joey's fruit & nut spelt loaf

prep time 1 hr 20
cooking time 30 mins
difficulty medium
style bread
oven temp 200 fan assisted oven, 250 non-fan


this loaf is an ideal breakfast food as it is filling and packed with fibre. it is also very sweet ( though with no added sugar) making it a perfect substitute for cake as a teatime snack.


ingredients

200g organic spelt flour (Doves Farm is very good)
200g organic white flour
1 sachet of fast acting yeast
1 pinch of salt
1 tablespoon of olive oil
300g of chopped dried fruit and nuts (I used prunes, dates, apricots and walnuts)
roughly 200-250 ml of water (add slowly as required)

thai tofu noodle soup

prep time 7 mins
cooking time 20 mins
difficulty easy
style thai, soup

ingredients

2 tablespoons of rapeseed oil
1 tablespoon of sesame oil
1/2 punnet of sliced mushrooms
1 red pepper sliced into thin strips
a dozen cherry tomatoes cut in halves
1 red chilli finely chopped
4 cloves of garlic (crushed)
3cm of ginger grated
3 teaspoons of lemon grass paste
rice or wheat noodles
1 can of coconut milk
1 packet of tofu
1 vegan stock cube
1 cup of water
corriander
lime

panda sushi balls

prep time 40 mins
cooking time 20 mins
difficulty fiddly
style japanese, kawaii, rice

the one animal I am happy to eat... a little panda sushi ball. I saw these little guys on the Kawaii Food Blog.

there wasn't a recipe so I just had a go at making them myself and they turned out pretty well.

as they were just a lunch time snack the quantities I used were quite small (enough for 2 people to have 2 each) but you can increase the quantities as required.

ingredients
150 g sushi rice
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
4 teaspoons of sugar
1 pinch of salt salt
1 teaspoon of sunflower oil
300g water water
1 sheet of nori

to serve
wasabi
pickled ginger
soy sauce & rice wine vinegar
sesame oil

ryan

why go vegan?

there are many good reasons that people choose to adopt a vegan diet.

a) for the sake of the planet ie. climate change, sustainability etc
b) for the sake of animal rights or animal welfare
c) for dietary requirements or allergies
d) to lose weight
e) for other ethical reasons, such as food access and security

For me it is a combination of all of the above, but largely motivated by my belief in human rights and the rights of all other living beings. Particularly my cat….
To be continued….

spinach, potato and mushroom curry served with garlic and turmeric rice

prep time 15 mins
cooking time 50 mins
difficulty medium
style curry, Indian
heat mild/medium
serves 4

ingredients

2 cloves of garlic finely chopped
1cm of ginger grated
1 teaspoon of crushed chillies (or 1 fresh red chilli finely chopped)
2 medium onions sliced
5 medium potatoes peeled and cubed
10 chestnut mushrooms sliced
1 bag of spinach leaves
a good pinch of fresh coriander
1 cup of cold water
1 can of chopped tomatoes
1 teaspoon of tomato puree
3 tablespoons of rapeseed oil or bran rice oil
1 vegan stock cube
2 tablespoons of turmeric
2 tablespoons of garam masala
1 tablespoon of ground cumin
1 tablespoon of ground coriander
1 pinch of salt
1/2 teaspoon of ground pepper
1 teaspoon of chilli powder (reduce or leave out if you don't like too much spice)

minted potatoes, with broad beans, peas and pickles

prep time 5 mins
cooking time 20 mins
difficulty easy
style mid-week comfort food

ingredients

5 medium sized potatoes
1 cup of broad beans
2 cups of peas
pickled onions
pickled cornichons
4 teaspoons of mint sauce
2 tablespoons of olive oil
pinch of salt and a good grind of pepper

serve with tofu or meat-free alternative (as this is my first week of attempting a vegan diet, I used a Quorn fillet that was left over in the freezer.)

nice one Macca

Peta celebrates Paul McCartney's Birthday

sesame tofu, rice noodles and veg in a homemade hoisin sauce

prep 10 mins
cooking 10 mins
difficulty easy
style noodle dish

ingredients

3 teaspoons of sesame seeds
1 handful of cashew nuts
200g of organic tofu cut into cubes
1 bag of fresh rice noodles
1 carrot cut in thin slices
1 courgette cut in thin slices
2 handfuls of green beans
4 sliced mushrooms
1 onion thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves finely chopped
1 cm of ginger grated
4 tablespoons of dark soy sauce
3 tablespoons of organic peanut butter
2 tablespoon of sesame oil
1 tablespoon of runny honey
1 tablespoon of rice wine vinegar
2 teaspoons of chilli sauce
2 tablespoons of rapeseed oil

why the blog?

I have decided to start a food blog for several reasons.

a) to document my own journey from veggie to vegan.
b) to share recipes and inspire anyone else thinking of making that difficult jump away from the cheese.
c) to give myself an outlet to vent my concerns and frustrations with the global food system today.
d) to explore whether a vegan diet can be truly be delicious, exciting and satisfying, and share my findings with others.