Gluten-free Archives - Page 11 of 12

Green Curry Tempeh Patties with Coconut-Lime Sauce

G is for…Green Curry Paste!

I ummed and ahed over what to choose for “G”. A rummage in my pantry had me pull out garam masala, ginger, green tea and goldenberries before I found this jar of green curry paste. It’s a bit of a giveaway as to how long I’ve had it that the label is in French. I lived in Paris from January to July 2012 so over a year has gone by since I bought this, and it was unopened! Ooops!

It might seem a rather strange thing to bring back with me but often curry pastes contain shellfish so when I stumbled across this one I excitedly snapped it up. It turns out it’s not actually difficult to find vegan curry paste here after all, but, as you can probably tell, I like to be prepared…

I of course could have just made a curry but I was feeling more creative than that and came up with these Thai Green Curry Tempeh Patties instead. They’re pretty easy to make, with just a few ingredients, including the curry paste. Topped with a zingy lime-coconut sauce I had the full curry experience in a different form.

I had half a package of tempeh to use up so just made a small batch of these. You could easily double the ingredients to use a whole package though.

Green Curry Tempeh Patties:

1/2 225g/8oz pkg Tempeh
1/2T Green Curry Paste
1/2C Shredded Courgette (squeeze out water and measure afterwards)
1 Small clove of garlic, minced
2 Green onions, minced (approx 2T)
2T Breadcrumbs (I make breadcrumbs with any leftover bread and freeze them so I always have them to hand, For GF use GF bread)
1/2T Ground flax seed + 1 1/2T Water
Salt + Pepper to taste

Whisk together ground flax and water and leave to thicken whilst you prepare the other ingredients.

Crumble tempeh into a bowl with your fingers, add shredded courgette, garlic and green onions, Stir in breadcrumbs and flax mixture and mix well, use your hands if you like. You may need another tablespoon of breacrumbs if it’s still very sticky.

Cover the bowl and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Heat a medium-sized pan over medium heat and add a little drizzle of oil. Shape mixture into 4 patties and cook for a few minutes on each side, until lightly browned. (You could probably bake these for a drier texture but I haven’t tried it)

Serve with the Lime-Coconut Sauce

Serves 2

Coconut-Lime Sauce:

1 Small clove of garlic
1/2 Chili, deseeded and minced
1/8t Salt
1/2C Coconut Milk
3/4T Lime juice
2 Green onions, finely chopped
2T Chopped fresh coriander

Using a pestle and mortar (or the flat of your knife on a chopping board) smash together the garlic, chili and salt. Stir in the coconut milk and lime juice and finally the fresh coriander and green onions.

Pre-sauce

I loved these over sautéed kale and quinoa, especially as the greens and grains soak up the tasty sauce.

Now, does anyone have a good Thai green curry recipe?! Or other dishes using green curry paste?

What unopened ingredients do you have in your pantry? It can’t just be me!

Hope everyone’s keeping up with Vegan MoFo now we’re into Week 2

Raw Banoffee Pie (for 2)

D is for…Dates!

Boy have I got a treat in store for you today folks!

Today I’m sharing my recipe for a Little Raw Banoffee Pie

I don’t know anyone who hasn’t fallen in love with raw desserts after just one taste. Usually creamy and rich, as well as their taste, I love that they’re made with whole ingredients- nuts, fruits and seeds and that they’re so easy to prepare. Although I do enjoy baking too, raw food is often quicker since there’s no cooking time involved and it must be said that it generally leaves me feeling much better physically than baked goods too.

If you haven’t made a raw dessert yet I can’t urge you strongly enough to give them a chance. The first recipe I made, and one I still love, was Ricki’s Cocoa Nibbles. I’ve got a few raw dessert recipes on my blog so far- Raw Mango Coconut Tartlets, Mini Raw Cacao, Coconut + Raspberry Cupcakes, and my latest Raw Vegan Matcha Ice Cream… oh and my Chocolate-Coated Peanut Butter Banana Pops can be made raw too using raw nut butter and a raw chocolate coating.

Dates are a magic ingredient in raw desserts, contributing a caramel-like sweetness without the need for refined sweeteners, and a stickiness which helps to bind everything together.

Of course Banoffee Pie involves bananas. I’ve probably mentioned that until I was 13/14 I didn’t eat any fruit. Nope. Not apples, not oranges, not strawberries and definitely not bananas! I gradually forced myself to start trying fruits again after over a decade of deciding I didn’t like them and bananas were my final fruit-shaped stumbling block. It’s pretty obvious that I’ve well and truly got over my fruit fears and am now a veritable fruit bat! It’s now a sad day when I don’t have any ripe bananas on hand.

There are a few components to this recipe but it still comes together much quicker than a cooked version would.

A date-nut crust topped with sliced banana, a thick layer of raw caramel, more sliced bananas and finally a vanilla bean whipped coconut cream.

I’ve given a few pictures of putting it together but it’s pretty self-explanatory really.

Raw Banoffee Pie:

Crust:
1/2C Walnuts
1/4C +2T Pitted dates, packed
Pinch of salt
Caramel:
1/4C Pitted Dates, packed
1/2T Almond Butter
1/4t Vanilla extract
Pinch of salt
2T Water
Vanilla Bean Coconut Whipped Cream:
1 Can Coconut milk, refrigerated (full-fat)
1/2-1 Vanilla bean
2T Coconut sugar

1 Medium-sized Banana

For the crust, whizz the walnuts and salt in a food processor until you have a coarse crumb. Add dates and process until the mixture sticks together when pressed between 2 fingers. Press crust onto a plate, or into a little tin if you have one, and shape into a circle. Refrigerate while you prepare the other components

In a food processor (I used the mini insert bowl), you might need to double the mixture if you don’t have a small food processor bowl. Blend all the caramel ingredients together, stop and scrape down the mixture several times to ensure everything is incorporated. You should end up with a reasonably smooth thick caramel. Try not to eat it all now! Remove to a bowl and refigerate as well.

Finally, prepare the coconut whipped cream. Remove the can of coconut milk from the fridge and carefully remove the thick layer of cream from the top of the can. It should have separated out from the liquid underneath. Be careful not to get any liquid or your coconut cream will be on the runny side (like mine…). With an electric whisk whisk the coconut milk until fluffy and thick.

Using a spice grinder or blender whizz the coconut sugar until powdered (or use powdered sugar). Fold this through the coconut cream along with the seeds of a vanilla bean. Refrigerate while you assemble the pie.

Slice the banana and arrange 1/2 the slices over the crust. Spread a thick layer of caramel over the bananas (you won’t need all the caramel so you can keep the rest for later to eat with apple slices dipped in , or spread on another banana). Add a second layer of sliced banana.

Top with as much coconut cream as you like, any remaining banana slices, and a dusting of raw cacao powder.

Serves 2-3

I’m submitting this recipe to the weekly blog parties, Wellness Weekends and Healthy Vegan Fridays

There are so many raw desserts out there using dates so for now I’ll just point you to my favourite site for all things raw, This Rawesome Vegan Life.

I also love dates in savoury dishes though too. I really like to add little bites of sweetness with fruit in salads- I used prunes in this Moroccan Puy Lentil, Carrot + Mint Salad, but chopped dates would be great too. This Lentil, Date +Tomato Salad with Chili Tahini Dressing is another favourite .

Try them in baked goods too of course. The Banana Date Scones from Veganomicon spring to mind as do these tasty Carob- Date Pancakes from Ricki.

Have you embraced raw desserts yet? Any interesting date recipes to share?

We’re heading back to savoury for the letter “E” tomorrow!

Strawberries ‘n’ Cream Chia Oat Pudding

(Firstly, sorry for the late posting. I’ve been away for 2 days moving all my belongings into my new flat. I’m not actually moving in for 2 weeks as there are a couple of things to be done before then and I don’t need to be there until the end of the month when I start my Masters…I said this would be a busy month! Anyway, just wanted to fill you in. Back to the matter in hand…

Chia Seeds!

Image Credit: timesunion.com

This magical little seed isn’t that new to me and likely not to you either as it’s been prominent, particularly on the vegan “scene”, for a couple of years now. Even so, I wanted to feature it as it’s only recently that it has earned a firm position in my pantry and I’m using it almost daily.

It’s not just fantastic for its versatility in the kitchen but has a whole host of health benefits too. It’s very rich in omega-3s, which as you probably know, are essential fatty acids (EFAs) that our bodies need for optimal health. Chia is also full of quality protein, magnesium, calcium, antioxidants (more than blueberries), iron, folate and soluble fibre.

So, what did I make with it? I’ll share a few other chia recipes below but this time around I opted for a simple Strawberries ‘n’ Cream Chia-Oat Pudding for breakfast. If you’ve been around Coconut and Berries a while you’ll know of my endeavours to get up earlier in the morning, and I’ve found making interesting and tasty breakfasts helps entice me out of bed! This pudding needs mixing up the night (or a few hours) before you want to eat it so it’s all ready to eat in the morning, even more encouragement to jump up immediately when the alarm sounds instead of hitting the snooze button…

Strawberries ‘n’ Cream Chia Oat Pudding:

1/3C Oats
1T Chia seeds
1/2C Almond milk (add more in the morning to thin if desired)
70g/2.5oz (approx 1/3C) Strawberries
A few drops of vanilla stevia (to taste) OR sweeetener of choice

In a short-cup blender, blend together strawberries and almond milk. Add stevia to taste. Add oats and give a quick pulse to break the oats up a little bit. Stir in chia seeds, pour into a jar or bowl, cover and let sit overnight in the fridge, or for at least 1 hour for the pudding to thicken up.

Serves 1

Top with nut butter and fresh fruit if desired. I went for my current favourite combination of cashew butter and sliced banana

Chia seeds’ ability to soak up liquid is what makes them really versatile in the kitchen.

I recently made a healthy no-cook jam using chia seeds and blackberries which was fantastic with my lemon coconut milk scones.

For a dessert or snack you can nix the oats and just stir in chia seeds to non-dairy milk and add fruit, cacao/cocoa or other flavours for a tasty and satisfying ‘pudding’ of sorts. If you saw my green tea ice cream post you’ll know I’m a matcha fan, so this Matcha Chia Pudding from Gena at Choosing Raw is on my to-make list.

Ground chia seeds work well as an egg replacer in b)aked goods, an alternative to ground flax which is what I usually use. See these Banana-Walnut-Chia Muffins (GF).

It adds bulk to smoothies too. This Cacao- Maca-Date one is my favourite indulgent breakfast smoothie.

Finally, I still haven’t made but must make Angela’s Super Power Chia Bread (GF). It uses buckwheat too! (See yesterday’s “B” post)

That’s all I can think of right now but if you use chia seeds for anything else please do share in the comments below.

I’m off to catch up on all your MoFo posts, see you all tomorrow for the letter “D”.

Teff Pancakes with Caramelized Bananas

I’m doing a little better with the early-rising. I’m blaming the strange routine we had in Edinburgh for throwing me a little and meaning I’m still not up as early as I’d like. Pancakes are a definite motivation to get me out of bed in the morning though and these are indulgent but healthy ones to boot!

I have very little experience with gluten-free baking. I don’t need to eat gluten-free although I appreciate many people feel better when eating less gluten. I’m all for eating less refined food though and try to use mainly whole grain flours in my kitchen. Making some empanadas a short while ago (recipe coming soon!) I had used up the ends of a few bags of flour and was left with a choice of chickpea or teff flours, incidentally both gluten-free.

I frequently use teff flour to make Injera, a delicious Ethiopian fermented flat bread that is perfect for scooping up wat (thick vegetable and lentil stews) but figured I could diversify and use it for other kitchen creations. Its mild, nutty, almost sweet flavour is ideal for pancakes.

As well as incorporating banana into the batter for moisture, I thought I’d go all out and top my pancakes with caramelized bananas! You might think that sounds more like dessert than breakfast, but serving two this recipe’s really not that high in sugar and fat (coconut oil and coconut sugar also contain some nutrition unlike their refined counterparts). The caramel bananas would also make a delicious, easy dessert served with a scoop of non-dairy ice cream or coconut cream.

I was really pleased with how these turned out. I’ve read that gluten-free baking can sometimes end up gummy but I did my research and seem to have managed to get the ratios spot on

Teff Pancakes with Caramelized Bananas

Yield: 2 servings (or 1 very large serving)

Ingredients

1/2 C Teff flour
2 Tbsp Tapioca starch (or other starch)
1/2 Tbsp Coconut sugar
1 tsp Baking powder
1/2 C Almond milk
1 tsp Apple cider vinegar
1 Tbsp Ground flax + 3 Tbsp water
1/4 C Mashed banana (1/2 medium banana)
1 Tbsp Coconut oil, melted

For the Caramelized Bananas

1 1/2 Bananas, cut on the diagonal into rounds
1/2 Tbsp Coconut oil, melted
3/4 Tbsp Coconut sugar
Dash of cinnamon (optional)

Instructions

Combine dry ingredients in a medium bowl.
Combine apple cider vinegar with almond milk to make “buttermilk”.
Whisk together ground flax, water and mashed banana and add to the almond milk mixture. Whisk in melted coconut oil. Stir liquid ingredients into dry, just until all the flour is incorporated.
Heat a large pan over medium heat and wipe with a little coconut oil. Scoop pancake batter onto pan in 1/3 C increments. The mixture is pretty thick so you might need to spread it with a spatula for even circles. Leave pancakes untouched until little bubbles appear and the edges are dry. Flip carefully and cook for another couple of minutes on the other side. Keep warm in an oven on low-heat until ready to serve. Repeat until all batter is used up.
Meanwhile, make the caramelized bananas.
Heat another smaller pan over medium heat and add coconut oil and coconut sugar. Stir to combine. Lay banana slices on top of caramel mixture and leave for a minute. Sprinkle with a dash of cinnamon if you like. Flip and cook another 30 seconds. Remove from pan. I let mine cook a little too long and they were falling apart slightly.
Serve immediately over warm pancakes.

http://www.coconutandberries.com/2013/08/21/teff-pancakes-with-caramelized-bananas/

It was a lovely sunny morning when I made these so I took my plate outside to enjoy my breakfast in the fresh air. Bliss.

What’s your favourite “special” breakfast?

Do you eat gluten-free? Any baking tips to share?

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Vegan Roasted Vegetable Frittata

You might have to forgive me for throwing several recipes at you over the next few days. I’ve got a stack of them lined up waiting to be posted and in my kitchen I’m churning out more than I can keep up with posting. Also, if I want to participate in Vegan MoFo I’d like to get most of them out to you before it begins in September.

On that note, I haven’t decided if I’m going to take part in Vegan MoFo this year. For those of you who don’t know, the idea of Vegan MoFo (Month of Food) is for bloggers to write as much as they can about vegan food over the designated month. Bloggers usually take on a theme for the period and write posts accordingly. There aren’t strict guidelines for how often to write, but the idea is to shoot for every weekday, or about 20 times in the month.

As I’ll be moving into my new flat in September AND starting my Masters course at the end of the month I don’t know if it’s going to be possible to blog that frequently…so we’ll see. Is there a theme you’d like me to tackle?

After being reminded of how much I like tofu omelettes when I made my pesto, ricotta + cherry tomato filled ones a while back, I thought I’d try out another variation- frittata! I haven’t quite worked out the difference between frittata and Spanish omelette yet (I think Spanish omelette might just have potatoes and onions along with the egg base, whereas frittata can have other ingredients too? ) but just like with my decision to name my “Summer” rolls, I decided on frittata to avoid the negative associations I have with “Spanish omelette”…

On a Spanish exchange I went on when I was 15, not an overly fun experience in any case, my exchange’s mother kindly packed me a lunch to take on one of our day-trips. I was greeted by a Spanish omelette sandwich: a thick wedge of potato omelette between 2 slices of white bread. Now that might sound delicious to some of you but to the fussy teenager that I was then, who also hated eggs, it was a pretty nasty sight. Needless to say it got tossed in favour of an ice cream…!

I’ve used a similar silken tofu base to my omelette for this recipe, easy enough to whizz up in a blender, then combined it with some sweet roasted vegetables and diced new potatoes for some substance, cooked it in a skillet on the stove top and finished it off under the broiler. A lovely light meal for 2-3, and very quick if you happen to have any leftover roasted veg on hand.

Roast Vegetable Frittata:

(Adapted from Chef Chloe)

Roast Vegetables:

1/2 Yellow, chopped
1/2 Red Pepper, chopped
1/2 Red Onion, Sliced into fairly thin wedges
1/2 T Olive Oil

Frittata Base:

200g Silken Tofu
1/2 T Olive Oil
3T Arrowroot (or other starch)
1/2t Black salt (or sea salt if unavailable)
Pepper
1/8t Turmeric
1/2t Onion powder
1/2t Garlic powder

Handful of cooked new potatoes, halved or cut into slices approx 1cm thick.
2T Chopped parsley for garnish

Preheat oven to 350C.

If you haven’t already, steam or boil your new potatoes.

Place vegetables in a roasting dish, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for approx 20 minutes, until soft.

Meanwhile blend all the ingredients for the frittata base in a blender. (I used my Tribest personal blender which is ideal for small amounts. If you don’t have something similar I’d suggest using an immersion blender rather than a full-size blender or it might be difficult to get all the mix out of the bottom. )

Heat a 9” oven-proof skillet over medium heat. Add a touch more olive oil and toss in the potatoes to crisp up the edges for a couple of minutes and to grease the pan. Add the roast vegetables to the skillet too and finally the frittata base mixture from the blender. Quickly mix with the vegetables before it starts to set, and, using a spatula spread out the mixture evenly in the skillet. Turn down heat to medium-low and let cook, undisturbed for 15 minutes.

Preheat the broiler.

At this point the frittata should look set on the top, if not continue to cook for a few more minutes. Place skillet under the broiler for 3-5 minutes to brown up. Keep an eye on it so it doesn’t burn!

Garnish with fresh parsley and serve.

Serves 2-3

Looking at these pictures from a few weeks ago reminded me of the silly game we played during dinner- spot the garden bean! At that time only a few of our green beans were ready to pick so I combined them with some we had bought. Now, it’s a different story all together- I just picked 1/2kg (over a lb) this morning!

Frittata or Spanish omelette, which sounds more appealing to you?

Are you taking part in Vegan MoFo this September? You don’t have to be vegan, just only post vegan food!