
The beauty of a frittata is that anything goes – really, it does! In this case, broccoli is the star, but let whatever is in your fridge take the lead. Always aim for some green as it’s often the green veg that most of us could do with more of. Not only is a vegetable frittata an easy and delicious way to start your day, but in this case you eat the whole broccoli in all its glory – stems and stalks – and, even better, everything happens in the same pan. If you’ve got cooked broccoli ready to go, then skip step 1 and save time. And if you know you’ll be rushing out the door a lot this week, bake it in a 12-hole muffin tray at fan 170°C/Gas mark 5 for 10–15 minutes for a grab-and-go breakfast or snack. Pictured overleaf.
1 large head of broccoli, florets evenly chopped and stem finely chopped 1 small onion, thinly sliced 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced 2 tbsp butter 10 eggs 2 large handfuls of grated cheese (I use mature Cheddar or you could use crumbled feta or goat’s cheese) Sea salt and black pepper
OPTIONAL EXTRAS
A handful of chopped fresh basil, parsley, chives or celery leaves Chilli flakes, to taste 2 handfuls of wild garlic, chopped (when in season)
Grab a medium-sized, deep-sided frying pan and steam the broccoli for 3 minutes in about 4 tablespoons of water, lid on, until almost tender and just turned bright green. Drain any excess liquid (though the broccoli will probably absorb it all) and set the broccoli aside.
Pop the pan back on the heat and gently fry the red onion rings and garlic in the butter for a few minutes.
Meanwhile, whisk the eggs together in a bowl, add salt, pepper and the cheese, plus any of the herbs, chilli flakes or wild garlic, if using.
Preheat the grill to high. Add the broccoli back to the pan to coat in the garlic butter, then pour in the egg mix, stirring so that the broccoli and onions are distributed evenly. Let the bottom and sides cook and start to set over a medium heat for about 5 minutes.
Pop the frittata under the grill for a further 5 minutes until golden on top and just cooked through (give the pan a wobble to check), then slide it onto a chopping board or plate. Cool for 10 minutes and slice up into quarters.
Feeds 4, takes 20 mins
WASTE NOT
This is divine with cauliflower too and tastes a bit like cauliflower cheese. The day I handed in this book, I made a celebratory clear-out-thefridge frittata with 2 big handfuls of chopped mushrooms, shredded cabbage, 1 tablespoon of leftover cream, ¼ onion and a big pinch of fresh thyme leaves. It was delicious and too good to not share with you here.