Welcome to the Blog

NOTE: The pictures for this blog post were in part updated in June, 2016.

Hi everyone!  If you're here for the fresh, summery and sexy watermelon gazpacho recipe, then please scroll down to the end of the blog post. You'd find the easy vegan recipe there. If you're happy to read about my wonderful visit with my amazingly talented sister, then please read on and get to the recipe later.

Question: What’s even better than making some fabulicious, seasonal plant-based food? Answer: Making it and sharing it with someone you ADORE. And for this week’s blog post I got to do just that as my gorgeous and über-talented little sis’ Sumera flew all the way from Berlin to come and visit hubby, son and ME in our humble London home.

Sumera might look familiar as she was one of the finalists on the Dutch X Factor a few years ago and apart from being graced with a voice that sends chills down my spine, this little tweety bird can put together a fierce plate of food too. We were ‘cooking’ up a storm in the kitchen, preparing a recipe handed down to us by my mama. So a true family affair all the way ‘round which resulted in a bowl full of LOVE.

 

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The avocado is a bit of a star in the raw vegan world, isn’t it? And it is easy to see why - avocado is so versatile, wonderfully nourishing and utterly delicious. Consequently, it is often used in green vegan smoothies and luscious raw ‘cheese’ cakes. Essentially, what the avocado does to perfection is lend all these desserts a smooth, creamy texture without impacting negatively on their taste. 

It’s mind-blowing all that it can do, but my husband says that we’re corrupting the poor avocado; that it was never meant to be hidden in some sweet drink or worse still a raw vegan chocolate mousse. Instead he feels avocado should take centre stage in a savoury dish, the good old fashioned way. (Although ironically, on a recent business trip to Indonesia the locals were appalled when they saw my husband sprinkle salt on his avocado. After much persuasion, they tried it, apprehensively, with a polite smile, before quickly scraping the salt off and reverting back to using their avocado where it belonged – in a sweet smoothie, thank you very much! LOL!)

But I’m with my husband on this one. Though I love raw vegan desserts that use avocado, I think it’s most enjoyable as part of a savoury dish without sugar overpowering its delicate and subtle flavours. I just like to keep any recipe involving avocado super simple, so that the avocado can really shine. Hence why I love this recipe so much and love sharing it with you; it ALWAYS turns out marvellous, it is ALWAYS a big hit at parties and it is ALWAYS so satisfyingly yummy!

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NOTE: The pictures were updated in July 2015

Hi everyone! If you are here for the easy, yummy and raw vegan Persian Herb salad recipe, then please scroll down to the end of the blog post. You'd find the super easy recipe there. If you're happy to read me rambling about living in London, then please read on and get to the recipe later.

This month, exactly 14 years ago I moved to the UK. YIKES, how time flies! Will I stay in London forever? Gosh, that’s a tough question. Actually, that’s a very tough question. Thing is, I’ve got a little bit of a love/hate relationship with this place. You see when the days are dark, gloomy and grey and it feels like I’m living on Noah’s Ark because the rain just keeps on falling, then I absolutely hate it! 

And then, slowly but surely the clouds clear away and Spring arrives in all her glory. With her appearance the short dark days make way for longer and lighter ones. And as if by magic, suddenly and gracefully London comes into her own. London’s countless open spaces turn a lush and beautiful green and it’s then you know that London’s reputation as the greenest city in European is well and truly deserved.

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I recently received an e-mail from one of my readers asking me about my stance on sugar. WOW! Big question there. It’s one though that I ponder about quite a lot myself and seeing that I’m posting yet another dessert recipe, Mango Nice Cream, I feel it’s time to share my (still evolving) thoughts briefly. 

Like most of us, I love sweet treats (I really, really, really do!). And if it's plant-based and raw, even better! But I also think it’s wrong to assume that just because a dessert is refined sugar free, vegan, raw or gluten free that it’s automatically healthy for us and/or that we can consume it in unlimited quantities.

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It’s been somewhat of an emotional rollercoaster, this whole blogging thing. Ok, so I’m being a bit of a drama queen, but honestly I’m only exaggerating mildly. 

There have been a number of lovely highs – my beetroot and orange ice lollies were chosen as vscofashionfood of the day; they were also made recipe of the day by veganfoodlovers on Instagram. And veganfoodshare featured my papatas-not-so-bravas on their Instagram account – what an honour! 

But then there are some days where things don’t quite go as planned; and today’s recipe of peaches and cream really embodies the downs of my rollercoaster ride. Sure, the recipe itself is stunning, if I may say so ;). The recipe is simple and easy and appeals to young and old. It doesn’t require any fancy schmantsy equipment, is so nourishing and the taste….OMG a-mazing! BUT… I am so, so, SO disappointed with the pictures I took :). I feel I’ve let the recipe down with these photos and let myself down big time too.

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Hi everyone! If you are here for the raw, delicious and easy Healthy Coleslaw, then please scroll down to the end of the blog post. You'll find the super yummy vegan recipe there. If you're happy to read my thoughts on the raw food movement, then please read on and get to the recipe later.

Today I wanted to muse a tiny little bit about the raw food movement, especially because I often get asked if I am a raw foodist and what my stance is on the matter. I know many of you are well aware what ‘eating raw’ means, but I also appreciate that not everyone has heard of raw foodism, so I thought I’d very briefly outline what it is all about.

As I understand it, some people choose to eat uncooked and raw plant based foods because they believe that fruits, nuts, seeds and vegetables’ nutritional content is at its highest when in its raw, natural, whole and unprocessed form. They believe that once foods are cooked over 42C, they lose most, if not all of their nutrients. Raw foodists often refer to raw foods as ‘living foods’ because it is their belief that uncooked fruits and vegetables contain natural, living enzymes, which the human body needs to build proteins and to maintain optimum health. Many raw foodists argue that humans have thrived on raw, unprocessed foods for centuries and that cooked foods build up toxins in the body, thereby depriving us of much needed nutrients. They also believe that raw foods help us fight off illness and maintain youth. 

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Hi everyone! If you are here for the easy, delicious and fresh Seasonal ABC Juice, then please scroll down to the end of the blog post. You'll find the delicious vegan recipe there. If you're happy to read my musings on my whole food plant based journey, then please read on and get to the recipe later.

I have been thinking a great deal lately about where I am on my whole food plant based journey. I suppose everyone’s reason to move away from animal based foods and their attraction to a plant based lifestyle is quite individual and quite unique. For me there were a lot of reasons why I chose this path. Mainly and primarily I was concerned about health and I had a strong urge to find a way of feeding my family and myself that would allow our well-being to thrive and blossom. I would love to tell you more about that aspect of my journey in another post perhaps. But today I wanted to focus on the second reason as to why I shifted to a more plant based lifestyle: my wish to honour the earth.

I know there is a lot of debate as to whether man (and woman)’s demand for agricultural produce places a greater strain on the environment than man’s wish for animal based foods. You can find lots of articles on the net supporting either position. And I suppose ultimately, it is about what research resonates most with you. For me a couple things are quite clear: the way that we consume meat now is completely unsustainable and so destructive. The earth cannot support this growing demand; it is completely impossible. And I feel very, very strongly about that.

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I live at the top of a hill, just by a playground and a big park overlooking the city of London. It’s a beautiful, beautiful location and I often have to pinch myself – I feel so lucky. But in the summer, things go a bit crazy. Actually, a bit very crazy ;). You see, the ice cream man arrives, – Disney songs blazing from his van and all. And he parks right in front of my home, not once, not twice, but usually about three times a day. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve got a soft spot for cheesy Disney songs, so I don’t mind that. BUT I do mind the content of his van – ice creams full of sugar, non-organic dairy products, additives, colourings and preservatives.

It is SO hard to keep my pre-schooler away from that stuff. So, my trick: make your own, better, wholefood version of orange and beetroot ice lollies with gorgeous colours galore and more flavours than your taste buds can handle. HA ice cream man, back at ya!

Adapted from a recipe in the stunning cookbook Rawsome Vegan Baking. 

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