Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato Soup

This dish was born out of laziness… pure laziness. However, when I came around to making it – I ended up making my own bread, roasted red peppers and pesto. How that happened, I will never know!

The soup is served with basil pesto toasts and is perfect for the cold autumn/winter nights. It’s easy to make, packed full of flavor, and will supply you with a boost of vitamin A, C, B6, antioxidants and phytonutrients.

Soft Polenta with Ratatouille

I’ve eaten polenta on numerous occasions, and it’s always been so bland and tasteless. When set and cut into pieces, it’s boring, and when soft, it brings back bad childhood memories of being forced to eat disgusting semolina with a splat of jam. Urgh… UK school dinners (or more correctly lunches) in the 80’s.

Polenta was one of those things that I thought I just hated. That was until J ordered vegetarian polenta at The Olive and Grape for lunch. Two things were weird – he went for a vegetarian dish, and it was polenta?!?

Dark Chocolate & Banana Ice-Lollies

These babies are gluten-free, vegan-friendly and super-delicious! Frozen bananas are enrobed in a high-quality dark chocolate and then rolled in roasted hazelnuts.

When you bite into these frozen treats, there’s a wonderful crack from the chocolate, which reveals the sweet, semi-frozen flesh of the banana. It’s a beautiful combination of flavors and textures, one that needs to be celebrated!

Lemon and Poppy Seed Muffins - Gluten Free & Vegan

Five years ago, I would never have thought I could walk into a bakery and not buy anything. I love my cakes, muffins and pastries. The only problem is that I’m allergic to American dairy. Eating anything is a little bit of a risk for me. Although I can drool at the cakes, I rarely eat them and when I do, I take a very small bite.

It was time to try another recipe from the Flying Apron’s Gluten-Free and Vegan Baking book. I love this recipe book, but it is RIDDLED with editorial errors. How this book got into print, I have no idea…

Tofu and Vegetable Yellow Coconut Curry

I've been meaning to post this entry for a long time… but I keep forgetting! It’s a delicious vegan dish (when omitting the fish sauce), which I make when we have a meat-less dinner. You really won’t miss the meat in this recipe.

The curry is well flavored and very mild. I’d compare it almost to a korma. The addition of the creaminess from the coconut milk makes this dish ultra-dreamy. Serve this over freshly cooked rice.

Vegetable Curry Patties

I’ve been craving those yellow tinged Jamaican curry patties for so long! The last time I had one, was probably in 2004, when I was still living in London. The turmeric spiced, soft, yet short pastry, encased a delicious, curried minced (ground) lamb filling. I can taste them now.

The thought of curry patties had subsided until this February. This was when J had some vegetable curry patties whilst up in Vancouver B.C. They’ve been playing on my mind ever since!!!!

Vegan Gluten-Free Oat & Berry Bars

This weekend I didn’t have to work or be someplace else, which meant it was playtime in my kitchen!

On Saturday, I whipped up two loaves of Roquefort bread, granola and these vegan gluten-free oat & berry bars. I still had enough time to prep loads of veggie skewers for our barbecue dinner.

These bars are oaty, chewy and chock-full of berries. They contain no refined sugar and won’t give those annoying pangs afterwards. They are satisfying and taste really wholesome. The bars aren’t overly sweet and the berries have just the right amount of tartness, to make the bar really good.

Mexican-Inspired Quinoa Salad

A friend of mine, M inspired me to make this salad. I changed the quantities a little and played around the seasoning, but it was one tasty salad! I’m making it again this Friday, I can’t wait.

It’s an all-in-one meal - you have quinoa, black beans, green peppers, tomatoes and avocado tossed together with fresh coriander (cilantro), cumin and lime juice. What’s not to like?

Chocolate Chia Pudding

The first time I heard about chia was from those annoying ch-ch-ch-chia adverts – arggh! Searching for that link just now, reminds me why we don't have TV, ha.

You can in fact eat chia seeds - they’re tiny nutritional powerhouses. Chia (salvia hispanica) belongs to the mint family and is commercially grown for its seed. The seed’s extractable oil is highly concentrated with omega-3 fatty acids. They also contain a high proportion of protein, dietary fiber and significant levels of antioxidants.

Dark Chocolate Muffins - Gluten-Free & Vegan

I never thought I’d be baking a chocolate muffin that was gluten-free… vegan maybe, but never gluten-free. I was inspired when I finally got myself to The Flying Apron in Fremont, Seattle. This place is somewhat out of our way, but it was my birthday weekend and I wanted to try it.

The Flying Apron Bakery is absolutely awesome – it sells vegan and gluten-free items and uses almost all organic and unrefined ingredients. These days, it IS possible to enjoy mouth-watering cupcakes, muffins, shortbread and cookies even if you are vegan and/or have allergies.

Olive Oil Roasted Kabocha Squash

My dearest Butternut,

I’m so sorry… I’ve been bad, very bad. I never meant for our relationship to end in this way, but I now have a new love. His name is Kabocha. Kabocha lives in the squash section of the produce department at PCC. The only reason I picked up Kabocha, was because you weren’t available for dinner that night.

Do not despair Butternut, Kabocha will take good care of me. He’s sweet, full of beta-carotene, iron, vitamin C and potassium and has traces of calcium, folic acid and B vitamins.

Raw Chocolate Cheesecake

Raw-food purists would never call this raw, as it has cashews in it. So to call this raw, isn’t entirely true – alas…

Although raw, by definition is also vegan – I would like to point this out to people who aren’t huge raw-food fans, like myself. So, not only is this cheesecake raw, it’s also vegan and has no processed sugars in it. You can of course sweeten it with agave nectar or maple syrup, but this will no longer make this cheesecake “raw”.

Roasted Butternut Squash & Red Pepper Soup

This is a classic favorite of ours. I was first inspired to make this soup when I used to buy tinned soup… yes, I really did use to buy tinned soup. Baxter’s did a nice butternut squash & red pepper and a really delicious Cullen skink.

How hard can making butternut squash and red pepper soup be? To enhance the flavor of the vegetables, I roasted them until they are caramelized in spots. Then you simply liquidize everything together – easy-peasy. I used to make huge batches of this soup, and freeze it into portions for evenings when I’m too lazy to cook.

Raw Raspberry and Chocolate Fudge Cake

Who would think that a cake that was vegan, gluten-free and raw could taste so darn good? Well, believe me, it does!

It’s also packed full of goodies, such as omega-3 fatty acids, flavonoids, monounsaturated fats, dietary fiber and more.

This cake is definitely not low-calorie, but if you compare the nutritional value and health benefits of eating this cake compared to that of a conventional cake made from refined flour, sugar, fat and eggs, this cake wins hands-down every time.

Sweet and Spicy Almonds

I had a bag of raw almonds sitting in the freezer for a little while, and whilst searching for food porn one evening, spotted this recipe for sweet and spicy almonds. I just HAD to make them!

I’ve slightly adjusted the amounts of ingredients in the original recipe. The result are almonds that are crunchy, sweet, salty, spicy and ever-so-slightly medicinal tasting – I guess that’s due to the fennel seed. And remember, almonds are good for you!

Vegan Chocolate Brownie Bites

These do NOT last long in my house – I just can’t help myself!

Their fudgy brownie center is simply made of dates, walnuts*, vanilla and cocoa, which is then drenched in molten chocolate^. The taste and texture sensation is incredible – you initially get the crack of the chocolate when you bite into one, which then allows your tongue to be tantalized by the dark, chocolately, goodness inside… reminiscent of a fudgy brownie. They taste so decadently sinful, yet they aren’t.

Bean-Free Sun-Dried Tomato "Hummus"

A hummus with no beans I hear you cry. Am I mad? Probably – but I’m not mad for making this no-bean hummus. If you try it, I promise I won’t call you mad – just let me know how much you enjoyed it.

It’s smooth, slightly sweet and garlicky, yet being light and fresh at the same time. I had to stop myself eating the whole batch with carrot sticks when I whipped up this batch! Hmm... I wonder what's going to feature in J's packed lunch tomorrow...

Kale Chips

Kale is one of those leafy greens that we should all eat more of.

It belongs to the Brassica family, which is a group of vegetables that include cabbages, broccoli, cauliflower, brussel sprouts and collard greens. It is this group of vegetables that are now known for their health-promoting benefits, due to their sulfur-containing phytonutrients.

Kale is an excellent source of vitamins K, A and C, manganese as well as containing decent amounts of dietary fiber, copper, tryptophan, calcium, vitamin B6 (pyridoxine), potassium, iron, magnesium, vitamin E, omega-3 fatty-acids, vitamin B2 (riboflavin), protein, vitamin B1 (thiamin), folate, phosphorus and vitamin B3 (niacin) [1].

Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Cookies

This is probably one of the easiest recipes that produce the most wonderful peanut butter cookies, that you’ll ever encounter.

They’re also gluten-free and simply full of peanut-ty goodness.

Frisian Sugar Loaf - Suikerbrood

A few years ago, my Mother-in-law introduced me to suikerbrood. I remember her serving it up thickly sliced on a small plate with tea. My brother-in-law made some comment about either I’d love it or hate it, but he loves it. It turned out I loved it! What is there not to love about bread that is swirled with cinnamon and pockets of sugary goodness?