PETA's Pesto Packs a Punch!

An Easy Way to Be Vegan

This delightful little dish is so full of flavour that you would never realise how simple it is to make, and it's a great way to win over friends afraid of vegan food! Just the right amount of kick and wholesome goodness to leave your tastebuds very satisfied. Even more good news is that the ingredients are incredibly cheap to buy! 

Budget friendly, easy and absolutely yummy make this a new regular dish in my weekly meals.

Ingredients (serves 2)

200 grams spaghetti

2 cloves garlic

2 cups fresh basil leaves

1/2 cup pine nuts

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup room temperature water

Salt to taste

Method

1. Cook the pasta.

2. Combine the garlic, basil leaves and pine nuts in a blender and pulse until coarsely minced together.

3. With the blender running on low speed, slowly add the olive oil, followed by the water.

4. Add salt to taste and blend gently. 

5. Once the pasta is cooked, stir through the pesto sauce and enjoy!

Tip

I had one very large garlic clove and two smaller ones. As these are ultimately served raw, they do provide a powerful little kick! Don't worry about the garlic breath and say "you're welcome" to your immune system. 

P.S

I found this fabulous recipe on PETA's website, click here for the original. But please note that they use hot water in their recipe which may ruin the bright beautiful green colour of the pesto.

Candied Walnut and Apple Cake

My Grandma's Find!

My Grandma is one of the most amazing cooks that I know. Her talent for cooking has been passed down to her two daughters, and her love of cooking has made it's way to me! At 80 years old she's still trying new recipes and tweaking them to suit.

Here is a recent gem! It's pretty, it's simple to make and it's a great way to use any apples that may be going soft - plus it's a real joy for the tastebuds!

Ingredients

125 grams unsalted butter

1 cup sugar

1 ½ cups plain flour

2 eggs

¼ cup boiling water

1 tsp baking powder

3 or 4 large apples

Topping

1 tsp unsalted butter

1 tsp sugar

½ tsp cinnamon

Handful chopped walnuts

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees celcius.
2. In a pot/pan pour the boiling water, add the butter and stir until it melts.
3. Once the water has cooled, stir in sugar, flour, eggs and baking powder.
4. Butter a cake dish.
5. Pour cake mixture into cake dish.
6. Wash, peel and core apples.
7. Cut apples in half moon slices and arrange tightly on the cake mixture in a circular pattern.
8. Melt topping ingredients together in a pan and then pour over cake mixture.
9. Bake for 50 minutes.
10. Smacznego - Polish for enjoy! :)

Tip

Instead of walnuts you can also use pecans - just as amazing!

Polish Salad

A Favourite of Mine!

I grew up eating this salad and it always brings back flavours of home for me. The salad itself is a Polish recipe. You may sometimes see variations of this salad in restaurants known as a Russian salad (however they tend to include tuna)! My salad is purely made up of fruit and vegetable goodness! It makes for an excellent side dish to any meal, however I like it so much I could eat the whole bowl myself!

Please note this is not a vegan recipe (unless of course you find a mayonnaise substitute!).

Ingredients (serves 4)

2 medium potatoes
1 medium carrot
1 medium turnip (this can be omitted if difficult to find)
1 granny smith apple (tart and green)
Small jar marinated mushrooms / small tin champignons
4 medium fermented cucumbers
1/2 cup mayonnaise

Method

1. Peel the potatoes and halve length wise.
2. Slice carrot and turnip into three equal pieces.
3. Place potatoes, carrot and turnip into a pot. Fill with water half way up the vegetables. Salt the water.
4. Bring vegetables to the boil, then simmer for about 20 minutes covered. Vegetables should be cooked through but not falling apart. Most of the water will be absorbed. Once cooked put aside to cool slightly.
5. Meanwhile finely dice the mushrooms, cucumbers and peeled apple, place in a bowl.
6. Dice the potatoes, carrot and turnip and add to bowl.
7. Add mayonnaise, mix all ingredients together.
8. Salad can be served immediately or kept in the fridge overnight so the flavours can all come together.

Tip

The finer you dice the ingredients - the more effective it will look (and the tastier it will be)!

Pecan Nut and Raisin Quinoa - Vegan Breakfast Cereal

An Ideal Vegan Breakfast

This breakfast is an ideal, well-rounded start to the day for any vegan concerned about a lack of protein in their diet.

Quinoa - Is filled to the brim with protein that contains all nine essential amino acids!

Cinnamon - This is what I consider to be one of the magical spices from mother nature which comes with numerous health benefits! From anti-fungal and anti-bacterial properties through to lowering your cholesterol. The list is endless.

Pecan Nuts - These tasty nuts contain more anti-oxidants than any other nut!

Of course quinoa can be enjoyed with many other different types of nuts, dried fruits, fresh fruits, different types of vegan milk... it's up to you to experiment and discover your favourite combinations! This is my first attempt at quinoa for breakfast, so I can't wait to discover other tasty combinations myself.

Ingredients (for 1 serving)

1/4 cup quinoa
1 cup water
Dash of cinnamon
Dash of vanillin sugar
Small handful pecan nuts - chopped
Small handful raisins
Soy milk

Method

1. In a small pot, bring to the boil quinoa, water, cinnamon and vanillin sugar.
2. Simmer for about 15 minutes, until quinoa has absorbed the water and becomes fluffy.
3. Garnish quinoa with nuts and raisins and serve with milk.

Aussie Wildflowers

Australian wildflowers from the Margaret River region (wine country) in Western Australia.

Spectacular to stand amongst fields of these.

Photo taken September 2011.