Are you taking part in Veganuary? Need a little direction? Well, look no further because here are some cheap, quick and easy ideas. Whatever your reasoning for taking part it’s a great way to get creative and experiment with some new recipes, so get stuck in!

Sweet Potato Chilli

Ingredients:

• 1 large onion
• 4 cloves of garlic
• 2 tins of tomatoes
• 2 tins of black beans / red kidney beans
• 2 medium sweet potatoes
• Fresh coriander (optional)
• Juice of a fresh lime
• 1.5 tsp cayenne pepper (more depending on how spicy you like it)
• 2 tsp smoked paprika
• 2 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp oregano
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• Oil
• 2 tbsp jalapeno brine (optional but adds a delicious fiery kick!)

Equipment:

• 1 sharp knife
• 1 peeler
• 1 chopping board
• 1 large pan
• 1 roasting tray

Method:

1. Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 5 / 180°C.
2. Meanwhile peel and chop sweet potato into cubes.
3. Pour some oil into baking tray and place into the oven to heat for a few minutes.
4. Peel and dice the onion and crush the garlic, then sauté in a pan with some oil and a pinch of salt on a low heat.
5. Remove baking tray from oven and place in sweet potato with some salt and roast for around 20 mins.
6. Add the herbs and spices into the pan and coat the garlic and onion.
7. Drain the beans and add to the pan with the tins of tomatoes.
8. Allow to simmer on a low heat (the longer you can leave it to simmer the better as the flavours just get more delicious and the sweet potato  breaks down and sweetens the sauce – you can even use a hand blender to blitz some of the chilli so it thickens).
9. If including, prepare coriander by washing and chopping.
10. After 20 minutes remove sweet potato from the oven and add into the pan to form the chilli.
11. Cut the lime in half and squeeze the juice into the chilli.
12. Add chopped coriander and serve with some more fresh lime, rice/pitta/wraps and whatever sides you fancy (see below).

Serving Suggestions

Rainbow Salad:

• 1 punnet tomatoes, de-seeded and diced
• 1 red onion, peeled and diced
• 1 yellow, green and red pepper, de-seeded and diced
• 1/2 a red cabbage, shredded
• 1 avocado, stone removed and chopped
• Juice of 1 lime
• 1/2 bunch coriander, chopped
• Generous pinch of salt

Easy Salsa:

• 1 punnet tomatoes, de-seeded and diced
• 1 red onion, peeled and diced
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 1 red pepper, de-seeded and diced
• 1/2 bunch coriander, finely chopped
• 1/2 red chilli, de-seeded and chopped (optional to add a bit of fire!)
• Juice of 1 lime
• Generous pinch of salt
• Fresh mango or avocado, diced (optional to make it a little more exciting!)

Avocado sauce:

• 1 avocado
• A splash of dairy-free milk
• Juice of half a lime
• 1 tbsp nutritional yeast (optional)
• A pinch of salt
• Blend together until smooth

Vegan Soured Cream:

• 3 tbsp of Alpro plain yogurt
• Juice of half a lime
• A pinch of salt
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder

Root Vegetable Curry

Ingredients:

• 1 white onion
• 1 medium piece of ginger
• 4 cloves garlic
• 2 parsnips
• 1 medium potato
• 1 large carrot
• 1/2 small pumpkin or squash (if you don’t have all these veggies you can bulk it out with a tin of chickpeas)
• 2 tins coconut milk
• Handful of chopped greens (optional)
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 2 heaped tsp turmeric
• 2 heaped tsp cumin
• 1 heaped tsp cinnamon
• 1 heaped tsp chilli / cayenne pepper
• 2 tsp cumin seeds
• Coconut or rapeseed oil

Equipment:

• 1 sharp knife
• 1 chopping board
• 1 grater
• 1 large pan
• 1 small pan
• 1 baking tray
• 1 mixing spoon

Method:

1. Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 5 / 180°C.
2. Wash and chop your veggies (I only peeled the pumpkin and parsnips but left the skin on the carrots and potatoes).
3. Place veg in a large baking tray / two smaller ones with coconut oil and sprinkle with the cumin seeds and some salt. Roast for around 30 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, peel and chop your onion and add it to a pan with oil or water.
5. Peel your garlic and ginger, grate them and add to the pan.
6. Sauté the veg for a few minutes.
7. Meanwhile, add your spices to another dry pan on low heat to warm them up and get them smelling and tasting gooooood – keep stirring them so they don’t burn.
8. Add your spices to the main pan with a little water and cook down for 15 minutes.
9. Check on the root veg and give them a little shake to make sure they’re cooking evenly and not burning.
10. Add your two tins of coconut milk and mix in the spices, add some salt and pepper and let it simmer away.
11. Once the root veg are cooked add them to the pan and mix well, add more salt and pepper if you need it, chickpeas if you’re using them and the chopped greens. Let it simmer down on low heat (the longer you can leave the curry cooking the better it will taste. So leave it on a low heat and check back occasionally).

Serving suggestion: top with cashew cream, spring onions and chilli flakes. Serve with rice, quinoa, bread, in a wrap, with chips or hash browns, on a jacket potato… so many options!

Creamy Cauliflower Soup

Ingredients:

• 1 large cauliflower and it’s greens (they’re too good to throw)
• 1 large white onion
• 5 cloves garlic (I like it garlicky)
• 1 tin butter beans
• 1 tin coconut milk
• 2 heaped tsp nutritional yeast
• 1 heaped tsp oregano
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Water

Equipment:

• 1 large pan
• 1 medium pan
• 1 sharp knife
• 1 chopping board
• 1 grater / garlic crusher
• 1 sift
• Hand blender / liquidiser
• 1 jug / something to catch veg water

Method:

1. Wash and chop  your cauliflower (keeping the greens to one side), place in your medium pan with your drained butter beans and fill with water – bring to the boil  for about 20 minutes.
2. Then peel, dice and sauté the onion in your large pan with some water- no need for oil- for 5 minutes or so then add your peeled,  grated/crushed garlic and sauté for a further 5 minutes with some salt.
3. Wash and finely chop the cauli greens and then add to the pan with some oregano.
4. After 10 minutes add in some water so the greens are submerged and let it simmer away.
5. After 20 mins is up drain your cauliflower and butter beans (catching the veg water in your jug).
6. Add cooked cauliflower and butter beans in to the same pot as your other veggies that have been simmering away, with your nutritional yeast, tin of coconut milk, some of the veg water you saved and more salt and pepper.
7. Then use a hand blender/ liquidiser to blend up your soup- have a taste and add more veg water to loosen if needed as well as salt, pepper and more nutritional if you’d like more!
8. Tadaaaah! All done! Super flavourful and delicious. Perfect with a big chunk of fresh bread, or with quinoa or brown rice mixed into it, yum!

Serving suggestion: top with crispy roasted chickpeas, potatoes and kale.

Mushroom and Red Pepper Stroganoff

Ingredients:

• 1 large onion (red or white)
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1/2 a chilli (optional)
• 2 red peppers
• 250g button mushrooms
• A handful of cashew nuts, for garnish
• 1 tin chopped tomatoes
• Approx 100ml Alpro single “cream” (depending on how creamy you want it, I just kept adding it as I went along)
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/2 tsp oregano
• A handful of fresh parsley, to garnish
• Salt and pepper to season
• Oil
• Approx 100g brown rice per person

Equipment:

• 1 medium pan
• 2 large pans
• 1 small frying pan
• 1 kettle
• 1 chopping board
• 1 sharp knife
• 1 can opener
• 1 colander
• 1 mixing spoon
• 1 hand blender / food processor

Method:

1. Firstly fill the kettle and turn on ready for cooking the brown rice… as it takes forever.
2. Once the kettle has boiled, pour the water into the medium sized pan and place on to hob.
3. Turn on to medium heat add the brown rice and cook for around 30 mins.
4. Meanwhile start to peel and dice the onion and garlic, then place in the large pan with a splash of oil and turn on to medium heat.
5. When the veg is soft add the paprika, cayenne pepper and chopped tomatoes and blend until smooth.
6. Wash and roughly chop up the mushrooms, red pepper and chilli (optional) and add to second pan with oil and oregano. Sauté for 5 minutes before adding to the tomato sauce.
7. Now season with salt & pepper and add the cream.
8. Stir the rice to make sure it isn’t sticking to the bottom of the pan.
9. Let the stroganoff cook down around 10 minutes, so that the sauce thickens, but not too much (add some water if if it gets too thick).
10. 5 minutes before serving, place the cashew nuts and a pinch of salt in the small frying pan on a medium heat and lightly toast until golden brown, be careful not to burn them.
11. Check if the rice is ready, and drain using the sift if so. Then you can dish up the stroganoff, and add the toasted cashews as well as a handful of fresh parsley and enjoy.

– Emily Wright (Chef at The Hive Café)

Give Emily’s food blog a follow on Instagram @easypeasy.lemonsqueezy to keep up to date with more of her wonderful vegan recipes!