Rose Elliot’s Vegetarian Meals In Minutes. Rose Elliot

Plum tomatoes usually have flavour and nice firm texture, but you could use other well – flavoured tomatoes.

      4 fresh plum tomatoes

      salt and freshly ground black pepper

      olive oil

      50g / 2oz Mozzarella cheese (packed in water)

      crostini or bruschetta (see here)

      8 fresh basil leaves

       Slice the tomatoes into rounds, put them on a plate and sprinkle them with salt, pepper and a few drops of olive oil. Cut the Mozzarella cheese into small pieces.

       Arrange the tomatoes on top of the crostini or bruschetta then du! the cheese over the tomatoes.

       Tear the basil leaves over the top of the tomatoes and cheese and grind over some more black pepper to taste.

      — 10 —

      GOLDY GREENY SPREAD

      A strange and interesting recipe, adapted from New Food For All Palates by Sally and Lucian Berg (Gollancz, 1967). Frozen beans are fine for this.

      1 onion, peeled and thinly sliced

      2 tbls olive oil

      125g / 4oz green beans

      1 egg, hard-boiled

      salt and freshly ground black pepper

      crostini or bruschetta (see here)

       Fry the onion in the oil until golden brown and crisp (this is very important for the flavour).

       Cook the green beans in a little boiling water for 3–4 minutes, until tender, then drain.

       Shell and roughly chop the hard-boiled egg. Put the beans, egg and half the onion into a food processor and whizz to a purée. Season to taste.

       Spread on top of the crostini or bruschetta and top with the remaining onion.

      — 11 —

      PECORINO AND PEAR ON WATERCRESS

      125g / 4oz soft pecorino cheese

      crostini or bruschetta (see here)

      a little milk (optional)

      a few watercress leaves

      1 ripe dessert pear

      50g / 2oz hard pecorino or Parmesan cheese, grated

      freshly ground black pepper

       Spread the soft pecorino cheese over the crostini or bruschetta (mix the cheese with a little milk first if necessary).

       Press the watercress into the cheese. Peel, core and thinly slice the pear and arrange on top.

       Sprinkle generously with the grated cheese and grind some pepper over, then serve straight away or flash under a hot grill to melt the cheese.

      A selection of Crostini, topped with Mushroom Pâté, Plum Tomato, Mozzarella and Basil, and Goldy Greeny Spread

QUICK PIZZAS

       It’s unrealistic to try and make a pizza from scratch in 30 minutes but you can make a good quick tomato sauce, spread it over a read-made base, add a topping and flash it under a hot grill. Although you can buy pizza bases, I like to use a range of different breads, such as granary, ciabatta and muffins. The bases and toppings in the following recipes can be mixed and matched, if you prefer, to suit whatever ingredients you have to hand.

       To make a quick lettuce salad, cut 1 or 2 little gem lettuces across into thick slices; wash and drain in a colander, then put into a bowl, sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, some sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, and toss lightly.

TOMATO SAUCE

      1 tbls olive oil

      1 onion, peeled and chopped

      2 garlic cloves, crushed

      1 × 400g / 14oz can tomatoes

      8 sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drained (optional)

      salt and freshly ground black pepper

       Heat the oil in a saucepan, add the onion then cover and cook gently for 10 minutes, until tender but not brown.

       Stir the garlic into the onion, cook for 1–2 minutes longer, then stir in the tomatoes, together with their juice, breaking them up with a wooden spoon. Chop the sun-dried tomatoes roughly, if you are using them, and add these to the pan too.

       Let the mixture simmer away for about 10–15 minutes until the liquid has evaporated. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

      MAKES ENOUGH FOR 2 MUFFINS, OR 1 GRANARY OR CIABATTA PIZZA

      MUSHROOM PIZZA

      225g / 8oz button mushrooms

      2 tbls olive oil

      salt and freshly ground black pepper

      2 muffins

      125g / 4oz Cheddar or other cheese

      tomato sauce (see above)

       Wash and slice the mushrooms then fry them in the olive oil for 1–2 minutes until they are tender. Season with salt and pepper.

       Cut the muffins in half and toast on both sides under the grill. Thinly slice the cheese.

       Heat the tomato sauce then spread it over the muffins. Top with