Recipe: Sweetcorn Shaak (curry) and rice within 30 minutes

This is one of my favourite dishes.
It doesn't take long to make and it's full of flavour and texture.

This recipe serves 2.

Ingredients for sweetcorn Shaak

•    1/2 a tablespoon of coconut oil
•    2 tomatoes – diced
•    1 fresh chilli – finely chopped
•    1 teaspoon of cumin seeds
•    1/2 a teaspoon of mustard seeds
•    2 sweet neem leaves
•    a pinch of asafetida
•    sweetcorn - frozen or a 340g tin
•    1 teaspoon of dried coriander powder
•    less than 1/4 of a teaspoon of turmeric
•    salt to taste
•    a tablespoon of lemon juice
•    1 handful of freshly chopped coriander
•    a handful of raw red skin peanut kernels  – about 30g

Ingredients for the rice 

•    a small teacup of brown rice
•    2 & 3/4 teacups of fresh water

How to make the Shaak

1.    Heat the oil in a pan, and add the cumin seeds, mustard seeds, sweet neem leaves and asafetida when it’s hot
2.    Put the lid on and wait until the seeds begin to pop
3.    When the silence in between pops is longer, add raw peanuts, chilli and tomatoes and put the lid back on the pan – don’t be alarmed if it sizzles
4.    After a 2 minutes add the sweetcorn, salt, dried coriander powder and turmeric
5.    Taste it after it’s cooked for another 5 minutes and add the lemon juice if desired
6.    Finally, garnish with freshly chopped coriander 

How to make the rice

1.    Wash the rice, drain the water and put the rice in a pan
2.    Add 2 & 3/4 teacups of fresh water and leave it to cook on a high heat, keeping the lid off the pan
3.    When it begins to froth, place the lid on the pan, reduce the heat to its lowest setting and leave it for 20 minutes
4.    Keeping the lid on the pan, tilt the pan with the rice in it, to see if there's any water left in it - if there's a little left, cook it for another 5 minutes, otherwise turn it off

To serve, spread the rice across the plate to create a circle with a hole in the middle, where you can put the sweetcorn and enjoy

Serving suggestion

Put the rice in a bowl/cup and then tip it upside down on the plate, to create a mound of rice.
Place the mound on one side of the plate or in the centre and place the sweetcorn around it.
A variation
To mix it up a bit, add 1 teaspoon of desiccated coconut to the sweetcorn, 5 minutes before serving it. 

The protein panic: where will vegans get their protein from?

One of the questions I've been asked is 'But where do you get your protein from?'Some of us are able to answer questions like this, others don't want to answer, and for some, they'd like something to help them give a response. Whichever category you fall into, it's worth reading what Gary L. Francione & Anna Charlton have to say about vegans and protein.

But…Where do you get your protein from?

This and similar “Buts,” such as “But do you feel healthy without eating meat and dairy?” are part of our desperate but futile attempt to cling to the notion that we must continue to consume meat and other animal products or risk dying of malnutrition. That is, these “Buts” maintain that there really is some necessity involved in eating animals.

As mentioned earlier, mainstream medical authorities now recognize that a vegan diet is healthy. The extremely conservative Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, formerly the American Dietetic Association, has stated:

It is the position of the American Dietetic Association that appropriately planned vegetarian diets, including total vegetarian or vegan diets, are healthful, nutritionally adequate, and may provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases. Well-planned vegetarian diets are appropriate for individuals during all stages of the life cycle, including pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood, and adolescence, and for athletes.

While adequate protein intake is one of the most commonly used reasons to counter a vegan diet, numerous studies and reports over the years across the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand, and Australia have confirmed that a vegan diet provides ample protein. Additionally, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) explicitly maintains that a vegan diet is capable of providing adequate amounts of protein.

Let us be clear and concise: there is no credible evidence — none — that a vegan diet cannot supply the same quality of protein as that from animal sources. The bottom line is clear: “Plant foods have plenty of protein.”

Related content

How do vegans get enough iron if they don't eat meat? 
How do vegans get enough calcium if they don't eat dairy products? 

Link to a book by Gary L. Francione & Anna Charlton: An exploration and rejection of the various excuses — the “Buts” — that keep us eating animal foods.

“Nourish the mind like you would your body. The mind cannot survive on junk food.”

— Jim Rohn

Going for a picnic

I wanted you to know how easy it is to have a vegan picnic. :)

Here's what we took: -

• Ryvita Sesame Crisp Bread

• Hummus

• Peanuts

• Chocolate

• Tikha Gathiya

• Nacho crisps

• Fruit

• Provamel Organic Forest Fruits Yofu

• A bottle of juice

It was effortless and delicious!

Goodies for a spontaneous picnic

Let me know what you take when you have a vegan picnic. :)

Find out what Promoe thinks we should use and consume

Here's a rap about lots of things but if you fast forward to 3 minutes and 28 seconds you'll hear some lyrics about what Promoe thinks we should and shouldn't use and consume.

No alcohol
No weed
No cigarettes
No E's
No milk
No cheese
No eggs
No meat
Just meditation and peace
Red lentils
Chick peas
Good workout
Good sleep
More sun shine....

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"It's my firm intention to whop cancer into submission and I truly believe I've given myself the best start possible by radically overhauling my diet and by staying true to my motto, which is: Don't worry, be happy, feel good. The first thing I did when I was diagnosed was to turn vegan."
- Larry Hagman

Recipe: Stir fried vegetables and rice within 25 minutes

This is a great recipe as it can be adapted and varied in many ways. You can use different vegetables. You can also use different rice e.g. white, brown and wild rice.

This recipe serves 2.

Ingredients for the stir fry and rice

•    3/4 of a cup of rice  – white, brown or wild rice
•    2 & 3/4 teacups of water
•    1 carrot – chopped into thin 3 cm strips
•    1 pak choi – separate the leaves
•    150g of tofu – chopped in to bite-size chunks
•    1/2 a red or green pepper – diced
•    1/2 a bunch of broccoli – chopped into bite-size pieces
•    1/2 a teaspoon of coconut oil or sesame oil
•    2 tablespoons of soy sauce

How to make the rice

1.    Wash the rice and drain the water
2.    Put the rice and 2 & 3/4 teacups of water in a pan on a high heat, with the lid off
3.    When it begins to froth, put the lid on the pan, reduce the heat to as low as it can go, and leave it to cook for 20 minutes
4.    Keeping the lid on the pan, tilt the pan with the rice in it, to see if there's any water left in it - if there's a little left, cook it for another 5 minutes, otherwise turn it off

How to make the stir fried vegetable

1.    Heat the oil in a pan and when the oil's hot, add the tofu, stir gently and wait 3 minutes before adding the carrots and soy sauce
2.    Stir gently and put the lid on the pan
3.    After 2 minutes add the remaining vegetables and stir
4.    Let it cook until it's the texture that you like it to be
5.    When the vegetables are ready, put the cooked rice in a bowl/cup and tip it upside down on the plate, to create a mound of rice.
6.    Place the mound on one side of the plate, or in the centre, and place the vegetables around the rice.

Serving suggestion

Spread the rice across the plate to create a circle with a hole in the middle, where you can put the vegetables. 

Below, you can see how I've used the same recipe but changed the ingredients a little

Recipe: A nutty, fruity and cooling snack within 5 minutes

This recipe makes a quick, delicious, healthy, cooling snack.

Ingredients for a vegan, nutty, fruity, cooling snack

•    5 tablespoons of vegan yoghurt also known as yofu
•    1 chopped mango
•    10 blueberries – you can use a different fruit
•    10 almonds – you can use different nuts

How to make a vegan, nutty, fruity, cooling snack

1.    Put the vegan yoghurt in a bowl
2.    Add the fruit
3.    Add the nuts
4.    Serve in a bowl and enjoy

Recipe: Spaghetti with vegan mince and vegetables within 25 minutes

I fancied some spaghetti and I wanted t make my own sauce so here's what I did. This recipe serves 2.

Ingredients for spaghetti with vegan mince and vegetables

• 2 handfuls of spaghetti
• 1/2 a small bunch of broccoli
• 3/4 of a small courgette
• Olive oil
• 5 cherry tomatoes
• Tomato Purée
• Salt
• Pepper
• A handful of vegan mince

How to make spaghetti with vegan mince and vegetables

1. Put some spaghetti on the boil 
   1. Put some boiling water in a pan and hold the spaghetti
   2. Within about 20 seconds, it will begin to soften, so you can bend the spaghetti around the pan, which means you don't have to break it into pieces
   3. Give it a stir now and again
   4. Chop the broccoli and the courgette 
   5. Put some olive oil in a pan
   6. Add the broccoli and courgette when the oil is hot
   7. After 5 minutes add some whole cherry tomatoes
   8. Add a little tomato purée
   9. Add salt and pepper to taste
   10. Add the mince and stir
   11. Put the lid on the pan and let it cook
   12. When the spaghetti is ready, drain it, add some vegan margarine and mix it up

Serving suggestion

When I served it,  I made a circular shape with the spaghetti leaving a hole in the middle for the vegetables.

download

Recipe: Chick peas and petis pois in pitta bread in less than 15 minutes

My hubby made this for our dinner recently. It was simple, delicious, light and didn't take him very long to make.

This recipe serves 2.

Ingredients for chick pea and petis pois filling

•    2/3 of a tablespoon of olive oil
•    1 (240g) can of chickpeas or use dried chick peas which would need to be soaked for 12 hours, the water drained and then boiled in fresh water
•    1 small bowl of petit pois – 100g – I  use frozen petit pois
•    tabasco sauce to taste
•    soy sauce to taste
•    salt to taste
•    pepper to taste
•    2 pieces of brown pita bread

How to make chick pea and petit pois filling

1.    Put the olive oil in a pan
2.    Add the chick peas and petis pois
3.    Add the tabasco sauce, soy sauce, salt and pepper
4.    Taste it to see if it needs any extra flavour
5.    Cut the brown pitta bread into 2 pieces and place them in the toaster for a short time - this will make it nice and warm but also makes it easier to split it before adding the filling
6.    Add the filling to the pocket and serve on a small plate

The filling

How do I tell others what I will and won't eat when I'm travelling?

I heard about this amazing book via a Yahoo group called Jain Vegans. It's amazing!

It's called the Vegan Passport.

It's a great pocket sized book that's great to travel with.

It explains what vegans will/won't eat in 73 languages.

It's simple, to the point and extremely clear.

Definitely worth buying! :)

The Vegan Passport

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“The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”
- Lao Tzu

Recipe: Hot chocolate with something extra, which will make all the difference!

I am not sure what made me do this but I got a bit creative the other day and the result was a delicious hot chocolate which was bursting with flavour and texture. This recipe serves 1.

Ingredients for vegan hot chocolate

• 1 cup of Oatly
• 4 teaspoons of Swiss Twinings Hot Chocolate
• 1 piece of vegan chocolate

How to make vegan hot chocolate

1. Put the Oatly in a pan and heat it up
2. Add 4 teaspoons of hot
3. Give it a stir
4. When it's almost ready to drink add the piece of chocolate to the pan and mix a little - the one I used is shown below
5. Pour after about 30 seconds

The result will be yummy.

Don't forget to scoop up any remaining chocolate at the bottom of the cup.