Tag: plant based diet

Chocolate Maca Chia Pudding

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Chocolate Chia Maca Pudding

People are constantly looking for healthy and easy to make alternatives to artificial, cardboard-like breakfast ‘cereals’ and toast. We are the biggest lovers of breakfast here at Two Kitchens! We have more breakfast recipes on our site than any other recipes.

This one is amazing for the whole family. It is packed with chia so it is full of bioavailable plant-based, organic protein, has maca powder in it so gives instant but long-lasting natural energy, the raw cacao is another source of plant-based protein, the almonds in the almond milk add calcium and you can add whatever fruit you like to it for more fibre and fruit intake. I added bananas but you can add strawberries or other berries too. The kids will honestly love this, you can send them off to school knowing they have been given the best start to the day and if you make enough, you can save some as a snack or even dessert for after dinner – so versatile!

Ingredients

1 cup almond milk
3 tbsp chia seeds
1 tsp maca powder (I use Organic Burst)
1 heaped tbsp raw cacao powder
1 tsp organic maple syrup or other natural sweetener of choice
1 banana, sliced
Small handful organic vegan chocolate chips (optional)

Method

Put all the ingredients except the banana and chocolate chips into a saucepan and heat gently over a low heat. It will seem dry at the beginning but eventually it will all melt into itself, just keep stirring. You want it to heat but not boil as boiling chia seeds will take the goodness out of them but we still want them to soften and swell.

Once it’s ready, transfer to a bowl, wait for it to cool then leave in the fridge for half an hour. Alternatively you can make it the night before and leave in the fridge overnight. The chia will then swell even more and be softer.

Transfer to a glass or any bowl of choice and top with your favourite toppings.

Enjoy!

Love,
Lauren

Roasted Butternut Quinoa Salad

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Butternut Quinoa Salad

When people ask me what my go-to gluten free, yet easy to make, lunch is, I tell them quinoa. It takes around 10 minutes to make and you can either make it that day or the day before and keep a tupperware full in the fridge for a few days. You can also add to it whatever you happen to have in the fridge at that time. In order to make it a bit more filling, I added butternut squash to it this time. You can add some grilled halloumi too, if you fancy, I just wanted to keep this one dairy-free. Quinoa is such an amazing source of protein that you don’t need to add any meat or fish (you can if you want to – if it’s organic of course 🙂 ) But you don’t have to all the same. This will give you all the protein you need.

Ingredients

Quinoa (add as much as is needed for the amount of people you want to feed)
1 butternut squash
Half a cucumber
3 spring onions
2 fresh beetroot, steamed and chopped
Generous handful of cherry tomatoes
2 carrots, shaved into ribbons through a potato peeler
Handful of pine nuts
1 tbsp lemon juice
Pinch salt (I used Oryx desert salt here)
Black pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.

Cook the quinoa as per the packet instructions. When it is ready, transfer to a bowl and set aside to cool.

While this is happening, peel the butternut squash and chop into bite-size pieces. Transfer onto a prepared oven tray and drizzle with olive oil. Roast for around 40 minutes, stirring occasionally with a spoon to make sure all pieces are coated by the oil.

While it’s in the oven, chop up your vegetables and add them to the bowl with the quinoa.

Add the lemon juice, salt and pepper and stir well, then take the butternut out the oven and add to the top.

Serve straight away or wait until cooled and keep in the fridge.

Enjoy!

Love,
Lauren

Vegan White Chocolate Cookies

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White choc cookies 1

Pregnancy cravings have struck! I am craving cookies and biscuits like never before, especially in the afternoon. I’ve given in and had a few ‘naughty’ Belgian chocolate covered biscuits because I don’t agree with depriving yourself to the point of being miserable. I’d say that my healthy lifestyle makes up for 80% of the time, and the other 20% is when I eat out or at other people’s houses or fancy a treat. I don’t want to be the person who goes out for dinner and can’t have anything on the menu. Since cleansing myself and getting into remission, I no longer have any intolerances so my body accepts everything, I just don’t agree with eating all that unhealthy stuff all the time. But every now and then, if I fancy a biscuit, I have it! That being said, the cravings have got a bit mad so I had to make some healthy ones to keep at home and these really do satisfy the craving 🙂

Ingredients

1 can chickpeas, rinsed then patted dry
2 tbsp organic natural peanut butter (I use Meridian)
3 tbsp almond milk
1 tbsp coconut oil
3 tbsp maple
1 tbsp sized chunk of cacao butter
3 tbsp buckwheat flour
1 tbsp coconut palm sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda (not essential, but I find it gives the outer layer of the cookie a crunchier texture)
Pinch of Himalayan or Oryx salt (I used Oryx desert salt)
Generous handful of vegan white chocolate chips (or any chocolate chips of your choice)

Method

Preheat oven to 180 (gas mark 6) and line a baking tray with baking paper and grease it slightly with coconut oil.

Put the chickpeas, peanut butter, almond milk and coconut oil in a food processor and blend until smooth.

Then add the maple, cacao butter, buckwheat flour, coco sugar, baking powder, bicarb and salt and process again until smooth and sticky.

Transfer the mixture to a bowl and add the chocolate chips and mix in.

Take cookie sized balls of the mixture in your hand, roll then press down to a cookie shape on the prepared baking tray. Dampen your hands slightly if it is too sticky. Repeat until mixture is finished.

Put in the oven for 12-15 minutes or until you see they are very slightly golden but do not over bake. They will continue to harden once they come out the oven. Transfer baking sheet that they are on, onto a cooling tray or wire rack until fully cooled.

Served best with a cold glass of almond milk!

Enjoy!

Love,
Lauren

Israeli Salad

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Israeli Salad

Simple, but oh so effective! The good old trusted Israeli salad. Full of yummy fresh veggies, colourful and delicious…

Ingredients 

2 tomatoes
Half a large cucumber
1 yellow pepper
2 spring onions
Extra virgin olive oil
White vinegar
Himalayan salt & black pepper

Method

Chop all your veggies up into really small pieces and put them all in a bowl. Drizzle a little olive oil, a little vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Mix, and serve! Voila!

Enjoy

Love,
Lauren

Chocolate Chai Baobab Smoothie Bowl

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Chocolate Chai Baobab Smoothie Bowl

You all know how much I love a smoothie bowl, but up until now I hadn’t posted a chocolate one and let’s face it, everyone loves chocolate for breakfast! This way you don’t even have to feel guilty. The raw cacao is a sensational way of getting plant-based protein. I wanted to add some chai flavouring as I just love the taste and thought it would go well with this and it really did… The best ingredient in here is the Baobab. I’m a big fan of superfoods and have a cupboard where I keep spirulina, acai berries, maca, lucuma, cacao and now baobab. Read up on Raine’s explanation of Baobab here…

Ingredients

1 frozen banana
Quarter cup boiling water
1 chai tea bag
Quarter cup almond milk
1 tbsp almond butter
2 dates
1 tbsp raw cacao
1 tsp baobab

 

Method

Before starting, boil the kettle and pour a quarter cup boiling water into a mug and let the chai tea bag steep in it for ten minutes. Put it next to a window so it cools down.

In the meantime, put the rest of the ingredients into a blender. Once the tea is cool, add this to the mix and blend well.

Pour into a bowl and add toppings of choice.

Enjoy!

Love,
Lauren

Avocado Toast

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avocado toast

Breakfast and lunch don’t have to be difficult, sometimes the best things are the most simple… I am obsessed with avocado, it is just the best fruit (yup, it’s a fruit!) as it is nutritious and filling at the same time, not like eating a bowl of lettuce! With avocado you really feel satisfied. Avocados are healthy fats. The majority of fat in avocado is oleic acid which is a monounsaturated fatty acid that has been linked to reduced inflammation and been shown to have beneficial effects on genes linked to cancer. It’s high in protein and the perfect plant-based post-workout lunch or breakfast! If you are eating well, you don’t need to stay away from healthy fats like avocados and nuts, your body will love them…

Ingredients

1 avocado
2 slices organic gluten free or granary toast
1 lime
Pinch of Himalayan salt and ground black pepper
Chilli flakes (optional)

Method

Toast your bread then mash the avocado on top of it and squeeze the lime on top. Finish off with the salt, pepper and chilli flakes if you want them. So delicious.

Happy lunching!
Love,
Lauren

Three Variations of Homemade Ice Cream

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IMG_9364 (3)

I kid you not, homemade ice cream is the easiest thing to make! You need to have a good, high-speed blender like the Vitamix, and some fruit. That’s literally it!

Freeze bananas the day before, then add them to the blender. The super high speed turns the frozen bananas into cream without actually putting any cream in there, that is how simple it is!

Variation 1:
Just frozen bananas, topped with Chunky Monkey Cookie Dough Chunks

Variation 2:
Frozen bananas with two dates to make a banana caramel ice cream, topped with Raw Cacao Cookie bites

Variation 3:
Simple sorbet – frozen strawberries and raspberries topped with some raspberries.

You can top with date syrup, nuts, seeds, fruit, desiccated coconut – anything you like. My parents came over for dinner tonight and couldn’t believe it was completely and totally plant-based and guilt-free!

Happy ice cream eating!
Love,
Lauren ❤

 

On-The-Go-Lunch Wraps

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Falafel wrap

We’re all busy running around and most of us don’t have the time to stand there cooking a fresh soup and home-baked gluten-free bread for lunch every day, but lunches should still be healthy, and they can be healthy and easy at the same time.

I used my vegan falafel and put them in a spelt flour wrap with leftover homemade tahini and lettuce. You can add whatever you want to it!

This is a great baby led weaning idea as you can just rip it all up and leave it on the tray in front of them!

Just a short post but hoping it inspires you to create healthy lunches for you and the kids!

Love,
Lauren

Roasted Butternut Squash with Garlicky Spinach

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When you first go vegetarian or vegan, it can be a bit stressful, especially if you are short of time. That’s because we’re so used to being able to ‘stick a steak under the grill’ or ‘put a chicken in the oven’ or ‘grill a chicken breast’ and so on and so forth. I got stressed about it myself when I first went fully veggie this time last year, which is why I try to come up with EASY vegetarian meals. I still have to cook meat for my husband, so it would be a hell of a lot of work if I was making highly intricate meals for me along with his meals. What I try to do is either a variation of whatever he’s having, or something simple, especially during the week when it’s all rush rush rush. But on nights like last night, he is more than happy to be part of vegetarian night because the food is so good!

I love butternut squash, I probably cook it in some variation at least once a week (by the way, speaking of butternut squash, you must try Raine’s Butternut Gnocchi!) Butternuts are high in fibre, low in calories and high in Vitamin B Complex which I need lots of for my nerve problems caused by long-term arthritis. They are also high in polyphenols (like acai berries and blueberries) which are great anti-oxidants. An all round brilliant vegetable!

Ingredients

1 butternut squash (half per person)
1 small bag of spinach
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
Himalayan salt

Method

Preheat your oven to 180. Cut the ends off the butternut and cut it in half, lengthways. Place it on a baking tray and bake for about an hour.

Take it out the oven after an hour and remove the seeds with a spoon – they should come out really easily now – and throw them away. Drizzle a little olive oil and salt over it and put back in the oven for half an hour.

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Meantime, cook the spinach by heating 1 tsp of the oil in a saucepan. Once it’s hot, add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds, then add the spinach, in small batches, along with some salt. It wilts to nearly nothing so a whole bag will end up just about filling the holes of the butternut. It shouldn’t take more than five minutes (should be less) for the spinach to be ready. Leave to the side, remove the butternut halves from the oven and fill the holes with the spinach. Serve on its own or with any accompaniments you choose. I served it with my vegan falafel, homemade tahini and some avocado.

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Peace and Love!
Lauren

No-Fry Vegan Falafel

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The chickpea, ladies and gentlemen, making yet another appearance. They’re just so bloody versatile! Yesterday I made cookies with them, last week hummus, today falafel.

Where I come from, falafel are fried in oil (where I come from just about everything is fried in oil!) but here at Two Kitchens we’re about healthy, nutritious food and Raine and I often take traditional recipes and try to make them healthier so these are baked instead of fried and have no grains or animal produce in them, they are fully plant-based. Here’s how:

Ingredients

2x 400g tins chickpeas
2 small carrots
1 onion
A handful of coriander, chopped finely
A handful of parsley, chopped finely
1 tbsp cumin
1 tsp Himalayan salt
Some pepper
1 tsp olive oil

Method

Preheat your oven to 200 and line a baking tray with baking paper.

Drain the chickpeas in a colander and rinse with cold water. Then pat dry with a paper towel to remove excess liquid and leave there to drain for a minute.

Peel the carrots and onion and put them in the food processor with the chopping blade or on a chopping setting to get them chopped up nice and small, very quickly. It shouldn’t take more than 10 seconds. Scoop it all out into a bowl and leave to the side for a moment.

Put the chickpeas in your food processor (you don’t need to clean it of the carrot and onion) and blend until smooth but not for too long as you don’t want to make hummus.

Once blended add the grated carrot and onion back in, along with the rest of the ingredients and pulse to combine. Alternatively you can remove all of it from the food processor and mix in a bowl.10

Once combined, wet your hands slightly and shape into balls or flatten them for falafel that fit nicely into pitta bread. I’ve done both in the picture below so you can see.11

Once all balls are on the baking tray, put them in the oven for 20-30 minutes until they are nicely golden but not burning. You can turn them over half way.

Serve straight away, either in pitta with salad and hummus or on a plate along with other plant-based goodies. I served it for dinner with roasted butternut squash, chopped avocado and homemade tahini.14

I’m feeling very happy and positive today, so I’m sending that out to all of you who need the same!
Love,
Lauren