Winter Slaw Salad with Apple, Celery & Cucumber

As, I joined in with Veganuary the past couple of years, but then reverted back to being vegetarian pretty soon afterwards, I thought I'd try something a little different this year. Instead of cutting out eggs and dairy, I thought I'd try reducing them instead (alongside meat substitutes), whilst trying to eat more raw/whole foods, fresh fruit & vegetables and pulses...

This seasonal salad is a great way to get an extra one or two portions of fruit and veg in, if served alongside a carb-based main meal.

• 1 firm eating apple, cored and sliced
• ½ cucumber, de-seeded and sliced
• 2 sticks of celery or ½ bulb fennel sliced
• 25g/1oz chopped walnuts
• 1 tbsp mayonnaise or vegan mayo (or vinaigrette made with 1 dsp olive oil mixed with 1 dsp white wine vinegar)
• A little fresh, chopped dill or parsley

Prepare the apple and place in acidified water (a bowl of water with 1 tsp lemon juice), whilst you prepare the other ingredients.

Drain the apple and blot dry with kitchen town.

Place all of the ingredients into a bowl and stir in the mayo or dressing.

Refrigerate until needed

.I'm entering this recipe to this month's No Croutons Required Challenge, co-hosted by Jacqui at Tinned Tomatoes and Lisa at Lisa's Kitchen. 

Pin It

Halloumi & Mint Bread Whirls

The recipe for these tasty halloumi bread rolls was inspired by one I tried in a Greek restaurant in Sydney, Australia. I don't know the actual recipe used, so I adapted my standard bread recipe and tried out a few variations.

When making a large loaf with raw halloumi, I ended up with a 'soggy bottom'! I found that I needed to cook the cheese first, to remove the excess moisture, and then had to cool it before adding to the dough.
So, I tried adapting my pizza whirl recipe instead, and it worked a treat using raw halloumi, as the moisture could evaporate.

For the bread base

• 1 cup cold water
• 3 cups strong white bread flour 
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 sachet fast-action dried yeast
• 1 tsp sugar
• ½ tsp salt

For the filling

• 200g halloumi, finely diced
• ½ cup chopped fresh mint, or around 2-3 tsp dried mint
• 2 tbsp olive oil

Put all of the dry bread ingredients in a bowl (or bread maker) add the wet ingredients.

Mix well until you have a smooth dough (on dough setting in bread maker).

Add a little more flour if the dough is too sticky.

Cover the bowl and allow to rise in a warm place for 30-60 minutes.

Dust a large board or clean table with a little flour.
Roll the dough into a rectangle, approx 25cm x 40cm. 

Sprinkle the halloumi and mint over, leaving a border at the front and sides.

Roll the dough lengthwise, as tightly as you can (like a Swiss roll).

Making sure the dough roll is seam-side down on the board, cut slices approximately 1.5cm thick.
Place on a greased baking sheet, with a little room to expand.
Drizzle with the olive oil.

Cover loosely with cling-film or a clean tea towel and allow to rise for a further 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 200C/190C Fan/Gas 6 .

Bake for around 10-15 minutes, or until well-risen and golden.

Place onto a wire rack to cool.
Serve warm, with dips, as part of a meze, or instead of a sandwich in a packed lunch.

I'm linking this post to November's Cooking With Herbs challenge

Pin It

Puff Pastry Empanadas with Black Beans

These quick and easy veggie empanadas make an idea starter or tapas dish. They would also work well in kids' lunch-boxes, as an alternative to sandwiches.
Obviously you can make your own pastry if you have time, or use shortcrust pasty if you prefer.

Makes 18-20 small empanadas

• 1 red onion, finely diced
• 1 large, or 2 small bell peppers, diced 
• 1 large clove of garlic, crushed
• 1 fresh chilli, de-seeded and finely diced, optional
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• ½ tsp smoked or plain paprika
• 1 tin black beans, rinsed and drained
• 2 tbsp chopped, fresh coriander
• 100g/4oz Monterey Jack or Cheddar cheese, diced
• 500g/1lb pack of ready made puff pastry
• 1 egg, beaten

Gently fry the onion, garlic and bell pepper in a little oil, until soft. Add the herbs and spices, and cook for a further minute. Set to one side to cool.
When cool, stir in the chunks of cheese.

Pre-heat the oven to 220°C/Fan 200°C/Gas Mark 7/425°F

Roll out the pastry as thinly as possible, on a lightly floured board.
Using a large cutter (10-12.5cm/4-5") or small plate/bowl and a sharp knife, cut as many circles from the pastry as you can. Re-roll any scraps of pastry and repeat.

Brush the perimeter of each circle with beaten egg.
Spoon 2 tsp of the filling into the middle of each piece.
Fold the pastry carefully over the filling, to make a semi-circle.
Press firmly to seal, then crimp with a fork, or by folding the edge over in the traditional way (YouTube tutorial here!).
Brush each mini-pasty with beaten egg to glaze.
Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until the pastry has puffed up and turned golden brown.
Remove from the oven and cool on a wire tray.
Eat warm or cold with your favourite dips.

Suitable for freezing. Defrost before re-heating.

Vegan version
Most brands of puff pastry are vegan, so this recipe is easy to veganise. Swap the dairy cheese for your preferred alternative, or omit and add some extra beans or vegetables. Seal the empanadas with a little water and brush lightly with olive oil to glaze.

Top tip: If you don't have time to make empanadas, use the same filling for quesadillas - just pop 2-3 tbsp of the beany mixture onto a tortilla, fold in half and pop in a sandwich press or hot pan for a few minutes to warm through and melt the cheese.

Although I haven't attempted to make my own puff pastry, I'm linking this post to Lisa and Jen's Pastry Challenge, hosted this month at United Cakedom.

Pin It

Tear 'n' Share Spiral Pizza

I was inspired to make this alternative pizza, after seeing the idea on Pinterest. My version is somewhere between a tear 'n' share' flat-bread and a pizza; it works well as a picnic food, as you can just pull a chunk off, rather than slicing it up. I topped mine with Manchego cheese, tomatoes, olives and parsley, for a Spanish theme, but you could use mozzarella and basil for an Italian flavour or feta and oregano for a Greek version.

Makes one large pizza

• 1 portion of basic white bread dough
• 100g/4oz cheese, chopped into chunks or grated
• 4 tbsp tomato purée or passata
• 50g/2oz olives, sliced
• 50g/2oz sun-dried or fresh, de-seeded tomatoes, chopped
• Fresh or dried herbs

Make up the dough, by hand or on the dough setting in the bread-maker.
Prove until doubled in size, then cut into 4 pieces.
Roll out each piece into a long 'sausage' about 30cm/1ft long.
Form a large spiral on a large, greased baking sheet, pressing the ends of each 'sausage' together. 
Make sure that there is a gap of around 2cm between each loop of the spiral.
Spread the tomato purée roughly over the dough.
Sprinkle the other toppings over randomly.
Leave to rise for 30 minutes.
Bake in a pre-heated oven at 220C/200C Fan/ Gas 7/425F for 10-15 minutes. or until the cheese and bread are starting to brown.

Suitable for freezing.

Vegan variation: Simply substitute the dairy cheese for your favourite vegan cheese.
Buffet variation: Make mini pizza whirls.

I'm linking this recipe to Bready, Steady Go, hosted by Jen’s Food and Utterly Scrummy Food For Families. 


Pin It

Vegetarian 'Hawaiian' Quesadillas

©

When I was growing up, fresh pineapple was considered positively exotic! We might have had tinned pineapple in fruit salads, or maybe on a Hawaiian pizza, but that was about it. Apparently pineapple on pizza isn't exactly traditional in Hawaii though, so apologies to any Hawaiian readers and especially to Little Ferraro Kitchen. 

Although I now love fresh pineapple, I hadn't thought of putting it in a sandwich; I came up with this simple veggie/vegan wrap combo after being inspired by a similar meat-based dish on Closet Cooking. I wasn't sure if the flavours would work with a meat substitute, but they really do. Coincidentally, Ephee has recently blogged an alternative vegan version over on her amazing blog: L'éphémère quotidienneté des repas et autres trucs de magie.

These quesadillas are really quick and easy to make, so are great for lunches and camping trips. 

Makes 4

• 4 slices of vegetarian/vegan bacon/ham, cooked if preferred and chopped
• 2-4 thin slices of pineapple (fresh is best, but tinned will do), chopped
• 2 tbsp pickled jalapenos, chopped (optional)
• 200g/8oz mozzarella/cheddar/vegan melting cheese
• 4 tbsp tomato puree/tomato salsa/bbq sauce
• 4 tortilla wraps

Fry or grill the veggie bacon/ham until lightly browned (this is optional, but I prefer it crispy!).
Spread half of each tortilla with a spoonful of tomato puree or your preferred alternative.
Divide the remaining ingredients between each wrap.
Fold the wraps in half and heat through until the cheese has melted, either in a hot pan or in a panini press/grill.
Slice into wedges and serve with salad.

Pin It

Vegetarian camping food for kids

©

I've been asked a few times for food specifically suitable for kids' camping trips. While I'm a big believer in feeding my children the same as we eat, I realise there is a time and place for giving the kids what they will eat...especially when time, money and tired, hungry children are involved. 

The following meal ideas rely quite heavily on convenience foods, but they are still pretty healthy and filling. A good pinch of mixed herbs, some mild chilli powder, curry powder and/or some garlic paste could be added to most of these dishes to make them more tasty. These recipes might also go down well with students and festival-goers as they are cheap and quick and easy to prepare.

• Hot dog stew: Heat sliced or mini vegetarian hot dogs in a pan, along with a tin of baked beans, a drained tin of ready-cooked small potatoes and drained tin of sweet corn. 
• Veggie sausages, hot dogs or burgers in buns: Cook on the barbecue and serve with ketchup, salad, vegetable sticks, or corn on the cob.
• Pasta in sauce/pesto: Cook some fresh pasta, until al dente. Drain, and add in a tub of your preferred ready-made sauce or vegetarian pesto. Heat through until piping hot. 
• Quick and easy mild chilli with tortilla chips: Mix a tin of beans in mild chilli sauce with a tin of ratatouille. Heat until the vegetables have softened. Serve with a sprinkling of grated cheese and tortilla chips to scoop.
• Soup and bread: Heat a carton/tin of ready-made soup and serve with some fresh, crusty bread.
• Omelette or frittatta: Heat a drop of oil in a frying pan and some chopped veggie sausage or veggie bacon (and some finely chopped vegetables such as bell peppers, mushrooms etc. if your kids like these). When cooked, add 1-2 beaten eggs (per child) and cook until set. Serve with baked beans and crusty bread.
• Vegetarian corned-beef hash: Boil some peeled, diced potato and sweet potato in a pan (you could add other root vegetables too). Drain. Heat a drop of oil in a pan and fry some finely diced onion and some chopped up veggie burgers (the brown, meaty-looking ones) until cooked. Add the cooked potatoes and heat through.
• Veggie kebabs: Cut veggie sausages or burgers into chunks. Thread onto skewers alternated with chunks of whatever veg your children like (bell peppers, courgette, mushrooms etc.) Brush with oil and barbecue. Serve in pitta breads or wraps.
• Dips and dippers: Buy a selection of ready made dips and pitta bread, naan bread or bread sticks (or a combination of breads). Cut (or buy prepared) carrot, cucumber and bell pepper crudités. 
• Sweetcorn fritters: Make up a pancake/batter mix a little thicker than for pancakes. Add a drained tin of sweetcorn and mix into the batter. Fry in batches.

Find more camp-site meal ideas on my vegetarian and vegan camping recipes post.

If you have any other suggestions to add to the list, please add them in a comment below.

Pin It

Vegetarian & vegan buffet ideas

Here are some of our favourite vegetarian and vegan buffet/meze/canape ideas which are ideal for parties and picnics (for mums who don't shop at Iceland!)
If catering for large numbers, I generally make up some batches of buffet foods in advance and freeze them. I also make various fresh salads and dips as needed, either the day before or on the day.

All recipes are, of course, vegetarian, so I have marked vegan recipes with (v) and those which can have a vegan option as (vo).

Make in advance and freeze:
Halloumi and double potato cakes
Halloumi tarts
Courgette and potato quiches
Falafels (vo)
Spinach and cheese pies
Cheese scones
Glamorgan sausages (or use this mixture in puff pastry to make sausage rolls)
Chorizo-type sausages (as above)
Nut roast sausage rolls (v)
Scone-base pizzas
Cheese muffins
Garlic bread/dough balls/pizza (vo)
Spinach, pepper and Goat's cheese quiche
Savoury puff pastry tartlets (vo)
Quorn kebabs (vo)

Make  fresh:
Hummus (v)
Tzatziki
Aubergine and feta dip (vo)
Pasta salad (vo)
Pesto and antipasti tart (vo)
Squash, lentil and sweet potato salad (vo)
Vegan salads (v)
Bulghar wheat salad (vo)
Marinated olives (v)
Guacamole (v)
Mushroom bruschetta (v)
Dakos (vo)
Veggie frittata/tortilla
Roasted vegetable salad
Green salad
Rice salad
Greek salad on a stick - a chunk of cucumber, a piece of feta, half a cherry tomato and an olive on a cocktail stick
Potato salad
Jacket potatoes/Potato wedges/Home made chips

Add a few store cupboard standbys:
Veggie cocktail sausages on sticks 
Cheese and pineapple on sticks
Crisps
Crackers
Bread sticks
Bread/wraps

Dessert ideas:
Oreo truffles
Tiffin (v)
Chocolate hazelnut truffles (v)
Mini whoopie pies
Mini desserts
Fresh fruit salad

Drinks:
Cider Punch
Champagne cocktails

Pin It