Peanut Butter Chocolate Chickpea Cookies

Let’s say you’ve made a batch of chocolate vegan mousse and you’ve made a chickpea curry for dinner, but you still have chickpeas left over? Try these delicious, gooey cookies! From the Lucky Penny Blog, these cookies have no flour since the blended chickpeas combined with the peanut butter gives enough structure.

If you’re making for a dedicated vegan, make sure you check that the ingredients such as the chocolate chips and peanut butter are “safe”.

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ cup chickpeas
• ½ cup peanut butter (or any other nut butter)
• ¼ cup maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 teaspoons vanilla essence
• A pinch of salt
• ½ cup chocolate chips

Method:

• Pre-heat oven to 180^oC/350^o Line a baking sheet with a silicon baking mat or parchment paper.
• Drain and rinse the chickpeas. It is recommended to “skin” the chickpeas by squeezing them between your fingers. It is easy enough to do but adds an extra 5 -10 minutes of prep time. It is completely optional, but tends to make a smoother batter.
• In a food processor or blender, combine the chickpeas, peanut butter, maple syrup, baking powder, vanilla, and salt. Blend until smooth, scraping down the sides as needed.
• Either pulse in your chocolate chips or fold them into the batter. Using slightly damp hands, roll the dough into golf ball sized balls. Place on your baking sheet, and flatten slightly with a wet fork.
• Bake for 10-15 minutes until golden in colour.
• Enjoy warm or at room temperature.

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Vegan Chocolate Mousse

It’s been a while! But this recipe is very much worth the wait. This vegan chocolate mousse uses chickpea brine (the juice in a can of chickpeas) which sounds weird but it’s becoming a very popular egg white substitute, and the flavour disappears in the final product. The brine from just about any canned beans will do the job if you’re not a chickpea fan.

Ingredients:

• 1 can chickpea brine
• 140g dark (vegan) chocolate
• Pinch of icing sugar and vanilla

Method:

• Whisk the brine for five minutes.
• Melt chocolate over a double boiler.
• Whisk the chocolate into the brine, and add the icing sugar and vanilla.
• Leave to cool then refrigerate.

(Grillable) Veggie Burger

Originally from Minimalist Baker, the blogger had five (count ’em!) previous attempts at veggie burgers. I’ve tried a few different recipes myself, and while they’re always tasty they inevitably fall victim to the curse of the veggie burger, in that they fall apart if you just look at them funny. But this burger recipe manages to hold its own (sorry, pun unintended) and yields a delicious veggie patty which can be grilled or barbecued. See the original blog for a photo tutorial.

Makes 5 large patties or 10 smaller ones.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup (155g) cooked brown rice
• 1 cup (120g) raw walnuts (or substitute breadcrumbs)
• ½ tablespoon vegetable oil
• ½ white onion, finely diced
• 1 tablespoon each chili powder, cumin powder, and smoked paprika
• 1 tablespoon coconut sugar or brown sugar
• 1 ½ cups (227g) cooked black beans, well rinsed, drained and patted dry
• ⅓ cup (22g) panko bread crumbs (or GF breadcrumbs if required)
• 3-4 tablespoons BBQ sauce (make sure it’s ‘safe’ if cooking for a vegan)
• Salt and pepper

Method:

• Toast walnuts over a skillet at medium heat for 5-7 minutes, stirring frequently. Once fragrant and golden brown, set aside to let cool.
• Re-heat the skillet over medium heat. Add some vegetable oil and sauté onions for 3-4 minutes with salt and pepper. Remove from heat and set aside.
• Once walnuts are cooled, add to a blender or food processor with chili powder, cumin, paprika, salt, pepper and sugar, and blend to a fine meal.
• In a large mixing bowl, add the drained and dried black beans and mash well with a fork, leaving only a few whole beans.
• Add the cooked rice to the beans, along with the spice-walnut mixture, sautéed onion, bread crumbs, and BBQ sauce. Mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon until a moldable dough forms (if too dry, add a little BBQ sauce; if too wet, add more bread crumbs). Taste and adjust seasonings as needed.
• Divide into patties, and grill on high for 3-4 minutes on each side.
• Serve with your favourite burger ingredients.

Tangy Pork Casserole

 

Ingredients:

• Olive oil
• 750g piece boneless pork, cut into large chunks
• 1 large onion, peeled and chopped
• 1 stalk celery, chopped
• 2 gloves garlic, crushed
• ¾ cup dry apple cider
• ¾ cup chicken stock
• ¼ cup barbecue sauce
• 1 tablespoon grainy mustard
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• Chilli seasoning, salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
• Side recommendationss: Sautéed Red cabbage, leeks and crispy potatoes

Method:

• Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F.
• Heat the oil in a frying pan over a medium-high heat. Brown the pork pieces for 4-5 Remove from the pan and place in a casserole dish.
• Add the onion, celery and garlic to the pan and cook for two minutes, or until golden. Add the onion mixture to the casserole dish with the cider, stock, barbecue sauce, mustard, thyme, Worcestershire sauce and seasonings.
• Cover the casserole dish with a lid and bake for 2 – 2 ½ hours, stirring occasionally, until the pork is very tender.
• Shred the pork chunks with two forks and serve garnished with the parsley.

Thai Green Beef Curry

Thai green curry is a very versatile dish, able to accommodate beef, chicken, shrimp, even vegetarian (it’s great with asparagus!). The recipe will vary depending on who you ask; below is the recipe from Annie Bell’s Gorgeous Suppers, but feel free to play around with the flavours to suit your tastes.

Ingredients:

• 400g beef schnitzel (or other fast-cooking cut), sliced into finger-length strips
•4 tablespoons groundnut or vegetable oil
• 8 spring onions, sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
• 2 tablespoons Thai green curry paste
• 425ml beef or chicken stock
• 2 x 400ml cans coconut milk
• 6 lime leaves
• 4 whole chillies
• 200g shelled peas (fresh or frozen)
• 3 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1 tablespoon caster sugar
• Fresh basil leaves
• Fresh coriander leaves
• Cooked rice and lime wedges to serve

Method:

• Heat half the oil in a large frying pan over high heat and brown the beef in several batches, seasoning it with salt, removing it to a bowl as you go.
• Heat the remaining oil in a large casserole or saucepan over a medium-low heat, and cook the spring onions and garlic for a few minutes until they soften.
• Stir in the curry paste and cook for 1 minute longer, then add the stock, one of the cans of coconut milk, lime leaves, and chillies. Bring to the boil over a high heat, then simmer over a low heat for 10 minutes.
• You can prepare the recipe to this point in advance and finish cooking it for 10 minutes before you want to eat. Cook the rice at this point too.
• Bring the sauce back to the boil over a medium heat, add the beef and peas and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir the remaining tin of coconut milk, the fish sauce, sugar and herbs into the curry, and bring back to the boil.
• Serve the curry ladled over rice and accompany with lime wedges. You can leave in the whole chillies and lime leaves and remove them as you eat.

Thai Green Chicken Curry

Thai green curry is a very versatile dish, able to accommodate chicken, beef, shrimp, even vegetarian (it’s great with asparagus!). The recipe will vary depending on who you ask; below is the recipe from Annie Bell’s Gorgeous Suppers, but feel free to play around with the flavours to suit your tastes.

Ingredients:

• 6 skinned chicken breasts, sliced into finger-length strips

•4 tablespoons groundnut or vegetable oil

• 8 spring onions, sliced

• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced

• 2 tablespoons Thai green curry paste

• 425ml chicken stock

• 2 x 400ml cans coconut milk

• 6 lime leaves

• 4 whole chillies

• 200g shelled peas (fresh or frozen)

• 3 tablespoons fish sauce

• 1 tablespoon caster sugar

• Fresh basil leaves

• Fresh coriander leaves

• Cooked rice and lime wedges to serve

Method:

• Heat half the oil in a large frying pan over high heat and brown the chicken in several batches, seasoning it with salt, removing it to a bowl as you go.

• Heat the remaining oil in a large casserole or saucepan over a medium-low heat, and cook the spring onions and garlic for a few minutes until they soften.

• Stir in the curry paste and cook for 1 minute longer, then add the stock, one of the cans of coconut milk, lime leaves, and chillies. Bring to the boil over a high heat, then simmer over a low heat for 10 minutes.

• You can prepare the recipe to this point in advance and finish cooking it for 10 minutes before you want to eat. Cook the rice at this point too.

• Bring the sauce back to the boil over a medium heat, add the chicken and peas and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir the remaining tin of coconut milk, the fish sauce, sugar and herbs into the curry, and bring back to the boil.

• Serve the curry ladled over rice and accompany with lime wedges. You can leave in the whole chillies and lime leaves and remove them as you eat.

Summer Salad

An easy salad made by combing the best of summer’s ingredients:

– Blanched asparagus
– Slices of strawberries
– Toasted almonds
– Rocket or mesclun
– Lemon juice and goat’s cheese

Toss together and enjoy