Tofu Feta

by Liz Child

Tofeta is an essential in our dairy free home. If you don’t eat dairy and find shop bought vegan cheeses a bit disappointing (not to mention full of processed junk) then this tangy feta cheese is the answer to your prayers. It’s made from extra firm tofu (a really healthy, whole food ingredient) and coconut oil to give it that creamy texture and to firm it up into sliceable, crumbly, melty feta. Flavoured simply with salt, lemon, garlic and vinegar, you’ll be amazed at how close to feta this cheese tastes! Crumble over pasta or salads, cube up into a classic Greek salad with sliced tomato, cucumber, red onion, basil and olives, spread into sandwiches or on toast/crackers… however you would normally use feta, this substitute will work!

TOP TIP – find some unscented/flavourless coconut oil or your feta will taste a bit coconutty.

Liz x

Ingredients

  • 400g extra firm tofu
  • 9 tbsp coconut oil (flavourless is best here)
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice
  • 2 tbsp vinegar (apple cider or white wine vinegars work best here)
  • 1 tsp garlic granules
  • 1 tsp salt

Method

  1. Start by pressing as much water as you can out of the tofu. This will ensure a nice crumbly, sliceable feta. If you can’t be bothered to do this step, not to worry, you’ll end up with a spreadable feta which is so delicious and useful too! To press the tofu, chop it into chunks and put it in a sieve over a bowl. Then place another bowl, which fits inside the sieve, on top and then place something heavy in the bowl like a big jar of pickles. Leave this set up to drain for an hour or so in the fridge. Then squeeze each chunk by hand before placing it in the food processor.
  2. Add all the other ingredients to the food processor and blend until silky smooth. You will need to stop the machine and scrape don the sides half way through.
  3. Line a plastic tub with baking parchment and smooth the tofeta mixture into it. Put the lid on and set in the fridge until solid.
  4. Then carefully tip the feta onto a clean board and slice or crumble as you like. This tofeta will stay fresh in the fridge for 4 days. Enjoy!

Quick Kale Pesto

by Liz Child

Pesto is such a staple in our house now. How did we live without it when we were kids? It is the most delicious condiment, not just for tossing through pasta for an easy mid-week meal (although of course that’s how it normally gets used up here), my daughter is obsessed with smearing a thick layer of pesto on toast for breakfast. Use it to stuff mushrooms, stir through boiled new potatoes or freshly steamed greens, add to sandwiches, dunk your chips in it… how else do you use pesto? We would love to hear your suggestions in the comments below.

I love that it’s a hit with the kids. It is beyond satisfying, watching them gleefully gobble up so many healthy ingredients. Nuts or seeds, raw herbs or other leafy greens like this kale version, olive oil, lemon juice, raw garlic… all super good! Home made pesto is the best-o. You’ve got to give it a try. For ease, use a food processor.

Liz x

Ingredients (fills an old jam jar)

  • 100g kale (or use a mix of kale and basil or any herbs or greens you like eg nettles, spinach, fennel fronds, parsley, dill…)
  • 100g pumpkin seeds (or any nut or seed you prefer)
  • the juice of half a lemon (or a couple of tbsp of good vinegar)
  • 1 garlic clove, peeled
  • 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
  • a big pinch of salt
  • 100ml olive oil

Method

  1. Place all the ingredients into a food processor but only half the olive oil.
  2. Pulse until roughly combined then blend whilst drizzling in the other 50ml of olive oil until you achieve a beautiful pesto consistency – not too smooth.
  3. Scoop out into a clean jar and refrigerate. Use within the week.

Tomato Risotto & Basil Pesto

by Liz Child

When we have a glut of tomatoes, this is one of our family favourite, summer suppers. The kids especially love this risotto and I love giving them a generous spoon of pesto. It’s so full of goodness – healthy fats and protein from the seeds and olive oil, antioxidants and vitamins from the fresh greens. Make your own pesto (follow one of our recipes here) or buy a handy jar (here). Tomato and basil is an unbeatable flavour combination. Did you know we sell organic risotto rice in compostable bags?

Liz x

Ingredients (serves 4)

  • 2 small or 1 large white onion, finely diced
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • 6 large tomatoes or a bag of cherry tomatoes, roughly diced
  • 6 sundried tomatoes, sliced
  • 1 mug of risotto rice
  • 1 large glass of white wine
  • 2-3 mugs of vegetable stock/bouillon
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • pesto to serve
  • fresh basil leaves to serve

Method

  1. In a large, heavy bottomed pot, sauté the onion with the olive oil until soft and golden. Over a medium heat, this should take around 8-10 minutes.
  2. Now add the garlic, tomatoes, sun dried tomatoes and a big pinch of salt and pepper. Sauté and cook down for another 5 minutes.
  3. Add the mug of rice and the glass of white wine. Stir until most of the liquid has been absorbed.
  4. Then add a ladle of the stock, stir and cook until most of the liquid has been absorbed. Keep repeating this step until the rice is cooked through. Taste a grain every now and then and stop adding stock when you are happy with the consistency. Adjust the seasoning as needed at the end too with some extra salt, pepper or maybe a squeeze of lemon?
  5. Serve in bowls and top each bowl with a generous spoon of pesto and some fresh basil leaves. Enjoy as it is or with a simple salad

Vegan Garlic Mayonnaise

by Liz Child

This mayonnaise is far, far easier to make than it’s eggy counterpart, you can’t taste the difference at all, and it lasts longer too. I find a jar of this is still fresh after a couple of weeks in the fridge, but trust your nose. So simple and such an essential summer condiment – slather on your burger buns, make potato salad, dunk your chips… And you can flavour it how you like! We love saffron or rosemary mayo best in our house. Just blend in the herb or spice of your choice and let the flavours infuse.

Liz x

Ingredients (makes around 450ml)

  • 250ml neutral vegetable oil
  • 130ml soy milk (it MUST be soy, other plant-milks do not emulsify in the same way)
  • 1 tsp mustard
  • 1 small garlic clove (optional, or add/substitute other flavourings you like eg saffron, rosemary, smoked paprika, chilli…)
  • 1 tbsp vinegar (white wine or apple cider work well)
  • a big pinch of salt

Method

  1. Measure all the ingredients into a jug.
  2. Use a handheld, emersion stick blender to blend into mayonnaise. It should emulsify within 10-15 seconds. You can use a smoothie maker or similar if you don’t have a stick blender.
  3. Taste and add more salt if needed. Then spoon into a clean jar and store in the fridge.

Leek Bolani

by Liz Child

These Afghan style stuffed flatbreads are so easy to make and so delicious! You’ll be making loads of different variations of them in no time. We love this simple leek version which is just seasoned with salt and lots of black pepper, but of course you can stuff them however you like. I have seen recipes with potato and fresh coriander stuffing which look amazing. Serve them as a light lunch with a yoghurt and herb dip or alongside my Afghan kidney bean curry.

Liz x

Ingredients (makes 8)

  • 2 leeks
  • 1 tbsp vegetable oil
  • salt & black pepper to taste (go heavy on the black pepper)
  • 3 small mugs of flour
  • a pinch of salt
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 small mug of water
  • vegetable oil for frying

Method

  1. Start by making the dough. Mix the flour, salt, olive oil and water together in a mixing bowl until it comes into a rough ball. Then turn out onto a clean work surface and knead until smooth and stretchy. This should take around 8 minutes. if your dough is too dry, wet your hands to incorporate a little more water. The dough should be firm, not sticky. Return the dough to the bowl and cover with a damp tea towel to rest for at least 20 minutes.
  2. Meanwhile make the filling. Cut the leeks in half, lengthways, keeping the root end intact. Rinse the leeks under a running tap and ensure you get the mud out of all the layers. Then trim the dried end and root end off and cut into cm strips. Yes, even the darker green part, don’t waste it! Fry the leeks in a pan with the vegetable oil, salt and pepper until they soften and start to colour. Taste and adjust the seasoning as you like. These are especially good when they are really peppery! Let the mixture cool down while you cut and roll the dough.
  3. Remove the rested dough from the bowl and cut into 8 even pieces. Roll each piece into a ball and then, using a rolling pin, roll into thin circles around 20cm wide. Place the leek stuffing on one half of the circle, leaving the edges free for sealing, then fold the dough over and seal, pressing the air out of one side before sealing all around the edge. Repeat for all the dough and space out on a clean, dry work surface so they don’t stick together.
  4. Heat a frying pan to medium-low with a little vegetable oil. Fry the bolani on both sides until blistered and golden brown. I like to turn them often and move them around to ensure all the edges are evenly cooked. Cut in half and serve warm with dips or curry.

Afghan Kidney Bean Curry

by Liz Child

We are always looking for new ways to eat beans. They are so good for us! An affordable and healthy source of protein and fibre. Good news is they are also great for the environment. Legume crops improve soil fertility naturally by working with bacteria to fix nitrogen into the soil.

So when we tried this delicious Afghan curry, we just had to share it! This is probably not an authentic recipe but it’s our quick and easy version. We love that the heat just comes from the generous use of black pepper. We’ll share the stuffed flatbreads recipe soon too. Watch this space!

Liz x

Ingredients (serves 4)

  • 3 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 1 tsp ground ginger
  • 1 tsp ground turmeric
  • 2 tsp garlic granules
  • 2 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp ground black pepper
  • 2 tsp ground cumin
  • 2 tsp ground coriander
  • 1 bottle of passata
  • 2 tins kidney beans
  • 2 red onions
  • 4 medium potatoes
  • (drizzle of veg oil, sprinkle of salt, pepper & ground coriander to roast the onions & potatoes)
  • diced red onion, fresh coriander & mint to taste

Method

  1. Turn your oven to 200C. Chop the potatoes into bites sized pieces and the onions into slivers and toss in a roasting dish with a drizzle of oil and sprinkle of salt, pepper & ground coriander. Roast for 20-30 minutes or until soft while you make the curry sauce.
  2. Heat the vegetable oil in a large pot & tip in the spices and seasoning. Stir fry in the oil until the spices are very fragrant and starting to darken.
  3. Pour in the passata and the drained and rinsed kidney beans & simmer for 10 minutes or so until the curry is rich and delicious.
  4. When the potatoes and onions are cooked through and starting to colour, scrape them into the curry and warm through.
  5. Serve in bowls topped with diced red onion and chopped mint and coriander. Scoop up with flatbreads or rice & enjoy!

Leeks on Toast

by Liz Child

I don’t know about you, but for mid-week meals (or even manic weekend meals), I am always after something fast – but, it has to also be satisfying, healthy, affordable and delicious! This super simple supper ticks all the boxes. We have just completed a massive leek harvest and they are so sweet and delicious. Leeks have got to be one of the most underrated vegetables out there. They are exceptionally delicious when made the star of the show. Don’t just loose them in soups and stews, try them as the main ingredient.

Liz x

Ingredients (serves 2)

  • 2 slices of sourdough bread
  • 1 small clove of garlic
  • 1 leek
  • 1 tbsp butter (we use this vegan one)
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • a few sprigs of thyme
  • a heaped tsp of mustard – Dijon or wholegrain…or any mustard you like
  • a splash of milk (we use creamy oat milk)
  • a handful of nutritional yeast flakes (or you can use grated cheese)

Method

  1. Toast the bread to your liking then peel the garlic clove and rub it over the toast on both sides.
  2. Slice the leek in half, lengthways, keeping the root end intact. Then rinse out the mud in the layers. Slice the very end off the leeks which will have dried out a bit, but keep as much as possible. The green part of the leek it just as delicious as the white – it just needs a touch longer cooking time. Then cut the leek into cm slices.
  3. Melt the butter in a wide pan over a medium-high heat. Then tip in the green bits of leek and stir fry for 3 minutes or so until they soften. Then add the rest of the chopped leek, some salt and pepper and stir fry again until the leeks start to collapse and colour lightly.
  4. Add the thyme, mustard, splash of milk and nutritional yeast (or cheese) and stir fry for another 3 minutes or so until you have a bubbly, silky mixture which can then be poured over the garlicky toast and devoured!

Chickpea Tikka Masala

by Liz Child

Our new range of curry spice sauces make it easy to put together a delicious dinner in minutes! We tested the Tikka Masala paste last night and it was so good. Here’s what we did but of course it’s totally flexible and you should use whatever vegetables you prefer or have in the house. We love the range of Bunalun organic tins too. So useful!

Liz x

Ingredients (serves 2)

  • 1 onion, diced
  • 1 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 2 tbsp tikka masala curry paste
  • 1/4 cauliflower, chopped
  • a couple of handfuls of diced butternut squash
  • 1 tin of chopped tomatoes
  • 1 tin of chickpeas, drained
  • 1 tin of coconut milk
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • rice and coriander to serve

Method

  1. Get your rice on to cook and find a large pot to cook the curry in.
  2. Fry the onion in the oil over a medium-high heat until it softens and starts to turn golden brown.
  3. Then add the curry paste and chopped vegetables and stir until fragrant.
  4. Pour in the tin of tomatoes and a half tin of water (swirl to get all the tomatoey juices out of the tin). Then add the chickpeas and simmer until the butternut squash is soft.
  5. Add the tin of coconut milk and warm through. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed with salt and pepper. Then serve over rice with some fresh coriander.

Rhubarb & White Chocolate Blondie

by Liz Child

Beautiful, pink rhubarb is in season now and it’s tangy flavour pairs perfectly with sweet white chocolate. We tried baking it into blondies and oh yes, it works! There is some debate as to what blondies are, but to me, the best blondies are simply a white chocolate version of brownies. I’ve based this recipe on my classic vegan brownie recipe and it’s a fairly straight swap – brown chocolate for white chocolate – but the lack of cocoa powder means you must add some starch or the texture is all wrong. So don’t skip the cornstarch (you can replace cornstarch with arrowroot, potato or tapioca flour if you don’t have cornstarch).

Good blondie recipes call for browned butter, but if you are making this recipe vegan as I am below, then you’ll need to use Naturli butter as other vegan butters do not brown like dairy butter due to the lack of certain proteins and sugars. Naturli contains almond butter so has the right proteins to brown beautifully. Give it a try, I think you’ll agree it adds a delicious nutty, caramelised depth of flavour to the blondies that help to balance out the sweetness of the white chocolate. If you don’t have Naturli in the house you can just use another vegan butter or coconut oil and simply melt it rather than browning.

Here’s my easy recipe, enjoy!

Liz x

Ingredients (makes 12 slices)

  • 50g Naturli vegan butter block, browned (see method)
  • 250g chopped white chocolate (50g kept aside to decorate)
  • 100g brown sugar (our whole cane sugar works perfectly here)
  • 230ml oat milk
  • 175g plain flour
  • 1 tbsp cornstarch
  • 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 2 rhubarb stalks, cut into bite sized pieces

Method

  1. Pre-heat your oven to 180C and line a baking tin with baking parchment (I used a 20x28cm one).
  2. If you have our vegan block of Naturli butter in, you can brown it to create a nutty, caramel depth of flavour. If you are using another brand of vegan butter then just melt the butter, it will not brown. To brown the butter simply melt in a small pan, keep it swirling/stirring until it goes a gorgeous hazelnut colour.
  3. Then turn off the heat and tip in 200g of the white chocolate. Allow it to melt in the heat of the butter BEFORE stirring. Then add the sugar and milk and stir into a smooth, shiny caramel coloured sauce.
  4. In a large mixing bowl, whisk the flour, salt, cornstarch, bicarbonate of soda and baking powder. Then pour in the melted butter, chocolate, sugar and milk and slowly whisk to just combine. Careful not to over-mix as that would activate the gluten in the flour and create tough blondies.
  5. Pour the batter into the lined baking dish and smooth out so that the corners are evenly filled. Then scatter over the reserved white chocolate and chopped rhubarb.
  6. Place the dish in the oven to bake until risen and golden. This should take around 30-35 minutes but ovens vary so check on it after 20 minutes. It is done when it is mostly set but still has a little wobble when gently shaken.
  7. Allow the blondie to cool in the tray then pop the tray in the fridge to set for a few hours or overnight (this requires heroic patience). Cut into 12 pieces and enjoy!

The Best Crispy Tofu

by Liz Child

Tofu is an amazing, versatile and healthy ingredient. We love using silken tofu to make scramble for breakfast or to place in wobbly cubes in a miso soup, it’s also great scored and dressed with soy sauce and sesame oil. We stock a delicious range of ready to eat tofus which are brilliant in sandwiches and salads or warmed up to go with your supper (our favourite is the wild garlic one and we also really rate the smoked one). But extra firm tofu is a brilliant blank canvas with a meaty texture. We love it thinly scored at an angle and cooked like a firm piece of fish with lemon, butter, salt and pepper. Our kids favourite way is like this, coated in well seasoned cornflour and fried until crisp. It’s just the thing to top noodle or rice bowls. Give it a try and let me know what you think.

Liz x

Ingredients (serves 2)

  • 1 x 200g block extra firm, natural tofu
  • 6 tbsp cornflour
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp chilli flakes
  • 3 tsp toasted sesame seeds
  • 2 tsp seaweed flakes
  • vegetable oil for frying

Method

  1. Drain the tofu and cut it into cubes.
  2. In a wide bowl, mix the cornflour, salt, chilli flakes, sesame seeds and seaweed flakes (if you don’t have seaweed flakes you can leave them out or snip up a sheet of sushi nori).
  3. Tumble the cubed tofu into the seasoned cornflour and mix it well ensuring each piece is coated.
  4. Coat the base of a wide frying pan with a generous layer of vegetable oil, then heat to medium high.
  5. Add the tofu but space it out so that the pieces are not touching each other (you may need to cook in batches). Turn the pieces regularly so that they cook on all sides. They should be golden brown and beautifully crispy.
  6. Serve as you like. We topped a rice bowl and vegetable stir fry and added a drizzle of soy sauce and some kimchi.