Vegan Recipe of the Week - Festive Mince Pies

Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without mince pies! And being vegan does not mean you have to miss out on the festive fun. Whether you want to opt for the super easy - assemble them yourself option or choose your fruits, soak them and bask in the homemade aromas filling your kitchen, I've got you covered.

This recipe is really easy to make and all of the family can share these festive pies. If you don’t want to make your own mincemeat, Sainsbury’s sell a jar which makes around 24 small pies for around £1, which is vegan! Even easier  VVx

Ingredients:

Jus-Rol ready rolled shortcrust pastry – All Jus-Rol pastry products are vegan and labelled so.

450g Sainsbury's Mincemeat in a jar or:

56g Vegan suet

56g Bramley apples, peeled and chopped

30g Candied peel

56g sultanas

56g Raisins

56g Currants

42g Demerara sugar

20ml Brandy – or Apple Juice for a non-alcoholic version

Frylight 

Soy milk for brushing pastry

Icing sugar for dusting

Method:

Mix all of the ingredients together in a mixing bowl and put into a sterilised jar overnight. 

The next morning, take the pastry out of the fridge and leave at room temperature for 30 minutes.

Unroll the pastry and use a cutter slightly larger than the circumference of the pastry tart tin holes to cut the bases. 

Spray the pastry tart tin with Frylight and place the bases into the holes pushing into the edges.

Roll out the remaining pastry and cut out a smaller round top for each pie using a cutter.

Spoon a heaped teaspoon of mincemeat into each tart case and cover with a pastry lid. Pinch the lids around the edge to seal the pies and pierce the top with a sharp knife to create an air hole.

Brush the pies with a little soy milk and place in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan.

Take the pies out of the fridge and bake on the middle shelf for 18-20 minutes until lightly browned on top.

Place the pies on a cooling rack for 20 minutes to cool and then dust lightly with icing sugar.

Don't be afraid to be creative, add stars or lattice tops. Serve warm or cold on their own or with dairy-free custard.

Eat and Enjoy!

Big Vegan Love,

VVx

For more delicious easy vegan recipes click here.

Vegan Vox Reviews...October's UK Vegan Food Swap

This month is my third month taking part in the UK Vegan Food Swap. As usual the lovely ladies at tohappyvegans.com paired us up with our partners. This month I sent my parcel to Ben and he said that he loved to cook, so I sent him the ingredients and a recipe for Roasted Pumpkin Seed Pesto - the recipe will be available on my blog next week if you fancy trying it out for yourself.

As well as the ingredients for the pesto, I sent Ben some Frank Bars, Liquorice, Vegusto Cheese and Cofresh Lentil Chips.

My sending partner this month was a lovely lady called Jade. Jade sent me some fab goodies, some which I love and some which I have never tried before, which is exciting. We have also decided to remain pen pals which is great - vegan food and vegan friends - my two favourite things! :-)

Here's what I received in my package from Jade:

First I got a lovely card with a detailed letter introducing Jade and the choices that she sent me. It was very thoughtful and kind.

Next I got some sachets of miso soup - perfect for a quick lunch on the run.

The next item was a lovely choc orange bar from Morrisons, this tasted just like Terry's Chocolate Oranges from my non vegan days - lovely!

The next items I opened were some snack bars and hummus chips - great snacks for nights in by the fire or to keep in my bag when out and about.

My next treats were fruit based - healthy and tasty. Orange flavour raisins and some Bukhara raisins. Yum!

I had a selection of fruit and herbal teas:

Next I had some chocolate treats - handmade vegan chocolates and some chocolate strands for baking and on vegan ice cream.

I got some satay cooking mix which I can't wait to try with some tofu and rice.

And my final treats were these animal biscuits and wasabi chips:

I haven't tried all of my treats yet but the ones I have tried were lovely - so another successful swap this month, I'm already looking forward to the next one. Thanks to Ben and Jade and to tohappyvegans for organising it.

If you haven't signed up to the swap yet and would like to do so, please click here to sign up.

I hope to see some of you at the West Midlands Vegan Festival this weekend in Wolverhampton and it's not too late to email me for the meet up. If you fancy joining us for a drink please email veganvoxblog@gmail.com. I will be sending out details of the meet up tomorrow by email.

Have a great weekend.

Big Vegan Love,

VVx

Vegan Vox Reviews...Wheaty Spacebar Chorizo

I first tried one of these Wheaty Spacebar Chorizos when I saw them for sale at Unicorn Grocery in Manchester. I was dubious, mainly because I have never eat chorizo before, not even a meat one, as I became vegetarian at a very young age. So, I wasn't sure what to expect. However, once I opened it and tried it, I loved it! These chorizos are spicy and moist and so full of flavour. They are spiced with paprika and air-cured for an authentic Spanish taste. I'm officially a fan! 

I chopped up this first one and put it onto my Vegan Vox Pizza, it was delicious. I have also used it chopped into my Patatas Bravas recipe and in simple tomato and basil pasta sauce.

As well as being a really versatile ingredient, these Spacebars are great just as they are - straight from the packet, as a tasty snack on the go. They are perfect for lunch boxes, travelling or to keep in the car for long journeys. They retail at around £1.10 each and can be purchased from most online vegan retailers, independent health food stores and vegan grocery stores. I wish they sold them in a shop near me, but each time I'm in Manchester for a visit or an event, I pop in to Unicorn and stockpile them! They have a long shelf life.

So if you have never tried vegan chorizo before, I would grab a couple of Spacebars with your next vegan shopping trip or online order and add some Spanish flavour into your vegan cooking! 5/5

These are the ingredients:

• Ingredients: water, wheat protein* (26%), red bell pepper*, coconut fat*, yeast extract, onion*, spices*, rock salt, thickening agent locust bean gum*, smoke. * = certified organic.

I'll be at London VegFest on Saturday this week - 5th October, 2013 - so I hope to see some of you there! If you are not going, I'll be reviewing my day at the event next week here on Vegan Vox Reviews. If you have missed any of my previous reviews, there is now a handy Reviews tab at the top of the blog so you can easily access them all from one place.

Big Vegan Love,

VVx

Vegan Vox Reviews...The One Earth Shop - Birmingham (Digbeth)

One very sunny afternoon in July, whilst in Birmingham for the Vegan Fair, I went to visit the lovely little vegan paradise in Digbeth that is One Earth Shop - Vegan Wholefood Store. The shop is next door to and operated by the same team who run The Warehouse Cafe - a vegetarian and vegan cafe/restaurant which I have yet to visit, but is on my must do list! The shop is small but has lots of gorgeous vegan delights once inside. There is a large refrigerator full of drinks, snacks, vegan cheeses, vegan meats, soy yogurts and much more.

The shelved area contained canned ready-meals and organic staples such as beans, pulses, tofu and tomatoes.

There was a good range of condiments, organic teas and coffees, nutritional yeast and stock.

In addition to lots of edible vegan produce, they stocked environmentally-friendly cleaning products, animal companion foods and a range of vegan-friendly drinks.

They had a baking section with gluten-free flours and well as organic wheat flours.

I got chatting to the friendly shop manager who offered to let me try a Shambhu's Mixed Berries Cheesecake from the freezer section (to review for this blog :-)), which also had a range of vegan ice creams, and a range of yummy vegan cheesecakes. 

Despite the temperature in my car that day and the cheesecake looking a little worse for wear, it tasted delicious. I love cheesecake and it was one thing I never thought I'd be able to replace as a vegan, but Shambhu's have nailed this dessert down. It was creamy and not too sweet with a lovely swirl of berries to cut through the creaminess. I fell a little bit in love with this cheesecake :-) So a huge thanks to One Earth for a lovely visit and free cheesecake to review...hey, it's a tough job being a vegan blogger! ;-)

So next time you are in Birmingham city centre, take a five minute walk down into Digbeth (54 Allison Street, B5 5TH) and enjoy a little hidden oasis of vegan shopping pleasure at One Earth Shop.

Big Vegan Love,

VVx