when i signed up for this phd last year i had to specify a start date for the scholarship. i put down the last possible day – march 1, and it came around so quickly. to mark the occasion i decided to have a dinner party, which ended up being a marker of so many beginnings:

• day 1 of the phd
• the first day of autumn
• our first big house dinner as a whole (there’s been some changing of the guards at home lately
• the first time we’ve had 10 people and a baby round the dinner table

 

there was also the small fact that i’d only had an hour’s sleep in the 24 hours leading up to the dinner, so it could have been a marker of our first all-nighter for the year…

the company was so lovely, and the food amazing. i made a vegan, gluten-free feast, in recognition of each of the house member’s exclusion diets (meat, dairy and wheat), and to prove that we won’t be eating air every night!

potato and kale enhiladas

serves 10

(adapted from veganomicon, my new favorite recipe book)

there’s two parts – the chile sauce and the enchilada filling.

the chile sauce

chop 2 onions and 4 green chiles in the food processor

saute them in a few tablespoons of olive oil until soft

add 3 tins of chopped tomatoes, 2 teaspoons of sugar and 2 of salt

simmer for a little

add a heaped teaspoon of harissa (the one we have is really spicy!) and a teaspoon or so of just ground cumin

simmer for a bit longer

blend in the food processor again, and set it aside.

the potato and kale filling

dice 6-7 big desiree potatoes (no need to peel)

boil them till tender in a big pan of water, drain.

crush 6 cloves of strong garlic, and add to 5 tablespoons of olive oil that’s been warming in a BIG pan

simmer in the oil till golden

rinse and chop two bunches of kale – i got 2 different types at the markets this morning, curly and dark green

add them to the garlic and oil and cover with a lid, stir through so the oil gets over it oil. the kale should wilt and soften a bit

add the potatoes, half a cup of vegetable stock, the juice of 3 or 4 limes, 2 teaspoons of freshly ground cumin, 2 teaspoons of salt and half a cup of toasted, chopped pumpkin seeds.

stir it all through, mashing the potatoes a little, until the liquid has absorbed.

assembling the enchiladas

line a big roasting pan with a little bit of the chile sauce.

i used corn mountain bread to make the enchiladas, but you can use corn tortillas too

put a bit of filling and a teaspoon or so of the chilli sauce in a line down the middle of the flat bread, roll it up and put it in the roasting dish. keep going like this until you have used up all the filling. if you go for a second layer, make sure you put a layer of sauce in between.

then, cover the enchiladas with the rest of the sauce, spreading it over well. cover the pan with foil, and bake for half an hour or so at 180. take the foil off and bake for another 10 minutes, and then serve!