Pastina

buona giornata di tutti 🙂  i bring this “recipe” today as a little window into my childhood and the childhood of any family connected to italy in any way….i put recipe in quotation marks because its not really a recipe at all just a little bit of history into a total winner of a dish,  all the kids in my family LOVE pastina and its been a massive part of our diet growing up……i didn’t realize it was such a prevalent dish in the history of italian cuisine……..first off pastina translates as “little pasta” and they’re not kidding, its so tiny and cute, you get all different shapes for example hoops, tiny stars, alphabet, shells and bow ties the list is long lol   its great in use in soups as well as just cooking it and serving it with some butter and pepper,  Pastina is made differently by each family and everyone has there own take on it for example adding meat or eggs and cheese but the way my family serve pastina is my favourite, it conjures up memories of my granny or my auntie making a pot of it while we were all moaning about being “starving” haha they would sit us round the table with a bowl each and a little drizzle of milk to cool it down and we would all tuck in to a big plate of bread and butter cut into soldiers (fingers) to dip in the broth,  everyone loves this soup, not only is it great to start babies out on pasta but its great for adults, kids and anyone whos feeling a little under the weather…..the same way as chicken noodle soup is a staple in millions of peoples homes for sickness, its great because you are getting fluids and some calories so you magically get better haha 

   I really have faith that if your kids like pasta they will love this ……in a pinch if you really cant find any pastina then just get a few strands of spaghetti and break it up into tiny tiny bits…..problem solved lol

 

Ingredients: 

vegetable bouillon or homemade vegetable stock

1/2 cup pastina shapes

3 cups boiling water

pinch ground black pepper and a pinch salt

 

Method:

1.  pop everything in a pot and cook till pasta is cooked through about 6-8mins depending on the shape, taste stock and add more pepper or salt or even add a little more boullion if it needs it….you can add as much water or pasta as you like its up to you how brothy you like it or if you want more pasta 🙂    serve with some bread and butter soldiers and if there are kids eating it then pop a little plant milk in it to cool it 🙂  

 

I hope you make this a family favourite to pass down the generations like the italians do 🙂  

 

                                buon appetito  xoxo

4 bean and veg chili!

hi everyone around our lovely planet 🙂  so here i bring you my favorite chili recipe EVER…..everyone who’s tried it loves it and i’m very proud of it 🙂  its healthy and hearty too and you can put as much or as little hot sauce in as you like or even omit the hot sauce and just serve the chili in a pot in the middle of the table with a ladle in it, leave bowls, tortilla chips or pitta chips (or both), and little bowls of chopped tomatoes, chopped onions, jalapenos, guacamame (see the taco recipe for guac recipe), vegan cheese and sour cream (i’m not too keen on those options but at a diy chili station anything is possible, put a bottle of hot sauce next to it all and let everyone dig in and make there own variations 🙂  it makes it fun and nice for a change of pace 🙂

 

Ingredients:

2 tins mexican bean mix (or 2 cups mixed dry beans soaked overnight)

1 large spanish onion, chopped

1 green bell pepper, chopped into little cubes

3 garlic cloves, chopped

1 bottle of vegan lager, Stella Artois is vegan

tinned chopped tomatoes

palmful of each… ground cumin, steak seasoning, chili powder

half palmful of ground coriander

1 cup frozen sweetcorn

cup of vegetable stock (top up with more if it drys out)

hot sauce, i use encona brand here in the uk but just use your favourite and as much or little as you want

salt and cracked black pepper to taste

 

Method:

1. heat extra virgin olive oil in a big pot and sizzle some chopped onions for about 3-4 mins until translucent then add chopped peppers, garlic and fry for a few mins then add the beans and corn…..add the dry spice and quickly stir through adding the whole bottle of beer to deglaze the pan, scrape all the cooked on bits on the bottom….now add tinned tomatoes and puree and hot sauce…..
2. bubble for 30mins and adding a touch of stock here and there to keep moist, add salt and pepper to taste and serve in whichever way you prefer 🙂

 

 

 

Strawberry Nutribites

hey again…. i’m adding two recipes today because i’ve kinda neglected you due to being in mexico and having too much fun but i’m back on it and looking into making this site a “.com” to make it easier to search for recipes and showcase my food better so nothing gets lost.  

This is a really tasty recipe and great for a snack to take to work, thats why i made them tbh, my husband used to eat those breakfast bars all the time and i dont like that i dont know whats in them and they have additives and such likes in them and thats not cool!   but these are just as good as a cold snack bar as they are warmed with a dollop of ice cream on top as a dessert 🙂   

Ingredients:

1 & 1/2 cups regular oats
1 cup of a mix of white and whole wheat
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
pinch sea salt
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 chia egg (1 tbsp chia seeds+ 4 tbsp warm water, mixed and set aside)
just over 1/2 cup vegan butter, melted (i use foil packed stork)
1/4 cup brown rice syrup
2 tbsp any plant milk
1 tbsp sesame seeds (for topping only)
1 tbsp dry shaved coconut
organic strawberry conserve (jam) you can use any jam you like.
punnet of strawberries, washed hulled and chopped / sliced
small handful oats to top

1. Preheat oven to 350F/gas 4. Line a square pan with greaseproof paper.

2. In a large bowl, mix all the oaty base dry ingredients: oats, flour, sugar, bicarb and salt….. In a small pot mix the butter, syrup, milk until melted, remove from heat and allow to cool a little then add the chia egg.

3. Combine wet and dry base ingredients in the large bowl until thoroughly smooshed together (technical term lol)

4. Pour the oat mixture onto the square pan and press down with fingers…make sure your hands are wet to smoosh the mixture into the pan it stops the mixture sticking to your fingers….Pour on strawberry jam and smooth out….then lay your chopped strawberries over the top.

5. Now sprinkle on your sesame seeds and coconut and finish off with a handful of porridge oats on top too.

6. Bake for around 30-40 minutes then remove, set aside to cool before removing from the tray (about 30mins)
Slice and then store in a container in the fridge to keep them nice and firm or serve them warm with ice cream.

 

Pesto pasta n peas

happy monday people….usually mondays are really depressing, normally because its the start of the new work week, back to school and you’re still wishing it was saturday haha   well this recipe is great to perk you up and if you eat this with your eyes closed you will be transported to a flower filled meadow with a picnic and a bottle of wine…..hahaha well, thats true if you have a really good imagination …..but really though this recipe is so yummy and FRESH, makes you feel all sping/summery…..its great for eating warm but also really good for packed lunches and for picnics or ever for a potluck or BBQ ….its an all round winner to be honest, great for any occasion and my husband requests it for his lunch all the time !!

   I’ve found allot of people are worried to try pesto because its green and they’re worried they won’t like it, i was one of those people too so theres no need to hang your head in shame lol  but when you try it you’ll be surprised at how yummy it is…the only word i can think of to describe it is FRESH ….. i’m starting to sound like will.i.am, but it really is the only word to describe it….if you can think of any more then comment lol

 

 

time to prepare 5mins   time to cook 10-12 mins depending on cooking time of pasta 

Ingredients:

    For the pesto:

1 1/2 cups fresh basil leaves
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup pine nuts
5 cloves garlic, grated
1/3 cup nutritional yeast
pinch sea salt
pinch of ground black pepper

      For the pasta:

400g short dry pasta, twists or bowties whatever you prefer, you could even do a mixture of a few this works with any short pasta

couple spoonfulls vegan mayonaise
good handfull pea shoots chopped very roughly
cup of frozen sweetcorn
cup frozen garden peas
cup frozen shelled edamame beans

 

Method:

1.  First off gather all your ingredients up so your organized, it will cut your cooking time down…get a big pot of salted water to a rolling boil and add pasta.
2.  As soon as the pasta is in the water get your pesto ingredients and pop them all into a food processor and blitz until it forms a lovely green pasta adding a little extra virgin at a time so you don’t use too much, once its all combined thats your pesto ready (you can store leftover pesto in a jar in the fridge and use it in sauces and in toasties)
3.  when your pasta is nearly ready throw in your frozen veg and boil for a few mins more until there cooked through and drain the whole pot into a colander   place your pasta and veg into a large mixing bowl and add your mayo, a couple spoons of pesto, chopped pea shoots and give it all a big stir to combine all the ingredients and form a sauce……there you have it….the quickest pasta ever …..    great for if you were suppose to bring food to a potluck and you forgot to make something haha