Seitan Kleftiko

Seitan is a wheat based meat alternative. We all know that going plant based/ vegan is not about replicating meat but if you’ve grown up a meat eater sometimes you crave a meaty bite and with its chewy texture this seitan recipe hits the spot! We found this recipe in Vegan Life magazine and its become a firm favourite.

You’ll need a blender, large saucepan and a large deep baking tray.

Serves 6

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

STOCK

2.4 L Vegetable stock (8 tsp Bouillon) (approx 50p)

1 bulb garlic

1 lemon, quartered

1 teaspoon oregano (approx 5p)

1 teaspoon rosemary (approx 15p)

1 teaspoon thyme (approx 15p)

4 bay leaves (free)

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (approx 10p)

SEITAN

240ml Vegetable stock (1 teaspoon bouillon) (approx 10p)

3 tablespoon tomato puree

3 tablespoon tamari (approx 20p)

4 tablespoon rapeseed oil (approx 10p)

2 teaspoon vegan Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon maple syrup

4 teaspoon garlic powder (approx 20p)

1 teaspoon rosemary (approx 15p)

1 teaspoon thyme (approx 15p)

1 teaspoon oregano (approx 5p)

300g vital wheat gluten (approx £1.65)

3 tablespoon plain flour

1 teaspoon salt (approx 5p)

GLAZE

1 tablespoon maple syrup

1 tablespoon mustard

1 teaspoon rosemary (approx 15p)

1 teaspoon thyme (approx 15p)

1/2 teaspoon black pepper (approx 5p)

1 tablespoon tomato puree

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £3.95

Method

Add all of the stock ingredients to a pan and bring to the boil. Simmer for 5 mins, then remove from heat and leave to infuse.

Preheat oven to 180C.

Make your seitan by adding vegetable stock, tomato puree, tamari, vegatble oil, Worcestershire sauce, maple syrup, garlic, rosemary, thyme and oregano to blender and blend until smooth.

Into a bowl add your vital wheat gluten, flour and salt, mix and then add in the blended ingredients and mix together to form a dough.

Kneed for 5 mins until it becomes stretchy and shape into a loaf.

Bring stock to a gentle simmer in large saucepan, add seitan and simmer for 45mins, turning when its halfway through cooking. Once cooked, remove pan from heat and leave seitan to cool in stock.

Mix glaze ingredients together. Remove seitan from the stock and place in baking trav. Brush seitan with glaze and roast in oven for 30mins before serving.

Enjoy with roast vegetables, salads, add to stir frys. Can be stored in fridge and reheated (see image, griddled on pan).

Zero Waste Tips

Buy your ingredients from a zero waste store to avoid packaging.

Look for tomato puree in aluminium tube or glass bottle and Worcestershire sauce and maple syrup in glass bottles so they are easily recycled or can be reused.

Leftover stock can be used to make a soup - add vegetables, cook and blend. Or use to cook rice/grain for extra flavour.

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Pumpkin Curry Traybake

This is a firm winter warmer favourite in our house and perfect for using your pumpkin flesh around Halloween! We found the recipe via The Happy Pear and amended it slightly.

Original recipe here.

You’ll need a blender and a large deep baking tray/casserole pot.

Serves 4-6

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

SAUCE

2 cloves of garlic

1 small thumb sized piece of ginger

1 onion

½ chilli

Juice of ½ lime

1 tbsp maple syrup or liquid sweetener of choice

1x 400g tin of Coconut milk

400ml veg stock (use 1/2 teaspoon veg bouillon mixed with water) (approx 7p)

1.5 tbsp medium curry powder (approx 10p)

1 tbsp of garam masala (approx 15p)

½ tbsp salt (approx 5p)

2 tbsp tamari (approx 20p)

CURRY

1 head of cauliflower inc leaves

500g pumpkin/sweet potato/butternut squash

100g mushrooms

100g red split lentils (approx 35p)

75g sosmix (approx 75p)

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £1.67

Method

Preheat oven to 200C.

Begin by preparing your sosmix by mixing it with 125ml of cold water, stir and leave.

Next make your sauce, peel and roughly chop the garlic, ginger and onion and add to a blender along with the rest of the sauce ingredients and blend until smooth. Leave to one side.

Now prepare the vegetables. Finely chop the mushrooms. Peel and finely chop the pumpkin/sweet potato/butternut squash. Cut cauliflower into florets and chop stem/stalk into fine pieces. Use leaves too, chopping into smaller pieces if large.

Add all the veg into a large deep oven baking tray/ casserole dish along with your lentils (rinse fist) and the sauce and mix.

Now make your small sausage balls using your prepared sosmix, simply taking a small handful of the sticky mix and shaping into small ball (should make around 4-6 depending on size) and place on top of the veg mix.

Place the tray in the oven and bake for 30-40 minutes or until the pumpkin is soft and cooked through.

Remove from the oven and enjoy!

Can serve with rice or naans.

Zero Waste Tips

Buy your ingredients from a zero waste store to avoid packaging.

Look for coconut milk in can and recycle after use.

Buy sweetener in glass jar that can be reused after.

Buy veg unpackaged and plastic free from your local greengrocer or market.

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Cinnamon Toast Breakfast Quinoa

This is a super tasty addition for breakfast! Shared with us by one of our customers, a great way to introduce nutritious quinoa at the start of your day!

Original recipe here.

You’ll need a saucepan and frying pan.

Serves 1

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

60g quinoa (approx 42p)

20g walnuts or pecans (approx 50p)

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (approx 10p)

pinch of salt

1 1/2 teaspoons coconut oil

1 tablespoon maple syrup

topping ideas: yoghurt, kefir, seeds, cranberries, figs

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £1.02

Method

Cook your quinoa (this can be done night before or using leftover quinoa from a different meal). Rinse quinoa first before placing in saucepan, covering with water and bring to boil. Reduce to simmer, cover and allow to cook for 15-20mins. Once quinoa is cooked (you will notice the grains have ‘tails’) drain and place to one side to cool.

Toast your chosen nut by placing in frying pan on a medium heat, shimmying the pan often, until the nuts smell fragrant and toasty, about 4 to 6 minutes.

Add the coconut oil, cinnamon and salt to the pot. While stirring constantly, cook until the cinnamon is fragrant, about 15 seconds.

Add the quinoa to the pot and stir to combine. Cook, while stirring constantly, just until the quinoa is warmed through, about a minute or so. Remove the pan from heat and stir in the maple syrup.

Transfer the mixture to a bowl and top with your chosen toppings, enjoy!

Zero Waste Tips

Buy your ingredients from a zero waste store to avoid packaging.

If buying oils by in glass bottles that can b reused and upcycled.

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DIY Polenta Tortilla Chips

Tortilla chips always come in single use packaging so when we decided to make a big Mexican feast for some friends who were staying with us we wanted to make it plastic free so gave this recipe a go and they were a hit!

Original recipe here.

You’ll need a saucepan, rolling pin, baking parchment and baking trays.

Makes 1 large bowl of chips.

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

150g polenta(approx 38p)

650ml water

1 teaspoon sea salt (approx 5p)

1-2 tablespoon olive oil (approx 20p)

seasoning ideas: sweet paprika, smoked paprika, garlic powder, nutritional yeast

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £0.63

Method

Pour water into a large saucepan and place on medium-high heat. Heat the water but don’t let it come to the boil. Add salt.

Slowly add the polenta while stirring all the time.

When all the polenta is incorporated, continue stirring to ensure no lumps. Turn down the heat, place a lid on top and cook polenta for 10mins, stirring every 3 mins or so.

Get your baking parchment ready into 2 large sheets. (It helps to crumple the paper into a ball and unwrap for it to lay flat). Lay parchment on kitchen surface.

Once polenta is ready carefully pour in the middle of one of the sheets and spread with a spoon and then place 2nd sheet of parchment on top. Roll out the polenta very thinly and evenly with a rolling pin.

Leave to get completely cold.

Pre-heat oven to 200C.

When polenta is cold, take off top parchment sheet and place on baking tray.

Brush top surface of polenta with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and chosen seasoning. Cut polenta into small squares and place the squares onto your lined baking tray.

Place the tray into the oven, cooking for around 50mins. Start checking after 25 mins to turn chips over and move around to cook evenly. Remove from oven when golden and crispy.

Serve. Place in airtight container but chips are best eaten fresh!

Zero Waste Tips

Buy your ingredients from a zero waste store to avoid packaging.

Use a compostable baking paper and reuse once finished with before composting.

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DIY Oat Tortilla Wraps

Wraps are hard to find without plastic packaging so we were pleased to come across this super easy recipe thats great for sweet or savoury dishes from Carleigh Bodrug on her Instagram page plantyou, original recipe here.

You’ll need a mixing bowl, blender and frying pan

Makes 2 wraps

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

100g porridge oats (approx 27p)

50-100g water

seasoning - e.g salt, bouillon, pepper, nutritional yeast if savoury

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £0.27

Method

Combine oats and water (use 50ml water to begin with) in your blender and leave for up to 1 hour.

Blend and test consistancy - you want a runny mixture but not too watery - add extra water if you think you need and any seasoning and blend again.

Heat frying pan over medium-high heat, add a drop of oil to pan and then add half of the mixture to the pan, shaping into circle. Flip when starts to bubble and cook on other side.

Remove from pan and enjoy! Can store, using baking paper between wraps to keep separate.

Zero Waste Tips

Buy your ingredients from a zero waste store to avoid packaging.

Use a compostable baking paper if using to store and reuse once finished with.

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Rocky Road

We’ve borrowed this recipe from the excellent Mind Food by Lauren Lovatt - we seriously love every recipe in this cookbook! This rocky road recipe passed the Jack test - he loves a rocky road and wasn’t disappointed by this make at home recipe! The dried apple makes a nice healthier alternative to marshmallows and seeds and flaked almonds give that biscuit crunch.

You’ll need a mixing bowl and square tin/container.

Makes 10 squares

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

100g nut butter (make your own)

2-3 tablespoons liquid sweetener (molasses recommended for richness but maple/date syrup or honey would work well)

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

20g cocoa powder (approx 26p)

30g coconut oil, melted

30g dried fruit (we like cranberries and sour cherries)(approx 68p)

10g apple rings (approx 12p)

40g seeds (we like hemp and sunflower) (approx 52p)

10g flaked almonds (approx 20p)

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £1.78

Method

Mix the nut butter with your sweetener, salt and 70ml of water in a medium bowl until you have a smooth paste.

Once mixture is well combined add the cocoa powder and mix again.

Gradually add the melted coconut oil ad continue to stir until well combined. Once silky smooth, check the saltiness to taste and then stir through the dried fruits, seeds and nuts.

Spoon the mixture into a square tin lined with baking paper and smooth the mixture down. The mixture will be quite thick, so leave it to set in the fridge for a couple of hours until firm.

Once firm remove from fridge and cut to size. These will keep in the fridge in an airtight container for 1 week.

Zero Waste Tips

Buy all your ingredients from a zero waste store to avoid packaging and look for sweetener and coconut oil in glass jars that you can reuse when empty (great for your refills!).

Use a compostable baking paper and reuse as much as you can before composting.

This recipe makes a great zero waste plastic free gift or snack!

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Gluten Free Seeded Bread

We’ve borrowed this recipe from the excellent Mind Food by Lauren Lovatt - we seriously love every recipe in this cookbook! This seed bread can be made in a loaf or in small buns and can be made savoury or sweet. All super easy to make, full of fibre and seed goodness and nearly all the ingredients you need to make them are available from us and it means you can have bread buns with no plastic packaging!

You’ll need a mixing bowl and baking tray.

Makes 6 buns

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

80g Buckwheat Flour (or any flour you have available)

60g Oats (Porridge or Jumbo) (appox 16p)

90g Chia Seeds (approx £1.13)

35g Hemp Seeds (approx 46p)

35g Sunflower Seeds (approx 21p)

40g Linseeds (approx 32p)

1 teaspoon Oregano (approx 5p) or Ground Cinnamon for sweet version

1 teaspoon Rosemary (approx 8p)

1 teaspoon Bicarbonate of Soda (approx 6p)

Large pinch salt

1/2 teaspoon Apple Cider Vinegar (approx 2p)

2 tablespoons Olive Oil (approx 10p)

350-400ml warm water

mashed brown banana for sweet version (the more bananas the sweeter the loaf)

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £2.59

Method

Preheat oven to 180C.

Add all of your ingredients to a bowl, pour in the water slowly, start with 350ml and add more if you need (you’ll need less water for the sweet version due to the banana). Mix will be quite wet to begin with, leave the mixture to rest for 10 mins when it should come together. Here you can decide if you want to place in a lined or greased loaf tin or roll the dough into balls for buns. Add more water if mix seems dry.

Bake for 30mins - 40 mins (loaf will take longer) until golden on the outside. Test if they are cooked through by gently piercing a small knife through- if it comes out clean they’re ready!

Once ready remove from oven and allow to cool as they continue baking.

Store in a sealed container for up to 3 days.

Serve cool or can be heated.

Zero Waste Tips

Buy all your ingredients from a zero waste store to avoid packaging and flour in paper bag.

Avoid food waste and store in freezer if needed.

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Porridge Pancakes

Gemma was introduced to this recipe on a fantastic plant based cooking course she took with Plant Academy. The recipe is from Arthur Potts Dawson, a great chef who champions sustainable cookery.

You’ll need a blender, mixing bowl and frying pan.

Serves 2 (4 small pancakes each)

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

175g Oats (Porridge or Jumbo) (appox 47p)

3 teaspoons Baking Powder (approx 10p)

1/2 teaspoon Bicarbonate of Soda (approx 3p)

275ml Oat Milk (make your own)

2 tablespoons maple syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla extract (make your own)

1 tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar (approx 5p)

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £0.65

Method

Blend oats to a flour consistency then transfer to a bowl.

Mix the other dry ingredients in and then add milk and mix well.

It will be a thick batter mix.

Add a spoonful of the batter to a hot frying pan and use spoon to shape into pancake shape. Cook on medium heat for a few minutes and flip to cook other side for another 3 minutes until golden brown on both sides.

Stack and serve with favourite toppings - we love stewed apples and maple syrup!

Zero Waste Tips

If you do make your own oat milk, you can save time and not sieve the milk and reduce the amount of oats you add to allow for the extra pulp from the milk.

Avoid food waste and store any leftover pancakes (without toppings) in a container separated with parchment paper to prevent sticking. Will keep in the refrigerator up to 4 days or in the freezer up to 1 month. Reheat in the toaster, oven or microwave until hot.

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Berry Buckwheat Smoothie Bowls

We wanted to come up with a breakfast recipe to make use of our foraged blackberries and were inspired by acai smoothie bowls and a recipe for Raw Buckwheat Bowls from the Every Day cookbook from Deliciously Ella. You could switch out the blackberries for other berries in season, for extra sweetness add a banana.

You’ll need a food processor/blender.

Serves 2

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

100g buckwheat (45p)

200g blackberries (approx) frozen or chilled works best

75ml milk of choice

1 tablespoon nut butter

1 tablespoon chia seeds (approx 15p)

1-2 tablespoon sweetener - date or maple syrup, honey, agave

toppings: extra berries, granola, nuts, seeds

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £0.60p

Method

Place the buckwheat in a bowl and cover with water and let it soak overnight.

When ready drain and rinse buckwheat (rinse well until water runs clear).

Place in blender with all other ingredients (apart from toppings) and blend until smooth- taste, add more sweetener if needed.

Pour into bowl and add toppings to serve.

Zero Waste Tips

Forage seasonal berries or buy without plastic from local shops.

Make your own plant milk to use (if you have none in the house mix 1 tablespoon of oats with 75ml water and blend).

Buy toppings from zero waste shop to avoid packaging!

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DIY: Self Raising Flour

Did you know its easy to make your own self raising flour? No need to have loads of different flours in the cupboards, just use this handy recipe to turn plain flour into self raising:

Ingredients (when in italics available from Incredible Bulk)

1 teaspoon baking powder (approx 4p)

100g plain flour

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £4p

Method:

For each 100g of self raising flour you need add 1 teaspoon of baking powder as raising agent to plain flour. Sieve and mix together before using in recipe.

Zero Waste Tips

Its easy to find flour in paper bags and baking powder from refill shop to avoid any single use plastic packaging.

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"Mac n Cheese"

Okay, so we’ve called this Mac N Cheese but our version had neither mac nor cheese! Tasted great though! We found this recipe in Vegan Life magazine from Eleni McCallum and adapted slightly to fit what we had in our cupboards:

You’ll need 2 saucepans and a baking dish.

Serves approx 6

Ingredients (when in italics available from Incredible Bulk)

300g Penne Pasta, or any pasta of your choice (£1.05)

1/2 onion chopped

Approx 100ml Olive or Rapeseed Oil (98p/60p)

Approx 100g flour of choice

750ml milk of choice (cashew is nice and creamy!) (approx £1.50)

1 tablespoon mustard

5-10 tablespoons of nutritional yeast (approx £1)

25g breadcrumbs

salt and pepper to taste

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £4.53/ 76p pp

Method:

Preheat oven to 180 C.

Cook pasta, ours takes around 8 mins, drain and place in baking tray.

Heat milk in a saucepan together with the onion and bring to a slow boil then remove from heat.

Add oil to another saucepan, add flour and whisk to combine. Gradually add the milk and onion mix, whisking constantly and heat until mixture thickens. Take off heat and add nutritional yeast, mustard, salt and pepper all to taste.

Pour sauce over pasta in baking tray and mix well.

Sprinkle breadcrumbs on top and bake in oven for 20-25 mins until golden on top.

Zero Waste Tips

You can make your own breadcrumbs from any leftover / stale bread - pulse in blender and store in freezer until you need.

Make your own milk - cashew, oat and soya would all work well in this recipe.

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Moong Dal

Anyone who is a regular to the van would have had the moong dal hard sell from Jack! Easily one of our most regularly recommended products if customers are looking for something new to try. You can’t go wrong with adding moong dahl as a side dish to your regular curry night! Here’s Jacks go to recipe.

You’ll need a saucepan and a blender if you want but not necessary.

Serves approx 2

Ingredients (when in italics available from Incredible Bulk)

200g Moong Dal (£1.00 )

2 garlic bulbs chopped

Thumb of ginger chopped

Tablespoon of cumin seed (approx 15p)

Chilli sliced or flakes (approx 20p)

Vegetables - for example shaved carrot / chard / spinach / cherry tomatoes halved (2 types of vegetables is often enough)

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £1.35

Method:

Rinse moong dal before adding to a pan and covering with water. Bring to boil then simmer for around 20 mins. Keep stirring so the bottom doesn’t catch.

When your moong has been cooking for around 5 mins start your spice mix by adding cumin seed to a frying pan and toast until you can smell the flavour. After 2/3 mins add garlic and ginger and then add chilli after another 2 minutes and cook until soft.

Transfer half of spice mix to moong dal.

Leave other half in the pan and add the vegetables.

Stir in spice mix to dal pan and then take half of the moong dal mix out of the pan and blitz in a blender for 15 seconds adding back into original dal pan. (This stage is not necessary if you are short on time/don’t have a blender).

Cook the veg / spice mix for a few minutes and add to the dal pan.

Stir well and serve when other dishes are ready.

Zero Waste Tips

Look for vegetables not in plastic packaging and this is a great recipe to use up left over vegetables.

Any leftovers can be saved for future meals or added to soups.

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DIY: Chocolate Energy Ball Easter Eggs

As soon as we saw this recipe from chef Tom Hunt on Instagram we knew we had to give them a try. They are absolutely delicious, easy and fun to make and completely plastic free!

You’ll need a blender, baking tray.

Makes approx 25 mini eggs

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

100g mixed nuts (approx £2) (we did a mix of hazels, cashews and pecans)

50g oats (13p) or other flakes you may have

100g dates, apricots, or other pitted fruit (approx 70p) (we did a mix of dates, apricots and prunes)

50g cranberries (60p)

25g nut butter (make your own)

1 tbsp cocoa powder (approx 20p)

100g dark chocolate (£2)

Toppings- we used local edible wild flowers but could decorate with desiccated coconut, cocoa powder, sea salt etc

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £6

Method:

Pulse blend the mixed nuts in a food processor to rough pieces. Add the flakes, pitted fruit, cranberries, nut butter and cocoa powder and blend to a rough paste. Turn out onto the table, split and roll into 25 balls, then shape into an egg shape.

Melt the chocolate, then dip the eggs into it and cover with chocolate. Remove and place on a parchment lined tray.

Decorate with your chosen toppings. Refrigerate until set and enjoy.

Zero Waste Tips

All ingredients are easy to find without single use plastic packaging.

Use compostable non-bleached baking parchment and look to reuse after initial use, compost when no longer good to use.

If you have leftover melted chocolate use to cover extra nuts or fruits as an additional snack!

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Easy Vegan Cake Mix

We decided to share this easy vegan cake mix as its great for using up over-ripe fruit you may find in your fruit bowl, which is how we came across it! Avoid food waste and get a delicious cake to eat! Recipe found via My Vegan Minimalist.

You’ll need 2 mixing bowls, cake tin.

Makes 1 cake

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

2 tablespoons ground linseed (approx 27p)

100ml boiling hot water

300g plain flour

90g demerara or coconut sugar (27p)

½ tsp salt (approx 5p)

2 tsp cinnamon ground (approx 25p)

3 tsp baking powder (approx 10p)

140ml olive oil (£1.33) or could use rapeseed

120ml unsweetened oat milk (make your own) or other alternative milk

3 tbsp maple syrup or other sweetener of choice

1 tbsp lemon juice (if no lemon juice can use apple cider vinegar)

1 pear skin removed - or whichever over-ripe fruit you have available, can use more for more moist cake or extras for decoration on top of cake.

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £2.15

Method:

Pre-heat your oven to 170°C.

Add ground linseed and boiling hot water to a small bowl. Stir and set aside. This will create a flax egg.

Combine flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon and baking powder in a large bowl.

In a second bowl whisk together oil, milk, maple syrup and lemon juice.

Add your flax egg to your oil mixture and mix well.

Slowly pour the oil mixture into the centre of your flour mixture.

Mix until no more flour specs remain, but do not overmix.

Remove the pear (fruit) skin. Then cut your pear (fruit) into small cubes and add to your mixture and stir gently.

Line the bottom of a round cake tin with a layer of baking paper. Brush the sides with a layer of oil.

Pour your mixture into the tin.

If decorating with extra fruit, brush fruit slices with maple syrup. Can also top with flaked almonds if you have.

Bake at 170°C (fan oven setting) for 50-55 minutes.

Once baked (skewer coming out clean from cake), remove from oven and let cool completely. Can top with layer of maple syrup or chocolate as we did!

Zero Waste Tips

All ingredients are easy to find without single use plastic packaging.

Great to use up any over-ripe fruit- can get creative with other spices added, look to use up what you have in your cupboards!

Can be frozen for up to 2 months - slice and place in airtight container.

Use compostable non-bleached baking parchment and look to reuse after initial use, compost when no longer good to use.

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Vegan Golden Hot Cross Buns

This year we spiced up our hot cross buns for Easter and gave this chai turmeric recipe from the talented Loria Stern via Mud Australia. We are a little lazy when it comes to baking so left out the crosses as didn’t have a piping bag and didn’t want to buy for just one recipe, hence the no cross! This was our first attempt and would say you probably need to add more flowers than we did to make more of an impact, or maybe to add after baking. But they taste amazing!

You’ll need a mixing bowl, baking tray.

Makes 12 buns

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

For Buns:

500g white bread flour

75g coconut sugar (60p)

3 tsp ground turmeric (approx 25p)

2 tsp Chai Tea (we used loose rooibos tea with cardamom, cloves, cinnamon and star anise approx 50p)

1 tsp sea salt (approx 5p)

finely grated zest of 1 orange + 1 lemon

10 g (1 tbsp) active dried yeast (15p)

80g melted coconut oil

300g coconut milk

100g sultanas (50p)

Flowers + Crosses:

60g plain flour

60g filtered water

2 tbsp apricot jam to glaze (if no jam can make sugar glaze mixing demerara and water together and heating to reduce to a syrup)

2 cups of yellow edible flowers, washed and dried (we used primrose and gorse which are easily foraged around Easter)

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £2.37

Method:

Pour coconut milk and sugar in a small saucepan and heat until steamy. Add your chai tea of choice and let steep for 30 minutes or so. Strain through and discard the tea but reserve the coconut milk.

While tea is infusing put the flour, turmeric, and salt in a bowl and mix together. Add the citrus zests and mix to combine.

Once tea has infused and the milk has been strained add your yeast to the milk mix and leave to blossom for 5-10 mins.

While waiting melt your coconut oil.

Once yeast has blossomed add yeast milk mix to bowl together with the melted coconut oil and mix together to create your dough.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 5-10 minutes until it is smooth and elastic.

Place the kneaded dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with a tea bowl and set aside in a warm place to rise until it has at least doubled in size, about 1 1/2-2 hours.

Once the dough has risen, shape into a rough rectangle, scatter over the sultanas. Divide the dough into twelve even portions (about 75 grams each) and roll them into balls. Try to make sure that the sultanas are tucked into the bun and not on the outside of the bun.

Place the buns onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper, loosely cover the tray with a tea towel and set aside to rise until about doubled in size, around 45 minutes. The buns should now be touching each other and spring back slowly if you gently poke one with a finger. If it springs back quickly they need a little longer.

While the buns are rising preheat the oven to 190 C and prepare the paste for the crosses (if doing!):

Place the flour in a bowl and gradually stir in enough water to form a thick paste. Place the paste in a piping bag fitted with a small round nozzle.

When the buns have risen, swipe the top of each bun with some apricot jam and then adhere your edible flowers, the sticky jam will secure the petals to the bun. Now pipe a cross on top of each bun. If your buns are lined up on the baking platter you can just pipe in one long line across the rows.

Bake the buns for about 25 minutes until they are deep golden.

Remove the buns and let cool, they are best served immediately however will stay delicious for up to 1 week if stored in an airtight container in the fridge!

Zero Waste Tips

All ingredients are easy to find without single use plastic packaging.

Can be frozen for up to 2 months.

Use compostable non-bleached baking parchment and look to reuse after initial use, compost when no longer good to use.

If you find your buns are going stale, use them in a bread and butter pudding - yum!

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No Waste 'Milk' Pulp Granola

This is a great recipe for using up the leftover pulp from making your own oat / nut/seed milks. You can even freeze your left over pulp from making milk until you have a big enough batch, or adjust recipe and make little and often. This recipe is a guide based on one found on The First Mess.

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

2.5 cups of pulp leftover from making milk

1/2 cup of nuts/seeds/oats of choice

1/4 cup of coconut oil melted, or use olive oil if looking to make a more savoury granola

approx 6 tablespoons sweetener of choice (maple or date syrup, molasses, malt rice barley, apple juice etc) or if making savoury 1-2 tablespoons of tamari

1/2 teaspoon of salt

optional add ins:

ground cinnamon

vanilla

citrus zest

herbs and spices if savoury

Method

Preheat the oven to 125 C. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

In a saucepan gently melt oil and add your sweeteners, stir to combine and take off heat. In a large bowl mix milk pulp with the remaining dry ingredients and then add your oil and sweetener mix and combine well.

Spread the mixture evenly onto the lined baking sheets and bake for 1 - 2 hours, until golden, stirring every 15 minutes or so for even browning.

Allow the granola to cool, you can then add any optional extras such as coconut, dried fruit, and additional seeds (if using). Store the nut pulp granola in a sealed container for 1-2 weeks.

Zero Waste Tips

Save your parchment paper after use - we often reuse parchment for a few bakes before replacing with a new sheet, composting the old one when finished.

This is a great recipe for using up small amounts of nuts, seeds and dried fruits you may have at the back of your cupboard!

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Coffee Ground Oat Pancakes

Did you know you could eat your coffee grounds?! We didn’t until we saw this brilliant instagram post from Max La Manna, an awesome zero waste chef, definitely worth a follow! In this zero waste recipe you utilise your old coffee grounds in your breakfast pancakes!

You’ll need a blender, mixing bowl and frying pan.

Serves 2 (3 pancakes each)

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

34g used coffee grounds (approx £1, or free as you’ve already got your coffee out of them!)

200g oats (50p)

300ml oat milk; or milk of your choice

1 tsp bi carb (approx 3p)

Pinch of salt

We added 2 teaspoons cinnamon to our mix as cinnamon is a great partner for caffeine (approx cost 20p)

And we like to add a tablespoon of chia or flax seed to our pancake mix too.

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £1.73

Method

Blend oats to a flour consistency then transfer to a bowl.

Mix the other dry ingredients in and then add milk until the batter is pourable but not too thick. If thick, add 1-2 tbsp of milk or water each time and stir.

Add a spoonful of the batter to a frying pan on medium heat and cook on both sides for 1-2 minutes.

For topping we poached a pear and then reduced down the sugar water to a syrup to pour on the pancakes.

Zero Waste Tips

You can make your own quick oat milk by adding a tablespoon of oats to 300ml water and blending, you don’t need to sieve out oats and can use as is.

Avoid food waste and store any leftover pancakes (without toppings) in a container separated with parchment paper to prevent sticking. Will keep in the refrigerator up to 4 days or in the freezer up to 1 month. Reheat in the toaster, oven or microwave until hot.

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Sunflower Mince Bolognese

We’ve been loving this new addition to the van: sunflower mince! Its exactly what is says it is, mince made from sunflowers! Here’s a simple Bolognese recipe found from the Sunflower Family website.

You’ll need a saucepan.

Serves 4.

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

75g sunflower mince (£2.63)

1 onion

2 cloves of garlic

100 g carrots (optional)

100 g celery (optional)

2 tbsp olive oil (approx 20p)

200 g tomato passata

200 g chopped tomatoes

1 tbsp tomato paste

2 teaspoon mixed herbs (approx 5p)

1 teaspoon demerara sugar (to taste) (approx 3p)

Salt pepper

250 ml vegetable broth (approx 5p if using vegan bouillon)

250g spaghetti (88p)

2 tablespoons nutritional yeast or vegan parmesan (approx 10p)

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £3.94 / £0.99 pp

Method:

Peel the onion, garlic, carrots and celery and cut into fine cubes.

Heat the olive oil in a saucepan and sauté the onion, carrots and celery.

Then fry the garlic briefly (approx. 30 seconds).

Add sunflower mince until it turns golden brown.

Then add the tomato paste and tomatoes and mix.

Add about 250 ml of vegetable stock.

Season the sauce with salt, pepper, Italian herbs and sugar and simmer over a medium heat for about 15-20 minutes until the sauce has thickened nicely (add a little vegetable stock if necessary).

In the meantime, cook the spaghetti in salted water until al dente and then drain.

Serve the spaghetti with the sauce and garnish with yeast flakes or vegan parmesan.

Zero Waste Tips

This is a great recipe for using up odds and ends of veggies found in the fridge - carrots, celery, courgette, you could also add in beans if you had any that needed using up.

Scraps and peelings from veggies can be saved to make your own stock.

Save the spaghetti water! Use to water houseplants or you can plan to use it for the stock in the recipe, it can also be used to replace plain water in bread or pizza dough recipes if you’re planning on making!

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Chia Seed Berry Jam

This is a great easy jam recipe from Deliciously Ella’s first cookbook, fab for using seasonal berries! Great on toast, porridge, pancakes - you name it!

You’ll need a large saucepan.

Makes 1 large jar

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

2 tablespoons chia seeds (approx 15p)

400g berries

3 tablespoons thick honey (we’ve also used a mix of honey and elderberry or rosehip syrup)

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £0.15

Method:

Wash and prepare your chosen berries and place in large saucepan with the honey, turn on heat and allow to cook until berries are soft.

Mash berries with masher or fork until mix is smooth as you would like.

Add the chia seeds and cook for a further 20 mins on low heat, stirring every 5 mins.

Remove pan from heat and place jam in bowl and allow to cool, it will continue to thicken.

Store jam in airtight container, it’ll keep for about a week.

Zero Waste Tips

Forage or pick your own berries to avoid single use plastic containers.

Great recipe if you see your berries starting to turn!

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Ramen Noodles

Making your own ramen is a great quick meal and is also perfect for using up odds and ends of vegetables left in the fridge!

Ramen is a Japanese noodle soup using wheat noodles (ours are perfect for ramen as they don’t get too soggy in the soup) served in a broth, traditionally meat, but of course you can go fish or vegetable, often flavoured with soy sauce or miso and finished with various toppings.

The recipe set out below is for a basic ramen where you can swap out ingredients for what you have in the kitchen, all you need is some noodles!

You’ll need a saucepan, frying pan.

Serves 2

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

1 noodle nest (approx 45p)

750ml Broth/Stock (you can make your own or use 3 teaspoon veg bouillon with hot water, approx 20p)

To add to broth:

ginger 4cm piece grated

1 red chilli chopped

1 garlic clove, bashed

2 tablespoons miso paste

For toppings:

1 tablespoon vegetable oil (we like sesame for ramen)

mushrooms approx 100g

shredded greens, we like chard but pak choy, spring greens etc work well

1 carrot, finely sliced

teaspoon soy sauce

2 tablespoons sesame seeds (approx 10p)

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx 75p / 38p pp

Method:

Add broth/stock, ginger, chilli and garlic to saucepan and heat to boiling. Once boiling reduce heat and add noodles to cook around 8mins.

While noodles cook prepare your topping, heating oil in frying pan and adding vegetables and soy sauce cook until soft and then add sesame seeds and cook for further min or two and then remove from heat.

Once noodles are cooked, take off heat and stir in miso.

Place broth and noodles in bowls and add toppings to serve.

Zero Waste Tips

This is a great dish to get creative with and to use up vegetables in the fridge.

Find miso and soy in reusable and recyclable glass containers.

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