Ross-on-Wye Yarn Bombing and Homemade Vegetable Pasta Bake

I think it must have been some time last year in July, that D and myself went to the market town of Ross-on-Wye.  Lockdown restrictions had eased and we were beginning to feel a tad comfortable going out and about again, playing tourists.

As we walked around, we noticed that post boxes, bollards, street signs and lamp posts in the town centre had  been yarn bombed by some local guerrilla knitters. 

Here are a handful that I managed to get photographs of. 

We had a poke around in some of the independent shops.  

We didn't purchase much, maybe a book that had vintage music posters.  To be honest, with a puppy it was proving difficult to go into shops.  When i did, the pup barked, when D went in the pup barked.  He just did not like be apart from either of us, even though there was only a door between us.

The town centre got considerably busy the longer we stayed; and our pup was finding it a bit overwhelming and to be truthful, so was I.    

So we took a gentle walk along the river Wye for the puppy to stretch his legs (but still on a lead). 

So now onto the homemade Pasta Bake.  

This is perhaps one of the easiest Vegetable Pasta Bakes to make.  

I made the tomato sauce for the pasta bake from scratch, but if you want you can use ready made or passata even.  Stir in the cooked macaroni pasta and chopped vegetables: mushrooms, red pepper and spring onions; and for some piquancy capers and black olives. Served like this, its good as a Pasta Salad: warm or cold; or Sprinkle the top with grated cheddar cheese and bake!  

I am sharing this Vegetable Pasta Bake with Souper Sundays for Soup, Salad and Sammies hosted by Kahakai Kitchen. 

Portobello Mushroom Ragu

I  was attracted to the photograph in the cookbook.  

The Mushroom Ragu pictured in the cookbook was serves with polenta.

I served mine with plain Basmati rice, but on reflection I think it would have been better served with brown rice. 

The Mushroom Ragu was really quick to put together, close to 30 minutes and it was ready to serve, but that is me not including the soaking time for the dried mushrooms, some of which were textually 'meaty'. 

D said he did not mind it, but found the flavours a bit low key, even though I had added 1/2 teaspoon some paprika. I agree with him. I also found it a bit watery, even though I cooked it down to thicken. It may be one of those dishes that is better the following day.  You can find the original recipe for Mushroom Ragu here. Adapted from The Australian Women's Weekly.

Seaweed 'Bacon' and Mock King Oyster Mushroom 'Scallops'

We have been indulging in King Oyster Mushroom 'Scallops', I know how decadent! And here is the handsome proof.

The King Oyster Mushroom 'Scallops' here are served on a bed of green pea puree, I know how original - not, and Sea Bacon, now that part is original.  

I was actually going to make rice paper 'bacon', but wanted to try the Sea Bacon which are dried strips of dulse. I've had a packet of Sea Bacon in my kitchen cupboard for a little while.  I had forgotten that I had it until I came across it looking for something else. I fried it in a little oil for a few seconds to crisp up. 

To the uninitiated, the Sea Bacon looks like thinly sliced potato peel, roasted and then strewn across the plate, but it really is seaweed. And no points for presentation, presentation skills are not my forte. 

The King Oyster Mushroom Scallops were absolutely amazing, the sea bacon was good too, crispy but very salty.  You would not want loads of it here.  I think the amount I served on the plate here was plenty. For the green pea puree I used frozen peas.

I am sharing this with The Veg Hog who is hosting #EatYourGreens this month.  There is plenty of time to join in, so please do.   

King Oyster Mushroom 'Scallops'

May I present to you homemade King Oyster Mushroom Scallops.

I made these mock 'scallops' last month during Veganuary (which I was doing quietly) for St Dwynwen's Day - Welsh Valentines Day. 

For an extra touch of elegance, I served them in these sea shells that I picked up from Cornwall a couple of years ago. 

King Oyster mushrooms are hard to track down where I am, but suddenly some supermarkets have them and I have been loving it, as it finally gave me the opportunity to make these vegan mock 'scallops' a number of times, and let me tell you these were superb!

Vegan Chinese Tofu Short Ribs

It is truly by coincidence that this recipes coincides with Chinese New Year of The Pig.

It is because I am still cooking recipes from The Superfun Times: Vegan Holiday Cookbook by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and the next recipe I had bookmarked to make was these Tofu Short Ribs which mimic Chinese Pork Ribs.  

These vegan Chinese Tofu Short Ribs were also so easy to make, you bake slices of tofu in the oven and then smother it generously in the sauce made with hoisin sauce, Chinese five spice and other ingredients all of which I found in my kitchen, other than the Hoisin sauce which I had to purchase (Please see my In My Kitchen blog post for brand).  

These Vegan Tofu Short Ribs tasted pretty good too. I will definitely be making them again and perhaps try them with seitan. 

If you want to have a go at making these vegan Chinese Tofu Short Ribs at home and you don't have the cookbook,  Isa Chandra has been generous and shared the recipe on her website  - follow this link for ease.

I had so much of the sauce left over, that we had this again the following day but this time I also included some slices of King Oyster Mushrooms and it was awesome.

Anyway, may I wish all my readers, especially those whom are celebrating the Chinese New Year - A very Happy Year of the Pig. 

Garlic Portobello Mushrooms and Eggs

Another dish that I made this over the festive season - Baked Garlic Portobello Mushrooms with Eggs. 

A fancy brunch of sorts as we had more time to spend in the kitchen

This one is a sharing plate, a bit romantic don't you think ?!  

Of course you can make this in individual dishes.

It was inspired by a recipe for Wild Mushrooms such as chanterelles, and trompettes and Eggs that I saw in Kaukasis by Olio Hercules, I must admit I even mimicked the presentation which was also part of the appeal!

Its essentially garlic and mushrooms, in this case Portobello mushrooms roasted in the oven with olive oil and butter with some eggs baked in the oven for 5 - 10 minutes until set to our liking and finished off with red pepper flakes and parsley.  

Sweet Paprika Mushroom Strogonoff

This is not the prettiest of pictures, in fact its a little hazy (in other words blurry) but I sill share it as it was delicious to eat. 

It is Sweet Paprika Mushroom Strogonoff that I made in December after work in the evening, another reason why its not well lit. The sweet paprika made a wonderful change form the smoked variety.

The Hungarian Paprika Mushroom recipe comes from Entertaining Vegetarians by Celia Brooks. Celia's recipe is made with Chanterelle mushroom, but it is not easy to find them fresh in my part of the world, so I used some dried chanterelle mushrooms in the cupboard and rehydrated them.  I also added some mangetout to the pot as I felt it needed a bit of crunch and colour, but once it was served up I realised the mangetout was not necessary and the burnished red tones imparted by the paprika gave it a warming glow that only made me feel happy eating it.  

Bourguignon of Mushrooms, Red Onions and Rainbow Carrots

A few weeks ago I went on a fungi forage, except it wasn't a fungi forage - 'why would you want to eat them?' exclaimed the fungi expert when he heard one of the participants (not me) ask her friend 'are these edible?'.  

The reason I am talking about mushrooms is because my  Bourguignon here looks a bit like an autumnal forest ground - mushrooms, green grassy colours from the long needle shaped leaves from rosemary herb, leaves in the form of bay leaf and lots of autumnal colours, but here everything is edible - I wonder what Alice in Wonderland would think?!

I think this dish is best made on a day like today when it's awfully dreadful, damp and dreich outside in Cymru aka Wales.  I am so glad its the weekend and I don't have to be in work or anywhere else today and can stay in the comfort of my home.  I am glad of it actually as its been a rather busy week at work too.  

As well as a medley of mushrooms, I had also picked up some rainbow carrots from the market in Cardiff, and if that did not provide enough colour - I decided in place of shallots to throw in some small red onions. If you look closely you will even seen flecks of green from fresh rosemary from the garden.  

We will be tucking into this textual dish with some homemade overnight sourdough bread later to mop up that rich vegetable flavoured gravy; and if we have some left over, perhaps with some mashed potato.

What have you been cooking lately?

One Pot Curried Red Chard, Butternut Squash, Chestnut Mushroom with White Beans

April weather has been teasing us - a peek of sunshine, followed rather quickly by a burst of rain - I know its not called 'April Showers' for nothing.  The point is, its still not very warm and we are still tucking into autumnal coloured food.  In fact, let me forewarn you in advance, this week my blog will feature food that is mostly orange in colour.   

Here is my One Pot Curried Butternut Squash, Red Chard, Chestnut Mushrooms and White Beans.  Food that glows and food that warms the belly.

I really dislike using the word 'curried', as its used so lazily these days, but this One Pot Butternut Squash, Red Chard, Chestnut Mushrooms and White Beans recipe is actually curried.  The recipe is also inspired and adapted from Anjum Anand.  It was surprisingly quite good.  

Mushroom Wellington Roast Spiral

These Mushroom Wellington Roast Spirals  were inspired from my time in Glasgow and when we went to The 13th Note in Merchant City.  The 13th Note was my favourite vegetarian/vegan  eatery in Glasgow, plus it being a popular music venue too.  

At the time there were not that many vegetarian or vegan eateries in Glasgow, there was The 13th Note, Mono and Stereo which was well  hidden in an alley way, unless of course you knew where to look and of course we did.   And there was The 78 Cafe Bar near Kelvingrove Art Museum. but it was relatively new. There was also Grassroots that was close to the University of Glasgow but the the vegetarian - vegan cafe closed down in 2009, though I have recently learned that it has re-opened once again.  It was one of my haunts in my University days.

Truffle Scented Mushroom and Lentil Pate (vegan)

Today was my last full working day at work and so the holidays begins.

Like many I am looking forward to the festive break.  We are travelling tomorrow, to spend Christmas with my mother in law.  I am looking forward to seeing her, but no so much the travelling there, but it must be done. 

I cannot remember the last time I made or had mushroom pate, so with Christmas beckoning, I thought I would make some enhanced further with some Black Truffle oil - its Christmas after all.

I would also and to wish my readers a Happy Christmas with your family, true friends and loved ones.

Vegan Meatballs in Paprika Mushroom Sauce

I am having a thing about veggie meatballs at the moment, its features in my diet three times this month. Not that I am grumbling, the weather in this part of the world has turned a little cold, that we have had to scrape ice of the car most mornings.  And coming home to comfort food that sticks to your ribs has been welcoming.

The vegan meatballs in this dish are steeped in a thick mushroom sauce served with mashed golden swede enhanced further with fresh thyme from the garden plot.

This recipe was actually inspired from Nigel Slater's recipe for Braised Pork Meatballs with Rib Ragu Saucei that was featured in The Guardian early on in the month.  I  adapted it to make it suitable for vegetarians and vegans alike.   Look I even copied his style of presentation, yes I am a fan of Nigel Slater - who isn't?!

Smoky Black Kale, Chickpeas and Mushroom Stew

Its been a busy month for me with work mostly.  I have to admit I haven't had much energy or enthusiasm for cooking when I got home.  In fact, twice last  week we have had Chilli and Potato Pierogi, not homemade but from a  packet.  I have made pierogi in the past and would love to have a go at making them again.

Today though, I got home and had a little energy to cook.  I made a relatively quick Smoky Black Kale and Mushroom Stew.  Many of the ingredients in this were left over from the Black Kale and Chickpeas Pot Pie I made over the weekend. 

I think this Smoky Black Kale and Mushroom Stew is one of those dishes best enjoyed a day or two later, as it was just okay. 

Creamy Chestnut Mushroom Blue Cheese Dill Lasagne

A generous portion of Creamy Chestnut Mushroom Blue Cheese Lasagne.

Lasagne is not the easiest to photograph, its a flat dish for a start.

So the best way to sell it to you is with its flavours, but that is a little hard when one of the main ingredients is mushrooms and I am not big on mushrooms, but here goes.... This Creamy Chestnut Mushroom is smothered in Blue Cheese and fresh dill herb.  

I actually made this Creamy Chestnut Mushroom Blue Cheese Lasagne early on in the year, when we had load of cheese left over from the Christmas and New Year - this Creamy Chestnut Mushroom Lasagne was made around the same time as the vegan Pickled Mushroom Strogonoff with Watercress.  Though it can be, this lasagne is not vegan, its made with blue cheese, milk and butter and a garnishing of fresh dill.

I have to confess I don't often make Lasagnes at home that often.  It its one of those dinners that is Ds makes, like weekend breakfast or brunch and coffee made in the cafetiere.    But I did this time as it was my decision to pick up the chestnut mushrooms in a bid to use up the excess cheese. I am sharing this recipe with Elizabeth's Kitchen Diary for No Waste Food Challenge.  

Vegan Pickled Mushroom Stroganoff with Watercress

We haven't had mushrooms for a while.  

I had picked up a load to make Mushroom Lasagne as we had so much cheese in the fridge left over from New Year.  I have made Mushroom Lasagne, but I also made a vegan version of Mushroom Stroganoff as I had a little carton of Oatly cream in my fridge too.  

As well as using fresh chestnut mushrooms in the Stroganoff, I also used a jar of pickled baby mushrooms that I picked up from an Eastern European shop in the town where I work.  My friend at work who is Czech recommended them to me and said they are often used in Stroganoff. She also pointed out a number of other things in the chiller cabinet and on the shelves that were suitable for vegetarian and vegans. 

Mushroom Stroganoff is one of my beaus favourite dishes so I always have a reason to make it, but for those of you who know me through reading my blog, will also know that I like to ring the changes with my dishes, so in went the pickled baby mushrooms and in went the Oatly cream.

I also had some watercress in the fridge.  So I decided to garnish my  mottled brown coloured plate of food  with the vibrant peppery green.  The pickled mushrooms made for an interesting change and for it being vegan, well we didn't even notice the difference. 

I am sharing with Inheritance Recipes co hosted by Solange at Pebble Soup and Coffee and Vanilla as Mushroom Stroganoff is a recipe that we as a couple turn to often as it is one of our quick go to evening suppers; and with Confessions of a Mother Runner and Whisk and Two Wands for Meatless Monday.

Other Mushroom Strogonoff Recipes on A2K  - A Seasonal Veg Table
Chestnut Mushroom and Smoked Tofu Stroganoff
Mushroom Stroganoff with Garlic Chives
Mushroom and Tofu Stroganoff
Lapsang Scented Chestnut and Mushroom Stroganoff

On another note, while I was googling Baby Mushrooms this unusual picture came up, then I decided not to use the term 'baby mushrooms'  for my recipe.

Image source here

vegan Christmas Tree Puff Pastry with Chestnut Mushrooms

I would like wish all my dear blog readers: new and old a very Merry and Happy Christmas.

This is not Christmas Dinner by the way, I made this a couple of days back. 

I garnished the Christmas Tree Puff Pastry platter with some ribbon carrots and Brussels Sprouts baubles and some fresh herbs that blew when we took it out in the garden for a photograph.  

In case your wondering, here is the Christmas Tree in our home with lots of eclectic ornaments hanging from it, including some wooden spoons, hedgehog, Frida Kahlo and a lady in a sari  carrying a pineapple (from a fair trade shop) and finally baby Jesus held by Mary.  The tree went up on the 1st December. 

Vegan Chestnut Mushroom Christmas Pull Apart Wreath

I've had a busy weekend, time spent finishing off wrapping the last of the Christmas presents and some planning ahead cooking, one of which is a very time consuming Chestnut Mushroom Wellington.

The Chestnut Mushroom filling was so vast that I made a number of small Mushroom Wellington loafs and put them in the freezer, but I still had plenty of Chestnut Mushroom filling to experiment with.  

At one point, I had thought to make a Pull Apart Christmas Tree, I made one with veggie mincemeat early this year, but then decided on a Pull Apart Wreath. 

My homemade edible wreath is not perfectly round, but I am one of those people that that hates waste, so its kind of square, but I think that is what makes it a little more visually interesting.  However, I am still hoping to make a round wreath again in the future, perhaps with a pizza filling.  

The recipe is slightly adapted from the brilliant Nadine Abensur's Mushroom Wellington filling from The Cranks Bible.  The slight adaptation I make are with the nuts, sometimes I use mixed nuts or just what I have and I often use dried tarragon in place of fresh.  I know Nadine  Abesur would be good to share the recipe, but here's the link that will also take you to her website.  To see step by step instructions for the Pull Apart Wreath, I followed this photograph. 

I have been enjoying participating in Food 'N' Flix, so I am joining in this month again.  The movie chosen this month is Kampus.  I watched it last year.  I originally wanted to make the wicked gingerbread man character in the movie, but with time running out I changed my mind.  Then I spotted the big bowl of Brussels sprouts on the table during the Dinner fight scene, but again I changed my mind making this Christmas Pull Apart Wreath.   My inspiration comes from the opening scene of Krampus you first see a wreath, before the camera slowly scans down to the Black Friday chaotic madness in the supermarket.  I am sharing this Chestnut Mushroom Wreath with Food 'N' Flix hosted by Heather at All Roads Lead To The Kitchen.  

I am also sharing this with  am sharing this post with  Harvest Monday hosted by Dave over Our Happy Acres as the herbs, the bay leaves and rosemary are from my garden, not much else is growing.  Its also an opportunity for me to say Thank you to Dave for hosting and to those who have visited my blog through Harvest Monday - Happy Christmas and a Happy New Year Monday Harvesters!  I hope to participate a bit more regularly come 2017.