Recipe #4 Spinach vegan-Ricotta cannelloni

This amazing recipe is from JAMIE; See for details his link
http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/pasta-recipes/awesome-spinach-and-ricotta-cannelloni

I gave it a twist, veganizing it; so here's my recipe for 4:

• Olive oil
• Hot paprika powder
• Dry oregano
• Dry nutmeg (optional)
• 1 stock cube
• 600 gr of baby spinach leaves
• 2 cans of 400 g chopped tomatoes
• salt and pepper
• 1 block silken tofu
• Mozzarella violife cheese, grated
• 12-15 cannelloni tubes
• 1 tablespoon of soy milk
• Nutritional yeast

In a wok add a bit of olive oil and place the baby spinach leaves on top. Season with salt, pepper and paprika. Let the spinach cook until the leaves stick to each other. Drain the water and oil. Chop the spinach and transfer to a bowl; 

Prepare the tofu: 
in a food processor blend the tofu and the milk with some salt and pepper. Now add the tofu and the spinach leaves. Spoon this into a clean plastic bag and cut a SMALL tip off. Squeeze the mixture into a cannelloni tube very carefully and place the cannelloni in a oven proof dish.

Sauce: 

Blend the tomato cans with 2 tablespoons of dry oregano, salt, pepper and the stock cube. 

Now cover the cannellonis with the tomato sauce. Add grated violife cheese on top and 2-3 spoons of nutritional yeast. Let it cook in the oven around 30-35 minutes on 180oC.

Recipe #65 Sauteed Greens

Easy Side dish !

Shopping list

• 4 handfuls of baby spinach leaves
• 6 big leaves of dark green cabbage, cut into small chunks
• (you can add more greens such as asparagus, kale, green beans, white cabbage, leek)
• 2-3 teaspoons of powder garlic (depending if you really like garlic)
• 2 tablespoons of oil (I like walnut or olive oil, use nut oil if you want to add nuts later)
• 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne powder
• freshly ground black pepper (5x turns)
• a pinch of sea salt 

Method

In a wok heat the oil and the greens. When you hear it start cooking add the seasoning and keep moving them so they won't stick and burn.

After 5-10 minutes all vegetables should be cooked and you can serve (be sure to use the remaining oil from the pan as this is full of flavour and, of course, garlic taste!) 

Recipe #48 Butternut Squash Soup [vegan]

Shopping list:

• 1 medium onion
• 2 potatoes 
• 2 tablespoons of oliveoil 
• 350gr butternut squash
• Salt
• Pepper

Method:

In a big saucepan heat the onion in the olive oil till it's golden. Add the vegetables in cubes and cover in water. Season and let it cool for 30 min. Pure it and serve with spinach leaves

Recipe #39 Vegetable Stew [vegan]

Shopping list (5 people)

4-5 leaves of savoy cabbage

2 cups of dry small pasta

1 onion

1 can of chopped tomatoes

1,75 liter of vegetable stock

seasoning (dry parsley, salt, black pepper)

olive oil (1/4 cup)

200 gr baby spinach leaves

1 carrot

pinch of sugar

Method 

Start by heating around 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a big saucepan. Add the onion (chopped) and the carrot (sliced or chopped, I chopped it for this recipe).

Add the can of tomatoes, salt, pepper, parsley and half the vegetable stock.

Now place in the pasta (here I used 2 types of pasta) and cabbage leaves.

Leave it to cook for some minutes and add the remaining olive oil and vegetable stock.

Taste it, if this tastes too much of tomato add a pinch of sugar to neutralize the tomato.

Put in the spinach (it cooks very fast) and cover the pan.

When the pasta is cooked it should be more of a stew than a soup.

it's a good recipe to use up bits and pieces you have in the fridge (such as loose vegetables, can vegetables as chickpeas) or small amounts of pasta you have in the cupboard.

Recipe #35 Spinach and Mango Vegan Smoothie

Shopping list (2 pints)

• 1 very ripe mango
• 1 big slice of fresh pineapple
• 1 handful of spinach
• 1 banana
• 400ml soy milk
• 200ml water or coconut water or cold green tea
• juice 1/2 lemon

Method

Peel the fruit and place everything into the blender. Blend for about 2 minutes.
You can add a tablespoon of chia seeds for extra goodness.

Benefits of Spinach:

Loaded with Vitamins (A, K, D, and E), Good Source of Omega 3 Fatty Acids, Anti-Cancer and Anti-Inflammatory Antioxidants, Nourishes the Eyes, Strengthens the Bones (One cup of fresh spinach contains TWICE your daily vitamin K needs. This along with the calcium and magnesium in spinach is essential to maintain healthy bones) 

Read more: http://www.care2.com/greenliving/8-benefits-of-spinach-the-first-superfood.html#ixzz3Eyb4pZrC

Recipe #33 Puffy Pastry with tofu and vegetables

Shopping list (4 portions)

• 1 puffy pastry
• 1 block of tofu
• handful of mushrooms (around 150gr)
• 2 Handfuls of baby spinach leaves
• 1 cup grated carrots
• oil (olive or sesame)
• 1 1/2 cups broccoli
• salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, paprika
• Juice 1/2 lemon
• Fresh parsley
• soy sauce (some drops)
• Nuts to serve
• Couscous 1 cup
• 1 lemon

Method

I bought the pastry, it seems to be vegan as the fat used is vegetable fat (Lidl pastry for 95 cents). But you can do it yourself if you want to use vegan butter for the pastry.

In a bowl place the tofu block, drained, and scrambled it with a fork. Season with salt, pepper, cayenne pepper and paprika; some lemon juice and some drops of soy sauce.

In a wok heat a bit of olive oil or sesame oil. throw in the mushrooms and the broccoli. After some minutes throw in the carrots and the spinach leaves and let the vegetables almost cook. Then add the tofu to the vegetables with some chopped parsley and let it cook slightly. Take off from the heat.

Open the pastry on the kitchen top (it should come rolled on a baking paper). Divide this in 4 rectangles. Place some of the vegetables in each rectangle and close at the top (doesn't really matter because they will open in the oven) or make some parcel shaped buns.
Place them in the oven for 20 min at 180 o C

To serve I placed the dry couscous in a bowl and covered it with 2 cups of boiling water; then added 2x 1/2 a lemon and sprinkled a bit of salt, pepper and parsley. Cover with a dish and leave it alone for 10min. When you remove the dish you will have nice fluffy couscous.

[You can make the same recipe with other vegetables, like courgette, tomato, green cabbage, soy sprouts, chickpeas...]

Recipe #31 Vegan scrambled Tofu

Shopping list (for 2 people)

• 1 block of firm tofu
• 150gr sliced mushrooms
• 2 handfuls of baby spinach
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil
• 1 small onion chopped
• salt and pepper

Method

Open the tofu and drain the water. With some paper towels drain the moist of the block. Place it into a bowl and mash it into small pieces, it will look like white scrambled eggs. Season with salt, pepper.

In a pan heat a bit of olive oil and throw in the onion; let them get slightly golden. Now throw in the mushrooms and after 2-3 minutes the tofu. Stir and after 1-2 minutes add the spinach leaves.

Recipe #17 Spinach & Ricotta Lasagna

Similar to the cannelloni recipe

Shopping list

• Olive oil
• Hot paprika powder
• Dry oregano
• Powder garlic (optional)
• 250 gr of baby spinach leaves
• 2 cans of 400 g chopped tomatoes
• 1 block silken tofu
• Mozzarella violife cheese, grated
• 8-10 sheets of lasagna
• 1 tablespoon of soy milk
• Nutritional yeast

Method

In a wok add a bit of olive oil and place the baby spinach leaves on top. Season with salt, pepper and paprika. Let the spinach cook until the leaves stick to each other. Drain the water and oil. Chop the spinach and transfer to a bowl; 

Prepare the tofu: 
in a food processor blend the tofu and the milk with some salt and pepper. Now add the tofu and the spinach leaves. Spoon this into a clean plastic bag and cut a SMALL tip off. Squeeze the mixture into a cannelloni tube very carefully and place the cannelloni in a oven proof dish.

Sauce: 

Blend the tomato cans with 2 tablespoons of dry oregano, salt, pepper and the stock cube. 

Get an oven proof dish. Place a bit of the tomato sauce and a layer of uncooked lasagna sheets. Then cover these with a layer of the spinach and 'ricotta'. Cover this with a layer of lasagna sheets. And another layer of spinach, another layer of pasta, a layer of tomato sauce. Finish this with another layer of lasagna sheets and cover them with the slices of mozarella style cheese. Use vegan parmesan to cover all the gaps in between the mozarella. (you can add chopped fresh basil or sprinkle dry oregano) 

Let it cook in the oven around 20-30 minutes on 180oC.

Always a winner

Recipe #11 Tortellini with Spinach cream

Shopping list

• 1 package of ready made tortellini
• baby spinach leaves (around 150gr)
• 1 small package of almond vegan cream
• corn flour
• salt +pepper+ drypaprika 1 teaspoon + dry oregano or fresh parsley

Method 

Boil a package of tortellini in hot water, and put aside.

In a sauce pan cook the spinach leaves in a bit of olive oil then add the cream and let it boil. Add two teaspoons of corn flour (or plain flour) and season. Stir for a couple of minutes (so the cornflour doesn't clump) and add the boiled tortellini carefully so they won't open. Stir carefully and serve.

Recipe #7 Spinach and Ricotta Quiche

Shopping list

• 5 cups of uncooked baby spinach leaves
• 4 eggs
• Olive oil
• 1 puffy pastry ready made
• 1 package of ricotta cheese (250gr)
• some grated cheddar or mozzarella to cover
• 250gr double cream

Method 

In a medium bowl place the eggs, the cream, the ricotta, salt + pepper and oregano. Use a mixer to mix them well.

Heat a wok or a frying pan and add some olive oil. Place the spinach in and allow it to cook.

Place the pastry ( I like the puffy one with this quiche) in a quiche dish or oven proof tray, pierce the bottom of the pastry slightly with a fork.

Throw in the cooked spinach on the bottom, cover with the ricotta mixture and top it with grated cheddar or mozzarella.

Cook for around 30min on 180 C