Tuesday 30 October 2012

Chickpea and Spinach Curry

Every week we have a curry night at home and because chick peas are so cheap and full of protein, they make for great curry ingredients! This is a particularly tasty chick pea curry recipe.

Serves: 4      Prep time: 10 mins    Cook time: 45 mins

Ingredients:

1tbsp vegetable oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2cm root ginger, chopped
3 tbsp tikka masala paste (you can use any paste you like according to flavours you want!)
400g can chopped tomatoes
100g red split lentils
250g spinach
400g can chick peas
4 tbsp plain soya yogurt (if want it to be slightly milder)

Directions:

1. Heat the oil in a large pan over a medium-high heat. Add the onion, garlic and ginger. Stir occasionally for 3-5 minutes until soft.
2. Add chosen curry paste to pan and cook for 3-4 minutes (can add splash of water if worried about spices burning!)
3. Add tomatoes, lentils and 300ml water and allow to simmer for 30mins.
4. Stir in handfuls of spinach and allow to wilt.
5. Add chick peas and yogurt if you wish.



Serve with rice/ quinoa/ yogurt and coriander/ poppadoms...

Have a great curry night!


Tasty Treacle Tart

There is something so comforting about pastry-anything when the weather outside is windy and cold! Firstly, my thoughts are with anyone affected by Hurricane 'Sandy'. I have been closely watching the news and have heard NYC might be without power for up to a week. Stay safe everyone-remember day to day jobs can wait, your safety is the most important right now!

We had a pastry party the other day and a messy kitchen and treacle tart were the outcomes! This recipe only requires four ingredients and, whilst it is not the healthiest, it is very tasty and a lovely treat for these coming chilly months!



Serves: 4      Prep time: 10 minutes      Cooking time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

100g pastry (you could either make your own or buy some but make sure to read the labels very carefully to check for all-vegan ingredients...in England Be-Ro Short Pastry is vegan)
100g golden syrup
25g Soft white breadcrumbs
1/2 lemon (grated- to create rind-and juiced)

Directions:

1.Warm the syrup
2. Mix the syrup with the breadcrumbs, lemon juice and rind.
3. Line mini flan/quiche cases with your pastry.
4. Pour the mixture into the pastry lined flan case & decorate top with spare pastry trimmings if you have leftovers!

Bake for 20 mins at 200C, gas mark 6



Then enjoy! Best served warm with a scoop of vegan ice cream.


Friday 26 October 2012

A taste of autumn...

Vegan pumpkin scones, glazed & decorated. A little bit of my English routes mixed with my love for the oh-so-American halloween festivities.


Relatively quick, pretty simple, very tasty.


Ingredients

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup whole grain spelt flour
  • 1 tbsp. baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp. sea salt
  • 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
  • 1/4 tsp. ground ginger
  • 3 tbsp sugar
  • 8 tbsp. dairy-free butter
  • 1/2 cup pureed pumpkin (tastiest fresh but can be canned)
  • 3 tbsp. almond milk (other dairy-free milks will work if there is a nut allergy)
  • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 1 flax egg (1 tbsp. ground flax + 4 tbsp water)

  • Glaze (flavour as desired, a simple melted chocolate glaze would be lovely but I used a variation of spices):
  • 125g icing sugar
  • 3 tbsp. almond milk
  • 1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice (or 1/4 tsp. cinnamon/ginger/nutmeg- I used this version and it was fab!)



Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 425F and line a baking sheet with non-stick parchment.
  2. In a small bowl mix the flax egg and set aside.
  3. In a large bowl mix the dry ingredients (flours, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger).
  4. Mix the cold dairy-free butter butter into dry ingredients until crumbly.
  5. In another bowl, mix the pumpkin, flax egg, and almond milk.
  6. Add wet to dry ingredients and mix until a ball forms (easiest done with your hands!)
  7. On a flour surface place the ball of dough and kneed a few times with your hands.
  8. Use a rolling pin to roll out dough and then cut into 8 triangles (like pizza!).
  9. Bake for approx 15 minutes (will differ from oven to oven).
  10. Allow to cool for 10-15 minutes.
  11. While cooling, make your glaze by mixing 1 cup icing sugar with milk and choice spices/flavouring until smooth.
  12. When scones are cool, decorate with glaze and any other toppings (I used roasted pumpkin seeds & chocolate chips as final touches!)



These were really delicious and my harshest critic (fussy little brother) even enjoyed them. They are easily adapted to taste and can be made sweeter/ spicier/ more savoury or chocolatey with little trouble.



The leaves are floating off the trees, the hedgehogs snuggling up. Hot chocolates are brewing and warm fires are smoking. The children are getting ready to brave the spooks of October 31st. Autumn is upon us, my favourite season. So grab a blanket, a piping hot drink & a tasty pumpkin scone; enjoy the season, it's a good one :)

Happy Halloween!

L xo



{Recipe adapted from the wonderful 'Oh She Glows' blog, do please go and check out her fab recipes.}