perfect borscht

Borscht. That gleaming red blood soup. Blood building soup. I lost a lot of blood this year through a couple of different surgeries and needed to rebuild my blood. I have not stopped eating borscht. It is so incredible.

I studied Chinese medicine and Shiatsu last year, full time, and it solidified a lot of other teaching I had sought through out my life. So I went back to healing myself with food, lots of Spleen supporting foods like soup. There will be so so many soup recipes coming.

I experimented with quite a few borscht recipes but this is the best one, trimmed down to the essentials so I could make it quickly. Serve with some tofu sour cream. I also threw in some gnocchi to really bulk this up but when I have time I also make pierogies (recipe coming soon).

adapted from this recipe

ingredients
3 medium beets, peeled
3 tbsp of nuttelex
1 small onion, diced
1 small carrot, diced
1 small leek, sliced
1/2 bay leaf
1.5 litres of vegie stock
2 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into a small dice
1/2 cabbage shredded (I used homemade sauerkraut when I didn't have fresh)
4 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp sugar
a couple of grinds of pepper

method
1. Dice beets into 1cm cube bites. Melt the Nuttelex in a large pot and soften the onions over a medium heat.

2. Once onions have softened add the carrot, leek, beets and bay leaf and stir well to coat with the marg. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add a little stock if the bottom gets too dry and the vegies start to stick.

3. Add the stock and potatoes and simmer for 15 minutes then add the cabbage and garlic. Cook for a further 10 minutes,

4. Add the vinegar, sugar, pepper and a pinch of salt to taste. Serve with sour cream and fresh dill.

spinach and tofu ricotta cannelloni

In the absolutely insanity that is Spring in Melbourne I find my food cravings oscillating wildly. One day its frozen mochi and coconut water in 32 degree heat the next its comfort food craving in the blustering 8 degree freezing overcast misery.


Lately I've found myself contemplating the foods I've grown up on, which I've avoided for many years until now. A combination of they always made me feel ill and I don't do things by halves (it takes at least 6 hours for me to make my lasagne). But nostalgia won out and I really feel like I perfected the "ricotta" filling in this.

This dish is so light and tasty I actually think it's better than the real deal. Doing it gluten free really makes all the difference. Let me know what you think.

ingredients
1 bottle of passata (690 gm)
1 tin of diced tomatoes (400gm)
10 large basil leaves
4 cloves garlic
1 tbsp of salt
1 tbsp olive oil
1 box of cannelloni shells (200gm*)
1 packet of silken japanese tofu (250gm*)
170gm firm tofu*
1 tbsp white miso paste
4 large silverbeet leaves, washed and chopped roughly
1/2 block of cheezly, grated

method
1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees celcius.

2. Gently slice open the silken tofu box and run some water into the sides to flush out the tofu water. Blend in a food processor until completely smooth. Add the miso until completely combined then add the silverbeet and firm tofu and pulse a few times. You want that creamy but also crumbly texture from the firm tofu and the silverbeet still a little chunky.

3. Before you start filling the cannelloni shells you want your sauce simmering down. Slice or crushed the 4 garlic cloves and fry in the olive oil on medium heat until they start to turn colour. Add the passata, diced tomatoes and salt, getting the remaining tomato flavour from the jar and can with some water. Leave on a medium heat to bring to the boil then turn heat down low for the sauce to simmer.

4. While the sauce is simmering fill your shells. I used a piping bag with a large tip and it made the process very easy. You could also just use a teaspoon or a knife depending on the size of your shells (mine were super small). You sauce should be done by then, do check on it every 5 minutes or so to check that it's not getting too thick.

5. Finish the sauce by snipping the basil in and stirring (I use scissors in the kitchen on most things green and leafy). Lay half the sauce in your baking pan, arrange cannelloni's on top then add the remaining sauce. Sprinkle with cheezly.

6. Bake at 200 for 30-35 minutes. If the top starts going too brown turn the heat down to 180 and let it cook longer. Stick in a knife to test the cannelloni shells.

notes: I used San Remo gluten free cannelloni shells and they were awesome. I love Cheezly mozz but the word around town is if you want that super creamy mozz combine Cheezly Mozz with Cheezly Sour Cream and Chives (I tried this on a pizza once IT WAS CRAZY).

* I'm trying to get better at measurements for you guys. But basically the cannelloni shells was one standard box of gluten free shells from San Remo. The Japanese silken tofu was a standard water packed Blue Lotus box and and the firm tofu was approximately a third of a 500gm pack of Pureland Firm tofu.

barley, tomato and garlic risotto

I've been kind of obsessed with pearl barley lately. Just adding handfuls to soup here and there. It's so delicious and toothsome. I wondered aloud whether it would make an AMAZE risotto and I got flooded with responses!! My favourite (of course) featured an Ottolenghi link. This was made THAT afternoon. So delicious and exactly what I needed! I've modified the recipe quite a bit but I'm sure you'll love it.

recipe modified from Ottolenghi's Guardian column

ingredients
1 tbsp olive oil
1 whole head garlic, cloves separated and peeled
5 large fresh tomatoes
3 tbsp tomato paste
1/4 tsp smoky paprika
a few shakes of tabasco
1 tsp dried thyme
2 strips fresh lemon zest (sliced thinly)
1 tsp caster sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup pearl barley, well rinsed in cold water and drained
1 cup of water
chopped coriander to finish (to your taste)
1 tbsp of pine nuts

method
1. Plop tomatoes into a saucepan of boiling water for a few minutes until their skins start to break. Put tomatoes into a sink of cold water and leave for a few minutes their skins will start peeling away. Rub off the skins and chop tomatoes roughly.

2. In a large saucepan or cast iron pot, heat the olive oil on high and fry garlic cloves until they start to take a bit of colour.

3. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, paprika, tabasco, thyme, lemon zest, sugar, salt, pearl barley and 1/2 of the water to the pot. Simmer for about 40 minutes until the barley is 'al dente' chewy but cooked. Make sure there is always enough water to cook the barley adding a bit and giving a stir every now and then. There should still be a bit of liquid at the end (see photo).

4. Finish the risotto off with fresh coriander, a sprinkle of pine nuts, a drizzle of olive oil and some salt and pepper.

gnocci with blue cheezly and broccolini

Last week I had a real craving for comfort food. Real comfort food - carb loaded, creamy, dreamy, sleepy comfort food. In the effort to clear out my cupboards I had a carton of Isola rice cooking cream that had been hanging about for 6 months so it was time it got used.

I consider mock meat junk food and barely eat it, I also try and avoid wheat and heavily process foods BUT blue cheezly is the best vegan version of a food I miss EVER. It tastes so much like blue cheese its FREAKY. The rice cream is also really good, I was surprised. This meal turned out to be the most decadent post vegan meal I've ever had.

ingredients
yields 4 medium meals
1 carton of Isola rice cooking cream
1/2 stick of blue cheezly, grated
gnocchi for 4 people*
1/2 bunch of broccolini, sliced thinly

method
1. Heat the rice cream on low and add the blue cheezly, it should be all melted and hot by the time the gnocchi has finished cooking.

2. Throw the gnocchi in salted boiling water, when it rises to the top its cooked.

3. Toss the gnocchi in the sauce and add the broccolini. The heat will be enough to cook the broccolini.

notes: Store bought dried gnocchi is vegan, I use 2 handfuls per person for a serving.
style points: For extra deliciousness add 1/4 block of smoked tofu, cubed small to the heated cream sauce.

mac n cheese

Ahh mac n cheese, the much fetishised vegan dish - there's even a whole blog dedicated to it. It's more of an American thing than an Australian thing, I do remember having a few KDs (Kraft Dinners as they're known) as a kid but it was by no means part of our regular meals. Sometimes you just want some comfort food, something creamy, something cheesy, something so full of carbs you feel like you're being hugged by God. This is the best BEST and most perfect mac recipe I've made, I'm not going to experiment anymore. I DIE.

ingredients
1/2 cup of raw alfredo sauce
1 1/2 cup of short noodle pasta, cooked and drained (should yield 2-3 cups cooked)
handful of frozen peas, beans, spinach, broadbeans - some kind of green so we can pretend its not completely devoid of nutritional value
1/2 cup of grated cheezly mozz
healthy lashing of salt and pepper

method
1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees

2. Toss the cooked noodles in the alfredo sauce then add the token greens. Combine and put into a casserole dish sprinkling the cheezly on top.

3. Bake until golden brown, start checking on it at the 20 minute mark.

brazillian french toast

Cooking is proving difficult for me right now. Well, planned cooking anyway. I'm back to the days of making pizzas of whatevers in my fridge and corn tortillas for bases. Coles garlic bread, bigilla or a toasted sandwich. There really just isn't the time. Thankfully I am seeing someone just as obsessed with food as I am (I know, prepare to crane me out of my house in about 3 months time) but with more drive to actually get things done. So my love affair with Vegan Brunch has been rekindled. More specifically after the french toast at Monk Bodhi Dharma we are now *obsessed* with sweet breakfast. Its still bad for you, it still burns off within about an hour and you're hungry again, but damn, DAMN.

Recipe slightly modified from Vegan Brunch.

ingredients
2 very ripe bananas*
1 1/2 cups of milk
2 tablespoons of cornflour
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 tsp of cinnamon
1 tbsp of kahlua or some booze! (optional)
1 stale baguette, sliced diagonally in 1 inch slices
berries of your choice and syrup

method
1. Blend bananas, milk, cornflour, vanilla and booze in a blender or food processor until smooth.

2. Spread out baguette slices in a single layer on a baking pan. Pour banana mixture onto the bread and flip slices to coat. Let sit for 10 minutes, then flip over and let soak for 10 minutes more.

3. Preheat a large, non stick pan over medium heat. Spray with cooking spray and fry the soaked bread for 5 to 7 minutes on one side and about 3 minutes on the other. When ready, the toast should be golden to medium brown. Keep warm on a plate covered with tinfoil while you cook the second batch.

notes: I used defrosted frozen bananas and it made the dip really creamy and smooth. I had REAL trouble with these sticking monsterously to the pan. I need a non stick pan. Stat.

cauliflower and caramalised onion tart

I had a 3 week old head of organic cauliflower just blankly looking at me from the fridge every time I opened the door. I FINALLY SNAPPED, Googled cauliflower and found this wonderful recipe. Well, inspiration because the only common ingredients is cauliflower, onions and mustard. This pie was jaw droppingly delicious, as well, we all know how I feel about pie, this is definitely a cookbook contender but I could NOT BE SO SELFISH AS TO NOT SHARE IT WITH YOU IMMEDIATELY. Enjoy.

Ingredients
1 medium head of cauliflower
3 tbsp of olive oil
2 large brown onions
1 tbsp of sugar
1 300gm packet of silken or soft tofu
2 tbsp of nutritional yeast
1 tbsp of dijon mustard
1 sheet of puff pastry
1/4 cup of cheezly*

method
1. Trim the cauliflower into florets, toss in 2 tbsps of olive oil, season with salt and pepper and roast at 200 degrees until they go golden (about 20 minutes).

2. While the cauliflower is roasting, slice the onions into thin rings, drizzle with remaining 1 tbsp of oil and cook on medium high heat in a heavy bottom pan, being careful not to brown them too much. Once the onion has wilted, turn the heat onto low, add the sugar, toss and cover the pan with a lid or a heat proof bowl, checking and stiring every 10 minutes or so. The onions should be done around the 30 minute mark, they will be soft, sweet and a deep golden brown.

3. Drain the tofu and whizz in a food processor with the nuritional yeast and 1/2 of the caramalised onions.

4. Line your pie pan (I use a 9 inch) with your pastry, prick the bottom about 10 times, then smear the dijon on the base.

5. Put the onions on the mustard then roughly chop your roasted cauliflower and arrange in the pie shell and smear the tofu mixture over the top, knocking the pie onto your bench a few times to make sure it fills all the little nooks and crannies.

6. Sprinkle with Cheezly and bake at 200 for about 30 minutes or until the top goes golden brown. Pie is best left to sit for about 10 minutes before slicing for the tofu to set.

Notes: Cheezly is optional, if you don’t have access to Cheezly or Sheese don’t bother with any other vegan cheeses. If you find your pie shells go too soggy, blind bake them before you put the filling in. You could sub the nooch for 1 tbsp of light miso paste. This pie is amazing as a warm brunch item and cold at midnight straight out of the fridge.

vegan sausage rolls

People foam at the mouth at the announcement that Cindy and Michael have brought their "sausage rolls" to potluck. They are so coveted that I have NEVER been able to manage to get a sample before they are all gone (yeah slow poke, too busy stuffing myself with something else no doubt). So on the weekend I decided to make some (its sausage roll weather no?) and also a good snack to pack for MIFF. I did pretty much ALL substitution as I didn't have ANY of the ingredients on hand, but these turned out UH-MAZING. The original recipe is here.

ingredients
125g pinenuts, toasted
1 onion, diced
1/2 cup of cooked bulghur (I cooked in vegie stock)
1/2 cup of cooked lentils (again in vegie stock)
1/4 cup rolled oats
1 teaspoon garlic powder
3 tablespoons soy sauce
fresh parsley, chopped (to taste)
1 tbsp of liquid smoke
salt and pepper, to taste
3-4 frozen puff pastry sheets, defrosted
non dairy milk or olive oil spray to brush pastry

method
1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees.

2. Pulse the ingredients in a food processor until it resembles sausage mince. Place sausage shape amount of filling along the width end of a piece of pastry and roll tightly (spraying the pastry with olive oil spray along the way so it 'seals' together when rolled over). Pack the ends with mince, you might need the end of a wooden spoon or something to get it all in there.

3. Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Seriously, its that easy.

notes: Always keep pastry damp, defrost in the packet and don't open until you're ready to use it. If it is already open, put a damp, clean tea towel over the top. If you dont have liquid smoke GET SOME or a sprinkle of smoked paprika would be amazing. My oven is MUNTED, there is only 'low' or 'high' so my temps are always a bit generic you guys are smart enough to figure this all out though.

green pea soup

I get the craving for this soup every winter. I just love it. So hearty and warm.

ingredients
1 1/2 cups of split peas
2 tbsp oil
1 medium onion finely chopped
1 stick of celery, finely slice
1 medium carrot, finely sliced
1 tbsp of ground cumin
1 tbsp of ground coriander
2 tbsp of fresh grated ginger
5 cups of vegie chicken stock
2 cups of frozen green peas
salt and pepper to taste
1 tbsp of fresh chopped mint

method
1. Soak split peas in cold water for 2 hours then drain.

2. In a stock pot sweat onion, celery and carrot until onion goes translucent. Stir in cumin, coriander and ginger. fry up for a minute.

3. Add split peas and stock to pot, simmer for 1 and a 1/2 hours, stiring occasionally, keep the lid on. Add the frozen peas and let sit off heat until the peas are cooked.

4. Blend the soup then add mint, serve with a dollop of tofu sour cream. Yumm!

potato bake

Kids this was off the hook. Talk about starchy, carby, garlicky, cheesy, creamy. Potato bake is infinite with what you can put in there. I sliced all my potatoes thinly, added a layer of leek, sliced garlic, salt/pepper, cheezly and cheatin salami and layered on repeat to the top. I then poured enough rice milk in to halfway up the pan, a few globs of marg on the top, baked in a 200 degree oven until cooked/brown on top (I *think* it was about 45 minutes). Anyway its really hard to stuff this up. Go forth and carb coma!

pasta with basil pesto, chilli and fried garlic

A quick winter meal that hits the spot and delivers some much need garlic to my system. I am really loving the Orgran gluten free pasta.

basil pesto
1 cup of pine nuts, toasted
2 packed cups of basil leaves
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp of barley miso (or in a pinch yellow miso/white miso)
1/4 cup of nooch
1/4 to 1/2 a cup of olive oil (I used chilli oil and grabbed chunks of chilli out of the jar)

method
1. Toast the pinenuts in a pan on high heat until they turn golden brown (they burn quickly so don't stop watching them!).

2. Whizz all the pesto ingredients in a food processor until blended. Slice 4 or 5 cloves of garlic and toast in a pan (I used very little oil for this) until they are crispy and almost burnt. Toss the freshly cooked pasta in a buttload of pesto and sprinkle the garlic on top. This was so good and so much what I needed I almost cried.

notes: Nooch = nutritional yeast or 'savoury yeast flakes' as it is sometimes called. You can buy at any health food store. Is a high source of B vitamins for vegans. It adds a cheesy flavour. You can make the pesto without.

cheese and spinach rolls

I kind of winged it with these and they turned out great! I got the idea from miss Vicki Vegan but tweaked it a little.

ingredients
2 boxes frozen spinach (thawed & drained)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 packet extra firm tofu
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
1 cup grated mozzarella cheezly
1 tbsp light miso paste
1 squeeze of fresh lemon
2 sheets pastry

method
1. Drain the tofu then put everything in a food processor and pulse about 5 times. You want to be blended but still chunky.

2. Roll in pastry and bake bake bake. TASTY! Perfect winter food, so yummy.

pumpkin, spinach, zucchini and ricotta lasagne

This is essentially a 'white' lasagne. I'm doing the Blood Type diet at the moment to see if it will help with my stomach issues and tomatoes/kidney beans/flour are off the list (what I usually make lasagne with). Cobbled together from bits and pieces every where and with whatever was in my vegie box this week. Of course its lasagne, you can layer it however you want, beets? roasted capsicum, red sauce etc. Check the notes.

pumpkin sauce (first layer)

2 cups of pureed pumpkin (I roasted 1/4 pumpkin in its skin)
1 tbsp brown sugar
1/4 tsp nutmeg
Pinch white pepper and cayenne
1/4 cup of stock

Whizz in a food processor until smooth.

grilled zucchini, spinach and ricotta layer

1 medium zucchini
half a bunch of silverbeet or english spinach, wilted, rinsed and wrung of water
1 recipe of tofu ricotta

Slice the zucchini .5 cm thick length ways, rub with olive oil and salt and either grill or bake in a hot oven until brown-ish.

bechamel sauce (top layer)

There are many many different ways to make bechamel sauce. The authentic French way takes a million years, I don't have a million years. I combine equal amounts fat and flour (so oil or marg) usually about 1/4 of a cup of each and heat for about a minute. Then stir in about 3/4 litre of milk slowly, once it starts to boil, reduce to a simmer and this is when it should start to really thicken. You may need to add more milk or flour after a few minutes. Voila! I'm sure if you really wanted to make an authentic one or have never made white sauce before, please look it up on the web!

layering

Smooth pumpkin mixture on the bottom and add a layer of lasagne noodles. I layered the spinach first, then tofu ricotta then grilled zucchinis, another layer of noodles and finally bechamel and a sprinkling of Cheezly.

Bake in the oven at 200 for about 40 minutes or until the top browns (all the ingredients are already cooked so its just a marination/browning process).

Notes: This was surprisingly tasty. I thought it would lack flavour or be too weird. I dribbled sweet chilli sauce on top which took it to the next level. I used Orgran gluten free lasagne sheets and flour which are both excellent.

mac daddy

The challenge has been thrown down. My lovely friend Dave has said MacnCheese will be his hardest, most dearly loved and held onto food to give up going vegan. Never to back away from a challenge I am going to cook up a few of the vegan mac and cheese recipes out there and see if I can sway his taste buds. This was super easy but check out the notes before attempting it. I am going to try Vegan Dads recipe next, but please send me some links of some tried and true as well!

What Dave had to say "Smells and tastes are power triggers of memory. There's nothing quite like having food that reminds you, of childhood, home and being cared for to cheer you up when your down. One of the biggest problems of giving up meat for me has been giving up comfort foods. We all have strong emotional conditioning with food and unless you were raised vegan, just like ex-smokers wanting a cigarette at the end of a hard day, those who have given up meat will unavoidably crave foods that associate with better times. For me its Mac and Cheese. As long as I can remember a glass of red and a good mac and cheese has been the food equivalent of spooning. There were times in my childhood when it was all I would eat. I was very sceptical of vegan Mac and cheese. It was never going to be the same as the delicious cruel rennet produced environmentally irresponsible product of from my childhood that was lovingly prepared by my mother, but it was really really delicious. It ended up sitting somewhere between actually Mac and Cheese and palm oil and msg soaked mee gorang noodles (another comfort food and another story) but unlike those other two it was healthy and ethical . What’s perhaps made it really comforting thought was it had been made with care and pride and was shared between good friends."

mac daddy (from memory from veganomicon)

3 cups of cooked short noodles (it was a bag of gluten free noodles for me)
1 small block of extra firm tofu
2 tsp of fresh lemon juice
For extra points (if you're into it) some finely chopped up broccoli and a few handful of peas.

cheezy sauce

1/4 cup unbleached flour
3/4 cup nutritional yeast
2 cups stock
2 tbs olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tbs yellow mustard
1/8 tsp of tumeric
2 tbsp of lemon juice (I didn’t use this and it still tasted amazing)

1. Sweat garlic in olive oil until just starting to turn. Warm the stock with the garlic then slowly whisk in the flour. Add the rest of the ingredients and stir continually over medium heat until sauce reaches desired consistency (about 5 minutes for a thick sauce).

for mac attack:

1. Crumble the tofu into a baking dish, add the lemon juice, peas and broccoli if you're using them. Stir in half a cup of the cheesy sauce until well combined. Add the hot noodles, toss it up and slather the rest of the cheesy sauce on top. At this point I was sad I hadn't made it to Radical Grocery before they closed to get some Cheezly to grate onto the top. Bake at about 200 till the top goes brown (took about 40 minutes for me). Yum!

notes: For the uninitiated, Nutritional Yeast Flakes (or Nooch as Vegans lovingly refer to it) can be purchased at any health food store (and some Safeways). I used gluten free Organ spirals and they soaked up every last stitch of the sauce, so next time I would only grill this quickly to get the top brown. It wasnt the saucy, voluptuous affair I wanted it to be but it was a good first try and I know how I'm going to tackle the next round of MacnCheese tastings.

For previous cheesy sauce action check out Roast Vegie Cheesy Pie.

winter mince pie with gravy

Its going to be pie crazy around these parts for a while, pop open the top button and strap yourself in.

ingredients
2 x cans of Sanitarium "Casserole Mince"
1 medium carrot very small dice
1 onion, sliced
1 large portobello mushroom sliced thinly
1 cup of frozen peas and corn (together)
3 sheets of pastry
salt and pepper to taste

method
1. Sweat the onions in a heavy bottom pan, once they start turning translucent add the mushrooms and carrot. Leave on medium heat, stirring occasionally while you potter around making the pie casing.

2. For a deep set, swoon worthy pie use a 9 inch collared pan. I needed 1 and 3/4 sheets of pastry to line the case, get creative with your cutting and pasting, making sure you seal the edges by squeezing them together (you don’t want pie goodness overflowing!). By this time the mushrooms, onions and carrot should be just right, add the 2 cans of casserole mince, peas and corn to the pan and mix thoroughly.

3. Tumble into the pie casing and put your lid on top. Brush with a little melted marg or rice milk. With the left over bits of pastry you can create some decorations! (squirrel loves owl!). Bake in an oven on high (I think mine was set at about 220 c) until golden brown. For a healthful pink glow to the cheeks devour with creamy mashed potatoes, minty peas and a robust red wine.

notes: In winter, take your pastry out of the freezer right at the beginning, it takes ages to become pliable in the Melbourne cold. To get a perfectly fitting lid sit the pan on top of the sheet of pastry and trace around it. Adding a glug of red wine or balsamic vinegar to the pan would take this to another level as would serving with homemade mushroom gravy or red sauce.

roast vegie cheesy pie

Mm its that time again. Roast vegies, pies, roast vegie pies. I really REALLY missed cooking while I was away and it was nice to get cracking in my new houses COMPLETELY MASSIVE kitchen. I cubed into bite size pieces cauliflower, broccoli, garlic and sweet potato, tossed them lightly in some olive oil, salt and pepper and roasted at 200 degrees celcius until the vegies started to brown on the outside (the broccoli will burn but is a taste sensation, if this is not your thing remove from the oven before they start to blacken). Line a pie pan with pastry, throw in a handful of frozen peas (or whatever frozen veg you have lying around), slather in cheesy sauce, pop a lid on it and bake for at 200 degrees until golden crisp deliciousness (about 20 minutes).

cheezy sauce (from memory from Veganomicon)

ingredients
1/4 cup unbleached flour
3/4 cup nutritional yeast
2 cups stock
2 tbs olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tbs yellow mustard
1/8 tsp of tumeric
2 tbsp of lemon juice (I didn’t use this and it still tasted amazing)

method
1. Sweat garlic in olive oil until just starting to turn. Warm the stock with the garlic then slowly whisk in the flour. Add the rest of the ingredients and stir continually over medium heat until sauce reaches desired consistency (about 5 minutes for a thick sauce).

notes: My hopes were not high for this sauce recipe. How wrong was I! Simply delicious. I used a mild mustard (djion) which gave it the kick I like. For the uninitiated, Nutritional Yeast Flakes (or Nooch as Vegans lovingly refer to it) can be purchased at any health food store (and some Safeways). I used Homebrand puff pastry (ninja vegan) and organic vegies from my Mooreland Co-Op vegie box. Bon Appetite!

chickpea noodle soup

This is vegan comfort food at its best. Slurpy noodles, soup, chickpeas, herbs. It really hits that 'ahh' spot. Sorry for the terrible photo. Another winner from Veganomicon.

ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion thinly sliced
1 cup of peeled, thinly slice carrots (really thin)
2 cloves of garlic
2 cups of mushrooms thinly sliced
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp of celery seeds (I didnt have these)
1 tsp of thyme
1/4 tsp of dried rosemary
2 tbsp of mirin (optional)
1/3 cup of brown rice miso (I used vegie stock instead)
6 cups of water (or vegie stock)
2 cups of drained, cooked chickpeas
1 packet of cooked thick asian noodles (I used soba)

method
1. Saute the onions and carrot in the oil for about 10 minutes (I always find mine are cooked quicker).

2. Add the garlic and mushrooms, herbs and saute for another 5 minutes. Deglaze the pot with the mirin (or just a splash of water).

3. Add the 6 cups of water and the chickpeas, cover and bring to the boil. Once add the boil, leave to simmer until all vegies are cooked, chuck in the noodles for the amount of time they need to cook. Add the miso and stir until its incorporated. I then threw in a couple of thinly sliced spring onions. Mmmm vegan comfort food.

spanikopita pie

Tofu ricotta recipe from The Voluptuous Vegan

ingredients
500 gm of tofu (firm) - (I used 2 x packets of water packed tofu which was 600gms it was fine)
3 tbsp of olive oil
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp salt
3 tsp of mellow barley or white miso
2 cloves of garlic sliced
2 tbsp soy cream cheese

some steamed spinach (I used an entire bag of baby spinach)
Filo pastry (for the pie)
Olive oil

method
1. Steam the spinach until wilted, rinse and squeeze as much water as you can out of it. Drain the blocks of tofu on paper towel, weighted down with cans on a plate for 10 minutes, changing the paper towel when necessary.

2. Whizz all the ingredients (minus the filo). Voila!

3. Leave the filo pastry on the bench whilst you are doing this so it softens, then working quickly (leaving a damp cloth on the filo you are not working with - it goes crusty and mank within about a minute!) get about 2 or 3 filo sheets then paint on a layer of olive oil, be sure to oil the edges as well. I use about 2 or 3 layers of this for the bottom, then smooth the tofu mixture into the bottom. Places 2 or 3 sheets on the top and seal the edges together then repeat for the filo lid with the oil and filo sheets. Oil the top and sprinkle on some salt. Bake at 200 for about 40 minutes (until the top turns all brown and crusty). Tasty as.

notes: I've cooked this a couple of times and its always gone pretty soggy on the bottom. I dont know how to fix this! I'm thinking scramble the tofu on the stove for 10 minutes until all the moisture is gone? I will try again and let you know. Not sure about the soy cream cheese in it, again will try another tasting but leaving it in for now.

home fries

I hosted my first brunch on Sunday and it was a feast. The timing was a little stressful (keeping 4 dishes warm, I had prepared 2 the night before but had to make two in the morning) but it all ended up spectacularly well. This was the all out super fattening dish, we all need greasy potatoes on a Sunday morning.

Recipe straight from "In the Garden of Vegan"

ingredients
2 potatoes, roughly cubed
1, onion, roughly chopped
1 tbsp of olive oil (I ended up using way more)
2 tsp of all purpose seasoning (recipe to follow)
1/4 tsp of pepper (I used more)
1/4 tsp of salt (I think I used about 3!)
some fresh parsley, chopped
1 hot chilli, sliced

all purpose seasoning
2 tbsp chili powder
2 tsp of onion powder
2 tsp of cumin
2 tsp of garlic powder
2 tsp oregano
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cayenne

method
1. In a large non-stick frying pan on medium heat, saute the potatoes and onion in oil for about 8-10 minutes (mine needed way longer) until potatoes can be pierced easily with a fork. Stir in the remaining ingredients and saute for an additional 2 minutes.

notes: I also added 3 cloves of sliced garlic with the onions, but I'm crazy like that. If I had them on hand I would have mashed roasted garlic cloves into it.

sweet potato latkes with dill sour cream

Again apologies for the crap pic, I really need to sort out lighting in my flat. Ok this recipe is really super easy.

ingredients
1x large sweet potato
1x tbsp olive oil
1 x tbsp flour
salt and pepper
0live oil for shallow frying

If you don’t have a food processor get one. I got mine for $50 on ebay and its changed my entire existence in the kitchen. I shredded the sweet potato finely, added the flour/oil/salt and pepper and mix well. The mixture should be wet enough to mould into patties and press down firmly into a heavy bottom pan with a thin layer of hot olive oil (make sure the oil is HOT!). Don’t flip until very very brown! They are hard to keep together, but add a bit more flour if you think you need it to the mixture. Drain on paper towel.

Sprinkle sea salt and pepper on them and serve with a dollop of dill tofu sour cream.