Lehed

Delicious vegan Midsummer recipes

Long live the Summer! Or at least according to the calendar. When I look outside, there’s a whole different story. But I don’t mind. Rain is good sometimes. It makes the mushrooms grow and our cabin’s grass roof flourish. Soon we can make a picnic on our roof and eat delicious mushrooms! But until there aren’t any shrooms, I offer you five (!) new great recipes to make your summer dinners and get-togethers even more tastier. 



this feast is for 4 – 6 people

Pan-fried shashlik

I have discovered a way to make these bland dried soy cutlets absolutely delicious. Over the years, I have tried many different versioins, but this crispy and juicy pan-fried shashlik is my favorite. The secret to the best dishes made out of dried soy products, is that you have to soak or boil them first and then carefully squeeze out all the extra water. That way they will get nice and crispy on a pan and absorb all the good flavors.



·         4 ½ oz / 125 g dried soy cutlets
·         4 Tbsp oil
·         3 onions
·         1 tsp salt
·         ½ Tbsp (apple cider) vinegar
·         3 Tbsp soy sauce

Soak the dried cutlets in plenty of water for an hour or more. If you are in a hurry, you can boil the cutlets for 10 minutes until they are soft. Drain the cutlets and carefully squeeze out all the extra water from every cutlet. Now cut the cutlets into strips. Heat up some oil on a pan. Add soy strips and let them cook without stirring for at least a couple of minutes. Then stir and cook some more, until the soy strips are getting crispy and golden brown. Add sliced onions and salt and another tablespoon of oil if you wish. Stir and cook until the onions are golden brown. Add vinegar and soy sauce. Stir and cook for a couple of minutes. Remove the heat.

Vegan cottage cheese salad

This sauce/salad reminds me of a good old cold cream sauce or cottage cheese salad I used to eat with young potatoes. And I just cannot get enough of my favorite thing – sunflower seeds! These cheap fellas will always come to my aid when I’m in need to make a creamy sauce. Tofu will give this sauce a nice cottage cheese texture but you can leave it out if you want.



Sunflower seed cream:

·         2 cups / 300 g peeled sunflower seeds
·         1 ¾ cups / 400 ml water
·         1 tsp salt
·         1 Tbsp lemon juice

Salad:

·         one bigger cucumber
·         4 big ripe tomatoes
·         9 oz / 250 g firm tofu
·         fresh dill and spring onions
·         1 tsp salt

Soak the sunflower seeds for a couple of hours or boil them for 15 minutes. Drain and rinse. Add water, salt and lemon juice. Blend until smooth.

Wash and chop the cucumber and tomatoes. Crumble the tofu. Finely chop the dill and spring onions. Mix all the ingredients together. Add salt and sunflower seed cream and mix some more.

Rustic wheat bran bread with fried onions

This earthy bread is packed with fiber since it contains a whole lot of wheat bran flakes. So you shouldn’t have any problem digesting this whole feast! Fried onions and thyme add a really nice smell and taste to this lovely loaf.



9 inch x 5 inch / 23 x 13 cm loaf pan

Caramelized onions:

·         3 – 4 Tbsp oil
·         2 big onions
·         1 tsp dried thyme
·         ½ tsp salt

Wheat bran bread:

·         ⅔ cups / 100 g all-purpose flour
·         ¾ cups / 100 g whole-wheat flour
·         1 ⅓ cups / 50 g wheat bran flakes
·         ½ tsp baking soda
·         1 tsp baking powder
·         ¾ cups + a couple of tablespoons / 200 ml water
·         1 tsp (apple cider) vinegar
·         ⅓ cups / 75 ml oil

Preheat the oven to 350 F / 180 C. Heat up some oil in a pan. Add finely chopped onions, thyme and salt. Cook for a couple of minutes until the onions are slightly crispy and golden brown. Remove the heat.

Mix the flours and wheat bran flakes with baking soda, baking powder and salt. When the oven is ready, mix water with vinegar and add the water-vinegar mixture to the dry ingredients along with onions. Add oil and mix some more. Grease a medium sized loaf pan and pour the batter in. Smooth it with a spoon and sprinkle some wheat bran flakes on the top. Bake the bread at 350 F / 180 C for 35 minutes. Let it cool down before cutting and serving.

Avocado hummus

So simple but it works so well. Avocado adds a fresh and „eggy“ taste to this hummus so you will have a nice buttery spread to eat with you wheat bran bread.



·         1 ripe avocado (peel it)
·         14 oz / 400 g canned chickpeas or white beans (drain and rinse)
·         ½ Tbsp lemon juice
·         ¾ tsp salt
·         1 tsp grated lemon zest

Blend everything together until smooth.

Melon boats with fruit salad and strawberry and coconut cream

I cannot believe this dish. It was absolutely heavenly! And it doesn’t contain a single grain of added sugar. I used golden raisins to make the strawberry and coconut cream sweeter. You will get a nice big bowl of cream so you can smother it on fruits or just eat it alone. I couldn’t keep my spoon away from this creamy dream!



PS! Before making this cream, be sure the coconut milk can has been in the fridge over night.

Strawberry and coconut cream:

·         5 ⅓ oz / 150 g golden raisins
·         14 oz / 400 g fresh or frozen strawberries
·         14 oz / 400 g can coconut milk (full fat!)

Fruit salad:

·         1 ripe melon
·         1 ripe mango
·         3 ripe kiwis
·         1 batch of red grapes




Pour some boiling water over the raisins. Let them soak for a couple of minutes. Drain and blend smoother. Add strawberries (if you are using frozen strawberries, thaw them and drain out the extra liquids). Now take the coconut milk can out of the fridge. Flip it upside down and then open it. Pour away the liquids. Now you are left with a coconut cream in the bottom of the can. Scoop it out and add it to the blended raisins and strawberries. Blend some more until you have a smooth strawberry and coconut cream.

Cut the melon in half. Scoop out the flesh and cut it into chunks. Add peeled and chopped mango, kiwis and grapes. Mix everything together and fill the melon boats with fruit salad. Serve with strawberry and coconut cream.