Dairy-Free – Page 29 – The Food Wife

Dairy-Free, Vegan, No-Knead Sourdough Hot Cross Buns

18th April 201919th May 2019
by thefoodwife

Makes 12

I made my first sourdough starter back in December. Named Cuthbert, he has gone on to make regular loaves and pizza dough without any need for yeast.

This Easter I decided to use him as the base of my hot cross buns. Iâ€™ve opted for a no-knead method. Essentially a 24 hour process with very little human input and no need for any machinery to produce the dough.

This year Iâ€™ve gone for a dairy-free bun, due to dietary requirements, but these can be made with butter if no such requirements are needed.

They can also be made in advance and frozen; simply defrost for a few hours before re-heating or splitting and toasting.

Ingredients:
330g recently fed sourdough starter (fed 2-3 hours before using)
80ml/g vegetable oil (or melted butter if youâ€™re not making these vegan/dairy-free)
300ml luke-warm water
10g salt
50g caster sugar
250g strong white bread flour
250g strong wholemeal bread flour
30g mixed spice
200g dried fruit (I used 150g sultanas and 50g of candied peel)

For the crosses:
50g plain flour
Water

For the glaze:
25g caster sugar
25ml water

Step 1: Begin by placing the bubbling starter in a large bowl, add the oil, water, salt, sugar, mixed spice and flours and use a wooden spoon to mix into a combined dough. This will not take long and will be a rather wet mix. Cover the bowl with cling film or a damp tea towel and leave for an hour.

Step 2: Uncover the dough and start folding the sides into the middle. Add the dried fruit as you go. Keep rotating the bowl, moving the outside in until you have done about 20 folds. Re-cover and leave, revisiting three more times over the next few hours to turn and fold a few times each visit. Each time the dough should have risen slightly and become smoother.

Step 3: Cover and leave in a cool place to prove over night.

Step 4: The next morning you should have a smooth, well risen dough. Tip out onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 12 pieces (I cut in half, divided each half in two and then each quarter into three).

Step 5: Line a baking sheet with parchment and roughly shape each piece into a ball and place on the baking sheet.

Step 6: Mix the paste for the crosses by combining the flour with a little water until a smooth paste is formed. Place in a piping bag and pipe crosses across each bun (each row can be piped as a continuous line).

Step 7: Bake in a preheated oven (200c/190c fan) for 25 minutes, or until browned, risen and have a hollow sound when tapped underneath. Make the glaze whilst they are baking by heating the water and sugar to a bubbling syrup in a saucepan.

Step 8: Brush each bun with the glaze and allow to cool.

These are best eaten warm. Either eat fresh from the oven, re-heat in the oven or split and toast. They can be frozen too; just make sure to remove and defrost a few hours before needed.

Whatâ€™s For Dinner?

15th April 201919th May 2019
by thefoodwife

The week ahead is sure to contain a fair amount of chocolate but I thought Iâ€™d share some of the recipes weâ€™ll be having over the next week to give you some inspiration too.

Since I posted my recipe for Chinese Lemon Chicken a couple of weeks ago, Iâ€™d been thinking about when I can have it again. I probably mentioned it a couple of times a day to The Food Husband, So I decided it was back on the menu this week and it made an excellent accompaniment to the new series of Game of Thrones!

Weâ€™ve also been using up previous batch cooking stores from the freezer and have had an easy meal of bolognese, simply defrosted and reheated and stirred through freshly cooked pasta.

As the freezer supplies need replacing Iâ€™m planning to make a new batch of my Moroccan-inspired chickpea and preserved lemon tagine later this week. I love the zingyness and potent flavour from the preserved lemons and it makes a cheap yet hearty meatless meal.

And of course Easter Sunday: we will be having lamb. Last year we had the glorious Mechoui leg of lamb. This year we are having a roasted shoulder with the classic garlic and rosemary. But on Monday we will be turning the leftovers into lamb rissoles to have with salad.

And for the Food Baby? Iâ€™ve just restocked his cheesy vegetable fritters in the freezer; this time a combination of carrot, broccoli, sweet potato, potato and sweetcorn with cheddar and smoked paprika instead of curry spices. And Iâ€™m replenishing the successful cheese and vegetable scones, switching the courgette for grated broccoli. A couple of veg-filled winners!

Hopefully thatâ€™s given you some inspiration for your meals ahead. If you are still in need of inspiration then head over to www.thefoodwife.co.uk and if you havenâ€™t already, why not sign up to the newsletter, sending you recipe inspiration each week. Wishing you all a happy Easter, The Food Wife.

Chinese Lemon Chicken

1st April 20191st April 2019
by thefoodwife

Serves 2-3

Growing up, it was much to my sisterâ€™s annoyance that if we were getting a Chinese take away I would always request lemon chicken. I love its astringent sourness whereas she does not! Luckily though, the Food Husband shares my love of it. However, Iâ€™m struggling to think when we last had a Chinese takeaway, but Iâ€™ve been working on my own version, and it is a pretty good dupe. Itâ€™s fairly quick to cook (itâ€™s all in the preparation) and Iâ€™m sure itâ€™s much healthier than the takeaway version.

I made this totally gluten-free in order to cater for my husbandâ€™s dietary requirements, but itâ€™s the soy sauce, stock and flour that are the ingredients you need to ensure are gluten-free if necessary.

Preparation is key to this recipe. Have everything ready to go into the wok and it will then be ready in no time. Iâ€™ve also done steps 1-3 an hour before weâ€™re going to eat so that I know that after the Food Baby is in bed, dinner will be ready to eat not long after.

Ingredients:
For the chicken:
2 tbsp soy sauce (gluten-free if required)
1 egg white, beaten
300g chicken (thigh or breast) cut into thin strips
5 tbsp corn flour
Pinch of ground white pepper

For the stir fry:
Vegetable oil
1 onion, large dice
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
2 inches of ginger, julienned (thin strips)
1 pepper, large dice

For the sauce:
2 lemons (juice and zest)
2 tbsp soy sauce (gluten-free if required)
1 tsp sesame oil
3 tsp sugar
150ml vegetable/chicken stock (gluten-free if required)

Step 1: Begin by marinating the chicken strips in a bowl with the soy sauce and beaten egg white. Allow to marinate for 20-30 minutes.

Step 2: Next you are going to coat each piece of marinaded chicken in the cornflour which has had a pinch of white pepper stirred through it.

Step 3: In a wok, heat some vegetable oil over a high heat and then cook the floured chicken in batches, until crisp and golden. Remove from the pan and leave to drain on kitchen paper (it does not need to be cooked through at this stage as it will go back in the wok later).

Step 4: Add a little more oil to the wok and start to stir fry the onion, garlic, ginger and pepper. Cook over a high heat for three or four minutes and then reintroduce the chicken. Keep everything moving and after a couple of minutes, add all of the sauce ingredients. Stir for a couple more minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce is thickened.

Serve immediately with rice.

Chorizo and Butterbean Stew with Sweet Potato and Red…

28th March 20198th April 2019
by thefoodwife

Serves 4

Sometimes you just want a bowl of warmth that you can eat with a spoon, and this is just that.

No oil is needed as the chorizo will release its own, adding extra flavour. However if you were making this a vegetarian or vegan meal, then omit the chorizo and heat a tablespoon of oil before adding the onion. You may also want to add a little more paprika, but do this at the end when you check the seasoning.

Made in just one pot it is ready in about half an hour, and can be eaten on its own; but you could also try it with some white fish, a serving of green vegetables or a chunk of crusty bread.

Ingredients:
200g chorizo ring, peeled and sliced into slices 3-4mm thick
1 onion, medium dice
1 fat clove of garlic, peeled and minced
1 heaped tsp hot paprika
1 heaped tsp smoked paprika
1 red pepper, deseeded, medium dice
1 tin butterbeans, drained
350g sweet potato, peeled and cut into 2cm cubes
150g red lentils
500g passata
700ml vegetable stock
Salt and pepper

Step 1: In a heavy bottomed sauce pan, over a medium heat, add the chorizo and let its oil come out. After a couple of minutes add the onion and stir, cooking for another five minutes.

Step 2: Add the garlic, red pepper and paprikas and stir, and cook for a minute.

Step 3: Add the beans, lentils and sweet potato, stir well and then add the passata and stock. Season with a big pinch of salt and pepper and bring to a simmer. Put a lid on the saucepan, lower the heat (it should still be simmering) and cook for about 20 minutes until the potatoes are cooked and the lentils are soft.

Step 4: Check the seasoning and serve.

Poached Pears

18th March 201918th March 2019
by thefoodwife

Serves 6

A dessert you can make ahead of time is a winner when entertaining. These pears are poached in a simple sugar syrup flavoured with vanilla and cinnamon. By all means add some other aromats; try star anise, lemon or orange peel.

The length of time they poach for will depend upon their ripeness. Mine were just ripe and took 30 minutes. But they will take less time if they are more ripe (and vice versa).

You could also go biblical and exchange the water for wine; in either case make sure you reduce the syrup by half once you have removed the cooked pears.

Ingredients:
300g caster sugar
1L water
1 vanilla pod (split lengthways and scrape out the seeds, then use both the seeds and the pod)
1 large cinnamon stick
6 Pears

Step 1: Put the sugar, water, vanilla and cinnamon in a large saucepan.

Step 2: Carefully peel your pears, leaving the stalk intact, and then slice the bottom of the pear off so that they can stand up.

Step 3: Place the pan over a medium-high heat, and once the sugar has dissolved use the stalks to carefully put each pear into the liquid. Bring to a simmer and either place a lid on the pan, or use a piece of baking parchment pressed into the surface of the liquid.

Step 4: Simmer until tender (check them after 20-30 minutes, but it will depend on the ripeness of the pear).

Step 5: Remove the pears from the spiced sugar syrup. Keep the lid or paper off the pan and reduce the syrup by half by which time it should by slightly thicker and nice and sticky.

These can be made a day or two ahead of time. Store the pears in their syrup in an airtight container in the fridge. They can be eaten hot or cold. Serve on their own or with ice cream.