So far on our global culinary journey, I’ve covered some of the world’s greatest (and lesser-known) savoury dishes, but it’s time for a change. With its sticky, nutty, booze-fuelled filling, Pecan Pie is surely one of America’s greatest desserts, and it’s about time I dived into some sweeter culinary classics.
As is often the case with ‘traditional’ dishes, tracing their origins is pretty tough, but with pecans native to the southern states, pecan desserts such as this one are most commonly associated with the south. New Orleans is a particular hub for the famous pie, with some believing that it was invented by the French, shortly after they settled in the city.
Nowadays, in the US, corn syrup is the most common ingredient used to get the deliciously sweet and sticky flavour and texture, however, prior to the invention of corn syrup, and in Pecan Pie recipes not of direct US origin, molasses, treacle, syrups and maple syrup are all used as alternatives.
Closely linked to Thanksgiving and Christmas celebrations, there are a number of variations of Pecan Pie, the most common being with the addition of Bourbon whiskey – another product which is also symbolic of the deep south. Occasionally, chocolate or chocolate chips are added to the pie, although this seems to be less ‘traditional’.
Christopher’s
My first couple of experiences of Pecan Pie were both in London, the first being at Christopher’s, an American-influenced restaurant in Covent Garden, and the second, a new menu item created by Claire at my favourite street food stall, A Pie Party. The Christopher’s pie slice was delicious – warmed through and served with ice cream, and was slightly more cakey (and without a traditional crust) than Claire’s version, which is definitely more conventional. I was apprehensive when I first bought a slice from A Pie Party, as unlike the Christopher’s version, this one was flavoured with Bourbon, and I’ve never been great with boozy flavours in desserts. Unsurprisingly, I had nothing to worry about, as Claire had got the balance spot on – a definite punch of whiskey flavours without it overpowering the whole dessert. The pecans were definitely more the star of the show in this second version, with no cakey filling – simply a classic pastry filled with a sticky, non-dense pecan mixture. Both were very different, but equally as delicious.
A Pie Party
Having had New Orleans on my mind for the last couple of years, I was lucky enough to spend a few days there earlier this year, precariously close to when all travel was put on hold due to Covid-19. Of all the places in the world to try this dessert, I was going to land in the epicentre of Pecan Pie greatness. It was tough trying to narrow down exactly where I would indulge in a slice of the classic pie, with it generally being a staple on most menus, but after conducting a little of my own research, casual dining restaurant Mulate’s seemed like a good shout.
It felt like the most American place I’d ever step foot in – the kind of setting you’d see the Teen Mom cast being filmed in, talking over their latest dramas. It’s a weirdly large place, with endless tables and super high ceilings, and your typical uniform all-smiles service. And to be quite honest, it’s got a pretty down-market feel. However… this is precisely the reason you don’t judge a book by its cover (not that there’s actually anything wrong with the interior), because the Pecan Pie… oh that Pecan Pie. A sensation. I definitely made the right shout having it warmed with a dollop of ice cream – as the ice cream melted into the gooey, sticky filling, it was honestly heaven on a plate. Of all the Pecan Pie slices mentioned in this post, this one definitely takes the top spot.
So when I touched down back in the UK, I felt inspired by the tastes of NOLA, and had bought many sticky pecan related goodies to cook with. I actually already had the Jamie’s America (Jamie Oliver) cookbook and there’s a whole section in there on New Orleans, including a Pecan Pie recipe.
Looking at the results, the pastry case definitely shouldn’t go up as high as this did but this was due to the pie tin that I used combined with significant excess pastry based on the recipe quantities. I’d say overall it’s a decent recipe. The filling tasted good, full of sticky pecans without an overwhelming Bourbon flavour, however, the pastry on the other hand was slightly underwhelming. It didn’t have the lovely crisp, buttery texture that I was hoping for, but how much of that was down to my cooking (and shit, overpowering oven) I can’t say.
Pecan Pie is a dessert that really does deserve to go global. That sticky, nuttiness with a hit of Bourbon to the back of the throat is certainly a more adult taste, but because of that, if you’ve ever thought you didn’t like it, I’d recommend going to back it a few years down the line (our tastes really do change over time…).
It can be a bit pricey to recreate at home, but if you still want your fix without all the effort, there are so many restaurants and bakeries out there that can sort you right out. If you can’t quite justify crossing the Atlantic for it, definitely visit Claire at A Pie Party, or Christopher’s in Covent Garden for two solid New Orleanian efforts.
Okay, so that’s not strictly true; if my Bosch Multitalent 3 Food Processor lasts the entire duration of my hopefully long life, I’ll be slightly surprised to say the least, but even so, it’s certainly not a ‘use for a few months and then forget all about’ kind of gift.
The same cannot be said, however, for the tin of Cartwright and Butler fudge, which lasted approximately 24 hours after having torn the wrapping paper from the giant box in which it was encased. In this instance, it definitely was just for Christmas.
I thought about whether to do this post, all too familiar of a vomit-inducing Youtube haul (I actually watch these all the time as there’s something addictive about them), but still I hate the ‘look at all this stuff that I either didn’t pay for, or I did pay for because I’m rolling in money for doing fuck all’ kind of posts.
I can’t decide if this is actually any different, but there are no Tiffany lockets, Michael Kors watches (sick face), or Gucci belts and handbags (actually just sick face all of those). Instead here you’ll find a selection of edible and inedible goodies that if you’re still reading, you might actually be interested in purchasing yourself.
Not everything Santa brought me was food-related (he very kindly gifted me some toothpaste, deodorant and make up wipes too – make of that what you will), but a lot of it revolved around the kitchen, and I simply wouldn’t have it any other way.
I should probably start with the aforementioned food processor then. It’s something I’ve wanted for a while (not necessarily that specific one but just something to mush stuff up). I already have a stick blender, and a smoothie maker, but nothing in between for mixing up larger batches of ingredients.
I did my research into how it all works last night, and there are a fair few exciting parts to this ‘MultiTalent’ gadget. The main processor bowl has various blades and attachments. Firstly, you have the standard choppy, mixy sharp blade that you’ll find in any standard processor (like I’ve mentioned before, we only use technical terminology here). It also comes with a plastic ‘blade’ which is designed for mixing up doughs, taking the effort out of strenuous hand-mixing (that’s where I get my bulging biceps from).
As well as those, there are two chopping disks. These sit just underneath the lid of the bowl, and so when you feed your ingredients through the funnel in the top, the blades slice them to the desired thickness (there’s a thick side and a fine side). The other chopping disk is used for speed-grating, and again, this blade has a coarse-grating side and a fine-grating side.
Remove the bowl, and you can add on the blender, ready for prepping smoothies, juices, sauces or soups. This add-on will probably get the least use of them all for me, as like I mentioned, I already have a specific smoothie maker, and my stick blender is perfect for soups, as you don’t even need to move the liquid from the pan.
Finally, what will be massively useful for me is the smaller add-on container. I often make spice/curry pastes for the dishes I cook up, and have been used to using the stick blender for that too. But when I’m literally just making a paste for a meal for one person, there’s so little of the mixture that it barely even reaches the blades on the stick blender. So this small container will be perfect for those kind of things – finely mashing up all those seeds, berries and bits of diced ginger and veg to create the perfect paste quantities for my main meals.
On to some of the edible goodies I found under the tree. First up is this Shawarma Paste by Belazu. I first found a love for Shawarma when I spent a few months living in Granada in Southern Spain. Every city has its own post-night out snack, and I would like to personally thank the Moors for bringing the hangover cure that is Shawarma from North Africa to the region of Andalucía. What could be more desirable in your inebriated state than a stodgy wrap, full of flavoursome kebab meat, salad and all the sauce.
I’ve never made anything along those lines myself, but you can guarantee I’ll give it a go now. It might not be in its Andalucían wrap form, but my mind is running wild with thoughts of all the delicious stews I could make that would benefit from this beautiful-scented paste.
Sticking with the Middle Eastern/North African theme, I unwrapped this lovely little jar of Steenbergs’ Dukkah. I had heard of it before, but truth be told, I wouldn’t be able to tell you exactly what it was, so here’s the Wikipedia explanation:
… is an Egyptian condiment, consisting of a mixture of herbs, nuts (usually hazelnut) and spices. It is typically used as a dip with bread or fresh vegetables for an hors d’oeuvre.
Having done some research, there seem to be a number of ways to cook with Dukkah. It can be used as a crispy coating for meat and fish (or even veg), or can be sprinkled over salads, eggs or toast for added crunch and flavour.
***
It’s customary in my house to receive some kind of Lindt chocolate at Christmas time (as if 24 days of Lindt advent calendar chocolate hadn’t been enough). I’ll actually be saving this milk chocolate bear ready for when I need chocolate to bake with. If I don’t want to overload myself with chocolate, I tend to put it to one side in the cupboard, and inevitably at some point I’ll be making a cake, hot chocolate or sauce that requires melted chocolate – and there it is, beautiful tasting, quality chocolate just waiting to be used up.
One thing that I’ve wanted to cook with for a while, but not necessarily had the patience to hunt down (it’s not actually that difficult to find at all) is liquid smoke. Perfect for BBQ style dishes, and actually also featuring heavily in many vegan recipes I’ve come across, this sauce has a unique flavour that can’t really be created from scratch using indoor cooking appliances. I think a big rack of BBQ ribs are in order now.
I was possibly most excited by this Doctor Seaweed, Weed and Wonderful, Smoked Scottish Seaweed Infused Rapeseed Oil. It may have an incredibly longwinded title, but it’s not that complex to use at all. It smells really interesting, and the bottle suggests drizzling it over fish or something along those lines to add smoky flavours of the sea.
As if my spice cupboard needed any further additions, Santa treated me to this cute little pack of nutmeg with a mini grater. First off, I LOVE the grater. Anything miniature has me whining and cooing about how adorable it is, but it’s actually quite practical too in this case. I still have a little bit of nutmeg left over from what my parents brought me back from Burma, but it is running kind of low, so now I have this lovely back-up ready and waiting. I honestly think nutmeg is my favourite spice. It just has the most beautiful warmth to it, and probably reminds me sentimentally of the bread sauce I smothered all over my roast chicken for years when I was (even) little(r than I am now).
It took me a while to work this next one out, and I’m still not entirely sure about it, but these are hot smoked paprika flakes. I’ve never used paprika flakes before, only ground paprika, so I imagine these will add a more intense burst of flavour. I do love spice (heat) so a sprinkling of this over avocado toast or something like that will be delicious.
Continuing on the paprika theme are these super cute mini paprika packets. Each one has a slightly different note – there’s smoky, sweet, and bittersweet. This is so useful for me, as I often follow recipes that ask for ‘sweet’ paprika, and all I have is what I consider to be ‘generic’ paprika so I just use that. Now I actually have slightly different concoctions of the spice that will add subtly different flavours to my dishes.
I think I now have enough saffron to last me a looong while, but who would be unhappy with that, as it’s the most expensive spice. I’ve also heard a fair bit about Brindisa being a great-quality supplier of Spanish ingredients within the UK – they have shops and tapas restaurants in London and so it’s nice to have something of theirs to try (literally off to browse their website right now…)
Another product that I’m happy to have a top up of is the Taylor and Colledge Organic Vanilla Bean Paste. I reluctantly (reluctant because of the price) bought some of this from Morrisons a few months ago, and I’m so close to running out, so it was a perfect coincidence that I found another little tub of it waiting for me yesterday morning. Obviously a tiny bit of vanilla bean paste or essence goes a long way, so this should hopefully last me a while.
***
Buying Rachel Ama’s Vegan Eats earlier this year introduced me to the idea of using Moringa and Açaí powder in my vegan cooking. Obviously I’d eaten açaí a million times over in Brazil, but never thought of using the powdered form. Rachel makes pancakes using the ‘superfood’ that is moringa powder (the whole superfood thing is mostly bullshit, but still, it looks interesting), and also an açaí smoothie bowl using that powder. These Indigo Nutrition packs are pretty big and so despite probably being quite pricey, they should last me a while. I’ll be making both the pancakes and the smoothie bowl quite soon, and so you should you’ll be able to see those finished brunch items in one of my upcoming Meat Me Halfway posts.
God, I’m still going. There’s actually quite a bit left. I loved the fact that instead of buying shitty crackers full of tat, my parents made crackers out of toilet roll and tissue paper with personalised things inside. My treat was this tiny tiny tub of Nutella, and you know what, I may never use it because it’s that cute. I don’t think I can even bear to open it…
I’d actually forgotten that I’d asked Santa for some mini tart tins, as when I was in Morrisons a few months ago, I saw that they did a pack of 2 for about a fiver, and so I couldn’t resist buying them. Well, now I’ve got 2 more, which is actually pretty helpful, as I think these ones are slightly bigger, and so would be perfect for making individual savoury tarts, whereas I feel like the ones I already have are a better size for sweet desserts.
The last set of food items came in the form of a hamper that came with the food processor. There was actually so much in here – all by Cartwright and Butler. There was a box of butter shortbread which were as expected – buttery and crunchy with a sprinkling of sugar on top. There was also the tin of fudge mentioned earlier (yes, that tin that I devoured in less than 24 hours). The fudge was beautiful and I’d definitely recommend that if you’re looking for a lovely gift for someone. Whilst the fudge came in a pretty greeny blue tin, the hazelnut truffles were housed in a lilac tin – both of which I’ll be reusing, filling them with other ingredients in my kitchen once I’ve eaten everything inside. The truffles weren’t exactly what I was expecting – I thought that truffles always had a soft centre, but these were solid throughout with a strong, bitter-flavoured cocoa coating. They weren’t unpleasant, but just not what I’d thought they’d be.
Savoury-wise, they’d included a packet of cheese biscuits, which were very moreish. I could say I wasn’t in love with them flavour and texture-wise, but then you’d question why and how I’d already managed to finish them all (:
Just a couple more bits in the hamper – a lovely little tin housing a big slab of cherry and almond cake. I sat in my room looking through all the bits I’d accumulated, wanting to try a little bit of everything, but unfortunately I didn’t have a knife up there. Instead of going downstairs to get one to slice a piece off like a normal person would, I peeled back the plastic wrapping, and just took a bite out of the side of the cake, shoving it in my face, eating it as if it were a child-size cake bar. Do not judge me. It was actually so lovely – there’s only half of it left, and I’m not sure whether it’s going to make it to my friends’ for New Year’s Eve or not.
The jar of rhubarb custards was super cute, and the mason jars are going to be perfect for making jam or something like that afterwards. I’m not normally a huge fan of sweets, but these will be nice for when I have a sweet craving but don’t want something too indulgent.
Finally in the hamper was a jar of apple chutney. I love chutneys so I’m very exicted about this. It smells amazing, and I love the thick, chunky texture. I haven’t decided what I’m going to use it with but I reckon it’d be a welcome side sauce for most things I’d cook.
I hadn’t heard of Cartwright and Butler before, but this hamper gives me the impression that their stuff is perfect for gifts, both in terms of taste and presentation, so it’d definitely be worth checking out their website (assuming they have one – I haven’t actually got round to that yet as I’ll probably want everything).
A couple of non-kitchen-related inedible items now, all still to do with food of course. The first is a book that I saw newly–released on Amazon not long ago. ‘This is a book for people who love hot sauce’ is a short and sweet A5 book all about, you guessed it, hot sauce. From the science behind the chemical processes involved and the Scoville scale, to the history, to the variations of hot sauce all over the world, it won’t take me long to blast through this book. I love hot sauce, and if you do too it’s a novelty read.
On the theme of books, I also got this beautiful blank notebook, which I’m going to use as my own personal recipe book. I’m going to fill it with a compilation of base recipes (think different pastries, staple sauces etc), and on top of that, once I perfect recipes of my own, or come up with ideas for potential recipes, I’ll jot all of those down in here too. I want it to be a book that I cherish, and one that I continue to add to for a very long time.
Before I disappear off to enjoy the last few hours of boxing day (before I head back to work fml), my final semi-related present was these incredibly comfy gym leggings from Gymshark. You may have no interest in these whatsoever, and why should you? But just in case you do get a little thrill from heading out for a run, or lifting weights in the gym after all that Christmas fun (there really is no need to feel like you should..), then these leggings have quickly become some of my Gymshark favourites. They fit true to size, aren’t too long for someone short like me, and are tight, sucking me in in all the right places, without feeling uncomfortably restrictive (like some of the other Gymshark styles).
So whether your New Year’s resolution is to cook more, eat more, read more or work out more, hopefully some of the items above that I was lucky enough to find wrapped up under the tree will be of interest to you.
I can’t wait to get to work in the kitchen with them, and no doubt over the next few months I’ll be adding even more to my gadget and store cupboard collections.
I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas (or just a lovely, relaxing break if you haven’t celebrated).
The New Year may be just around the corner, but resolutions or not, we’ve still gotta eat, so…
Nadiya Hussain is now often referred to as a national treasure.
Which she is.
But this adopting of her by a whole nation seems to ignore the individual stories of those who have found solace in both her story, and her food.
I watched Bake Off back in 2015, and yes, I was one of those who grew to love her. Endearingly funny without realising it, and completely oblivious to her own talent, we were all rooting for her until the end.
After bake off finished, however, I didn’t think much more of it. I liked her, but I didn’t continue to closely follow her story.
It was just after Christmas last year when I decided to buy her third cookbook, ‘Nadiya’s Family Favourites’. I’m not sure what made me do it – I didn’t own a single recipe book prior to that, and although I often cooked from scratch at home, it was never anything particularly complicated and I certainly hadn’t yet discovered the passion for food that existed somewhere within me.
In the first few months of this year, I tried following a few of her recipes, with varying degrees of success. There were however, occasions where I miraculously ended up with a dish that actually looked half decent. I’d take something out of the oven, and think, ‘I actually made that… and it wasn’t a disaster…’
Ham and Cheese (not crown) Crown
Rhubarb and Ginger Cake
Without really realising it, I was learning a lot and something was stirring inside of me.
It wasn’t until about April when things really changed. Working in a very challenging secondary school environment started to take its toll on me. I had struggled on for 8 months without saying anything, but it began to reach a point where it was obvious something was wrong, and there was nothing I could do to hide it, often finding it near impossible to drag myself out of bed to go to work without becoming hysterical.
Fast forward a few weeks and I eventually conceded that I needed time off, and began to talk about things that had been stuck in my head for as long as I can remember. This, coincidentally, was also the time at which Nadiya released her ‘Anxiety and Me’ documentary.
I didn’t watch it at the time, despite multiple people referencing it in conversation. At that point, I wasn’t prepared to be introduced to someone else’s struggles when I was working my way through a difficult time myself (I have since watched it, and am in awe of her as always).
Having a few months off work wasn’t what I had initially wanted, but I was very productive during that time. I kept active, going to the gym nearly every day, I completed a food journalism course whilst blogging and researching career options that would help to carve out a happier future for me, and I baked. I cooked and I baked and I baked and I cooked.
I remember in those first few days constantly worrying that everytime I posted on Instagram something that I’d made, people would be thinking ‘so she’s not at work but she’s ok enough to post all these photos of food and jolly captions.’
But it wasn’t like that.
As I sort of managed to tell Nadiya at her book signing on Sunday night, through blubbering, hyperventilated breaths, it was my therapy.
I realised that when I was at work in the kitchen, I literally didn’t think about anything else.
I then bought Nadiya’s second cookbook ‘Time to Eat’, and loved this one even more than the first. Her recipes incorporate everything from British comfort food (think baked beans, roast dinners, buttery English muffins and sausage and mash) to plates inspired by her Bangladeshi background (fattoush, chaat, lassi and halva) and then everything in between (enchiladas, pancakes, pizza and pastries).
Those few months were a whirlwind in the kitchen and I made some of the best food I’ve ever attempted.
Something inside me had been ignited, and I put so much of it down to the love of cooking that her recipes produced within me.
I began to write more about food, starting this blog and channelling all of my energy into what that made me happy.
After a pep talk from one of my closest friends, I made the decision to quit my job. It was a risk, as I didn’t have a plan, and for me, not having a plan is terrifying.
The funny thing is, I still don’t have one, the only difference now is that I trust that I’ll get to where I need to be regardless.
Last night (Sunday 1st December) I went to Nadiya’s book tour for her new memoir ‘Finding My Voice’ at the Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre in London. She spoke openly and eloquently about the many challenges she had faced and overcome, and still is overcoming in her life. Some of them were so far from anything I had ever experienced, and others spoke to me. Some of her fears are my fears, but some of her strengths (without wanting to blow my own trumpet lol) are my strengths.
I was lucky enough to meet her afterwards, but came away feeling like a ginormous idiot, as words failed me, and for reasons I couldn’t really explain at the time I got massively emotional. I actually blame the woman in front of me in the queue who also started to cry so it was her fault for setting the precedent. So yes, this big, long essay here is everything I was trying to explain to her, which just came out in sobs via my ugly crying face.
Who knew cooking and enjoying the incredible recipes that someone else has conjured up could have such an impact on me.
And now I can’t wait to spend every minute of my work shifts reading through the chapters of her life.
Nadiya is brave and inspiring. She’s funny and warm. And I hope that one day when I have children, they have someone like her to look up to.
Fangirling is a bit cringey. But as the title suggests, if you can cry over Beyoncé, I can cry over Nadiya.
……………..
Leaving it on a more light-hearted note, I now have 3 of Nadiya’s 4 recipe books and am gradually working my way through cooking a load of her incredibly diverse food, so just to get you salivating, here are a selection of my favourite and most successful attempts.
Chocolate Caramel Tear ‘n’ Share Soda Bread
Halloumi Fries
PBJ Pancake Traybake
Cayenne Eggs Benedict
Chocolate Lime Roulade
Black Pepper Cake
One Tray Peanut Chicken Gnocchi Bake
Blender Beetroot Pasta
Semolina Halva with Cheat’s Paratha
Beef Burgers
Savoury French Toast
Gingerbread Melt-in-the-Middle with Cardamom Ice Cream
Hello. I currently feel like a big bag of poo and can barely
motivate myself to write, but if I continue to lie here watching Netflix all
afternoon/evening hoping my illness will disappear I am going to go mad. If the
poo reference hasn’t put you off, please continue to read.
This is the second post in my ‘ultimate’ series, bringing
you my top recommendations. This time things are a little bit different – we’re
not talking dining out, but rather cooking at home.
Home cooking can be daunting – potentially time-consuming,
requiring a load of obscure ingredients, and with a risk that it might not go
to plan at all. But don’t let that put you off! It can also be massively
rewarding, and I’m giving you a head start in providing a solid set of recipes
that have worked a treat for me, leaving you with delicious and creative meals
to dish up to your friends and family.
Just a little note on the ‘Effort Level’ section. This is
based more so on how long it takes to make and many elements and/or techniques
are involved. Just because something is high in effort, it doesn’t necessarily
mean it’s difficult to make, only that you might need a bit more patience!
We’ll start with my favourite breakfast and brunch recipes…
7. Cauliflower Hash
and Eggs
Recipe by: Nadiya Hussain in ‘Time to Eat’
Effort level: Medium
Dietary info: Vegetarian (contains eggs)
This one was a big surprise for me. I find it quite difficult to make something cauliflower-based that I enjoy, but this grated cauliflower hash was actually so tasty, what with all the flavour from the chilli and chives. The fried egg isn’t supposed to leak like this but overall I think my attempt looks pretty impressive, so if you want something filling and can be bothered to go wild with a grater then defo have a go at this.
6. Granola
Recipe by: Rachel Ama in ‘Rachel Ama’s Vegan Eats’
Effort level: Easy
Dietary info: Vegan (contains nuts)
You might find yourself thinking, ‘why would I make granola when I can just buy it?’ But personally I found it really satisfying knowing exactly what had gone into it. You can customise with any additional dried fruits etc, and I also enjoyed junking it up a bit by adding the vegan cookie dough from Doughnut Time’s Ice Ice Bae Bae doughnut in there too.
Sometimes I’m in the mood for a savoury pancake more so than sweet. This one was more like the size of a crepe but with the density of an american pancake and so one was plenty enough for lunch. Again, you can customise the toppings, so along with the chorizo and spring onion, I had some manchego that needed using up so I dropped that into the batter as it was cooking so that it melted into the pancake. Only downside then is that when you flip the pancake the melted cheese sort of sticks to the bottom of the pan. But it still worked and most of it stayed within the pancake.
4. Sweet Potato Cakes
with Poached Eggs
Recipe by Kyle Boyce (London Grind), available from BBC Good
Food
Effort Level: Medium
Dietary Info: Vegetarian (contains eggs)
Like with the Cauliflower Hash, this one is slightly more effort just because of all the gratey-gratey but it is worth those extra few minutes of prep time. The result ends up being a crunchy delight, topped with a (hopefully) gooey-yolked poached egg. Bursting with flavour.
3. Sausage and Egg
Bap with Spicy Tomato Sauce
Recipe by: BBC Good Food
Effort Level: Medium
Dietary Info: Contains pork, eggs
One of my absolute favourites. I actually attempted to make the white baps as well but I won’t necessary include that in my analysis of the recipe as they were way too stodgy and hard, but following the recipe and using shop-bought rolls would work perfectly. The sausage patty was delicious, my fried egg perched beautifully on top, and the spicy tomato sauce brought everything together. This is very easy to make, I’ve just given it a medium effort level due to the different aspects that you have to work on separately. You could go wild and add bacon too for the Full English experience.
2. Cinnamon French
Toast Drizzled in Chocolate
Recipe by: Rachel Ama in Rachel Ama’s Vegan Eats
Effort Level: Easy/Medium
Dietary Info: VEGAN!!
Vegan French toast is the most exciting discovery I have made recently. I won’t spend too long talking about this one as I mentioned it in my last post (Meat Me Halfway: Week 2). You do not need eggs at all to create the mixture to coat your bread, and this one was really delicious, although I fucked up the chocolate a bit and it wasn’t supposed to be quite so runny.
1.Semolina Halva with Cheat’s Paratha
Recipe by: Nadiya Hussain in Nadiya’s Family Favourites
Effort Level: Medium/High
Dietary Info: Vegetarian, contains ghee, nuts
This is my ultimate breakfast/brunch recipe. Well, not my recipe sadly, but my favourite recipe to follow. I had no idea what this even was when I got this recipe book but thought I’d be a bit adventurous and try it out anyway. I perhaps wasn’t as open-minded back then because I wasn’t massively optimistic about liking it. But let me tell you, this is beautiful. The buttery, orange flavour with the crunch of the nuts and slight sweetness from the dried fruit; not to mention the ‘parathas’, which in this case are literally just balls of puff pastry rolled and flat and dry-fried. They end up warm and slightly spongy, and then you can pile the semolina on top, or even indulge in them taco-style if you’re an animal like me.
Next up let’s have a look at lunch and dinner. I split up the categories in this way because I couldn’t decide what exactly constitutes lunch, and what would be classed more as dinner, so this seemed more logical.
15. Butternut Pasta
Soup
Recipe by: Nadiya Hussain, in Nadiya’s Family Favourites
Effort Level: High
Dietary Info: Vegan
I never used to be a fan of soup, not really classing it as a proper meal but I’ve made some really tasty ones in the past year or so. I’m always in two minds about these kinds of ‘pasta’ soups. I’ve tried a few and for me personally I don’t think the orzo or whatever pasta shape it is enhances the dish in anyway – I either want pasta or soup, not an odd combination of the two. But whether you add the orzo or not, this is a delicious soup, managing to be super creamy without the addition of cream itself. The chipotle flakes add a warming kick, making it perfect for these long winter nights.
14. Canneloni Filled
with Spinach and Ricotta
Recipe by: Gino D’Acampo in Gino’s Pasta
Effort Level: High
Dietary Info: Vegetarian, contains dairy
Making your own pasta is a bit of a ballache but it is really rewarding, knowing you’ve made every element of the dish yourself. It’s not actually difficult, mainly just mixing your egg and flour to make the dough but then obviously it does require a pasta machine to create the sheets (they’re not particularly expensive). The béchamel with the passata, and ricotta filling makes this stuffed pasta dish super indulgent but the flavours go way beyond tomato and cheese.
13. Blender Beetroot
Recipe by: Nadiya Hussain in Time To Eat
Effort Level: Low
Dietary Info: Vegetarian, contains dairy
This is honestly one of the quickest and easiest things to make, requiring so few ingredients. Once the beetroot has been blended, your sauce is sorted. When added to the pasta, everything turns a beautiful deep purply pink. Top that off with feta and dill and you’re good to go.
12. Bhel Puri Salad
Recipe by: Jamie Oliver in VEG
Effort Level: Low
Dietary Info: Vegan
Salads are generally dead. So uninspiring, leaf upon leaf of bland rabbit-food textures. HOWEVER, just look at this one. I was shocked. This salad is so delicious, and yes that’s partly because instead of leaves there are poppadoms and Bombay Mix but it’s still mostly comprised of radish, tomato and onion so is still pretty healthy. I loved the crunch, it was incredibly refreshing and so vibrant with all the colours.
11. One Tray Peanut
Chicken
Recipe by: Nadiya Hussain in Time To Eat
Effort Level: Medium
Dietary Info: Contains nuts, meat
One that worked a treat for my packed lunches at work, just
as tasty cold. The combination of the peanut butter with the thai green curry
paste is delicious, and the broccoli, gnocchi and chicken make a really
interesting combination. It’s not difficult to make as you can just chuck
everything in a baking dish together but it does require a fair few
ingredients.
10. Amazing Tomato
Curry
Recipe by: Jamie Oliver in VEG
Effort Level: Low/Medium
Dietary Info: Vegan, contains nuts
I made this just last night, using a load of cherry tomatoes rather than larger whole tomatoes as recommended. This is super creamy, and one of my favourite things is the interesting addition of mango chutney to the actual curry towards the end of its cooking time. This adds a lovely sweetness that is normally reserved for dipping. Serve with rice (or as I did, Nadiya Hussain’s Masala Eggy Bread).
9. Shell Pasta with
Prawns and Saffron
Recipe by: Gino D’Acampo in Gino’s Pasta
Effort Level: Medium
Dietary Info: Contains shellfish, dairy
A deliciously creamy-below-the-surface béchamel pasta, with
a crispy top after being grilled before serving. Always slightly more effort to
make a béchamel sauce rather than using a tinned tomato sauce or jarred pesto,
but worth it ultimately, and the fact that this is pretty quick to make overall
compensates for this tiny bit of effort.
8. Rigatoni with Soft
Cheese and Pecorino Sardo
Recipe by: Gino D’Acampo in Gino’s Pasta
Effort Level: Easy AF
Dietary Info: Vegetarian, contains dairy
Another Gino one right here, and one that I avoided making
for ages because there was no photo in the book (anyone else also tend to
neglect these recipes??) but when I eventually got round to it, it tasted
beautiful despite being so so simple. Again, it’s super creamy, but without
having to make a béchamel – this one is just butter, cream cheese and milk.
Ironically I don’t have a photo of my finished thing either, probably because
it looked so uninspiring with no colourful elements to brighten it up, but
trust me when I say the flavour was surprisingly good.
7. Samosa Pie
Recipe by: Nadiya Hussain in Nadiya’s Family Favourites
Effort Level: High
Dietary Info: Contains meat, eggs
When this recipe actually worked out for me I was over the moon. Anything that involved me making my own pastry from scratch, I was sure would be a complete disaster but just look at it! The hot water pastry was actually very simple to make, and the samosa filling tasted so authentic. 100% recommend this recipe if you’ve got a load of people to impress!
6. Green Spinach and
Lemon Risotto with Crispy Prosciutto
Recipe by: Rosie Birkett via BBC Good Food
Effort Level: Medium
Dietary Info: Contains pork, dairy
Risotto is slightly more time-consuming to make, constantly topping up the stock until the rice is plumped up and creamy, but this recipe is worth it. The blended spinach gives it a beautiful colour and the crispy prosciutto on top adds some variation texture-wise.
5. Stuffed Curried
Aubergines
Recipe by: Jamie Oliver in VEG
Effort Level: Low/Medium
Dietary Info: Vegan, contains nuts
Aubergines can be dry and tasteless if you don’t cook them well, but add a delicious curry paste with a whole load of spices, sandwich it inside the aubergine and roast, and you end up with a soft, creamy, dreamy vegetable. I paired this curry with Rachel Ama’s coconut rice rather than plain boiled.
4. Prawn and Salmon
Burgers with Spicy Mayo
Recipe by: Elena Silcock via BBC Good Food
Effort Level: Low/Medium
Dietary Info: Contains shellfish, eggs
The first time I had a salmon burger was at an amazing restaurant in Lisbon, and for some reason, I remember wondering how on earth they made them, as if making a burger out of fish would be the most complex thing in the world. It’s actually not. This burger has so much flavour, the spicy mayo is a beautiful addition, and providing you’re not attempting the buns yourself, is actually pretty straightforward to make.
Cooking whole joints of meat can be quite daunting. I’ve only started trying it recently, and I have had a couple of disasters. But this lamb turned out beautifully – tender and almost creamy, and the pesto sauce is something different to traditional roast lamb with just a blob of mint sauce on the side. You’ll have to excuse the odd combination of sides on the plate below – I wouldn’t serve this odd combo up to anyone else but I was just trying a few recipes at the same time. I froze the leftover lamb and had it in a few other meals later down the line, including Greek Lamb with Orzo, and a Harissa Lamb Pie and the meat was still delicious in both.
2. Beef Burgers with Bacon Jam
Recipe by: Nadiya Hussain in Nadiya’s Family Favourites
Effort Level: Medium/High
Dietary Info: All the meat, plus eggs
Another burger recipe here, and one that I adored. I used blue cheese instead of whatever cheese was in the recipe but other than that I think I followed it pretty accurately. I’ve come to love the idea of a fried egg to top a burger, and the bacon jam was also super tasty, despite my scepticism reading the instruction to add coffee powder…
1.Meatloaf Roll
Recipe by: Nadiya Hussain in Time
to Eat
Effort Level: Medium/High
Dietary Info: Contains meat, eggs
So this is it. One of my absolute favourite lunch/dinner recipes. I’ve made this a couple of times now and anyone who’s tried it has really enjoyed it. It is slightly more effort what with all the elements you have to combine, but at least there’s no expectation for you to make your own puff pastry. Fuck that. Also, any marmite haters should ignore the fact that diluted marmite coats the pastry in between the crust and the sausage meat centre, because I don’t like marmite, but actually the very tiny amount adds a deliciously subtle sweetness when you bite into it. The eggs lined up in the centre make for a super satisfying sight when you cut through the roll. Such an interesting meal, and one that won’t disappoint on flavours.
Exciting section coming up. This one is all about the desserts (dancing lady emoji). So there are actually only 3 in this section, and they are all Nadiya recipes, in case you hadn’t already noticed how much I love her.
3.Gingerbread Melt in the Middles
Recipe by: Nadiya Hussain in Time to Eat
Effort Level: Medium
Dietary Info: Contains dairy
In third place, we have these little gingerbread cookie cups filled with a melted chocolate centre. This is another recipe that didn’t come with a picture, and when I started trying it I don’t think I’d actually read the recipe through beforehand so didn’t really have any idea what I was making. These turned out such a treat though. Cooked through, the biscuit cup is buttery and delicious and then cutting into it, the melted chocolate centre oozes out. I served this with Nadiya’s Cardamom Ice Cream that she makes alongside her Banana Tarte Tatin (a recipe that actually failed for me lol).
2. Burnt Almond Butter Fudge
Recipe by: Nadiya Hussain in Nadiya’s Family Favourites
Effort Level: Low/Medium
Dietary Info: Contains dairy and nuts
I’d never realised fudge was this straightforward to make. It is slightly disconcerting when you realise as you’re making it that it’s pretty much pure sugar, but the flavour is stunning. This one had the most incredible smooth, creamy texture. I’m never a fan of the kind of fudge you have to sort of scrape bits off with your teeth rather than being able to bite straight into it (reminds me particularly of shitty cinema pick & mix fudge…). The almond flavour was lovely, and it’s given me the confidence to try making my own flavour variations of fudge using this recipe as the base.
1.Choco Lime Roulade
Recipe by: Nadiya Hussain in Time to Eat
Effort Level: Medium/High
Dietary Info: Contains dairy, eggs
This is my favourite dessert recipe. Often my favourite recipes end up being unexpected ones, or basically the ones that I think are going to be a disaster, and actually turn out to be pretty impressive. I 100% assumed this sponge would break up as soon as I rolled it, but it didn’t at all. I found the chocolate/lime flavour combination really interesting and unusual and I would definitely serve this up to guests again!
We’re nearing the end and it’s my final section – snacks and sides. Either dishes that you could eat alone when you’re peckish mid-afternoon, or that you could combine with the above recipes.
4. Banana Honey and Hazelnut Smoothie
Recipe by: BBC Good Food
Effort Level: Low
Dietary Info: Contains nuts, dairy
In fourth place is actually a drink/smoothie, but one that is a great breakfast addition. The honey stops the banana flavour from being overwhelming and the little chopped hazelnuts on top add a lovely little crunch. You could always use soy milk as I did to make it dairy-free.
3. Chunky Halloumi
Chips
Recipe by: Nadiya Hussain in Nadiya’s Family Favourites
Effort Level: Low/Medium
Dietary Info: Contains dairy, eggs
Who doesn’t love halloumi. Especially halloumi that’s fried. These squeaky cheese chips are delicious, with the saltiness of the halloumi and the added chilli and za’atar for a spike of flavour. If you want to be particularly indulgent, wrap these in prosciutto before frying.
2. Naan Bread
Recipe by: Miriam Nice via BBC Good Food
Effort Level: Medium
Dietary Info: Contains dairy
Another recipe where the result shocked me. I couldn’t believe how perfect this naan was. From the teardrop shape, to the soft, spongy texture, to the pronounced flavour from the Nigella seeds. Despite learning in India that this kind of naan we’re used to having here doesn’t actually exist there (no teardrop shape, more just like a big, circular, flat and less spongy flatbread), this still was incredibly satisfying to produce and looked shop-bought in a good way. Dipping this into my soups and curries was heavenly. Also freezes well.
So I already raved about these in my last vegan blog so I don’t want to repeat myself other than saying these were insanely delicious. You don’t have to make the chia jam yourself if that’s too much effort, using shop bought is fine. Head to the website in the link above for a huge number of other variations of these little energy balls, all of which I want to get round to trying at some point!
And there’s my full round-up of the best recipes I’ve tried
in the past year or so. The above have all produced fantastic results for me so
I definitely recommend trying some of them out. I think the majority of them
can be found online, although it’s always worth investing in a few solid recipe
books if you’re looking for inspiration.
If you end up trying any of these, I’d love to see the
results, so tag me on Instagram @foodtravelsldn so I can check them out!
One month has flown by, and so we’re already at week 2 of my mission to reduce my meat and dairy intake.
I’m gonna go straight in there and say that I enjoyed this week a lot more. I think the meals I ate were more varied, and I focused slightly less on beans and pulses; my body ultimately thanking me for this as I felt less heavy and bloated.
I’ll kick things off with one of my absolute favourite things that I snacked on at work nearly every day.
I saw this recipe on @mrshollingsworths Instagram account and they looked amazing – peanut butter energy balls filled with raspberry chia jam. You never know if these kinds of things are going to work for you in the same way that they miraculously do on Instagram and recipe books etc, but I can confirm that these came out perfectly. Basically just a combination of oats, peanut butter and dates blended together. For the chia jam you can either buy it or make it yourself but you need to freeze it in an ice cube tray so that the little blobs are easier to work with. Once they’re frozen, you take them out and press the dough around the frozen jam in a little ball. The jam will then defrost so that when you bite into them, this happens…
Just delicious. And with the same Rachel Ama raspberry chia jam recipe that I used for her pancakes last vegan week. I’m looking forward to trying other variations of these little energy balls next time round.
Along with these snacks, I needed a more substantial main meal for my week of packed lunches and decided to take a risk, following a salad recipe. Just to emphasise, I am really not a salad person and just the word alone makes me shudder. But, being open-minded and all, I went straight to Jamie’s Veg book (which seems to be absolutely everywhere recently) and tried his Bhel Puri Salad recipe.
Biggest shock of my life. It was amazing.
First off, it was so vibrant in colour – I think perhaps the fact that it wasn’t such a green salad helped me to find it less off-putting. It’s certainly not a traditional leaf-based salad.
You’ve got red onion, radish, peanuts, pomegranate, and a whole load of crunch from the Bombay Mix and crushed poppadoms. Add all the spices and this really does form a solid meal that tastes as exciting as it looks.
A couple more Rachel Ama recipes followed, one a bit meh, one an absolute winner. I had a brunch of her Nut Butter Toast which was okay but quite basic I guess, but at least it’s something you can customise yourself in terms of toppings and flavours.
What did really impress me though was her French Toast. I’d never really thought of french toast as something that could be vegan, as I’d thought that the egg was a key component. The substitute for the beaten egg mix worked perfectly though and visually created the same yellow-brown hued appearance on the bread. The recipe also used sourdough which I was sceptical about as I thought (bare with me on this one), it might be too ‘bread-like’. As in perhaps a bit crusty etc but it turned out super soft and spongy.
Ngl I would gladly eat this in a restaurant. Credit where credit’s due.
So after this masterpiece and the PBJ balls, I felt like I was on a bit of a roll, but I did take a few steps back again with my attempted Mango Cococnut Chia Pudding breakfast topped with granola and coconut shavings. I made this the night before as Rachel suggests, thinking it would be ready to go, perfect for the following morning and giving me an extra 15 mins in bed as I didn’t have to make anything from scratch. However, this ‘pudding’ just didn’t do it for me. A question of taste I reckon. I’ve never enjoyed mango that much but I’m always determined not just to write off recipes containing it. But that, along with the coconut milk that had soaked into the chia seeds forming an almost gelatinous slime really didn’t go down well. I don’t think the recipe is bad by any means but it just didn’t work for me.
From one coconut recipe to another, her simple, straightforward recipe for Coconut Rice was a winner, and pairing this creamy, delicious side with Jamie’s Stuffed Curried Aubergine worked a treat.
Doesn’t look massively appealing here, but it was absolutely packed with flavour – I highly recommend trying this recipe.
Back to Instagram, and the vegetable I have a love-hate (like-hate is probably more accurate) relationship with, it’s @elavegan ‘s recipe for Kung Pao Cauliflower.
This didn’t end up being bad, but I think I would’ve enjoyed it more had I boiled the cauliflower beforehand to soften before pan-frying and roasting.
Then came the evening when for once I didn’t have a plan. It was my opportunity to wing something. I had some filo pastry that needed using up so decided to try a filo pastry pie. Instead of egg wash I used coconut oil which I read was a half-decent substitute, and so after lining the dish with a couple of layers of the pastry, I filled it with chopped walnuts, mushrooms, vegan pistachio pesto (featured in my last Meat Me Halfway post), and @iamnutokay ‘s vegan black truffle cheese. The end result actually turned out pretty well, and it was really tasty, despite the photo looking like an absolute mess.
I bought a couple of things from @iamnutokay at Victoria Park Market in Bethnal Green a few weeks ago. All their ‘cheeses’ are plant-based, and although the texture doesn’t particularly resemble actual cheese, it’s a great substitute that comes in a range of really tasty flavours. Along with the black truffle, I also bought a chipotle cheese, and both of them are delicious. Vegan ‘parmesan’ also seemed like an important staple so I grabbed a jar of that to keep me going for a while, to add to vegan pastas and risottos.
***
Some of you may know that yesterday was actually World Vegan Day, and the evening before, on Halloween, I got last minute tickets to the Vegan Nights Festival at the Trewman Brewery in Shoreditch, London. I am going to do a separate post about that shortly, but I tried quite a few different vegan street food style meals with mixed results! A couple of amazing finds and some to be avoided, but more to come on that soon!
Restaurant-wise, I’ll take it back to Itsu, which is really great for vegan lunches. I also find their food so refreshing and energising, and they make rice box salads that are super filling. I don’t have any photos this time, but I still adore the vegetable gyozas which I had for a second time, and also was massively surprised by the mini avocado maki rolls. Not a huge fan of avocado, but for some reason, encased in sticky rice and nori sheets it tasted great.
***
I still love the fact that two of the best biscuits out there (Oreos and Lotus biscuits) are both vegan, and so these make a great base for vegan shakes. From Ed’s Easy Diner, I got an oreo milkshake which was creamy and indulgent, and kept me going through a long night shift.
Again, not the most appetising-looking but I promise it tasted great!
Last but not least, I finally got round to trying Arancini Brothers, whose burgers I had first noticed on Instagram a while back, being astounded that they were vegan. I ordered a ‘nudie’ arancini pot along with a chorizo burger. Other than the arancini arriving cold which was disappointing, I loved everything about the food.
I didn’t get any chorizo flavour or texture from the burger to be honest, but the flavour was still beautiful. It was pretty spicy, and the whole concept of an arancini patty is amazing, especially if you’re not a fan of typical plant-based patties made from soya/beetroot/mushroom/lentils etc. The ‘cheese’ was just oozing everywhere, and so for me, this is the perfect example of how vegan food can be utterly indulgent. We’ve come a long way from immediately associating a vegan diet with greenness and health-obsessions.
So that’s pretty much everything. Like I said I found this second week a lot more exciting food-wise than the first week and there are a few meals here that I would actively choose over meat/dairy-based meals which is a good sign. It’s given me a new burst of enthusiasm for all the recipes that I’m going to try next time around at the end of November when week 3 comes calling.
Stay tuned for the Vegan Nights post coming as soon as I have the time. In the meantime why not research vegan eateries near you and set yourself the challenge of eating out at one of these plant-based spots this month. Go in with an open-mind, and…
This is the first part in my new and ongoing series of blog posts, ‘Meat me halfway’. It’s basically a diary following the ups and downs, highlights and lowlights of my journey to reducing my meat and dairy intake.
I’ll willingly admit that I don’t ever have any intention of giving up meat, seafood, and dairy products entirely, however, everything I’ve seen in the media recently has made me consider what I can do to contribute positively to the environmental issues we’re facing. I’m under no illusions – I know that me eating slightly less meat/dairy isn’t going to change the world, but it’s a small step that I can take to contribute to reducing the demand. The way I’ve decided to work it is that for one week towards the end of each month, I’ll only eat plant-based food, so that equates to 3 months a year. I’m also intrigued as to whether my body will physically feel any better.
So there’s my intro – you can look forward to these diary
posts once a month from now on, but for now let’s get stuck in and see what
delicious (and not so delicious) meals I ate.
One of the things that actually quite concerns me about eating purely vegan food is Biscoff. Is there anything in the world that tastes as incredible as Biscoff spread? I think not. Yet it being vegan is not synonymous with it being healthy. And it is fast becoming my weakness. Firstly, Doughnut Time’s ‘David Hassel-Biscoff’ is one of the best and most indulgent doughnuts you will ever eat. But I wanted to incorporate this incredible spread into my home-cooked food. Porridge oats are delicious with some added Biscoff spread. This meal is so straightforward – oats with soy milk, (which I’ve realised doesn’t differ in taste at all to cow’s milk) add a blob or swirl of Biscoff spread, and top with a few Lotus biscuits. Super straight-forward, filling and tasty. Now I just need to stop eating it straight from the jar…
Another breakfast meal that’s really satisfying to both make and eat is granola. When I decided to embark on this journey I bought Rachel Ama’s Vegan Eats book, as it was one of the only books that stood out to me in terms of interesting, exciting-looking vegan food that I was eager to try out. Her guide to making your own granola is so simple – blitzed mixed nuts with coconut oil, oats and maple syrup, baked until golden and then add your choice of dried fruits. To make this even more delicious, I took the vegan cookie dough from Doughnut Time’s Ice Ice Bae Bae doughnut and sprinkled that on top.
Meal prep for the week came in the form of beetroot lentils with HECK sweet chilli plant-based sausages. I have to admit that this meal that I ate repetitively throughout the week didn’t really do it for me in the end. I much prefer chickpeas and beans to lentils, and although I love the flavour of beetroot, I felt like the texture of the lentils with the sausages was just too stodgy. The sausages were actually pretty tasty but the texture was definitely veggified rather than them attempting to be an actual meat substitute.
Last Sunday afternoon I headed to the Black Food Festival at the Oval Space, the focus being on innovative food aesthetics – more specifically, black tinted food. I hate to say it but I was very disappointed with the festival overall. There just weren’t enough traders or visitors to fill the large space, and to make matters worse, despite the festival ending at 9pm, by 5pm when I arrived, most of the food had sold out. I was able to get my hands on a vegan salad from a stall that I annoyingly can’t remember the name of but I’m not actually sure what that had to do with black food. It was tasty at the time, but one of those that on reflection you wouldn’t desperately want to eat again. Then I got a mushroom and black bean taco from Tacos Hermanos. It looked great with the charcoal tortilla and the contrasting bright orange chipotle sauce, and it tasted good, but I found myself admitting that I would never choose that over meat.
Before heading to work the following morning I went back to the wonderful recipes of Rachel Ama, and this time, her vegan pancakes with raspberry chia jam. They were super easy to make, including the jam (although it didn’t thicken up that much) and they tasted great too. The pancakes were quite heavy as oats had been used instead of flour, but they still had a nice texture and the sharpness of the chia jam worked really well.
I was lucky enough to receive some freebies from Itsu later that day in exchange for food from where I work and luckily the ladies had lots of vegan options. They gave me some vegetable gyozas and a tofu rice/salad box. I really enjoyed the gyozas – honestly don’t think I have a preference between the meat and veg ones, which says a lot. When it comes to tofu I have tried it many a time and sometimes I can stomach it, others I can’t. I really wasn’t a fan of this one so I left it, but I did really enjoy the salad and sushi rice, with the delicious sauce, although I still haven’t worked out exactly what it is.
My first proper vegan restaurant dining experience took place at BabaBoom in Islington. It was good that they had a few different options, although there were no vegan desserts. We had flatbread with sweet potato hummus to start and the hummus was great and really creamy. My main was a broadbean falafel flatbread, and whilst I definitely did enjoy it, I still found myself getting food envy when my parents’ chicken and mutton flatbreads were served. Falafel is a great vegan option though and I was definitely super full at the end – helped out by the really well-seasoned fries that I had on the side.
My homemade sweet treats of the week came in the form of apple crumble oat balls. I had a couple of these to snack on each day, and they grew on me throughout the week. They’re made from a blend of apple, almond butter, dates and oats and then chilled in balls so that they hold together. These are great for an energy boost and would be really easy to adjust the ingredients to create different flavours.
We’re on to Rachel Ama round 3 for one of my dinners, and I made her Caribbean Channa. This chickpea curry/stew was packed with flavour and tasted so much better than it looked, but despite all that flavour, for some reason it just didn’t satisfy me in the same way that it wouldn’t done if it’d had beef or chicken in.
I think one of the things I’ve been realising is that sweet vegan food is often much better than the savoury, and Juicebaby’s Açaí bowl reaffirmed this to me. I hadn’t had açaí since I was in Brazil and had been kind of nervous that it just wouldn’t be the same, eating it at work in rainy London as opposed to on beautiful, sunny Ipanema beach. But you know what, I loved it. It didn’t disappoint and although it was a little on the pricey side it was a decent portion size and a great breakfast. It was topped with banana, granola and coconut, but toppings can be customised.
Now, my first slip up. Up to this point, I’d found eating vegan super easy. I hadn’t been remotely tempted to break my plant-based promise. But whilst at work, I was approached by a lady who worked at the café opposite who was interested in doing a food exchange, much like the one I’d done with Itsu days before. I agreed enthusiastically, but then it turned out that eggs and bacon were the extent of the options available. My brain for some reason just froze and I couldn’t tell her that I wasn’t eating meat or eggs so found myself replying ‘Ooh a bacon sandwich would be great.’ Ten minutes later I’m sitting there with this sandwich thinking what the fuck do I do now? The smell was killing me. I literally can’t deal with food waste so there was no way I was gonna let it go to waste but it wouldn’t last until my vegan week was over. So yes, in the end I ate it. And you know what? I have no regrets, because there are no rules to my plant-based eating plans. I can eat what I like, and if during a week of around 15 vegan meals, one ends up slipping, who cares? I’ve still done really well. So I don’t plan on breaking the cycle every time I’m on vegan week, but I really didn’t need to beat myself up about it.
Okay, we’re on to our penultimate meal, and it’s a good one. I was really excited when I came across Chilango’s ‘This isn’t chicken burrito’ on Deliveroo. I was really intrigued as to how convincing it would be. This was one of the best things I ate all week. You could barely tell it wasn’t chicken, the texture was almost identical, and being the filling to a burrito, flavour didn’t really come into it, as that came from all the other elements. You had rice, black beans, salsa, jalapenos, all of which created the most flavoursome Mexican wrap which I would be happy to eat any time, even when not making a conscious effort to eat vegan. This is one that I massively recommend.
Last but not least is another home-cooked meal, but this time one that required no recipe. My parents had just got back from Italy and had brought me back some food-related goodies. One of those was a jar of vegan pistachio pesto, and along with that was some Busiate pasta from where they had been in Sicily which is not made with eggs. The pasta was oddly slimy, but not unpleasant, and when I’ve made fresh pasta myself it’s always had this texture. The pesto was really nice, but not as strong tasting as a basil-based pesto. Regardless, I will definitely be eating this again, maybe with some added sun dried tomatoes and who knows, perhaps a few bites of chicken.
So there’s what went down during my first vegan week. The highlights were definitely the Biscoff, which I have found myself craving 24/7 and also the Chilango burrito. I’m also impressed by the discovery of plant-based milk, which I’ll be using full-time from now on.
I reckon I’d been pretty naïve regarding the way I thought my body would feel following all this plant-based food. I assumed that by being so ‘healthy’ I would feel less heavy and generally better in myself, whereas in fact I felt more gross and bloated than I have done in a long time. I guess this stems from a combination of things – firstly, as previously mentioned, veganism and healthy-eating are not necessarily synonymous so I hadn’t really been that healthy. Secondly, such a drastic change in my diet is obviously going to have effects on my body, and will probably take some getting used to, not to mention the fact that beans, pulses and some veg are known for leaving you slightly bloated so I should’ve expected this. It hasn’t put me off at all though and I’m sure once my body gets used to it every month, the side effects won’t be so significant.
I definitely suggest that you check out Rachel Ama’s
cookbook for further inspiration, and hopefully you’ll learn that plant-based
food can be both deliciously satisfying and full of flavour. Whether you’re a
full-blown meat-eater or a dedicated vegan, I hope this little diary has
offered you some ideas to consider when it comes to meat-free eating habits,
but remember – as long as you’re enjoying what you’re eating in a balanced way,
you do you! This is well and truly a non-preaching zone.
Stay tuned for next month’s instalment, and for now…
¡Comemos! 