August Cookbook Review - Mouthwatering Vegan

This month I have been cooking from Mouthwatering Vegan by Miriam Sorrell:

This book is jam packed with gorgeous looking vegan recipes that I have been looking forward to trying for ages, this is what I thought:

Tofu & Mushroom Scramble:

This was a nice recipe using silken tofu, mushrooms. I didn't expect it to be that great but I was surprised, the tahini really made the recipe special and I will definitely be using it in my scrambles in future:

Cream of Porcini Mushroom Soup:

This was a nice, warming and flavourful soup, I subbed the cream for coconut cream but I don't think it made much of a difference. I'm not usually a fan of mushroom soup but this was good:

Tava:

This was really excellent, I changed the "beef" for "chorizo" as that was all I had in the freezer, this recipe was full of flavour and absolutely delicious:

Red bomb Curry:

This again was full of flavour, also very filling and very healthy:

Spanish Omelet:

I liked this. A lot. It was flavourful and didn't go mushy or fall apart like some omelets. The only improvement I would make is some extra nooch:

Creme Caramel:

This was good but the tofu seemed to split and the taste of tofu did come through. I may try this again with a firm tofu and more maple syrup:

Mouthwatering Multigrain Bake:

This was a good recipe for summer, filling and healthy, tasty and great served cold:

 Rainbow Rice Salad:

This was good - rice, veg, apple, cheese, I would make it again but I would leave out the mint, it ruined it for me as it contrasted with the rest of the flavours:

Greek Garlic Bean Stew:

This was another good recipe, on the first night I thought it was just good but the next night I had the leftovers with some added BBQ sauce and nooch which made it fantastic:

Juicy Burger and Potato Stew:

This was another winner but I didn't like the idea of leaving the burgers whole, I prefer them chopped up so I would do that in future:

Chili Con Carne:

This was good chili recipe, I personally prefer chili served cold but it would be equally good warm:

Happy Milk:

Vegan milk made from cashews and maple syrup - who could fail to love that? I have to admit I would not have tried this without having a high powered blender, but if you do have one this is definitely a great recipe, tasty but not overly sweet, the only flavour a slight taste of cashew:

Shepherds Pie with Maple Glazed Parsnips:

This was my favourite recipe. Outstanding. I forgot to put a layer of cheese in but it was still a fantabulous recipe that I have ear marked for making again:

Overall - a great book. There was nothing that I didn't actually like, there were a recipes where I would have like to change thing but other than that it was fantastic. There are also some rather fab looking desserts in here too such as a vegan bountyesq bar that I am dying to make!

July Vegan Tuck Box Review

I have been a massive fan of Vegan Tuck Box since they launched last year, I was first introduced to them at the LABL fair in Liverpool where I bought their first box to try out and within a few days I had already set up a monthly subscription.
They are a great company with excellent customer service who actually listen to their customers (a few months ago they asked for feedback on how to improve their service, my idea was to allow additional items to be bought in the online shop and added to your next tuck box to save on postage. Vegan Tuck Box listed and have incorporated this facility into their shop).
Barring the special edition boxes (Chocolate Lovers & Gluten Free) I have had them all but I have not reviewed them because I always found them rather heavy on chocolate products. This month however the selection was a brilliant and varied, with most products being completely new to me:

Friesengold Chocolate Shortcake Biscuits -
These were heavenly. Light as air and delicious. I know some bloggers had a few broken biscuits but I only found 1 to be broken, which didn't detract from the taste at all. I would definitely have these again:

Montezumas Salted Caramels - 

I wasn't sure if I would like these or not but I loved them. The buttery taste of caramel with the salt is perfectly balanced and make an unusual but tasty treat:

Rysp Baked Rye Sour Dough Crisps -
I have tried these before (at this years LABL fair), they are a bit of an acquired taste/texture, but once you get used to them they are very enjoyable. This pack was Garlic & Rosemary, I think they would be lovely dipped in houmous:

Smooze Coconut & Mango Fruit Ice -
I have tried a different flavour of Smooze (coconut & pink guava) but not this one, in my opinion this is far better than the other flavours, a lovely combination of coconut and mango which is both tasty and refreshing:

Vantastic Foods Almond Milk Chocolate -
This is another new flavour for me (I have had a few other Vantastic chocolate products), this one was great. A sweet milk like chocolate with little bits of almond. A really nice bar of chocolate:

Sweet Revolution Lime Raw Chocolate - 

Fabulous. I loved this bar, it was delicious and was really similar to chocolate lime sweets. The lime was not overpowering but added a great dimension and taste to a good quality raw chocolate:

Amazin Tomato Corn Rolls -

Time for a confession. I ate the whole pack in one sitting. These were very very good. They are basically tomato flavoured tortilla chips in a roll shape, they do taste a little oily but once you start eating them its hard to stop:

Cocofina Coconut & Date Bar - 

This was an unusual bar, similar to a Nakd bar but with the coconut content it was a lot more fatty.It was unusual but still tasty, I would buy these if I saw then in a shop:

Wild Trail Cherry Crumble Bar - 

This was a nice bar, with a underlying cherry flavour but tasted nothing like crumble. It was a lot drier than most cereal bars due to the oat content. It was tasty and I would buy them, but this was not my favourite item:

Creative Nature Tropical Treat Bar -
I didn't expect to like this at all as I have tried a different flavoured bar and thought it tasted like carpet. This flavour was much better, it was quite moist with a good ginger flavour. I did enjoy it but wouldn't bother to buy these:

Wowbab Orange Bar - 

This is a cereal bar made with Baobab, Amaranth, Quinoa & Orange Flavour Chocolate. I didn't think I would like this because I hate quinoa, but I loved it. You cannot taste the quinoa, only its texture. The chocolate is delightful with just the right amount of orange. A really nice and health cereal bar:

Overall this months tuck box was brilliant. An excellent range of products, most of which were delicious.

July Cookbook Review - American Vegan Kitchen

Hello
I am posting Julys cookbook review early as I have nothing to do today so decided to get organised.
The review is of American Vegan Kitchen by Tamasin Noyes.

I bought this book a while ago as I love American food, but couldn't decide if I like the book or not. I decided to make 15 things from the book, as usual I will start with my least favourites:

Cashew Cheese

Damn. This was the last recipe I tried and I thought it would be a case of liking all 15 recipes. I was wrong, I didn’t like this at all. It had good potential, but the vinegar added a weird flavour and there was nowhere near enough nooch.

Well thats it, now on to the good stuff

Route 66 Seitan

This was a really good seitan recipe, it was very flavourful and had a good  texture (not too firm and not too chewy), the only downside was that the recipe stated to use vegetable broth, I didn't have any so had to wing it with sage and onion & water etc. I also forgot to take a photo but it can be seen in the sandwich in my birthday post.

Tuna-Free Noodle Casserole

This was fantastic, the recipe is complicated and the ingredients long but the artichoke hearts and other flavours worked together perfectly and made the effort worthwhile. I did cheat somewhat when making this, instead of using cashews I used the cashew cheese sauce from Oh She Glows cookbook  but I don’t think this detracted from the flavour in any way but next time I make it I will follow the recipe to the letter. I googled the recipe a few days later and it would appear I also used too much paprika but I don’t think you can go wrong with paprika

Chinatown Scramble

I have made quite a few scrambles in the last 6 years but thought I would make this as I liked the uniqueness of the ingredients (Beans Sprouts, Chinese 5 Spice, Lime Juice) and I am glad I made it, it was delicious, had a great texture and was very filling.

Sweet Garlicky Ribz

Time for another confession, regarding this recipe I made the seitan exactly according to the recipe, however after reading the sauce recipe I could not justify consuming that much sugar (I am diabetic) unless its in the form of cake, so I used a shop bought BBQ sauce and served it with Pad Thai noodles and veg. That notwithstanding this recipe is absolutely brilliant, the texture of the Ribs was perfect and I thoroughly enjoyed them. I will definitely be making this again.

Mustard Mac Slaw

In wasn't sure about this whilst I was making it, I kept thinking “this is just going to taste of mustard”. I was wrong, this slaw was wonderful, it took me about an hour to figure out what it reminded me of  - its a cross between coleslaw and piccalilli. I thoroughly enjoyed it and have made it since -  I tend to serve it with Seitan Steak.

Home Style Macaroni Salad

This was good, I subbed some of the mayo for soya yoghurt but it was still a really good, quick and simple recipe to throw together after work.

Stovetop Mac and Cheese

I love Mac and Cheese, although this is not my favourite recipe it was very quick and simple, flavourful and not too high in calories. Perfect for a quick weeknight dinner

Seitan Lite

At first I did not like this, the texture was spongy and it didn't have much flavour, however I then realised this is not a recipe to use on its own (in sandwiches or just for stuffing your face with) its a base ingredient along the same lines as plain tofu or tempeh.  If you fry it in a pan it develops a much better texture and if you throw it in a stew or marinate it the seitan really comes into its own. I tried it in numerous recipes but my favourites were pan frying it with Buffalo Wing Sauce and covering it in mushroom gravy. If you are after a good seitan recipe to make a base mock meat then I would recommend this seitan but be forewarned it makes a lot!

BLT Potato Salad

I was intrigued by this recipe, potato salad is not something that I ate much before becoming vegan but something about the idea of this recipe really interested me so I decided to make it. It was brilliant, bursting with flavour it tasted very decadent but wasn't too unhealthy with only a small amount of  mayo . I made my own fake bacon bits instead of using the tempeh bacon recommended in the recipe and I served it with seitan steak and corn on the cob. This is a fab meal that I will be making again. And again.

Deli Style Sandwich

I rarely make sandwiches from cookbooks but this one looked so delicious – Seitan lite (marinated and cooked) with salad and cheesy mayo -  I just had to make it. Again I’m very glad I did, the cheesy mayo was the perfect condiment and made this sandwich a belly filling delight

Noodle Omelette

This was a rather strange recipe – noodles in a tofu omelette mix but somehow it worked (potatoes in Spanish omelettes work so  why not noodles?), it wasn't massively flavourful but was a nice filling meal that I might make again but I would add some additional flavourings – maybe some soya cheese and fake bacon

Red Eye Tofu

I have made Red Eye gravy before and didn't like it, coffee in gravy just didn't do it for me but I decided to try it again and this recipe changed my mind, the tofu was supposed to be made into skewers but I couldn't be bothered after getting home late so just made it as tofu cubes.

It was excellent – warm and full of flavour but not too spicy, I will be making this again

Diner Tempeh Patties

This recipe required blocks of tempeh, I didn’t have any. Just a jar of tempeh chunks so its Diner Tempeh Chunks instead. And they were gorgeous, the recipe is wonderful. I wasn't sure if I would like them because of the maple syrup in the recipe but it worked really well and added an extra layer of flavour (the ketchup and balsamic vinegar were great additions as well). I think if I get some tempeh blocks I will make this again and use it in sandwiches

Tempeh Burgers

These were quite similar to the previous recipe but were rather more savoury with miso (red) and liquid smoke being two of the flavourings. This recipe was nice but I was spoilt by the Diner Tempeh Patties which were far superior in my opinion!

Overall what did I think of this book? In the words of Ron Weasley in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets - Bloody Brilliant. One of the best cookbooks I have.

Bank Holiday and Birthday Food

I though I would share a few photos of some nice food I have eaten over the last couple of weeks, on my birthday and last bank holiday:

Birthday Breakfast - Speculoos & Banana on Toast & a Chocolate Hot Cross Bun. Followed by a choc chip cookie from the Ms Cupcake cookbook

Sandwich - Route 66 Seitan (From American Vegan Kitchen), Vegusto Walnut, Spicy Coleslaw and salad

Homemade Chocolate Cake (Cake is from Chloes Kitchen, buttercream was invented by myself). It is also filled with black cherry pie filling and topped with nuts, chocolate chips and the ganache from Chloes Kitchen

Slightly collapsed cake

Steakless steak - I felt like steak last weekend so made this. I made up the recipe using some of my favourite techniques/ingredients. It was great. I scribbled down the recipe and will post it if I can find it: