A vegan diet is more restrictive than a vegetarian one. A part from to eliminating meat, it excludes all animal products such as dairy and even honey. The idea behind the creation of the vegan philosophy, which is not limited to diet alone, is to oppose all forms of exploitation and cruelty to animals used for food, clothing or for any other reason.
The decision to switch to a vegan diet requires careful consideration of the menu so as to provide the body with all the necessary ingredients for life, especially proteins, that are the main building blocks of the human body. It should also be mentioned that despite the best-balanced diet, vitamin B12, which is found in animal products, should be supplemented.
I am a vegetarian but for health reasons (Crohn's disease) I have to limit the consumption of dairy products, especially cowlike. That's why I would like to share some ideas that might be used in vegan cuisine and not only. I recommend them to everyone who would like to introduce more vegetables to their nutrition but have no idea how to do it.
I apologize in advance for the fact that most of my recipes don’t specify the precise amounts of ingredients used. Most of them I come up with on impulse, which I encourage everyone to do. In order not to limit your imagination, I only give ideas for further improvement because the kitchen is a very creative place and cooking can be a pleasure resulting from creating.
Suggestions for breakfast or supper:
Bread with pumpkin paste and vegetables.
I buy ready-made pumpkin paste, which successfully replaces peanut cream. I put fresh vegetables on top. The paste is slightly sweet. It goes well with lettuce, fresh cucumber, sweet pepper, chopped parsley. It's tasty, nutritious and quick to prepare breakfast.
Millet groats.
Millet with banana, linseed, chopped almonds and walnuts, raisins and dark chocolate (80%). I cook the millet over low heat for 16 minutes, in the middle of the cooking time I add linseed seeds. After straining, I put the groats with linseed into a bowl with previously prepared almonds, nuts and banana. Add raisins and cubed chocolate.
Sandwich with avocado and vegetables.
I often use avocado instead of butter. For extra flavor, you may sprinkle them with pepper or dried chili peppers. We can make avocado paste by blending it with lime juice, a little salt and chili pepper. Some people also add garlic. You may put fresh vegetables on the avocado paste. It accompanies with sweet paprika and chopped parsley very well.
Hummus.
A handful of dried chickpeas previously soaked in water (it is best to set it overnight), cook for 10 -15 minutes. When it cools down, I blend it into a homogeneous mass with the addition of: marjoram, cumin, oregano, dried chili peppers, black cumin seeds, olive oil or sesame oil and the main ingredient - sesame paste.
Posh muesli.
Ingredients: oat flakes, linseed, sesame, sunflower seeds, chopped nuts and almonds, raisins, dark chocolate 80%, cinnamon (powder). I put together oat flakes in a bowl with roasted in a pan: linseed, nuts, almonds, sesame and sunflower seeds. I add raisins and a bit of cubed chocolate. Instead of raisins, you may use other dried fruits: dates, figs, apricots, by your lights.
People who allow honey in their diet may add it to oat flakes with seeds and nuts and bake it in the oven for 13 - 15 minutes at 180oC, mix it from time to time so that it does not burn. After taking it out of the oven, I add to muesli dried fruit and a bit of dark chocolate and eat it with coconut yogurt.
Suggestions for dinner:
Parsley cream soup.
Ingredients: 2 large parsley roots, 1 large carrot, a teaspoon of desiccated coconut, coconut or almond milk, bay leaf, marjoram, chopped parsley, fresh mint, oregano, milk thistle, black cumin seeds, lemon, chili pepper. Boil the pared carrots and parsley until soft (about 20 minutes) in salted water. Add spices, coconut flakes and plant milk and blend. Flavour with lemon and dried chili to taste.
One pot dish.
Ingredients: red lentils, potatoes, cauliflower, carrot, green peppers, mushrooms, onions, tomato sauce, black cumin seeds, linseeds, curry, cumin, marjoram, thyme, dried hot peppers.
Red lentils don’t require prior steeping. I put a few tablespoons of lentils in a tall pot and pour water, add curry, marjoram, bay leaf, a little salt and cook. Then I add cubed potatoes and carrots, cauliflower florets. Chopped peppers, mushrooms and onions are blanched in a pan with a bit of coconut or rapeseed oil and added to the vegetables that are cooking in the pot. At the end, add the remaining herbs and spices, black cumin seeds and tomato sauce. I cook the vegetables until soft.
Pasta.
Ingredients: penne pasta, roasted sunflower seeds, chopped walnuts, linseed (seed), with the addition of basil oil, olive oil and dried sage.
Cook the pasta one minute less than indicated on the package. In a dry frying pan, roast sunflower seeds, flaxseeds and nuts, then add a little basil oil and dried sage. I add the cooked pasta and mix all the ingredients in the pan, and at the end of cooking I pour the dish extra virgin olive oil.
Turnip cutlets.
Ingredients: turnip, millet groats, linseed, black cumin, chia seeds, chopped parsley, marjoram, salt, hot pepper. First, I cook millet with linseed (I often cook more groats for breakfast and use the rest to make cutlets). I rub the peeled turnip on a grater and blend it with millet groats and spices, herbs and seeds. After creating a uniform mass, I form cutlets and roll them in breadcrumbs and sesame seeds, and then fry in rapeseed oil or bake them in the oven.
Vegan bigos (hunter’s stew).
Ingredients: white cabbage, sauerkraut, carrot, cranberry, prunes, edible dried wild mushrooms, milk thistle seed, black cumin seed, marjoram, bay leaf, allspice, thyme, lovage, salt and pepper to taste; a bit of herbal tincture or red wine.
I chop white cabbage and blanch it with a little rapeseed or sunflower oil in a large pot, then add sauerkraut with carrots (or grate fresh carrots and blanch together with the cabbage). Next, I add dried mushrooms, herbs and some water. I cook it for about an hour on a slow fire without a cover. The next day, I add the rest of the ingredients and cook the whole thing over low heat for about 30 minutes. On the third day, I cook the dish over low heat for about half an hour.
Chickpeas with rice.
Ingredients: chickpeas, mushrooms, fresh peppers, onion, brown or jasmine rice, tomato sauce (or canned tomatoes), milk thistle seeds, black cumin seed, marjoram, cumin, curry, hot pepper (dried or in powder), ginger (fresh or in powder), green parsley (fresh or dried), basil (fresh or dried), fresh mint, salt to taste.
I prefer dried chickpeas (not canned), so I put them soaked in water overnight the day before cooking. I cook it for 20 minutes in a small amount of water with the addition of marjoram, cumin and Himalayan salt. At the end of the process, I add lightly fried in coconut oil mushrooms, onion and fresh pepper. I mix all the ingredients, cooking on low heat, adding the other herbs, grains and spices. Cook the rice one minute less than indicated on the package. Finally, add the tomato sauce and cooked rice to the chickpeas. Mix all the ingredients and it's ready.
Dessert suggestions:
Healthy muffins
Ingredients:
1 cup of wheat flour (preferably semolina),
1 cup cornmeal (or other gluten-free flour)
2 medium eggs (oops…),
half a cup of vegetable oil (I use half sunflower and half coconut oil),
half a cup of fine vegetable sugar (from birch or sugar cane),
1 cup of plant milk (e.g., coconut or almond)
2 teaspoons of baking powder.
A glass - 250 ml.
Mix all ingredients in a bowl and then pour into muffin casts. I fill the mold 1/3 with the dough, then put the stuffing, and then fill the cast with another portion of the dough (up to ¾ of the size).
Sample stuffing for muffins: finely chopped peeled apples, with the addition of cinnamon and finely chopped dark chocolate 80%.
Baking time about 20 - 25 minutes at 180oC.
Halva balls
One important thing at the beginning: in the recipe I use honey, if someone is a strict vegan, they can use vegetable sugar (e.g., from birch) instead of honey.
Ingredients: sesame paste with the addition of honey and oat flakes; coconut shreds.
After blending the ingredients, I form the balls and roll in coconut flakes. Bake in the oven at 180oC until golden brown (about 5 minutes).
I encourage you to prepare your own meals because ready-made products (especially vegan) from supermarkets have a lot of strange chemical names and ingredients can be purchased in proven stores (not necessarily organic because there you may also come across Mendeleev's table, only for twice the price).
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