Greek cooking has always understood something the rest of us are slowly catching up to: that the best Mediterranean food was never really about expense. It’s sunshine in the form of herbs and lemon, a block of feta crumbled with abandon, vegetables coaxed into something far greater than the sum of their parts. Peasant food in the loveliest sense – built to stretch, to feed a crowd, to make a little go a long way.
It helps, too, that none of it needs meat, historically the fastest way to halve a food bill without anyone at the table feeling hard done by. Which makes it ideal for Budget Bites, our monthly collaboration with Sorted Food, launched in response to the cost of living crisis to prove that eating well and eating cheaply needn’t be a contradiction.
This month’s trio heads straight for the Mediterranean. There are orzo-stuffed peppers, baked sweet and soft in a rich roasted-pepper sauce, all creamy tomato and salty olives. There’s halloumi saganaki – golden, squeaky, piled onto warm lentils and spinach with a sticky lemon-walnut dressing that does most of the talking.
And there’s a moussaka-style lentil bake that takes the long, laborious original and turns it into a weeknight proposition: cinnamon-spiced ragu, tender potatoes, a golden mascarpone crust standing in for the usual bechamel faff.
Three dishes, minimal outlay, maximum payoff. Kali orexi!
Greek-inspired orzo stuffed peppers
Sweet roasted peppers stuffed with creamy tomato orzo, spinach, olives and feta, baked in a rich roasted pepper sauce.
Ingredients:
2 red bell peppers
2 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic
20g pine nuts
120g orzo
200g cherry tomatoes
100g fresh spinach
20g fresh basil
80g black olives
150g feta
50g mascarpone
200g tinned chopped tomatoes
150g jarred roasted red pepper
Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 200C.
2. Slice 2 red peppers in half lengthways and use a spoon to scoop out the seeds. Place them into a large ovenproof frying pan, drizzle with 1 tbsp of olive oil and season with salt and black pepper. Bake for 15-18 minutes, until beginning to soften, then set aside.
3. Peel and finely grate 2 cloves of garlic. Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Add the garlic and 20g of pine nuts and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring regularly until lightly golden. Keep an eye on these – they burn easily!
4. Add 120g of orzo to the pan and stir well to coat. Pour in 400ml of water and cook for 10-12 minutes, stirring regularly, until the orzo is soft and the liquid has mostly absorbed. Add a little more water if the pasta isn’t cooked.
5. Halve 200g of cherry tomatoes. Quarter 80g of olives, crumble 150g of feta and roughly chop 10g of fresh basil. Add 50g of mascarpone, half the tomatoes, half the olives, half the feta, all the spinach and the chopped basil to the orzo. Cook for 2-3 minutes until the spinach wilts.
6. Thinly slice 150g of jarred roasted red peppers. Add the sliced peppers, 200g of tinned chopped tomatoes, the remaining cherry tomatoes, olives, and feta to the frying pan used for the peppers, and cook over a medium heat for 5 minutes.
7. Spoon the orzo mixture into the softened peppers and place them back into the frying pan with the sauce. Return to the oven and bake for 10 minutes, until everything is hot and slightly golden.
8. Scatter over the remaining 10g of basil leaves, then serve. Enjoy!
Halloumi saganaki with walnut dressing
Golden, crisp halloumi piled onto warm lentils and spinach with sweet roasted peppers and a sticky lemon-walnut dressing.
Ingredients:
1 ciabatta (1x 250g)
40g walnut halves
2 tbsp honey
4 tbsp olive oil
1 lemon
225g halloumi
2 tbsp plain flour
190g tinned green lentils
150g jarred roasted red pepper
100g fresh spinach
50g feta
10g fresh basil
Method:
1. Halve 1 ciabatta through the middle. Heat a frying pan over a medium-high heat. Add the ciabatta slices and 40g of walnut halves and toast for 2-3 minutes, stirring the nuts frequently, until the bread is golden brown and the nuts are fragrant.
2. Roughly chop the toasted walnuts and add them to a medium bowl with 2 tbsp of honey and 2 tbsp of olive oil. Squeeze in the juice from 0.5 lemon, stir to combine and set aside.
3. Drain 190g of tinned green lentils. Thinly slice 150g of jarred roasted red pepper. Cut 225g of halloumi into 1cm thick slices. Add 2 tbsp of plain flour to a bowl, add the halloumi and toss to coat.
4. Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in the frying pan used for the bread over a medium-high heat. Add the halloumi slices and fry for 2-3 minutes on each side, until golden and crisp.
5. Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in another large frying pan over a medium heat. Add the lentils, roasted red pepper and 100g of fresh spinach to the pan. Cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring gently, until the spinach has wilted and everything is heated through. Stir half the dressing through the lentils.
6. Place the toasted bread onto plates. Spoon over the lentil mixture and top with the halloumi. Crumble over 50g of feta, drizzle with the remaining walnut dressing and tear over 10g of basil to finish. Tuck in!
Moussaka-style lentil bake
All the comfort of moussaka, made simpler: a rich cinnamon-spiced lentil ragu topped with tender potatoes and a creamy golden mascarpone crust.
Ingredients:
400g loose white potatoes
1 brown onion
1 aubergine
3 cloves garlic
150g jarred roasted red pepper
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp dried oregano
200g tinned green lentils
200g tinned chopped tomatoes
200g mascarpone
30g hard Italian cheese
Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 220C.
2. Stab 400g of potatoes all over with a fork, then cook them in the microwave on full power for 10-12 minutes, until soft.
3. Meanwhile, peel and finely dice 1 brown onion. Trim and dice 1 aubergine into 2cm cubes. Peel and finely grate 3 cloves of garlic. Thinly slice 150g of roasted red peppers from the jar.
4. Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a large ovenproof frying pan over a medium heat. Add the onion and aubergine with a pinch of salt and pepper. Cook for 6-8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onion is soft and golden. Add the garlic, 1 tsp of ground cinnamon and 2 tsp of dried oregano and cook for 1 minute, until fragrant.
5. Add 200g of tinned green lentils with their water, the sliced pepper, 200g of tinned chopped tomatoes and 150ml of water. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook for 10-12 minutes, until the sauce has thickened and loosely coats the lentils and veg.
6. Once the potatoes are cool enough to handle, cut them into thin rounds. Lay the slices over the lentil ragu in an even layer, overlapping slightly.
7. Stir 200g of mascarpone with 2 tbsp of water to loosen slightly. Spread it evenly over the potatoes, then finely grate over 30g of hard Italian cheese. Transfer the pan to the oven and bake for 10-12 minutes, until golden and bubbling.
8. Leave the bake to stand for 2 minutes, then spoon into bowls and serve. Tuck in!
In response to the rising cost of living, we have teamed up with Sorted Food to bring you easy, affordable, quick and (most importantly) tasty recipes once a month. Find out more about Sorted and their nifty meal-planning app Sidekick at sortedfood.com/sidekick.
