Tag Archive for: virtually vegan

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Fig & Lentil Salad from Virtually Vegan

Summer and salad go hand-in-hand and this offering from Heather Whinney’s Virtually Vegan is a fresh, sweet, figgy take on a summertime staple. Complete with a harissa and mint dressing for an unmatched kick!

Taken from Virtually Vegan by Heather Whinney

Serves 4–6
Prep: 15 mins
Cook: 40 mins

Ingredients
400g/14oz/2 cups dried Puy lentils, rinsed well
a pinch of allspice
2 garlic cloves, grated
about 10 fresh figs
a drizzle of olive oil
200g/7oz coconut pieces
2 celery stalks, trimmed and finely sliced
3 spring onions/scallions, trimmed and finely chopped
1 large handful of land cress or baby spinach leaves
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the dressing
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp white wine vinegar
1–2 tsp harissa, plus extra for drizzling
1 handful of mint leaves, finely chopped, plus extra to garnish

Method
1 Put the lentils in a pan of salted water and bring to the boil, then turn the heat down and simmer with the lid partially on for about 40 minutes, or until tender. Drain well and leave to one side.
2 While they are cooking, make the dressing. Put the oil and vinegar in a small bowl or jug, whisk and season with salt and pepper, then stir in the harissa and mint. Pour it over the lentils while they are still warm so they soak up the flavours. Add the allspice and garlic and stir well so all the lentils are coated. Taste and season some more if needed.
3 Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas 6.
4 Put the figs in a roasting pan and drizzle over the oil, add the coconut to the pan and roast for about 10–15 minutes until the juices start to just run from the figs and the coconut begins to turn golden. When cool enough to handle, slice the coconut pieces into shards and roughly chop the figs or quarter them. Leave to one side.
5 When the lentils are cool, stir in the celery, spring onions/ scallions and cress or spinach leaves, then add the figs and half the coconut and stir gently. Transfer to a serving bowl, scatter over the remaining coconut shards and mint leaves and drizzle with a little extra harissa oil from the jar to serve.

For non-vegans…
The Moroccan flavours of this salad work well with lamb kebabs, particularly for a barbecue. Alternatively, crumbled feta would make a tasty topping.

Don’t forget to tag us – @nourishbooks – in your recreations! Happy cooking!

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Decadent chocolate & raspberry cake

Recipes for #Veganuary2021 continue! This glorious chocolate cake recipe was taken from Virtually Vegan by Heather Whinney.

The best bit about this cake is that you can lick the spoon knowing there is no raw egg involved. Don’t expect the same rise you would get for a cake with eggs – but it will still look the part once sandwiched together and piled with chocolate frosting.

Taken from Virtually Vegan by Heather Whinney

Serves 8 | Prep: 15 mins | Cook: 30 mins

Ingredients

85g/3oz/scant ⅓ cup dairy-free spread
2 tbsp maple syrup
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
300g/10½ oz/2½ cups self-raising/self-rising flour
2 tbsp dairy-free cocoa/unsweetened chocolate powder, at least 70% cocoa, plus extra for dusting
100g/3½ oz/½ cup golden caster/superfine sugar
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda/baking soda
½ vanilla pod, seeds only
300g/10½ oz fresh raspberries, roughly chopped, leave some whole for topping

FOR THE TOPPING:

200g/7oz dairy-free dark chocolate, at least 70% cocoa
80g/3oz dairy-free spread
2 tbsp almond milk or dairy-free milk of your choice
6–8 tbsp icing/confectioners’ sugar, sifted plus a dusting for decoration if you wish

Method

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas 4 and base-line two 20cm/8in cake pans with parchment paper.

2 Put the dairy-free spread in the bowl of a food mixer, add the maple syrup, apple cider vinegar and 300ml/10½fl oz/1¼ cups of boiling water. Mix slowly until the spread has melted and everything is combined.

3 In another bowl, put the flour, cocoa, sugar, bicarbonate of soda/baking soda and the vanilla seeds and stir. Add this to the wet mixture and beat on slow until you have a smooth batter.

4 Divide the mixture between the pans, smooth the top and bake for about 20–30 minutes (check after 20 minutes), or until a skewer poked into the middle comes out clean.

5 Leave the cakes to cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then invert onto a wire rack to cool completely.

6  To make the frosting, put the chocolate and dairy- free spread in a heatproof bowl. Sit it over a pan of just simmering water and stir occasionally until melted. Remove from the heat and leave to cool a little, then stir in the milk and slowly add the icing/confectioners’ sugar, beating as you go, until it begins to thicken and become glossy. Put in the refrigerator to set.

7 To assemble the cake, remove the frosting from the refrigerator and beat until glossy. Spread generously over one of the sponges, top with most of the raspberries then top with the other sponge and cover with the remaining frosting, and use a knife to neaten. Top with the remaining raspberries and a dusting of icing/confectioners’ sugar or cocoa, if using.

We’re almost halfway through January, plus it’s Thursday, it’s time for a little chocolate flavoured indulgence. Don’t forget to tag us, @NourishBooks, if you give any of our recipes a try!

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Courgette, mushroom & truffle oil pizza

We are getting stuck right into #Veganuary2021 with this delicious, veggie-filled pizza from Virtually Vegan by Heather Whinney! We’ll be posting plant based meal inspo and dairy free dessert recipes – join us this month for a #Veganuary adventure!

‘Who needs dairy on a pizza? What you need is flavour, and this combo has lots of it. You can make the dough ahead and leave it to prove slowly in the refrigerator for a few days or wrap well and freeze for up to a month. For a change, try tossing a handful of fresh wild rocket/arugula on top to serve and give the pizza an extra drizzle of chilli oil.’

Courgette, mushroom & truffle oil pizza from Virtually Vegan

 

Makes 4
Prep: 20 mins, plus proving
Cook: 10 mins

Recipe

500g/1Ib 2oz/4 cups ‘00’ flour or strong white flour, sifted, plus extra for dusting
7g/¼oz/1 sachet of fast-action/instant active dried yeast
4 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for greasing
sea salt

FOR THE TOPPING*:
8 tbsp passata/sieved tomatoes
300g/10½oz portobello mushrooms, finely sliced
4 courgettes/zucchini, sliced into ribbons
a pinch of chilli flakes
a generous drizzle of truffle oil
1 handful basil leaves, to garnish
a few oregano leaves, to garnish

*NON-VEGAN TOPPING:
Try any non-vegan topping you like with this base and tomato sauce. It works well with dairy-free cheese, too, but you could scatter over some torn mozzarella if you prefer.

Method

1 To make the pizza dough, put the flour, yeast and a pinch of salt in a food mixer. Make a well in the middle and slowly
pour in 360ml/12½fl oz/1½ cups of warm water. Using the dough beaters, beat until the mixture comes together, then add 4 tablespoons of olive oil and continue to mix until it forms a dough. It will begin to make a slapping noise as it mixes, which means it is ready. Transfer to a floured board and knead for about 10 minutes until it softens up and becomes spongy.

2 Put the dough in a bowl, cover with cling film/plastic wrap or a dish towel and leave in a warm place for 30–40 minutes until doubled in size.

3 Preheat the oven to its highest setting and put a baking/cookie sheet in the oven to heat up.

4 Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for a couple of minutes to knock out the air, then divide the dough into four equal balls.

5 Have all your topping ingredients ready. Roll and stretch a dough ball until you get a round, about 25cm/10in in diameter. Making one at a time, lightly oil the hot baking/cookie sheet and put the dough round on it. Add 2 tablespoons of passata/sieved tomatoes to the top of the pizza and spread it out to cover. Top with mushrooms and courgettes/zucchini. It will seem like a lot of courgette/zucchini but pile them high as they will shrink when cooking. Sprinkle with chilli flakes and drizzle the truffle oil over the top. Bake for 10 minutes until golden. Remove and continue making the other pizzas. Garnish with fresh herbs, slice into triangles and serve.

 

We can never say no to pizza, so hopefully you enjoy this recipe as much as we do! Don’t forget to check back through Veganuary for oh so many new and delicious recipes.

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Which Nourish cookbook will be your #WorldVeganMonth companion?

Join us in celebrating #WorldVeganMonth this November! It’s been amazing to see how far the vegan movement has come over the years; here at Nourish, we have made it our mission to aid and assist the movement, by publishing the ideal accompanying vegan guidebooks to help you join in and celebrate.

Take the Living on the Veg! quiz to get matched with the Nourish cookbook that will be your #WorldVeganMonth companion – share your results with us on social media using the #LivingontheVeg hashtag!

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