Vegan chickpea and courgette kofta

Chickpeas are a great store cupboard essential. I normally have a few tins as well as a bag of dried chickpeas lurking somewhere at the back of my shelves. Hummus is an obvious way to use up the peas and I could quite happily munch my way through tubs of the sesame spiked paste. For a slightly more unusual use my blog founding chocolate chickpea cake recipe is great. But chickpeas are perfect to bulk out vegetarian and vegan food often giving a bit more substance meat free dishes. And this vegan curry recipe displays this quality of chickpeas perfectly, in fact you really wouldn’t notice that there was anything missing from this vegan feast.

This recipe is based on Isa Chandra Moskowitz’s chandra malai kofta recipe published over on the Guardian website. So go check out the original for a slightly more authentic recipe as I made a few tweaks (mainly substituting cashew nuts with peanut butter) to suit what I had in my cupboards at the time of cooking. Either way this is a truly tasty treat.

INGREDIENTS (Serves 2)

FOR THE KOFTA

½ tin of chickpeas (drained and rinsed)

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

100g courgette (grated)

1 tablespoon chopped fresh coriander

1 tablespoon of fresh ginger (grated)

1 clove of garlic (crushed)

½ teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons breadcrumbs

2 tablespoons corn flour

FOR THE SAUCE

1 tablespoon crunchy peanut butter

1 cup vegetable stock

1 medium onion (finely diced)

1 clove of garlic (crushed)

1 tablespoon fresh ginger (grated)

½ tablespoon curry powder

1 teaspoon garam masala

1 teaspoon ground cumin

½ tin of coconut milk

1 tablespoon tomato puree

½ cup frozen peas

Toast the cumin seeds in a pan over a medium heat for about 3 minutes until lightly brown and fragrant.

Mash the chickpeas in a bowl together with the toasted cumin seeds until well combined then add the courgette, coriander, ginger, garlic and salt. Then add the breadcrumbs and cornflour and use your hands to bring the mixture together onto a firm ball. Then wrap in cling film and place in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile make the sauce by gently frying the onion in a saucepan until it begins to soften. Then add the garlic and ginger for about 1 minute before adding the curry powder, garam masala and cumin and stir for another minute until fragrant. Add the coconut milk, tomato puree, peanut butter and vegetable stock, bring to a gently simmer and cook for 15 minutes until reduced and thickened.

Place a large frying pan over a medium heat and add a little vegetable oil. Take a small handful of the kofta mix at a time and form into a fat sausage shape and add to the frying pan. Continue forming approximately 8 kofta. Fry the kofta for about 8 minutes rolling them about in the pan so that they cook evenly on all sides.

Finally add the peas to the curry sauce mix and warm through and then serve the curry sauce together with the kofta and some boiled rice (I used red rice), then tuck in and enjoy.

Banana Ginger Cake

I love a good cookbook, pretty glossy ones with lots of mouth-watering photos to match the recipes. And ones with recipes that are a little bit different or unusual but that ultimately always work, recipes that have been developed with love and thoroughly tested to avoid kitchen disappointments occurring for us at home. One of the best baking book purchases I have made in the last couple of years has to Dan Lepard’s Short and Sweet which is a beautiful book full of delectably delicious recipes for breads, cakes and pies. And so far everything I have made from the book has turned out perfectly, which is a bit of a miracle as since moving into a house with a Rayburn I do still at times struggle to get the perfectly risen cake or not overly crusty loaf of bread.

Dan Lepard also used to write for the Guardian and when on a recent trawl of the internet for recipes to use up some browning bananas I came across this dark banana ginger cake recipe. And so it was a complete no brainer to get stuck into this recipe rather than continuing my recipe search. Due to not having all of the appropriate ingredients in the original recipe I did make a few little adjustments, as well as adding a lemon syrup to the cake after baking to make it a little more moist but I would probably recommend going to try Dan’s original recipe first as in my opinion he is a true baking king!!

Oh and this recipe uses vegetable oil rather than butter so is dairy free, making it a great blog addition.

INGREDIENTS

200g banana

200g soft dark brown sugar

3 extra-large eggs (one of mine was a double yolker so not sure if that counts as 4)

125ml vegetable oil

50g glace ginger

½ teaspoon ground ginger

150g plain flour

50g rye flour

3 teaspoons baking powder

Juice of 1 lemon

2 tablespoons  of caster sugar

Pre-heat the oven to 170°C / 335°F and line a 24 x 18 cm baking tin with non-stick baking parchment.

Mash the sugar and bananas together in a large bowl before mixing in the oil, eggs and glace ginger. Finally fold in the ground ginger, baking powder and flours, stirring until fully combined.

Transfer the mixture into the prepared tin and bake in the oven for 50-60 minutes until golden in colour and springy to the touch.

Whilst the cake is in the oven put the lemon juice and caster sugar in a small pan and place over a low heat until the sugar has fully dissolved. When the cake is removed from the oven and whilst still in the tin use a skewer or sharp knife to make lots incisions in the cake. Drizzle the lemon syrup over the cake allowing it to seep into the holes made by the knife/skewer. Then once cooled transfer out of the tin and the cake is now ready to enjoy.

Cheesy Popcorn Croutons

I really love popcorn. I’m more of a savoury than sweet fan (although I did make myself some of this dark and stormy caramel popcorn at the weekend which was amazingly good…and slightly addictive!!) and salty is definitely my first choice in a trip to the cinema. But popcorn isn’t just a cinema snack and as the proud owner of a popcorn machine I often fire up my slightly indulgent kitchen gadget and spray popcorn kernels all over my kitchen. And making popcorn at home provides the perfect opportunity to experiment with flavours a little more, a good sprinkling of smoked paprika a long with a pinch of salt for example is always a winner for me.

As well as just munching through bowls of the stuff whilst sitting in front of the TV popcorn can be added to other dishes and a few savoury flavoured pieces of popcorn can be used to top a bowl of soup, providing a great wheat free alternative to traditional croutons.

I recently made myself a bowl of roasted cauliflower and parsnip soup and topped it with these cheesy popcorn croutons….and it was really rather delicious.

INGREDIENTS

¼ cup unpopped corn kernels

¼ cup grated parmesan

½ teaspoon dried oregano

1 tablespoon olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Serves 4

Pre-heat an oven to 170°C / 335°F and line a large baking tray with non-stick baking parchment.

If you don’t have a popcorn machine to pop your corn you can follow these instructions to do it in a saucepan instead.

Once popped combine the popcorn with the cheese, oil, oregano and seasoning, tossing together in a large bowl until the corn is evenly coated. Transfer the mixture to the baking tray spreading out into a single layer and then put the baking tray into the oven for 15-20 minutes until the cheese has melted slightly, moving the popcorn around on the baking tray halfway during the baking time.

Allow to cool very slightly before using the popcorn ‘croutons’ to top a bowl of soup of your choice.

Gluten Free Mincemeat Shortbreads

After all the of the Christmas baking I have found myself with a couple of half finished jars of mincemeat in the fridge to use up. I did contemplate just making another massive batch of my rather popular mince pie cookies but thought I should probably experiment and try something a little different instead. And so I pimped up my gluten free shortbread recipe and made these mincemeat shortbread sandwich biscuits instead. These rather buttery biscuits aren't going to help with those January detox diets but will free up a bit of fridge space by using up an leftover Christmas mincemeat.

INGREDIENTS

340g butter
175g caster sugar
50g icing sugar
200g rice flour
100g polenta
300g gluten free flour
200g mincemeat
zest from 1 lemon

Pre-heat the oven to 180 deg C and line a 24 x 18 cm baking tray with grease-proof paper.

Beat together the butter and caster sugar until light and fluffy.

Mix the flours, polenta icing sugar and lemon zest into the butter mixture until fully combined.

Take half of the mixture and push into the prepared tin until and even layer is covering the base. Spoon on the mincemeat and spread out before topping with the remaining biscuit mix (I took small lumps of the dough at a time and scattered on top of the mixture and then gently pressed the dough down so as not to squash the filling too much).

Transfer to the oven and bake for 30-35 minutes until lightly golden in colour. Remove from the oven and allow the mixture to cool completely before turning out...the biscuit mixture is really 'short' meaning it crumbles really easily so needs to cool fully before attempting to turn out and slice otherwise it may just turn into a big pile of crumbs. Then enjoy with a big cup of tea...and store the rest in an airtight container.

Vegan Tofu Quiches

I was lucky enough to receive the incredibly thoughtful present of a lot of magnetic spice pots from Santa this Christmas. These pots meant I could free up some cupboard space and stick a stash of my spices onto the side of the Rayburn. To achieve this however I had to begin the year with a massive kitchen cupboard clean up session to consolidate all of my spices and discover long forgotten ingredients lurking on shelves out of my usual reach. And as well as discovering a massive stash of kaffir lime leaves I also unearthed a few scrumpled up pieces of paper with barely legible scrawl on. But these little scribbles turned out to be a couple of recipes that I made months back that I thought had been lost to a local landfill site. And so at last I can share these little crust less and vegan alternatives to traditional quiches…a fairly healthy start to the new year.

INGREDIENTS

A little olive oil

1 red pepper, chopped into chunks

½ red onion, roughly chopped

300g firm silken tofu

60ml soymilk

2 tablespoons cornflour

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon dried oregano

A pinch of salt and pepper

Pre-heat the oven to 180°C

Lightly grease 6 large muffin cups in a muffin tin.

In a frying pan gently cook up the onion and pepper (you can add other vegetables such as mushrooms or add a little garlic at this point for a little extra kick). Once softened remove from the heat and place to one side.

Place the tofu, soymilk, cornflour, herbs and spices to a food processor and blitz until a smooth, lump-free mixture is formed.

Add the vegetables to the tofu mix and combine thoroughly before dividing the mixture evenly between the muffin cups. Transfer the muffin tin to the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes until golden and firm to the touch. Remove from the oven and allow to cool a little before turning the quiches out, then tuck in and enjoy (as I did with a little tomato salsa).

Chestnut and Mascarpone Yule Log

It’s time for some more Christmas baking fun and as the big day gets ever closer overindulgence now rules! The yule log or Bûche de Noël is a traditional Christmas desert but not something that has ever been a major part of our celebrations (we are much more of a Christmas pudding family!). And I had never attempted to make a yule log…until now that is, and after reading a few tips from The Guardian website I came up with a pretty delicious treat. And the great thing about the light and airy sponge that makes the base of the yule log is that it is often naturally gluten free and many recipes contain absolutely no flour but are just lots of whipped up eggs and cocoa powder, so a perfect gluten free addition to the Christmas dinner table, and not as tricky to make as you may think!!

INGREDIENTS

6 large eggs, separated
150g caster sugar
60g cocoa powder

1 jar of chestnut jam (you can make your own by checking out this recipe)

100g frozen cherries (or other red berries as preferred)

150g mascarpone

50g icing sugar

200g dark choc

180ml double cream

Glug of rum

Pre-heat the oven to 180°C. Line a swiss roll tin (or shallow rectangular baking tin) with grease proof paper, being careful to fully tuck the paper into the corners of the tin so that they are neatly folded in as this will allow the cake to rise nicely.

Separate the eggs dividing the egg whites and egg yolks into separate bowls.

Add the sugar to the egg yolks and beat with an electric mixer until a thick and glossy mixture is formed. Add the cocoa powder to the mixture and continue to beat until fully combined.

Ensure that the electric mixer is fully cleaned and has no traces of the egg yolk mixture and then beat the egg whites until soft peaks are formed.

Gently fold the egg white mixture into the egg yolk mixture a little at a time until fully combined. But be careful not to knock all of the air out of the egg whites.

Spoon the mixture into the prepared tin and place in the centre for about 25 minutes until firm to the touch.

Remove the cake from the oven, place another sheet of baking paper on top of the cake and invert onto the kitchen surface. Carefully remove the cake from the tin and peel off the baking paper that had lined the tin. Then, using the paper now underneath the cake carefully roll the cake up along the longest edge until a tight roll is formed. Leave the cake to cool rolled up (you can make the cake the day before you require it and leave it rolled up overnight before decorating the following day).

Once you are ready to construct the Bûch carefully unroll the cake (don’t worry if it cracks a little at this point, any little faults will be covered up with all the icing!)

I filled mine with chestnut jam which I had previously made (following this recipe, but if you don’t have a personal supply of chestnuts and enough time to make yourself some jam sweetened chestnut puree will work just fine) and sweetened mascarpone which I made by combining the mascarpone with the icing sugar. Spread the chestnut jam evenly over the cake. Then sprinkle with the cherries and top with the sweetened mascarpone. Carefully re-roll the cake using the baking paper for support as you roll.

Carefully transfer the roll to your serving plate and then liberally coat with chocolate ganache which is made be breaking the chocolate into a heat proof bowl, then bring the cream to the boil in a small pan, as soon as the cream begins to boil remove from the heat and pour over the chocolate. Stir the mixture until the chocolate has melted and a smooth glossy mixture has formed. Stir in a glug of rum and then pour the ganache over the cake and spread across with a spatula until it is fully covered.

I melted a little extra chocolate and piped out holly leaf shapes onto some non-stick baking parchment and once set used these to decorate my yule log but a liberal dusting of icing sugar would look just as festive.

Then get stuck in and enjoy this gorgeously indulgent chocolate desert…it is Christmas after all.

Mince pie cookies

Christmas really is fast approaching now, and although I am a right scrooge when I hear Christmas songs in the shops in September my ‘Bah Humbug’ attitude quickly dissipates once December arrives. This week I have been getting rather festive in the kitchen and have been having a massive kitchen baking session with cheesy Christmas music playing in the background whilst I have been liberally dusting every surface with icing sugar.

Now Christmas isn’t Christmas without a copious amounts of mince pies but I like to experiment a little with my mincemeat! And after making mincemeat Danish pastries last year I thought I would get creative again and so the mincemeat cookie was born. If you aren’t a big fan of pastry these are a perfect yule time treat with a little dollop of the sticky mincemeat mix hidden inside a gorgeous almond and vanilla cookie.

INGREDIENTS

80g butter

150g golden caster sugar

1 egg

100g almond butter (you could use peanut butter here if you can’t find almond butter, but it is available in many supermarkets and all good health food shops)

2 tablespoons golden syrup

Seeds from half a vanilla pod

25g ground almonds

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

150g plain flour

50 g rye flour

1 jar of mincemeat (or if you feel a bit more adventurous you can make your own!)

Makes approx. 20

Pre-heat the oven to 180°C/350°F.

Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.

Add the almond butter, egg, golden syrup and vanilla to the mixture and continue to beat until smooth and well combined.

Finally mix in the ground almonds, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and both flours and fold in until a firm dough if formed. Wrap the dough in cling film and place in the fridge for 30 minutes to chill.

To construct the biscuits begin by taking a small ball and making a dent/well in the centre. Place a teaspoon full of mincemeat into the indent.

Take another piece of the dough and form into a small round disc and place over the top of the mincemeat.

Then work the two bits of dough together forming a fat disc of cookie dough with the mincemeat hidden inside.

Place the cookies on a lined baking tray, leaving a little bit of space between them so they have room to spread a little.

Bake for 10-12 minutes until golden brown. Allow to cool a little before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely. Will keep in an air tight container for a few days….but I doubt these delicious cookies will last that long!!!