Like the other vegetable fritters, this one is full of all sorts of my favourite veggies but also includes my secret ingredient to make it super crispy, crunchy and scrumptious!
It hasn’t any recipe to follow and doesn’t need any scale. You may use your favourite veggies. I just pick most vegetables from our garden, like courgette, potatoes, spinach and some bell pepper leaves. Only carrots and cabbages are bought from the supermarket.
All you need to do is finely shredded or grated them. Put the finely grated carrots with the shredded cabbages in the mixing bowl, sprinkle a teaspoon of salt, mix and leave it for half an hour or so to let it soften, then squeeze all the liquid out as possible. Grate the potatoes and also need to squeeze the liquid, mix with the carrots, cabbages and potatoes together, add in the seasoning of salt and pepper, and some ground cumin, dried parsley or fresh chopped one. If you don’t like parsley, use the coriander should be fine. Then add in just enough flour to bind everything together. Mix and shape into flat fritters and coat with coarse cornmeal (this is my secret ingredient to make the fritters so crispy!) Fry in enough oil until both sides are golden brown.
DELICIOUS! ☺️
TIPS:
To make the fritters thinner, you will get crispier, and also quicker to fry.
You may use gluten-free flour instead of the normal plain flour if necessary, I tried to use chickpea flour before, but it still works so well.
I just am aware of, I haven’t been posting for a month, time flying too fast when you’re too busy with work. I still make my own 3 meals a day: breakfast, lunch and dinner. But all of them are just simple & quick. I think a lot of you would be in the same situation as me.
This is a super easy and not too time-consuming meal. You can use your favourite pasta like linguine, rigatoni, farfalle, etc. Or you can use tortelloni for a special dish! I have bought a pack of fresh Black Tuscany kale, you may use curly kale, spinach or other seasonal veggies!
Ingredient: Serve 2
100g Spaghetti
Salt
1 tbsp olive oil to fry the chorizo
Pinch of chilli flakes, more or less for your liking
1/2 pack Fresh Black Tuscany kale
2-3 Vegan Spicy Chorizo Sausages, sliced
Pasta water
Nutritional yeast flakes for topping or Vegan Parmesan, optional
1 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil for topping
Sea salt and cracked pepper
Instruction:
Remove the tough stalks from the kale, chop and rinse with water. Set aside.
Boil water in a saucepan, and add 1/2 tbsp salt. Cook pasta until al dente. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water.
In a large pan, heat olive oil and chilli flakes over medium-high heat. Add sliced chorizo and fry for a minute. Add chopped kales and fry for another minute. Add a splash of pasta water to get things moving and to help steam the kales. Cook for another two minutes to wait for the kale to soften.
Season with salt and pepper. Toss in pasta and lightly toss into the veggies. Add in the remaining a splash of pasta water to emulsify. Grate Parmesan cheese and toss again if you use it. Check for seasoning, top with yeast flakes and more extra virgin oil and serve immediately.
I do feeding my sourdough starter regularly and saving me some sourdough discard to make this super easy cake for my hubby’s afternoon tea today.
If you have your sourdough starter, what will you do with your discard starter? Share with me more ideas if you don’t mind, please!
You can add your sourdough starter and discard up to 250g if you have, but reducing the flour to 1 cup should be enough. Because I have a 150g discarded starter, I decided to add 1/2 cup of flour to balance the cake batter. Also, you can add the sugar from 1/3 to 1/2 cup for your sweet tooth, I just use 1/3 cup of sugar that’s enough for me! Feel free to adjust your sweetness.
The way to achieve this cake shouldn’t be complicated for anyone. You only need one bowl, first of all, mash up the bananas straight in the mixing bowl, top with starter discard, oil, then sugar, stir to well combine. Then sieve in all the dry ingredients and chopped nuts, remember to reserve some nuts for topping. At last, place in the preheated oven to bake until cooked and golden brown. Isn’t that easy? This recipe is the easiest for the green baker!
Ingredients: 2 to 3 Spotty bananas, mashed well (I used 2) 150g Sourdough starter discard (can use room temp or from the fridge) 3 tbsp Vegetable oil 1/3-1/2 cup, packed brown sugar 1 1/2 cup plain flour 1 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp baking soda A pinch of Pink salt A handful of chopped nuts, reserve some for topping
Instruction:
1.) Mash the ripened bananas and stir in the sourdough discard, oil and brown sugar. Mix all well to combine. Sieve in all dry ingredients and chopped nuts. Use a spatula to fold altogether without any dry flour.
2.) Pour in a lined loaf tin, pour the cake batter in evenly, top with the reserved nuts, place in the air-fryer and set the temperature to 160C, bake for 10 minutes first, then cover with a piece of foil, continue to bake for another 20 minutes until cooked.
Note: If using the normal oven, preheat the temperature to 180C/ 160C for a fan oven, and bake the cake for 28-30mins.
Once you’ve made your own English muffins, you’ll never want to buy them again. That’s what Paul Hollywood said.
I totally agree after I made these extra crispy English muffins. They’re soft inside, so crispy outside. The tips to achieve this result: first of all, your dough needs to be proof until triple or at least double the size; second tips, use a good oil to fry, like organic oil to get the nice colour and crispier.
If people said muffin, you must think that must be a little sweet sponge cake. Some people will be wondering: English muffin is a cake or bread? According to a google search, the English muffin is a flat yeast-leavened bread that is commonly sliced horizontally, English muffin is an essential ingredient and a variety of breakfast items are derived from it, such as the popular McMuffin. But it has to distinguish them from the sweeter cupcake-like muffins.
For making a quick dairy English muffin in a couple of hours, here is the link from Paul Hollywood (one of my favourite bakers) I suggest to you.
The tips to make this softer, you only need to prepare a Biga starter after your dinner. Mix up the dough and let the fermentation process in the fridge for a night. And the next day, just like the normal way to make bread. And the way to make this bread extra crispy, you don’t need to bake it in the oven, just heat up a griddle or frying pan, add your chosen oil and fry until both sides are golden and crispy.
They will keep in an airtight container for 2 days, but I would think you’ll finish them as soon as possible in your breakfast, pack lunch or even your tea time with peanut butter with jam!
I wish you had a go, these English muffins are extremely scrumptious! Once you try it, you won’t go back to the supermarket to get your muffins. Furthermore, they’re totally easy to handle!
More ideas to serve with your English Muffins:
For savoury ideas: Florentine muffins, Egg or Just egg muffins with melted vegan cheese, muffins with hummus & tomato, Portobello mushroom with roasted red peppers & balsamic glaze, use any pizza toppings and grill before serving.
Sweet tooth ideas: English muffins into French toast, strawberries with vegan cream cheese.
INGREDIENTS FOR THE BIGA:
60ml Water 75g Strong flour/bread flour 3/4tsp Instant yeast
FOR THE MAIN DOUGH:-
500g Plain flour/all-purpose flour 3/4 (3g) tsp Instant yeast 285-300g Water 1 tbsp Olive oil 6g Pink Sea salt
FOR THE TOPPING:-
5 tbsp Organic Rapeseed oil or Clarified butter or ghee for non-vegan 35g Polenta or Cornmeal, semolina
INSTRUCTION:
1). Mix all the Biga ingredients into a dough-like, leave at room temperature for 30 minutes, then chill in the fridge to do the fermentation for around 8-12 hours.
2). For the main dough: Add the ready Biga with the main ingredients in a bread machine, and let it work to finish the kneading process is. Lightly grease a large bowl with oil. Place the dough in the oiled bowl, cover and leave to prove for about one hour or more, or until triple in size in a warm place around 25-27C.
3). Dust the work surface with semolina or polenta. Tip the dough out onto the table, deflate and divide it into certain portions, and roll it into a ball shape. Leave for 15 minutes. Roll out to about 2.5cm thick. Spray the top and bottom side with water, and dust the semolina or polenta evenly. Place them evenly spaced apart on a large baking tray. Leave to prove for another 45 minutes or more in a warm place around 30C until double its size. (The longer you leave your dough before baking, the more bubbles you will create an even better flavour.)
4). Preheat the hot griddle or a heavy-based frying pan on the hob to very low heat. Griddle the muffins for approximately 5-6 minutes, then flip over and griddle for another 5-6 minutes on the other side until crispy golden colour.
5). Cut the muffins in lengthways, and serve with your favourite fillings. Any left-over can save in an airtight container for 2-3 days. Reheat in a hot griddle to make it crispy again for the best serving. Enjoy!
I am not a fan to celebrate any special day for me, but I love to do this for people who like to celebrate St Patrick’s Day with classic vegan Irish stew – it’s big on flavour, alternatively bigger if you make it ahead and quite literally.
Traditionally, an Irish stew with Guinness is made with lamb, which you can totally do. My version is vegan, and I like to use soy chunks/ TVP, but you may use meaty-like king oyster mushrooms instead. Whichever you choose, this stew is absolutely delicious. Not too heavy, but still extremely filling. It’s great for St. Patrick’s day to enjoy with your family or friends. Great for this cold winter night.
Ingredient:
2-3 King oyster mushrooms (cut chunky dice) or 1 cup soy chunks or TVP chunks
¼ cup all-purpose flour (You can use gluten-free)
2 medium potatoes, chunky dice
1 cup chunky diced Butternut squash or pumpkin
2 sticks celery, sliced
1 Large carrots, sliced
6-8 mushrooms, quartered
1/2 can Black beans, optional
1/2 can Guinness draught stout
2 cups Vegetable stock
1-2 tsp Mixed herbs
Small bunch of fresh coriander, chopped
Salt & Black Pepper
Method:
1.> Mix the flour with salt and pepper and half the herbs. Dredge the king oyster mushroom chunks in the flour. Shake off any excess flour with a sieve. Or soak the soy chunks in warm water until soft, squeeze the liquid out, add some soy sauce, sesame oil, white pepper & a little bit of salt, 1 tbsp of cornflour, stir to well combined, marinate it for half-hour. Then dredge it in the flour with the salt & pepper and half the mixed herbs.
2.> Heat up a large frying pan with 2 tbsp of vegetable oil, brown the King oyster mushrooms or soy chunks in a single layer, being careful not to crowd them. Remove them to a dish lined with a paper towel and set them aside.
3.> Add one tbsp oil to the frying pan, add carrot, celery, mushroom, potato and butternut squash. Season with salt and pepper. Saute, stirring frequently, over medium heat until softened and about 5-6 minutes. Add the remaining flour if left from the soy chunks, stir to mix. Add the Guinness, cook and bring to a boil. Add the remaining half herbs with the fried mushroom or soy chunks, and the vegetable stock, more or less by your judgement.
4.> Bring it to a boil again, reduce heat and let it simmer with a lid on, cook for a further time until the vegetables are very tender and the flavours have melded together. I love to make my stew thicker, but you can make it soupy like. Add seasoning to taste, suggest you add a knob of butter for a richer flavour.
5.> Serve hot with your Irish soda bread is the best or boiled rice for your choice.
Wish you all have fun with your flapping skill! But I don’t, I always make a mess with my pancakes, unfortunately!
I haven’t put on any new post for two months since the last one. Such stress, hectic and depress difficult time I have been through. I wish everything gets better!
Orange and chocolate pancakes to cheer up for all. The batter is so easy to whisk up, ingredients can find in your cupboard easily.
Let’s start!
Vegan Orange & Chocolate Pancake
Ingredient:
2 Oranges, rind and juice, reserve 1/2 of the orange juice to make sauce
20g Dairy-free chocolate chips
120g Plain flour
3/4 tsp Baking powder
Pinch of sea salt
1 tbsp Light brown sugar or maple syrup
1 1/2 tbsp Rapeseed oil
(1/2 of the orange juice from above + dairy-free milk) = 150ml
Method:
1). Whisk the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar together. Pour in the milk, oil, and 1/2 of the orange juice, mix well combined until smooth. Fold in the chocolate chips. Set aside for 10-20 minutes.
2). Heat a tablespoon of oil in a frying pan, spoon about 2 tbsp of the batter at a time. Let the surface of the pancake appears lot of bubbles then flip. Wait both sides are golden in colour, remove and transfer to a plate and cover with a tea towel to keep warm!
3). Cook the remaining orange juice with 1 tbsp brown sugar or without, make a thickening sauces with 1/2 tbsp cornflour with 3/4 tbsp water. Whisk in the boiling juice, off heat.
4). Served the pancakes with some chocolate chips if you like and pour the orange juice over, maybe a drizzle of maple syrup or a scoop of your favourite dairy-free ice cream on the side. Enjoy!
Hi everyone! Happy Christmas to you all! Wish all have a wonderful festival time and play safe!
I have been so busy to experiment making Panettones since December, they are great to try out a few of the recipes. Most of them are dairy for my family to try. The result was not too bad, the latest one took me 4 days to finish (because the weather so cold), the taste was rich and the texture so spongy and moist. But the downside is: it took me so much time to look after it. I still desperately love to make a sourdough vegan Panettone for myself. I wish I had time to make it.
Crispy on the outside, juicy inside and stuffed with sautéed cabbages, tofu, shredded carrot, mushroom or more, and seasoned with salt, toasted sesame oil and ground white pepper. These crispy bottom veggie buns are absolutely delicious, and tasty. The other name is called Shanghai Sheng Jian Bao上海生煎包!
Sheng Jian Bao/生煎包 (aka Sheng Jian Mantou/生煎饅頭) is a type of Chinese pan-fried bao buns. It is made from yeast dough and originally filled with minced pork, spring onion and various seasonings. Its size is small, similar to a golf ball! In Shanghai, these buns are traditionally served as breakfast, they are popular in street stalls. People are queueing in front of the stalls starring at a large flat pan cover with lots of Sheng Jian bao frying. They are truly fresh and super flavoursome!
This flour ratio is my best recipe and I adapted it all the time to make Chinese buns. You may adjust the water content for the different flour you used.
* 500G Plain flour * 5g Instant yeast * 1 tbsp Maple syrup or sugar * 2g Sea salt * 250g-260g Water * 1 tbsp Oil, optional to make it oil-free
FILLING: * 1 tbsp Neutral oil * 1/4 Head of White cabbage, shredded * 1 Carrot, grated * 1 Courgette/zucchine, grated * Few Mushrooms, sliced * 2 tsp Grated ginger * Small bunch of fresh Coriander, chopped * 1 tbsp Chilli paste, hot or mild of your choice * 1 tbsp Soy sauce * 1 tbsp Flax seeds + 3 tbsp water, stir to mix, set aside, check note * Salt and white pepper * 1 tbsp sesame oil
METHOD:
1) Making the dough: Add water, maple syrup or sugar, yeast in a bread machine, then add the flour and salt. Choose the dough setting and start to work until all the ingredients come together and form a rough dough, add the oil and work to the end of the programme finish.
(Or you may knead it by hands: In a large bowl, mix flour, yeast and sugar. Pour in water little by a littlewhile stirring with a pair of chopsticks. Then knead with your hand until a smooth, elastic dough forms. Cover the bowl with a wet kitchen towel. Leave to rise in a warm place until double in size. It will take between 40 minutes to 1.5 hours depending on the room temperature.)
*2) Turn the dough onto a floured surface, and knead for a few more minutes until smooth. Let the dough proof until double the size, it takes around an hour or more, depending on the temperature.
*3) For the filling: Put the cabbage, carrot, courgette in a mixing bowl, add 1 tbsp salt and rub thoughtfully with all, leave for an hour, squeeze the liquid out.
*4) Heat oil in a pan. Sauté ginger, mushrooms until fragrant. Add the cabbage mixture, soy sauce, salt and white pepper, chilli paste, and cook for 2 minutes, off heat. Transfer the mixture into a bowl. Then add along with flax ‘egg’ mixture and a drizzle of sesame oil. Set aside.
*5) To make the buns, turn the dough onto a floured surface and punch down to deflate. Divide the dough into 16 pieces about 50g each, roll each one into a ball. Take one of them and flatten it slightly with your palm. Use a rolling pin and roll out to a flat circle, thicker in the middle. Put a tablespoon of filling on top and pleat dough to seal tightly. Add half a tablespoon of oil in a large flat-bottom frying pan, put the buns in (about eight in a 28cm pan), with a gap between. Cover with a lid and leave for around half-hour until you touch the buns and feel fluffy.
*6) Cooking the buns over medium heat and fry for one or two minutes until the bottom turns light brown. You can flip over the buns and fry the other side if you like, otherwise, you can just fry only one side is fine. Slowly add in hot water to cover about 1/4 of the buns, put the lid on and turn the heat to medium-low. Cook until all water has been absorbed. Take out the buns and repeat for the remaining ones.
NOTE:
*You can freeze the cooked buns and just reheat in the pan, or steam them! No need to thaw.
*Add the flax ‘egg’ is for bringing all the filling stick together, you may skip this if you don’t like it.
I can’t remember how long I haven’t made banana cake, luckily my hubby bought a bunch of ripened bananas on the bargain shelf for me. They smell so nice and full of black spots on the skin, I think it is the best time to make this cake today.
Even you’re the first time to bake, this recipe is super easy, not many tools and no complicated ingredients to prepare, only need a mixing bowl and a spatula and a baking tin, so simple! The main ingredient need 2 bananas, chocolate and some slivered almond (some toasted for topping, some of the cake), and I sprinkle some desiccated coconut on top of the cake for decoration, but you can skip if you don’t have it. Because my banana is well ripened and I like my cake not too sweet, so the sweetness you can adjust!
Ok, let’s start! First, mash the bananas in the mixing bowl, add sugar, vegetable oil, nut milk, chop some dark chocolate, some slivered almond or chopped almond, stir to mix all. Sieve in the flour and use a spatula mix until well combined without any flour lumps left. Pour into the baking pan and bake! EASY!!!
1 Bowl Vegan Banana & Chocolate Cake
INGREDIENT: (6″ cake)
2 bananas, ripened
20g Brown sugar or maple syrup*
50g Vegetable oil
65g Nut milk of your choice
50g Dairy-free dark chocolate, chopped
3 1/2 tbsp ground almonds or hazelnuts
150g Plain flour
1 1/2 tsp Baking powder
FOR THE TOPPING:
80-100g Dairy-free dark chocolate
1 tbsp Vegan butter
Slivered almond or chopped hazelnut, optional
METHOD:
*1) Preheat the oven to 350F, 180C or 160C in a fan oven, grease one 6″ cake tin with baking paper.
*2) Mash the bananas in the mixing bowl, add sugar or maple syrup, then add the oil and nut milk of your choice. Stir until well combined. Add the chopped chocolate and ground nuts, sieve in the flour and baking powder. Mix all with a spatula until without any flour lumps. Pour in the cake tin. Bake in the hot oven for 30 minutes to a golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.
*3) Chop the chocolate into small pieces in a small bowl with the butter, and place over a pan of simmering hot water until the chocolate melted (don’t let the chocolate bowl touch the hot water). Stir the chocolate with the butter to a smooth paste.
*4) Spread the chocolate all over the cake and sprinkle the nuts on top. Then serve with a cup of your favourite coffee, ENJOY!
NOTE:
The sweetness of sugar you can adjust because I don’t like too sweet.
You won’t forget your childhood’s beloved food, no matter how long you have been away from your hometown, right?
Vegan HK Pineappe Buns~純素港式南瓜菠蘿包+湯種
Pineapple buns are also known as melon buns メロン パン in Japan, actually, they haven’t got anything connected to pineapple!!! I guess the pattern of the topping has a bit similar, don’t you think?
Most of the sweet buns are more moisture than the others, this one is the same, even without any eggs. Adding the water Roux/ tangzhong 湯種 will give the texture lighter and softer, but not too easy to handle by hand kneading. So I prefer to use a bread machine to help me finish the kneading step.
Except for the water roux, adding the pumpkin puree is my next main ingredient in this buns, because pumpkin is the seasonal food now, I like to adapt it to my beloved bread. It gives the bread more flavour and sweetness. Another ingredient is my discarded sourdough starter (you knew I didn’t like to waste any food). I use about 10% of the main flour and reduce a small amount of yeast, water content is only 60g, but that’s enough for this bun. But it depends on your flour to adjust the water, maybe more or less!
After all the hardwork, you can enjoy a soft, springy and scrumptious Hong Kong style pineapple buns 港式菠蘿包!
* Put all the ingredients in a small saucepan over low heat and stir constantly until it starts to thicken like a paste. Keep stirring another one minute, off the heat and let it cool down.
Ingredient for the main dough: (Makes 16 buns, 55g each)
150g Pumpkin puree
50g Discarded sourdough starter
50g Brown sugar or Maple syrup
60g Water
2g Sea salt
420g Strong flour/Bread flour
5g Instant yeast
20g Rapeseed oil
Ingredient for the topping: (16 pieces, 33g each)
250 g Self-raising flour/ cake flour
1 1/2 tsp Baking powder
40 g Custard powder
90 g Unrefined light brown sugar
40 g Pumpkin puree
80 g Vegan Butter, melted
3 tbsp Nut milk, more or less
INSTRUCTION:
*1) For the main dough: Place the pumpkin puree, discard sourdough starter, sugar, salt, water into the bread machine, then add the flour and instant yeast on top. Select the dough setting and press Start to work.
*2) After a few minutes, add oil to the dough and work together until the setting programme is finished.
*3) Remove the dough out and place in a warm place to proof until double the size, it takes about 1 1/2 hours depending on your temperature.
*4) Now, prepare the topping: Mix all the ingredients together, cover with a piece of cling film, chill in the fridge if the temperature is too warm, otherwise, keep at room temperature should be fine.
*5) Remove the main dough to the table and deflate it. Divide into 16 portions, around 55g each. Cover with a tea towel and rest for 15 minutes. Roll into a ball shape, repeat all the rest of the buns.
*6) Place in a warm place and make the 2nd proofing around 30 minutes. Then divide the topping into 16 portions, about 33g each, flatten with a rolling pin between two pieces of cling film. Use a dough scraper to make the mark with a cross hatch/ diamond pattern. The pattern should be deep enough (otherwise it will disappear when the bread rises and bakes) without cutting through the cookie dough.*6) Place in a warm place and make the 2nd proofing around 30 minutes. Then divide the topping into 16 portions, about 33g each, flatten with a rolling pin between two pieces of cling film. Use a dough scraper to make the
*7) After 30 minutes, the buns double the size, place one piece of the topping on each bun carefully.
*8) Preheat the oven to 350F, 180C or 160C in a fan oven. Place the tray of buns in the second-low shelf of the oven and bake about 15 to 17 minutes until golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack to cool thoroughly. Then enjoy!
matchamochi 