Heya, friends. It's been a long time since I wrote my last blog about a year ago. And so many things have happened since like finally fixing my overbite (thanks to my ortho who looked after me for three years. hah!), changing The Vegan Dinosaur's menu (twice!), and opening my dream business, a bulk food store. Probably, my most exciting and exhilarating adventure so far this year, more than all those exotic Durio and Artocarpus species I've had in Borneo early this year. I've been wanting to open it since I transitioned to low-impact lifestyle in 2016 but just didn't have the courage and I felt like it wasn't time.  But after a trip to Australia last June, it rekindled my long forgotten dream of creating a bulk food store. Just like The Vegan Dinosaur, Croft Bulk Foods is a product of sweat, blood, and tears, and whole lot of hard work. But I digress, all I'm saying is that, it's been a crazy year and writing a blog, although it crossed my mind, wasn't really a priority. But I do hope that this one would be the catalyst for me to write more. I will do my best, I promise.

Back to Ela Vegan's recipe, this one's really easy to follow with ingredients that can be found locally (except for nutritional yeast but this one is available at Healthy Options and this is also optional so no worries, if you don't have this on hand). Her recipe also called for white wine but I didn't use on my version. I also don't consume oil so I made my oil-free and garlic-free. I didn't have tamari on hand so I substituted it with Bragg's liquid amino that I bought from Gaisano Mall of Digos. I used organic unsweetened soy milk but feel free to replace it with any plant milk you like - almonds, oats, or coconut milk. For the vegetable broth, I bought a box of vegan ones from Healthy Options (do make sure to adjust the taste according to your preferences, I don't like salty food very much and I tend to overdo it sometimes, I even eat soup with no flavourings at all. Add more liquid amino or soy sauce if you have to).

True to Ela Vegan's words, this gets done so quick! Not even 30 minutes, and this keeps quite well in the fridge for few days too so feel free to add this to your healthy meal prep.

This isn't only easy to make, it's also hearty, satiating, super delicious, and healthy.

Make sure to check out @elavegan on instagram and give her some love and the original recipe of this mushroom stroganoff.

Method

In a heat-proof bowl, melt vegetable broth cube in 100 ml hot water and set aside.

Heat water in a medium-sized pan, add diced onion and 'fry' until it's translucent. Then add the mushroom and pan-fry over medium heat for about 3 minutes.

Slowly pour in the pre-mixed vegetable broth, liquid amino, all the spices and dried herbs, and nutritional yeast. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to slow and simmer.

Stir in cornstarch to the plant-based milk until the starch is dissolved. Then add into the pan and cook until the sauce thickens, stir occasionally to keep the sauce from burning.

When the sauce thickens, remove from heat. Taste and adjust seasonings according to your preference.

Serve with rice, job's tears (adlai), or quinoa and sprinkle with some fresh parsley. Best served hot!

** Keep left-over in the fridge for 2 to 3 days or a week in the freezer. Just reheat on stove-top or microwave.

Hope you'll enjoy this dish as much as I did. This recipe is a keeper! x

With love,
Lara

I've posted a photo of alugbati yesterday in hopes that it may hold me accountable in creating a recipe that uses alugbati. I'd be so ashamed if I didn't get my arse moving in the kitchen and make food when I've already posted it on social media. So I decided to create one that's not only quick but also quite pocket-friendly for Filipino vegans.

I know that the problem with people wanting to go vegan is that people always say 'we love dairy!' so it's only apt that I try to address that concern and help people transition, get creative and make vegan versions of our favourite recipes, hey? I have made it my personal mission to spread veganism whenever I can in Davao City.

Traditional carbonara is usually filled with cow secretions and eggs (chicken *******), oh wait, that didn't sound right but sadly that's the truth. Unless you're a calf, then quit drinking your dairy milk. You know what they say about dairy, right? Not your mum, not your milk.

If you can eat healthy vegan food, why wouldn't you? So here's our take of traditional carbonara minus the BAD cholesterol and cruelty. Hopefully, you'd love it as much as I loved eating and making these. Add more nutritional yeast, salt or liquid amino, if you want more flavours. Somehow, my recipes are usually bland for non-vegans.

The most important ingredients here I guess would be the soy milk and the corn flour as they're the ones that make this carbonara creamy. I haven't had carbonara in such a long time that I can't remember how it tastes like, this might taste a little different for some but the creaminess of this recipe is on point.

Ingredients

Serves 6

300 grams spinach fettuccine
2 T Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 t Minced Garlic
1 t Minced Onion
2 C Soy Milk + 1 T Nutritional Yeast
1 T Corn Flour (diluted in 1 T water)
1/2 t Himalayan Pink Salt
1/2 t Freshly Ground Black Pepper
200 g Alugbati (Malabar Spinach)


Method

Cook pasta according to package instruction. Set aside.

Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium high heat. Saute onion until translucent then add garlic until golden brown.

Add alugbati and let soften for few minutes. Add the cooked fettuccine. Pour in soy milk mixed with nutritional yeast and corn flour mixture. Season with salt and black pepper.

Stir until the sauce thickens then remove from heat.

Serve hot in a bowl and sprinkle with some chili flakes and more black pepper.


* If you want the sauce to be thinner, add a cup of soy milk. Adjust flavourings.
** Fresh basil leaves may be added.