Vegetable Stew with Lentils and Chestnuts

This is a good vegetarian main dish: the chestnuts make it special. The puy lentils have a good flavour and keep their shape well. If you use oil for frying, it's even vegan!

Serves 4 people.

Ingredients

• 3 onions, chopped
• 2 tablespoons oil or butter
• 1 lb (500 g) carrots
• 1 swede, diced
• 1 lb (500 g) mushrooms, broken in half
• 8 oz (250 g) puy lentils (sometimes sold as green speckled lentils
• 1 lb (500 g) peeled chestnuts (best to buy them ready prepared, in a tin is cheapest or failing that a packet)
• 1 bulb garlic, peeled and crushed
• a good squirt of tomato puree
• 6 heaped teaspoons Marigold brand vegetable stock
• 3 heaped teaspoons coarsely ground black pepper
• half a liter or so of water

Method

Fry the onions and garlic in the oil while you chop everything else up.

Add the carrots and give them a bit of a fry, then add the swede and do the same. Add everything else, bring to the boil, cover and cook for about forty-five minutes, stirring occasionally. Add more water if required.

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