12 October 2017

Couscous with maple-roasted squash and crunchy chickpeas

Sandra mains butternut squash, chickpeas, couscous, crisp chickpeas, roasted onion, roasted squash, roasted veg, spiced chickpeas, squash, vegan, vegetarian 2 Comments

Autumn is here and I couldn’t be happier with the prospect of all the warm-spiced sweet and savoury foods to be enjoyed in the next couple of months. Roasted squash and pumpkins, freshly picked chestnuts and seasonal baking, I’m ready to go! This week I put my oven to work and welcomed the season with […]

12 October 2017

Crisp-roasted spiced chickpeas

Sandra sides, snacks chickpeas, crunchy chickpeas, drinks, gluten free, healthy snack, roasted chickpeas, salad topping, spicy chickpeas, vegetarian 2 Comments

As you can tell from my recipes, I love chickpeas and I use them whenever I can, but up till recently I’d only used them in their soft, floury state. I´ve been missing out! A while ago I finally ventured making these attractive, spicy-looking crisp-roasted chickpeas you can see circulating on the Internet. They were […]

5 October 2017

Double chocolate pancakes with chickpea and chestnut flour

Sandra breakfast/brunch, sweet chestnut flour, chickpea flour, chocolate, chocolate pancakes, gluten free, pancakes, vegan, vegetarian, wholegrain 0 Comments

With a chocolate ganache birthday cake and chocolate cupcakes to hand out at school, my youngest’s birthday has been filled with all things chocolatey. And what better way to start a day like that than with chocolate pancakes? Recently, I’ve come to the state of luxury in which, if anyone wants pancakes for breakfast, my […]

21 September 2017

Warm-spiced lentil ragù with mushrooms and fresh herbs

Sandra mains bolognese, mushrooms, pasta, puy lentils, vegan, vegan bolognese, vegetarian 0 Comments

The upcoming chill in the air calls for blankets, large lattes and warming bowls of comfort food. Just the right time to cook a big batch of bolognese! This veg and fresh herb-laden lentil ragù is my favourite veggie version of a traditional bolognese. Filled with Puy lentils for bite, chestnut mushrooms for their juicy […]

6 September 2017

Maki sushi with black rice and marinated carrot

Sandra mains, snacks black rice, black rice sushi, carrot lox, gluten free, no added sugar, sushi, vegan sushi, vegetarian 0 Comments

Before I turned vegetarian, if you were to ask me what my favourite food was, I´d answer without hesitation: sushi. Not only was it the perfect combination of flavours and textures, it was also the dish I enjoyed most making together as a family. After abandoning meat and fish from my diet, I found making […]

27 August 2017

Summery tropical fruit nice cream

Sandra snacks, sweet banana, homemade ice cream, melon, nice cream, no added sugar, no-churn ice cream, pineapple, vegan ice cream, vegetarian 0 Comments

Next to fire, the wheel, written language and almond butter, I think nice cream heads the list of best inventions ever. Whoever was the first to think that freezing a banana and whizzing it into a snack might be a good idea, deserves a medal in my book – if they didn’t already get one. […]

12 August 2017

Dolmadakia – vine leaves with rice and fresh herbs

Sandra sides, snacks dolmadakia, dolmades, dolmas, gluten free, mezze, vegan, vegetarian, vine leaves 2 Comments

Grapes are slowly ripening in our garden. It’s a process I follow with happy anticipation every year, but at the moment the abundantly growing tendrils and leaves around the fruits are of even more interest to me: it’s the perfect time to make dolmadakia! Dolmades, or the Greek diminutive dolmadakia, are the stuffed vine leaves […]

5 August 2017

Cashew cheesecakes with lemon and wineberries

Sandra snacks, sweet cashew nuts, cheesecake, gluten free, vegan, vegetarian, wineberries 0 Comments

Like every year, around this time we have a wall in our garden covered with fruit-laden wineberry branches. I’m talking about the lovely Japanese sister of the raspberry and blackberry (Rubus phoenicolasus), which seems to feel perfectly at home in our Dutch climate. The berries growing from this plant are smaller than their siblings’, but […]

13 July 2017

Pak choi stir-fry with ginger, lime and sesame

Sandra mains, sides bok choi, gluten free, pak choi, stir-fry, vegan, vegetarian 0 Comments

A quick and easy stir-fry this week, on the occasion of the fact that I had four heads of pak choi in my garden, ready to be eaten. This sounds very matter-of-fact, but for me it’s cause for celebration, because those little pak choi seeds actually made it all the way from their package to my […]

1 July 2017

Grilled okra with lemon and romesco sauce

Sandra side dishes, sides, snacks barbecue, gluten free, grilled veg, okra, romesco, vegan, vegetarian 1 Comment

Among vegetables, okra seems to be a category of its own. Like coriander, it divides people into two very distinct groups: the ones who love it and the ones who can’t stand the stuff. And like it is with coriander, once you’re in the latter group, crossing over to the other side seems almost impossible, no […]