This mayonnaise is far, far easier to make than it’s eggy counterpart, you can’t taste the difference at all, and it lasts longer too. I find a jar of this is still fresh after a couple of weeks in the fridge, but trust your nose. So simple and such an essential summer condiment – slather on your burger buns, make potato salad, dunk your chips… And you can flavour it how you like! We love saffron or rosemary mayo best in our house. Just blend in the herb or spice of your choice and let the flavours infuse.
Liz x
Ingredients (makes around 450ml)
250ml neutral vegetable oil
130ml soy milk (it MUST be soy, other plant-milks do not emulsify in the same way)
1 tsp mustard
1 small garlic clove (optional, or add/substitute other flavourings you like eg saffron, rosemary, smoked paprika, chilli…)
1 tbsp vinegar (white wine or apple cider work well)
a big pinch of salt
Method
Measure all the ingredients into a jug.
Use a handheld, emersion stick blender to blend into mayonnaise. It should emulsify within 10-15 seconds. You can use a smoothie maker or similar if you don’t have a stick blender.
Taste and add more salt if needed. Then spoon into a clean jar and store in the fridge.
We always meant to reopen it, but there never seemed to be enough time or energy, we never quite got back into anything that resembled routine, and so it remained closed, that is until this coming Saturday at 10am.
On many occasion over the past two years we came close to being ready to reopen then another lock down or another wave would raise its head and bang off we went again tumbling and rolling with all that was thrown at us.
The first lockdown for us was not too unlike being hit by a bus and over and over again, up and down it went for the last two years.
It is funny though that now life seems normal again. I can never quite grasp how everything moves on. You think at the time you will be in the middle of the pain forever and then just like that, it is gone, over and we move on. Life is funny.
Anyway, philosophical ramblings aside we are finally reopening our farm shop and this time it is going to be so much different, better, brighter and on a Saturday which is what you all asked for!
We have two amazing people that will be serving you Thiago and Anna, both lovely bubbly and helpful individuals.
We have opened up our whole packing shed with all the hundreds of grocery, plastic free, sustainable and 100% organic products, plus of course the very best range of fresh organic produce in the country and nearly all plastic free.
We will have a modern till system, and accept all cards for payment, in fact that would be our preference and going forward the shop will be cashless.
It all kicks off this Saturday at 10am and we have some amazing things happening. The line-up will go something like this.
Parking on site
10am shop open
12pm-2pm farm tour. (I’ll bring you on a tour of the farm, show you the polytunnels, and the fields walk down to one of our forestry areas see the bee hives and hopefully meet and feed Florence and George (our two rescue pigs). All the time you will be learning about sustainability, growing and biodiversity. )
1-2pm see the tractors and some machine demonstrations (get up on one if you are feeling brave!)
2-4pm live music, including classical flute music!
3-4pm kids natural art workshops run by Jenny.
There will be a pizza truck and a smoothie/juice stall and coffee too! There will be even some home baked fresh cakes.
The event is FREE, so come along bring your friends and family and please let others know. The current weather forecast for Saturday looks amazing and hopefully it stays that way!
Thanks for all your support and looking forward to finally meeting people here again on our farm.
These Afghan style stuffed flatbreads are so easy to make and so delicious! You’ll be making loads of different variations of them in no time. We love this simple leek version which is just seasoned with salt and lots of black pepper, but of course you can stuff them however you like. I have seen recipes with potato and fresh coriander stuffing which look amazing. Serve them as a light lunch with a yoghurt and herb dip or alongside my Afghan kidney bean curry.
Liz x
Ingredients (makes 8)
2 leeks
1 tbsp vegetable oil
salt & black pepper to taste (go heavy on the black pepper)
3 small mugs of flour
a pinch of salt
1 tbsp olive oil
1 small mug of water
vegetable oil for frying
Method
Start by making the dough. Mix the flour, salt, olive oil and water together in a mixing bowl until it comes into a rough ball. Then turn out onto a clean work surface and knead until smooth and stretchy. This should take around 8 minutes. if your dough is too dry, wet your hands to incorporate a little more water. The dough should be firm, not sticky. Return the dough to the bowl and cover with a damp tea towel to rest for at least 20 minutes.
Meanwhile make the filling. Cut the leeks in half, lengthways, keeping the root end intact. Rinse the leeks under a running tap and ensure you get the mud out of all the layers. Then trim the dried end and root end off and cut into cm strips. Yes, even the darker green part, don’t waste it! Fry the leeks in a pan with the vegetable oil, salt and pepper until they soften and start to colour. Taste and adjust the seasoning as you like. These are especially good when they are really peppery! Let the mixture cool down while you cut and roll the dough.
Remove the rested dough from the bowl and cut into 8 even pieces. Roll each piece into a ball and then, using a rolling pin, roll into thin circles around 20cm wide. Place the leek stuffing on one half of the circle, leaving the edges free for sealing, then fold the dough over and seal, pressing the air out of one side before sealing all around the edge. Repeat for all the dough and space out on a clean, dry work surface so they don’t stick together.
Heat a frying pan to medium-low with a little vegetable oil. Fry the bolani on both sides until blistered and golden brown. I like to turn them often and move them around to ensure all the edges are evenly cooked. Cut in half and serve warm with dips or curry.
We are always looking for new ways to eat beans. They are so good for us! An affordable and healthy source of protein and fibre. Good news is they are also great for the environment. Legume crops improve soil fertility naturally by working with bacteria to fix nitrogen into the soil.
So when we tried this delicious Afghan curry, we just had to share it! This is probably not an authentic recipe but it’s our quick and easy version. We love that the heat just comes from the generous use of black pepper. We’ll share the stuffed flatbreads recipe soon too. Watch this space!
Liz x
Ingredients (serves 4)
3 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground turmeric
2 tsp garlic granules
2 tsp salt
2 tsp ground black pepper
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground coriander
1 bottle of passata
2 tins kidney beans
2 red onions
4 medium potatoes
(drizzle of veg oil, sprinkle of salt, pepper & ground coriander to roast the onions & potatoes)
diced red onion, fresh coriander & mint to taste
Method
Turn your oven to 200C. Chop the potatoes into bites sized pieces and the onions into slivers and toss in a roasting dish with a drizzle of oil and sprinkle of salt, pepper & ground coriander. Roast for 20-30 minutes or until soft while you make the curry sauce.
Heat the vegetable oil in a large pot & tip in the spices and seasoning. Stir fry in the oil until the spices are very fragrant and starting to darken.
Pour in the passata and the drained and rinsed kidney beans & simmer for 10 minutes or so until the curry is rich and delicious.
When the potatoes and onions are cooked through and starting to colour, scrape them into the curry and warm through.
Serve in bowls topped with diced red onion and chopped mint and coriander. Scoop up with flatbreads or rice & enjoy!
I don’t know about you, but for mid-week meals (or even manic weekend meals), I am always after something fast – but, it has to also be satisfying, healthy, affordable and delicious! This super simple supper ticks all the boxes. We have just completed a massive leek harvest and they are so sweet and delicious. Leeks have got to be one of the most underrated vegetables out there. They are exceptionally delicious when made the star of the show. Don’t just loose them in soups and stews, try them as the main ingredient.
Liz x
Ingredients (serves 2)
2 slices of sourdough bread
1 small clove of garlic
1 leek
1 tbsp butter (we use this vegan one)
salt and pepper to taste
a few sprigs of thyme
a heaped tsp of mustard – Dijon or wholegrain…or any mustard you like
a splash of milk (we use creamy oat milk)
a handful of nutritional yeast flakes (or you can use grated cheese)
Method
Toast the bread to your liking then peel the garlic clove and rub it over the toast on both sides.
Slice the leek in half, lengthways, keeping the root end intact. Then rinse out the mud in the layers. Slice the very end off the leeks which will have dried out a bit, but keep as much as possible. The green part of the leek it just as delicious as the white – it just needs a touch longer cooking time. Then cut the leek into cm slices.
Melt the butter in a wide pan over a medium-high heat. Then tip in the green bits of leek and stir fry for 3 minutes or so until they soften. Then add the rest of the chopped leek, some salt and pepper and stir fry again until the leeks start to collapse and colour lightly.
Add the thyme, mustard, splash of milk and nutritional yeast (or cheese) and stir fry for another 3 minutes or so until you have a bubbly, silky mixture which can then be poured over the garlicky toast and devoured!
Our new range of curry spice sauces make it easy to put together a delicious dinner in minutes! We tested the Tikka Masala paste last night and it was so good. Here’s what we did but of course it’s totally flexible and you should use whatever vegetables you prefer or have in the house. We love the range of Bunalun organic tins too. So useful!
Get your rice on to cook and find a large pot to cook the curry in.
Fry the onion in the oil over a medium-high heat until it softens and starts to turn golden brown.
Then add the curry paste and chopped vegetables and stir until fragrant.
Pour in the tin of tomatoes and a half tin of water (swirl to get all the tomatoey juices out of the tin). Then add the chickpeas and simmer until the butternut squash is soft.
Add the tin of coconut milk and warm through. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed with salt and pepper. Then serve over rice with some fresh coriander.
Beautiful, pink rhubarb is in season now and it’s tangy flavour pairs perfectly with sweet white chocolate. We tried baking it into blondies and oh yes, it works! There is some debate as to what blondies are, but to me, the best blondies are simply a white chocolate version of brownies. I’ve based this recipe on my classic vegan brownie recipe and it’s a fairly straight swap – brown chocolate for white chocolate – but the lack of cocoa powder means you must add some starch or the texture is all wrong. So don’t skip the cornstarch (you can replace cornstarch with arrowroot, potato or tapioca flour if you don’t have cornstarch).
Good blondie recipes call for browned butter, but if you are making this recipe vegan as I am below, then you’ll need to use Naturli butter as other vegan butters do not brown like dairy butter due to the lack of certain proteins and sugars. Naturli contains almond butter so has the right proteins to brown beautifully. Give it a try, I think you’ll agree it adds a delicious nutty, caramelised depth of flavour to the blondies that help to balance out the sweetness of the white chocolate. If you don’t have Naturli in the house you can just use another vegan butter or coconut oil and simply melt it rather than browning.
Pre-heat your oven to 180C and line a baking tin with baking parchment (I used a 20x28cm one).
If you have our vegan block of Naturli butter in, you can brown it to create a nutty, caramel depth of flavour. If you are using another brand of vegan butter then just melt the butter, it will not brown. To brown the butter simply melt in a small pan, keep it swirling/stirring until it goes a gorgeous hazelnut colour.
Then turn off the heat and tip in 200g of the white chocolate. Allow it to melt in the heat of the butter BEFORE stirring. Then add the sugar and milk and stir into a smooth, shiny caramel coloured sauce.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk the flour, salt, cornstarch, bicarbonate of soda and baking powder. Then pour in the melted butter, chocolate, sugar and milk and slowly whisk to just combine. Careful not to over-mix as that would activate the gluten in the flour and create tough blondies.
Pour the batter into the lined baking dish and smooth out so that the corners are evenly filled. Then scatter over the reserved white chocolate and chopped rhubarb.
Place the dish in the oven to bake until risen and golden. This should take around 30-35 minutes but ovens vary so check on it after 20 minutes. It is done when it is mostly set but still has a little wobble when gently shaken.
Allow the blondie to cool in the tray then pop the tray in the fridge to set for a few hours or overnight (this requires heroic patience). Cut into 12 pieces and enjoy!
Tofu is an amazing, versatile and healthy ingredient. We love using silken tofu to make scramble for breakfast or to place in wobbly cubes in a miso soup, it’s also great scored and dressed with soy sauce and sesame oil. We stock a delicious range of ready to eat tofus which are brilliant in sandwiches and salads or warmed up to go with your supper (our favourite is the wild garlic one and we also really rate the smoked one). But extra firm tofu is a brilliant blank canvas with a meaty texture. We love it thinly scored at an angle and cooked like a firm piece of fish with lemon, butter, salt and pepper. Our kids favourite way is like this, coated in well seasoned cornflour and fried until crisp. It’s just the thing to top noodle or rice bowls. Give it a try and let me know what you think.
Liz x
Ingredients (serves 2)
1 x 200g block extra firm, natural tofu
6 tbsp cornflour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp chilli flakes
3 tsp toasted sesame seeds
2 tsp seaweed flakes
vegetable oil for frying
Method
Drain the tofu and cut it into cubes.
In a wide bowl, mix the cornflour, salt, chilli flakes, sesame seeds and seaweed flakes (if you don’t have seaweed flakes you can leave them out or snip up a sheet of sushi nori).
Tumble the cubed tofu into the seasoned cornflour and mix it well ensuring each piece is coated.
Coat the base of a wide frying pan with a generous layer of vegetable oil, then heat to medium high.
Add the tofu but space it out so that the pieces are not touching each other (you may need to cook in batches). Turn the pieces regularly so that they cook on all sides. They should be golden brown and beautifully crispy.
Serve as you like. We topped a rice bowl and vegetable stir fry and added a drizzle of soy sauce and some kimchi.
We lean heavily on our pantry this time of year during the hungry gap (that time when Irish winter veg are finished and the summer harvests are still a little way away). Beans and lentils are so nourishing, cheap and filling – and they are climate friendly crops too. This is our favourite way to make a pot of white beans. We sometimes make it with dried beans when we have the time, but here is a quicker version with tinned beans for you. You can customise it as you like with greens wilted in at the last minute, top with roasted vegetables or just scoop it up with some good bread. So so delicious!
Liz x
Ingredients (serves 4)
2 sweet potatoes – scrubbed & chopped into chunks
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp chilli flakes
6 fresh sage leaves, sliced
1 jar of sun-dried tomatoes in oil
a whole bulb of garlic – cloves separated, peeled & sliced
3 bay leaves
a large handful of rosemary
2 tins butterbeans or cannellini beans
a large handful of fresh thyme
a large glass of white wine
salt & pepper to taste
chopped spinach or kale or another leafy green you like
Method
Turn the oven to 200C and tumble your sweet potatoes into a roasting dish. Drizzle with the olive oil, season with salt and sprinkle over the chilli flakes and chopped sage. Shake the dish to evenly coat the potatoes in the seasoning then pop it in the oven to bake while you make the beans. Depending on your oven and the size of your chunks, they should take around 20-30 minutes to cook through.
Drain the oil from the sun-dried tomatoes into a pot. Then, using kitchen scissors, chop the sun-dried tomatoes up into strips. Then turn the heat under the pot to medium-high and add the sliced garlic, bay leaves and rosemary. Cook until the garlic is softening and starting to colour.
Then tip in the 2 tins of beans and their liquid too. Add the white wine, thyme and chopped sun-dried tomatoes. Season with a little salt and pepper then simmer gently for 15 minutes or so until the flavours have developed. Careful not to overcook the beans as they will turn to mush. Turn the heat off and let the beans rest while you wait for the sweet potatoes to cook through.
Once the sweet potatoes are cooked through and you are ready to serve, add the greens to the beans and warm them through. Serve in wide bowls topped with the roasted sweet potatoes and scoop up with bread if you like.
Chickpea flour (aka gram flour) is such a useful store-cupboard ingredient. Have you tried it yet? In Indian cuisine it is used to make savoury pancakes called dosas and to the make the batter for deep fried onion bhajis. At home we love to use it to make nutritious, delicious, protein-rich fritters all year round. Fritters are a great lunch option with a simple salad and a dip, or you can use them as sandwich fillers or burger alternatives. You can really make them your own with different vegetables and herbs/spices. Here’s one of our favourites, carrot and coriander.
natural yogurt, lime wedges and salad leaves to serve
Method
Start with the batter. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the chickpea flour, seasoning and water into a smooth batter.
Grate the carrots and add them to the batter along with the coriander leaves. Stir well to coat the veggies in the batter.
Heat a frying pan to medium with the vegetable oil. Make sure your pan is not too hot, chickpea flour batter can taste a little bitter if it is not cooked through so you want to cook it slowly so it’s not burned on the outside and raw in the middle.
Dollop the batter into the pan in four even scoops. Fry the fritters for 5 minutes or so on each side or until they are golden brown on the outside and firmed up and hot inside.
Then serve with salad, natural yoghurt and a good squeeze of lime.
