You don't have to be a vegetarian to love vegetarian food.

Bloody Mary Tomato Salad

Filed under: My Vegetarian Recipes — Tags: — Sarah Jayne @ 6:31 am June 21, 2012

California summer is here! If the past week is anything to go by then it is going to be a scorcher. Which means it is time for me to find summer vegetarian recipes which will satisfy my taste buds and my hunger without heating up the house.

As a child, my mother introduced me to the joy of tomato sandwiches. The most basic of ingredients; juicy tomatoes, toasted white bread, mayo and salt and pepper was all that was needed to make one of the most satisfying summer dishes. Ever since then, I equate tomatoes when no-cook summer recipes.

On a particularly hot afternoon last week, I decided to see what I could come up with some tomatoes and bits of stuff I had in the fridge.  The result was this bloody Mary tomato salad.  After some time chilling out in the fridge, it really hit the spot.  Served with some good bread to soak up the juices, it made for a perfect summer lunch.

Not only did my taste buds tingle from all that was going on but I felt like I had just put something healthy into my body at the same time. For me, that is a winning meal.

Bloody Mary Tomato Salad

Bloody Mary Tomato Salad

Ingredients:

1 cup cherry tomatoes, sliced lengthwise

1 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon vodka

1/2 teaspoon prepared horseradish

1/2 teaspoon dried minced onion

1/2 teaspoon hot sauce (I used Tiger Sauce)

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Whisk the oil and vodka together in bowl until combined.

2. Stir in horseradish, minced onion, salt, pepper and hot sauce.

3. Add sliced tomatoes into the bowl and gently stir through to coat tomatoes.

4. Refrigerate for 30 minutes or more.

 

Serves 2

Cinnamon spiced hot chocolate

Filed under: Other's Vegetarian Recipes — Tags: , , , , , , — Sarah Jayne @ 11:37 pm December 5, 2009

December has arrived and for most of us the calendar change signals that a month of hardcore cooking and baking is on the horizon.

I have a huge stack of cooking magazines and recipes I have printed out from the internet sitting on my desk as I try to widdle them down to decide what exactly I will be cooking and baking for the Christmas period. You would think after all that foodie focused research I would be settled on a menu by now. The problem is that the more I see the more I want to make but I want to be careful of not biting off more than I can (literally) chew.

One thing I do know is that Christmas cooking period is going to be one of those times where I won’t be sticking strictly to a vegetarian diet. However, I do really want to try as much as possible to be cooking and serving mostly vegetarian Christmas recipes.

The good thing though is that it really isn’t very hard to do that. When you think about it, most of the Christmas cookies and cakes we will munch over the holiday period are vegetarian by their very nature. Then, the normal Christmas dinner trimmings are also largely vegetarian. At least that is the case if you skip doing your roast potatoes in goose fat. Frankly, even when I wasn’t so focused on vegetarian cooking that never appealed to me anyway.

As I make my way through a largely vegetarian Christmas, I will check in and share my vegetarian cooking adventures. Hopefully, it will give some of you also trying to eat mostly vegetarian over the Christmas cooking period of bit of inspiration.

For now though, it is on to finally forming a solid Christmas cooking schedule. So, time to settle down with that stack of Christmas cooking magazines and make my mind up. At least until I change it again.

Of course, I can’t do that research without having a good hot beverage by my side. This month for the vegetarian swap I participate in over at Recipezaar, I picked out this Mayan Hot Chocolate recipe posted by Recipezaar member the80srule

spiced hot chocolate recipe

It turns out this hot chocolate recipe is the perfect partner to planning my vegetarian Christmas cooking. Firstly, the big sell for me, is that it is actually made with soy chocolate milk. I am lactose intolerant so whenever I make a creamy drink like hot chocolate I have to weigh up the consequences. I could make a normal hot chocolate recipe with water, I suppose, but any lover of hot chocolate knows that is simply never the same. Amazingly though, I had never thought of using soy chocolate milk as the base of a hot chocolate recipe but it really did work.

What really makes this hot chocolate recipe special though are the spices that go into the mixture. First in the pot, is a bit of cinnamon which gives a real Christmas feel to the hot chocolate recipe. Then comes the real surprise, a pinch of cayenne pepper. You would think that would make it hot and spicy but really it just adds a back ground warmth to the hot chocolate.

So, make yourself your own mug of this spiced hot chocolate and pull up your own pile of Christmas recipes and join the foodie December ritual of planning your holiday baking and Christmas cooking. Let the games begin!

Chunky broccoli slaw with apricots

Filed under: My Vegetarian Recipes — Tags: , , , , — Sarah Jayne @ 11:28 pm November 28, 2009

These days, two topics dominate both media coverage and personal conversations. Seriously, have any of us gone one full day in the past year without hearing anything about either the budget crisis or what is called the obesity crisis? Well, here is a recipe that, in its own way, addresses both issues.

If you want to save money on your food budget, one the best ways to do so is to make the most of your ingredients. A great deal of what most people normally throw in the trash could actually go towards making meals.

For example, instead of throwing away your carrot and onion peels, keep them in the freezer until you have filled up a freezer bag. Then use all those trimming to make a vegetable stock. Not only have you made the most of something you have already bought but you save yourself having to pay for store bought stock or stock cubes.

When, I was in the States, I discovered broccoli slaw. I guess this is something that became popular after I left the States to move to the UK because I hadn’t even heard of it until recently. Basically, it is just like coleslaw but instead of cabbage the main ingredient is shredded broccoli. It turned out to be really very tasty. Also, depending on the dressing you use for the broccoli slaw recipe it can be very healthy. Broccoli is, after all, a super food.

Upon my return to the UK, I decided to try to figure out how to make my own broccoli slaw recipe since it isn’t available in British supermarkets. When I investigated what went into making a broccoli slaw I found out that the broccoli used is actually the broccoli stem. How great is that? Something which the vast majority of us just chop off and throw away can be used to make something so tasty and healthy. You simply use a vegetable peeler to take off the top layer of the broccoli stem and then you are ready to make your broccoli slaw recipe.

So, in one full swoop you can take on both the budget and obesity crisis by making this tasty low fat and healthy broccoli slaw recipe. I cut the vegetables chunky because that way I can have it has a side dish when I want but I can also have it as a lunch salad all on its own if I desire. Plus, I am usually too lazy to pull out the food processor to shred them.

Chunky broccoli slaw with apricots

Ingredients:

45 grams broccoli stem
85 grams carrots
70 grams green cabbage
55 grams law fat mayonnaise
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon dried onion flakes
1 tablespoon skim milk
25 grams dried apricots

Directions:

1. Peel the carrots and broccoli stalk and then cut them into matchstick sized pieces.
2. Use a knife to shred the cabbage and put into a large bowl with the carrots and broccoli.
3. In another bowl, mix together the mayo, mustard, onion flakes and milk until well combined.
4. Fold the vegetable mixture into the mayo mixture until all of the vegetables are covered in the dressing.
5. Slice the dried apricots into thin slices and fold into the slaw mixture.
6. Chill in the fridge for an hour or so and then serve.

Makes 2 to 4 servings

Chive and ricotta stuffed mushrooms

Filed under: My Vegetarian Recipes — Tags: , , , , — Sarah Jayne @ 11:21 pm November 22, 2009

Have I mentioned before how much I love mushrooms? Well, I really love mushrooms! Whenever somebody tries to go a ‘getting to know you’ thing where they ask what your last meal would be, I always answer “I don’t know but there would be mushrooms”.

Truthfully, I haven’t met a variety of mushroom that I haven’t enjoyed. However, I may have to hide my face in foodie circles when I say that I think the good old fashion variety of mushrooms such as button mushrooms, flat mushrooms and chestnut mushrooms are the favourite. Sure, I will happily enjoy wild mushrooms or portobello mushrooms but I really think the ‘boring’ variety of mushrooms are the best for my tastebuds. Once more, they are far easier on the budget.

I think from this point forward, I am going to make a point of showing the vast array of wonderfully tasty thing that can be done with the traditional mushroom varieties. To begin this championing of classic mushrooms, I thought I would start with showing there is more that can be done with large mushrooms other than doing them in the pan as part of a fry up.

Stuffed mushroom recipes always sound daunting as a concept. I worry that they are going to be too fiddly to be worth the effort. However, that really doesn’t have to be the case at all. These chive and ricotta stuffed mushrooms are pretty darn simple to throw together and they cook fast enough to fill a sudden mushroom craving.

Really, any herbs you have around could go into this mixture. Even a slight change up of the herbs can actually make it a whole new dish. So, experimenting to find your favorite combination is very much encouraged. You will also notice, that I used dried herbs in the recipe. Fresh herbs are fantastic but I feel that the foodie world can get a bit too snobbish about using dried herbs. Most home cooks rely on dried herbs and I think anything that gets people cooking should be encouraged. Plus, the taste good when used properly. So, why not use them?

This chive and ricotta stuffed mushroom recipe works great as a light lunch. They would be at home at an evening meal too either as a starter or alongside a hearty salad for a vegetarian main course. I have made the recipe for two mushrooms. Even though I have said that is two servings, my mushroom related greed would most likely result in me eating both. Don’t worry if you need to make for larger numbers because the stuffed mushroom recipe is very easily scaled up.

Chive and ricotta stuffed mushrooms

Ingredients:

2 large flat mushrooms
1 teaspoon olive oil
65 grams ricotta cheese
1 clove garlic, finely minced
1 tablespoon dried chives
1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
1/2 teaspoon dried onion flakes
1 teaspoon parmesan cheese, divided

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees (gas mark 6, 200c).
2. Take the stems out of the mushrooms. Reserve these because they can be chopped up and used in things like omelettes.
3. Brush the outsides of the mushroom with the olive oil and then placed on a lined baking tray.
4. In a bowl, mix together the ricotta, garlic, chives, parsley, onion and half a teaspoon of the parmesan.
5. Season the mixture with salt and pepper to taste.
6. Divide the mixture between the two mushroom caps, filing each with as mush as you can.
7. Sprinkle the tops with the remaining parmesan.
8. Put into the oven and bake for about 20 minutes or until the cheese has started to go golden.
9. Serve.

Makes: 2 mushrooms

Weekend Carnivore goes to Masterchef Live

Filed under: Vegetarian London — Sarah Jayne @ 11:19 pm November 19, 2009

Hang on to your seat – this is going to be a long update! I haven’t posted for a little while because I have been travelling but I have returned to London and am somewhat back to normal now.

Last weekend, I celebrated my return to London by attending the Masterchef Live event which was held at Olympia. I had been to this event before but in previous years it had been called The Good Food Show after the BBC Good Food magazine. In those times, it was all very much about Ready Steady Cook but since, I guess, Masterchef is the popular cooking program of the moment they have re-branded. I can’t blame them because I do enjoy watching Masterchef and it was clear that many other people did too since the place was packed from the moment the doors opened on Saturday!

Masterchef Cook Off

We started off our day at Masterchef Live by attending a live Masterchef cook off. That really turned out to be a lot of fun! It was hosted by wine expert Olly Smith. Olly Smith will be a familiar face to anybody that watches either Saturday Kitchen on the BBC or Market Kitchen on the Good Food channel. He came off as a very likeable guy and got the audience pumped up. No small task for if being first thing on a Saturday morning.

Once Olly Smith had us all warmed up, it was onto the real stars of Masterchef. Both of the judges, Gregg Wallace and John Torode came on stage carrying their Masterchef Live bags full of food. Obviously, these were going to be the ingredients available to the two chefs cooking in the Masterchef cook off. That bit did feel a tad bit Ready Steady Cook but I suppose there wasn’t much better of a way for them to bring out the ingredients.

I can’t fully recall all of the items they had in the bags but they did include brioche, lentils, chocolate, cod and pancetta. In addition, the two competing chefs could use a variety of things such as eggs, milk and herbs and spices available in the larder (again very Ready Steady Cook in feel). The next mystery was who would be the two chefs competing in the Masterchef cook off.

I am pretty sure the pattern of contestants in our showing was replicated in the other Masterchef cook offs throughout the event. One of the contestants was from Celebrity Masterchef and the other was a past winner of the normal Masterchef series. We had the interesting pairing of Wendi Peters from Celebrity Masterchef and 2008 Masterchef winner James Nathan.

They had a few moments to contemplate the ingredients before starting to cook. Certainly, they went in totally opposite directions. James Nathan went for a cod and lentil dish with capers and peppers in the mix somewhere.

Wendi Peters was much more vegetarian friendly by going for using the brioche to make a chocolate caramel French toast. Yummy! Given that Gregg Wallace is infamous for having a sweet tooth, that sounded like a winner. Judging by the reaction from the audience when she announced her intentions, it was a crowd pleaser too!

She certainly provided the comedy of the event by using a plastic bowl to form a double boiler for melting her chocolate. It wouldn’t take too much imagination to think that using plastic over heat would melt the bowl but she went with it until John Torode stepped in with his health and safety hat and took it off the heat.

After they had used every bit of their allotted 30 minutes to cook their dishes, it was time for the all important Masterchef judging from Gregg Wallace and John Torode.

They tucked into the dish from James Nathan first and gave it very positive reviews. As James Nathan is now working at one of Rick Stein’s seafood restaurants in Cornwall, it is probably not all too much of a shock that he would have produced a good tasting fish dish.

They also oohed and aahed over the seriously lush looking sweet offering from Wendi Peters. Even John Torode, who usually says he doesn’t like sweet things, was very enthusiastic about it. I know, that I would have loved the chance to sample that dish. It was piled high with sticky gooey chocolate and caramel and then topped with whipped cream. Total yum and vegetarian. So, of course it would have gotten my vote.

I couldn’t get a very good photo of the dish that Wendi Peters cooked because of my location in the audience. However, I decided to share this photo of Gregg Wallace directly after he tasted it to demonstrate how much he enjoyed it. Not only can you see Wendi Peters looking a bit taken back by his reaction but you can even see a little smudge of the chocolate still on the corner of his mouth. That, is total enjoyment of a dish.

Gregg and John then went into their huddle to whisper and debate who would be the winner of the Masterchef cook off. Despite the overwhelmingly positive reaction to the French toast, they awarded the win to James Nathan. Not really all that shocking since he was the actual Masterchef winner but still a lot of fun to watch it play out.

Invention Test

From there, the next stop on our Masterchef Live adventure was to a viewing of the live Invention Test round. Anybody that has ever watched Masterchef on the BBC knows the invention test is really the best part of the show. A bunch of contestants show up and are presented with a bunch of ingredients and they have to quickly make something out of them. The ones that make something that please John and Gregg stay and the others are gone for good.

One of the main features of Masterchef Live was that visitors to the event could pay to take part in a mass live invention test. It was pretty costly to take part – something like £60 – but you could be in the audience and watch for a few pounds. So, we went for the audience option. Judging by the fear on the eyes of the contestants as they came out to compete, I think we made the right choice! Plus, their main ingredient was chicken which wasn’t amazingly vegetarian friendly, once again. It was still fun to watch though.

Gregg Wallace and John Torode were back to judge the invention test and the whole event was hosted by, former Celebrity Masterchef contestant, Andi Peters.

The invention test contestants were also provided with two Masterchef alumni as advisers. In our round, they were Wendi Peters (again) and 2009 Masterchef Winner Mat Follas. We were excited by that because all of us had been big champions of Mat Follas during his season on Masterchef and were really happy to see him win. If you have never checked out the food blog that Mat Follas does be sure to check it out now – The Wild Garlic Blog. I would love a chance to eat at his restaurant on one of my Weekend Carnivore days.

Whilst the bewildered invention test contestants cooked away, Wendi Peters, Mat Follas and John and Gregg made their way around the different stations tasting and advising as they went. There was a really nice spirit of good nature to the whole event.

Without question, another highlight was the inclusion of the Bounty Ladies (now the Plenty Ladies since the name change) Brenda and Audrey. The pair were so much fun throughout the event. The reception they got shows just how many people advertising reaches!

The Food

The real star of Masterchef Live was the food. The whole venue was packed full of different food suppliers and nearly all of them were offering tastings. A real treasure trove for any foodie! Whilst there certainly were a lot of meat products to taste (lots of different types of sausages) there was still a fantastic selection for anybody following a vegetarian diet.

That was particularly the case if you love cheese because you really couldn’t move without somebody offering you a stick with some fantastic (usually) British cheese stuck on the end. Most were cheddar varieties but the one that got the vote of my tastebuds was this buffalo mozzarella from Laverstoke Park Farm.

Apart from cheese, it was very apparent that different types of oil is very much on trend with foodies. All over the Masterchef Live venue, there were different types of olive oils to sample. For me though, the oil stand that was not just the best oil on offer, but also possibly the best product I sampled at the whole show was the avocado oil from Olivado Natural Nutrition

I had never actually had avocado oil before but it was so good and I had heard about its health benefits. So, I for sure had to buy a couple bottles – one of their extra virgin avocado oil and one of their truly wonderful avocado zest oil which has a great lemony to it.

Plus, the people at the stand were so nice and friendly. They also threw in a bottle of macadamia nut oil with the bundle. So, watch this space for a ton of new recipes coming up from me using both avocado and macadamia nut oil. Seriously though, watch out because I have a hunch that avocado oil is about to become a real ‘it’ food.

Another of my favourite stalls was that of The Garlic Farm. I had seen them at a previous event and they have been stuck in my head since. They are, as their name would suggest, masters of all things garlic. Never a bad thing for me since I love garlic! Their stand was overflowing with huge stacks of garlic. Some of that was smoked garlic which smelled so stunningly good that I bought a bulb. Now, I just have to figure out how to use it. Any suggestions?

A product of their’s which I have really enjoyed in the past was a banana and garlic chutney (I *know* but it really works!) called Cheeky Monkey. I was really sad that it wasn’t on sale at their Masterchef Live stand but they did have its spicy cousin called Raging Ape. I am not at all one for very hot and spicy things but I was so in love with the idea of taking home some Cheeky Monkey that I bought one of the Raging Ape. It turned out to be seriously good too and was fantastic used as a condiment on a cheese sandwich I made after the event. Really, don’t hesitate if you get the chance try this stuff. I would never have thought of garlic with banana but it really works.

On the subject of things that sound like they shouldn’t work but do, we move to the booze section of the show. There were so many free samples of booze that it would be very possible to get drunk on them alone. At a previous event, I had tried a Welsh toffee vodka called Toffoc. I am not a drinker but with just one sip I bought a bottle. The problem is, that none of my friends will try it because they have trouble imagining it tastes good.

So, I was thrilled to see that Toffoc had a tasting stand at this year’s Masterchef Live too. I insisted my friends try it and they enjoyed it. Finally, I was proven right! I bet my bottle isn’t safe this New Year’s Eve now! If you like toffee try it! We did try another toffee vodka at the show but it wasn’t as nice. So, try Toffoc first. Plus, there is always the novelty of having Welsh vodka.

Not everything ‘different’ actually worked for me though. After having seen a lot of foodie press lately about black garlic, I was keen to try it at their tasting stand. Now, as I have said, I am a huge garlic fan. However, I am sorry to say there was nothing resembling garlic about the taste of this at all. The texture was gummy and almost similar to that of a date. The taste wasn’t all that dissimilar to a date either but a very burnt one. I am afraid this is one foodie trend I will not be following.

That was our day at Masterchef Live and it really was a fantastic day out. We ate so many new things and got slightly tipsy on free booze samples. Mix that in with a bit of John and Gregg and what more could a London foodie ask for on a Saturday afternoon?

Ricotta and pesto toast recipe

Filed under: My Vegetarian Recipes — Tags: , , , , — Sarah Jayne @ 5:36 pm October 13, 2009

If you are anything like me, you can often find yourself with a fridge littered with jars and tubs with just a little bit left in them. There isn’t enough to actually use it in a meal but too much to think about throwing it away. Especially, when we all know we have to be careful about food wastage.

My default in these situations has become to figure out how I can combine some of these little bits and bobs and put them on toast. After all, just about anything can go okay on toast – just about.

This time I really lucked out and found a pairing that turned out to be a culinary marriage made in heaven – ricotta and pesto. I had just a couple tablespoons left of both and just spread them both on toast. It was *so* good that I was seriously tempted to run out and get more ricotta and pesto right there and then just to have an excuse to make it again.

Ricotta and pesto toast recipe

Ingredients:

2 slices bread
2 tablespoons ricotta cheese
2 teaspoons pesto, fresh is best

Directions:

1. Toast the bread.
2. Spread each slice with one tablespoon of ricotta cheese.
3. Smear a teaspoon of pesto over the ricotta on each slice and enjoy!

Serves: 1 to 2

Sun dried tomato and olive tortilla pizza recipe

Filed under: My Vegetarian Recipes — Tags: , , , , , — Sarah Jayne @ 5:32 pm October 10, 2009

Who doesn’t love pizza? I sure know that I do but ordering takeaway pizza is just a no no on my diet. When I have a lot of time on my hands, I am not adverse to trying making a homemade pizza dough recipe. Truth is though, I rarely think that far ahead. Even if I did, a homemade pizza dough recipe is still going to have more calories than I am likely to have spare.

Lately, I have been indulging my pizza craving moments by throwing together quick and very easy tortilla pizza recipes. It really is as simple as using a tortilla in place of the normal pizza dough and piling it high with the cheese and toppings of your choice. They are so easy and simple to make that I have taken to having them instead of a sandwich for lunch. I suppose, really they are an open faced sandwich or a an inside out quesadilla anyway.

You really can put just about anything on them and make a whole new tortilla pizza recipe each and every time. They are great for anybody following a vegetarian diet because the pizza topping options really are as varied as the types of vegetables you can find.

My recent favourite topping combination for my tortilla pizza recipe is sun dried tomatoes and a mixture of green and black olives. If I use reduced fat mozzarella I can pile those olives high and not worry too much about the fat. It is all good fat anyway, right?

Sun dried tomato and olive tortilla pizza

Ingredients:
1 flour tortilla
1 tablespoon pasta sauce
1/3 cup reduced fat shredded mozzarella cheese
1/3 cup sun dried tomatoes in oil, drained and roughly chopped
1 1/2 tablespoons green olives, sliced
1 1/2 tablespoons black olives, sliced

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400F/Gas Mark 6
2. Put the tortilla on a baking sheet and spread with the pasta sauce.
3. Scatter the cheese evenly over the tortilla.
4. Put the sun dried tomatoes and olives all over the top of the cheese.
5. Bake in the oven for about 5 minutes until the cheese melts. Watch it very closely during this cooking time as it can very quickly go from golden and melted to very burnt.
6. Put onto a plate and eat sliced into pizza style slices.

Serves: 1

Baked ricotta-stuffed tandoori potatoes

Filed under: Other's Vegetarian Recipes — Tags: , , , , — Sarah Jayne @ 5:27 pm October 7, 2009

Ah, the humble spud. As much as we love the potato, it can get a bit samey if you have them often. Luckily, one of the best thing about potatoes is that they are so adaptable and you aren’t likely to run out of new potato recipes any time soon if you allow yourself to get a bit creative. There is always a potato recipe that is something totally new to try and that is exactly what I thought when I saw Anjum Anand’s recipe for Baked ricotta-stuffed tandoori potatoes in a recent copy of Good Food Magazine.

I won’t lie, the recipe is a bit fiddly because you have to hollow out the potatoes just enough to stuff them with the ricotta mixture. However, I found that once I figured out that an apple corer was the right tool for the job it went much more smoothly. Once you are past that bit it is just a matter of making up the ricotta mixture and the tandoori yoghurt glaze for the outside of the potatoes. Both are pretty darn simple. After that it is just letting them cook in the oven.

Since I am a bit of a spice wimp, I used less chilli in the ricotta mixture. I also left out the cashews to save calories and because my husband isn’t a lover of nuts. I don’t think the dish really missed the nuts, if I am honest. I suppose they add texture but I didn’t eat the potatoes and think ‘hmm, this needs nutty crunch’.

Sliced thickly, these look pretty impressive on the plate and served along with some steamed veg made a great light meal. I think the tandoori glaze would be excellent on chicken or fish too for the meat eaters in the family. As it uses Greek yoghurt as the base, it isn’t even really too calorie loaded either.

Coriander and green olive hummus recipe

Filed under: My Vegetarian Recipes — Tags: , , , , , — Sarah Jayne @ 5:21 pm October 4, 2009

Hello, my name is Sarah Jayne and I am a hummus addict! Seriously, I can’t get enough of the stuff. If I had the choice between really good hummus and chocolate, I wouldn’t have to think twice about snatching the hummus out of the hands of the person asking such an odd question. However, until recently, I have usually been guilty of buying hummus from the store rather than trying my hand at making my own hummus recipe.

Just like with the pesto the other week, I just always thought it would be too complicated for me to learn how to make hummus. Once again, I was wrong. I stumbled onto an easy hummus recipe that I really love because the base recipe doesn’t even use olive oil. Which means that I don’t feel at all bad about using tahini on my diet. It is such an easy hummus recipe that ever since my discovery of it, I have been playing around adding all sorts of things to it to come up with new hummus recipes.

Lately, I have also been “suffering” from a bit if an olive addiction. The little green and black gems have been finding their way into just about every meal I put together. So, when it was time to put together my latest hummus recipe I couldn’t resist the temptation to throw in some olives and see what happened. I also had a bunch of fresh coriander – cilantro for our American friends – that needed to be used. So, I threw that in too.

Boy did this turn out to be a seriously yummy hummus recipe! So, good that I simply topped it with a couple more olives (told you I am addictive) and ate it with warm pitas and made that my entire lunch!

Coriander and green olive hummus recipe

coriander and green olive hummus recipe

 

Ingredients:
1 (400g) can chickpeas, drained but the liquid reserved
1/4 cup tahini
3 tablespoons lemon juice
2 cloves garlic
1/3 cup fresh coriander
1/3 cup green olives, pitted
freshly ground pepper, to taste
sea salt, to taste

Directions:

1. Put the chickpeas, tahini, lemon juice, garlic, coriander and olives into a blender or food processor. I use my mini chopper to make it extra easy.
2. Blitz in short bursts, pushing the mixture down when needed until everything is combined.
3. Add a little bit of the reserved bean liquid and blitz again. Add more if you need more to get to the hummus texture you desire.
4. Serve in a bowl topped with olives.

Serves: 2 to 4 (or just 1 hummus addict like me!)

Avocado toast topped with poached egg

Filed under: My Vegetarian Recipes — Tags: , , , — Sarah Jayne @ 3:59 pm October 1, 2009

The morning before I go grocery shopping it is never certain I am going to have any of my normal breakfast foods still kicking around. On these days, my breakfast choices can get more than a bit experimental. Usually, I take a look at what odds and ends I have left over from the last week and attempt to put together a vegetarian breakfast recipe that can hopefully claim to be at least a bit healthy.

The day that I came up with this recipe, I really had just about nothing left in the fridge and what was there wasn’t jumping out as working well together. I had once slice of wholemeal bread, one egg and half an avocado. Ack! I decided not to give into defeat that easily though and crossed my fingers as I attempted to make this breakfast recipe work.

You know, it wasn’t bad at all!

I have had a mashed avocado mixture on toast before but usually I would have mashed it with a bit of lemon juice and garlic. I was totally out of any sort of lemon or lemon juice though. So, I reached for some garlic infused white wine vinegar I bought at a craft fair in Wales a few months ago and used that to mash up the avocado. I think I will do that again for another avocado recipe because the slight sharpness of the vinegar worked well with the creamy avocado.

I felt like I needed a bit of something else on top of that toast and avocado recipe. With just the one egg around and not wanting to add a ton of calories onto the recipe, I poached the egg and put it on top. When the poached egg yolk spilled out over the avocado it really was yummy.

Not only did it taste pretty good for a recipe put together with such haste, but all of the good fats going on in the recipe meant that just the one slice of the avocado toast filled me up and kept me full until well into the afternoon. Tons of time for Tescos to deliver my grocery shopping and make lunch so much easier!

Avocado toast with poached egg

Ingredients:

1 slice wholemeal bread
1/2 of an avocado
1/2 teaspoon garlic infused white wine vinegar or white wine vinegar and 1/2 clove crushed garlic
1 poached egg

Directions:

1. Put the bread into toast.
2. Meanwhile, scoop the avocado flesh into a bowl.
3. Add in the garlic vinegar and mash until it is roughly mashed and everything is combined.
4. Spread the avocado mixture on top of the toast.
5. Place the poached egg on top and enjoy.

Serves: 1

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