Rose Elliot - Rose Elliot’s New Complete Vegetarian

Beat in the egg yolks, then whisk in a quarter of the butter, beating until the butter has melted and is beginning to thicken.

Add the rest of the butter in three batches, beating well between each batch. Add a little more lemon juice if you wish.

This gorgeous sauce is easy to make if you use a blender. Make it just before you want to eat it.

SERVES 4

125g (4oz) butter, diced

1 tbsp lemon juice

2 egg yolks

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Melt the butter in a small saucepan then bring to the boil.

Whiz the lemon juice and egg yolks in a blender until pale and thick, then, with the machine still running, pour in the boiling melted butter and whiz for a further minute. Season with salt and a pinch of pepper and serve at once.

This creamy, smooth lentil sauce that turn a plate of steamed or roasted vegetables into a complete meal. For spicier lentil sauces see the lentil dals on page 194.

SERVES 4

125g (4oz) red lentils

575ml (1 pint) water

1 onion

1 tbsp olive oil

2 tsp curry powder

juice and grated rind of 1 lemon

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Simmer the lentils in the water until tender – about 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, peel and chop the onion and sauté gently in the oil with the curry powder for 10 minutes.

Add the lemon juice and grated rind a little at a time, until it tastes right to you.

Liquidise or blend the sauce, season well with salt and pepper and serve.

Sharp-tasting yet sweet as well, mint sauce complements many lentil and bean dishes such as field bean burgers, lentil croquettesor white nut roast.

SERVES 4–6

25g (1oz) chopped fresh mint

1 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp boiling water

4 tbsp cider vinegar or white wine vinegar

If you’ve got a liquidiser or hand blender, just wash the mint leaves and take off any stalks, then whiz with the other ingredients until the mint is finely chopped. Pour into a jug to serve.

If you’d rather make the sauce by hand, finely chop the mint leaves, then put them into a bowl. Add the sugar, water and vinegar and mix well.

Rich, creamy and luxurious, this adds a gourmet touch to any meal. Try it with cashew nut and parsley fritters, tofu escalopesor lentil croquettes.

SERVES 4

25g (1oz) butter

1 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp finely chopped onion

250g (9oz) chestnut mushrooms, sliced

1 tsp plain flour

125ml (4fl oz) Marsala

200ml (7fl oz) crème fraîche

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat the butter and oil in a large saucepan. Add the onion, cover and cook gently for 2–3 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook for 4–5 minutes, until they are tender.

Add the flour and stir over the heat for a minute or two, then pour in the Marsala and let the mixture bubble away over the heat for 3–4 minutes, or longer if you want to reduce it more. Stir in the crème fraîche, adding salt and pepper to taste. Reheat gently, then serve.

This is a creamy fresh-tasting sauce that’s best served warm and is delicious with nut or pulse savouries, burgers and also with plainly cooked vegetables.

SERVES 4–6

15g (½oz) butter

125g (4oz) button mushrooms, chopped

150ml (5fl oz) soured cream

salt and freshly ground black pepper

a pinch of paprika

Melt the butter in a medium-sized saucepan and fry the mushrooms for about 5 minutes.

Stir in the soured cream and salt, pepper and a little paprika to taste.

Reheat gently, but don’t let the sauce boil.

Sweet and tangy, this goes with so many things and is so good you can even eat it as it is. It makes a great topping for bruschettaand keeps well in the fridge for a week or so.

SERVES 4–8

1kg (2¼lb) red onions, thinly sliced

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp golden caster sugar

3 tbsp fino sherry

2 tbsp red wine vinegar

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oil in a large saucepan. Add the onions, cover and cook, stirring every 5 minutes, for about 15 minutes or until they’re very tender. They must be really soft before you go on to the next stage.

Add the sugar, sherry and vinegar, then leave to simmer gently, without a lid, for about 30 minutes or until you have a thick, sticky mixture with hardly any liquid left. Remove from the heat, season to taste with salt and pepper and leave to cool. Store in a covered container in the fridge for about a week.

This sauce always makes a meal taste special. You can use either an inexpensive wine, or some extra of whatever you’re having with the meal. Try this with the chestnut, sage and red wine loaf.

SERVES 6

425ml (15fl oz) vegetable stock

425ml (15fl oz) red wine

1 bay leaf

a piece of onion

1 garlic clove, finely sliced

a pinch of dried thyme

5 tsp black peppercorns

2–3 parsley stalks

1 tbsp redcurrant jelly

salt and freshly ground black pepper

40g (1½oz) butter, softened

20g (¾oz) plain flour

Put the stock and red wine into a saucepan with the bay leaf, onion, garlic, thyme, peppercorns and parsley stalks and bring to the boil. Let the mixture bubble away for 10–15 minutes so that the amount of liquid reduces to half. Strain into a clean saucepan and mix in the redcurrant jelly and some salt and pepper.

Next make a beurre manié: simply mash half the butter with the flour to make a paste and add this, in small pieces, to the still-warm sauce, mixing well after you’ve added each piece. This is an easy, foolproof way to thicken a sauce.

Put the sauce back over the heat and stir it until it has thickened slightly.

Let the sauce simmer gently for a few minutes to cook the flour. Check the seasoning again and beat the remaining butter into the sauce just before serving to make it look glossy and appetizing.

Tip

If you want to prepare the sauce in advance, after you’ve added the beurre manié and simmered the sauce for a few minutes, take it off the heat and dot the remaining butter over the top of the sauce to prevent a skin forming. When you’re ready to eat, heat the sauce gently and stir the butter in.

Zingy and refreshing, this perks up so many dishes and can be made several hours in advance. Add the chilli to taste – either cautiously if you’re unsure or generously for hardened chilli lovers.

SERVES 4–8

4 tomatoes, fairly finely chopped

1 garlic clove, crushed

4 spring onions, chopped

2 tbsp chopped red onion

1 green chilli, deseeded and chopped

2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander

1 tbsp lime juice

½ tsp salt

Just mix everything together and set aside until you are ready to serve. If you have time, leave to stand for a while to bring out all the flavours.

This is a gorgeous tangy, creamy, protein-rich sauce that you can whip up in a moment. You can serve it with the deep-fried salt and pepper tofu, or with cubes of fried smoked tofu; it’s also fabulous in the cauliflower satay. I like to use good-quality pure peanut butter, but you could also use cashew or almond butter if you like. You can find jars of tamarind and vegetarian Thai red curry paste (i.e. not containing fish) in large supermarkets.