Lentil & 3 C's Stew

Here's a nice easy meal that is great in winter because it's so warm and soothing and full of veggies. It is great by itself, but also pairs well with brown rice or couscous or baked potatoes or even freshly baked bread.
We make it in a pressure cooker, as it's super quick & easy. We have the ability to saute first in our pressure cooker which is a feature I love, as I really prefer the taste of sauteed onions over just having them cooked in the stew without being sauteed first. However, if you don't have a pressure cooker you can make it over a stove top -  it will just take longer and may require more water.
This has become a favourite in our home, especially at the end of the week when we have quite a few bits and pieces of veggies leftover and want to use them all up before we buy our fresh lot for the next week. My husband refers to this meal as "pressure cooker lentils" - just stating things like they are ;-)
It works with any different herbs you wish to use, depending on what flavours you'd like to add to your stew. We also occasionally use a drop of liquid smoke which adds a lovely depth to the stew. The options are truly endless. :-) 

LENTIL & 3 C's STEW

(Makes 6-8 servings)

You'll need:
2 cups dried green lentils
1 onion
4 cloves garlic
1/4 head cabbage 
2 carrots

2 stalks celery
1 zucchini
1/2 bunch silverbeet 
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 Tablespoon lemon juice 
1 litre veggie stock
1/2 litre water
1 teaspoon fresh rosemany

Chop all the veggies. 
Saute the onion and garlic. Add the remaining veggies to either a pressure cooker or stove top. 
If using a pressure cooker, add remaining ingredients and cook under pressure for 18 minutes. Release steam and serve. (You can use baby spinach in place of the silverbeet, add after steam has been released and stir through until wilted.)
For stove top, add the stock, water and lemon juice and cook for 30-35 minutes until lentils are cooked through and veggies are tender, adding more liquid if required. Then stir through the nutritional yeast, tomato paste, and rosemary.

Question of the day:
Do you have a winter comfort food? If so, what is it?

"Sausage-less" Rolls

Life has been very busy for me lately - this is reflected in my lack of posts! 
I hope to be more motivated soon and share all the drafts that I have lined up waiting to be published. 

These "sausage" rolls were inspiration enough to get me started back at it again. They are super easy to make and they are very delicious. 

"SAUSAGE-LESS" ROLLS

To make 4 rolls you'll need:

2 tins lentils

1 Tablespoon each: nutritional yeast, onion flakes, soy sauce

1/2 teaspoon each: ground garlic, sage powder, liquid smoke and molasses

8 sheets filo pastry

Drain the lentils and combine them in a bowl with all the other ingredients except for the pastry.

Mash until the lentils have crumbled and the mixture resembles mince. 

Place a quarter of the mixture onto the side-middle of 2 sheets of filo pastry. 

Fold the side of the filo pastry in, then fold the edges up and roll until you reach the end of the pastry.

Repeat for the other 3 rolls.

Place on a lined baking tray and brush the tops with soymilk.

Bake in a 180C oven for 20 minutes until golden brown.

Best served while still hot from the oven.

In My Kitchen November: Polenta Crusted Adzuki bean & Vegetable Loaf

This month In My Kitchen I'm sharing a few newish gadgets that bring me much delight, and a recipe I've created using them. 

Let me introduce to you my new Tupperware gadget - 

Extra Chef

I debated long & hard about if I should get one of these as they are a little pricey. In the end, I have decided it has been so so worth the money! It is incredibly versatile, works just as well as my electric food processor and yet runs just on my arm strength!!!! ;-) Gotta love anything that is environmentally friendly and helps with jiggly arm syndrome!
It has a great capacity, but at the same time doesn't take up much cupboard space (considerable less space than a traditional food processor). It is incredibly easy to clean and all the attachments store inside the compartment itself.
I use it for so many things, but it especially comes in handy for when I want to add vegetables to dishes where I don't want them to be chunky.

Let me also introduce to you my new electrical gadget - 

Digital Pressure cooker

I never had much luck with the stove top pressure cooker that I had - so I offloaded it and waited for a good special on an electric one. I was over the moon when Target had a massive homewares clearance and this was less than half price. I quickly informed my husband that it was to be part of my birthday present! Thankfully, he took the hint!!!!

I am REALLY REALLY happy with it's pressure cooking ability. Not only for making legumes from dried instead of relying on canned ones, but also for making soups, stews, as well as cooking rice and other grains.
I LOVE the saute function, as it means I can toss in my onions and garlic and saute them in the same pot before adding other ingredients, saying on washing up. 
The non-stick coating is fantastic meaning I can saute without using oil, and also the insert goes into the dishwasher - a MUST for all our cooking gadgets as I hate washing up!!!!
It is *meant* to be multi-function meaning it can slow cook also, however after several trys with the slow cook feature on maximum length I have been disappointed to find the meal virtually uncooked. So, alas I haven't as yet been able to offload my other slow cooker as I was hoping to with a multi-purpose machine. Though, I find that with this machine I have no real use for a slow cooker as I can pop this on anytime and the keep warm function works amazing. Also everything that I previously would of done in the slow cooker has worked fantastically well being pressure cooked.


And now let me show you a recipe I made using both of these new gadgets:

POLENTA CRUSTED ADZUKI BEAN 
AND VEGETABLE LOAF 

Loaf:
1 onion
3 garlic cloves
1 carrot
1/2 head broccoli
2 celery stalks
1/2 capsicum
2 cups cooked adzuki beans
1 teaspoon each: dried oregano, cumin, turmeric, paprika
1/2 cup tomato paste
Topping:
2 Tablespoons nutritional yeast
1/3 cup polenta
1/3 cup panko breadcrumbs (regular breadcrumbs work fine however I particularly like the added crispiness that panko crumbs provide)


Place all the vegetables roughly chopped into a chopper, or food processor.

Process until all ingredients are finely chopped. (You can do this by hand if you would rather, for the best outcome you need all ingredients very finely chopped.)

In a large bowl, lightly mash the adzuki beans (I used the back of a spoon, depending on how soft your beans are you may need a proper masher) and stir in all the herbs and the tomato paste. 

Add the vegetables to the bowl and stir until well combined.
Press the mixture into a large baking dish (I used a 30cm x 20cm). Press down well.

In a smaller bowl combine the ingredients for the topping/crust. Press the crust over the bean mixture and gently press down. (For a gluten free version replace the breadcrumbs with more polenta.)

Bake in a preheated oven for 35-40minutes until golden brown on top.

Slice and serve.

Delicious with roasted potatoes (as I had but somehow managed to delete the picture)!
My hubby and daughter love this in a burger!

(Note: I have made this several times and I usually include frozen spinach that has been defrosted prior to adding it to the vegetable mix - however on the occasion I was taking pictures I defrosted the spinach and then forgot to stir it in!)


Share what's in your kitchen at Fig Jam and Lime Cordial.

Question of the day:
Have you ever debated about purchasing a kitchen gadget and had it work out more valuable than you initially thought?

Noodles with Green Sauce

Noodles - my husband hates them.... I love them!
So on the occasions that he doesn't join us for dinner, then I get to indulge!
Here's my favourite way of indulging in them lately:

NOODLES WITH GREEN SAUCE

Serves 4

You'll need:
350g noodles
1 zucchini
1 bunch broccolini
1 cup snow peas
90g baby spinach leaves
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon minced garlic
juice of half a lemon
150g soft silken tofu
1/2 cup soymilk (or other motherless milk of choice)
1 teaspoon cornflour
1/2 teaspoon dried sage
2 teaspoons dried basil
1/4 teaspoon allspice


Chop the zucchini, broccolini and snow peas into pieces of desired size. 
 
Place vegetables and noodles into a large pot  with water & bring to the boil. Once boiling simmer for 3-5 minutes. 

Whilst the noodles & veggies are cooking prepare the sauce.
In a blender combine the spinach, nutritional yeast, garlic, lemon juice, tofu, soymilk, cornflour & herbs. Blend until smooth.

Drain the noodles & veggies and then return to the pot.
Pour the sauce over the noodles and stir over a medium heat for a few minutes until warmed through & slightly thickened.

Serve.
 

Submitted for Health Vegan Friday


Add your recipe on Rock My Vegan Socks blog each Friday.

Baked Quinoa Pizza Pie

This is neither a pizza nor a pie really..... but rather inspired by both pizza and pie!
Either way - it's totally delicious :-)

BAKED QUINOA PIZZA PIE

Pie:
3 cups cooked quinoa
1/2 green capsicum
1/4 cup corn kernels (or other pizza veggies of choice like mushrooms)
1 spring onion
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1/4 cup tomato paste 1 teaspoon garlic flakes
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon chili

Chop the veggies and basil leaves.
Place all the ingredients in a bowl and stir until well combined.
Press into a lightly sprayed casserole dish. Press down well.

Next make the topping.

Cheese sauce:
2 generous Tablespoons nutritional yeast
1 Tablespoon cornflour
1 cup plant milk of choice

Whisk together all the ingredients in a microwave safe jug.
Microwave for 1 minute or until thicken.
Spread over quinoa mixture.

Bake 30 minutes in a preheated 180C oven.

Slice and serve.
This will slice better if it has had time to cool first. 

 Submitted for Healthy Vegan Fridays.

Add your healthy vegan recipe on these blogs:

Herbivore Triathlete 
Hello Veggy 
Rock My Vegan Socks



Question of the day:
What dishes have inspired you to be creative with their flavours but in an alternate way?

Healthy Carbonara

Childhood memories of carbonara are not my most favourite to be honest. Thick cream & egg heavy pasta topped with fat dripping bacon and smelly parmesan cheese. 
Not my idea of tasty food.....

But then again, that didn't turn me off experimenting with this dish to turn it into something healthy, light and totally delicious :-)

Healthy Vegan Pasta Carbonara

(Makes 3 Serves)

You'll need:
250g dried pasta of choice

1 onion
3 cloves garlic
1-1 1/2 cups chopped mushrooms

Sauce:
1/4 head cauliflower
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
1 cup motherless milk of choice
1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 Tablespoon cornflour
1/2 teaspoon ground sage

Lentil "bacon" bits:
1/2 cup lentils (already cooked, either home made or from a can)
1 Tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke

Extra nutritional yeast to serve


Bring a large pot of water to the boil and cook the pasta per packet directions.
Slice the onion and crush the garlic. Dry fry with the mushrooms until browned well.
Place the lentils in a fry pay with the soy sauce, maple syrup and liquid smoke. Dry fry until the lentils begin to pop open. You can chop them into smaller pieces if you wish to make them more similar to 'bacon bit.
 


Place all the sauce ingredients into a blender and blend til smooth. 
When the pasta is cooked, drain and return to the pot. Pour the cauliflower cream sauce over the pasta and stir til pasta is evenly coated.




Serve with the mushroom/onion mix and lentil 'bacon' bits. Top with nutritional yeast.

Submitted to Healthy Vegan Fridays.

Add your healthy vegan recipe on these blogs:

Herbivore Triathlete 
Hello Veggy 
Rock My Vegan Socks

Meatless Monday: Tofu -- Gnocchi with Basil & Broccoli

Today's Meatless Monday ingredient is Tofu.

Tofu is often an ingredient that people look upon with frowns! I have to admit that I their have been times when I'm had tofu dishes that are just not that tasty! It's important to remember that tofu will take on flavours from what it is cooked with and by itself it quite bland.
Here's a great way to use tofu and make it really tasty!

Gnocchi with Basil & Broccoli

500g gnocchi (either store bought or home-made)
1/2 head broccoli
3 cups fresh basil leaves
300g soft silken tofu
3 Tablespoons nutritional yeast
2 cloves garlic

Bring a large pot of water to the boil. Add the gnocchi and the broccoli cut into small florets.
While the gnocchi is cooking prepare the sauce. Place the basil, drained tofu, nutritional yeast & garlic in a blender or food processor and blend til smooth.
You will be able to see when the gnocchi is cooked because it will start to float. When it is cooked, drain. 
Return gnocchi and broccoli to the pot and stir the sauce through til evenly distributed. Heat for 2 minutes until warmed through.

Serve with freshly cracker black pepper.

Serves 3-4

Question of the day:
Do you enjoy eating tofu? 
If so, what is your favourite flavour to combine with it?

Meatless Monday - Queso

Welcome to another Meatless Monday.

I must admit I felt a little overwhelmed by the idea of the letter "Q" coming up..... and that feeling intensified when I discovered that I had no idea what Queso was!!! When I found out that it simply is Spanish for "cheese" I didn't feel quite so overwhelmed!

So here I give you a Vegan Mexican version of 'cheese':

Cheesey-Salsa Sauce

1/4 cup salsa

1/4 cup nutritional yeast

2 teaspoons cornflour

1 teaspoon cumin

1 cup plant milk of choice

 
Blend til smooth.
Pour into a jug and put in microwave for 1 minute til warm and thickened.

This is delicious poured over roasted or mashed potatoes, on nacho's, tacos or wraps.



Want to see how I host a Mexican Dinner Party??
Then head over to the Pink Vegan blog to see my guest post.

Fallback food: Easy Mexe-Pasta

We all have those days when we walk in the door after work and need dinner on the table in less than half an hour. 
In fact, sometimes that happens more often than not in our busy lives.
Here's a super easy meal to fall back on for those days:

Easy Mexe-Pasta

 

You'll need:
pasta of choice
canned mexican bean mix
bag of baby spinach leaves
salsa spice mix of choice 




 


Bring a large pot of water to the boil and cook the pasta for the recommended time.
Drain the pasta and return to the pot along with the mexican beans, spinach and spice. 
Stir over low heat until warmed through and spinach has wilted.

Serve sprinkled with nutritional yeast.

You can adjust the quantity of ingredients as needed.
To serve 3, I used 250g pasta, 160g spinach, 1 can mexican beans and 1 teaspoon salsa spice mix.


I have discovered a new range of spice mixes! They are from an Australian Company called "Your Inspiration at Home". They make amazing products that add a wonderful taste to food and are super easy to use. They offer a HUGE range of spice blends, dip mixes, chocolate powders, baking spices, flavoured sugars and salts, along with tea and coffee. All the products have no added preservatives, MSG, gluten, or anti-caking agents. That means no numbers or letters! A big tick in my opinion!
If you'd like more information about these products and how to purchase them contact me on this facebook page.

Lentil Lasagne

I have always loved lasagne! And now that I'm vegan its no different!
This was what my daughter requested for her birthday meal - so it must be good!  

LENTIL LASAGNE

In a pot combine:
2 cups of green lentils
Add 4 cups water
Cover and cook til lentils are soft - approx 25mins.
Remove from heat and stir in:
1 Tablespoon Italian herbs
1 cup tomato paste

Cover 4 wholemeal lasagne sheets in boiling water to soften. Drain when ready to assemble lasagne.

Make the cheesey sauce by combining in a blender:
1 roasted red capsicum (I use a jarred one that is soaked in vinegar not oil) 
1 onion
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
3/4 cup soymilk
1 teaspoon cornflour
Blend til smooth and thick.

Assemble lasagne by placing half the lentil mixture on the bottom of a large baking dish and spreading til evenly distributed. 
Spread a thin layer of the cheesy sauce over the lentils.
Follow with two lasagne sheets.
Spread a thin layer of Italian Passata Cooking sauce over the lasagne sheets.
Add the remaining lentil mixture, topped by the remaining two lasagne sheets. 
Cover the lasagne sheets with the remaining cheesey sauce.
Bake in a preheated 180C oven for 30 minutes until golden brown.

Slice and serve :-)

Potato Chop and Bake

I love a meal that is easy to prepare. 

This requires a bit of chopping but no 'cooking' other than putting it in the oven.

This can be prepared in advance and kept in the fridge til its time to bake.

So tasty for something so easy :-)

 

POTATO CHOP AND BAKE

Serves 4

5 medium potatoes

1 can chickpeas

1 leek

1/2 cup frozen peas

1/2 cup mushrooms

1/3 cup nutritional yeast 

2 garlic cloves

2 cups plant milk

pepper

Chop the potatoes into 2cm cubes. Spread over the base of a large baking dish.

Drain the chickpeas and pour them over the potato cubes, followed by the chopped leek, chopped mushrooms and frozen peas.

 

Sprinkle the nutritional yeast evenly over the vegetables.

Combine the cloves (crushed) in a jar with the milk and pepper (as much as desired). Mix together.

Pour the milk mixture over the vegetables and nutritional yeast.

Cover with foil and place in a preheated 200C oven and bake for 50-60 minutes until potatoes are soft and milk is absorbed.

Serve

Question of the day:
Do you prefer meals that require lots of chopping, or lots of hands-on type cooking?

Pasta with Greens

If you've followed my blog for some time it will probably come as no surprise to you that I'm a pasta lover! In fact our whole family is! I am very pleased that I have finally got my husband to be a pasta eater too now!
I love to serve pasta in ways that aren't always just a standard red sauce and this is one of those alternative ways :-)
The little kick of sweet chili sauce adds a lovely touch without too much heat - don't skip it! 

PASTA WITH GREENS

You'll need:
250g pasta of choice
1/2 bunch kale, chopped into little pieces
8 large broccoli florets, chopped into little pieces
1 can chickpeas, drained

1 cup soymilk
1 Tablespoon cornflour
1 Tablespoon sweet chili sauce
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon garlic

Bring a large pot of water to the boil. Add the pasta and cook for recommended time. With 3 minutes spare, add the kale, broccoli and chickpeas.

Drain the pasta and vegetables.

While the pasta is draining, use the pot to make the cheesey sauce. 
*Remove the pot from the stove*
 
Combine all the sauce ingredients (soymilk, cornflour, sweet chili, nutritional yeast, garlic) in the pan and whisk together til cornflour and nutritional yeast has dissolved and the sauce in smooth. *This won't work properly if the pot is on the heat still as you need to dissolved cornflour in COLD fluid.






Return to the heat and continue to whisk until slightly thickened. Approx 3-4 minutes. 
Pour the drained pasta and vegetables back into the pot and stir well until all pasta has sauce over it.

Serves 3