The clock’s have gone back, the evenings are drawing in, and the air is fresh and crisp. I love the beauty of the Autumn season; the changing colours of nature’s palate and crunching my way through piles of golden horse chestnut leaves. The cold and extra layers of clothing… I love less so; but I’m working on it. What makes the foray into the cold that much sweeter however, is the return home to a hearty, warming dinner.
In today’s post, I’m sharing a recipe for an Italian bean casserole that’s just perfect for the cold weather seasons. It’s hearty, warming and filling. It’s also packed with lots of immune-boosting nutrients to keep those pesky cold germs at bay.
In today’s post, I’m sharing a new plant-based recipe that my family has been loving lately… it’s the Indian-spiced Sweet Potato Fritter. These fritters are filled with simple ingredients – sweet potato, onion, chickpea flour and spinach – which also happen to be nutritional powerhouses, providing an array of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants ✨ The Indian spices used to flavour the fritters – cumin and garam masala – notch up their antioxidant potency even further.
Not only are they quick and easy to make, but they’re super cheap too! According to my calculations, it cost just £1.07 to make six fritters. That’s 18p each. Bargain!
Tofu scrambles are one of my family’s favourite easy weeknight meals. They take 20 minutes or less to make, use just one pan and can be flavoured myriad ways, which means they never get boring. The scramble recipe I’m sharing in today’s post is filled with beautiful colours and flavours inspired by the Mediterranean ☀️
Fresh, crisp sweet peppers and zucchini, salty black olives and rich sun-dried tomatoes make one tasty combination of flavours and textures. A splash of soy sauce and sprinkling of mushrooms adds an extra hit of ‘umami’ deliciousness.
To enhance the flavour even further, I sprinkle in a couple of my favourite herbs – fresh basil and dried oregano – and spices – smoked paprika and ground cumin. The smoked paprika turns the tofu a beautiful red colour, as well as adding a delicious smoky flavour.
I’ve always loved using dried herbs and spices in my cooking (and have a whole shelf in my pantry dedicated to them!) but I’ve only recently starting learning about their health benefits.
Do you know which food category averages the most antioxidants? Take a guess…
Nope, it’s not fruits.
Nor vegetables.
It’s herbs and spices!!
By sprinkling just a single teaspoon of dried herbs or spices on your food, you can double, triple, quadruple or more its antioxidant content. Incredible!
Here’s what Dr Michael Greger has to say in his epic “nutrition bible” How Not To Die …
Antioxidants, in a Pinch
The food category that averages the most antioxidants is herbs and spices.
Let’s say you prepare a nice healthy bowl of whole-wheat pasta with marinara sauce. Together, they may achieve a score of about 80 units of antioxidant power (approximately 20 units from the pasta and 60 from the sauce). Add a handful of steamed broccoli florets, and you may end up with a delicious 150-unit meal. Not bad. Now sprinkle on a single teaspoonful of dried oregano or marjoram, oregano’s sweeter and milder twin. That alone could double your meal’s antioxidant power, up to more than 300 units.
How about a bowl of oatmeal for breakfast? By adding a teaspoon of cinnamon, you could bring the antioxidant power of your meal from 20 units to 120 units. And if you can stand the punch, adding a pinch of cloves could bring your unassuming breakfast up to an antioxidant score of 160 units.
Plant-based meals tend to be rich in antioxidants on their own, but taking a moment to spice up your life may make you meal even healthier.
p50, How Not to Die
Having read this, I’ll be sprinkling those herbs and spices even more liberally from now on!
Recipe Card
Prevent your screen from going dark
Mediterranean Tofu Scramble
This tofu scramble makes a delicious, quick 'n' easy supper, lunch or brunch. It comes together in just 20 minutes and only uses one pan (my favourite kind of meal!) It’s protein- and calcium-rich (thanks to the tofu) and packed full of antioxidant-rich veggies, herbs and spices. We love to serve it on wholegrain toast at home and stuffed into pitta breads for school and work lunchboxes.
Gently heat the oil in a large frying pan (skillet). Add the onion and cook for a couple of minutes. Stir in the garlic, sweet romano/bell pepper and courgette, and continue cooking for a further 2-3 minutes.
Drain the tofu, then crumble it into the pan. Sprinkled the smoked paprika and cumin on top, and stir until the tofu is fully coated in the spices.
Add the remaining ingredients to the pan (tamari/soy sauce, oregano/Italian seasoning, basil, mushrooms, sun-dried tomatoes and olives) and stir through. Continue cooking for about 5 minutes.
Taste test, and adjust the seasoning to suit. Sprinkle on some nutritional yeast and hemp seeds, if desired, then serve.
Any leftover scramble can be stored in an airtight container for up to five days. It is also freezable.
Big shout out to the lovely people at Suma who supplied me with ingredients that I used to create this recipe. The following organic ingredients are available from Suma and can be purchased in the UK from independent health food shops and online:
Do you enjoy using dried herbs and spices? If so, what are your top favourites? It’s hard for me to pick just one, so here are my current top five (in no particular order) ….
If you try this Mediterranean tofu scramble recipe, please come back and leave a review. It’s so helpful to me (and other readers) to hear your experiences and ideas for variations. Thank you! ❤️
In today’s post, I’m sharing my recipe for easy home-made tortilla wraps. They contain just five ingredients and cost as little as 27p for six. Bargain!
Not only budget-friendly, they also taste far nicer and fresher than the shop-bought variety. One bite of a home-made tortilla and you’ll never want to go back to shop-bought again!
✧ Home-made tortillas are easy and delicious!
Have you checked the ingredients lists on shop-bought tortillas? I was shocked when I saw how many ingredients they contain. I counted 12 ingredients in the basic Waitrose and Tesco tortillas, including emulsifiers, preservatives, stabilisers, humectants… and palm oil.
I never dreamed that they would be easy to make from scratch, however one day we were in the midst of making fajitas for dinner and realised that we didn’t have any tortillas on hand. Instead of abandoning the fajitas, we decided to have a go at making our own.
And you know what? Not only were they easy to make, but they were absolutely delicious! They tasted so fresh and ‘real’ compared to the shop-bought variety. In fact, Mark and Lucien loved them so much that they said they could never go back to shop-bought again. I was okay with this, on the proviso that they make the tortillas while I prepare the fillings. And they happily agreed to do so!
✧ Make it fun!
The kitchen is now filled with fun and lots of chat on kebab and fajita nights, as we all get stuck into preparing the meal. I prepare the filling, while Mark rolls the tortillas and Lucien cooks them. A helping hand means the tortillas are ready in half the time, which is a bonus!
The tortillas are best served fresh, however they can be stored in the fridge for up to a week. Sometimes, I’ll spend an hour preparing a triple or quadruple batch, which we then use through the week. I always make sure the music’s playing loud and I’m singing and dancing along, which makes the tortilla making much more fun.
✧ Perfecting my tortilla recipe
My first attempt at home-made tortillas was based on my chapatti recipe (also published on p119 of the Bit of the Good Stuff cookbook) and it was pretty good. Since then, however, I’ve been on a mission to ‘perfect’ my flour tortilla recipe. I’ve tried different ratios of dry ingredients and liquids; different amounts of oil (I wanted to keep the oil to a minimum, yet use sufficient oil to ensure the tortillas can be stored and reheated without drying out and cracking); and I’ve compared using water and plant milk as the main liquid. Tortillas are traditionally made with water, but I find plant milk can really enhance the flavour.
The recipe I’m sharing today is based on my fifth trial and they’ve got a huge thumbs up from the family. I hope you enjoy them too!
✧ My top tips for home-made tortillas
Making tortillas is far easier than you might imagine, but here are some tips that I’ve learnt along the way to help perfect the process:
✦ For tortillas, you want a light, slightly sticky dough. It’s easier to start with a dough that’s too sticky and add a little flour at a time until you reach the right consistency, rather than adding more liquid to a dough that’s too dry.
✦ It’s best to use warm liquid rather than cold. It makes it much easier to roll the tortillas.
✦ To roll a perfect circle, press the floured dough ball into a flat disk using your fingers, then use a rolling pin to roll the tortilla into a large circle, rolling anti-clockwise from the centre of the circle to the outer edge. With practice, the easier and quicker it becomes. I was rubbish at rolling to begin with, but can now roll a circular tortilla in 45 seconds.
✦ If you’re not using the tortillas immediately, store them flat in an airtight container in the fridge. They will stiffen up over time, but heating them through in a frying pan (skillet) returns them to their pliable state. Don’t try and fold the tortilla straight from the fridge otherwise it will break in half.
Recipe Card
Prevent your screen from going dark
Easy Home-Made Tortilla Wraps
These soft flour tortillas contain just five ingredients and are much tastier than the shop-bought variety. They’re easy to make and don’t take too long. See if you can recruit someone to cook them as you roll and this will halve the cooking time. The tortillas are best served the day they are made, but they can be stored in the fridge for up to a week. We love to use these tortillas for fajitas, burritos and vegan doner kebabs.
120g/ ½ cup soya milk(can substitute with water, but I find the milk enhances the flavour of the wraps)
2TBSPextra virgin olive oilor oil of choice
210g/ 1½ cups plain (all purpose flour) (or you can use 140g / 1 cup plain (all purpose) flour and 70g / ½ cup fine wholemeal (whole wheat) or chapatti flour)
½tspsalt
½tspbaking powder
Instructions
Gently heat the milk and oil in a small pan. Whisk with a fork to combine.
Place the flour, salt and baking powder in a mixing bowl. Pour in the warm liquid and stir with a spoon until it starts to come together. Continue to bring the dough together with your hands. You want the dough to be soft and slightly sticky. The consistency will vary depending on the type of flour and liquid you have used. If it’s too sticky, add a touch more flour. If it’s too dry, add a touch more liquid.
Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 1-2 minutes, until smooth.
Divide into 6 equal pieces (I weigh mine to divide it equally). Use your hands to roll them into balls and place on a chopping board. Cover with a clean tea towel and leave to rest for 15 minutes.
Pre-heat a dry frying pan (skillet) on medium-high heat.
Take one dough ball and coat in flour. Place on a lightly floured surface and using your fingers, press it into a thin disk. Use a rolling pin to roll it into a circle with a 23cm / 9” diameter. (To achieve a circular shape, I roll from the centre of the circle to the outer edge, in an anti-clockwise motion).
Lay the rolled dough over the rolling pin and transfer to the hot pan. After a short while, the dough should start to bubble a little. When this happens, flip the tortilla over and continue cooking until brown spots appear on the underside. If the tortilla is browning too quickly, turn down the heat a touch. (I have an electric hob and I cook mine for 40 seconds on the first side, and 20 seconds on the second).
Transfer the cooked tortilla to a plate lined with a piece of kitchen paper or a clean tea cloth. Cover with a lid slightly larger than the plate (I don’t have a lid large enough so I use an upturned frying pan!) This will help to keep the steam in and prevent the tortillas from drying out.
Repeat the process with the remaining dough balls, adding them to the plate once cooked and covering with the lid.
If not using immediately, allow the tortillas to cool completely then store flat in an airtight container in the fridge, where they will keep for up to a week. They will stiffen up over time but heating them through will return them to their pliable state.
If you make these Home-Made Tortilla Wraps, I’d love to hear your feedback and how you choose to fill them! You can leave a comment in the box below or tag your photos with #bitofthegoodstuff on social media – I always love to see your creations!You can connect with me on my social media channels here: Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest.
In today’s post, I’m sharing a recipe that caught my eye in this month’s Vegan Life magazine. These ‘Chickpea Nuggets’ have been a big hit with the family and we’ve made them multiple times in the past couple of weeks. They’re simple to prepare, packed full of nutritional goodness and budget-friendly too!
I had my first experience of vegan nuggets a couple of weeks ago at a fast food establishment in Valencia, Spain (yes, Valencia has vegan fast food joints! How cool is that?) The fast-food nuggets were okay, but the home-made variety win my vote. They just taste more like ‘real food’ to me. Plus they definitely make me feel better on the inside.
The main ingredients in these nuggets are oats and chickpeas. Both ingredients are packed full of nutrients including protein, complex carbs, dietary fibre, B vitamins, iron, zinc and magnesium.
The nuggets are great for dipping into all kinds of sauces. We love mayo, BBQ sauce, even hummus, but our current favourite has to be home-made chunky tomato sauce. I’ve posted the recipe below in case anyone else fancies trying it. I find it tastes much nicer than shop-bought tomato sauce (fresher and less processed) plus it’s rich in vitamin C, which helps our bodies absorb all the iron in the nuggets.
To make the outside of the nuggets nice and crispy, I used Panko breadcrumbs which can be found on the world food aisle in supermarkets (in the Japanese section). Onion powder is not currently available in UK supermarkets (such a shame as it’s really useful!) however you will find it in independent health food shops and online. (I buy mine in Harvest Coop in Bath).
Along with the onion powder, the nutritional yeast helps to give these nuggets a delicious, savoury flavour. I use the Marigold nutritional yeast flakes with added B12, available from the larger UK supermarkets, health food shops and online.
Recipe Card
Prevent your screen from going dark
Vegan Chickpea Nuggets
These nuggets are simple to make, packed full of nutritional goodness, budget-friendly and versatile! We love to serve them for lunch, as a healthy snack and as a main meal (alongside potato wedges, baked beans and a side salad). They are best served straight from the oven (when the outer coating is super crispy), however they can also be eaten cold and make a great addition to school and work lunchboxes.
400g/ 14 oz can chickpeasthoroughly drained (reserve the chickpea water aka ‘aquafaba’)
½tspgarlic powder or granules
1tsponion powder
½tspsalt
2TBSPnutritional yeast flakes
60ml/ ¼ cup 'aquafaba'(water from the chickpea can)
Chunky Tomato Sauce
400g/ 14 oz can Italian vine-ripened chopped tomatoes
2TBSPtomato puree (paste)
1TBSPextra virgin olive oil
1tspunrefined sugar
½tspsalt
1tspdried oregano
Instructions
To make the chickpea nuggets:
Heat oven to 190C (180C fan) / 365F.
Place the oats in a food processor and process into a flour.
Add the chickpeas to the food processor, along with the garlic powder, onion powder, nutritional yeast and salt. Pulse until crumbly. Add the aquafaba (chickpea water) and continue to process until the contents form a ball. If the mixture feels a little wet, add more oats.
Divide the mixture into 12 equal portions and shape into nuggets. Coat each nugget completely in the panko breadcrumbs and place on a baking tray lined with baking paper.
Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until firm. Serve with your favourite dip.
Any leftover nuggets can be stored in the fridge for up to five days.
To make the chunky Tomato Sauce
Place all the ingredients in a pan and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes, or until the mixture has thickened slightly. Use a wooden spoon to break up any large chunks of tomato. Taste test and adjust the seasoning to suit.
Stored in an airtight container, this sauce will keep for five days in the fridge.
Notes
Recipe lightly adapted from Heather Lawless and Jen Mulqueen’s ‘Chicknuggets’ in The Chickpea Revolution, featured in the April 2018 edition of Vegan Life magazine.
Big thank you to Heather Lawless, Jen Mulqueen and Vegan Life magazine for the inspiration! This is definitely a recipe I’ll be making time and again.
And if you make these vegan nuggets, I’d love to hear your feedback and any suggestions for adaptations! Tag your photos with #bitofthegoodstuff on social media – I always love to see your creations! You can also connect with me on my social media channels here: Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest.
In today’s post, I’m sharing a recipe for the perfect Winter warmer – Creamy Butternut Squash Soup with Golden Pan-Fried Chickpeas 💛 With its delicious, sweet flavour and golden orange hue, this soup is so bright and cheery that it’s bound to put a smile on your face. It also happens to be packed full of immune-boosting nutrients to help keep those pesky Winter bugs at bay.
Butternut squash is a fantastic immunity-booster. Of all the winter squashes, it contains the highest amount of vitamin C. It’s also packed with the vitamin A antioxidants alphacarotene and betacarotene.
I love blending some cashews into this soup to make it thick and creamy. The cashews also provide protein and heart-healthy fats, which help us to feel full and satiated. Simmering the cashews in the soup softens them, making them easy to blend smooth in a high-speed blender.
My family loves to serve this soup as a weekend lunch or weeknight supper. The Golden Pan-Fried Chickpeas that I posted last week, make the perfect topping.
Recipe Card
Prevent your screen from going dark
Creamy Butternut Squash Soup
This soup is cheery, flavourful and packed full of immune-boosting nutrients. The addition of cashews makes it thick, creamy and filling. We love to top it with Golden Pan-Fried Chickpeas (recipe link in Notes below). These only take eight minutes to make, so we prepare them while the soup is simmering or cooling.
800g/ 5 cups butternut squashdeseeded and chopped into small, bite-size pieces
1TBSPtomato puree (paste)
72g/ ½ cup cashews
salt & freshly ground black pepperto taste
Instructions
Gently heat the oil in a large saucepan. Cook the onion until it starts to soften (about 4 minutes). Add the garlic and cook for a further minute.
Add the vegetable stock, squash, tomato puree and cashews to the pan. (This is meant to be a thick soup, so the liquid should just be sufficient to cover the squash). Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat, cover with a lid and simmer for 15 minutes or until the squash is tender.
Leave to cool slightly then transfer to a high speed jug blender (due to the quantity of soup, I recommend blending half at a time). Start blending on low speed, then increase to high speed until silky smooth.
Transfer the soup back to the pan and gently heat through. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste.
This soup will keep for five days in the fridge. I haven’t tried it yet, but I’m pretty confident it will be freezable too.
Notes
My recipe for Golden Pan-Fried Chickpeas can be found here.
As you can probably imagine, it’s pretty tricky taking food photos this time of year as the days are so short and the weather’s so changeable! It was certainly a fun challenge taking these soup photos. As I was shooting them, the sky suddenly clouded over, which totally changed the look and feel of the photos. Compare the photo below to the ones above. It looks pretty different, doesn’t it? It’s dark and gloomy, but kind of atmospheric too.
If you make this Creamy Butternut Squash Soup, I’d love to hear your feedback and any suggestions for adaptations! Tag your photos with #bitofthegoodstuff on social media – I always love to see your creations! You can also connect with me on my social media channels here: Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest.
