Note: the peperonata needs to be made the day before.
Serves 4
Vegan
Preparation time: 30 mins
Cooking time: 1 hour (+ chilling overnight) if using fresh ingredients
Ingredients
600g fresh vine tomatoes, peeled (or use 400g canned tomatoes)
3tbs olive oil
2 red peppers, sliced
1tbs sugar
4 fat cloves garlic, crushed
500g fresh spinach, washed and drained (or use 300g frozen chopped spinach, defrosted)
1 medium onion, finely chopped
75g white breadcrumbs
100g ground almonds
3 – 4tsp low salt stock powder
3 – 4tbs vegetarian red wine
Season to taste
Method
1. Firstly, make the peperonata. Remove the seeds from the tomatoes, chop the flesh and put into a saucepan. Put over a low heat until the tomatoes begin to give off their juice. Bring to the boil and simmer until they are reduced by half. (Alternatively, use a can of peeled plum tomatoes, drained and chopped. No need to cook)
2. Heat 1tbs oil in a medium to large pan and cook the sliced peppers gently for 3 – 4 minutes, stirring all the time, until the peppers are beginning to soften. Add half the garlic and continue cooking and stirring for another 30 seconds. Add the cooked tomatoes (or the canned tomatoes) and the sugar. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Season well with salt and pepper to taste. Cool and refrigerate overnight.
3. Preheat the oven to 200C / 400F / Gas mark 6. Grease and line a 20cm square tin with baking parchment. Roughly chop the spinach and put into a large saucepan. Cover with a lid and cook until the spinach has wilted. Cool. Line a large sieve with two layers of kitchen paper and put in the spinach. Top with another piece of kitchen paper and press to extract as much liquid as you can. You should be left with a small ball of spinach. If using frozen spinach, just defrost and press through a sieve in the same way.
4. Saute the onion and the rest of the garlic in the remaining olive oil until softened but not coloured. In a bowl, mix together the onion and garlic, the spinach and all the remaining ingredients. Stir well to make a moist mixture, adding a little water if it seems rather dry. Season to taste with a little salt (if needed) and lots of pepper. Pile into the prepared dish and cover tightly with a piece of foil. Bake for about 20 minutes, removing the foil lid for the last 5 minutes.
5. Reheat the peperonata and serve with the spinach pie.
This recipe is one of twelve mouth-watering, monthly recipes, included in Season to Taste a collection of recipes using seasonal and locally sourced produce and is available free of charge by calling 0161 925 2000.
© The Vegetarian Society – (recipe created by the Cordon Vert cookery school) www.vegsoc.org.