THE Haggis…

Tags

buckwheat, Burn's Night, Burn's Supper, carrots, gluten free vegan, gluten- free, lentils, mushrooms, oats, Scottish, vegan, vegan haggis, vegetarian, vegetarian haggis

I totally get the simplicity of the “meat and two veg” thinking of yore- its simple, requires little effort and is hugely satisfying. The thing with and (in many ways) the beauty of plant based cooking is that you have to think a bit more creatively. Sure you could serve a block of plain tofu or a pile of freshly cooked pulses but i feel like theres something lacking, a little wanting on the flavour scale or my much adored textured requirements.

Perhaps its just me but sometimes i want a slab of delicious protein.

Mwah ha ha, so this is where THE haggis comes in. A veritable kaleidoscope of mouthy textures, deep, rich, addictive flavours. Heady smells that permeate the very walls of your home (not in a gross way mind). If it were an album it would be The Who’s “Meaty, Beaty, Big and Bouncy”. Its the Tom Weir of plant based protein- resplendent in an Aran knit jumper and full of magical tales of the good old days. Its comfort, its satisfaction, its that Sunday Roast feeling anytime you make it.

Oh and it just happens to be super healthy- full of slow releasing carbohydrates, earthy minerals and healing spices. Its the perfect fuel for these cold, long Scottish evenings.

(Serves 6-8, Vegan, Gluten- free is omitting Pearl Barley)

• 1/4 cup Puy Lentils (/other lentils, split peas) soaked for a few hours
• 1/4 cup Buckwheat (or Pearl Barley) soaked
• 1 Onion, diced
• 1/2 Leek, diced
• 4 cloves Garlic, minced
• 1 large Carrot, diced
• 5 Mushrooms, diced
• 1/2 cup Oats (Pinhead if you can)
• 500ml Vegetable/ Mushroom Stock
• 2 tbsp Coconut Oil (other oils/ butter)
• 1 tsp Allspice
• 1tbsp ground Black Pepper
• 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
• Sea Salt, generous “pinch”
• 1 tbsp Dark Brown Sugar

1. Preheat your oven to 180c, grease a medium sized casserole pan
2. Drain the lentils and buckwheat and cook in boiling water for 15 minutes (35 minutes if using Pearl Barley, Split Peas) until tender, drain
3. Add the oil to a medium/ large pot on a medium heat
4. Add onions, leeks and carrots and cook for 5 minutes
5. Add the mushrooms and garlic and cook for 5 minutes (adding a splash of stock if necessary)
6. Add the all the seasoning and the oats, lentils and barley, stir thoroughly
7. Add the stock and sugar and cook on a medium low heat for 10- 30 mins (depending on your pulses) until the mixture is thick and almost all of the water has evaporated
8. Remove from the heat, spoon into casserole tin and cover with foil
9. Cook for 30 mins before removing foil and baking for a further 30 mins.

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Mediterranean Lentil & Pesto Soup

Tags

basil, compassionate eating, gluten free vegan, gluten- free, healthy, homemade, lentils, mediterranean, nourishing, nut free pesto, plant based, puy lentils, soup, vegan, vegan pesto, vegetarian

So that soup train i was talking about in my last post? Well, i’m certainly enjoying the ride and if there were to be a proverbial engine, well then, it would most certainly be this stunner.

This is one hearty soup. I could just be me (and may well be) but the flavours are absolutely out-of-this-world addictive. Its nuanced in profile, with just the right amount of licks coming from the fennel seeds and fresh parsley. The chilli and paprika add a soft, warming glow to whole affair, comfortingly circling around the star of the show- the pesto. Fresh but earthy, creamy but not too rich. This is truly a luxurious soup, perfect for sharing with a lover after a bracing walk in the December sun (which continues to be utterly breathtaking), or equally perfect for sharing with yourself, in your pyjamas, listening to this heartbreakingly beautiful documentary about Jeff Buckley (for example).

The pesto is super easy to make and nut free which is aces for all you no-can-do-nuts out there (and also much cheaper than trying to find pine nuts that don’t cost a bazillion pounds). It keeps good for about a week but really, it lasted about 4 days when left with this pesto- eyed goblin.

(Serves about 4)

• 1 Red Onion, diced
• 3 stalks Celery, sliced
• 3 cloves Garlic, minced
• 1 Red Chilli, minced
• 1/2 tsp Fennel Seeds
• 1 tsp ground Peppercorns
• 1 Carrot, diced
• 1/2 large Courgette, sliced and halved
• 1 scant cup Puy Lentils (soaked in boiling water for 10 minutes)
• 1 handful fresh Parsley
• 1 cup Kale
• 250ml Passata
• 1 litre Vegetable Stock
• 1 tbsp Coconut Oil
• 1-2 tbsp Pesto (+ extra for serving)

1. Heat the oil in a medium pan, add the onions and celery and cook on medium for 5 mins
2. Add the garlic, chilli and fennel seeds, cooking for 3 minutes
3. Add the carrots and courgettes and cook for 5 minutes
4. Add the remaining ingredients and cook at a simmer for 15 minutes
5. Serves with an extra teaspoon of pesto on top

Nut Free, Vegan Pesto:

• 2 cups fresh Basil
• 1/2 cup toasted Sunflower Seeds
• 2 small cloves Garlic
• 1 tbsp Lemon Juice
• 3 tbsp Nutritional Yeast
• 1/4- 1/2 cup Olive Oil
• 1/2 tsp Sea Salt and Pepper

1. Pop the basil, garlic and seeds in a blender and pulse until reduced
2. Add the lemon, yeast and seasoning and blitz for 30 seconds (you’ll probs have to scrape the sides down a few times)
3. Add the oil in stages until you have your desired consistency (I used about a 1/3 cup in the end)
4. Pop into a clean jar and cover with extra oil to preserve.

Chakra Kebabs… healing from the inside out…

Tags

beetroot, carrot, chakra, courgette, drizzle, gluten- free, honesty, hummus, kebabs, lemon, lentils, love, pumpkin, radish, red onion, sumac, thyme, tomatoes, vegan, vegetables, vegetarian

I’m getting really into this idea of a spiritual and physical Spring clean. Although i have a certain habit i’ve yet to defeat, i think i’m doing a pretty good job of taking care and nourishing my body. I have little concerns over that aspect of myself. There is however a large part of my holistic self that i haven’t given much thought to- you know, that little thing- the soul. I understand if many of you switch off/ roll your eyes right now, but hey! each to their own right?!

I am starting to see that my transformed eating habits are part of the process, part of the journey that i have embarked on. The journey to self- awareness and self actualisation. Without going in to my back story here, i am in the process of finally being at a place where i can i learn who i really am/ who i am to become. I know this sounds far too esoteric for a Saturday morning (get on with the damn food lady!) but i am starting to become aware of what really makes me tick. What lights the fire in my belly. What puts the dance into my feet. I am finally starting to assimilate the interests, hobbies, passions into something concrete. Simply put, i am starting to see “right, this is me, i like these things and i believe in those things”.

I guess its strange (or maybe not) for any of you lovely followers to be able to witness this transformation. But i am not afraid to share it with you. In fact, as i learn more and more about myself, i’m less and less afraid for the world (albeit my tiny wordpress/ Facebook world) to know who i am, how i roll.

So, to get back to the point (there was one somewhere), i am a person who believes that each other person, themselves included, is one fantastic, holistic being. A being that is as much mind as body, as much soul as brain, as much emotion and chemical function. Everything is interrelated, one thing does not function without the other. And so it is that i started to learn about Chakras (and this is finally where the recipe comes in).

The seven chakras are each the centre of a very important network of goings on. They can get blocked and this can lead to related emotional, physical and psychological difficulties. Simple ways to help loosen these blockages include: surrounding yourself with the corresponding colours, exercising (certainly yoga) and eating certain foods. As this is all very new to be and i am in no way knowledgable on the subject, i decided just to jump right in there. And so came about the Chakra Vegetables Kebabs (at last)!

Simple, visually spectacular and as full of nutrients as they are in their array of lovely rainbow colours. So this is how, in my small way, i am starting to heal myself (and those i love) from the inside out…

(Serves 4, Vegan, Gluten- free)

• 1 Carrot
• 1/4 Butternut Squash (pumpkin)
• 1 Courgette
• 1/4 large raw Beetroot
• 1 Plantain
• 12 Baby Plum Tomatoes
• 1 Red Onion
• 6 Radish, halved

1. Heat your oven to 180c, line a roasting tin with foil
2. Cut/ slice all the veg into similar, 1/2 thumb size chunks
3. Boil the carrots and pumpkin in one medium pan and the beetroot separately in a smaller pan, for 10 minutes, drain and leave to cool for a lightly bit
4. Start assembling your kebabs by skewering all the vegetables onto bamboo/ metal sticks
5. Start with tomato, then carrot, pumpkin, plantain, courgette, beetroot then radish (there is no recommended fruit/ vegetable for the eleventh chakra but you could easily use black grapes, beetroot etc)
6. Pop onto the roasting tray and cook for 25- 30 minutes
7. Meanwhile, make up your hummus drizzle…

Hummus Drizzle…

• 1/2 cup Red Lentils
• 2 cloves of Garlic
• 1/2 Red Chilli
• 1/4 Red Onion
• 2 tablespoons of Olive Oil
• juice of 1 Lemon
• 1/4 teaspoon of Sea Salt
• 1 tablespoon of fresh Thyme, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon of Sumac

1. Wash the lentils thoroughly and add to a small pan with plenty of fresh water
2. Bring to the boil and reduce to a gentle simmer, cook for 10 minutes
3. Drain, rinse and allow to cool
4. Throw everything else, save the 1/2 thyme and sumac into a blender and blitz until very smooth and runny
5. Transfer to a cup and sprinkle the remaining sumac and thyme on top, drizzle over your roasted kebab

Spinach Falafel & Cashew Cream Tzaziki…

Tags

caraway seeds, cashew cream, chilli, coriander, cucumber, cumin, dipping sauce, falafel, gluten- free, lentils, mint, nigella seeds, orange, polenta, rice wine vinegar, sesame oil, soy, spinach, sweet chilli, tumeric, tzaziki, vegan, vegetarian

Turns out i do have a receptacle for measuring in imperial- my blender. Who’da thunk it? Anyway, i’ve been wanting to make Cashew cream for quite some time now. I haven’t because i’ve probably been suspicious of my success (note my failed attempt at tahini). That said i had to make Falafel on Monday. Had to because i’d had a shitty day, because i’m still feeling ill, because its my favourite food and i damn well felt like i deserved a treat. So i set to soaking my cashews and got on with making my falafel.

Now, sometimes i like to mix things up and use lentils instead of chickpeas for my falafel- i have no reason why, its just that i like the change in texture. And, i hadn’t soaked any chickpeas on Sunday night. The addition of Spinach not only boosts the dish’s nutritional profile but also gives you amazing green balls of Middle Eastern deliciousness.

From half a cup of Cashews i got one large cup of cashew cream. I saved half for a later date and combined the rest with finely chopped fresh mint, grated cucumber and nigella seeds. The results would fool any dairy eater into thinking they were enjoying yoghurt. Creamy, slightly sweet and very decadent. I highly recommend.

Makes 12 Falafel, Vegan, Gluten- free

• 1 cup of Red Lentils
• 4 cloves of Garlic
• 1/2 large Red Chilli
• 1/2 bunch of fresh Coriander
• 2 handfuls of Spinach
• 1 tablespoon of Tumeric, Cumin, Coriander and Caraway Seeds (mixed together)
• 2 tablespoons of Polenta

1. Soak the cashews in cold water for at least 4 hours, or overnight
2. Wash your lentils and pop into a small pan with plenty of fresh water
3. Bring to the boil, reduce to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes
4. Drain and wash well, allow to dry
5. Combine half the lentils and all other ingredients, except the polenta in a blender, blitz until smooth
6. Transfer to a bowl and stir in the remaining lentils, refrigerate for 1 hour
7. Heat your oven to 180c and sprinkle a small amount of polenta on to a baking tray
8. Pour the remaining polenta onto a clean chopping board
9. Scoop 2 soup spoons of falafel mix into your hands and form into a ball
10. Gently roll the ball in the polenta and then pop on your baking tray
11. Repeat until you have finished all the mix
12. Bake for 25- 30 minutes or until golden

Cashew Cream Tzaziki:

• 1 cup of Cashews
• Water for soaking
• 1/2 a cup of Almond Milk
• 1/4 Cucumber
• 1/2 bunch of fresh Mint
• teaspoon of Nigella Seeds

1. After the cashews have soaked, drain and rinse well
2. Add to a clean blender with the almond milk and blitz for 5 minutes, scrapping down the sides of your blender every so often, until very smooth
3. Reserve half the cream for later, put the other half in a bowl
4. Finely chop the mint and add to the bowl
5. Grate the cucumber and squeeze out the excess liquid before combining in the bowl
6. Stir in the seeds and mix well, refrigerate until ready to use

Sweet Chilli Dipping Sauce:

• 1 tablespoon of Sesame Oil
• 1 tablespoon of Soy Sauce
• 1 tablespoon of Rice Vinegar
• 1 tablespoon of Agave Nectar
• juice and zest of 1/2 an Orange
• 1 thumb of Ginger, peeled
• 1 clove of Garlic
• 1/2 a Red Chilli

1. Add everything to a blender and blitz until smooth.

I served our falafel with a simple salad of mixed leaves and finely sliced Radish. And yes, we did eat all the falafel!

Golden Beetroot Burgers with Plum Tomato Salsa

Tags

beetroot, burger, chilli, cumin, Edinburgh, garlic, Leith, lemon, lentils, rice, salsa, seasonal, tomatoes, vegan, vegetarian, vinegar

I wanted to make a veggie burger with some back bone. I’d seen numerous recipes for Beetroot burger, one problem- my fella ain’t so keen on the beets, (the vegetable of course, his taste in music is quite swell). How happy i was to find in my local greengrocers Golden Beetroot, i was intrigued, i didn’t even know they existed, and i do love a challenge… This recipe is great in that is also uses up the left over rice we had from the tofu salad and it’s vegan- score.

(Serves 4, Vegan (omit cheese) and Gluten free)

For the burgers:

(Makes 8 hefty sized burgers, but we saved half the mix and made falafel)

• 1.5 cups of cooked brown rice
• 1 cup of brown lentils
• 2 golden (or purple) beetroots
• 1/2 a green chilli
• 3 cloves of garlic
• a dash of olive oil
• 1/3 bunch of coriander
• teaspoon of cumin seeds, coriander seeds & garam masala

1. Cook the lentils for 10/15 minutes until they are just cooked but still retain their bite, drain and rinse in plenty of cold water
2. Peel and dice the beetroot into small squares
3. Place all ingredients into a blender and pulse until the mixture is quite smooth but still has a few nice lumps and bumps
4. refrigerate for an hour or so
5. Heat a heavy based pan with a little olive oil
6. Get your hands in there and form the mixture into desired size- we used scone/ cookie cutters and pushed the mixture firmly into these, then fried them, still in the cutters, until both sides were browned
7. Grill or pop in the oven for another 5/ 10 minutes
8. At the last minute we added some Camembert that needed using but you can keep them vegan if you like.

Plum Tomato Salsa:

• 10 plum tomatoes
• 1/2 a red onion
• 1/2 a red chilli
• tablespoon of red wine vinegar
• 1/3 bunch of coriander
• juice of 1/2 a lemon

1.  Quarter the tomatoes lengthways
2. Finely dice the red onion
3. Very finely chop the chilli and coriander
4. Combine all ingredients in a bowl