Spicy BBQ Sauce

I must admit I was never a big fan of BBQ sauce until I started making my own. Now I use it with everything :)

This BBQ sauce is quick and easy and requires no cooking.

Ingredients :

1 cup of tomato ketchup
3 TBS Apple cider vinegar
1 TBS Molasses
1 TBS smoked paprika
1 Tsp chili powder
2 TBS Organic coconut sugar (you can use brown sugar) 
1 Tsp garlic powder
1 Tsp onion powder
1 Tbs English mustard

 1 Tsp Black pepper

Feel free to add liquid smoke if you want a more smokier flavour, I left it out this time as the smoked paprika gave it just the right smokiness that I like.

Method :

Add all of the ingredients into a large bowl.

Give it a good mix and taste for adjustments.

Pour your BBQ into a jar or squeezy bottle.

Keep the BBQ Sauce stored in the fridge.

The sauce should last a month in the fridge.

Chick'n style Seitan

For those who don't know what seitan is, it is a meat substitute made from vital wheat gluten, it is a great alternative to soy and tofu.
Seitan can be be flavoured however you like and cooked in two ways which are baked or simmered. Once cooked it can be used in stir fries, roasts, curries or whatever you like in substitute of meat.
This recipe I've made is using the simmering method, it's very easy and the end result is amazing and very delicious.

Ingredients:

For the seitan:

1 and 1/2 cups of vital wheat gluten flour.
1 cup of vegetable stock
2 Tbs of Nutritional yeast
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 Tbs soy sauce
1 tsp dried Rosemary
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp chipotle chili powder 

For the broth :
8 cups of water
1 vegetable stock cube
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp dried Rosemary
2 splashes of soy sauce.

Method :
add all the dry ingredients to a large bowl and mix thoroughly as you want it mixed before adding the stock.

Now add 1 tbs of soy sauce into your 1 and 1/2 cups of stock and add it to the bowl stirring quickly with a spoon.

stop stirring as soon as all the liquid has been absorbed.

Now get your hands in there and gently knead only for 10 seconds ( if you knead too much it will result in a tough seitan) Gently flatten with your knuckles and let the seitan rest whole you prepare the broth.

Add 1 cube of vegetable stock to a large pan with 8 cups of cold water , soy sauce, garlic powder, onion powder and dried rosemary. Make sure your pot is large as the seitan pieces will expand whilst cooking.

Bring the broth to a rolling boil and then lower it to a gentle simmer.

Now it's the time to shape your seitan however you like .
I halved the seitan in the bowl and made one bit into a small loaf shape and pulled little bits and stretched them to make chicken like pieces to be breaded and fried on another day.
You can make one large loaf if you wish.

Now gently add the seitan to broth.

Cover the pot with a lid and simmer for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally so that it won't stick to the bottom of the pan.

Once the 45 minutes is up, your seitan is ready and will look like this.

Put a colander over a large bowl and put the seitan and broth in it. The bowl will gather the broth and the seitan can cool in it.

Once the seitan and broth is cooled store the seitan in a tub with a lid and pour the broth over it to keep it moist.

Seitan is always best eaten the next day as it soaks in the flavours of the broth for a few hours. But by all means it is ready to eat on the same day, so feel free to enjoy it with a meal on the day.
Seitan is so versatile, it can be used in sandwiches, wraps, stir fries and anything else that you would use meat for.

The seitan will last in the fridge for 2 weeks and can also be frozen in it's broth or alone for up to 3 months.

Serving suggestion.

Snickerdoodles

I absolutely love the taste of cinnamon and also partial to a cookie or two so I thought why not make a vegan version of Snickerdoodles. 
These cookies are so delicious and cakey, you won't be able to eat just one. They're quick and easy to make and only require a hanfull of ingredients. You don't have to be vegan to enjoy these yummy cookies.

Ingredients :

1/2 a cup of vegan butter (I used dairy free vitalite)
1/2 a cup of granulated sugar
1/4 cup of non dairy milk
2 cups of plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 Tbs of sugar
1 Tbs of cinnamon powder Method :

 Preheat your oven to 180/350

Add the butter and sugar to a mixing bowl and cream together until fluffy.

Now add the milk and vanilla extract and give it a stir.

Now add the flour, baking powder and baking soda.

Mix the ingredients until it forms a cookie dough, at this point you may need to add a little more flour to make it more manageable.

Now add the extra sugar to a bowl along with the cinnamon and give it a mix.

Now roll the cookie dough into small balls and gently roll into the cinnamon sugar until coated well.

Put the cookie balls on a lightly greased baking tray making sure you leave a space in between each ball (even more than shown in my pic) as they expand quite a bit.

Bake for 10-12 minutes.

let the cool for 2 minutes before removing them from the baking tray as they are quite delicate and will break if you try and take them off straight away.

These cake-like cookies are delicious with a glass of your favourite non dairy milk or a hot drink of your choice.

Enjoy and share with loved ones, or have them all to yourself ;)

Green Lentil and Mushroom Dahl.

Growing up in an Indian family , My mum made lots of different types of dahls with various lentils which were served with Indian flat breads such as Chapati/rotli/ parathas and curries and rice.

This is my version of Green lentil dahl but without the typical Indian spices, added protein and mushrooms.

Ingredients :

1 tin of Green lentils ( I used Biona organic lentils)
1 small onion (sliced)
5 large mushrooms (sliced)
1 Tbs Nutritional yeast  (not brewers)
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp Garlic powder
1/2 tsp Onion powder
Large squirt of Sriracha ( Vietnamese chili sauce)
1 cup of vegetable stock ( I used Kallo)
5 cherry tomatoes chopped
1 Tbs Refined coconut oil for frying.
Corn flour for thickening.

I didn't add salt as the vegetable stock already has the right amount of saltiness to it.

Method :

Add the coconut oil to a large pan on medium heat.

Add the sliced onion to the pan and saute until tender and golden brown.

Now add the mushrooms and cook for two minutes.

Add all the seasonings and spices to the pan and give it a good stir and cook for another 2 minutes.

Now add the vegetable broth and lentils and gently stir, making sure not to mash the lentils.

Now add a squirt of sriracha and stir it in gently.

Let the dahl cook on a medium heat for ten minutes.

Now remove the pan off the heat and stir in the chopped cherry tomatoes.

Now it's ready to serve :)

Serving suggestion :

I served the dahl with rice, oven baked garlic and rosemary potato slices and a salad.

Enjoy.

Mushroom Gravy

This delicious mushroom gravy is very quick to make and absolutely delicious.
There's no need to go out buy those high sodium granules when all you need is a handful of ingredients which you'll probably already have at hand.
This gravy tastes amazing with a roast or with anything you use gravy on.

Ingredients :
1 vegetable stock cube
Mushrooms as needed (sliced)
Small white onion (chopped)
1 sprig of fresh rosemary
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tbs of soy sauce/Tamari
1 tbs of coconut oil for frying
1 and a half cups of water
1 tbs nutritional yeast (optional)
Corn flour for thickening

Method :

Add the coconut oil to a pan and gently saute the onion for 2 minutes.
Now add the sprig of rosemary and mushrooms and cook for another two minutes.
Add the seasonings to the pan and mix well.
Now dissolve the vegetable stock in a glass of freshly boiled water and add to the pan along with another half cup of boiled water.
Add the soy sauce and stir.
let the gravy cook for 5 minutes and then add some cornflour to give it the thickness of your choice.
Cook for another minute and serve with your meal.

I don't add salt to the gravy as the stock cube and soy sauce give it enough saltiness that it needs.

Enjoy the recipe :)