Tzatziki Sauce

This Greek yoghurt based sauce is amazing with falafel!! Original recipe from Genius Kitchen.

Tzatziki Sauce

Ingredients

3 cups vegan greek style yoghurt (I use Kite Hill)
3 tablespoons lemon juice (or juice of one lemon)
1 garlic clove, minced
1 large English cucumber, diced (the long, skinny ones)
1 tablespoon salt (for salting cucumbers)
1 tablespoon fresh dill (or both, depending on preference) or 1 tablespoon of fresh mint, chopped (or both, depending on preference)
salt & freshly ground black pepper


Method

Peel cucumbers and dice.
Put them in a colander and sprinkle with the tablespoon of salt (draws water out).
Cover with a plate and sit something heavy on top.
Let sit for 30 minute Drain well and wipe dry with a paper towel.
In food processor or blender, add cucumbers, garlic, lemon juice, dill and/or mint, and a few grinds of black pepper.
Process until well blended, then stir into yogurt.
Taste before adding any extra salt, then salt if needed.
Place in refrigerator for at least two hours before serving so flavors can blend.
This will keep for a few days in the refrigerator, but you will need to drain off any water and stir each time you use it.

Stuffed Vine Leaves

These stuffed vine or grape leaves are a delicious snack, starter or picnic item. This authentic Turkish recipe was given to me by one of best friends. Thanks Ashley! She recommends the same exact mixture for stuffed capsicum/peppers as well!
Pickled vine leaves can be found in a Mediterranean grocer or international supermarket.I found them in the regular supermarket in the international section.
This was a huge batch we made so you could halve the ingredients and take less cooking time of you wanted a smaller batch. They last in the fridge for up to a week and are a very healthy and delicious snack.

Stuffed Vine Leaves

Ingredients

2 x 1lb jar pickled vine leaves (you can use fresh if you have them)
2 cups uncooked white rice (if using brown cook half way first)
250g red or yellow capsicum/peppers
1/2 white onion
2 large tomatoes (or 1x 400g tins of chopped tomatoes, liquid removed)
2 medium potatoes, sliced
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
60g tin tomato paste
Juice of 4 lemons (reserve 1/2 cup)
1/2 bunch of parsley
1/2 bunch of mint


Method

Remove vine leaves from jars and rinse well.
In a large pot boil enough water to cover vine leaves but do not place leaves in the water while boiling.
Once water has boiled remove from heat and place vine leaves in to soften while you prepare the other ingredients.

Finely chop the capsicum, onion, tomatoes, parsley and mint (we used a food processor) and mix well with rice.
Juice the lemons and add them to the mix, reserving 1/2 cup for later.
Add salt and pepper to taste.
Taste the mixture and add any extra flavours you like if necessary.

Slice the potatoes and layer at the bottom of the large pot. These prevent the stuff vine leaves to stick to the bottom.
Drain vine leaves and find a large surface to work on. spread out a few vine leaves at a time, veins facing up.
Place a small amount (around 1-2tsp) of mixture to the centre of each vine leaf (remember the mixture will be larger when the rice cooks.
Fold up the bottom tightly, then the sides, then roll to the top firmly and place into the large pot on top of the potatoes.

Place them in opposite directions for each layer.
Repeat until you've used all the vine leaves (if you have any rice mixture left over you can cook it separately and use it for stuffed peppers!)

Mix the tomato paste, reserved lemon juice and approx. 2 1/4 litres water together.
Place pot on the stove and drizzle over some olive oil (it will sink to all layers).
Pour the tomato mixture over the vine leaves (it should cover the top layer) and place a plate that fits inside the pot on top of the vine leaves to prevent them from floating.

Bring pot to boil then turn down to a gentle simmer for approx. 1 - 1 1/2 hours.  Cooking time will differ for different amounts of vine leaves. Just test one from the middle to make sure the rice is cooked through.

Once cooked through place a large tray or plate on top of the pot and flip it over so that you have a pile of stuffed vine leaves with the potato on the top. They are ready to eat straight away but might be a bit hot. The potato tastes delicious too!

Roast Capsicum Hummus

Roast Capsicum Hummus

Ingredients

1, 400g tin chickpeas, drained
125g roasted red peppers from a jar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 1/2 tablespoons tahini
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
small handful chopped fresh parsley
Olive oil


Method

Puree all ingredients in a food processor. Add olive to make smoother or drizzle on top for presentation.

Hummus

This is a simple but delicious hummus recipe that you can build on. Original recipe from Vegan Easy.

Hummus

Ingredients

1 400g can chickpeas

1/8 cup water

2 tbsp canola oil

1 tbsp tahini

Juice of ½ lemon

1 small garlic clove

Salt

Method

Place all ingredients (using only a small amount of salt at this stage) in a bowl, or blender.

Blend together until smooth.

Taste and add further salt if required.

If the hummus is a little too stiff add extra water until it is at your preferred consistency.

Baked Falafel with Baba Ghanoush

This is a recipe from family member and it's sooo yummy. Obviously you can fry the falafel if you prefer.

Baked Falafel


Ingredients

2 425g cans chick peas, washed & drained
3 Tbls olive oil
1 red onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic
3 Tbls parsley, chopped
3 Tbls coriander, chopped
3 Tbls GF plain flour
1 Tbls chili powder (this just gives them a little kick, not too spicy but omit if you don't want spice)
1 1/2 Tsp salt
1 Tbls lemon juice
1 Tbls cumin
1/2 tsp baking powder


Method

Preheat oven to 200˚C. Spray mini muffin tray with oil.
Process chickpeas in a food processor and then add all remaining ingredients until smooth.
Shape into balls and place in mini muffin cup.
Bake for 40mins, turning after 20mins.and pressing down.
Tip out onto paper towel and allow to cool slightly.

Baba Ghanoush


Ingredients

2 Eggplants (around 1kg)
1 clove garlic
2/3 cup tahini
1/2 cup lemon juice
1 tsp salt
1tbls parsley (preferably flat leaf)


Method

Place whole eggplants over a gas flame grill BBQ until blackened and softened, turning often. Alternatively place in a 220˚C oven for 40mins, turning regularly.

If you bake in the oven you won't get the smoky flavour so you can add a dash or two of liquid smoke.
Peel the eggplant and place flesh and all ingredients into a food processor and blend until smooth. Omit parsley if you prefer to stir in afterwards for presentation.
Serve with a sprinkle of paprika and a drizzle of olive oil.