Brussels Sprouts and Onions in Creamy Mustard Sauce

This week we continue the brussels sprouts theme with a cute little side of creamy brussels sprouts, pepped up with some wholegrain mustard.

Brussels Sprouts and Onions in Creamy Mustard Sauce

Serves 2-4

Ingredients

500 ml brussels sprouts
1 onion
2 cloves garlic
1 tbsp flour
200 ml soy milk
1 tbsp wholegrain mustard
salt and pepper

Method

1. Prepare sprouts - remove damaged outer leaves, trim bases, and cut in half. Drizzle with oil, sprinkle with salt and roast at 180 C for 15 minutes.

2. Slice the onion and mince the garlic. Heat an oiled pan over medium heat and fry the onion until translucent. Add garlic and fry for a few minutes.

3. Add the flour and cook for a few minutes. Add the milk little by little, whisking between each addition to form a creamy sauce. Simmer until thick. Add mustard and brussels sprouts. Mix well, season with salt and pepper, and serve.

Pasta with Sundried Tomatoes and Brussels Sprouts

This 5-ingredient vegan pasta doesn't look wonderful, but it makes up for its lack in the aesthetic department with punchy flavours: roasted brussels sprouts with a little chilli, bright lemon juice, and savoury sundried tomatoes. The roasted brussels sprouts are great for converting sprout-haters.

Pasta with Sundried Tomatoes and Brussels Sprouts

Serves 4

Ingredients

1000 ml brussels sprouts
chilli flakes
150 ml sundried tomatoes
500 g pasta  (gluten-free for gluten-free option)
1/2 lemon

Method

1. Remove damaged leaves from brussels sprouts, trim bottoms, and cut in half. Sprinkle lightly with chilli flakes, toss with salt and olive oil and roast for 10 minutes at 180 C.

2. Slice sundried tomatoes. Toss with brussels sprouts and roast for 5-10 more minutes, until brussels sprouts are done.

3. Cook and drain pasta. Squeeze the lemon. Toss with the pasta, brussel sprouts and sundried tomatoes.

Vegan Bechamelkartoffeln

When I was a child, I hated white sauce. I would dread having Macaroni Cheese, or worse yet, Cauliflower Cheese. I've gotten over my cauliflower doubts thanks to roasting it with lemon juice. Now I've come to see how delicious white sauce (aka bechamel) can be.

I stumbled across this recipe last winter while I was looking for quintessentially German recipes. Bechamelkartoffeln, steaming hot potatoes in creamy white sauce, are a perfect winter side. Add a vegan sausage and a little salad, and you've got dinner. I changed the original recipe a little to make it vegan and easier to follow if you've never made a bechamel before.

Vegan Bechamelkartoffeln

Serves 4
Lightly adapted from this recipe

Ingredients

1 kg potatoes
1 onion
2 tbsp margarine
2 tbsp flour
250 ml soy milk
250 ml vegetable stock 
salt, pepper and nutmeg

Method  

1. Peel and dice the potatoes. Add to salted water and boil until tender. Dice the onion.

2. Heat margarine in a pan over medium heat, and fry the onion until soft. Add the flour and cook for another minute, stirring constantly. Add the soy milk slowly, whisking between additions to avoid lumps. Add the vegetable broth. 

3. Bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for about ten minutes, stirring regularly. Add the potatoes and simmer for a few more minutes. Add salt, pepper and nutmeg to taste.

Polish Potato Pancakes with Creamy Mushroom Sauce (Placki Kartoflane)

One of the wonderful things about living in Berlin has been being able to travel to other countries easily. Want to go to Poland? Jump on the overnight bus! I'm still getting used to the change. In New Zealand we're so far away from everything that going anywhere (except Australia) takes a long time and isn't budget-friendly.

Old Town in Warsaw, Poland

Our last Poland trip was to Krakow, a beautiful city with a castle, gorgeous old town, and, of course, delicious food! My boyfriend, who's a vegetarian, had some wonderful potato pancakes with decadent mushroom sauce on top. This is a recreation of that dish, Placki Kartoflane. This picture is of a version with blended potatoes, but it's easier to make them with grated potatoes.

Polish Potato Pancakes with Creamy Mushroom Sauce (Placki Kartoflane)

Serves 4

Ingredients

creamy mushroom sauce
400 ml (200 g) cashews, not roasted or salted
2 tbsp vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
150 ml water
1 onion
400 g mushrooms (1000 ml chopped)

pancakes
6 potatoes (1150 ml grated)
1/2 tsp corn starch
1/2 tsp rice flour
4 tbsp flour
1/2 tsp salt

Method

1. Blend the cashews with the vinegar, salt and water. Chop the onion and slice the mushrooms. Fry the onion in an oiled pan over medium heat until glassy. Add the mushrooms and cook until done. Stir in the cashew cream. Add salt and pepper to taste and set aside.

2. Peel and grate the potatoes. Mix together corn starch, rice flour and 2 tbsp water. Combine with potatoes, flour and salt. Heat an oiled pan over medium heat. When hot, add several pancakes and spread to a 1 cm thickness. Wait until the underside is a golden brown, then flip and brown the other side. Drain on paper towels. Repeat with remaining potato mixture.

3. Divide the pancakes between four plates. Briefly warm the cashew sauce, adding water to thin if it's too thick. Top the pancakes with sauce and serve.

Leeks, Carrots and Kidney Beans in Tahini Sauce

This combination of leeks, carrots and kidney beans looks unassuming, but has a deep rich flavour from the tahini. It makes a lovely Turkish meal when combined with another easy side, like capsicums in tomato sauce.

 

Leeks, Carrots and Kidney Beans in Tahini Sauce

Serves 2 as a side
Closely based on this recipe

Ingredients

2 carrots
1 leek
1 tbsp tomato paste
250 ml water
1 (400 g) can kidney beans
3 tbsp tahini
2 tbsp lemon juice

Method

1. Chop the carrots and leek. Heat an oiled pot over medium heat. Fry the carrots for a few minutes. Add the leeks, tomato paste and water and stir well. Put the lid on and simmer until the vegetables are tender. Drain and rinse the beans and mix them in.

2. Salt well. Mix together the tahini and lemon juice. Spoon over the top of the vegetables. Close the lid and let rest for a few minutes before serving.

Caramelised Onion Varenyky

My family lived together with a Russian family for most of my childhood. For that reason, I had some wonderful early food experiences. My favourite foods included salmon selyodka (pickled fish) and roe. Those, I wouldn't eat anymore (unless someone makes a vegan version...). But my absolute favourite food was sweet varenyky filled with apples. Varenyky are the Ukrainian-Russian version of pierogi.

For a long time I was put off making my own varenyky because of how hard I thought it would be. Then I tried making them, and it was really hard. The dough was extremely delicate. It stuck and tore. A few weeks ago, I discovered this pierogi dough on Vegan Sandra's website and tried again. The dough is a pleasure to work with. No sticking and no tearing!

When I was a child, a dumpling without apples inside wasn't really a dumpling for me. I can vividly remember the deep feeling of disappointment and offence I had after biting into a potato pirozhki (baked dumpling). These days I love potato-filled dumplings, and would be over the moon if someone made them for me. Not everything has to be sweet! But my favourite part is always the fried onions on top, so I thought I'd put them inside. Here are varenyky filled to bursting with caramelised onion, with a little potato to bind the filling.

Caramelised Onion Varenyky

Makes 16 varenyky, serves 2

Ingredients

1/2 a recipe of the crispy and simple pierogi dough from Vegan Sandra
5 onions
1 potato (200 ml)

Method

1. Chop the onions. Fry them in a little oil over medium heat for 30-40 minutes, until nicely browned. Stir every now and again and reduce the heat if they start to burn.

2. Peel, chop and boil the potato. Mash it and mix with the onions. Add salt and pepper. Divide the dough into 16 equal pieces and roll them into balls. Cover with a cloth.

3. Roll out the first ball into a circle on a lightly floured surface. Put 1-2 tsp of filling in the middle and pinch the varenyky shut. Put it on a lightly floured tray and cover with a cloth. Repeat for remaining balls of dough.

4. Boil the varenyky until they float, and then for an additional 2-3 minutes. Serve with margarine or vegan sour cream.

Zupa Ogórkowa (Polish Pickle Soup)

I went to Poland recently and thoroughly enjoyed all the vegan food I could get my hands on. Since then, I've been bookmarking hundreds of recipes to try out. I'm not up to making vegan smoked sausage yet, but I have tried my hand at some Polish soups. Zupa Ogórkowa consists of potatoes, grated pickles and vegetables in a rich, milky broth.

Zupa Ogórkowa

Serves 3
Based on this recipe

Ingredients

1 leek
2 carrots
1 onion
1.25 litres vegetable stock
1 bay leaf
6 peppercorns
1 onion
2 cloves garlic
6 pickles
4 potatoes
250 ml soy milk

Method

1. Slice the leeks. Dice the carrot and the first onion. Add to a soup pot with the stock and bring to the boil. Simmer until the vegetables are soft. Add the bay leaf and peppercorns.

2. Dice the remaining onion and mince the garlic. Grate the pickles. Heat some margarine or oil in a pan and fry the onion until golden. Add the garlic and fry for a minute, then add the pickles and fry for a few minutes, until most of their liquid has evaporated. Add to the soup pot.

3. Peel and dice the potatoes. Add them to the pot and cook until soft. Mix in the soy milk and heat briefly. Remove the bay leaf and season with salt and pepper.

Garlic Roasted Carrots

These garlic roasted carrots are an easy and impressive side. They get a lovely delicate flavour from the garlic. They can bake while you make the rest of dinner and you can easily double or triple this recipe if you need to feed more people.

Garlic Roasted Carrots

Serves 2

Ingredients

4 large carrots
3 cloves garlic

Method

1. Peel the carrots if the skin doesn't look nice. Slice them on the diagonal into 1 cm slices. Toss with the garlic, olive oil and salt. Spread on a baking sheet (covered with baking paper if things tend to stick to it) and bake at 200 C for 20 minutes. Turn and bake for 30 minutes more or until soft and crispy.

German Pea, Carrot and Sausage Stew

This is an easy vegan Eintopf (one-pot, the German word for stew). It's simple but tasty and satisfying. Highly recommended for chilly days with some toast on the side to soak up the juices.

German Pea, Carrot and Sausage Stew

Serves 2
Adapted lightly from this recipe, in German

Ingredients

120 ml whole dried peas
1 onion
2 carrots
2 potatoes
500 ml vegetable stock
1 bay leaf
salt, pepper and cider vinegar
a few vegan sausages (optional)

Method

1. Soak the peas overnight. Cook until done (how long this takes will vary with the dryness of your peas). Drain and set aside.

2. Dice the onion, carrots and potato. Heat oil in a pan and fry the onion and carrots over medium heat until the onion is soft.

3. Add the potatoes, stock and bay leaf. Bring to the boil and simmer until the potatoes are done, about 20 minutes. Remove the bay leaf and season with salt, pepper and a glug of vinegar.

4. Chop up the sausages, add them to the pot, and cook for a few minutes to warm.

Olivier Salad

This yummy salad originated in Russia. It consists of chopped potatoes, carrots and peas in a mayonnaise dressing with tangy pickles and onion. It's a great winter dish, but also perfect for summer picnics and barbecues, or the first month of spring while you're waiting for the new produce to appear.

Olivier Salad

Serves 4 as a main or 6 as a side

Ingredients

8 potatoes
2 carrots
1 400 g can or 375 ml frozen peas, cooked
vegan ham (optional)
6 medium pickles
1/4 onion or 3 stalks spring onion
400 ml vegan mayonnaise made with silken tofu
salt and pepper

Method

1. Wash the potatoes and carrots, and simmer them together until done. Let them cool for a while. Peel them and dice them finely. Drain and rinse the peas.

2. Mince the onion and finely chop the pickles. Slice the spring onions and ham, if using. Mix everything together and season well with salt and pepper.