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Miso-Ginger Salad Dressing

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You may not have tried miso before, but its flavour is delicious, it’s incredibly rich, and it adds beautiful umami notes (with a hint of sweetness) to dishes. Because it’s fermented, it’s supportive of a healthy gut. You can find miso in the Japanese section of your supermarket, in your local Asian market, or in a health food store.

Ingredients

2 cloves garlic, minced
3cm piece ginger, minced
1 shallot or 2 tsp red onion, minced
2 tbsp lime juice
2 cups cooked white beans, or one can, rinsed and drained
2 tbsp white miso paste
3 tbsp maple syrup or other suitable-for-vegan liquid sweetener
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1/2-1 cup water, or amount needed to thin to desired consistency

Method

Purée everything in in a blender or food processor. Cool in the refrigerator for at least an hour before serving.

Sweet Potato Coconut Curry

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This fragrant and warming meal takes under 20 minutes. It serves two people on its own, or four served with rice.

Ingredients

1 tsp suitable-for-vegan red chilli paste
1 can coconut milk
1/2 cup vegetable broth
1.5 tbsp soy sauce
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 inch ginger, grated
400g sweet potato, peeled and in medium dice
1 small cauliflower, in florets
150g mushrooms, quartered
1 red and 1 yellow bell pepper, medium dice
4 green onions, chopped
100g spinach
Handful basil, torn

Method

1. In a lidded frying pan, or a wide-rimmed pot, mix the red chilli paste, coconut milk, vegetable broth, soy sauce, garlic, and ginger. Simmer for a minute or two until the sauce becomes fragrant.
2. Add the sweet potatoes and cauliflower, cover, bring to the boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 5 minutes.
3. Add the mushrooms, peppers, and green onions, re-cover, and simmer for 2-3 minutes more until cauliflower and sweet potato are cooked for your liking.
4. Turn off the heat, add the spinach and basil, recover, and allow to steam for about 2 minutes, until the spinach is wilted.
5. Serve and enjoy.

Ginger, coffee, and walnut nice cream sweetened with dates

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A rich, lightly spicy treat.

Ingredients

3 medium frozen bananas (about 2 cups)
1 shot espresso (short)
1t fresh ginger, grated and minced (or to taste)
1/4 cup dried, soft dates, pitted and chopped
1T walnuts chopped with 1t reserved for garnish

Optional: 1t maca powder.

Method

Blend everything but the garnish until smooth. Scoop out, garnish with the walnuts and serve. If your dates are hard, soften them in the coffee then blend.

 

 

Tofu and red potatoes in coconut milk with cremini mushrooms, savoy cabbage, garlic and ginger

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The tofu, potatoes, mushrooms and cabbage are slow cooked together in broth and then finished in coconut milk to give this very simple, inexpensive dish a rich finish.

Ingredients

About 220g of tofu in .3″ slices
2 medium red potatoes, quartered (about 1 1/2 cups)
6 medium sized cremini mushrooms, stemmed and quartered (about 250g)
3 cups of savoy cabbage, thinly sliced
3 scallions, minced (reserve about 3 – 4″ of one green for garnish)
1 cup of boiling water
2 bouillon cubes
1/2t of coarse sea salt
1/2 cup of full fat coconut milk
3T of garlic, minced
1T of ginger, minced
1t of dried ground cumin
1t of dried ground coriander
Sea salt and black pepper to taste

Instructions

Add the tofu, mushrooms, cabbage, scallions, mushrooms and sea salt to a slow cooker.
Dissolve the bouillon in the boiling water, add to the slow cooker and stir to combine.
Cook covered for about 4 hours, stirring here and there.
At the 4 hour mark, preheat the oven to 400F.
You should have about 2 cups of liquid left. If you don’t, add a little water.
Add the remaining ingredients, stir to combine and pour everything out into a shallow oven pan with sides (I use a 9×13″ pan).
Bake for about 30 minutes, stirring periodically, or into the mixture is starting to brown lightly.
Remove from the oven, let stand 10 minutes to cool, and serve.

The scallions are very thinly sliced on an oblique angle to give them good volume. The dish is plated here with lightly sauteed mixed greens and some red pepper, a great way to add some additional colour and nutrition to the plate.

Carrot ginger soup with Thai chili oil, lentils, kale and potatoes

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A lovely fall soup soup with some additional texture, flavour and colour added by a layer of roasted kale and potatoes and sweetened Thai chili oil. This is a great use for left over lentils, and brown will look just as good.

For the soup
1T of cooking oil
1/4 of sea salt
1T of ginger, grated
2 heaping cups of carrots, chopped
2 cups of vegetable stock
1T of arrowroot powder whisked with 2T of water
Sea salt to taste

For the garnishes
1/4 cup of cooked beluga lentils*
1T of minced chives

1 cup of kale, chopped
2t of cooking oil
1/4t of sea salt
2T of nutritional yeast
Sea salt to taste

2 small white or yellow potatoes in 1/3″ dice (about 3/4 cup)
2t of cooking oil
1/4 of sea salt
1T of minced chives

1T of agave nectar
1t of red Thai chili paste
2t of olive oil

Start the garnishes, and then make the soup.
Preheat the over to 400F
Whisk the agave nectar, chili paste and olive oil, and then set aside.
Toss the potatoes in the oil, sea salt and chives.
Add to a well-oiled baking sheet and roast for about 10-15 minutes, turning frequently.
Toss the kale in the oil and sea salt.
Add to the pan with the potatoes and roast another 10-15 minutes (or until the kale and potatoes are lightly browning and the potatoes are fork tender).
Ovens vary and the size of the dice and the freshness of the potatoes will influence the cooking time; use the colour and consistency as your guide and if you have to remove the potatoes and kale separately, do so..
When done, remove from the pan, toss the kale in the nutritional yeast a and set the kale and potatoes aside.
Season to taste.
While the kale and the potatoes roast, make the soup.
Bring the oil to heat on medium high in a pan with a lid.
Add the ginger and the sea salt and saute for 1 minute.
Add the carrots and saute for 3-5 minutes.
Add the stock, cover and simmer on low until the carrots are fork tender (about 10-15 minutes).
Remove from heat and puree the soup until smooth.
Whisk the arrowroot with the water.
Return to heat and bring to a light simmer.
Whisk in the arrowroot mixture, stirring continuously until thickened.
Remove from heat and let stand 10 minutes before serving.
Season to taste.
To serve, ladle the soup.
Carefully drip the chili oil over the soup.
Sprinkle the kale on top in a thin layer, then the lentils, followed by the potatoes and finally, sprinkle with the chives.

*If you make the lentils from scratch, simmer them in 2 parts water to 1 part lentils covered on low until the water absorbs. I simmer my with kombu.

 

 

Soft wheat and cabbage with ginger and garlic

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A very simple side dish based on an Ethiopian dish. Trade the wheat for potatoes and add some carrots for a more traditional version.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups water
1/2t coarse sea salt, divided
1/2 cup soft wheat berries
2T plant only margarine
1/2T fresh garlic, minced
1t fresh ginger, minced
1/4t dried ground cumin
1/4t dried ground turmeric
2 cups shredded cabbage (I use coleslaw mix)
1/2t white vinegar
Sea salt and black pepper to taste

Directions

In a small sauce pan with a lid, bring the water and 1/4t sea salt to a light boil.
Add the wheat, reduce to low, cover and simmer until all the water is absorbed (about 45 minutes give or take).
Remove from heat and set aside.
When the wheat is done, in a large frying pan on medium low, bring the margarine to heat with the sea salt.
Add the spices and fry for 2 minutes.
Add the cabbage and the wheat, and stir to combine.
Add the vinegar.
Fry for 7-10 minutes or until the cabbage is lightly wilted, stirring frequently.
Remove from heat and serve.

Parsnip, ginger and miso soup

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A rich and filling soup for winter, garnished with smokey bourbon and brown sugar coconut, spinach chiffonade and black pepper.

Ingredients

For the soup
2T cooking oil
1/4t coarse sea salt
1T fresh garlic, minced
2T fresh ginger, minced
3 cups parsnip, 1/2″ dice (about 4-5 cored parsnips)
1T lemon juice
2 cups unsweetened soy milk
2 cups vegetable stock
1T white miso
2T nutritional yeast
1T tapioca starch dissolved in 2T cold water
1/2 cup baby spinach
Sea salt and black pepper to taste

For the coconut
3T coconut flakes
1T bourbon (1)
1/2T tamari
1/2t brown sugar (2)
A dash liquid smoke
Sea salt and black pepper to taste

Directions

First, core and dice the parnship.
Bring the oil to heat with 1/4t sea salt in a large pan with a lid on medium high.
Add the garlic and ginger and fry for 2 minutes until they’re aromatic.
Add the parsnip, and fry for 4-6 minutes, until the pan is starting to brown lightly.
Add the lemon juice to the pan and deglaze.
Add the soy milk, stock and miso.
Return to a simmer, cover, reduce heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes.
While the soup simmer, make the coconut.
Preheat the oven to 350F.
Toss the coconut in the other ingredients until well-coated.
Arrange the coconut in a a small glass or ceramic baking dish in an even layer.
Bake on the middle rack until brown, about 10-12 minutes, stirring here and there. Ovens vary; use the
color and dryness as a guide and be careful not to overcook.
When ready, remove the coconut from the oven and set aside.
When the soup is ready, remove it from heat.
Add the nutritional yeast.
Puree the ingredients.
Return to a light simmer.
Stirring continuously, add the tapioca solution to the pan, stirring until thick.
Remove from heat, and let stand 10 minutes to cool.
Season to taste, and ladle into bowls.
Garnish with a few grinds of fresh black pepper, 2-3 whole spinach leaves, 2-3T spinach chiffonade and
coconut.

  1. It’s rare that bourbon is manufactured with animal
    products, but some are.
  2. An increasing amount of cane sugar is made without animal bone charcoal. Organic cane sugar, beet sugar, and otherwise unrefined sugars are typically fine.

Pistachio, ginger, and coffee frozen dessert

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A rich breakfast or a light dessert. You can substitute a couple tablespoons of brewed coffee for the espresso, but the flavor won’t be as rich.

Ingredients

3 medium frozen bananas (about 2 – 2 1/2 cups)
1t fresh ginger, grated
1T and 1t chopped pistachios, separated, the 1t reserved for garnish
1/4t vanilla extract
A half shot of espresso (short)
Sweeten with stevia, maple syrup or agave nectar to taste

Optional: 1t maca powder

Directions

Puree everything except the 1t pistachios reserved. Add the maca if you’ll be using it. Sweeten to taste. Spoon out to an appropriate glass. Garnish with 1t chopped pistachios and serve.