Roasted Roots

My mother was asking me for parsnip recipes. I've never been a big fan of parsnips, but I gave her this recipe. Then she said "I think I'll just steam them." Whatever! This is WAY tastier. Anyway, this recipe is very simple and can be used on any kinds of root veggies.

Roasted Roots

4 - 6 cups cubed root vegetables (parsnips, potatoes, sweet potatoes/yams, beets, celeriac, carrots, turnips)
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt & pepper
1 - 3 tbsp herbs, dry or fresh (oregano, rosemary, basil)
6 - 12 cloves garlic (whole)
1/8 cup balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp grain mustard or mustard seeds

Mixed all ingredients together so that the cubed veggies are well coated. Place the mixture on a large baking tray on the top rack in the oven. Bake at 375 for 40 minutes (turning them at 20 minutes). Keep an eye on them because all ovens are different, sometimes it takes more time, sometimes less. I love beets and sweet potatoes so I tend to use lots of them, but potatoes are often quite cheap.

Potato Pancakes

These are ridiculously easy to make, not to mention cheap! A great breakfast (just don't have them every day, then can be a little greasy... well, that's how I like them).

Potato Pancakes

3 medium potatoes (mix it up and substitute 1 or 2 sweet potatoes if you like!)
1/4 cup flour
1 medium-sized onion
Salt & pepper
Vegetable oil (for frying)

Grate the potatoes and onions into a big bowl. Add the flour, salt and pepper and mix it all together. Pre-heat a pan for frying with the oil. Shape the mixture into little balls, squeezing out the excess liquid, and place in the pan. Flatten them out with a spatula once they are in the pan. Don't turn for a few minutes, or else they will fall apart. They are very delicate until they are cooked through. Fry until brown on both sides.

This makes about 6 - 9, depending on the size you like them. If you make a double batch, they freeze well and you can just re-heat them for breakfast the next day!


Best served with vegan sour cream or ketchup.

Goma-ae

I'm a huge sushi fan - count yourself lucky enough if you live in a city where you can get good quality vegetarian sushi and not just avocado rolls all the time (not knocking avocado rolls, it's just nice to have some variety). I'm particularly fond of that little Japanese salad, spinach goma-ae. As I got more adept at making my own sushi, I decided to try my hand at this delicious dish and my results were pretty satisfying. A lot of places use peanut butter as well, so you can always try to replace the tahini with pb if that's more your thing. This is a great recipe for getting your daily calcium intake - a cup of boiled spinach provides you with 25% of your daily value, and a quarter cup of tahini has about 35% - or so WHFoods tells me!

Spinach Goma-ae

1 bunch spinach (or a bag of pre-washed spinach leaves)
1/4 cup tahini (sesame seed paste)
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tbsp raw sugar or agave nectar
1/8 cup sushi vinegar
1 tsp sesame seeds

Wash your spinach well. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Take the water off the heat and immerse the spinach in the water. Let sit, covered, for 2 - 3 minutes. Drain it and squeeze as much moisture as you can out of it, forming little balls (the spinach should have some give but not be falling apart). Set the balls aside and let them cool. Mix the tahini, soy sauce, sugar and sushi vinegar together until they are well-blended. If you want it creamier add more tahini, saltier add more soy sauce, sweeter add more sugar, tangier add more vinegar - it's pretty simple and all goma-ae sauces are different, it's down to your personal preference (I like it a little sweet myself). Once you have perfected your sesame dressing (it should be reasonably thick), pour it over the spinach balls. Sprinkle with sesame seeds. Let cool or refrigerate before eating. It may not seem like you get much for how much you put in, but the balls are very dense and packed with nutrition!

Greek Potatoes

So, the fruit shop up the road was having a sale on Desiree potatoes, $2 for a 5kg bag, so we picked it up but now we have a potato surplus, so I shall post my many potato recipes (and there's a fair few)! This is one of them. If you like Greek food, these are for you. As easy as home-fries but a little more interesting.

Greek Potatoes

2 - 3 medium-sized potatoes
Olive Oil
Oregano (2 - 3 tablespoons)
Salt & Pepper
Lemon Juice (1/8 cup)
Garlic (1 -2 cloves, finely chopped)

Dice/cube your potatoes as thick or thin as you want them. Coat frying pan with olive oil. Fry potatoes on medium-low until cooked through a bit, add oregano, salt & pepper, and lemon juice, and cook them a few minutes more. Turn up heat a little and add the garlic. Stir until potatoes are brown and lemon juice is evaporated (make sure you are always flipping them so they cook evenly). I like them really lemony and garlicky so I usually over-season, but it's up to your taste. Makes a delicious side dish for falafels.

Creamy Peas and Cashews

The last time I went out for Indian food, I got so inspired! There were so many things I couldn't eat that looked so delicious that I decided to replicate at home. This is one of many (more to come) that have made their way into my rotation.

This one is so easy. Coconut milk/oil is one of the easiest sources of fat for vegans (this can be a good or bad thing, depending on the rest of your diet!). In fact, this may be the fattiest recipe I've posted so far. Also, one of the tastiest.

Creamy Peas and Cashews

1 1/2 cups unsalted cashews
2 cups frozen peas
1 can coconut milk
1 clove garlic, finely diced
1 - 2 tablespoons Indian spice or curry powder (Garam Masala is best)
Salt (about 2 tsp)
1 tbsp margarine or vegetable oil

Heat margarine/oil and coconut milk in a medium-sized pot on low heat. Add frozen peas and let them defrost a little. Add cashews, garlic, salt, spices and stir on medium heat until peas are cooked through. It's just that simple, folks! Serve over basmati rice or as a side dish to a larger curry meal. Add more/less salt and spice as suits your own taste.

Breaded Tofu

Doesn't sound too healthy does it? Well, it probably isn't, it's very oily but it's SO GOOD. It resembles tempura, I suppose. If you are craving fried food (we all do sometimes let's face it), it's miles better than, oh, chicken-fried bacon or whatever is popular these days. And it's very simple to make. I got the idea from the battered/crumbed fish my mom used to make when I was little.

Breaded Tofu

1/4 cup flour (I use tapioca flour, it's gluten-free)
Block of tofu
2 tsp Salt
1/4 cup sesame seeds
1/2 cup bread crumbs (I use rice bread crumbs, gluten-free and a bit lighter)
Sauce of choice (Sweet chili is my fave with this, but teriyaki would be good, too!)

Mix the flour, crumbs, salt and sesame seeds well and put the mixture it in a small bowl or plate. Slice block of tofu into 1-inch thick slabs (or approximately that, it's up to you how you like it). Dip/coat tofu in oil, then dip/coat it in the flour mixture (the oil helps keep the coating on). Fry up your slabs in oil on medium-high heat (it should sizzle but not pop), turning when necessary (it is ready before it turns brown). Cooks in about 2 - 4 minutes. Not a bad idea to pat some of the oil off with paper towels before you eat it (also it'll be hot so be careful!). Enjoy dipping in your favourite sauce. Also, this would probably be very good as part of a meal with rice and stir-fried veggies on the side.















Yippee! I remembered to take a picture before I ate it all (barely).