helena's recipes

Hi! I'm Helena and I'm allergic to a lot of things that aren't worth even an attempt at a list. Over the years I've become quite handy in the kitchen, so wanted to record the recipes I've found useful in one space. Each recipe should have allergens identified as well as possible swaps, so, if you're like me and don't fit into one dietary requirement box, cooking might be a bit easier. If there's anything specific you want to see, give me a shout!

[helena-nut-free]

parsnip soup with oven-roasted onion

prep time: 25 mins cook time: 25 mins serves: 4 have i tried it yet: no vegan: can be vegetarian: yes

allergens: gluten in stock cube, dairy in milk and butter swappable ingredients: choose a gluten-free stock cube, swap the milk for a dairy-free alternative like coconut milk, swap the butter for olive oil, ditch the honey if you want to make it vegan

ingredients:

- 4 red onions, quartered - 3-4 tbsp honey - 50g butter - 2 white onions, diced - 8 parsnips - 2 veg stock cubes - 800ml milk - Olive oil - Salt and pepper to taste

recipe:

1. Preheat the oven to 200 °C. Put the onion on a baking tray with some oil and seasoning and drizzle over some honey (or don’t if you want to make this vegan). Roast for 20 mins until the onion is slightly charred around the edges. 2. Meanwhile, heat some butter in a pan and start to fry the onion. If you want to bulk out the soup, add 1 chopped leek. 3. When the onion becomes transparent, add the parsnips and season. 4. Crumble in the stock cube and mix in the milk. 5. Simmer for 20 mins. 6. Blend the mixture. If it’s too runny, leave to simmer more until more liquid has evaporated. If it’s too thick, add some more milk or water. 7. Serve with the roasted red onions on top and some more black pepper.

[helena-nut-free]

spaghetti carbonara

prep time: 15 mins cook time: 30 mins serves: 5 have i tried it yet: yes vegan: no vegetarian: no

allergens: egg in the sauce, dairy in parmesan swappable ingredients:

ingredients:

- 1 onion, diced - 12 rashers of smokey bacon, diced - 400g baby mushrooms, slice - 500g dried spaghetti - 8 egg yolks - 100g grated parmesan - Olive oil - Salt and pepper

recipe:

1. Begin cooking the spaghetti in a pan of salted boiling water. 2. In another pan, heat some oil and throw in the onion and fry until it begins to go translucent. Add in the bacon and cook until the bacon is nearly done. 3. Put the mushrooms in the pan and let them cook on a medium heat for a few minutes so that the mushrooms begin to brown and the liquid reduces. 4. In a separate bowl, mix the egg yolks and parmesan, adding lots of black pepper (at least 4 tsp). 5. Once the pasta has cooked, drain most of the water away but leave some starchy water in the bottom of the pan. There shouldn’t be tons, but enough for you to hear it at the bottom of the pan. 6. Tip the egg and parmesan mixture into the pasta pan and stir very well. Make sure all of the pasta is covered. This should begin to cook the egg mix. Keep stirring until the sauce is smooth. 7. Add the onion, mushroom and bacon mix and serve with parmesan on top.

[helena-nut-free]

asparagus tagliatelle

prep time: 10 mins cook time: 15-20 mins serves: 5 have i tried it yet: yes (one of my favourite recipes) vegan: can be vegetarian: can be

allergens: gluten in the pasta, dairy in the creme fraiche and cheese swappable ingredients: swap the creme fraiche for a dairy-alternative yoghurt, swap the parmesan for a dairy-alternative hard cheese to make it vegan or vegetarian

ingredients:

- 400g dried tagliatelle - 900g asparagus spears, halved after 2cm of woody stem removed - 500ml creme fraiche - 1 lemon, juiced and grated zest - 150g grated parmesan or dairy-free hard cheese alternative - Olive oil - Salt and pepper

recipe:

1. In a pan of salted boiling water, start cooking the pasta. 2. In a different pan, heat some oil and start frying the asparagus. Season very well with generous amounts of salt and pepper. Stir occasionally until they begin to brown. 3. Add the creme fraiche and the lemon juice & zest, and mix well. Don’t stir too vigorously or the asparagus will begin to disintegrate. 4. Fold most of the parmesan cheese, leaving some for sprinkling on top at the end. Season again with salt and lots of pepper. 5. Take off the heat and add the tagliatelle once it is cooked. Mix well and serve with an extra sprinkle of pepper and parmesan on top!

[helena-nut-free]

spiced butternut squash soup

prep time: 45 mins cook time: 60 mins serves: 4 have i tried it yet: no (again, butternut squash does not agree with me) vegan: no vegetarian: yes

allergens: gluten in the stock cube swappable ingredients: choose a gluten-free stock cube, don’t include the honey if you want to make it vegan

ingredients:

- 2 butternut squashes, peeled and diced - 8 tsp paprika - 3 tsp dried chilli flakes - 1 tbsp honey - 100ml water - 2 vegetable stock cubes - Olive oil - Salt and pepper

recipe:

1. Preheat the oven to 190 °C. 2. Put the butternut squash in an oven-proof dish with a generous amount of oil, half of the seasoning and all of the honey. Make sure all of the surfaces are covered. The recipe this is based on also recommends roasting some of the butternut squash seeds and sprinkling them on top of the soup when serving. 3. Roast the butternut squash for 40 mins until it’s soft. 4. Tip everything from the tin, including the oil, into a pan and add the water and stock. 5. Blend the ingredients together and add the rest of the seasoning. Season further to taste and serve.

[helena-nut-free]

mushroom risotto

prep time: 15 mins cook time: 20 mins serves: 4 have i tried it yet: yes vegan: can be vegetarian: yes

allergens: dairy in the cheese, gluten in the stock cube swappable ingredients: choose a gluten-free stock cube, ditch the cheese or find a dairy-alternative

ingredients:

- 1 onion, diced - 500g arborio risotto rice - 2l boiling water - 3 stock cubes - 400g mushrooms - Olive oil - Salt and pepper - Parmesan

recipe:

1. Boil some water. 2. Fry the onion in a pan with some olive oil for 5 mins or until the onion begins to brown. Add the rice and season with some salt and pepper. 3. Add 200ml of the water to the pan at a time, crumbling the stock cube in for every 500ml. 4. Keep stirring until the rice has absorbed the water and begins to get creamier. 5. In a separate pan, fry the mushrooms with some salt and pepper and olive oil for about 10 mins until they begin to brown. 6. Stir the mushrooms into the rice with some parmesan if you’re choosing to include this.

[helena-nut-free]

stuffed red pepper

prep time: 10 mins cook time: 20 mins serves: 4 have i tried it yet: yes, but not this exact recipe vegan: can be vegetarian: yes

allergens: dairy in cheese, gluten in couscous swappable ingredients: swap the cheese for a non-dairy alternative

ingredients:

- 8 spring onions - Packet of couscous - 4 red peppers, halved and deseeded - 160g feta, cubed - olive oil - salt and pepper

recipe:

1. Preheat the oven to 190 °C. 2. Fry the spring onions with the salt and pepper some oil in a pan over a medium heat until they start to brown. 3. Just as they start to colour, add the couscous to the pan with about 80ml water. Remove from the heat. After 5 mins the couscous should have doubled. 4. Add the cubed feta to the couscous and stuff the mixtures into pepper halves. If you would like extra cheese, some grated cheddar can be put on top! 5. Place the peppers on a baking tray and cook in the oven for 20 mins, when the edges of the peppers should begin to char.

[helena-nut-free]

vegetable lasagne

prep time: 30 mins cook time: 50 mins serves: 8-10 have i tried it yet: yes vegan: no vegetarian: yes

allergens: gluten in the pasta, dairy in the milk, butter and cheese swappable ingredients: choose gluten-free pasta (and the milk, butter and cheese are for the cheese sauce, so if you can find a dairy-alternative version please use!)

ingredients:

- 2 onions, diced - 3 peppers (any colour), diced - 200g mushrooms - 10+ sundried tomatoes, chopped - 4 cloves of garlic, crushed - 2 tsp dried basil - 2 tsp dried oregano - 1/2 tsp chilli flakes - 800g chopped tomatoes - (Add some more veg or 500g of meat or quorn mince for some extra protein) - 50g butter - 70g plain flour - 600ml milk - 250g grated cheddar cheese, plus extra for the top - 600g lasagne sheets at least - Olive oil - Salt and pepper

recipe:

1. Preheat the oven to 200 °C. 2. In a pan, heat some oil and start frying the onion and garlic. After a few minutes, add in the peppers, mushrooms and sundried tomatoes as well as the seasoning. Be particularly generous with the herbs. 3. After the veg starts to brown, add in the chopped tomatoes. If you are adding mince, cook it in the pan before adding the chopped tomatoes. 4. Simmer for 10 mins or so on a low heat whilst you make the cheese sauce. 5. In a separate pan, melt the better over a medium heat and add the flour. Stir to form a paste and add the milk until the sauce thickens. Stir in the cheese until the sauce is smooth. 6. In an oven-proof dish, layer some of the tomato sauce and then cover with some sheets of lasagne. Put a thin layer of cheese sauce over the pasta, and then cover with the tomato sauce. Continue with this layering pattern until you have none left. Try to end with the cheese sauce. Sprinkle some cheese on top. 7. Cook in the oven for 35 mins until the cheese has turned golden.

[helena-nut-free]

shakshuka

prep time: 20 mins cook time: 15 mins max serves: 4 have i tried it yet: yes vegan: no vegetarian: yes

allergens: eggs, gluten in the bread swappable ingredients: if you take the eggs out, it’s just as delicious and tbh makes a good sauce

ingredients:

- 4 tsp cumin seeds - 1 1/2 tsp paprika - 2 red onions, chopped or sliced - 2 yellow peppers, sliced - 800g tinned chopped tomatoes - 4 eggs (one for each portion) - Olive oil - Salt and pepper to taste - Some bread to dip (sourdough is a personal recommendation)

recipe:

1. Toast the cumin seeds in a pan over a medium heat until they start to pop (keep a lid on the pan...). 2. Add in some olive oil and the onion, and sprinkle the paprika over it. Once the onion has softened, add the peppers and cook for a minute or two before adding the chopped tomatoes. 3. Season to taste. Let the sauce simmer until the sauce gets thicker. 4. In the pan, make some craters for the eggs with the back of a spoon. Crack the eggs into the craters and put the lid back on the pan. Simmer gently until the egg whites are cooked all the way through (shouldn’t be runny). 5. The recipe suggests serving in the pan, but this is impractical unless you have a bunch of skillet pans ready (which I don’t). This part is messy, but I would recommend transferring to a bowl. Try not to break the yolks, but if you do don’t worry.

[helena-nut-free]

chicken fajitas

prep time: 10 mins cook time: 15 mins serves: 4 have i tried it yet: no vegan: can be vegetarian: can be

allergens: gluten in the wraps and flour, dairy in the creme fraiche swappable ingredients: choose gluten-free wraps and flour, swap the chicken for a meat alternative like quorn chicken, swap a dairy-free yoghurt for the creme fraiche

ingredients:

- 4 tsp paprika - 1 tsp ground cumin - 4 chicken thighs, deboned (or 600g meat alternative), cut into strips - 2 red onions - 2 peppers (any colour) - 8 tortilla wraps - 300g cherry tomatoes, halved - 8 tbsp creme fraiche - Olive oil - Salt and pepper - Fresh coriander, chopped

recipe:

1. In a bowl, mix the paprika and cumin with a bit of olive oil and salt and pepper. 2. Coat the chicken strips in the mixture. 3. Heat a pan and dry fry the chicken on both sides until the surface chars a little and the chicken is cooked all the way through. Chuck the onion, tomatoes and peppers into the pan and cook them until they begin to char too. 4. Heat the tortilla wraps in a pan until they start to brown on each side. 5. Spread the chicken and veg mixture across the centre of the tortillas and spoon some creme fraiche over each. Sprinkle a little bit of coriander over the mixture and creme fraiche. 6. Fold up the tortillas and serve.

[helena-nut-free]

pulled pork chilli

prep time: 15 mins cook time: 100 mins serves: 4 have i tried it yet: no (it’s a no from me to the kidney beans) vegan: can be vegetarian: can be

allergens: gluten in the flour and the stock, diary in the crème fraiche swappable ingredients: choose gluten free flour and stock, swap the creme fraiche for a dairy-free yoghurt, swap the pulled pork for a vegetarian alternative like quorn mince

ingredients:

- 600g total meat weight - 3 red onions - 6 garlic cloves, crushed - 4 tsp cumin - 5 tsp paprika - 50g plain flour - 800g chopped tomatoes - 3 stock cubes - 600ml water - 800g kidney beans (from two drained 400g tins) - 4 tbsp creme fraiche - 2 spring onions, chopped - Olive oil - Salt and pepper

recipe:

1. Put the meat in a saucepan with some oil and salt and pepper. Start cooking until it is slightly browned. 2. Add the garlic and cook for a few more minutes. 3. Add the cumin, paprika and flour. If you’re using a meat alternative, you may want to add 2 tbsp of water. Stir until the flour has all disappeared. 4. Add the chopped tomatoes and crumble in the stock cube. Add the water and bring to the boil. 5. Take the heat down and simmer on a very low heat for 90 mins with the lid on. 6. Add the kidney beans and cook for a further 10 mins. You may need to add more water here too. 7. Serve with 1 tbsp creme fraiche for each portion with the spring onions sprinkled on top.

[helena-nut-free]

crab linguini

prep time: 20 mins cook time: 20 mins serves: 4 have i tried it yet: yes (one of my favourite recipes) vegan: no vegetarian: no

allergens: gluten in the pasta swappable ingredients:

ingredients:

- 100g linguini - At least 300g cherry tomatoes, halved - 4 garlic cloves, sliced - 1 tsp dried chilli flakes - 290g tinned crab (shredded will do) - 1 tbsp lemon juice - A whole packet of fresh parsley, roughly chopped - Olive oil - Salt and pepper to taste

recipe:

1. Cook the linguini in a separate pan of salted water. 2. In a different pan, heat the oil and drop in the halved cherry tomatoes. Leave them in the pan for about 5 mins, stirring very occasionally. They should look slightly brown, but their skin shouldn’t come off. 3. Add the garlic and seasoning. Cook for a minute or two before adding the crab. Stir to make sure it’s well-distributed. 4. Depending on whether you’ve made way too much pasta or not, you can add the pasta to the pan or the other way round. Basically combine them. 5. Stir in most of the chopped parsley and all of the lemon juice. 6. When serving, add the rest of the chopped parsley on top. I also personally like to add some grated parmesan, but it’s just as good without.

[helena-nut-free]

mac and cheese

prep time: 25 mins cook time: 50 mins serves: 4 have i tried it yet: yes (I literally cook it all the time) vegan: no vegetarian: yes

allergens: milk in butter, milk and cheese, gluten in pasta swappable ingredients: dairy alternatives for butter, milk and cheese (please note that the fats in the alternatives may work differently to the dairy ones, so it may need some fine-tuning if you’re going to try this), choose gluten-free pasta

ingredients:

- 400g macaroni pasta - 2 onions (or 1 big one) - 4 garlic cloves, crushed - 1 1/2 tsp dried chilli flakes - 1 tbsp English mustard - 100g butter - 50g plain flour - 400ml milk - 500g cheddar cheese, plus extra to go on top - Salt and pepper to taste

recipe:

1. Preheat the oven to 180 °C. 2. Start cooking the macaroni in a pan of salted water. 3. Melt 25g butter in the pan and tip the onion in. Once the onion has gone translucent, crush the garlic into the pan. 4. Add the chilli flakes and mustard, and stir until it’s all mixed in. Put the rest of the butter in the pan and let it melt. 5. Add the flour and stir - you should get a thick paste. 6. Stir in the milk slowly. Stir it in and gradually it should blend with the paste and look more like a smooth sauce. Make sure you get rid of any lumps of flour. 7. Once you have a smooth sauce, stir in the grated cheese, leaving some to go on top in the oven. 8. Combine the sauce with the pasta until it’s all covered, and transfer to an oven-proof dish. Cover with the rest of the cheese and cook for 20 mins until the cheese is golden brown.

[helena-nut-free]

tortillas

prep time: 12 mins cook time: 5 mins serves: 4 have i tried it yet: no vegan: yes vegetarian: yes

allergens: gluten in flour swappable ingredients: choose gluten-free flour

ingredients:

- 320g plain flour, and extra for dusting - 200ml warm water

recipe:

1. Mix the flour and the water in a bowl to form a dough. 2. Lightly flour a clean surface and knead for 5 mins until the dough is smooth and slightly bouncy. If the dough is too sticky, add more flour. 3. Divide into 8 pieces and roll each one into a flat circle. Try to get it a few millimetres thin. 4. In a pan, dry fry the tortillas on high heat, one at a time. Cook on each side until it starts to brown.

[helena-nut-free]

butternut squash tagliatelle

prep time: 20 mins cook time: 70 mins serves: 4 have i tried it yet: no (butternut squash does NOT agree with me!) vegan: yes vegetarian: yes

allergens: gluten in the pasta swappable ingredients: choose gluten free pasta

ingredients:

- 1 butternut squash, peeled and diced into chunks - 6 tagliatelle nests - Paprika - 1 tsp chilli flakes - Olive oil - Salt and pepper to taste

recipe:

1. Preheat the oven to 190 °C. 2. Put the butternut squash into a tray with plenty of oil and season with paprika, chilli flakes and salt and pepper so that all surfaces are covered. Cook for about 40 mins until the squash is soft. 3. When the butternut squash is nearly done, start cooking the pasta in a pan of salted boiling water. 4. Take the butternut squash from the oven and transfer to a frying pan with a tiny bit more oil. Mash it with the back of a fork and season again with all seasoning, but especially pepper. 5. Drain the pasta and mix it with the butternut squash until the pasta is totally covered.

[helena-nut-free]

pears in marsala with ice cream

prep time: 15 mins cook time: 35-50 mins serves: 6 have i tried it yet: no (i’m allergic to pears) vegan: yes (without ice cream to serve) vegetarian: yes

allergens: dairy in ice cream to serve swappable ingredients: use a dairy-free ice cream, such as oatly

ingredients:

- 6 firm pears - 1 orange - 1 lemon - 550ml Marsala - 75g golden caster sugar - 1 cinnamon stick - 1 vanilla pod, or 1 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract - 3 bay leaves - water, no more than 200ml - vanilla ice cream to serve

recipe:

1. Peel the pears leaving their stalks intact. Cut a thin slice off the base of each pear so it can stand upright (not essential...). Peel the zest off the orange and lemon, removing as little pith (the white stuff) as possible. 2. Put the marsala, sugar, cinnamon, vanilla, bay leaves, and citrus peel into a pan with a lid. Make sure it is big enough for all the pears. 3. Place the pan over a high heat and bring to the boil. Immediately turn down the heat to medium-low, and pour in enough water to raise the level of the liquid to cover all of the pears. Simmer gently (with the lid on) for 25-35 mins until the pears are cooked. 4. Once the pears are tender, transfer them to a plate and set aside. Remove the cinnamon stick, bay leaves and citrus peel, and boil the liquid for a further 5-10 mins until the sauce is thicker. 5. Serve the pears with the ice cream and some of the sauce drizzled over.

[helena-nut-free]

moroccan spiced vegetables, hummus and flatbread

prep time: 90 mins cook time: 40 mins serves: 4 have i tried it yet: no vegan: yes vegetarian: yes

allergens: gluten in flour swappable ingredients: choose gluten-free flour

ingredients:

- 1 aubergine, roughly diced - 2 red onions, roughly diced - 2 courgettes, roughly diced - 4 carrots, roughly diced - 4 tbsp harissa spice blend (or a mixture of paprika and ground cumin) - 800g chickpeas, drained - 4 garlic cloves, crushed - 160g plain flour - 100ml cold water - Olive oil - Salt and pepper to taste

recipe:

1. Preheat the oven to 190 °C. 2. In an oven-proof dish, mix the aubergine, onion, courgette and carrot with the harissa paste and a few tablespoons of olive oil. Season well. Toss until all surfaces are coated. 3. Roast in the oven for 40 mins until the veg is soft and slightly browned at the edge. 4. Microwave the drained chickpeas in a bowl for 1 min until soft. Using a fork, mash them with the garlic and some salt and olive oil. 5. For the flatbread, mix the flour and water together in a bowl to form a dough. Knead for a few minutes on a lightly floured surface and split into 8 pieces. Roll each piece out into a circle and aim to get each a few millimetres thick. 6. In a frying pan, cook each piece over a high heat for 2 mins on each side until it starts to colour. 7. Eat!

[helena-nut-free]

baked veggie wraps

prep time: 5 mins, cook time: 30 mins serves: 4 have i tried it yet: yes vegan: can be vegetarian: yes

allergens: milk (cheese on top), gluten (in wraps) swappable ingredients: swap cheese for lactose-free cheese, choose gluten-free wraps, alter the roasted vegetables to ones you like

ingredients:

- 200g roasted veg (e.g. peppers, aubergine, courgettes, carrots) - 100g frozen peas - 2 garlic cloves, crushed - 1 small red chilli, sliced - 4 wraps - 400g chopped tomatoes (tinned) - 1 tbsp freshly chopped parsley - 30g grated cheese - salt and pepper to taste

recipe:

1. Preheat the oven to 200 °C. 2. In a non-stick pan, dry-fry the veg and peas until hot, add the garlic, chopped chilli and salt and pepper. 3. Fill the wraps and place next to each other in an oven-proof dish. It may be easier to put each wrap into the dish, fill it and wrap it over one-by-one rather than assemble them outside the dish and transfer them. 4. Cover with chopped tomatoes. 5.Sprinkle over the parsley and cheese before baking in the oven for 15 mins until brown.