Cheesy Veggie Crumble

This delicious veggie crumble is great for serving at big events and includes plenty of nutritious vegetables that count towards your 5-a-day.

Ingredients

2 medium leeks
1 pepper (red, yellow or orange)
75g mushrooms
1 medium courgette
25g unsaturated fat spread
1 pinch chilli flakes (optional)
25g plain flour
175ml semi-skimmed milk
175ml water
15g mature Cheddar cheese
1 x 5ml spoon French mustard
1 x 198g can sweetcorn
125g frozen peas
10g fresh herbs OR
1 x 5ml spoon dried herbs
Black pepper (optional)

Crumble topping
60g wholemeal flour
20g unsaturated fat spread (cold)
2 x 5ml spoons cold water
35g breadcrumbs
35g mature Cheddar cheese
½ x 5ml spoon dried thyme OR 1 x 5ml spoon fresh thyme

Equipment

Weighing scales
Chopping board
Sharp knife
Colander
Kitchen towel
Very large, deep
frying pan
Wooden spoon
Measuring jug
Measuring spoons
Grater
Can opener
Large mixing bowl
Large ovenproof dish
Oven gloves
Pan stand
Tasting spoon

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan or gas mark 4.
2. Top and tail the leeks and peel off and discard the outer layer. Slice partway from the top down and hold under cold running water, fanning out the top layers to remove any dirt. Slice the leeks in half lengthways, then across into semicircles about 2cm thick. Wash all of the vegetables.
3. Holding the pepper stalk, cut the sides away from the centre and discard the stalk. Cut the pepper into bite-sized chunks.
4. Wipe the mushrooms with damp kitchen towel to remove any dirt, then slice thinly into ½cm slices.
5. Trim the ends of the courgette, slice in half lengthways, then into bite-sized chunks.
6. Melt the spread in a frying pan over a low heat and add the leeks. Stir for 5 minutes until soft and then add the black pepper to taste (if using), courgette, mushrooms and chilli flakes (if using) and cook, stirring, for another 5 minutes.
7. Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables and stir to combine – it will look lumpy. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring gently so that it doesn’t burn.
8. Measure the milk and water together, then add 50ml to the pan at a time, allowing it to fully combine and thicken a little before adding the next 50ml (this stops it splashing out of the pan and allows any lumps to disappear). Simmer for 5 minutes then take off the heat.
9. Grate the cheese and stir into the pan with the mustard, drained sweetcorn and frozen peas. Chop the fresh herbs finely, then stir in.
10. Add a little more milk if the mixture is very thick.
11. To make the crumble topping, measure the flour into a bowl. Cut the spread into roughly 2cm cubes and rub into the flour to form fine breadcrumbs. Add the water to help it clump together. Stir in the breadcrumbs and grated cheese, then add the thyme and combine well.
12. Pour the vegetable mixture into the ovenproof dish and sprinkle over the crumble.
13. Using oven gloves, place the crumble into the preheated oven and bake for 25 minutes until golden brown and bubbling around the edges.

Skills used include:
Washing, weighing, measuring, peeling, chopping, grating, rubbing-in,  mixing/combining, boiling/simmering, frying and baking.

Top Tips

• You can use English mustard, but use half the quantity as
  it is much stronger and hotter than other mustards.
• For a special event, double the ingredient quantities and make the crumble to serve 10 people.

Something to try next time

• For a dairy-free version, replace the milk with soya milk, check that the spread is dairy free and replace the cheese with a dairy-free cheese substitute.
• For a gluten-free version, substitute the flour with a gluten-free flour mix and use breadcrumbs made from gluten-free bread.
• Make a QuornTM and Leek Cheesy Crumble. Stir-fry 150g of QuornTM chunks in a 15ml spoon of vegetable oil until beginning to turn golden brown and continue to follow the recipe as above but add half as many chopped vegetables. Add the sweetcorn and peas too, but add more milk if the mixture is very thick – QuornTM tends to absorb more liquid.
• Use different vegetables that are in season. Chopped onion instead of leeks with finely sliced fennel, broccoli and beans would be ideal in the summer. Try some frozen mixed vegetables with the leeks as an alternative in the winter.

Prepare now, eat later

• If you want to cook the crumble later, leave the vegetable base to cool before topping with the crumble. Cover and store in the fridge for up to 24 hours before baking.
• Make a large amount of breadcrumbs from stale bread and freeze in a freezer bag, then you can take out the amount you need and use it straight from the freezer.
• Rub together the flour and spread and store in bags in the fridge for up to 4 days.
• Freeze the prepared crumble, well wrapped, for up to a month. Defrost thoroughly then cook until it is piping hot.