Vegan Recipes

This is intense and delicious, and yes, only two ingredients are required (well, plus water...). It tastes quite a bit like nama choco, an amazing Japanese chocolate which is made with cream, but there is no cream here, and it is also incredibly easy to make.

Inredients

200 g dark chocolate (dairy free, and the best you can find)

100ml water

the liquid from a can of chickpeas (aquafaba)

Break the chocolate and place into a bowl with the water, and then onto a pot of boiling water to melt at bain marie. If you heat the water and the chocolate together they will mix perfectly. 

In the meantime beat the aquafaba until you get stiff peaks. 

When the chocolate is melted beat it with an electric beater until it cools down.

Add a spoon or two of aquafaba to soften, and then, spoon by spoon, add the chocolate to the aquafaba mixutre, folding well.

Pour into an ice cream container. It will look quite pale and have the consistency of a 'runny' mousse, but it will turn back into a strong dark chocolate colour while freezing.

Freeze for a few hours, then remove from the freezer 10 minutes before serving, wait for the edges to melt a little and then cut into slices and serve. This is really, really good!

Photos and recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

Well, after making pavlova, meringues and pasta with aquafaba (brine from a can of chickpeas) I am convinced that it really works like eggs, so why not try mayonnaise too? This is my own recipe, it tastes great and it is easy to make!

2 tbsp aquafaba (brine from a can of chickpeas)

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 pinch salt

about half a cup vegetable oil

Place the first three ingredients in a tall thin container or glass and start blending with an immersion blender, add the oil slowly and see your mayonnaise form! It takes two minutes for half a cup of fresh lemon mayo!

For variation: add a little mustard or wasabi or capers, or garlic (my favourite!) or anything. Store in the fridge.

Photos and recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

Did you know that aquafaba (the brine from a can of chickpeas) works very well as an egg replacement for many recipes, including fresh pasta.

The chickpea brine gives protein to the mixture and elasticity to the dough which is easy to roll exactly like an egg dough. Only the colour is lighter (not so yellow) but I don't see this as an issue, and you can always add a pinch of saffron to the aquafaba if you like your pasta more yellow. The taste is perfect and the pasta dries very well, and cooks well too. Plus the taste is great!

Alessandra's Vegan Homemade Fresh Pasta

200 g high grade flour (plus more for dusting)

150 ml aquafaba

Serves 4

Mix the ingredient until you have a smooth and elastic dough. Divide the dough into small pieces (about 6-8) and pass through the rollers of a pasta machine, starting from the larger setting down to the thinner setting. Don't skip settings, every piece of dough will need to go through all the settings one by one, dust with flour if the sheet of pasta looks too sticky and you find it difficult to put it through the settings. After the last setting (or the second to last if you prefer your pasta thicker) cut the pasta to your chosen shape. I made tagliolini here. Dust with more flour and roll the pasta into 'nests', place on a try lined with a clean tea towel and let it dry (if not using immediately). Keep it in a dry place and it will last a few days (I haven't tried to leave it for too long, but usually I do make pasta one or two days ahead). To cook: place the pasta in salted boiling water and stir immediately, it won't take long to cook, if it is very thin it will take just a couple of minutes. Drain and serve with your favourite sauce.

Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

"Vegan baker Goose Wohlt coined the term aquafaba ("bean liquid") to describe the liquid, which French chef Joël Roessel discovered could be used in recipes much like egg whites."

Source; Wikipedia

Not confident enough to try a single Pavlova I made two disks, plus some little ones to see how they baked. I had the oven on first very hot, and the at about 75°C fan for about three hours, actually more, it seemed to take forever! In the meantime I also whipped some coconut cream (Vegan Pavlova, remember?), I find that the Family Choice coconut cream has the thickest cream of all, in fact so thick that you don't need to refrigerate the can first, and can use the liquid a the bottom of the can to thin it down. I added a tsp of golden syrup (Maple syrup is good too) and a few drops of vanilla, and then set the cream aside in the fridge.