This one of my favourite “store cupboard ” favourites. My Dahl moves from the tradional to include a mix of pulses (mainly because when I made it I didn’t have enough of just one ..but luckily it turned out great). I also added sweet potato for added sweetness and another burst of colour.
I love this as a comfort food when it’s cold and dark out. This is more of a warming blend of spices , but if you wanted to add chill for a kick it would work great here to. This recipe makes a fair amount of dahl , but don’t worry it freezes really well!

The split peas I always recommending soaking over night before hand. If not it will add a fair bit of time on the cooking !

Dahl Recipe :
1 cup of split peas (soaked over night )
3/4 cup red lentils
2 tbs Oil of your choice
1 Onion diced
1 inch of Ginger finely chopped
3 cloves of Garlic finely chopped
3tsp Turmeric
1tsp ground Cardamom
Salt
5 cups Vegetable stock  (you may need a little more if it gets dry)
1 Sweet Potato peeled and chopped
1/2 cup Raisins or Currants

Start by sautéing the Onion in the oil on a medium temperature. The idea is to make them soft as opposed to cooking them until browned. Once they’re getting soft , add the Garlic, Ginger and Turmeric  , mix this in making sure the garlic doesn’t burn.
At this point add the Split peas, Red Lentils and Sweet Potato. Give everything a coat in the now yellow oil and then add your Vegetable Stock. At this point I sprinkle in the cardamom and salt.
Give everything a good stir and make sure nothing is stuck on the bottom of the pan. Pop the Raisins in at this stage.
Bring this to a boil then reduce to a simmer. Keep giving it a stir every now and again for about 45 mins or until the split please are tender but still holding shape.

While the Dalh cooks , you can make the Wedges.  You can multiply this up easily if you want more wedges.

Optional toppings :
Corriander leaves (Cilantro)
Toasted Cashews
Toasted Pumkin seeds

Recipe :
2 Potatoes
Tbs Oil
1/2 Tsp ground Ginger
1 Tsp Paprika
1/2 Tsp Salt
1/2 Tsp Cumin

Chop potatoes into wedges , and coat with Oil. Sprinkle with spices and toss to coat.
Pop into a preheated 400° oven for 30 mins.

Ok, Turmeric is magical. This bright yellow little concoction has anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antitumour,  antibacterial, and antiviral properties ! Quite the little powerhouse of goodness!  Above all of these things I jusy can’t help but fall in love with its beautiful yellow hue! Naturally very bright and very strong (on that not be careful with it it will stain ) this glorious little ray of sunshine in spice form can transform almost anything!

I am obssesed with love Cauliflower There are a million things you can do with it , boiled Cauli, baked Cauli , steaked Cauli, Cauli pizza base , Cauli rice , Cauli tots, Cauli Tabbouhel, Cauliflower cheese  the list goes on and on .  Sorry. Turned into the Bubba Blue of Cauliflower. But you get my point. Today I wanted it whole and impressive , and roasted. Here’s what I did :

Turn oven to 375 °

Recipe :
For the Turmeric Rub:
2 tbs Shoyu (you can use soy I’d that’s what you prefer )
2 tbs Maple syrup
1tsp Oil of your choice ( I use Avacado)
1/2 tsp Mustard powder
1/2 tsp ground Ginger

1 Medium Cauliflower.

Mix this up into a thin paste. And rub it into the raw Cauliflower. I suggest gloves cos this baby will stain your hands ….

Once Cauli flower is coated, (the colour will look a little dark at this point but don’t worry it will be sunshiney yellow when it’s roasted )pop it in to a roasting dish that you have lined with a little foil , if anything that drips off the Cauli may burn onto your pan so this just makes it easier to clean. Into the oven it goes for about 45 mins to an hour. If it starts getting too dark on the outside but isn’t tender through , feel free to put water into the tray , the steam will speed things up a bit.

While that’s roasting in the oven. You can make the lentil salad.

1 cup lentils cooked to packet instructions (if boiling your own I highly recommend boiling them in vegetable stock for flavour, add a clove of garlic too .

Once the lentils have cooked , reserve a little of the stock they boiled in to help with our dressing.

Dressing :
1/4 cup of Lentil stock liquid
2 tbs Tahini
Salt
1cm piece of fresh Ginger grated.

To Decorate :
Raisins and Pumkin seeds.

Stir the Tahini into the warm stock, it will look a little funny at first but should thin out properly with a good whisk. Add Salt and Ginger to taste.

I used Ginger here as its from the same Family as Turmeric, and they complement each other very well in alot of dishes.

Drizzle the dressing through the cooked Lentils and top with Raisins and Pumpkin seeds.

Your Cauliflower is done when it’s tender through the florets !

This dish is quite versatile. It can be served hot. But room temperature the next day is also great for Lunchboxes !

These little bites proved a little too addictive  ! These work well with a Cheese plate. I’d recently received a Plant based “goats cheese” as a gift and was looking for something to showcase it on. Crackers just didn’t have the same appeal. The idea of a scone was pretty simple , and a mini one to keep it light seemed like plan ….Besides I love anything in miniature **swoon** !! Soo I was thinking of flavors that would work and I had thought about my favourite stuffing. It  is always Leek and Sage , as it’s pretty classic in England. With plenty of Sage growing in the Garden it was crying out to be used !  Plus I find the smell of Sage strangely enchanting … but less of my weird fetishes and back to the food.

So here we have it !!

225g of Spelt Flour (2 cups ) any all purpose flour will work too.

2 tsp baking power

1/2 tsp Salt

55g  ( 1/2 stick) of EarthBalance(vegan)
or Cold butter.

150ml (2/3 cup) Milk of your choice – I used Almond.

1tsp dried garlic

1 bunch of Sage finely chopped

1/2 a Red Onion quite finely chopped

Pre heat the oven to 400°.

Put Flour , Baking powder and salt into a bowl. Add the Earth balance or Butter and use your hands to break the butter/spread  so it’s dispersed evenly and the mixture looks like bread crumbs.
Then add in the Garlic , Sage and Onion.
Then gently add the milk bit by bit until it’s incorporated. Try not to over mix or the scones will be heavy. If the mixture is a little sticky make sure to flour your work surface well.

At this point you can shape them however you would like. I just made a large rectangle and cut them into even squares. As long as they are the same size too cook evenly you have free reign to do what you like !

If you want a very golden top brush with a like milk or egg. But that step is optional.

Pop them into the hot oven for about 12 mins but keep a close eye on them !

These were lovely Warm but we still happily being munched at room temperature too!

Sooo. This year we went for a healthier centerpiece to our Holiday table! It was a move I wasn’t too sure would go down too well with the family , but I was so pleased it was a big hit ! Growing up in the Uk Pumpkins were only ever a big deal when it came to Halloween. You carved them and that was that. Poor little unloved Pumpkins. After my move Stateside I learned just how beautiful and versitile these babies really are. And a whole new kind of love was born!
Along the way I was also taught that Pumkins are also high in vitimans A and C aswell as being a good source of beta carotene too, so who can argue with that?? I heart Pumkins….

So obviously with my new found obsession , Pumpkins were the first thing in my mind when my plant based Thanksgiving was penned .. so here’s what I did:

I choose a medium sized pumpkin. It was one of the little “pie pumpkins”. But have done similar things with very small pumkins too!

Cuteness overload….

So in keeping with the Thankgiving theme , my centerpiece had to be spectacular. I just had no clue what to fill it with. …

So I went with everything that looked pretty at the Farmers Market. Sound plan right ??

For the Pumpkin:
1 Medium Pie Pumpkin
Oil of choice for roasting. (I use Avacado)

The stuffing is as follows :

2 cups of your preferred grain or seed cooked. Some good choices are , Rice , Millet , Quinoa or Barley.
Then :
1 Carrot
1 Beetroot
1 Red onion
2 Portabello Mushrooms
A big bunch of Sage leaves
2 tbs Tahini
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 cup of Dried Cranberries
1/2 cup of roughly chopped pecans.
Spalsh of your preferred milk or cream. I used Almond milk.
Oil of choice (I used avacado )
Optional : Honey

To Decorate : Grapes , Pumpkin seeds and fresh Sage leaves.

Put the oven onto 375°.
Then cook your grain or seed. Whils that’s cooking hollow the Pumpkin (seeds can be roasted later if you’d like ). Make sure to keep its little “lid”. Once the pumpkin is nice and empty give the inside a rub with your oil. Then pop that beauty in the oven ok a tray “lidless” to give it a head start on roasting. My pumkin took about an hour and a half total for the flesh to be nice and tender.

Right. Next onto the stuffing ! Chop the Carrot , beetroot and Red Onion into similar sizes. Chuck them in a sauté pan with a good glug of your oil. I prefer Avacado so I know it’s safe at high temperatures. Let everything cook for a few minutes until some colour is on the veg. Then add in your diced Portabello and garlic too. Once everything seems happy and is not quite fully cooked , add in you grain or seed that previously prepared.
Give everything a big stir and add in thr chopped sage , Cranberries and Pecans. Remember to season with salt and pepper too. Check for herbs and add a little more if necessary. Drizzle the Tahini over and add enough of your milk or cream to stop everything from getting too dry. (A little drizzle of Honey or a sweetner can be good here too just to enhance the sweetness of the root veggies).

Now that you have everything prep’d make sure the Pumpkin has had a good 45 minutes head start roasting.

Then … the fun bit !
Be very careful lifting the Pumpkin out and stuffing it , it’s going to be hot ! Then (using a large spoon is best) stuff away merrily!!

Pop the stuffed pumpkin back in the oven , complete with lid for another 45 minutes.

I recommend when the Pumpkin cooked you give it a little resting time to cool before carving.

At this point I popped it’s little lid off and topped with some chopped grapes amd pumpkin seeds for a fresh burst of colour and flavor.

This will definetly be on my holiday table again!!

This is definetly on my list of must have winter foods. A favourite of my best friend too! I have a complete love affair with Harissa hot, sweet and spicy. It’s my little jar of culinary heaven.

Recipe :
Two large Sweet potatoes (or three medium)
2/3 of a cup of Red Lentils
A clove of garlic
1-2tbs Honey
1-2 tsp Harissa paste.

Makes about 6 servings.

Peel and chop the potatoes , add into a pan with enough water to cover by about an inch (you may need a little more a little later if it gets too dry ) add the lentils and the clove of garlic. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer until the lentils have all but dissolved and the potato is falling apart.
At this point remove the garlic clove. Then add everything to a bender , it will already be quite “soupy” but this helps make it nice and smooth !
Add honey and Harissa to taste , with a big sprinkle of salt to pull everything together.

I garnish this with toasted Pumpkin seeds and fresh Parsley.

Enjoy !

Who said you shouldn’t eat Pizza for breakfast? Who are they and what do they know ?

This beautiful little number is a perfect way to brighten up a morning and send you off into the world with a skip in your step. I know. I’m waaayy to cheesey … but you have to admit it’s pretty right?

Not too much of a recipe per say, just a nice round of watermelon adorned with your favorite fruits and herbs. This particular concoction showcased and incredibly majestic looking dragonfruit ! I had aquired it from my local Farmers Market and was pleasantly suprised to discover it’s magenta hue when I cut into it. Just perfect….Sorry I digress.
This baby was loaded with said Dragon fruit , Mango, Blackberries , Blueberries and a lovely mix of fresh Mint and Basil.
Nothing crazy, just simply celebrating fresh fruit at its finest.

So, I have a problem . Admitting it is the first step right ? I adore all things plant related. It’s time to take my love to the next level. We’re going public baby.

 

Hope you enjoy the fruits of my labour as much as I do !