Meh, it's my life :)

Tofu-cake: heaven for vegans who dream of cheesecake.

Recipe here. 

Yeah, I like my alliteration.

Anyways, I was feeling a tad more peckish than usual so I decided a healthy, filling dinner had to be on the menu. Before I was a vegetarian, spaghetti bolognese was my favourite, and even after I became a veggie, soy mince was quite cheap in the UK. However, Japan is not known for being especially loving of vegetarians, so I’ve had to adapt the classic bolognese sauce to make it both vegan and affordable. Before I dish out the recipe, I thought I should mention another delicious vegan recipe that I tried out on Sunday. I got the recipe here, and it’s made my top 10!

(I actually don’t have a top 10, but it’s still great)

Better than Bolognese Sauce

Ingredients: (serves 4-5)

1 onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, crushed

2 carrots, cut into tiny cubes

1x 400g can of chopped tomatoes

1/2 can red kidney beans

100g Puy lentils, pre-cooked and drained

150ml veggie stock

6 bay leaves

2 tbsp mixed herbs

salt and pepper

1 tbsp vegetable oil

Heat the oil in a large saucepan, and fry the onion, garlic and carrot for 7 minutes. Then add the stock, chopped tomatoes, bay leaves, mixed herbs and season well. Bring to a gentle boil, then simmer for about 15 minutes (if you’re eating this with pasta, cook the pasta now!). Add the beans and lentils and cook for another 5 minutes.

Serve with an enthusiastic “buon appetito!”.

xoxo.

Recipe here.

vRemember when I was shunning the vegetarian stereotype of existing only on salad and tofu? Well guess what I made for supper tonight…

This is a pretty awesome salad though, so sometimes I reckon it’s ok to conform.

Recipe here.

I’m a vegetarian.

Some people would have you believe that vegetarians live on a diet of salad and tofu, practice meditation and hug trees.

Some vegetarians do (but not many), but the rest of us tend to enjoy normal food, just the same as everyone else. I’m not vegan, but I do like to try out vegan recipes from time to time (check out these vegan cupcakes – inspired by A Beautiful Mess).

And yes, even vegans enjoy pizza.

Recipe here.

Wahey! Today I had a go at a tofu pizza, which is now officially my favourite pizza flavour!

Ingredients:

1.5x Pizza dough (see recipe here)

3 large ripe tomatoes

1 medium onion

2 garlic cloves

300g cotton tofu

1 leek

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Handful of fresh basil

Salt and pepper

Cheese (optional - cheddar or mozzarella is best)

1. Boil a small pan of water, then place the tomatoes in the water for about a minute (or until the skin starts splitting). Dunk them in cold water and peel off the skins.
2. Blend the tomatoes with half of the onion and all of the basil in a food processor. 
3. Heat the tomato pulp in a saucepan (uncovered) for about half an hour or until it is significantly redder and thicker.
4. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F or 190 degrees C and leave the tomato sauce to stand.
5. Halve the pizza dough and roll out into two bases. Then spoon on the tomato sauce. If using cheese, sprinkle half of it onto the pizzas then bake for 10-15 minutes.
6. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a frying pan and cook the remaining onion and garlic for a couple of minutes (or until it’s golden). 
7. Add the leeks and tofu, and cook for about 5 minutes on a medium heat. Add a pinch of salt and pepper and the rest of the cheese if using.
8. When the pizzas are done, spoon on the tofu mixture and add a sprig of basil to each if you want them to look good :)
9. EAT.