Giving it a go

It would be a bit rubbish if I had married a veggie and instantly converted myself. That is just not the kind of person I am. However, living with a veggie has meant I have had to adapt and has opened my eyes to a whole world of wonderful food I had never experienced before. I love cooking and eating and sharing this with the person I share my life with is therefore obviously important to me, so this has meant when I cook for us both at home, I cook veggie. I am not dead set on becoming a vegetarian right now and am not sure if I will in the future but I have been so inspired by the many vegetarian/vegan blogs out there that I was itching to start my own. So here we go.

Monday 12 December 2011

Some quick dinners

A bit of leftover tarka daal, some leftover rice transformed into chinese fried rice and a ready made bean kiev.











Channa masala and rice with leftover lentil cakes (started off with a recipe from the PPK and then transformed into something entirely different due to lack of correct ingredients)


2 heavenly quick loaves thanks to the PPK!

I had to mail order pumpkin puree since I couldnt find it in my local supermarket but the Chocolate Pumpkin Loaf and Chocolate Banana Swirl Loaf from www.theppk.com are seriously a couple of the best cakes I have tasted :) Parents, husbands, friends were all delighted as was I.



Homemade Pizzas

There is nothing quite like being able to have whatever veggie toppings your heart desires instead of being limited to the 1 option on the pizza takeaway menu!

I use Rachel Allen's dough recipe but not her sauce - I made my own sauce from chopped tomatoes, fresh tomatoes, red wine vinegar, sugar, salt and dried thyme.

http://www.rachelallen.co.uk/recipes_november08.html

Toppings included peppadew peppers, sweet corn, mushrooms, green chillies, onion and a veggie pepperoni recipe from The Complete Guide to Vegan Food Substitutions which is by far my new fav book.

This is how they looked before 15mins in a hot oven :)


Chocolate Raspberry Cookies

While preparing my Christmas menu and flipping through the lovely Veganomicon - I came across this recipe and it seemed so quick and easy I couldn't resist having a go! Half the recipe made the amount you see in the photo - they were heaven!!

Monday 21 November 2011

Shahi Baked Paneer

A delicious creamy paneer dish - it is a bit time consuming so I would save it for a special Sunday lunch or a birthday meal. Huge benefit for parties in that you can make the night before, shove it in the fridge and leave the baking part till the next day.


- Soak 1 tbsp cashew nuts in 2 tbsp milk for 30mins
- Blend with 4 cloves garlic and 2 inch piece ginger until you have a smooth paste - set aside
- Deep fry 400 g cubed paneer pieces and set aside
- Boil 150g frozen peas and set aside
- Chop 2 onions and fry until golden, add 1 tsp cinnamon, 2 bay leaves and 1 tsp chili powder and fry for 1min
- Add 1 can chopped tomatoes and cook until reduced by half
- Add 200g plain yogurt, 1 tsp garam masala, 1 tsp cumin seeds and 1 tsp ground coriander, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp sugar, the paste from earlier and stir to combine
- Add 4 tbsp double cream, the fried paneer and peas and cook for 1 min
- Taste for seasoning
- Pour into a baking dish, sprinkle with a handful of grated mozarella and bake at 180 degrees for 20min
- Serve with chappatis and onion/tomato salad

Monday 31 October 2011

Oriental Mock Chicken Salad

I used to make this all the time when I cooked meat with leftover crispy chicken and I was delighted to find it works perfectly with mock meat - I like it best with the frozen type from the Chinese supermarket.

- Cook 1 pack mock chicken breasts according to packet instructions - drizzle with olive oil first and possibly cook a little longer if not golden and crispy
- Shred 1/4 of a small red cabbage, thinly slice 1 red onion, use a vegetable peeler to shred 4 carrots and chop a handful of fresh coriander. Place this in a big bowl
- In a small bowl whisk together the dressing: 3 tbsp soya sauce, 1 tbsp sesame oil, 1 tbsp sunflower oil, 2 tbsp honey and 1 tbsp lime juice.
- When the mock chicken is ready snip into strips with scissors and add to the bowl of veggies with the dressing
- Toss well and serve

Aubergine and mock chicken parmagiana (serves 2)

- Put 2 breaded mock chicken schnitzels in the oven per packet instructions (I use frys)
- Also into the oven in a roasting dish place 6 halved tomatoes and 8 whole unpeeled garlic cloves drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with dried thyme, sugar, salt and black pepper
- Both will take around 20mins
- Meanwhile slice thinly and fry 1 aubergine draining on kitchen paper as they are ready
- When the tomatoes are soft remove from the oven, pop the garlic out of the skin and place the whole mix in the blender.
- In a baking tray assemble the chicken schnitzel, a layer of tomato garlic sauce, a few slices of overlapping aubergine, another layer of sauce and top with grated mozarella
- Bake for 5mins on high until cheese is golden
- Serve with steamed green beans in a bit of butter
- Enjoy!



Monday 24 October 2011

Acuri

My Dad used to make Acuri at home on a Sunday evening so thought I would give an eggless version a go. For those of you that haven't heard of it - it's really a spicy scrambled eggs usually served on toast.

- Fry 1 chopped red onion with 1 tbsp ginger/garlic paste
- Add 2 chopped tomatoes and 1 chopped chilli with seeds and fry a little longer
- Add 1/2 tsp turmeric and 1 tsp salt
- Add 1 block mashed firm tofu and fry till some edges look golden
- Chuck in a handful of chopped fresh coriander, cook for 1 minute
- Quickly toast and butter 2 pieces of bread - chuck the acuri on top and beat your husband to the TV to watch something lovely like the Kardashians :)

Nandos at home :)

The husband adores Nandos like possibly more than me but it is quite pricey and unfortunately we cannot eat out all the time! Here is my at home version - it was yummy and firey.

- To make the sauce blend in a food processor: half red pepper, 2 tbsp tomato puree, 5 cloves garlic, 2 tbsp olive oil, 1 scotch bonnet, 1 red onion, juice of 1 lime and juice of 1 orange. Simmer this in a saucepan to reduce - Season with salt, pepper, sugar, chopped coriander and turn off heat
- Bake 4 frozen mock chicken breasts of your choosing according to packet instructions until crispy
- Meanwhile boil 2 cups frozen peas, drain and saute in 1 tsp butter, 1/2 tsp dried mint, 1/2 tsp chilli flakes and 1/2 tsp salt. Mash a little to get that mushy pea effect
- Peel and chip 4 large potatoes - deep fry and sprinkle with paprika and salt
- Dip the cooked mock chicken in the sauce to thoroughly coat and griddle until charred black criss cross lines show.
- Stick it all on a plate and eat!

French Toast and Necterine Slices

- In a sealable plastic bag crush 2 cups Frosties cereal (anysweet cornflakes will do)
- Add to this 1/2 cup flour, 1/4 tsp baking soda, 1/4 tsp baking powder and pour into a bowl
- Add 1cup vanilla soya milk and whisk into a batter, if too thick add a little more
- Heat a pan with a mix of butter and oil- Dip 1 at a time 6 pieces of wholemeal bread into the batter and fry until golden flipping half way
- Serve with slices of fresh necterine and maple syrup


Saturday 7 May 2011

Teriyaki stirfry with crispy noodles and garlic brocolli

I love nothing more than crispy crispy noodles in a chinese restaurant, this is my at home and hopefully slightly healthier version! Serves 2 with some leftovers for the next days lunch.

- Chop the very ends off 8 pieces of tenderstem brocolli and place in a small saucepan
- Boil the kettle
- Fry in groundnut oil 1 sliced onion with 8 sliced mushrooms and 4 crushed cloves garlic
- Add 15 thick slices of your favourite seitan - I used a new version that came in a glass jar from Whole Foods, fry mix for about 10mins
- Meanwhile pour hot water over 2 nests of egg free but still yellow thread noodles, cook for 3 mins, drain in cold water and fry in 2 tbsp ground nut oil with 1/2 tsp salt until crispy
- Pour hot water over the brocolli, boil for 5mins, drain, return to the pan with 2 crushed garlic cloves and 2 tsp butter and cook until the garlic is done
- Add 4 tbsp teriyaki sauce to your mushroom, onion, seitan mix, stir to combine, add 2 tbsp chopped coriander and turn off the heat
- Enjoy :)

Friday 6 May 2011

Sweet potato and butternut squash soup

This is one of my mums favourites and a version of something I once saw on Saturday Morning Kitchen :)

- Peel, scoop out the seeds and dice 1 butternut squash
- Peel and dice 3 sweet potatoes
- Peel and slice 1 white onion and crush 8 cloves garlic- Fry all the above in 2 tbsp good olive oil and 1 tbsp butter for aboout 15mins
- Add 1 veggie stock cube to the pot and pour boiling water from the kettle in until all the veg is covered
- Add salt and black pepper the soup and bring to the boil
- Simmer for 20 mins or until squash is soft
- Turn off heat, use a masher to mash some of the chunks but not all, taste for seasoning and enjoy

Tuesday 26 April 2011

Yummy potato salad

-Boil 20 small new potatoes in salted water until tender
-Meanwhile prepare vegan mayo
-Mix in a food processor 60ml soya milk, 2 crushed garlic cloves and 1 tsp cider vinegar
-Slowly add 150ml sunflower oil while the food processor is on medium speed until the mayo has a creamy consistency
-Add a generous twist of salt and black pepper, mix and taste
-Drain the potatoes and add to a bowl with a big bunch of chopped mint and 4 finely sliced spring onions
-Add the vegan mayo and stir to combine

Serve preferably on a sunny day with bbq veggie sausages and burgers!

The best vegan cupcakes I have ever tasted!

I was getting frustrated with claims that this recipe or that recipe was truly the best vegan cupcake only to end up with stodgy/weird smelling/lumpy cupcakes. So i bought Vegan Cupcakes Take Over The World and was delighted! These are the basic vanilla ones - the first recipe in the book - that I made on Easter Sunday :)

Thursday 21 April 2011

Mushroom and seitan pasta

A nice hearty winter warmer dinner. It was however 25 degrees celsius when I fancied making this so with the heat in the kitchen and the heat in the pasta I nearly boiled to death!

- Cook 200g brown fusilli pasta in a big pot of boiling salted water with a little oil for 20mins
- Meanwhile chop and fry 1 red onion, 10 mushrooms and 5 garlic cloves until brown and sticky
- Add 1/2 tsp salt, lots of black pepper, 1 tsp dried rosemary and 2 tsp chili flakes
- Add about 20 thin strips of your favourite seitan, I defrost frozen black pepper mock chicken from Veggie World
- Fry for about 10 mins whilst stirring
- Add 1 cup red wine and allow to cook off for 5 mins
- Stir in 2/3 cup low fat crème fraiche and taste/adjust for seasoning
- Drain and add the pasta to the sauce and serve


Paneer skewers and stuffed mushrooms

This is a nice snacky dinner when you fancy something warm but not too filling/too much hassle

- Soak some wooden skewers in water and prehat the oven to 200 degrees celsius
- Cube 200g paneer
- Cube half a red pepper
- Thread onto the skewer alternating between paneer and pepper
- Brush with you favourite chilli sauce and a bit of tikka masala paste and bake for 20mins
- Meanwhile scoop out the middle of 7 chestnut mushrooms
- Put 1/2 tsp butter in each followed by a sprinkle of garlic powder and as much grated mozerella as you can squeeze in
- Place on a baking tray, brush each with a little oil and sprinkle with my new favourite veggie seasoning Bacon Salt!
- Place in the oven for 15mins and serve

Tuesday 19 April 2011

Veggie Tacos

This dish starts with a boring shop bought pack but turns into something much more fun and tasty!

- Prepare the salad with 2 chopped avocados, 4 chopped tomatoes, 3 chopped spring onion, a big bunch of chopped coriander, juice of half a lime, salt and olive oil
- Peel 3 sweet potatoes, chop in rough chunks, place in a roasting dish and then drizzle olive oil over and sprinkle salt and garlic pepper. Roast at 200 degress celsius for 30mins
- Open the Old El Paso Taco kit. Lay the taco shells on a baking tray ready for heating later and pour the salsa in a bowl
- Lay out a handful of grated cheese in another bowl
- Defrost 1 pack soya mince in the microwave for 5mins
- Meanwhile in the food processor blitz - 1 tomato, 1 red pepper, 1 onion, 4 garlic cloves and 2 green chillies- Fry the vegetables in oil until fragrant and add the defrosted soya mince
- Add the spice mix from the kit, some salt and paprika to taste and 3 tbsp water and cook for a further 5 mins
- Put the taco shells in the oven for 3 mins
- Assemble your taco with the soya mince on the bottom of the shell, then a sprinkle of cheese followed by salad and salsa
- Serve with the roasted sweet potatoes

Chocolate Raspberry Brownie Cake

Very dense but very tasty. I served it with fresh raspberries and a soya raspberry icecream! Unfortunately the husband had eaten a slice by the time I took the photo!

- Preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius. In a medium bowl mix 1 cup plain flour, 5 tbsp cocoa powder, 1 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tspbaking soda, 1 tsp egg replacer powder and 1/4 tsp salt
- In the blender, combine 3/4 cup water and 1/2 cup raspberries and blend until smooth
- Make a well in the dry ingredients. Add 1/2 cup agarve syrup and the berry mixture. Stir until completely mixed. Pour into an oiled 9-inch round cake pan
- Bake 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean
- Drizzle with golden syrup and serve with fresh raspberries

Monday 18 April 2011

Easy Daal

This is a nice quick recipe, very fullfilling and it keeps well in the fridge for a good few days.
- Rinse 1 handful of channa daal and 1 handful of urid daal under the cold tap
- Tip into the pressure cook and fill 1/3 with water
- Cook on medium gas for about 20mins
- In the mean time fry in a large pan 1 chopped onion with 5 cloves chopped garlic, 1 knob sliced ginger, 2 sliced chillies and 2 tsp salt
- When golden add 1 tsp cumin seeds, 1 tsp ground coriander, 1 tsp turmeric and 1 tsp garam masala and cook for a further 2 mins. Stir in 2 tbsp tomato puree
- Put the pressure cooker in the sink and run the cold tap on it for a minute
- When cool open and test the daal - if soft enough add the daal and a little of the liquid to the onions and spices (if not return to the heat for another 5 mins)
- Stir the daal and add more liquid until desired consistency is reached.
- I add about 2/3 of the total liquid
-Test for seasoning and add a handful of chopped coriander

Pad Thai

A very tasty dish if I do say so myself!

- Soak one nest of flat rice noodles in a bowl of boiling water
- Defrost 6 veggie shrimp in the microwave
- Chop 5 garlic cloves, 2 chillies, a knob of ginger, half a green pepper, half a red onion and slice about 6 mushrooms- Fry all of the above for about 8 mins
- Slice and add the defrosted shrimp and cook for 2 mins
- Add a good splash of soya sauce, shaoshing rice wine, a squueze of lime juice and 1 tsp sugar
- Drain and add rice noodles and stire
-Taste for seasoning and sitr in a handful of chopped coriander

Thursday 14 April 2011

Chickpea Cakes

I started with Vegan Dad's recipe and ended up modifying it quite a bit based on what I had at home. I absolutely adore his recipes! They are always tasty and pretty - not always the easiest with veggie food.

- Dice and fry half a white onion with half a green pepper for 5minutes
- Drain and rinse 1 can of chick peas and blitz until broken down but still lumpy in a food processor. Add the onion mix and blitz once more
- Transfer to a bowl and add: 1 tsp paprika, 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper, 1/2 tsp rosemary, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 tbsp cornflour, 2 tbsp regular flour, a squeeze of lime juice, 1 tbsp chopped fresh coriander and 1 tbsp garlic chilli sauce
- Mix really well and put in the fridge for 20min
- Make 10 patties from this mix and shallow fry in 2 batches turning half way until golden
- Serve with a salad made from 3 chopped tomatoes, handful of coriander, 1/4 chopped onion and 1 sliced avocado. Dress the salad with a splash of olive oil, lime juice and salt

Wednesday 13 April 2011

Winey and creamy halloumi penne

This is dish is one of my husband's favourites and we often have it on special occasions - I thoroughly recommend you try it. For some reason despite a relatively standard ingredient list the result is exceptional! Serves 4 people generously.

- Cube and shallow fry a 225g packet halloumi. Remove from the pan to a bowl
- Chop 1 large red onion and 1 red pepper and fry in olive oil until soft and slightly brown
- Chop and add 5 garlic cloves to the vegetable mixture
- Boil the kettle twice and add water to a large pan with some olive oil
- Add 500g dried penne to the boiling water and cook until done - al dente works best with this dish. The pasta will probably be done just as you finish the sauce but keep an eye on it
- Grind in a pestle and mortar 1.5 tsp mixed peppercorns and add 1.5 tsp dried chilli flakes. Add this to the pan and fry for a few mins
- Measure out and then add 150ml red wine and 200ml double cream to the vegetables, allow to come to the boil gently and then simmer for a couple of minutes
- Microwave a 250g bag of baby spinach according to instructions and add this to the pan
- Drain and cut into strips a small jar of mixed roasted peppers and add to the sauce
- Add the prepared halloumi, stir sauce and adjust for seasoning
- Drain the pasta well, mix pasta and sauce together and serve!

Monday 11 April 2011

Thai mushroom soup

- Fry 1 finely chopped leek with 2 inches sliced ginger
- Add 1 pack of defrosted mock chicken strips and fry till brown
- Add 8 thinly sliced mushrroms and cook for a further 5 mins
- Add 1 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tsp kejap manis (sweet Indonesian soy sauce), 1/2 tsp sugar and a good sprinkle of chilli flakes- Add 1 tin coconut milk, refill half the can with water and add this.
- Bring to the boil then reduce heat and simmer
- Turn off heat, add juice of half a lime and a good bunch chopped coriander
- Taste and adjust for seasoning

Mock Chicken Curry

For me there is nothing like a good chicken curry on a Friday night! Try this…it's my new favourite. Also nice served with a tomato, red onion and coriander salad.

- In a food processor blitz 2 white onions, 5 cloves garlic, a big lump of ginger and 3 green chillies
- Fry this mixture in some oil for about 10mins whilst stirring
- Add 1 pack of defrosted mock chicken strips and fry till brown
- Add 1 tsp tikka masala paste, 1/2 tsp cumin seeds, 1/2 tsp garam masala, 1/2 tsp turmeric, 1/2 tsp ground coriander and 1 tsp salt
- Blitz 3 tomatoes in the food processor and add these along with a squirt of tomato puree. Stir well and cook for 5mins
- Add a can of coconut milk, refill half the can with water and add this.
- Bring to the boil then simmer for 10mins and serve with chappatis/rice as you please.

Chocolate Pie

I made this for my husband on Valentines and it went down very well!!

- Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsius
- Wipe a little oil around a 10 inch round pie dish with removal base
- In a food processor blitz 12 chocolate digestive biscuits, add 2 tbsp melted butter and 1 tbsp water while it mixes
- Press this into the pie dish and bake for 10mins
- In a small bowl add 1 tbsp agar flakes to 1/3 cup water and stir until dissolved
- In a saucepan mix 2/3 cup sugar, 1/3 cup cocoa powder, 1/4 cup cornstarch and 1/8 tsp salt. Add 1.5 cups milk and whisk on low heat. Add 1.5 cups more milk and turn the heat to medium, whisking constantly until the mixture thickens and just comes to a boil (10mins)
- Remove from heat, add 2 oz dark chopped chocolate and 2 tsp vanilla extract and stir until the chocolate melts in
- Pour into the crust, leave in the fridge for 3 hours and decorate with a handful of strawberries

Chickpea chilli with mashed potatoes and sweet peppers

This meal is not conventional but satisfies all my - it's Saturday night and I want something warm, filling, tasty, salty and spicy cravings!

- Empty 1 pack frozen soya mince in a bowl and microwave for 4mins
- Meanwhile dice 3 carrots, 5 garlic cloves and 1 big red onion
- Fry the vegetables in olive oil for 10 mins on low heat then add the garlic
- Add 1 tsp italian herb seasoning, 1 tsp dried chilli flakes, 1/2 tsp cumin seeds, 1/2 tsp mixed spice and 1 tsp salt
- Bltiz a can of chopped tomatoes and add this along with half the can water and 1 tbsp tomato puree
- Bring to the boil then simmer until the sauce is thick (about 15mins)
- Drain 1 tin chickpeas and stir in for the last 5 mins of cooking
- Peel, roughly chop and boil 6 medium sized King Edward potatoes
- Drain and mash with butter, a little milk, salt and pepper
- Serve with 2 or 3 pieces of roasted sweet peppers from one of those lovely Spanish jars

 

My absolute favourite stirfry

This stirfry is beyond simple but such a tasty quick dinner that I make at least once every couple weeks. Sometimes I had strips of fried mock chicken as well.

- Slice 2 carrots, 1/3 head of brocolli and 6 shitake mushrooms
- Chop 2 cloves garlic and 1 red chilli
- Fry the garlic and chilli in ground nut oil for 2 mins, add the vegetables and 1 tablespoon water
- Stir fry on medium-high heat until the veg is the consistency you enjoy (for me about 5mins cooking does the job)
- Add 3 tbsp veggie oyster sauce and 1 tsp soya sauce, stir for 1 min on high heat and serve

Tuesday 8 February 2011

Grape and lychee bubble tea

Chinese restaurants often serve this lovely drink called bubble tea. It comes in many flavours and is basically a juice drink with sweet tapioca pearls that sink to the bottom.

- Boil 10 cups of water in a saucepan
- Add 1 cup tapioca pearls
- Boil until the pearls have expanded
- Turn the heat down, put a lid on and simmer for 10mins
- Meanwhile put ice in 4 tall glasses
- Chop into quarters 1 large tin of lychees reserving the juice
- Split the lychees, pearls and lychee juice evenly between the 4 glasses
- Top up each glass with red grape juice and stir

Friday 28 January 2011

A very pretty Apple Cake

A nice winter warmer.

- Preheat the oven to 180oC
- Use a round 20cm cake tin with removable base, grease it with butter
- Peel 4 braeburn apples, core and slice them about 2cm thick
- Place in a bowl with 1/2 cup water and microwave for 1 minute until slightly soft
- Drain them and squeeze a little lemon juice on them and stir
- In a free-standing mixer - blend together 1/2 cup butter with 1/2 cup golden caster sugar
- Add 1/2 cup apple sauce, 2 tsps vanilla extract and 3 tbsp soya milk and continue mixing
- Sift in 1 1/2 cups plain flour and 2 1/2 tsp baking powder and mix
- Tip the batter into your cake tin
- Arrange the apples on top
- In a bowl mix together 1/4 cup dark brown sugar, 1/2 tsp cinnamon and 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- Sprinkle this over the apples and bake for 35mins
- Place a few raspberries in the middle and serve warm with custard

Giant Mediterranean Veg Tart

I tend to have this as a main course on a week night with a big Greek salad (nice and quick), but it also works well as mini tarts for starters at a party.

- Pre heat oven to 200oC
- Roll out 1 large rectangle of Jus-Rol puff pastry. I buy the refrigerated stuff not frozen.
- Line a baking tray with baking paper and place the pastry on this before assembling
- Thinly slice 1 red onion, 1 red pepper and half an aubergine and set aside
- Grate 1 pack halloumi
- Spread the halloumi evenly around the pastry leaving a 1 inch border
- Sprinkle with Italian herb seasoning (my new favourite herb mix, I use Tesco)
- Arrange the veg in whatever pattern you feel like, sprinkle very little salt (the cheese is very salty), black pepper, a little more Italian seasoning and 5 tbsp olive oil.
- Brush milk around the border and stick in the oven for around 25mins until golden and puffed up
- You will likely need to drain off the water from the aubergine halfway through cooking

Pineapple Trifle

This is another one of those things I was getting in a grump about, thinking I wouldn't be able to enjoy jelly with my husband but then I came across some great vegetarian jelly in my local Indian market which cheered me right up!

- Make up 2 packets of vegetarian pineapple jelly in a big glass bowl
- Add 1 tin of pineapple pieces to this, stir and leave in the fridge overnight to set
- On top of the jelly, pour 2 tins Ambrosia custard and smooth the surface with a palette knife
- Whip a large pot of double cream with 5 tbsp icing sugar and 3 tbsp Malibu rum (or more if you're feeling boozy!)
- Pour this on top of the custard and smooth the surface
- Top with a handful of toasted flaked almonds




Thursday 27 January 2011

Keftethes and salad

These Greek meatballs are my favourite and I was determined to find a veggie and egg free way to make them. These are a bit more fragile than the meat version but worth the effort!

- Defrost 500g frozen soya mince for 5mins in the microwave.
- Add to it 1 large chopped white onion and 1 cup golden breadcrumbs
- Also add 3 tbsp dried mint, 1 tsp mixed spice, 1/2 tsp black pepper and 1 tsp salt
- Mix well
- Whisk together the equivalent of 4 eggs with Ener g egg replacer
- Stir this into the meat ball mix, use your hands to make it start to bind
- Squidge these into small patties, they are supposed to be round and slightly flat, but mine didn’t quite turn out that way
- Shallow fry on medium heat turning when golden.
- Serve with a salad of tomato, cucumber, white cabbage and white onion dressed with olive oil, lemon juice and salt
- Also nice with a toasted pita bread and fresh houmus
Enjoy :)

Paneer, potato and pea curry

- Cut 500g paneer into small cubes
- Shallow fry turning often until evenly golden. Sprinkle with salt and remove from the pan.
- Fry 1 diced red onion with 3 minced garlic cloves, 1 finely sliced green finger chilli and 3 inches chopped ginger.
- Add 1 tsp cumin seeds, 1 tsp turmeric, 1/2 tsp garam masala, 1/2 tsp ground coriander and 1 tsp salt
- Fry for 1 minute
- Add 2 tbsp tomato puree and stir this in
- Then add 650ml  water to the pan
- Whilst this is coming to the boil - peel and halve 12 new potatoes and place them in the sauce. Turn down to low heat.
- When the sauce has reached desired consistency, about 20mins for me as I like it medium-thick, add 1 cup frozen peas to the pan
- When the peas have cooked the dish is ready to serve.

Wednesday 26 January 2011

Thai Tofu Curry

I fancied a tasty and spicy but healthy dinner last night and this hit the spot :)

- Fry 2 sliced red onions with 3 chopped cloves garlic in a little oil till slightly brown
- Add 6 sliced white mushrooms and fry till cooked
-Add 1 and a half heaped tbsp of Rendang curry paste (I use this more often then the ready made thai red paste as this often as fish sauce/dried shrimp in it, but any tasty veggie thai flavoured paste would do)
-Drain and press 1 block of firm tofu, cut into small pieces and add to the onions, garlic and mushrooms. Fry for 5mins
- Add 1 tin of coconut milk, bring to the boil and simmer until curry reaches your desired consistency. For me about 10mins.
- Add 4 asparagus spears chopped into 2 inch pieces during the last 3mins of cooking.
- Adjust for seasoning and squeeze a little lime juice at the last moment.
Serving options: soup style on its own, with sticky white rice, sprinkled with coriander.

Tuesday 25 January 2011

Sandwich Fillers


This is something I really struggle with....making tasty meat free, egg free (hubby doesn’t eat egg either) sandwiches. To make life more complicated I don’t like cheesy tasting cheeses! I have come up with a few ideas which have gone down really well so thought I would share :)

Veggie sausage, ketchup, red onion and fresh chilli on granary bread
Grilled mock chicken, cabbage and red pepper with peri peri sauce
Falafel, coriander, tomato and tahini in a wholemeal pita
Mashed up onion bhajias with red onion, cucumber and tzatziki
Grilled mock chicken, avocado, baby spinach leaf and vegan garlic mayo on a good brown seeded bread
Halloumi and tomato in a wholemeal pita
Grilled mock chicken with plum sauce, lettuce, cucumber and spring onion in a wrap