Tickle your taste buds and make your heart happy with Viva!’s cruelty-free cookery…
Cooking veggie has nothing to do with abstinence or self denial just because it happens to be healthy. It can encompass flavours, textures and colours from a hundred cultures - Thai and Turkish, Indian and Iranian, oriental and continental. Or it can be as homely and reassuring as Betty Turpin’s Corrie hotpot.
The dishes on these pages are simply a tantalising glimpse into a world which many people find daunting but to others is as easy as a late-night takeaway. Try France with this utterly delectable puff-pastry dish - ideal for posh dining or celebrations. The sticky tofu stir fry is quick, easy, as healthy as healthy and simply delicious. The nut stuffed mushrooms are as reassuring as a warm rub down on a cold winter’s day and the rosti are a dream, either as a starter or part of a main course. Decadent, delicious and delightful, the ice cream contains no dairy but you’d never know it.
Viva! has a whole army of vegetarian cookery books when you want to take the next step so go on, be a devil.
Parsnip and potato rosti with ‘cream cheese’ and cranberry (serves 4)
2 large potatoes
3 large parsnips
Olive oil for frying
Salt and pepper
1 pack soya ‘cream cheese’*
1 jar cranberry sauce
Chives to garnish
1. Parboil potatoes and parsnips whole for 10 minutes. Leave to cool, peel and grate. Mix with salt and pepper to taste and -form into round patty shapes, squeezing mixture together.
2. Fry in olive oil until golden, turning once.
3. When ready, top with a spoon of ‘cream cheese’ and a smaller spoon of cranberry sauce. Decorate with chives.
* Such as Sainsbury’s Free From ‘cream cheese’ with garlic and herbs or Tofutti ‘cream cheese’ with garlic and onions or herbs and chives, available in most health food shops
Sun-dried tomato and asparagus pasta with pesto (serves 3-4)
250g fusilli or penne pasta
1⁄2 pack sun-dried tomatoes, soaked in hot water then chopped with scissors into bite sized pieces
1 tin asparagus (or 1⁄2 bunch fresh, lightly steamed), chopped into 2cm/1 inch pieces
8 garlic cloves, finely chopped but not crushed (NB, the chopping can be done in a grinder/food processor but do very quickly!)
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1⁄2 jar vegan pesto (Zest is available in some large supermarkets as well as health stores and delis.) It’s also dead easy to make your own*)
2 tsp dried herbs such as basil or oregano OR a handful fresh coriander, chopped
Freshly ground black pepper
Salt
1. Cook pasta in a pan of boiling water for 10 minutes or according to taste.
2. Add some olive oil to stop pasta sticking.
3. Heat asparagus and add to cooked pasta.
4. Add fresh coriander or dried herbs.
5. Add sun-dried tomatoes.
6. In a saucepan, heat olive oil, add chopped garlic and fry gently until lightly browned.
7. Add oil and garlic mix to pasta and stir in carefully but thoroughly.
8. Add salt and freshly ground black pepper.
*Pesto
50g fresh basil leaves
25g pine kernels
1 garlic clove
Freshly ground black peppe
4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp vegan ‘Parmesan’ (Florentino Parmazano brand is available in little tubs from good supermarkets such as Tesco and Sainsbury’s, as well as health food shops.)
1. Put garlic, pine kernels and ‘Parmesan’ in a food processor and chop finely.
2. Add basil leaves.
3. Finally, pour in olive oil, season with black pepper and blend until smooth.
Hotpot (serves 4)
11⁄2 kg potatoes
2 large onions
2 cloves garlic
Mixed herbs
1⁄2 packet frozen veggie mince
2 handfuls nutritional yeast flakes
5 tbs virgin olive oil
1 pint vegetable stock or 2 Green Oxo dissolved
Salt and black pepper
1. Thinly slice the onions and garlic cloves and sweat in 2 tbs olive oil until tender.
2. Peel and slice the potatoes (if large, cut in half lengthways before slicing).
3. Layer them in a gratinee dish until half full.
4. Spread the cooked onions and garlic, herbs and the veggie mince over and season - use plenty of black pepper.
5. Finish layering with the rest of the potatoes.
6. Sprinkle remaining olive oil and yeast flakes over.
7. Add the stock.
8. Cook at 200ºC until top is golden. It should still be very moist - if not add more water and cook for a further couple of minutes.
Raspberry and almond syllabub (serves 8)
225g silken tofu (red packet)
450g soya cream
450g fresh raspberries
2 tbsp caster sugar
3 tbsp ground almonds
flaked almonds to decorate
1. Beat the tofu into the cream.
2. Blend two-thirds of the raspberries and add to cream together with sugar.
3. Stir in the ground almonds followed by whole raspberries.
4. Put in the fridge to chill. To serve, decorate with toasted, flaked almonds. (Place flaked almonds on tin foil under grill, stirring occasionally. Don’t take your eyes off them - they brown suddenly!)
Chestnuts and mushrooms in red wine (serves 4-6)
12 baby onions
16 button mushrooms
4 tbsp virgin olive oil
1 large onion
12 chestnuts - tinned, vacuum packed, fresh or dried (soaked for 8 hours and cooked)
2 slices of veggie bacon cut into batons (or 2 tbsp Bacos)
2 green Oxo cubes
1 tbs dried mixed herbs
1 pint water/red wine (50:50)
1. Saute 12 small onions in olive oil until lightly browned, remove and put to one side.
2. Saute the chopped onion and garlic in the same oil.
3. When the mixture starts to brown, add the mushrooms and cook until all juices have stopped flowing.
4. Add the chestnuts, bacon pieces, herbs and Oxo cubes and stir.
5. Add water and wine and seasonings and transfer the mixture to a casserole dish and place in preheated oven.
6. Cook covered on 200ºC for 30 minutes then add the whole onions.
7. Cook for a further 15 minutes.
8. If too runny, thicken with a little cornflour dissolved in a little water (3 tsps). If too thick, add a little water.
Click here for hundreds more free veggie recipes!
Or how about trying our guide, Martin Shaw Cooks Veggie
- a delicious collection of totally animal free recipes
from TV's popular actor. Perfect for inexperienced and experienced cooks
alike! Read it free online at www.viva.org.uk, or in hard-copy for £1 (plus 50p p&p) each.
