I’ve been making these energy balls/energy bites/bliss balls/whatever you want to call them for a few years now, so I don’t know why I’m only blogging them now. Still, here we are. Or, rather, here they are.
Crispy Air Fried Smoked Paprika Chickpeas
I’ve been attempting to up my exercise lately, which is all well and good but, with exercise comes appetite and if I burn off 300 calories, it makes me want to eat 1,000, so some healthy snacks were needed to stop me munching on crisps and chocolate.
Basil & Chive Pesto (Vegan)
As much as I love using fresh herbs, I’ve never had any success growing my own, the grow-in-a-pot ones from the supermarket don’t seem to last long and the ones in the plastic packets – once opened – only last a couple of days before going soggy and, although I’ve tried freezing them, they defrost as a soggy mess and get thrown in the bin. Therefore, I usually prefer to save my money and create less waste by not ending up throwing soggy herbs in the compost bin after only using a tablespoon or so of them.
Vegan Tofu & Mushroom Mini Quiches
I went to London VegFest the other week and for once, I actually came out looking forward to the next year’s event. On the previous years I’ve been, it’s been cramped, overcrowded and I hadn’t been able to get anywhere near the stalls, let alone try anything or buy anything. This year, although it was in the same space and I’m going to assume they weren’t turning stallholders or customers away, there was plenty of room to walk around and to see and sample everything, and sample things I certainly did.
Smooth and Creamy Tofu Hummus – a Tasty Alternative to Chickpeas
I’m not suggesting for a moment you ditch the more traditional chickpea hummus – especially when I have the recipe for the best hummus in the world ever but, if you fancy a hummus/spread/dip type thing but can’t be bothered to go to the supermarket for a tin of chickpeas but you do have a carton of silken tofu and a jar of tahini in the house, then this is the recipe for you. As an added bonus, unlike the recipe for the best hummus in the world ever, you don’t have to wait for this tofu hummus to cool down.
Vegan Cheese, Chilli and Mustard Straws
My friend Jacqui (who I interviewed here and who wrote about her stay at Jacob’s Ridge/The Pig Village here) mentioned the other day how much she and her family like the Tesco Free From Soya Medium Cheese. Although there are almost as many opinions on vegan cheese varieties/makes as there are actual vegans, I took her recommendation in good faith, especially as she’s the only vegan in her house. I mean, if dairy-cheese eaters like it, it must be good, right? Wrong. Really wrong. So wrong I immediately unfriended her and asked her for the package of chocolate orange I gave her back, even though I hate chocolate orange (this isn’t actually true (the unfriending bit, that is – the ‘I hate chocolate orange’ is most definitely true) and she’s probably eaten the chocolate already anyway).
Dehydrated Mushroom Jerky
I dropped some tofu jerky on the kitchen floor the other day. This saddened me because it was the last of the current batch and even though I scooped it up within the three-second-rule thing, I know how often the kitchen floor gets cleaned and therefore I apply something more akin to a three-foot-rule thing as far as any food/floor contact goes. I wiped the jerky with a bit of kitchen roll but I still didn’t fancy my chances and I wasn’t about to bleach it then eat it, so into the bin it went. Sniff.
Vegan Smoky Garlic Mushroom Pâté
Move on if you’re allergic to mushrooms or nuts – this vegan pâté is made with copious amounts of both.
My experience of pâté is limited to chicken liver pâté sandwiches as a child in the 70s (so you can imagine what that was like) and, more recently, to the mushroom pâté in the red tubes sold in Holland & Barrett (which, if you’ve never tried, is very nice indeed). I’m doubtful whether either of these are representative of ‘real’ pâté as, whenever I see it being made on Come Dine With Me or its ilk, it’s always served as a hard lump that can be cut with a knife and not the spreadable mush I’m used to.
Dehydrated Tofu Jerky
I love tofu. I especially love it when it’s been pressed to perfection and isn’t a gungy spongy lump of goo, which it hasn’t been since getting my hands on a Tofuture tofu press. But I still wanted to make it meatier and chewier and wondered what it would be like dehydrated, which also gave me a good excuse to use my new Optimum P200 dehydrator.