Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Vegan Sage Biscuits

Sage has such a lovely “musky” aroma and taste. It is an amazing herb, it can withstand the freezing temperatures, and grows lush in the summers. It really should be used more often than just stuffing at holiday time.

Salvia officinalis tricolor
I harvest sage throughout the summer, drying some and freezing others. And this year I will also make sage syrup so it is on hand for cough and cold season. We really enjoyed these sage biscuits last Sunday. They are a basic baking powder biscuit or scone recipe with a generous addition of fresh sage.

Vegan sage biscuits

Yield: 6-7 medium biscuits

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups AP flour
  • 1½ teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ¼ cup fresh sage, minced
  • 4 tablespoons vegan margarine
  • 1 egg replacement
  • 4 tablespoons non-dairy milk

Directions:

  1. Pre-heat the oven to 475°F/245°C.
  2. Place baking parchment on a cookie sheet.
  3. Mix the flour, baking powder, salt and minced sage in a medium large bowl.
  4. Cut in the vegan margarine and blend until the mixture resembles coarse sand.
  5. Mix the egg replacement (I used Orgran No-Egg), and add the non-dairy milk.
  6. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix until the moisture forms a dough ball. Don’t over-work the dough.
  7. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured workspace..and fold over 3-4 times to make a consistent mass.
  8. Flatten by hand until it’s about ½-¾ inch thick.
  9. I used a water class to “cut out” the biscuit forms.
  10. I placed a small sage leaf on top of each biscuit.
  11. Set on the baking parchment lined baking sheet and place in the oven to bale 15-18 minutes or until lightly golden brown.
  12. Remove from the oven and serve warm with vegan margarine or a vegan spread.
  13. The biscuits are best warm.


from Vegalicious https://ift.tt/2MvI28C
via Why You Should Consider Buying Organic Food

Friday, July 12, 2019

Fresh Spinach Ravioli with a Mushroom Sauce

We harvested the first of our organic spinach of the season this morning and enjoyed these delicious ravioli for dinner tonight. it was really lovely having our own home grown vegan meal.

Fresh Spinach Ravioli with a Mushroom Sauce

Serving Size: 4

Ingredients:

for the ravioli pasta:

  • 1 cup semolina or pasta flour
  • ½ cup AP flour
  • pinch salt
  • ½ cup warm water
  • 2 teaspoons olive oil

for the spinach filling:

  • 1 lb. fresh spinach, washed
  • 1 leek white and light green parts only, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon oil
  • splash lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
  • dash nutmeg
  • salt and pepper to taste

for the mushroom sauce:

  • 1 lb. mushrooms, sliced
  • 1 onion, minced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 tablespoon oil
  • 2 cups soy yogurt
  • thyme
  • pinch red pepper flakes
  • salt and pepper to taste

Garnished with basil leaves, chopped chives and vegan Parmesan.

Spinach ravioli filling

Directions:

  1. Prepare the pasta first. To make the dough:
    1. Mix the ingredients with a mixer using dough betters.
    2. Cover the bowl with a damp cloth or plastic wrap and allow to sit for 1/2 an hour.
  2. To make the filling:
    1. Wash the spinach.
    2. Chop the leek.
    3. Heat a large frying pan with oil.
    4. Add the chopped leek and begin to sauté.
    5. Add the spinach and sauté until it wilts.
    6. Add the splash of lemon juice and the thyme and nutmeg.
    7. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
    8. Remove from the frying pan and allow to cool.
  3. To make the mushroom sauce:
    1. Chop the onion.
    2. Clean and slice the mushrooms.
    3. Heat the oil in a large frying pan.
    4. Add the chopped onion and sauté.
    5. Add the mushrooms and and garlic.
    6. Cook on a low heat until the mushrooms have soften and release their liquid.
    7. Add the soy yogurt and gently mix.
    8. Season with the thyme, red pepper flakes and salt and pepper.
  4. To make the ravioli:
    1. Roll out a portion of the ravioli dough on a lightly floured workspace.
    2. Roll out enough to make a couple of ravioli top and bottom pastas.
    3. Using a ravioli form indent markings for the ravioli bottoms.
    4. Place a spoonful of the spinach filling within the indented markings.
    5. Place the pasta top over the filling and press together with your fingers Using the ravioli form, press the form through both top and bottom pieces thus making a seal of the edges and cutting the form.
    6. Lay the ravioli on a lightly floured plate and continue making the ravioli until all the dough and filling has been used.
    7. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to boil.
    8. Cook 3 or 4 ravioli at a time. They are done when they float.
  5. To serve the ravioli:
    1. The ravioli can be served plain with just a bit of vegan Parmesan sprinkled on top and garnished with chopped chives, or place a generous serving of the mushrooms sauce on a plate, and top with 2 or 3 ravioli. Garnish with the chopped chives and vegan Parmesan.

Notes:
Making ravioli from scratch is not difficult, joust a bit time consuming, but it is well worth the effort. The more often you make ravioli from scratch, the easier it becomes.



from Vegalicious https://ift.tt/2XIUlFl
via Why You Should Consider Buying Organic Food

Tuesday, July 9, 2019

Cashew, Sweet Potato and Tamarind Curry

Our friends at Rude Health have teamed up with ultimate vegetarian foodie and author of The Modern Cook's Year, Anna Jones, for this comforting plant based recipe. 

‘This recipe is a version of a recipe that has become a weeknight classic in my house. The sweet potato and tamarind come together to make a vibrant curry perfectly balanced between sweet and sour.’ – Anna Jones

Serves 4?
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons of garam masala
- 800g sweet potato, peeled and cut into 2cm pieces
- 1x 400g tin of good chopped tomatoes?
- 400ml Rude Health Cashew Drink?
- 2 tablespoons tamarind paste

From the store cupboard: 
- 1 onion (red or white)
- 2 cloves of garlic
- coconut or groundnut oil.

- Brown rice or chapatis to serve

Optional Toppings:
- Toasted coconut flakes
- Lemon wedges for squeezing
- Fresh coriander
- Toasted cashews 

Method:
  1.  
1. Peel and finely chop your onion and finely slice 2 cloves of garlic. Heat a little oil in a large deep saucepan, add the onion and garlic and a good pinch of salt and cook for 10 minutes until soft and sweet. ?

2. Next add the garam masala and cook for another couple of minutes. ?
3. 
Add the sweet potato, tinned tomatoes, cashew drink and the tamarind, together with a good pinch of salt, and allow this to simmer on a low heat for 20-30 minutes until the sweet potato is cooked and the sauce is rich and thick. ?
4. 
Taste and add more salt if needed and a little more tamarind if the curry needs more of its sour kick. ?
5. 
Divide between four bowls and serve with brown rice or chapatis and top with add ons above if you like. ?

 



from Planet Organic Blog https://ift.tt/2Ld2IlV
via How to Save Money When Buying Organic Foods

Friday, July 5, 2019

Planet Organic Queen's Park

 
Planet Organic is extremely excited to open its eighth store in Queen’s Park, Northwest London this August. The shop will be part of Queen’s Studios on Salusbury Road in the heart of Queen’s Park.
 
The pop-up café outside is already set up outside the store serving organic coffee, vegan affogatos and kombucha on tap while we work on getting the store ready for opening. The pop-up will be open 8am-4pm Monday to Friday and 9-5pm Saturday and Sunday for the whole of July, so stop by and say hello to the new team.
 
Our Queen’s Park store is already set up online for click and collect orders during the coffee bike’s opening hours, so simply order online and collect from the team at our pop-up café.  
 
In store, we’ll have fresh juices and organic coffee, wholesome hot food and superfood salads, our unpackaged range of store cupboard essentials, organic fruit and vegetables, a natural health and beauty section and plenty of eco living products for your home. 
 
With a strong, family orientated community, we feel that Queen’s Park is a perfect location for Planet Organic and we are very much looking forward to meeting our new neighbours.

from Planet Organic Blog https://ift.tt/2S0gzwr
via How to Save Money When Buying Organic Foods