So there I was in class at 1PM this afternoon, hungry as anything. Naturally, I started to daydream...about food. Almost immediately, I got an idea of chopping up some winter vegetables and throwing them into a pot with tons of spices and letting the whole thing cook for ages.
Here's the recipe.. you can tweak it to your preferences.
Ingredients
2 tomatoes, roughly chopped into big pieces
2 parsnips, roughly chopped into big pieces
2 potatoes, roughly chopped into big pieces
2 carrots, roughly chopped into big, round pieces
2 sweet potatoes roughly chopped into big pieces
4 baby eggplants, sliced into quarters
2 onions, roughly chopped into big pieces
4 cloves garlic, each cut in half
2 teaspoons chopped fresh fennel
Add butternut pumpkin if you wish
Rocket leaves
Tomato pasta sauce, 3 tbsp
Balsamic vinegar
Spices, herbs, and seasoning (to taste)
Ground coriander, ground garlic, ground cinnamon, ground cumin, paprika, a pinch of dried lavender (yes!), peppercorns, mixed spice, fennel seeds, cinnamon sticks, bay leaves, sea salt, chilli flakes, curry powder, ground turmeric.
Procedure
Heat up 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil on high heat, add ALL the vegetables, then add all the spices, herbs, and seasoning (I added 2-3 teaspoons of each... except for the peppercorns, bay leaves, cinnamon sticks, lavender, and sea salt, turmeric). Mix very well together and let cook for two minutes. Place the lid on the pot, reduce the heat to low and let it cook slowly for around one hour.
After the hour, taste the vegetables and check whether they're cooked. If they are, add some tomato pasta sauce and mix well.
Place rocket leaves on a plate and then spoon the vegetable mixture on top of it. Splash a quick dash of balsamic vinegar for some tanginess. This really improves it.
Enjoy!