D.K's Stir Fried Noodles with Broccoli (vegan & gluten free)

Rocket & Roses HQ Play List:

No Sinners ~ Boo Hoo Hoo Album 

Big news folks...R & R HQ is now officially on the market. I am one step closer to escaping Helltown. Woo! And on other news one of my all time favour rock bands, Thunder, are going back into the studio to record a new album...Woo-woo! Oh isn't that a cocktail? lol It is also one of my favourite people in the worlds birthday so Happy Birthday Ann and much love from all at R & R HQ...I hope your day is as splendid as you are. 

Broccoli and noodles...two of my favourite foods and what a happy woman I was when I originally found this recipe. I found it between the covers of Donna Klein's The Chinese Vegan Kitchen...I bought the book last year and took it away with me when we went to stay in Cornwall on holiday. There were many recipes I couldn't try because I couldn't find or source a bottle of veggie oyster sauce. And now I have..I am nestled back between those cookbook covers and making up for lost time. 

I had to make a couple of changes with the ingredients but the recipe below is Klein's recipe as she meant it to be made. My changes were using buckwheat noodles in place of the udon noodles...omitting rice wine vinegar and rice wine and using apple cyder vinegar in a smaller amount. I also used Braggs instead of soy sauce. These simple changes were simply a matter of my own personal needs...gluten-free and vinegar-free. Oddly I can have apple cyder vinegar...who knew..lol.  

It gave me the opportunity to break out my newly delivered belated birthday present. A transportable little set of cutlery. A stainless steel set of screw together chop sticks, fork and spoon. And the surprise was that the handle of the spoon and fork have a smiley little face...lol. I know little things...lol There is a photo after the recipe...I know you want to see them.

The noodles and broccoli were perfectly cooked and the sauce had a great savoury flavour and the chilli flakes gave it a perfect heat. I will be making this...many times...yum..

Stir Fried Noodles with Broccoli

Stir Fried Noodles with Broccoli    Serves 4
(Recipe from The Chinese Vegan Kitchen/Klein) 

12 oz Udon or Buckwheat noodles 
8 oz fresh broccoli florets, cut into bitesize pieces
2 tbsp peanut oil (I used 1/2 tbsp)
4 scallions, white and green parts, separated, thinly sliced
2-3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/4 tsp crushed red chilli flakes, or to taste 
2 tbsp veggie oyster sauce or mushroom soy sauce
2 tbsp reduced-sodium soy sauce
2 tbsp Shaoxing rice wine, dry sherry, sake or dry white wine
2 tbsp rice wine vinegar 
1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste 

In a large stockpot, cook the noodles and noodles in boiling salted water according to the package instructions until al dente, about 3 minutes. Drain well in a colander. 

In a wok or large non-stick skillet, heat the peanut-oil over medium-high heat. Add the white parts of the scallions, garlic, and red chilli pepper flakes, cook, stirring constantly, 1 minute. Reduce the heat to medium and add the oyster sauce, soy sauce, rice wine, vinegar, sesame oil, salt and black pepper. Cook, tossing and stirring often, until heated through and combined, about 2 minutes. Add the scallion greens and toss well to combine. Serve at once. 

Enjoy! 

Smilely Happy Birthday cutlery...

Thanks for stopping by and I hope that your week has started well...and there has been plenty of laughter.

~Red~

NB: This recipe is not mine and therefore I take no credit for them whatsoever. It is the hard work and creation of Donna Klein and hers alone. But thank you for a great cookbook ~R~

Rocket & Roses Vegan Sushi with Mixed Quinoa

Rocket & Roses HQ Play List:

Caro Emerald ~ My 2 Cents 
Joan Jett ~ Wait For Me
Pat Benetar ~ Shadows Of The Night
Stevie Ray Vaughn ~ Willie The Wimp
Harry Connick Jr ~ Where Or When
Madonna ~ I'd Rather Be Your Lover
Keith Urban ~ Raining On Sunday
Sting ~ Desert Rose
Pearl Jam ~ Once
Garbage ~ Wicked Ways
Melissa Etheridge ~ Resist
Clare Teal ~ Messin' With Fire
Scorpion Child ~ Liquor
VAST ~ Land Of Shame

OK..*hands up* ok..ok...OK!...I admit it. I over did things at the weekend so this week has sadly been lost to extreme pain and well..urghness. It has been very frustrating but I have to accept these little set backs...or so I'm told. Kitchen time has been impossible so I haven't had any recipes to share until today...much due to the fact that ML has been working from home today. I sat at the dining table with all of the ingredients and equipment I needed and set myself the task of making vegan sushi for the first time. I needed a task that would keep my mind focused and blimey did this ever fit that bill. Now regular readers will know that I am not gifted with the virtue of patience..lol so this was quite a challenge. Vegan sushi is something I have been wanting to tackle for some time and I've admired others creations but the smell of the nori/seaweeds have always put me off. However my curiosity to try vegan sushi finally won..

I always thought that I would use brown rice when I first tried making my own vegan sushi but I found myself asking ML to cook me some mixed quinoa. I made an avocado sauce using a ripe avocado, fresh lime juice, fresh ginger and 1/2 tsp wasabi paste. I found prepping the veggies quite calming and soon I had everything sat out around my sushi rolling mat. And yes..if I'm honest I was still knocked back by the smell of the nori sheets as I opened the packet but I carried on regardless. I was soon layering, folding and praying to the sushi gods that my finished rolls would stay together. lol. By the end I was a mess of avocado cream, dropped quinoa and beansprout ends but damned if I didn't have something that not only resembled sushi...it stayed together too..just! When I plated up the sushi I decided to have a go at making some carrot flowers to decorate the serving platter and my attempts were not successful...they resembled the Iron Cross...NOT a good look so thankfully ML saved the day and made quite beautiful flowers. I also used some homemade Sriracha and some leftover Avocado sauce to finish off the platter. 

I sat with my vegan sushi lunch and I couldn't make the leap to get busy with my chopsticks and get dipping. I was still overwhelmed by the nori smell but with the encouragement of ML I tried my first taste. And it wasn't half bad...lol The nori taste blended beautifully with the earthiness of the mixed quinoa, fresh crunchy vegetables and the silky avocado sauce. I used just plain Braggs as my dipping sauce this time but look forward to experimenting with other dips soon. I really enjoy Braggs and use it to replace soy/tamari now and wouldn't change this. The odd roll with a little homemade Sriracha was also very good and gave them a little zing. I surprised myself at how much I enjoyed vegan sushi...and how filling it is. That fact shocked me a lot as I'd always thought it would be lighter. It was filling in a satisfying way not a lead balloon way. I will be experimenting a lot in the near future with the realm that is vegan sushi...and brushing up my veggie sculpture skills lol. It's good to try something new...what are you trying for the first time? 

R & R Vegan Sushi with Mixed Quinoa...not to shabby for a first attempt, eh? lol

 
Rocket & Roses Vegan Sushi with Mixed Quinoa 
(Original recipe from the Rocket & Roses Vegan Kitchen)

NB: No exact amounts as it is entirely at your discretion as to how little or how much you want to fill your sushi rolls. Although overfilling will lead to loss of temper..ahem..lol ~R~

2 nori sheets per person 

cooked mixed quinoa 
avocado sauce (recipe below)
sesame seeds 
thin carrot sticks
thin green pepper sticks
thin mange tout sticks
thin baby sweetcorn sticks
thin cucumber sticks - de-seeded 
finely sliced red cabbage - thick stalks removed 

To garnish and additions ~ Braggs for dipping, homemade Sriracha sauce and Avocado sauce. Carrot flowers and white and black sesame seeds to serve.

Avocado Sauce:

1 avocado, flesh added to a small bowl
juice of 1 lime
1/2 tsp wasabi paste 
1" piece of fresh ginger, micro-grated

Mash the avocado down and then add the remaining sauce ingredients and whisk until creamy and smooth. Set to one side. 

To assemble 

Take a deep breath....

Lay your sheet of nori shiny side down on your sushi rolling mat. Leaving a good cm at the top and the bottom of the sheet, thinly spread the avocado cream over the nori. Then spread a thin layer of quinoa over the cream. Then layer the veggies on the edge closest to you and press down gently and then fold over the nori using the mat to guide you. Keep rolling until the outside edge is almost reached...gently spread with water with your fingers and then finish the roll to ensure a good seal is reached. Gently remove the mat and then place the complete roll on a board and using a sharp serrated knife slice the rolls into bitesize pieces and arrange on the serving platter. Then repeat until the desired amount is made..

Serve with a small bowl of Braggs to dip or your own personal choice of dipping sauce. 

...and breathe once more because you made it! lol 

Enjoy! 

Thanks for stopping by and I hope your week has been a great one...

~Red~ 








  

Mixed Vegetables Southern Indian Style

Rocket & Roses HQ Play List:

The Union ~ Obsession 
Rob Thomas ~ Lonely No More
Nelly & Tim McGraw ~ Over and Over
VAST ~ I'm Dying (Live in Seattle)
The Union ~ Fading Out of Love
The Union ~ Burning Daylight
The Animals ~ Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood
Tanita Tikaram ~ Valentine Heart
Black Stone Cherry ~ Blame It On The Boom Boom
The Fratellis ~ Mistress Mabel
Xtina ~ Can't Hold Us Down
Shakira ~ The One Thing
Rudimental ~ Hell Could Freeze Over
Connie Francis ~ Who's Sorry Now

What a weekend...I'm sore and exhausted..lol..and for the very best of reasons. We are officially putting R & R HQ on the market this week. Yep, finally the sign will be hung and we can start making real plans for the move to the city. But keeping our expectations realistic as so many of our loved ones have felt the need to caution us...we made the decision to move nearly two years ago...and this is not my first time at the rodeo...so I think we are aware what a slow process it can be. lol. I know I will feel a sense of great relief when they come to put that beautiful sign up...a step closer to escaping Helltown.

It's been a holiday weekend here in England which means most people got Monday off of work. Ours started off with our good friend Ann coming over to stay for the weekend and we all worked to getting the house set out as suggested by our estate agent and we only stopped on Saturday night to attend my cousins 18th Birthday party. When we finally stopped Sunday evening to sit and eat dinner together the three of us slumped onto our dining chairs and almost finished our meals with our heads on the table. We were so tired. Yesterday was a different reason to be that tired...yesterday was a day out with ML, Ann, Caz, Dev and Bev with the four legged pooches. It was recently Bev's birthday so it was a belated birthday treat. We road-tripped to the Yorkshire Sculpture Park which is set over the rolling hills of Yorkshire. Sculptures are set against the landscape and the lake and you can take in the many suggested walks or just please yourself and pootle around. I was enchanted by the whole day as Sculpture is one of my passions. I was a trooper even if I do say so myself and made it around almost everything on the lower lake side... I think?  Next time I will attempt the upper...but that would've killed me yesterday. My favourite sculpture I saw on the walk yesterday would have to be Barbara Hepworths Family of Man.

After the walk we sat and enjoyed tea and coffee outside and then we took it in turns to visit the Ursula Von Rydinsvard's 2014 Exhibition..pooches not permitted..lol. I had the pleasure of taking my tour around with Dev and we got completely lost in the exhibit as we discussed each piece. I was captivated by UVR's work and my emotional response to some of her pieces will stay with me forever. However vegans beware some of her works include animal products which left me cold but her work with Cedar was just something else. If you get the opportunity to see her exhibition you should..in my humble opinion.

This morning I am sore all over but I really don't care. I know Ann is having muscle issues after making a 100 trips up and down our stairs with boxes and ML is starting the working week on empty and in need of hours of sleep. Even with all of this physical fallout I wouldn't have changed a thing. The knowledge, that the house that hasn't been our home for such a long time, is finally going on the market...the eventual escape to the city..time spent with family...and the day with our friend/family yesterday amongst such a beautiful setting, soaking in the sculpture and stunning landscapes...seeing Bev and hearing about their recent trip to London...Ann's amazing photo memories of the day...all things that make my mind feel peace. A sense that something big is about to change...relief and terror...lol. Worth every bruised, sore, jarred and exhausted joint and muscle in my body. Completely worth it and thanks to every one I shared this weekend with. And I'm sure ML would agree with me..a very special Thank you to Ann...you rock woman!

As you can imagine with all of these things going on there really wasn't a lot of time for kitchen duties but I was determined on Sunday evening I would serve up myself and Ann a good home cooked meal. ML not being able to partake kept to the usual white rice, white fish and cabbage. I had made a salad dressing on the Saturday that needed a couple of tbsp's of coconut milk so had the remains of the milk waiting to be used up. I decided to try out a recipe that was incredibly simple and quick to make, by one of my favourite foodie authors, Mridula Baljekar from her much used The Low Fat Indian Vegetarian Cookbook. I made it in between packing boxes and sorting so it really is very simple to make. I purposely made it in the morning so it would have the day to develop the delicate flavours. I served Ann's with chapatis as she's not the biggest rice fan and I served mine with brown rice. Alongside these I also served freshly steamed broccoli. This dish is comforting and luxurious with the coconut milk sauce and the mix of veggies. The delicately spiced sauce is a delight with a little chilli kick. I had the leftovers last night when I got home from the day out and the chillies had heated up some more and it was almost a different dish..still delicious but just in a slightly hotter way. I could almost kick myself for not trying this one before now...

Mixed Vegetables Southern Indian Style

Mixed Vegetables Southern Indian Style   Serves 4 
(Recipe from The Low-Fat Vegetarian Cookbook/Baljekar)

225g/8oz/1 1/2 cups potatoes, peeled and cut into 5cm/2" cubes
125g/40z/1 cup cut green beans 
150g/5oz/1 cup carrots, peeled and cut into 5cm/2" cubes
225g/8oz aubergine ( I used courgette cut into thick half moons)
400ml/14 fl oz/ 1 1/4 cup reduced fat coconut milk
2 tsp chick pea flour
1 tsp salt or to taste
2 tbsp sunflower or plain olive oil (I used 1 tbsp sunflower)
6-7 shallots, finely chopped
6-8 fresh or 10-12 dried curry leaves
1/2 tsp dried chilli flakes
1 tsp ground coriander 
1/2 tsp ground turmeric 

Put all the vegetables, except the aubergine ( or courgette), in a large pan and add 300ml/10 fl oz/1 1/3 cup hot water. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat to medium, cover the pan and cook for 5 minutes. 

Meanwhile, peel and quarter the aubergine length ways and cut into 5cm/2" pieces. Rinse and add the the vegetables in the pan. (If using courgettes as I did, they go in at this stage)

Add two tbsps of the coconut milk to the chickpea flour, beat until smooth and blend with the remaining coconut milk. Pour into the saucepan and add the salt. Bring to a slow simmer (reduced fat coconut milk will split if exposed to a high heat), cover the pan and cook for 6-7 minutes. 

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a small saucepan over a medium heat and cook the shallots for 4-5 minutes until softened. Add the curry leaves, chilli flakes, coriander and turmeric. Stir for 15-20 seconds and pour the entire contents over the vegetables. Stir to distribute then remove from the heat and serve...

Enjoy! 

Thanks for stopping by and I hope your weekend was good and your week has started well...

~Red~ 

NB: This recipe is not mine and therefore I take no credit for it whatsoever. It is the hard work and creation of Mridula Baljekar and hers alone. I thank her for creating another fantastic recipe. ~R~ 



   

Bountiful Brown Rice Salad Bowl with Melissa's Homemade Sriracha Sauce

Rocket & Roses HQ Play List:

Jamie Cullum ~ But For Now
Beware of Darkness ~ Sweet Girl
Buckcherry ~ Lit Up
Joan Jett ~ We're All Crazy Now
Anna Nalick ~ Drink Me (early demo)
Bonnie Raitt ~ Used To Rule The World
Artful Dodger ~ Twentyfourseven (Radio version)
Beyonce ~ Green Light
Brad Paisley ~ She's Everything
Audioslave ~ Sound Of A Gun
Pearl Jam ~ Jeremy
Brandi Carlile ~ Rise Again
The Union ~ Fading Out Of Love
Gin Wigmore ~ Happy Ever After

More often than not the best recipe creations are the ones you just throw together at the last minute. I made this salad for lunch yesterday. My Mum was here for her regular Wednesday afternoon visit and as quickly as I could chop the fresh veggies she was pinching them...like a Pick n Mix stand. lol. I don't mind as this recipe makes enough for 4 servings. I used brown rice as my starter base but you could use any cold cooked grain or seed. There was no thought to the selection of veggies used...I just grabbed what I could and chopped and threw them in. The star of this salad was the Sriracha Sauce I added at the end. Last week I found a recipe by Melissa over at mywholefoodlife.com and after a particularly horrid hospital appt I came home and boy did I take it out on my mountain of chillies...lol. Kitchen work is my therapy...always has been and that day I was grateful to have this recipe to test out and for Melissa's original recipe and posting about this sauce simply click here...

Now my only experience of Sriracha Sauce has been the standard bottled variety and to be honest I wasn't that taken with it. I was a great fan of sweet chilli sauce at that point so I found Sriracha just...well..hot. But since eliminating all refined sugars and most other forms too I've lost my taste for Sweet Chilli Sauce so I thought maybe now I would appreciate Sriracha (I just wish I could actually pronounce it...lol) Sauce but when I scanned the contents list on my shop bought bottle I was horrified by the ingredients. I have to admit that bottle went straight into the bin and I searched out a homemade recipe and that is how I found Melissa's recipe. I did have to make two minor changes...you cannot buy Fresno chillies here so had to use the regular reds you can buy in almost all supermarkets. Also Habanero chillies are hard to find so I swapped them out for Scotch Bonnet chillies. The one major change I made was using apple cyder vinegar instead of the white vinegar because apple is the only vinegar I can eat now. And although I was tempted to try using Stevia in this recipe I caved in and bought a bag of coconut sugar and I am happy to report it hasn't made me sick so phew..lol..but it was such a small amount I was hopeful my system could tolerate it. 

The sauce is nothing like the bottle processed kind although you could blitz it until it's smooth if that's your wish. I like that it's quite thick but would happily blitz some down if I wanted to make a Sriracha drizzle for a recipe. I enjoy this sauce...it has some heat, a warming heat as opposed to hot heat. It is very slightly sweet but that is maybe the difference between using white vinegar and apply cyder vinegar. I would also reduce the coconut sugar next time too...take it down to maybe 1/2 tbsp. Overall this sauce is great and stored in a glass jar in the fridge Melissa says it will keep good for a couple of months which makes it an economical homemade alternative to the store bought kind.

Bountiful Brown Rice Salad Bowl with Melissa's Homemade Sriracha Sauce

Bountiful Brown Rice Salad Bowl    Serves 4 

90g cooked brown rice, cooled 
1 med carrot, peeled and finely diced
2 celery stalks, trimmed and finely diced
6 red radish, trimmed and finely diced
handful mooli/diakon noodles, slightly chopped
1 large red bell pepper, chopped
15 mange'tout, trimmed and chopped
7oz cooked green lentils, cooled 

Peel, chop and trim all veggies and place into a large serving bowl with the brown rice and lentils and toss to distribute and you have your salad bowl. 

Melissa's Homemade Sriracha Sauce

 Melissa's Homemade Sriracha Sauce  Makes 2 cups
(Recipe from mywholefoodlife.com)

1lb red Fresno peppers
2 Habanero peppers
2 tbsp minced garlic
1/4 cup white vinegar 
1 tbsp coconut sugar
1/2 tsp salt

Cut the peppers and mince the garlic. Add all the ingredients to a processor and pulse until everything is mostly broken down. 

Add the processed mixture to a saute pan and cook on high for about 5 minutes stirring constantly.  Remove from the heat and let the mixture cool. 

Transfer the mixture to a jar and store in the fridge.  This sauce should keep in the fridge for a couple of months. You can also freeze it for longer storage. 

Enjoy! 

Thanks for stopping by and I hope your Thursday is a great one..

~Red~

NB: The Sriracha sauce recipe is not mine and therefore I take no credit for it whatsoever. It is the hard work and creation of Melissa @ mywholefoodlife.com and hers alone. I thank her for a great recipe. ~R~  

Crispy New Potato Bake ~ High Days and Holidays Dish

Rocket & Roses HQ Play List:

Calvin Harris ~ I'll Be Thinking 'Bout You
LeAnn Rimes ~ Can't Fight The Moonlight
Bodyrockers ~ Round & Round
Kaiser Chiefs ~ You Can Have It All
JET ~ Black Hearts (On Fire)
Meredith Brooks ~ It Don't Get Better
Jose Carreras ~ Santa Lucia
Guns N' Roses ~ Welcome To The Jungle
Jackson Browne ~ Doctor My Eyes
UB40 ~ Singer Man
Clawfinger ~ Warfair
Meredith Brooks ~ Bitch
Cyndi Lauper ~ True Colours
QOTSA ~ In My Head


Today...today is a good day. I have just finished a phone call with one of my consultants who was able to pass along some good news for a change. I had some brutal tests recently and the results have come back...clear...wehooooooo. *doing happy dance around the desk*. Please forgive me but I am a little relieved and somewhat giddy. So please raise a glass, a bread stick or a carrot stick to my continued good health news and celebrate with me for a brief moment...*bowing* thank you. 

I cannot believe it is Wednesday already and I apologise for not posting since Sunday but it's been all hospital appointments and catching up with old friends so far. But today I have managed to find some time to make something other than buckwheat pancake breakfasts and noodle soups/salads for lunch. I have had a strange craving for olives since Saturday and I wanted something a little springlike for my evening meal today. What is more spring like then the humble new potato? I don't eat a lot of white potatoes and I have recently lost my love of the sweet kind. But I do enjoy new potatoes and I am most definitely a skins on kinda gal. When I found this recipe for a crispy new potato bake that included olives in its list of ingredients...well I was sold. I had to make one adaption by using apple cyder vinegar in place of white wine vinegar but otherwise I made the recipe as it was created. And yes I did tremble at the use of 6 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil but when recipe testing I tend to use the suggested amount and then make adaptions to the recipe for the next time I make it...if I make it again. I'll have my serving as the main part of my meal and then serve it with a good portion of steamed green veggies...then maybe with a good salad the next day. I'm hoping I can freeze a serving and then I'll give a serving to my Mum to test when she visits later. The recipe makes four servings....very generous servings in my opinion. 

It is easy to make as the only effort is the boiling of the potatoes for 12 minutes before adding everything together. I just brought my pan to a boil and got the potatoes going then went off and enjoyed my breakfast...no stresses here. lol. However the only problem I had was the lightly crushing of the potatoes. I used Charlotte potatoes and the recipes asks for Jersey Royals which are a little more soft when cooked. And because of this my potatoes didn't stick to each other in the baking process but I still ended up with a great dish. I would definitely used a fraction of the oil next time. The olives and capers gave the dish an edge which I liked. The thyme and wholesome new potatoes gave it an earthiness and incredible savoury hit. A crispy potato was definitely a good description for this recipe. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this recipe because I usually prefer my new potatoes steamed with no additions...well back in the vegetarian days I liked a little (ahem!) salad cream with them. I still crave that combination..lol. But this dish was good for a High Days and Holidays dish...but as I am celebrating today...it counts. 

Crispy New Potato Bake

Crispy New Potato Bake    Serves 4 generously

1 kg Jersey Royal new potatoes
handful of capers 
2 handfuls stoned black olives
1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 
1 tbsp white wine vinegar (I used apple cyder vinegar)

Heat the oven 240'C/425'F/GM 9 and line a swiss roll type baking sheet with parchment paper being sure to leave a generous edge overlapping the sides. Set to one side. 

Boil the potatoes whole for a full 12 minutes and then remove from the water and halve and put them straight into a large bowl. Add in the thyme, olives and capers and generously grate black peppercorns over. Drizzle 4 tbsp of the oil over and then stir to evenly distribute and lightly crush the potatoes as your stir. 

Pour the potatoes into the prepared tin and press them down evenly. Mix the remaining two tbsps of oil and the vinegar together until emulsified and then drizzle over the potato mix. Place in the hot oven and bake for 40 minutes or until they are golden brown. (I removed mine at the 30 minute mark) Serve...

Hot out of the oven...so aromatic. Gratuitous foodie shot...

Enjoy! 

Thanks for stopping by and I hope that your week has begun well....

~Red~ 

NB: This is not my recipe and therefore I take no credit for it whatsoever. It was posted by Anon but I would be happy to amend this posting and credit where it is due. rocketandroses@aol.com ~R~

Tomato Tart (vegan & gluten free)

Rocket & Roses HQ Play List:

The Ting Tings ~ Be The One
Joan Jett ~ You Can't Get Me
NIN ~ Closer
Becky Hill ~ You Will Want The Most
Jon Fratelli ~ She's My Shaker
Chris Cornell ~ Lost Cause
Stevie Ray Vaughn ~ Tin Pan Alley
Black Stone Cherry ~ In My Blood
The Eagles ~ One Of These Nights
INXS ~ Shining Star
Jim Reeves ~ Four Walls
James Morrison ~ Better Man 
The Zutons ~ Hello Conscience
Pixie Lott ~ Cry Me Out

What do you do when you have a punnet of beautiful and ripe baby plum tomatoes to use up? Make a salsa...a chutney...a salad...a sauce...or even a soup? Yep..well you could but isn't it sometimes a shame to chop, dice or mush these resplendent jewels from mother nature? Which is why I decided to make this tart instead. The recipe is not mine as I found it posted by Anon on a recipe site. But I knew the moment I saw it that I wanted to make it. It uses the tomatoes as the star attraction and they are nestled by a base of almonds and oats. Perfect..

It's very simple to make and I confess I made mine whilst making my breakfast...yep that simple. I made two adaptions by using coconut oil in the base in place of the salted butter or olive oil option and by replacing fresh oregano with dried but that wasn't a choice, it was what I had available. I used my punnet of baby plum tomatoes with 2 deep red med vine tomatoes. The smell of it baking away in the oven was a pure delight...

Now this cannot be mistaken for a robust gluten crust because removing it from the baking tin was impossible so I had to leave mine to cool on the springform base. Yep..the almond/oaty base is definitely a little crumbly but it doesn't take away from it's beautiful flavours and when combined with the tomato filling...its taste matches its aroma in its pure pleasure. 

Tomato Tart

 
Tomato Tart  Makes 1 9" round tart

1 cup ground almonds
1 cup gluten-free oats
1 tbsp pysllium husks
3 tbsp cornmeal
1/2 tsp low sodium salt
4 tbsp coconut oil (or vegan marg or olive oil)
2 tbsp cold water

2 cups chopped assorted tomatoes, cut into halves or quarters
1 red onion, halved, quartered and thinly sliced 
2 garlic cloves, sliced 
1 tsp dried oregano (or 1 tbsp fresh chopped oregano)
1 tbsp grainy mustard 
salt to season

Preheat your oven to 350'F/180'C/GM 4 and line a 9" baking tin with parchment paper and set to one side. 

In a food processor pulse the almonds and oats until they resemble a coarse meal. Add in the pysllium, cornmeal, salt and oil and pulse until the mixture starts to come together. With the machine running add the cold water until the mixture comes together (although mine never quite balled up but did stay together when pressed) and then turn out into the prepared tin and press it down firmly into the base and allow a slightly little lip around the edge. Set to one side...

Gently toss the tomatoes, onion, oregano, mustard, garlic and salt together in a bowl. Pour the mixture onto the tart base and spread it out evenly over the crust. 

Bake in the oven for 40 minutes..and then serve. 

Enjoy! 

Thanks for stopping by and I hope your Sunday has been a peaceful one...

~Red~ 

NB: This is not my recipe and therefore take no credit for it whatsoever. I would be more than happy to give credit where it's due if you recognise this recipe as your own..simply just drop me an email at rocketandroses@aol.com. But whoever you are..thank you for a great recipe...~R~   

Monique's Crunchy Thai Quinoa Salad with Ginger Peanut Dressing (vegan & gluten free)

Rocket & Roses HQ Play List:

The Union ~ Cut The Line
Janis Ian ~ At Seventeen
Toyah ~ Thunder In The Mountains
The Quireboys ~ Hey You
Jimmy Clift ~ Wonderful World, Beautiful People
The Commitments ~ Mustang Sally
Def Leppard ~ Rocket
Jack Johnson ~ Belle
Thunder ~ One Bullet
UB40 ~ The Way You Do The Thing You Do
Presley ~ Loving You
Melissa Etheridge ~ I Want To Be In Love
Kid Rock ~ Cocky
Bing Crosby ~ Well Did You Evah?

Well it's still raining and it looks like it is staying for the weekend. Yesterday I indulged in a moment of winter comfort with a great lentil soup but today I am going all out for a fresh and delicious salad. If I can't have spring outside then in inside the house I will...oh yes! The recipe fed through on my Pinterest feed and I was clicking on the link immediately. It is from the kitchen of Monique over at her blog ambitiouskitchen.com. Her blog isn't vegan but is vegan friendly and worth a look..I enjoyed my time over there. And for her original posting including this recipe simply click here..

Now as there is only me enjoying lovely vegan fare these days...(still death food for ML sadly)..I halved the recipe straight away and I made a couple of adaptions...small ones so below is the recipe as I made it and as always, for Monique's method, simply use the link above. For the actual salad I added extra red pepper, carrot and red cabbage and left out red onions as I loathe raw onion. I left in the spring onion because I can tolerate that in small amounts. In the dressing I subbed the honey with agave, apple cyder vinegar for the red wine vinegar and Braggs for soy sauce/tamari. I also used a wholefood peanut butter. And although I halved the dressing recipe I still only used a fraction of it but got enough for a good flavour but I am a little bit of a purist when it comes to my veggies and salads...I don't like my dressing to take over the dish. So with those few changes...lol...I got busy...

...I adored this salad. Absolutely, completely, devoured it. The many textures would make this a fantastic salad in itself but combined with the peanut based dressing and the cashews. WOW! Only now do I wish I'd made the full recipe so I could enjoy it for the next few days. Lesson learnt, eh? lol Yes the spring onions did make me twitch a little but then they always do. This salad was refreshing in flavour and light in texture...just what I was needing today so thanks Monique.

Monique's Crunchy Thai Quinoa Salad with Ginger Peanut Dressing

Crunchy Thai Quinoa Salad with Ginger Peanut Dressing   Serves 2-3
(Recipe by Monique @ ambitiouskitchen.com) 

3/8 cup uncooked quinoa 
1 cup of red cabbage, finely sliced 
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1/4 red onion, diced ( I omitted this)
1/2 cup carrots, grated
1/4 cup of fresh coriander/cilantro, chopped
2 small spring onions, finely sliced
1/2 heaped cup cooked edamame, cooled 
juice of one lime 

For the dressing:
1/8 cup wholefood crunchy peanut butter
1 tsp fresh ginger, micro-grated
1 1/2 tbsp Braggs animos
1/2 tbsp agave nectar
1/2 tbsp apply cyder vinegar
1/2 tsp sesame oil
1/2 tsp olive (next time I would leave this out) 
water to thin to desired consistency (I didn't need this)

To cook the quinoa: Rinse the quinoa very well with fresh water in a metal strainer. In a small saucepan bring 3/4 cup of water to a boil. Add the quinoa to the pot and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to low and let simmer for 15 minutes or until the quinoa had absorbed all fo the water. Remove from the heat and fluff with a fork, place in a large bowl and set aside to cool for about 10 minutes. Set to one side. 

The make the dressing: Add peanut butter and agave to a medium bowl and heat in the microwave for 20 seconds. Add in the ginger, Braggs, vinegar, and both sesame and olive oils and stir until mixture is smooth and creamy. If you want a thinner dressing, simply add in a tsp water. 

Add as much or as little as you like to the quinoa. Alternatively you can save the dressing to drizzle on the quinoa and veggie mix afterwards. (I mixed mine into the quinoa) Next fold in the red pepper, onion, cabbage, carrots and coriander into the quinoa. Garnish with the cashews and spring onions. Serve chilled or at room temperature with lime wedges if desired. 

Enjoy! 

Thanks for stopping by and I hope your Saturday has been splendid...and hey...the sun's out! Well..sort of..lol 

~Red~ 

NB: This is not my recipe and therefore I take no credit for it whatsoever. It is the hard work and creation of Monique @ ambitiouskitchen.com and hers alone. I thank her for such a great recipe. ~R~