Review: Woodlands Restaurant (London)

On March 12, 2018June 11, 2018 By ClareIn londonLeave a comment

Kate and I had to go to London so we figured that we could combine obligation with a little bit of sightseeing, some shopping, and a lot of eating. We stayed close to Paddington Station so I spent a lot of time Googling and Happy Cowing (well, it should be a thing) vegan eateries in the area. Strangely thin on the ground once you rule out menus full of raw food or other dishes Kate wouldn’t touch with a barge pole. Kate does like one thing however, and that is South Indian food. So off we went to vegetarian India restaurant Woodlands. We rocked up to the Marylebone location on Friday night and prepared for a feast.

At this point I’d like to apologise for the pictures. The lighting was bad and so is my camera. I really wanted to talk about this place though because I loved the food. We ordered from a few places around the vegan menu (PDF) and started with the incredible Chatt Bombs. Tangy, tasty and full of tamarind. Sev is always welcome on my plate and pomegranate seeds added a welcome burst of freshness.

We also split an order of Idli. Kate couldn’t decide if the pillow like texture was a good thing or a bad thing. I’m firmly on the side of good thing. Undeniably the sambar is a good thing. I can see why they have extra portions on the menu. I could have drunk it down. I restrained myself though. Gotta have your best manners on when you are in the nation’s capital.

On to mains then. We needed dosas; who doesn’t, right? We split an order of the masala dosa with rice and lentil batter. Classic. I thought it was a little underdone in the middle but the taste was good and it came with more sambar. So can’t complain too much.

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Considering we were trying a few we things we thought we’d order our old standby of Sagg Aloo. Just in case. As it turned out that was a bad idea. Kate, as we’ve mentioned before, is not a chilli fan. She can tolerate a little heat but it was rather hot. It was right in the middle of my comfort zone. I loved it in fact. Kate was a little overheated though.

Mixed review then. Me, I recommend Woodlands on the strength of the chatt and sambar. Kate doesn’t recommend it because of the strength of the chillies.

Recipe: Vegan Scones

On February 26, 2018February 27, 2018 By ClareIn recipe2 Comments

Vegan food is constantly changing and evolving. New products are launched all the time, creative cooks are coming up with new methods, and an entire community is buzzing with fresh new ideas. One product that’s been a huge game changer for us is oat milk. I’m not just saying that because I work in a coffee shop: oat milk is also a fantastic addition to the vegan baker’s arsenal. I first read about the effect of oat milk in baked goods in the America’s Test Kitchen book Vegan For Everybody. They take advantage of the sugars in oat milk to give baked goods a lovely brown colour. These scones use oat milk both in the dough and brushed on top to make them look golden brown and delicious. This is another recipe updated and brought across from our old blog.

Ingredients

(for about 12 medium sized scones)

450g plain flour
4 teaspoons of baking powder
1/4 teaspoon of salt
100g margarine (we use Vitalite)
200ml oat milk + a few tablespoons more for brushing the tops
50g sugar

Pre-heat the oven to 200°C and line a tray with baking parchment.

Mix the plain flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl.

Break up the margarine into teaspoon sized amounts and place in the bowl. Rub into the flour until you get a loose, crumb-like consistency.

Mix in the sugar and 200ml of milk, stirring together until it forms a dough.

Tip the dough onto your work surface and pat down until a couple of inches thick. Use a circular cutter (or the top of a glass) to cut out the scones. Keep going until you have used up all of your remaining dough.

Pop the scones on the baking tray and brush over the remaining oat milk.

Cook for 20 minutes, until golden on top.

Review: Vegan 100

On February 23, 2018February 23, 2018 By ClareIn books3 Comments

Gaz Oakley’s Vegan 100 has been hanging around my kitchen for the past couple of weeks. And honestly I’m not sure what to make of it. We got off on the wrong foot I think. The first thing I tried to make was the Fancy Baked Doughnuts, that seduced me with their chocolate glaze. First I had to buy a doughnut pan. Then I had to make two other recipes from the book: vegan butter and egg replacement. I love a good cooking project, especially if I get to buy new equipment. Only then I made the doughnuts. And they did not work. The lovely delicate doughnuts fell apart. So. On the wrong foot.

Onwards to Valentine’s Day! I thought I’d treat Kate to some lovely home cooked food so I picked two of the recipes that attracted us in the bookshop. Tofu Tikka Kebabs and Carrot and Red Onion Bhajis. The bhajis are super easy to knock up and there are instructions for both baking and frying. I baked ours. And loved them. The bhajis got two thumbs up. The kebab… maybe half a thumb. I thought it needed a lot more in the way of seasoning.

Fortunately the next recipe I tried, the Moroccan Chickpea “Omelette”, was perfectly spiced and so very easy to make. It’s in the Breakfast and Brunch section but this works at any time of day. Finally we sampled the Potato and Leek Croquettes. Again there are instructions for both baking and frying. Again I’m still not trusted to deep fat fry. They were simple to make and they taste… okay. And I think that is the sentence that sums up the book. The recipes are clear, they’re easy, the concept is great but when I follow them the end product is just okay. If I didn’t have a shelf full of other cookbooks I’d be okay with that, especially with that omelette recipe in there. But I do have a shelf full of other cookbooks and that means I don’t know what to make of this one.

Review: Stable’s Vegan Pizza

On February 16, 2018February 16, 2018 By ClareIn Exeter3 Comments

Stable Pizza are slowly taking over the universe, or at least England. If you haven’t got a location in your town yet you probably will soon. They currently have 16 locations, most here in the South West. They focus on pizza, pies and cider, switching up ingredients in each location to keep it as local as possible. And they have a Vegan Menu which is why I’m talking about them today.

We used to eat at the Plymouth and Exeter Branches as dirty, rotten cheese eaters and we’ve always been impressed by the spectacular sourdough crust and the creative combination of toppings. Going back as vegans made us a little nervous but we’re always willing to try new pizza. You know, for the sake of the blog. So we tried the Exeter Branch.

When we arrived we were hungry, very hungry, and laden with bags. The Exeter Branch is in a fab location at the Guild Hall. It’s on the first floor so you can people watch the shoppers below while relaxing with the soft glow of the lights and the stylish chunky wood furniture. The staff were amazing. Though it was hard to figure out who our waiter was as a few had matching beards. When we asked about the vegan menu our waiter was quick to tell us about our drink options too. Not helpful for us, as we’re teetotal, but it’s great they’re on the ball. When it turned out our food was going to be late out they kept us updated the whole time. Things go wrong but when you know the staff are handling it, well that’s just good customer service.

On to the food then. We started with the vegan garlic bread. You can add cheese but we went without because between oily, garlicky goodness and that base you just can’t go wrong. It was amazing. Then the pizzas arrived. And we saw that it was good. I went for the Bute Island Blazer. Peppers, onion, chilli, mushrooms, and finished with Sheese. Sheese isn’t my favourite cheese but I’ve started to appreciate it on a pizza. All put together it was fantastic. The cheese complimented the other toppings nicely and you can never go wrong with a bit of chilli. Except if you are Kate so she had the One Potato, Two Potato instead. Kate gave it two thumbs up. So did I, because I stole a bite.

Then we were asked if we want dessert.

‘Do you have anything vegan?’ Kate asked.

‘We have a Vegan brownie.’

‘Yes please!’ replied Care and Kate simultaneously.

‘One?’ asked the waiter who had obviously never met them before.

‘Two!’ Clare and Kate replied simultaneously again, this time more forcefully.

After gleefully stuffing ourselves full of brownie, Kate got up to pay. They didn’t let her. Because of the wait we had for our garlic bread, they let us have the meal for free. Our wait was around 45 minutes, not unheard of on a busy Saturday, and the staff kept us informed so we weren’t complaining or threatening bad Trip Advisor reviews or anything. We would have been perfectly happy to pay but it was a lovely gesture and we’re not going to argue. We’ll just have to go back and pay for our pizza another time.