VEGAN GF PAKORAS

VEGAN GF PAKORAS

This recipe is awesome. I love pakoras but sometimes buying authentic vegan ones can get pricey.  Luckily most indian food is actually vegan. Its always my go to restaurant when i'm in a town I don't know. There's always tons of vegan option on the menu and if you ask a waiter about vegan options they always know what youre talking about. Dont you just hate when you ask a waiter about vegan options and they give you a confused look and you have to explain yourself? I know I do. I always have an uneasy feeling afterwards like they didn't understand and I'm eating something vegetarian. Thats why I love homemade everything! You know exactly what's in your food, where its from and how its cooked. Plus its so rewarding when you make something as delicious as pakoras. Serve these with mango chutney and you will think you died and gone to heaven. Its an awesome recipe to make if you're having people over because it makes tons! I made mine pretty big and it made 20 so im sure you could make them a little smaller and make 40! These store great in the fridge too. Just put the leftovers in a tupperware and fry it in a frying pan with a little oil to reheat. They will last up to 7 days in there. I hope you love spicy!  Enjoy my vegan pakora recipe.

Recipe                                         

Batter
GLUTEN FREE
2 cups garbanzo bean flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3 teaspoons pepper
3 teaspoons turmeric
6 tablespoons curry powder
1 1/2 teaspoons ground mango powder
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons coriander
1 cup water


Vegetables
1 head of cauliflower, finely chopped

1 can of sweet peas
half a white onion, finely chopped
4 potatoes, peeled, grated
1 big handful of spinach, finely chopped

Steps
Preheat your oven to 400 F. Oil your baking pan. Make sure there's lots of oil in your pan. Cut your cauliflower,onion and spinach. Peel and wash your potatoes. Grate your potatoes fine. Makes sure everything is cut pretty small. This helps it all stay together better. Once your vegetables are all washed and ready, combine all of them  together in a large bowl. Time to start your batter. Combine all your dry ingredients together in a medium sized. Stir together with a fork to make sure there's no clumps. Add the water slowly. Keep stirring with the fork while adding the water. It should be like the consistency of pancake batter. If its too thick, add some more water one tablespoon at a time. If its too watery add more garbanzo bean flour one tablespoon at a time. Once your batter is the right consistency pour it into the bowl of vegetables. Stir everything together really well. Make sure all your vegetables are covered in some batter. Using a big spoon, take out large scoops of the mix. Make sure to let any excess drip off. Then place it on your place. It might seem a little runny but it bakes together great! Repeat this until your bowl is empty. You can choose the size of the pakoras as you please but try to keep it uniform so they all bake evenly. Place in the oven. Bake for 10 minutes then flip them and bake for another 10 minutes.

If they stick a little just flip them gently. Allow them to cool for 10 minutes then serve with chutney!

VEGAN CAULIFLOWER BBQ WINGS

While I was up visiting my family my little sister and I made an amazing christmas dinner.  Christmas dinner in our house is a little tricky because I'm the only vegan. My sister's only eat certain meats and have both been vegans at some point in their lives , my brother eats everything and my parents loveee their turkey and ham. I love a challenge so we made a bunch of different sides. As vegan as we could. I think the only non vegan things there was rice a roni (which is my moms favourite so its a must of course) and the stuffing! One of the awesome dishes my little sister made was spicy cauliflower wings! They were so good and I was so happy she made a special vegan dish. I loved them so much I thought I'd make my own recipe.  So props to my little sister Ivy for inspiring me to make these. So easy and so quick to make. This recipe is easy to change around spices and sauces to your own preference. Experiment and have fun. All of my meat eatin'  family members loved them.  Enjoy:)

VEGAN CAULIFLOWER BARBECUE WINGS

Recipe

1 head cauliflower washed and broken up

4 tablespoons of olive oil *for your baking pan

1 cup unbleached white flour 

1/4 cup corn starch

1 teaspoon pepper 

2 1/2 teaspoons chili spice

1/2 teaspoon salt 

dash of curry powder

2 teaspoons sriracha 

2 teaspoons vegan barbecue sauce

1 cup cold water

1/4 barbecue sauce * for brushing on the wings while they are baking

Steps
Preheat your oven to 400 F.  Oil your baking tray. Wash your cauliflower and break off pieces with stems on the bottom. Its pretty easy to just follow the stem of the cauliflower. If the pieces are too large you can just cut them in half with a knife.
Combine ingredients flour through water in a medium sized bowl. Mix together well with a fork. Dip the cauliflower pieces into the batter with a fork. Allow the excess batter to drip off and place the cauliflower on the pan.

 Repeat for all your pieces and place in the oven.  Bake for 10 minutes. Take the pan out and use your 1/4 cup of barbecue sauce to brush on the cauliflower pieces. Place them back in the oven for 10 more minutes.
When you take them out just let them cool down then you can peel any excess batter dried around your cauliflower.
Put them on a plate and serve! You could serve them with dipping sauce as well.
Enjoy!

VEGAN CHILI

Its definitely fall time in Victoria now

Everything looks beautiful. I love all the colors of fall time! It was actually the first cold day out here so I thought I'd make my first chili of the season. It was a good call because my house smells amazing now. I had half a loaf of portofino roasted garlic and cracked pepper bread too! Its made by a local bakery here and it is THE BEST. (I attached their website on local bakery) I wish I could share it with the world because its sooo good. Here's my recipe:) I hope this warms you up in the coolldd season wherever you are. Cheers! 

Recipe

makes 4-6 servings

1 white onion, diced

6 cloves garlic, diced

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 teaspoons chili spice

1 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon salt

Half a red pepper, diced

1 1/4 cup vegetable broth

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can kidney beans, drained, rinsed

1 can chick peas, drained, rinsed

1 can bean medley, drained, rinsed

1 can tomato paste

4 drops liquid smoke

7 tablespoons chili spice

1 1/2 teaspoons pepper

1 teaspoon poultry seasoning

1 handful of fresh thyme

4 basil leaves, diced

Steps

Saute your onion, garlic, chili spice, salt and pepper in a frying pan for 5 minutes. 

 I add some chili spice on mine for extra flavour!

In a large pot on medium heat, combine your vegetable broth, all your vegetables and beans, spices (except chili powder), liquid smoke and tomato paste. Stir together well. Cook for 5 minutes. Add your chili powder and stir well again. Bring to a low boil and reduce to low-med heat with a lid slightly opened. Cook for 1 hour. 

Sprinkle nutritional yeast on top and you're done. Easy right?

CURRY POCKETS

These curry pockets are just a fun, healthy spin on a simple pizza dough recipe. 

Its a little bit time consuming but sooo worth it because they are amazing! I'm fijian so I grew up eating the spiciest curry from a really young age so if my recipes are too spicy for you just change it up a bit! Either way they will be delicious and good for you. They are great to bake a bunch and store in the fridge for lunches or even to freeze for another dinner! The recipe would work with a gluten free pizza dough recipe as well! I just add different spices and flours to the dough to make it less like pizza and more like samosa dough. So here we are......

CURRY POCKETS

Makes 9

Dough recipe:

1 cup warm water

1 packet of instant yeast

pinch of salt

2 1/2 cups organic white or whole wheat flour (I used whole wheat this time)

1/2 cup garbanzo bean flour

1 1/2 teaspoon curry 

1 1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1 1/2 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon of marjoram

handful of fresh thyme

Filling recipe: 

4 small yellow potatoes, boiled, mashed

half of a yellow pepper, diced

3 mushrooms, diced

4 gloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup purple onion, diced

1 can of chickpeas

4 tablespoons coconut cream/milk

1/2-1 tablespoon earth balance butter

2 teaspoons curry

2 teaspoons turmeric

2 teaspoons cumin

pinch of salt and pepper

STEPS

Preheat your oven to 350C. Prepare 1 cup warm water ( not too warm or you will kill the yeast ). Add a pinch of salt. Sprinkle yeast packet over top and let stand for 10 minutes. Mix all dry ingredients together in a large bowl. Add less spices if you want. Prepare a pot with water for the potatoes on your stove. Place a lid over it, set to med-high heat and wait for it to boil. Cut all your veggies for your filling. Add your potatoes to the pot once it has boiled. Boil for 10 mintues or until potatoes are soft. Drain the water then mash your potatoes. *You don't have to add the same veggies I'm sure it would be good with other things! By this time your yeast is probably ready and you can add it to your dry ingredients. Create a well in the middle and pour the yeast and water in. Mix them together well until a dough begins to form. Knead for 5-10 minutes. *The longer you knead it the less chance of air bubbles in your dough. Lightly flour your area to roll your dough out. Roll your dough out into a square, roughly 12" - 14" inches wide and 1/4" inch thick. Cut into 3 even rectangles. Then cut those into 3 even squares. Take one square and roll it out a little bit thinner. Mix all your cut up veggies in with your mashed potatoes and add spices according to your taste. *saute the garlic and onion for extra flavour Make sure they are stirred together good. Take about an ice cream scoop full of your filling and put it in the middle of your dough.

 

    

Roll the dough from in half and press the sides with forks. Make sure the dough it is stuck together really well so its doesn't open while you bake them. Repeat this until all of them are ready. Oil a baking pan and place curry pockets on top. Brush the tops with oil and bake for 15-20 mins!