Category: Easy

For the times when you want something super simple to make.
Vegan Chocolate Mousse

Vegan Chocolate Mousse

By | | Comments 0 Comment

Is there anything you can’t do with chickpeas? I mean honestly. They make hummus, they’re perfect in currys, and it just so turns out that the juice they come in is also a godsend for vegan baking. Aquafaba, the cloudy water you find in a can of chickpeas, somehow has the ability to be whipped up into a meringue-like substance and therefore can be used to make meringues, macaroons and gorgeous mousses like this.

In complete honesty this doesn’t taste exactly like a normal chocolate mousse. Generally the texture of a normal chocolate mousse is thick and creamy, almost heavy, where as this is as light as a cloud and has the slight watery texture that I guess a cloud would also have. That said, they taste super rich and indulgent, and considering they are made from chickpea water they have an incredible soft, airiness to them! If you haven’t discovered aquafaba for yourself yet then next time you open up a can of chickpeas I beg you to save the water and not pour it down the sink – instead use it to make some of these!

Recipe

Serves 4

Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

  • 140g Dark chocolate
  • 2 tbsp Soya milk
  • 240ml Aquafaba (from a 400g can of chickpeas)
  • 1 tsp Lemon juice
  • 20g Caster sugar
  • Berries to garnish

Method

  1. Put the chocolate and milk into a bowl over a pan of gently simmering water. Mix and then leave to cool a little.
  2. Open your 400g can of chickpeas and drain the liquid into a super clean large bowl.
  3. Add the lemon juice to the aquafaba and whisk until stiff peaks form. It can’t be overwhipped so persevere and whisk until the mixture doesn’t slide around the bowl at all.
  4. Slowly add the sugar and whisk in until incorporated.
  5. Check the chocolate has cooled down a little and then fold it into the aquafaba.
  6. Divide the mousse between 4 glasses and then put in the fridge to chill for about 3 hours. Enjoy!

Thanks for reading!

Emma x
Vegan Peanut Butter Blondies

Vegan Peanut Butter Blondies

By | | Comments 0 Comment

In the last 3 days I’ve moved back to college, have had 36 hours of drama rehearsals and now I have a tonne of coursework to do before term starts, so this is gonna be a fairly short post. Essentially, I made some of these last April and then I found myself craving another batch. However, unable to use eggs and milk at the moment I had to make a vegan version of my fave PB blondies instead. Dare I say it, I actually prefer these to the originals because they’re so much easier to make and they taste so damn good!

Recipe

Makes 16 squares

Time: 15 minutes, plus baking

Ingredients

  • 150g Light brown sugar
  • 200g Peanut butter
  • 45ml Sunflower oil (or other oil like vegetable or coconut)
  • 130g Plain flour
  • ½ tsp Baking powder
  • 100ml Soy milk
  • 100g Vegan white chocolate chips

Method

  1. Pre-heat the oven to 180˚C. Then grease and line a 25x25cm cake tin with a little oil and baking paper.
  2. Put the sugar, peanut butter and oil into a large bowl and beat together with a wooden spoon until smooth.
  3. Add the flour, baking powder, milk and chocolate chips to the batter and mix again to make a smooth batter (it may be fairly thick).
  4. Pour the mixture into the tin and smooth out to make an even layer.
  5. Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes until golden brown and baked all the way through. Leave to cool a little before serving!

Thanks for reading!

Emma x
Vegan Pizza

Vegan Pizza

By | | Comments 0 Comment

One of the things I’m really missing as a vegan is cheese. I’ve never been much of a cheese person but oh man do I miss a good tangy bit of cheddar or a squeaky slab of halloumi. I know it’s been less than a week but it honestly feels like a year since I started! And pizza, oh pizza, I would kill for a good margherita right now. That said, I have found a way to make a delish pizza that works well without cheese (yes it is possible!) and it’s also super quick so what’s not to like?

Traditionally if I were to make a pizza I’d make the base as well as I love making bread, but when you’re at uni and are over-committing yourself as usual who has time for that? So bring in the ready-made pizza bases. These have honestly saved my life so much! Simply pop on some tomato sauce, whop on your toppings and hey presto – one delish pizza! However, there is still the problem about the cheese. Now I know you can by vegan cheese, but let’s be honest, it doesn’t make up for a good cheddar does it? So what I’ve found is that a good dollop of hummus to dip the pizza in does the same kinda thing! Think of it kinda like the garlic dipping sauces you get from Dominoes, but adding a salty, tangy flavour to the whole shebang. It’s so so good you have to try it!

Recipe

Makes 1 pizza

Time: 15-20 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1/4 Aubergine
  • 1/4 Courgette
  • 1 Pizza base (most are vegan but just make sure when you buy it)
  • 3 tbsp Passata (I went for a garlic and herb one)
  • 1/4 Red pepper
  • A few Chestnut mushrooms
  • 1/2 tsp Za’tar (optional)
  • A few tbsp of Hummus to serve

Method

  1. Pre-heat the oven to 180˚C.
  2. Take the aubergine and courgette and use a vegetable peeler (or a knife) to make super thin strips. Lay the strips on a baking tray lined with baking paper and put in the oven to soften for about 5 minutes.
  3. Meanwhile, chop the mushrooms into ¼s and finely slice the red pepper into strips.
  4. Spread the passata over the pizza base in an even layer. Then arrange the vegetables over the top. Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper and some za’atar if you’re using it.
  5. Bake the pizza in the oven for 5-10 minutes, until the vegetables are cooked through and the base is starting to colour. Serve with lots of hummus!

Thanks for reading!

Emma x
Welsh Cakes

Welsh Cakes

By | | Comments 0 Comment

I think we’ve got to that point in the year where it’s dark more than it is light, the words ‘I can’t believe it’s getting dark this early’ ring in the air, and you can no longer convince yourself that you don’t need a coat when you go out. I’m up north for the weekend and about 70% of the time I can’t feel my fingers. Oh yes… we’re in… winter.  (Add dramatic music as you will). But it’s not all bad. The Christmas lights are out, the jumpers are in and comfort food is better than it ever was.

I think this little treats are massively underrated. I find loads of supermarkets sell them, however as they’re small and look a little meh they don’t really get picked up. If you’ve never had one before think of them as a sweeter, slightly shorter scone that you cook in a pan. They’re so easy and quick to rustle up that they’re perfect to make before Strictly on a Sunday evening.

Recipe

Makes 20

Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

  • 230g Plain flour
  • 90g Caster sugar
  • ¼ tsp Ground ginger
  • ¼ tsp Ground cinnamon
  • ½ tsp Baking powder
  • 50g Unsalted butter
  • 50g Lard, plus extra for frying
  • 70g Raisins or currants
  • 1 Large egg
  • 25ml Milk

Method

  1. Put the flour, sugar, ginger, cinnamon and baking powder into a big bowl and mix together until combined.
  2. Add the butter and the lard and then rub the fats into the dry ingredients with your fingers until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Shake the bowl from side to side every so often to get the lumps to the top so you can work them into the mix.
  3. Add the raisins or currants and mix them into the dough.
  4. In another bowl mix together the egg and milk. Then slowly trickle in the milk, mixing with a round bladed knife (like a table knife) until a dough forms.
  5. Lightly flour a worktop and roll the dough out into a thin sheet around the thickness of a £1 coin. Take a 6cm round cookie cutter and cut out as many circles as you can, re-rolling the leftovers until you’ve used all the dough.
  6. Put a large skillet or frying pan over a medium heat. Add a knob of lard and leave it to melt. Then place 4-5 welsh cakes on the pan and fry for 3-4 minutes on either side until golden brown and cooked all the way through (they shouldn’t feel squidgy when prodded gently).
  7. Repeat with the rest of your welsh cakes until you have a stack of delicious treats. Serve with jam, butter or just as they are!

Thanks for reading!
Emma x
Easy Gnocchi

Easy Gnocchi

By | | Comments 0 Comment

Four steps. Four ingredients. Four sentences. Boom!

No but seriously. I’ve been turning to pasta so much during my time at uni so far that the time has come to look beyond pasta. Admittedly gnocchi isn’t the most different thing I could have turned to, but it’s so quick and comforting that it’s perfect if you want to shake things up a little. Especially now that you can buy packs of semi-cooked ready-made gnocchi in most supermarkets you can rustle yourself up a bowl of this in minutes. As a tip I’d say that in order to get the best tasting dish you can buy a good a quality passata or tomato sauce. The one I used for the dish photographed here was a budget range one and it was so sour that it made the whole thing taste really meh, but if you get a good one (maybe even with herbs in if you want to be a little fancy) it’ll transform the whole dish!

Recipe

Serves 2

Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 Packet of Gnocchi (around 500g)
  • 400g Tomato passata
  • Fresh bail to garnish (optional)
  • Cheddar cheese or Parmesan to finish

Method

  1. Put a pan of water on a high heat and leave to boil.
  2. Add the gnocchi and cook to the packet’s instructions.
  3. Drain the gnocchi and add the passata. Stir to combine and then leave with the lid on for a few minutes to warm the passata through.
  4. Pop the gnocchi into two bowls and top with the basil and a little grated cheese!

Thanks for reading!

Emma x