Easy Bread with Oats and Seeds (v)

This is my mum's recipe and is so simple but makes a really tasty loaf that keeps well and also toasts well.

For one large loaf you need:
500g wholemeal bread flour
200g porridge oats
1 heaped tsp salt
1 scant tsp sugar
7.5g fast action dried yeast
1 tbsp sunflower oil
1 tbs each sunflower, poppy and pumpkin seeds
350-450ml warm water

Place the yeast and sugar in a jug with 350ml warm water. Leave for a few moments till it goes frothy. Meanwhile place everything else in a bowl and mix. Add the yeasted water and mix to a dough, adding more water if necessary. Turn out and knead for about 10 mins till elastic. Leave to rise for 60-90 mins then knock back. Shape into a circle and place on a baking sheet. Cook in a hot oven for about 40 mins.

Rich Chocolate Brownie (v)

I think my tastebuds are evolving. I never thought it would be possible to enjoy a dense, gooey, sticky, rich, unctuous chocolate brownie sans butter and eggs, but it is. And this recipe proves it. I tweaked the original recipe in line with feedback from others, reducing the sugar by 100g, using muscavado to make it more gooey and sticky and reducing the oil slightly too. I cooked for 20 mins as I wanted the outside squares more cakey and the inside squares ooooooozing.

For about 24 brownies you need:
250g plain flour
250g light brown muscavado sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
200ml sunflower oil
250ml water
65g cocoa powder

Mix everything together until smooth. Scrape into a lined tin and bake at 160 degrees for 20 mins. Leave to cool slightly before scoffing.

Limeade (v)

This is refreshing, and quick. Add as much sugar as you want to taste. I like mine sharp and sour.

For 2-3 glasses you need:
4 limes
2-3 tbsp sugar
1 litre of water

Place in a blender. Blend. Strain. Drink. That is all...

Quinoa with Steamed Vegetables and Peanut Sauce (v)

I was craving satay sauce today and also had a selection of pathetic looking vegetables to use up in the fridge. The quinoa is quick to cook and makes a nice change from rice or noodles.

For 2 people you need:
Quinoa
1/2 cup quinoa
1 cup boiling water
1/4 tsp vegan stock powder

Peanut Sauce
1/4 jar smooth peanut butter
1 small can coconut cream
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 chilli, finely chopped
1/2 tsp dried chilli flakes
2 tbsp soya sauce
1 tbsp mirin
2 tbsp medium sherry
2 tsp chinese vinegar

Vegetables of your choice to steam (I had asparagus, sugar snap peas and chinese leaf which I left raw)

Place the quinoa, stock powder and water in a lidded pan. Bring to the boil, simmer for 5-10 mins and then turn off the heat and leave to steam for a further 5-10 mins.

Place all the sauce ingredients in a pan and heat, mixing well. Do not allow it to boil or the fat will separate, bleck.

Steam the vegetables. Serve and enjoy.

Lentil Shepherd's Pie with Sweet Potato Mash (v)

I fancied this, so I made it...

For 3-4 portions you need:
1/2 cup puy lentils
1/2 cup green lentils
1 bay leaf
2 onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tin chopped tomatoes
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp vecon stock paste
salt and pepper
3 large carrots, peeled and chopped
250ml red wine
2 tbsp tomato puree
3-4 large sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped
2-3 tbsp soya milk
1 small knob vegan marge
Generous grating of whole nutmeg
Salt and pepper.

Wash the lentils, then place in a pan with the bay leaf. Cover with water and bring to the boil. Boil rapidly for 10 mins then reduce the heat and simmer for 15-30 mins till the lentils are soft but not mushy.

Meanwhile sautee the onion, garlic and carrot in the oil for 10 mins. Add the tomatoes, puree, wine, salt, pepper, oregano and stock. Cook for 10-15 mins till thickened. Once the lentils are done, drain and add to the tomato sauce. Mix well.

Cook the potatoes in a pan with a little water. Drain, mash with the milk and marge. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Place the filling in a dish and top with the mash. Bake in a hot oven for 15 mins or so till the mash has browned slightly. Serve with veg or as is...

Creamy Curry Sauce (v)

When we were in Toronto we went to an amazing veggie eatery called Fresh. We had a sauce similar to this there with sweet potato fries. It's sort of like chip shop curry sauce but soooooooooo much nicer. It makes a large batch but keeps for a week or so in the fridge (or you can freeze it) so halve it if you don't want to be drowning in curry sauce...

For 8-10 portions you need:
1 can coconut milk
3 cups vegetable stock
1 large onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 chilli, chopped
1/2 cup tomatoes, chopped
3 tsp each turmeric, garam masala, coriander, cumin
2 tbsp plain flour
1/2 - 1tsp chilli flakes depending on how hot you like it
1 tbsp vegetable oil

Fry the onion, chilli and garlic in the oil for about 10 mins till softened. Add the flour and dry spices and cook out for a further 3-4 mins. Slowly add the stock, stirring to avoid lumps. Add the coconut milk and tomatoes. Bring to the boil and then simmer for 30 mins. Serve with rice and lentils or whatever you fancy really. Including chip shop chips...

Rice and Lentils (v)

I admit this doesn't sound or indeed look very appetising, but it is yummy. Honest. It's also quick and easy to do and is nice hot or cold. You can serve it with a cold Indian style salad or lime pickle and mago chutney or maybe a creamy curry sauce. We had it with roasted sweet potatoes and carrots and curry sauce. The choice is yours...

For 4-6 portions you need:
1 cup basmati rice
1.5 cups red lentils
2 onions, finely diced
6 tbsp oil (don't stint on this, you need it all!)
3 cups water
crispy fried onions, to serve

Fry the onions in the oil over a gentle heat for about 20 mins until golden and crisp. Wash the rice and lentils thoroughly. Add to the pan along with the water. Bring to the boil and then cover and simmer very gently until the rice and lentils are cooked, about 20 mins. Fluff up with a fork and serve topped with more crispy onions.

Blueberry Muffins (v)

I had some manky blueberries to use up. Manky as in they were old and the skins therefore a little tough so I didn't just want to eat them. Muffins to the rescue, as the heat of the oven would make them burst and their juicy loveliness would then be spread throughout the muffin. Some lemon in these too helps to lift the flavour.

For about 6 large sized muffins you need:
1 cup plain flour
1/2 cup caster sugar
zest of one lemon
1 punnet blueberries, washed and picked over for stalks etc
3/4 tsp bicarb
1/2 tbsp white wine vinegar
40ml grapeseed oil
1/2 cup soya milk
1/4 tsp salt

Place everything in a bowl and mix well. Spoon into cases and bake in a moderate (170 degree) oven for 15-20 mins till risen and golden brown. Lovely warm and they also freeze well.

Double Ginger Cookies with Stem Ginger (v)

The only problem with opening a jar of stem ginger in syrup is that you need to eat it within a week... So these were created to use up the jar I opened to make the sticky date and ginger loaf yesterday. This was a risk recipe as the original uses egg but I just omitted that and used some of the stem ginger syrup to replace it. It worked a treat and these cookies are crisp but chewy and nicely packed with bits of ginger. The original recipe is another Rose Elliot (Vegetarian Cookery, original edition, p325).

For about 18 cookies you need:

50g vegan margarine

100g caster sugar

40g golden syrup

175g self raising flour

1 tsp bicarb

1 tsp ground ginger

4 balls stem ginger, chopped

2 balls stem ginger, sliced (to decorate)

Mix the marge, sugar and syrup together till fluffy. Add the four, bicarb, ground ginger and stem ginger. Mix well. Add a little of the stem ginger syrup if you need to bring the mixture together in to a dough. Pull of bits about the size of a walnut and roll into balls. Place on a lined baking tray and flatten with a fork. Top each one with a piece of stem ginger. Bake in a moderate (160 degree) oven for 10-15 mins till golden brown and risen. Leave to cool for a few mins on the baking sheets then transfer to a cooling rack. 

Tofu Scramble with Mushrooms and Spring Onions (v)

I have long been scared to make this, and I have no idea why. It's a piece of p*ss. Quick. Tasty. Easy. Good for you. And to my delight sooooooooo much nicer than scrambled eggs too. Tofu scramble, where have you been all my life??!

For two people you need:
1 small pack firm silken tofu, drained
3-4 spring onions, trimmed and finely sliced
1/2 punnet mushrooms, roughly chopped
1 tsp oil
salt and pepper
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
a few drops tabasco to serve (optional)

Begin by sauteeing the onion and mushrooms in the oil for about 5 mins till softened and the juices have run from the mushrooms. Season. Crumble over the tofu and add the turmeric. Cook through, stirring gently so that the tofu doesn't break up too much. Serve with toast (and marmite ;-)) and a few drops of tabasco.

Sticky Date and Ginger Loaf (v)

I love love love gingerbread and sticky gingery cakes and my staple vegan cake of choice is thus Rose Elliot's fabulous parkin. But we all fancy different things at times and my recent decision to go totally vegan has meant my vegan cook books are getting more of a read of late. This is another Rose Elliot recipe, from her Vegan Feasts book (p164). I have tweaked it slightly in the method and by adding some of the ginger syrup in place of golden syrup.

For 2 2lb loaf cakes you need:
250g plain flour
2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp bicarb
125g stoned dates
50g (about 4 balls) stem ginger in syrup
125g light soft brown muscavado sugar
150g treacle
100g golden syrup
50g ginger syrup from jar
125ml grapeseed oil
125ml soya milk

Heat the treacle, sugar, golden syrup and ginger syrup until everything has melted together. Leave to cool (this is important! If it's too hot the cake will collapse).

Meanwhile mix together everything else in a food processor to roughly chop the dates and ginger. Add the cooled sugar/syrup and pulse quickly to bring it together. Pour into lined loaf tins and bake in a moderate (150 degree) oven for an hour or so. The cakes last well and get stickier over a week or you can slice and freeze ready for lunches.

Summer Bean Salad (v)

I love haricot beans. I love them as baked beans but they're even better, naked, and centre stage imho. They're smaller than cannellini beans, but with the same creamy inside of a butter bean and just taste so delicious. This salad is quick and easy to throw together and lasts for a couple of days so makes for an excellent portable lunch.

For 3-4 portions you need:
1 tin haricot beans, drained and rinsed
1 small tin sweetcorn, drained and rinsed
handful baby plum tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 large red onion, finely diced
4" length of cucumber, diced into 1cm cubes
1 large carrot, peeled and grated
salt and pepper
2 tbsp walnut oil
1/2 tbsp white wine vinegar
1 tbsp french mustard

Mix together the dressing ingredients. Toss everything together and slather with dressing. Serve on a bed of salad leaves. Become the envy of the office :)

Hotdogs (v)

I love hotdogs but the veggie hot dog style sausages are now 'new and improved' which means they're rank. So I have swapped to using Linda McCartney sausages instead, and the bonus is that they are also vegan. Win.

For two people you need:
2 hot dog rolls
2 Linda McCartney sausages
1-2 onions, finely sliced
1 tsp vegetable oil
4 tbsp water
Ketchup and american style mustard to serve
Chips if you wish.

Begin with the onions. Heat a pan, add the oil and onions and leave them to gently cook for 15-20 mins. if the pan gets too hot add some water. Add some water anyway towards the end as this gives them a lovely texture akin to that found in burger van onions (no really, this is a *good* thing). Cook the sausages and chips. Split the buns and squirt in ketchup and mustard. Add the sausage and top with the onions, adding more ketchup or mustard if you wish. Perfect weekend food.

Raspberry and Strawberry Soyashake (v)

Tesco's strawberries were rubbish yesterday and they looked so sad today that I had to use them up in something other than eating them au natural. I macerated half of them as L adores those on pancakes and the others went into this. Add sugar/agave nectar/maple syrup if you want but I kind of like the sharpness of just using fruit and soya milk. Clearly this can be made with milks other than soya but I happen to like soya milk...

For one person you need:
1/2 cup fresh strawberries
1/4 cup fresh raspberries
200ml unsweetened soya milk

Lob everything into a blender and blitz for 2-3 mins till smooth and frothy. Enjoy :)

Banana and Oat Cake (dairy free)

My flat is too hot. And I buy too much food. So there were manky bananas to use up last week and I am fed up with making Nigella's banana bread so googled for a new recipe and found one on the able and cole website. It was nice. One loaf went to work and disappeared. The other was donated to the school fete. I should probably say now I don't like banana bread. It'd probably be easier to (a) buy less bananas or (b) throw them away... At least other people benefitted tho. According to feedback the cake was nice.

For 2 2lb loaf cakes you need:
200 g brown sugar
5 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 eggs
4 ripe bananas, mashed
100 g porridge oats
120 ml soya milk
200 g plain flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla bean paste


Mash the bananas in a large bowl. Add everything else and mix. Pour in to two lined loaf tins then bake in a moderate (170 degree) oven for about an hour till the cakes are risen and cooked all the way through. 

Puff Pastry Pizza

I have blogged something similar to this before, but this combination of ingredients was too good not to remember for another day.

For 4-6 portions you need:
1 sheet ready rolled puff pastry
1 jat red pesto
1 red onion, finely sliced
2/3 pack chilli olives
1/4 jar salted capers, well rinsed
1/2 log goats cheese, cut in to slices
Handful fresh basil leaves, roughly chopped
1-2 tbsp coarsely grated veggie parmesan
drizzle chilli oil
4-6 sun dried tomatoes in oil

Lay the pastry on some baking paper on a baking sheet.
Score an edge 1cm thick.
Spread the pesto on the pastry inside the boarder.
Scatter over the onions, olives, capers and cheese. Top with the basil and parmesan and tomatoes.
Bake in a hot oven for 15-20 mins till the pastry is risen and everything is cooked.
Serve with a rocket salad and drizzled with chilli oil.

Pasta with Chickpeas, Tomatoes and Broccoli (v)

This was suggested to me by @DixxyD and mighty fine it is too. It's a recipe from Rose Elliot's Vegetarian Express (p92) which I have tweaked slightly by adding tenderstem broccoli to it. It's lovely hot but the leftovers are equally nice cold the next day for lunch.

For 4-6 people you need:
1 tin chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 tin chopped tomatoes
1 onion, chopped
2 fat cloves garlic, crushed
1 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper
1tsp vegan stock powder
splash red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp sugar
1 pack tenderstem broccoli, trimmed, washed and cut in to bite sized chunks
325g wholewheat pasta

Fry the onion in the oil for about 10 mins till softened and lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook for a further 1-2 mins. Add the tomatoes and bring to the boil. Add everything else apart from the broccoli and pasta and cook for 10 mins or so till thickened. Season to taste.

Meanwhile cook the pasta, steaming the broccoli over the pasta for the last 5 mins. Add the broccoli to the sauce, then drain and pasta and add this too. Mix well and serve.

Vanilla Frappachino (v)

Yeah I know I blogged a mocha one last week, but this is also worth trying. Honest.

For one person you need:
250ml double strength coffee, brewed and left to go cold, then chilled.
2 tsp sugar
4 tbsp vanilla swedish glace
1 cup ice

Place everything in a blender and whizz till smooth. Serve in a long glass and enjoy the buzz.

Olive, Sun Dried Tomato, Cheese and Onion Soda Bread

This was based on a recipe in August's Cook Vegetarian magazine.

For one large loaf you need:
450g plain flour
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
300ml plain runny yogurt
3 tbsp water
75g mature cheddar, grated
75g veggie gruyere, grated
75g mixed, stoned olives, chopped roughly
6 sun dried toms in oil, roughly chopped
freshly ground pepper
1 large onion, finely diced
1 tbsp olive oil

Begin by frying the onion in the oil for 10 mins till softened. Meanwhile mix the flour, bicarb, cheeses, olives, tomatoes and pepper together. Add the onions once cooked. Then mix to a dough with the yogurt and water. Shape into a round and place on a baking sheet. Cut a deep cross in to the top. Bake in a hot (200 degree) oven for 20 mins. If the inside is not cooking fast enough, cut through the slash to break the loaf into four quarters to help speed up the cooking process. It's done when golden brown all over and sounds hollow when tapped. Leave to cool slightly then scoff. It's fab on it's own or else serve with soup or salad.

Mr Strone Soup (v)

You can basically use whatever you want for this. I had carrots and cabbage to use up, so used up they were...

For 4-6 portions you need:
1 onion, diced
3-4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
6 new potatoes, cut into bite sized chunks
75g wholewheat spaghetti, broken into small lengths
1 can black eyed beans, drained and rinsed
1 tin chopped tomatoes
2 tsp vegan stock powder
salt and pepper
1/2 tsp sugar
2 tbsp vegan red pesto (I had this to use up but you don't need to add it)
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
4 large carrots, peeled and cut into bite sized chunks
1/2 savoy cabbage, finely shredded

Fry the onion in the oil. Add the carrots and potatoes after about 3 mins and cover with a lid. After 10 mins add the garlic and continue to cook for 2-3 mins more (keep stirring frequently to avoid it sticking). Add everything else along with 3 can fulls of water and bring to the boil. Simmer for 10 mins until everything is tender. Serve with fresh bread and some freshly chopped basil and oregano on the top.