Vegan Effect

Written by   McDonald, T.    |  Date 19th of January 2026 I love a good pizza and this is a favourite of mine. TVP for the minced beef, extra firm tofu for the ham, jalapeño peppers and olives.  As ever, make the poolish the night before, and it will add flavour and made such a difference to the light crispness of the base.

Written by McDonald, T.   |  Date 12th of January 2026   Yet another great traditional English dish, but this time it's from Liverpool.  Rumour has it that its roots lay in the Vikings that had a similar dish by a similar name ( Viking Skause ).  English food has history!  This is great on winter days, like many English dishes, it knows how to deal with the cold weather we have here in the UK. Chunky root vegetables, potato, and protein. In this version, I have swapped the white potato for sweet potato and the soya chunks replace the meat. Notes Gets better the next day! Soya chunks are easy.  Put them in a bowl, cover with boiling water, cover with a plate and leave for 10 minutes. You can swap the soya chunks for another meat substitute or extra firm tofu. Blind Scouse is exactly the same, but has no meat substitutes or tofu.  Soya chunks are meaty.   Time, 1.5 hrs approx Serves, 3 – 4 people Ingredients Soya chunks x 130 g Potato x 300 g...

Written by McDonald, T.   |  Date 22 of December 2025 When I am in need of a quick and easy festive bread or cake, this is always a great option! It is great for any festival at any time of the year. It has all the fun of fruit cake or stollen, but is ready to eat in 2 hrs. The marzipan in the middle makes it an amazing addition to your festive table. Enjoy!

Written by McDonald, T.   |  Date ? of December 2025 This is a supper dinner to have for Boxing Day.  Providing these products are still available, I would highly recommend.  I say this because I had this meal last year.  The meat substitutes are no-turkey and no-gammon from Sainsbury's.  It is traditional to have ham at Yule in the UK and just as traditional to have cold meats on Boxing Day.  The meal formula is simple: Cold meat subs, usually no-turkey and no-gammon Mash potato Green veg Pickles Gravy is optional I hope you liked this blog!  I would love to hear from you; especially if you tried this recipe out.  Have a great day!  

Written by McDonald, T.   |  Date 10th of November 2025    This is a traditional English dish that winter was made for! Chunky carrot, cabbage, and soya chunks in an amazing mint gravy all topped with potatoes and just the thing on a cold winters evening.  The potatoes are soft on the underside and soak up some gravy while being more like roast potatoes on the top. An explosion of flours!

Written by McDonald, T.   |  Date 3rd of November 2025 I use this recipe a lot because it is a simple bit of fun to liven up the weekend. It's easy to make and great on taste.  The sweet taste and bready texture make for a satisfying treat.  It's wonderful with tea/coffee or as a dessert. 

Written by McDonald, T.   |  Date 8th of September 2025 This is the easiest curry you will ever make.  It is a blend of warm spices and flavours.  It can be ready in 40 minutes or less and will impress any house guest you have. Not only is it tasty, but it contains a lot of nutrients that are essential to your health. Notes Tagine is usually roasted in the oven in a special tagine pot with a funnel top. I do it on the hob because it's very quick when it is veganized.  If you want to roast it in the oven, follow the steps, but roast it for 30 mins at 170 °C and skip the resting step. Serves 3 Time, 40 mins  Ingredients Chickpeas x 1 tin (240 g drained) Soya chunks x 90 g dry Enough boiling water to cover the soya chunks Peaches x 1/2 tin + light syrup Chopped tomatoes x 1 tin Carrot x 160 g diced Sweet red pepper x 100 g sliced Stock cube x 1 Spices Chilli powder x 2 tsp Turmeric x 2 tsp Coriander x 2 tsp Black ground pepper x 1 tsp Cumin x 2 tsp Cinnamon ...

Written by McDonald, T.   |  Date 8th of September 2025 Cottage pie is a traditional English dish that was all the rage in the last half of the last century.  It's traditionally made with minced beef, but vegans use many alternatives.  In this vegan version, I will be using green lentils and tvp.  It has a beefy flavour and is great at warming you up on cold days.

Written by McDonald, T.   |  Updated ? of ? 2025 I used to eat this dish all the time when I was younger.  I used to like it with a generous helping of sweet and sour sauce.

Written by McDonald, T.   |  Date 25th of August 2025 This is one of the first Korean dishes that I leant how to make.  Traditionally, it is made with soft tofu, but I like to use firm tofu.  It is still soft enough to absorb all the flavours. 

Written by   McDonald, T.    |  Date 14th of July 2025 This is a quick and easy salad that as joyous to look at as it is to eat. Loaded with flavours from the pepper, spianach and chickpeas. You can either serve the pasta and chickpeas cold or hot. I find that using saracha or sweet chilli sauce as a dressing.

  Written by   McDonald, T.    |  Date ?th of July 2025 When the weather is hot, only salad will do, but what dressing to use?  Well, this is easy and loaded with flavour.  It has an interesting mix of flavours and texures that will add something different to your salad.

Written by   McDonald, T.    |  Date 23rd of June 2025   This is a quick and tasty dip that is great as an accompaniment too.  You can make it as hot as you like and leave out any ingredients that upset your stomach. I tend to leave out onion and garlic because they can cause the IBS to flair up. Still, with this recipe, I don't miss out.

Written by McDonald, T.   |  Updated 16th June 2025 Never miss out on chocolate bars again.  Making your own vegan chocolate bar is so easy and requires no baking at all.  You can have this recipe ready to eat in a few hours and take only minutes to prepare.

Written by McDonald, T.   |  date 2nd of June 2025 Why make your own curry powder? If you have trouble with a sensitive stomach, store bought curry powder might not be for you.  Some people have trouble digesting onion powder or garlic powder, so making your own is the best option.  Whatever your reason, it's very simple to do. Ingredients Coriander x 4 tbsp Cumin x 2.5 tbsp Turmeric x 2.5 tbsp Ginger x 1 tbsp Paprika x 2 tsp Chilli powder x 2 tsp (if you want it hot, use 3 tsp. If you like it mild, use 1 tsp) Black pepper x 1.5 tsp Salt x 1 tsp (optional) Cinnamon x 1 tsp Ground fenugreek x 1 tsp Dried fenugreek x 1 tsp Cardamom x 1 tsp Clove x 1/2 tsp Method Mix all the ingredients together with a spoon and store in an airtight container. I usually mix them into the pot I will be storing them in and give it a shake with the lid on at the end just to be sure.  I hope you decide to give this a try. If you do, please let me know what you thought in the comments...

Written by   McDonald, T.    |  Date 26th of May 2025  This curry is based on a fish curry. Instead of fish, it uses jackfruit and grated tempeh to simulate chunks of fish and fish flakes.  It has a great texture and a good amount of heat to its taste. 

Written by   McDonald, T.    |  Date 12th of May 2025 A very quick and easy red vegan pesto!  This has a wonderful taste and goes great with pasta or even spread on some homemade bread.

Written by   McDonald, T.    |  Date 5th of May 2025 This was a favourite of mine while growing up.  With today's vegan ranges, it's very easy to make.  I used banana bread cut into fingers for the sponge, but you can use a regular sponge if you want. Notes I used banana bread cut into fingers in place of the sponge fingers. I used Flora double cream, which took a lot of whipping! I used Alpro vegan custard.   I used wibble strawberry jelly crystals   Serves 6 Time - 2 days Ingredients  Strawberries x 1 tin Vegan custard x 1 carton Vegan double/whipping cream x 1 carton Vegan jelly crystals x 1 sachet Vegan sponge fingers x  Apparatus Medium glass bowl Measuring jug  Hand whisk Method  Cut the sponge into fingers about the size of a finger and add to the glass bowl. Drain the strawberries and add to the glass bowl.  Make the jelly as directed on the packet. Pour the jelly over the sponge fingers and strawberries....

Written by McDonald, T.   |  Date 21th of April 2025 Filled with rhubarb and strawberries and topped with a biscuit crumble.  This has got to be one of the best desserts in the world! It's so comforting and easy to make.

Written by McDonald, T.   |  Date 14th of April 2025     The spicy tastes to this dip is so good!  It's a combination of garlic, jalapeños and sundried tomatoes all blended into the chickpea paste.  Great as a dip with carrots, celery and pitta bread or used as a side dish.