The Future of New Years Day Dinner

I think my mum has just hit the nail on the head when it comes to dinner on New Years Day... SALAD!!!

After all the heavy Christmas food salad is definitely the way to go. I've been craving something raw and light, I just didn't realise it until I sat down at the table :-)

New Years Eve Buffet

As promised, here are the pictures of the buffet I made for last night. Pretty much everything I made was in miniature proportions.



We had mini pizzas...



Mini burgers...



And mini kebabs.



We also had hummus, chickpea and tomato dip and chunky guacamole (which my mum made) with breadsticks.



The base for the pizzas and the burger buns were made from the same batch of dough. I got the recipe from Vegan With A Vengeance. The cheese for the pizza was an interesting experiment. It was soya milk, paprika, salt, pepper, vegemite and just enough potato flour to thicken a bit. It doesn't want to be too thick, you still want to be able to dribble it on to the pizza. Don't worry it'll thicken up, get a skin on it and go brown and a bit crispy like real cheese in the oven.

The burgers were made from the leftover seitan we'd had in a sweet and sour stirfry that I'd done for dinner the night before. I dribbled a little of the cheese that I made for the pizzas on them and stuck them in the oven for 10 minutes just to heat through and let the cheese go crispy. On the burger buns I put a little vegan mayo and some gorgeous homemade sweetcorn relish that was given to my mum in a little hamper.

The kebabs were the simplest thing in the world to make. All they are is seitan made up with the spices of your choice. I used a premixed curry powder in the absence of anything else, but next time I'm gonna try them with tandoori spices instead. I tore the seitan into chunks, steamed them for 10 minutes and shoved them in the oven for 10-15 minutes to crisp up a little bit. Once they were done they were put in some mini pittas (the pitta recipe came from fatfreevegan.com), with vegan mayo and chilli sauce.

All in all my family really enjoyed the food, as did the two neighbours who turned up about 15 minutes after I posted last night, out of their faces drunk and falling over everything in the garden. It was amusing to say the least.

Happy New Year

Happy new year to all. Here's hoping 2009 is a good one.

I made a vegan buffet for myself and my family to pick at this evening. There's only four of us so I didn't make much, but it seemed to go down well nonetheless. I'll get some pictures and recipes up tomorrow, but right now I'm going to watch Jools Holland's Hootenanny and enjoy my glass of champagne... I think I've earned it.

Soya Milk

Soya milk is stupendously easy to make. All you need is:

1/4 cup dried white soya beans
1l water, plus extra for soaking the beans
sweetener (optional, I like to use 1 dessert spoon of golden syrup)

1 large pan
1 blender or handheld blender
1 large(ish) funnel
1 coffee filter paper or muslin cloth
1 bottle/jug to keep the milk in (its best to keep it in something with a lid)

Firstly, you need to rehydrate the soya beans. You can do this by either leaving them in cold water overnight, or gently boiling them for about an hour before you want to use them.

Once the beans are soft put them into the blender with the litre of water. If you're using a handheld blender, put your beans and water into the pan instead. Blitz them down until you are left with a liquid that is as smooth as possible.

Put the mixture into the pan (if its not already there) and put it back on a low heat. Once it comes up to the boil turn it off straight away.

While the mixture is still warm add any sweetener to taste and mix it well. Golden syrup, maple syrup and concentrated apple juice work best.

Line the funnel with the muslin or coffee filter paper, put the funnel in the top of bottle and carefully strain the milk mixture. The muslin or filter is important otherwise you will end up with a milk that is gritty and leaves horrible gunk in the bottom of your tea.

Once you have strained your milk give the filter or muslin a gentle squeeze so that the contents are as dry a possible, but without pushing the contents through.

That's your milk done, put the lid on, let it cool and stick it in the fridge. Every time you use it give it a little shake first.

Don't throw the contents of the filter away, store it in the freezer and use it as a bulking agent for soups or a base for creamy sauces. Its wonderful stuff and it would be criminal to waste it.

Tricks... (Part 2)

First off, an apology.

I went over what I wrote last night and realised that as it is it sounds really patronising. Please don't take it that way, it just needs some explaining...

Everything in my last post is something that I have had to realise for myself at some point in the past. I have been vegetarian for 11 years and vegan for 8 of those years. As I was only 12 when I first became vegetarian, many of those years have been spent under the watchful eye of my parents and as a result I didn't do much in the way of cooking for myself until I was older and I certainly didn't have to consider budgeting for what I wanted until I left home at 22 (actually, I left home at 20, but illness forced me home into my parents care).

In June 2007 my mother moved to the north coast of Scotland to live out her dream. In December of that year my dad followed and I stayed in Ashton with my grandmother. In time my grandmother moved to Scotland and I decided that I would remain in Ashton as I was about to start university to train to be a nurse.

So now I am 23, I've barely a penny to my name and I live on my own. My point is that I am no longer in a position to buy food on a whim, I have to budget and I've had to ask myself these questions and remind myself of these tips on many occasions in the past.

Right, back to the tricks...

I've come to realise that building up a store cupboard over time is invaluable. For the first few weeks, the money that I was saving by changing what I buy was spent on store cupboard staples such as various types of flour, herbs, spices and dried beans and pulses. These will last for months and months as you never really need to use a great amount, plus you don't have to worry about them going off.

Once you've got a decent store cupboard underway you need the right pots and pans to clutter up your kitchen space. I highly recommend getting, if you don't already have, a food processor, blender or handheld blender, a steamer and a slow cooker. Not to mention the usual mixing bowls, utensils, pans and oven trays. Now this sounds like a lot of stuff and a lot of money and in theory it may well be, but checking out the right places might see you grabbing some real bargains.

Do some research, find out how much these things cost, roughly, then determine how much you have to spend on them. Don't worry if you can't afford them all at once, other than a couple of pans, a couple of wooden spoons and an oven tray, none of the rest are essential - they just make life a whole lot easier. Check out eBay, your local charity shops, flea markets, car-boot sales and anywhere else you can think of, it really is amazing what you can find.

Assuming that they are not falling apart, some of the best quality pots and pans are only available second-hand. Old-school cast-iron frying pans are amongst the best in the world, but getting hold of them from anywhere other than specialist shops and the kitchen section in Selfridges is almost impossible and they cost a fortune. I have one, it cost around £5 from a flea market and it will undoubtedly last me my entire life.

I have to admit at this point that I have been very fortunate. My parents prepared my bottom drawer when I was in my early teens. Not everything in my kitchen has come from my parents, but a lot did. Gift certificates and birthday presents are your best friend when you need something and you're completely skint. Don't be cheeky or rude, but there's no harm in dropping the odd hint here and there.

There's no right or wrong way of saving money and there is no gospel truth that you must adhere to. You'll discover that there are some things that you can absolutely never live without and there are some things that you can give up or make for yourself quite easily. I can't live without Pure margarine, but you may find that you can swap it for a cheaper alternative and never look back. Just be careful though, a lot of the cheaper dairy-free spreads have ingredients that are derived from sheep's wool.

Anyway, my point is try things out and see what works for you.

Leccy x

Tricks of the Trade

A lot of people think that being vegan has to be expensive, always forking out money, hand-over-fist, for alternatives to meat and dairy. Fortunately it doesn't have to be that way.

A 1l carton of sweetened soya milk from Asda costs around 63p. A 1l carton of Asda's smart price unsweetened soya milk costs around 59p. Do you need your soya milk to be sweetened? Would a teaspoon of golden syrup mixed into a cheaper alternative suffice? Can you make it yourself for less?

How much you spend on your weekly shop obviously depends on what you buy, but it also depends on in what form you buy it. Tiny changes here and there make a remarkable difference to how much you spend on your shopping. For instance, opting for a budget range product is perfectly fine, but only as long as you are not choosing an alternative that is cheap because it is bulked out with chemicals and excessive sugar and salt.

Pulses and beans probably account for about 3/4 of a vegan's protein intake, whether its as they are, or processed into foods such as tofu or hummous. But a can per meal can mount up over time. Go for dried pulses and beans instead, although they're not as quick, it doesn't take much more effort to put however much you need on to boil for an hour before you use them, or even put them in cold water to soak the night before.

Shopping at discount supermarkets such as Aldi or Lidl can have its merits, however, I know from experience that other than cheap veg and booze, they don't sell a great amount that is suitable for us vegans. Also, whilst some of the deals they offer may be so obscene that you walk around feeling like you're robbing the place, they do make up for it in other ways, like charging for carrier bags. But if you are able to invest in some lovely jute bags, you can use them time and again and they will last for years, plus they're much more caring to our poor, suffering environment.

Check out your local market (indoor and outdoor). The fresh produce you can get from local markets is often miles better than the stuff you get at the supermarket. Not only that, but you'll get a warm fuzzy glow from knowing that you are supporting your local traders.

Don't feel that there is a crime in buying frozen vegetables. Frozen veg have the same vitamins and minerals as fresh veg (sometimes even more). I live on my own and I only really cook for myself, (with the exception of having the occasional friend over) so buying fresh veg is often pointless for me as I only get the opportunity to go shopping once a week at the most. As a result, half of it ends up going off because I'm not eating a week's worth in two days. I can buy as much frozen veg as I can fit in my freezer and not have to worry about it going off, or that I'm going to run out any time in the next 15 years, which is kind of nice. Frozen veg is a genius idea and I won't hear a bad word against it.

Most money-saving tricks aren't national secrets, or anything like that, they're common sense and they essentially boil down to shop around, buy budget alternatives and, if you can, make it yourself.

Right now it is 4:41 in the morning and I must crawl to my bed before I drop where I am. I'll undoubtedly finish this list when I get up.

Night night all
Leccy x

Good Tidings and Peanut Butter Cookies

This is my first post in my shiny, new blog and its all very exciting.

I hope everyone is enjoying the holiday time, whatever of your religion, or even (like me) if you're just enjoying the time off.

I'm visiting my parents for the holidays this year, there is very little to do and I'm bored out of my skull, so I'm trying to keep myself busy with some cooking and I came up with these little beauties.

All you need to make these is flour, sugar, vegan margarine, peanut butter and (if you have it, it doesn't matter if you don't) a little maple syrup.

Method:

Pre-heat your oven to 175^oC.

Mix in a bowl equal quantities of marg, sugar, peanut butter and flour. Its much easier if you mix the peanut butter and marg first, then add the sugar, then the flour, finally add a little maple syrup to taste if you wish.

When its properly mixed you should be able to form soft, but not sticky, balls. I suppose they're kind of similar in texture to the plasticine you used to play with as a kid, maybe slightly softer.

Break chunks of your cookie dough off, roll them into balls and then flatten them out into cookie shapes. If you like you can push a piece of chocolate into the top, or make an indentation with your thumb and drop in a small dollop of your favourite jam.

Place them on an oven tray and stick them in the bottom of the oven for about 15-20 minutes.

Keep an eye on them because they will go from dough to burnt very quickly.

When you take them out they should still be a little soft on top. As long as they're browning round the edges and starting to brown on top they'll be done. The residual heat in the cookies will finish them off and you'll end up with lovely cookies that are crumbly on the outside but still soft and moist on the inside.

Feel free to tinker with the recipe until you find one that suits you. I like to use crunchy peanut butter so that my cookies have a little bit of bite to them, but if you prefer smooth then use smooth, its a simple as that.

I hope you enjoy them as much as I will, but first I'd better clear up all the crumbs I've left on my mother's dining table :-S

Happy holidays,
Leccy x