Foodie Friday: Vegan Mac & Cheese with Butternut Squash & Applewood Vegan Smoky Cheese (Dairy Free recipe)

It's the ultimate comfort food - Mac & Cheese. Few things hit the spot better when you're craving a big bowl of carbs and cheesy goodness and this recipe allows you to sneak in some extra veg as well, without missing out on any of the indulgence. Oh, and it's vegan too!

With the pasta shelves now being readily restocked by the supermarkets (hooray!) after the stockpiling madness of recent weeks, it's finally time that I feel able to share one of my favourite comfort food recipes to enjoy whilst in lockdown and beyond. 

I love everything about a classic Mac & Cheese but sometimes it can be a little heavy going, so this version includes some cleverly hiden veg (so it's great to share with fussy kids as you can't really taste it) and skips out all of the dairy to make it vegan. Don't worry though - it's still got an awesome layer of cheese thanks to the best vegan cheese out there - Applewood Vegan Smoky Cheese. Seriously, if you haven't tried it yet, make it part of your next essential shop ASAP. It's a game-changer!

This recipe is really easy, as most pasta-based meals are, and it's also amazing heated up the next day for a quick lunch with or without a salad - I'll leave that decision up to you ;)

Ingredients (makes 3-4 portions depending on how hungry you are):-

• 200g Macaroni Pasta
• 150ml Passata
• 250g Butternut Squash
• Generous handful of Petit Pois Peas
• 150ml Cashew or Almond Milk
• 1 tbsp Dairy-Free Butter
• 1 clove Garlic (peeled & crushed)
• 200g Vegan Cheese of your choice
• Pinch of Salt & Pepper to season
• Drizzle of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Method

• Preheat the oven to 180C / Gas Mark 4. Cut the Butternut Squash into chunks and add to a baking tray with a drizzle of Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Roast for around 30 minutes until soft and tender. Alternatively, if you find it difficult to cut up Butter Squash, skip this step and get some ready chopped frozen Butternut Squash to use instead.
• Cook the Macaroni Pasta in a large pan of boiling salted water for 10-12 minutes. Drain and set aside.
• In a saucepan, add the Butternut Squash (roasted as above or frozen), 50g of the grated Vegan Cheese, Passata, Almond Milk, Dairy-Free Butter and crushed Garlic, and simmer over a medium heat for 10 minutes, until all of the ingredients are thoroughly combined. Next, use a hand blender or a potato masher to break down the Butternut Squash into the sauce so that you have a smooth consistency. Season with Salt & Pepper to taste.
• Add the cooked Macaroni Pasta to the sauce. Throw in a generous handful of Petit Pois Peas and stir to combine. Transfer to an ovenproof dish and top with a layer of the remaining grated Vegan Cheese. 
• Cook in the oven at 180C for around 15 minutes until the cheese is bubbling and golden. Serve immediately - enjoy!

Storage tip: Once thoroughly cooled, you can store any remaining Mac & Cheese in the fridge in an airtight container for about 2-3 days.

What's your favourite Mac & Cheese recipe?

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Foodie Friday: Vegan Spaghetti Bolognese (Dairy-Free recipe) #Veganuary

It's been incredibly inspiring to see so many people take part in Veganuary this year on my social media feeds, and this week's recipe is for anyone who has been craving some serious comfort food - it's my favourite Vegan Spaghetti Bolognese! 

A generous bowl of spaghetti is sometimes the only thing that really hits the spot during Winter, especially as this whole week seems to have been a pretty miserable combination of dark grey skies, constant drizzle, chilly temperatures and awful politics - brrrr! 

This plant-based Vegan Spaghetti Bolognese only takes around 30 minutes to make and it's one of the best mid-week dinners that the whole family can enjoy. I find that it's a good one for kids too, as it's an easy way to sneak some extra veg into their meal without the bowl being thrown at the wall ;) 

As always, you can customise the ingredients by adding some Chilli if you want some heat, or if you're on a low-carb diet, you can simply swap the Spaghetti for Courgetti instead. 

Ingredients (serves 4)

• 200g Dried Spaghetti 
• 1 pack of Vegan Mince
• 1 can of Chopped Tomatoes
• 1 punnet of Chestnut Mushrooms
• 1 tbsp Tomato Paste
• 1 tbsp Tamari or Soy Sauce
• 2 Garlic Cloves, peeled & crushed
• 1 small White Onion
• 2 sticks of Celery
• 1 Red Pepper
• Generous handful of Petit Pois Peas
• Salt & Pepper

To Serve

• Fresh Basil Leaves
• Dairy-Free Cheese 
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil 

Method

• Roughly chop up the Red Pepper, Onion, Celery and Mushrooms and give them a quick blitz in a food processor, or finely chop everything into very small pieces, e.g the mushrooms should look similar to mince.
• In a large saucepan over a low-medium heat, add the finely chopped vegetables, along with the can of Chopped Tomatoes, Tomato Paste, Soy Sauce and Garlic. Stir everything together and simmer to allow the flavours to infuse and season with Salt & Pepper. After 10 minutes, add the Vegan Mince, stir and cook for a further 10 minutes until the vegetables have softened.
• Whilst the veggies and sauce is simmering, cook the Spaghetti and Petit Pois Peas according to the pack instructions and set aside.
• Add the cooked Spaghetti to the saucepan with the veggies and stir over a low-medium heat to ensure it's thoroughly coated and piping hot.
• Serve immediately with torn fresh Basil Leaves, a drizzle of Extra Virgin Olive Oil, extra Black Pepper and finely grated Dairy-Free Cheese if desired. Enjoy!

Storage tip: The Bolognese sauce will keep in the fridge for 2 days in an airtight container. Ensure that it's thoroughly heated before serving with fresh pasta.

 What's your favourite pasta dish?

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Foodie Friday: Kale & Cashew Nut Pesto Pasta with Courgette & Chestnut Mushrooms (Vegan / Dairy-Free recipe)

Happy Friday everyone, I hope you're all looking forward to the weekend! For this week's Foodie Friday feature, I'm sharing one of my all-time favourite pasta dishes which is packed full of healthy and fresh ingredients. It's also ready in just 10 minutes so it's brilliant as a quick and easy mid-week dinner!

Since I posted about my weight loss and overall health and fitness journey a few months ago (read that post here if you missed it), the most common question that I'm still asked today is if I eat any carbs. In fact, whenever I post about eating more healthy on Instagram, I'm guaranteed to receive at least one DM about carbs. 

So ladies and gents, let me tell you something.

Carbs are NOT the enemy!

You NEED carbs in your life, especially if you're doing any kind of intensive workouts like running, weightlifting, circuits, spinning classes or HITT. Carbs help to refuel your body and without them, you're likely to feel easily irritable, hungry and even constipated (many people who cut out carbs run the risk of not getting enough fibre in their diet, which also leads to further problems with gut health and digestion). For further info, read up on the NHS' 'The Truth About Carbs' page here.

If you love pasta as much as I do, you can make healthy swaps by switching white pasta to whole grain, but eating the odd bowl of white pasta here and there isn't going to kill you, which is why I wanted to feature one of my fave pasta recipes this week.

This Kale & Cashew Nut Pesto Pasta tastes oh-so-fresh and it's a cheeky way to sneak some extra dark greens into your meal. Once you've whizzed up your own pesto from scratch, you'll never want to buy a ready-made supermarket version ever again! Simply add veggies (I've included Courgette and Chestnut Mushrooms in this one) and enjoy a hearty, filling bowl of goodness. 

Ingredients (serves two)

• 150g Pasta of your choice
• 75g Kale
• 40g Cashews
• 2 cloves of Garlic
• 50ml Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Juice of 1 Lemon
• A handful of fresh Basil Leaves
• Pinch of Salt & Pepper
• Your choice of Veggies 

Method

• Bring a kettle to the boil and pour into a large saucepan. Add the Pasta with a pinch of Salt, and simmer for about 10 minutes until the pasta is al dente or done to your liking.
• While the pasta is cooking, make the Pesto. Add all of the remaining ingredients to a food blender or processor, removing any particularly tough stalks from the Kale and blend until you have a pesto paste. Taste and add extra seasoning if desired. 
• Pan fry or steam your chosen Veggies until lightly cooked, then drain the Pasta. Add the Veggies and Pesto, stirring everything to combine. Plate up and enjoy!

Storage tip: If you have any leftover Pesto, place into a small glass jar with a lid, pouring a little Olive Oil over the surface which helps to preserve it. Keep in the fridge for up to a week or freeze for up to a month.

Have you made your own Pesto before?

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Foodie Friday: Homemade Spinach & Ricotta Cannelloni (Vegetarian recipe) #WorldPastaDay

OK, so technically it was #WorldPastaDay yesterday, but that wouldn't fit with Foodie Friday would it?! Being the massive pasta fan that I am, I didn't want to let the occasion pass me by, so this week I'm sharing how easy it is to make one of my all-time favourite vegetarian pasta dishes; Spinach & Ricotta Cannelloni.

Spinach & Ricotta Cannelloni is a staple ready meal in the vegetarian aisle at the supermarket, and whilst I've been known to pick up one or two when I've been shopping, nothing quite beats a good homemade meal does it? And of course, being homemade, you know exactly what ingredients are going into it (those ready meals are usually loaded with excess salt and sugar), so you can adjust the calories and macros to suit your personal needs. This popular veggie pasta dish is wonderfully comforting during the colder months and it's also incredibly easy to make. It takes less time than you might think too.

The recipe below makes one individual serving, but you can make a larger dish to serve more people by tweaking the number of ingredients - just add additional filled Cannelloni rolls and pour over more tomato sauce - easy!

Ingredients: (for 1)

• 2 Fresh Lasagne Pasta Sheets
• 75g Ricotta Cheese
• 100g Fresh Spinach
• 150g Passata Sauce
• Pinch of Nutmeg
• Pinch of Oregano
• 10g Extra Strong Mature Cheddar Cheese (optional)
• Salt & Pepper (to season)

Method:

• Preheat the oven to 180'C / Gas Mark 4.
• In a frying pan, lightly sauté the Spinach and sprinkle over the Nutmeg and Oregano.
• On a clean work surface, make the Cannelloni by laying out the Fresh Lasagne Sheets and spooning over the Ricotta Cheese evenly. Add the sautéed Spinach and roll up the pasta sheets.
• In an ovenproof dish, pour in half of the Passata sauce. Add the now filled Cannelloni rolls and pour over the rest of the Passata on the top.
• Bake in the oven for 20 minutes, then remove and add the grated Mature Cheddar Cheese if using. Return to the oven for a further 5 minutes to allow the cheese to melt. 
• Serve immediately - enjoy!

Storage tip: This dish can be frozen (after it's been cooked and fully cooled) for up to 3 months in a freezer-proof container, or any cooked leftovers can be stored in the fridge for up to 2 days.

What's your favourite pasta dish?

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