Asparagus, Broccoli and Courgette Pizza with a Spinach Powder Crust (vegan)

I never really need an excuse to make pizza but this time I chose pizza for dinner because I wanted to use my spinach powder again! I really liked the spinach crusted tofu I made before because it didn’t have a hugely strong spinach flavour and I felt it would work nicely to add interest to dough.

The uncooked dough had a very green colour but once cooked it looked paler and simply whole meal which I thought was nice and rustic, bright green pizza dough may be a bit off putting! I wanted to keep it as a “green pizza” so I replaced the traditional tomato base with a tofutti cream cheese base (good way to use up what was left over in the tub!) and I topped it all off with my fave vegetables – asparagus, broccoli and courgette!

I absolutely love asparagus on pizzas, you don’t have to pre cook them as they cook perfectly in the oven but if you have particularly large stalks then I would suggest peeling and slicing them like I have! Similar with the broccoli, little bit of common sense but chop the florets into small pieces so that they cook all the way through.

What’s your favourite pizza topping?

I have a fail safe pizza dough recipe that I use as a base every time before adding any twists such as seeds or herbs, so I used that again for this recipe but I added a few tablespoons of the spinach powder. This made it a little dry so I reduced the amount of flour and that worked perfectly. I felt the dough needed more kneading than usual but once fully kneaded and risen it was lovely and soft, once cooked it was crispy.

I felt the tofutti cream cheese base added a nice twist so I would recommend trying it instead of using tomato purée! As usual I added some chilli flakes and fresh herbs after cooking to add depth. I love mixing cooked and raw ingredients in a dish just for a bit of variety.

Makes 1 pizza

Pizza Dough:
110g Strong White Bread Flour
1 Packet of Easy Blend Dried Yeast
2-3 tablespoons Spinach Powder
1 tblspn Olive Oil
Pinch Salt
55ml Luke Warm Water

Topping:
2-3 spoonfuls of Garlic and Herb Tofutti Cream Cheese
1 Large tomato – thinly sliced
1/2 Yellow or Green Courgette – thinly sliced
4-6 Asparagus Spears – sliced in half if large
4 Broccoli Florets – chopped into smaller florets
2 Spring Onions – finely sliced
Black Pepper
Dried Chilli Flakes
Fresh Basil Leaves – roughly torn

To make the bread dough sift the bread flour into a large mixing bowl and add the yeast, spinach powder and a pinch of salt. Make a well in the flour and into that add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and the luke warm water. Mix it with a wooden spoon combining all the flour and spinach powder until it has come together as a green dough (add a little more water if needed but only 1 tablespoon at a time). Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface for 8-10 minutes then shape it into a ball, coat it very lightly in oil to keep it moist and place in a bowl covered in cling film for an hour or so to let it rise.

Pre heat the oven to 180c

Roll the dough out until it is to the desired thickness, I like mine really thin! Place the rolled out dough onto the tray you will cook it on then spread over the tofutti cream cheese and assemble the toppings except the chilli flakes, pepper and fresh basil evenly on top.

Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes until the vegetables on top are cooked and the crust is golden and crispy. Once cooked sprinkle with chilli flakes, black pepper and freshly torn basil.

Spring Veg Hot Pot – Virtual Vegan Potluck

A great centre piece main course for any potluck!

Welcome to Veghotpot and hello old friends! I am once again taking part in the ever growing “Virtual Vegan Potluck Party” where 168 Food Bloggers are sharing Vegan dishes including starters, sides, mains,puddings, soups, salads and drinks. If you’ve stumbled across this post and want to start at the beginning then please click here to visit Vegan Bloggers Unite. The idea is that everyone has linked to the person before and after them in the party list so you should be able to do a full circle of deliciousness! To visit the person before and after me in the main course category then please click the buttons below!

“Click Me to see Rachel in Veganland”

“Click Me to see My Plant Based Family”

So for my main course offering to this exciting party I have made a Creamy Bean and Spring Vegetable Hot Pot! My blog isn’t called Veghotpot because I’m an obsessed fanatic of this dish (although we have eaten it continuously over the last 3 weeks because I wanted it to be perfect), but I do love a good veghotpot! In fact this is the first veg hot pot to appear on Veghotpot……confused yet?

Leave on a table with a large spoon…it will disappear!

I love cooking big one pot dishes, they are usually more suited to the winter months when the slow cooker is dusted off and root vegetables and hearty beans are slowly stewed in dark ale and served with big comforting mountains of mashed potato. A traditional hot pot recipe includes red meat cooked in a dark meaty sauce and topped with thinly sliced potatoes (a dish I used to love but is now completely alien to me). Vegetarian varieties are mostly root veg based and often include some alcohol to add depth to the traditionally rich sauce.

We are now fully into spring (if you can believe it) so I wanted to take the concept of a hotpot but really lighten it up, make it more seasonal and much more colourful! I have used a medley of spring vegetables including leeks, asparagus, garden peas and carrots mixed with creamy vegan tofutti garlic and herb cream cheese.

Arrange the potato slices so it looks pretty! Each portion will have an even amount of potato

This is my first taste of tofutti garlic and herb cream cheese and I’m not sure what I think about it on its own but mixed with all of these lovely vegetables it is absolutely delicious! I couldn’t find vegan cream cheese anywhere in the supermarket so i ventured down to my local Holland and Barrett as I knew they would have it. It wasnt too expensive either so I was pleasantly surprised. I found this dish very moreish, every time I have made it I have ended up having second helpings and even when I was photographing it I couldn’t resist sticking a spoon in. Oh dear if you read my blog often you will have realised by now that if I have a spoon in my hand nothing is safe! I’m a picker!

Serves 6

Vegan, Gluten and Wheat Free, Dairy Free

2 Carrots
1 Large Onion
2 Leeks
Olive Oil
2 Cloves Garlic
10 Spears of Asparagus
1 Can White Beans such as Canellini or Butter/Lima beans
1 Cup Frozen Green Peas
1 tblspn Gluten Free Flour – I used rice flour
100g Dairy Free Garlic and Herb Cream Cheese (I used Tofutti)
400ml Gluten Free Veg Stock
1 Large Potato

Preheat your oven to 180c.

Peel/ Wash/ Trim your carrots, onion and leeks then fry in a small drizzle of olive oil for 10 mins on a medium heat in a large deep based oven proof frying pan or casserole dish.

Crush the garlic into the pan, season with a good pinch of salt and pepper and add your roughly chopped asparagus, white beans and frozen peas and cook for a further 5 mins. Once the vegetables are softened (and the peas are defrosted) stir in the flour, cream cheese and vegetable stock.

Bring to the boil then simmer covered for 15 mins. Add a splash of water if the sauce is thickening too quickly.

Top the filling with a layer of thin slices of unpeeled potato, you can do this randomly or in a nice swirl like I did. Cover with foil or put the lid on and bake in the oven for 20 mins. Then uncover for 10-15 mins to crisp up potatoes.

It is done when the potato slices are browned around the edges and the filling is bubbling away underneath. Serve hot with any side you like. If you are serving this at a party then make a couple of big pan fuls, place a large spoon in each pan and watch it disappear!

I can’t wait to see all of the recipes fellow bloggers are bringing to the potluck! Enjoy the party and thank you for checking out veg hot pot at Veghotpot

Butternut Squash and Peanut Curry

Packed full of Vegetables

As usual this recipe was a real work in progress until I finally got it to the point where I thought it was well balanced and fairly authentic. I originally wanted a tomato based curry however it just did not work with the peanut butter, and if there was anything I was going to compromise on it was NOT the peanut butter.

Peanut butter is seriously delicious, it took me 2 whole minutes of squirming until I finally snapped the lid back on and hid it back in the cupboard. Not without two spoonfuls rapidly disappearing into my mouth! I rarely buy it because it would never see a slice of bread, it only ever see a spoon (or a finger!) and I’ve certainly never cooked with it before. It added such a beautiful earthy depth which enhanced the sweetness of the butternut squash.

This recipe was inspired by Jamie Oliver’s Butternut Squash Laksa from his 30 Minute Meals cookbook (a firm favourite in my house and I highly recommend it). My recipe is completely different but it came about because as I was eating the Laksa I thought that some peanut butter would be awesome to add some further warmth. I researched recipes which include both butternut squash and peanuts and I decided to keep the coconut milk from Jamies laksa but i added some different varieties of vegetables and use different spicing.

We didn’t serve this with any rice or breads because it is really filling however Scott had some chicken and I had some stirfried baby corn. To be honest it didn’t even need this extra side but I can’t help myself, I’m variety greedy!

Serves 4

Vegan, Gluten Free, vital for Peanut Butter addicts

1 large onion
1 Red Pepper
1 Garlic clove
1 tblspn Fresh Ginger
1 Green Chilli
1/2 Large Butternut Squash
Handful Paleskin Peanuts
1 Courgette
1/2 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
1 teaspoon Paprika
Salt and Pepper
1 tblspn Tomato Purée
2 tblspn Organic Crunchy peanut butter
1 can Light Coconut Milk
6 lumps of Frozen Spinach
Olive oil

Roughly chop the onion, red pepper, butternut squash and courgette. Crush the garlic and finely chop the ginger.

Heat some oil in a large deep frying pan or saucepan on a medium heat and add the onion, pepper, garlic, ginger and chilli. Cook for 3-4 minutes stirring often then add the butternut squash, peanuts and courgette and cook gently for 10 minutes, again stirring every few minutes to stop it sticking.

Add the spices, tomato purée and peanut butter and stir to mix it in with the vegetables and then add the coconut milk. Simmer with a lid on for 20 minutes then add the spinach, a splash of water and cook for a further 15 minutes.

Taste for seasoning then serve hot with your choice of sides or by itself!

New Potato, Fennel and Spring Onion En Papillote: Technique of the Week

I’ve had ‘En Papillote’ down on my list as a technique to try for awhile. It’s another way of steaming your food but with added flavour! ‘En Papillote’ simply means ‘in parchment’ in French and it is a technique of baking ingredients inside a paper parcel. I used to make similar parcels out of foil and cook salmon fillets with lemon slices in them, it kept the fish incredibly soft and juicy, but I had never tried making a parcel from baking/ parchment paper. It worked really nicely and I love how the ingredients stay very true to their natural form but just with an added depth of flavour from the liquid you use (in this case white wine). The potatoes were soft but not mushy and the fennel and spring onions had absorbed all the lemon and wine flavour but again still with a bit of bite.

It took me quite a long time to decide what to put in the parcel, I have seen plenty of Mushroom en papillote recipes before so I wanted to do something a little different. I loved poached fennel when I tried poaching my veggies so I knew I had to include fennel again! Then I decided on new potatoes because they are very in season at the moment and great for side dishes at a BBQ or summery lunch. They are also small enough to be cooked in this way in a relatively short amount of time. I originally thought about adding leeks but Spring onions were thrown in at the last minute because I had an abundance of them in the fridge and I’d never really cooked them before (only sliced them onto a salad).

This recipe would be perfect as a side dish at a BBQ. I’m not sure if you could actually cook it on a grill (maybe if you soaked the paper first???) but it could definitely be cooked in the oven and then bought outside for people to help themselves too along side BBQ’d vegetable skewers, corn on the cobs, veg sausages and mixed salads.

This portion would serve two, you could make individual sized parcels or even party sized ones! Just half or double up the recipe until you have enough to feed all of your guests.

Gluten free, vegan, BBQ side dish, seasonal!

250g (approx 8-10) New Potatoes
1/2 Fennel bulb
4 Spring Onions
Sprig thyme
1/2 Lemon (juice)
1 tblspn Extra virgin olive oil
2 tblspn White Wine
Salt and Pepper

Preheat the oven to 180c (fan oven) or 200c normal oven.

Cut two rectangles of parchment paper (use the whole width of the roll) big enough to fit your potatoes into the middle (you are going to double up the thickness). Lay the two pieces on top of each other then scrunch the paper up slightly around the edges so that it is a boat shape. Place the whole potatoes in the middle, trim the roots and any rough looking dark green ends off your spring onions and layer them on top and then roughly slice your fennel and place that around the potatoes. Make sure you keep the delicate fennel fronds to one side as a garnish. Squeeze over the lemon and pour over the oil and wine then top with the whole sprigs of thyme.

Give it a good grind of salt and pepper and seal the parcel shut at the top leaving plenty of room in the middle to let it steam properly. Make sure the paper is really sealed tightly and give it a little shake to combine all of the ingredients.

Cook for 35 minutes, check the potatoes are cooked through the middle by slightly opening the paper and piercing them with a knife then once done, fully open the parcel, sprinkle over the fennel fronds and serve immediately. The potatoes are also very nice cold the next day with the juice from the parcel poured over the top.

What would you cook in an ‘en papillote’ parcel? What’s your favourite BBQ side dish?

Spinach Powder and Polenta Crispy Coated Tofu

Spinach Powder mixed with dry polenta makes a lovely coating for tofu

Back in February we went to Brighton and I bought some Spinach Powder from ‘The Spice Shop’. I’ve been thinking of simple ways to incorporate it into my cooking and I decided to use it in a polenta coating for tofu first. I didn’t find that it has an over powering taste of spinach but it just adds a lovely bright green colour and adds interest to an otherwise quite bland tofu.

By coating soft tofu in dry polenta before griddling it creates a deliciously crispy coating. If you can’t find spinach powder then you could substitute it with mixed dried herbs or even spices such as paprika (served with chips!).

Spinach powder and polenta could be a great coating for anything including fish and tofu!

This recipe idea is vegan, gluten free and low fat. It is also inexpensive because you only use a small amount of ingredients for the coating.

The method is really simple, mix 2 tablespoons of polenta with 1 tablespoon of Spinach powder and some salt and pepper and spread it out on a plate or a board. Slice and press your tofu then lay it in the powder coating and using your hands rub the polenta all over the tofu.

Heat a hot griddle pan, spray your tofu with some oil and lay your tofu on to the hot pan. Cook for 2-3 minutes on each side turning every minute or so to stop it burning.

I served mine with some paprika stirfried peppers, tomatoes and onions stirred into spaghetti pasta. I felt that the earthy spinach would suit a more rustic dish rather than a stir fry. It would be lovely served on top of a roasted vegetable salad or served in a wrap with peppers and hummous.

I really enjoyed using the spinach powder and I have a few more ideas for the rest of the bag so you’ll be seeing it appear a bit more on here I also bought a beetroot powder so I’m excited to give that a go too!

ps I’m watching Masterchef UK as I write this, it’s so inspiring seeing all of the different flavour combinations!

Raw Beetroot, Orange and Asparagus Salad with Hazelnut Dukkah

Ready for some summer weather!?

A couple of weeks ago everyone from my office went for a work lunch and even though I was tempted to order a big pizza I quickly opted for a house salad as everyone decided on healthy options. I work in a really healthy office, no biscuit tin to be seen! This is actually quite nice to be honest, I can still buy treats if I fancy it, but the temptation isn’t always there.

The salad I ordered seemed to have absolutely everything in it! Avocado, orange, grapefruit, beetroot, salad leaves, tomatoes, hazelnuts and many more salad items. It was nice but I found it confused so I decided to do my own version with a selection of the flavours I really enjoyed.

I used to eat a turkey and orange salad all the time and since I turned vegetarian I actually haven’t eaten oranges in a salad, and as soon as I tried it again I fell in love with the juicy sweet freshness it adds to a savoury salad.

The second addition to this salad is the hazelnut dukkah. This was on the salad I had at the restaurant, when I read it on the menu I got really excited as I’d never tried it before but when it turned up all I could find was toasted hazelnuts. I googled dukkah and it describes the dish as nuts mixed with spices so I gave it a go and I think it worked amazingly, especially with the fresh oranges.

I used the dukkah as a sort of dry dressing as it coats everything with flavour and the orange segments act as a wetter ingredient. Make sure everyone has enough orange segments to balance out the flavours.

Autumn colours, summer flavours

Serves 2

Vegetarian, dairy free, gluten free, fruity!

Handful of Watercress
1 small head of Lettuce – chopped
1/2 Raw beetroot
8 spears of Asparagus,
1 large Orange or 2 medium sized ones
Hazelnut Dukkah- 5 toasted hazelnuts blitzed with 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds, 1/2 teaspoon coriander seeds and black pepper.
1 teaspoon pumpkin seeds
Organic extra virgin Olive oil

The method is very simple – peel the orange and slice into thick segments, peel and finely chop the beetroot into little match sticks and peel and roughly chop the asparagus.

Dry fry the fennel seeds, crushed hazelnuts and coriander seeds until slightly golden and the aroma has been released. Blitz them with some black pepper in a blender and then stir in the pumpkin seeds. Put this to one side to sprinkle over the salad. It should smell amazing and fragrant!

Griddle the asparagus until soft and slightly browned and leave to cool slightly.

Assemble your salad with the mixed lettuce and watercress on the bottom and then the beetroot, orange and asparagus spears scattered around then sprinkle over the hazelnut dukkah and drizzle over good quality olive oil.

Seasonal Vegan Tofu and Garden Pea ‘Quiche’

A great vegan alternative to traditional quiche

This is my version of a quiche/ flan which is suitable for vegans!I have simply replaced the eggs and cream with tofu. As you will see I have included my favourite combination of peas, lemon, garlic, basil and mint – such classic flavours which instantly make you feel like its summer! I have also added watercress because it is in season right now and is so delicious and very good for you.

I was feeling a bit conscious that I use these flavour combinations a lot, but they work so well and each recipe is so different! So hopefully instead of being repetitive I am simply showing how using up ingredients in different ways can create lots of different meals

I have made pies before with a bean puree or with a nut cream and both worked delightfully, however this time I wanted something much lighter (but still creamy) and less calorific. I don’t eat a lot of tofu but I do buy it when I just fancy something easy, there is so much you can do with it, it’s a great vehicle for stronger flavours and it is low fat.

Creamy vegan filling in a crispy pastry case!

I definitely preferred this quiche served hot however it would be nice to make a head and eat at room temperature too as part of a buffet. When I think of quiche it brings up memories of party buffets with sausage rolls, egg sandwiches, chocolate fingers and lemonade! I’m not sure back in those days, when I was a kid who couldn’t get enough of those styles of buffet, that I would one day be making my own version made of tofu!

Maybe deep down I knew because I was one of the few people who would fill my plate with the salad garnish before adding the more unhealthy options.

In case any one was wondering, I have still been following a mostly gluten free diet. I am feeling great on it and I definitely notice the difference when I “accidentally” eat a huge blueberry muffin someone bought in to the office for their birthday, and my stomach instantly bloats up twice the size! This recipe uses filo pastry which isn’t gluten free but you can substitute it for a vegan short crust or your favourite gluten free pastry. As long as it holds in that creamy tofu filling you’ll be fine!

Serves 4

Dairy Free, Vegetarian, Vegan, Husband approved!

Tin size – 10″

400g Tofu130g Frozen Peas
1/2 Lemon
Large handful Watercress
2 Garlic Cloves
10 Large Basil leaves
Handful Mint Leaves
Salt and Pepper
3 Sheets Filo Pastry
Spray Oil

Preheat your oven to 180c

Place the tofu, peas, watercress, garlic, basil, mint and juice of 1 lemon into a blender and mix until you have a smooth green puree. Season with salt and pepper to taste and then blitz again to mix in seasoning. Keep some water cress to one side for garnish

Grease a quiche tin, preferably with a loose bottom so you can get the quiche out easily (and not with 3 spatulas and a lot of swearing as I did). You could also line the tin with baking paper, or just slice it in the quiche tin and take it out in slices

Next line the tin with 3 layers of filo pastry, spraying or brushing some oil in between each layer, trim around the edges so you don’t have too much pastry hanging over.

Pour the tofu mix into the pastry case and smooth out so it is one even layer. Crinkle up the edges of the pastry to make a border around the edge of the quiche.

Place the quiche into the oven and bake for 35 minutes until the filling is set and the pastry is cooked. If the edges look like they are browning too much then cover the pie with foil so that it continues to cook but not colour.

If you are taking it out of the tin then once cooked leave it to cool slightly to make it easier to handle.

Leftovers can be placed in the fridge and then reheated in a hot oven for around 10 minutes.

Perfect for sharing, great hot or cold.

Cooking for a multi diet family of two

I wasn’t vegetarian when me and my husband met so we sometimes joke that I lured him in under false pretences, I would cook steaks and roasts and now I look lentils and tofu. Scott has taken to the diet changes with loving enthusiasm but he is not a vegetarian and I respect that so I make sure I cook him meat a few times a week.

The more I learn about food, and meat in particular, it makes me want to strive for maximum quality in whatever we eat and I try to keep the food we buy as close to its natural state as possible. The changes I have made for Scott are small but significant. For example I have stopped buying processed ham for sandwiches and I now buy an organic free range chicken every couple of weeks, roast it and separate it into portions to go into his lunch (something my mum has been telling me to do for years!). In fact all the meat I buy is organic and British and it is very much about the quality and not the quantity.

Evening meals can be a challenge when planning for us both. I am lucky because I have lots of time in the evenings to potter around the kitchen but it was not always so plain sailing. I have had to work out different menu combinations to ensure I am not cooking two completely separate meals every day. I have found the following tips have helped make meal times satisfying for us both without breaking my back in the kitchen.

One Pots:
I love one pot dishes because not only do they make cooking for different diets easier but it means you always have a portion of something delicious to pull out of the freezer when you know you will be pushed for time. I often make a big 6 portion stew based on vegetables and beans or lentils then I serve it with a portion of meat on the side for Scott and a portion of broccoli or kale for me.
The main base of the dish is made and all you have to do is oven bake or grill some meat and and boil/ steam your vegetables.

If I have time at the weekend then I sometimes make 2 big one pots, one meat based such as beef and ale stew or coq au vin and one vegetable such as lentil chilli or Irish stew. Then during the week all I have to do is heat up one portion of each and cook some vegetables to accompany it.

Curries, tagines and casseroles can all work for this!

Stir fries:
Kind of like an Asian one pot, you can easily either make one large vegetable stir fry in one wok with your vegetables, sauce and noodles and then in another frying pan first cook your tofu (or favourite veggie stir fry topping), keep it warm to one side under some foil and then cook your meat. Then you can serve up the vegetables and noodles followed by the separate toppings. Make sure you cook the vegetarian option first!

Of course you could always cook two stir fries in two pans but I personally only have one wok and then a few frying pans.

Roasted Vegetables:
I cook a big tray of assorted mixed vegetables pretty much every week. They make such a superb base to any meal and you can add bulky root vegetables along with lighter options such as courgettes, peppers and aubergines. Keep it light by using a spray oil and play with the flavours by mixing up spices and herbs or even adding garlic cloves and shallots.

I will often serve beef burgers/ beany burgers on the side or Scott will have a piece of meat and I will have a slice of lentil bake with a vegetarian gravy. The fact you can include the root veg and light veg means you don’t really need any extra sides except your protein.

Leftovers are also great chopped up and stirred into pasta.

Tacos/ Enchilladas:
We got into a routine of eating my butternut squash enchiladas once a week a while ago. The beauty is that the fillings are individually wrapped so do not mix. Fill 4 wraps (2 per person) with the butternut squash filling and then add some grilled bacon and even some cheese to two of them. Wrap them up, put into a baking tray and top with tomato sauce. Just make sure you remember which side is which

Tacos are also great for multi meal easy options as you can do a “fillings buffet” so everyone just helps themselves to what they fancy. Leftovers can be used to make a taco salad the next day!

This also applies to fajitas and quesadillas!

Soups:
Soup is a weekly occurrence in our house, whether it be at lunch or dinner time and it works perfectly at satisfying us both. I make a big batch of vegetarian soup to share and then serve crispbreads/ crackers or toast on the side. My bread will be topped with cheese or salad and Scott’s will be topped with lean meat.

Soup toppings can also vary, add lean chicken breast to bulk the soup up for your partner and add some cooked beans to yours.

I hope some of these tips have been helpful and showed how you can incorporate some easy meal options so that you don’t have to do too much juggling in the kitchen. Let me know what your “multi diet” tips are that you have developed!

Courgette, Watercress and Melon Bruschetta

Fresh flavours piled on top of garlic bruschetta

Bruschetta is traditionally topped with fresh tomatoes mixed with garlic, basil and sometimes mozarella cheese. I wanted to do something a bit different so I thought of some fresh flavours which I felt would work on top of a nice thick slice of garlic bread. Watercress is in season now and is one of my favourite salad leaves. It’s peppery, really delicate and goes perfectly with milder flavours such as courgette as well as being perfect teamed with fruits such as orange segments, grapefruit and melon!

The idea for this kind of obscurely came from watching Masterchef last week. The contestants were given an assortment of ingredients including ciabatta, courgettes, herbs, beef mince, peppers etc and nearly all of them made a beef burger or meat balls with garlic toast. I thought about what veggie options you could do and decided courgette and pepper bruschetta would be nice (although maybe not enough to win Masterchef!). Then after a bit of recipe planning I scrapped the pepper for a sweet melon instead and ta daaa.

I love courgette sliced thinly like this as it still has a bit of crunch to it but it is thin enough to absorb the flavour of the marinade so that the salad isn’t bland at all. This is a perfect way to enjoy it raw! Together I think this bruschetta topping has a really nice balance of freshness, sweetness and pepper.

A perfect light lunch or snack

The weather has been trying to turn nice over the weekend here and it reminded me that summer is on its way and there will be may be a time when the shorts and strap tops come out of the cupboard. I’m always quite careful with what I eat however in summer I do try and make an extra effort to stay healthy since you can’t hide behind woolly jumpers and big scarfs. If you are also prepping for summer then this salad can be topped on light crispbreads or raw crackers instead of a chunky ciabatta roll.

This was a perfect weekend lunch for me because I had the bread to fill me up but the salad topping to keep it light. I ate this sat with the patio doors to the garden wide open, listening to the birds and watching my next door neighbours cats chase leaves around the bottom of the garden. It made me feel so happy, especially because it was nice and warm. Our neighbours cats are so funny I love watching them play. They are happy until they spot one of us watching them and then as soon as that eye contact is made they stop sharply and just stare back at you! Even if I walk away for a few minutes and come back they instantly notice you again and stop and stare again! Sometimes I will be washing up at the kitchen window and I won’t have noticed them until I look up and see the cat on the fence staring with intense concentration and it catches me off guard completely, then I feel uncomfortable and have to hide until he moves haha.

I made a big batch of the courgette and melon topping and kept it in a bowl in the fridge then for work I have packed a selection of salads left over to eat without the carbs. I love packing left overs for lunch, especially nice salads like this one and the kale and pomegranate salad as it feels like an extension of the weekend. If you are planning on having it for lunch over a few days then I would make a fresh batch every 2-3 days as the courgette and watercress will wilt significantly when left in the lemon juice.

Serves 2 – Makes enough for 4 Ciabatta halves

Vegan, Dairy Free, Gluten Free Option, Low Fat

1 Courgette
1/2 Cantaloupe Melon
Large Handful Watercress
Small Bunch Mint
1/2 Lemon
1 tspn Organic Olive Oil
Black Pepper

1 Garlic Clove
1 Ciabatta Roll or gluten free bread roll
1 tspn Organic Olive Oil

Use a peeler to thinly slice the courgette and melon (deseed the melon first) into long thin strips. To get them really thin I cut the courgette in half lengthways and the melon into thin wedges before slicing to get the desired width. Leave the peel on the melon to make it firmer to hold but make sure you discard the peel once you have sliced all the flesh.

Place the strips of melon and courgette into a large bowl and add the watercress and mint. If your mint leaves are large then roughly slice them.
Squeeze the lemon juice into the bowl with the olive oil and black pepper and mix everything well. Put to one side.

Cut your ciabatta roll in half and grill the non cut side. In a small bowl crush the garlic and mix with olive oil then brush onto the non grilled/ cut side. Place back under the grill with the garlic side up and grill until golden brown and the garlic is cooked.

Pile the salad on top of the warm ciabatta and tuck in quickly!

Purple Kale, Radish and Pomegranate Salad

You can use green or purple kale but I think this looks pretty!

I’ve been seeing raw kale salads for a while now and although I eat a lot of kale I’ve never tried it raw. Even as I began making this salad I was questioning myself, will this be filling? Will this be a pleasant texture? Will it taste good?? Well for all the other raw kale doubters out there I can confirm that not only did I feel full afterwards I also thought it was delicious.

I had a pomegranate that I bought in the reduced aisle which I was planning on crushing to drink with some soda water, lemon and mint but then I came across this kale and pomegranate salad from ‘Running with Tweezers’ blog and I knew I had to make my own version. I have adapted the recipe to make it a really simple side dish with my favourite radishes.

I have purple kale which I don’t think tastes too much different to green kale, but its purple! So pretty, and it turns this purple and pink salad into something beautiful.

I bought the new purple edged plate especially for this salad

You can add to this salad to bulk it up or you can keep it simple. I think it would be nice with some pumpkin seeds or some cold boiled potatoes.

The salad leftovers can be kept in the fridge for a couple of days if you didn’t eat it all, in fact the salad gets even nicer the next day as the kale wilts further and the flavours intensify.

I’ve been making big batches of salads at the weekends and then on Monday and Tuesday at work my lunch has been a nice selection of salads mixed together. We are a bit more relaxed with our healthy eating at weekends and sometimes if we’ve ended the weekend with a takeaway then it can be hard to get started on a good foot on Monday morning. By having salads ready to go it makes it all a lot easier!

Serves 2

Vegan, Raw, Wheat and Gluten Free

2 Large handfuls of Green or Purple Kale
1 Lemon
1 tblspn Olive Oil
1 tspn Balsamic Vinegar
4-6 Radishes
1 pomegranate

Wash and roughly chop the kale and put in a bowl with the juice of 1 lemon, the olive oil and the balsamic vinegar. Mix well with your hands for a few minutes and then set to one side.

Thinly slice the radishes, discarding the root end, and remove the seeds from the pomegranate. I find the best way to do this is to squeeze the pomegranate over a bowl and use a spoon to scoop out the seeds. You can then scoop the seeds out of the bowl!

Place the dressed kale on a plate and top with the radishes and pomegranate seeds. Tuck in!

I’ve got half a pomegranate left in the fridge so I think I may make my drink of crushed pomegranate seeds, lemon juice, mint and soda water anyway. It is so refreshing!!