Prawn, aubergine and green bean curry

After all that rich festive food, has you got a craving for something a little different, well I have just the recipe for you. A delicious prawn, aubergine and green bean curry, rich in tasty vegetables ideal to serve with rice for an informal supper.

Its so darn easy as well, and can be on the table in about 30 minutes start to finish, if you want to impress your guests why not whip up some roti or naan to serve alongside this dish.

What you need

• Bag of frozen raw king prawns - defrosted or fresh prawns
• 1 onion - peeled and roughly chopped
• Good handful of chopped green beans (I used frozen homegrown)
• 1 aubergine - topped tailed and cut into chunks
• 2 tomatoes- chopped
• Squirt of tomato puree (or you could use passata)
• Fish stock or coconut milk if you like a creamy finish (I do)
• Salt and Pepper
• Curry paste (from a jar or make your own)
• A little coconut oil or vegetable oil

What you do

• Heat the oil in a frying pan, add the onion and fry until softened and translucent
• Add the curry paste to the pan and cook for a few minutes to release the flavours, add the aubergine to the pan, stir fry adding a little more oil if necessary.
• Once the aubergine is starting to soften add all the other ingredients to the pan except for the prawns
• Cook until the sauce starts to reduce and the vegetables are cooked, add the prawns and simmer until they are cooked through.
• Serve strewn with fresh coriander and the accompaniments of rice and roti
• Enjoy

Chicken, green bean and courgette salad

The harvest from the garden is starting to slow but we are still battling a couple of gluts, mainly green beans (well actually purple beans as they are Blue Lake) and courgettes ( both yellow and the more traditional green), we still also have a pretty good selection of salad leaves growing too. Inspired by a recipe in River Cottage "Vegetables" this is a versatile lunch dish which has the comforting warmth of the beans and courgettes to lift it on these cooler days, the addition of  cooked shredded chicken ups the protein content, but can easily be omitted if you require a vegetarian dish.

Ingredients

• Shredded cooked chicken
• Mixed salad leaves (spinach, rocket, lettuce leaves, maybe a little mint)
• Cucumber
• Courgettes - sliced 
• Green beans, cut into bit sized pieces
• Olive oil
• Lemon juice
• Honey
• Salt and Pepper

Method

• Arrange the salad and shredded chicken on a plate
• Cook the green beans until tender
• Mix the olive oil, lemon juice, honey and salt and pepper in a jar to make a dressing, taste 
• Fry the courgettes until softened and lightly coloured
• Add the beans and courgettes to the salad leaves and then drizzle with dressing
• Serve immediately