Green 'Piña Colada' Smoothie





I LOVE a smoothie! Who doesn't right?! They're great to get your daily fruit and veg intake in a quick and delicious way.  And if you can sneak in some Spinach or Kale - even better!  

I've tried a few different combos and this is now one of my staples.  I love the tropical-coconut taste.  Reminds me of the Piña Colada's I had on holiday! Minus the rum...

But hey, feel free to add a dash of rum if you like - no judgement here! ;)

Enjoy guys! x





 

Green 'Piña Colada' Smoothie

Recipe adapted from Set the Table.  Click here for original.

Prep Time: 5 mins 
Serves: 1-2

Ingredients

  • 1 cup Alpro Coconut Milk 
  • 1 cup Pineapple Juice (not from concentrate) 
  • 1 cup Frozen Pineapple 
  • 1 Ripe Banana (or 2 if you like a thicker smoothie) 
  • 2 cups Kale
  • I also like to add Flax Seeds and Maca Powder to all my smoothies :)

Instructions

  1. Add all ingredients to blender, adding the liquids first as this will help blend easier
  2. Serve!!



Overview

  • Easiness: 5/5
  • Taste: 5/5
  • Approximate Cost: £1.74 (£4.77 to buy all ingredients in full but with plenty remaining to make more!)
  • Would I make again: Yes
  • Summary: So easy to make, not too many ingredients and healthy! With the added bonus of tasting like a virgin Piña Colada - what more could you ask for in a smoothie?!

Falafel is my go to filling - I had never even heard of it before and was introduced to it by a friend and was amazed how good it was and just has so much flavour! 

I normally put falafel in a wrap with some spinach and sweet chilli sauce but it is more traditionally served in Pitta bread with a Tahini sauce as I have done this time.  Wikipedia describes falafel as "Street Food" which is accurate but could be eaten at lunch or dinner as well as a snack.












Homemade Falafel with Tahini Sauce

Recipe from Just a Taste.  Click here for original.

Prep Time: 30 mins 
Chilling Time: 60 mins
Cook Time: 6 mins
Total Time (inc chilling): 96 mins
Serves: 6 (around 20 falafel)

Ingredients

For the falafel
  • 2 medium roughly chopped white onion
  • 6 garlic cloves
  • 2 cups cooked chickpeas, drained
  • 1 cup lightly packed parsley leaves (I had to use 2 tbsp dried as I bought 2 x coriander leaves by mistake!)
  • 1 cup lightly packed cilantro (coriander) leaves
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon chili powder
  • 2 teaspoons cumin 
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • ½ cup (70g) all-purpose flour 
  • Vegetable oil, for sauteing 
  • Pitta bread, for serving 
  • Salt and pepper for seasoning
For the tahini sauce
  • 1¼ cups (300ml) plain soya yogurt 
  • ¼ cup (60ml) tahini (sesame paste) 
  • 2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice 

Equipment Required

  • Food processor
  • Sauté pan or frying pan
  • Cooling rack 
  • Paper towel
  • Ice cream scoop or spoon
  • Whisk

Instructions

  1. Add the onion and garlic cloves to the bowl of a food processor and pulse just until they are finely minced. Remove the mixture and set it aside.
  2. Add the chickpeas, parsley, cilantro (coriander), salt, chili powder, and cumin to the bowl of the food processor and pulse until they are roughly blended but not pureed.
  3. Return the mixture to the food processor, along with the baking powder and just enough flour so that when you pulse the processor, the mixture begins to form a small ball and is not sticky. (Note: Start by adding ¼ cup of flour, and then the remaining ¼ cup. You can add more if the mixture is still too wet.) 
  4. Transfer the falafel mixture to a bowl, cover it with plastic wrap and refrigerate it for 1 hour.
  5. While the falafel mixture is chilling, prepare the tahini sauce by whisking together the yogurt, tahini and lemon juice. Season it with salt and pepper, cover it and place it in the fridge.
  6. Once the falafel mixture has chilled, use a small ice cream scoop or spoons to form the mixture into balls (roughly 3 Tablespoons per ball). (Note: You can also add additional flour at this point, if the mixture is too wet to scoop.)
  7. Set a large sauté pan over medium heat and add a liberal amount of vegetable oil so that the pan is well-coated. Let the pan pre-heat for 3 minutes then add the falafel, browning them on the first side for 3 minutes, then flipping them once and browning the second side until the mixture is cooked throughout.
  8. Transfer the falafel to a paper towel-lined cooling wrack and immediately season them with salt. 
  9. Place three or four falafel inside a halved, warmed pita and drizzle with the prepared tahini sauce.


Overview

  • Easiness: 4/5
  • Taste: 5/5
  • Approximate Cost: £5.27 (£10.91 to buy all ingredients in full but with plenty remaining)
  • Would I make again: Yes
  • Summary: Falafel forever! 


This is one of my favourite cupcake recipes! Forget that they're vegan, you seriously wouldn't even know.  Once you have the dry ingredients in the cupboard, you just need to make sure you have almond/soya milk and a vegan butter in the fridge (staples in a vegan fridge anyway) and you can whip these up whenever you please! 








Vegan Vanilla Cupcakes

Recipe from Babble.  Recipe link here.

Prep Time: 20 mins (5 mins ingredients, 5 mins mixing & filling cases, 10 mins mixing icing & piping)
Cook Time: 20 mins
Cooling Time: 25 mins
Total Time (inc cooling) to shove cupcakes in face: 65 mins
Serves: 10

Cupcakes
  • 1 cup (140g) flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • pinch salt
  • 1/2 cup (105g) caster sugar
  • 1/4 cup (60ml) flavorless oil (such as vegetable or sunflower)
  • 3/4 cup (180ml) non-dairy milk of choice (I used almond milk; soy would work just fine too)
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 tsp apple cider vinegar

Icing
  • 2 cup (250g) icing sugar
  • 1/2 cup (100g) melted and cooled vegan butter
  • 2 tsp vanilla

Equipment Required

  • Muffin tray
  • Mixer bowl / bowl and electric whisk
  • 10 cupcake cases
  • If piping - Piping bag and nozzle


Instructions

  1. Pre-heat oven to 365f (185c). Line a pan with 10 cupcake cases. 
  2. In a mixer bowl combine flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Mix on low for a few seconds to combine. 
  3. Add remaining ingredients and beat on medium till well blended and no lumps remain.
  4. Fill the cupcake cases with the batter and bake for 20 minutes, or till a toothpick tests clean and cupcakes bounce back when lightly pressed.
  5. Remove cupcakes from pan after 5 mins and place on a wire cooling rack and cool completely (around another 20 mins) before icing.
  6. Combine all ingredients in a mixer bowl. Beat on low till well combined, then increase speed to medium-high. Beat till light and fluffy. If frosting is too thick to pipe or spread, add more melted butter – a tablespoon at a time – till it reaches the right consistency. If it is too wet, add a little more icing sugar.
  7. Pipe or frost as desired; serve immediately or keep covered – in the fridge – for up to three days.


Overview

  • Easiness: 5/5
  • Taste: 5/5
  • Approximate Cost: £1.36 (£9.46 to buy all ingredients in full but with plenty remaining)
  • Would I make again: Yes
  • Summary: Ultimate staple recipe, can be adapted as you like for different flavours.  Really light but moist sponge and the icing is just mmmm! I've made this recipe several times now and always turns out consistently good





Welcome to my first blog post!! There will be many more to come.  Hope you enjoy it and feel inspired to try some of the recipes that I share.

Just to be clear, these are not my own recipes, just recipes I've found online and tried out that I want to share and have in one place, along with my review of the dish.  Plus I will also be posting any accidentally vegan treats that I find in supermarkets ;)









Creamy Garlic Pasta with Roasted Tomatoes (Vegan, Gluten Free)

Recipe from: Minimalist Baker, click here for a link to the original

As it's American, I've also added in the UK conversions to assist.  Prep and cook times below are how long it took me (I can be a bit slow!)

Prep Time: 15 mins
Cook Time: 30 mins
Serves: 3-4

Ingredients
  • 3 cups (390g) grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 10 ounces (285g) gluten free pasta (or regular pasta if not GF).  Use any kind you like, penne, linguine or fettuccine work best.  I only had fusilli at the time! 
  • Olive oil
  • 2 medium shallots, diced
  • 8 large cloves garlic, minced/grated
  • Sea salt and black pepper
  • 3-4 Tbsp gluten free all purpose flour (or regular flour if not GF)
  • 2.5 cups (600ml) unsweetened plain almond milk

Equipment Required
  • Large pan
  • Large pot
  • Colliander
  • Whisk
  • Blender
  • Baking sheet/tray
  • Parchment paper / baking paper

Instructions 
  1. Preheat oven to 400f (200c) and toss tomatoes in a bit of olive oil and sea salt. Place cut side up on a parchment-lined baking sheet (baking tray) and bake for 20 minutes while you prepare the rest of the dish. Then set aside.
  2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook pasta according to package instructions. When done, drain, cover and set aside.
  3. In the meantime, prepare the sauce. In a large skillet (pan) over medium-low heat, add 1 Tbsp olive oil and the garlic and shallot. Add a pinch of salt and black pepper and stir frequently, cooking for 3-4 minutes until softened and fragrant.
  4. Stir in 3-4 Tbsp flour and mix with a whisk. Once combined, slowly whisk in the almond milk a little at a time so clumps don’t form. Add another healthy pinch of salt and black pepper, bring to a simmer and continue cooking for another 4-5 minutes to thicken. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed.
  5. If you want an ultra creamy sauce, transfer sauce to a blender to blend the sauce until creamy and smooth. Place back in pan and reduce heat to a low simmer until desired thickness is reached.
  6. Once the sauce is to your desired thickness, taste and adjust seasonings as needed. Then add pasta and roasted tomatoes and stir.
  7. Serve immediately and garnish with extra black pepper, fresh basil and/or vegan parmesan cheese.



Overview
  • Easiness: 4/5
  • Taste: 4/5
  • Approximate Cost: £2.64
  • Would I make again: Yes
  • Summary: Deliciously creamy and garlicky pasta, the tomatoes really enhance the flavour of the sauce.  Very easy to make, possibly a few too many dishes for my liking but totally worth it! I feel like there is something missing with the flavour, not sure what yet but I will experiment next time I make it!



Sam xx



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