Up until now, this little ‘three ways with’ series has been concentrated mainly on dinnertime meals. Today though? Today we’re all about lunch.

Now, I’ll admit to you, lunch is by far in a way my least favourite meal. Unless I’m out and about in London somewhere with endless exciting food options to hand, I’d usually rather just have lots of different snacks spread out through the middle of the day than go to the trouble of making and sitting down to a proper lunchtime meal. And to be honest, even when I *am* in London with endless exciting food options to hand, I’m usually far more tempted by the prospect of a ‘cake and hot chocolate’ lunch than by anything else! But since having cake for lunch isn’t the choice a sensible 24 year old is supposed to make, lately I’ve been trying to be better ;)

These three simple grain dishes have become some of my favourite lunchtime meals. The grains do a wonderful job of at filling the belly and sating the appetite without leaving you feeling heavy and sluggish (looking at you, sandwiches), and they’re all easy to put together and ready in under 20 minutes. I like to think of the first as being for grey, drizzly weekend lunches (it’s beautifully creamy and comforting), the second as a burst of Mediterranean sunshine on a plate, and the last being the one to make on a Sunday evening, and portion up for grab-and-go weekday sustenance.

Shall we get to it?

O N E :: Bacon + leek spelt risotto.

Serves two.
Ingredients ::
150g rolled spelt/quick cook farro {they’re the same!}
3 leeks
8 rashers smoked bacon
A sprig of thyme
3tbsp creme fraiche
Splash dry white wine
Parmesan {to taste}

- Place the spelt into a saucepan, and cook in salted water for approximately 10 minutes.

-Whilst the spelt cooks, slice the bacon into small pieces and the leeks into half centimetre rings, and then add to a large frying pan along with the thyme, a knob of butter and a splash of extra virgin olive oil. Cook slowly over a low to medium heat, stirring constantly, until the leeks have softened and turned sweet. Add in a splash of white wine, and turn up the heat briefly to allow the alcohol to cook away.

- When the spelt is cooked, drain it thoroughly and then add to the leek mixture. With a low heat under the pan, in the creme fraiche, then grate in some parmesan before tasting and adding in any extra parmesan, salt, and pepper.

- Serve with a squeeze of lemon over the top, and an extra grating of parmesan because there’s never too much of a good thing.

T W O :: Tabbouleh with quick pickled onions.

Ingredients ::
T A B B O U L E H
70g bulgar wheat
70g fresh parsley
70g fresh mint
6 large ripe tomatoes
1 lemon
Olive oil
Salt

Q U I C K   P I C K L E D  O N I O N S {recipe here}
1 large onion {preferably red, I only had white to hand!}
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1tbsp sugar
1.5tbsp salt

- To make the onions, mix together the vinegar, salt and sugar, then finely slice the onion and cover in the pickling liquid. Set aside for one hour.

- Cook the bulgar wheat according to package instructions, then, whilst it’s still hot, squeeze over half a lemon and mix together with a pinch of salt and splash of olive oil. Set aside.

Finely chop the parsley and mint, then deseed then dice the tomatoes. Mix together with the cooked grains, add the juice of the second lemon half as well as another splash of olive oil, and salt if you feel it needs it.

- Serve with the pickled onions, as a side to just about anything you fancy! Keeps well for several days in the fridge, and tastes better after having sat overnight to let the flavours infuse.

T H R E E :: Red pepper + feta lentils with marjoram.

Ingredients ::
250g puy lentils
100g feta
3 red peppers
Balsamic vinegar
Extra virgin olive oil
2 handfuls fresh marjoram

- Place the peppers into a roasting dish (no oil necessary!) and roast them whole at 200 degrees celsius for 35 minutes, until the skins are blackened and the flesh is tender. Allow the peppers to cool for at least ten minutes before attempting to remove the skins.

- Peel the skins from the peppers then shred the flesh back into the roasting dish, discarding the skins and seeds. Season well with a good splash of extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar, and add in half the marjoram leaves.

- Cook the lentils in salted boiling water for 25-30 minutes, then drain well. Add the lentils into the pepper dish to allow them to soak up the flavour of the marinade, then finally crumble in the feta and top with the remaining marjoram leaves.

Do tag me in on photos if you have a go at making any of the recipes! Find me on Twitter, and Instagram (@ciderwithrosieblog), and tag #ciderwithrosiecooks! :)

Want more ‘Three ways with’ recipe posts? ::
:: Chorizo.
:: Hummus.
:: Roast chicken.