POWER TO PLANTS
This selection of recipes from The Australian Women’s Weekly’s new cookbook, Vegan Kitchen, highlights the fullness of flavour, colour and variety to be savoured in plant-based cooking.
This extract from The Vegan Kitchen cookbook shows plant-based cooking at its most flavoursome.
Roasted cauliflower dip with rice crackers
These crackers can be made a week ahead and stored in an airtight container. This dip is delicious served with crudités such as sliced cucumber, radishes and baby carrots.
Prep plus cook time 1½ hrs (plus soaking)
Serves 4
400 gm cauliflower, cut into florets
60 ml (¼ cup) olive oil
2 tbsp hazelnut dukkah
3 garlic cloves, unpeeled
400 gm canned cannellini beans, drained, rinsed 140 gm (½ cup) vegan yoghurt (see note) 2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp finely chopped fresh chives
35 gm (¼ cup) roasted hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
Rice crackers
45 gm (¼ cup) linseed (flaxseed) 70 gm (⅓ cup) red quinoa, rinsed
175 gm (1 cup) cooked brown rice
2 tsp tamari
1½ tbsp olive oil
50 gm (⅓ cup) sesame seeds, toasted
1 For rice crackers, place linseed in a small bowl and cover with water. Stand for at least 20 minutes, drain well, then dry on paper towels. Meanwhile, place quinoa and 500ml water in a small saucepan and bring to the boil, then reduce heat and simmer uncovered until tender (12 minutes). Drain well and cool, then blend with linseed, rice, tamari, oil and 1 tsp sea salt in a food processor until mixture forms a ball; add 1 tbsp of water if too dry. Add sesame seeds and pulse to combine. Dough will be very sticky. Preheat oven to 200C. Divide dough in half.
Roll each half between 2 sheets of baking paper to 2mm thick. Remove top sheet of paper and score dough into cracker shapes with a knife.
Slide with paper onto oven trays and bake until crisp and golden (40 minutes). Cool briefly (5 minutes), then break crackers along score lines and cool completely.
2 Preheat oven to 220C and line an oven tray with baking paper. Scatter cauliflower on tray, drizzle with half the oil, sprinkle with 1 tbsp dukkah and toss to coat. Add garlic and roast until cauliflower is tender (30 minutes). Cool to room temperature. 3 Peel garlic and process with cauliflower, beans, yoghurt, lemon juice and remaining oil in a food processor until smooth. Stir in chives, season to taste, sprinkle with hazelnuts and remaining dukkah and serve with crackers and crudités. Note To make vegan yoghurt, soak 150gm cashew nuts and 160gm blanched almonds in a large bowl of cold water for at least 4 hours or overnight. Drain and rinse nuts well in cold water, then blend in high-powered blender with 250ml water to a yoghurt-like consistency. Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to a week.
Roasted eggplant with sumac orange turmeric yoghurt
Use white, red, black or tricoloured quinoa for this recipe. White cooks the fastest, but red and black only take a fraction longer.
Prep plus cook time 55 mins
Serves 4 (pictured p111)
1 kg (2 large) eggplant, halved lengthways 80 ml (⅓ cup) olive oil
2 tsp ground sumac
400 gm assorted cherry tomatoes, halved 2 tsp balsamic vinegar
140 gm (½ cup) vegan yoghurt (see note above)
2 tbsp orange juice
1 tsp finely grated orange rind
½ tsp ground turmeric
200 gm (1 cup) white quinoa, rinsed, drained ½ cup mint, coarsely chopped, plus extra to serve
80 gm (½ cup) roasted almonds, coarsely chopped
1 Preheat oven to 200C and line 2 oven trays with baking paper. Score a criss-cross pattern on cut sides of eggplant halves with a sharp knife. Combine 2 tbsp oil with sumac in a small bowl, then rub over eggplant and into cuts. Season well, then roast cut-side up on one of the trays until tender and browned (40 minutes).
2 Meanwhile, toss tomatoes with 2 tsp oil and vinegar in a bowl, season to taste, then roast on other oven tray for the last 15 minutes of eggplant cooking time.
3 Combine yoghurt, orange juice and rind and turmeric in a small bowl and season to taste.
4 Bring quinoa and 1 litre of water to the boil in a saucepan, then reduce heat and simmer quinoa uncovered until tender (12 minutes).
Drain well and return to pan. Add mint, roasted tomatoes and almonds, season to taste, toss to combine, then transfer mixture to a platter and drizzle with remaining oil. Top with eggplant, drizzle with yoghurt mixture and serve scattered with extra mint.
Baked porridge with stone fruit
While porridge takes longer to cook in the oven than on the stovetop, it needs no stirring or tending and rewards with delicious creaminess. This recipe also works well with soy, almond or coconut milk. In winter, try roast pears and rhubarb in place of stone fruit; firm pears may take a little longer to cook.
Prep plus cook time 55 mins
Serves 6 (pictured p110)
Vegan margarine, canola, olive or coconut oil, for greasing
134 gm (1½ cups) rolled oats
40 gm (½ cup) desiccated coconut
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground ginger
90 gm (¼ cup) pure maple syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
750 ml (3 cups) rice milk
125 gm (2 stems) rhubarb, cut into 4cm lengths 350 gm (3 medium) plums, halved
340 gm (2 medium) nectarines or peaches, cut into thick wedges
2 tbsp coconut sugar
Edible flowers and vegan yoghurt
(see note in cauliflower dip recipe p112), to serve
1 Preheat oven to 180C and grease a 1.25-litre ovenproof dish. Combine oats, coconut, cinnamon, ginger, maple syrup, vanilla and a pinch of sea salt in dish, stir in milk to combine and bake until oats are tender and creamy (40 minutes).
2 Meanwhile, place rhubarb and stone fruit in a small baking dish, sprinkle with coconut sugar and add 80ml water. Bake on a separate shelf for the last 20 minutes of porridge cooking time. Top porridge with baked fruit, fruit syrup and edible flowers and serve with vegan yoghurt.
Nuts and sprouts pilaf Prep plus cook time 1 hr (plus standing, soaking)
Serves 4
500 gm butternut pumpkin, unpeeled, cut into 1.5cm-thick half-moon slices
2½ tbsp olive oil
1 large (300gm) onion, finely chopped 3 garlic cloves, crushed
40 gm (¼ cup) natural almonds, coarsely chopped
40 gm (¼ cup) Brazil nuts, coarsely chopped 2 tsp baharat (see note)
300 gm (1½ cups) brown rice
1 litre (4 cups) vegetable stock
50 gm (¼ cup) pepitas
200 gm Crunchy Combo Sprouts (see note) ½ cup (loosely packed) dill sprigs
½ cup (loosely packed) flat-leaf parsley 200 gm (¾ cup) vegan yoghurt (see note in cauliflower dip recipe opposite), or shop-bought vegan coconut yoghurt Lemon wedges, to serve
1 Preheat oven to 200C and line an oven tray with baking paper. Place pumpkin on tray, drizzle with 2 tsp oil and roast until golden and tender (30 minutes).
2 Heat remaining oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, garlic and nuts, and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion softens
(5-7 minutes). Add baharat and stir until fragrant (1 minute), then add rice and cook, stirring to coat (2 minutes). Add stock, bring to the boil, then reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 35 minutes. Uncover and cook until liquid is absorbed and rice is tender (10 minutes). Remove from heat, stir in pepitas, half the sprouts and half the herbs, then stand covered for 10 minutes to steam. Season to taste. Arrange pumpkin on a platter, top with pilaf, remaining sprouts and herbs, and yoghurt. Season to taste and serve with lemon wedges. Note Baharat is a Middle Eastern spice mix available from Herbie’s Spices (herbies.com.au). If it’s unavailable, substitute ras el hanout or a Moroccan spice blend. Farmland Greens Crunchy Combo Sprouts, a mix of blue pea, mung bean, lentil, adzuki and chickpea sprouts, are available in supermarkets.>