A meal in its own right, especially served with pita bread and unsweetened soya yoghurt.
2 lemons
250g quinoa, buckwheat, couscous or any grain you have to hand
1 teaspoon veg stock powder
1 head broccoli, stalks chopped, florets left whole
A good handful of frozen peas
Olive oil
2 leeks, washed, trimmed and finely sliced
A handful of basil, mint, or any fresh herbs you have, leaves picked and chopped
3 big handfuls of spinach or kale, washed and shredded
2 tbsp toasted pumpkin seeds
2 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
Cut 1 of the lemons in half and place both halves in a pan with the grain. Cover with 600ml of water and crumble in the stock cube, bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for about 15 minutes, until most of the water has been absorbed. Top up with more boiling water, if needed, until the grain is almost cooked. Lay the broccoli and peas directly on top of the grain, put a lid on and steam for a couple of minutes.
While the grain is cooking, get a frying pan on a medium heat, add a splash of olive oil and the sliced leek and cook slowly for 10 minutes or so, until soft and sweet.
When the grain and broccoli are both cooked and tender, drain off excess water, remove the lemon halves and squeeze their juice over the grains.
Put the grain, broccoli and peas into a bowl and add the chopped herbs, shredded greens, toasted seeds and cooked leek. Squeeze over the juice of half of the second lemon, add a couple of tablespoons of olive oil and mix well. Taste and season with salt and pepper.
