Black bean and mango stew

A simple lunch that packs a punch!  Oh dear, I think i’ll leave the rhymes behind in future...

As you read this I am fighting back the nerves as I get my gear in order and make last minute preparations for Tough Mudder…. In just a couple of hours time I'll be en-route to the army base in Winchester where the event takes place so there is no backing out now. I just hope I don’t let myself down, I’m my own worst enemy for setting the bar so high in my mind and then struggle to match it. The main thing is that I give it my best shot and come back on one piece… no doubt I’ll keep you updated on Facebook once I’m done (and maybe a post on here later today if I’m not totally exhausted!!)

Now, back to food….

This is the kind of lunch (and dinner) I’ve been eating recently off the back of my tropical fruit experiments. I‘ve made this ‘stew’ both with mango and pineapple and they were equally nice. The sauce is light and fruity and makes more of a glaze.

This would be great to make with some leftover pineapple after having made the tropical bake for breakfast...just a thought ;-)

It’s a bright and simple ‘stew’ and can be cooked up as a light meal or added on top of brown rice or quinoa (i've been easy so much quinoa these final few days!) for a more hearty main dish.  Use veggies of your choice sliced thinly to cook through evenly and you’re good to go in no time.

Recipe: Black bean and mango stew

Serves 1

Ingredients:

½ cup black beans

2 cups veggies (I used an onion, sweetcorn, red pepper, mange tout and tomatoes)

½ cup fresh or pineapple mango chunks

Sauce:

1 tbs marmalade (sugar free if possible)

1 tbs lemon juice

1-2 tsp soy sauce

1 tbs fresh ginger

Method:

Saute onion for 5 mins until softened, add the remaining veggies and cook for another 5- 10 minutes (depending on size/type).

Add the cook black beans and continue to cook for a couple minutes until heated through.

Meanwhile mix the dressing ingredients and mix through with the mango/pineapple chunks. Add to the stew in the final minute of cooking to glaze and warm through.

For further guidance on making gluten free choices please see this post.

For tips and info on recipe measurement conversions, ingredients, substitutions and the methods behind how I do things.... check out my 'baking tips' tab at the top of the page.

Ginger and mango muffins

I’ve been on a bit of a savoury kick recently. I’m not sure why that it…but upon looking through my photo file of various recipes yet to be posted, I noticed a lot of savoury descriptions lurking. Hmmmm, I might have to do something about that to re-address the balance!

I think it’s got a lot to do with the fact that I’ve been so busy at weekends recently and have struggled to find time to dedicate to a major afternoon baking session and therefore my lunches and dinners have been the focus of my posts. Also the sunshine finally appears to have come out here in England and so baking endeavours are simply not quite so as appealing…more ice cream and no-bakes on the menu?                                                                                        

One recipe I did manage to find time for last weekend was these ginger and mango muffins. They were actually inspired  off the back of a batch of gingerbread granola I’d made the morning before and saved a few of the uncooked  crumbles for the top. I made the mistake of eating the granola before I’d had a chance to photograph it…ooops! I will post that recipe another time soon, but you could use any homemade granola (uncooked so it doesn’t burn on the top) or simply some nuts or seeds and extra crystallised ginger for a warming kick!

I have included crystallised ginger in this recipe. Crystallised ginger is not healthy since it is coated in refined sugar, but for the small amount this recipe required and for the extra special chewiness and intense gingery taste it offers I was happy to use it. However if you would prefer to omit this, feel free to add extra ground or fresh ginger in its place.

I made these in muffin pans and the recipe made 5, but if you used slightly smaller cupcake pans you’d easily get 6. Perfect for my mid morning snacks this week!

Recipe: Ginger and mango muffins

5-6 muffins

Ingredients

1 cup GF flour mix* (I used ½ buckwheat, ¼ tapioca, ¼ ground almonds)

¼ cup agave syrup and a pinch of stevia

pinch salt

1 ½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp baking soda

1 tsp ground chia

1/3 cup soy milk (or orange juice or other ‘milk’)

2 tbs coconut oil- melted

¼ cup mango puree

¼ cup chopped mango chunks

2 tbs crystallised ginger- finely chopped (optional or use grated  fresh) (reserve some for topping)

2 tsp ground ginger

Handful of uncooked gingerbread granola for topping (or oats and seeds)

Method

Mix all dry ingredients together in a medium bowl and then add wet ingredients. Mix together well.

Spoon the batter into 6 muffins pans (you may only get 4-5 muffins worth if the pans are large).

Add the reserved ginger and granola sprinkles to the top of each muffin.

Bake at 180C for approx. 20 mins until cooked through when tested with a toothpick. You may need to lightly cover the muffins with foil after 10 minutes if they are looking almost done, to prevent the tops burning.

* for further guidance on making gluten free choices please see this post.

For tips and info on recipe measurement conversions, ingredients, substitutions and the methods behind how I do things.... check out my 'baking tips' tab at the top of the page.

Angel delight

I know the name of this dessert will confused many of you...because Angel Delight is simply a British phenomenon. I did a little search to see what the US equivalent was and there didn’t seem to be one (feel free to correct me if I am wrong!)

Angel Delight is an instant powdered pudding mix whisked with milk to create a mousse-like custardy sweet dessert. It comes in various flavours and is something of a childhood staple in the memories of most of the UK population.

So, I wanted to create a healthy vegan equivalent that cuts out the dairy, the sugar and all the scary 'unknows’ of the powdered packet mix. I think I’ve cracked it…well it certainly went down well for dessert when I layered it up in little glass bowls and served it up for my family at the weekend.

‘Angel delight’ makes your perfect creamy moussey parfait.

Give it a try, I know you are curious now!

There are so many flavour combos you could try, here I went for strawberry and mango (I preferred the strawberry out the of two), but you could also go for other berries, banana, chocolate or maybe even orange although I think fruits with a higher level of natural pectin would work best as they would give the creamiest result when combined with the tofu.  I made my dessert by mixing the ‘base’ i.e everything but the fruit, then divided it into two before mixing in the fruit separately. The key is to blend really well.

Chill first (to allow the cashew and coconut butters to thicken slightly), then either serve it straight or with fruit and granola crumbs as I did here…basically layer up your own parfait. So pretty!

Recipe: Angel delight

Serves 1-2 (can easily be doubled)

Ingredients

½ cup silken tofu

½ cup fruit (mango/strawberries)

1 tbs cashew butter

1tbs coconut oil melted

1tbs agave plus a pinch stevia if needed

1 tsp vanilla extract

1tbs tapioca flour (or alternative thickener)

Method

Mix all ingredients together in a high powered blender (ideally with whisk attachment) until smooth. Pour into serving bowls and chill for min. 30 mins prior to serving.

Seving suggestion: Layer up different flavours with nuts/granola in between and chunks of fruit on top.

This will keep in the fridge for a couple of days.

This recipe is shared at Slightly Indulgent Tuesday and Hearth and Soul Blog Hop 

For tips and info on recipe measurement conversions, ingredients, substitutions and the methods behind how I do things.... check out my 'baking tips' tab at the top of the page.