BREAKFAST #4 - PLAIN PANCAKES AND SEASONAL FRUITS

Happy Saturday! It's been a while since I've done a breakfast post soo here's what I had to eat this morning. The pancakes are plain this time around, unlike the banana and raisin number I shared back in March.

But shifting the focus away from the pancakes, let's talk seasonal fruits. Where I am at the moment, peaches are in absolute abundance. You can't walk into a store or market without being hit by the smell of sweet, fragrant peaches.  Nothing says summer like fresh fruit so I've topped my pancakes with lightly spiced peaches and oodles of freshly squeezed lemon juice. Yum!


















Ingredients
(serves 2)
- 2 peaches (diced)
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 cup cane sugar
- 2 tbsp vegan margarine (melted)
- 1/2 cup almond milk
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1  tsp nutmeg
- Freshly squeezed lemon juice

Mix the flour, baking powder, sugar, melted margarine and almond milk in a large bowl to form a thick, gooey batter.

Drop 1 cooking spoon of the batter into the centre a non-stick frying pan and cook/brown on both sides (medium-low heat). Repeat the process for the rest of the pancakes.

Place the diced peaches in a bowl and toss with cinnamon and nutmeg until evenly coated.

Stack your warm pancakes on a plate and top with the spiced peaches. Squeeze as much lemon juice as you want over the top.

SPINACH AND APPLE PESTO

In the culinary world, I imagine that there are few things more exciting than discovering or trying new flavour combinations. This particular dish was the result of me glancing into my fridge and thinking that I'd reeaaallyy like something unusual for dinner.

In the end, I was a wimp and only used half an apple in this recipe, but if I could start all over again, I'd throw in at least another whole one.

It just works!

You've got the heat of the scotch bonnet pepper (or ata rodo) just sitting at the back of your throat, the creaminess from the [vegan] margarine-infused spinach, the crunch of the chopped toasted peanuts and then bam! you're pelted with the juicy morsels of sweet apples. If this explosion of flavours and textures was an outfit, it'd be some kind of colour-riot iro and buba that's just crazy enough to look flattering.

Ingredients

(serves 2)
- 2 servings whole-wheat spaghetti
- 2-3 cups spinach (finely chopped)
- 1/2 scotch bonnet pepper, or ata rodo (finely chopped)
- 1 large tomato (finely chopped)
- 2 tbsp vegan margarine
- 1/2 large apple (chopped)
- 1/2 cup chopped roasted peanuts
- 1 tbsp curry powder
- 1 vegetable stock cube
- Salt to taste

Boil the spaghetti in salted water for 8-10 minutes, drain and set aside.

To make the pesto, melt the vegan margarine in a large frying pan and add the chopped tomato, apples and spinach. Sauté on medium heat for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Next, add the peanuts, curry powder, stock cube and season with salt. Make sure the ingredients are well combined and keep stirring as you cook for a further 5 minutes. You may need to add a drop or two of water if the pesto dries too quickly but in the end, you want a paste-like mixture (you don't want your spaghetti to swim in it!)

Finally, add the cooked spaghetti to the spinach pesto, mixing well until the pesto is evenly distributed and coating the strands of spaghetti.

Enjoy!

BUTTER BEAN PARCELS

These are about the cutest little things I've made to date and I'm incredibly happy with how they turned out. As we dip our feet into the summer months, light eating really is the name of the game. A couple of these with a side of salad and you've got yourself a nourishing lunch or dinner. And if you're one to fill your summer nights with food, fun and friends then these will look effortlessly impressive at your next get-together.

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I've used butter beans in this recipe but please feel free to use whatever type you have in your kitchen cupboard. 

Ingredients

(serves 4-6)

- 1 + 1/2 cups wholegrain flour

- 1 tsp baking powder

- 2 tbsp sunflower oil

- Warm water

- 1 cup cooked butter beans

- 2 carrots (finely chopped)

- 1 courgette (chopped into small cubes)

- 1 large tomato (finely chopped)

- 2 tsp curry powder

- 2 cloves crushed garlic

- Salt to taste

To make the filling, place the cooked beans, chopped vegetables and seasoning in a saucepan with a little water and cook uncovered on medium-low heat for 20 minutes. You want the liquid to reduce down a little and the veg to get soft. Leave to cool while you get on with the pastry.

To make the pastry parcels, mix the flour, baking powder and oil in a large bowl (add a pinch of salt if you want). Start adding the warm water slowly, mixing until you have a firm dough. Divide the dough into eight equal parts.

Putting it all together: take one part of the dough and roll it out into a roughly round shape on a lightly floured surface. Place the rolled out dough in your cupped palm and fill the centre with 2-3 tablespoons of the filling.  Be careful as you lay it down on a lined baking sheet. Play around with the shape until it more or less resembles a small parcel. (If you've got a large muffin tin then go ahead and use that.)

Repeat this process for the rest of the parcels and bake in a pre-heated oven, gas mark 6, for 20-30 minutes, or until the pastry case is cooked and slightly browned. Serve hot or warm!

HOT SALTINE CRACKERS

My idea of vegan junk food is a bowl of saltine crackers. Tired of the shop bought variety, I rolled up my sleeves and made my own. I was in a bit of a hurry when I made this batch so they came out in all kinds of strange and wonderful shapes and sizes. If you're a neat freak then feel free to make yours more square and uniform. If anything, at least it proves that I baked these myself and didn't throw a bunch of Ritz crackers in a bowl!

I realise that adding chilli to everything doesn't automatically make it more African, let alone Nigerian. I mean, I'd hate to perpetuate the stereotype that we eat, drink and breathe spicy food. Well, sort of...


















Ingredients
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup wholegrain flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 cup sunflower oil (and a little extra for brushing)
- Warm water
- Chilli powder
- Salt

Place the baking powder, all-purpose and wholegrain flour in a large mixing bowl and add the oil. Start to add the water a little bit at a time, kneading as you go along, until you have a firm and slightly elastic dough. Knead the dough for a couple of minutes to combine the ingredients.

Roll the dough out very thinly on a lightly floured surface. Grab a knife (in a non-violent way) and cut the rolled out dough into your desired shapes. Lift the crackers very gently onto to lined baking sheet and prick each one with a fork.

Mix a little water and oil in a small bowl. Brush the crackers with this oil-water mixture before sprinkling with salt and chilli.

Bake in a pre-heated oven, gas mark 6, for 10-15 minutes or until lightly browned.

Yum!

RICE & CARAMELISED ONION STEW

'Rice and stew' is jollof rice's humble alter-ego - never steals the limelight at parties and a bit underwhelming when you really think about it - but ask any Nigerian and they'll tell you that it is THE go-to meal. A bit too much of a go-to meal if you ask me but hey, I also get the impression we'd be pretty lost without it.
Can't think of what to have for dinner? "Let's have rice and stew!"
Got some guests coming over and need to rustle up something quick? "Let's cook rice and stew!"
Feeling uninspired in the kitchen? "Let's boil some rice and heat up some stew!"
So on and so forth.... Never gets old...

Red onions have always fascinated me. You know, the way they turn all sweet and caramelly when you sauté them long enough. I decided to make this scrumptious, sticky red onion infused stew. Served up with some brown basmati rice. Enjoy.


















Ingredients

(serves 2)
1 cup brown basmati rice
2 cups red pepper mix
1 large red onion (thinly sliced)
1 vegetable stock cube
1 tsp curry powder
2 tbsp sunflower oil
Salt to taste

Boil the rice in salted water until soft.

To make the stew, sauté the onions in oil on medium-low heat until the onions are soft and sweet. Be patient with this, there's a difference between burnt onions and caramelised onions so keep the heat under control and stir the onions from time to time.

Add the red pepper mix and turn the heat up. Add the stock cube, curry and salt and boil the stew for 3-4 mins. Turn the heat back down to medium-low and simmer uncovered for a further 15-20 mins to allow the stew to thicken.

Serve hot on a bed of brown rice.

BANANA, RAISIN, ALMOND & CHOCOLATE SLICES

We had one of those pot-luck dinners at church today and I decided to unleash my vegan baking on some unsuspecting taste buds. It sounds more devious than it actually is though. By now, most people know that I don't cook with meat, eggs or dairy so they're always curious as to what I'll come up with. I got some rave reviews, including the very hyperbolic "I could eat this all day". Given the chance, I probably could too.

But I think I'll let you be the judge.. if you ever get round to trying this recipe. 

You should. 

Really. 

It's rich, moist and super indulgent - talk about getting a sweet fix. Reminds me a lot of Mr Biggs' infamous birthday cakes.

Yet, when you really break it down, this is probably one of the healthiest snacks/desserts you could ever hope to enjoy. 

Ingredients

- 2 cups wholegrain flour

- 1/2 cup 100% cocoa powder

- 1 tsp baking powder

- 1/2 cup raw cane sugar

- 2 ripe bananas (mashed)

- 1/4 cup raisins

- 1/4 cup chopped almonds

- 1/2 cup vegan margarine (i.e. plant-based margarine)

- 1 tsp almond extract / vanilla essence

No big deal to this at all. Put all the ingredients in a large bowl and give it a good mix.

Pour into a loaf tin lined with greaseproof paper and top with a few chopped almonds to make it look all rustic and home-made.

Bake in a pre-heated oven (gas mark 6) for 20-25 min. Insert a cocktail stick to check if it's cooked all the way through. If it comes out clean then you're good to go.

Leave to cool for about an hour before cutting into thick slices.

 

ADALU

Incredibly delicious and incredibly filling, adalu is a sort of porridge made with beans and corn. It's a comforting meal, not too complicated and packs a protein punch.

Ingredients

(serves 2)

- 1 cup beans (brown or black-eyed)

- 4 cups water

- 1 small red onion (chopped)

- 1/2 cup sweetcorn / freshly cooked corn (off the cob)

- 2-3 cups red pepper mix

- 1 vegetable stock cube

- 2 tbsp palm oil (optional)

- Salt to taste

Cook the beans in salted water with the chopped onions (on medium-low heat) until soft. You may need to add some extra water as you go along. In the end you want the beans to be soft and the water almost completely evaporated.

Add the red pepper mix, corn, oil and stock cube to the beans. Simmer for a further 25-30 minutes on a low heat.

Tastes great hot or cold.

RED STEW MIX

I mentioned in a previous post that peppers are pretty fundamental to Nigerian cuisine.  

This particular red stew mix forms the base of most dishes, which is why I've decided to dedicate an entire post to the versatile mixture. It's not unusual to find some Nigerians lugging what seems like a month's worth of peppers, tomatoes and onions to the market to have it blended to a pulp in large grinding machines. The mix  is then divided into doubled up nylon bags or plastic containers to be stored at home and used for stews and soups and other Nigerian lovelies. 

To be frank, I'm also tired of having to write out the process for every single recipe that requires this mixture. From now on I'll just refer to it as 'red pepper mix' and provide the link back to this post.

Tip: make a large batch of this and store in the freezer. Whip it out when needed.

You'll need: 5 red bell peppers, 2-3 scotch bonnet peppers, 6 large tomatoes, two large onions, water.

Blitz the lot together to form a smooth mixture. Pour into a large container and pop in the fridge/freezer.