Tag: plantbased

Categories
Mains Recipes

Roast Veg Tartlets

Warm ’em up, or eat ’em cold. Either way, these individual vegetarian tartlets will provide an attractìve, appetising, tasty and nutritious lunch. They’re also a great way to use up leftovers.

Servings

2 tartlets, so a light lunch for 2.

Timings

30 mins to roast the veg while you make the pastry and the tomato sauce, then 15 mins to bake at 180C.

You Will Need:

  • A couple of individual sized flan/tartlet dishes
  • 1 small sweet potato
  • 3 – 4 chestnut mushrooms
  • Half a red pepper
  • Drizzle of olive oil
  • A sprinkle of dried mixed herbs
  • 110g plain wholemeal flour
  • 50g butter
  • Pinch of salt
  • 2 – 3 tbsp cold tap water
  • Half a red onion
  • 1 clove of garlic
  • 3 – 4 tbsp tomato passata
  • Half a 400g tin of kidney beans
  • Black pepper
  • Strong hard cheese, like mature cheddar or parmesan, for grating

Method

  1. Turn a fan oven on to 180C.
  2. Peel and chop the sweet potato into 1 – 2 cm sized chunks. Quarter the mushrooms, and cut the red pepper into pieces the same size as the sweet potato. Place all in a roasting dish. Sprinkle with the herbs and drizzle with oil, then place in the oven for 30 mins.
  3. While the veg is roasting, get started on the pastry. Sieve the flour into a food processor with blade fitted. Chop the butter into small cubes and add to the flour with a pinch of salt. Pulse a few times until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Drip in the water and pulse again, until you have a ball of soft dough. Remove, wrap in cling film and place in the fridge while you make the tomato sauce.
  4. Warm a few drops of the oil in a saucepan. Crush in the garlic and add the onion, finely chopped. As it softens, add in the passata and kidney beans. Give it a few twists of black pepper. Stir to mix and let reduce for a few minutes, until you have a thickish consistency.
  5. Grease the individual tartlet dishes with butter. Take the pastry dough from the fridge and roll out on a floured surface, then use to line each pastry dish. Prick each a few times with a fork.
  6. When the veg has finished roasting, scrape it all into the saucepan and mix in with the tomato and kidney beans. Leave the oven on.
  7. Spoon the veg and tomato mixture into the tartlet cases, then top with the grated cheese. Place in the oven for 15 mins until baked, with the cheese browned.
  8. Serve up with seasonal steamed veg, or let cool and enjoy with salad.

Customise it!

Swap in an̈y leftover veg you may have that is good for roasting: parsnip, carrot, celeriac, green or yellow pepper. Chop up a few celery stalks and add to soften in the tomato sauce. Try grating Stilton over to give another taste twist.

Recently, I’ve been revisiting the great REM albums from the 1990s. I played these a lot when first released and have always admired the band’s music. I feel quite privileged to have seen them play live on two occasions when they visited the UK. Here’s one of many fave tracks, this one from the New Adventures in HiFi album: Bittersweet Me.

Categories
Mains Recipes Sides

Spicy Bean Burger and Salsa

Whenever I look at the above photograph, I just want to place the fingers of both hands on the top of the roll, my thumbs underneath, scrunch it all together and take a large bite.

Which is a pretty good clue to what happened next, the moment I’d set my camera phone to one side.

I love the taste of a good veggie burger, and many times will choose one over a meat version. So when a bag of freshly harvested pulse beans arrived from our local farm, I had little doubt what to make them into.

I soaked the beans overnight and then boiled them for around 45 mins, before draining, cooling and mashing. However, you can just as easily use a can of beans that are ready to use.

Mixing the mashed beans with breadcrumbs and an egg gives a good texture that ensures the burgers, once shaped into patties by hand, stay together during the cooking process.

A fun part of the exercise is deciding what spices to add, and you can really go to town on tailoring it to your tastes. I opted for chopped red chilli, ground cumin, freshly chopped coriander and nigella seeds. Hey, you want garlic? Crush it in!

Here’s another shot just before the lid was positioned, showing the toppings including raw red onion, chopped lettuce, sour cream and my home made tomato salsa. Don’t worry if some pieces topple over the side while building it – this is real food. The scrunching down of the brioche roll between your hands will hold everything in, as you go to take that first bite….

Getting hungry, yet?

Servings

This mixture made 6 burgers, each the size of a brioche bun.

Timings

If cooking the beans from raw, they need to soak overnight, then be boiled for around 45 mins before draining and cooling. You can save time on this by opening a can of beans instead. Otherwise, prepping the burger mixture and salsa takes about 20 mins, with another 20 mins to fry/keep warm.

You Will Need

For the bean burgers:

  • 400g cooked beans e.g. kidney beans, butterbeans
  • 100g wholemeal breadcrumbs
  • 1 egg
  • 2 red chillis, finely chopped
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • small bunch of coriander leaves, chopped
  • 1 tbsp nigella seeds

For the tomato salsa:

  • 4 – 5 ripe tomatoes, finely chopped
  • half a red onion, finely chopped
  • small bunch of coriander, chopped
  • 1 garlic clove, crushed
  • juice of half a lime
  • a splash of white wine vinegar

To serve:

  • 6 brioche buns
  • chopped lettuce
  • soured cream
  • chopped raw red onion

Method

  1. Mash the beans on a plate with a potato masher, and scrape into a bowl. Add in the breadcrumbs, egg and all the spices.
  2. Roll up your sleeves and get your hands in there, squidging the mixture between your fingers till it is all well combined.
  3. Pull out just enough of the mixture to make one burger, and flatten it down between the palms of your hands. Set aside on a tray. Repeat to make 6 burgers in all. Place the tray in the fridge to chill while you make the salsa.
  4. In a separate bowl, combine all the salsa ingredients and give them a stir. Set the bowl in the fridge.
  5. Switch on the oven to 140C. Fry each burger on the hob for 4 – 5 mins on each side, then transfer to a tray and place in the oven. This will keep the burgers warm until serving time, and also round off the cooking process, making them browned and crisped all over.
  6. Serve each burger in a toasted brioche roll, on a bed of chopped lettuce, and topped with a dollop of the salsa. Add raw chopped red onion and sour cream.

Customise It!

The sky really is the limit here. Add slices of avocado to the bed of chopped lettuce if you want. Top it off with your favourite cheese, grated, and slam it back in the warm oven for a few mins to melt, before adding the salsa. Engage imagination!

The next band to feature on the ADK Playlist has been around for over 20 years, and is finally enjoying some well-deserved public attention, following a collaboration with Taylor Swift. Two critically acclaimed albums released in 2023 have also helped their cause. Their sound reminds me of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, and Arcade Fire, so they are definitely worth a listen if you haven’t heard their stuff. Here’s a good one to start with, included on 2023’s Laugh Track. From Cincinnati, Ohio, this is The National (featuring Bon Iver), with Weird Goodbyes.

Categories
Recipes Sides

Scallion, Celeriac and Cucumber Slaw

Slaws are very useful dishes this time of year. They’re quick to throw together, and can be made well in advance of mealtime. They can be left to rest in the fridge, their flavours infusing while you take it easy enjoying the sun with an aperitif. Using fresh ingredients means minimal processing and little, if any, cooking.

I like experimenting with different combinations of raw ingredients. This is one I made recently, that delivers a good tasty crunch with sticks of celeriac, chopped scallions (or spring onions, from the garden) and roasted wholemeal croutons. The mayo and white wine vinegar dressing is spiced up with a little Dijon mustard and fresh dill. This is complemented with fine silky slivers of cucumber that bring some cool respite on the tongue.

Fancy giving it a go?

Servings

Served as a side salad alongside a main (such as a quiche) and other side salads, this will be enough for 4 adults.

Timings

10 – 15 mins to prepare.

You Will Need

  • half a cucumber
  • 1tbsp white wine vinegar
  • 3 scallions
  • 200g celeriac
  • 100g slices of wholemeal bread
  • a handful of fresh dill
  • some olive or rapeseed oil
  • 2 good tbsp mayonnaise
  • 1 tsp Dijon mustard
  • seasalt and ground black pepper

Method

  1. Cut the cucumber lengthwise into cylinder shapes about 10 – 12 cm long, and then cut each into quarters lengthwise. Scrape out and discard the soft, squishy middle. Then, using a veg peeler, shave each piece of cucumber into long, thin ribbons. Place into a serving bowl.
  2. Next, cut the rough, outer edges from the celeriac and discard. Cut the remaining flesh into matchstick size pieces about 3cm long. Add to the cucumber.
  3. Cut the scallions into pieces the same length as the celeriac sticks, and add to the bowl.
  4. Add the wine vinegar and chopped dill, giving it all a good stir to coat the salad ingredients.
  5. Mix the mayo and mustard and add to the bowl. Add a few twists of salt and pepper. Give it another good stir to combine, and then place in the fridge till mealtime.
  6. Finally, cut the slices of bread into cubes, drizzle with oil and roast, spread out on a tray for 5 mins at 180C. Allow to cool.
  7. Just before serving, take the salad from the fridge and arrange the wholemeal croutons on top. Then serve.

Customise it!

Try to keep to the 3 core ingredients but, beyond this, feel free to experiment e.g. cider vinegar if you prefer, or different fresh herbs to replace the dill. Melt parmesan over the croutons while roasting, or add garlic to the dressing. The possibilities are nearly endless!

Next track for the ADK Playlist is a very catchy tune that’s been playing this week in the ADK Kitchen. It will get your toes tapping as you chop those scallions and celeriac sticks. This is The Wiseguys with Ooh La La.

Categories
Bakes Mains Recipes

Kale & Sweet Potato Flan

Now here’s a dish to help tackle the cost of living crisis. Not only will it feed the family on a budget, but the bright, neon-like orange beaming from the roasted sweet potatoes will mean you can switch the lights off for the evening and bask in its glow.

Ok, maybe a slight exaggeration, but the bright, cheerful sunshine colours of this savoury, vegetarian flan, as shown in the photo, are for real.

Timings

40 mins to prepare, and another 40 mins to bake.

Servings

4 generous portions.

You Will Need

  • 225g plain flour
  • pinch of salt
  • 100g margarine or spread
  • 2 – 3 tbsp cold water
  • 3 – 4 sweet potatoes
  • oil
  • 1 leek
  • half a red pepper
  • 8 or 9 leaves of kale
  • 1 egg
  • splash of milk
  • salt and pepper

Method

  1. Warm the oven to 180C.
  2. Pierce the sweet potatoes with a fork and place in a metal dish. Chop the red pepper into pieces, drizzle with oil, and place alongside. Leave to roast in the oven for 30 mins.
  3. Chop the leek and place in a saucepan with a little oil, over a gentle heat. Leave to soften for around 10 – 15 mins.
  4. Steam the kale over a pan of boiling water for 10 mins.
  5. Prepare the pastry base by sieving the flour and salt into a food processor with blade fitted, then adding in the margarine or spread. Blitz till it resembles breadcrumbs. If you prefer, you can complete this stage with an electric mixer instead.
  6. Add in enough water to mix to a smooth dough, then tip out on to a lightly floured surface. Roll out to a size that fits the flan dish you will be using (mine shown is 22cm diameter).
  7. Grease and line the dish with a circle of baking paper, then place the pastry on top. Smooth out to the sides and trim any that is overhanging. Place in the fridge to chill for 10 mins.
  8. Scrunch up another piece of baking paper and then unroll it in the centre of the pastry dish. Fill with ceramic baking beans and place in the oven for 10 mins.
  9. While the pastry base is blind baking, you can combine the filling. Cut the roasted sweet potatoes down the middle and scrape out the soft orange flesh into a bowl. Mash it with a fork, still leaving a few lumps. Add in the roasted red pepper, and leave to cool slightly.
  10. Remove the pan of leek from the heat, and let cool slightly.
  11. Dry the steamed kale leaves between 2 slices of kitchen paper, then spread on a board and cut into shreds.
  12. For the final part of the filling, crack an egg into a jug. Add the splash of milk and season with salt and pepper.
  13. Take the pastry dish from the oven, removing the paper and baking beans. Spread the leek over the base, then top with the sweet potato and red pepper. Dot in the kale and, to finish, gently pour over the beaten egg/milk.
  14. Place back in the oven for 40 mins. Serve!

Customise it!

Stick with the combination of roasted sweet potato and steamed kale, but feel free to swap in other veg around this. I used roasted red pepper because I wanted to enhance the fiery sunshine appearance, but you could use green if you wish. Replace the leek with brown or red onion. Slices of celery would go well. Use your imagination, basically.

A few posts ago, I mentioned I was enjoying the most recent album from dance and electronica pioneers, Leftfield. Here’s another great track from it, which reminds me a little of Kraftwerk – City of Synths.

Categories
Bakes Recipes

Vegan Choc Cupcakes

As the egg shortage in our shops continues, so does my search for alternatives to the use of eggs in baking.

Today I’ve borrowed a great recipe for vegan vanilla cupcakes over on Tulsi’s Vegan Kitchen. Click on the link if you wish to see it – there is also a very helpful You Tube instruction video that I can recommend. Thank you, Tulsi!

So what takes the place of eggs in the recipe? Unsweetened almond milk, curdled with a tablespoon of vinegar (I used cider vinegar). I wondered if this would add sourness to the taste, but it absolutely doesn’t. It just replicates the use of buttermilk in baking, which adds taste and texture through its extra acidity.

The one development that I have made is to add 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder to the dry ingredients, turning mine into chocolate cupcakes, as you can see in my photo above. The mixture rises well and is very moist. An undoubted success!

This recipe, and the one in my previous post using avocado to give texture to a chocolate mousse, have certainly opened my eyes to the possibilities of egg-free baking.

In the music world this week, I’ve been enjoying exploring more of a certain band I’ve admired for some time. As well as listening to music while I cook, I also tune in with my ear pods while at the gym. I’ve discovered that this, the band’s most recent track, has the perfect beat and rhythm to work out to on the elliptical trainer (perfect for me, that is, coming in at 68-69 revolutions per minute). So once you’ve enjoyed the choc cupcakes, burn those calories and get the arms and legs pumping in sync with LCD Soundsystem – this is New Body Rhumba.

Categories
Desserts Recipes

Choc, Lime & Avocado Mousse

Avocados in a chocolate mousse? Surely not, I hear you say!

This week I have been researching egg-free dishes, as there is currently a shortage of eggs in our local shops here in the UK. Higher costs for farmers, and a cull of animals due to an outbreak of avian flu, are being given as the reasons for this. I understand this is also the case in some other parts of the world at the moment.

I’m seeing it as an opportunity to explore some recipes that don’t require eggs, so expect a little more of this over the next few posts. Here is the first – a rich, chocolatey mousse based on ripe avocado.

Servings

This will make 4 desserts.

Timings

10 mins to make, and then an hour chilling in the fridge before serving.

You Will Need

  • 2 large, ripe avocados
  • 3 tbsp cocoa powder
  • juice of 1 lime
  • 3 – 5 tbsp runny honey
  • 2 – 3 slices kiwi fruit, chopped into pieces
  • 0 eggs!

Method

  1. Chop the avocados in half and remove the stones. Scoop out the flesh into a food processor with blade fitted. Add in the cocoa, lime juice and honey and blitz to a smooth consistency.
  2. With a spatula, scrape the mousse into four pots for serving. I’ve used sherry glasses in the photo, but you could use ramekins or other small glasses if you wish. Top with the pieces of kiwi and place in the fridge to chill for 1 hour.
  3. Er, that’s it.

Customise It!

Cutting out the eggs is half way to making a vegan dessert, so why not go the whole way by replacing the honey with maple or agave syrup. You could also replace the kiwi with raspberries or cherries. Slices of banana, or chopped nuts, would be great also.

Turning to the ADK Playlist, I have still been buzzing this week after seeing Inspiral Carpets last weekend in London. It really was a great concert. Here is another of their tracks, this one reminding me of that memorable encore at the O2 Shepherds Bush Empire – Commercial Reign.

https://open.spotify.com/track/2ERdxKQ5IJo41PqpQA7VNP?si=3389712cf1034a9e
Categories
Blog

Falafel and Tahini Flatbread

One of the foods I have wanted to try, while in the Middle East, is falafels. I’m a fan, and was keen to see how they are prepared and cooked in this part of the world.

A spot of local research suggested an Egyptian Restaurant, the Khan Farouk Tarab Cafe was the place to visit. A hop on Doha’s excellent, state of the art metro, took us there. Having a number of impressive reviews, it certainly lived up to its reputation.

The restaurant is situated in the Katara Cultural Village part of Doha, another modern development impressive in size and quality, and which has clearly been built with a generous budget. It is the only place I can recall visiting where the streets are air conditioned from grilles in the pavements.

The restaurant specialised in Egyptian food. It was busy and doing a good trade, appearing to be popular with the local North African community. One of the upsides of Qatar’s policy of strict control of alcohol is that more restaurants and bars are family friendly, and this was certainly the case here.

I immediately liked the fact that there was a member of staff permanently stationed by a traditional clay oven, baking fresh flatbread that was then served to the tables warm.

It was inside one of these that my meal was served. The sliced falafel had a crunchy and golden coating, with a soft, green and spicy centre. It was mixed with crisp green salad and tahini dressing. Served with pickles, the whole sandwich was delicious (see main photo). Prices were reasonable once again – my meal cost 26 QAR which works out at under £6.

It’s been one of the pleasures of our time in Doha that we have been able to sample some genuine cuisine from across Africa, Asia and the Middle East, prepared and cooked by experts.

Today’s musical choice continues the Middle Eastern theme – here is Thief of Baghdad by The Teardrop Explodes.

Categories
Mains Recipes

Parmesan Kohlrabi Steaks

Kohlrabi is a great vegetable to cook with. It has a texture that’s been described as a cross between a turnip and a water chestnut, which sounds about right.

Quite often you will see it in recipes that treat it like the poor relation – consigned to the margins of a meal, as a side dish, or have it grated into a salad along with other ingredients.

I felt it deserved its place in the spotlight, so this dish sees it firmly centre stage (or should that be centre plate?) as the star attraction. The crisp, juicy and crunchy texture it retains when cooked makes it suitable as a main, especially for anyone on a vegetarian, vegan or plant-based diet. I hope you will find it lives up to its billing!

It is actually quite simple to make. Cut a large disc-shaped slice of the kohlrabi that is about 1 – 2cm in thickness from the widest point (the equator, if you know what I mean). Trim off the peel, then cut it into about 6 pieces. Go for irregular shapes – you want each steak to be individual and the whole dish not to look uniform. Also, work in a number of angles and corners – these will crisp and caramelise as they roast.

Briefly place the steaks in a shallow pan with a little oil. Fry each steak on both sides for about 2 – 3 mins, then transfer to a roasting dish and place in the oven, heated to 180C. Let them roast for 30 mins, flipping them over half-way through.

Remove the dish from the oven and grate 40g of parmesan cheese (or vegan alternative if desired) over the steaks. Place back in the oven for a further 10 mins and let the cheese melt. The steaks will be browning up nicely as the photo below shows (I couldn’t resist a sneak peek in the oven to see how they were doing).

When complete, remove and serve with your choice of accompaniment. In my main photo you can see that I served this with savoury rice and steamed carrots. I served 3 steaks in one serving, making this a meal for 2.

If you like, you can make more servings, or have it again on another occasion, as you will only have used a fraction of that beautiful kohlrabi.

This is an exciting weekend for me, as I am setting off on my travels, spending the next couple of months in Australia, with some time in the Middle-East en route. I’ll be blogging here and tweeting (@differentkitch) along the way, so do please follow me on my journey. I welcome any comments and suggestions on places to visit and eat, food and drink I should try. This lovely track about global travel – Ramblin’ Man from Lemon Jelly – seems particularly appropriate today!