Vegan Effect

Written by  McDonald, T.    |  Date 9th of April 2021 One way of cutting out the single use plastic is to make your own rolls.  Baking is fun and easy, but you will need to practice it to get the best results.  Another advantage to home baking is you control the ingredients.  Wholemeal is better for us because it has more nutrients and roughage. Makes 4 rolls Ingredients  Strong wholemeal bread flour x 1.5 cups Caster sugar x 1 tbsp Salt x 1/2 tsp Instant fast acting yeast  x 3.5g Vegan butter x 20g Soya milk x 1/4 cup Water x 1/4 cup Method Stage 1 Wash your hands Add the flour, salt and fast acting yeast to a medium to large mixing bowl and stir to combine. Heat the vegan milk and water in a saucepan the add the vegan butter and wait for it to melt. It is important not to let the milk boil.  Make a well in the mixture and add the vegan milk and melted vegan butter.  Be sure that the vegan milk and butter is not to hot or it will ...

Written by  McDonald, T.    |  Date 8th of April 2021 This is a great polish dish that is veganised with comparative ease.  This is diffidently different with a great spicy flavour.  When it is cooked this way, it resembles lasagna.  Maybe that is why it goes well with chips and salad or avocado.  Serves 2 Ingredients  Cabbage leaves x 4  Vegan white sauce  Vegan cheese (optional) about 30g grated  Filling  Black beans x 30g Pinto beans x 30g Sweetcorn x 60g Chopped tomatoes x 30g Peas x 30g  Carrot x 30g Onion x 1/4 Garam masala x 1 tsp Goan x 1 tsp Turmeric x 1/2 tsp White pepper x 1/2 tsp Balsamic vinegar x 1 tbsp Teriyaki sauce x 1 tbsp Chilli pepper x 1/2  Vegetable stock cube x 1 Marmite x 1 tsp (optional, it gives a more beefy taste) Nutritional yeast x 1 tsp Method  Prepare the beans if you have dried ones by soaking overnight and boiling for 30-40 and drain.  Dice finely the carrot and mushroo...

Written by  McDonald, T.    |  Update 16th of September 2021 Vegan Kebabs are an easy and fun dish with great flavours.  I chose to use a combination of beyond meat and tofu for the meat substitutes, which worked out very well.  The main part of this dish is the kebabs, so the salad can be what ever salad items you like.  I decided to have potato wedges because i was just in the mood for them and potato does add a lot of nutrition and carbohydrate to this meal, which otherwise would be very one-sided on the protein.  I chose the beyond meat because of the flavour and protein content and i chose the tofu again for protein and for the different texture.  In addition, it is fun to serve with home-made flatbread .  You can put a kebab in the flatbread and use the flatbread to pull the food off the skewer.  Then you can eat it like a sandwich. Fantastic! The beyond sausage meat was great! I am new to this mock meat and I was very impres...

Written by  McDonald, T.    |  Date 5th of April 2021 Hot cross buns are a sweet treat at Easter for Christians in the UK. They are a bun with crosses on, have sultanas or sometimes over fruits such as apple in with spices and mixed peel.  People have them as a snack with butter and jam or just butter at anytime over Holy week and Easter.  Some people like to toast them while overs eat them as they are. Since i am a vegan, i wanted to make a vegan version of this traditional British Easter bun.  I chose to go with the traditional fruits and mixed peal because i know this is what people are expecting and i didn't want to disappoint them.  The mixed spice adds a unique flavour; however, i  added more cinnamon so as not to stray to far from the traditional bun.  In addition, i added both lemon and orange zest simply because i had both in the fridge and they needed using up.  The zest adds a fresh zing to the flavour. Moreo...

By McDonald, T.   |  Date 3rd of April 2021 Looking for something packed with nutrition to complement your dinner?  Kale is it.  It really is a superfood and is great with all sorts of dishes. Ingredients  Kale Balsamic vinegar  Salt Maple syrup  Method Mix all the ingredients together in a small roasting dish, cover and bake for 15 - 20 minutes.  That's it!  Nutrition Kale is full of nutrition! Kale provides vitamins A C and K in huge amounts.  It even will provide some B6, calcium, copper and magnetism.

Written by  McDonald, T.    |  Date 2nd of April 2021 Being vegan does not stop us from baking.  Just because we don't use eggs or dairy doesn't mean we get left out.  You can, if you want, spend time and money in the supermarket looking for that accidentally vegan stuff or you can make your own.  There is nothing wrong with buying buns and bread; however, making your own is much more fun and you get to control the ingredients, so this is especially good if you have specific dietary needs.  These hot cross buns are wholemeal, vegan and devious!  Because they are wholemeal, theze buns will be a little heavier than then plan white counterpart.  Makes 6 buns Ingredients 150 ml unsweetened vegan milk 25g vegan spread or butter 250g strong white or wholemeal bread flour 3.5g  fast action yeast 35g golden caster sugar Orange or lemon zest 1 heaped tsp cinnamon 1 heaped tsp mixed spice 35g sultanas 25g mixed peel 1/4 tsp salt Apricot jam...

Written by  McDonald, T.    |  Date 10th of April 2021 [you need to set the date] Passover is to remember how the Israelites escaped from the Pharaoh.  The story starts with the ten plagues of Egypt, which are: The sea turning to blood The plague of frogs The plague of lice The plague of flies The plague on the livestock The plague of boils The plague of hail The plague of locusts The plague of darkness The death of the first born After the tenth plague, the pharaoh frees the Israelites, but then changes his mind and chases after them with his army.  Mosses calls on God and the sea parts allowing the Israelites to escape while the Pharaoh and his army are swept away.    Parts of the meal  Chazeret  Is something bitter like lettuce.  Symbolises the bitterness of slavery.    Beitzah Traditionally, a hard boiled egg. Vegans use a vegan chocolate egg instead.  The egg has many meanings  Moaning to remember the templ...

Written by McDonald, T.   |  Date 31st of March 2021 If you need a sauce to spruce up your dinner whether it is a cauliflower steak, a mock meat steak or just to go on some veg, this is a great choice.  It is easy to make and very versatile too.  Onion  Plain white flour x 1 or 2 tbsp depending on desired viscountcy Vegan milk x 50ml Mustard powder x 1/2 tsp Garlic granules x 1/2 tsp Vegetable stock   Salt to taste White pepper to taste Vegan sweeter (optional) Method Cut the onion up and place in a blender. Pulse until the onion is just starting to turn into a paste, but still has biggish chunks.  Scrape into a saucepan with some oil and fry until the onion starts to caramelise.  Add the garlic granules and mustard powder.  Keep stirring.  Add the vegetable stock and then the milk.  Keep stirring.  Add the vegan sweetener, which could be brown sugar or pineapple juice or maple syrup or whatever you like. (Optional) Sieve...

Written by  McDonald, T.    |  Date 30th of March 2021 I am feeling lonely again.  I am heart broken.  Today in Catechism class we were taught conspiracy theories that come out of the The Prothetical Of The Elders Of Zion, which is an anti-Semitic book and has nothing to do with the Catechism or the Catholic Church.  In class, these conspiracy theories were being taught as if they were true even though no evidence was presented.  I am horrified at the incident and i now feel that i can't trust the Church i go to.  Nevertheless, i continue fasting but i have stopped praying.  Instead, i am tempted to forget about Easter and go with Passover instead.  If i head to a synagogue, at least i will not have to put up with the paranoid rantings from some crazy person.  At least it was not the priests that were teaching this rubbish.  I must admit, the whole thing has put me off.  Faith is treated like a big joke by most peopl...

By McDonald, T.   |  Date 30th of March 2021 If you are new to veganism, you might find the transition very difficult at times.  Men tend to like certain types of dinners and that is usually the cause of failure because we crave a dinner like our Mum would cook, something chunky, something to bit into.  However, the modern vegan man has many new and exciting options to choose from that will satisfy that need for something more manly.  Vegan stake and chips There are two vegan stakes that i have tried: Plant Chef and Viva.  Both are great, but the Plant Chef is slightly better I think. Peanut Butter Curry This is a dinner that dreams are made of! Coconut milk, spies and the most amazing peanut flavour.  This is a great meal anytime of the year and is not that hard to prepare. Garlic Mushroom And Cheesy Peppers With Sweet Potato Mash  This is a dinner with a difference.  Can be veganised easily by using vegan cheese.  This is full of fla...