Shepard's Pie

Shepard's Pie

Starring polenta.

Busy week ahead? Spend 40 minutes whipping this up. Put it aside, then shove it in the oven later in the day; it's one to feed the masses. Or your own hungry mouth-hole every evening for the next week...

Mashed potato is an alternative topping option, although Polenta is preferable. The crispy, cheesy polenta top gives an exciting spin on this otherwise rather standard (yet admittedly delectable) English classic. 

Ingredients

serves 5-6 people

1+1/2 cups dried Soya Mince

3 x tins of chopped Tomatoes

3/4 cup of Gravy Granules (I used 'Ah Bisto' original & 'accidentally vegan' product)

3 x Carrots

3 x Celery stems

1 large Onion

2 Garlic cloves

2 cups Polenta

3/4 a block of Vegan Cheese (grated)

Nutritional Yeast

1. Add polenta slowly to boiling water in a saucepan until thick. Stir every few minutes for a total of 30-40 minutes. You may need to add extra water during this cooking time if the mixture appears too thick.

If you're really stuck on how to go about cooking your polenta, here's a video on HOW TO:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jE2NemX-FO4 

2. Whilst cooking polenta, chop carrots, celery, garlic & onion

3. Sweat vegetables in a frying pan till soft. Optional: Sprinkle on sugar to caramelise

4. Add tomatoes to saucepan  

5. Add dried soya mince to tomato & vegetables. Mix, cover pan & leave to simmer for 10 minutes.

6. Add gravy granules to tomato mince mix & stir rapidly

7. Add lemon juice, salt & pepper to TASTE. Cover with lid.

8. When polenta is cooked, turn off the heat & mix in your grated cheese. 

9. Add salt & nutritional yeast to your polenta to taste. 

10. Throw your mincey mixture into your chosen pie dish. Top with cheesy polenta. 

11. Bake pie in oven for 30-40 minutes till polenta topping is crispy

Serve.

WELL GO ON THEN

THAT PIE WON'T EAT ITSELF.

Hazelnut & Tofu 'Ricotta' Lasagne

Hazelnut & Tofu 'Ricotta' Lasagne

Layers upon layers of pure vegan joy...

Impress the fam by cooking up this delicious chunk of hazelnut heaven! 

Maybe it was just where I went to school. Perhaps our cantine ladies didn't have as much spruce and culinary creativity as the others...but I always HATED lasagne day.

A few layers of sad, floppy, dull pasta sandwiching a boring mix of mince and tomatoes was an option that I dreaded on a weekly basis.

So here's a lasagne recipe with a makeover...
A creamy almond milk based sauce, toasted hazelnuts and heaps of basil made this one of my proudest achievements in the kitchen as of yet; so don your dinner lady hat & get on it!

Ingredients... 

Lasagne sheets

Fresh basil

1 cup chopped hazelnuts

1 jar homemade/shop bought ragu sauce

1 onion

Broccoli

1 large garlic clove (chopped)

Your favourite vegan cheese...

Tofu Ricotta:

1 box of extra firm tofu (pressed + crumbled)

1 1/2 tblesp tahini

3/4 cup nutritional yeast

1 tblsp lemon juice

1 1/2 tblesp miso paste

1 tblesp garlic granules

Béchamel sauce:

500ml unsweetened almond milk

Cornflour

Nutritional yeast

1. Preheat oven to 180°c. Mush your tofu ricotta ingredients together with a spoon & set aside.

Looks awful, tastes amazing

2. Chop broccoli + onion, fry + caramelise with sugar + garlic. Add most of the hazelnuts a few minutes before you turn off the heat to get them good & TOASTY.

3. Heat milk in saucepan, add 1/2 cup of nutritional yeast. Thicken to desired consistency using cornflour. (METHOD: Put cornflour in cup. Add a splash of lukewarm water. Mix vigorously till dissolved. Pour cornflour mix into very hot milk and stir milk quickly till thickened.)

4. Add salt, black pepper + more nutritional yeast depending on the preference of your taste-buds. Chop a large handful of basil and mix into the 'béchamel' sauce. 

5. Layer the broccoli-onion-hazelnut mix into a dish of your choosing, followed by a layer of lasagne sheets. POUR ON COPIOUS AMOUNTS OF WHITE SAUCE.

6. Next in is all of your tofu ricotta. APPLY MORE WHITE SAUCE. Add your next layer of lasagne sheets.

7. Pour on the necessary amount of ragu. Top it off with white sauce. TADA.

Lasagne making is messy business

But just look at all those beautiful LAYERS

8. Shove in the oven for 40-50 minutes. In the last 10 mins of cooking, add grated vegan cheese to the top + sprinkle with the rest of the chopped hazelnuts.

It should end up looking like THIS.

SERVE WITH A SPRITELY SALAD. 

LASAGNE WILL NEVER BE BORING AGAIN.

Hot lentil curry & wholemeal paratha

Hot lentil curry & wholemeal paratha

What's a paratha you say?

 IT IS A DELICIOUS INDIAN FLATBREAD YES IT IS.

Indian deliciousness.

Ingredients

1/3 tube of tomato puree

1 cup red lentils

1 tblsp of cumin

teasp/tblesp of garam masala paste (depending on how spicy you fancy it)

Hot curry powder

1 small bunch of fresh coriander

lemon juice

1 cup of wholewheat flour

1/2 cup of water

Vegetable oil

salt

1. Put lentils on to boil as instructed on packet

2. Mix wholewheat flour, water & a pinch of salt together in a bowl. 

3. Knead the mixture on a lightly oiled surface, then put aside to rest in a covered bowl for a minimum of 15 mins

4. Add tomato puree to lentils approx 15 mins into cooking time.

5. Stir into lentils: garam masala paste, cumin, 1/2 teasp of salt & a squeeze of lemon juice & continue to simmer until cooked. 

6. Add salt & curry powder to taste to lentils

7. Chop coriander & mix into lentils

8. Roll dough for paratha as thinly as possible onto a lightly floured surface.  You should be able to make 1 or 2 flat circles of dough.

9. Heat the large frying pan and add a tblespoon of vegetable oil till very hot. 

10. Lay a paratha into the frying pan and fry for a few mins till it has golden brown spots & areas of puffiness. Flip it over and do the same on the other side.

11. Dish up your lentils!! 

Fold your paratha in half when it gets out of the frying pan and SERVE!!!

NOW SCOOP UP THOSE LENTILS WITH YOUR DELICIOUS FLATBREADY CIRCLE OF WONDER.

Cauliflower sauce & caramelised aubergine spaghetti

Cauliflower Sauce & Caramelised Aubergine Spaghetti 

Who knew cauliflower was such a wonder veg...

THAT'S NO CHEESE SAUCE YO

Tomato sauce. Cheese sauce. Pesto? 

Those are pretty much the only sauces I've ever thought acceptable to smother my pasta dishes in. UNTIL NOW.

This excessively healthy pasta sauce is made from blended CAULIFLOWER.

Cauliflower...the vegetable that I rejected as a child for it's image, so suggestive of a failed broccoli.

But anyway, this recipe has changed my mind permanently over the previously questionable deliciousness of this big white plant. So enjoy!

Ingredients

Wholemeal spaghetti (I used enough for 3 people)

1 cauliflower 

1 garlic clove

1 tblesp olive oil

1/2 cup nutritional yeast

handful of flat leaf parsley

1 teasp of garlic powder

1/2 cup unsweetened soya milk

1/2 teasp of balsamic vinegar

1 fresh chilli

1 large aubergine or 2 smaller ones

Brown sugar

salt & pepper

1. Slice aubergine. Steam for 10 mins. Then fry on low heat for another 10 mins. Caramelise using a sprinkling of brown sugar, add salt & pepper. Put aside.

Never seen such purepleness in my entire life.

2. Boil cauliflower till tender & roast garlic in oven at 180°C (alternatively fry in frying pan). Approx 5-8 mins for both.

Boil those FLORETS.

3. Drain Cauliflower. Remove skin from roasted garlic.

4. Put pasta on to boil!

5. Add to blender: garlic, cauliflower, soya milk, nutritional yeast, garlic powder, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper & a pinch of brown sugar. BLEND! Remove from blender.

Look at that sexy cauli-mix.

TASTE THE MIX. Add more seasoning if/as required!!

6. Finely chop parsley & chilli. Add to the cauliflower sauce.

CHOPPPPPPPP!

7. Drain cooked pasta, place in serving bowl. Add olive oil. MIX. Add cauliflower sauce & mix till pasta is completely covered.

8. Add caramelised aubergines. Mix a little. SERVE. 

NOW DON'T TALK FUCKING SHIT ABOUT CAULIFLOWERS EVER AGAIN.

Vegan Mac n Cheese

Vegan Mac n' Cheese

Without the mac. Or the cheese...

Nom Nom Nom 

Ok, so I couldn't find any wholemeal macaroni in the supermarket...so I opted for these little twirly pasta things instead. 

Just use whatever pasta you want really, it's really easy and only took me about 10 mins to put together!

Ingredients

feeds 2-3 

Macaroni/any pasta (I used miniature wholemeal twirly pasta)

400ml unsweetened soya milk

2 cups nutritional yeast

1/2 block of Vegan cheese (I used Cheezly's Mozzarella)

1 tblesp Dijon mustard (optional)

1 teasp Turmeric

2/3 cup of cornflour

Salt

Pepper

2 cups frozen spinach (defrost)

1. Put pasta on to boil. Make enough for 2-3 people.

Wholemeal macaroni why don't you exist.

2. Heat soya milk in saucepan till bubbling, then turn down the heat

3. Add nutritional yeast, turmeric, mustard & grate the vegan cheese in. STIR!

4. Add a little warm water to the cornflour in a separate cup, and mix till smooth. Make sure the soya milk is piping hot or bubbling through, then add the cornflour mixture to it. Stir quickly & constantly till the sauce has thickened.

5. Add a teasp of salt. Taste. Add more salt if required.

6. Turn off heat & grind some black pepper into the mixture

7. Drain your pasta & then mix with the cheesy sauce

8. Dish up your mac n cheese. Warm your spinach in the microwave & top your pasta with it.

NOW EAT YOUR NON-COW RELATED CHEESY PASTA WITH THE GUSTO OF A PARTICULARLY ECCENTRIC VEGAN.

Lentil Burgers & Oregano Potato Wedges

Lentil Burgers & Oregano Potato Wedges

Because who needs McDonalds when you've got these bad boys to come home to...

Unfortunately this is the only photographic evidence of my accomplishment :(

I decided to cook for the masses and feed a few of my housemates this evening...

These burgers are pretty simple to make and had the seal of approval from all those involved in consuming them. 

I've put measurements of seasoning in the ingredients list below, but to be honest...nutritional yeast, ketchup, lemon juice etc; I just throw them in and sample it along the way until I think it tastes delicious. 

Obviously with it being vegan, you can eat it raw and not worry about salmonella...

So please feel free to add more or less of this or that to get it tailored exactly to where your taste-buds want it

Apologies for the lack of 'along the way' photos. For pretty much the whole time my hands were covered in mushed up lentils so I couldn't touch my phone ;(

Ingredients

Feeds 6 hungry mouths

Potato Wedges

2kg Potatoes 

Dried Oregano

Salt & Pepper

Sunflower oil

Burgers

6 x wholemeal burger buns

250g French style or green lentils

1 cup nutritional yeast

1 1/2 cup breadcrumbs

1/2 cup wholemeal flour

1 white onion

1 orange

1 1/2 cup Tomato ketchup

squeeze of Lemon Juice

1 tblespoon paprika

1 1/2 cup crushed almonds (I crushed mine up with my pestle & mortar)

Sesame Oil or Virgin Olive Oil

1 small bunch of fresh coriander

Potato Wedges

1. Pre-heat oven to 180°C 

2. Peel potatoes & chop into wedge shapes. Boil them for 5 mins till a little softer. 

3. Drain and spread onto baking tray. Rub potatoes in sunflower oil, dried oregano, salt & pepper. Put in oven for approx 1 hour (don't forget to turn them over every so often)

Burgers...to make whilst your wedges are roasting away

1. Cook lentils according to instructions on packet (30-40 mins) Drain cooked lentils & empty into a mixing bowl

2. Add flour, breadcrumbs & nutritional yeast. MASH! 

3. Chop onion & fry in olive oil. Add sprinkle of brown sugar to caramelise & cook till very soft.   

4. Finely grate half the orange rind into the mix (I squeezed a little of the orange juice in too), add caramelised onion, ketchup, crushed almonds, salt, pepper, lemon juice & a glug of sesame or olive oil. 

If mixture is too dry then add a little water. 

If mixture is too wet then add more flour &/or breadcrumbs. 

It needs to be firm enough to make into patties, but not so firm that it starts breaking into pieces. 

Obviously.

5. Taste mixture (VERY IMPORTANT!!) & add further seasoning to taste if needed. More tomato ketchup is always a good shout if it doesn't quite taste right...

6. Chop coriander finely & add to mix

7. Heat oil in a large frying pan (low-medium heat) & shape 6 burger patties from your lentil mix.

8. Pat the top & bottom of each patty with a little wholemeal flour before frying briefly for 2-3mins on each side

9. Keep you patties warm in the oven whilst you prepare your burger buns!

Fill your burger with salad, avocado, tomatoes, onions...whatever the hell you fancy. I had mine with vegan garlic mayo, mustard & BBQ sauce (don't judge)

SCREW BURGER KING. YOURS TASTES BETTER.

Chinese Cabbage

Chinese Cabbage

Beijing style baby.

Crunchy between my teeth bones.

A few years back I travelled through China for a few months. 

Surprisingly, one of the most memorable dishes I had was a simple plate of chinese cabbage leaves. 

Crisp, fresh & green, this recipe is quick & easy to make as well as being a sure winner for anybody who likes the taste of authentic Chinese food (like my Asian self)

You'll find all of the ingredients in your local Chinese supermarket so no fucking excuses.

Ingredients

serves 2 vegan humans

Brown rice or noodles (optional)

1 chinese cabbage

1 tblsp Shaozing Rice Wine

Sesame Oil

3/4 cup Light Soy Sauce

1 piece of fresh Ginger (the size of your thumbnail)

1 Garlic clove

1 medium hot chilli

1/2 teasp sugar

Dirty cabbage. 

1. Wash your cabbage. Chop!

2. Heat a good glug of sesame oil in a large frying pan or wok. Chop your ginger, garlic & chilli finely & fry for 1 minute on medium heat.

3. Add all chopped cabbage & stir till mostly wilted (approx 10mins)

4. Add a tblespoon of rice wine, sugar soy sauce. Fry for further 5 mins.

Saucy minx that cabbage...

5. Taste and add more soy sauce &/or sugar if needed

Serve with rice or noodles...or alone if you're feeling wild.

NOW GRAB YOUR CHOPSTICKS AND TRY MISERABLY TO NAVIGATE THE CABBAGE TOWARDS YOUR FACE.

Vegan Quiche

Vegan Quiche

Quiche minus the egg...

Looks like egg but isn't. Tastes better too!

Pre-veganism you would never have convinced me that mushed up tofu has similar qualities to scrambled egg. But it fucking does. 

This was a sweet potato, spinach & caramelised onion quiche, but you could use any vegetables that don't tend to excrete a load of water whilst heating up. 

Having never made pastry prior to this moment, 'Vegan quiche' is without a doubt one of my proudest cooking achievements as of yet. 

If I can do it, then you definitely can too.

Ingredients

Pastry

1 1/2 cup of plain white flour

1 cup wholemeal flour

1 handful of finely crushed cashew nuts

1/2 cup of coconut oil

tblsp salt

1/3 cup of ice water

Quiche filling

1 block of firm tofu (press the water out of it)

1/2 cup of Nutritional Yeast

1 cup grated Vegan Cheese (I used Cheezly's Mozzarella)

small bunch of fresh coriander

250g frozen spinach (defrost in microwave)

black pepper

tblsp salt

1 sweet potato

1 white onion

1 teasp chilli powder

1 teasp turmeric powder

1 garlic clove (finely chopped)

a small handful of pumpkin seeds & flaked almonds (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 180(°C). Combine all the pastry ingredients together in food processor. BLEND! 

2. Remove pastry dough from blender & place the pastry dough on a floured surface. Roll out relatively thin.

Pastry pre-rolling

 3. Place pastry in a greased (with vegan butter substitute) tart tin and use your fingers to get the pastry where you want it.

Press that pastry in yo tin

4. Put your pastry lined tin in the oven for 10-12 minutes. Set aside.

5. Peel and chop your sweet potato into small cubes. Partly boil them (takes about 5-7mins). Drain them, rub them with olive oil and put in the oven to roast for 20 mins.

6. Finely slice the onion & fry in olive oil with a sprinkle of brown sugar to caramelise. Add the chilli powder, garlic, nutritional yeast, spinach & sweet potato once the onions are cooked. Turn off heat.

My sweet potato was white not orange :'(

7. In a mixing bowl mash up the tofu with your fingers. Add the grated cheese and all of the contents from your frying pan. Add the tumeric, black pepper & coriander (chopped). MIX.

8. Fill the pastry with the tofu mix

Quiche-licious

9. Bake in oven for 15 minutes (or till pastry is cooked through)

Remove from tin. Top with flaked almonds & pumpkin seeds if you're feeling fancy. 

CONSUME!!

The pastry was crisp and the filling was tofu heaven. #PleasedWithMyself

NOW STUFF THAT FAKE EGGY, PASTRY CASED MUSH INTO YOUR HUNGRY OPEN MOUTH-HOLE.

Cheezy stuffed squash

Cheezy stuffed Squash

Butternut Squash stuffed with 'cheesy' mustardy leeks

SO ORANGE!

People keep asking me if I miss cheese. The answer is no. Purely because there's plenty of cheesy tasting alternatives available out there for my hungry vegan mouth hole...

Ingredients

1 butternut squash

soya butter (or any vegan butter alternative)

1 large leek

150ml soya/vegan cream

3/4 pack of Vegan Cheese (I used Cheezly mozzarella)

1 tsp english mustard

1/2 cup Nutritional Yeast

1. Chop butternut squash in half. Remove seeds & carve out some of the flesh

Don't squash your squash. CHOP IT.

2. Wash & chop leeks finely. Fry with soya butter till soft.

I used more then one leek because these are tiny ones fresh from the garden. ORGANIC GOODNESS.

3.  Add the soya cream, nutritional yeast, cheese (finely grated), nutritional yeast & mustard. Turn off heat.

Creamy.

4. Pack the 'cheesy' mix into the carved out squash

5. Place the squash halves in a oven proof dish, cover with tin foil and bake for 45mins-1 hour (dependent on size of squash)

SERVE. EAT.

NOW EAT YOUR FUCKING VEGETABLES.