Eating vegan in England (London, Bath and Liverpool).

Hey all! Just got back from a mad 1 week trip to England. I was super busy running around seeing the sights that food was really the last thing on my mind! Weird! I'm usually eating all the time. Didn't have any issues finding vegan grub. Here's a quick run down of what I ate.

Pizza Express on Charlotte St. in Fitzrovia, London. They have a great pizza called Pianta pizza that has: Spinach, chestnut mushroom, pine kernels and artichoke on a spicy Arrabbiata base finished with rocket and extra virgin olive oil. No cheese. I asked them to make it "Romana" style which is a thinner crust. It was perfect.

The Coach and Horses on Greek Street in Soho, London. A vegetarian/vegan pub!

Tofu fish n chips!

This was my mom's burger. It's normally vegan but she got it with cheese.


A REALLY GOOD falafel wrap from Falafel Time at Camden Lock Market.


Crazy delicious passion fruit cheeze cake at Inspiral Cafe on Camden High St.


Melissa's patisserie had wonderful vegan pretzels. I tried the cinnamon pretzel and it was heaven in my mouth!

A couple of grocery runs when we didn't have time or energy to eat out. Some vegan items from Planet Organic on Torrington in Bloomsbury and the Sainsbury's Local at Euston. (The non-vegan items were for mom.)

Delicious thai food at Salathai in Bath. I asked them to make the red curry vegan by omitting fish sauce.



Delicious vegan carrot cake from Guildhall Markets in Bath.


Yummy samosa and potato dosa at the food stalls at Borough Market in Southwark.

What a treat! Kanom krok (thai coconut pancakes) at the "Kanom Krok" stall at Borough Market.

Went up north to Liverpool and had breakfast at Brasco Lounge at Pier Head. Vegan breakfast was just right.


Nando's at Queen's Square is known for chicken but they have several vegan options. I love the people in Liverpool. The owner/manager was super nice and chatted with us several times when we dined there. The guy at the register who was helping me out went out of his way to make sure what I ordered would be vegan. So nice!

This is their soya tomato burger. Ask for it with HOT sauce and no mayo. It's really good!
Here's an article about vegan options at Nando's: http://metro.co.uk/2016/03/24/yep-vegans-can-eat-at-nandos-heres-what-to-order-5773006/


Got a ready made hummus and roasted veg sandwich from a little bakery/cafe on Thurloe St. in South Kensington.

This was yummy!

Last night in London we ate at Chinatown at Canton Restaurant. Fried aubergine in garlic sauce and fried chinese broccoli. Asked for them without oyster sauce. My mom had chicken. I was glad that they could make my dishes vegan. They were very tasty.

Chickpea Ketchup Curry and Homemade Roti.

Chickpea ketchup curry from River Cottage Veg cookbook. Easy and satisfying.

Homemade roti! Here's a good recipe using whole wheat flour. I used white flour for mine.

Indian food and cake.

I made a delicious indian feast today: Mixed lentil dal curry (split masoor dal, moong dal and split urad dal) and Aloo Palak (potatoes in spinach gravy). So good with rice and buttered bread!

For dessert I used 2 cups Bisquick mix with two mashed bananas, two tablespoons sugar, 1 cup almond milk and vanilla. Before I stuck it in the oven, I sprinkled a mixture of Earth Balance, cinnamon, brown sugar and Bisquick to make a topping.

It's really good. Kind of a cross between a pancake and a muffin in taste. Not too sweet because of the small amount of sugar. Perfect for tea! *Edited to add: I guess this is more like "coffee cake"? It's really good the next day even after refrigerating it. I had to keep it away from ants!

Spinach, Tofu and Potato Curry

I followed the "Chard and New Potato Curry" recipe in the River Cottage Veg cookbook. I substituted spinach and used regular russets and added a bit of cubed tofu. And also instead of yogurt I substituted almond milk. I kept all the spices: garlic, ginger, garam masala, mustard seeds, turmeric etc the same. Delicious!

Simmering away.

This curry goes well with rice, couscous, quinoa or chapati.

Day Off Food.

Got the day off today to babysit my pooch Buster. Buster hasn't been so well lately as he was diagnosed with a hemangiosarcoma lump on his rear area. Vet says he's a good candidate for surgery as the cancer has not spread to any organs yet. He is scheduled for surgery on Thursday. I'm very worried for him as the lump is ulcerated and has been bleeding for days. The worst was on Sunday night and since then my husband and I have been babysitting him in turns. Today I got to spend time with him as well as cooking some good comfort foods. My good friend Cami stopped by to visit Our Buster. While she was here, we cooked!


Comforting curry! I followed a chana masala recipe and added mushrooms and peas. We had corn salad and rice as well as tamarind/ginger/chili chutney and a pickle relish.


For dinner I made this yummy sandwich.


Our Buster.

Lentils and Rice: Quintessential Vegetarian Food.

I think a lot of us veggies enjoy eating this basic meal of lentils and rice. They offer a low-fat, nutritious source of complete protein, fiber, iron and other minerals. Switch out the white rice for brown rice and you've got whole grains in your favor. It's very easy to prepare and is helpful when you're short on time and uses ingredients from your pantry. I made this today out of sheer laziness. While the red lentil dal was cooking, I threw some rice, a handful of frozen peas and a pinch of turmeric in the rice cooker. In about 20-30 mintues, lunch was ready. I added some tomato salsa (which works great as a chutney) on top.

Red Lentil Dal

1 cup red lentils
5 cups water
2 TB olive oil
1 TB minced ginger
1 clove garlic, minced
1 jalapeno chile pepper, minced
1/2 tsp each: cumin, turmeric, coriander powder, garam masala
salt to taste
1 TB tomato paste

2 TB olive oil
1 tsp black mustard seeds
a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
a pinch of asafetida
Chopped cilantro
Lemon wedge

Heat 2 TB of olive oil in a soup pot over medium high heat. Saute ginger, garlic and chile for a few minutes. Add water and lentils. Bring to a boil. Add spices, salt and tomato paste. Lower heat to medium low and simmer for about 20-30 minutes.
In a small pot or pan, heat the other 2 TB of oil. When hot, add mustard seeds, red pepper flakes, asafetida. When mustard seeds begin to pop, pour the whole mixture into the pot of lentils. Cover lentils with a lid immediately and turn off heat. Let sit for five minutes. Stir in cilantro, lemon juice and season with more salt if needed.

Pav Bhaji.

I'm currently reading a food memoir called "Monsoon Diary" and reading about all the delicious indian foods made me crave this dish big time. I've always used this recipe every time I make pav bhaji. I substitute dairy free Earth Balance margarine for the butter. This always turns out mouthwateringly delicious.

Soy BBQ Curry

Dang, I can't believe I made this. If you are a West LA local and a veggie who loves indian food, you probably know about Samosa House in Culver City. They make really good veggie indian food that I have had the pleasure to enjoy only a few times. My favorite dish of theirs is what they call "Soy BBQ" which is a curry full of soy chunks swimming in a dark red sweet and spicy bbq/curry sauce. After having it a few times, I was determined to make it. Only thing was I had no real idea what flavors I was tasting. It is sweet with slight curry flavors and a hint of spicy kick. Today I experimented and I think I came pretty darn close. Keep in mind these measurements are very loose as I was adding a little bit of this, a little bit of that as it simmered. You do what suits your palette.

Vegan Mouse Soy BBQ Curry

2 TB canola oil
1/2 a large onion, sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup chopped eggplant (optional)
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice
2 tsp garam masala
2 tsp hot curry powder
1-14oz can diced tomatoes with juice
1-6oz can tomato paste
2-3 TB tamarind chutney
2-3 TB BBQ sauce (I used hickory bbq sauce)
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
2 cups water or more
1 cup chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 cup tvp chunks (use more if you are not using chickpeas or eggplant)
1 TB olive oil


Heat canola oil in a pot and saute onions and garlic until soft and fragrant. Add the eggplant and cook until semi tender. Add the spices, tomatoes, tomato paste, chutney, bbq sauce, sugar, salt and water. Stir to break up the tomato paste and bring to a boil.

Add chickpeas and tvp chunks. Stir to make sure tvp chunks are submerged in the sauce so they will expand and soften. Then lower heat to low, cover with lid and let simmer. Every 10 minutes or so, stir. If you need to add more water, go ahead and do so. The tvp chunks should always be submerged in sauce. Also the sauce should be medium consistency and not too thick.

Continue to simmer covered for an hour and adjust spices and salt as you go. At the end, drizzle about a tablespoon of olive oil and stir.

Indian craving.

Went out with my girlfriends last night and had some delicious vegan indian at Electric Karma in L.A. It really got me in the mood for it again so I made this potato, spinach and chickpea curry today. AND I made homemade roti for the first time. It was dead easy. Recipe here. For condiment, I had some jarred tamarind chutney that I thinned out with lemon juice and added ginger and cilantro. This food was very satisfying.

Indian food craving.

When I crave Indian, I must have it! I went all weekend craving a good curry and even though I had a lentil dahl at a non-indian restaurant on Saturday, it didn't cut it. Came home and made my favorite: channa masala. I usually add peas to mine so I don't think that part is authentic. But the taste was amazingly authentic. I ate it with rice, mini chapati and tamarind chutney to complete my indian feast. Recipe here.

Good stuff to eat.

Sorry, been so lazy with the blogging lately! I've had several meals that I forgot to blog about and here's one of them. It's fried tofu with a tamarind/hoisin glaze. That's coleslaw on top.


Kidney bean curry when I was craving indian food.


Deeelicious flaky and tender biscuits! They are great on their own and perfect with margarine and jam. Me+tea+biscuits=happiness.

I got this recipe from bazu over at the ppk forums. Here it is veganized:

Recipe James McNair's Buttermilk biscuits:


1/2 c. solid vegetable shortening (I used Earth Balance stick)

2 c. all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 c. soymilk whisked together with 1 tsp. vinegar

Position rack in middle, preheat oven to 400
spray baking sheet with oil or line with parchment, set aside
in a bowl or food processor, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt. cut in the shortening with your fingertips or a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse bread crumbs. (I used a fork) Add soymilk/vinegar and stir just until the mixture sticks together.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead lightly and quickly, about 30 seconds. using a lightly floured rolling pin, roll out about 1/2 inch thick. using a floured 2 1/2 inch round biscuit cutter, cut out circles. Place onto the prepped baking sheet.

Bake until lightly browned, 10-12 minutes. Serve piping hot.

I got about 10 biscuits out of this, plus a bunch of loose ends that I'm saving in the freezer to use as dumplings.

Vegan Red Wine Bolognese and Vegetable Biriyani

Yesterday's dinner was this comforting bowl of rigatoni with red wine bolognese sauce. I used TVP (textured vegetable protein) which gave it the perfect "meaty" texture. The parmesan-like topping is almonds/miso/nutritional yeast/salt.


Tonight's dinner was this simple vegetable biriyani from Flavors of India cookbook. It is flavored with cinnamon, cloves and cardamom.

Red Wine Bolognese Recipe

2 TB olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
2 celery ribs, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 tsp. fennel seed
1 tsp. oregano
2 cans diced tomatoes (I puree them in a blender first)
1/4 cup red wine
1/2 tsp sugar
1/3 cup TVP
salt and pepper to taste

Saute onion, carrot, celery and garlic in olive oil until softened. Add herbs and stir for a bit. Add tomatoes and red wine and sugar and bring to a boil. Add TVP and cook for a couple minutes. The hot liquid will soften and rehydrate the TVP. Add a little water if too thick. Lower heat to simmer covered for 1 hour. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Vegetable Pakora

This is the first time I made vegetable pakora (deep fried battered vegetables) and they came out so good. The recipe is from Flavors of India and it was super easy.


Here are the vegetables mixed in the batter made from garbanzo flour, water, lemon juice, baking powder and spices.


Out of the oil.


YUM.


My cousin Andrea enjoying the pakora. She loved them.