Tuesday 14 May 2013

Crunchy Peanut Butter Mo-chi with Banana Puree


Ingredients (Serves 1)

4 Peanut butter mo-chi (found at Chinese supermarkets, I prefer the frozen to the fresh ones as they boil better)
300ml hot water
Enough banana puree for garnish (I cheated here and used Tesco's dairy free banana smoothie, found in larger Tescos in the yoghurt isle!)
Kiwi slice for garnish

Method

- Boil mo-chi according to packet instructions.
- Place in a small ramekin.
- Garnish with banana and kiwi.
- Enjoy!

* I must admit, I don't like peanut butter at all, but I loved these mo-chi! However, I didn't really know what to have with it, so this probably seems really random, but the sweet/sour ratio worked well for me, but feel free to use a garnish you think would taste much better!

Sichuan Pepper Soup with Crunchy Tofu Croutons



Ingredients

For the Broth

500ml hot water
1 tsp sichuan peppercorns (smashed) or powder (available at Chinese Supermarkets)
1 tbsp chopped garlic
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1tsp salt
1 vegetable stock cube
2 large florets of broccoli, quartered
Small handful of udon noodles
Handful of Brussels sprouts, chopped (you can swap them for cabbage if you don't like them!)
2 small carrots, roughly chopped
Julienned baby leeks and spring onions for garnish

For the Tofu

Half a block of firm/extra firm tofu, pressed and chopped into chunks
Handful of plain flour for dusting

Method

- Add all of the broth ingredients into a large pot apart from the leeks, spring onions and noodles.
- When carrots are almost tender, add in the noodles and simmer for a further 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, heat a chip pan/deep fat fryer until boiling *BE CAREFUL*, dust the tofu with flour thoroughly and then carefully add to the fryer and fry until a golden brown in colour.
- When the soup and tofu are ready, place them in a bowl (see above for serving suggestion) and garnish with leeks and spring onions.

* These tofu bites are great on their own, you can make more and taste delicious dipped into the leftover broth!

Enjoy!

Saturday 11 May 2013

Crispy Sweet Tofu with Lemon Rice and Steamed Greens



Ingredients

For the Tofu
Extra Firm Tofu, pressed and cut into cubes/rectangles
3 tbsp of agave nectar (available at Holland & Barrett and larger supermarkets)
3 tbsp of dark soy sauce
1 tbsp of cayenne pepper (or any chilli pepper powder!)
2 large garlic cloves, minced

For the Rice

Rice, boiled (however much you want, just adjust to your taste)
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp salt
1 tbsp of dried coriander, or fresh, finely chopped

For the Veg

Handful of julienned leeks
Handful of julienned choi sum (or pak choi, these are now available at supermarkets)
Handful of shredded green cabbage
Finely chopped baby radishes to garnish




Method

- Mix together the minced garlic, agave nectar, soy sauce and cayenne pepper in a bowl.
- Add the tofu and coat well with mixture, leave this to marinate until you are ready to cook it.
- Add boiling water to a wok (or frying pan) and line the bottom of a bamboo steamer with parchment paper (if you don't have a bamboo steamer, you can substitute the wok for a small saucepan and the steamer with a bowl, making sure you have a lid big enough to cover the bowl)
- Add all veggies, except the radish, to the steamer and cook until tender, but still with a crunch.
- In another pot, cook the rice, drain well and add lemon juice, salt and coriander and mix. Cover with a lid and reheat when ready to serve.
- Heat a chip-pan, deep frying pot, whatever you call it in your house, on a high heat. When boiling, CAREFULLY add marinated tofu to the pot, discarding the marinade (you can use this to dress the dish afterwards if you like).
- Fry the tofu until golden brown and crispy on the outside, you can check this with a knife or chopstick. *BE CAREFUL*
- Reheat the rice, watching carefully as to not burning it.
- Line the bottom of a dish with the steamed veggies, adding the rice on top and topping with the tofu.
- Garnish with the chopped radishes and serve!


Sunday 5 May 2013

Pets and Vegan/Vegetarian Diets



So recently my dog (13 year old Border Collie named Shep) has been having trouble with his back legs and walking long distances. We also noticed a substantial weight gain.
Now, we only feed Shep once a day (with occasional treats), we normally feed him 1 can of Winalot dog food mixed with two small cupfuls of dry mixer.


So we have decided to start him on a vegetarian diet, perhaps even pescatarian, as he loves tuna! We don't feed him dairy products (minus a slice of cheese very very occasionally), so his diet would be more or less plant based.

I want to keep you guys informed of how it goes, and will supply recipes I've used for anyone who is trying to convert their dogs - I will attach recipes to the bottom of this blog however so people aren't making strange meals for themselves!


PLEASE NOTE:
Dogs (and cats!) need certain extra supplements to live on vegetarian diets. Dogs and cats are omnivorous (like us!) but, just like normal dog food, supplements are added to these foods that we as humans do not need, but that pets need for certain health aspects.
These supplements are Taurine and L-Caratine, which can be found in whole foods markets such as Holland and Barrett, maybe try somewhere else for lower prices, Amazon?
I'm not sure on exact amounts at the moment.

Some Useful Links
http://www.peta.org/living/companion-animals/vegetarian-cats-and-dogs.aspx
^ This will tell you the gruesome truth about what goes into your dogs tinned food!

http://thekindlife.com/blog/post/what-to-feed-my-dogs-2



*MORE COMING SOON*