Vegetarian dining in Disney World - part 3

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Well done if you've made it through parts one and two of my Disney dining guide. Here's part three...which is kind of a review, plus a few more tips...

Making Advance Dining Reservations (ADRs)

If you book your table service (TS) meals in advance, you can place a dietary restriction on your restaurant reservations, but as vegetarian and vegan aren't options on the online booking form (for some strange reason), I went for a shellfish allergy! This strategy seemed to work well. All restaurants we had booked for, except Wolfgang Puck Cafe, confirmed details of my 'allergy' when we arrived and all seemed relieved, when I said that my daughters and I were vegetarian and not allergic to anything!

If you're vegan or have any genuine food allergies, I would suggest that you email your requests once you've booked your ADRs, to: SpecialDiets@DisneyWorld.com. State your reservation numbers, where you will be eating each day and what you can/can't eat (one recommendation on Disboards says that it might be a better option to state that you are vegetarian with an egg and dairy allergy, rather than vegan). We didn't do this, as I was confident that we would be able to find something vegetarian that we would all eat in the restaurants I had booked at.

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The waiting staff were generally knowledgeable about the menus, and asked the appropriate questions about whether we ate eggs and dairy. In the buffet restaurants, they offered to ask the chef to give us the tour of the buffet, to let us know what was suitable, which we accepted each time (surely it would be easier to label foods with a V for vegetarian though!)

Several non-buffet restaurants were able to vegetarianise meals by leaving the meat/fish part out, but the vast majority of our meals contained some cheese or dairy, so vegans would need to check whether this could be left out of their meals. 

If you want to take a gamble, try to find out where Chef TJ is working and book a meal there (apparently he doesn't work in the same restaurant each night). Chef TJ has reputation for cooking great vegetarian food - just Google him to find out more.


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Luckily, we found him working at 1900 Park Fare the night we ate there, and instead of the buffet on offer, which had quite a limited vegetarian selection, we were treated to a freshly cooked selection of starters and a main course for the same price. The characters there also made this a fabulous night out, as the ugly sisters, Cinderella and Prince Charming all gave a good performance as they went around the tables.

Our favourite places to eat in Disney World were:

Table Service

• Tusker House, Animal Kingdom - African/Asian buffet with lots of salads, rice, vegetable samosas, fresh fruit etc.
• Boma, Animal Kingdom Lodge - African buffet with lots of hot and cold vegetarian options. Dishes are generally sweet in taste with cinnamon, mild spices and dried fruits.
• Wolfgang Puck Cafe, Downtown Disney - Italian/American with several vegetarian pasta options, plus the offer of making omitting meat from a couple of other dishes. 
• Raglan Road, Downtown Disney - Irish pub food which serves real chips (not fries!) and fabulous desserts.
• Sanaa, Animal Kingdom Villas - South Asian/Indian food with a good choice for vegetarians and vegans. Dishes are quite spicy, so might not appeal to children.
• Hacienda, Epcot - Mexican with a separate vegetarian menu including 4 main courses (you need to ask for this as it's not on display).
• Cape May, Boardwalk/Crystal Palace, Magic Kingdom character breakfasts - Similar foods available at both with plenty of delicious pastries, breads, waffles and fresh fruits.
• Crystal Palace, Magic Kingdom lunch/dinner - Lots of tasty salads, fruits, pasta and desserts. Limited vegetarian hot food.
• 1900 Park Fare, Grand Floridian  - Great for characters and to sneak a peak at the Grand Floridian Hotel, but generally quite limited vegetarian options (pasta, salads, fruit and vegetarian sushi). Fantastic food if chef TJ is working there.

Counter Service

We weren't particularly impressed with the quick service options available, as the vegetarian options were often limited to one choice. We were very glad that we only got one counter service (CS) meal each day on our dining plan. The quick service dining plan (QSDP) includes 2 CS meals plus 2 snacks per day, which really wouldn't have suited us.

Our favourite CS locations were:

• Earl of Sandwich, Downtown Disney - Sandwiches, wraps and salads with a few vegetarian options.
• Wolfgang Puck Express, Downtown Disney - Vegetarian pasta and flat breads/pizza available.
• Restaurantosaurus, Animal Kingdom - only one vegetarian option (veggie sub with sweet potato fries) but it tasted good and there was a toppings bar available.
• Boulangerie Patisserie, Epcot (cheese tartine) / Main Street Bakery, Magic Kingdom (mozzerella and tomato focaccia roll) - again limited vegetarian savoury options but great pastries!
• La Cantina de San Angel, Epcot - one vegetarian option (cheese empanadas) but it was tasty and filling.

Snacks

There are plenty of snacks and drinks available if you are peckish or thirsty between meals. The best place to find out what counts as a snack on the dining plans is back on Disboards, where you'll find a snack credit thread which is updated each year. Frankly we didn't use many of our snack credits during our holiday, as we just didn't need any more food! We did enjoy the odd ice cream and frozen lemonade though, and we sometimes used them to buy pastries to eat for breakfast the next day. Snack credits can also be 'spent' on sweets and treats to take home  as presents.

To summarise, we were all pleasantly surprised at how good the food was in Disney generally, as we'd expected to see fries with everything. It's perfectly possible to find good quality, tasty vegetarian food, but be prepared to do your research before you go!

If you have any tips or recommendations to add, please feel free to add them in a comment below. Pin It

Vegetarian dining in Disney World - part 2

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If you haven't read part 1 of  vegetarian dining in Disney, I'll recap...my best advice is to plan your dining options in advance. If you like to be spontaneous and choose where to eat on the spur of the moment, don't! Firstly, you may find that the most popular table service restaurants are fully booked, especially during peak season. Secondly, you may find that there are no veggie options available on the menu (yes, really, not even one!)

The way around both of these issues, is to plan where to eat, book table service (sit-down/waiter-service meals) in advance and know where you can find the best veggie counter service and snack options. This might sound like a lot of fuss and bother, but in my opinion, it's worth it.

When planning your food options, your first stop should be AllEars.Net. This website is amazing - it lists up-to-date menus, vegetarian dining strategies  plus recommendations for vegetarian and vegan counter service (fast food) and table service dining locations.

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If you want to ask for recommendations or see picture of veggie meals available at Disney World, try the food forums on Disboards, in particular, the vegan/vegetarian dining help thread, or check out The Disney Food Blog.

There are various Disney Dining Plans available which can either save you money, or may be 'free' as part of your holiday package. We got the free, regular Dining Plan (DDP), which entitled us to one table service meal, one counter service meal and one snack each per day, which was more than enough food!


Veggie kids on the DDP
My kids are 10 and 12, so in Disney terms, that makes them adults! I wasn't impressed with paying adult prices for them, but with hindsight, I'm glad they were able to eat from the adults' menu at no extra cost, purely for the better selection this gave them - even though the portions were far too big for them most of the time. For lunch, the children generally shared a counter service meal.

If you have younger veggie children, I would suggest either paying extra to upgrade them as adults, eating mainly at buffet restaurants, or making sure in advance that the table service restaurants you want to eat at will be able to provide small portions from the adults' menu but at a the cost of a child's meal/DDP credit. If not, your children will be stuck with a very limited choice consisting of mainly pizza and macaroni cheese.  

Part 3 here... Pin It

Vegetarian dining in Disney World - part 1

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You may have noticed that I've been quiet on the blogging front lately; That's because my family and I have just returned from our trip of a life time to Disney World in Orlando, Florida, which was fabulous, but exhausting.
There must be hundreds of guides to Disney World and believe me, I've read quite a few. My top tip is to plan, plan and plan again! If you know what parks you want to visit, which rides you want to go on and where you want to eat, you'll save time and arguments!

I whole-heatedly recommend buying The Unofficial Guide Walt Disney World as this answers just about every question worth asking about Disney World, Orlando and the surrounding areas. It also has pull-out park guides with step-by-step instructions on how to use your time in the parks most effectively. Two alternative fountains of knowledge are the Disboards site and forum, and the AllEars website which cover accommodation, attractions, restaurants and reviews.

Information on vegetarian and vegan dining in Disney is harder, but not impossible to find; While Disney is mainly aimed at the meat-eating guest, with a bit of research and planning, it's quite possible to do Disney as a vegetarian (but definitely more difficult as a vegan). I'll be putting together some links and tips which have helped us find some great veggie food in The Land of the Mouse over the next few days.

Read part 2 here.

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Summer Vegetarian Meal Plan

Here's my latest meal plan for summer vegetarian family food - some of these recipes include eggs and dairy products but most are easily veganised. Use the delicious seasonal vegetables around at the moment to cut down on cost, and refrigerate or freeze left-overs for lunches. Use up any remaining vegetables in the casserole/pasta bake at the end of the week.

See my 3 meals a day vegetarian meal plan for quick and easy breakfast and lunch ideas.

Week 1
Monday: Veggie Sloppy Joes with salad and sweet potato chips

Tuesday: Aubergine and cheese bake with pasta

Wednesday: Vegetarian chorizo sausages in wraps with salad

Thursday: Pasta with tomato and vegetable sauce.
Friday: Pesto and antipasti tart with new potatoes and seasonal veg.

Saturday: Veggie burger/veggie sausage in a bread roll with a trio of salads.

Sunday: Stuffed mushrooms with cous cous.

Week 2

Monday: Falafels with salad, pitta bread and tzatziki dip.

Tuesday: Minced Quorn with spicy rice.

Wednesday: Roasted vegetables with halloumi, in wraps.

Thursday: Pasta with tomato and vegetable sauce.
Friday: Lentil and pesto burgers with corn on the cob and cheesy potato wedges.

Saturday: Vegetarian barbecue.

Sunday: Turkish vegetable casserole with cous cous.

Week 3
Monday: Potato Masala Parathas with salad.

Tuesday: Squash, lentil and sweet potato salad with cous cous. 

Wednesday: Hummus with pitta bread and crudités.

Thursday: Paneer and pepper fajitas 
Friday:  Veggie mince shammi kebabs with pilau rice

Saturday: Aubergine and cheese bake with salad and garlic bread.

Sunday: Butternut squash, sweet potato and goats cheese pasta bake.

See my other meal plans here: low budget vegetarian meal plan,  2 week vegetarian meal plan.

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Turkish Vegetable Casserole

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If you have a glut of home grown or locally produced vegetables, use them up in this tasty Middle-Eastern vegan stew. You can substitute just about any alternative vegetables, so long as they are cut up into even-sized pieces.
If there's any left over, eat it cold for lunch the next day, or use to top a home made pizza.

• 3 bell peppers, sliced
• 2 courgettes/zucchini, diced
• ½ butternut squash/2-3 carrots/1 sweet potato, peeled and diced
• 1 large onion, sliced or diced
• 6-8 ripe tomatoes, diced or 1 tin of chopped tomatoes 
• 200 ml water or vegetable stock
• 1-2 large cloves of garlic, crushed
• 1 tbsp sun dried tomato paste
• 1-2 tsp paprika/smoked paprika
• 1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
• ½ tsp cinnamon or allspice powder
• ½ a fresh chilli, chopped finely (optional)
• black pepper to taste
• 2 tbsp olive oil

Heat the oil in a casserole dish at 200C/190C fan/Gas 6.
Add the onions, peppers, courgettes and squash and coat in the oil.
Return to the oven and roast for 10-15 minutes.
Stir in the chopped tomatoes, garlic, herbs and spices. 
Return to the oven for a further hour or so, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has reduced and the vegetables are soft and lightly browned.
Serve with rice, flat bread or cous cous.

Alternative: Add a tin of drained chickpeas for extra protein.
Slow cooker/crock pot method: Add all of the ingredients to the slow cooker (reduce the water/stock to 100ml) and stir well. Cook on medium for 6-8 hours.

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Apple Cake (Vegan)

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This moist apple cake is a good way to use up left-over apples or other seasonal fruit. If you grown your own apples, like I do, use up your wind-fall or less-than-perfect fruits with this recipe.

• 4 eating apples, peeled, cored and grated 
• 200g self-raising flour 
• 100g dairy free spread
• 100g sugar
• 100g dried fruit (optional)
• 1 tsp cinnamon or mixed spice 
• 2-3 tbsp water or dairy-free milk
• 1 tbsp demerara sugar

Pre-heat oven to 180C/ Fan 170C/ Gas 4/350F
Cream the spread and sugar.
Mix in the remaining ingredients (except the demerara sugar) adding just enough water/milk to make a thick cake mixture.
Spoon into a greased and lined 8"/20cm x 6"/15cm tin (or a 7-8" round tin) and flatten with a spatula or spoon.
Sprinkle with the demerara sugar and a little extra cinnamon. 
Bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown and firm to the touch.
Cool in the tin and cut into slices before turning out.
Eat warm or cold.

Suitable for freezing.

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Easy Falafel

I've made several versions of falafel in the past, but they've always been apt to fall apart on cooking. Not a major problem, but I've found that adding an egg and some fresh breadcrumbs to the mixture makes a more structurally sound falafel, which will even stand up to barbecuing.

Makes 8-10 falafel.

• 1 tin of chickpeas, drained
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp ground cumin 
• a little black pepper or chilli powder
• 1 tbsp fresh coriander, chopped
• 1 tbsp tahini paste 
• 1 large clove of garlic, crushed
• 1 cup of fresh breadcrumbs
• 1 egg 

Blend the chickpeas, garlic, herbs and spices with the tahini and egg.
Mix in enough fresh breadcrumbs to make a dough-like mixture - add more if needed.
Chill in the fridge for 30 minutes to firm up.
Form into 8-10 small balls and flatten slightly.
Brush with vegetable oil on both sides and fry, oven bake or barbecue.

Serve with salad and hummus or tzatziki.

Makes 4 large 'veggie burger' patties instead of falafel.

Suitable for freezing.

Vegan alternative: Omit the egg and replace with and extra 1 tbsp tahini paste for a vegan option. Use around ½ cup of fresh (vegan) breadcrumbs,as the mixture will be slightly drier. Pin It

Aubergine/Eggplant/Brinjal Chutney (Vegan)

You may have guessed by now, that I love aubergines, and you'd be right. They have to be cooked well though, as undercooked aubergines are just not nice! I had 2 aubergines that needed using up, but couldn't find a chutney or pickle recipe that I liked the sound of, so made up my own.
This lightly spiced aubergine chutney goes well with salads, barbecued food, quiches and cheese.

• 2 large aubergines, diced
• 2 large red onions, diced
• 4 tbsp vegetable oil
• 200g/8oz soft brown sugar
• 250ml/ ½ pint white wine vinegar
• 4 cloves garlic/1 tbsp garlic paste
• 1 tbsp. fresh grated ginger/ginger paste
• ¼ tsp chilli flakes/ ot chilli sauce or 1 fresh chopped chilli
• ½ tsp garam masala
• ½ tsp black mustard seeds
• Black pepper and salt to season

Heat the oil in a large pan.
Add the mustard seeds, onion and aubergine, and cook gently for 5-10 minutes, or until the aubergine is soft.
Add the garlic, ginger and remaining spices and stir.
Add the sugar and vinegar.
Bring to the boil, stirring regularly.
Simmer for about 30-40 minutes, stirring from time to time, until the liquid has reduced by half.
Spoon into sterilised jars, top with a lid.
Keep for up to 6 months in a cool, dark cupboard. 
Fills 2 small or 1 large jar.

Alternatives: Double the recipe and/or bulk out the aubergine with other seasonal fruits such as bell peppers, squash and courgettes/zucchini. Pin It

Pickled Cucumber

I remember seeing Jamie Oliver on TV recently, suggesting that we bulk buy and pickle cucumbers, as they're in season and cheap at the moment. I googled, but couldn't find his recipe anywhere, so I've come up with my own, which may or may not be similar to Jamie's!

• 1 large cucumber
• 1 cup (200-250ml) of white wine vinegar
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp chopped fresh dill
• 1 tsp pickling spice (optional)

Wash the cucumber and slice in in half length-wise.
Scoop out the seeds using a teaspoon and then slice thinly (I used the food processor).
Place in a bowl and sprinkle with about 1 tbsp salt.
Leave for 3-4 hours (or over night) to release the juices.
Mix the remaining ingredients together in a jug and allow to steep.
Rinse the salted cucumber with cold water, drain well and pat dry with a clean tea towel or kitchen roll.
Pack into sterilised jars, pressing down well, and pour the vinegar mixture over.
Top up with a little more vinegar, if needed.
Seal the jars and keep in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

Fills 2 small or one large jar. Pin It

How to cook an Indian meal in 30 minutes

You may remember my previous review about Bipin's Masala curry pastes. Well, I was so impressed with my free sample, that I ordered some more to try out. I decided on a pack of 3 different pastes: Surti Masala, Jeera Masala, and Garam Masala and I was pleasantly surprised to find an extra complimentary pot of Bipin's new Royal Korma paste in my package (which arrived within 3 days of ordering).

I popped all 4 pots into the freezer as directed, until I was ready to use them. This week I tried out the Jeera Masala and the Royal Korma pastes in two different curries:

In one pan, I added the following chopped fresh vegetables: 1 onion, 2 carrots, 1 green pepper, some butternut squash and half a pack of paneer cheese. I gently fried these with 1 tbsp of Royal Korma paste and a drop of extra oil. I then added half a carton of passata and 100ml of water and allowed to simmer for about 30 minutes. Before serving, I stirred through 25g of creamed coconut.

In the other pan, I heated 1 tbsp sunflower oil and added  a chopped aubergine. I cooked this until soft and then added a chopped onion, a drained tin of chickpeas, 100g of mushrooms, 1 tbsp of Jeera Masala paste, and about 50ml of water. I allowed this to simmer for around 20 minutes.
I made up some naan dough in the bread maker, and cooked them under the grill while the curries were cooking.

Both curries were completely different in taste. The Royal Korma, despite being mild, was packed full of aromatic flavours and went down really well with my children. The Jerra Masala complemented the aubergine and mushroom well, and had a distinct taste of cumin with a good chilli kick.

The pastes were really quick and easy to use, and allowed me to produce a restaurant quality meal in 30 minutes - not bad, eh?

Bipin's Masala can only be bought online at a cost of £10 for 3 pastes (plus p&p). Each curry paste pot serves 4+ people and is suitable for freezing.

Integrity Statement
I bought 3 pots of Bipin's Masala and received 1 free sample of  Bipin's Royal Korma to review. I did not receive payment, and the views expressed are genuinely those of myself and my family.

Image 2 courtesy of Bipin's Masala © Pin It

Tzatziki Dip

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Tzatziki is one of my family's favourite things to eat and always bring back memories of our many holidays in Greece. It's really simple to make and tastes so much better than the shop-bought variety.
I forgot to take a photo of my last batch of tzatziki, so I've included a photo from our holiday in Skiathos, instead!

• 250ml Greek/Greek-style plain yogurt
• ¼ cucumber, grated
• 1-2 cloves of garlic, crushed 
• a little chopped fresh dill (optional)
• a dash of chilli sauce/pinch of cayenne/black pepper to taste (optional)

Grate the cucumber onto several sheets of kitchen roll.
Squeeze as much moisture as possible out of the cucumber.
Mix all of the ingredients together and chill until needed.
Serve with fresh, warm pitta bread.

Alternative: I'm not sure how this would taste using a dairy-free yogurt, but it's worth a try...you might want to add a glug of olive oil to get a more 'creamy' taste. Let me know if it works!

More Greek meze recipes: Greek salad, Hummus, Aubergine dip

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Artificial meat - the end to world hunger....or not?

An article shared by Yeovil and Somerset Vegetarians on my Facebook page, prompted me to write this post. It stated that the Japanese are developing a new meat-like food stuff made with protein from bacteria, extracted from human waste. After reading the article, I had to check the date, to see if it was written on April the 1st!

Then, last Sunday, I read a very interesting, but scary article in the Sunday Times newspaper about in vitro meat (an update from this previous article.)  Apparently scientists have managed to produce small quantities in the lab and think that mass-produced cultured meat could be a reality within the next 10 years.

I was slightly surprised to find PETA are promoting this research, despite their reasoning that in vitro meat could save the unnecessary slaughter of farm animals, reduce carbon emissions and could help tackle famine.

Famine is something that we would all surely like to end. As far as I understand, and I could be wrong, it's known that if the entire world's population turned vegetarian, we would, in theory, all have enough food to eat - Around 70% of the world's agricultural land is currently used to grow food to feed and raise livestock, instead of being used to grow plant-based food for humans. As a bonus, carbon emissions would be significantly reduced, as farmed animals produce approximately 20% of our global greenhouse-gas emissions.

Now, I'm not saying that the world going vegan or vegetarian is likely, or even possible (as this is a totally idealistic argument), but a diet more like that of our ancestors, containing just a little meat or fish along side plenty of plant-derived foods, would surely go along way to feeding the starving millions, and would help to improve the health of people globally.

We already have the option of eating non-meat alternatives such as soya, tofu and Quorn which are all low in fat, high in protein and cheaper to produce than meat - so why do we need a version which contains animal cells? I'll certainly be sticking to my veggie diet, whatever the scientists come up with!

What do you think...are you for or against cultured meats and do you think they could be the answer to world hunger?

Read more about in vitro meat here.  Pin It

Vegetarian Jambalaya

I saw some Cajun seasoning in the supermarket this week and bought it as an impulse buy. I then had to find something to use it in, and decided on a one pot vegetarian jambalaya. Having scoured my recipe books with no luck, I turned to the internet. I found two recipes which sounded like they might work, (a meaty but simple one from Netmums, and a veggie one from Gumbo Pages which serves 12 people) so I picked the best bits from both and came up with this recipe to serve 4.

• 4 vegetarian/vegan sausages or chicken-style fillets, defrosted and diced/sliced
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 bell pepper, diced
• ¼ butternut squash peeled, seeded and diced (or a large sweet potato)
• 1 courgette/zucchini, diced
• 1 tin chopped tomatoes
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 cup long grain rice
• 2-3 cups hot vegetable stock
• 1-2 tsp smoked paprika powder
• 1-2 tsp Cajun/Creole seasoning*
• ½ tsp dried thyme/1 tsp fresh chopped thyme

Heat the oil in a large pan.
Add the onion and squash, cook for a few minutes on a medium heat. Stir in the herbs and spices to taste (I used 2 tsp each of smoked paprika and Cajun seasoning).
Add the garlic, bell pepper, courgette and chopped sausage to the pan, and cook for a further 5 minutes.
Stir in the rice and then add the tinned tomatoes and 2 cups of stock.
Bring to the boil and then reduce to a simmer.
Put the lid on the pan and simmer on a low heat for around 20 minutes, or until the rice is tender and most of the liquid has been absorbed. (You may need to add some of the extra stock as the rice is cooking.)

Alternative: Swap the veggie sausage for a tin of drained red kidney beans or chickpeas.

*To make your own seasoning, mix equal quantities of ground cumin, coriander, cayenne, dried oregano, black pepper and sweet paprika. 


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Flapjacks with Dried Fruits, Nuts and Seeds (Vegan)

This is a fruity adaptation of my vegan chocolate flapjack recipe. It came into being after finding a packet of almost out-of-date dried dates at the back of my cupboard!

Makes 12-16 bars/squares.

• 150g/6oz dairy-free spread
• 150g/5oz soft brown sugar
• 2 tbsp golden syrup
• 150g/6oz mixed chopped dried fruit, nuts and/or seeds 
• 225g/9oz porridge oats  
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Pre-heat the oven to 160C/150C Fan Oven/325F/Gas 3.

Melt the spread with the sugar and syrup (in a pan or in the microwave).
Stir in the dried fruit/nuts/seeds and the vanilla extract.
Mix in the oats until coated in the syrup.
Pour into a greased baking tin (15cm x 20cm approx) and flatten with a fork or spoon.
Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown.
Cool in the tin for 5-10 minutes before marking into squares/bars with a knife.
Turn out when cool - not before, or they'll fall apart!

Suitable for freezing.

Alternatives: Top with melted dairy-free chocolate when cool, for a more indulgent flapjack!

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Chocolate Orange Cupcakes (Vegan)

I've been attempting to make a decent vegan chocolate cupcake for some time now. I wanted to make them without egg replacer or any fancy ingredients, but although I found I could make great tasting cakes, the texture was too crumbly without egg to stick it together. This time I added a grated apple and that seemed to do the trick!

• 250g/10oz SR flour
• 200g/8oz soft dark brown sugar
• 4 tbsp fine shred orange marmalade
• 150g/6oz vegan/dairy-free spread
• 150ml/a generous ½ cup cold water or dairy-free milk
• 50g/2oz unsweetened cocoa powder
• ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1 peeled and grated eating apple
• 50g/2oz dairy-free chocolate chips, raisins, chopped dates or chopped nuts (optional)

Pre-heat oven to 180C/170C Fan/Gas 5/375F. 

Cream the dairy-free spread and the sugar, then add the cocoa, grated apple and marmalade and mix well.
Add the flour, water/milk and bicarb. Blend until you have a smooth mixture.
Stir in some chocolate chips/chopped nuts etc (optional).
Spoon generously into 12 muffin/cupcake cases.
Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until firm to the touch.
Ice when cool (optional).

Suitable for freezing.

Orange glacé icing

• Juice and zest of 1 orange
• 100g/4oz icing sugar
• A couple of drops of orange food colouring (optional)

Mix all ingredients together. Add a little boiling water or some more icing sugar if needed, to make a thick, but spreadable icing.
Spread on top of each cake.

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