Chocolate and Beyond

Recipes: Mushroom, Spring Onion & Chilli Vegan 'Omelette'

Okay. Since this recipe has proved to be so popular, and it doesn't even have a post of its own, I decided I needed to ensure it *did* have a post of its own, so readers can find it easily. So I am bringing you this post, with a recipe that has already been published within my site, for that reason.

I featured this 'omelette' in the 12 Yummy Vegan Breakfast & Brunch Ideas post I wrote a couple of months back which seems to have been pretty well-received. So well-received, that a fellow vegan food blogger Adriana has dedicated a whole post on her own blog, called Vegan Omelette, to it. I have to say, I am incredible flattered and there's surely no better compliment a cook could have than this!

Vegan Living: How to Ditch Dairy - Tips for the Would-Be Vegan in Going Cheese-Free

 

Nearly every vegan I know that used to be a vegetarian said it was “giving up” cheese that was their biggest hurdle in going vegan. And certainly, nearly every vegetarian I currently speak to always comes out with that same line “I'd love to go vegan, but I just don't think I could live without cheese!”

Well here's the thing. Of course you can live without cheese. You just prefer not to. Yet it's much easier for a person to go without cheese, than it is for a cow to live without the calf that has been taken from her soon after birth, in order for humans to steal her milk.

If you're reading this post because you are interested in ditching dairy from your life (I hope so!), then you may already be aware what the multitude of reasons are for doing so. But I will just go over a few of those reasons, for those who are not aware.

Guest Post: Vegan Christmas (and Thanksgiving!) Tips from Karin Ridgers of VeggieVisionTV

Today I have a guest post from vegan Karin Ridgers, founder of the VeggieVisionTV site, on how to have a vegan Christmas, including a great recipe for a Vegan Christmas Strudel. Karin has also produced the resource 'The VeggieVision Essential Guide to Surviving and Loving your Vegetarian Christmas'.  With Thanksgiving around the corner too though, I think the post is perfectly apt for that holiday, as well!

How to Have a Merry Vegan Christmas

I can't even remember a non veggie Christmas, we vegans don’t miss out at all. Christmas is the time for celebration – although it ain’t much for turkeys. 

We enjoy everything that everyone else has – just a animal free version. Maybe a fry up for breakfast – mushrooms, hash browns, veggie sausages, toast, a soya latte. And maybe some naughty but dairy-free choccie nibbles during the day. Well, it is Christmas.

Recipes: Chickpea, Walnut & Wild Rice Stuffed Harlequin Squash

If you follow my Facebook Fan Page, you will have seen me post recently about what I was to do with some of the lovely seasonal squashes that I had bought. I had two Harlequin squashes, which I have never tried before, and I was looking for something interesting to do with them. Somebody suggested stuffing them, and so this is the recipe I came up with (I'm not one to follow an existing recipe, being me, of course!). And I'm very glad that I did it this way, because it turned out exceptional.

It is a most hearty, tasty and very filling way to eat these Harlequin squashes, and the stuffing recipe that I concocted was incredibly delicious and 'moreish'. I did honestly want to eat it all over again, as soon as I had finished my plate. My dinner guest also was very impressed, so this was definitely a winner.

Recipes: Cauliflower, Coconut & Peanut Soup

I can't really take the credit for putting cauliflower with coconut and peanut and coming up with this most delicious soup. Although this recipe is certainly refined to my own taste and with my own touch, the original idea came from a friend which came from an old cafe that used to exist many years ago in Manchester. But since the cafe is no longer, I don't suppose me plagurising their recipe matters that much!

Rest assured though, this is a most scrumptious combination, and a very inexpensive way to impress dinner guests, as well as a more unique way to use up seasonal cauliflowers.

Recipes: Black Forest Berry Booster (Dairy-Free Yogurt Smoothie)

Thick, delicious and a perfect start to the day, this berry fruit soya yogurt smoothie, using frozen fruits, is a fabulous way to start the day. And one of the few vegan smoothies I make without using bananas! The non-dairy soya yogurt, of course, ensures it has some filling power, which is the reason I often use bananas.

I ALWAYS have a supply of frozen berries and summer fruits in my freezer, so I can enjoy smoothies like this year-round. Whether you pick and freeze them yourself, or buy them ready-frozen, they are such a versatile fruit that it is really worth keeping them in stock. And they are super-healthy, and I think this is the case for frozen berries just as much as fresh.

Recipes: Cashew & Mushroom a la Creme with Three Grain Rice

 

This creamy and 'cheesy' tasting mushroom and cashew stroganoff-style sauce with a nutty, chewy wild rice mix is my favourite "Hmm, what shall I cook tonight? Ahhh, I'll do this" dish. It's really simple to knock up when I'm lacking inspiration or motivation for anything else, and I always enjoy eating it like it's the first time I made it. Especially with a glass of zesty white wine.

I tend to have mushrooms in most of the time, as I love to eat them in all kinds of recipes and dishes, and they are the best thing for times when I'm feeling a bit 'stuck'. So, I have been cooking versions of this for years, although now I do think I have perfected my vegan version which includes nutritional yeast to add some 'cheesiness' and depth of flavour to the sauce.