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Truffled Cheesy Pasta Recipe

Posted on February 10, 2020

The Cheesiest Vegan Pasta Recipe

This has to be one of the most indulgent cheesy recipe yet. Using vegan cheese instead of traditional, it’s the closest thing to mac and cheese you’ll find. Keeping the recipe super simple, this cheesy pasta will hopefully become a staple in your cupboard.

Ingredients Breakdown

Vegan Cheese – For this recipe I’ve used a vegan cheddar (Violife) which you can find either grated or sold as a block cheese. It’s one of the most available products to find here in the U.K but please feel free to use which ever product if your personal favourite.

Olive Oil – Using a good quality olive oil is key with this. It acts as a fat and really helps create that silky smooth texture for the pasta to bubble away and absorb.

Smoked Paprika – Smoked paprika is such a key ingredient within most of my dishes. The beautiful smoked flavour really compliments the cheese and just gives a little bit of depth the the dish.

Cornflour- This ingredient is gluten free and acts as a thickener to the sauce. It’s a great ingredient to have for soups, stocks and sauces such as this one. It really helps bind the ingredients together and create a thicker texture.

Nutritional Yeast- This is an optional ingredient, so don’t worry if you don’t have it to hand. It’s a brilliant ingredient that adds a slightly cheesy taste to dishes. I use it within pesto recipes (find here)

Truffle Oil- Now this brings the dish to another level. Truffle is a type of fungus (think along the mushroom line) which has a really distinct taste. It adds a gorgeous flavour to dishes, especially vegan dishes when trying to inject a little umami and flavour.

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Cheesy Vegan Pasta

Plant based cheesy pasta recipe. Made using vegan cheese, this is so rich in texture and flavour. The closest thing to macaroni cheese flavour since going vegan. Swap out the pasta for macaroni to make the traditional dish.

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Prep Time 10

Cook Time 23

Servings 4 People

Ingredients

250 g macaroni
Pinch salt

For the sauce

75 ml olive oil ½ cup
400 ml oat milk just less than 2 cups
¼ cup nutritional yeast optional, not required
1 tbsp truffle oil
4 cloves garlic substitute for 1 ½ tsp garlic powder
¼ tsp cracked black pepper
½ tsp salt
1 tsp smoked paprika
¼ tsp dijon mustard
2 tbsp cornflour
100 g grated vegan cheese 1 cup

Optional topping:

4 brussels sprouts optional
12 clove minced garlic
pinch of salt

Instructions

Bring the pasta to boil in a pot of water with a pinch of salt
*options for the garlic* you can finely chop and fry the garlic before adding to the sauce, or just add the whole cloves to the sauce to infuse with the flavour and remove after a few minutes before adding to the pasta.
Either using a whisk or a blender, add all of the ingredients to make the sauce (apart from the vegan cheese) and mix until smooth
Add the sauce mix to a pot and place on a low - medium heat, adding the grated vegan cheese until melted - careful not to bring to a simmer
Drain off the cooked pasta then add the cheese sauce and mix until coated

Notes

Optional topping:

Peel off the leaves from the brussels sprouts then add to a pan with a ½ tsp olive oil, the minced garlic and salt and fry for around 5 minutes then add to the top of the pasta

Add a drizzle of truffle oil to make this the most indulgent dish yet!

Keyword cheesey pasta, cheesy pasta, macaroni cheese,, pasta recipe, vegan recipe

Find me on Pinterest or over on Instagram

Chorizo & Paprika Pasta

Posted on January 6, 2020

Method:

Bring the pasta to boil in a pan with a pinch of salt for the time instructed on the packet (approx 12 mins)

Finely chop the onion, celery and add to a frying pan with 1 tsp olive oil, fry for around 6-7 minutes

Chop the red pepper and the vegan chorizo sausages into large bite size chunks and add to the frying pan

After a few minutes of frying, finely chop the garlic and add to the pan and cook off for around 2 minutes

Add the tinned tomatoes, tomato puree, smoked paprika, sage, bay leaf and the water and leave to simmer for around 10 minutes

Drain the pasta and add to the pot of tomato, taste test adding a little more seasoning if needed.

Lunch & Light Bites Recipe

Glamorgan Sausage Roll

Posted on December 13, 2019

Method:

Preheat the oven to 200ºC

Finely chop the leeks then add the spices, breadcrumbs and nutritional yeast and mix together

Then add the jar of applesauce and combine until everything is fully coated

Get in there with your hands, and roll the mixture into 3 similarly sized sausages (it helps if they’re approximately the same length as the shortest side of the pastry sheet)

Wrap the sausage mix in tin foil then pop in the fridge for 20 minutes

Take out of the fridge, then gently fry in a tsp olive oil for 6-7 minutes until turning golden on each side

Lay the sheet of pastry on a flat surface, pop one of the sausages along the shortest side, then roll the sheet over to make the first sausage roll

There should be a little overlap in the pastry, so using a fork crimp the edge to help seal it

Repeat this with the two other sausages then lightly wash in the vegetable stock mix

Gently score the top of the pastry with a knife then finish with a sprinkle of black sesame seeds

You can either slice the long sausage rolls into mini ones before baking, or after - I like to do it before, and make around 8-10 small sausage rolls

Place on a baking tray on greaseproof paper and bake for around 15-18 minutes or until the pastry is golden

Recipe Sides & Savoury Snacks

Vegan Pancetta & Cream Cheese Pinwheels

Posted on December 12, 2019

vegan pancetta pinwheels with nush cream cheese

This vegan cream cheese and pancetta pinwheel are a great recipe to serve at a party as a canapé idea or if you have a few friends coming over. Using Nush chive infused cream ‘cheese’ and a vegan pancetta these have a beautiful balance of creamy, salty, buttery goodness.

Step By Step

Roll out the ready made puff pastry then spread over the cream cheese. Using a flavoured cream cheese will give this even more flavour – I chose a chive infused one. Top tip, add a few extra fresh chives or parsley to the cream cheese.

*using a silicone spatula will help spread the cream cheese on smoothly*

vegan pancetta pinwheels with nush cream cheese

Sprinkle and Roll

There’s no need to precook the pancetta however please feel free to do so. Sprinkle the pancetta and extra dried herbs across the top of the pastry sheet, careful to spread everything evenly. No one wants to pinwheel with no filling!

You can get creative with what ingredients you’d like to add however using a simple mix of chives, parsley and black pepper will be delicious enough.

vegan pancetta pinwheels with nush cream cheese

Roll Them Up!

Rolling the pastry lengthways you will create one long and skinny sausage shape. Then using a super sharp knife slice down the middle to create two. Then repeat this process until you have around 14 – 16 sausages. If the filling is really warm it may get a little messy, but just keep that knife clean and it will be perfect.

You can decide to give them a brush in tamari or not, it won’t effect the pastry too much but the tamari glaze adds an extra kick of flavour.

Vegan Cream Cheese & Pancetta Pinwheels

Vegan puff pastry pinwheels filled with plant based cream cheese and pancetta. Deliciously indulgent and perfect for parties of gatherings

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Prep Time 5

Cook Time 15

Servings 16 Pinwheels

Ingredients

1 sheet ready rolled puff pastry
100 g plant based cream cheese I used a chive infused cream cheese
1 tsp dried parsley
1/2 tsp dried garlic
50 g vegan ‘pancetta’
1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
2 tbsp tamari for the wash
1 tbsp fresh chopped chives to garnish optional

Instructions

Allow the pastry to warm to room temperature
Roll out the pastry sheet onto an even surface and spread the cream cheese evenly across
Sprinkle the garlic powder, dried parsley and vegan pancetta with a pinch of cracked black pepper
Roll lengthways to make a long sausage shape then using a sharp knife, half, half again and repeat until you have around 12 pinwheels
Place the rolls on the baking tray on the greaseproof paper (that coats the puff pastry) then brush with the tamari to create a beautiful glaze (2tbsp should be enough to lightly cover all of the pinwheels)
Pop in a preheated oven at 200ºC for 12-15 minutes or until beautifully golden
Add a little extra cream cheese to the top then garnish with a sprinkle of fresh chives or dried parsley and enjoy!

Keyword easy pastry recipes, pinwheel, sausage rolls, vegan sausage, pastry recipes, puff pastry, vegan cream cheese, vegan pancetta

If you like this recipe you might like my easy 3 ingredient sausage roll recipe.

Bread & Dough Recipe

Garlic and Leek Twist Bread

Posted on December 6, 2019

leek and garlic twist bread lucy nd lentils vegan

Garlic and Leek Twist Bread Recipe

A savoury take on a light babka bread recipe, but using garlic and leek as the delicious filling. The idea is the bread is served like a pull apart bread served with soups, stews or for dipping in hummus. The twist method is really simple to recreate which I’ve shared on another twist bread recipe here.

Ingredients Breakdown

Leek- When leeks are in season, this recipe is perfect. You can swap them out for a thick pesto instead. If you dice the leeks into small chunks it makes it easier to fold into the bread. You can give the leeks a steam to release a little flavour before adding to the twist bread, or simply add them raw.

Butter- I refer to vegan butter as butter out of habit but you can use any dairy free spread or margarine whether it’s coconut based, soy based or oil based.

Sugar- If you’re sugar free, even just adding a little pinch will just help feed the yeast when activating. I’ve written caster sugar but you can use golden caster, cane sugar or even muscovado.

Garlic Powder- Using a garlic powder helps prevent the flavour from ‘burnt’ so by using fresh garlic it can sometimes catch and slightly burn. If you prefer to use fresh garlic or don’t have garlic powder, simply mince 1 garlic clove instead.

Tips for the bread

Kneading- Careful not to over knead the dough, it should only take around 5-7 minutes. It should have a bit of an elastic feel, so if you stretch the dough out it will slowly ping back. If you prod a finger onto the dough it should create a dint but then spring back.

Rolling out- You want to roll out the dough to around 1cm thick to create a beautiful base to create multiple layers to the twist.

Yeast- By letting the yeast react with the warm water and sugar first it allows it to activate and wake it up. This step can be skipped if you’re in a rush however it does work a little better if following this step at the beginning.

Featured in Vegan Food & Living Magazine for British Leek Growers Association.

Garlic & Leek Twist Bread

Delicious fluffy and light babka twist savoury bread with a leek and garlic butter filling. All vegan friendly, perfect to serve with soups, stews or to dip in hummus.

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Prep Time 15

Cook Time 35

Proving time 1 15

Servings 8 slices

Ingredients

For the dough:

400 g cups plain flour around 2 cups
7 g Fast action yeast 1 sachet
1 tbsp caster sugar to feed the yeast
1 tsp salt
210 ml room temperature oat milk ¾ cup
60 ml olive oil 2 tbsp

For the filling:

100 g vegan margarine ¼ cp
1 medium leek around 150-200g
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp dried parsley
1/4 tsp salt

Instructions

Add the luke warm milk, sugar and yeast into a bowl and leave for around 5 minutes to froth
Add the flour, and salt to a large mixing bowl, then once the milk and yeast have reacted, pour those into the mixing bowl with the olive oil and bring together with a spoon or your hands
Move to a floured work surface and knead by hand for 5-7 minutes until, you can also add the dough to a machine and knead for the same amount of time
Clean out the mixing bowl, then add a few drops of olive oil, place the kneaded dough within the bowl, cover and leave in a warm place for around 1 ½ hours
Prepare the filling by finely chopping the leek then beating into the margarine, add the salt, pepper, parsley and garlic powder and mix until combined then leave aside
After the dough has risen, knock it back and roll onto a floured surface. Using a rolling pin, roll it out into a rectangle shape, around 2-3cm thick
Spread the butter and leek filling onto the surface of the rolled out dough leaving just a thin border
Roll the dough lengthways, to make a long sausage shape, then using a sharp knife carefully slice down the middle (also lengthways) to it should leave you with two long strands
Overlap the two strands, keeping the exposed filling facing towards you (this will help the butter ooze out and bake) then place in a large loaf tin, cover with a tea towel and leave to rise for a further 30 minutes
Preheat the oven to 190º then place the risen dough in for 25 minutes, then cover with baking foil and bake for a further 20-25 minutes
Allow to cool and enjoy!