Category: Recipe

  • Apple and butternut soup

    Apple and butternut soup

    It’s Halloween so it seemed apt to have butternut squash soup for dinner tonight (also known as butternut pumpkin in Australia). Lately I’ve been thinking it might be worthwhile to share cheap meal ideas since so many people are struggling with bills right now. It’s not hard to feed a family of four on a…

  • Chocolate bean balls

    Chocolate bean balls

    My mother-in-law shared this delicious recipe with me and I’ve modified it slightly and am sharing it now with you. These balls are a hit with the kids so it’s a good way to get fussy eaters to eat beans. They can be modified for adults with the addition of whisky but I think they’re…

  • Vegan scones and cream

    Vegan scones and cream

    The Brits are known for their scones but unless you go to a vegan cafe they’re always packed full of butter and cream. It’s a shame because vegan ones are easy to make and delicious. You can even make the whipped cream without using any cow’s milk. I used coconut cream. Here’s the recipe: 2…

  • Fudgy no-bake brownies

    Fudgy no-bake brownies

    Elizabeth made the fudgy no-bake brownies from Dr Gregor’s How Not to Die cookbook yesterday. They’re so easy to make even a kid can do it. I just helped her a bit with the food processor. They’re delicious and healthy. There’s no sugar in the recipe and they’re gluten-free and vegan. Ingredients 1 cup walnuts…

  • ‘Tis the season to stuff your face with lots of yummy food

    ‘Tis the season to stuff your face with lots of yummy food

    Every Christmas I make lebkuchen which is German for ginger bread except that it doesn’t contain any ginger. I’m a bit slow making it this year because I’ve been making panforte – I’ve made three batches of it so far and probably eaten most of it myself because the kids don’t like it. I had to…

  • Vegan panforte

    Vegan panforte

    Ben’s mother often makes panforte during the Christmas period and it’s one of the yummiest things I’ve ever eaten. I thought I’d try making a vegan panforte this morning and it turned out beautifully! It’s dangerously delicious which means I’ll need to find some self-control to avoid stuffing my face. I used this recipe but…

  • Vegan haggis with whisky sauce

    Vegan haggis with whisky sauce

    After our visit to Glenfiddich last weekend I was inspired to make a vegan whisky sauce to go with vegan haggis. All the supermarkets here sell vegetarian haggis and there are two main brands to choose from – Simon Howie and Macsween. Both are very good. Last night we had Simon Howie’s haggis which contains…

  • Vegan banana choc chip muffins

    Vegan banana choc chip muffins

    Is there anything more delicious than banana and chocolate mixed together? This has always been my favourite combination for a muffin. These are very quick and easy to make and they’re also a great way to use up elderly bananas. Ingredients 2 ripe bananas 2 tablespoons ground flaxseed 6 tablespoons water 1/4 cup vegetable oil…

  • Recipe: Vegan Protein Balls

    Recipe: Vegan Protein Balls

    I made some more protein balls and this time I made a note of the ingredients. These make a really nice mid-morning or late-afternoon snack when you’re hungry but don’t want to spoil the next meal. The coconut condensed milk is something I’ve discovered recently and it’s available at Ocado. If you’re in Aberdeen you can…

  • Porridge with peanut butter

    Porridge with peanut butter

    Last Sunday we went to Bonobo for brunch and I tried their Bonoboats which is porridge made with peanut butter. I was a little skeptical at first but it exceeded my expectations so I decided to try making it at home. Here’s what I got at Bonobo: Here’s what I made today at home: Ok, so…

  • Cauliflower cheese without cheese

    I’m not that into cooking however I like eating and I know I need to eat more fresh vegetables and fewer processed vegan meals. Last night I made a vegan version of cauliflower cheese that tasted wonderful and was very easy to make so I thought I’d share it. Someone at the allotments gave me…

  • Vegan ice cream for dummies

    I adapted this recipe from one I saw in the August edition of Britain’s Vegan Food & Living magazine. It is possibly the easiest, quickest, healthiest, and yummiest vegan ice-cream you will ever eat. Ingredients 3 large bananas 300g frozen black currents (or berries of your choice) 1 tbsp maple syrup 100ml soya milk Two…

  • Stinging Nettle Soup

    Just over our back fence is a prolific jungle of stinging nettle. I have always viewed stinging nettle as a bit of a nuisance because touch it with your skin and it’s very unpleasant, leaving a stinging sensation for sometimes a day or two. However I recently discovered that the leaves of stinging nettle are super nutritious because…

  • Is pearl barley the perfect food?

    I love pearl barley. It’s one of the oldest cultivated cereals and was an important source of food for Europeans up until the end of the 19th century. It has a very low glycaemic index and is high in soluble fibre making it excellent at regulating blood sugar. It’s also higher in protein than rice…

  • Vegan macaroni cheese recipe

    I haven’t shared a recipe for a while and last night I cooked a vegan version of macaroni and cheese which my kids love and so do we. It’s adapted from a recipe called Sunflower Mac in one of the best vegan cookbooks on the market, Isa Does It. My sister told me recently that the photos I…

  • Mince pies and free the nipple!

    When I first moved to the UK as a twenty-year-old I was puzzled by the mince pie. Why were they eating meat for dessert? I thought a mince pie contained beef mince rather than fruit and nuts. Now I’m a little more cultured than I was then, although not by much, and I’ve got a good…

  • Cashew nut pasta ~ vegan of course

    I’ve shared recipes before that contain cashews all ground up but this one is a little different because I am currently without my coffee grinder for grinding nuts. It is on a ship somewhere between New Zealand and Scotland. So I decided to buy some cashew butter instead which is just like peanut butter except with cashews.…

  • Red lentil and tomato soup

    Red lentil and tomato soup

    We had a really yummy red lentil and tomato soup at the cafe at Newton Dee on Saturday and even Daniel expressed his approval so I thought I’d trying making one for lunch today. Lentils are a great source of protein and iron, and they’re also very cheap. My soup was yummy and it passed the Daniel…

  • Vegan blueberry & cashew cheesecake (gluten-free too)

    Since we’re about to leave New Zealand, I thought I should spend all my fly buys points. So I bought a cookbook I’ve been wanting for some time: The Revive Café Cookbook. It’s written by the owner/founder of the Revive Cafés in central Auckland. The book has exceeded all my expectations. It’s wonderful. I thought I’d share this recipe…

  • Easy vegan blueberry ice-cream

    Since I’ve banned sweets from our house, we have been missing something yummy for dessert. I thought I’d try making a healthy ice-cream to compensate. Credit to my mother-in-law for the idea to use bananas in this recipe. They give it the creamy texture you would normally get by using dairy products but without having…