Vegan cheesecake

*** Vegan cheesecake ***

Dairy free, soya free, egg free and easily made gluten free.

One can of coconut milk (400g)
200g dairy free chocolate
2 tbsp icing sugar (powdered sugar)
250g biscuits (any biscuits will work – a mixture of digestives and ginger biscuits is nice)
100g dairy free butter

Method

Store can of coconut milk in fridge over night. This will allow the cream to rise to the top.
Crush biscuits in blender. Melt the butter and add to the crushed biscuits. Place crush biscuits in bottom of cake dish.
Melt the chocolate – set aside to cool.
Using only the cream of the coconut milk (not the water), whisk with the sugar.
Add melted chocolate to coconut milk (need to have cooled slightly) and mix well.
Spread across top of crushed biscuits. Place in fridge for a few hours to set.

Alternatives:
• Use gluten free biscuits in base.
• Use 2 cans of coconut milk (800g) and 400g of chocolate to make top thicker.

Possible to freeze and will keep in freezer for up to 3 months. Defrost overnight before using.

Strawberry Cheesecake.

Vegan chocolate avocado cake

*** Vegan chocolate cake ***
Dairy free, soya free, egg free and gluten free

Very moist cake

Ingredients

1 ripe avocado
300g brown sugar
300g gluten free flour
50g cocoa powder
1 tsp bicarbonate soda
2 tsp baking powder
Half tsp of salt
400ml milk (rice milk is best in vegan baking)
170g dairy free butter

Method
• Preheat oven to 160 degrees celsius.
• Put avocado and sugar in food processor and blend well.
• Add all other ingredients and blend well.
• Divide between 2 lines cake tins.
• Bake for 30/35 minutes.
• Leave in tins until cool.

Decorate as required. I used vanilla buttercream and chocolate buttercream.

Vegan ganache can also used to decorate.

Milk – Rice milk is best in vegan baking as it holds air better than many alternative milks.

Spinach muffins

*** Spinach muffins ***
Dairy free, egg free and gluten free

Ingredients

270g self raising flour (I use Aldi self raising gf flour)
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp mixed spice
Pinch of salt
4 cups of well chopped spinach
2 tbsp grated carrot
2/3 cup of sugar
1/2 cup milk (any milk will work)
1/4 oil
180ml pureed apple
1 tsp apple cider or lemon juice

Method

Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius
Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, mixed spice and salt together
Whisk spinach, carrot, sugar, milk, oil, Apple puree and cider/juice.
Add wet mix to dry mix and whisk well.
Bake for 20/25 minutes.

These freeze well so handy for lunch.

Ice cream

** Icecream ***
Dairy free, egg free and sugar free ice-cream

Ingredients

3 ripe bananas
150ml coconut milk (any milk will work)

2 tbsp cocoa powder

5 strawberries chopped in small pieces

2 tsp vanilla essence

1 tbsp golden syrup/maple syrup/corn syrup (optional)

Method

Chop banana and put in freezer over night.
If using canned coconut milk, put in fridge over night so you can take off the cream.
Blend frozen in blender and add milk and syrup, blend until you get a creamy consistency.
Split mix 3 into 3 separate bowls.
One bowl add the vanilla essence and mix well – Vanilla ice cream
One bowl add the cocoa powder and mix well – chocolate ice-cream
One bowl add the strawberries and mix well – Strawberry ice-cream.
Put back in freezer for at least 3 hours to set.
If you prefer soft ice-cream serve immediately.

Alternatives

Half a cup of Chopped raspberries (or any fruit)
2 tbsp of peanut butter
2 tbsp Chocolate chips
Broken up cookies

Banana and apple scones

*** Banana and apple Scones ***
Dairy free, egg free, gluten free and no added sugar

Extremely easy

Ingredients

200g gluten free flour
100g Dairy free butter
2 ripen bananas (well mashed)

1 apple grated
1 tbsp cinnamon (optional)

Method
• Preheat oven to 160 degrees celsius.
• Rub the butter into the flour and cinnamon.
• Add the mashed bananas and grated apple and mix well.
• Roll out on a floured surface and cut with cutter.
• Bake for around 20 minutes.

Pancakes – vegan

*** Simple egg free and dairy free pancakes ***

Can easily be made gluten free too.

Ingredients

1 cup/180g of any flour
1 cup/240ml of milk (any milk will work)
A banana or cup of apple puree
1 tablespoon of oil

Method

Mix the flour, milk and oil together.
Mash the banana/apple puree and add to mixture and mix well.
Best to use either an electric mixer or blender otherwise you will end up with lumps of banana.
Fry on a hot frying pan using either df butter or df margarine.

Alternatives

For thickener/fluffier pancakes use self raising flour and fry on a medium heat until golden brown.
The crepe/thinner pancakes are really nice using buckwheat flour.
Instead of the banana or apple use a tablespoon of milled flaxseed mixed with 3 tablespoons of hot water.
Add chocolate chips or cocoa powder for chocolate pancakes

Vegan lemon cake

Lemon Squares
*** Dairy free, soya free, egg free and gluten free ***
Low sugar
—————————————————-
275g self raising flour (I use gluten free flour)
100g caster sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 lemon zest and juice
100ml oil
170ml milk (I use rice milk)

*** Method ***

Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius
Sieve the flour, baking powder.
Add the sugar and mix well.
Add remaining ingredients and mix until smooth.
Line baking tray and pour in mixture.
Bake in oven for 18/20 minutes.

Pinwheels

Pinwheels
*** Dairy free, soya free, egg free ***

Gluten free if made using gluten free ingredients.

Made using puff Pastry.

Most shop bought puff pastry is dairy free, soya free and egg free but always read ingredients.

** Pizza Pinwheels **

Tomato puree

Mixed herbs

Chopped ham

Dairy free cheese

Puff pastry

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.

Spread the tomato puree, sprinkle with mixed herbs on the pastry, sprinkled with chopped ham and grated cheese.

Roll tightly, cut into slices. Spread on baking tray and bake for 12/15 minutes.

** Pesto Pinwheels **

Puff Pastry
Dairy free/soya free pesto
Chopped ham
Grated cheese
Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius
Spread the pesto on the pastry, sprinkled with chopped ham and grated cheese.
Roll tightly, cut into slices. Spread on baking tray and bake for 12/15 minutes

**** Pinwheel fillings ****

Hidden veg sauce and violife mozzarella (pizza pinwheels)

Pesto

Pesto with chopped up chicken

Tomato passatta with mixed herbs and a little garlic

Tomato passatta with chopped up chicken

Broccoli and violife creamy

Spinach, sun-dried tomato and violife mozzarella

Bolognese (just puree standard homemade bolognese)

Chicken and violife creme fraiche with red pesto and cherry tomatoes

Mashed beans and sausage

Tuna, red onion and violife creamy

Peanut butter and banana

Peanut with grated apple

Sweet freedom choc shot (offered with a little bit of custard made with oatly or almond milk)

Strawberry fruit puree and choc shot

Apple fruit mash or grated with cinnamon

Most purees will work

Once you use gluten free pastry and gluten from ingredients then the pinwheels will be gluten free. One example of gluten free pasty is Jus Rol Puff Pastry.

Apple muffins

*** Dairy free, soya free, egg free and gluten free ***

Really moist buns

*** Ingredients ***

125ml golden syrup
80ml milk (any alternative milk)
60ml flavourless oil (sunflower oil, vegetable oil, rapeseed oil)
125ml yogurt (I use koko yogurt)
180g self raising flour (I use gluten free self raising flour)
1 tsp baking powder

1 medium cooking apple

** Method **

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius
Whisk the golden syrup, milk, oil and yogurt together.
Add to the flour and baking powder.
Mix well.
Slice/finely chop the apple and fold into mixture
Put in bun cases and bake for 18/20 minutes. The recipe makes 10 muffins.

These freeze well and an easy snack.

Golden syrup

A question regularly asked is what is golden syrup? The following information is taken directly from Wikipedia.

Golden syrup or light treacle is a thick amber-coloured form of inverted sugar syrup made in the process of refining sugar cane or sugar beet juice into sugar, or by treatment of a sugar solution with acid. It is used in a variety of baking recipes and desserts. It has an appearance similar to honey and is often used as a substitute where honey is unavailable or prohibitively expensive.

It is not to be confused with amber corn syrup or amber refined sugar. Regular molasses, or dark treacle, has both a richer colour and a strong, distinctive flavour.

A common brand used is Lyle Golden Syrup.

Caramel slices

** Dairy free and gluten free caramel slices **
These are also soya free and egg free

These taste great.

* Shortbread Base *
100g gluten free plain flour
100g cornflour
1 tbsp/15ml warm water
160g dairy free butter
80g icing sugar

* Caramel layer *
A can of condensed milk or condensed milk made with 1 can of coconut milk (400g)
90g caster sugar
1 tbsp maple syrup/golden syrup
125g dairy free butter

* Chocolate layer *
150g dairy free and soya chocolate
1 tbsp coconut oil (optional) – this makes it easier to spread on top

*Shortbread*

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius
Mix the butter and sugar together
Sieve in the flour and mix well into butter and sugar mix.
Add water and bring mix together. Don’t over mix.
Press into lined tin (8cm Square tin) and bake for 25/30 minutes.
Remove from oven, put aside to cool.

*Caramel*

Put the condensed milk, caster sugar, syrup and butter into a saucepan.
Stir constantly over a low heat until sugar melt. Stir constantly to prevent burning. this will take approximately 15 minutes.
The mixture will thicken as the sugar and syrup melts.
Continue stirring over heat until colour changes to a ‘caramel’. watch carefully as it can easily burn.
Leave a side to cool. Make sure it’s fully cool before putting on the shortbread. Spread across shortbread.

*Chocolate*

Melt chocolate (and coconut oil)
Ensure caramel is completely cold before spreading across it.

Leave to cool and harder before cutting.

The Caramel layer can be made without condensed milk but is more temperature sensitive

* Caramel layer *
400g canned coconut milk
260g caster sugar
30ml water
130g dairy free butter

Place tin of coconut milk in fridge over. This will allow the cream to rise to the top of tin.
Put sugar in saucepan and add water.
Mix until sugar is wet.
Heat over medium heat and boil to a caramel colour.
Do not mix as it will crystallise but shake saucepan to ensure that all the sugar melts.
Be careful not to burn but you need to bring it to a high temperature, otherwise it won’t set.
Take off heat and mix in coconut cream (you will be left with water in tin).
Stir quickly as you don’t want it to thicken too quickly.
Continue to stir until milk dissolves.
Stir in butter while still hot. Make sure butter melts fully.
Leave a side to cool. Make sure it’s fully cool before putting on the shortbread. Spread across shortbread.