Vitamin Wheat

This is fast, adaptable and good for using bits of veg up. Quantities here are for 2-3 meals.

2 mugs of bulgar wheat or couscous (or cooked rice)
1 small onion
1-2 cloves of garlic, sliced
A handful of chopped dried fruit (optional but things like cranberries, apricots, sultanas...)
About 10 cherry tomatoes, halved
1 apple, chopped
A slosh of cider (or water)

Other things you can add:
1 courgette, diced
1 pepper, diced
2 sticks of celery, chopped
3 handfuls Quorn chunks
a bit of cubed feta
Chickpeas

Dressing:
a glug of olive oil
juice of a lemon
handful of chopped parsley
half tsp cinnamon
half tsp cumin
half tsp sumac (optional)
half tsp advieh (optional)
chopped mint (optional)

Put the bulgar or couscous in a bowl and pour over boiling water until it is about a cm over the grains and cover with a plate for about 5-10 mins. If you are using dried fruit, add this too. Or cook the rice.

Meanwhile, cook the onions in a little oil until translucent. Add the quern here if using.

Add the garlic and other veg, a slosh of cider, and cook for about 10 mins or until they have softened and the veg (and quorn) has gone goldenish.

Tip it all into a big bowl with the grains and (add the feta now if using) and add the dressing stuff.  Stir it all up and cover for 5 mins then serve.

You can leave leftovers to go cold and have it for lunch the next day.

Hummus

It's just so much nicer homemade and cheap to make. Even cheaper and tastier if you can be arsed to soak and boil dried chickpeas. Any leftover chickpeas can be chucked into magic gug, soup or simply double the hummus quantities.

Half a tin of chickpeas (or about half a mug of dried ones, washed then soaked over night and boiled for about an hour until you can easily squish)- either way, keep a bit of the liquid.

Juice of 1-2 lemons

1-2 garlic cloves

2 tablespoons of tahina

About 2 tablespoons of olive oil

You can either make this by hand or in a blender or processor. If you are using a processor then whizz everything up, adding a little of the liquid and tasting until it's to your liking. Add one of the garlic cloves and one of the lemons to start then add the rest if you think it needs it.

If you are making it by hand then grate the garlic and then mash everything together, again tasting until it's right.

VARIATIONS- 

You can add a pinch of cumin, chilli or ground coriander to add a bit of spice.  

Try making this but with red kidney beans or other pulses.

Using dried pulses- it works out super cheap but you need to really check the soaking and boiling instructions as undercooked pulses to bad stuff to your belly. Tinned work fine but, especially with chickpeas, it's worth making the effort with dried.