Cheap, Easy Bean Burgers

I thought I'd do another update before I move so that I'm not going weeks without posting anything. I made these bean burgers out of all the leftover things I have in the kitchen that I want finished before I go. They got the stamp of approval from my omni housemate so they must be pretty good.

This recipe made 14 decent sized burgers but it's really easy to halve it if you don't want to make so many.

• 2 Medium red onions, finely chopped
  
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 large carrot, grated
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp chilli powder
• 2 tins of kidney beans, drained and mashed
• 2 tbsp each of soy sauce, dijon mustard and tomato ketchup
• 150g oats
• Oil

1. Heat some oil in a frying pan and fry the onions and garlic until soft.
2. Add the carrot and spices and fry for another few minutes
3. Add this mixture to the mashed beans. Also add the soy sauce, mustard, ketchup and oats. Stir until properly combined. Add more oats if the mixture doesn't hold together.
4. Shape the mixture into patties and fry for a few minutes on each side until crisp and brown.
   

I had mine with some pasta, but they pretty much go with anything.



Hopefully I will get time to do a post in the next week or so. I will be back on track soon, I promise!

Dragon Bowl

I feel like I'm always apologising for lack of posts recently, sorry! I'm moving to a new flat in a few weeks, my brother has just moved to China for 18 months and I've had a few hospital appointments that kept me busy. I hope to be back on track in a few weeks and posting a lot more than I have been.

Anyway, I made a delicious Dragon Bowl last night and thought I would share it. I got the jist of it from 'The Garden of Vegan' cookbook, and the dressing is practically the same as the one in there, but the main recipe changed a lot.

Dragon Bowl

• 1 cup uncooked brown rice
• 2 cups spinach
• 1 large carrot, grated
• 1 large red onion, chopped
• 1 avocado/a handful of cashew nuts (toasted or untoasted)

1. Place the rice in a pan with enough water and cook
2. When the rice is done, add the spinach, carrot and red onion to the pan, cover and leave for 5 minutes or so. During this time I make the dressing.
   
   
   
   
3. Dish into bowls, top with avocado or cashew nuts (or both) and slather in dressing. NOM.

Sarah and Tanya's You-Must-Make-This-Dressing (adjusted for what I did)

• 1 tbsp chopped red onion (I just took a bit from what was going in the dragon bowl)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tbsp agave nectar (or maple syrup)
• 4 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 tsp dijon mustard
• 2 tsps fresh chives
• 2 tsp fresh dill
• 2 tsp fresh parsley
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 cup olive all

1. Put everything in a blender and whizz it up.

This was so much better than I imagined it would be. Kind of like a salad but kind of not...

Give it a go anyway. The original recipe said it serves 2, but I reckon you can get 3 out of this, it's strangely filling.

Hot Mushroom Cashew Rice

Frugal meal numero two.

Extremely quick and easy to make. I reccommend preparing all your chopping in advance as I got myself in a fluster trying to do it as I went along. There isn't much to prepare so it won't take much extra time.

Hot Mushroom Cashew Rice

• 2 tbsp oil
• 1 handful of cashew nuts
• A pinch of cumin seeds
• 1 small onion, chopped finely (I used a red onion for pretty colours :) )
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• Chilli flakes (I just used a pinch, but if you want real spice then use more)
• 1 handful fresh coriander, chopped
• 250g Mushrooms, sliced thinly
• 1/2 tin of chopped tomatoes
• 1/2 cup rice and 2/3 cup water
• Salt
  
• Soy yoghurt (optional)
• Lemon juice (optional)

1. Heat the oil in a large pan. When hot, add the cashew nuts and fry for 30-60 seconds until browned. Remove from the saucepan and set to one side.
2. With the remaining oil in the pan, add some cumin seeds. When they start to fizz it's time to add the onion. Fry for 3 minutes or so until soft and translucent.
3. Add the garlic, chilli flakes and salt. Fry for 30 seconds or so
4. Add the mushrooms, tinned tomatoes and fresh coriander. Heat for a minute or so
5. Add the rice and water and simmer for 15 minutes, until the rice is cooked through and the liquid is absorbed.
6. Serve with soy yoghurt and a splash of lemon juice.

I apologise now for the rubbish photos. I started eating it before I remembered and then just took quick ones while I balanced the bowl in my lap. Was good eatin'

Introducing....

Frugal cooking month (or two)!

I was a bit of wally and decided to buy an ipod Touch for the heck of it. It's all very good, I have some cool apps and something pretty I can wipe fingerprints off but it's also taken £285 out of my bank account. I'm moving to a new flat on the 30th of July so now probably wasn't the best time...so basically I'm going to cut back on what I'm spending from now on, and a large part of that is food.

Fear not, i've done it before and have had great fun with it. I'll not post any of my experimental disasters, only the good stuff.

I've started off with:

Mediterranian Pasta Bake

• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped into chunks
• 2 courgettes, chopped
• 1 small aubergine, chopped
• 1 red pepper, cut into chunks
• 4 large tomatoes, roughly chopped
• 1 tbsp of tomato puree, mixed into 200ml water
• 1 tsp garlic, minced
• 200g pasta
• salt and pepper

1. Put the olive oil, onion, courgettes, aubergine and red pepper into a roasting tin. Season with salt and pepper and bake for 30 minutes, stirring halfway.
2. Add the garlic, tomatoes and tomato puree stock and put back into the oven
3. While this is baking, boil the pasta for 10 minutes. Drain and add to the tin, season with salt and pepper and a wee bit of sugar.
   
4. Bake for a further 5 minutes, until the pasta is soft.

Simple right? Here's a few extra things you can do if you want to be a little bit fancy

• Add a splash of balsamic vinegar when you roast the vegetables
• Add chopped olives, they're ace!
• Add a bit of hot sauce or chilli if you fancy some spice
• Top with some vegan cheeze when you add the pasta for some extra flavour.