banana and cardamom loaf

we had too many overripe bananas sitting in the pantry & had to use them up somehow! try this rustic yet exotically flavoured loaf!

makes 1 loaf
ingredients:
1/4 cup warm water
1 tsp dry active yeast
pinch of brown sugar
1 Tbsp whole cardamom pods
1 cup wholemeal flour
2 1/2 cups strong white flour
4 pinches of sea salt
2 Tbsp vanilla essence
2 large, slightly overripe bananas (mashed)
sesame seeds, to adorn

directions:
1. in a small bowl, mix water, yeast, and sugar, & let set for 10 minutes
2. in the meantime, mash up bananas into a pureed consistency. also, break your cardamom pods & mash up finely
3. sift flour into a big bowl & make a well in the middle. pour in yeast, cardamom, bananas, vanilla extract, & sea salt. slowly combine all ingredients into a dough, adding more water or flour accordingly
4. with your hands, form a ball with the dough. then place on a floured surface & knead for 5 minutes, until elastic and smooth
5. place back into the big bowl & cover with a damp cloth. leave to rise in a warm place for 2 hours
6. preheat oven to 190 C
7. get the dough & knead again for a few minutes. then split dough into three parts & plait. then cover in plastic wrap & let sit for another 20 minutes
8. place the plait on a lightly oiled baking tray. brush with a little water & sprinkle with sesame seeds
9. bake at 190 C for 10 minutes, then turn the heat down to 170 C and bake for another 15 minutes

carrot tops

the perfect sweet nibbles for this autumnal weather! take a moment to enjoy the deliciously spiced flavours of these very cute carrot cupcakes with a special tofu icing

makes about 35 bite-sized cupcakes
ingredients
for cupcakes:
1/2 cup apple sauce
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
1 cup margarine
2 pinches of sea salt
2 tsp baking powder
2 "eggs"
1 cup of sugar (feel free to add another 1/2 a cup if you are pining after something sweeter!)
plenty of cinnamon!!
1 Tbsp allspice
1 cup wholemeal flour
1 1/2 cup spelt flour
1/4 cup soy milk
2 large carrots, grated
1 cup finely chopped walnuts

for icing:
50g extra-firm tofu
1 cup plain icing sugar
1 cup cooled margarine

directions:
1. combine all ingredients together in a large bowl! you are looking for a sloppy and sludgy consistency, but not wet. if too dry, add a little more soymilk & if too wet, add a little more flour!
2. put some margarine in your muffin tins & spoon in mixture
3. bake in 200 C oven for about 15 minutes (note: if you are making larger cupcakes rather than these bite sized ones, you will need to cook for about 25 minutes! just keep testing with a fork)
4. while you let these cool, whip up your icing: simply blend all your ingredients together in a bowl. we used an electric whipping utensil, but if you don't have one, you can simply beat the ingredients together very vigorously until the consistency is smooth & slightly stiff!
5. let these two components meet harmoniously: smother the carrot tops with your creamy icing & lightly dust with cinnamon

Mexican Lasagna!

our beautiful, beautiful sister lucy is here from australia for just one week. so to welcome her, we're making this fusion food of mexican lasagna! complete with layers of a veggies, fake meat, and chilli beans, as well as a deeelicious cheesy sauce... a most wonderful & hearty meal!!

serves 7
ingredients:
1 large red capsicum
1 large green capsicum
1 large brown onion
1 large red onion
4 cloves garlic
1 cans of tomatoes
1 can chilli beans
1 can fake mince meat (if you cant find any, just use another can of beans!)
1 pack instant lasagna sheets
3 tsp paprika
3 Tbsp olive oil
sprinkle of pepper
1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 vegetable stock cube
1 Tbsp tuimato sauce
raw cashews & mixed herbs, to serve

& for cheesy sauce:
2 Tbsp margarine
1/4 cup wholemeal flour (stoneground)
1 Tbsp miso paste
3/4 cup almond milk
1 Tbsp tahini
2 Tbsp miso paste
1 Tbsp tomato sauce/paste
juice of half a lemon
1 tsp agave nectar
1/2 cup salsa


directions:
1. heat up some oil in a pan & saute roughly chopped onions, minced garlic & slivered capsicums for 5 minutes
2. stir in can of tomatoes & fake mince, as well as soy sauce, paprika, pepper, apple cider vinegar, stock cube, and tuimato sauce & cook for a further 10-15 minutes
3. make your cheesy sauce *
4. now begin with your layering of the lasagna! pour veggie and fake meat mix in a deep casserole dish, cover with lasagna pasta sheets & then cheesy sauce over that. for the next layer, pour in chilli beans & then another layer of pasta sheets & finally another layer of cheesy sauce & top with cashews and mixed herbs. cover with tin foil
5. bake in a 200 C oven for 40-60 minutes, until the lasagna sheets are tender!

*for cheesy sauce:
1. melt margarine in a large pot & once melted, mix in flour until a paste is formed
2. turn the heat to low and slowly add in the rest of the ingredients

banana-walnut muffins

today we have baked some deliciously sweet and healthy muffins to deliver to our wonderful & charismatic neighbours! munch on these omega-3 rich, potassium filled treats!

makes around 6 muffins

ingredients:

3 medium-sized overripe bananas

3 Tbsp olive oil

1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 cup spelt flour

1 1/2 cup wholemeal flour

2/3 to 3/4 cup brown sugar (use your judgment for how sweet you like food as you'll already be getting a lot of sweetness from the bananas!)

1 tsp baking soda

1 Tbsp LSA mix

1 "egg"

generous sprinkle of cinnamon

1/3 cup soymilk (or more, depending on how mushy bananas are!)

1/2 cup walnuts, rather finely chopped

directions:
1. mash up bananas with olive oil and apple cider vinegar
2. add in rest of ingredients, bit by bit, & mix well until all combined!
3. you are looking for a sticky, slightly wet consistency, so if the mix is too dry, add a little more soymilk! if too wet, add a little more flour
4. once all mixed up, spoon into muffin tins & back for 15-20 minutes in a 200 C oven!

cool chick chickpea patties

our brother haz has been a mad chef for the past few days, creating some sensational meals! today he made us the best thing we've ever tasted; chickpea patties! eat up, eat up, they are out of this world!

ingredients:
half a can of chickpeas
half a carrot
a smidgen of beetroot (for the colour!)
1 veggie stock cube
3 pinches of mixed herbs
1 red onion
1 tomato
splash of oil
1 "egg" (optional, though will hold together better!)
1 Tbsp LSA (ground linseed, sunflower, & almond mix)
1 tsp dukkah (or other spices of your choice)

directions:
1.  drain chickpeas & pour into a bowl
2. add very, very finely chopped carrot, onion, tomato, and grated beetroot. mash together until wonderfully smushed!
3. now add flaaaavours: stock cube, mixed herbs, oil, LSA, "egg",  and dukkah & mash up nicely all together
4. preferably, let sit in the fridge overnight (this will allow patties to combine better!) then cook on a grill or non-stick pan, 5 or so minutes on each side, until browned

and presto! you can serve these in a sandwich like we did. youll fall in love if you throw together some bread, tahini, hummus, avocado, grated carrot & beetroot, capsicum, silverbeet, tuimato & rocket fuel!

for another idea, leave out the "egg" and leave as a delicious mushy dip!

thank you hazzie!!!

slow roast

our oven has been broken over the past few weeks. so in celebration, tonight we will be cooking a meal utterly dependent on the warm splendour of the wonderful machine! try our take on the traditional family roast, complete with tofu steaks, roast vegetables in a bed of spices, and creamy broccoli & cauliflower.

serves 6

ingredients
tofu steaks:
1 1/2 blocks extra firm tofu
3 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
2 Tbsp tamari (or soy sauce)
1 Tbsp miso paste
2 Tbsp white sesame seeds
3 Tbsp sesame seed oil
4 Tbsp water

roast vegetables:
1/2 cup potatoes
1/2 cup pumpkin
1/2 cup kumara
pinch of cinnamon
pinch of curry powder
pinch of turmeric
2 tsp cardamom pods
1/4 cup of maple syrup
salt and pepper
drizzle extra virgin olive oil

creamy broccoli & cauliflower:
1/4 head broccoli
1/4 head cauliflower
2 Tbsp margarine
1/4 cup wholemeal flour (stoneground)
1 Tbsp miso paste
3/4 cup soymilk
1 Tbsp tahini
2 Tbsp miso paste
1 Tbsp tomato sauce/paste
juice of half a lemon



directions
for tofu steaks:
1. cut tofu into "steaks" (pieces about a centimetre thick & the block cut in half longways)
2. now press the tofu to reduce water content: place steaks on a towel & fold over, covering them. gently press, releasing excess liquids
3. then spread the tofu out in a casserole dish
4. mix marinating sauce in a small bowl & drizzle over tofu. if you want to, drizzle some maple syrup over the top
5. bake at 200 C for around 25-30 minutes

for roast vegetables:
1. roughly chop root veggies into inch-cube pieces
2. place in a somewhat deep casserole dish & coat liberally with seasonings
3. bake in 200 C oven for around 40-45 minutes, until slightly crisp on outside and tender on inside

for creamy broccoli & cauliflower:
1. start with creamy sauce: melt margarine in a large pot & once melted, mix in flour
2. turn the heat to low and slowly add in the rest of the ingredients
3. roughly chop broccoli and cauliflower into small pieces and add into the mix!
4. pour into a casserole dish and bake at 200 C for 15-20 minutes

breathe in deep & hold onto the dazzling aroma and tastes of this delicious meal!

Curried Noodles

this delicious malaysian dish was inspired by the sensational "curry noodle" from aunty mena's!

serves 6
ingredients:
1 cup string beans
1/2 head broccoli
1 large carrot
1 cup frozen peas
1 stalk of corn
3/4 cup cashews (raw or roasted)
1/3 cup sesame seeds
1 pack soba noodles (270g)

for curry sauce:
2 veggie stock cubes
2 brown onions
1 can pureed tomatoes
1 can coconut cream
juice of 1 lemon
4 gloves garlic
1-inch piece of ginger
pinch of: turmeric, curry powder, and cumin

directions:
1. begin with curry sauce: boil stock cubes in some water & sautee very finely chopped onions
2. using a mortar & pestle, grind up garlic, ginger, and spices. add to stock
3. add tomatoes, coconut cream, and lemon juice & cook for 10-15 minutes
4. now add finely chopped carrots, broccoli, and corn & peas, as well as string beans, with the ends cut off! cook together for 10 minutes, or until vegetables are tender
5. in the meantime, cook up noodles. this should only take a few minutes!
6. combine noodles into curry & add sesame seeds and cashews

top with more sesame seeds & cashews!
looove it!

Magenta Magic!

rejuvenate your mind and body with this powerful juice! every ingredient to give you that healthy glow

the beautiful painting in the background was created by justin brown, georgette's father!

serves 1-2
ingredients:
1/2 beetroot, tops removed - full of iron, vitamin B & C, liver cleansing properties
1 carrot, top removed - rich in vitamins across the spectrum: B, C, D, E, K, & fantastic for eyes & skin
4 leaves of spinach - high in vitamin B, C, K, as well as iron & calcium, wonderful for kidneys & liver
1 brussel sprout, top removed - contains high amounts of vitamins B & C, liver cleanser
1 clove garlic (optional!), skin removed - cancer & general sickness fighter
1-inch piece of ginger, skin removed - immunity booster, full of minerals such as zinc & magnesium
2 stalks of celery - calms the nervous system, helps insomnia, full of calcium, iron, phosphorous
2 pears or apples- vitamins B & C, tonnes of fibre
1 orange, skin removed though maintaining the pith (the white stuff, full of nutrients!) - full of vitamin C!

directions:
juice all ingredients in a juicer!
if the juice is too strong, or you want it to go a little further, add water to your taste!
feel the power of this wonderful juice!!!

x