Vegan Chocolate Banana Bread from Bosh! {recipe review}

The best part of being vegan was this banana bread. I am just sayin'.

It's not the first time I have baked vegan, but it was always with varying results this loaf turned out great and I ate it for days and now make it whenever I have any old bananas lurking around.

The recipe is really simple and easy to make. It's literally just throw everything into a bowl and mix it together and then throw it in the tin and bake! Finding a recipe as simple as this, but tastes just as great is always a winner and the added bonus as that no animals were harmed in the making of this baked good!

If you are looking for a great baking vegan recipe to test the waters I recommend starting with this one!

Banana Bread

250g plain flour
75g light brown sugar
75g white sugar
1½ tbsp cocoa powder
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
½ tsp salt
½ tsp ground allspice
110g dairy-free butter
3 ripe bananas
60ml almond milk
2 tbsp maple syrup
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp vanilla extract
60g dark chocolate
50g pecans/walnuts

Preheat oven to 170C fan (190C/gas 5) and line a 1kg loaf tin with parchment paper.

Pour all the ingredients except the dark chocolate and pecans into a food processor or free standing mixer and beat them to a thick mixture. Scrape any excess mixture back into the bowl.
Break the dark chocolate and pecans or walnuts into small pieces and tip them into the bowl. Fold until just combined.
Pour the mixture into the lined loaf tin and put it in the oven.
Bake for 60-65 minutes, or until a skewer inserted at the middle of the loaf comes out clean. Take the tin out of the oven and leave the bread to cool to room temperature. Remove the loaf from the tin and cut it into slices to serve.

My Top 5 Vegan or Plant Based Cookbooks (Veganuary)

There are many different reasons someone might want to be a Vegan, a term that was coined not all that long ago for people who don't eat anything that comes from an animal; some vegans even cover everyday products as well. But a group of them got together and said hey let's make January Veganuary, let's give people the information that shows how being vegan can benefit you and the world, and let's show them how it's not all that hard! 

That isn't what this post is all about and as I am a newbie to this Vegan stuff and honestly probably not all that qualified to give it. If you are looking for more of that information veganuary.com is a good place to start. 

This post is to show the four new cookbooks I picked up and one I already had living on my shelf. I don't need much of an excuse to buy a new cookbook, but I think learning to cook and eat a plant based diet is a pretty good one! 

The first two books I picked up were Bosh! and Feed Me Vegan for All Occasions, shortly followed by a much recommended book The Green Roasting Tin and then of course Leon's newly released Fast Vegan. It's early days, but I have already tried a few recipes from the these books as well as read them almost cover to cover .... only picked up Fast Vegan a couple days ago. 

Bosh! 

by Henry Firth & Ian Theasby 

- At first glance you wouldn't even know this book was plant based the recipes are all ones you probably recognise! It isn't until you look closer you see the differences and by differences I mean one glaringly obvious difference and one slightly less so. There isn't any meat in any of the recipes, but more so there isn't any dairy. There are dairy substitutions when needed and it's when you recognise that you recognise what this book is all about. 

I think this is my favorite out of the ones I have, I have already tried two of the recipes and bookmarked more! I would also recommend this book to any one of any diet because you don't need a label to use this book! It literally has everything you could want from a cookbook.

Want to learn more about Bosh! - visit their website bosh.tv 

Feed Me Vegan for All Occasions

by Lucy Watson

- One of my secrets is that I used to watch a lot of Made in Chelsea, not as big of fan now, but love the older episodes because of the people on them, including Lucy Watson. I follow her on social media and she talks a lot about her vegan lifestyle and it's always made me curious. So, it was a no-brainer for me to pick up a copy of her book. This is actually the second book, the first I flipped through at the store and nothing grabbed my attention like it did in this one. So, having to watch my wallet as I don't live in Chelsea I just bought the one. 

What I liked about this one compared to the others is that most of the ingredients and recipes are straight forward. These are the recipes I will be using when needing to make something quick, delicious, and fuss free. She also includes weekly meal planner to help those just starting out and a section on vegan pet food. 

Want to learn more about Lucy Watson's Feed Me Vegan - follow Lucy on social media 

writing this it is 99p on amazon kindle 

The Green Roasting Tin 

by Rukmini Iyer

- This was recommended by two people I follow on instagram (I live on instagram so if you don't follow me already - go do it I will follow back if you make yourself known to me) one a vegan and another a vegetarian. Both parents that have busy lives with kids and jobs and lives... I already said lives. Although the recipes may take longer in the oven there is little to no prep. Just throw it in the tray and pop in the oven, do chores, helps kids with homework, read a book, drink a cuppa or whatever and let the oven do the work and still have a delicious tasty meal on the table! 

This is one of those books that suits anyone's lifestyle and any time of year. The book is broken down first into Vegan and Vegetarian and then the recipes for each are broken down by speed: Quick, Medium, Slow. You just can't go wrong with this one! Bonus for me was the infographics showing how to combine/cook different vegetables. I am a sucker for a good infographic though. 

Leon: Fast Vegan

by Rebecca Seal, Chantal Symons & John Vincent 

- One of my favorite cookbooks is my Leon: Family & Friends cookbook. Already a company that values good food, not just good as in tastes good because that you can get a lot of different places, but food that tastes good and is good for you. They have restaurants across the UK and several cookbooks and it's natural after publishing Fast Vegetarian that they would go that step further with Fast Vegan! 

This book I only picked up recently as it was only published recently so haven't read through the whole thing like I have the others, I'm about half way and it's everything I expected and more. I can't wait to try some of the recipes from this book. 

Want to learn more about Leon visit their site leon.co 

Last but not least a book I have had many years now - 

Ms. Cupcake - The Naughtiest Vegan Cakes in Town! 

by Ms. Cupcake aka Melissa Morgan

- I had a friend who was allergic to dairy and eggs and never could enjoy cake. There was no way I could allow that! And it was that thought process that lead me to think: well vegans don't eat dairy or eggs so what do they do for cake? It was when this book came to my life. There are not words to express how great this baking book is.

If you live in London you can just visit her shop, but if you don't then I suggest you pick up this book. I have made cupcakes and muffins and various other things that all turned out great for me! I also met Ms. Cupcake at the Cake & Bake show years ago. Being Vegan isn't just about eating vegetables - which sounds so very boring - but it's being aware of what you are eating and the bigger picture of where our food comes from and how it's produced. 

Want to know more about Ms. Cupcake and the delicious treats visit her site mscupcake.co.uk 

> These cupcakes were made from a recipe from Ms. Cupcake for my daughter's birthday as my vegan friend and her son were attending and not a single one of the party goers realised they didn't have any eggs or dairy in them! 

Last note - It's interesting how we use meat as the focus of our meals and vegetables as a side dish. These books, even if you aren't vegan, are a great way to look at vegetables as the star not as a side act. I may not continue to be strictly vegan after the 31st of January, but I know I will be adding recipes from these books to my repertoire from now on.

I hope to share a bit more on here this month as I attempt a vegan diet/lifestyle. Anything you'd like to see or that I should try let me know in the comments! 

*all books were purchased by me - all opinions are my own please see contact/policy page for more information

Living on the Veg: A kid's guide to life without meat by Clive Gifford & Jacqueline Meldrum

Over the last few years I have been cooking a minimum two veggie meals a week to accommodate for my child who doesn't particularly like meat. We have discussed her dislike for meat and what her other options are, but this book has been great for her to understand what exactly it means to be a vegetarian and the global impact of her choices. It has also shown her she isn't alone.

Food is one of those topics everyone has an opinion on as we all need it to survive. It's something we are all too happy to judge people, claiming that a food choice that isn't the one we would make as 'weird' or 'gross.' But if we don't talk about food then how do we know what else is out there?

I feel more empowered after reading this book to be able to explain my choices as well as my defend my daughter's choices to people. Like anything it's about educating people and it's best to educate them young and this book is a great introduction to 'living on the veg!'

Not only does it give us a lot of information it also gives us a few recipes to get started with from Jacqueline Meldrum, vegetarian and food blogger at Tinned Tomatoes. My daughters and I choose to make the Puff Pizza Pies for a treat one day after school. They are super easy and easily topped with your favorite vegetables to make the ultimate veggie pizza!

There were other great recipes like these bean burgers and sweet treats like coconut ice! There are so many more options then you think when you are eating veggie, sometimes it's just thinking a little more creatively! Your taste buds will thank you! 

If my review isn't enough to convince you have a look at these other bloggers who have reviewed Living on the Veg!!

• Tinned Tomatoes - review
• Elizabeth's Kitchen Diary - 10-Minute Vegan Bean Burgers
• A Mummy Too - Quick Green Pasta Sauce
• Tin & Thyme - Puff Pizza Pies
• Utterly Scrummy - Chocolate Mousse

*I was provided a copy of Living on the Veg by by Clive Gifford & Jacqueline Meldrum to review by the publisher, Wayland, retails at £12.99 and available now from your local book retailers or online! All opinions are my own, I was not given any other compensation nor was I asked to give a positive review, please see my contact/policy page for more information.

Saffron Soul by Mira Manek {book review}

Earlier this week Mira Manek released her debut book Saffron Soul, but she is no stranger to having her recipes published; they have been featured in numerous publications as well as her own website.

Her love of traditional Indian food and vegetarian dishes have lead her to share this love with all of us! Mira's cookbook, for me, is an entirely new and refreshing way to look at Indian food! I am no vegetarian and my experience with Indian food is left to westernised restaurants and I can't wait to get stuck into the recipes in this book!

The chapters are broken down into ingredients and key pastes and garnishes followed by chapters titled Soulful Mornings (breakfast), Anytime Favourites (snacks and teatime treats), Light Meals (lunch) , Traditional Thalis (Thali is a meal of various dishes that aims to offer all of the 6 different flavours of sweet, salt, bitter, sour, astringent, and spicy all on one platter) - probably the chapter I found the most interesting because I had never heard of Thalis before and I love how she uses her mother's and both of her grandmother's traditional Thali, then there is a chapter on desserts (always a great chapter), and last but not least spiced drinks.

Normally it is this part of the review that I would list all the recipes I would like to try, but with this title I just don't know where I would start? Here are a few pictures to get a peek into the book!

*I was given a copy of Saffron Soul by Mira Manek to review by the publisher, jacqui small. Retails at £20 and available now from your local book retailers or online! All opinions are my own, I was not given any other compensation nor was I asked to give a positive review, please see my contact/policy page for more information.

Butternut and Halloumi Burgers {Simply Nigella by Nigella Lawson}

I bought a butternut squash. It wasn’t part of the plan. Meaning it’s not in anything that I had planned for dinner nor was it even on the shopping list. It was there and I wanted it.

It sat on the counter for almost two weeks. I kept staring at it thinking “I need you, to use you before you go off that is. I just don’t know what to do you with you?” Curries and soups kept going in and out of my head, but it just wasn’t right.

So, I opened my new Nigella book, Simply Nigella and bookmark that I didn’t know was there opened the book right here:

Okay the picture doesn’t really tell us much, but it had a butternut squash in the picture. So, I turned the page to see what the recipe was and it was for Butternut and Halloumi Burgers.

The fact that I had halloumi cheese in my fridge as well seemed too much of a coincidence. The only thing I was missing was pittas. If you read my previous post you will know how I solved that problem!

So, with all the ingredients in my possession I made lunch! I love how there are very few ingredients and it made a filling and tasty meal!

Butternut and Halloumi Burgers:

1 butternut squash
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon of dried oregano
225g halloumi cheese (or buy it already sliced)
pitta bread

Heat the oven to 200C. Slice the top thinner part of the squash into rounds. Not too thin, not too thick. Depending on the squash and how you cut there should be 4-8 slices. Spread the oil over the bottom of a baking tray and lay the slices of squash on top. Sprinkle half the oregano on top and flip the slice over and sprinkle the rest on top. Bake in the oven for 20-30 minutes.
Once the butternut squash is soft and browning around the edges add the cheese slices and bake for a further 10 minutes or so. If you have worked with halloumi cheese before you know it doesn’t really melt, but it does heat up nicely!
Before you take the slices out of the oven stick the pittas in your toaster for a few minutes to warm them up. Slice them to make a pocket and take the butternut/cheese slices out of the oven and add them into the pocket and enjoy!

note: recipe is adapted from Nigella's new book Simply Nigella - I had my copy signed! Find out more in my next post!!

If you want to make your own pittas check out my last post!!