Grilled Tempeh Breakfast

What an incredibly fateful morning! I was on my way to buy some supplies for my next blog post when I took a wrong turn. I ended up having to make a detour and got caught behind a vegan/animal rights protest called Animals Matter to Africa. I pulled over and ran to join them. I only caught the tail end of it, but I was so happy to see a bunch of vegans getting together to spread the word and stand up against animal cruelty.

Photo from Animals Matter to Africa event page

So, on to breakfast! This week I bought some tempeh from Tempestuous Tempeh. I hadn't tried it until now and was so glad to discover a local supplier who uses all organic ingredients. I was also very pleased to find how delicious it is, since I went out on a limb and bought an entire kilogram of the stuff!

If you're not sure what tempeh is, have a read here.

 

It's a pretty chilly morning in Sea Point, so I felt like something roasty and warm to start the day. I decided on a toast stack with grilled veggies and tempeh bacon. We usually don't have white bread in the house, but Kyle had to buy some yesterday when there were no healthier options at the little shop near his work. I have to admit, good old white bread is pretty delicious now and then.  

 

Fresh zucchini slices and whole garlic cloves make a lovely grilled combo.

Ingredients:

80-100g tempeh
1 tbs soy sauce
1 tbs water
1 tsp liquid smoke
1 tsp brown sugar or xylitol
2 medium zucchini's, sliced length ways
2 medium tomatoes, sliced into 3
12 cloves garlic, peeled
2-3 tbs olive oil
2 slices toast
2 tbs B-Well vegan mayo
salt + pepper

Cut the tempeh into thin 3-4mm slices and marinate in a mixture of the soy sauce, water, liquid smoke and brown sugar for about 15 minutes. Place the zucchini and garlic on an oven tray, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper, and place under the grill at 250 degrees C until golden brown. Turn them over half way so both sides are well grilled.

While the zucchini's and garlic are grilling, fry the tomato slices in a pan with a little olive oil until they are soft and slightly charred on either side. Do the same with the marinated tempeh.

Spread a tablespoon of mayo onto each slice of toast and stack all the ingredients on top, like a tower of delicious breakfasty goodness! Serves two, enjoy! xxx

Brocolli Stem & Baby Fennel Soup

I always feel guilty throwing out the stem of my brocolli. I know its full of goodness, but I just can't bring myself to eating that big tree trunk of green fibre. So, what better way to mask an unwanted veggie than to blend it into a smooth, tasty soup - the master of disguise.

Ingredients:

1 white onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, sliced
1 tbs coconut oil
stems of 3 broccoli heads, chopped (I chop the florets off, rinse and keep for easy use in salads etc)
3-5 bulbs baby fennel, sliced
2 large carrots, chopped
1 tsp garam masala
1 litre vegetable stock
1/4 tsp salt

On a low to medium heat, saute your onions and garlic in the coconut oil. This should be done slowly so that they don't burn quickly - approximately 15 minutes. Turn the heat up to medium, add the sliced broccoli stems, fennel, carrots, salt and garam masala and continue to saute for 5 minutes. Add the vegetable stock and bring to the boil. Turn the heat down to simmer and cook for approximately 30 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly before blending with a stick blender. Serve with a sprinkling of fresh herbs and sprouts.

Note: my brilliant chef brother taught me that soups and broths are always more flavoursome when served the next day. Since soups do take a little longer to cook, I like to make them on the side while preparing a quicker meal for the night. It's a little extra effort, but means I have instant, healthy meals for the next two nights.

Almost Raw Pizza

This was an accidental pizza.

The base was originally intended to be a loaf of sprouted bread, but it's fate changed and this beauty was born. A sprouted lentil and buckwheat base with all raw toppings: glorious.

Ingredients:

For the base:

1 cup sprouted buckwheat
1 cup sprouted lentils
1/2 tsp Himalayan salt
2 tbs nutritional yeast

Buckwheat sprouts aren't generally available in stores, so I grew my own. I have a sprouting kit, but there are many ways to grow them using what you have at home. For instance, I have heard that you can put your 'seeds' in a sieve over a pot and they will sprout. The key to sprouting is to rinse them often (about twice daily) and to let them drain well. There is a tonne of information on sprouting here.  

Place the sprouts in a medium sized bowl and use a stick blender to blend into a smooth-ish paste. Add the nutritional yeast and salt and mix in with a spoon. Grease a non-stick pizza tray with a little coconut oil and spoon the mixture in the middle. Rub some coconut oil on your hands and press the dough into a pizza base. Bake at 200 degrees Celsius for approximately 20 minutes, then flip using a spatula. Bake for a further 20 minutes until it is crisp and brown on each side.

For the cheese:

100g raw cashews
1/4 cup soy milk or water
2 tsp nutritional yeast
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp himalayan salt

Place all the ingredients in a bowl (a cereal bowl is big enough) and blend with a stick blender. I pulse it until most of it is a paste and then I sort of push the ingredients in a circle around the bowl to make sure everything is well blended. You can add more or less liquid for a firm cream cheese or a softer sour cream texture.  

Toppings:

sliced avo
sliced tomato
garlic stuffed green olives
dried italian herbs
fresh oregano
salt + pepper

 Of course with pizza you could do anything with the toppings. I used what I had around the kitchen and it turned out fabulously. I just used small dollops of the cashew cheese as it is quite rich and flavoursome, but you could spread it over the base if you wanted more coverage.

xxx