Recipe book

The food situation: My diet looks something like this. I was a vegetarian for nine years since turning 13, then switched to an omnivorous diet, then alternated
between the pescatarian and vegetarian diets for some years, then went vegan 2020 - 2023. I'm now technically omnivorous but animals products
are still difficult for me. In general, I'm a faddy eater and have a difficult relationship with food.

What's new? I've now installed a water filter that filters not only lead, but everything, including the good minerals. Water never tasted better. Foodwise, I've increased my intake of sweets by 500% which is probably related to staying off gaming for a month (dopamine is dopamine, people). I've tried real liquorice (you know, from the plant) and it's great if an acquired taste, mix of sweet/bitter. Haven't fasted in ages, actually started having a little breakfast some days.

Some thoughts on vegan cooking: just like you can't simply replace meat in 'meat and two veg' with something else when you go vegetarian,
you can't just adapt vegetarian meals to be vegan. Well, you can but you will always feel like the poor cousin at the dinner table. It all becomes
about substitutes and exclusions. Instead you need a full paradigm shift which takes time. I have a 70s recipe book that suggests making a vegetarian
turkey for Thanksgiving out of tofu and decorating the tail with real turkey feathers(?!). Now veganism is in that early developmental stage with lots
of bad craziness but interesting new ideas are emerging fast which is really cool.

The goal: to collect 60 recipes that actually work and cook them a lot, fine-tuning along the way. Also make a list of vegan processed foods that are actually decent.
This is a total mess atm but I'm working on it. Most of these recipes have been modified to suit my needs but I'll link back to sites that are readable, not over-SEO'ed and don't try to sell stuff. I'm also working on a list of quick lunch ideas.

All recipes should make 4 portions.

Quick access menu

Soups

• Gazpacho +bread (vegan)
• Pea & leek soup +bread (vegan)
• Asian vegetable broth (vegan)
• Soup of chickpeas, greens & bread (vegan)
• Lemon, chickpea & orzo soup (vegan)
• Beetroot soup +rye bread (vegan)
• Sour cucumber, potato and barley soup (vegan)

Decent vegan processed foods

• Here

Recipes

Light and easy

Gazpacho +bread

This is a summer dish. If making in winter, I wouldn't bother with fresh tomatoes and use tinned instead (if doing that, leave out the tomato juice too).
I didn't find a good way to add protein to this without compromising the flavour.

Ingredients

• Tomatoes, medium - 6
• Red onion, small - 1
• Garlic - 1 clove
• Red pepper - 1
• Cucumber - 1/2
• Lemon - 1
• Vegetable stock - 300ml
• Tomato juice - 300ml (if you can get it, you want the fresh stuff)
• Basil, fresh - 1/2 a handful
• Tarragon, fresh - 1/2 a handful
• Tabasco - a dash
• Vegan Worcestershire sauce or vegan 'fish' sauce - a dash (Waitrose sell the latter but it doesn't matter if you don't have any)
• Extra-virgin olive oil
• Bread - a loaf
• Salt & pepper

Instructions

1. Make the bread into croutons (cube the bread, put it on an oven tray, drizzle with olive oil, put in the oven until crisp).
2. Half your lemon and get the squeezer out.
3. Get out a large mixing bowl or a pot, it has to fit in your fridge.
4. Peel the garlic. Crush it, then chop it finely. Add it to the bowl/pot.
5. Peel and finely cube the red onion, add it to the bowl.
6. Finely cube the tomatoes, add them in.
7. Deseed and finely cube the pepper, add it in.
8. Same with the cucumber. Don't leave the seeds in, they'll water down your soup.
9. Chop basil and tarragon, add them to the bowl.
10. Squeeze the lemon and add juice to the bowl to taste, then season with salt and pepper.
11. Pour in tomato juice and stock to cover the vegetables.
12. Add a dash of each tabasco and Worcestershire/'fish' sauce.
13. Blend everything roughly, cover with a plate and put it in the fridge to chill. Ideally for 4 hours, but who are we kidding here.
14. Pour into bowls, top with a drizzle of olive oil and some croutons.
    
15. Have it with bread & sherry or white wine (you want one made with Pedro Ximenez grape) if you fancy.

Pea & leek soup +bread

I've tried various sources of smoke (smoked salt, water, paprika) in this and smoked water is what you want. It's hard to find
the right kind that's not full of weird stuff and it's expensive so I don't always use it. When I do, I use Halen Mon. It's got a
dripper but you'll need much more than a few drops to actually taste it.

Ingredients

• Yellow split peas - 300g (dry)
• Leeks - 2
• Carrot - 1
• Celery - 1
• Onion - 1
• Thyme (dried) - 1/2 tsp
• Vegetable stock - 1.5 l
• Oil (I use rapeseed) - a little
• Salt & black pepper - to taste
• Smoked water - to taste (optional)
• Dry sherry (fino is good) / dry vermouth / white wine - a splash (optional)

Instructions

1. Half and slice the leek, chuck it in a soup pot.
2. Peel (if you want) and dice the carrot, chuck it in the pot.
3. Dice the celery, chuck it in the pot.
4. Chop the onion, chuck it in the pot.
5. Add a little bit of oil and saute the vegetables on medium heat until softened.
6. Add the peas.
7. Pour in the stock.
8. Add dried thyme, salt & pepper, sherry/vermouth/wine & smoked water.
9. Bring the stock to the boil, then turn down to a simmer, cover and leave until the peas are soft.
10. Taste and add whatever it needs more of, then serve with bread & a small drink of dry sherry.

Asian vegetable broth

If you're eating this over a few meals, store sliced chilli, sliced spring onion, coriander and mint in a small jar or food container in the fridge.
Don't chop the herbs until you're ready to eat, store the leaves whole. Likewise, store tempeh/tofu in a food container. Take everything out of the
fridge first thing in the morning so they come to room temperature in time for lunch.

Ingredients

• Asian greens (e.g. pak choi, choy sum, Chinese cabbage) - 150g
• Spring onions - 2
• Noodles - a packet. When they're divided into portions with paper tape, I find that 1/2 portion is enough for one person.
• Tempeh or tofu - around 300g but you can use less.
• Coriander - a small bunch (can substitute thai basil)
• Mint - a small handful (can substitute shiso cress)
• Chilli, red - 1/2
• Garlic - 3 cloves
• Ginger - large piece (~5cm)
• Lemongrass - 1 stick
• Lime - 2
• Vegetable stock - 1 l
• Star anise - 2 stars
• Soy sauce - to taste
• Vegetable oil - a little.
• Vegan fish sauce - to taste (optional)

Instructions

1. Slice or cube your tempeh/tofu.
2. Line an oven tray/roasting dish with baking parchment and arrange the slices. Either brush the slices with oil only or with a marinate of choice.
3. Put them to roast until crisp on the outside and soft in the middle. I use gas mark 7 but my oven sucks.
4. Wash the greens, ginger and lemongrass.
5. Get out a large soup pot and stick it on the stove.
6. Peel and crush the garlic. Chuck it in the pot.
7. Peel and roughly chop the ginger. Chuck it in the pot.
8. Bash the lemongrass stick open - I hit it with a mortar to do this. Chuck it in the pot (halved if need be).
9. Add the star anise to the pot.
10. Get your vegetable stock ready.
11. Turn the stove on high, pour in the stock. Let it come to a boil, then turn down to simmer for 30 min.
12. Meanwhile, wash the spring onions, chilli, coriander, mint and limes.
13. Trim and finely shred your Asian greens. Transfer to a bowl or plate.
14. Finely slice the spring onion (diagonally!) and chilli, also as much of the herbs as you'll need to top your bowls now.
15. Squeeze out half a lime (per serving).
16. Strain the stock (I use a strainer placed over a mixing bowl) and discard the solids.
17. Return the stock to the pot, add your greens and simmer for another 5 min or so.
18. While they're simmering, boil some water in the kettle (unless you're in the US), pour it into a small saucepan and bring it back to the boil.
19. Add the noodles and boil until ready, then strain.
20. Assemble your bowls: noodles, tempeh/tofu, broth with greens. Top with chilli, spring onion, mint, coriander, soy sauce and vegan fish sauce.
21. Add lime juice, you can add the whole squeezed-out half.
22. Taste and adjust toppings for the right balance of flavours.

Beetroot soup +rye bread

It might be tempting to put in extra beetroot - don't. Potato balances it from becoming too sweet.
If cooking the beetroot is too much faff for you, buy ready cooked (just not the vinegary sort) and skip the first steps.

Ingredients

• Beetroot - 225g
• Potatoes - 225g
• Onion - 1
• Dill (fresh) - a handful (for topping)
• Oat yoghurt (but you could sub any yoghurt/cream/etc.)
• Rye bread - enough to have with soup
• Vegetable stock - 1 litre
• Oil (any) - a little
• Salt & pepper

Instructions

1. Put the kettle on (Americans can skip this).
2. Wash the beetroot, the potatoes and enough dill for one meal.
3. Top and tail the beets, put them in a large pot. Cover with boiled water from the kettle or (if you're in the US) with cold water. Bring it to the boil.
4. Turn the heat down a bit and leave the beets to simmer until they're soft in the middle (stick a knife in to check).
5. Whilst the beets are cooking, prepare your stock.
6. Drain the beets, cool them under a tap, then peel the skins off with your hands.
7. Chop the beetroot into bite-size pieces, put them in a bowl and clean up the crime scene. Rinse/wash the pot.
8. Chop an onion, put it in the pot with a little oil on low heat, cover and leave for 5 min.
9. While the onion is cooking, peel and chop the potatoes into bite-size pieces.
10. Add potatoes and beetroot to the pot, stir and cook until they start to stick or brown.
11. Pour the stock over, bring it to the boil, then turn the heat down, cover the pot and simmer until the potatoes are ready.
12. Whilst the soup is cooking, chop some dill.
13. Blend the soup. Taste and season with salt & pepper, if needed.
14. Pour the soup into bowls, top with yoghurt and dill. Slice some bread to have alongside.

Soup of chickpeas, greens & bread

This reminds me of sorrel soup I used to have as a kid. If you were to actually use sorrel, you wouldn't need the lemon juice.

Ingredients

• Onions (large) - 3
• Swiss chard, cavolo nero or spinach (or try nettle?) – 300g
• Chickpeas – either 225g dried or 2 tins of 400g each (undrained weight)
• Vegan yoghurt – 250g (amount can be varied)
• Bread – 6 slices
• Lemon - 1
• Garlic – 4 large cloves
• Saffron – 2 large pinches
• Paprika – a small amount
• Vegetable stock – 1.4 litres
• Oil – a drizzle

Instructions

1. Wash the greens and the lemon.
2. Drain the chickpeas.
3. Squeeze out some lemon juice (about 1 tbsp of lemon per serving).
4. Slice the bread and toast it under the grill or in a toaster.
5. Peel and finely slice the onion.
6. Peel the garlic, finely chop 3 cloves and crush the remaining clove with pestle & mortar.
7. Prepare the vegetable stock.
8. Put a bit of oil in the pot on low fire, add the sliced onion and the chopped garlic (not the crushed clove). Mix. Sweat for 14 minutes, mixing often so they don’t stick.
9. Meanwhile, if you’re using greens that have thick stems, separate the stems from the leaves. Slice the stems and the leaves separately.
10. Add the saffron, the chickpeas and the vegetable stock to the pot.
11. Bring the soup to the boil, then turn down to simmer, cover and leave for 10 min.
12. If your greens had hard stems, add them to the pot and leave them to cook for 5 min.
13. Add the leaves, switch off the stove, cover and leave them to wilt for 2 min.
14. Take a measuring jug or other vessel. Depending on the number of people eating, add a heaped tablespoon of yoghurt per person.
15. Add a little of the crushed garlic to the yoghurt.
16. Add almost a full ladle of broth and mix vigorously until the yoghurt is blended in with the broth.
17. Take out the serving bowls.
18. Add 1.5 slices of toasted bread to each bowl, breaking it up into chunks with your hands.
19. Top the bread with soup from the pot.
20. Drizzle the yoghurt-broth mix on top (you can make a swirly pattern).
21. Sprinkle on some paprika and some lemon juice. Serve.

Lemon, chickpea & orzo soup

Healthier option: use brown rice instead of orzo. Or wholewheat orzo.

Gluttonous option: double-up on the carbs by serving with bread.

Ingredients

• Onion - 1/2
• Garlic - 3 cloves
• Carrots – 3
• Lemons - 2-4 (just the juice)
• Spinach or other greens - 1 large handful
• Dill, fresh - some
• Orzo or brown rice - 1 cup (uncooked)
• Chickpeas – 2 tins of 400g each (undrained weight)
• Tahini - 1/4 cup (apparently, you can sub cashew butter)
• Vegetable stock – idk, 1 to 1.5 litres?
• Salt & pepper
• Oil – for cooking

Instructions

1. Wash carrots and lemons.
2. Drain the chickpeas. Measure out the orzo/rice.
3. Dice onion and carrots, chuck in the pot.
4. Mince the garlic.
5. Get the stock ready. In my case that's just putting a kettle to boil, I use stock from a jar.
6. Add oil to the pot and saute the vegetables until nearly ready.
7. Add the garlic and cook for another minute.
8. Add chickpeas & orzo/rice. Pour in the stock.
9. Bring to the boil, then turn down to a simmer.
10. Measure out the tahini. Wash the greens and the dill.
11. Chop the dill. Squeeze out some lemon juice.
12. If the greens are tough, chop them and add them about 5min before the soup finishes cooking. Otherwise hold.
13. When the grain is cooked through, switch the stove off.
14. Add the tahini and the lemon juice to the pot (taste as you go along). Season with salt and pepper.
15. If the greens are tender (e.g. baby spinach), add them now and stir to wilt.
16. If having toast, now it's the time to prep it. Serve.

Sour cucumber, potato and barley soup

This was my favourite soup when I was a child. If you're vegan, increase the amount of protein by adding a tin of cannellini beans.

Credit where credit is due: I loosely translated this recipe from this excellent Lithuanian blog. The author uses homemade bone broth but I use vegetable stock.

Note on sour cucumbers: these are not gherkins but cucumbers fermented in brine. They can be found in Eastern European shops and world food aisles in supermarkets.

Ingredients

• Onion - 1
• Potatoes - 3
• Barley (pot barley or pearl barley) - 1/3 of a mug or tumbler
• Carrot – 1
• Sour cucumbers - 2 or more
• Bay leaf - 1
• Parsley, fresh
• Vegetable stock – idk, 1 to 1.5 litres?
• Soy/oat yoghurt (or regular yoghurt if not vegan)
• Salt & pepper
• Oil – for cooking

Instructions

1. Wash the potatoes, carrot and parsley.
2. Put a glug of oil in the pot.
3. Dice the onion and chuck it in the pot.
4. Cube the potatoes into bite-sized cubes, slice or cube the carrot.
5. Prepare your stock (if it needs preparing).
6. Saute the onion until transluscent.
7. Add potatoes, carrot and bay leaf, cook for a few more minutes.
8. Pour over the stock, add the barley.
9. Bring the pot to the boil, then reduce heat and leave to simmer for 10 minutes.
10. Meanwhile, chop the cucumbers into small cubes.
11. Once 10 minutes have passed, add the cucumber to the pot.
12. Add salt and pepper to taste and leave to simmer for another 10 minutes or so. Careful with salt, cucumbers are salty.
13. Chop some parsley to top your bowl with.
14. Once everything has cooked through, taste and add more salt/pepper/cucumber as needed.
15. Switch the stove off and ladle the soup into bowls.
16. Top with yoghurt and parsley.

Vegan processed foods (in the UK) that are actually good

Criteria: no coconut-oil based vegan 'cheese', no preservatives, colours, flavourings ('natural' or otherwise).
No crazy amounts of saturated fat a la Beyond Meat burgers. Decent taste.

Take me home