Risotto

Tonight's dinner was a quick and easy risotto using up left over bits and bobs from the fridge! I threw in mushrooms, carrot, white wine, garlic and some wild rice (just for fun!). Then I added some of my new mushroom ketchup from the food swap. It was ace, even if I do say so myself!

Cooking with friends

I had a lovely Saturday afternoon this weekend! My friend Soukina is a wonderful cook! She has a real passion for it and her food is always amazing! Earlier this year she threw a dinner party and made me some really amazing vegan food that had all the meat eaters' mouths watering. Check out my dessert:

So Saturday afternoon I popped round the corner for a cooking workshop with Sou!

The plan:

🍩 Tempura sweet potato and avocado Bahn Mi baguettes 

🍩 Caramelised onion 'sausage' bites

🍩 Chocolate pudding!

Sou had pre-prepped the 'viet' as it needed time to steep and I got a lovely jar of it to take home! It was so easy to make though and I'll definitely be having a go myself. Sou used turnip instead of the daikon in the recipe and it tasted fab and will be great with salads.

Other than that I did everything myself (with Sou's guidance) and was really surprised how easy it all was, and most importantly for me, all the ingredients were fairly standard and easy to come across. The only ingredient that I may not be able to find in Sainsbury was rice flour.

We had so much fun and a great natter too; it was a brilliant bonding opportunity! 

After the fun of the cooking was the best bit; eating it all! Everything tasted brilliant! The pudding was very rich and turned out differently to last time Sou had made it - we think this is because we got carried away with the chocolate and perhaps it could have done with some soy cream. It still tasted lush though!

I've come away with lots of ideas and more confidence too. Before now I'd never made caramelised onions and who knew such a great pudding could be so easy (simply blend and go!) I finished off the sausage bites tonight with mash, beans and gravy, perfect for a Sunday night tea! 😊 

Kipper wanted to help but he was in disgrace for massacring a pigeon - naughty Kipper!

Here's where you can find the recipes...

Bahn Mi - www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2013/02/tempura-sweet-potato-bahn-mi-vegan-Vietnamese-sandwich-recipe.html

'Sausage' bites -

Http://Thevegpod.wordpress.com/2012/11/14dees-caramelised-onion-sausage-bites-vegan-Christmas-party-food/

Goodies!

What really spurred me on to creating a blog was joining the UK Vegan Food Swap. A friend told me about it recently and I just couldn't wait to join up! All you have to do is put together a package of vegan treats, send it to your designated swap partner, wait, and then you receive a box of goodies back! Amazeballs! A great way to disover new food and connect with some fellow vegans!

This month was my first month taking part and I was ridiculously excited! I have recently been to America, so whilst there I stocked up on loads of vegan goodies ready to send my swap partner. They included giant vegan cookies, fake jerky, sweets and other non-healthy varieties of exciting vegan treats not available in the UK! My swap partner Chrissie is a new vegan and was dead chuffed with them! Yay for sharing the vegan love!

So I was over the moon when my food parcel from Sasha turned up. Here's what she sent me:

Jammy Dodgers! Only one of my favourite biscuits! (The chocolate ones are vegan too). Needless to say these won't last long.

I had to stop myself ripping open the popcorn long enough to photograph it, I really love popcorn, and I've not seen this make or flavour before.

Love Hearts *sigh*need I say more!

The package also included Lemon Sherberts by Monty Bojangles, and Wasabi & Soy sauce flavour almonds (intriguing!).

The Halva was a revelation to me. A Greek desert, I'd always thought halva contained honey, so have never tried it, but it turns out that this variety is sweetened by grape juice! Brilliant!

The final item in my amazing box of food was Mushroom Ketchup! What? Well according to the bottle it can be added to stews, sauces, soups and gravy - so stay tuned to see what happens with this!

Hi there!
I've been talking about starting a blog for ages, so here it is! Often when I meet people and they find out I'm vegan, their first question is 'What do you eat'. My answer is always 'Loads of stuff!' So because of this I started an album on my Facebook page chronicling some of my favourite dishes, snacks and sweet treats eaten in restaurants, cooked at home or discovered on shopping expeditions. Often friends are amazed by what I can eat, so I thought I would share this in more detail. I also often get asked for tips, recipes and advice from new vegans or those looking to go dairy-free. So here you will find regular updates from my vegan foody adventures!
Stay tuned!
x Chloe x