Tofu kimchi burger

Home-made kimchi

Home-made kimchi

Tofu kimchi burger
 
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No joke, this burger is life-changing. The combination of spicy tangy kimchi, dependable fried tofu, caramelised onion and creamy garlic basil mayo is all you need.
Ingredients
  • Appromixately 150 grams of tofu per person, cut into slices 1-2 cm thick
  • Hamburger buns or good bread
  • Kimchi (easy and quick to make at home; I made mine using this recipe: http://www.mynewroots.org/site/2013/01/fabulous-fermentation-week-kimchi/)
  • One large white onion, thinly sliced
  • Sea salt
  • Cold-pressed safflower or sunflower oil, for frying the tofu
  • One large beef tomato, sliced
  • Shredded lettuce
Preparation
  1. Fry the sliced onion at high heat in a little oil until it starts to soften - then turn the heat down, add a pinch of sea salt, and leave to caramelise, stirring occasionally so it doesn't burn.
  2. Heat 1-2 tablespoons of oil in a large non-stick frying pan at medium-high heat, and add the tofu slices so they lie flat (ideally not touching so they don't stick to each other). Cook until the underside of the tofu is crisp and golden, then flip the pieces, lying them flat again until the other side is crisped.
  3. Time to assemble the burger - generous tablespoon of your preferred condiments on each piece of bread and then stack the lettuce, tofu, kimchi, tomato and onion. Sooooo good.

  4. Garlic basil mayonnaise

Mini filo apple pies

 
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I created these to fulfil the only McDonald's craving I ever get: apple pies. These pies are all about the luscious apple filling. So healthy, you're forgiven for eating three before they've cooled down!
Ingredients
  • 10 small apple pies
  • 2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 2 tsp apple juice concentrate
  • Small handful of sultanas
  • Pinch of sea salt
  • ½ cup water
  • 300 grams filo pastry (if you search, you can find filo without sugar)
Preparation
  1. Pre-heat the oven to 160 degrees.
  2. Combine all ingredients (except the filo) in a large pot on the stove and cook over a low heat until the apples are just tender. Don't worry if the mixture seems dry, the juice from the apples will come out as they cook. Strain the mixture and set aside.
  3. Lay the filo sheets out flat and keep inside a towel to stop the pastry drying out.
  4. Set up your pie-making station: put an oiled, non-stick surface for making your pies in the centre, a shallow dish of olive oil to the side, drained pie filling to the other, and the towel-covered pastry on top.
  5. To make each pie: make a double-layered strip of pastry around 4 inches wide and oil both sides (dip your fingers in the oil and transfer to the pastry), then place a tablespoon of the mixture in a corner of the pastry strip and fold over into a triangle shape (see picture below). Dip your fingers in the oil again and smooth some oil over the pastry, and fold the pastry over again - and again, until you're left with a neat triangle shaped pastry. As you fold the pastry, stuff some extra apple pieces into the mixture if there is space. Put onto a tray covered in grease-proof baking paper and coat the pastry with more oil; the more oil, the crispier the pastry (I like mine less oily for everyday, but if I'm making these as a dessert then I'll use more oil throughout the process and add another layer or so of pastry). You'll end up with around 12 pastries.
  7. Bake at 160 degrees until golden, turning over half-way through baking. Cool on racks and enjoy hot or cold.

 

Lemongrass tofu

 

Lemongrass tofu
 
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Time-consuming, but very worthwhile.
Ingredients
  • 6 stalks of lemongrass, minced
  • 10 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
  • 11 shallots, chopped on the diagonal into inch long pieces
  • ½ - ¾ tblsp of seasalt
  • Dash of tamari
  • ¼ red chili, chopped finely
  • ½ tblsp tumeric
  • Safflower or sunflower cold-pressed oil
  • 500 grams of firm tofu (firm as you can get), cut into finger-sized pieces
  • 1½ cups of corn flour
Preparation
  1. Mince the lemongrass, using a blender and adding a few tblsps of water if needed. Combine the lemongrass with all remaining ingredients except the tofu and corn flour. The lemongrass mixture will taste slightly too salty - but this is okay, since the mixture will be diluted when later mixed with the tofu.
  2. Heat enough oil to coat your frying pan, and then lightly fry the lemongrass mixture, adding a little water if needed to get the mixture evenly cooking. Minimise any water added, since the aim is to create a 'dry sauce', rather than a sauce that can flow.
  3. Soften the mixture, then take off the heat, cover and set aside.
  4. Heat a few tablespoons of oil in a second frying pan and set up your tofu production line: one plate with the corn flour and another plate with the tofu next to the stove. Dip a piece of the tofu into the corn flour, coating it on all sides, then shake of any excess flour and slip into the oil. Repeat with the other pieces of tofu until the pan is full, and avoid the tofu pieces touching each other (they'll stick). Fry on both sides until just golden, and then put onto kitchen towels to drain (don't cover or overlap the tofu pieces, since they will go soggy) . You might need to clean the pan between batches, since any excess corn flour left behind in the pan can smoke.
  5. Put the first frying pan (with the lemongrass mixture) back onto heat and warm up. Add the tofu and lightly stir for 1-2 minutes until just combined, then serve. Lemongrass tofu is great served with rice and morning glory with garlic - or put into a banh xeo (see below) or wrap.

 

 

Lazy vegan scones with balsamic strawberries

 

Lazy vegan scones with balsamic strawberries
 
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Ingredients
  • 2 cups of wholemeal spelt flour
  • 3 tsps of baking powder
  • 1 pinch of sea salt
  • 3½ tblsps of cold pressed oil (I like safflower or sunflower for the bonus nutrients, but olive oil is fine too)
  • 5 tblsps of brown rice malt (add more if you have a sweet tooth, but then reduce the volume of milk)
  • 100 mls of rice milk (I prefer rice milk for its sweetness, but soy works too)
  • 1 large punt of strawberries
  • A drizzle each of balsamic vinegar and brown rice malt.
  • 1 can soya spray cream
Preparation
  1. Preheat oven to 220 C
  2. In a large mixing bowl, use your fingers to break up the baking powder and sea salt, and add to the flour. Then, rather than sifting (these are lazy scones after all), gently whisk the dry ingredients to combine.
  3. In a small pan, add the oil and rice malt, stirring with a fork, and gently heat. The aim is to melt the malt into the oil for easier mixing, so be sure to take the pan off the heat well before the rice malt bubbles.
  4. Using a fork, stir the oil and rice malt mixture into the dry ingredients, adding the milk as you go, until the dough is pliable but not too sticky. You might need to add a little extra flour or reserve some of the milk.
  5. Turn the dough onto a sheet of grease-proof paper and lightly knead. Put another piece of grease-proof paper on top and roll the dough out to approximately 2 cms thick. Cut into 4-5 cm wide circles and place on a baking sheet.
  6. Bake for approximately 9 minutes or until golden.
  7. While the scones are baking, prepare your strawberries: simply slice your berries into a bowl, drizzle with balsamic vinegar and rice malt, lightly stir and let sit.
  8. Serve your scones with the balsamic strawberries and soya spray cream (raspberries and other berries optional).