Tag: vegan recipes

Walnut ‘Meat’ Tacos with a Fresh Pineapple Salsa

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Walnut ‘Meat’ Tacos with a fresh Pineapple Salsa

I have had a couple of requests to upload the recipe for these walnut meat tacos.  I am a huge fan of Mexican food and love how social it feels, sitting around eating with your fingers and downing a couple of mojitos!  I would love to say the recipe is my own, but I have adapted it slightly from Aine Carlin’s The New Vegan.  I have made these tacos for my pop up low FODMAP brunch and the launch event I did with Makrobios.  They are super fresh, crunchy and the walnut ‘meat’ really is ‘meaty.’   They work perfectly as a vegan starter or as finger food and if you are interested into getting into the raw food movement this is a great introduction.

If you want to make this in advance I would recommend making all the elements separately, but fill the lettuce taco shells at the last minute or they will go soggy.  Also try and get the best quality walnuts you can, preferably organic as it will really make a difference to you finished dish.  My version of this recipe is low FODMAP as well as gluten free and vegan.

Walnut ‘Meat’ Tacos with a Fresh Pineapple salsa – serves 4 – 6 as a starter

130 g Organic Walnuts (I used Makrobios organic walnuts)

5 sun dried tomatoes and a tsp of their oil

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp dried coriander

1/2 tsp smoked paprika

pinch of cayenne pepper

1/2 tbsp of gluten free soy sauce

2 tbsp of olive oil (I used Clear Spring)

2 – 4 little gem lettuces, depending on their size

For the Salsa:

1/2 fresh pineapple, peeled and diced

1 yellow pepper, diced

a handful of chives, finely chopped

juice of one lime

a handful of fresh coriander chopped

An avocado, cut into thin slices and extra fresh chopped coriander for serving

Put the walnuts into a food processor and pulse into a coarse rubble. Add all the other ‘meat’ ingredients except the lettuce and pulse until it forms a crumbly ‘meaty’ texture.

For the salsa, simply combine all the ingredients together, mix and leave for a few minutes for the flavours to develop.

To build the tacos, separate the lettuce leave and spoon a little of the walnut meat into the centre.  Top with a slice of avocado, a spoonful of the salsa and a sprinkling of extra coriander.

 

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Chocolate Orange Baobab Cake with Citrus Cashew Cream Cheese Frosting

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Chocolate Baobab Cake with Citrus Cashew Cream Cheese Frosting

Here is my second recipe using PONA’s Baobab powder.  Remember you can get a 20 % discount off your order using my exclusive discount code VEGEBRIT at http://www.pona.fi/shop until 24.6.  PONA sources their baobab from a local co-op in Zimbabwe and have a commitment to only using organic fruit powder.  One of baobab’s biggest strengths is its versatility.  With high levels of fibre, it works well in cakes, breads and baking.   If you haven’t read my previous post, I will quickly repeat what a super food powerhouse baobab is, it contains:

  • 10 times more antioxidants than blueberries
  • More calcium than milk
  • More iron than red meat
  • More potassium than a banana
  • More magnesium than spinach
  • The high content of vitamin C allows for a better absorption of iron

So it is great for anyone wanting to boost their nutritional levels and for those on a vegan diet looking for another source of these essential vitamins and minerals.

This cake was inspired by Cat Elliot’s paleo mud cake.  I have mixed it up a little and serve this cold with a baobab citrus cashew cream cheese.  Baobab really boosts any citrusy flavour as well as helping the cake and icing to set properly.    The cake is super moist, wheat free and not too sweet.  It lasts well in the fridge and I topped mine with poppy seeds, edible rose petals and chopped toasted pecans.

Chocolate Orange Baobab Cake with a Citrus Cashew Cream Cheese Frosting

Dry Ingredients:

200g of ground almonds

35g of raw cacao powder

4 Tbsp of PONA’s organic baobab powder

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

a pinch sea salt

 

Wet Ingredients:

3 tbsp of chia seeds

50g  of fresh blueberries blended with 1 dl of water

1 and 1/4 dl of maple syrup

2 tbsp melted coconut oil

zest of an orange

 

For the cashew Cream Cheese:

3 tsp PONA’s Baobab powder

125 g  cashews, soaked overnight, drained and rinsed

juice of 1/2 an orange

Zest and juice of a lime

1 tbsp coconut oil, melted

maple syrup (optional – see note below)

 

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees c. and grease and line a 22 cm round loose bottom cake tin.

Mix all the dry ingredients in a large bowl and set to one side.  In another bowl add the chia seeds and 9 tbsp of water, stir and allow to thicken for a couple of minutes.  Stir in all the other wet ingredients.  Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix well.  Pour into your cake tin and bake for 35 – 40 mins, until a toothpick comes out clean.  Set to one side and allow to cool completely, preferably in the fridge.

Meanwhile make the cashew cream cheese.  Add all the ingredients, except the maple syrup, into a food processor and blend until super smooth and creamy.  Depending on how juicy you fruit is, you may need to add a little more juice or water, but remember the icing will get thicker as it cools in the fridge.  If you prefer a sweeter icing, add maple syrup to taste.  I chose to colour my icing with a little beetroot juice, but you could also use fruit powder, or simply leave it plain.

Carefully remove the cake from the tin.  The cake is fairly soft, however it will firm up the longer it is chilled.  Spread the cake with the cashew cream cheese.  Finally I decorated my cake with toasted pecans, poppy seeds and dried rose petals.

Allow the cake to chill in the fridge for a couple of hours before serving, this will allow the icing to firm and make the cake easier to cut.

 

Organic Baobab Powder – Collaboration with PONA and Webshop Discount Code

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Baobab Berry Smoothie Bowl, Yoghurt with Baobab, Cherries and Granola, Baobab Tumeric Latte

As  I have mentioned before I have been super busy with a number of projects, but now you will begin to see the fruits of my labours!  I have been lucky enough to try out PONA’s Organic Baobab powder.  PONA is a word in Shona meaning to heal or get better.  The company, based in Helsinki, was set up by three good friends who share a commitment to ethically sourced products and working with smaller local producers.   Baobab is an African super fruit, full of dietary fibre and packed with nutrients.  Baobab has more anti-oxidants than any other fruit, has more iron than red meat, and has high levels of potassium and magnesium.  The fruit dries while still on the branch, naturally producing an organic superfood powder.  It has a lemony citrus taste and can be added to yoghurt and smoothies, stirred into water to create a nutritious drink and can also be used in baking, pancakes and ice cream.  Baobab also thickens, which helps to quickly create jams and add depths to sauces, marinades and compotes.

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PONA’s Organic Baobab Powder

It has been great to get to know the product and see how versatile it can be.   I will be posting a series of recipes and hope to give you an idea of how Baobab can easily be added into your diet to boost your dishes and intensify citrusy fruity flavours.  PONA’s Organic Baobab powder is currently available in John’s Coffee Shop and Kuuma. However if you order online now (9.6. – 24.6.) with my exclusive discount code you will get 20% off your order!  Go to PONA’s webshop at http://pona.fi/shop/ or click on one of the links in this post, and use the discount code VEGEBRIT to get a 20% discount off their Baobab powder (unfortunately it is currently only available in Finland).

I began by simply adding a teaspoon or two to boost my smoothie bowls and yoghurt (pictured above) and moved on to this Baobab Turmeric Latte.  It is a super easy way to introduce yourself to using Baobab, not to mention it is packed full of healthy goodness!  So why not give PONA’s Baobab a try?  During the next two weeks I will be posting more Baobab recipes from cakes and pancakes to bircher muesli and ice pops so you can get an idea of what can be done with this superfood powder.

Baobab Turmeric Latte – makes 2 lattes

4 dl almond milk

1 heaped tsp PONA’s Organic Baobab Powder

1 heaped tsp turmeric

2 tsp maple syrup

2 small cinnamon sticks

4 cardamon pods, crushed

a good pinch of ground ginger

a pinch of pepper

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Baobab Turmeric Latte

Pour the milk into a small pan and slowly heat, add all the spice ingredients and allow to infuse for 3 – 5 mins.

Pour through a sieve into 2 cups and top with a little extra cinnamon.  If you wish you can whisk the milk, or whizz it up quickly in a heat proof blender to create some foam before serving.