Vegan Carrot Cake

I love carrot cake, so I was eager to make it on a recent spring afternoon. There was a wonderful smell coming from the oven as M made her way home.

 

I have also tried grating in one or two stalks of rhubarb and adding ¼  cup rhubarb curd for some extra flavour.

 

Ingredients:

2½ cups carrot (about 2 big carrots)

2 cups flour

¼ cup ground almonds (you can leave this out if you want)

1 cup sugar

¼ cup brown sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla

3 tsp cinnamon

¾ cup sunflower oil, plus extra for the pan

¼ cup rice milk (or other milk)

1 tsp lemon juice

½ cup raisins

½ cup flaked almonds (or, yes, if you prefer another nut, use that, but M is allergic)

 

Instructions:

1. Grate the carrots.

2. Mix all the dry ingredients together. Stir in the oil, milk, and lemon juice and mix well.

3. Stir in the carrots, raisins, and almonds.

4. Lightly oil an oven-safe baking dish and then pour in the batter.

5. Bake for 30-35 minutes at 180 C.

Callalo Pie

Sometimes it’s nice to try new ingredients, so when I saw a tin of callalo at the grocery store, I picked it up. Callalo is a green from the Caribbean area and the particular tin I picked up was from Jamaica. The tin had info saying that callalo is like spinach but with a slightly different flavour, so I decided to use it as I would spinach.

 

I used carrots and beetroot in this pie, but any vegetables would work. I also added some roasted pumpkin oil for extra flavour, but any oil and/or herbs would be fine.

 

To make it vegan, leave out the eggs. It will be slightly looser, but still tasty.

 

Ingredients:

1 tin callalo (or other green)

2 beetroots

2 carrots

2 cloves garlic

1 tsp rosemary (or other herb)

½ carton Oatly (or about ½ cup soya yogurt)

2 eggs

1 tbsp roasted pumpkin oil (or other oil)

salt

pepper

1 package phyllo dough

 

Instructions:

1. Rinse and drain the callalo.

2. Peel and dice the beetroots and carrots. Peel and chop the garlic. Snip or chop the rosemary.

3. Mix the callalo, other vegetables, garlic, and rosemary with the Oatly, eggs, and oil.

4. Season with salt and pepper.

5. Place 3 sheets of phyllo dough overlapping in the bottom of an oven-safe dish.

6. Spread the filling on top of the dough. (Alternatively, spread half the filling, add a piece or two of phyllo, and then the rest of the filling.)

7. Spread the remainder of the dough on top. Lightly brush with oil.

8. Bake for 20-30 minutes at 190 C.

Courgette and Carrot Fritters

These taste quite like potato pancakes (latkes) but are healthier and a touch sweeter. Great for a chilly evening, especially dabbed with sour cream or Oatly cream.

 

Ingredients:

1 onion or 2 shallots

2 carrots

1 courgette

¾ cup flour

1 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp baking powder

2 tsp mint, if desired

2 eggs

oil

 

Instructions:

1. Grate the veg together into a bowl.

2. Whisk the dry ingredients together, then add to the veg.

3. Add the eggs. Stir well.

4. Fry until golden on both sides in oil in a frying pan.

Matzoh Ball Soup

Ingredients:

1-2 carrots

1 celery stalk

1 onion

1 vegetable stock cube

water (about 6-8 cups)

matzoh balls (see previous recipe)

 

Instructions:

1. Peel and chop the vegetables and cook with the stock cube in water.

2. Add the matzoh balls and cook for 10-30 minutes, depending on size, until they are cooked and fluffy.

3. Serve and eat.

Carrot Ginger Soup

Ingredients:

2 shallots or 1 onion

oil

2-3 tsp minced ginger (I use frozen, but fresh is great too)

1 vegetable stock cube

5-6 carrots

1 potato

water (about 4 cups)

black pepper, to taste

powdered ginger, to taste

yogurt or cream (we use Oatly)

 

Instructions:

1. Peel and dice the shallots or onion, then fry lightly in oil.

2. Add the ginger and stock cube and fry another minute or two.

3. Peel and chop the carrot and potato and add them to the pan.

4. Boil the water and add it to the pan.

5. Cook the vegetables for 15-20 minutes.

6. Puree the soup.

7. Season as desired, then top with a dollop of yogurt or cream.

Vegan Pot Pie

I’ve posted a pot pie recipe before, but this time I made it completely vegan and in filo dough.

 

I also had leftover chestnuts, so I added them in for extra texture and flavour.

 

Ingredients:

2-3 carrots and/or parsnips, chopped into pieces

water or rice milk

1 celery stalk, chopped

1-2 cups frozen veggies (peas and corn are great)

2-3 garlic cloves, optional (for some extra flavour, I used black garlic)

1-2 stalks spring onion

1/3 cup flour

2/3 cup rice milk

1 vegetable stock cube

salt

black pepper

1 package filo dough (about 270 g)

 

Instructions:

1. Peel and dice the carrots and/or parsnips, then cook the pieces over medium heat until slightly soft in water or milk to cover (about 10 minutes).

2. Wash and chop the celery. Add it and the other veggies. Cook briefly, until defrosted.

3. Chop the garlic and onion and add it to the pan..

4. Add the flour, milk, stock cube, salt, and pepper. Cook a bit more over medium heat, stirring.

5. Put some filo on the bottom of a pan (if you want, you can bake it for 2-3 minutes first). Top it with the filling.

6. Add the rest of the filo on top.

7. Bake for 30 min at 220 C, until golden.

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.

Apple and Vegetable Pie

I’d read a recipe that suggested making a mash out of apples instead of potatoes to use as a crust for a vegetable pie. M thought that sounded interesting but long-winded, so we decided to make a vegetable pie that included apples instead.

We used our typical vegan shortcrust pastry to make a nice pastry bottom and lid for the pie.

Ingredients:

200 g flour

110 g Cookeen (or margarine or butter)

1 tsp salt

2-4 tbsp cold water

1 onion

olive oil, plus a little extra to grease the pan

2 Bramley apples

1 parsnip

1 carrot

1 baking potato

1 stock cube

100-200 ml water

1 tbsp tomato puree

herbs (rosemary, mint, parsley, for example)

Instructions:

1. Make the pastry by mixing the flour, fat, salt, and cold water together. Set in the fridge while you make the rest.

2. Peel and dice the onion. Fry it lightly in olive oil.

3. Peel and dice the parsnip, carrot, and potato. Add them and the stock cube to the pot and cook for a few minutes.

4. Add the water, cover, and let cook for 10-15 minutes.

5. Uncover and let the water cook away (this takes another 10 minutes).

6. Mix in the tomato puree and herbs.

7. Roll out the pastry and put it in a lightly greased oven-safe dish. Fill with the vegetables and fold the pastry over it, so there is a lid. Crimp the edges.

8. Cook at 200 C for 20-30 minutes.

Hot Pot

I saw a recipe for a vegetarian hot pot. I’ve never had a hot pot, not being English, but I liked the idea, so I made my own variation on the recipe. I don’t know if it’s like a hot pot, but it was good and warming.

Ingredients:

4-6 small potatoes or 2-3 medium ones

water

1 onion

1 clove garlic

oil

1 tsp honey

1 vegetable stock cube

1 tbsp tomato puree

2 carrots

2 stalks celery

½ cup liquid (I used a combination of coconut milk and water, but wine or ale or just water would work too)

2 tbsp herbs (I used dill and sage, but any would probably work well)

black pepper

Instructions:

1. Parboil the potatoes in the water for about 10 minutes.

2. Peel and dice the onion and garlic and lightly soften them in the oil and honey. Mash in the stock cube and stir in the tomato puree, then continue to caramelise for a few minutes.

3. Peel and chop the carrots and wash and chop the celery. Add them and the liquid to the pan. Cook for 5-10 minutes.

4. Add the herbs and season with black pepper.

5. Pour the vegetables and liquid into an oven-safe dish. Slice the potatoes and layer them on top. Drizzle with a little oil.

6. Bake at 180 C for 10-15 minutes.

Savoury Carrot Pie

This can also be easily varied with different vegetables or different spices or herbs. I thought this worked quite well and was something different.

Ingredients:

1 onion

1-2 garlic cloves

oil

2 tsp honey

2-4 small potatoes

3-5 carrots

1 courgette, optional

milk or water

1 lemon

2 tsp cinnamon

2-4 stalks dill

filo dough

70 g hazelnuts or almonds, chopped

Instructions:

1. Peel and dice the onion and garlic. Soften them in oil in a large saucepan over low heat, then add the honey, so they caramelise.

2. Thinly slice the potatoes and add them to the pan. Chop the carrots and add them. Slice the courgette, if using, and add it too.

3. Add a little water or milk, cover, and cook for 20-30 minutes, stirring now and then. Add more liquid if the vegetables start sticking to the bottom of the pan.

4. Add the lemon zest and juice from half the lemon and the cinnamon. Wash the dill and snip it into the mixture as well.

5. Transfer the mixture to a food processor and blitz a bit at a time until it’s the desired consistency (some people like it smooth; I left it slightly chunky); you can also use a hand mixer.

6. Lightly oil an oven-safe dish. Spread 3 pieces of filo dough across the bottom, then top it with some of the carrot mixture. Squeeze a little lemon juice on top, then sprinkle with nuts.

7. Top with 2 more pieces of filo dough, then more carrot mixture, lemon juice, and nuts. You can do one more layer if you like or just do two. Top with 2 more pieces of filo.

8. Bake at 180 C for about 30 minutes.

Vegetable Stew

This was a hearty meal, especially served with the dumplings and bread I posted in the last two posts. You can easily vary the amounts and the vegetables.

Ingredients:

oil

5 shallots

1 tbsp honey

2 tbsp tomato puree

1 vegetable stock cube

1 pinch rosemary

2 tbsp flour

3 parsnips

4 carrots

½-1 sweet potato

4-8 little new potatoes or 2-3 medium potatoes

1 apple

water

½ cup orange juice

Instructions:

1. Heat the oil in a large oven-safe casserole.

2. Dice the shallots and sauté them for a few minutes over low heat.

3. Add the honey, tomato puree, stock cube, rosemary, and flour, and cook for a couple of minutes.

4. Peel and dice all the vegetables and the apple. You can choose how large to leave the pieces. Small pieces cook more quickly but large ones might look nicer to you.

5. Add the vegetables to the pan and cover with water and orange juice.

6. Roast in the oven, covered, at 180 C for about an hour.

7. Stir, add the dumplings (if using them), and cook for another 20-30 minutes.

Roasted Vegetables

This is a simple side dish, but it’s very tasty. Use sugar instead of honey to make it vegan.

Ingredients:
2-3 parsnips and/or carrots
5-6 small potatoes
1 fennel bulb
olive oil
1 tsp honey/sugar
sea salt
black pepper

Instructions:
1. Wash and peel the parsnips and/or carrots and the potatoes and then slice them. Wash and chop the fennel as well. Put the vegetables in an oven-safe dish.
2. Pour olive oil over the vegetables.
3. Roast at 200 C for about 10 minutes. Then add the honey/sugar and salt and pepper to taste and stir.
4. Roast for another 20 minutes, stirring now and then.

Fish Stew

You can vary this according to what you have on hand (for example, use coriander but not lime or curry paste) or which type of fish you like. You can also add prawns. I made this spicy for me by adding dried chilli and Tabasco, but I left it milder for my sweetheart.

Ingredients:

around 6 waxy potatoes

1-2 carrots

a couple of small pieces of lemongrass

water

one head of spring greens or a similar amount of spinach

oil

around 200 g fish (I used coley)

lime leaves

curry paste

coriander

black pepper

1 tin coconut milk

Instructions:

1. Wash and slice the potatoes. Wash, peel, and slice the carrots.

2. Put them and the lemongrass in the water and boil for about 10 minutes, until the potato has softened. Drain.

3. Lightly steam the greens and the oil.

4. Remove the skin and bones from the fish and chop it into pieces.

5. Put the greens, potatoes, carrots, and fish in a pot and season/spice according to taste. Add the coconut milk and cook, covered, for about 15 minutes.

Morning Glory Muffins

Don’t snicker at the name – these are common muffins in the US, where “morning glory” has a much more innocent meaning (it’s a flower and not something men get in the morning).

These are pretty healthy and really tasty. You can also add nuts or coconut.

Ingredients:
1 apple
3-5 carrots (about 2 cups worth)
1 cup vegetable oil
1 cup raisins
2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
2 tsp baking soda
1 pinch salt
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp cinnamon
2 eggs

Instructions:
1. Peel, core and grate the apple and peel and grate the carrots.
2. Add the oil and raisins to the apple and carrots.
3. Mix the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, vanilla and cinnamon together.
4. Beat the eggs and mix them with the dry ingredients.
5. Mix the eggs with the apple and carrots. Mix everything together well.
6. Put in muffin tins and bake for 18-20 minutes at 170 C.

Pot Pie

Growing up in the US, I regularly had what we call “pot pie”. This is a pastry filled with vegetables and chicken or turkey. Once I became a vegetarian, I wanted something with the same sauce but without the poultry. So I made my own version, and I’ve successfully served it to people here in the UK, and they have complimented me on it.

Ingredients:
500 g puff pastry
1-3 carrots and/or parsnips, chopped into pieces
water or milk
1 celery stalk, chopped
1-2 cups frozen veggies
some chopped tofu, if desired
1/3 cup flour
2/3 cup milk
1 vegetable stock cube
salt
black pepper

Instructions:
1. Roll out the pastry and make two pieces from it.
2. Peel and dice the carrots and/or parsnips, then cook the pieces over medium heat until slightly soft in water or milk to cover.
3. Wash and chop the celery. Add it and the other veggies. Cook briefly, until defrosted. Add the tofu if using it.
4. Add the flour, milk, stock cube, salt, and pepper. Cook a bit more over medium heat, stirring.
5. Put one crust on the bottom of a pan. Top it with the filling.
6. Add the other crust on top.
7. Bake for 30 min at 220 C, until golden.

Lentils and Vegetables

Ingredients:
1½ cups puy lentils
water
1 carrot
1 bag green beans
½ half cabbage or 1 head spring greens
3 tbsp cream or yogurt
seasoning (salt, pepper, paprika, parsley, etc – I actually seasoned it with truffle olive oil for a luxurious edge)
rice, if desired

Instructions:
1. Rinse the lentils and cover with water. Boil them over low heat for about 15 minutes.
2. Wash the veg. Peel and chop the carrot. De-string the beans. Chop the cabbage/greens.
3. Add the veg to the pot and add more water if needed. Continue to cook for about 10 minutes.
4. Mix in the cream/yogurt. Season to taste.
5. Serve over rice if desired.

Veggie Crumble

Fruit crumbles are so easy to make and they’re a tasty, healthy end to a meal. So why not a veggie crumble? It’s the same concept. Lots of veg topped with a yummy crumble, perhaps with cheese and/or seeds in it. It’s really easy to vary both the filling and the crumble topping, so you could happily make many different veggie crumbles.

Ingredients:
900 g vegetables (I used a combination of potatoes, parsnips, peas, spring onions, and carrots, but any combination could work)
1 l vegetable stock (or milk, if you prefer that sort of taste)
parsley, tarragon, mustard, black pepper, or other spices
75 g flour (I used spelt flour)
50 g butter
2 tbsp seeds (I used poppy seeds)

Instructions:
1. Peel, wash, and chop the vegetables as needed.
2. Cook the vegetables in the liquid and season with the spices.
3. Blend the butter and flour, but leave some lumps. Mix in the seeds.
4. Pour the veg into a casserole dish, then top with the crumble.
5. Bake for 25 minutes at 200 C.

Lentil Pie

A hearty lentil pie is simple, healthy, and tasty. I like to season it with a bit of cinnamon, which adds an exotic tinge, but it’s easy to vary the spices according to your taste.

Ingredients:
1½ cups lentils (I use puy lentils)
3 cups water
1 vegetable stock cube
2 carrots
1 parsnip
2 shallots
2 garlic cloves
oil
cinnamon
black pepper
1 handful cherry tomatoes
1 package puff pastry
Greek yogurt, to serve with

Instructions:
1. Rinse the lentils, then boil them in the water with the stock cube. This will take about 30 minutes, until the lentils are tender. If you use regular lentils, they may need to be soaked for a couple of hours and/or boiled longer. Check the package.
2. Peel and dice the carrots and parsnip. Dice the shallots and garlic. Lightly fry in oil and season with cinnamon and black pepper.
3. Wash and halve the cherry tomatoes.
4. Lightly oil an oven-safe dish and drape the puff pastry in it.
5. Mix the lentils, tomatoes, and other vegetables. Season more if necessary.
6. Bake at 200 C for about 25 minutes. Serve slices with Greek yogurt.

Carrot and Butterbean Soup

I thought a soup of carrots and butterbeans would be a soothing meal, but alas I made it much too spicy for M’s taste, and she ended up eating oatmeal instead. So I ate lots of soup the next day! Without the chilli, however, it works for all tastes.

Ingredients:
1 onion
oil
agave or sugar
6-8 carrots
vegetable stock cube
about 600 ml water
1 container butterbeans
chilli pepper, to taste
Greek yogurt

Instructions:
1. Dice the onion and fry it lightly in oil and agave or sugar.
2. Peel and slice the carrots into coins, then add them to the onion. Add the stock cube and water and boil.
3. Add the butterbeans and chilli pepper or other seasonings (coriander, parsley, black pepper) to taste.
4. Puree and serve with dollops of Greek yogurt.

Thai Green Curry over Barley

As part of our quest to eat less wheat, I’m trying out new carbohydrates. So I got some pearl barley, which is a lovely, toothsome, gently nutty grain. I decided to use it as a bed for a spicy green curry. It could also be used instead of oats in a heartier porridge, or with beans or chickpeas, but do note that it takes over an hour to cook.

You can choose how much curry paste to add according to your taste. I add some of it to the barley and some of it to curry mixture to create more of an integrated taste, but many people prefer to only add the paste to the curry mixture. The same goes for the coconut milk. You can experiment with how much curry paste and how much coconut milk you use and whether you add those ingredients to the rice/barley/whatever other starch you use or to the protein mixture. You can also vary which protein/s and vegetables you use.

Ingredients:
80 g pearl barley
water
3 carrots
2 courgettes
oil
1 jar green curry paste
100 g spinach
tofu or other protein, as desired (chickpeas would also go well here)
1 tin coconut milk

Instructions:
1. Cook the pearl barley in the water in a pot according to the instructions on the packet. Note that it usually takes over an hour to cook, so start this part of the process in plenty of time, and not just when you are getting hungry.
2. Peel and slice the carrots into coins. When the barley is about 10 minutes from being cooked, add the carrots to it.
3. Slice the courgettes and fry them lightly in the oil. Add a few tablespoons of the curry paste and some of the spinach, and continue frying.
4. Add the rest of the spinach and more curry paste to the barley.
5. Add the tofu or other protein to the frying pan.
6. When the barley and carrots are almost ready and the water has cooked away, pour the coconut milk into the pot. Add more curry paste to taste.
7. Serve the courgette mixture over the barley.