Let's do (Vegan) lunch darling...!

Never has there been a better time to learn about and experience a plant-based lifestyle.

A lifestyle that's kind to you, to animals and to our beautiful planet.

Whatever you've either heard about veganism or think about veganism - perhaps: how hard it is, how boring it might be, how bland the food must be - FORGET IT!!!

Negative perceptions - are just that - PERCEPTIONS - because a lot of industries want you to doubt how good a life vegans have.

But I'm here to let you in on the world's best kept secret - being VEGAN is WONDERFUL!!!

Of course veganism is a whole lifestyle, but starting with changes to your diet is the most fun way to get started. So let me show you that it's never about deprivation - more about liberation! Through scrumptious breakfast, brunches, lunches, suppers and treats.

Right then - let's do lunch!

[All the meals you see here have been made by me, from scratch, in my kitchen at home. I take my inspiration from everywhere and love to be creative too. No time to add all the recipes, so please contact me if something takes your fancy and I'll send you your very own recipe sheet.  
Much love - Chantal xx]


 

Hoisin 'duck' wrap.  

Exactly like your crispy Chinese favourite & you'd never know the difference! I use tins of braised gluten, drained, dried, shredded & fried! Then add shredded spring onion, cucumber & a vegan hoisin sauce in a vegan tortilla wrap.

  

Minestrone soup with canellini beans and garlic parsley flatbreads on the side. Nutritious, delicious and a meal in itself - this soup is one of my all time favourites. Add several bay leaves for that wonderful fragrant finish.

 

Maple glazed tofu on a bed of mixed grains and fresh spinach salad.  

This is officially now my favourite way to eat tofu! It's absolutely delicious - sticky, sweet, tangy. The grains underneath are 'Seeds of Change' brand Tamari infused. 

 

Cream of broccoli and asparagus soup. 

Ever chop off or throw away the stalks of these incredible veg? This soup was made with stalks! They are still so nutritious and tasty and blended like this with shallots, veg stock and some soy cream it's an incredible lunch. 

 

 

Spiced mixed vegetable pakora with mango chutney.

Add plenty of cumin and coriander to the gram flour batter mix and I think Geetas mango chutney is by far the most delicious brand to go with this (registered vegan too).

 

Spicy black bean tacos.

This is a simple dish to make using smoky chipotle paste and any beans you like. Top with guacamole and shredded iceberg. Old el Paso taco shells are vegan.

 

Posh beans on toast!

Just to 'pimp' them up a little bit & add extra nutrition - try adding onions, mushrooms, peppers etc & I love them with added BBQ sauce. This is amaranth quinoa rye from Biona.

 

Vegan BLT !

I did really use to love a BLT and whilst I'm not keen on the faux bacon products, I do love these bacon flavour spinkles! You can get them in Tescos and Sainsburys in the salad condiments aisle. They add a lovely crunch and Plamil vegan mayo is a must :)

 

Raw shoots & super seeds apple, omega salad.

Even the healthiest dishes are delicious. This combines sprouted shoots, pumpkin and sunflower seeds, fresh apple, dried apricots and I added some Cauldron marinated tofu pieces. The dressing is lemon and an omega oil such as the one from Biona. 

 

 

Thai-spiced butternut squash and sweet potato soup.

For the Thai spicing I use red Thai chillis, a lemon grass stalk (not blended in) & coconut milk. The sprinkles are some remains of the raw salad above! 

 

Hummus with warm wholemeal pittas and raw veggie crudites.

This is my absolute favourite 'go-to' lunch so I always have hummus in the fridge or a tin of chickpeas at the ready. Warm pitta and crunchy sugar snap peas is the ultimate :) but for the best vegan nutrition, remember to 'eat a rainbow'.

 

Gazpacho with focaccia.

I made this chilled soup with the end of season tomatoes (great if you can grow or buy cheaply) with diced cucumber and plenty of garlic! Perhaps too much garlic. Jus-Roll now do vegan focaccia! Just add olives, rosemary & salt!

 

Spicy bean quesedillas with a 'cheese' sauce & rustic avocado, tomato, cucumber salsa.

I love Mexican food & these are so easy - you could use any veggie filling really. I fill the tortillas, fold them in half & griddle. Vegusto make the best ready-made cheese sauce (in my opinion).

 



Griddled vegetables with a herby mayonnaise in hot ciabatta bread.

I love these style of vegetables - so juicy and flavourful when grilled, griddled or roasted! Great with lots of fresh black pepper too. 

 

Griddled basil tofu with vegetables, fresh spinach and tomato salsa in a flatbread wrap.

I used Taifun basil tofu for this - and it makes a delicious change. Healthy and high in protein low in fat. 

 

Ginger and miso vegetable noodle stirfry with cashews.

Literally made using miso paste with a little water, tomato puree and fresh ginger.I used spelt noodles here, but buckwheat and rice are great too - although rice are more delicate. 

 

Spicy chickpea & quinoa salad.

Tinned chickpeas are so handy to have in your kitchen. Dust these in gram flour, cumin and paprika, then fry in a little oil and add to some cooked quinoa with a lemon, coriander, oil dressing. Simple! 

 

Leek and potato soup with granary sourdough.

This is a perfect autumn / winter classic - you can add carrots and celery to the base and I find Marigold Swiss vegetable bouillion the best stock powder by far. I blitz half the soup & mix back in.

 

Pesto mushroom pannini.

Pesto can be made using any combination of nuts, herbs, oils and seasonings. Experiment! This one was made by blitzing cashews, basil, garlic and hemp oil! 

 

Sweet potato wedges & dips (fresh guacamole, tomato salsa, mayo, sweet chilli).

You can bake or fry these. If frying then bake first, cut into wedges then fry (more crispy!) and guacamole is simply mashed avocado, pinch of cumin, squeeze of lemon juice & black pepper (tomato pieces if you like too). 

 

Bruschettas with salsa, guacamole and coleslaw.

Using up the remaining dips from the dish above (or any dips for that matter). Just have them on toast & go all Italian about it! :) 

 

Packed lunch - vegan style! Cucumber & marmite sandwich, date & oat cookies, savoury almonds, fresh apple & soya milk. 

Just trust me on the cucumber and marmite combo.

 

Sweetcorn chowder (clam-free).

Onion, carrot, leek, garlic, thyme, sweet potatoes, sweetcorn, stock. Done. Throw in some lentils too if you'd like it even more hearty. 

 

Warm mixed grain and vegetable bowl.

This is great for leftovers! Any combination, hot or cold with any dressing for extra flavour. Open the fridge and raid... 

 

Thai vermicelli soup.

This is so light and fresh. Use a Thai red curry paste, vegan stock & soy sauce for the broth & simply add crunchy fresh veg, shiitake mushrooms & then cook the vermicelli rice noodles in the soup for 2 mins. 

 

Raw cashew hummus with herby tomatoes & fresh onion bread.

Hummus is basically a blend of nuts or beans or peas - usually with added tahini (sesame paste), oil, lemon juice and seasonings - to this I added garlic and onion powders. 

 

Mexican mushrooms with corn tortillas & green salad.

Mexican food uses a lot of fresh herbs sometimes, plenty of thyme and rosemary in this which create an amazing flavour with the chilli tomato base.

 

Walnut pate on warm 'buttered' toast.

I was never a fan of tarragon with chicken & now I know it's better with walnuts! Blitz with walnut oil, red wine, red onion, soy sauce, chives & some breadcrumbs. Yum. 

 

Mushroom burger with fresh salad and mayo.

This is a burger from Vegusto - and it's very tasty. It makes a light, quick lunch.

 

Lemony kale fusilli.

And lastly... where would vegans be without kale?! This was sauteed with onions, pine nuts & artichokes, added to fusilli pasta and mixed with an olive oil lemon dressing & loads of black pepper! [ The vitamin C in the lemon helps us to absorb the iron in the kale - top tip :) ] 

So another 30 ways to make the change to plant-based living.
How varied and tasty does that look?! Do vegans struggle to find things to eat? Ummmm NO!!

Enjoy :) 
GO VEGAN. FOR LIFE.

Halloween Recipe - Roast pumpkin linguine with sundried tomatoes and a chilli, basil, walnut pesto.

Happy Halloween!

I love pumpkin - not quite as sweet as butternut squash and very versatile. But I bet there's a few people who carve one up for Halloween and don't know what to do with the flesh?! Oh! what a waste :(

So, no excuses now, I've come up with this delicious Vegan creation especially for you - perfect for a cold autumnal eve before sitting round the fire and telling ghost stories until the witching hour.........

Enjoy!  

Chantal xx

roast pumpkin linguine with sundried tomatoes & a chilli, basil, walnut pesto

[serves 2 - 4 or 2 generous suppers & 2 light lunches the next day]

Gather:

ingredients gathered - i used half of this pumpkin

Roast veg

Chopped flesh of a small - medium pumpkin.

2 small - medium red onions sliced into 8-12 (leave root intact so slices hold together)

1/2 jaror deli pack of sundried tomatoes in oil - tomatoes cut into 4 pieces each

freshly ground black pepper

salt (I use pink Himalayan - expensive but wonderful and toxin-free)

Pesto

2 cloves of garlic roughly sliced

1 small pack of fresh basil - roughly torn (reserve a few leaves for the garnish)

1 handful of walnuts (approx 10 halves)

1 red chilli deseeded and roughly chopped

extra virgin olive oil or light rapeseed oil (or oil of choice)

Other

150g dry linguine pasta

1 slice stale bread (I used granary sourdough)

A little oil for frying

Create:

Set your oven to high - 220C, 200C fan, GM 7, Aga 'hot'.

1.  Chop the pumpkin, onion and tomatoes, add to a roasting dish, season and pour over about 2 tbsp of the oil from the sundried tomatoes. Mix well to coat.

veg ready to roast

2.  Roast in the oven for approx 25 mins (stiring half way) or until the pumpkin has caramelised around the edges.

3.  Add the pesto ingredients to a blender and whiz to your preferred consistency - adding oil as you go - again to the consistency that you prefer. Season if you wish.

chilli, basil, walnut pesto

4. 15 minutes into roasting your veg bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and cook the linguine according to packet instructions - usually for about 9 minutes for the perfect 'al dente' texture.

5.  Whilst this is cooking heat some oil in a pan and fry the bread cubes until golden brown and then drain on kitchen paper.

granary sour dough bread made incredible croutons

6.  Remove the roast vegetables from the oven, drain the pasta, add to the vegetables, pour over the pesto and stir to coat and mix in well. Serve topped with the croutons, fresh basil leaves and condiments as below!

Enjoy:

I can't resist serving any pasta dish with added Nutritional Yeast Flakes as sprinkles (good for your B12 intake too). I also added some Vegan bacon flavour salad sprinkles - which were incredible with this! And lashings of Vegan mayo on the side made my trio of condiments complete!

Cooks Tips:  This would also be lovely with other cucurbits such as courgettes and with pumpkin other herbs such as rosemary and sage work well roasted with it (although they are very pungent and pumpkin has quite a delicate flavour - so use sparingly).

Learn to love this veg and don't just cook it for Halloween (see why below!)

Health benefits of Pumpkin

• It is one of the very low calorie vegetables. 100 g fruit provides just 26 calories and contains no saturated fats or cholesterol; however, it is rich in dietary fiber, anti-oxidants, minerals, vitamins. The vegetable is one of the food items recommended by dieticians in cholesterol controlling and weight reduction programs.
  
• Pumpkin is a storehouse of many anti-oxidant vitamins such as vitamin-A, vitamin-C and vitamin-E.
  
• With 7384 mg per 100 g, it is one of the vegetables in the Cucurbitaceae family featuring highest levels of vitamin-A, providing about 246% of RDA. Vitamin A is a powerful natural anti-oxidant and is required by the body for maintaining the integrity of skin and mucus membranes. It is also an essential vitamin for good visual sight. Research studies suggest that natural foods rich in vitamin A help a body protects against lung and oral cavity cancers.
  
• It is also an excellent source of many natural poly-phenolic flavonoid compounds such as α, ß carotenes, cryptoxanthin, lutein and zea-xanthin. Carotenes convert into vitamin A inside the body.
  
• Zea-xanthin is a natural anti-oxidant which has UV (ultra-violet) rays filtering actions in the macula lutea in retina of the eyes. Thus, it helps protect from "age-related macular disease" (ARMD) in the elderly.
  
• The fruit is a good source of B-complex group of vitamins like folates, niacin, vitamin B-6 (pyridoxine), thiamin and pantothenic acid.
  
• It is also rich source of minerals like copper, calcium, potassium and phosphorus.
  

Restaurant review: The Jack in the Green Inn - a Vegan taste sensation!

one of the stunning desserts to come...

In an increasingly fast paced, hectic, pressured world, it's easy to forget to take time out once in a while, 'reboot' yourself and create a perfect day. You know - the type of day that gets you through for the next month or so. Yesterday was that day for me :) A special one on the calender and, as it turns out, potentially a special one for veganism - allow me to tell you more...

I started out wafting around Totnes - the chilled-out hippy capital of Devon and an oh-so-lovely place to get into the right vibe for a perfect day. We enjoyed a delicious vegan lunch at Willow vegetarian restaurant (look out for a review later) and generally mooched in the crisp autumn air and low slung sunshine. Bliss. Next we went to Bovey Tracey on the edge of Dartmoor, to see an old friend, visit the stunning arts & craft centre and grab an afternoon tea - which turned out to be a soya cappuccino at the Flying Pig - a cafe whose new owner was extremely interested in vegan food and how she could either make, or acquire some, for her customers. 'Spreading the word' has never been so much fun!

Then a quick change and off to our final destination: The Jack in the Green Inn - Rockbeare.

I'd heard of their great reputation, but the plan this day (after much liaising with them by email and phone) was for an entire vegan meal. I don't mind telling you that based on some previous experiences elsewhere, I was both excited and nervous at the same time, because it's imperative that if plant-based foods are going to ever appeal to the masses they have to be contemporary, creative and tasty beyond belief.

the bar

The restaurant itself is quite unassuming from the outside. But once inside it could only really be described as traditional but with a modern twist! It's well presented and immaculate and if, as a vegan, you can get past the stylised pictures of hunting scenes (this is Devon) and the quirky, 'humourous' animal / food drawings, then trust me, you're in for a real treat.

The ambiance is soothed along with soft jazz and the welcome from the proprietor Paul Parnell could not be more warm, personal or professional.

'We said we'd give it a go for you, and here you are...' Paul said as he handed us a menu headed 'Vegan Tasting Menu'. My heart literally skipped a beat.

Here's what I read...

Whilst transfixed to the menu Paul proceeded to also tell us about the vegan wines he could offer and we opted for a light Beaujolais-style Brouille red.

10 minutes later, and full of anticipation, we were escorted to our quiet corner table where 3 types of warm fragrant seeded breads, balsamic and the lightest of olive oils awaited us.

A good start.

And so to the dishes. The only way for me to (calmly) do this is to work through them methodically and mentally recall every delicious stage.

The dishes...

Mixed leaves with hazelnut vinaigrette, roasted celeriac and apple.

Leaves, can, well, leave you pretty unimpressed at the best of times - but these microleaves packed a punch & the toasted hazelnuts and tangy vinaigrette on the sweet roasted celeriac were a perfect combination to start the meal in a light and very appetising way.

Salt and pepper tofu with mixed wild mushrooms and truffle oil.

 

I often make chilli salt tofu at home so, was curious to see how they approached this. Delicate cubes, dusted, seasoned, fried and served with tiny wild mushrooms - the flavour of which was totally enhanced by the strong tofu seasoning. The truffle oil and mushroom puree just made this an incredible tasting dish. I could have very happily eaten a huge bowlful of this as main course.

By this stage I was actually starting to swoon!

 Roasted pumpkin with curly kale, roasted nuts and seeds.

Small balls of sauteed pumpkin on the juiciest, sweetest kale topped with crisp parsnip tuille and fried noodles was yet another triumph and reason #73 why kale really is a vegans friend - when cooked so well!

 Thai vegetable curry. Served with steamed wholegrain rice.

Whilst the Thai curry didn't have the usual aromatics of Thai ingredients (I'm sure it contained an Indian-style curry blend instead) - the description was irrelevant really, because the mix of fresh vegetables was so vibrant, succulent and flavourful. There was a real bang of chilli heat at the end - that might of had some people wincing. Fortunately I love and can handle hot curries - so this dish really did it for me.

Caramelised pear with blackberries, almond and oat crumble.

After the kick of the curry, this delicately presented platter, again, was such a well thought through combination of all of those elegant seasonal dessert flavours - pear, almond, blackberry - the caramelisation was just right, the almond clusters adding nutty sweetness and the blackberries just adding the hint of sharpness to balance it all off - utterly perfect.

Chilled coconut rice pudding with raspberry sorbet.

Now two puddings always have to be better than one - don't they? I thought the pear couldn't be beaten by a cold rice pudding surely? How wrong a girl can be. Sweet coconut rice pudding with perfectly al dente grains, topped with toasted seeds, little balls of silky smooth mango and raspberry sorbet and crystallised rose petals. What a revelation! The portion was large for fine dining - but I have to say I was glad. We didn't actually speak one word whilst eating this (although some cooing noises were possibly coming from my side of the table) which I think speaks volumes.

And so to ... coffee and petit fours - a fabulous decaf and vegan blackberry and apple jelly cubes. A perfect ending.

 THE END ahhhhh........

I simply cannot fault any of the food that was served to us. It was all stunningly presented and delicious - the flavours rich, yet light, complex, yet simple. How is that possible? Well because they were cooked by a chef who clearly knows his food, who still has passion for his food and who still cares about delighting his customers.

Throughout this fabulous vegan experience at the Jack on the Green our server was attentive and genuinely interested in how we found each course. He even shared with us the fact that he loved the look of it and had enjoyed spending time cooking for an ex girlfriend who had been vegan. Paul also frequently checked in on us to seek our opinion. And when Matthew - the head chef came to talk to us at the very end it was with no shame that I gave him a full bear hug and kisses for making my perfect day - well, perfect. He sat with us for a while discussing the merits of vegan food with the type of enthusiasm that I wish I could bottle and send to every catering establishment in the world.

During our evening we also learnt that The Jack in the Green regularly have vegan business diners, can cater for main meals (with advance notice) and indeed are very happy to do so. This tasting menu was a first for them though and I hope that in spreading the word about it people will give it a try.

I've been lucky enough to eat in some world class restaurants - Hestons 'Fat Duck', Iceland's panoramic revolving restaurant at the 'Perlan' and Hong Kong's sky-scraping 'Above and Beyond', to name-drop but a few. But I couldn't be happier and more proud to find this gem of a place in my home county. It can be quite a rare thing to find such places where the desire to create and delight is so strong. These guys have it in shed loads and we'll be back with all of our carnivore friends - to show them, in no uncertain terms, just how exciting modern Vegan cuisine CAN be.

So thank you David for arranging this and to everyone at The Jack in the Green. Perfect.

£££ At £39.95 for 7 courses, this was incredibly good value, especially when compared with many other fine dining tasting menus. I have paid twice, if not three times, this amount for mediocre food in many city-based fine dining restaurants such as the 'acclaimed' Purnells - where the somelier was insistent there was no such thing as vegan wine and lacklustre dishes consisted of a bowl of mixed tomatoes, and carrots on a lettuce puree - I kid you not.

Good to know: To get the best experience from this incredible gastro-pub please phone in advance to discuss your food. They serve over 140 covers on a busy night and run 4 menus, so a little advance notice will help them to get it perfect for you too :)

Call 01404 822240, ask for Paul and please do feel free to mention me by name. I am the elated huggy vegan :)