Category Archives: Recipe

Fudgy Beetroot Brownies | Vegan

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Rich, gooey and devilishly chocoately, these brownies are both a sinful dessert and one of your five-a-day! Fresh beetroot and coffee add an unparalleled depth to the flavour whilst keeping the texture moist and fudgy. Here they are topped with a smooth dark chocolate topping for extra indulgence.

Beetroot in sweet cakes and brownies has been on my radar for a while, having been featured on many a food blog. I’d been itching to try it but not so much to blog about it; there doesn’t always seem the need to add another recipe into the mix. However, since I had some fresh beetroot in my fridge with no real plans for it the time was nigh to at least give it a taste. Vegan Fudgy Beetroot Brownies

After perusing recipe after recipe I came to realise how much diversity there was out there and just how many ways there are to make brownies. I also came to realise that the ingredients in my house didn’t match up to any exact recipes. Never one to follow a recipe anyway, I took a gamble (it really is a gamble making up a sweet recipe!), kept my fingers crossed, and started putting together my own combination of ingredients that I imagined would result in brownies. Traidcraft Ethiopian Coffee

To add a deeper flavour to complement the chocolate, I also added fresh coffee. You could use instant coffee for a hassle-free option but as I was brewing up fresh coffee anyway with this Ethiopian Sidama coffee kindly sent to me by Traidcraft, I made sure there was a little extra left for the brownies.

I knew that I wanted to make a vegan version so in place of eggs I mixed up some flax “eggs” with ground flax seeds and water – this recipe could be made with any egg replacer or, if you use them, then real eggs would of course be fine.

Vegan Fudgy Beetroot Brownies Fudgy Beetroot Brownies | The Tofu Diaries

Fortunately, my experimentation paid off resulting in both a delicious stash of fudgy, chocolately brownies and a recipe to share. The brownies aren’t very sweet as I wanted to keep the sugar content to a minimum but more can be added according to your taste.

I did add some stevia syrup to the frosting to prevent it being too bitter; again, this can be adjusted to your preference. The frosting also contains coconut oil to make it smoother and fudge-like but it could simply be topped with plain chocolate. Overall, the recipe is quite flexible so don’t be afraid to play around!

Fudgy Beetroot Brownies

Makes 8 brownies

Ingredients:

For the brownies:

4 fresh beetroot, peeled, chopped, boiled until softened (retain a small amount of the liquid from cooking), and puréed in a food processor

100g plain flour

50g dairy-free margarine

50g brown sugar

3 flax “eggs” (1tbsp ground flax meal + 3tbsp water per “egg”, whisked for five minutes)

125g dark chocolate, roughly chopped

3tbsp cocoa powder (I used Green & Black’s organic cocoa)

2tsp baking powder

For the topping:

50g dark chocolate, broken into pieces

2tsp coconut oil

1tbsp water from the beetroot

1/4tsp stevia syrup (optional)

Small amount of desiccated coconut or grated dark chocolate to sprinkle on top (optional)

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180C. In a large mixing bowl, cream the margarine and sugar. Once mixed, stir in the flax eggs followed by the beetroot purée.

2. In another bowl, add the flour, cocoa and baking powder. Using a sieve to remove any lumps, slowly add the flour mix to the beetroot mix, a small amount at a time. As you go, gently fold in the flour, avoiding stirring too much.

3. Grease a deep tin or oven-proof dish (glass or ceramic are fine) and pour the mixture in, spreading evenly. Place in the oven and bake for around 45 minutes; the exact cooking time will depend on your oven. For fudgy brownies, you can tell they are cooked when the edges begin to pull away from the container and putting a cocktail stick in doesn’t bring out any lumps (it won’t come out clean for fudgy ones even when they are cooked).

4. Once the brownies are cooked, remove from the oven. Leave for around five minutes to cool slightly before transferring to a cooling rack or kitchen paper. Allow them to cool completely before adding the topping.

4. Whilst the brownies are cooling, bring a small amount of water to the boil in a large pan. Place a large heat-proof mixing bowl over the pan and add the chocolate, coconut oil and beetroot water into the bowl. Stir constantly until the ingredients have melted and formed a smooth, glossy paste. Mix in the stevia syrup, if using.

5. Spread the topping evenly over each brownie and sprinkle with either desiccated coconut or grated chocolate. Serve as warm or cold! Vegan Fudgy Beetroot Brownies | The Tofu Diaries What do you think about adding vegetables into sweet recipes? Have you ever tried any?

P.S. Did you know The Tofu Diaries is now on Instagram? !

P.P.S. I’ve just entered this recipe into Rix’s monthly aga-inspired food competition where November’s seasonal theme is ‘Beetroot’!

Warming Apple & Parsnip Soup | Vegan

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A hearty soup to take you from autumn to winter with earthy parsnips and tangy apples perfectly combined. Warm spices add a delicate complexity and added nutritional yeast brings vitamin B12 for an all-round healthy meal.

I don’t know about where you are, but here in Leeds winter has firmly dug its heels in making me only have tastebuds for warm, hearty lunches. That means making up batches of soup over the weekend with some portions to keep me going through the week and some to save in the freezer. I’m not ashamed to admit that I liked this one so much I had it for four lunches in one week.

Sadly there are no apples left in my garden anymore so I picked up some big Bramley apples to use in this soup. The apple flavour really shines through and does add a slight tartness; if that’s not your thing you could swap one of the apples for an extra potato instead.

This could also be cooked in the slow cooker for around 8 hours on low or 4 on high. Head over to Pinterest for more inspiration on .

Vegan Apple & Parsnip Soup Makes 8 servings

Ingredients:

500g parsnip, peeled and cut into small pieces

2 large cooking apples, peeled, cored and roughly chopped

2 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into small pieces

600ml hot vegetable stock

3tbsp white wine

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1/4 tsp turmeric

1/4 tsp ground all spice

1/4 tsp black pepper

1tbsp nutritional yeast (optional, I use Engevita)

Method:

1. Place the parsnip, potatoes and stock into a large pan. Bring to the boil over a medium high heat, cover and simmer for around 15 minutes.

2. Add the remaining ingredients (bar the nutritional yeast if you are using it) and simmer for a further 15-20 minutes until the vegetables have softened.

3. Remove from the heat and blend the soup until it is thick and creamy. Add additional stock/water if it is too thick.

4. Stir in the nutritional yeast and serve with crusty bread or roughly chopped croutons.

Vegan Apple & Parsnip Soup

What is your go-to winter lunch?

3-Ingredient Fig & Almond Bites | Raw, Vegan

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Each one of these 3-ingredient fig & almond bites is a perfect mouthful of sweet fig, delicate almond and nutty tahini, and is packed full of vitamins A, B2, E & K, calcium and more.I seem to be on a roll at the moment making lots of vegan desserts. This time of year, and all of winter really, makes me crave sugary things and hopefully these will be something to turn back to for a sweet treat that doesn’t really have any added sugar. These fig & almond bites are another ideal healthy option.As I mentioned in my last recipe post (a vegan apple crumble recipe using quinoa if you missed it!) my new kitchen is slowly coming together with the addition of some carefully chosen blue crockery. Another recent addition is this adorable Scandinavian-inspired Setesdal set of measuring cups that were sent to me by Culture Vulture Direct. I’m excited about these for two reasons. Firstly they add some much needed animals into my crockery collection with foxes, squirrels, hedgehogs and more incorporated into the folk print.Secondly, as someone who only really weighs ingredients so I can write proper recipes that stand a chance of being followed, these really appeal to me as an effortless way to measure ingredient ratios. Actually, as a bonus they make following US recipes that rely on cup measurements a whole lot easier too! Fig & Almond Bites, Raw Vegan | The Tofu Diaries Culture Vulture Direct is a website full of what they call ‘finds from a world well-travelled.’ I’ve completely fallen in love with their curated selection of home and kitchen ware and, consequently, I now have my eye on several things from their website such as these zinc photo frames and this gorgeous folk print coffee pot. They are exactly the kind of website I love stumbling across to find something that bit more special and I know these measuring cups are going to be very well-used in my kitchen.For this recipe, using measuring cups was an ideal way to get the right ratio of figs/almonds/tahini easily and quickly. I’ve been making some kind of raw treat almost every week as they are perfect to keep me going during an afternoon in the office, without resorting to something processed or full of refined sugar. The quantities here make twelve small balls but can be increased or decreased just by keeping the 4:2:1 ratio the same.

Makes approx. 12

Ingredients:

1 cup dried figs, chopped

1/2 cup chopped almonds

1/4 cup tahini

Method:

1. Place all of the ingredients in a food processor and blend until they have formed a sticky dough

2. Separate the mixture and roll into small balls

3. Eat and enjoy!

What have you bought for your kitchen recently? Share in the comments!

Wholemeal Quinoa Apple Crumble | Vegan

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A tangy base of gently cooked organic apples bursting with cinnamon topped with a crunchy, wholesome crumble. Added quinoa ups the nutrition for a healthy dessert perfect for autumn but delicious any time of year!

Ever since spotting that the tree in my new back garden is an apple tree, I’ve had my eye on it just waiting for the right moment to pick the fruit. To be honest, I did have to do a bit of research to be sure that the apples would be edible. Luckily said research confirmed that no apples are actually poisonous; the worst that could happen is that the apples would be very sour but still very much edible.

Once a couple had started to drop, it seemed the time was nigh to pick the others if I wanted a big enough batch to make something from. With a little assistance from Pete’s shoulders, some giant tongs and a lot of laughter (let’s hope no neighbours were watching) I have a batch of organic, home-grown apples that I knew were destined for my autumn favourite, apple crumble.

My favourite kind of apple crumble is always one where the tartness of the apple shines through and there is only a hint of tempering sweetness from the crumble. That’s why this recipe doesn’t add any sugar into the stewed apples, instead there is just a sprinkling that browns on the crunchy top. You could of course change this around to suit your taste, or even skip the sugar all together for a version healthy enough to dig into for breakfast.

The addition of quinoa was an experiment that paid off; it adds an extra layer of texture and slight nutty flavour to the crumble top, already deeper in taste through the wholemeal flour. Breaking open the quinoa seeds in a pestle and mortar before mixing them in ensures that you still benefit from the nutrients inside – otherwise, unsoaked as they are, they would pass through undigested. Wholemeal Quinoa Apple Cumble, Vegan | The Tofu Diaries

I just have one more thing to add: how gorgeous is this Le Creuset mixing bowl and utensil pot? I’m slowly building up a blue theme in the kitchen – I adore mismatched crockery and kitchenware held together by a colour theme and (despite the green dish here spoiling the illusion!) these additions have fitted in a dream. I picked them up in TK Maxx at an absolute bargain of a price and am keeping my fingers crossed I see more in this colour!

Serves 6

Ingredients:

For the filling:

700g apples, peeled, cored, chopped

100ml water

1/2tsp cinnamon

For the topping:

150g wholemeal flour

1tbsp quinoa, uncooked

125g dairy-free margarine

2-3tsp brown sugar (optional/according to taste)

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to around 180C/350F/Gas mark 4.

2. In a large pan, add the chopped apples, water and cinnamon. Cook over a medium hob for around ten minutes, stirring frequently, until the fruit has softened.

3. Meanwhile, in a pestle and mortar, lightly crush the uncooked quinoa. In a large bowl add the quinoa, flour and margarine. Rub together with your fingertips (or using a fork) until it forms breadcrumbs.

4. In a large oven-proof dish, spread out the stewed apple and top evenly with the crumble mix. Sprinkle the brown sugar over the top according to taste and cook in the oven for around 20-25 minutes until the topping has turned golden with a slight crunch.

5. Serve!

What is your favourite autumn dessert? Have you cooked with apples lately?

Recipe Round-up: 10 Veganised Recipes from Around the World

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A selection of recipes inspired by dishes from around the world and creatively transformed into delicious vegan meals.From fluffy American-style pancakes to a slow-cooked tangy Iraqi stew, I would say there are few places where inspiration cannot be found for a delicious vegan feast. New flavours and unique ingredients that give each international cuisine its distinctive taste can be transported and recreated into a subtly tweaked or an entirely refashioned dish.