Eat food you love that loves you back
Here’s the final video for this Global Sharing Week – and it’s a good’un! If you like pastry, but cannot or do not eat refined fats (so can’t make it the traditional way or pop to the supermarket for a ready-roll version), you’ll love this super-easy and tasty pastry that is surprisingly easy to make and very forgiving in clumsy hands! Continue reading “Magic pastry”
It’s day 4 of my video series, sharing some of my top tips and easy recipes for Global Sharing Week. Today, I’m going to tell you how to make a super easy and deliciously tasty chocolate cake frosting alternative. No refined fats, just deliciousness and extra nutrients. It’s recipes like this that make cake health food 🙂 Continue reading “Sweet potato chocolate frosting”
My next post for Global Sharing Week is a simple way to make a lovely dairy-free cheese alternative. Labneh is a Middle-Eastern soft cheese made from strained yoghurt – here I show you how to make it with soya yoghurt instead. Continue reading “Dairy-free labneh”
It’s one of my favourite times of the year – asparagus season. I just love those wonderful deep green, aromatic spears that melt on the tongue as you bite into them. I even have a special little asparagus song that my husband has to listen to me singing whilst it lays in the steamer (he loves it really…… 😉 ) Continue reading “Plant-based hollandaise sauce”
I’m so happy to say I’ve been getting some wonderful feedback from people who have read my book Eat Well Live Well with The Sensitive Foodie. As well as gaining some useful insight from the first half (which covers loads of information about health, food and plant-based eating), they’re loving the recipes.
It seems that my simple banana bread recipe is a particular favourite. I’m not surprised as it’s really easy and super yummy. It’s also the one that gets raved about whenever I make it for an event or shared lunch. Continue reading “Banana bread loaf”
Food waste is big news. And so it should be. It’s estimated that 18 million tonnes of food ends up in landfill every year in the UK alone. Globally the figure is a mind-numbingly huge 1.6bn tonnes, almost a third of what’s produced. At a time when food poverty still affects one in nine people, that just seems wrong.
And as the UK government formally declares a climate crisis, food waste comes high on the agenda of things we can do to make a different. Climate scientists state that reducing food waste is the third most impactful thing we can do (eating a plant-based diet is top of the list!). Which is good news. And there are some great initiatives going on that help get unused food to those who need it (like Fareshare) and even apps that enable you to find someone local who wants your unwanted food (like Olio). Continue reading “Potato, leek and mushroom ‘gratin’”
I’ve always been a bit partial to a slice of deliciously creamy cheesecake. Before I went dairy-free and plant-based my favourites were the ones you could buy frozen (I never tried to make my own!). Super-sweet crunchy biscuit base, thick and creamy filling then finished with a colourful layer of blackcurrants or strawberries, coated with more sugar of course. It hit all the pleasure buttons in one go!
When I went dairy-free, cheesecake was off the menu until I discovered the raw version – not quite so super-sweet but still delicious. I loved experimenting with different flavours – there are two amazing ones in my new book Eat Well Live Well with The Sensitive Foodie that are a winner every time. Continue reading “Strawberry and chocolate ‘cheesecake’”
As the wonderful world of plant-based eating grows ever-more popular, it’s fascinating to see how traditionally trained chefs are exploring this new culinary frontier with a whole array of ingredients and techniques to explore. Which can only be a good thing – beneficial to our taste-buds as well as our bodies, and of course animals and the environment too.
Alexis Gauthier, head chef of Gauthier, has been in the UK press a few times recently, particularly the plant-based media after his appearance as guest judge on the latest series of Masterchef. A classically trained chef, he started exploring cooking with plants as far back as 1997 featuring a range of vegetarian, then vegan dishes. He currently has a multi-course tasting menu running alongside his ‘classic’ meat and fish menus. After becoming vegan himself, Gauthier announced last year that the restaurant would become fully vegan in the future. Which is quite something in the top restaurant market place. Continue reading “Gastronomical Gauthier”
Following on from my ‘brain food’ post yesterday (plant-based foods that are particularly good for the old grey matter) I wanted to share one more with you – mushrooms. According to an article on the BBC website this week, a research study suggests that people who eat mushrooms more than twice a week have less age-related cognitive decline that those who didn’t. This means they performed better on memory and recall tests, good news for mushroom lovers!
The study was small and the research cannot make a direct cause and effect link (so hard to do as there are so many other factors to take into account). However, it does suggest there is something in mushrooms that can benefit the brain. As with all fresh produce, mushrooms contain a whole array of micronutrients and phytonutrients. In fact, mushrooms as medicine is a huge area of research at the moment. Continue reading “Creamy mushroom pasta”
It’s been British Pie week for the last 7 days, a chance to celebrate everything pie. And who doesn’t love a good pie? A crunchy crust can top a whole host of tasty fillings inside. Continue reading “Aloo gobi pie”
