Glasgow under lockdown

Glasgow has slowed way down since entering Tier 4.

Not a vegetarian, but…

I’m not a vegetarian, but one of the things I’m trying to do with my family is make more plant-based meals. With kids, I’m always conscious of wanting to make sure they’re getting enough vitamins and minerals from their food and making veg-rich meals is the easiest way to do that.

Tonight, I made what were basically grain bowls using a bunch of roasted winter veg with barley. One of the best things I learned to do in the kitchen was the humble traybake.

Rather than trying to give each ingredient it’s own sort of perfect treatment, you just chop them up to relatively equal sizes, drizzle some oil, season liberally and roast at 200C(400F) for somewhere around half an hour.

This, without fail, has resulted in sweet potatoes that are super-crispy and caramelised on the outside but soft and creamy inside. Parsnips, left long and cut into quarters, come out with thin, crunchy tips and crispy thicker bits.

And then, I made a really simply dressing with equal parts olive oil and cider vinegar, a healthy squeeze of honey, a heaped teaspoon of Dijon and a good pinch of flaky salt and pepper.

Serve it over greens or with a cooked grain (or both) and drizzle over the dressing. It’s one of my favourite meals to make during the week.