Posts Tagged With: food

Raw Power Balls

Posted on September 23, 2012 by leroy watson

Apricot Sesame and Tahini – Raw Power Balls

These are real super fuels, if you need power and energy, look no further. These Raw Power Balls are like duracell batteries for the body.

We love a good raw bar. Nutty or seedy. Carob or crunch. Nak’d and Nine Bar are just a couple on sale in the UK which are perfect when you fancy a treat but don’t want to eat a load of junk. Making them yourself however is a lot more fun and allows your creative side to get busy.

These little balls pack a serious punch, tasty and like rocket fuel, your energy levels and vitality will leap when you try them. We experiment with this recipe all the time and they are the perfect snack for a long day walking up steep hills (and then down again). I eat them at work and they keep me rocking all day. The measurements are rough here, they don’t need to be exact, handfuls are accurate enough. This is a simple, quick snack that serves as a tasty last minute treat.

Packed with nuts and date, you need to take it easy with this type of snack. They are very filling and packed full of sugar, hence the power. Too many and you’ll negate any benefit gained from all that raw goodness (by getting fat!).

They don’t need any preparation, but the dates and nuts will be better for a soak. They swell up and even taste better. They become softer and easier to blend. Soaking will also release many of the useful enzymes and nutrients that are otherwise closed off to the body. If you do decide to soak your bits, keep the juice, date juice is lovely and sweet and the nut juice is packed with nutrients. We add it to juices, stews or soups.

You may also like to make these into a truffle. Heat up some chocolate (in a bowl above a pan of steaming water) and roll you power balls in them until well coated. Place on a tray, covered with baking parchment and stick them in the fridge. Once the chocolate has hardened, they are ready to be enjoyed. That’s surely a treat worthy of a special birthday walk or even a dessert in its own right (just make the balls slightly bigger).

On a wander, seeing some flowers.

Here are a few of our favourite Power Ball flavour combos:

The Bits

Makes six decent power balls

Basic recipe:

1 handful of good dates (we like medjool, soaked for 2 hours), 1 handful of almonds (soaked overnight), 1/2 handful of cashews (soaked overnight)

Dark Chocolate Orange

2 heaped teas cacao powder, 3 teas orange blossom water or 2 teas orange zest, 1/2 handful of raisin (soaked)

Apricot, Sesame and Tahini

3 teas sesame seeds, 2 teas tahini, 1/2 handful of dried apricots (soaked and chopped)

Walnut Apple Pie

1 handful dried apples (soaked), 1 handful of walnuts (replace almonds), 1/2 teas cinnamon

Lemon Cardamom

2 teas lemon zest, 2 teas crushed cardamom seeds

Coco Choco Mint

1/2 handful of fresh coconut (blend first), 2 teas cacao powder, 2 teas finely chopped mint leaves

Vanilla Cashew

1 teas vanilla extract, use only cashew nuts

Very Berry

1 handful of dried cranberry, 1/2 handful of dried blueberry, 1/2 handful dried cherries, 1 teas vanilla extract

Seedy Wonder

1/2 handful sunflower seeds, 1/2 handful pumpkin seeds, 1/4 handful sesame seeds, 1/4 handful poppy seeds

Ginger Bread

1/2 teas all spice, 1/2 teas dried ginger, 1 handful of pecans (replace almonds)

Maple Fig and Lavender (CAUTION – very sweet!)

1 teas maple syrup, 1/2 teas dried lavender, 1/2 handful dried figs (soaked and chopped)

Peanut Butter

2 teas peanut butter, 1 handful of raw peanuts

The list goes on…………..like kids in a sweet shop……

Do It

The technique is always the same. Put it all into a food processor, blitz until smooth (or chunky, you decide). Get your hands in there and roll out a decent sized ball between your palms. That’s it!

Place in the fridge for a while to make them firmer and a little less sticky. They last for a long time in a sealed container in the fridge and can even be frozen and munched at a later date.

Chocolate Orange – Raw Power Balls

Serve

Preferably on top of a peak or in a forest somewhere far away from anywhere.

We Love Them!

Better than a biscuit and full of only raw goodness.

Foodie Fact

Dates give you a hefty dose of protein and fibre. They are also high in calories, essential when wandering around the countryside (or city for that matter). They are also a good source of Vitamin B and you’ll even get a splash of C thrown in as well.

Sun on flowers, taken on a walk in the woods

Categories: Desserts, Raw Food, Recipes, Snacks and Inbetweens | Tags: balls, dates, energy, flowers, food, hiking, nuts, photography, raw, snack, vegan | 4 Comments

Avocado, Coconut & Lime Cheesecake

Posted on September 18, 2012 by leroy watson

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This is just one of those recipes that comes along, out of the great blue yonder, that catches the eye and demands to be made. This floated by via a recommendation from Yolanda at the wonderful Byzantine Flowers blog. There are millions of recipes hovering around out there, but only a small minority grab me and really get my creative juices flowing. I like something a little bit different, something challenging and new. When I saw that this cheesecake had either kale, beetroot leaves or spinach in it, I knew I’d discovered a new dessert for me to play with. I’m strange like that!!

MERCI CHEF!

We are in veggie heaven at the moment after helping chef strim his garden. To be honest it was more of a wild field than a garden and due to our combined efforts in helping tame his jungle, chef gifted us a serious glut of amazing vegetables from his pristine veg garden (you can see where his priorities lie!).

Chef lives way up in the hills and has a fantastic garden that he and his Zimbabwean wife, Estele, take magnificent care of. Estele is a natural with the good earth and can grow things that just shouldn’t grow in these temperate parts. Chef is a proud frenchman and quite handy with a strimmer and mandolin. Thanks to them we are now the proud owners of literally bin bags full of incredibly sweet spinach, fiery mint, intense chives, vibrant cabbage and some of the most vivid carrots. You may be seeing more of these ingredients soon (maybe in desserts?!) I have never tasted spinach this sweet (see below), the seeds came from chefs sister in the Loire Valley in France. Ideal dessert spinach I’d say.

Raw desserts normally have a lot of components, but they are easy to get together and require a lot less messing around than normal baking (its not going to sink, burn, crumble, split……etc), it just sits there on the plate looking sexy. I’ve never used pumpkin seeds in a base before and I think they taste even better than nuts. Less fat, more flavour. Seed bases are a winner. The filling is rich and bright green (the spinach doing its thing) and you won’t believe that cream cheese wasn’t added. It’s so smooth and creamy.

Who needs flowers

In the bright, green future, we’ll all be eating these!

Here’s the recipe with a few Beach House additions. I stuck with handfuls, rather than exact measuring, here because its so straightforward and we love getting our mitts involved in cooking!!!

———

Avocado, Coconut & Lime Cheesecake (raw, gluten-free, vegan, yum!)

Avocado, Coconut & Lime Cheesecake

The Bits – 6 little cheesecakes or one large one

Crust

4 big handfuls pumpkin seeds

2 big handfuls dates (pitted and soaked in warm water for an hour)

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

2 teas tahini

Pinch sea salt

Filling

2 avocadoes (peeled and stoned)

3 big handfuls spinach leaves (washed)

2 handfuls dates (pitted and soaked n warm water an hour)

125ml (1/2 cup) water/ water from date soaking

3 tbs lime juice

2 tbs coconut flakes/ desiccated

1 tbs coconut oil (melted)

1 tbs maple syrup

1 tsp lime zest

Pinch of sea salt

The pumpkin seed bases

Do It

Using a food processor, pulse the pumpkin seeds, dates, vanilla, tahini and salt together until they start to clump into a ball. Place in the fridge for an hour to firm up.

On a chopping board, using your hands, press the ball down into a flattish sheet (approx 1.5cm thick). Then take a cake/cookie cutter and cut circles. Roll up the leftovers and make another smaller sheet, repeat this until most of the base mix is used (eat the rest. Yum!)

In the mix

Get all of your filling ingredients in your food processor/ blender and blitz up until nice and smooth. Place you cake/ cookie cutter over your bases and spoon in a good layer of mix, using the spoon, even out the mix and make sure it meets the edges (giving you a nice looking, clean edge). Gently pull off the cutter, your cheesecake should look splendid. If not, be more careful with the next one! Repeat until your mix runs out.

As I mentioned, the base can be rolled up into little balls and snacked on at a later date, so no waste here.

Please feel free to play with sizes and shapes. We used this cutter as it makes for a decent dessert size and was handy. The original recipe was more of a cupcake size.

Serve

They don’t last long, for many reasons, the avocado doesn’t help (so creamy!) Serve them immediately with thin slices of lime, bits of coconut or as we did, a sprinkle of coconut flakes and a few pumpkin seeds.

We Love It!

People look quite disgusted when we tell them we’ve been making desserts with spinach in. Hopefully they’ll read this post and have their minds changed, even better, they’ll actually try it for themselves. Vegan desserts are the future, next week, garlic beer! (joking)

Foodie Fact

Coconut oil is an excellent substitute to cooking oils and especially butter. It has been heralded as a ‘superfood’ and it certainly is. The benefits of coco oil are many, for example, it can even be rubbed into your hair and skin giving amazing nutrition to both. Coconut oil is high in saturated fats, but they are mainly lauric acid, which actually helps repair the heart and arteries. These fats also contain micro-biological qualities that fight bad bacteria and fungi in your guts, they also help you absorb many vitamins and minerals. I could go on here……..I’m sure you get the idea. Eat more cocos!

Categories: Desserts, Raw Food, Recipes, Vegan | Tags: cheesecake, coconut, dairy/ lactose free, dessert, food, gluten-free, lime, raw, recipe, vegan | 9 Comments

The Beach House Kitchen nominated for the ‘Beautiful Blogger’ and ‘Reader Appreciation’ Awards

Posted on September 10, 2012 by leroy watson

The Beautiful Blogger Award

Another couple of wonderful award nominations have landed at the Beach House doorstep recently. We love ’em!
I’ve finally managed to get around to acknowledging this kindness. We are putting both nominations onto one post due to the Beach House being full of busy at the moment. Not enough time to cook, never mind type!

Karin Wiberg nominated us for the Beautiful Blogger Award, which is a real pleasure because we love Karens writing, especially the regular haiku’s that spring from her blog. A wonderful place for creative writing and literary inspiration. We’ve been called many things in the past, but never beautiful! We are blushing up here in the hills.

Yoga with Maheswari nominated us for the Reader Appreciation Award. Yoga with Maheswari is a really wonderful blog for positive vibrations of the yogic kind, wisdom and much bendiness. One day we hope to attend a class and share a breath.

The rules of both awards basically the same:

Thank the blogger who nominated you with a link.
Copy and paste the award logo to your blog.
Share seven things about yourself
Nominate 5-10 bloggers for the award and notify them.

Seven things about ourselves:

1- Our front garden is being laid siege to by a particularly grotty group of feral street sheep. These sheep are not pets and stare down oncoming traffic. If they breech the dry stone walls, our tomatoes are in great peril.

2 – Our back garden is being laid siege to by a seemingly infinite number and vastly diverse range of ravenous slugs. They are eating anything that lays down roots for too long and we fear they may be planning future raids on the veg drawer in our fridge, such is their devious and slimy nature.

3 – Our first green chilli bloomed yesterday on the windowsill, the same day as our first tomato. A day when the sun actually shone for a while.

4 – Jane is Gemini, I am Taurus.

5 – Jane has recently taken courses in aromatherapy, mechanics, Spanish and woodworking at the local college. I am allergic to the classroom environment.

6 – The Beach House may sound like an exotic location bathed in sunshine and bikinis, well, not quite. We have had the worst summer in North Wales for the past 100 years and the Beach House may be more aptly named the House of the Rising Damp.

7 – Jane is a keen breeder of spider plants, we currently have at least one in each room and the ‘Mother’ is threatening to take over the front room (remember the film ‘Little Shop of Horrors’!)

Here are our nominations for ‘Beautiful Bloggers’ and what a gorgeous bunch they are. We also feel that they deserve the ‘Reader Appreciation Award’, so we bestow that accolade on the below blogs also. This may be bending the rules slightly, but richly deserved non-the-less.

I just wish I had the time to give them all a nice write-up, needless to say, they are all equally amazing places you should embrace, visit and enrich:

1 – Super Natural Life Enthusiast

2 – Byzantine Flowers

3 – Free Flow Foodie

4 – Moel Faban Supper Club

5 – Mother Nature Loves You

6 – Mumtopia

7 – The Bear and the Blackberry

8 – Kolpona Cuisine

9 – Travel Butterfly

10 – Veggie Nook

Big love and thanks to all Beach House readers, we will be posting more soon (things have been a little hectic of late).

Peace and Happiness,

Lee and JaneX

Categories: Awards/ Recognition, Blogs, Inspiration | Tags: awards, beautiful blogger award, blog, blogging, community, food, nominations, reader appreciation award, recognition | 9 Comments

Trio of Simple Organic Summer Salads

Posted on August 27, 2012 by leroy watson

Aloe Vera Plant

Only naked and fresh veggies here! Food for the sun. When the produce is this good, you don’t want to mess with it too much. The flavours of these veggies are amazing, we are so privileged to live in an area with some serious vegetable growing heroes living close by.

We are getting veg from two local farms over the hill and have recently been picking up a veg box from another farm. We are suddenly inundated with incredible produce and can think of no better way of eating it than raw. Bring on the salads!

Local food is fresher and contains more nutrients due to this, we also like to support these amazing folk who are dedicated to the land. These salads are simple and contain only a few ingredients. Its what you’ll find us eating most days. Adding less ingredients to food makes the nutrients in food easier for the body to digest and use.

Our garden has taken a beating recently with the ‘summer’ storms, the wind is raging out there as I type these words. Leaves whizz by at right angles and the rocket is blown flat to the ground. The slugs have also had a field day out there, I can only hope they enjoyed what they ate. We have been harvesting some lovely red potatoes and a little rainbow chard, but really, the garden had been a steep learning curve this year. Next year, we are full of hope and fresh ideas to fortify our garden from these vicious Welsh elements. Having spoken to local farmers, it has been the worst growing season for 20 years, so a meagre crop is understandable. So we need some help!

Doing my best for the leeks

I’ve been working like a trooper of late, no time to cook food at the BHK. I needed plenty of shiny food and nutrition to keep me going and Jane has stepped in and has been making the most fantastic raw food delights. These salads, that we ate last night for dinner, were for me the pick of the bunch. Simple and tasty with a wonderful dressing.

I have a habit of throwing things together and letting a little bit of experience and my taste buds sort out the rest, Jane is brilliant at following recipes and measurements. This is important with some parts of cookery, namely baking and it would appear dressings. This dressing was perfectly balanced, with the warm edge of mustard and a good amount of honeyed sweetness.

Thinly sliced veggies

Thinly Sliced Veggies

Some may call this a ‘carpaccio’, but really it’s just a stunning way to serve veggies as a salad. Get your nicest plate out of the cupboard, some amazing veggies and slice thinly and arrange. Viola!

The Bits

We used our one each of our local organic farms courgette, beetroot, broccoli and a organic yellow pepper. Any combination of hard vegetables will do, if you are conscious of presentation, maybe mix up the colours a little.

Tomato and Basil Heaven

Tomato and Basil Heaven

For this you must have the finest tomatoes available. These red/green tomatoes came with our veggie box and completely blew us away. They grow in poly tunnels and god knows what else! They are insanely tasty and needed just a few torn basil leaves which are blooming on the windowsill and a splash of olive oil.

The Bits

2 handfuls of amazing tomatoes, meagre handful of torn basil leaves, a splash of great olive oil and sea salt and pepper if you must.

Carrots and Almonds

Carrots and Almonds

The sweetness of these carrots and almonds goes perfectly with the sweet mustard dressing.

The Bits

3 wonderful large carrots (scrubbed, not peeled), 1/3 head of broccoli (broken into little pieces, use the stalk and leaves), 1 handful of raw almonds, thinly sliced red onion and yellow pepper.

Sweet Mustard Dressing

Shake all ingredients together in an old jam jar, they are also handy to keep your dressing in afterwards.

The Bits

1 teas English Mustard, 2 teaspoons clear honey, 1 tbs lemon juice, 4 tablespoons rapeseed oil, a sprinkle of sea salt and pepper.

There is so little work in getting these together, we hardly need a ‘Do It’ section. More time to soak up some rays with your loved ones.

Serve

All veggies are best served at just under room temp, we used the dressing on the Carrot and Almonds and Thinly Sliced Veggies, the tomatoes needed no additions nonsense.

We Love It!

Magic veggies deserve to be eaten in all their glory i.e. naked and fresh!

Foodie Fact

Why buy organic/ local? Food loses nutrition when shipped and kept, so the more local fresh food you consume the better for you and your community in general. Organic veggies actually contain no more nutrients that conventionally grown, but they are clean and contain no pesticides (or poisons). Organic practices enrich the earth and by not using chemicals and GM techniques, ensure the fertility of the earth for future generations. Also, people who grow organically are normally lovely people to visit for tea!

Categories: Organic, Recipes, Salads, Vegan | Tags: dressing, food, healthy, local, organic, raw, salads, vegan, vegetables, vegetarian, why | 4 Comments

Salad Shirazi

Posted on August 20, 2012 by leroy watson

Farm fresh veggies from our friends at Trigonos, bring on the salads!

Salad Shirazi is one of my favourite Persian salads and very easy to get together and prepare. This salad seems to be ubiquitous from Delhi to Tangiers, hard vegetables chopped up small with onion and some lemon juice, herbs if you are lucky or decadent or both.

We used some lovely veggies from the farm and added a little courgette because it is that time of year. The mint came from the herb garden and our little taste of Persia was complete.

This salad adds the ideal fresh crunch to rich cuisine and went perfectly with our Persian Aubergine Stew, but is perfect as a salad in its own right. The fresher the produce, the better the salad.

The Bits
3 medium sized cucumbers, 3 small firm tomatoes, 1 courgette, 2 small sweet onions, 3 tablespoons good olive oil, juice of 1 lemon or lime, 1 handful of fresh mint (chopped, dried mint will do), sea salt and cracked pepper to taste

Do It

Cut tomatoes, cucumbers, courgette and onion into small cube-ish pieces and place them in a salad bowl and gently mix. Add salt, pepper, mint, olive oil and lemon juice, mix well.

Salad Shirazi

Serve

Slightly chilled with smiles.

We Love It!

CRUNCH!

Foodie Fact

Salad is good for you.

Categories: Raw Food, Recipes, Salads, Vegan | Tags: cucumber, food, iranian, mint, persian, recipe, salad, shirazi, tomato, vegan, vegetarian | 2 Comments

Khoresh Bademjan – Persian Aubergine Stew

Posted on August 20, 2012 by leroy watson

Persian (or Iranian) food is a favourite of mine, but something I haven’t cooked for a long time. It is similar to Indian food and the food of other areas in the Middle East; namely Turkey, Iraq and Pakistan. Some would say that these countries food cultures are similar to Persian food, after all, they were there first! Ancient Persia, Darius the Great and all, have always sparked my imagination. I hope one day to visit (soon).

THE BEAUTY OF PERSIAN CUISINE

Persian food is beautifully spiced and rich. It’s roots are of course ancient and the oldest Iranian cookbook was written in 927 and was called ‘Kār-nāmeh dar bāb-e tabbākhī va sanat-e ān’ or the “Manual on cooking and its craft”. It offers an exhaustive insight into the complexity and importance of Persian food to the people and the culture. This amazing food tradition has been passed down through the generations, normally from mother to daughter, meaning that the dishes served in Tehran today will not have varied greatly from the time of the ‘Kar-nameh’. This all means that Persians take there food very seriously, authenticity is a must.

Persian food is captivating, I love the emphasis on fresh produce, in London I have seen Iranian housewives shopping down at the markets and they only accept the very freshest of ingredients (giving the stall holders feedback if things aren’t up to scratch!) Persian cuisine uses large amounts of fresh herbs, sometimes it seems they replace the use of vegetables!

A LITTLE HISTORY…….

Persian food has influenced the world of cooking, much more than we know, giving us delights such as ice cream and kebab. Dare I say it, many of North Indian dishes are heavily derived from Persian cuisine. In Mughal times especially, Persian cooks were in high demand in the courts of the ruling caste. These trends filter down into the melting pot of India’s culinary traditions.

The whole vast area of the Middle East has been linked throughout history; cultures mingling and merging throughout the centuries. Iran is a very fertile land with a wonderful array of produce; pistachios, spices, dried limes, fruits, pomegranate, green herbs, the flavours of rose and saffron, all spring to mind and the colours alone get my imagination flowing.

TEHRAN VIA LONDON

My first taste of Persia came in a London backstreet, a place where farsi filled the air and a smiling man made fresh flat breads in a stone oven. The food was so fresh and the flavours striking. I started to experiment with Iranian cooking and found a whole new range of flavours and ingredients to play with. Dried limes for example are unique revelation!

Persian food is very traditional and each dish has set rules to follow, not something I am completely comfortable with, but the results are generally outstanding. My best memories of these Iranian days were the rice (polo) cake that I made. The sort of dish that is so easy and looks very unique, the rice takes the shape of the the pan and forms a nice golden crust. You cut into it like a cake! Served with a delicious Ghormeh Sabzi (Veg and Kidney Bean Stew – Iran’s National Dish) and you have something quite special to enjoy.

Although Persian main dishes revolve around meat and rice, I have found the creative combining of ingredients can easily be related to veggie foods. There are also many vegan stews, salads etc that are popular in Iran, like this Khoresh Bademjan or Aubergine Stew, which traditionally would have a lump of meat in it.

AUBERGINE – ‘THE POTATO OF IRAN’

Aubergine (Egg plant to some) is a staple in Iran and is even known as the ‘potato of Iran’. I love making stews, the gentle simmering nature, the way they fill the house with the homely smell of food. The use of cinnamon here adds such a warming flavour to the dish and the lentils keep nice and firm, giving the stew a very hearty feel.

I know how passionate Iranians are about their food, so I felt it right to seek advice for this recipe and stumbled upon a top Iranian food blogger, Azita at Turmeric and Saffron. Azita’s recipes are traditional and made with love and care, many handed down from her mother. This to me is real heart and soul food, cooked with love and care and a cornerstone of family life and culture all over the world. It is surprising how many of our memories of loved ones revolve around food (or maybe that’s just me!) I have changed the recipe slightly, but kept the authentic flavours in tact.

Iran is such a vast and fascinating land, the dishes served will vary greatly in different regions, I’ll just have to go for a visit and try them all myself! Hopefully you’ll see some holiday snaps on the B.H.K soon. It’s great to be back in the Iranian cooking flow and I hope to be making much more Iranian food.

Happy CookingX

This makes a big pot full, good enough for four hungry mouths.

The Bits

3 large aubergines (peeled, sliced into large chunks and salted with 2 tablespoons of salt)

2 courgettes (chopped into large chunks)

4 medium tomatoes (peeled and chopped)

1 large onion (diced)

4 cloves of garlic (crushed and chopped)

3/4 cup yellow split peas (rinsed)

3 tablespoons sunflower oil for frying onions etc

1/2 cup (60ml) oil for frying aubergines

3 tbs tomato puree

3-4 cups of water

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 1/2 teaspoon turmeric

sea salt and cracked pepper (to taste)

1 lime or to taste (juice) or 2-3 tablespoons sour grapes (ghooreh).

Do It

This is Persian food, meaning a very particular way of preparing the dish. Well worth the effort!

Leave your aubergines for 30 minutes with salt rubbed into them. Then place the salted aubergines in a large container filled with water; put a heavy bowl or a heavy lid on top of the eggplants to hold them down for ten minutes, this will get rid of the bitterness. Remove aubergines from container and pat dry completely before frying. (You can skip this step if you’re pushed for time).

Fry the aubergines in 1/2 cup (60ml) of hot oil until brown on both sides, remove and then add the courgette and fry until golden. Place all on a plate lined with thick kitchen paper to drain some of the excess oil.

Using a knife, mark each tomato with a shallow X at the top, place them in a pot of boiling water for five minutes before pulling off the skin, then chop or slice them thinly or just chop the tomatoes skins on (for the time deprived).

In a large saucepan, heat the oil, add chopped onions, saute until translucent then add the garlic, stir well. Sprinkle in the turmeric, salt and pepper and cinnamon. Mix thoroughly. Cook until onions begin to caramelise.

Add dry split peas, fry for five minutes, this will keep the peas more firm in the khoresh. Then add chopped tomatoes, tomato puree and three cups of water to cover all the ingredients. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, cover and cook for an 35 mins on medium heat.

Add the fried aubergine and courgette to the mixture, adjust the seasoning and add more water if needed.

Cook for another 15 minutes, until all is nice and tender. Add the lime juice or two tablespoons of sour grapes (ghooreh). Let it sit for 10 minutes off the heat, with the lid on. This allows the stew to cool a little, flavours can be impaired by really hot food.

Serve

With steaming rice, soya yoghurt (or whipped silken tofu) and a fresh salad shirazi. This dish may also be served with sour grapes (ghooreh), which you can buy in many world food stores.

We Love It!

Jane and I can sit at our table in the Beach House, up in the clouds, and dream of exotic far off lands and ancient cultures…to the blue mosque of Isfahan and back before dessert…..traveling the world one plate at a time. This stew is that good!

Foodie Fact

The aubergine (or brinjal or eggplant…) is native to India, this fruit comes in all shapes and sizes and is now grown around the world. It is very low in calories and contains much soluble fibre. The skin of aubergine is high in anti-oxidants and it is a good food to help high blood cholesterol and aids metabolism.

Categories: Uncategorized | Tags: aubergine, cinnamon, eggplant, food, healthy, iranian, persian, recipes, stew, tomato, vegan, vegetarian | 8 Comments

Beetroot Leaf Soup

Posted on August 11, 2012 by leroy watson

The Beet Leaves

With beetroots like these who needs spinach?! Or something like that anyway. With a regular supply of these beauties almost year-round you can expect alot more beetroot dishes on the BHK! Really though, it is my favourite veg. I know that is a bold statement for a veggie lover. The ‘root is such a magnificent purple thing, but the leaves are just as good and this soup recipe puts them to good use. We normally chop them up and put them into salads, so this is a nice change.

Now, the vast majority of Beach House readers are from over the pond, that is to say the USA. We love you guys and must translate a little here, you may know these leaves as beet greens and beetroots are of course beets. I like the name beets and beet leaf has a much better ring than beetroot leaf, but I must stay true my small island roots.

The beetroots we are buying at the moment from the farm all come with at least five crisp leaves and beautiful crimson roots. You can really see the similarity with chard, especially swiss chard, they are all one big happy family. As with most plants, the leaves contain more nutrients than the roots, one more reason to never, ever throw them away (I hear of people doing this). What a waste!

This is a basic soup recipe and the beetroot leaves can be substituted for beetroots themselves, or most other veg. This is a classic soup base that allows you to use up any veggies that you have hanging around.

As with most soups, its better the day after. The flavours really come together and the piquant tomato flavour really comes through with the balsamic adding a lovely sweetness.

I decided on oregano here, because it is blooming at the minute in the herb garden. You may prefer to use thyme or even rosemary would go nicely.

We made a big vat of soup here, feel free to half the quantities for a more modest pan full.

Makes one big pan full (eight bowls)

The Bits

1 tbs veg oil

2 sticks celery (chopped)

1 carrot (chopped)

4 cloves garlic (minced)

1 big white onion (chopped)

2 teas ground cumin

Leaves of 12 beetroots (well washed and roughly chopped)

2 tbs balsamic vinegar

2 stems of fresh oregano (leaves only, 2 teas dried oregano otherwise)

1.5ltr veg stock

5 ripe tomatoes (roughly chopped)

2 tbs organic tom puree

sea salt and cracked black pepper

Do It

Heat veg oil on medium in a suitably large pan, add onions and soften for a couple of minutes, add celery and carrot and continue cooking and stirring for a couple more minutes. Then add cumin, garlic and balsamic, allow the vinegar to evaporate (getting rid of most of the acidity) then add you beetroot leaves and season with salt and pepper, stir in well.

Beet leaves wilting

Cook for a few minutes and when the leaves are wilting add the tomatoes, the oregano leaves and the puree, stir in and heat through, then add your stock and bring it all to the boil. Lower heat and cover, cook for 20 minutes, until all veg is tender. Then blend together using a hand blender or in batches in a food processor. The soup should be smooth, no lumps, check seasoning.

Blitz it up!

Serve

In warm bowls, topped with some oregano leaves and fresh cracked black pepper.

Beetroot Leaf Soup

We Love It!

A great summer warmer (needed in these climes), we love the combination of balsamic and beetroot, sweet and tangy coming together nicely with the deep and hearty tomatoes. A lively, zingy soup, jam packed full of flavour and goodness.

Having a good slurp. YUM!

Foodie Facts

Beetroot leaves are full of fibre, protien and vitamin C, which we need constant supplies of because our bodies cannot store it. One cup of beetroot leaves gives you 60% of your daily dose of C. The best news is the vitamin A content, one cup contains 220% of your daily intake. Cor! They also contain alot of calcium, most people think that calcium comes from cows, but there are so many other ways of getting your calcium.

Categories: Recipes, Soups, Vegan | Tags: balsamic, beet, beetroot, food, greens, healthy, leaves, oregano, recipe, soup, vegan, vegetarian | 38 Comments

Vegan Chocolate and Almond Ice Cream

Posted on August 7, 2012 by leroy watson

One big pile of Vegan Chocolate Nut Ice Cream

The Beach House Kitchen is definitely rustic. Not in the manufactured ‘rustic’ sense of the word, I mean we have sheep invading our front garden and no coffee shop within a half hour drive. The wind howls and we regularly have horses looking into our bathroom window (which can be quite a shock when you’re getting out of the shower!). We live out here and it’s beautiful!

I try and convey this country feel in our pictures, I just don’t have the gadgets (and time) to make our food look so polished. I am in awe of many blogs that manage to make any dish look like food of the Gods. When it’s so grey outside, taking photographs of food just doesn’t do the dish justice. One blog who constantly dazzles with its photographs and gorgeous food is 84th&3rd. This recipe is inspired by their Vegan Chocolate Ice Cream recipe. This is one of those food blogs that is so delicious and sexy, you just want to try out all of the recipes.

This is an amazing recipe that will blow anybody away. Vegan or otherwise. Even the hardest of hardcore Ben and Jerry lovers will be impressed with this ice cream. It is a wonder, with purely natural and healthy ingredients. Good fats and sugars ahoy!

The Beach House additions to this recipe were mainly nutty. Almonds to be exact, although pecan and cashews would be lovely also. We used soaked almonds here, the soaking brings out the nutrients and also makes them nice and plump and soft, ready for blending. Soak your nuts! It helps.

Cacao powder is a great investment, a little costly, but a small spoonful goes a long way. It is surprisingly chocolaty and opens a doorway into much sweet experimentation. Contrary to popular misconception, vegan ice cream can be rich and we’ve turned to the old favourite, avocado, to give things that creamy richness that diary normally would.

Cacao Beans

Cacao or Cocoa?

Cacao is not cocoa, cocoa is not cacao. They are very similar in every way, which can be confusing, but one way they differ greatly is nutritionally. Cacao is raw, meaning not heated to an extent that fragile enzymes and nutrients are destroyed, cocoa is heated (although still very tasty). Raw chocolate is brilliant for the body (in moderation) and big slab of Cadbury’s just ain’t so great.

Try to buy organic with your cacao, they use a load of pesticides and bad things in cacao growing. There’s no point going healthy and opting for a chemical cocktail, it will probably be the matter of a few pennies more.

Bananas (not ripe yet)

Bananas

The bananas here, and in general, should be getting towards brown. Some brown spots and a nice soft banana is important. They will be alot sweeter and better for you (I won’t bore you with the science of it this time, see the ‘Foodie Fact’ for that). Most places sell bananas way to early, meaning we eat them far too early. We try and buy bananas a week in advance so they are nicely ripened when we get around to them. Bananas are an essential part of any healthy foodies diet. They are so packed with sugar and can add super sweetness to all kinds of things. No added sugar required when a banana is in town. It is a nice idea to keep some bananas (and fruit in general) chopped and ready in the freezer. It keeps them fresh and is perfect for making smoothies etc.

This recipe is so easy to prepare, no need for an ice cream blender (which is surely a dust trap/ counter clutterer waiting to happen). It just needs a little stirring and a freezer and you have a gorgeous, very chocolaty ice cream.

You may like to add even more chocolate to this recipe, just bash up a bar of your favourite dark chocolate or add cacao nibs for the healthier touch. This adds some nice crunchy bits, as does the almonds. If you like a smoother ice cream, just blend for longer.

Jane sneaks in

The Bits

1 cup soaked almonds (overnight), 1 ripe avocado, 2 large frozen bananas (chopped up), 1/4 cup cacao powder, pinch good sea salt (we use halen mon tahitian vanilla sea salt), 1 tsp maple syrup/ honey, 3 tbsp bashed up dark chocolate or cacao nibs (for serious chocolate fiends only)

Do It

Blend up the almonds first for a minute then add your banana, avocado and salt using a food processor until smooth. Chop up the rest of the almonds into rough looking pieces and stir them through with cacao powder until well combined. Add maple syrup/ honey. Stir through chocolate chunks/ cacao chips if using.

Pour into an old ice cream container, or something of those dimensions. Stir every 30 minutes or so, breaking up frozen bits and mixing until smooth. Do this approximately four times if you can. You may also like to dust off and put into use your ice cream maker here.

Set out for 15 or 20 minutes to soften slightly before using, it is easier to scoop this way. Sharing is optional.

Serve

We had ours with blueberries and chopped banana, with a little more chopped almonds on top.

We Love It!

The texture of this ice cream is so rich and has a lovely smooth nuttiness. We cannot believe how healthy and delicious it is, we will be making more of this. Alot more.

Foodie Fact

When bananas ripen proto-pectin is converted into digestible, soluble pectin and starch is also converted into sugars of which 20% is glucose, 14% is fructose and the remaining 66% is sucrose.

Bananas give off a large amount of ethylene, which helps fruits ripen. If you have any fruits that need ripening, pop them in a bowl with the bananas and wait a day. They use this ethylene to turn green oranges orange. Many people don’t like the look of a green orange, even though they are ripe. We do funny things with our food!

Bananas also contain our happy friend trytophan, that converts to serotonin and makes us shine. See our ‘Mood Foods….’ post for more info on happy veggie foods.

Categories: Desserts, Recipes, Summer, Vegan | Tags: almond, banana, cacao, chocolate, cocoa, dessert, food, healthy, ice cream, recipe, vegan | 17 Comments

Stuffed Courgette with Hazelnut and Peach

Posted on August 4, 2012 by leroy watson

The Bits

Cooking is still a bit weird here after all of our raw escapades. We are still eating mainly raw, with a few exceptions, when the produce and mood take us in a hotter direction. I need to keep my hand in because of the work that I do.

I’ve always loved a stuffed veg, Mum used to make stuffed peppers back in the dark ages on the early 90’s. Mum’s always been a bit of a maverick. I remember the first time she made cheesecake, in the mid 80’s with cheddar cheese! The family all came around to try this new found food. We’ve come a long way since then.

This is a dish along the lines of the millions of other ‘stuffed’ dishes on cyber space, the only difference being, this is ours and its only semi-stuffed. Recipes that spring to mind via what you have at hand are always my favourite. Spur of the moment cooking, making the best of what you have. This recipe goes against all of the food combining advice that we have been following recently, but we felt like living dangerously!

We are lucky to have brilliant courgettes at the moment from the farm and some sweet ripe peaches; combine that with a nut cabinet that never runs dry, mint growing wild like a madman in our garden and the ever-present cauliflower and you have the makings of a feast.

I decided to add the cauliflower to the cous cous, I love the subtle flavour that cauliflower gives off when steamed/ boiled. It added great flavour to the cous cous.

Being very much an amateur cook, I make many mistakes, or as I call them, great opportunities to learn. Cooking with an electric hob can be a real drag, but that is what we have. I much prefer gas stoves, mainly for controlling the heat by eye. When cooking the cous cous and cauliflower here, I forgot that the hob was still on very low and went off to do other things (drink tea), leaving the poor cous cous to overcook. Oh well, this is ‘real’ cooking and it still tasted good, if a little soft and congealed.

The French beans here are optional and can be substituted with anything else green and is season. Peas, spinach, broad beans etc would be grand.

We are an energy conscious household at the Beach House and don’t like turning on the oven unless very much necessary, namely, when we have lovely guests. Otherwise, it’s all hob. These courgettes could be blanched off in boiling water then thrown in a hot oven for a while, that would be nice. We have opted for the simpler and more efficient method of re-using your frying pan.

This is an ideal seasonal summer lunch which oozes flavour. All that sweetness and crunch with the bitterness of the olives. You could even cook the courgettes on the barbecue if you fancy!

Peaches and Raisins

The Bits

2 cup wholemeal cous cous (or brown rice, quinoa etc), 1/2 cauliflower (chopped finely), 1tbsp good veg stock, 1 large onion (chopped), 10 french beans (topped and tailed and chopped), 1 teas carraway seeds, 2 cloves garlic (minced/ finely chopped), 1/2 cup olives (sliced, we like the green ones), 1 ripe peach (finely chopped), 3 tbsp hazelnuts, 2 tbsp raisins (chopped), 2 tbsp mint (chopped), 1 tsp parsley (chopped), sea salt and cracked black pepper, 1 tbsp good oil, 4 courgettes (halved lengthways)

Chopped Cauliflower

Do It

Boil some water in a saucepan (follow quantities written on your cous cous packet, you will need a little less due to the water given off by the cauliflower) and stir in your stock, add your finely chopped cauliflower and cous cous, stir a little then tightly cover and leave off the heat to cook for 20 minutes. Fluff cous cous with a fork and re-cover until needed. If more water is needed, add now.

Heat your frying pan, add your hazelnuts and warm them through, lightly roasting them. Allow to cool, chop up into chunks.

Then heat some oil in the pan, gently soften your onions for 5 minutes, until slightly golden; add carraway seeds and french beans. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring regularly, then add your mashed garlic, cook for 5 minutes more.

Gently soften your onions

Now add your mint, parsley and chopped hazelnut, stir for a minute to heat through, then add your cous cous and cauliflower, raisins, olives and peaches, with plenty of cracked pepper and some sea salt. Combine well. Be gentle with the cous cous here, you don’t want a mush! Cover pan and keep warm.

In another large frying pan, heat some oil and on a low/med heat, fry your courgettes face down. Allow them to colour for a few minutes then flip over, repeat this twice and the they should be cooked. You don’t want to overcook the courgette, it should still have a little crunch in the middle.

Stuffed Courgette with Hazelnuts and Peach

Serve

Place two courgettes on a plate, leave a little space inbetween, spoon over your filling. Pile it nice and high, finish with some of your chopped herbs.

We Love It!

This is a great dish, ideal for a light summer dinner. The combination of flavours and textures here is something that delights the mouth (even with overcooked cous cous)!

Stuffed Courgette with Hazelnut and Peach

Foodie Fact

Cous cous is small balls of semolina flour, whole wheat cous cous is made with wholewheat flour and has higher nutritional properties. Wholewheat cous cous contains higher fibre and iron than the normal stuff, 1 cup gives you a third of your daily fibre requirement.

Categories: Lunch, Recipes, Summer, Vegan | Tags: cooking, courgette, food, hazelnut, healthy eating, peach, recipe, stuffed, summer, vegan, vegetarian | 11 Comments

Beach House Garden – Summer Update

Posted on August 2, 2012 by leroy watson

The Beach House Garden

Well there has been little summer to speak of really. The clouds parted today, so I went outside and took a few pictures, but really this summer has been very strange. Even the old timers down the farm say they cannot fathom what is going on. The soil should be warm and it is cold and damp, meaning the plants don’t know what to do.

White Rose

Our lonesome Kori Squash and Rainbow Kale

We have had a few minor successes, mainly down to raiding our neighbours horse field for massive piles of poo. It’s like magic dust. One sprinkle and the plants shoot up. The potatoes love this environment and sprang up, they are just starting to flower and we may have a look soon to see if we have any tasty little tubers.

The Potato Patch

Rampant Foxglove

After an epic battle with slugs and snails, we have managed to get one squash plant through the madness. We have been trying all sorts, beer traps, gravel and jagged rocks, I have been on many stealth nighttime missions to snatch them off our precious green friends. Sometimes it felt like a losing battle, but now things are established and semi-blooming, all these efforts seem worthwile. The squash is growing nicely and we hope to have our first Welsh kori squash soon. Beetroots, rainbow kale, runner beans and hannibal leeks are all holding in there.

The Beetroot Jungle

Flowering Succulents

We have also diversified in the herb garden, with some different types of thyme and our new favourite, ginger mint. A wonderful thing that has its own bed to go wild in. We have been loving wandering out to the herb garden and cutting our own fresh herbs. A real cooks treat (even in the howling gales).
We think it will be a late summer (we hope!) and in late September, we will be cooking with our first batch of Beach House Veg. We will keep you posted.

Beauty Beets

Kori Squash and Runner Beans

Tomato plants (hiding in the green cupboard)

Categories: Garden, Healthy Living, Organic | Tags: flowers, food, garden, gardening, nature, organic, photography, plants, summer, sustainable living, vegetables, vegetarian | 20 Comments

Mood Foods – Top Nine Happiest Plant-Based Foods

Posted on July 31, 2012 by leroy watson

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Moods. What can we do? Sometimes you’re up and then for no reason whatsoever, your down. Can food help? Most people realise that moods affect what we eat, but does it work the other way. Do foods effect our moods?

There has been much research into the matter which has shown a link between moods and the food we eat. A recent survey has shown that a large proportion (over 80%) of people felt better when they changed their diet. Eating healthier makes us feel better inside and out.

From what we can tell this is down to serotonin, the happy chemical, produced in our brains. Serotonin cannot be produced without tryptophan (an amino acid), so its a good idea to eat foods high in trypophan to make us happy. Simple enough!? Low serotonin levels are blamed for anxiety, cravings, mood disorders and IBS. The concept of eating foods high in trypophan is similar to that of taking an anti-depressant like prozac. Holistic anti-depressants.

Smile away!!

Moods cannot be gotten rid of, but can be brought under some kind of control. The extremity of the ups and downs can be lowered, minimised, meaning we feel more centred and grounded in a good place. Evidence suggests that eating and living well can be essential in maintaining not just our physical, but also our mental health. We certainly feel the benefits!

Here are some plant-based foods that can help:

Mung Beans

Top Ten Good Mood

1) Mung beans

2) Asparagus

3) Sunflower seeds

4) Pineapple

5) Tofu

6) Spinach

7) Bananas

8) Nuts

9) oats

Taken from the e-book The Serotonin Secret, Dr Caroline Longmore

Foods high in fibre, whole grains and protein can also help boost moods. Food with a low glycemic index, like oats for example, will help the brain absorb all of these happy amino acids. Tryptophan absorption is boosted by carbohydrates.

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These foods should be combined with lots of clean water and fresh fruit and vegetables. Eating regularly and not skipping meals also boosts our mental health. As ever, a balanced diet is always the best way forward, lots of fresh veg and fruit, with wholegrains, plenty of green leafy veg and some sweetness! Treats are essential!!

Foods that have the opposite effect are sometimes called ‘Stressors’, the main culprits are listed below:

Food ‘Stressors’

Sugar
Caffeine
Alcohol
Chocolate
Wheat-containing foods
Additives
Dairy
Saturated Fats

Provided by the food and mood project, backed by the mental health charity Mind.

A diet heavy in the ‘stressors’ can lead to all sorts of problems including anxiety, insomnia, fatigue, panic attacks, lack of concentration and unfortunately, many more…

Roast Carrot & Ginger Hummus – Healthy, happy, get dippin’!

Sugar has a powerful effect on our sense of well being, if we eat too much, we can get into a ‘sugar roller coaster’, which is never nice. Our blood sugar levels are all over the place and we feel drained and fatigued when the sugar is lessening and high as a kite when its peaking.

If you do over indulge, one of the worst things that you can do is feel guilty about it. Feel great about it! You have just treated yourself and you deserve it. Move on and make efforts to eat better and feel better, step-by-step, slowly slowly. It’s a long road without any fixed destination.

Apparently we all have ‘triggers’, foods that can take us up and down. This depends on you, have a little experiment. If you are feeling a bit sluggish and down, think about what you have eaten that day or the night before. Trends will inevitably form.

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We found it really helpful to take the plunge and go for a full raw diet. Our bodies became sensitive to what we ate and we learned alot about what makes us feel good and otherwise. You don’t have to go this far of course, just cut out certain foods for a period of time and see how you feel.

Eating well is one thing, but thinking well is another level completely. Think positively, practice thinking only positive thoughts for 5 minutes at a time and build on that. You will eventually develop a brilliant habit of a positive world outlook. This is a helpful tool. Add that to your new found passion for mung beans and you’ll be shining away for all to see!

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For more information on mood foods, check out the ‘Mind’ site. There is information here for Brits on how to contact dietitians and nutritionists to get started on a new diet plan and lifestyle. You could also check out the website food for the brain.

Take it easy, have a handful of sunflower seeds and shine onX

Categories: Healing foods, Healthy Eating, Healthy Living, Nutrition | Tags: balanced, food, happy, health, healthy eating, life, mental, mood foods, top ten, vegetarian | 16 Comments

Watermelon and Tofu Kebabs

Posted on July 24, 2012 by leroy watson

The Bits

We don’t care if the weather is damn awful, we are having our summer! These kebabs are pure sun food, to be eaten when it’s too hot to even consider a barbecue and all you want to do is have a massive chill (preferably in a hammock). Serving suggestion – on a tropical beach. They are easy on the eye, served cool and require very little effort.

Summer will not be reaching Wales this year, so we are making our own, using kebabs. When you need to get a big fire on in mid July, you know you’re in trouble. British people are famous for talking about the weather, well it’s no wonder, it’s a freak.

Watermelons are a fruit custom designed for summertime. They are so thirst quenching, I like then best just at it comes and straight out of the fridge. When living in Murcia,(+40oC in summer) Spain I used to use them as ice cubes (just cut into cubes and stick in the freezer). We decided to add kiwi here and some amazing cucumber from the farm; purely for the colour contrast, we demanded sexy kebabs. The not-quite-ripe kiwi also adds a nice fruity bitterness.

We marinated the tofu for a few hours in a classic style summer dressing, all basil and mint from the garden with tad of honey and lemon. You can use goats cheese or feta and treat it in the same way.

Marinating Tofu

When you buy a watermelon, and you don’t have a family of ten, you have to get a little creative to use it all up. We found out recently that you can actually eat the rind of the watermelon, cook it up into a stew. Checkout our some favela cooking, Rio style. Waste not, want not! We bought a beastly sized thing and have been making it into soups, salads, smoothies and all sorts. This was our favourite experiment with the big pink globe.

Watermelon works surprisingly well with savoury dishes, its light sweetness blends nicely with fresh flavours, it is quite neutral really. It certainly add colour to the plate, which is something we love in any food.

Please try these cooling kebabs in a hotter part of the world, we ate ours with our fleeces on (indoors) dreaming of swaying palm trees. We have good imaginations, it nearly worked!

Remember your seeds. Keep them, dry them out and roast them for a lovely little snack. Pumpkin and watermelon seeds are delicious and very easy to collect and roast. It seems a waste to chuck them in the bin.

Kebabs and the ‘Big Crunch’

Makes two big kebabs:

The Bits

Kebabs – 10 big chunks of watermelon (cubes), 10 chunks of firm tofu (marinated), 1 large cucumber (chopped into chunks), 1 kiwi (not quite ripe, peeled and cut in slices). 2 large skewers, we used metal.

Marinade – juice of 1/2 lemon, 6 fresh basil leaves (ripped up small), handful of fresh mint (chopped), 1 teas honey, 1 clove garlic (finely chopped/ crushed), pinch of sea salt, cracked black pepper (to taste), 1/4 cup of good olive oil.

Do It

Mix up your marinade in a bowl, toss tofu well and coat in the marinade. Leave covered in the fridge for a couple of hours. When ready to serve, gather your bits and begin to make the kebabs. Slide on your chunks in a regular order, we like the last one to be a kiwi.

Serve

Spoon over any left over marinade and serve on a nice platter/ chopping board.

We had ours with a nice ‘big crunch’ salad:

All chopped – 1 head chicory, 1 apple, 2 carrots, 1 orange pepper, 2 large mushrooms, 1 beetroot, 1 red onion(diced small), 6 large lettuce leaves, 1 handful of beetroot leaves, sprouted mung beans, golden flax seeds with our ‘Beach House Dressing‘ mixed in. CRUNCH!

Watermelon and Tofu Kebabs

We Love It!

This is the perfect summer munch and a fine way to get rid of your excess watermelon! One day, we will eat this in the sunshine…….

Foodie Fact

Watermelon are the ideal accompaniment to a sun scorched summers day. They are originally from Southern Africa and are closely related to the squash. They are full of electrolytes and of course, water. They also contain alot of lycopene (super antioxidant) vitamin A and C and potassium.

Categories: Dinner, Healthy Eating, Recipes, Vegan | Tags: food, gluten-free, healthy eating, kebabs, low fat, salad, tofu, vegan, vegetarian, watermelon | 4 Comments

Waste not, want not for food lovers in Rio’s favelas

Posted on July 23, 2012 by leroy watson

We are really looking at how we can cut down on our waste, both non-organic and organic. This clip is a real slice of inspiration. Stewed watermelon rind, who knew?!
world-latin-america-18284632

Categories: Uncategorized | Tags: food, freegan, news. watermelon, recycle, rio, waste | 3 Comments

Beetroot and Apple Raita

Posted on July 22, 2012 by leroy watson

Beetroot and Apple Raita

The perfect accompaniment to the ‘Hippy Daal’. This sweet, crunchy, fruity raita salad is the ideal side dish to spicy rich food, also great as a salad in its own right.

This is a really nice twist on your normal raita recipe. Absolutely nothing wrong with the original recipe, but when you have amazing beetroots and apples in the bowl, you just have to play with flavours!

Of course we love beetroot at the BHK, for the most part, we live on the stuff. We juice it, chop it, grate it……our table is incomplete without a little purple plate or two.

I like using the apples here, because I would normally sweeten my raita, but with these apples it doesn’t need it.

Jane and I on the beach today, enjoying the a little bit of sun (too rare).

The raita will look great if you try and chop all components in an even way. Squares work well! Circles more difficult, but very impressive!

Make sure your yoghurt isn’t too thick, water it down if needed. Otherwise you could have a sticky mess on your hands. The fresh mint makes this dish, so do try and get some together. It is really easy to grow and we have found it saves alot of hassle (and money) to have some planted outside or on a window ledge. If given space, it will spread like wildfire and you’ll never have a fresh mint crisis again (you’ll also have an endless supply of amazing mint tea).

The Bits

1 medium sized beetroot (peeled or scrubbed and chopped), 1 sweet organic apple (chopped), 1/2 cucumber (chopped), 1 small courgette (chopped), 1/2 teas ground cumin, 1 clove of crushed garlic, 1 handful of chopped fresh mint (chopped), 150 ml of yoghurt (we use soya, greek/turkish would be amazing)

Do It

Add all ingredients to a bowl and give it a good stir.

Beetroot and Apple Raita (Raw)

Serve

Leave for at least an hour before serving, let the flavour’s gather. Serve as you like, traditionally with a stonking curry or as we like, as a main course salad with some green leaves. Add nuts (hazelnuts, walnuts) to make it more of a meal of it.

We Love It!

Creamy, spicy, fruity and what a crunch! Difficult to find anything wrong with a raita.

Foodie Fact

Mint is high in fibre and magnesium. It is very high in vitamin A and folates and also packs some serious vitamin C. It also helps with all sorts of stomach issues.

Categories: Raw Food, Recipes, Salads, Vegan | Tags: apple, beetroot, food, raita, raw, recipes, salad, vegan, vegetarian | 7 Comments

Hippy Daal

Posted on July 22, 2012 by leroy watson

Bubbling Hippy Daal

We fancied a stew, a change to all these raw food textures. My mind immediately stuck on my ‘Hippy Daal’. With the beetroot and apple raita that was being chopped up, this was going to be a feast!

Hippies like daal (Dhal, Dal, Dahl however you take it), I like hippies, daal likes me…… I’ve cooked this a million times, maybe more, over camp fires and in people’s homes, in the back of jeeps and beside roads. We eat it in the Beach House every week and every week it changes, but the heart of the dish remains the same. Lentils and spices cooked with love, stewed until creamy. Food that ‘clings to your ribs’ as we say. It’s a true one pot wonder and cheap as chips.

The California Baba in Rishikesh, India

Daal is the food that keeps India ticking over, it comes in many forms, made with lentils, beans or chickpeas. All Indians eat Daal of some description and I was told that one state had to ban Daal, because the people were eating too much of it and not getting a balanced diet. Daal is normally a super healthy dish (unless you add loads of ghee) so these are quite drastic measures, but show the passion for the dish in India. A land fuelled on daal.

Cooking daal is so simple and I’ve made it even simpler. I have cut out the steps of frying the onions and spices etc and fast forwarded straight to whacking it all in the pan and bubbling the stew until it becomes thick and gooey. It saves on washing up at least. This is a basic recipe and is wide open to bits being added and spices thrown in.

Daal in India is always made in pressure cookers, as are most curries. Anybody who has travelled around India will be familiar with the sound of your dinner hissing away in the kitchen, regularly reaching a kind of hissing climax that sounds like an imminent explosion. It can be quite therapeutic, knowing that food is one the way and the potential of a hot chapatti just tops things off. Chai mileaga!

I like all lentils and yes, some people do call me a hippy, not always because of this though. Yellow lentils keep their shape, but also break down a little to form that lovely creaminess. You can experiment until your heart is content with this one.

You cannot be shy with your spices here, they must be added with gusto and happiness. Remember to take care of your spices, they are sensitive to light and the air. Keep in a cupboard in an air tight container preferably, for long term, keep in the fridge. I still have my stash of spices brought back from my favourite little spice market in Mumbai. They have retained their potency.

Because this post relates to Indian cuisine, I must mention Kolpona Cuisine, the best place to go online for India recipes. I love the way that Desi Chick cooks, plenty of oil and spices, and bold, bold flavours.

The garam masala here adds a nice bit of spice, I like the touch of cinnamon and cloves. Really, you can use any India spice here and it will still turn out fine. You can substitute all of the spices for the same amount of your favourite curry powder if you liked.

Daal keeps brilliantly, just add a little water to loosen it up again when re-heating. I server my daal quite thick, but in India its normally halfway to a soup (or a full on soup depending on the quality of the restaurant you’re eating in). I like it nice and thick though. In fact, the best Indian food I have ever eaten has been in the U.K. In Leicester and London in particular, we are blessed to have such a culturally diverse nation, it certainly means some interesting food.

The best Indian restaurant in Britain is the Jungle Club in Leicester. Eating there is the complete Indian experience on these shores. It’s such a colourful place, decorated like a jungle, with monkeys and tigers all over the place. There is also a kids play area and a working mans club attached, just to add to the spice!

Strangely in the north east of England, where my family all hail from, we have a dish not disimialr to Daal. Lentils cooked in stock, cooled to form a thick paste. Its called ‘Peas Pudding’ and we traditionally spread it on sandwiches with ham and beetroot and plenty of butter. The bread we use is a soft doughy white loaf called ‘Stottie Cake‘ which is very similar to the ubiquitous round load of Morocco. Small world eh! ‘Stott’ means bounce in Geordie (a dialect in this little corner of the world) and the bread is so dense, it bounces when dropped. The north east of England was a mainly coal mining area and the food there was designed to fill up the miners for the hard labour they carried out 6 or 7 days per week miles below the surface.

This method produces a great daal, although not traditional in anyway. Its carefree cooking, lentils are very forgiving, just let it bubble nicely and you know, dinner is on the way. This daal is a meal in itself.

Makes one big panful:

Hippy Daal – Ready for a mix

The Bits

2 cups of yellow split lentils (any lentils will do really, soaked overnight in filtered water), 1 big onion (chopped into small pieces), some root veg (we used one large potato, and half a swede and 1 carrot, also using parsnips, sweet potato etc would all be grand. Chopped into small chunks).

2 inch piece of ginger (finely chopped), 4 cloves garlic (mashed/ finely chopped), 4 bashed cardamom pods, 2 teas garam masala, 1 teas cumin seeds, 1 teas ground coriander, 1 teas turmeric, 1/2 teas chilli powder, 2 teas flax seeds (good for the belly), 2 teas curry leaves, sea salt to taste

I added two teaspoons of tamarind pulp to give it a nice fruity edge (optional).

Do It

Rinse you lentils well and cover in a large, heavy bottomed pan, with an inch and a half of water (more water can be added if needed throughout the cooking). Bring steadily to a boil and then add all you veg, ginger and garlic. Lower heat to a fast simmer and cook for 5 minutes, then add all of your spices and stir well, bubble gently for around 20 minutes, add some more water if needed, then cover and cook for another 20 minutes, stirring when you are in the area. Check that you stir the base of the pan and no daal burns on the bottom. Easy as that.

Hippy Daal with Beetroot and Apple Raita

Serve

We’ve had it cold in sandwiches before, now we eat it with salads and some Beetroot and Apple Raita, you can thin it down into a soup…cook it down and make lentil fritters…use it as a dip, the list goes on.

We like to stir in some more richness, we use yoghurt (soya or whatever you preference), ghee (authentic and delicious) or just a little good oil. The last two will give a nice shine to the daal.

Foodie Fact

Lentils are packed with protein, a good source (of many) for a veggie diet. Daal contains a protein content of around 25%, similar to meat and is very low in fat but high in carbohydrates. It is also high in vitamin B and iron.

Ready to munch!

Categories: Dinner, Healthy Eating, Recipes, Travel, Vegan | Tags: best indian restaurant in britain, daal, dal, food, hippy, lentils, recipe, travel, vegetarian | 8 Comments

Rich Tomato and Basil Soup (Raw)

Posted on July 20, 2012 by leroy watson

Tomato and Basil

Here’s one for when you are in a little bit of a hurry and you need something quick and tasty. Cold soup is a funny one for most people, it can be difficult to get your head around. Cold soups are served all over the world and I can think of many delicious recipes from Spain. It is very much a cultural thing, in Britain we have diabolical weather, which means we normally need a little warmth in our bellies. Soup is so sustaining and comforting, I don’t see why cold soup cannot have the same effect.

We managed to get our hands on a decent amount of lovely tomatoes, rare in these parts and this soup really did them justice. The tomatoes really make this dish and without gorgeous tomatoes, you will struggle to get much flavour. It’s all about tomato here!

Raw food is nutrient dense, which means alot of ingredients. It is not your average soup, which normally relies heavily on a decent stock, its really just one big savoury smoothie!

This is a recipe that has the added richness of an avocado. I love the way that raw food uses things like avocado to add creaminess to dishes, surely better than a blob of clotted cream (no!?). But I must admit, clotted cream is definitely better on a scone.

We added on green chilli here, to add a little mexican style zing to proceedings. It is optional of course. If you’d like it richer, add more avocado, you can never get enough!

So dust off the blender and give this one a whirl. The perfect summer soup, refreshing and filling. You can heat this if you like, it will be nearly as nice!

Makes two big bowlfuls:

The Bits

8 tomatoes (medium size, chopped into 1/4’s), 1/2 sweet red pepper, 8 sun dried tomatoes (finely chopped/ mashed), 2 cloves garlic (minced, crushed etc), 1/2 medium sweet onion (Spanish are good, finely chopped), 1 big handful of chopped basil leaves, 1 avocado, pinch of good quality sea salt, 1 green chilli (very optional), olive oil for a drizzle

Tomato and Basil Soup (Raw)

Do It

All in a blender and pulse until a nice chunky texture is formed, add water if needed to thin out slightly.

Serve

We topped ours with sprouts (no surprises there then!) and a couple of basil leaves, a drizzle of olive oil maybe?

We Love It!

Nice and rich and refreshing, a great way to use glorious toms!

Foodie Fact

Basil is regarded as the ‘king of herbs’ and is a holy plant in many cultures. Basil originated in Iran and India. Basil has many anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial and anti-oxidant properties, it contains exceptionally high levels of beta carotene, vitamin A, iron and a whole host of other good stuff.

Categories: Raw Food, Recipes, Soups, Vegan | Tags: avocado, basil, food, healthy eating, raw, recipe, soup, summer, tomato, vegetarian | 12 Comments

The Beach House Kitchen voted for a ‘Thought Provoking’ Blog Award

Posted on July 19, 2012 by leroy watson

Lovely Ivelinax

Our dear Ivelina at ‘Mother Nature Loves You’ has kindly bestowed the B.H.K. with another little blog award, the ‘Thought Provoking’ Blog Award. We love to receive these awards, especially from a wonderful lady like Ivelina.

Ivelina has created a very special space, where she conveys her wisdom and gifts on a daily basis. Ivelina’s insight into living and her shining energy is a constant source of inspiration for us and we are blessed to have such a friend supporting the Beach House Kitchen. Ivelina is also very knowledgeable about all things vibrant food and holistic living. Thank you ‘Mother Nature’X

This award actually started off at my other blog ‘Riding Effortlessly On A Large Green Turtle’ a blog for travel, poetry, philosophy and whatever else I encounter along the way; but eventually found its way to the Beach House. I have found so many great new blogs and like minded folk through such an award, I love to pass them on and spread the good word. We hope you find the same!

At the Beach House Kitchen we aim to create a home for folk who love healthy vegetarian food, a place for vibrant ingredients and energies to mingle and create; a little hillside retreat from the grey modern world where we can add a little colour and spice to living, a place that nurtures body and mind. We also have a very good laugh at the same time.

Here are a few foodie blogs that inspire us and get out thoughts flowing in the right direction (just a handful and in no particular order):

the bear and the blackberry – Beautiful vegan blog.

freeflowfoodie – Wonderful energy to be found here (and veggie bites)

the veggie nook – Gabby is a real sweetie!

sacred strawberry – Emily writes from the heart and heat of Madrid

veganchopnchat – Inspirational words and food abounds.

mumtopia – Many Mum’s join us in the BHK, it seems a great time in life for healthy food! The is lovely Ali (Jane’s sisters) brilliant blog about all things motherhood.

travelbutterfly – Because we love travel and Savannah gives us wings!

lucysfriendlyfoods – Lucy has the luckiest family around. Cordon Bleu treats and balancing a busy, busy lifestyle. A real inspiration.

postpunkkitchen – The PPK is a constant stream of amazing recipes and huge library of gorgeous dishes.

Peace the consciousness, the transitoriness, your existence – What is cooking without a little poetry?! Beautiful words that light up our days.

Thank you to the whole blogging community for being so kind and supportive and enriching out lives.

Lee and JaneX

Categories: Awards/ Recognition, Blogs, Healthy Living, Inspiration | Tags: awards, blog, blogging, food, food blogs, recognition, thought provoking blog award, vegan, vegetarian | 5 Comments

Coconut Pad Thai Salad with Almond Dressing

Posted on July 18, 2012 by leroy watson

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‘Tis a grey day in Wales and the streets of Bangkok seem a million miles away. There’s a man we know, who moonlights as a pole dancer (it is Bangkok) who makes the best Pad Thai, just off the chaotic Kaosan Road. He whips it up in seconds, with his vivid painted blue nails and long fake eyelashes. It normally contains little dried shrimps and eggs, which we don’t add, but the rest of the ingredients are so simple and classically Thai.

This type of Pad Thai recipe has been in my mind for a while and Jane just kick started me into getting it done. I knew I wanted coconut in there somewhere, to make up for the flavours of shrimp, fish sauce and egg, but it needed something else. I sought inspiration on the interweb and found a great recipe at the taste space food blog. Just add almonds!

This is a taste sensation, as you would imagine from anything faintly Thai. Thai’s food knows no mediocrity, over cooked veggies or insipid stews. Its all fresh and POW! over there.

Pad Thai Vendor

For the salad itself, you will need a sharp knife and a French peeler. Really, no cooks drawers are complete without one, so it’s a wise purchase. You will save years of your life peeling things, they are so easy to use and in this recipe, double as an ace veg noodle maker. Yes, no noodles here, just veggies. Making it super healthy and crunchy.

KELP NOODLES?

You can use some kelp noodles as a base if you are in a rush, this salad does take while to get together. Kelp noodles are really interesting and taste fantastic, not disimilar to a noodle. They are also completely raw (aka good for the belly and body). They are widely available and well worth an experiment.

The salad base will be good with other things like carrots, cauliflower and apples for instance. We have gone for something a little closer to home i.e. whats in the fridge.

The kitchen is still full of the aroma of this intense dressing and the salad not only tastes wonderful, but is a rather sexy little number to boot! It’s a looker.

This is the perfect summer salad to impress your friends (if they need any further impressing) and to treat your nearest and dearest to a taste of Thailand with a twist. It is ideal served as a main course, but could also make a super side dish or starter. Basically, you need to try this, however its served!

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Coconut Pad Thai Salad with Almond and Orange Dressing

Coconut Pad Thai Salad with Almond & Orange Dressing

The Bits – One Big Bowlful

I know this looks like a hefty amount of ingredients, but don’t fret, its easy peasy really….

Salad/ Noodles

1 large courgette (ribboned)

1 head chicory (very thinly sliced whole)

1 red pepper (very thinly sliced)

2 spring onions (finely chopped)

1 stick celery (ribboned)

2 handfuls finely grated white cabbage

1 big handful sprouted mung beans (we used sprouting aduki beans also)

1 orange (peeled and chopped small)

1/2 small coconut (chopped into small chunks)

1/2 cup peanuts – roasted is nice if you’re not a raw one (crushed)

1 tbs sesame seeeds

1 lime (wedges for serving)

Dressing

3 tbs tamari (or g.f. soya sauce)

2 teas sweetener (agave, brown rice syrup etc)

2 cloves garlic (minced/ crushed)

1 inch ginger (finely chopped)

1 chilli (finely diced)

1 big lime (juice)

4 dates (soaked until soft)

1/2 cup of almond butter (we make our own using soaked almonds and a lot of blending, plus a little water. You may use peanut butter here)

Sea salt (if you like)

We love Thailand! Would be the perfect backdrop for this Pad Thai

Do It

Ribbon and chop all your salad bits and get them into a lovely big bowl. To ribbon easily, keep your fingers out of the way and bring the peeler down in smooth, firm motions. Flip the veg regularly to ensure it is evenly peeled and by the end, you should be left with only a little slither, which can be sliced and tossed in also. Reserve a few of the peanuts, sesame seeds and coconut for serving later.

In a blender, add all of your dressing ingredients and whizz up for a few minutes until a smooth texture has formed. Taste it and adjust accordingly, normally the decision will be, sweeter or not? It may need a little more lime, use the lime reserved for serving.

Mix the dressing into the salad, gently does it, some of those ribbons are quite fragile and look great when served whole.

Dish up with a big smile and be prepared for some yummmmmssss!

Serve

Sprinkle a few peanuts, coconuts and sesame seeds and finish with a little twist of lime juice.

We Love It!

WOW. A really stunning salad. Jane said it was “more than lovely, INCREDIBLE! This salad is genius…..”

Foodie Fact

Pad Thai is one of Thailand’s national dishes. It has been served in Siam (Thailand’s old name) for thousands of years, but was made popular by president Luang Phibunsongkhram in the 1930’s. He wanted to lower the consumption of rice in Thailand, which was making good money being exported, and therefore promoted Pad Thai as being proudly Thai and virtuous. He set about educating the nation in making rice noodles, especially the under privileged, training them to sell Pad Thai dishes, selling them in small cafes or from street carts. This may have something to do with the amazing array of Thai street food in modern day Thailand.

Now for a blast of Thai blues from my favourite bar in Bangkok, the legendary ‘Adhere Blues’ bar. They don’t serve Pad Thai, but they do serve up some serious blues chops…

Categories: Healthy Eating, Raw Food, Recipes, Vegan | Tags: food, gluten-free, healthy eating, pad thai, raw food, recipe, salad, thailand, vegan, vegetarian | 20 Comments

Summer Chili (Raw)

Posted on July 17, 2012 by leroy watson

“The aroma of good chili should generate rapture akin to a lover’s kiss.”
Motto of the Chili Appreciation Society International

It is chilly here! But not in the good way, we thought we’d flip that and add a spicy chili to get some heat back into our sleepy Welsh village. I know I keep on going on about the weather, but it is a bit of an issue. We need the sun!

Chili is the epitome of soul food and I love the heated variety in all its forms, it was probably one of the first things I became passionate about cooking.

Chili is a dish that originated in the south of America, probably Texas and they are mighty proud of their dish down there. I wonder what they would think of this, beef-less/chilled version. I think I’d probably have to leave the state.

Chili originated, like most good soul food, in poorer homes and was made by scraping together ingredients that were available. This raw chili was made with a similar sentiment, but we just happen to have loads of veggies and raw food bits. The principal is the same. Make do and make very tasty.

There are so many options to play with here if you are not raw. I would definitely like to see some sweetcorn in here somewhere, but it needs cooking.

This raw food is addictive, in the sense that when you eat cooked food, you feel quite rubbish. Your belly complains (swollen and windy) and your energy levels are low. You become very sensitive to foods and this isn’t a bad thing, but it can be a challenge when travelling and socialising. You can come across as some kind of nutter! It has certainly made us more aware about what we are putting into our bodies and who our real friends are!

This sauce can be warmed up and poured over roasted veggies, which sounds delicious! The beauty of these raw things, are their simplicity. Whack it all in a blender and you’re off, leave it in the fridge and heat it later. A very easy dinner and something a little different. If you heat it to just over warm (seems to be a decent enough gauge) you will not kill all the good stuff either.

The inspiration for this recipe comes from the raw cookbook, ‘Live Raw by Mimi Kirk’ and a mighty vibrant read it is.

The Bits

Sauce – 1 cup of sun dried tomatoes (soaked for two hours to make tender), 2 cups of tomatoes (chopped and organic), 1/2 cup of carrots (chopped), 1 sweet yellow pepper, 1 small chilli (check the heat there), 2 cloves garlic (crushed), 2 tbs tamari (or g.f. soya sauce for non-rawers), 1 tbs of each evoo (e.v. olive oil), apple cider vinegar (white wine vinegar will do), agave syrup (or sugar) and chilli powder, then 1 teas cumin, oregano, smoked paprika, fresh cracked pepper, 1 handful of chopped coriander leaves.

Chunky Bits – 1 cup sprouts (mung beans, aduki beans, or green lentils something nice and fat, we mixed them up a little), 1/2 cup celery, 1/2 sweet potato, 1 courgette, 1 sweet red pepper, handful of chopped mushrooms

Do It

Chop all of your chunky bits into funky shapes, set aside in a big bowl.

Add all sauce ingredients to a blender and whizz away until smooth.

Pour sauce over base (we were a little stingy with ours, it should look more like a stew really) and mix together. Ideally, leave in the fridge for a while to let the flavours get together.

Serve

We would normally have an avocado on this, but had none. Next time. This would be great with some corn bread or tortillas (if you have a dehydrator handy) and would also be amazing with sour cream (raw cashew cream is very good indeed) and of course, loads of cheese and coriander.

We Love It!

Just the spice and fuel we needed in our lives this windy, wet summer.

Foodie Fact

It’s a fruit! A gift from the Mayans and Aztecs, native to Central America and then shipped around the world by those dodgy conquistador types. Tomatoes are low in fat and cholesterol and are full of good things. They contain lycopene, that is a super antioxidant that protects your cells and also your skin (from the sun). They are also rich in vitamin A and C and have great levels of potassium. When picking tomatoes to eat, the redder the better.

Categories: Dinner, Raw Food, Recipes, Vegan | Tags: chili, food, gluten-free, health, healthy living, raw, recipes, salad, vegan, vegetarian | 5 Comments

Cashew Hummus (Raw)

Posted on July 17, 2012 by leroy watson

Raw Cashew Hummus

Here’s a quick little pot of goodness, so rich and so healthy. I love making hummus, mainly because it is so easy and tastes so much better homemade than out of a plastic tubs from a plastic shops. You can get to play around with the flavours and really tailor your hummus to your taste. And as we all know, hummus is important!

This hummus requires a little preparation, you do need to soak the chickpeas and cashews overnight, but its well worth it. It’s healthy hummus. Most hummus has alot of fat, due to the large amounts of oil used, this hummus uses a little oil (possibly none) and loads of raw cashews and chickpeas that are jam packed full of good things.

The chickpeas just need to be plump (and well rinsed) to use. They don’t need to sprout, if they do, that’s a bonus!

You can make this with just cashew nuts (just double the quantity of nuts) but I like it with the chickpeas. It’s slightly more traditional and after a night in the fridge, it takes on a lovely ‘cheesy’ quality. ‘Cheesy’ is the best way I can describe it, basically, it matures nicely and gets more flavoursome.

Cashew are a real gift from nature, one nut grows on the end of a fruit (called a cashew apple, see below) and they’re really difficult to harvest. The tree gives off toxins, it doesn’t want to let go of its precious nuts!

Cashew apples growing in Wat Suan Mok Monastery, Thailand

This will make a decent tubful:

The Bits

1 cup cashews (soaked in filtered water, they will swell a little overnight, rinsed), 1 cup chickpeas (soaked overnight in filtered water, rinsed), juice of 1 lemon, 3 nice tablespoons of tahini (unroasted is milder, roasted is full on), 2 cloves garlic, 1/2 teas cumin, 1/2 teas paprika, pinch of rock salt, a little water/ oil to form a nice paste.

Do It

Place all ingredients in a sturdy blender, blend until smooth, adding water/ oil if needed. You may need to stop a couple of times and scrape the mixture back into the centre.

Serve

As you like your hummus, we had ours on chicory leaves, which make a great little ‘boat’ for dips and the like. They also look cool. In a warm wrap is something quite special! We suggest topping it with a little more oil, especially if it’s been in the fridge for a while.

We Love It!

This hummus has added lovely richness to our raw salad meals. Always a brilliant addition to add a different texture to the plate.

Foodie Fact

Although high in fat, cashews boast mono-unsaturated fats, meaning in moderation they’re good for you. Cashews are packed with soluble dietary fiber, vitamins, minerals and numerous health-promoting phyto-chemicals that help protect from diseases and the big ‘C’.