Mung Bean Curry

I love a curry, and I also love mung beans. So why not put the 2 together!
This meal takes a bit of time to prep with all the chopping, and also to cook the beans, but it's not difficult so don't let that deter you!
If you want to shorten the cooking time, you can pre-soak the mung beans for a minimum of 6 hours & reduce the cooking time by about half. You will only need about 1 litre of stock then too.
I love that mung beans don't NEED to be presoaked, and I don't mind the cooking time because this curry has the most enticing aroma as it simmers away on the stove! 

MUNG BEAN CURRY
(Serves 4)

 
               You'll need:
               250g dried mung beans - rinsed
               1 large brown onion
               1 zucchini
               2 celery stalks
               1 large carrot
               1/2 head cauliflower
               200g green beans
               2 garlic cloves, crushed
               1 inch ginger, peeled and grated
               1 Tablespoon turmeric powder
               1 heaped teaspoon each: cumin, coriander
               1/2 teaspoon cardamon
               1 long green chili
               100g baby spinach leaves
               1.5 litres salt free veggie stock

In a large saucepan or pot that has a lid, put the mung beans. Add 1 litre of the stock, cover, bring to a boil and simmer for 30 minutes. While the mung beans are cooking, chop all the veggies into bite sized pieces.
Add the veggies (except for the spinach) to the pot, along with all the spices and the remainder of the stock. Return the lid to the pot and again bring to the boil then simmer. Allow to simmer for approx 15 mins or until the stock is absorbed and the veggies are tender.
Stir through the spinach leaves until lightly wilted, then serve. 

Cheesy Baked Cauli & Capsicum

I am totally in love with these mini capsicums that are readily available in the grocery store lately.
There's something about the mixture of the colours and their little cone shapes that I just find incredibly appealing!

Here's our families favourite way of using them lately. This makes a great side dish. 
The capsicums make little cups that hold the cheese sauce - just delicious :-)

CHEESY BAKED CAULI & CAPSICUM

You'll need:
250g tub of mini capsicums
1/2 head cauliflower
1/4 cup nutritional yeast 
1 Tablespoon cornflour
2 teaspoons onion flakes
1/2 teaspoon each sage, garlic powder, paprika
1/2 cup motherless milk of choice
1/4 cup water

Half the capsicums and scrape out the seeds. Place in a baking dish along with the cauliflower broken into florets. 

In a microwavable measuring jug, combine the remaining ingredients and stir with a fork until dissolved. 
Microwave for 1 minute until the mixture starts to thicken.

Pour over the vegetables.

Place in a preheated 200C oven for 40 minutes until veggies have softened and lightly browned.

The top will be crisp and underneath will be filled with oozing-gooey-cheesy sauce :-)

Question of the day:
Are mini capsicums available in your area?
Do you use them as mini scoops for anything?

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

Veggie & Rice Bake with Cauli-Sauce Topping

This bake has a lot of layers & takes a bit of time, but its not at all hard.
In fact once the layers are put together it simply bakes in the oven.
We have had this many times and its always a winner. I love how big the meal is so that makes plenty of leftovers!
Its incredibly tasty & although it's just 'one' dish, it really is a complete meal by itself.
I especially love the cauli-sauce topping because I can't get my husband to eat cauliflower unless its hidden like this!!!! ;-)

VEGGIE & RICE BAKE WITH CAULI-SAUCE TOPPING

Makes one large baking tray - Serves 6-8
You'll need:
Bottom layer: 
2-3 cups cooked brown rice
1 can lentils, salt free
1 onion
1 cup mushrooms
1 can tomatoes

1/2 green capsicum
1 can corn
1 carrot

Cauli sauce:
1/2 head of cauliflower
2 Tablespoons tahini
1/3 cup nutritional yeast
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoons minced garlic

Black pepper

Spread the pre-cooked brown rice into the bottom of a large baking dish.
Drain the lentils and spread the evenly over the rice, followed by the chopped onion & the chopped mushrooms. (Mushrooms shown only on one side of the bake here to keep hubby happy!)
Pour the canned tomatoes over the onions and mushrooms. Spread so evenly distributed.
 

I find the putting the tomato in the middle helps to keep the bake moist while its cooking instead of just on the top.







Chop the carrot & capsicum. Spread them over the tomatoes along with the drained corn.

To make the cauli-sauce:
Combine all the ingredients in a blender and blend til smooth and thick.

 












Pour the sauce over the bake and spread til all the veggies are completely covered.

 Sprinkle with freshly cracked black pepper.

Bake in a preheated 200C oven for  45-60 minutes. The vegetables will be tender but not completely soft after 45 minutes, they will be soft by 60 minutes - so the choice is yours! Please note, these times are for my oven and ovens can vary! Baking for 60 minutes will definitely brown your cauli-sauce but not to the point of being burnt. If you are worried about the browning you can cover the dish with foil.

Shown here baked for 1 hour.

So I must admit that this is not the 'prettiest' food to photograph! The pictures don't do it justice of how yummy it is! 
Definitely a home-style meal & not for photographic purposes!!!!

Submitted for Healthy Vegan Friday.
You can add your recipe at these blogs:
carrie on vegan

veggie nook

greenthickies 

Pasta Bake with Cauli-'Cheese' Sauce

 

I love pasta! And I love a good pasta bake. Here's a way of adding some veggies to the mix!

Pasta Bake with Cauli-Cheese Sauce

Serves 4-6

250g wholemeal pasta (shape of choice)

1/2 head cauliflower

Cook the pasta per packet directions. Drain and then place in a large baking dish.

Break the cauliflower into pieces and place in a bowl of water & microwave on high for 10 minutes until softened.

In a blender combine:

1 small onion, quartered
1/3 cup nutritional yeast
1/4 cup tahini
1 clove garlic
2 Tablespoons cornflour
1 teaspoon sage
And the cooked cauliflower

Blend til smooth and thick.

Pour the cauli-cheese mixture over the pasta & gentle turn the pasta til the cheese sauce has been spread evenly over all the baking dish and all pasta is moistened.

Sprinkle with breadcrumbs, chives and black pepper.

Bake in a preheated 200C oven for 20 minutes until lightly browned on top & warmed through.

Slice and serve.

Gimme a C, Gimme an S, Gimme a T

What's it spell????
Hmmmmm, well I guess I'll never make a cheer-leader....

Cauli, Spinach, and Tahini does make an awesome meal though ;-)

Very versatile, this dish can be served on top of potatoes, pasta, rice, couscous with salad or even as a side dish.

Why not double the recipe and take it to your next pot-luck!!!

For 2 large servings you'll need:
1/2 head cauliflower
1 1/2 cups spinach leaves
1 onion
2 garlic cloves
1 Tablespoon tahini
1 Tablespoon tamari
1/2 teaspoon ground sage
cracked black pepper to serve

Chop the cauliflower into little florets. Chop the onion and garlic. Place into a frying pan. Dry fry for approximately 10 minutes, stirring frequently, until the edges of the cauliflower and onion are browned.

Reduce the heat to low and add the spinach leaves. Gently stir to combine and the leaves will begin to wilt.
Add the tahini and the tamari along with 1/4 cup of boiling water (this will help the tahini to spread). Add the sage. Stir well so the tahini has just covered all the cauliflower pieces. 

Serve topped with freshly cracked black pepper.

Shown here with wholemeal couscous, and lentil burgers.

Cauli, corn & cannellini bites with tangy dipping sauce

Looking for a quick & easy lunch that isn't another sandwich?!?

You can get these done in less than 15 minutes!

Ingredients:
1 corn cob
4 cauliflower forets
1/2 can cannellini beans, drained
3/4 cup wholemeal flour
2/3 cups plant milk
1 teaspoon ground sage
black pepper, to taste

Cut the cauliflower into tiny pieces, and remove the corn pieces from the cob.

Drain the beans and add all ingredients into a mixing bowl. Stir until well combined.

Dry fry small spoonfuls of the mixture. Flipping when lightly browned - approx 3 minutes each side.

 









To make the tangy sauce:
1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 Tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon chili
Combine in a small dish & mix well.

* Warning - this sauce has a real bite to it! If you can't handle heat you can reduce the chili and mustard or just omit them completely.*
 
Serve over a bed of salad leaves, by themselves, with couscous or in a breadroll ;-) You can pour the sauce over or just serve in on the side.

These carry well making a great addition to lunchboxes or perfect picnic treats when you're after hand-food.

WIAW - Unprocessed Tuesday Week 2

I decided to post Tuesday's meals this week for what-i-ate-wednesday! Why post Tuesday instead of Wednesday you may ask?!? Well because Wednesday's meals always seem so boring being my work day! 

Today I experimented a bit, so I thought it would be more fun to share today!
Possibly Wednesday will be full of today's leftovers anyway ;-)


Breakfast -->
Banana Oat Pancakes
Same as my blueberry-choc-oat-pancakes, just omit the blueberries and add one over-ripe mashed banana.

Lunch -->
I experimented with making my own tortillas! :-/
Let's just say... next time I'll stick to store bought ones!
It was a lot of fun but they just weren't so great to roll up into a salad wrap. 
That said, they were still very tasty.
They worked out way better as 'dipping bread' for this pumpkin cheeze-sauce than for wraps!

Dinner -->
More experimenting :-) I love having fun in the kitchen.
What is that quote Nigella Lawson says at the start of her series Kitchen - "If I'm in the kitchen, I'm happy". Well personally, I couldn't agree more.

For this evening's meal I made Cauliflower fried-rice with sweet potato and chick pea burgers.

The cauliflower fried rice but a bit of an experiment but it was soooooo amazingly tasty that I'm going to make it again and then share the recipe soon! 
I did go back for seconds ;-)

The sweet potato and chick pea burgers were really simple. Just steam a small sweet potato and then toss it in a food processor with a drained can of chickpeas, chopped spring onions and enough besan flour to hold the mixture together. Then bake for 30 mins until golden brown. ~Really tasty~

Dessert -->
As always.... banana ice-cream! This time with cherries and cocoa too :-)
mmmmmm black forest flavour soft-serve! Soooooo good!

To see some of my experimenting with the tortillas continue scrolling below!

Letting the dough sit

Rolling out the tortillas - bit sticky :-/

Much better rolling out with flour instead of paper!

Dry-fry the tortilla

Yay a puffed one!!!!!!!
Lucky number 3 ;-)

And making the sweet potato burgers....