about things I like and things you might like too :)

Sunday 8 August 2010

Vegan Sausage Rolls!




These are the sausages rolls I made a few days ago.
My boyfriend scoffed them up.
I did some with onion chutney and some regular.
Really easy to make, just Granose Sausage mix & ready made puff pastry.
Bish bash bosh.

Friday 6 August 2010

Breaded mushrooms

My breaded mushrooms are rather good, even if I do say so and so easy to make. They make a lovely starter and I serve 5 each, with a little salad and some garlic vegan mayo.
Most breaded mushroom recipes call for an egg in to make the breadcrumbs stick to the mushrooms, but I substitute this for some unsweetened soya milk. So here it goes...

Breaded Mushrooms

10 closed cup mushrooms or button mushrooms
10g plain flour
50g breadcrumbs
1/2 cup of unsweetened soya milk

Always clean the mushrooms beforehand!
Coat each mushroom in flour, shake off any extra mixture. Then dip in the milk, then the breadcrumbs!
Place on a baking tray and bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes, or until the breadcrumbs are golden and crispy.
Alternatively, they are great lightly fried in olive oil, if you're feeling adventurous.


I'm making...

Breaded mushrooms with garlic mayo

Vegan sausage & onion chutney rolls

Soya mince and onion pies with mashed potato & mushy peas (couldn't be more British!)

Oh and blueberry vegan pancakes and soya cream for dessert! Yummy.

Will be posting pics soon :)

Monday 5 July 2010

Eggless Egg & Cress sandwiches

I do miss my egg sandwiches, especially the ones from Pret a Manger. But I've come up with the perfect vegan eggless egg sandwich. They are made using firm tofu, some vegan mayo and of course, cress!

Egg sandwiches minus the bleurghness and cruelty! :)


Eggless Egg & Cress Sandwiches
Perfect for picnics, but why not try for brunch with some skinny fries and ketchup!


Egg mayo sandwich by drywontonmee.


You'll need:
1 pack of firm tofu (I use Cauldron)
Your favourite bread/bagels or even pitta pockets
1/2 cup of vegan mayo (I love love love Life Free From Mayo)
1 tsp of tumeric
1 cup of cress
1/2 cup of chopped spring onions
Salt & pepper


What to do:
Mash the tofu with a fork in a large bowl
Add all your other ingredients to the tofu - not the bread or the cress!
Mix well and add more mayo if needed
Load your bread with the mixture, top with the cress and enjoy!


So easy and well tasty!

Peace & Love.
Lauren

Israeli Salad

My favourite place to eat in London is Inspiral Lounge in Camden Town. It's cheap and super yummy, the potato wedges and vegan garlic mayo rocks! Check it out: http://www.inspiralled.net/

Another of my favourites is their Israeli Salad and here's my version of it:


Israeli Salad

P6110024.jpg israeli salad image by q30jewluva


You'll need:

3-4 large tomatoes

2 green peppers

1 avocado (optional, but I love it!)

5 tbsp poppy seeds

2 large cucumbers

1 large red onion


3 tbsp lemon juice

2 tsp agave syrup

2 tsp za’atar (Thyme, Oregano, Basil & Seasame Seeds)

2 tbsp freshly chopped parsley

salt & freshly ground black pepper

1 cup olive oil



What to do:

Halve the tomatoes & discard the seeds.

Chop the tomatoes into small cubes.

De-seed the green peppers and chop, and do the same for the cucumbers.

Remove the skin from the red onion and chop.

Toss all ingredients together in a large glass or ceramic bowl.

Combine the lemon juice, agave syrup, za'atar, salt & pepper and whisk.

Continue whisking & stream in the olive oil until combined.

Pour dressing over salad and mix in.

Mix in the poppy seeds

Chop the avocado & place on the top of the salad


Love & Peace.
Lauren

Speedy Lemon & Herb Puy Lentils

Yesterday's vegan picnic went down a treat and everything was really simple to make.

So if you fancy packing a hamper and heading to the park. Or if you just fancy a couple of nice summery side dishes to try here's the first of my recipes to check out. Enjoy!



Speedy Lemon and Herb Lentils
I love these lentils. So moreish and ideal for picnics.
They also work really well with some lovely vegan sausages!


You'll need:
Around 200g or 2 cups of Puy Lentils
(I use Merchant Gourmet's steam in the bag lentils)
1 Unwaxed Lemon
(a waxed lemon will do the job but make sure you wash it under warm water first)
2 tbsp chopped rosemary
2 tbsp chopped oregano
2 tbsp chopped parsley
1 garlic clove
2 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 carrot, chopped small
Salt and freshly ground black pepper


What to do:
Firstly prepare and chop all of the herbs
Crush the garlic
Zest your lemon and then juice it
Fry your onion and carrot in the olive oil for 10-15 minutes until soft and golden brown
Add your chopped herbs and garlic to the pan
Pop your lentils in the microwave
Pop the cooked lentils to the pan with the onion, carrot and herbs
Next add the lemon juice and zest to lentils
Season with some salt and pepper

Makes enough for 4!


Sunday 4 July 2010

Lazy Summer Afternoons in London


Living in London during the summer months has a few negatives:

There are tourists everywhere! There are on non-summer days too, but from June to August you can't move for them! Oxford Circus is a total no-go for these months. Another thing i
f you've never experienced the tube during the hot weather I cannot stress how unbearably hot and smelly it becomes. Oh and because there's more tourists means you can never get a seat and that means having to stand under some really tall guy's stinky armpit for the duration of your journey. Oh and once you get off the tube and are desperate for water expect to pay around 50p more than you normally would because the shopkeepers use summer as an excuse to rob you blind.
Another negative is my hair but nevermind!
etc etc...

Annnyway...aside from that London is THE best place to be in the summer and today confirmed that there is nowhere better to spend lazy summer afternoons.

Having ventured out of bed around 11am we decided to first of all see the pterosaur exhibition at the Southbank Centre. It was well worth a visit, specially for my boyfriend who is crazy about winged things.

Here's a pic.



After our adventures along the Southbank we hopped on the tube to Hyde Park to eat our picnic (see previous post for what we ate!). Hyde Park is one of London's most beautiful places, and the summer brings it to life.

The first thing I noticed today was the overwhelming, almost enchanting, scent from the Rose Garden.



We found a lovely spot opposite the Serpentine for our picnic. It was idyllic. Most excitingly though, I used my new spotty picnic plates for our lunch check it out...


Just to let you know, the lunch was lovely and I made a few extras to what I listed yesterday
I used some Redwood Beef Style slices and Redwood Sage and Onion slices to make some extras sandwiches. My favourite part though was definitely the strawberries! :) Scrummy.


All in all we had a perfect day and now we're just waiting for the Family Guy Star Wars Special to start :) what could be better?

Tomorrow, I will post my recipes for some of the picnic food. How to make the tofu 'egg-style' and cress sandwiches, Israeli Salad and lemon and herb lentils.


Love & Peace.
Lauren

P.S - My sister is currently living in Georgia, USA so Happy 4th July to y'all.