This economical casserole is packed with fresh vegetables, and is finished off with a tasty scone topping.
Serves: 2
Preparation time: 25 minutes
Cooking time: 40 minutes
Approximate cost for recipe: £1.28
Approximate cost per serving: 64p
Ingredients
• 1 teaspoon of olive oil
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 celery stick, sliced
• 1 small parsnip, chopped
• 1 large carrot, sliced
• 50g cauliflower florets
• 50g button mushrooms, sliced
• 200g can chopped tomatoes
• 40g red lentils
• 1 tablespoon cornflour
• 225ml vegetable stock
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
• Ground black pepper
For the topping:
• 75g self-raising flour
• 20g low-fat spread
• 1 – 2 tablespoons semi-skimmed milk
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 180°C, fan oven 160°C, gas mark 4.
2. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan and cook the garlic and onion for 2-3 minutes. Add the celery, parsnip, carrots and cauliflower and stir-fry for another 2-3 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the mushrooms, tomatoes and lentils.
3. Blend the cornflour with 3-4 tablespoons of water and add to the saucepan with the vegetable stock and parsley. Return to the heat and bring to the boil to thicken the mixture. Season with pepper, transfer to a casserole dish, then cover and bake for 20 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, sift the flour into a large bowl. Rub in the low-fat spread with your fingertips. Add sufficient milk to the dry ingredients to make a soft dough. Knead lightly, roll out to 2cm/1 inch thickness and cut into rounds.
5. Remove the casserole from the oven and raise the temperature to 200°C, fan oven 180°C, gas mark 6. Arrange the scones around the edge of the dish and brush with the remaining milk. Return to the oven and cook for a further 12-15 minutes, until the scone topping has risen and is golden brown.
Top tips
• If you don’t like some of the vegetables, replace them with your favourites, such as broccoli, sweet potato or green beans.
• Try adding mixed dried herbs to the scone mixture to make a herby topping
• If you make extra freeze any leftovers, label and date and enjoy another for another meal!