Vegan Recipe of the Week - Brussel Sprouts with Chestnuts & "Bacon"

This makes a great snack, side dish or meal. It is fresh and delicious, tastes great and is satisfying for carnivores and herbivores alike!

Serves 4 as a side dish and 2 as a main course.

Ingredients:
12 fresh Brussel sprouts
4 medium mushrooms
200g whole chestnuts - cooked and peeled
3 cloves garlic
3 rashers of vegan bacon
1 tsp crushed red chilli
1 Tbsp soy sauce
olive oil for cooking
Ice cubes for shocking the sprouts
Salt and pepper for seasoning

Method:

Fill up a bowl with cold water and ice cubes and leave to one side.

Take the outer leaves off the sprouts along with the end of the stalk, wash and cut in half.

Put the sprouts into a pan of salted water and bring to the boil. Simmer for 6 minutes, then drain and plunge into the iced water. Drain again and put to one side.

Finely slice the garlic, slice the mushrooms, chestnuts and bacon slices.

Heat a wok or frying pan and drizzle in a little olive oil. Add the vegan bacon strips and fry for a few minutes until crispy. Remove from the wok and place to one side.

Add a little more oil to the pan and then add the chilli and garlic, fry for a couple of minutes.

Then add the chestnuts and mushrooms and stir fry for a couple more minutes.

Add a tablespoon of soy sauce and stir through before adding the sprouts.

Stir fry for another 2-3 minutes and then add the bacon, salt and pepper.

Stir to combine and serve immediately. Add a splash more soy sauce when in the serving dish. Mr Vox likes this served up with some homemade crusty bread rolls! 

Eat and Enjoy!

Big Vegan Love,

VVx

The Ordinary Vegan - Batchelors Super Pasta 'n' Sauce

The Ordinary Vegan for those new to the blog, is a weekly feature every Monday, sharing an ordinary supermarket or high street product, which just happens to be vegan. This week, is the turn of Batchelors Super Pasta'n'Sauce. The Tomato, Onion & Herb flavour is one of three vegan flavours, and this is sold at most supermarkets, grocery stores and corner shops. The other vegan flavours are Tomato & Mediterranean Veg and Tomato & Basil.

It is a dried packet meal, to which you add boiling water and a knob of vegan butter, and then cook on the hob or in the microwave. The meal takes around 10 minutes to make and is a good base to add other veggies, I often add a handful of olives, mushrooms or just grate some vegan cheese over and cracked black pepper. It serves one person as a meal or two as a side dish.

Alternatively sprinkle with chopped nuts, seeds or a little vegan parmesan. These packets are good to take travelling, camping, to work or just to keep in the cupboard for when you haven't got the time or energy to make a sauce from scratch. 

If home cooking is more your thing, come back tomorrow as every Tuesday is a brand new vegan Recipe of the Week.

Big Vegan Love,

VVx