The heat is on - Pimp your water!

The summer has finally arrived in London and with a vengeance. I went to the Wholefood market in Picadelly and there was rows of beautiful bottles of infused waters. It was boiling outside and looked so beautiful in the bottles.

I bought a bottle and the boys and I agreed this was a great drink, but a bit expensive for what it really was.

I can do that myself I thought.

I found on Amazon Kindle a free book about Flavoured water to down load, even better.

No need for juicers and blenders, only your patience. If you are real fancy, you could buy an "infuser", but really a glass or plastic bottle is all you need.

I got lots of mint in my garden and 3 pebble strawberry plants., so the first batch we made was strawberries, mint and lime. Left it for 3 hours and ready to drink.

Other great combinations are:

- cucumber w/lemon infuse for 2 hours 

- Kiwi on its own, or with strawberries. Infused for 3 hours 

- Pineapple with mint, or ginger. Infused for 3 hours 

- Watermelon w/rosemary infused 2 hours 

There are hundreds of other combinations, but no excuse to get dehydrated. Enjoy the summer.

"Against all grain" granola

I really don't like many of the breakfast products you can buy in the shops. Too much sugar, boring or something I don't like i.e. Raisins. So when I occasionally get the craving for granola, I do it myself .

This recipe is pimped from Danielle Walkers book "Against all grains - meals made simple". I really really like her cookbooks a lot and can highly recommend to get your hands on one of her two books. 

Her granola is called "Nut-free granola " and that it isn't anymore in my pimped world. I also halved the portion size.

So here it is: 

Mix 2 tsp chia seeds with 1 Tbsp warm water - set aside.

In a pot 1/4 cup raw honey + 1 Tbsp coconut oil + 1 Tbsp almond butter, melt these on very low heat.

In a bowl mix 1 cup of mixed seeds (pumpkin, sesame, sunflower) + 1/2 cup coconut flakes + 2 Tbsp hulled hempseed + 1 tsp cinnamon + dash of vanilla powder and salt. Put all the seeds into a food processor and pulse 6 time.

Mix the melted honey and oil with seed mix - spread on lined baking tray and into oven 150 degrees 5 mins, flip around and back again for another 5 minutes. Please keep an eye on this, at this stage. Mine got a bit dark this time, but still okay.

When the granola is cold, mix in 1/3 cup of dried sour cherries. Could be raisins or cranberries.

Raw Raspberry Chia seed jam

Enjoying a morning at home, kids at school and some well deserved time to myself. So while staring out in the garden and reflecting on life and what brings joy to your life, I realised how much I missed blogging. Last couple of years has been a challenge, with my twin boys autoimmune diseases, my own and life in general.

So why blogging!? Do I have something to share and does anybody care? I don't know, but maybe - just maybe someone is reading this out there and find some of this useful.

First cookbook to be pimped is Madelaine Shaw "Get the glow". Great recipes and beautiful photos. 

Well done Madelaine!

So this morning I decided to make from her book, the raw jam for my breakfast. Shop bought jams are often a sugar/fructose feast, attacking your blood sugar beyond believe. But this version is fresh and healthy. But of course pimped by me.

Raspberries and chia seed jam

Put 250 gram raspberries into a food processor/blender together with 1 Tbsp raw honey, 2 tsp stevia and some vanilla powder. Blend until smooth stire into this 2 Tbsp Chia seeds. As soon as the seeds is added, make sure it is well mixed in and pour into a kilner jar. Let the jam set for at least 15 min, then it is ready for smearing on bread, or mixing into yogurt.

Keep in fridge for 4 days, but don't worry it will be gone by then. Enjoy 

Hot chocolate for the soul

There is something about autumn, winter and hot chocolate,
So on this official first cold day in London, after a day with wind so powerful that a few panels of my old garden shed got ripped off, time for Hot chocolate!!!

I always experiment with little improvments to make this drink even better.
So inspiration for this dark cup of pleasure, is from a new cook book from Fran Costigan "Vegan Chocolate - Unapologetically luscious and decadent dairy-free desserts".

So here my pimped version per person :

1 cup almond milk
1 Tbsp Cocoa powder
1 Tbsp grated dark chocolate
1 Tbsp Agave syrup
1 pinch of salt
1 pinch cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp vanilla extract

Into a pot and on the stow, warm up slowly.
 When heated up add 1 tsp arrowroot powder dissolved in a little almond milk. Stir into the hot chocolate and see it thickening, just ever so slightly. This is to create that perfect chocolate moustache!
Take of the heat. You might want at this state to add a little sugar or stevia, to satisfy the sweet tooth, that is your choice.
But what ever you do, it is love in a cup and great gesture to make for someone you love - I.e. Yourself!!!!

Pimp my Japadogs

Just returned from a fantastic trip to the US and Canada, last stop was Vancouver.
As we were rolling our suitcases up Burrad street Vancouver, something court our eyes "Japadog" -www.japadog.com  street food, hot dogs Japanese style.
The next day I got a message from a "cousin" saying if you are in Vancouver, you must try Japadog.
So that was it, I took it as a sign. And off we went to try it out. Luckily  there were a meaty and veggie version, so everybody was happy and Terimayo Yum yum!

Back again in my London kitchen trying to recreate some jolly holiday memories, what better way that travel with the taste buds.
So here is my version of Japadogs Greenwich style.

To make these you would need:
Hot-dog Sausages
Finger rolls
Onions
Mustard
Avocado
Japense mayo or Egg free mayo
Wasabi
Ume Plum seasoning (optional)
Teriyaki sauce
Lemon
sesame seeds
Nori seaweed

Please choose the Hot-dog sausages of your liking. I got some Tescos Meat-free Hot-dog sausages and for the meat eaters some Halal chicken Hot-dog sausages.
I a small oven prof pan a small amount of water, add the sausages and drizzle the teriyaki sauce over them.
1 Tbsp Teriyaki sauce pr 4 sausages and  into the oven 200 degrees. Remember to flip them around every now and then, so they don't dry out. Stay in the oven for about 20 min.

Now lets make the Wasabi Avocado mayo. Mush up with a fork one whole avocado,3 Tbsp Mayo, add 2 tsp of lemon juice, 2 tsp of wasabi ( more if you like it hot!) salt and a dash or 2 of Ume Plum seasoning. Set aside.

Fried soft caramelised onions, who doesn't like that!?
Slice 2 red onions, fry them in small amount of water or add some oil if you like that. Fry them until they are just the way you like them.

Heat the finger rolls slightly and time to put it all together.
In the warm roll, I start with a thin line of mustard, then the sausage, Wasabi/avocado mayo, soft onions, chopped up Nori and a sprinkle of sesame seeds. And KONNICHI WA!!
Bloody delicious! Pimp my Japadog!

London Blackcurrant Ice cream

The blackcurrant bush in our London garden has not been very productive, well I guess Greenwich is not known for marvellous soil quality.
But 1 cup full of fresh Blackcurrant was all I managed to pick and that was just enough to make this dessert.
We got a new Baumatic ice cream machine, which I can highly recommend. So a perfect opportunity to get the beast into action.
I have had this book "The Vegan Scoop" Wheeler Del Torro on the shelf for ages, ready for experimenting.
So here it is "take one" My pimped ice Blackcurrant cream, adapted from Del Torro's blueberry version..
Pimped Yeah! I hope you don't think I followed the recipe completely!
I cut some of the sugar and substitute an ingredient or two. And the result was clean bowls for every one.
Please enjoy My Blackcurrant ice cream

  1 cup of blackcurrants + 1/4 cup of sugar and stevia mix + a dash of lemon juice, in a pot and boil until all the berries has burst. Then take the pot of.
Whisk in a bowl 1/4 cup soya milk and 2 table spoons of arrowroot powder. Set to a side, you need it soon.
In another pot 1 cup soya yoghurt + 1 carton of Alpro soya cream + 3/4 cup soya milk + 1 cup rapadura whole cane sugar. Warm it up until the boil (be careful gentle please), then add the arrowroot mix while whisking and take the pot of the cooker. Keep whisking and you should see it mixture thickening.
Now add the berry mix and a table spoon of pure vanilla extract.
Set aside to cool, before you add it into your ice cream maker. Please follow your machines instructions
Ours take about 50 minutes and cool tangy delicious ice cream is ready to munch.

Scary good Pumpkin Cupcakes

Scary good Pumpkin Cupcakes

This recipe is a true classic in our house, every year for Halloween. They are not scary or pretty, but taste great!
The recipe is pimped from on of my favourite cookbooks "Vegan Cupcakes - take over the  world" Isa Chandra Moskowitz & Terry Hope Romero. This book is truly well used. It got sugar stains and chocolate splatters all over the pages. But as always I have to change the recipes for a less sugar craving European pallet. So if you start now, you should have time to bake them for tonight. Get baking!

Pumpkin Cupcakes

Mix all these wet ingredients together by hand :
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/3 cup cold pressed rapeseed oil
3/4 cup Xylitol or sugar
1/4 cup Soy milk
1 teaspoon good vanilla extract.

DON'T use electric mixer- it will get rubbery!
.
Now add all the the dry ingredients into the wets:
1 1/4 white flour or light brown self raising
1/2 tsp baking powder +1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda,
1 tsp Cinnamon, 1/4 tsp salt, little nutmeg and a little ground ginger.
Mix it all together with a fork.

Into 12 paper cases in a cupcake tin, 180 degrees in the oven for about 22 min.
Make sure they are cold before you add the frosting.


Cashew Butter frosting

I a food processors add :

1/3 cup cashew nut butter + 3 Tbsp soft non dairy spread. Mix for 1 min
Now add 1tsp vanilla extract, 1/3 Cup Maple syrup, 1/3 cup Soya milk powder and a small dash of cardamon.
Mix until soft and smooth.
Put in the fridge for at least 15 min, before frosting the cupcakes. Frost them with a knife and leave to set.

Hope you will enjoy these and a Happy Halloween to you all.