beetroot Archives - Feast of Plants

Creamy Beetroot Pasta (Vegan, Gluten Free)

Feast of Plants — Tue, 08 Mar 2022 11:00:06 +0000

Skip to the recipe It’s no surprise to hear that going for a plant based diet can be good for you. The benefits of fruit and vegetables is well known, and the UK’s five-a-day campaign recommends everyone gets at least five portions of fruit and vegetables a day. Easy right? Well not quite — a recent survey found the average Briton only eats 2.7 portions of fruit and veg a day! UK diets revolve around meat so much that I’ve had friends tell me they couldn’t go vegan because they wouldn’t know what to eat. To make things easier, here are five simple tips I used, to help you reduce your meat intake, and maybe even make the transition to vegan one day: Try new things. Don’t just stick to the same few veg you know, instead try to pick up something new every time you shop. Whether that’s an interesting fruit to liven up your dessert or a new veg that you’ve always wanted to try, this will naturally increase your range of recipes. Eat the rainbow. Vegetables come in every colour of the rainbow and the more you eat, the more nutrients you’ll have. What’s more, the more colourful your plate, the more you’ll want to eat it. From red tomatoes to blue corn, white daikon to Kale so dark it’s almost black, you’re sure to find something you love and have a plate that looks amazing! Eat More Beans and Legumes. Beans are so versatile and a great source of protein. Try adding them to soups or stews or simply have them as a side dish. Thanks to also incredibly cheap, you might even find your food bills go down! Make a list of your favourite meat based dishes and then investigate substitutes. You can still have your favourites, just makes some easy swaps. For example, if you like chicken consider having tofu instead or if beef is your thing, try some mushrooms, while well prepared jackfruit can work well in the place of pork. The key here is to focus on flavours and textures that are similar to the foods you currently enjoy. Experiment with vegan substitutes. As meat-free lifestyles have become more popular, many companies have realized that they can have a whole new customer base by introducing vegan versions of their products into the market. Try simple swaps to vegan mayonnaise, cheese, or other alternatives in your cooking and you might find you can still enjoy your favourite foods just made plant based! Today’s dinner ties in with point two in this list – eat the rainbow. It’s bright, colourful pink comes from beetroot and everyone loves it, even those who claim to hate beetroot! Packed with essential nutrients, beetroot is a great source of fibre, folate (vitamin B9), manganese, potassium, iron, and vitamin C. What’s more, If you’re looking for an incredibly easy, tasty, and child friendly dinner then this is it. If you use precooked beetroot, you can have dinner on the table in less than 15 minutes. Topped off with a herby, nutty sprinkle, and served with a seasonal salad or maybe even some garlic bread, you’ll have the easiest dinner you ever made and some seriously happy diners! Makes: Serves 4 Ingredients For the Pasta: 260g Beetroot, well scrubbed 350g Pasta (we use gluten free spaghetti) 3/4 Cup Cashews, soaked 3 tbsp lemon juice 2 tbsp Nutritional Yeast 1 Garlic clove, peeled 1/2 tsp onion powder t tbsp Olive Oil 1 tsp Salt For the Herbed Crunch Sprinkle: 1/3 cup Walnuts, roughly chopped 2 tbsp Fresh Mint, chopped 2 tbsp Fresh Parsley, chopped 1 tsp crushed Chillies (optional) 1 tsp Lemon zest (optional) Directions If you’re using precooked beetroots then skip this first step and move straight on to cooking your pasta. I like to either roast my beetroot or cook them in the instant pot for an easy hands free method. Oven method: Preheat the oven to 200 C (180 Fan/400 F). Trim off the stalks, drizzle with a little oil and wrap well in foil (no need to season yet). Bake in the preheat oven for 45 minutes, or until the beetroots have softened enough that a knife will sink easily into them. Instant pot cooking: Pour a cup of water into the base of the pressure cooker before adding a trivet or steamer. Trim the stems from the prewashed beetroot and place onto the trivet. Cook on high for 28 minutes with a quick release and carefully remove the lid. The beetroots should be cooked and soft. Cook the pasta according to packet instructions, but for a minute less so it’s a little al dente. Reserve approx. 300ml of the cooking water before draining. While the pasta cooks, take a few moment to make the sprinkle. Roughly chop all the ingredients together on a board until well combined. Set aside in a small bowl. Place your cooked beetroot into a blender along with the rest of the ingredients and the reserved pasta water. Blend until completely smooth. Transfer the cooked pasta back into the pan and pour the sauce over the top, stir well. Taste and add seasoning as needed, adding a little more water if it feels a little thick. Serve in wide bowls topped with a generous serving of the sprinkle on top. Serve immediately with more of the sprinkle to pass at the table. Notes I find the chillies and lemon zest can be the more controversial part of the dish. While I love the extra notes they bring to it, if you’re cooking for children or anyone a little picky, then you may want to skip them! Allergy Notes: This is naturally vegan, gluten free, and soy free but leans heavily on nuts for the creamy texture. If nuts are a problem for you, you can try subbing out the cashews for about 115g of firm tofu and add the pasta water gradually, until you’re happy with the texture. You can skip the walnuts entirely or sub them with toasted sunflower seeds for a similar feel. If you have any allergies to the ingredients in this dish or have questions on substitutions, leave me a comment below, we love to hear from you!

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Beetroot & Coconut Curry (Vegan & Gluten Free)

Feast of Plants — Tue, 16 Mar 2021 16:09:40 +0000

We get a veg box most weeks and it’s been great for encouraging me tto be creative with my cooking, as well as being more seasonal. What it’s not great for? Seasonal means that we sometime gets the same veggies over and over again. While that’s great for staple like carrots and potatoes, for some veg it can be a bit of a struggle. At this time of year, beetroot can be one of those problems – since we don’t tend to have the same things over and over again it’s been a struggle to make something new each time. I’ve turned it unto pancakes, vegan wellington, burgers, ravioli, pickled it and used it in stir fries. The one thing I haven’t done before is what I present you today, beetroot curry. Beetroot is the star of this dish with coconut and spices lifting the earthiness of beetroot to new exotic heights. Inspired by a combination of Indian and Sri Lankan cooking, this is actually on of easier recipes here. It’s not quick but, like most curries, it’s even better the next day so it that makes it perfect for meal prepping. So whip it together on the weekend or start it while working from home. There’s not much hands on time so what I do, begin the sauté while on a conference call – by the time the meeting’s over it’ll be happily simmering away and you can move on to the rest of your day job. Perfect if you love beetroot, it’s ideal served with rice or some of your favourite flatbreads. Makes: Serves 4-6 Ingredients 2 Tbsp Coconut Oil 1 Cinnamon Stick 1 tsp Coriander Seeds 1 tsp Cumin Seeds 1 tsp Mustard Seeds 1 Onion, finely diced 1 Green Chilli, finely diced 1 Red Chilli, finely diced 5 Lime Leaves 1 Bay leaf 2 Garlic cloves, minced 4 Large Beetroot, peeled & roughly chopped 300ml Coconut Milk 1 tsp Chilli Flakes 1 Tbsp Garam Masala 1 Tbsp Fenugreek Leaves 60ml Vegetable Stock 1 tsp Sugar (optional) 1 tbsp Cornflour (optional but great to thicken the sauce!) Salt & Pepper to taste Directions Place a large, heavy based pan on to a a medium heat with the coconut oil. Once the oil has heated through add in the cinnamon, cumin, coriander, and mustard seeds. Lightly toast until the seeds begin to darken and the mustard seeds begin to pop. Add in the onion, chillies, and at least a tsp of salt. Gently sauté until the onion softens and turns translucent. Now add in the lime leaves, bay leaves, and garlic and continue to cook until the onions start to brown. Now add in the rest of the ingredients and stir well to combine. Bring up to a gentle simmer and cook, simmering constantly, until the beetroot softens and can be easily pieced by a fork. Depending on how small you’ve cut up the beetroot this can take between 30 and 50 minutes. Once cooked, taste and season, adding more sugar if needed. If the curry is a little thinner than you’d like, remove 2 tbsp and mix with the cornflour to make a thin paste. Carefully stir through the sauce and continue cooking until thickened. Serve with rice or you favourite flatbreads. Enjoy! Notes Allergy Notes; This dish is vegan, gluten free, soy free, and nut free – wohoo! If you struggle with any of these ingredients then let me know and I can suggest alternatives.

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Vegan & Gluten Free Ravioli Two Ways

Feast of Plants — Mon, 01 Feb 2021 16:02:16 +0000

I did a thing and I am oh so proud of it. I made homemade pasta, it was vegan and gluten free and it was oh so tasty, and I’ll teach you to do it too. It’s not difficult and you don’t need a lot of special equipment. You will need time and patience but hey, we’re in lockdown, time isn’t something we’re short of right now. Get the kids involved, they’ll love it, or spend your next Friday night making pasta, while you watch something fascinating. I found it really quite satisfying. But first, before we look at pasta, we need to talk about flour. Gluten free flour to be specific. I’m a big fan of Nicole from Gluten Free on a Shoestring. Her recipes guided me on my first nervous steps of gluten free cooking all those years ago and for a long time, her flour blends have been my default. Her blend for mock better batter style flour is still my favourite – even if my version of it is tweaked ever so slightly (I skip the brown rice flour and use sorghum flour instead). So when I refer to gluten free flour in my recipes you can know this is what I’m using. It comes with xanthan gum already included and it’s incredibly easy to make in large batches so you can have a jar of flour just there and ready to use. As a general rule you should be (mostly) fine subbing in your favourite GF flour blend instead, even if its shop bought, but if you choose to do so, be prepared to have to be a little more flexible with the rest of the recipe. Different flour blends might need a little more, or less liquid and always check to see if you need to add your own xanthan gum. But back to pasta. My big tip for this recipe? Make a double batch and freeze half of it for an unbelievably quick dinner that’ll remind you of those heady days when we could actually eat in a restaurant. To freeze, lay out your ravioli on a lined baking tray making sure they’re not touching, and place in the freezer. Once solid simply tip into a freezer safe bag, seal, and store till needed. Cooking instructions are the same as below, it just might take slightly longer. Enjoy! Makes: Serves 4 Ingredients For the Pasta Dough: 275g Gluten Free Flour* 70g Chickpea Flour 1 tsp Salt 1/4 tsp White Pepper 1 Tbsp Olive Oil 125ml Aquafaba** 125ml Hot Water For the Cashew Ricotta: 300g Cashews, soaked overnight 125ml Plant based Milk 1 1/2 Tbsp Lemon Juice 1 1/2 Tbsp White Wine Vinegar 2 Tbsp Nutritional Yeast 1 tsp Garlic Powder 1 tsp Onion Powder Salt to taste For the Beetroot Filling: 550g Cooked Beetroot 200g Cashew Ricotta 1/4 cup Nutritional Yeast 2 Tbsp Mint leaves, finely chopped 1/2 tsp Nutmeg Salt & Pepper to taste For the Butternut Squash Filling: 600g Butternut Squash, peeled & roughly chopped 250g Cashew Ricotta 3 Tbsp Sage Leaves, chopped 1/4 tsp Nutmeg 1/4 tsp Chilli Flakes Salt & pepper to taste To Serve: 115g Vegan Butter Handful of Walnuts, roughly chopped 1/4 cup Sage leaves 1/4 cup Nutritional Yeast 1/4 tsp Chilli Flakes Salt & Black Pepper to taste Directions First things first, pick your filling. The ingredients given will fill one batch of pasta so either pick one or do both but half the amounts. To make the pasta: Sift your dry ingredients into a bowl. Chickpea flour can be incredibly lumpy and the last thing you want to find in your pasta is lumps of unmixed chickpea flour. I used a standmixer with the dough hook attachment for the next bit but you can do this by hand if you’re patient and feeling strong. Pour the liquid ingredients into a well in the centre and kneed until smooth. When ready, a good pasta dough should be firm but not at all sticky. You should be able to kneed it with your hands and still have clean hands afterwards. If it’s too sticky then add a little more flour, no more than a tablespoon at a time, and continue kneading until the texture is just right. The dough can be used straight away or wrapped very tightly in cling film and placed into a fridge for up to 2 days. Making the Cashew Ricotta: This batch is a development from the version in my lasagne soup but the method is the same. If you prefer my old version then feel free to use that instead. Once the cashews are soaked, they should be soft and mailable to the touch, drain well and placed to a blender jug. Add the rest of the ingredients and blend until smooth and creamy. It’s ready, place until the fridge until needed. You may not need all of it for this recipe but anything you don’t need will be great on toast! To make the beetroot filling: Want to know a secret? When I’m doing this I don’t bother peeling the beetroot. If buying them raw they should be well scrubbed before cooking but I’ve never seen the point in peeling them when they’re about to go in the blender. Top and tail the beetroot before throwing the in blender with rest of the filling ingredients apart from the mint. Blend until smooth and stir through the mint leaves. Taste and season to taste, each batch of beetroot will be different so don’t be afraid to keep tasting till you get it right. To make the butternut squash filling: Preheat the heat to 220 degrees (200 Fan/435 F). Toss the squash in a little oil and season lightly before roasting for 45 min – 1 hour, or until soft and caramelised around the edges. Mash the squash with a fork or potato masher (I’m not a fan of using a blender for this one as I prefer the more interesting texture). Add the rest of the filling ingredients and stir well. Taste and season as needed. Forming the Ravioli: Before starting make sure you have a few basic items to hand; a rolling pin, biscuit cutter (I use this to cut out my ravioli), lined baking tray, damp tea towel, and a fork. I like to separate the pasta dough into 4 equal sized portions when rolling out as it just makes everything a lot easier to handle. Make sure you keep the rest of your dough firmly wrapped into cling film while you work to stop the dough drying out. Place your dough onto a very lightly floured surface and roll the dough until its about 2mm thin and slightly transparent. To make sure the dough doesn’t stick to the work surface, turn and flip regularly, adding more flour as needed. When the dough becomes too large to easily turn without tearing, don’t be afraid to use the rolling pin to help. When rolled out, cut out as many shapes as possible with the biscuit cutter. Cover the shapes with the damp tea towel and repeat with the rest of the dough. Here we come to one of the best parts of working with GF dough – if you have any offcuts, don’t throw them away. Knead them back into a smooth ball of dough, and keep rolling and cutting until you’ve used all the dough – no waste here! I like to put my filling into a piping bag for this next step but a steady hand and a spoon will work just as well. Line up half of your pasta shapes on the workbench and place about half a tablespoon of filling in the middle of each. Brush the edges with a little water using your finger before covering with a second piece of dough. Carefully press down, removing any air from inside and sealing using a little pressure around the edges. Lightly crimp around the edges with the fork before placing on the lined baking tray – repeat until all the pasta dough has been formed into ravioli. To cook, bring a large pan of water up to a boil and place the butter into a wide frying pan. Once the butter is melted add the sage and walnuts. Cook, stirring occationally, until the walnuts are toasted and the sage leaves are crispy. Stir in the rest of the ingrediants and season to taste. Meanwhile, place the ravioli into the simmering water and cook until the ravioli floats – fresh pasta doesn’t normally take more than 2-3 minutes. Gently, drain well and serve with a drizzle of the sage and walnut butter. Enjoy! Notes * Check to see if your blend contains xanthan gum. If it doesn’t then about 8g will work well here. ** Tinned aquafaba should be reduced before using. Simmer in a pan until reduced by a third and the liquid is thick and silky. Allergy Notes; This recipe is vegan, gluten free and soy free but not nut free. If nuts are an allergen for you then substitute the cashew ricotta with tofu ricotta and skip the walnuts for a tasty sage butter.

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Indian Beetroot Pancakes or Beetroot Dal Chilla (Vegan & Gluten Free)

Feast of Plants — Wed, 27 Jan 2021 15:00:33 +0000

I’ve made pancakes inspired by dal chilla before (see here) but with these I’ve gone along the more traditional route. Healthy, nutritious, and packed with protein, these make the ideal companion to your next curry night. We paired them with last week’s Gobi Manchurian which made for a very colourful dinner. I’ve flavoured the pancakes with beetroot and chives and it’s a great way to squeeze in yet another vegetable into your dinner. Provided you have a blender, these are really quite easy to make. Stuff them with your favourite vegan cheese to make a quick snack, fold them up and they make a great addition to any lunchbox, or just use to scoop up your favourite curry. Makes: Serves 4-6 Ingredients 230g Yellow Split Lentils 4 Beetroot, cooked* 1/2 Red Onion, finely diced 20g Chives, chopped 1/4 tsp Tumeric 1/4 tsp Cayenne pepper 1/2 tsp Ground Cumin 1/4 tsp Asafoetida** 1 tsp Ginger paste 1/4 tsp Mustard Seeds 1 tsp Salt Directions Rinse the lentils well and soak for at least 4 hours. They should be soft and tender before starting. Keep in mind that they could almost double in size so make sure your bowl can accommodate that. Drain well and place into a blender jug along with the beetroot. Add a 1/4 cup of water and grind to a fine paste. Add more water, a tablespoon at a time, as needed. Try not to add too much water if your blender can handle it but make sure the paste is smooth and fine. When your blenders work is done, tip into a bowl and mix in the rest of the ingredients. Leave to rest for at least 15 minutes to allow the onions to release their liquid. Once rested, check the thickness of your batter, gradually adding more water as needed. It should be pourable but not too thin, much like a good American pancake mix. Heat a good non-stick frying pan on a medium-high heat. When hot, pour a good spoonful of batter into the middle of the pan. Smooth the batter into a round, flat shape with the back of a spoon. Drizzle a little oil round the edges of the pan and leave to cook until the edges are browned and the batter is set. Flip and cook on the other side for a few minutes, or until fully cooked. Once crisp and brown remove from the pan and repeat until the batter is completely used. Serve as a snack with chutney or as a side to your next curry – enjoy! Notes * If you have raw beetroot then they can be easily roasted. Trim off the leaves, drizzle with oil, and roast at 200 degrees for 45 minutes, or until the beetroots are soft but not shrunken. ** If you are gluten free then be careful when purchasing Asafoetida as it’s often mixed with wheat flour. It’s entirely possible to get gluten safe asafoetida, just be a little careful. Allergy Notes; This recipe is naturally vegan, gluten free, soy free, and nut free. If you have any issues with any of the ingredients then let me know and I’m happy to suggest substitutes.

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Beet Burgers (Vegan, GF)

Feast of Plants — Wed, 30 Sep 2020 14:00:42 +0000

If you’ve taken a look at my recipe for Beetroot Wellington then you’ll know that recipe started as a burger. This is that burger. It works beautifully as a cheeseburger, the earthiness of the beetroot pairing perfectly with the smoothness of a great vegan cheese. But to make the best burger, a messy burger that you’ll need napkins to eat but will never regret – use my peppercorn sauce. Believe me, it’s a revelation. What’s more, it’s easy to make a batch for a crowd as they cook in the oven. Want to prep a batch in advance? They freeze or can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container. I normally make more than we need for one meal and freeze the rest to make for a no stress dinner another day. You’ll find the recipe is very similar to my vegan wellington up to a point. It should be, they started out as the same recipe! If you haven’t already taken a look at that recipe then go ahead, it’ll make your Christmas dinner. Makes: 8-10 Burgers Ingredients For the Burger: 1 Small Onion, chopped 1 Carrot, chopped 1/2 Celery Rib, chopped 2 Garlic cloves, minced 1/2 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar 30ml Vegetable Stock 30g Walnuts 15g Ground Almonds 250g Roasted Beetroot 45g Chickpea Flour 175g Cooked Kidney Beans 200g Cooked Chickpeas 1 Tbsp Nutritional Yeast 1 Tbsp Lemon Juice 1 Tbsp Dried Cranberries 1/2 Tbsp Tahini 1/2 Tbsp Worcester Sauce 1/2 tsp Smoked Paprika 1 tsp White pepper 1 tsp Miso (optional) 1 tsp Rosemary 1 tsp Thyme 35g Gluten Free Breadcrumbs 1 1/2 Tbsp Tapioca Starch 1 tsp Salt Suggested Toppings: Peppercorn Sauce Gluten Free Burger Buns Vegen Cheese Tomatoe Slices Fresh Spinach leaves Directions Start off by sauteing the carrot, onion and celery on a medium heat until softened and just starting to brown. Add the minced garlic, rosemary, and thyme and continue to cook until fragrant and lightly browned throughout. Deglaze the pan with a touch of stock before adding the rest of the stock and balsamic vinegar. Simmer until reduced by half and put to one side. Place the beetroot and nuts into a food processor and blend until chunky. Put the flours and breadcrumbs to one side before adding the rest of the ingredients to the food processor. Blend until mostly smooth, some small chunks are fine and add interest to the texture. Season to taste before stirring in the flours and breadcrumbs. Place in the fridge to chill. Preheat the oven to 200° C (190 Fan/ 355° F) and line a baking tray with a piece of baking paper. Shape your mix, I find about 1/2 a cup of mixture makes the perfect burger. Place onto the prepared tray and spritz lightly with oil before baking for 30 – 45 minutes, or your burgers are fully cooked. If making cheeseburgers then place onto the burgers in the last 5 minutes of cooking to allow the cheese to melt. Serve on a gluten free bun with a generous smear of peppercorn sauce and your favourite fixings. Notes Allergy Notes; This recipe is vegan, gluten free and soy free. If nuts are an issue for you then I’d suggest replacing both the walnuts and ground almonds with a similar weight of sunflower seeds.

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Beetroot Wellington with Creamy Peppercorn Sauce (Vegan, Gluten Free)

Feast of Plants — Wed, 23 Sep 2020 17:00:37 +0000

This recipe started out life very differently. I was working on a new Beet Burger recipe (don’t worry – you’ll see it this week, it’s amazing!) and had a shock of inspiration. Big meals like Christmas and Thanksgiving can be tricky for vegans as there are few big, dramatic centrepieces to build a fancy roast meal around. A lot of those that do exist are impressions of meat, like vegan friendly roast turkey. Now I have no problem with these dishes, but I wanted a dish that was both vegan and gluten free while elevating vegetables to the centrepiece. My trial beet burger was meaty and interesting enough that it could happily stand as the star of the show on taste but needed a fancy coat for special occasions. So we come to a wellington, a big beautiful beetroot roast, coated in a chestnut and chard duxelle, all wrapped in some gluten free puff pastry. By itself the wellington is wonderfully tasty but what takes it to another level entirely is the peppercorn sauce. Creamy enough that your guests won’t guess it’s vegan, the mix of peppery bite and soothing cream will lift your beetroot wellington to a dish worthy of any special occasion. Make it for Christmas, for my american friends – it’s perfect for thanksgiving, it’s so easy to make for a crowd, and equally wonderful for your next date night (make two individual wellingtons, the process is the same and you’ll just charm the socks off your other half). A small note on why I’m just so stoked to have this recipe for Christmas, even though I know it’s too close to begin planning for! The secret to a perfect, stress-free Christmas feast is planning ahead. Do as much as you can in advance and the event on the day will be so much easier to juggle. This wellington, it loves to be made in stages, or prepped in advance. In fact it works better if you do. The filling needs to be chilled before wrapped in pastry and the pastry cooks better if it’s also chilled. So make up the filling one day, wrap in the pastry just before you head to bed the night before and it’ll be ready to pop in the oven when you’re ready for it on the day – all very relaxed. Let me know how you get on with your big night! Makes: Serves 6-8 Ingredients For the Beetroot Roast: 1 Small Carrot, chopped 1 Onion, chopped 1/2 Celery stick, chopped 2 Garlic Cloves, minced 1/2 tsp Rosemary 1/2 tsp Thyme 30ml Vegetable Stock 1/2 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar 30g Walnuts 240g Cooked Beetroot* 1 tsp Paprika 1/2 tsp Ground White Pepper 1 Tbsp Nutritional Yeast 1 1/2 Tbsp Tapioca Starch 35g Gluten Free Breadcrumbs** 1/2 tsp Yeast Extract 1/2 tsp Salt 125g Kidney Beans, cooked 1/2 Tbsp Tahini 1 Tbsp Dried Cranberries 1/2 Tbsp Lemon Juice 15g Ground Almonds 1/2 Tbsp Vegan Worcester Sauce 45g Chickpea Flour Salt & Pepper to taste For the Chard & Chestnut Duxelle: 180g Chestnuts, cooked 1 Red Onion, finely diced 70g Mushrooms 10g Dried Shitake Mushrooms, soaked 200g Chard 1 Tbsp Rosemary 1 Tbsp Thyme 1/4 tsp Chilli Flakes 250ml Vegetable Stock Salt & Pepper to taste For the Wellington: 500g Gluten Free Puff Pastry*** Plant Based Milk (for brushing) Poppy Seeds, to garnish For the Creamy Peppercorn Sauce: 150g Cashews, Soaked 375ml Vegetable Stock 1 Tbsp Black Peppercorns 2 small red onions, finely diced 1 Garlic Clove, minced 15g Vegan Butter 1 1/2 tsp Vegan Worcester Sauce Salt to taste Directions To prepare the Beetroot Roast; Start of by sauteing the carrot, onion and celery on a medium heat until softened and just starting to brown. Add the minced garlic, rosemary, and thyme and continue to cook until fragrant and lightly browned throughout. Deglaze the pan with a touch of stock before adding the rest of the stock and balsamic vinegar. Simmer until reduced by half and put to one side. Place the beetroot and nuts into a food processor and blend until chunky. Put the flours and breadcrumbs to one side before adding the rest of the beetroot roast ingredients to the food processor. Blend until mostly smooth, some small chunks are fine and add interest to the texture. Season to taste before stirring in the flours and breadcrumbs. Place in the fridge to chill. Preheat the oven to 180° C (170 Fan/ 355° F) and line a baking tray with a piece of baking paper. Shape your beetroot mix into a evenly shaped log on the tray before spritzng lightly with oil and roasting for 30 – 45 minutes, the roast should be crisp around the edges and cooked though. Place into the fridge to chill thoroughly before using the roast. To prepare the duxelle: Finely dice the chestnuts and mushrooms. Strip the stalks from the chard and dice before roughly chopping the leaves, put the leaves to one side. Heat a wide bottomed pan on a medium to high heat with a touch of oil. When the pan is hot add in the chestnuts, mushrooms, onion, and chard stalks. Saute until the onions have softened and the chard begins to brown. Add the herbs and just enough stock to barely cover. Simmer uncovered, for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the chard is cooked and the stock has reduced to a thick sauce at the bottom at the pan. Turn the heat up and stir through the chard leaves, stirring constantly until wilted. Season to taste and set aside in the fridge to chill. Assembly: Make sure both the beetroot roast and duxelle are completely chilled before assembling. Preheat the oven to 220 degrees (200 fan/ 425 F). Shape a quarter of the duxelle into a rectangle similar in shape to your roast in the centre of the puff pastry. Place the beetroot roast on top. Now coat the roast with the duxelle mix in an even layer, pressing lightly with your hands. Now cover with a slightly larger square of pastry, sealing with a brush of water. Crimp the edges with a fork and make sure to add a hole in the top to allow the steam to escape. If you have leftover scraps of pastry, now is the time to use these as decoration. Brush with milk and sprinkle with poppy seeds before placing onto a tray. Place into the oven for 30 minutes or until golden brown. For the peppercorn sauce: Blend the cashews with 250ml of the stock until smooth and similar to single cream. Crush the peppercorns, either using a pestle and mortar or pop them in a zip lock bag and crush with the base of a frying pan. Melt the butter over medium heat, if you’re using the same pan that you cooked the duxelle in then deglaze the pan with just a touch of stock. Fry the onions until fragrant and translucent. Add in the garlic and peppercorns and fry for a minute or so until the garlic just starts to brown. Pour in the worcester sauce along with the rest of the stock, then turn the heat down low and stir in the cashew cream and season to taste. The cashew cream will thicken the longer it’s exposed to the heat so remove from the heat as soon as it’s warmed through. It’ll thicken slightly as it cools but should have a texture similar to single cream. Serve your wellington with the peppercorn sauce on the side. Notes * If you’ve picked up raw beetroot then scrub, trim off the ends, season generously, and toss in a little oil before wrapping in foil. Bake in an oven at 200 degrees (190 Fan/400 F) for about an hour depending on the size of your beetroot. When cooked, a knife should slip easy into the beetroot. ** I make my own breadcrumbs from old bits of Gluten Free bread – just blend a few old bits of bread in a food processor or blender. Breadcrumbs can be easily frozen until needed. ***Most shop bought pastry is vegan unless it states otherwise – but don’t forget to check your packaging to make sure! Allergy Notes; This dish is vegan, gluten free and soy free.

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