Looking for healthy recipe inspiration this Veganuary? We have five easy vegan recipes with all with just five ingredients from your supermarket. January never looked so simple or tasty
Have you thought about going vegan? Lots of people have, but often they are put off by seeing ingredients they have never heard of or wouldn’t be able to get a hold of unless they were a pro- WholeFoods visitor.
Ingredients such as nutritional yeast, carob powder, raw cacao nibs, soya cream and vegan cheeses can’t always be picked up at your local supermarket and so, some vegan recipes seem impossible or just too difficult to follow.
So Vegan in 5 by Roxy Pope and Ben Pook, has over 100 simple recipes with just five ingredients that you will definitely be able to find in your local supermarket – hallelujah. Here are the five easy vegan recipes:
Vegan recipe #1 Peanut Butter and Jelly Breakfast Slices
This is the perfect grab-and-go breakfast for anyone who’s always in a rush. If made on a Sunday night this loaf can last for almost a week in the fridge.
Makes 8 slices
Ingredients:
1 – 130g crunchy peanut butter
2 – 3 tbsp coconut oil
3 – 4½ tbsp maple syrup
4 – 200g jumbo oats
5 – 200g fresh raspberries, plus 12 for decoration
Method:
- Preheat the oven to 220ºC/200ºC fan/gas mark 7 and line a 10 x 20cm loaf tin with baking paper.
- Add the peanut butter, coconut oil and 4 tablespoons of the maple syrup to a small pan over a medium heat.
- Stir until everything has fully combined and the coconut oil has melted.
- Meanwhile, transfer the oats to a large mixing bowl. When the peanut butter mixture is ready, pour it over the oats and stir until the oats are completely coated.
- Add half of the oat mixture to the prepared loaf tin and push down with the back of a spoon to make sure it’s compact.
- Add the 200g raspberries and remaining ½ tablespoon of maple syrup to a separate small pan over a medium heat.
- Simmer for 10 minutes, until it turns into a sauce, stirring occasionally.
- When the sauce is ready, spread it evenly on top of the oats in the loaf tin.
- Top with the remaining oats and use the back of the spoon to press down like you did before. Top with the remaining 12 raspberries.
- Bake in the oven for 25 minutes or until slightly golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and leave to cool for 10 minutes.
- Use the baking paper to remove the loaf from the tin, and transfer to a wire rack.
- Leave to cool completely before cutting it into eight slices. Try not to devour them all in one go!
Tip: It’s totally worth investing a little extra in a quality natural peanut butter, which doesn’t include added sugar and unwanted additives.
Vegan recipe #2 Ratatouille Swirl
The trick to impressing friends is creating something that looks and tastes epic, but is actually a total breeze in the kitchen. Step forward the Ratatouille Swirl.
Serves 4
Ingredients:
1 – 500ml tomato and basil pasta sauce
2 – 2 garlic cloves
3 – 2 medium, thin aubergines
4 – 1 large courgette
5 – 4 ripe plum tomatoes
Method:
- Preheat the oven to 200ºC/180ºC fan/gas mark 6.
- Pour the pasta sauce into a 25cm ovenproof frying pan or round dish, then finely chop the garlic and stir it into the sauce.
- Slice the aubergines, courgette and tomatoes into 3mm-thick rounds, discarding the tops of the aubergines and courgette as you go.
- Pick up a slice of each vegetable and arrange the stack of three slices around the inside edge of the pan or dish on top of the pasta sauce, to create a compact spiral shape. Repeat until you create a swirl, covering the entire inside of the pan.
- Use a brush to coat the top of the vegetables with a little olive oil, then sprinkle a generous pinch of salt and pepper on top.
- Cover the ratatouille swirl with foil and bake in the oven for 30 minutes.
- Remove from the oven, discard the foil and return the swirl to the oven to bake for a further 30 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and leave the ratatouille swirl to rest for 10 minutes or so before serving.
Tip: You can use normal medium-sized tomatoes if you’re struggling to find the plum variety.
Vegan recipe #3 Mushroom, Sage and Onion Wellington
This is an absolute showstopper. I mean just look at it. My mouth is watering already.
Serves 4
Ingredients:
1 – 8 Portobello mushrooms
2 – 3 onions
3 – 10 sage leaves
4 – 120g walnuts
5 – 2 x 320g sheets of dairy-free puff pastry
Method:
- Preheat the oven to 220ºC/200ºC fan/gas mark 7 and line a large baking tray with baking paper.
- Wipe any excess dirt off the mushrooms and place five of them in an ovenproof dish.
- Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper, then bake in the oven for 15 minutes.
- Then remove the mushrooms from the oven and set aside, leaving the oven switched on for later.
- Meanwhile, quarter the remaining mushrooms, then peel and roughly chop the onions and add to a food processor along with sage leaves, walnuts, 1⁄2 teaspoon of salt and 1 teaspoon of pepper.
- Process to form a smooth paste, then add to a frying pan over a medium–high heat and fry for 15 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Set aside to cool for 10 minutes.
- Roll out one sheet of pastry onto the lined baking tray. Spread a third of the paste down the middle of the pastry lengthways, spreading it 5cm wide and leaving 5cm clear at each end.
- Turn the baked mushrooms upside down to remove any excess juices, then place three of the mushrooms, gills facing up, on top of the paste down the middle of the pastry.
- Add the remaining two mushrooms, gills facing down, between the three mushrooms.
- Spoon the remaining paste around the mushrooms to cover them on all sides.
- Place the second sheet of pastry on top and use your fingers to seal the edges together.
- Trim around the wellington roughly 1cm away from the filling, discarding the excess pastry as you go.
- Lightly score the wellington with diagonal lines at 3cm intervals and brush with olive oil.
- Bake in the oven for 50 minutes, until the pastry turns a lovely golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and serve in slices
Tip: Did you know most store-bought pastry is vegan? You should always check the label, but you’ll be pleasantly surprised at how easy it is to get your hands on some quality ready made pastry.
Vegan recipe #4: Deep Pan Pizza
Pizza may be considered a hard thing to give up if you decide to go vegan, but this vegan classic deep pan version is indulgent and ridiculously satisfying.
Makes 1 medium pizza
Ingredients:
1 – 230g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
2 – 1 tsp fast-action dried yeast
3 – Small handful of fresh basil, plus extra to garnish
4 – 150g tomato purée
5 – 150g vegan mozzarella
Method:
- Mix the flour, yeast and ½ teaspoon of salt together in a large mixing bowl, creating a well in the middle.
- Pour 150ml of tepid water into the well along with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, then use a spoon to mix everything together into a sticky ball.
- Transfer the dough to a floured surface and knead for 5 minutes, adding pinches of flour as you go to prevent the dough sticking to your hands or the surface.
- Place the dough into a lightly greased mixing bowl, cover with a clean tea towel and leave it to prove somewhere warm for at least an hour. The dough should double in size.
- Preheat the oven to 240ºC/220ºC fan/gas mark 9.
- Gently punch the dough a few times to push the air out and transfer it to a floured surface, then roll the dough out into a circle roughly 35cm in diameter.
- Lightly grease a 25cm ovenproof frying pan, then add the pizza dough to the pan so it covers the base and falls slightly over the edges.
- Roughly chop the basil and it to a small bowl along with the tomato purée, 80ml of cold water, 2 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar and a generous pinch of salt and pepper.
- Stir the sauce to combine, then spoon it over the pizza base.
- Trim any excess dough that is hanging over the edge of the pan, then fold the sides in on themselves to create a thick crust.
- Slice the mozzarella and spread it out evenly on top of the sauce.
- Bake in the oven for 15–25 minutes or until the crust turns a light brown.
- To finish, drizzle the pizza with a splash of extra virgin olive oil, top with a few extra grinds of pepper and garnish with few basil leaves.
Tip: Make sure the yeast is fresh! Old dried yeast will become inactive and your dough won’t rise.
Vegan recipe #5: Coconut Chocolate Bars
And for dessert? The pistachios in this recipe bring a colourful crunch, but you can add your own twist with your favourite toppings.
Makes 8 bars
Ingredients:
1 – 400ml tin coconut
2 – 120g desiccated coconut
3 – 5 tbsp golden syrup
4 – 150g dairy-free dark chocolate
5 – 25g pistachios
Method:
- Open the tin of coconut milk to check if the cream has set. If not, place the can in the fridge for 1 hour.
- When the coconut cream has set at the top of the tin, scoop out 150g of the cream and transfer it to a mixing bowl along with the desiccated coconut, golden syrup and a pinch of salt.
- Stir until everything is fully combined.
- Mould the mixture into eight mini bars, then place the bars on a freezerproof tray, transfer to the freezer and freeze for 1 hour to firm up.
- Meanwhile, prepare the pistachios for decoration by peeling the shells and roughly chopping the nuts. Set to one side for later.
- Break up the chocolate and add to a heatproof bowl set over a pan of gently simmering water (make sure the bottom of the bowl doesn’t come into contact with the water underneath), then stir the chocolate occasionally until it has completely melted.
- Remove the bars from the freezer and coat them in the melted chocolate, one at a time, using a couple of metal spoons to guide the chocolate over the bars.
- Transfer the bars to a wire rack (set over a sheet of baking paper, to catch any drips) and sprinkle with the pistachios. Leave to set before serving.
Tip: Don’t forget about our ‘shake test’ when you buy tinned coconut milk. We avoid buying tins that sound slushy when you shake them, because this might mean the cream won’t set in the fridge.
So Vegan in 5 by Roxy Pope and Ben Pook is out now by Lagom in Hardback.
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