Tali's Tomatoes

I have always been a fan of barley risotto so one day I thought I'd have a go at making quinoa risotto or 'quisotto'.

It was surprisingly easy and delicious. It is also really easy to adapt if you like other ingredients such as pumpkin or feta cheese.





What you need to serve 4 hungry people, or more as a side dish:

• 2 cups of dried quinoa, rinsed
• 1 tbsp coconut oil 
• 1.25 litres of vegetable or chicken stock
• 1 brown onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 400g mushrooms (mix of normal, oyster and/or shitake is best)
• 1/2 bunch of kale chopped (or one packet frozen/fresh spinach, chopped)
• 1 punnet of cherry tomatoes, each tomato halved
• 1 lemon, juice and zest
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese or nutritional yeast
• 2 tbsp white wine vinegar or 1/4 cup white wine (optional - it tastes wonderful without it)
• salt and pepper to taste

This 'burger' will literally change your life forever. You will never crave a traditional bread burger again!

These grain free burgers have a lovely 'meaty' texture from the mushrooms and pairs perfectly with the haloumi. If you are eating paleo, swap the hummus for pesto and replace the haloumi with a meat pattie or some bacon. If you are vegan replace the haloumi with marinated tofu.

These burgers are easy to put together and are very satisfying. Serve them with some sweet potato fries (recipe below).




The health benefits of mushrooms include lowering cholesterol levels and the risk of breast cancer, prostate cancer, and diabetes. Mushrooms also contain an edible form of the critical Vitamin D and can increase the strength of your immune system.




What you need to make four 'burgers':

• 8 large mushrooms that are roughly the same size (I used plain flat mushrooms from Australia - you could use brown or portabella varieties), stalks removed
• 1/2 red onion, halved and thinly sliced
• one cup of basil leaves
• 2 cups of baby spinach leaves
• one tomato, sliced
• 1 large red capsicum, sliced into 4 flat pieces (or as close as possible to flat)
• 1 packet of haloumi, sliced in half and then cut in half (so there are 4 pieces)
• 2 tbsp of hummus (recipe for white bean hummus below)
• salt and pepper to taste

To make the sweet potato fries mix the potato with the oil and some salt in a bowl and then add to a baking tray that has been lined with baking paper. Bake in a 200 ºC oven for approximately 20 minutes or until cooked and slightly crispy.

Tips for getting them crispy: make sure that there is room between the fries so that they don't stew and put them on the shelf in the oven furthest away from the element.


White bean hummus recipe:

• one tin of white beans, drained and rinsed (or dry beans that have been soaked and cooked)
• 2 tbsp tahini
• juice of one large lemon (or two small lemons)
• 1-2 tbsp olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste
• one garlic clove, sliced or minced (optional)
• water (if needed)

I seem to have an obsession with roasted cauliflower lately and a new found love for roasted and BBQ'd corn - it's just so delicious!

On my quest to combine these two ingredients I came across this recipe from The Forest Feast and wanted to give it a go with some added roasted eggplant. I was very impressed with the result.

There are so many options with these tacos. Make them vegan by adding some cashew 'cream', guacamole or hummus on top instead of yoghurt. Other alternatives are sour cream and fetta.

You can add plenty of other taco toppings if you would like but I don't think they are necessary. Some toppings that would be nice include avocado, cheese and jalapeño chillies.

You could also turn them into burritos with some added rice.

Not wanting to use processed tortillas, I found this recipe for whole wheat tortillas from Cooking ala Mel which can be used to make either 14 taco sized tortillas or 8 burrito sized tortillas. It is super simple and I encourage anyone who hasn't made them before to give it a go. The only comments that I have are to make sure that you let the tortillas rest under a tea towel or some aluminium foil until soft and use two frying pans to cut the cooking time in half.

• 1 head cauliflower, florets chopped into small pieces 
• 2 corn cobs, corn removed
• 1 small eggplant, chopped into 1 cm pieces
• 1 tsp each of chilli powder (or less if you don't like it really spicy), chilli flakes, dried cumin and garlic powder
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tbsp olive oil or coconut oil
• Greek yoghurt to serve
• Hot sauce to serve
• Coriander and lime to serve (optional)
• 8 taco tortillas

I am completely obsessed with pumpkin. Prior to making this cake I did not realise that I already had two pumpkin related recipes on my blog including a Cherry Tomato and Pumpkin Laksa and Pumpkin Risotto using pearl barley.

My desire to make this cake stemmed from a celebratory lunch with my boyfriend. We went to a restaurant called Vegerama to have a vegan satay burger. Whilst ordering my salad I noticed all the beautiful vegan cakes they had. One of them happened to be a pumpkin cheesecake. I had never tried a pumpkin cheesecake, let alone a vegan one, so we ordered it. It was completely amazing and love at first bite.

Following this I started searching for some vegan pumpkin cheesecake recipes and stumbled across one from Laura Friendly. After making a few changes to ensure it had less sugar, I was wrapped with the results.

This cake is moist and sweet and has a cheesecake texture. It is my new favourite, followed swiftly by this Flourless Orange Choc Nut Cake. Best of all, it doesn't even need to be baked! I  recommend leaving it in the fridge overnight if you can resist eating it to let those yummy flavours develop.

Please note that you will need to soak the raw cashews for at least 8 hours (or overnight if possible).

What you need to make one cake for very lucky people:

• 12 dates, pits removed, soaked in water for 30 minutes, then drained (save water)
• 4 to 6 tbsp date water
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 cups raw almonds (or equivalent of almond meal) or other nut meal of choice
• 1 tbsp coconut oil (if needed)

In a blender or food processor add the dates, date water and salt. Blend until it becomes a paste. Set aside.

In a food processor, add the almonds and pulse until they become a coarse meal. Add in the date paste and pulse until the mixture starts to mold together. Add up to 1 tbsp of coconut oil if the mixture isn't sticking together and continue to process.

Transfer mixture into a lined 20 cm springform cake pan. Press the mixture into the bottom of the pan and about 3.5 centimetres (1.5 inches) up the sides.

Place pan into the freezer and allow to chill before adding the filling, around 10 minutes.

• 2 cups raw cashews, soaked in water overnight, drained
• 1.5 cups cooked pumpkin, cooled (fresh or canned)
• 2/3 cup coconut oil, melted
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 2 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp fresh ground nutmeg
• 1 tsp salt
• Sweetener of choice (I used 1/4 cup maple syrup, 1 tbsp rice syrup and 6 drops liquid stevia - a combination of rice syrup and stevia would be perfect and contains almost zero sugar - taste as you add the sweetener to test desired sweetness)

In a blender or food processor add the cashews, pumpkin, coconut oil, maple syrup, lemon juice, vinegar, vanilla, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Blend until the mixture is smooth. It will be quite thick.

Pour the mixture onto the chilled pie crust, smoothing out the top with a blunt knife or the back of a spoon. Chill the cake in the refrigerator for 1 hour or overnight. Slice and serve cold. If you leave it out for too long it will be more of a mouse like texture.

• 500 grams chicken breast mince (I processed whole free-range breast meat)
• small handful of basil leaves (Asian basil if you can get it), torn
• large handful of coriander leaves, torn
• large handful of mint leaves, torn
• 1/2 large red onion, chopped
• 12 cos or iceberg lettuce leaves
• 1 cucumber, thinly sliced
• 2 small fresh or dried red chillies, finely chopped (seeds removed optional)
• 2 tbsp fish sauce
• 5 tbsp lime juice (approximately 1.5 limes)
• 1 cup uncooked brown rice
• 1 tbsp coconut oil for cooking
• 2 tbsp uncooked brown rice

Optional ingredients:

• 1 tsp grated galangal or ginger
• 1/2 tbsp lime leaves, finely sliced (I used a jar)
• roasted peanuts, chopped to serve
• bean sprouts to serve 
• green beans to serve 
• shredded carrot to serve

My mum, being English, made Cottage Pie (with beef mince) and Shepherd's Pie (with lamb mince) fairly regularly when I was growing up.

Not understanding the origin of these pies I looked it up and discovered that the pies were originally made with left over roast. In more recent times most people make the pies out of minced meat.

Traditionally the pies are made using white potatoes, however I am a huge fan of sweet potatoes so I thought I would give them a go. The result was delicious.

Sweet potatoes contain vitamin A, vitamin C, manganese, B vitamins, potassium, iron and almost 15 percent of your daily dietary fibre intake.They are also a great source of healthy antioxidants and have a low glycemic index, which means that the body can slowly absorb the glucose and sustain a moderate rise in sugar levels. In comparison, white potatoes have a high glycemic rating.

These pies can be made with sweet or white potatoes, or a mixture of both. You can add any vegetables that take your fancy and feel free to change the lentils to any other type of legume or bean (some suggestions are at the end). The recipe makes one big pie or four individual pies.

So, here is my veggie version on the humble Shepherd's Pie:

What you need to make four individual pies or one large pie:

• 2 carrots, chopped into 1cm cubes
• 1 large stick of celery, chopped
• 150 g mushrooms, sliced
• 1 onion (red or white), finely chopped 
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped or minced
• 950 g sweet potato, chopped into chunks for boiling (unpeeled if organic)
• 400 g tin of organic chopped tomatoes (or 3 fresh very ripe tomatoes)
• 125 mls (1/2 cup) red wine
• 2 tsp dried thyme or 2 tbsp fresh thyme
• 1 tbsp dried cumin
• 150 g tomato paste
• 1 tbsp smoked paprika
• 2 stock cubes or 1 tbsp of other seasoning (such as herbamare)
• 1 tbsp soy or Worcestershire sauce
• 3 tbsp milk of choice (regular, almond, soy etc)
• 1 cup dried puy (also called green or French) lentils (soaked for as long as possible or overnight) or 2.5 cups cooked lentils (approximately 1.5 tins)
• 85 g cheddar or other cheese, grated (optional)
• 1 tbsp nutritional yeast flakes (optional)
• 1 tbsp butter or coconut oil for mashing the potato
• 1/2 tbsp coconut oil for cooking
• salt and pepper to taste

Make it naughty - add some extra cheese and/or cream to the mash.


Source for the sweet potato information: Livestrong

Turned off by pizza because of the carbohydrates? Flour? Calories? Kneading the dough? Well you don't have to do worry about any of that with these fab little pizza crusts made using raw grated cauliflower.

It took me one practice run to get the consistency and ratios right for the pizza base, but I’m now happy to confirm that these pizzas are as good as the real thing - you can even pick them up in your hand and eat them like a regular pizza.

Have you ever wondered how the white flour on your pizza base is produced? Non-organic white flour is made by treating the seeds and then the plant with pesticides and hormones. Following this the wheat grains are milled usually with high speed mills that remove the bran and germ, and the resulting flour is mostly made up of the starchy endosperm layer.  In other words white flour is devoid of most of the original nutrients by the time it is made into a pizza dough.

Cauliflower on the other hand contains vitamins, minerals and phytonurients (plant nutrients that may help neutralise damaging toxins). Cauliflower also contains glucosinolates which activate the body's detoxification process, which some research suggests helps to prevent some types of cancers. Cauliflower is also a great source of potassium and vitamin C (one cup of raw cauliflower contains almost as much vitamin C as an orange).

Therefore these pizzas should be eaten with a guilt free conscience! The cauliflower in the base combined with the vegetables on the top are a great way to get your daily intake of veggies.

What you need to make 4 mini cauliflower pizza bases (serves 2 with no sides, double to serve 4):

• 1/2 head of cauliflower
• 1 whole egg
• 1 egg white 
• 2 tbsp of dried herbs (or to taste) - I used thyme and oregano
• 1/4 cup grated cheese - mozzarella or soft goats cheese
• 3/4 tbsp nutritional yeast flakes (probably optional)
• 1 tsp coconut or grapeseed oil

Preheat the oven to 180 C. Line a baking tray with baking paper and very lightly spread/spray with oil.

Process or grate the cauliflower until it resembles breadcrumbs. Whisk the eggs briefly and then add the eggs, herbs, cheese and nutritional yeast flakes to the cauliflower and mix until well combined.

Using your hands, divide the mixture into four equal portions. Roll one portion in your hands to form a ball, gently squeeze any excess liquid out of the ball and then spread evenly onto the baking tray to make a pizza base. Repeat with the other portions.

Cook in the oven for 10 minutes and then flip and continue to cook for around another 10 minutes or until crispy on top and the edges are dark brown. Leave the pizza bases to cool at room temperature while you prepare the sauce and other ingredients.

Once you have prepared your toppings and the pizzas have cooled to room temperature, top the pizzas and bake for a further 10 minutes or until the cheese has melted. Enjoy.




Possible pizza toppings:

• tomato pizza sauce made by cooking organic tinned tomato with oil over a medium heat, stirring occasionally until thick
• pesto
• cheese i.e. mozzarella, goats cheese or fetta cheese (of any variety), vegan cheese
• nutritional yeast flakes
• thinly sliced capsicum
• halved cherry tomatoes
• olives (green or black)
• capers
• finely diced and sauteed eggplant
• mushrooms
• anchovies
• finely sliced red onion
• herbs
• spinach and rocket (fresh, added after the pizzas have been cooked)

Sources:1, 2

I love a spicy curry, particularly a Thai curry. However I have witnessed how hard it is for my vegetarian friends to go to a Thai restaurant and have a curry without either shrimp paste or fish sauce.

Enjoy a taste sensation? Then this curry is for you! It was actually my brother Ben who made it for me initially and I absolutely love it.

If you are trying to lose weight I would recommend using light coconut milk or alternatively don't use any coconut milk and add 1/2 cup of macadamia nuts to your laksa paste to add some creaminess. Alternatively you could add any other kind of milk (almond, soy, regular) and 1/2 teaspoon of coconut essence. Coconut milk/cream is made from blending coconut flesh and water. Coconut milk and light coconut milk simply have more water added to the mix and therefore are less creamy and have less fat content.

Try making your own laksa paste if you can  (*recipe at the end). That way you will know exactly what's in it and it won't have any preservatives. The paste involves a lot of ingredients but you can easily pick up all of the ingredients at Coles/Woolies (major grocer) or an Asian grocery store.

Make it Paleo: replace the noodles with zucchinnigetti (see my previous blog post about zucchini spaghetti here) and replace the tofu with vegetables such as capsicum and carrot.

• 600 g pumpkin (weighed with skin on), skin cut off and cut into 2cm cubes
• 250 g tofu cut into 1cm cubes
• 24 cherry tomatoes
• 2 cups bean sprouts
• 4 tbsp laksa paste
• 2 tbsp fish sauce (or soy sauce if vegetarian)
• 2 tbsp tamarind paste or puree
• 1 litre (4 cups) vegetable stock
• 400 mls unsweetened good quality coconut milk
• Dried soba, ramen or rice noodles to serve 4
• 1 lime, sliced into quarters
• 1 handful of fresh mint and coriander leaves
• 1/2 tbsp coconut or grapeseed oil

Preheat the oven to 180 C. Line a baking tray with baking paper. Toss the cherry tomatoes and pumpkin in the oil and a small amount of salt and pepper, place in a single layer on the baking tray and roast for approximately 15-20 minutes or until soft.

Add the laksa paste, vegetable stock, coconut milk, tamarind paste and tofu to a saucepan and simmer for 8 minutes. Add the fish sauce (or soy sauce) and simmer for a further 2 minutes.

While the broth is simmering cook the noodles according to the packet directions. Drain the noodles and divide between four deep bowls, add the tomato and pumpkin, top with the tofu and laksa broth and garnish with bean sprouts and herbs. Serve with lime quarters and other optional toppings.


Make it Naughty: use coconut cream instead of coconut milk if you like your laksa really really creamy.


*Laksa paste recipe - makes approximately 6 tbsp

• 2 small red onions, diced
• 8 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 tsp galangal or ginger, roughly chopped
• 6-8 red chillies, chopped
• 4 dried chillies
• 2 tsp roasted coriander seeds
• 2 tsp shrimp paste (optional)
• 2 tsp lime zest (= 2 limes)
• 2 stalks of lemongrass, green part only, roughly chopped (I used a jar of lemongrass)
• 3 tbsp coriander roots, stems and leaves
• 2 tsp shredded lime leaves (I used a jar of lime leaves)
• 2 tsp turmeric powder
• 1/2 cup macadamia nuts (optional if not using coconut milk/cream)

Grind all of the ingredients in a mortar and pestle or blitz in a food processor.

What you need to serve 4 people:

• 6 eggs
• 3/4 cup Greek yoghurt
• 1/2 cup quinoa
• 1 cup vegetable stock
• 4 mushrooms, thinly sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
• 1 tbsp nutritional yeast flakes (optional)
• 1 1/2 cups spinach or kale cut into thin strips
• 1 punnet cherry tomatoes, each tomato chopped in half
• salt and pepper to taste
• butter or oil for cooking (I used coconut oil)

How to make it:

Preheat the oven to 180 C (350 F) and grease a quiche dish with butter or oil. Rinse the quinoa, add to a saucepan and then cover with the stock. Bring the stock to the boil and then reduce to a simmer and cook until all of the stock has been absorbed and the quinoa is cooked.

While the quinoa is cooking, add some oil to a frying pan and saute the onions and garlic until soft and fragrant. Add the spinach and  mushrooms and stir until the spinach has just wilted. Set aside to cool.

Whisk the eggs with the Greek yoghurt until frothy. Add the spinach mixture, parmesan cheese, cooked quinoa, nutritional yeast and salt and pepper and mix until well combined. Pour the mixture into the greased quiche dish.

Carefully place the cherry tomatoes seed side up all over the top of the quiche and place it in the oven. Cook for approximately 45 minutes until golden.

Make it Naughty: add some tasty cheese and bacon pieces.

If you would like to see a video on how to cook quinoa, there is a quirky video available here - http://vimeo.com/21870705.



Sources: 1, 2, 3