vegan

Clive of India curry powder is one of my favourite curry powders when it comes to making pies. When the spices combine with the puff pastry, it’s incredibly moreish. I also love this curry mixture without pastry, in a bowl with brown basmati rice.

Turmeric has been used and well respected for 2500 years in India as an Ayurvedic medicine. This brightly coloured spice, which gives curry its lovely orange-yellow colour, has many outstanding health-boosting properties. Curcumin is also a highly effective anti-inflammatory as well as having strong antioxidant properties. Regular consumption of turmeric in the diet could protect you against infections, especially those of the digestive tract, as well as relieving arthritic conditions and helping protect you from cancers and Alzheimer’s disease.

I can’t tell you how important it is to follow a soaking process when preparing any legumes or pulses. If you have a careful look at your soaked legumes after 24 hours, you begin to see the sprouting shoots pop up underneath the skin. This sprouting process reduces the amount of phytic acid in legumes, which makes them much easier to digest. Phytic acid can also bind to essential nutrients, making them less available to the body. Reducing phytic acid levels releases more of these essential nutrients to the body. I find it easiest to soak, sprout and cook a lot of chickpeas at once. Then I freeze them into smaller containers and have them ready for use in a dish like this.

Having a curry spice on hand is such a delicious way to diversify the way you cook vegies and proteins and this recipe is a wonderful example of just that. If you don’t have tempeh then an organic tofu, chicken or fish will work well, too.

These bliss balls are the perfect sweet treat and the spices add a lovely warm and heated flavour. These would also be delicious with some dried ginger powder to create a ginger-nut flavour.

Cultivators of the carrot, it seems only fitting to dedicate a Dutch style recipe to the humble but mighty orange root veg! I’ve added some pumpkin here for extra creaminess but it would work just as nicely as a pure carrot soup.

Not everyone loves Brussels sprouts but these mini cabbages floating in a rich, warming curry sauce make for a delicious dish the whole family will love.

If you’re not normally a lover of Brussels sprouts, this dish is sure to turn you into a fan! The sprouts are roasted in a sweet balsamic vinegar dressing that adds a lovely flavour and makes them nice and crunchy. They do look like they come out of the oven very dark, almost burnt, but it’s just the balsamic dressing.

When our kids were young, this was their favourite dish. We’d make a big batch every week and they’d take it to school, have it for afternoon snacks or ask for it when their friends had sleepovers. This recipe is totally kid-friendly.

Snack time just became a whole lot more interesting thanks to this Curry Spiced Trail Mix: the perfect combination of flavours from the curry spice blend with honey and a good dose of plant proteins from chickpeas, nuts and seeds. Enjoy as is or sprinkle it over salads and rice when you want to up the nutrition and flavour in your meal.

Cauliflower and sweet potato add such abundant nutrition to this traditional curry dish with a twist. Both vegetables are rich sources of antioxidants including beta carotene and sulphoraphane, which help protect the body from the stress and disease.

Cottage pie is one of those comfort dishes that make you feel nurtured and warm. My vegan version is easy make and will satisfy the whole family. I always serve it with some steamed green vegetables or salad.