Bulgur salad with halloumi, baba ganoush, dressed courgettes & spiced carrot chutney

This is the first of our recipes using an ingredient bought at this past weekend's Norwich Food & Drink Festival.  We loved the spiced carrot chutney made by Candi's Chutney so much that we couldn't wait to include it in one of our dishes and so on Sunday evening, Mr Vegan Man took to the kitchen to put together this dish.

The recipe makes use of a bulgur wheat salad recipe, inspired by classic tabbouleh, that Mr Vegan Man makes regularly for lunches or for a tasty, healthy dinner.  It is great on its own or with just some griddled halloumi, but when Mr Vegan Man has a bit of time to spend in the kitchen he likes to treat WOTVM to something a bit more fancy and this recipe adds a few extra flourishes that really elevate it.

We think that this is one of the tastiest dishes we've cooked in a long while; it's inspired by some traditional mezze dishes but done in our own way and put together as a single cohesive plate of food.  The flavours all worked really well together with freshness and zing coming from the chutney and courgettes, complimenting the rich smokiness of the baba ganoush and the crisp, salty halloumi.  The bulgur wheat salad is packed with lots of fresh, punchy flavours and worked well with the other elements of the dish.

The recipe below will serve four people, with some bulgur wheat salad to spare for lunch the next day too!  Preparation and cooking time is 1-1.5 hours although you may need to allow a little longer for some elements to cool.

Ingredients:

For the bulgur wheat salad:

250g Bulgur wheat
2 sweet pointed red peppers
1 large clove of garlic
40g of cocktail gherkins/cornichons
75g of green olives
1 red chilli (or Scotch bonnet if feeling adventurous)
Small packet of fresh flat leaf parsley (approx. 30-40g)
Small packet of fresh mint (approx. 30-40g)
2 tbsp. of extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 tsp. granulated or caster sugar
Juice of 3 lemons

For the baba ganoush:

1 aubergine
4 cloves garlic
1 tbsp tahini paste
1 tbsp olive oil
Juice of a lemon
0.5 tsp smoked paprika

For the courgette salad:

2 large courgettes
2 tsp nigella seeds
2 tsp sesame seeds
Juice of a lemon
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp red wine vinegar

To finish:

225g block of halloumi
1.5 tbsp. Candi's Chutney spiced carrot chutney

To begin, cut the aubergine in half length ways and make four small incisions in the flesh of the aubergine.  Cut the cloves of garlic in half, also lengthways, and stuff them in the cuts you've made as picture.  Drizzle over a little olive oil and season with salt and pepper before placing in an oven pre-heated to 180°C for 30-40 minutes.

Once the aubergine is cooked - it will be golden brown on top and slightly squidgy to the touch - remove from the oven and leave to cool for a few minutes.  Scrape the aubergine flesh and garlic cloves into a bowl and add the olive oil, tahini, lemon juice and smoked paprika.  Use a hand blender to blitz the ingredients to a smooth, creamy texture.  You could use a food processor if you don't have a hand blender.

Set aside the baba ganoush until it is time to serve.  Leave the oven at 180°C and chop up the sweet pointed peppers into chunks about 2cm by 2cm.  Place the peppers with a little olive oil on a baking tray or small roasting tin and place in the oven for 20-25 minutes.  Whilst the peppers are cooking you can begin making the rest of the bulgur wheat salad.

Take a large saucepan and add the bulgur wheat after first rinsing it.  Boil a kettle full of water and once this comes to the boil, cover the bulgur wheat with the boiling water so that the water is just under 1cm above the level of the bulgur wheat.  Add a tablespoon of olive oil and a good pinch of salt and stir.  Cover the pan and place on a very low heat and leave for 8 minutes, then turn the heat off and leave for a further 15-20 minutes.  This method should ensure that your bulgur wheat is cooked through, retaining a bit of bite, with the grains light and fluffy and not at all stodgy.

Move the bulgur wheat into a large bowl and leave to cool whilst preparing the rest of your ingredients and by this time your peppers will have finished roasting so can be removed from the oven.  Crush the clove of garlic and finely chop the chilli, cocktail gherkins and green olives.  Add  these to the cooling bulgur wheat, along with the peppers, and stir.

Make the dressing for the salad by combining the olive oil, red wine vinegar and lemon juice.  Add this to the bowl and mix thoroughly so that the dry ingredients are all well-coated in dressing.  Finely chop the mint and parsley and finish the bulgur wheat salad by stirring the herbs through.  Set aside for serving.

Cut up the courgettes into thin strips, about 2-3mm is ideal if possible.  Heat a griddle pan over a high heat and coat the surface of the pan with a little oil.  Once the pan is nice and hot, add your courgettes in batches and cook for 2 minutes on each side.  This will be enough time for them to take on colour and flavour and to cook through fully.  In a bowl, mix the olive oil, lemon juice and vinegar along with the sesame and nigella seeds.  Add the courgettes and mix, seasoning with a little salt and pepper. Cover and set aside for serving.

Chop the halloumi into slices about 0.5cm thick - a block this size should give you eight slices, enough for two per person.  Re-heat the griddle pan over a high heat and place the halloumi in the pan, cooking for about 3 minutes on each side or until they have taken on a nice char.  To get a crisscross effect, turn the halloumi ninety degrees during cooking.

Once the halloumi is cooked the dish is ready to plate up.  Add some small dollops of the spiced carrot chutney around the halloumi as the two work really well together.  Whilst we'd wholeheartedly recommend buying the chutney as it is so very tasty, if this is not possible then as an alternative grate 1 large carrot and mix with 0.5 tbsp of cider vinegar, 0.5 tsp of olive oil, 0.5 tsp of chilli flakes and a pinch of sugar and leave to sit for a few hours in a covered bowl, remixing occasionally.  This will make a good substitute but remember to make well in advance so the flavours can infuse properly.  A chilli jam or relish could also work with the dish.

WOTVM was really delighted with the dish - we both love Middle Eastern inspired food - it was packed with flavour and each mouthful was different and really got the taste-buds going.  Please give it a try and let us know how you get on by leaving a comment below or by emailing us.

Norwich Food & Drink Festival - 19th of June 2016

Today, we paid a visit to the Norwich Food & Drink Festival, organised by Norfolk Food & Drink and held in and around The Forum in Norwich city centre.  The festival brings together local producers from Norwich and Norfolk, all offering their wares on a range of stalls selling everything from gin to popcorn, from hog roast to dairy- and gluten-free baked goods.

We arrived at about 12.30, by which time there was already an impressive crowd of people and the festival had a nice buzz about it from the off.  We started off inside The Forum where top chef and local lad Rich Bainbridge was about to give a demonstration.  Although we didn't have time to follow the demonstration through, we did hear him talking passionately about his journey over the past 18 months, from leaving Morston Hall - where he had been head chef for a number of years - to establishing his own restaurant, Benedict's, as one of the very best places to eat in Norfolk. 

Rich speaks with such passion and enthusiasm about his work and he has such humility too; whilst we are lucky to have him in Norwich, he makes it clear that the feeling is mutual and he feels blessed to be here in his home city, establishing a loyal following of diners who are attracted to his modern, seasonal locally-sourced food.  He is open about how much he risked in opening his own venue in the city with a limited budget, which effectively meant no real publicity, and he has had to work hard - with support from his family and his Benedict's family too - to achieve the success he is now achieving.  Having visited twice ourselves, and planning to go again very soon, we can confirm that Benedict's are really hitting the mark and the plaudits Rich and his team are receiving are well-deserved.

Inside The Forum, numerous stalls caught the eye and our first stop was at the table of The Tiny Tipple Company, who specialise in creating infused spirits.  We sampled a strawberry gin which was delicious and packed a real hit of fresh strawberry flavour.  There was a good crowd around the table, sampling other delights including rose hip infused vodka and rhubarb gin.

Our next stop was Season's Bounty, maker of handmade preserves.  This was where we made our first purchase - a jar of strawberry and elderflower jam which WOTVM bought as a present for her dad.  The jam was very tasty and clearly very popular; we managed to get the last remaining pot.

Just across the way from Season's Bounty was the stall of Ethnic Fusion - a catering company and cookery school based near Dereham and specialising in fine Indian cuisine.  The food on offer looked amazing and Mr Vegan Man couldn't resist.  Alongside traditional pakoras, samosas and bhajis was a gluten-free offering called a bonda, made using chick pea flour.  The bonda was superb, lightly crispy on the outside and filled with a spicy potato-based filling.  There was some coriander chutney on the table too so we helped ourselves to a good spoonful of that as well and we were very glad that we did - it was fresh and punchy and went excellently with the bonda.

As we began to make our way towards the exit of The Forum to check out the stalls outside, our eyes were caught by Candi's Chutney.  An array of intriguing chutneys and pickles were on display, and Mr Vegan Man tried a spiced carrot chutney and an asparagus chutney.  The asparagus chutney was tasty, reminiscent of piccalilli in flavour with a nice sharp vinegary, mustardy taste.  This was, however, outshone by the stunning spiced carrot chutney, which was so good that Mr Vegan Man insisted that WOTVM needed to try it.  She tried it and she also loved it and so our next purchase of the day was complete.  We will bring you a dish incorporating the chutney later this week - yes, we've already been using it!

Next door to Candi's Chutney was a Deliveroo stand, offering generous free samples to anyone entering their competition.  We signed up for the competition and were rewarded with two delicious pieces of sushi from Ciscoe's and a chocolate and hazelnut brownie from Macarons and More.  The brownie was rich and fudgy with a generous amount of hazelnuts, it looked great and the taste lived up to its looks.

Once outside, we discovered a whole host of stalls around the side of The Forum and we made a beeline for Bullards' table where their Norwich Dry Gin was being handed out.  The gin was incredible, with a real peppery heat on the back of a throat and deep, fruity flavours from their blend of botanicals.  We're quite well-stocked for gin at the moment, but this blend will definitely be on our wish list once we've depleted our current supply a little further.

We moved on to Essence and Jubberwacky's stall next door.  Mr Vegan Man tried two kinds of mustard, one spicy mustard and one wholegrain mustard.  Both were excellent but the Jubberwacky wholegrain mustard in particular was superb and so another item was bought.  The helpful lady on the stall (who may have been the owner) explained that the good kick that comes at the end when you taste the mustard comes from them cracking the grains and soaking them overnight in Nelson's Revenge.  They pride themselves on using local ingredients in their preserves and it is clear from the taste that Norfolk is producing some excellent ingredients right now!

We also quickly perused Kind Food's stall, offering a good looking range of gluten- and dairy-free breads, cakes and pastries.  Unfortunately we were too full to consider buying anything and so moved on to another excellent preserves stall, this one being run by Ollands Farm Foods.  The jams were excellent, Mr Vegan Man tried a particularly tasty lime and chilli marmalade, but we couldn't justify a further purchase and so we left empty-handed.  The outside stalls were all really busy, which was great to see, and Riverford seemed to be getting interest in their increasingly popular organic fruit and veg boxes.

The 'Battle of the Bangers' was one of the highlights of this year's festival and so we decided to join in.  Of the eight varieties on offer there was one veggie option made by North Nofolk's vegetarian Art Café.  As Mr Vegan Man could only try one of the options and so would vote for this by default, he abstained from the contest and WOTVM was left with the great responsibility of selecting her favourite banger.  Ultimately, the first one she tried was her favourite - a substantial and meaty pork sausage from Icarus Hines.  WOTVM chose this one because of its great texture - smooth and not grainy - rich pork flavour and excellent caramelisation.  We bumped into a friend of WOTVM's who had also voted for the same variety and as it transpires, the Icarus Hines entry was the overall winner of the 'Battle of the Bangers'.

Before we left, WOTVM couldn't resist the sight and smell of the hog roast stand and so as we left she bought herself a generously filled roll, complete with crispy crackling.  The pork was soft and rich and was a rare treat for WOTVM as it's not the sort of thing she ever gets to have at home.

We had a great day out at the Norwich Food & Drink Festival.  Huge kudos to the organisers as the event seemed really well-run and attracted a good crowd throughout.  It was great to see so many local producers gathered in one place, many of whom we had no idea existed, and this was further evidence of just how strong the local food scene is in Norfolk at present.  We look forward to seeing what's on offer next year and we will definitely be seeking out some of the vendors again.

Stay tuned over the next fortnight as we will be bringing you two dishes using ingredients we bought at the festival.  We hope that those of you who attended enjoyed yourselves as much as we did.  Please get in touch via the comments section or send us an email with your thoughts on the event.