Alphabetic Recipes C — Chestnut, Cep Lentil and Vegetable Stew Recipe

With the weather closing in, today, as the latest recipe entry in my A to Z of recipes, I have a warming autumnal vegetarian stew made with Chestnut, Ceps, Lentils and Vegetables. Ceps (Boletus edulis) are also called porcini (or penny buns in England) and are a classic wild mushroom that can readily be purchased dried.


Today's is the third entry of my new series of Alphabetic recipes. Each day for the next month and more, I will be adding a new recipe linked to a different letter of the alphabet. As I collect recipes from all over the globe, and have lots of Welsh recipes, I am going to use a blend of the Welsh and English alphabets:

A | B | C | D | E | F | Ff | G | H | I | J | K | L | Ll | M | N | O | P | Q | R | Rh | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z

so there will be 30 entries in total. As today is the third day in this series I am providing a recipe starting with the letter 'C'.

Chestnut, Cep Lentil and Vegetable Stew Recipe

Serves: 8
Preparation Time: 25 minutes
Cooking Time: 80 minutes

Ingredients:
50g dried ceps
1/2 onion, finely chopped
5 garlic cloves, minced
3 celery sticks, chopped
4 carrots, peeled and sliced
2 parsnips, peeled, cored and sliced
1l good quality vegetable stock
500ml water
400g tinned, whole, plum tomatoes
400g tin puy lentils
300g cooked and peeled chestnuts (vacuum-packed are ideal)
salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste



Method:
Place the dried mushrooms in a bowl, pour over enough warm water to cover then set aside to soak for 20 minutes. Drain off the liquid into a jug, halve the mushrooms if they are large and set aside. Set the jug aside to settle.

Heat the olive oil in a large, deep, flame-proof casserole dish over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook for 3 minutes then add the garlic and cook for about 2 minutes more, or until the garlic is transparent.

Now add the celery, carrots and parsnips. Stir, fry for 2 minutes then add the vegetables stock and water. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover and cook for about 15 minutes, or until the vegetables are just tender.

Add the tomatoes (and their juice), along with the mushrooms then carefully pour in the mushroom soaking liquid, making sure that you leave any sediment behind. Bring the mixture back to a simmer, cover and cook for 10 minutes more. Reduce the heat to low then add the lentils and chestnuts.

Continue cooking, covered (allowing it to simmer gently), for 60 minutes more, or until the chestnuts are tender and the stew has thickened.

Adjust the seasonings to taste and serve hot, accompanied by crusty bread and mashed potatoes.


This recipe is brought to you in conjunction with the Celtnet Guide to Recipes Beginning with 'C'.

Find more British recipes on the Recipes from the British Isles page of this blog.