Author: Kate Morley

Gram and vegan cheese shortbread (recipe)

On By Kate MorleyIn recipe, veganmofo19Leave a comment

This post is part of VeganMoFo 2019, a month-long celebration of vegan food. This week’s theme is travel, and today’s prompt is road trip snack.

These gram and vegan cheese shortbread rounds may be small, but they pack in a lot of flavour. Fill a mini lunch box with them for a delicious snack that’s robust enough to survive being thrown around in your travel bags.

This recipe is adapted from a non-vegan original in Rose Prince’s The New English Kitchen. The keys to success are using a firm vegan butter (I used Naturli Organic Vegan Block) and the strongest vegan cheese you can find (I used Daiya Medium Cheddar Style Farmhouse Block).

lunchbox

Ingredients (makes 12)

60g gram flour
50g vegan cheese, grated
40g vegan butter, cut into cubes
¼ teaspoon salt
Several pinches of ground pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 180℃.

Put all the ingredients in a food processor and process until they start to combine.

processor

Tip out onto a clean surface and knead for a few seconds until the mixture has an even consistency.

Roll into a cylinder about 3cm in diameter, and then cut into rounds about 1cm thick. Use a sharp knife and rotate the cylinder a quarter turn after each cut to avoid squashing it.

before-baking

Put the rounds onto a baking tray and bake for 15 minutes. The edges should start to turn a golden brown colour. Leave to cool.

after-baking

Vegan Mofo 2019: Winter warmer

On By Kate MorleyIn veganmofo192 Comments

Hot chocolate is the perfect end to a winter’s day. Or indeed, any other day throughout the year, which is why Clare and I have 36 cartons of oat milk in the pantry. It was hot chocolate at the Exploding Bakery in Exeter that introduced us to oat milk (first Oatly, and then Minor Figures), and having tried every vegan milk around we’re still convinced that oat milk makes the creamiest hot chocolate.

This is my hot chocolate recipe: a grown-up hot chocolate, dark and strong.

hot-chocolate

Ingredients (serves 2)

1 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp raw cocoa powder (if using processed cocoa powder, increase the sugar to 2 tbsp)
15g dark chocolate (I use three squares of Green & Blacks 70%)
400ml (2 mugs) oat milk (I use Minor Figures)

Method

Put everything in a saucepan over a high heat and whisk steadily until the chocolate melts. Pour into mugs.

 

Review: Deliciously Ella (London)

On By Kate MorleyIn londonLeave a comment

When we discovered our one-day trip to London was going to last another three days, Clare headed back down to Torquay to grab some clothes and arrange for the pets to be looked after, leaving me to explore London by myself. Not enjoying crowds or noise, I took a long walk around Hyde Park before heading off along the minor roads in the vague direction of Crosstown Doughnuts.

On the corner of Weighhouse Street and Binney Street I discovered Deliciously Ella, and several hours later I returned, clutching a bag of Lush bath bombs, for a late lunch. You order at the counter and then sit around a communal wooden table where the native Londoners try to avoid making eye contact.

deliciously-ella

This is the sweet potato, chickpea, and pumpkin curry (£8.95), which is served with brown rice and optional coconut chips and chilli flakes; I turned down the chilli. It’s a wholesome and delicately flavoured dish, which unfortunately suffers from having too high a rice-to-curry ratio. In the corner of the photo is the organic chocolate cashew blend, which was pricey (£6.95 for 500ml) but wonderfully rich. For a cheaper drink, Belu water is available from a fountain in exchange for a donation to WaterAid.

While not that special for an (impromptu) holiday meal, I can imagine Deliciously Ella being a great option for those who work nearby and want good quality food without a wait.

Review: Li’l Mama’s Vegan Kitchen (Paignton)

On By Kate MorleyIn PaigntonLeave a comment

When Paignton-based Li’l Mama’s Vegan Kitchen became available through Just Eat last October, many reviewers complained of long delivery times. Attributing this to the initial stampede that greets every vegan launch, we decided to wait a few months.

We placed our order at 5:20pm on Wednesday evening, and were given an estimated delivery time of 6:20pm. With no sign of our order by 7:00pm, we called and were told the delivery driver was outside but couldn’t find our flat, so Clare went out to find him.

When we unpacked our order we found the vegan mac and cheese was missing. Fifteen minutes later they realised their mistake, and called to offer us a refund on that item.

So what about the food we did receive?

kate

I had the Vegan Mince Lasagne (£12), which was a big contrast to the Plant Kitchen lasagne from earlier this month. The cashew cheese and marinara sauce was thick and creamy, and the pasta and mince were dense and chewy. It was easily the best lasagne I’ve ever had. It came with a side of herb-roasted baby potatoes, which were cooked until just tender, although a little bit salty for my taste.

clare

Clare had the Fully Loaded Vegan Kebab (£8). She thought the seitan was perfectly spiced, tasting just like the real thing, the coleslaw and salad worked well, and the flatbread was fluffy and soft.

Our experience ordering from Li’l Mama’s Vegan Kitchen epitomises the phrase ‘good things come to those who wait’: amazing food, but not a good choice if you’re hungry and used to takeaways arriving in under an hour.

Update (7th March 2019): This evening we gave Li’l Mama’s Vegan Kitchen another go. We placed our order at 5:30pm and were given an estimated delivery time of 7:05pm. The food finally arrived at 7:55pm.

The lasagne and kebab were as good as before, but the herb-roasted potatoes were lacking in herbs. This time the Mac & Cheese (£3) wasn’t forgotten, but in contrast to the lasagne it was very bland, with an almost flavourless sauce.

pasta

Two and a half hours is too long to wait for a takeaway. We won’t be ordering again.