Green & Vegan

Sadly we closed our vegan pop-up dinners in Cape Town, South Africa due to Covid.
While the long term plan is to revive them one day - for now - both of us are working in non food related industries in the UK.
We love making food and so we started to share pics of what we get up to in the kitchen.
We don’t want to see yet another vegan burger.
Our focus is on new things and on eating plants, plants and more plants.

On the plate is Sautéed Cabbage, Onion & Garlic with Baked Moroccan Spiced Falafels.

Green & Vegan updated their website address.

Smoked Tofu Stuffed Courgette | Steamed Brussel Sprouts | Lemon Miso Drizzle

Main course at our last event.
We tend to always use some form of protein in our main course much like in classical cooking hence the smoked tofu in this dish.
Lots of caramelised onion, tomato paste, garlic and miso went into the filling to give a rich umami flavour.

Vegan Cheese

Vegan cheeses have come a long, long way since we dropped animal foods from our diet.
In the early days we had to make our own cheese and our go to book was the .
Today we can order cheese from a variety of suppliers and serve them to guests.
From Camemberts to Gorgonzolas to rich Cheddars - it’s available.

View previous post for photo

ROASTED TOMATO SOUP

Red Onions
Tomatoes
Olive Oil
White Wine/Cider Vinegar
Vegan Stock Powder/Cube
Seasonings

I’ve purposely left out quantities as this recipe is so flexible. It really doesn’t matter if you have more or less of the ingredients.
The key - in our opinion - to a good soup is caramelised onions. We like to use a lot of onion.
The onions will intimately be blended so you can cut them as you wish.

Begin by caramelising the onions in olive oil and salt to taste. Long slow cooking is best. Next add a splash of white wine or vinegar to deglaze the pan. This also adds a touch of acid to the flavours. Set aside to cool.

Cut a X on the top of your tomatoes and roast at 180’C for about 30 minutes - or until soft. Set aside to cool.

Add the vegan stock powder/cube to a jug and add boiling water. Allow to dissolve in the water. Set aside to cool. We like the vegan beef flavoured stock cubes. You can add seasonings such as basil at this stage.

In a large bowl mix together tomatoes, onion and stock. Place in a blender - or use a stick blender - and blend until smooth. We like to leave the soup overnight for the flavours to draw.

You can gently reheat when ready to serve or serve it chilled on a hot day.

We garnished this with soy cream and crunch kale crisps.

See previous post for a photo of this Roasted Tomato Soup.

Roast Tomato Soup

This was one of our starters (pre Covid) when we were still able to do vegan pop up dinners.
We’re ever hopeful we can resume them.
Will share the recipe for the soup in our next post.
We topped it with a swirl of oat cream and some crunchy kale crisps.

I shared the photo of this heavenly bread in my last post.

Will now share that the recipe comes from and is called

And life changing it certainly is.
A small slice is filling and nutritious.
It’s stupid easy to make.
In fact it is flop proof.
This bread lasts and last wrapped up in the refrigerator but we also pre-slice and then freeze it.
The Life Changing Loaf of bread toasts beautifully.

It’s a low carb high nutrition staple.

Low Carb Bread

This is a well known recipe on the Internet which I will share with my next post.
It’s easy to make.
Flop proof.
Very low carb.
High fibre.
And delicious.

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VEGAN CHOCOLATE MOUSSE

100ml Plant Milk
200g Dark Chocolate
50 - 100g Sugar
1tsp Cream of Tartar
Pinch Salt
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
200g Aquafaba

Firstly - we never use aquafaba straight from the can. It’s not thick enough. We add leftover bean brine to a container which we keep in the freezer.
Once we have around a litre - we reduce it by a third to half. You’re looking for the texture of egg white when it’s cool.
Freeze it in an ice tray. And defrost blocks to use as needed.

Begin whisking aquafaba in a clean - no grease - cold bowl. You need a stand mixer or a hand be**er. We find the other gadgets don’t work as well.
Add Cream of Tartar.
Whisk more.
Add sugar slowly and keep whisking.
You can’t over whisk aquafaba like you can egg white.
Once it’s nice and firm - keep in a cool spot.

Bring milk to just below the boil.
Place in a soup bowl or large glass bowl above a pot of gently simmering water.
Break dark chocolate into small pieces and add to warm milk.
Do not let this mixture get too hot or the chocolate will split.
Once chocolate starts to melt remove from heat and add vanilla and mix chocolate and milk together.

Now using a spatula add a small amount of aquafaba to the chocolate mix using light cutting motion so you don’t squash the air out of the aquafaba.
The cooler your chocolate is - the better.
Keep going but reverse it - adding chocolate to the aquafaba until it’s all incorporated.

Layer chocolate mousse in a glass.

Top with Chocolate Soil - recipe from

Voila!

VEGAN CHOCOLATE MOUSSE

Part of our trio of desserts we used to serve at our pop up dinners.
It’s topped with Chocolate Soil and Mint so it looks a bit like a plant.
Recipe to follow in next post.

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CHIA CHOCOLATE PLUM PUDDING

750 ml Plant Milk
3 Heaped Teaspoons Cacoa
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
Blend with
6 Tablespoons Chia Seeds

12 Plums
Splash of water
Bring to boil and then reduce to simmer until fruit is soft and a jam like texture.

Layer chocolate mixture with fruit mixture in a glass.

Top with Coconut Flakes.

Voila!

CHIA CHOCOLATE PLUM PUDDING

This almost fat free dessert can also be a healthy breakfast.
Recipe in the next post.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CK8nzTiJ6w7/?igshid=1xhzvvn6e5tmm

See previous post for photo. VEGAN CRAB SALAD Shred a punnet of King/Oyster Mushrooms into a bowl. Sprinkle with salt, squeeze and allow to stand about 1/2 hour. Squeeze hard to eliminate all water. Toss in nori powder to taste. We ground nori sheets in our coffee grinder. To make the sauce mix - Vegan Mayo Tiny amount of Tomato Paste Smoked Paprika Garlic Powder Onion Powder Add finely diced celery and white onion to sauce. Mix mushrooms into sauce. Voila! #veganrecipe #veganrecipes #veganfood #veganfoodshare #greenandvegancapetown #greenandvegan #veganseafood #vegancrab #vegancrabsalad #veganfoodrecipes #veganstarter #plantbased #plantbasedrecipe #plantbasedrecipes #plantbasedseafood #plantbasedcrab

https://www.instagram.com/p/CK3tSqupaEd/?igshid=1akmxcjqzifpa

VEGAN CRAB SALAD With Valentines Day coming up we wanted to experiment with an old fashioned Starer - Crab Salad. Will post the recipe in the next post but we used shredded mushrooms and a pink seafood sauce. #vegancrab #vegancrabsalad #veganseafood #veganseafoodcocktail #greenandvegancapetown #plantbasedcrab #plantbasedseafood #plantbasedcrabcocktail #plantbasedcrabsalad #veganrecipes #veganized #veganised #veganfood #veganfoodshare

VEGAN CRAB SALAD

With Valentines Day coming up we wanted to experiment with an old fashioned Starer - Crab Salad.

Will post the recipe in the next post but we used shredded mushrooms and a pink seafood sauce.

We’ve not put out any notification about Green & Vegan as we have been considering spending time in the U.K.

Covid blind sided us.
We cannot see away to have a social dining event that is Covid friendly.

We gave the gourmet sandwiches a half hearted try.

Now the opportunity to work in the U.K. has materialized we’re going to take it.

We will still spend time in S.A. and hopefully it will be possible to host events again when we are in Cape Town.

A million Thank You’s to all who supported us.

Salad Plate

This was us trying to play around with a mix of fruit, veg and leaves on a plate. Some of the vegetables were pickled.
We made a bright yellow turmeric and Dijon mustard vinaigrette which was drizzled over the plate.
It was lovely to look at.

Was chatting to someone today and he asked what we eat.
We’ve been vegan since 2012 and even in South Africa we are able to make or everything we ever ate before.
Just vegan versions.
So for example meringue.
Using a browser and type in vegan meringue recipe.
You will find loads of recipes.
Going plant based does not equal deprivation or giving up food.
It’s merely making different choices.

Such a treat to be out in fresh air enjoying amazing food at .
We brought home vegan drumsticks from which we had with Coronation coleslaw.
Romeo and Vero nail the vegan meat substitutes.
👏🏻

Our flyer.

We had these printed and been putting them in mailboxes.

This is the bread!
It’s almost two slices in one. We get it from the wholesale division of . It’s a whole grain seed loaf.
Plus a hefty portion of chickpea tuna mix.
There’s smashed chickpeas, artichoke hearts, ground nori, ground wakame, kelp, celery salt, diced celery and finely chopped capers all mixed together to get ocean flavours.
Friday’s gourmet sandwich comes with our Orange Almond slice which is a generous 7,5 x 7,5 cm portion.

Sjoe Covid-19 and the Lock Down took us off on a detour. Not sure if we will ever open the restaurant again.

But what we can resurrect are the things we learned as plant based chefs. And this one is a biggie.

You want to maximize flavour at every turn and caramelising onions or a mirepoix for soups, sauces, pates and just about anything add sweetness and umami. To get all the deliciousness loose from your pot/pan - and add a bit of sour - you add an acid.
Yes wine, but also lemon or vinegar.

Blueberry Oat Bars

These gluten-free bars come with Wednesday’s Meal Deal.

We’ve finally found the perfect bread! 😀
It’s a monster sized whole grain loaf. One sandwich with even the hungriest person.