#veggietableau

I love stuffed pasta. It’s something that I missed initially when going vegan as it’s rare to find fresh pasta sans egg. But then I thought to myself, if I can make pierogies, then I can certainly make ravioli. That’s how this recipe evolved. 

What you’ll need:

Dough ingredients:

1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour 1 cup slightly warmed water 1/2 tsp sea salt

Filling ingredients:

1 sweet potato 1/3 cup raw cashews (soaked for 20 mins in boiling water or overnight, be sure to drain before adding to recipe) 1/3 cup nutritional yeast 1 tbsp lemon juice 2 garlic cloves 1/3 cup vegetable stock 1 tsp sage 1 tsp dried basil Salt and pepper to taste Pesto ingredients:

1-2 cups fresh basil leaves 1/2 cup nutritional yeast 1/4 cup olive oil 1/4 cup lemon juice (fresh preferable) 1/3 cup pine nuts (can sub chopped walnuts) 2 garlic cloves, minced Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

To prep your dough:

Start by preparing the dough. Combine the flours with sea salt and then create a well in the middle of the flour with a large spoon. Pour the water into the well and begin to fold the flour in until combined. Place the dough onto a clean counter and knead until it comes together and is slightly sticky. Lightly flour the ball of dough, place it back into the bowl to rest and cover the bowl with a cloth while you prepare the filling. To prep your filling:

Take your sweet potato and either microwave until soft (about 5mins) or steam until a fork can easily/cleanly be inserted. Remove from skin and then place your sweet potato along with all the remaining filling ingredients into a blender and pulse until very smooth. It may require a bit of work to get the ingredients smooth, but stopping the blender to scrape the sides/ move the contents around with a spoon or spatula will help immensely. Cover the filling and set aside while you roll out your dough. To assemble:

Divide your dough in half (it makes it easier to handle) and place on a floured counter. Using a rolling pin, roll out your dough until it’s about 1/16″ thick. If you’ve a pasta roller, use it and save your arm muscles! Use a 2 1/2-3” wide glass, a round  or square cookie cutter and cut out as many pieces from your dough. You can take the scraps and create a new ball to roll out and repeat the process until you’ve gotten all the disks/squares you can from the dough. While doing this process I’d suggest covering the cut-outs with a cloth to prevent them from drying out.

Once you’ve produced all the cut outs you can from your dough, place about 1/2 tbsp of filling on half them. Have a small dish of water standing by. Using a finger, dab a little water around the edges, place another cut out over the filling, and gently press the sides together around the filling sealing the ravioli. The finished ravioli can either be frozen or cooked up straight away! If you freeze them, be sure to lightly flour and layer between parchment paper.

To prep your sauce:

In a blender add your sauce ingredients. Pulse until smooth. To cook:

A little bit of story time. I was chatting with my Dad and mentioned I’d be making sushi for dinner. 

He goes “Where do you buy your fish from to make it?”

I go “Dad, I just make it with vegetables... I’m vegan, remember? No fish for me.”

My Dad is typically on the ball when it comes to my “nuts and berries” diet (his favourite way of describing it) so this brain fart was just one reminder that I need to work a bit harder with my family on realising there are alternates to the omnivorous ‘norms’.

Anyways, back to the sushi at hand. It’s a great way to be inventive and it’s easier than you think. You just need a bit of patience because of all the veggie chopping. 

I’ve stuffed my rolls with things like tempura sweet potato, sautéed mushrooms, avocado, carrot, peppers, marinated tofu, green beans, and cucumber. You can really do anything with veggie sushi so be as inventive as you’d like! 

What you’ll need to make the sushi:

1 1/2 cups of sushi rice 2 cups of water 2 tbsps mirin 1 tsp salt 1 packet of nori (you’ll likely have some sheets left over for next time) 1/2 carrot sliced lengthwise and thinly 1/2 cucumber sliced lengthwise and thinly 1/2 red pepper sliced lengthwise and thinly 1 avocado sliced lengthwise and thinly 8 green beans 1 sweet potato tempura (recipe here) Marinated tofu sliced thinly Mushrooms sliced thinly 1 tsp liquid smoke Soya sauce Wasabi Sesame seeds

Directions:

Take your rice and water and put it in a big pot over high heat. Have the lid on until the water begins to boil, turn the temperature down to medium-low and tilt your lid so the steam can escape (prevent it from boiling over by occasionally removing the lid or fanning the bubbles). If you’ve a rice cooker, use this instead. Once all the water is gone, remove pan from heat and let your rice cool. Mix in your mirin and salt.

In a small frying pan over medium heat, place your mushrooms, liquid smoke and a dash of soya sauce. Cook your mushrooms until tender (4-5 minutes) and remove from heat.

Prepare all your veggies and have them sitting close to hand. Grab a small bowl of water to dip your hands into (this will help you handle the rice). On a bamboo sushi mat place a square of clingfilm and a piece of nori (rough side up). Spread your rice thinly and evenly across the nori, leaving about a one inch square along the far edge of the nori (this is the side that will be on the exterior of the roll). 

Near the start of the nori sheet place your veggie selection lengthwise. I suggest mixing and matching your veggies. Make sure not to put too much on as your sushi piece needs to fit in your mouth! 

Fold the bottom edge of the seaweed over the filling, then roll it up firmly. Dampen the top border with a little water to help it seal the roll. Repeat to make the rest of your rolls. At this stage, the rolls can either be cut with a serrated blade (about 6-8 rounds per roll) or be wrapped individually in cling film and chilled until ready to serve.

Sprinkle some sesame seeds on top and serve with wasabi and soya sauce.

楽しんで (Tanoshinde) Enjoy!

It’s fun to create something simple yet festive for the Halloween season. I was heading to a party and wanted to bring something along but didn’t have a lot of time to prep. The solution came quickly. Witch finger cookies. They’re relatively quick to make, I had everything I needed in my cupboard and it didn’t require me to think too far ahead with preparation. 

What you’ll need: 2 cups flour 1/2 cup powder sugar 1/2 cup brown sugar 1/2 cup vegan margarine 1/2 cup coconut oil 2 tsp baking powder 1 flax egg or egg replacer Almonds and jam for the fingers Directions: Combine everything except the jam and almonds in a bowl. You should end up with a pretty firm dough. Roll out pinky sized fingers (they expand in the oven), place on a piece of baking parchment on a cookie sheet. you’ll then press an almond into each finger and make your knuckle grooves with the edge of a spoon. 

Put your tray in the fridge for ten minutes before baking on the middle rack for twelve minutes at 350°F (175°C with fan). Pull from the oven when golden brown and move the cookies onto a cooling rack. 

Remove almonds when slightly cool to add jam in the grooves and then press the almond back on top. 

Presto-chango you’ve a spooky treat!

Are there ever times where you want a bit of dessert but realize you'd have to pop to the shop for flour? Not to worry, this treat is gluten free! Chocolaty, peanut butter squares. Takes a whopping 30 minutes to make and 10 minutes of patience. 

What you need:

1 ripe banana 2/3 cup of peanut butter 1/2 cup of brown sugar or maple syrup 2 cups oats 1 bar of dark chocolate cut into chunks (reserve 1/3 of bar for drizzling on top) 3 tbps cocoa powder 1 tsp vanilla extract 3 tbsps nut milk 1/4 cup shredded coconut 1/4 cup crushed almonds 2 tsps baking powder 2 tbsps ground flax Pinch of salt Directions:

In a bowl, mash your banana and flax together. Add the remaining ingredients and mix well. Pop the batter into a pre-greased 8x8" baking dish and into a pre-heated oven of 180*C with fan (375*F) for 20-25 minutes. 

While your treat is baking (around the 18 minute mark), either use a double boiler or a pot with water and a metal bowl to melt the remainder of your chocolate. Remove the treat from the oven and drizzle your chocolate over. 

Sprinkle with some more coconut and let cool for 10 mins before serving.