FoodCycle Festive Feast & Vegetable Crumble Recipe

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A couple of weeks ago I was invited along to the FoodCycle Festive Feast which took place at St Pauls Church where FoodCycle run their weekly meal. I popped down early to help set up and cook. I also got a chance to make my flourless chocolate cake for around 50 people which was a bit of a challenge but I thoroughly enjoyed making my way through all that chocolate & butter!

On the night  we were treated to some seriously delicious food made with surplus vegetables & fruit that would have normally been thrown away. For the main course we were treated to a seriously tasty Vegetable crumble which was served with seasonal vegetables & roasted potatoes. As soon as I tried it I knew that I wanted to make it for us at home as its the perfect winter warmer. I asked very nicely and Sam Martensz (one of the guys in charge at FoodCycle Cambridge) has shared the recipe below. I can't wait to make it next week! 

As you can see the recipe it really versatile so its the perfect meal for using up any vegetables you may have laying around at home.

"This is the rough recipe on the scale that I originally came across it. The main changes were the vegetables and I think the real star were the jerusalem artichokes they gave it that sort of smoky flavour. To anyone else I would say I planned it that way, blending the flavours with the expert mix but as you know really it was because we got a huge bag of them donated and they would work with this style of dish!"

Serves 6
You will need-

• 2kg mixed root vegetables- parsnips, jerusalem artichokes, carrots and potatoes
• 200g pumpkin
• 2 onions, sliced 
• 4 heaped tbsp wholegrain mustard 
• 3 tbsp honey 
• 2 tbsp rapeseed oil 
• 1 tbsp chopped rosemary 
• 360ml double cream 
• Salt and pepper 

For crumble topping

• Handful of crushed walnuts
• 1 good handful porridge oats 
• 5-6 good handfuls of fresh breadcrumbs 
• 25g cubed unsalted butter
• 50g grated mature cheddar 
• Salt and pepper

Parboil all root vegetables separately until soft but not falling apart. Mix in roasting tray with the pumpkin. 

Saute onions until translucent then mix with vegetables. 

Whisk marinade of honey, mustard and rapeseed oil in a bowl with fork, adjust for seasoning adding a little more pepper than you think is needed, once it has been combined with the vegetables and roasted it will come through and give the necessary kick. 

Now mix in the the vegetables and place in preheated oven on 180C for 30-40 mins until the vegetables are slightly brown and the pumpkin is cooked. By roasting the vegetables first with the honey their natural sweetness will be amplified, this wouldn't happen if you skip straight to the next stage. 

Whilst the vegetables are roasting rub the topping together with your hands- no cheating with food processors. Once it has all been mixed set aside, take out the vegetables when ready.

Now pour over cream, adding a little more if you think it is necessary but no need to drown it! Sprinkle the walnuts over, they are better in between the topping rather than in it as you don't want to risk that burnt nut bitterness. Put on the topping, patting down firmly and then return to the oven which will should be turned up to 200 degrees. Watch like a hawk to avoid burning but it should be nice and golden brown after about 20 minutes. 

Special mention also goes to the lentil and mushroom pate which was served with crusty bread & a winter 'slaw'

All in all I had a fantastic evening and my team even mananged to win the food quiz (I never win anything) and no cheating I promise! So I snagged a FoodCycle apron and lots of other goodies. Unfortunately I didn't have as much luck with the raffle, there were some fantastic prizes provided by Cooking Gorgeous, La Tasca, Limoncello, Fudge Kitchen, Rawr Chocolate, and Nana Mexico.


Nick Gresham (brother-in-law) shot a video of the night which you can see below. Also a big shout out to Jen & the rest of the FoodCycle team who organised the whole event and to Love Food Hate Waste who sponsored it... as you can see they did a fantastic job and raised £750 for FoodCycle!