Tag: vegetarian

Categories
Favourites Snacks & Sides

Sun-Dried Tomato & Basil Pesto

Looking for an easy way to make delicious pesto – tomato or basil? You are in the right place, follow along, and make it yourself!

Hi Everyone,

Welcome back to my blog!!

Today I am going to make a couple of delicious pestos: sun-dried tomato & basil pesto.

You can use these for various things as: pasta, spreads, dips, salads; and it keeps for about 5 days if properly stored (airtight container – refrigerated).

SUNDRIED TOMATO PESTO recipe

INGREDIENTS:
– 150g of sundried tomatoes (drained from oil)
– 50g of quinoa (cooked)
– 50ml of olive oil
– 50ml of water
– 1 tbsp of maple syrup
– 1 tbsp of lemon juice
– 1,5 tsp of salt
– 2 tsp of pepper
– a pinch of chili flakes
– a bunch of chives
– 5-6 garlic cloves (roasted)
– 25g of walnuts

PREPARATION:
Cook the quinoa in cold water, once up to boil, lower the heat, and cook for 15 minutes.
Roast the garlic cloves (skin on) in the oven for 18-22 minutes on 180°C (360°F) FAN option.
Drain the tomatoes from their oil – you can keep the oil for cooking or salads (great umami taste!).
Once the garlic is roasted, clean it and also drain, and then wash the quinoa in cold water.

Now, it’s time to blend it together, add all the ingredients except for the quinoa, and give it a good blend. Stop halfway to scrape the sides of the blender using a spatula.
At the very end, go ahead and add the cooked quinoa to the pesto, and give it just a quick blend!

One pesto down, one more to go 😉

BASIL PESTO recipe

INGREDIENTS:
– 4 cups of fresh basil
– 1-1,5 tsp of salt
– 1,5 tsp of pepper
– 3 tbsp of nutritional yeast
– 1/3 cup of olive oil
– 1 tbsp of lemon juice
– 50g of roasted pine nuts
– 2 cleaned garlic cloves

PREPARATION:
First, roast the pine nuts in a pan with NO oil!
Your next step is only to put all the ingredients into a blender and to nicely blend it all together!

Enjoy and don’t forget to check out the upcoming video this weekend, where we will be using these pestos to make a filling for homemade arancini.

Enjoy!

Cheers,

Vito

For a video tutorial, check the link below:

Categories
Lunch & Dinner

Noodles

Need to make lunch but have very little time?!? You are at the right place, check out our SUPER SIMPLE stir fry noodles recipe!!!

Hi Everyone,

Welcome back to my blog!

In this post I am keeping it very simple – stir fry noodles – for those busy days! It will take you no more than 20 minutes to prepare this yummy recipe filled with crispy vegetables.

INGREDIENTS:
– 200g of noodles (I used Ramen)
– 3 scallions
– 1 carrot
– 1/2 sweet pepper
– a handful of mange tout
– g of broccolini
– a few baby corns
– 1/3 of a pointed cabbage
– 2 tbsp of sesame oil
– 2 tbsp of soy sauce
– 2 tsp of salt

PREPARATION:
Go ahead and cut all the vegetables into strips/slices and cook the noodles. Now, preheat a stir fry pan on max and add 100ml of cooking oil and all the vegetables except the cabbage to it, add the salt, and saute for 2 minutes.
Add the noodles and cook for another minute – turn off the hob and add the cabbage to it, mix it and you are ready to serve it!

Enjoy!

Cheers,

Vito

For a video tutorial, check the link below:

Categories
Lunch & Dinner

Mixed Lentil Pie

Created with GIMP

Are you looking for a new Sunday lunch recipe for the whole family?? Bingo! Check out our new recipe that is packed with protein!!

Hi Everyone,

In this post, I am showing you how to make a mixed lentil pie, that everyone at your Sunday lunch table will love and is also packed with protein!

INGREDIENTS:
To start off, you will need the following vegetables:
– 2 medium-sized onions
– 3 medium-sized carrots
– 2 celery stick
– 1 sweet pepper
– 1 eggplant
– 8 medium-sized potatoes

The lentils that are used in the recipe (but you can do any lentils – approx. 300g):
– 70g of black beluga lentils
– 70g of lentils verts
– 70g of red lentils
– 70g of green lentils

The rest of the ingredients:
– 1 can of red kidney beans
– 1 can of chopped tomatoes
– 2,5 tsp of salt
– 2 tsp of pepper
– 2 tsp of chili flakes
– 2 tbsp of nutritional yeast
– 6 tbsp of milled chia seeds
– 1 tbsp of maple syrup

PREPARATION:
Go ahead and start cooking your lentils in cold water on low heat (once it starts boiling cook for another 15-20 minutes). Then, chop all the vegetables into smaller pieces, except the potatoes that have to be cut into thin slices.
Now you can heat up some oil in a pan (high heat) and add all the vegetables (not the potatoes) and saute them for 5-7 minutes and then add the rest of the ingredients (including lentils), stir it well, and cook on low heat for another 5 minutes.
Once the mixture is taken off the hob, spray some oil on the bottom of the baking tray and then put a layer of potatoes in – put some salt and oil on top and make your second layer, including a layer on the sides of the baking tray. Now it’s time to put the mixture in and then finish it off with the rest of the potatoes.
Preheat your oven to 180°C (360°F) on the fan option and bake it for 45-50 minutes.

You are ready to serve it, enjoy!

Vito

For a video tutorial, check the link below:

Categories
Lunch & Dinner

Vegetable Soup With Semolina Dumplings

Looking for a simple and delicious veg soup recipe?? You are at the right place! Check out our new recipe and make it for yourself!

Hi Everyone,

In this post I will show you how to make a super easy and healthy vegetable soup, that will be served with semolina dumplings.

INGREDIENTS:
– 2 medium-sized onions
– 3 medium-sized carrots
– 3 medium-sized parsnips
– 4 celery sticks
– 4 small potatoes
– 1 eggplant
– 2 vegetable stock cubes

PREPARATION:
To start off, chop all your vegetables: fine chop onion carrots, and the rest in cubes. Saute the onions and carrots for a few minutes on high heat and then add the rest of the vegetables to the pot – mix them up and top up with cold water.
Cook the soup on low heat for an hour and a half – add the vegetable stock cubes a few minutes prior to taking it off the hob.

In the meantime let’s prepare the semolina dumplings, the ingredients that you will need are:
– 100g of wheat semolina
– 1,5 tsp of egg replacer
– 1,5 tsp of salt
– 1,5 tsp of pepper
– 1,5 tbsp of nutritional yeast
– 1 tbsp of olive oil

Wisk the egg replacer in a bowl with 3,5 tbsp of water, and after that add the rest of the ingredients and make a dough out of it. Once done, make little dumplings and then cook them in water for 45 minutes.

When your soup is cooked, separate in another pot 1/3 of it and add into the 1/3 of soup the following ingredients:
– 1,5 tsp of salt
– 1,5 tsp of pepper
– 1,5 tbsp of olive oil
– 1,5 tbsp of vegan butter

Now go ahead and blend it – serve it with the dumplings and some fresh parsley & soy cream (this serves 3).

I usually freeze the rest of the soup for another day 🙂

Enjoy!

Vito

For a video tutorial, check the link below:

Categories
Lunch & Dinner

Seitan – Sweet & Spicy Glaze

Always wanted to make Roasted Seitan??? You are in the right place, as this is a great easy to follow the recipe and you will love it!

Hi Everyone,

In this post I am showing you how to make Roasted Seitan with Sweet and Spicy glazing – It can be eaten hot as part of the main course or cold as part of a sandwich – and both options are phenomenal!

To start off you will need to make a dry mixture so place the following ingredients into a bowl:
– 300g of vital gluten
– 250g of Gram (chickpea) flour
– 1,5 tbsp of garlic & 1,5 tbsp of onion powder
– 3 tbsp of nutritional yeast
– 1,5 tbsp of dried paprika
– 1 tbsp of cajun seasoning
– 1 tsp of cayenne pepper
– 2,5 tsp of salt

Mix all the ingredients together and start preparing the liquid component – place the following ingredients into a jug:
– 1,5 vegetable stock cube
– 2 tsp of soy sauce
– 3 tbsp of maple syrup

Top it up with a pint of hot water and mix it together and then add it to the dry mixture.
Knead the dough until it all combines nicely.

Now you will need another liquid component where the Seitan will be roasting in, which will eventually become a glaze once it thickens up.
The ingredients are as follow:
– 1,5 vegetable stock cube
– 1 tbsp of dried paprika & 1 tbsp of chili flakes
– 2 tsp of pepper
– 2 tbsp of brown sugar
– 3 tbsp of maple syrup
– a bunch of fresh thyme

Top it up again with a pint of hot water and mix together (that should be enough liquid to cover about half of the seitan).
Pour it into a baking tray and then shape the seitan into a few pieces and put them into the liquid.

Bake it in the oven for 45-55 minutes at 200°C (390°F) while turning the seitan over every 15 minutes – once the liquid reduces, brush the seitan over with the remaining liquid.

Cut it and serve it – Enjoy!

Vito

For a video tutorial, check the link below:

Categories
Lunch & Dinner

Jackfruit ”Tuna” Salad

Are you craving a tuna salad while being vegan? It can still be done, and you will need jackfruit! Check out and make it yourself!

Hi Everyone,

In this post, I will show you how to make a great jackfruit ‘tuna’ salad that is done in only 15 minutes! I’ve been using homemade vegan mayonnaise. You can check the recipe on my Webpage or on my YouTube channel.

INGREDIENTS:
– a can of young jackfruit
– 1 tsp of salt & 2 tsp of seaweed
– 1 tsp of pepper
– 1,5 tsp of mustard
– 1 tbsp of vegan butter
– 2 tbsp of vegan cream cheese (I used Violife)
– 4 tbsp of vegan mayonnaise
– 1 celery stick
– 2-3 pickled gherkins
– 80g of sweetcorn (half of a small can)

PREPARATION:

To start off, get the jackfruit ready for your salad – take out the pits and separate it (the same way as when making pulled jackfruit).

Now mix up the following: Mayo, cream cheese, butter, mustard, salt, pepper, and seaweed – mix it all well together and add it to the jackfruit.

Now fine chop the celery & gherkins, and add them together with the sweetcorn to the jackfruit – mix it all well together!

Chill the salad in the fridge and you are ready to serve!

Enjoy!

Vito

For a video tutorial, check the link below:

Categories
Lunch & Dinner

Vegan Bolognese

Ever wondered how to make delicious bolognese since transitioning to a vegan diet? You are at the right place, check out our post.

Hi Everyone,

In this post, I am showing you how to make vegan bolognese, and it can be done in about 25 minutes, so is great as a quick lunch option and you can also freeze it for those busy days!

INGREDIENTS:
– 2 small onions
– 3 small carrots
– 1 eggplant
– 70g of red lentils
– 100g of soy mince
– 2 tsp of salt
– 2 tsp of pepper
– 1 tbsp of mixed herbs (or use fresh thyme, parsley, and basil)
– 1/2 tbsp of brown sugar
– 1,5 tbsp of nutritional yeast
– 1 tbsp of olive oil
– 6 tbsp of tomato paste

PREPARATION:

Start off with the red lentils – cook them on medium heat and once the water starts boiling, cook for about 8 minutes, so you don’t overcook them!
Soak the soy mince in water for 5 minutes and then try to squeeze as much water as possible out of it – otherwise, it becomes mushy – and you don’t want that with your bolognese 🙂
Now you can go over to the vegetables – finely cut the onions and carrots, and cut the eggplant into smaller cubes – now you can saute them for about 7-8 minutes on high heat.
Lower the heat on the vegetables and add your lentils and soy mince to in and mix it all well together.
And then add all the seasonings with a cup of water – and let it simmer for another couple of minutes!

You are ready to serve it, Enjoy!!

Serve it with pasta the original way, or make squash spaghetti (but it tastes great with rice as well).

Vito

For a video tutorial, check the link below:

Categories
Lunch & Dinner

Sauerkraut Rolls

Hi Everyone, it’s nice to have you back!

Today I am showing you how to make a famous Balkan recipe, known as the Sauerkraut roll – but in a meatless way!

It will take about an hour and a half to prepare this dish and there is some work behind it – but it’s more than worth it as you can freeze them for those busy days for a quick lunch. This is usually served with mashed potatoes.

INGREDIENTS:
– 2 medium-sized carrots
– 2 medium-sized onions
– 2 tsp of pepper
– 2x 3 tsp of salt
– 2 tsp of dried paprika
– 1 tsp of chili flakes (knock yourself out if you like it spicier)
– 3 tbsp of tomato paste
– 4 Bay leaves
– 1/2 cup of green lentils
– 1/2 cup of rice
– 1/2 cup of buckwheat
– 50g of vital gluten (gluten flour) – but you can use another binder as pea protein instead
– 1 cup of passata
– and the queen of the day 1 whole Sauerkraut!

In case you can’t find a Sour cabbage, you can always do it with bell peppers.

PREPARATION:
You can start off with washing and cooking your grains in some salt – once you bring it up to boiling lower down the heat and cook for another 10 minutes.
Now you can chop the carrots and onions into small pieces. Heat up a pan and saute them for a few minutes. Place it into a bowl – the grains should be cooked by now, so drain them and add them to the bowl and give it a good stir.
The next step is to add the following ingredients: salt, pepper, dried paprika, chili, and tomato paste and mix it all together – the final step for the filling is to add the gluten flour.
Once done, start working on your Sour cabbage by carefully pealing of the leaves – don’t worry if you break some, just give them a wash and chop them up (they will be used).
Now, cut the hard stems from the middle of the leaves (if the leaves are bigger, you can cut them into half).
It’s rolling time!! This is the tricky part: take a leaf in your hand and take some filling on the upper edge of the leaf – fold the edges and start rolling – once rolled secure them by tucking in the sides with your thumb (this is tricky and don’t expect that they will all look perfect 🙂
Take a big pot and first place all the cut Sauerkraut on the bottom, follow with the cup of passata and salt and then start placing the rolls (but it’s important to squeeze them together as much as possible, so they don’t fall apart during cooking) – top it up with water, just that you cover all the rolls!
Put a lid on top and cook on medium heat for about 45 minutes.

In case you are doing this recipe with bell peppers, cut out the stem and fill them and then put them in a pot facing up!

You are ready to serve it, Enjoy!!

Vito

For a video tutorial, check the link below:

Categories
Lunch & Dinner

Vegan Mince – 3 Layered Pie

Today we are doing a nice 3 layer vegan oven-baked dish that consists of a soy mince and veg layer, followed by some ‘cheesiness’ (who doesn’t like that?! 🙂 and finished off with mash potato. Not to forget a sprinkle of breadcrumbs that will create a crunchy crust.#

INGREDIENTS:
– 1 zucchini
– 1/2 eggplant
– 2 medium carrots
– 1 sweet pepper
– 1 leek
– vegan butter
– vegan cheese
– 1 tbsp brown sugar (or just use regular)
– 3 tsp salt
– 2 tsp pepper
– 1 tsp chili flakes (or as spicy as you like it 🙂
– 2 tsp mixed herbs
– 1/3 cup breadcrumbs
– 50g red lentils
– 50g soya mince
– 1 cup passata

PREPARATION:

To start off, did you wash your hands?!? 🙂
Begin with washing your lentils and put them in a pot of cold water with some salt and start cooking them (this will take about 15 minutes).
The next step is to chop your vegetables into small cubes, once that is done, it will probably be time to rinse of those cooked lentils under some cold water.
Afterward, start prepping your sauce by adding your ingredients (salt, pepper, chili, sugar, and herbs) into the passata and mix it all together (for some more flavor, you can always add some olive oil).
Now, preheat your pan and start frying the vegetables (put some salt to take out the water more easily out of them), meanwhile wash of the soya mince. You will also have enough time to cut your leek into rings, once cut, separate them so you can wash it more easily.
It’s time to get back to your veg and add the sauce and a cup of water – cook for about 5 minutes. Afterward, add your lentils and soya mince to the pan and stir it all together. In a few minutes it will all thicken up, but if it is still not up to your satisfaction, add 2 tbsp of milled chia seeds that will for sure do the job!
Before taking it off the stove add the leek and mix it once more.
Now, preheat your oven on a 180°C (360°F) on the FAN option.
At last, take a baking tray and start putting your mince as the first layer, followed by cheese and then mash potato. On the mashed potatoes spread some butter and then sprinkle the bread crumbs on top.
After 15 minutes of baking, it’s time for why we are all here – to serve it and enjoy (or just straight out of the tray, that’s all up to you 😉

Enjoy!!

Vito

For a video tutorial, check the link below:

Categories
Snacks & Sides

Vegan Mashed Potatoes

Who said you can’t make delicious and plant-based mashed potatoes, well they were wrong! All you need is my secret ingredient…..

This VEGAN mash potato is a real favorite even among my non-veggie friends, so don’t miss on trying this one yourself!!

INGREDIENTS:

– 5 medium-sized potatoes

– 2x 2 tsp salt

– 2 tsp pepper

– 50g cashews

– 2 tbsp coconut oil

And my secret ingredient is….. homemade CASHEW MILK!

You will also need a hand-held blender to make your cashew milk.

PREPARATION:

How to make it: Peel and cut your potatoes into cubes and top them up with cold water and add 2 tsp of salt to it. Once you bring it up to boil, lower down the heat and let it cook for 8-10 minutes (this all depends on the types of potatoes). In the meantime, soak the cashews into warm water for about 10 minutes, you will just have enough time for that while your potatoes finish with cooking. Once you drain your cooked potatoes, blend your cashews in some fresh warm water for a minute, until you get a smooth compound. Now it is time to do your last steps, add salt, pepper, coconut oil, and your cashew milk to the potatoes and start mashing (may the force be with you on this one)!!

A quick tip: if you want your mash a bit more creamy, you can always add a bit of soy milk, or make more cashew milk (it’s important that it suits your taste buds).

Thank you for reading.

Vito

 

For a video tutorial, check the link below: