Ultimate Pub Gravy

I adore pub food. The sheer comfort, the absolute unpretentiousness of it...  delightful. Sadly, we don't have The Snug in Brisbane (and sadly, it's awesome vegan-friendly St Kilda location has also closed), so mostly, I do with making Pub Lunches at some.

This is my go-to gravy; it's a one-pot wonder that takes about 15 minutes to come together and is both Hangover Approved and worthy of guests. The perfect addition to your homemade pub lunch!

Feel free to leave out the mushrooms, sub in a different veg, switch up the stock and spices... it's incredibly forgiving, so use this as a base for your own dream gravy.



Ultimate Pub Gravy

In a large frying pan, combine:

1 brown onion, diced
2-4 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
2-3 sliced mushrooms (or equivalent to volume to onions if presliced (a good handful))
Few good cracks of salt
Generous tablespoon each of butter and olive oil

 Sauté until onions are mostly transcluent then add:

1 tsp dried thyme
1 tbl nooch
1 stock cube/1 tbl stock power (omit if using stock later)

Cook, stirring almost constantly, until toasty then add:

1/4 cup white flour

Cook, still stirring, until flour is beginning to brown then add:

1/4 cup red wine OR beer
2 cups (approx) of water OR stock (if not using stock cube/powder)

 
 
Stir thoroughly until mix is cloudy. Wait for mix to bubble then lower heat slightly, continuing to stir, until mix is desired thickness (keep in mind it will thicken as it cools; add more stock or water if it becomes too thick). Season with pepper, and additional salt if required.

 

Sweet Potato Pasta Sauce

This recipe is the result of being home disappointingly early but surprisingly tipsy to discover that there was nothing to eat. I quickly roasted the sweet potato I found tucked at the back of my cupboard but then realizing that there was no way it would sate our growing drunger, I quickly cooked up some pasta and decided to turn it into a sauce.

Worried I only only enjoyed it under the influence, I tried it a couple more times to confirm it is indeed a ridiculously quick and delicious meal you can throw together with minimal effort.

Sweet Potato Pasta Sauce
Preheat oven to 200C. In a pan (I use my cast iron), put:

1 brown onion, sliced
1 medium sweet potato, cut small
3 cloves garlic, crushed and/or roughly chopped
Good splash canola
Big pinches of salt and nooch

Bake for 30, and start boiling water for pasta.

After 30 mins, add a big splash of red wine, mix through, then mix through 2 heaped tablespoons of tomato paste. Thin with approx 1/2 cup stock (until it's just a little thinner than you want). Return to the oven (turn the oven off) while you cook pasta, for about 10 minutes. Stir sauce through cooked pasta. Season.

You can also stir the cooked pasta through the sauce and crumb the top the top and bake together. Simply mix together 1/2 cup of breadcrumbs (I use Panko) with a teaspoon or so of oil, salt, pepper, nooch (optional), and freshly chopped parsley or oregano. Sprinkle over the top of the sauce and pasta then return to the oven for 15-20 minutes (until the top is golden brown).

30 Minute Ragù alla Bolognese

I adore lasagna. Creamy, meaty, savoury, delicious sauces held in sheets of silky pasta... is there anything better? I rarely eat it, though, cause "real" ragù alla Bolognese takes 2 to 3 hours to make, and while the Homecooker means I don't have to stand around and stir it myself, that's a long time to wait! Is it worth it? Yes. Can I be bothered 90% of the time? Heck no.

Anyway, the other day after a tough day at work, all I wanted was lasagna, but after spending all day in the kitchen, I didn't want to spend all night either. A conversation a few months ago with Matt on how he was tweaking Bryanna Clark Grogan's amazing ragù recipe to make it a bit quicker had given me a few ideas, so I thought I'd give it my own shot.

After a couple more attempts, I think I finally cracked it. While this doesn't have the depth or complexity of the traditional ragù (which I'll still be making for special occasions), the speed at which it can be made more than makes up for that, and means you can have lasagna assembled and ready to go in the oven in about 45 minutes (if you make the béchamel in between stirs of the ragù, you can probably get it in the oven in more like 35, and have your lasagna (all from scratch!) in just over an hour!).

A few notes before we start:

• Watch the salt! You'll be adding a lot of salty ingredients into the sauce from the beginning, so refrain from seasoning the sauce until the very end.
• This makes more than enough for a mini lasagna (I used an 8" baking dish), so you can have lasagna for dinner and used the leftover ragù for lunch or dinner the following night. If you're making lasagna for a crowd, I would double the recipe.
• To make wheat/gluten-free, use gluten-free soy sauce or tamari, and double-check the ingredients in the TVP (some brands contain gluten).
• In order to speed up the process, you'll be cooking this on a much higher heat than you generally would, so don't leave it alone!

30 Minute Ragù alla Bolognese
Based on Bryanna Clark Grogan's Ragù alla Bolognese from Nonna's Italian Feast

1. To a medium saucepan over medium heat, add 1 tablespoon each olive oil and vegan butter and 1 teaspoon of sesame oil.
2. Roughly dice 1 carrot, 1 red onion, 1 brown onion, 6 cloves garlic, and 2 stalks of celery and add this to the pan. Increase heat to medium-high and saute, stirring frequently, until vegetables are softened.
3. Add 2 cups TVP mince, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast, 1 teaspoon dried rosemary, 1 teaspoon dried thyme, 1 chicken-style broth cube (or 1 tablespoon chicken-style broth powder), and 400g tomato paste. Stir together, then allow to sit for a minute or two before stirring again. Continue until mix has nearly dried out and is sticking to the bottom of the pan.
4. Deglaze pan with 1/2 cup dry red wine (you can use a dry white in a pinch) and reduce heat to medium. Stir until the wine has evaporated, then add 1/2-1 cup stock (homemade or store-bought), just enough to thin out of the ragù into an appropriately wet sauce. Stir in 1/2 cup soy milk (or other neutral-flavoured milk; don't use rice milk as it will add too much sweetness) and cook for a minute or two until it's combined. If sauce it too thin, reduce the sauce, stirring constantly, until it is the thickness you like. Season with salt and pepper; your sauce is done!

Either place on top of freshly cooked pasta and eat straight away, or use to assemble lasagna. If you're making lasagna, you can use Bryanna's delicious béchamel.

Enjoy!

Incidentally, if you don't own Nonna's Italian Kitchen, RUN DON'T WALK and get yourself a copy. It is a book that I go back to again and again for both recipes and inspiration.

Vegan Savoury Crepe/Omelette

I threw the original version of these together when morning when I needed to bring together an odd combination of leftovers and nearly-past-it vegetables I'd salvaged from the bottom of my fridge. Though I generally just guess the proportions when I make them these days, when I presented my vegan breakfast class at Laneway Learning last year, I realised I should probably have an actual recipe for people to follow, so here it is!

These aren't exactly like an omelette in taste or texture, and also in that you wrap it around the fillings rather than folding them into the batter, but what else do you call it? Most importantly, it's super delicious. Even better, it's a great way of repurposing leftovers, can be throw together in about 10 minutes (great for lazy mornings and hangovers alike), and the batter will last in the fridge for up to a week (possibly even longer).

Leftovers from making tacos or nachos are great for fillings, otherwise any mix of veggies sauteed are equally great. You don't need to do anything too fancy. Cook the fillings beforehand and set aside covered so they stay warm.

Blend (in an upright blender or using an immersion blender):

300g firm silken tofu
200g soy milk
80g besan (chickpea) flour
30g cornstarch (cornflour)
20g olive oil
6g nutritional yeast flakes
Big pinch each of salt, pepper, oregano, garlic powder

Heat a non-stick (or very well seasoned cast iron) over medium heat. Grease with the fat of your choosing, then ladle about 1/2 cup - 1 cup of the batter into the pan; use the back of the ladle of cup to evenly spread the batter over the pan. Place a lid on the pan: glass lids are useful because you can see when it's drying, otherwise check after a couple of minutes to see if the top of the crepe has dried out a bit. Once the top has dried out, flip the crepe over and cook briefly on the other side. Adjust the heat of the pan as necessary to make sure they don't burn.

Set cooked crepes onto plates, and cover half with the filling of choice. Fold the free half over the top, dust with paprika and serve!

I'm about halfway through my Barcelona post (I went again this year) so, once again, I'm posting a recipe to fill in the meantime! Hopefully that'll be up soon, or I'll just have to share more recipes!

Mum/Lyn's Quick Cinnamon Scrolls

This has been a very long week, and sadly last Monday we celebrated the life of Matt's mum, Lyn.

In honour of her, I thought it would be good to share a recipe she made often, and which Matt & I probably made a little too often! Lyn had many allergies during her life which means she ate mostly vegan for much of her life. This recipe is probably one of those accidentally vegan recipes that appeared during the war (if anyone recognises and knows where it's from, please let me know so I can add an attribution).

Because they're not yeasted, you can get these scrolls together in about half an hour, making them great for a quick winter afternoon treat, or a last-minute "was that today??" snack for a family gathering (guilty!).

Ingredients
Dough:
2 cup of self-raising flour (if you don't have self-raising flour, use 2 cups plain flour and 3 teaspoons baking powder and increase the pinch of salt to 1 teaspoon)
pinch of salt
90g non-dairy butter
2/3 cup non-dairy milk

Filling:
60g non-dairy butter
2 tablespoons soft brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Icing:
1 cup icing sugar
1 tablespoon boiling water

Method
Preheat over to 210°C
1. Sift flour and salt in a bowl. Rub butter into flour with fingertips.
2. Make well in centre and add most of the milk. Mix lightly with flat backed knife: add more liquid if necessary.
3. Knead dough briefly on lightly floured surface until smooth. Roll out to 25 x 40cm rectangle approx.
4. Make icing: beat butter, sugar and cinnamon until light and fluffy. Spread to corners of dough.
5. Roll up dough from long side. Using a sharp knife slice dough into 3cm pieces.
6. Cook for 12 minutes. Drizzle with icing.

Eat them while they're hot (as if you'll be able to resist!), or microwave for about 30 seconds to reheat.

And, most importantly, remember to share them with those you love.

We both love and miss you, Lyn/Mum.

Easy Chocolate Mousse

There are millions of vegan chocolate mousses out there and they vary from the ridiculously easy to the stupidly overcomplicated (and, usually, with very little payoff). Similarly to brownies, there is a lot disagreement among what people expect from a mousse: some people want super fluffy (the texture I associate with that creepy brown paste served at fast food "restaurants"), others want something rich but still light, as though someone put chocolate in a cream gun. Other people don't care as long as it's chocolate.

This is an incredibly dense chocolate mousse; I'd love to say that a couple of spoonfuls is enough but yeah, that's a lie. My one big tip is: don't tell people what's in it until they've eaten it! And then they'll be amazed and you'll give them the recipe and they'll go home and make it and the deception will spread across the world...

HA.

The craziest thing about all that is that most people don't know what's in mousse anyway, but if you give the slightest hint that it's not "normal", they'll freak out. "You mean it doesn't contain BUTTER?!"

Anyway...

The easiest way to do this is using a stick blender, but you can always use an upright blender if you don't have one (but then go out and get one, seriously, why don't you have a stick blender). You can easily double the recipe, but keep an eye on the size of the container; the first time I made this, it ended up about half a centimetre below the top of the container, which made blending... very nerve-wracking.

In an appropriately sized, microwave-safe container (pick depth over width; an 8 cup pyrex is a good size), blend until completely smooth:

300g silken tofu (I use Morinaga tetrapack tofu which says it's 298g)
150g chocolate coconut or soy milk (if you don't have chocolate milk, you can just use plain)
50g liquid sweetener (I used golden syrup; using liquid sweetener means you don't have to worry about granulated sweetener dissolving)
5g vanilla extract
Pinch of salt

Add 300g good quality dark chocolate (I use Callebaut). Microwave for 1 minute on high, stir well, then microwave for 30 second intervals (stirring well each time) until the chocolate is almost completely melted (chocolate will melt at around 36 degrees, so it really doesn't need to be that warm to melt properly; 1-1:30min should be enough). Stir until the mixture is a uniform colour. Blend with the stick blender for a couple of seconds (this will pull air into it and give it that sort-of Aero texture), then cling wrap and place in the fridge OR distribute to smaller serving glasses, cling wrap them and then refridgerate. Small servings should set in one to two hours to set, but overnight/overday is best to be totally sure (and a must if you're just going to do it in the one container and then eat it with a spoon, which is what I do).

If you're feeling particularly decadent, use it to ice a chocolate cake. And then thank me.

And you're done! Seriously, that's it.

I will be back soon with seriously belated travel-related posts, or maybe another recipe so I can just keep on delaying actually finishing the travel posts... we shall see!

Quick & Easy Vegan (Yeasted) Cinnamon Buns

Cinnamon Rolls. Cinnamon buns. I won't quibble over specifics - if there's bready goodness with a sweet, creamy, gooey, cinnamony filling - I will be there in a flash. With or without the glaze that makes them totally over the top.

Photo from James' attempt!

I grew up with a single, working Mum who didn't have a lot of spare time. But every now and then, I'd wake up to gorgeous scents floating through the house, jump up excitedly, and run to the kitchen to find that she'd made us cinnamon rolls. 

Now, my Mum was a busy, single working mother, so she didn't have time to mess around with yeast and kneading, so the cinnamon rolls she made were unyeasted - basically, a rolled and filled almost-shortcrust pastry. And they were darn delicious. My mum is actually extremely, horribly allergic to dairy and eggs, so I grew up with cinnamon rolls that were unintentionally vegan, which made returning to them as an adult even easier - they didn't even require any tweaking of the recipe. I still make them sometimes.

Me at approximately 4, baking with my Grandma. Look at my crazy eyes - I loved it.

As I've gotten older, I've also found an equally passionate love of cinnamon buns - which, are obviously more bakery style - and are yeasted, with a silky, tender, puffy, slightly chewy tender dough in place of that creamy almost-shortcrust I grew up with, but are otherwise pretty much the same. The yeasted nature gives them an almost un-explainable umami richness.

I have a Kitchenaid stand-mixer, so pretty much the only thing that stops me making either buns or scrolls is a) the unavoidable rolling-out of the dough and the sprinklings of flour that I know are going to get everywhere and b) the time component.

I'm now learning just to relax, put down a Silpat (silicone baking mat), and spread that flour everywhere, knowing that it won't be hard to clean up afterwards. If I just start, I'll overcome the mental hurdle of hatred of mess. Watching the way Nigella Lawson gleefully gets her hands right into every step of the cooking process has also helped me too. It just takes a quick wipe down and a hand-wash for her to revert to looking pristine. Maybe I could too... Now if only I had her lighting team, and luscious, luscious hair...

A screenshot I took from Nigella's 2005 talk show on dieting, as she announced she was giving the entire audience free Krispy Kreme donuts, because "you mustn't deprive yourself". You've gotta love her.

Getting over this hasn't helped fix the time component for yeasted buns. I'm pretty bad at delaying gratification - so making something and waiting four hours to eat them is akin to slow, painful torture for me. And then, this morning, the Universe smiled down on me, and I saw that my friend Kittee had made quick cinnamon buns, based on the recipe that Somer McCowan of Vedged Out had posted on Instagram. They're yeasted, but only require 10 minutes rising time, thanks to a special ingredient she (and I) had on hand after making Bryanna's palm-oil-free vegan butter, called Liquid Lecithin, an emulsifier and humectant which I've discovered has properties that greatly improve yeasted doughs, and require little or no rising time.

I thought I'd take a punt and give them a try, and they worked out gorgeously. You may still get covered in flour, but at least you won't have to wait. I can't find the recipe on her website, so thought I'd share it here. It's quick, little fuss, and very satisfying. Thanks very much to Somer for pulling this together.

Somer McCowan's Quick & Easy Cinammon Buns, re-written (so blame me, not her!):

1. Preheat your oven to 180 C / 350 F and grease a square or circular baking dish (I used a glass Pyrex pie dish and canola spray).

2. In the bowl of your stand mixer, fitted with the beating paddle, add:

1 cup warm water (not too hot, or you'll kill the yeast)
1 tablespoon instant yeast (I used Lowan brand)
1 tablespoon liquid lecithin (eyeball this, because it's near impossible to get it off either utensils, OR your hands - trust me, it's a very unpleasant feeling to have this all over your hands (James/Bryanna's note: spray the tablespoon with oil before measuring the lecithin and it will slide right off the spoon!))
2.5 cups + 2 tablespoons plain flour
1 teaspoon sea salt

3. Knead for 8-10 minutes, or until smooth and elastic. My dough was pretty touchable, and not sticky.

4. Flour your work area and your rolling pin, and roll the dough out into an 8 x 14 inch rectangle (my silicon mat has inches marked, which is fantastic).

5. Mix together:

1/4 cup softened butter (I'm not going to get into naming wars. Use whatever you use as butter - whether nuttelex, earth balance, or dairy butter - just don't write to me proselytising and raving about how unhealthy butter/margarine is, because I truly don't care. Add salt as needed, if what you're using is unsalted. Salt makes things delicious).
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon

6. Spread butter mixture all over the dough, right to the edges (I used a pastry brush)

7. Grasp both edges of the longest length side (bottom of the rectangle), and gently roll it forward, taking care to keep the filling even, until you end up with a cylinder which is spiralled inside. 

8. Cut cylinder into one inch rolls, turn them sideways (spiral visible from above), and place in your greased baking dish. Continue cutting and arranging until complete. I had to squish some of mine up, but that's okay, their will to rise is strong, and they will be fine.

9. Set the dish, packed with yummy buns full of potential in a warm (but not hot) place, to rise for 10 minutes, or until almost doubled (which I admit I forgot to do, I was so eager - and they turned out fine, with no "yeasty" taste).

10. Bake for approximately 20 minutes, until the tops are lightly golden.

They're good as they are, or you can make an icing sugar/butter/milk glaze to drizzle over them if you're feeling really Nigellicious and want your hands dripping with sugar and fat.

Unfortunately, I was pretty slap-dash and devoured half of them like a ravenous beast, so I don't have a photo of the outcome, sorry (not sorry). So here's a photo of my darling Devon Rex cat Sylvia, when she was a baby kitten and I had just brought her home. Today, she's a ferocious beast, but she's still gorgeous.

She's not shy. Work it, girl!

I'm also interesting in hearing about your experiences with liquid lecithin - I've read you can use it to make super fast-rising pizza dough as well. Let me know what you think.
And in the words of Nigella Lawson - "I don't believe in deprivation. Enjoy yourself".

Matt 

Creamy Potato & Leek Casserole

To be perfectly honest, I've never really had an interest in casseroles (making them, at least): I've always been very stove-top based (maybe because my interest in cooking started with Japanese and Chinese cooking?). So I'm not entirely sure why I'm suddenly taken with them. Maybe roasting potatoes is a gateway to all manner of oven cooking?

Regardless, I had a leek that was desperately in need of use the other day and, of course, my trusty "reduced!" baby red potatoes, and decided, rather than bother with making a soup (as was my original thought), I'd fashion it into a casserole. If it's possible, this is even easier than a soup, though of course it is more dry (and quite a bit more rich!).

Creamy Potato & Leek Casserole
Preheat oven to 220C.

Cut 1kg roasting potatoes into 1-2cm cubes/chunks and place them on the bottom of a baking dish. Over the top of this, evenly distribute:

4 cloves of garlic, crushed and sliced (not minced)
leaves stripped from 4 sprigs fresh thyme or rosemary (if using rosemary, roughly chop the leaves)
1 brown onion, thinly sliced
1 leek, greens trimmed, halved, washed and thinly sliced (if you're new to leeks, here's a quick guide on how to prepare them)

Don't mix the vegetables together. Over the top of this, pour 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, spreading it evenly. Measure out 1/4 cup vegan butter or margarine (I use Nuttelex olive); scoop little pieces and place them across the top of the vegetables (they will melt into the mix in the oven). (Alternatively, melt together the oil and margarine and pour this mix over the vegetables).

Give the dish a good sprinkling of salt and a few good cracks of pepper, then place in the oven for 30 minutes.

While it's cooking, use either a blender or a stick blender to make the cream. If using a stick blender (much easier for clean up), place all ingredients in a tall container (one is usually included in the pack with stick blenders, otherwise improvise!). Regardless of the method, combine:

1/2 cup vegetable stock (I used homemade stock, which is quite rich and concentrated, so if using stock cubes or powder, consider using slightly greater ratio of cube/powder to water than you may otherwise)
1/2 cup soy milk
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
295-300g silken tofu (I use Morinaga silken tofu, which comes in (debatably) 297g packs)
1tsp salt
A hearty pinch each of white pepper and nutritional yeast flakes 

Blend until completely smooth. DON'T TASTE IT, especially if you're an omnivore; just trust me that it will taste good in the casserole!

When the 30 minutes is up, remove the casserole from the oven and pour the cream over the top. Mix everything together so the cream is spread evenly through the whole mix. Return the casserole to the oven for a further 25 minutes. Allow the casserole to rest for 5-10 minutes once it's out of the oven, then enjoy!