Vegan Ice Cream

I read this recipe for one-ingredient vegan ice cream and of course I had to try it, although I did adapt it.

Basically, you freeze some bananas, then blend them with any other ingredients you want for a creamy, dairy-free ice cream. Next, I want to try this recipe for avocado dairy-free ice cream.

Ingredients:
2 bananas
2 tsp vanilla
2 tsp honey
1 tsp cinnamon

Instructions:

1. Slice the bananas and freeze them in a Tupperware container for a few hours.
2. Blend the slices with the other ingredients until creamy.
3. Put the mixture back into the Tupperware container and freeze again, until you want to serve it.

Chinese Aubergine

I was looking for a healthier way to make aubergine, since it soaks up oil when you fry it or stir-fry it, and I came up with this idea. It’s perfect over rice. It tastes like one of my favourite Chinese dishes.

 

Ingredients:

1-2 tsp ginger

4-5 garlic cloves

1 vegetable stock cube

water

2 aubergines

lemon juice

sesame oil

spring onions

 

Instructions:

1. Chop the ginger and peel and chop the garlic. Dry fry them lightly with the vegetable stock cube.

2. Add about 1 cup of water.

3. Wash and slice the aubergines and add them to the pot, along with more water, so they are just covered.

4. Cover the pot and steam the aubergine in the flavourful brother until tender. Remove the lid, increase the heat, and boil away most of the liquid.

5. Season with lemon juice, sesame oil, and sliced spring onions.

Plum Clafoutis

You can use many other fruits instead of the plums.

 

Ingredients:

350 ml milk (I used rice milk; you could also use cream, for an even richer dessert)

1 vanilla pod

6-8 plums

3-4 tbsp sugar, depending on how tart the plums are

2 tbsp flour

2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp lemon juice (or use lemon zest if you prefer)

3 eggs

 

Instructions:

1. Gently warm the milk. Halve the vanilla pod, scrape out the beans, and add the beans and the pod to the milk. Continue to cook for about 10 minutes.

2. Wash, halve, and stone the plums. Sprinkle 1-2 tbsp sugar on the bottom of an oven-safe dish, then place the plum halves on top.

3. Bake the plums for 5 minutes at 175 C.

4. Let the milk cool. Mix in the rest of the sugar, the flour, cinnamon, lemon juice, and eggs.

5. Pour the vanilla custard over the plums and bake for 30-45 minutes.

Soft White Rolls

Ingredients:

500 g strong white bread flour (or use a combination of white and wholemeal if you prefer)

7 g fast action yeast

2 tsp salt

2 tbsp honey

3 tbsp sunflower oil (or rapeseed oil)

300 ml warm water

 

Instructions:

1. Blend all the ingredients together and knead or mix in a food processor for about 10 minutes.

2. Leave to rise for an hour.

3. Knead and shape into rolls. Leave to rise another 30-60 minutes.

4. Cut a cross into the rolls if you want. Bake at 200 C for 15-25 minutes.

Chocolate Cherry Bread

A tasty treat that’s perfect with coffee or tea.

 

Ingredients:

2 tsp active dry yeast

1 cup warm water (about 200 ml)

3 cups strong white bread flour (about 400 g)

½ cup cocoa powder

¼ cup sugar

1 tsp salt

1-2 tsp cinnamon, optional

1-2 tbsp oil

¼ cup rice milk (or regular milk)

¼-½ cup chocolate pieces

½ cup cherries

 

Instructions:

1. Dissolve the yeast in the water and set aside for about 15 minutes until frothy.

2. Mix the dry ingredients together. Add the yeast and the wet ingredients. Knead well for 5-10 minutes.

3. Add the chocolate pieces. Wash and de-stone the cherries and fold them in.

4. Leave to rise for an hour.

5. Shape into a loaf or small rolls and leave to rise another 30-60 minutes.

6. Bake at 180 C for 20-40 minutes, or until the bottom sounds hollow when tapped.

 

Gooey Vegan Brownies

When I was on leave from work, enjoying a “staycation”, I had a craving for gooey brownies. So this is what I came up with.

 

If you bake this recipe in a fairly small tin, it will puff up like a soufflé. If you bake it in a wider, shallower tin, you’ll end up with brownies.

 

Ingredients:

1 cup flour

1/3 cup cocoa powder

¾ cup sugar (more if you like it sweet)

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp sea salt

1 tsp vanilla

½ cup rice milk (or water or coffee)

½ cup oil (I used rapeseed for a slightly nutty flavour)

¼-½ cup chocolate chips, optional

¼-½ cup nuts, optional

 

Instructions:

1. Mix all the dry ingredients together.

2. Mix the wet ingredients together and add to the dry mixture. Blend thoroughly.

3. Add the chocolate chips and/or nuts, if using.

4. Bake at 175 C for 15-25 minutes, depending on whether you prefer them more on the gooey side or more on the cakey side.

Quote

In nothing does man, with his grand notions of heaven and charity, show forth his innate, low-bred, wild animalism more clearly than in his treatment of his brother beasts. From the shepherd with his lambs to the red-handed hunter, it is the same; no recognition of rights -- only murder in one form or another. -John Muir, naturalist, explorer, and writer (1838-1914)

Vegan Chocolate Cake 4

We stayed at a lovely B&B in Pembrokeshire and the wonderful host made a vegan chocolate cake for M, since we had told her that M couldn’t have dairy or soya. It was delicious and we’ve now adapted it and made it at home. It’s wonderful topped with fresh berries.

 

Ingredients:

1¼ cups flour

1/3 cup cocoa powder

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

¾ cup sugar (or more if you like it sweet)

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/3 cup vegetable oil plus extra to oil the tin

1 tsp balsamic vinegar

1 cup warm water

 

icing

½ cup icing sugar

2-3 tbsp cocoa powder

2 tsp vanilla

4 tbsp margarine

 

Instructions:

1. Mix all the cake ingredients together until well blended.

2. Oil the cake tin and pour the mixture into it.

3. Bake at 175 C for 20-25 minutes (until a knife comes out clean). Cool for an hour.

4. Mix the icing ingredients together and spread on the cake.

Vegetable Udon Soup

When I had some dental work done, I wasn’t in the mood to have anything too hard to eat. Vegetable soup with udon noodles fit the bill. This can be adapted so you use whatever vegetables you have on hand. You can add miso paste if you want as well. You can also replace the udon noodles with other noodles or even dumplings.

 

Ingredients:

udon noodles

water

1 vegetable stock cube

1-2 carrots

½ cup mushrooms

½ cup sugar snap peas or regular peas

2 spring onions

black pepper, smoked paprika, other spices

 

Instructions:

1. Boil the udon noodles in water (this takes about 10 minutes), then drain and set aside.

2. Boil another 4 or so cups of water and add the vegetable stock cube.

3. Wash the carrots, slice, and add to the stock. Clean and slice the mushrooms, then add them.

4. After 5-10 minutes, wash and add the peas.

5. Cook for another 5-10 minutes.

6. Add the udon noodles and heat for 1-2 minutes.

7. Set out in bowls, then slice the spring onions and add on top.

8. Season as desired.

Berry Sorbet

This is very easy to make. You can replace the berries with just about any fruit you can think of (mango and peach would be great), and you can add spices or nuts as well. I made berry cinnamon sorbet and I think peach almond would taste delicious.

 

Ingredients:

360 ml water

150 g sugar

1 tbsp lemon juice

500 g fruit (I used raspberries and strawberries)

spices or nuts as desired

 

Instructions:

1. Boil 160 ml of the water and mix in the sugar and lemon juice. Remove from the heat and stir. Once the sugar has dissolved, set aside to cool.

2. Wash, peel, de-stone, and hull the fruit as needed.

3. Mix the fruit with the remaining 200 ml of water in a food processor. Add the spices, if using.

4. Add the cool sugar water and blend again. Add the nuts, if using, and stir to mix.

5. Place in a Tupperware container and freeze. Stir after an hour, then freeze again. Stir again after another hour. Freeze until set (it takes several hours).

The Complete Guide to Vegan Food Substitutions: Book Review

When M and I got married, one of my friend bought us The Complete Guide to Vegan Food Substitutions by Celine Steen and Joni Marie Newman. It was a great gift and it’s a lovely, helpful book.

 

Since I’m a vegetarian and M can’t eat soya or dairy products, sometimes it can feel like a struggle to find dishes we can both make. What I like about this book is that it has a number of basic recipes and explanations for useful substitutions (such as for homemade milks other than soya or non-egg mayonnaise) and then many recipes that use those items, so you can see how to do it and get inspiration.

 

The recipes are very tempting, though there are a few items that I haven’t been able to find in my small city in the UK (rice milk powder, for example). I’ve really enjoyed this book and plan to make quite a few of the recipes. I think it would be a great book for any vegan/vegetarian and also for anyone with food allergies.

Sesame Bread

This is a somewhat unusual bread, with tahini in it to add a tang. Decorate it with sesame seeds too, if you like. It has a sweet and slightly bitter taste and it’s great with salad. Ingredients: 5 cups strong white bread flour (about 500 g) 2 tsp yeast 1 tsp salt 2 tbsp honey or sugar or maple syrup 4 tbsp oil (I used rapeseed but I think toasted sesame oil would be good too) 1-2 tbsp tahini (depending on how strong you want the sesame taste) 1 cup warm water (about 225 ml) sesame seeds, optional Instructions: 1. Mix all the dry ingredients together, then add in the honey, oil, tahini, and water. Add the sesame seeds if you want or sprinkle them on top. Mix with a bread hook in a stand mixer or else knead on a floured surface for 10 minutes. 2. Leave to rise in a warm place for about an hour. 3. Knead again and prove a second time. Sprinkle with sesame seeds now, if you prefer. 4. Bake for about 20-25 minutes at 200 C.

Vegan Banana Pancakes

These are so fast and easy to make, and very yummy too. Ingredients: 200 g flour 1 tsp baking powder 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda ½ tsp salt 2 tbsp sugar (or agave or maple syrup) 1 tbsp cinnamon 1 tsp vanilla 2 bananas 220 ml rice milk (soya or almond would be fine too) oil agave or maple syrup Instructions: 1. Mix all the dry ingredients together. 2. Mash the bananas and add them in, then pour in the milk. Blend well. 3. Warm the oil in the pan, then cook a few tablespoonfuls at a time over medium heat, flipping so that both sides get golden. 4. Serve with agave or maple syrup.

Hummus

Maybe it’s the heat, but lately I’ve been feeling like minimal cooking, so I’ve been making lots of spreads. The latest was hummus. Ingredients: 1 tin chickpeas (about 400 g) 2 cloves of garlic (or more, if you prefer) 3-4 tbsp tahini juice from 1 lemon (or 2-3 tbsp lemon juice) 5-6 tbsp olive oil (use more for a looser, smoother spread, or less for a stickier spread) 1-2 tbsp fresh parsley spices (I use cinnamon and smoked sweet paprika, but cumin is also common) salt and pepper to taste Instructions: 1. Drain the chickpeas and rinse well. 2. Blend all the ingredients except the salt and pepper in a food processor. Then season to taste. 3. Serve with vegetables or pita bread.

Olive Tapenade

We were at a reception where olive tapenade was served on little pieces of baguette and a couple of weeks later, I found myself craving it. So this is what we made. It was delicious on crisp rolls or on focaccia. Ingredients: 2 cloves of garlic (more if you like it stronger) 1 tin of black olives (about 1¼ cups) (you can also mix in green olives) 1-2 tbsp lemon juice 2-3 tbsp olive oil sea salt and black pepper to taste Instructions: 1. Mix all the ingredients together in a food processor until the tapenade is your desired consistency (I like it pretty smooth, with some chunks). 2. Season, then serve.