Chickpea and vegetable casserole

As the autumn/winter nights take hold (dark at 5pm!) I find myself craving warm, comforting meals for dinner. The idea of eating a salad fills me with dread right now, but this thick, tomatoey and slightly spicey casserole with hearty vegetables and potatoes is just right.

It would be fab too with some sausage or chorizo in it if you’re into meaty stuff. But its plenty filling with the chickpeas and cous cous its served with – and cheap and healthy too.

Here’s how you make it! You will need

• veggies
• tomato pasta sauce or passata
• 1 tin chickpeas
• cous cous
• spices

First I roasted up some veggies. You can use whatever veggies you like – the ones currently in season will usually be the cheapest. Right now, thats butternut squash, cabbage, Leeks, mushrooms, potato, sweet potatoes, pumpkins, swede, turnips and anything else you spy in abundance in your local greengrocers!

I used sweet potato, potato, peppers and courgettes to roast (drizzled with olive oil, salt and pepper and for about 20-25 minutes in a hot oven). Then I lightly sauteed (it sounds better than fried) some chopped onion and mushroom in a pan on the hob. I did these on the hob rather than in the oven as I prefer onion and mushroom cooked this way. Once the roasted veggies were cooked, I added them to the (large) frying pan and added in a tin of chickpeas, 2/3 of a jar of Bertolli pasta sauce and some cumin and chilli flakes.

While everything was simmering away – it really only needs to warm through – I made some cous cous using my usual method

1. Pour random amount of cous cous into bowl (a bit for one person, a lot for two people)
2. Pour over a random amount of boiling water (should just cover cous cous)
3. Cover with tea towel and leave for a few minutes
4. Fluff up your cous cous and serve

Works every time!

This meal was delish – very filling and comforting.

Related articles

• Easy healthy dinners : Salmon with veggie cous cous (kerrycooks.wordpress.com)
• Top 10 Budget-Friendly Foods (Healthy Ones!) (everydayhealth.com)
• Our 10 Favorite Ways to Cook Potatoes (wholefoodsmarket.com)