This is a delicious, warming, good for the soul, stew - a real one-pot wonder. Really easy to make, very kind to wallet and a great one for feeding a hungry family. Loaded with root vegetables and pearl barley it will help to nourish from within; just what we all need on these cold winter evenings. A perfect dish for curling up with at the end of a long hard day.
Serves 4
Ingredients
Stew
2 tbsp olive oil
2 red onions, chopped into quarters or sixths (depending on size)
4 sticks of celery, chopped into 1 inch pieces
5 carrots, quartered
4 parsnips, quartered
200g button mushrooms
1 tbsp tomato puree
5 veggie sausages, halved (I used Cauldron cumberland sausages)
1.2 litre vegetable stock
2 bay leaves
3 sprigs of thyme
1 sprig rosemary
150g pearl barley
Henderson's relish
Dumplings
100g self raising flour
50g vegetable suet
pinch of sea salt
Approximately 5 tbsp water (add a tbsp at a time)
100g stilton, grated
1 tsp fresh chopped rosemary
Directions
Stew
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees C.
Place a large casserole dish over a medium heat on the hob.
Add the olive oil and fry the onion for 6-8 minutes until golden brown.
Add the celery, carrots and parsnips and fry for a further 3-4 minutes, until the veggies have taken on a little colour.
Add the mushrooms and tomato puree and cook for a further minute, stirring regularly.
Add the halved veggie sausage, stock, a few good dashes of Henderson's relish and the herbs and mix well.
Finally sprinkle over the peal barley and mix again.
Bring to the boil and then place the lid on and place in the oven for 40 minutes.
Dumplings
Mix the flour with the suet and salt.
Add the water, a tablespoon at a time, until it forms a firm pliable dough (add more water if necessary).
Add the stilton and chopped rosemary and gently combine (don't overmix as you will make your dumplings heavy).
Divide the dough into 8 and then gently shape into balls.
Place the dumpling balls on top of the stew for the last 20 minutes of cooking time (check the liquid level FIRST in the stew, add a little extra water/stock if looks a little dry BEFORE adding the dumplings).
Cover with a lid.
Remove the lid for the last 5 minutes of cooking time so that the dumplings crisp up a little on the outside.
Remove and allow to stand for a couple of minutes before serving.
Divide between serving bowls and then devour.
Delicious served with a wedge of fresh crusty bread to mop up any juices.
xxx
* if there is any left (unlikely!), it tastes delicious the next day.