VeganMoFo 2011 #14: 'Eat, Drink & Be Vegan'

Eat, Drink & Be Vegan
Dreena Burton, Arsenal Pulp Press, 2007



I can tell you the exact moment I purchased this book - 10.36am (and 34 seconds) on the 27th of April, 2009. I know this because I found the Borders docket still tucked away between the pages. This was the first book of Dreena's that I purchased, and it is definitely my favourite book of hers. This book has an entire chapter devoted to hummus, how can you not love that? There is a good range of recipes in this book. Dreena also loves to use spelt and oat flour in a lot of her recipes instead of white flour, so you can pretend you are being super healthy while nomming on your cookies.

The book is a paperback, the size means it does not stay open easily. There are several inserts with colour photos of some of the recipes. Contents include Introduction (kitchen equipment, cooking and food prep, cooking tips), Top o' the Mornin'! (Breakfasts), Hummus Hummus (and more Hummus), Bits & Bites (Other Dips & Nibblers), Pour It On! (Sauces, Dressings, & Toppers), Soup's On! (Soups & Stews), The Best Thing Since Sliced Bread (Sandwiches & Spreads), The Main Events (Casseroles, One-Pot Meals, Pastas & More), Sidekicks (Side Dishes & Accompaniments), Sugar 'n' Spice & All Things Nice (Desserts & Baking, Baking Notes, Baking Tips), A Toast To Being Vegan (Beverages), Grain & Bean Cooking Guides, Measurement Conversion Tables and a Glossary.

Now, five-star food times!

Berry Goodness Muffins


These muffins are so yummy. The berries in them are strawberries - my favourites! The flour mix include spelt, oat and chickpea powder, so they are practically good for you. Plus they keep you quite full.

Peanut Sesame Hummus


Chickpeas, lime, peanut butter and sesame oil form the basis of this wonderful savoury dip. It is quite rich, but you won't want to stop eating.

White Bean Hummus with Fresh Thyme & Basil


This is made with white beans rather than chickpeas, so perhaps technically not a hummus. But it is delicious. The herby flavours come through very strong here.

Simplest Garlic Bread


I love this bread, though I don't know that I would call it garlic bread. Frozen baguette slices are rubbed with a raw garlic clove to impart the garlic flavour, but it is not as strong as I would normally make my garlic bread. The mix on the bread is Nuttelex (vegan butter), sea salt and nooch, so it is a wonderful cheesy and salty bread. Next time I will mix some minced garlic into the buttery spread.

Creamy Basil Dressing


I love this beautiful dressing, particularly over cucumbers and tomatoes as pictured here. The 'creamy' comes from non-dairy milk and raw almonds.

Polenta Croutons


Take prepared polenta, cube, toss with olive oil and seasonings and bake. Oh my goodness, I like to make these just as a snack! They are so delicious.

Traditional Cranberry Sauce


This is my go to cranberry sauce, and with this in my repertoire I need never buy cranberry sauce again. I like this cranberry sauce recipe above others because it is easy and fast to make, and has only four ingredients that I generally have on hand (assuming I have a box of frozen cranberries). It thickens up beautifully, and has a fantastic flavour.

Broccoli Cashew Teriyaki Tofu Stir-Fry


Served over soba noodles or rice, this is a delicious quick and easy dinner. I love that it is a homemade teriyaki sauce as well, no bottled stuff here. Of course I left out the capsicum.

Orange Sesame Tofu


There is lots of flavour in this tofu. Plus, there is lots of extra sauce leftover to drizzle over everything. I served this with Coconut-Lime Basmati Rice and Simple Swiss Chard, also from this book.

Coconut-Lime Basmati Rice


Here is the rice I served with the above! It is really delicious. I had some leftover basmati-wild rice mix so I mixed that in with the regular basmati rice. This also cooks well in the rice cooker!

Cornmeal-Crusted Plantains


This was the first thing I ever made with plantains - and they are so yummy! Lime juice is a must for serving.

Potato Squashers


These are everything I love about potatoes. Bake potatoes, squash potatoes then bake again on both sides with olive oil and salt. This is so good. I like to give them an extra five or ten minutes in the oven at the end to make them extra crunchy on the outside.

Rosemary Cornmeal Polenta Fries


One of the other things I love is baked or fried seasoned polenta. These 'fries' are really good. The recipe says 510g of prepared polenta will give you 3-4 serves, but I used an entire 1kg block and found I got four servings out of that. I just give a minimal sprinkling of salt is all these need.

Olive & Sun-Dried Tomato Hummus
Back-to-Basics Balsamic Vinaigrette
Cumin-Cinnamon Vinaigrette
Living Caesar Dressing
Lentil Veggie Chimichangas

What is your favourite hummus?

Cute Kitty Photo of the Post


This fluffy tummy fur belongs to the handsome Possum. You know you want to blow raspberries on it!