IT’S PARTY TIME

WORDS AND PICTURES BY MARYANNE HALL, FOOD AND COOKERY MANAGER With lockdown retreating and friends hopefully calling round – we think it’ s high time for a summer party! The mood is lifting and it’ s time to celebrate! Share and enjoy all the delicious recipes on offer, to help bring everyone back together in style. Our watermelon, feta and pumpkin seed salad is a perfectly fresh and zingy accompaniment to liven up TIMETIME PARTYPARTYIt’sIt’s any barbecue dish or savoury summer pie. (Violife Greek White Block and Green Vie Greek Style are both incredible ‘feta ’ alternatives – non-vegan friends definitely won ’t know the difference!) The pizza twister is the ultimate sharing dish! Light fluffy dough with balsamic-glazed vegetables and lashings of melty vegan cheese. And whatever else you do, make our strawberry galette – simple, beautiful and gorgeous. Guest chef for this month is the fantastic Bianca Zapatka – Germanbased author, food stylist & photographer, recipe developer and blogger/Instagrammer with more than 692K followers on the platform!

Watermelon, Feta & Seed Salad

Serves 2 | 5-10 minutes

l 400g watermelon, cut into (roughly) 1 inch chunks l 70g vegan feta (approx.), crumbled (we used Violife Greek

White Block) l 8-12 black or Kalamata olives l ½ red onion, finely sliced into rings l 50-60g rocket or mixed leaves l 2 handfuls (approx. 10g) fresh mint leaves, finely chopped plus extra for decoration l 2 handfuls toasted mixed seeds (shopbought for speed) l Drizzle extra virgin olive oil l Salt and black pepper to taste

1 Arrange all of the ingredients on a large serving plate in any way you fancy. 2 Drizzle over olive oil and season. Voila!

Pizza Twister

Serves 6 | 70 minutes

Dough l 500g strong bread flour l ½ tsp salt l 7g sachet of yeast l 325ml tepid water

Filling (Get creative and maybe devise your own filling). l 1 tbsp olive oil l 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar l 15g/½ bunch fresh basil, leaves torn roughly l 150g cherry tomatoes, halved (mixed colours look pretty) l 1 courgette, finely sliced l 8-10 black olives, stones removed and halved (olives with stones have more flavour) l 1 tsp dried oregano (optional) l 150g vegan red pesto (eg Sacla, Biona, some supermarket own-brands) l 150-200g vegan mozzarella (we used

MozzaRisella) l Salt and pepper

1 Preheat the oven to 190°C (fan)/375°F/Gas Mark 5. 2 Sieve the flour into a large bowl and add salt. 3 Mix yeast and water with a fork until dissolved. Add pinch of the flour before adding yeast mix to the bowl. 4 Gather the mixture together with your hands and form into a dough. Knead well on a floured surface until silky, smooth and elastic 9around 5 minutes). 5 Place dough into an oiled bowl, cover with damp tea towel and leave to doubled in size (about an hour). 6 Mix the olive oil and balsamic vinegar together in a bowl, add all vegetables, oregano and a pinch of salt and pepper. 7 Go back to the dough and knead for 30 seconds on floured surface then roll into a large rectangular shape (about the size of a tea towel). 8 With your hands, rub red pesto over all the dough. Add vegetables and ‘ mozzarella ’ evenly over the base. 9 Roll the dough up lengthways like a Swiss roll and cut into 12 chunks. Place swirl side up in an oiled oven-proof frying pan (approx. 26cm) or baking tray. Cover with a tea towel and leave to prove - around 30 minutes until doubled in size. 10 Place in the oven for 30-40 minutes or until golden. Check for burning after 25 minutes.

Serves 4-6 | 60 minutes

Vegan Spinach & Walnut ‘ Ricotta ’ Pie

Walnut ‘Ricotta ’ l 250gcashewnuts,soaked l 150g walnuts, soaked l 175-200ml water l 1 capsule of strong probiotic bacteria (optional) l 2 tbsp nutritional yeast l ½ tbsp lemon juice l ½ tsp salt (or more to taste) l Good pinch of black pepper

Other ingredients l 5-6 sheets filo pastry l 250g young spinach (you can use frozen) l 1 onion (finely diced) l 2 cloves garlic (crushed) l ½ tsp grated nutmeg

Walnut ‘Ricotta ’ 1 Soak the cashews and walnuts for a minimum of 4 hours or overnight. 2 Rinse thoroughly and blend with 175ml of water until smooth and creamy. If necessary, add more water bit by bit as you want mixture as thick as possible. 3 (Optional step) Add the probiotic capsule and blend again. Cover the cashew mix with cling film and leave to ferment (at room temperature for minimum 4 hours. 4 Rinse walnuts and chop finely. 5 In a large bowl, add walnut pieces, cashew mix add remaining ingredients. 6 Stir together and check seasoning.

Other ingredients 1 In a frying pan, fry onion until golden, add garlic and fry for a further two minutes. 2 Add spinach and cook until wilted. 3 Remove from pan to a sieve and squeeze out excess water. 4 When cool, stir in the ‘ ricotta ’ mix and then the nutmeg. 5 Use a 20cm loose bottom cake tin, greased with olive oil. 6 Lightly brush 4-5 sheets of filo pastry with olive oil. 7 Place one sheet on the bottom of the tin, excess pastry can fall over the top. Layer another sheet at 90º and continue until you ’ ve layered 4-5 sheets. 8 Spoon mixture into the pastry-lined tin, fold the corners of the pastry into the middle. 9 Fill any gaps in pastry with a scrunched up sheet of filo. 10 Lightly brush or spray the top of the pastry with olive oil and place in the oven for approximately 30 minutes or until lightly golden.

Strawberry Galette Serves 6 | 45 minutes

l 320g/1 sheet ready to use puff pastry (eg Jus-Rol or some supermarket own brands (Jus-Rol has a GF version). l 800g fresh strawberries, hulled (you can leave them whole but halving or quartering makes themd nicer to eat) l 2x200mltubsOatlyCremeFraiche (oryoucanmakeourcoconut creamwhiporthesweetversionof ourcashewcream–youwillnot needtoaddlemonjuice,icingsugar andvanillaextractlistedbelow) l ½ tbsp lemon juice l 6 tbsp sieved icing sugar (plus extra for dusting) l ½ tsp vanilla extract or paste l Optional decoration: fresh mint sprigs, dusting of icing sugar, chopped nuts

1 Preheat oven to 180ºC (fan)/350ºF/Gas Mark 4. 2 Place puff pastry on a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper, prick with a fork and cook for 15 minutes or until golden. 3 Remove from oven, turn pastry over and gently press to flatten and return it to the oven for a further 5-10 minutes. 4 Remove from oven and leave to cool for minimum 15 minutes. 5 Liquidise 100g of the hulled strawberries then sieve to make a smooth paste. Refrigerate until needed. 6 In a medium sized bowl, mix the Oatly, lemon juice, icing sugar and vanilla extract until smooth. 7 Spread the cream evenly over the cooled puff pastry sheet. 8 Place the fresh strawberries evenly over the layer of cream. 9 Top with the liquidised strawberry paste, a dusting of icing sugar and mint.

Cheesecake Brownies

Serves 16 | 55 minutes

For the cheesecake mixture l 225g vegan cream cheese l 125g soya yoghurt l 40g sugar l 1 tbsp cornflour l ½ tsp vanilla extract

For the brownie batter l 2 flax eggs (or 100g unsweetened apple purée) l 120g vegan butter (or margarine/ coconut oil) l 120g vegan dark chocolate l ½ tsp vanilla extract l 120g plain flour (or gluten-free flour) l Pinch salt l ½ tsp baking powder l ¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda l 150g brown sugar l 60ml/5 tbsp plant milk (or hot coffee)

Toppings l 85g vegan chocolate chips

1 Preheat oven to 175°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4. 2 Lightly grease a square 21cm (8 inch) cake tin and line with baking paper, leaving some hanging over the sides (makes for easier lifting when cooked). 3 Prepare flax eggs by mixing 2 tablespoons ground flax seeds with 6 tablespoons hot water. Leave to stand for 5–10 minutes. 4 While waiting, place all cheesecake ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix to a creamy consistency preferably using an electric hand mixer. 5 Melt the vegan butter, chocolate and vanilla extract in a saucepan. 6 In another bowl, combine flour, salt, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and sugar. Add the flax eggs, plant milk, melted butter and chocolate mixture. Mix to a smooth, creamy batter. 7 Pour a third of the brownie batter into the prepared cake tin to cover the base. Add alternate heaped tablespoons of cheesecake mixture and brownie batter, creating a marbled effect, until both mixtures have been used. 8 Bake the brownies for around 40 minutes or to your preferred consistency (the longer you bake them, the drier they will be. For gooier brownies, don ’t bake them too long). 9 Once baked, leave to cool then lift out of tin using the excess paper. 10 To slice, dip a sharp knife into hot water, quickly dry it and use the warm knife to cut the brownies into squares. 11 For the best results, warm the brownies up for a few seconds in the microwave before serving to make them gooey and creamy. Guest Chef Recipe: Bianca Zapatka biancazapatka.com

Find out all the latest vegan foodie news with our resident chef, Maryanne!

Latesł foodie news

Things I’ve tried recently that get a big thumbs up

Taste & Glory Quarter Pounders – these burgers are incredible! Great texture and taste, widely available and reasonably priced. Non-vegan friends have tried them and said they ’ll never buy anything else!

English Cheesecake Company Vanilla Cheesecake with Lotus Biscoff – this is such a mouth-watering treat! Creamy, light, fluffy and moreish – I had to double check the packet to make sure I’d got the vegan version.

Nurishh Plant Based Alternative to Camembert – the best way of eating this amazing cheese is with Ritz biscuits and chutney. I also highly recommend baking it with rosemary and garlic with a big chunk of warm sourdough for dunking! Find it in Sainsbury ’ s.

Oatly Creamy Oat Spread – this new range of vegan cheese spread is delicious – rich, fluffy, melts on your tongue and you can eat it straight from the tub!

Plant Pioneers No Prawn Tempura – I bought chips and mushy peas from the chip shop and then added this tempura to the plate – worked a treat!

What I’ve been cooking at home

I’ ve made the Rose Elliot frangipane tart for so many birthdays now and it’ s gone down a treat every time!

My friend and I eat the Vegan Mega Burger together once a week now as a bit of a ritual, washed down with our favourite reality show… shhh!

Now that I’ m feeling more summery, I’ ve made the Vegan Recipe Club vegetable paella several times over the last few weeks – it’ s really colourful and hearty with a lovely combination of flavours – great as a sharing or party dish!

Tips

I’ ve been camping a few times recently and rather than cooking the usual camp stew, I made ‘duck’ pancakes, one pot pad Thai and pulled jackfruit with slaw and avocado and all on a single gas stove – my friends were very happy! Have a look at our camping blog on the Vegan Recipe Club site to posh up your next adventure.

If you haven ’t tried the Vegan Recipe Club farinata then you really must. Made from gram flour and filled with Mediterranean veg, it makes for the ultimate sunny delight. You can use the base for lots of other dishes too – I once made a breakfast farinata, filled with potato, tomato and vegan sausage, for guests on a yoga retreat and they loved it.

Make up a batch of our ultimate tahini sauce and use it on salads, stews, tagines, roast vegetables and even pasta to add depth and richness to your dish – not to mention protein and calcium too.

Things I’m still waiting to try (but can’t seem to find anywhere!)

I finally got my hands on the vegan Bounty but it was a little disappointing – it’ s a shame they haven ’t made a vegan version like the original Bounty bar – fingers crossed!

The new Dr Oetker Ristorante vegan pizza – looks very tasty, it’ s had positive reviews and it doesn ’t have a gluten-free base.