Apart from the foodie things I get up to, the occasional festival and the odd moment where I'm feeling blue I don't share too much about my personal life on here. For no other reason than I'm a little bit shy and so I let the food do the talking.
But today I am going to hijack this recipe to share some personal news, it's been on my mind for months now about how to do this and I decided nestled in amongst a recipe was the least fussy and slightly less scary way to break the news. Since my end of 2013 post where I was feeling a bit lost in life, I have to inform you that me and my husband Scott have sadly separated and moved out of our home to follow different paths. Moving house again within 6 months and dealing with all the mixed emotions has taken its toll but I am feeling hopeful and positive about the future.
I felt the need to share this because Scott is embedded deep in the history of this blog and I didn't want to leave this new turn unmarked. I was expecting the sadness and fear of moving on from my marriage but not the shame, even though I feel my life will be ok and I am actually doing well I still feel this deep embarrassment when telling people my marriage didn't work. But the level of support both myself and Scott have received has kept us strong, and we remain friends, which is all that matters.
I am living alone for the first time ever in my life but I am really enjoying it! I thought making meals for one person would maybe be harder but I am eating much healthier and the freezer has become my best friend! When you live alone you don't really have to think about normal routines, you can just eat when your hungry...and eat whatever you like too! I have always thought that batch cooking and freezing portions was the way forward for a healthy and low budget lifestyle and this is certainly ringing true now, especially with evening meals.
For lunches too I have been making batches of falafel or tortillas and having a piece or two each day with salads.
I love tortilla because it is so versatile! For this version I have added some summer greens for extra nutrition including spinach, spring greens like sweetheart cabbage, courgette and onions and flavoured it with chives. You could add anything though including beetroot, carrot, tomatoes, kale, mushrooms....anything!!!
Unfortunately I do not make a vegan version of a classic tortilla like this however I am working on it!! I eat a mainly vegan diet with no dairy but eggs are the one thing I am yet to cut out!
Cuts into 8 large slices
Vegetarian, Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Nut Free, Fuss Free
Ingredients are rough estimates - use enough to fill the sized pan you are using!
6 Medium sized Baking potatoes
3-4 Leaves Cabbage (Sweetheart or savoy is best)
3 Handfuls Spinach
1 Large Courgette
1 Onion
1 Bunch Chives
3 Garlic Cloves
4 Large Eggs
Salt and Pepper
To prepare your vegetables Chop the potatoes into bitesize chunks (do not peel but definitely give them a scrub). Remove the tough bottom core from the cabbage leaves and then wash and thinly slice into strips. Wash and wilt the spinach. Wash and Finely dice the courgette. Peel and finely dice the onion. Finely chop the chives. Peel and crush the garlic.
Par-boil the potatoes for 5 minutes until starting to soften then drain and put to one side.
In a deep set frying pan roughly 20cm/ 8″ diameter heat up some oil and add your cabbage, spinach, courgette and onion. Cook for a few minutes to soften then add the potatoes, chives and garlic and plenty of salt and pepper.
In a bowl beat the eggs. Once the potatoes have started to brown and cook through pour the eggs over the top so everything is evenly covered and using a spatula pat the top down to make everything sit in the pan with a smooth top. Don't leave this on a very high heat as the bottom will burn before the egg sets.
At this point pre heat your grill to a medium/ hot heat.
Once the egg looks like it has set and the sides have started to come away from the pan (a sign it is cooked) place the pan under the grill to brown the top. You can pierce the tortilla with a knife inbetween the pieces of potato to see if any uncooked egg appears, if so then give it a little longer.
Turn the tortilla out on to a plate and allow to cool slightly before slicing. This sort of dish is great served hot or cold and can be kept in the fridge for 3-4 days.
