Asian Style Soy Mince and Avocado Wrap with Spicy Peanut Sauce

So, this has become an absolute favourite wrap for my husband and me. I first made it with store bought frozen soy mince then when I couldn't buy it anymore, with my own homemade soy mince (in photo). Both versions are equally as good.

Garlic, ginger and soy mince are fried with a splash of soy sauce, tossed with spring onions and placed in a large wrap with shredded iceberg lettuce, avocado slices sprinkled with lime juice and topped with a good drizzle of delicious sriracha peanut sauce. 

Seriously one of my new favourite wraps!

Asian Style Soy Mince and Avocado Wrap with Spicy Peanut Sauce:

Makes 2 wraps.

Filling:
1 tsp peanut oil
1 fat clove of garlic, finely chopped
1 tsp finely chopped fresh ginger
Freshly ground black pepper – 4 grinds
100g frozen soy mince
50ml water – omit if using my homemade mince
1 tsp soy sauce
2 spring onions, chopped

Sauce:
1 Tbsp creamy peanut butter
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp sriracha 
1 tsp water

Plus:
1 avocado, sliced
Fresh lime juice
Shredded iceberg lettuce
2 x large wraps

Make the sauce by whisking everything together until smooth. Set aside. 

Heat the peanut oil in a large skillet then add the garlic, ginger and black pepper. Fry for a couple of minutes on a gentle heat until fragrant. Add the frozen soy mince and the water (if using store bought mince) and fry until the mince is cooked and all the water is gone. Stir in the soy sauce and fry a minute more then stir in the spring onion, give it a good stir then turn off the heat.

Slice the avocado, place in a bowl and sprinkle generously with fresh lime juice, toss well. 

Heat a large wrap in a dry frying pan until just warmed and pliable, transfer to a plate then top with a good handful of shredded lettuce. Top with half the soy mince mixture, half the avocado slices and drizzle over some of the sauce. 

Wrap up burrito style, cut in half on the diagonal and eat!

♥

Nutritional Information: based on 1 wrap

Calories: 398

Protein: 17.4g

Fat: 16g

Sat Fat: 3.3g

Fibre: 9.2g

Carbs: 42.9g

Sugar: 5.4g

Sodium: 726mg

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Homemade Frozen Soya Mince

So I was puzzled as to what to call this recipe. I've always found it confusing that the dry soy mince you see in the picture there is called the same as the bags of cooked and seasoned frozen soy mince you can buy....so just to be clear, this is a recipe for those frozen, cooked and seasoned bags of soy mince, not on how to make dried soy mince granules :-) Also, is it soy or soya?? I've never known and use both interchangeably here, gah - confusion!
*Update - The dry soy mince that I've used to make this (the bag you see in the photo there) is also known as TVP or textured vegetable protein in the US.

Anyway, I came up with this recipe out of necessity as I cannot seem to buy the frozen soy mince here in Ireland anymore :-(  My favourite was always Tesco's own label soy mince as I felt it had the best texture but I can't even find Linda McCartney's anymore. 

Since I have quite a few recipes that call for frozen soy mince: goulash, stuffed jumbo pasta shell lasagna, chimichangas, burritos and enchiladas, chilli and rice, wontons, gyoza, oven baked mini wonton rolls, grilled cheeseburger wrap and most importantly our traditional Christmas dinner main dish of Tourtiere, I committed myself to creating a recipe to replace it.

I had a look at the ingredients for Linda McCartney's Mince and basically just based this on that. The onion and garlic are basic flavourings here, the malt extract, a sweet syrup, was also in hers and adds a sweetness which is important as dried soy mince can have a slight bitterness, then I've tried to create "meaty" flavours with the soy sauce, Worcester sauce and mushroom stock.

Altogether, I am SO happy with this recipe that even if I could buy the store bought stuff again, I wouldn't. I have so far used my homemade version in my recipes for the goulash, burritos, enchiladas, the grilled cheeseburger wrap and a new favourite wrap which will be blogged next, and I haven't been able to tell the difference. Further bonus - my son, who was never too keen on the store bought soy mince, LOVES my version! 

You can use mine as you would the store bought stuff, the only difference I have found is that my version doesn't need as much water added (if any) while cooking. For example, in my goulash I would add half a can of water when I added the frozen soy mince and with this mince, I don't need it.

Homemade Frozen Soy Mince:

1¼ cups dried soy mince/ TVP (100g)
1 x Kallo mushroom stock cube
450ml water
1 tsp each: soy sauce, vegan Worcester sauce and malt extract
½ tsp each: garlic and onion granules (powder is fine too)

Measure the soy mince into a bowl.

 In a small saucepan add everything else. Whisk while bringing to a boil. 

Pour over the soy mince, cover and let sit for 5 – 10 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Fluff it with a fork.

Spread out onto a large plate or paper lined baking sheet (whatever will fit in your freezer) cool to room temperature then place in the freezer. 

Every half hour or so, remove from the freezer and crumble and separate the granules with your hands so you don't end up with a large frozen sheet of mince. I first use a spatula to life the mince off the tray then crumble it with my hands. Return to the freezer. When the mince is completely frozen and separated, transfer to a freezer bag and keep in the freezer.

Recipe makes 470 grams of soy mince.

Use from frozen, as you would store bought frozen soy mince. Mine has always been eaten up within a month of making it but I imagine it should keep in the freezer fine for 6 months or so :-)

♥

Nutritional Information: based on 100g

Calories: 100

Protein: 13g

Fat: 0g

Sat Fat: 0g

Fibre: 4.3g

Carbs: 9g

Sugar: 4.1g

Sodium: 507mg

The Sexy Vegan's "Happy Hour at Home"

Corn Dawggies with the Most Wonderful Ketchup, Okra Fries with White Barbecue Sauce and a Pomarita Cocktail.

Well hello again!! Yes, I am back from my somewhat extended holiday :-) First, I should explain that we spent 4 weeks in Canada this summer, back to my hometown to visit my family. We had an absolutely fantastic time, it was my first time back in 6 years and it was SO good to be back. 

We returned late July but then unfortunately the old lupus decided to act up and I just haven't had the energy to blog. At all. So, that's why the break was a little longer than expected but I'm feeling OK now, it comes and goes but I'm happy to be back for the time being anyway! I would also like to apologise for all the late comment posting, responding to emails/twitter and book reviews....everything gets put on hold when I have a flare up.

Speaking of book reviews, I was contacted way back when, just before we left for Canada if I would mind reviewing Brian Patton's (aka - The Sexy Vegan) new cookbook "Happy Hour at Home - Small Plates, Big Flavours and Potent Cocktails" and I was only too happy to oblige. After all, I love cocktails and anything snacky - this sounded right up my alley! 

It's a great, fun book combining diverse cocktails with small bites, great for parties and small get-togethers. The book is divided into menu's like: "Little India" with samosa pizza, roasted chana and stuffed dates or "Really Little Italy" with rigatoni poppers, grilled asparagus and figs and grilled basil-mint watermelon skewers or "Satay-day Night Fever" with tempeh satay with peanut sauce, grilled baby bok choi and teriyaki almonds....just to give you an idea. Each menu also comes with a cocktail recommendation with all the drink recipes in the back. And of course the whole book oozes with Brian's fantastic sense of humour :-)

It's quite simply a great cookbook, I loved the sound of all the menus but when choosing which one I was going to test there was no contest - I went with the "State Fair Fare" menu: Corn Dawggies with the Most Wonderful Ketchup and Okra fries with White Barbecue Sauce. The reason is simple - I've actually never in my life had corn dogs (!) and have been wanting to try them for AGES now. Corn dogs being of course hot dogs dipped in a cornbread batter, deep fried and eaten on a stick, a common fair food in America. On top of that, brace yourselves, I've never had okra before (!!) So, how awesome was this menu for me??? 

Well, I'm glad to report that everything turned out beautifully, perfect first try and everything was so easy to do as it's clearly written and well explained. 

The Sexy Vegan's Corn Dawggies with the Most Wonderful Ketchup

Now, as I mentioned above I have never actually had corn dogs before so I had nothing to compare these too, but they looked just like them, cooked up a charm, had perfect texture and most importantly, tasted incredible!! I will definitely be making these again...and I will give him this - that really is "The Most Wonderful Ketchup"! Soon to be a staple in this house :-)

Corn Dawggies:
Canola, vegetable, or any other high-heat oil, for deep-frying

1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cornmeal
1/2 teaspoon ancho chile powder
1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons unrefined granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
2/3 cup unsweetened nondairy milk
1/2 cup arrowroot
4 veggie dogs, cut into thirds
Toothpicks
Yellow or whole-grain mustard, for serving
The Most Wonderful Ketchup (recipe follows), for serving

Pour oil to a depth of 3 inches into a pot, high-sided pan, or deep fryer. Line a plate with paper towels and set it next to the stove. Heat the oil over medium heat until it registers 375°F on a deep-frying thermometer. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cornmeal, chile powder, paprika, salt, sugar, and baking powder. Stir in the nondairy milk and keep stirring until you have a batter that is slightly thicker than pancake batter. Let rest for at least 5 minutes.

Spread out the arrowroot on a large plate. Working in batches, roll the veggie dogs in the arrowroot until completely coated, tapping the dogs to remove the excess, and immerse the dogs in the batter. Using a fork or chopsticks, take the dogs out of the batter and gently lower them into the oil. Fry for 3 to 5 minutes, or until golden on all sides, making sure to turn them a few times for even cooking. Transfer the dogs to the paper towel–lined plate. When they’re cool enough to handle, cut them in half crosswise, and serve with toothpicks, mustard, and the Most Wonderful Ketchup.

The Most Wonderful Ketchup:

1 cup ketchup

2 teaspoons pomegranate concentrate

½ teaspoon agave nectar

Whisk all this stuff together in a bowl.

Excerpted with permission from The Sexy Vegan’s Happy Hour at Home ©2013 by Brian Patton.  Published with permission of New World Library http://www.newworldlibrary.com.

♥

My Notes for the Corn Dawggies

• I used Fry's brand veggie dogs which come frozen so I defrosted them at room temperature first.
• I cut the dogs in half only as I wanted the more traditional looking corn dog on a stick here.
• I couldn't find ancho chile powder here so I just used a "hot chile powder".
• I used smoked sea salt in place of the salt.
• I fried them in vegetable oil.

My Notes for the Ketchup

• I used pomegranate molasses as it's called here. (Same diff).
• I used Sweet Freedom in place of the agave as it's my vegan syrup sweetener of choice :-)

The Sexy Vegan's "Pomarita" Cocktail

This.Was.Gorgeous!!! Now, the drink recommendation for this menu was actually the lush sounding "Starburst" with citrus juices and strawberry vodka that Brian describes as tasting just like starburst candy (which I would LOVE!) but, I didn't have any strawberry vodka and that stuff is expensive, haha, SO I went with the Pomarita (think pomegranate margarita) as it called for some pomegranate concentrate which I already bought to make the ketchup and well, I liked having another recipe to use the stuff in! 
An amazing cocktail, another regular for sure, and while I would usually shake my margarita style cocktails with ice and pour into a martini glass, I quite like the rustic look of it in my mini beer stein... (which yes, IS a former mustard pot!)

♥

The Sexy Vegan's Okra "Fries" with White Barbecue Sauce

Like corn dogs I also have never had okra before, I heard that they can be slimy and I think this has been putting me off trying them; but thankfully there was no slime whatsoever here, they had a nice crunchy cornmeal coating, were slightly chewy inside and went perfectly with the white barbecue sauce.

Altogether this was a great menu, fun to make and easy to do and I look forward to having some people over and trying the other menus in the book!

♥

Disclaimer: While I was given this cookbook to review I was not paid to review it and all views expressed here are my own, as are all the photos.

Smoky and Spicy Sausage and Tomato Pappardelle Pasta

Well, from a rather complicated salad which involved making 2 homemade vegan cheeses and 2 days to make to a ridiculously easy and very tasty pasta dish for you, dead easy to whip up for dinner.

As good as this was using all the ingredients I did, don't feel you can only make it with the ingredients I used. Replace the sausages with your favourite brand, the hot smoked paprika with any type of smoked paprika, smoked sea salt with regular table salt or the pappardelle with any old pasta shape :-) 

(I absolutely love pappardelle, it just has such a silky texture which goes lovely with "meat" style pasta sauces. It can be hard to find without egg but Tesco have started selling one - scroll down to see photo below - which I am most pleased about!)

I used these Wicken Fen Tomato and Garlic Sausages to make the sauce. They are vegan and the flavour just goes perfectly in this dish. I think I actually prefer them as a pasta sauce than I do on their own! Like everything else here though, just swap with whatever vegan sausages you like. If you can, make sure it's a brand that crumbles easily - Fry's for example wouldn't work really well. 

As you can see, I kept this pasta as is but some sliced fried mushrooms would be a gorgeous addition, as would serving this with some Garlic Bread!

The smoked paprika I used here - Tesco's, doesn't state that it is hot but it is. It's like cayenne pepper hot! If you are using just a regular smoked paprika and still want a spicy dish simply add between 1/8 - 1/4 tsp of red chilli flakes at the same time as the paprika.

Smoky and Spicy Sausage and Tomato Pappardelle

serves 2

• 1 Tbsp olive oil

• ½ onion, diced

• 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

• ¼ tsp hot smoked paprika

• ½ of a 400g tin of chopped tomatoes (don't drain)

• ½ Tbsp tomato paste (puree)

• ¼ tsp smoked sea salt

• 1/8 tsp sugar

• 150g Pappardelle Pasta (dry weight)

• 2 Wicken Fen garlic and tomato sausages

If using these sausages cook them from frozen in the microwave for 2 minutes then crumble by hand. If using another brand, follow their instructions for cooking but opt for a way that won't give a crispy coating like frying as that will make the sausages hard to crumble. If they are sausages that are already cooked you can just defrost and crumble as they get heated in the sauce.

The sausages crumbled.

Get a large pot of lightly salted water on for the pasta and cook until al dente. 

While it is cooking, heat the olive oil in a smaller saucepan then add the chopped onion. Fry gently until soft and transparent. Add the garlic and paprika and fry on low just until fragrant - about 30 seconds.

Add the chopped tomatoes, tomato paste, smoked sea salt and sugar. Bring to a simmer then add the cooked and crumbled sausages. Cover with a lid and simmer for 5 minutes, you can add a splash of water if needed.

Drain the pasta reserving some of the cooking liquid. Return the pasta to the pot and pour over the sauce. Mix well adding enough of the cooking water to make a loose sauce. Dish up onto a couple of plates and serve immediately!

♥

Nutritional Information: per serving, will vary depending on brand of sausages used.

Calories: 475

Protein: 16.1g

Fat: 12.4g

Sat Fat: 2.2g

Fibre: 4.1g

Carbs: 75.4g

Sugar: 7.2g

Sodium: 605.3mg

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Vegan BBQ Chicken and Avocado on Crispy Garlic Butter Ciabatta

Now, I'm going to have to ask you to ignore that the BBQ "chicken" there looks a little bit like steak tartare as this was an absolutely gorgeous sandwich!! (I've tried to "pretty it up" as best I could!) But seriously, saucy BBQ vegan chicken on top of 'buttery' garlic ciabatta with creamy avocado and crisp lettuce....it's a stunning sandwich taste wise ;-)

Naturally the snow, ice, frost and freezing weather had me craving summery food :-/ I'm kidding of course but I have decided there is no point blogging "seasonally" - as it was rightfully pointed out to me, some of my readers are currently sweltering in summer heat right now anyway! Although, in a weird way so am I.... 

You see our house has large south facing triple glazed eco windows and they are VERY efficient  When it's sunny, my kitchen and living room can get up to 26C even if it's snowing and freezing outside without ANY heating on. It's great! Yesterday was just such a day - frosty outside but brilliant sunshine. So, I sat there in my hot kitchen, eating this rather summery dish and sipping iced tea with the windows open and in short sleeves.... I swear my brain must get temperature confused sometimes!

Anyway, I'm not entirely sure where I originally got the inspiration for this sandwich. I feel I must have seen a meat version while scrolling through Pinterest and thought, hmmm, that would be nice all vegan'd up! I then searched around and found this one on the Baked Bree Blog and knew right away I would base mine on hers. 

First of all it's a stunning blog, the type that gives you pangs of blog jealousy! But crucially, she made hers exactly as I was thinking of making mine - with crispy ciabatta garlic bread - and OMG that makes this sandwich!! I just used my usual garlic bread spread recipe here and added slices of avocado and shredded iceburg lettuce. 

Personally I think the avocado is rather essential, it just goes perfectly with the slightly spicy BBQ sauce and garlic butter. As for the BBQ sauce, just use any vegan store bought one you like. I could have gone a bit fancier with one of those posher kinds you can buy now but I just went common as muck and used plain old Heinz BBQ sauce - with a dash of cayenne to give it a little kick ;-)

I couldn't decide what type of salad to have on the side of this but in the end I was just too swayed by her blog post and also did a cucumber and red onion type salad. I based mine on those vinegary Scandinavian type cucumber salads as I always loved them growing up. It's just thinly slices cucumber and red onion in a marinade of white wine vinegar, sugar, salt, water and fresh dill. It was really good but I think when I make this again I would make my Kohl-Slaw to go on the side. Vegan BBQ Chicken Rolls and Coleslaw? yes please!!! Oh, and don't forget the iced tea ;-)

Some Recipe Notes

♥ I used a 5" long ciabatta roll BUT cut it in half, so my roll was about 2.5" x 2.5".  In hindsight this was a little small but the full size would have been too big. I certainly used to be able to buy ciabatta rolls that were square - they would be the perfect size. Anyway, depending on the size of the ciabatta roll you use you may need to double the chicken filling and garlic butter.

♥ As mentioned above I just used plain Heinz BBQ sauce here but added a pinch of cayenne pepper.

♥ I used Fry's brand Vegan Chicken Style Pieces. As they come frozen you'll have to defrost them first. I just placed mine in a bowl and left them out for about an hour, then kept them covered in the fridge until I was ready to use them.

Vegan BBQ Chicken & Avocado on Crispy Garlic Butter Ciabatta Bread

Yields 1 sandwich

• 1 Ciabatta Roll

• 15g vegan butter (1 Tbsp)

• 1 smallish clove of garlic, pureed

• pinch of salt, I used smoked

• some finely chopped fresh parsley (or dried)

• 30g vegan chicken strips, defrosted.

• 2 Tbsp BBQ sauce

• pinch of cayenne pepper - optional

• slices of avocado

• shredded iceburg lettuce

First make your garlic butter: Simply mix together the butter, garlic, tiny pinch of salt and the parsley (just add enough parsley that it looks nice and speckled). Split open the ciabatta roll and spread both sides with the garlic butter:

Preheat your oven to 200C / 400F. While it's heating up slice up the vegan chicken strips as thinly as you can:

Place the ciabatta on a baking sheet and bake for 7 - 10 minutes. You want the butter to be melted and bubbly and the ciabatta to be lightly golden and crisp around the edges. While they are cooking slice up your avocado and finely chop the lettuce into small strips. 

In a small saucepan add the BBQ sauce and the "shredded chicken" and heat, stirring now and again until it comes to a simmer. I didn't notice how long mine was on the heat here - no more than 5 minutes. If the sauce starts to stick the bottom of the pan you are done, just take it off the heat.

Now simply pile the BBQ chicken onto one side on the roll and the lettuce and avocado on the other. I also added a tiny splash of hot water to the saucepan I cooked the chicken in and stirred and scraped the pan with a spatula to get some of the cooked on sauce off and spooned a tiny bit of this over top of the chicken, just to make it a little more saucy ;-)

Carefully sandwich this baby together and enjoy! Oh, one more thing...you're going to get messy. Don't avoid it just grab a stack of napkins. As well as sitting in my hot kitchen in short sleeves in the winter I was also sitting there with BBQ sauce all down my face and all over my hands. Embrace it. It's ok!! Just don't make these for a date ;-)

♥

Source: Inspired by BBQ Chicken Sandwich from Baked Bree.

Nutritional Information: will vary depending on size of roll used.

Calories: 361

Protein: 12.6g

Fat: 22.8g

Sat Fat: 5.5g

Fibre: 5.6g

Carbs: 30.4g

Sugar: 1g

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♥

Pan-Fried Vegan Cheeseburger Wrap

I made this up shortly after making my second batch of my vegan unprocessed cheese slices. It's amazing. Tasted just like I remember cheeseburgers tasting like but in a crispy fried wrap which just makes it even better. Damn. Vegan junk food at it's finest :-P

Obviously, you can put whatever you would normally like in a burger in this wrap. My favourite fast food burger "back in the day" was A&W's "teen burger" as it had, in my opinion, the holy trinity of burger ingredients in it: pickle, onion and mustard. Hence why I've gone for that here, and a few slices of vegan bacon wouldn't have gone amiss either ;-)

Pan-Fried Vegan Cheeseburger Wrap

Makes 1.

• 50g frozen soy mince (I use Tesco own label)

• 1 shallot, or a couple tablespoons finely chopped onion.

• 1 small clove garlic, finely chopped

• pinch of smoked sea salt

• 5 grinds of black pepper

• 1 tsp vegetable oil

♥

• 1 large white wrap

• 1 slice Vegan Unprocessed Cheese.

• lettuce, preferably iceberg.

• dill pickle slices

• yellow mustard (French's)

• a little extra oil to fry, no more than a teaspoon.

Heat the oil in a frying pan and add the soy mince, shallot or onion and garlic. Fry over low heat until it starts to get dry then add about 50ml water. Cook until the water is fried off, soy mince is cooked and onions are soft.

Warm the wrap up briefly in a dry frying pan so it's pliable. In the centre add some lettuce leaves and the mince mixture. Top with a cheese slice cut in half diagonally then the pickles and some yellow mustard. 

Fold both ends over then roll up burrito style. Heat another bit of oil in a pan, I used the same pan I fried the mince in then add the wrap, pressing down to flatten slightly. Keep the heat high, you just want to crisp up the outside and melt the cheese, not wilt the lettuce. Flip over when golden and repeat, again pressing down with a spatula. Transfer to a chopping board and slice in half diagonally. Done.

♥

Nutritional Information: 

Calories: 409

Fat: 16.6g

Sat Fat: 2.9g

Carbs: 42.9g

Sugar: 4.2g

Fibre: 5.9g

Protein: 17.6g

Sodium: 828mg

Vegan Cheese Dog

...And in continuing in my quest to make more vegan junk food, the vegan cheese dog! I've taken this photo from the daily blog where I was thoroughly enjoying these daily until I ran out of cheese slices :-) 

Simply melt one unprocessed cheese slice onto a hot dog bun (I used the grill) and fill with your favourite vegan hot dog (I use Fry's) then top with a relish made with tangy dill pickles finely chopped with onion and lots of French's mustard. Delicious!

♥

Vegan Turkey Style Deli Slices

Now, I don't work with vital wheat gluten much. Anyone who lives in the UK or Ireland will know why - it's almost impossible to buy the stuff! Online only as far as I can see and I like to keep my foodstuffs ordered online to a minimum  That being said I do order vital wheat gluten mostly so I can make my Vegan Rullepølse, which is an absolute Christmas essential for me :-) 

Since I had some about I thought I would have a go at some turkey style deli slices. This was inspired from 2 sources, first - the turkey style broth for seitan in La Dolce Vegan and Vegan Dad's Corned Beef.

I once tried the broth in La Dolce Vegan when I got brave one night and attempted to make my own wheat gluten (nightmare, I don't recommend it!) but I loved that broth, the sage and onion flavouring really was reminiscent of Christmas turkey and I actually continue to use a variation of it as a gravy. Then I made Vegan Dad's corned beef which is steamed rather than boiled and I was so impressed with the texture: tender, not too chewy and when it's cold can be sliced really thin.

So I thought I would combine the two, adding the flavourings from the broth in La Dolce Vegan with the steam and bake method Vegan Dad uses. I am so happy with the end result, well, for someone who rarely uses vital wheat gluten I am! If you know those sage and onion slices by Redwood foods this is very close, and I love those. (Just a note, I noticed that Vegan Dad also has turkey style slices but he uses flavourings I can't buy here so figured I would stick with La Dolce Vegan's flavourings).

In the same way any meat style dish features in my life it's for one reason only - memories. Good food memories. For me, leftover Christmas turkey was only consumed one way: thinly sliced in buttered white bread with lots of mayo and a bit of salt and pepper. Yes. Sliced white bread - gasp! So, that's exactly how I had this (with vegan butter and mayo, of course) and it reminded me so much of my old favourite. That being said I can also see this working as a roast, thickly sliced while warm and served with the usual trimmings.

Vegan Turkey Style Deli Slices:

• 100g (1/2 cup) canned white canellini beans, drained and rinsed.
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 cup water
• 2 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp vegan worcester sauce
• 3 Tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1/4 tsp smoked sea salt
• 1/2 tsp dried sage
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 1 1/2 cups vital wheat gluten

I prefer to do all of this in a mortar and pestle but you could use a food processor if you prefer or even by hand.

In a mortar and pestle add the nutritional yeast flakes, onion powder, salt, sage and thyme and grind until the yeast flakes are like a powder and the herbs get crushed. Remove and set aside.

Add the beans to the mortar and pestle and mash until really creamy. Transfer to a large bowl.

Mix together the water, olive oil, soy and worcester sauce in a pyrex measuring jug then whisk in the yeast and seasonings. Pour a little over the beans and whisk to incorporate, slowly add the rest of the liquid whisking all the while until mixed. 

Add the wheat gluten and mix well until it comes together. Sprinkle some more wheat gluten onto a surface and knead a few times until you have a large, wide oval loaf. I probably kneaded in a couple tablespoons more gluten here but the loaf will be on the wet side. That's good as you won't end up with dry deli slices, although it is probably the reason for the holes in the end product there. Still, I wouldn't change a thing here as the taste and texture was lovely!

Wrap the loaf up in foil, sealing the edges well and steam for 1 hour. Do check the water levels now and again as it can easily boil dry!

Preheat the oven to 180C when there is about 15 minutes left of steaming. Place the foil wrapped loaf directly in the oven and bake for 30 minutes. Remove and let cool then it's ready to be sliced thin for sandwiches.

Furthermore, I used the slices to make another variation on my Vegan Butter Grilled Bagel Toasties. This one had the turkey slices, vegan mayo, black pepper and Dijon mustard and was amazing! Possibly a new favourite here :-) Just toast using the same method as the other bagel toasties in the post there.

♥

Nutritional Information: per 100g

Calories: 196
Fat: 2.8g
Sat Fat: 0.3g
Fibre: 1.8g
Protein: 23.9g
Carbs: 16.8g
Sugar: 0.4g
Sodium: 422mg

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I saw something very similar to these on Pinterest the other day. I forgot to pin it so cannot say where the idea came from but the original was with orzo pasta. As I was having troubles finding orzo.....ok, I only looked in 1 shop and was too impatient to try this, so I used macaroni instead! 

By the way, quick question regarding Pinterest for those of you who follow me: do you like me pinning my own stuff, by that I mean new recipes, or is that annoying as hell? I'm on the fence on this one. If you have a feeling one way or the other, please let me know!

Anyway, any small pasta shape will do here but I can see orzo working really well. The recipe I saw wasn't vegetarian so I didn't even click on it but I knew immediately how I would make it - with my Vegan Chicken Salad Recipe, which I haven't blogged on here yet, it's over on the Daily Food Blog where I like to stick more "simple" recipes. 

I usually have it (obviously) without the pasta stuffed into a wholemeal pitta with lettuce and tomato, it's one of my favourite lunches but I really like this twist. It was also most welcome recently as I've been consuming far too much bread lately, yes, I'm a carboholic! And even though this isn't free of carbs with the pasta there, it's at least a little break from the bread :-)

The little gem lettuce cups and a fresh squirt of lemon juice make this a most crisp and refreshing lunch, really light feeling and so easy to make. I was hesitant in calling these wraps however, as you can see they are more "cups" but you do kind of wrap them as you eat them, so we'll stick with that ;-)

Vegan Chicken and Macaroni Salad Lettuce Wraps

Serves 1 as a meal.

• 40g vegan chicken strips, I used Fry's.
• 1/2 tsp oil to fry
• 30g vegan mayo, (2 Tbsp) I use Plamil Organic.
• 1 spring onion, finely chopped.
• 1/4 stalk of celery, diced small.
• 25g small pasta, dry weight, about 1/4 cup
• 4 baby gem lettuce leaves
• sea salt (I like smoked here) and freshly ground black pepper
• dijon mustard - optional
• lemon slices - optional

Heat the oil in a small frying pan and fry the chicken strips for 6 - 8 minutes from frozen or according to your brand's instructions. Set aside to cool slightly then finely chop.

Cook the pasta according to package instructions then rinse well under cold water until cool, toss in a clean tea towel to get all excess water off and transfer to a bowl.

Mix together the mayo, spring onion, celery, a pinch of sea salt and a few grinds of black pepper in a small bowl. Add the chicken and pasta and mix well. Season to taste.

Wash and pat dry the lettuce leaves then brush them with a little dijon mustard. Optional, but nice. Fill the lettuce leaves with the filling and serve with slices or wedges of lemon to squirt over before eating. Again, it's optional, but nice! 

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Nutritional Information: based on the whole recipe, depending on brand of vegan chicken used.

Calories: 367

Protein: 12.4g

Fat: 23.3g

Sat Fat: 4.2g

Fibre: 4.2g

Carbs: 27.2g

Sugar: 2.4g

Sodium: 494mg

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