Pasta e Fagioli

3 cloves garlic 2 T olive oil 1/2 courgette (or squash) 1/2-1 t sea salt 1 can white beans (or chickpeas in a pinch) 1/2 cup dried pasta (ideally something small, we like shells) 1 1/4 C water 1/2 t stock powder (optional) A super simple, super nourishing recipe using just pantry staples. Serves 1-2…

The French Cheese Exception

I married an omnivorous Frenchman – a risky move for a vegan. But this particular Frenchman is incredibly supportive of my vegan lifestyle, of our vegan home, of plant-eating in general – he just wants to eat delicious food, he doesn’t care what that food is made of. And he has never, ever uttered any…

Cranberry Cheesecake Bites

NZ’s animal rights group SAFE asked me to contribute a wee something for their Christmas Dessert Contest “Sweet As” so here’s my entry: Cranberry Cheesecake Bites. Find out about the Sweet As comp here and enter! These are really easy to make and perfect to take to a shared Christmas as a sweet vegan option….

Chouchou Potato Cake

I love okonomiyaki. And gamja-jeon. This is a vegan white chick fusion of those two things with a silly Frenglish name to please my toddler (pronounced shoo-shoo, meaning cabbage cabbage*). It’s perfect for NZ winter, it’s also chewy, crispy, super quick, and it feels like junk food – which I tend to crave in winter….

Lemon Pepper ‘Chickn’ Nuggets

Filed under: delicious fried food and sneaky way to feed kids healthy stuff by disguising it as junk food. This is rather heavy on ingredients but could be simplified by omiting the jackfruit and simplifying the spice mix.  You can also switch out the jackfruit and chickpeas for tofu to get a softer, less ‘meaty’…

Bento Du Jour – Autumn/Winter

Lunchbox Bits and Pieces: I sneak extra green leaves into the toddler by blending them into pestos, sauces and smoothies or chopping them super fine and adding to savoury muffins, fried rice, stews and curries. Thankfully she’s still too young to figure it out that she’s eating spinach if it doesn’t look like a leaf…

Veganniversary/ Mushroom & Hazelnut Pâté Recipe

It is 20 years since I became vegan! That means two things: I must be old, and everyone who thought it was ‘just a phase’ can suck it. So of course I threw a wee dinner party. I was planning a big party thing but, y’know, working mum… winter nights… Anyway I’ve decided that I…

Vegan Blueberry Mini Muffins

These are toddler friendly, with no refined sugar. You could use all wholemeal flour but I prefer half white, half wholemeal. 1/2 C white flour 1/2 C wholemeal flour 1t baking powder pinch of salt 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon 4 Tablespoons maple syrup 1 Tablespoon ground linseed + 3 Tablespoons water 2 heaped Tablespoons coconut yoghurt…

Bento Du Jour – Autumn

Kim Chi Fried Rice – Nori-wrapped Tofu ‘Fillet’ – Edamame & Petits Pois – Pak Choy & Coriander Stalk Gyoza – Sugar-free Blueberry Coconut Mini Muffin – Grandma’s Cucumber, Tomatoes and Table Grapes – Mandarin   Red Lentil & Chard Dhal with Steamed Basmati Rice & Paratha – Coconut & Raspberry Chia Pudding – Brown…