I adapted this recipe from Italian minestrone so it has the same base flavours of tomato, onion and garlic. I decided to replace the white pasta with much healthier brown rice which makes the soup   gluten free   and the addition of some beans adds   fibre, protein and minerals and really makes this a complete meal in a bowl! 

You can add whatever veggies you have to ring the changes but peppers, green beans, carrots, leeks, courgettes, frozen peas and finely shredded greens of some sort all work really well and add loads of antioxidants, minerals and vitamins, strengthening literally every body system.
It's still wild garlic season so I am making the most of it by adding it to as many  dishes as I can.
It's delicious, highly nutritious and it's free so get yourself out to your nearest woodland and let your nose guide you to  swathes of gorgeous  wild garlic!

Any beans work, flageolet, cannelini, haricot, butter beans are all great.
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I am a big fan of nutritional yeast  flakes so add a   couple of tablespoons   to your soup or sprinkle some on as a garnish. They add great flavour, loads of minerals and vitamins and  make the soup lovely and creamy!

So without further ado, here is the recipe, I hope you enjoy it....!


VEGAN RICE AND BEAN SOUP  WITH WILD GARLIC

INGREDIENTS

• I large onion, finely chopped
• 1 leek, finely sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed or finely chopped
• 2 medium carrots, finely diced
• 1 medium or 2 small firm courgettes, finely diced
• 1 red pepper, finely diced
• 2 sticks celery, chopped
• a large bunch  of finely shredded wild garlic
• 1 tin chopped tomatoes
• 1 small cup of brown rice
• 1 tin butterbeans or other white beans like cannellini or haricot
• 2 litres vegetable stock
• 1 tablespoon red pesto (optional)
• 1 or 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes (optional)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil or rapeseed oil
• Sea salt to season


• METHOD

1. Chop all the vegetables into fairly small pieces.
2. Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a large soup pot and sauté the onion and leek for 5 minutes on medium heat. Add the chopped carrots, courgettes, pepper, celery and garlic and cook stirring for another 5 minutes.
3. Add the tinned tomatoes, rice, beans and stock, bring to the boil then simmer for 30 to 40 minutes    until the rice is cooked .
4. Finely shred the wild garlic and add to the pot , turn the heat off, put the lid on and let the wild garlic wilt.
5. Stir in the pesto if using and season with sea salt.
6. If the soup is too thick just add more stock. 
7. You can garnish with a good sprinkling of nutritional yeast flakes    or seaweed flakes for an extra nutritional and flavour boost.

Well since the vegan cooking retreat in Wales, I have discovered a love of smoky flavoured food! 
Smoky flavours are big in Mexican food and we had a whole spread of chilli, bean, dishes to eat our way through! It wasn't difficult, the food was all delicious!
The main ingredient to impart a smoky flavour is smoked paprika, quite different to sweet paprika or normal paprika. It generally comes in a wee square tin and is a lovely deep red colour. A little goes a long way! This is a store cupboard essential in our house.
Jenna spent a  few months in Mexico last year and just loved all the vibrant food. Chillies are a big part of the cuisine and there are so many varieties, some of them extremely hot! I am a total chilli wimp and really can't handle hot food, unless I have some cooling yoghurt or a big jug of cold water!
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Anyway, back to these delicious and so simple big portobello mushrooms with a lovely smoky marinade.

These literally take 5 minutes to prepare, then they are cooked in the oven, no faffing about with hot frying pans! I like to make life as simple as possible and will always choose to oven bake rather than fry foods in oil. Oven baked is healthier too so another reason to use this method.

I love mushrooms of all varieties but the big portobello mushrooms are fabulous sliced and marinated, they almost taste meaty so make a great alternative to animal protein.

Mushrooms are a great source of protein, fibre, iron, zinc, selenium, folate, B vitamins and are low in carbohydrates so are always a healthy choice. 

So back to this extremely simple recipe! I kind of made it up and it worked so well I've made it a few times! Great when you need a meal in a hurry and this tastes and looks good enough to serve up at a dinner party!
I have served them on a bed of sweet potato mash and also on a pea & mint puree, both delicious drizzled with any extra marinade.
You can use a mixture of mushrooms, you will need around 500g or around 6 big portobello mushrooms for 4 people. They do tend to shrink a bit when cooked!

I really hope you give this a go, its so easy and tastes delicious! You can impress your friends and family with a healthy meat free main!

So here is the very simple recipe.....

Smoky Portobello Mushrooms
Ingredients

• 6 big portobello mushrooms or 500g mushrooms of choice
•  1 tablespoon rapeseed or olive oil
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 2 tablespoons tamari sauce
• 2 tablespoons tomato puree
• 1 heaped teaspoon smoked paprika
• sea salt and black pepper to taste
• fresh thyme and flat leaf parsley (optional but nice)

Method

1. Give your mushrooms a good wipe with some damp kitchen roll.
2. Slice them and put them into a large flat dish, in a single layer if possible, or on a flat baking tray.
3. Measure the oil, tamari, maple syrup, tomato puree, smoked paprika and salt and pepper into a jug and give it a good mix. 
4. Either brush the mushrooms on both sides with the marinade or if you are using smaller mushrooms, just pour the marinade over and gently toss to coat them. Sprinkle with some fresh thyme if you have any!
5. If you have time to spare, then leave the mushrooms aside for an hour or so for the flavours to develop. This step isn't essential as the mushrooms will be delicious even if you cook them straight away!
6. Spread the mushrooms out on your baking tray, pour over any extra marinade and bake in the oven at 180 C for around 20 minutes. 
7. Serve on a bed of mashed potato, sweet potato or mashed peas, drizzled with extra marinade and garnish with chopped flat leaf parsley.

​                                            ......your health in your hands.....

I've just returned from a fab vegan cooking retreat in the beautiful Welsh countryside, run by my awesome cool dude pal Lee Watson of The Beach House Kitchen and author of my favourite vegan cookbook Peace & Parsnips!

The theme was recipes from around the world, focusing on Lees favourite places, and believe me he has been everywhere, cooking with locals and picking up tips, spices and recipes on his travels.

I am planning to share my favourites from the retreat but I'm heading off to The Lake District with Jenna today, sadly she is going to work in a beautiful vegetarian B & B, so I'll have to do all my own cooking!!

So since I came home I have made this delicious soup from Indonesia since I had all the ingredients to hand so I'm sharing this first!

This soup is packed with flavour from coconut, turmeric, ginger and basil and full of the most health giving ingredients quinoa, kale, squash and lentils! Its literally a meal in a bowl, packed with fibre, protein, antioxidants, minerals, vitamins and good fats!
Everything a body needs to stay healthy and it tastes amazing!!

This is definitely comfort food at its best, warming, nourishing and delicious! Just what we need more of as the weather changes and we head into autumn.

Although to be honest our weather is so bad that I make soups all year round!!
Soup is also very easy to digest and simple to make so another two reasons to make it! This one is also gluten free!

Anyway without further ado, here is the recipe....
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SULAWESI QUINOA & SQUASH SOUP

Ingredients

• 100g quinoa, rinsed 
• 100g red lentils (about half a cup)
• 50 - 100g coconut block or 1 can of coconut milk
• 250g diced butternut squash or sweet potatoes
• 1 red onion, finely diced
• 1/2 cup sweetcorn kernels (frozen is fine)
• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1/2 inch fresh ginger, grated or finely chopped
• freshly ground black pepper (to increase absorption of the turmeric)
• 1 tablespoon coconut or rapeseed oil
• 2 big handfuls of finely chopped kale or spinach
• 2 litres veggie stock (I use Kallo organic or Marigold Bouillon Powder)
• 1 handful of basil leaves to garnish

Method

1.  Heat the oil in a large pan and add the red onion, saute for a few minutes.
2. Rinse the quinoa well under running water in a sieve to remove the bitter saponin layer. You can substitute rice for a wee change.
3. Add the chopped ginger, turmeric, cubed squash, lentils, quinoa, coconut block or milk, stock & freshly ground black pepper. Bring to the boil then gently simmer for around 15 to 20 minutes until the squash is cooked.
4. Stir in the sweetcorn and chopped kale and simmer for another few minutes.
5. Stir in the  chopped basil leaves just before serving.

.......your health in your hands.....