Tahini Brownie

06-03-2018 Local Black Bookbrownie, cake, chocolate, recipe, tahini, vegetarianLeave a comment

I’m not sure what it is, but it seems more and more of my internet friends are falling victims of strange and spectacular baking nightmares.

Things burn, don’t raise, turn out to be weird colours… and it’s happened so much in the past few weeks I’m starting to worry it’s not just a coincidence!

No way that’ll stop be from baking though – I absolutely need both the process and the resulting cake to face the very stressful period of change I’m currently into! – so I more than ever rely on tried-and-tested, fool- (and catastrophy-) proof recipe.

On top of that list comes brownies.

SO easy to make (no fuss whatsoever), SO delicious (moist and dense and chocolatey and everything a good brownie should be).

I’ve been using the base recipe for years (about 10 of them!) and it’s simply perfect.

And, as it turns out, even better with added tahini to create those dreamy squares of tahini brownie goodness!

Because it tastes best the day after it’s baked, this tahini brownie is the ultimate make-ahead treat…

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And, if you don’t look too closely, you might even say it’s a fantastic square meal!

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More foolproof cake recipes:

Banana bread (V, Vg & DF options)

Simple lemon cake (V)

Cranberry oatmeal cake (V)

The best carrot cake (V)

Vegan Buddha Bowl with Green Tahini

13-06-2017 Local Black Bookbuddha bowl, dairy-free, gluten-free, lunch, quinoa, recipe, salad, sweet potato, tahini, vegan2 Comments

Defined as ‘a bowl which is packed so full that it has a rounded “belly” appearance on the top, much like the belly of a buddha’, buddha bowls might sound like just another food fad.

Sweet Potato & Quinoa Vegan Buddha Bowl with Green Tahini • Recipe • Cake + Whisky

But not at all. Because if the term is new, the concept (a random bunch of delicious veggies, thrown together in a bowl and topped with all sorts of creamy n’ crunchy treats) really isn’t.

Packed full of nutrients, buddha bowls make for super satisfying, healthy meals.

They’re super easy to adapt to any diet (vegetarian, vegan, gluten free, dairy-free) without feeling like you have to compromise. And they only take a few minutes to put together.

As a result, they’re my packed lunch of choice.

I’ve tried quite a few variations of the ol’ grain + greens + veg + sauce combo, and this quinoa & sweet potato vegan buddha bowl is simply the best (yes, even better than this bad boy!).

As it just so happen, this baby is good for you, nutritious, vegan and gluten-free.

But because it’s packed full of colours, flavours and textures and soooooo satisfying, you won’t even notice it!

Just my kind of superbowl!

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More healthy lunch recipes:

Spring Potato Salad (Vegan, GF)

Best Ever Guacamole (Vegan, GF)

Tomato & Coconut Pasta (Vegan)

Broccoli & Avocado Salad

04-01-2017 Local Black Bookavocado, broccoli, recipe, salad, tahini, vegan, vegetarian3 Comments

When it comes to packing your own lunch, raise your hand if you always start the year full of grand plans and good intentions, only to give up a few days later because GOSH WHY DOES IT TAKE SO MUCH TIME AND EFFORT? and f*ck it, I might as well just go to Pret and get the same old sandwich everyday because I’d rather from boredom than exhaustion?

Yeah? Me too.

But the truth is, it doesn’t have to be that hard.

Exhibit n°1 with this Broccoli & Avocado Salad.

This is healthy eating at its best. Simple, cheap as chips ingredients thrown just a few minutes to create something super healthy and, most importantly, absolutely delicious.

The beauty of this salad lies in its perfect simplicity and its amazing contrast of texture.

Creamy avocado, crunchy broccoli, with a bit of added zing from the tahini-lemon dressing, it makes for a super satisfying vegan lunch.

Broccoli & Avocado Salad (vegan, serves 1 as a main course or 2 as a side)

Ingredients:

1 small broccoli head (washed, pat dried and chopped into bite-sized pieces
1/2 avocado (pitted, peeled and chopped into small cubes)
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp good quality tahini (this is my favourite)
juice from 1/2 lemon
small pinch chilli flakes
1 clove garlic (peeled and finely chopped)
big pinch za’atar
chives (finely chopped)
salt, pepper

1. Pre-heat your oven to 180°C (gas mark 6).

2. In a bowl, mix the broccoli pieces with the olive oil, chilli flakes, garlic and a small pinch of salt. Transfer to an oven tray and roast until slightly brown and tender (about 30 min).

3. In a small bowl or glass, combine the tahini and lemon juice and mix until well combine (add a bit of water if necessary). Season with salt and pepper.

4. In a serving bowl, combine the roasted broccoli and cubed avocado. Top with the tahini dressing, sprinkle with za’atar and chives and serve immediately.

Curried Cauliflower Salad

21-09-2016 Local Black Bookcauliflower, cook, curry, curry powder, healthy, healthy food, lunch, pine nuts, raisins, recipe, salad, tahini, vegan, vegetarian, yoghurtLeave a comment

When it comes to cauliflower, I go through phases.

I won’t cook it for months and months, and then I have a bit of a cauliflower-frenzy time, when I’ll have it every day, two times a day.

Curried Cauliflower Salad | Cake + Whisky

And guess what… Right now, it’s cauliflower time!

While cauliflower cheese is a staple in my house and my absolute favourite way to cook it (I mean, helloooooo, melty, cheesy gratin of dreaaaamz!), cauliflower can also take on some more exotic flavours, as proven by the recent explosion in the number of roasted cauliflower dishes at some of my favourite London restaurants (including The Barbary‘s gorgeous version).

The below recipe for the easiest, most delicious, sweet and savoury Curried Cauliflower Salad is my take on this trend, and a serious contender for my favourite way to eat cauliflower, ever.

And since cauliflower is packed full of vitamins (especially the C & K kinds), this salad is basically the perfect way to build up your immune defenses before winter hits up, so you should broccoli try it…

Curried Cauliflower Salad (serves 1, with some leftovers)

Ingredients:

a small head of cauliflower, carved into small stalks
2 tbsp curry powder
1 small handful raisins
10g pine nuts
1 tsp tahini
1 tbsp Greek yoghurt (skip for a vegan version, in which case you might want to double the quantity of tahini)
1 tbsp olive oil
sea salt, black pepper

1. Pre-heat your oven to 200°C (gas mark 7).

2. Bring a medium saucepan of salted water to the boil. Add the cauliflower and poach for 3-4 minutes or until cooked but still quite ferm. Drain.

2. In a big mixing bowl, combine the curry powder with the olive oil and a good pinch of salt. Add the cauliflower and mix until evenly coated.

3. Transfer to a roasting tray, sprinkle a little bit more curry powder and bake for 35-40 min or until golden.

4. Heat up a frying pan and roast the pine nuts until slightly golden (about 1min).

5. Combine the tahini & the Greek yoghurt to make the dressing. Season to taste.

6. Arrange the cauliflower on a plate, sprinkle with the pine nuts and raisins, then drizzle with the yoghurt/tahini dressing and eat immediately.

(If you’re having this as a packed lunch, pack the salad and the dressing separately and combine at the very last minute)

What’s your favourite way to cook cauliflower?

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