Julie Montagu Shares Fall Recipes

The first dish was a vibrant beetroot, celeriac and fig salad, a lighter dish perfect for the transition from summer to fall, and the second dish was a hearty buckwheat porridge with papaya topping, ideal for the chilly mornings that are on the way. See the recipes for these dishes below!

Recipe

Beetroot, Celeriac and Fig Salad

Yields 4 servings

Beetroot is fantastic for increasing your stamina and helping your muscles work harder for longer. When I’m craving something that’s healthy and light to satisfy my taste buds, sometimes I find that a mundane salad doesn’t cut it. Keeping things interesting in the kitchen is the key to sticking to a healthy diet and this is the kind of salad that will help you do just that. This is another good side to serve with steamed fish – sea bass or bream are perfect. It is an absolutely stunning salad in both appearance and flavor!

Ingredients

• 3 large beetroots, peeled and cut into chunks
• ½ celeriac, trimmed and cut into chunks
• Large handful of fresh flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
• Large handful of fresh coriander, roughly chopped
• 5 figs, quartered
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the lime dressing:

• Juice and zest of 1 lime
• 3cm piece of fresh ginger, peeled, and minced
• ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
• ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

Directions

1. Fill a large saucepan with about 2 cm water and heat over a medium heat. Add the beetroot and cook for about 20 minutes. Drain and put in a large bowl.
2. Add another 2 cm water to the empty pan and heat over a medium heat. Add the celeriac and cook for about 15 minutes. Drain and leave to cool in a separate bowl.
3. Once the beetroot and celeriac have cooled, add the parsley, coriander and figs to the large bowl, along with the celeriac.
4. Whisk together all the dressing ingredients in a small bowl. Drizzle over the beetroot and celeriac salad and season with salt and pepper before serving.

Buckwheat Porridge with Papaya Topping

Yields 2 servings

In addition to being high in vitamins A and C, Papaya contains papain, a digestive enzyme that is used to treat digestive disorders. It is also excellent for skin conditions, such as acne.

Ingredients

• 170 grams buckwheat groats
• 480 ml water
• 120 ml almond milk (or any plant-based milk)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon lime juice

For the papaya topping:

• 1 large papaya
• Zest of 1 lime
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 2 tablespoons raw honey
• 2 tablespoons pumpkin seeds

Directions

1. At first glance, you might think this is going to be a tricky recipe, but in reality, it’s quite easy – especially when it comes to making the buckwheat porridge. You can get most of this ready the night before, which is a bonus, particularly if you’re rushing to work or doing the school run.
2. Soak the buckwheat groats in the 480ml water for at least 1 hour or overnight. After soaking, strain and rinse well. Put the soaked groats, almond milk, vanilla extract and lime juice in a blender or food processor and blitz well.
3. To make the topping, peel the papaya, then cut it into chunks and place in a large jar or container. Add the remaining ingredients and mash together with a large spoon – this will release the juices from the papaya, but be sure to leave a few good chunks. Cover your jar or container with an airtight lid and place in the fridge to marinate if you have time. (Again, a great one to get ready the night before.)
4. Once marinated and ready to go, put your porridge in a bowl and spoon the papaya topping all over.

This post was originally published by the Natural Gourmet Institute. Learn more about today's Natural Gourmet Center.