Bell Pepper Cream Cheeze Dip

July 22, 2014 · by · Leave a Comment

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Bell Pepper Cream Cheeze Dip
This cream cheeze dip has a wonderful fluffiness; its texture is lighter than cream cheese, but is a bit firmer than a dip. The trick is agar agar. The capsicum - or bell pepper - gives it a fresh flavour that is delightful. Feel free to add more chilli, as when it comes to this sort of hot, I'm a wimp 😀 Serve with savoury biscuits or in a sandwich with fresh greens.
Cuisine: vegan
Recipe type: Dip
Prep time: 
Cook/wait time: 
Total time: 
You need
  • 2 cups of soaked raw cashews
  • 2 tbsp of pine nuts
  • 1 small chilli (about 2cm), deseeded and chopped up very finely
  • ½ red capsicum, chopped roughly
  • 3 cloves of garlic, minced or finely grated
  • 1⅛ tsp himalayan rock salt
  • ⅛ tsp black salt (kalak namak)
  • 1 tbsp (white) miso
  • 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
  • ¼ cup rice bran oil
  • 1.5 cups oat milk (or another rather plain non dairy milk)
  • 6 tsp agar agar
To do
  1. blend the soaked cashews and pine nuts in the small bowl of your food processor till nicely mixed and fine
  2. add the capsicum, blend again
  3. then mix in chilli, minced garlic, salt, black salt, miso, nutritional yeast and blend for a few minutes so that it is really well blended and as smooth as possible
  4. meanwhile, in a small sauce pan, add oat milk and oil, and sprinkle agar agar on top
  5. heat and whisk till dissolved
  6. when mixture is getting thick (which happens when it heats up), pour into the nut mixture while the machine is running
  7. as soon as you stop the machine, have plastic containers sitting ready to be filled. This recipe makes about 550ml.
  8. let cool slightly before placing in fridge
  9. let set for 2 hours

 

Filed Under: Agar Agar, All, Dips, Sauces & Condiments, Gluten free, Raw & Almost Raw, Snacks & Entrées · Tagged: , , , , , , , ,

Pineapple & Avocado Jelly w Orange Coconut Cream

May 9, 2014 · by · Leave a Comment

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Pineapple & Avocado Jelly w Orange Coconut Cream
Lovely light and natural sweet is this dessert. No added sugar or sweetener except in the Orange Coconut Cream. You could replace this by soaked and blended dates, if you prefer. Use fancy moulds for a more impressive presentation or just for fun. I served this with a raw cookie on the side, just because I could 🙂
Cuisine: Vegan
Recipe type: Dessert
Serves: 4-6
Prep time: 
Cook/wait time: 
Total time: 
You need
  • 1 whole medium to large pineapple
  • 1 avocado
  • 1 tsp vanilla bean paste (or essence, but the real stuff)
  • 1 cup of water
  • 3 tsp agar agar powder
for the Orange Coconut Cream:
  • 1 cup coconut yoghurt (as thick as possible)
  • zest of 1 small orange
  • a little bit of orange juice
  • 1 tbsp raw agave nectar (or coconut nectar, maple, etc) If you want to use Stevia, then add to taste
To do
  1. peel the pineapple, and chop up the flesh (including the core, which is full of bromelain)
  2. add to blender, add avocado and blend till all smooth
  3. in a small pan, place water and sprinkle agar agar on top
  4. bring to the boil while stirring or whisking
  5. just when it gets to the point of boiling, switch blender back on and pour in the agar mixture, blend well
  6. pour the contents of the blender into a silicon container or something similar. You can make individual jellies too, by using small containers or moulds
  7. place in fridge and let set for 2 hours (or just check if it's solid)
  8. mix the coconut yogurt with the zest and agave nectar, and add some of the juice of your orange, but don't dilute it too much - unless you prefer a thin sauce, of course
  9. slice the jelly, place on plates, and top with the cream
  10. a few fennel seeds do nicely with this dish too!

 

Filed Under: Agar Agar, All, Desserts, Fruit dishes, Gluten free, Raw & Almost Raw · Tagged: , , , , ,

Beetroot & Coconut Terrine w Olive & Dill

March 19, 2014 · by · 2 Comments

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Beetroot & Coconut Terrine w Olive & Dill
Not only can you serve this dish instead of a dip, but you can also use it as part of a meal, just serve a wedge on the side. Although this recipe can easily be made as dip by leaving the agar agar out, it is nice for a change to present it in solid form. It's low fat and has a lovely light, flavoursome texture 🙂
Cuisine: vegan, cooked (roasted)
Recipe type: side dish, condiment
Prep time: 
Cook/wait time: 
Total time: 
You need
  • 300gr beetroot (peeled weight)
  • ½ cup coconut yoghurt
  • 1 large clove of garlic, minced or finely chopped
  • 4 good quality black olives (mine were dried, delish!), chopped
  • 30gr red onion, chopped
  • 3 tsp dried dill
  • ⅛ tsp salt
  • a good grind of pepper
  • 1 cup oat milk or other non dairy milk
  • 3 tsp agar agar powder
To do
  1. preheat oven to 190-200C
  2. wash beetroots, place in a dish and then in the oven, bake till soft (or almost soft), which would be about 45minutes, depending on their size
  3. let cool down, then peel skin off, cut in pieces, add to the small bowl of your food processor (see note)
  4. add coconut yoghurt, chopped onion, garlic, olives, dill, pepper, salt, blend till fine, taste and tweak flavours
  5. before the next step, make sure you have your moulds or slightly oiled ramekins ready to be used; this last phase needs a bit of pace
  6. in a small sauce pan, place oat milk and sprinkle the agar agar powder on top, heat the milk, whisk powder in, and you'll find that as soon as the milk starts to boil, the mixture will go thickish
  7. take immediately of heat and, with your machine running, pour in the agar mixture
  8. let blend for a short while, making sure the agar is well mixed through
  9. pour mixture into moulds, and tap them to fill up nicely, place in fridge and they're done when solid
Notes
You can make this dish with a stick blender, just make sure the beetroots are quite soft and that you have somebody to pour the agar mixture in while you stir thoroughly.

 

Filed Under: Agar Agar, All, Dips, Sauces & Condiments, Gluten free, Low/no added fat, Snacks & Entrées, Veggies & Sides · Tagged: , , , ,

Garlic & Thyme Cheeze

July 24, 2013 · by · Leave a Comment

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Garlic & Thyme Cheeze
It doesn't have to be cheese! Nut cheese may never taste like real cheese - it just isn't that oily - but it looks great, it tastes great, it slices, cubes and it melts! Pretty good! :-),
Prepared by:
Cuisine: vegan
Recipe type: cheeze, vegan alternatives
Prep time: 
Total time: 
You need
  • 1 cup + 2 tbsp of cashews
  • 3 tsp of garlic powder
  • 3 tsp of onion flakes
  • 1¼ tsp Himalayan rock salt
  • 2 tbsp of fresh thyme leaves (or 1 of dried thyme)
  • 1 tsp turmeric
  • 1 tbsp of nutritional yeast
  • 8 tsp agar agar powder
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 tbsp of miso (preferably light miso)
  • 1¾ cup of non-dairy milk (I used a combination of rice milk and almond milk)
  • ¼ cup of rice bran oil (or other oil you prefer)
To do
  1. grind the nuts in the small bowl of your food processor till fine
  2. add garlic, onion flakes, salt, thyme, turmeric and nutritional yeast
  3. in a small sauce pan, bring the milk with the agar to the boil, making sure all the agar is dissolved
  4. with the machine running, pour the agar mixture into the bowl
  5. add lemon juice, miso and slowly pour oil in
  6. let run till all nice and smooth
  7. pour into plastic or silicon container and place in fridge for about 4 hours
  8. take out of mould and that's it 🙂
Notes
Keep in fridge, it will stay fine for weeks. It melts, so you can use it on pizzas, for toasties, stir it into your pasta dishes, ahh... anything 🙂

 

Filed Under: Agar Agar, All, Gluten free, Snacks & Entrées, Vegan 101 & Alternatives · Tagged: , , , , , , , ,

Mango, Orange & Rum Jelly w Plum & Kirsch Sauce

May 27, 2013 · by · Leave a Comment
Mango, Orange & Rum Jelly w Plum & Kirsch Sauce

Mango, Orange & Rum Jelly w Plum & Kirsch Sauce

 

This dessert put a smile on my face, it is delish 🙂

You need for the Jelly (for 6 persons, cutting in half is no problem):
– 1 mango
– 2 oranges
– 75 ml of water
– 290 ml of non-dairy milk
– about 50ml of rum
– 5 gr (1 tbsp) of agar agar powder (double if you have agar flakes)
– some Stevia (as much as you like, just taste)
– 1 tsp of vanilla
– 6 silicon forms or oiled ramequins.

For the sauce you need:
– 4 ripe plums
– about 60ml of Kirsch

You do (Jelly):
– cut the mango and put into blender
– juice (in a juicer) the 2 oranges. If you don’t have a juicer, then juice by hand and zest 1 orange
– blend mango, orange juice and rum
– boil water in a small pan, then add Agar
– when Agar is dissolved (if you use flakes, this will take a few minutes) add non-dairy milk and rum
– turn down heat stir until nice and smooth
– pour into moulds and let set in fridge for a few hours

For the sauce:
– just blend the flesh (including skin) of the plums and the Kirsch in your blender.

When your Jelly is firm, squeeze the sides of your mould until it comes loose and pop it down on a plate. Then pour the sauce on or around the jelly.

Mango, Orange & Rum Jelly w Plum & Kirsch Sauce

Filed Under: Agar Agar, All, Desserts, Fruit dishes, Gluten free · Tagged: , , , , , , , ,

Vegan Cheeze w Truffle Oil & Chives

May 15, 2013 · by · Leave a Comment
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Vegan Cheeze w Truffle Oil & Chives
'Cheeze'!! It's not that I miss it so much, but it just is a change from dips, it gives you something to slice 🙂 Also, non-vegans really like it too. And if you don't like the taste of truffle oil, leave it out all together.
Prepared by:
Cuisine: Vegan
Recipe type: Vegan alternatives
Prep time: 
Total time: 
You need
  • ½ cup raw cashews
  • 2 tbsp of pine nuts
  • ¼ cup nutritional yeast
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1 teaspoon Himalayan rock salt
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1+3/4 cups oat milk (or other non dairy milk)
  • ½ cup agar flakes (or ¼ cup agar powder)
  • ¼ cup rice bran oil
  • 2 tbsp yellow or white miso
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoons white truffle oil (more or less to taste)
  • chopped chives
To do
  1. lightly oil 3-4 small ramekins, or use plastic containers (they don't need oiling)
  2. finely grind the cashews in a food processor
  3. add the nutritional yeast, onion powder, salt and garlic powder, quickly blend
  4. combine the soy milk, agar, and oil in a saucepan
  5. bring to a simmer over high heat, then decrease the heat to medium-low heat
  6. cover and simmer until the agar is dissolved (this will only take a few minutes)
  7. with the food processor running, gradually pour the milk mixture into the cashew mixture, blend for 2 minutes, or until the mixture is very smooth and creamy
  8. blend in the miso, lemon juice and chopped chives, and then half of the truffle oil. Taste and add more truffle oil (as much as you want)
  9. transfer the cheeze to a container; cover and refrigerate until it is very firm, about 4 hours. Once it is firm, use a knife to gently remove the cheeze from the ramekin, or wriggle plastic container.
Notes
For a quick sauce, melt the cheeze and add non dairy milk to dilute if needed.
Filed Under: Agar Agar, All, Gluten free, Snacks & Entrées, Vegan 101 & Alternatives · Tagged: , , , , , ,

Coriander & Macadamia Terrine

May 11, 2013 · by · Leave a Comment

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Coriander & Macadamia Terrine
If you like coriander, you have to try this 🙂
Prepared by:
Cuisine: vegan
Recipe type: terrine
Prep time: 
Total time: 
You need
  • a lot of coriander, about 4 cups
  • about ¾ cup of macadamias - a bit more or less is fine too. You can use any nut, really
  • about 4 cloves of garlic, squeezed
  • 1 tsp of salt
  • pepper
  • ½ cup of agar-agar flakes
  • 1 cup of water
  • 2 or 3 tbsp of olive oil (start with 2 if you need more to make the paste smooth, then add more. You can also dilute with water or vegetable broth)
To do
  1. in a small sauce pan, heat the water with the agar flakes. Stir, bring to the boil, then let simmer, stirring occasionally, till dissolved.
  2. add all other ingredients to food processor and run machine. You may have to scrape sides now and then. Run till smooth, add oil or water if necessary.
  3. when agar is dissolved, add it to the nuts mixture, while machine is running. Keep it running till it's all nice and smooth
  4. taste and tweak!
  5. pour in plastic container or other form, slightly oiled, and let set in fridge for about 3 or 4 hours.
Notes
Done 🙂 Eat as is on biscuits, or cut through salad or warm meal (it will melt), anything. It is a nice way to keep your coriander. You could omit the nuts if you just want pure coriander. Keep in fridge.

 

Filed Under: Agar Agar, All, Dips, Sauces & Condiments, Gluten free, Snacks & Entrées, Veggies & Sides · Tagged: , ,