I can't make gravy without singing Paul Kelly's song, How to Make Gravy. This gravy is easy, and taste like proper gravy made from a proper old school roast...only it's vegan! 

Chop up two or three onions, depending on how gravy-greedy you are, and fry them in a saucepan with a little oil. It doesn't matter what your knife skills are like because these bits of onion are going to get blasted by your stick mixer or food process/blender anyway so it's really no biggie unless you're trying to impress someone while you're cooking ;-)

Once the onions are about two thirds cooked (bearing in mind you're going to cook them until they are almost caramelised, add a handful of diced mushrooms (optional, it is fine with just the onions), any kind will do, even the dried ones that you soak to re constitute add great flavour - make sure you keep the soaking water to add later too!

I never thought I'd put those two words together. But here goes. This is one for those occasions when you just want something to roast up and carve and have with your roast veggies and amazing gravy on a cold winter night or for a nice family dinner.

Heat a little oil in a large deep sided fry pan or wok and fry off an onion, a couple of carrots, some celery if you have it and/or some zucchini until they are soft. Add a couple of tins of canned lentils, drained and rinse, and some spices. We go with our spice mix usually because it's quick and easy and already in the cupboard but if you haven't got any add about a tablespoon of ground coriander, half a tablespoon on cumin, perhaps some paprika and any other spices you like really! You'll also want to season it with some salt and pepper. 

Who doesn't love a good dahl? It's like comfort food 101 and can be served with or without rice, other curries, papadums or just on it's own as a stand alone dish.

This dahl we make with urid dahl but you can use toor dahl, mung dahl or any kind of split peas or lentils....and it is outstandingly easy and if you have a pressure cooker it's a quick dish too!

Start off frying an onion or two and any other veggies you wish - carrots are a good start, celery works too and sweet potato is ace. Add some grated ginger when the onions are almost cooked and then chuck in your spices.....you can use the spice mix or plain old curry powder or get creative! We have a curry leaf tree in the garden and it is simply the best for top notch yummy curry.

If you like eggplant you'll love this. Hell, even if you don't like eggplant you'll love it!

It's great served with roasted butternut pumpkin and chickpeas over greens, or as a relish with anything. We put it on pizza with broccolini or asparagus (whichever is in season) or have it as a side with any salad, roasted veggies, burgers - just about anything!

It's pretty easy to make, just get it going and then let is cook down and adjust the flavours as you need to get the right balance of salty, sweet and acidic.

Yep, you read it right, it's a fridge cake! That means no baking, just melting, mixing and stirring.

You'll need....
100g mint chocolate
200g dark chocolate
100g nutelex (or any vegan margarine/butter)you could use nut butter and coconut oil if you like them)
A large tablespoon or two of honey, golden syrup or maple syrup
A pinch of salt
About 150g of ginger nut biscuits or digestive biscuits or any kind you like, we use whatever gluten free biscuits we can find but if you don't need it to be gluten free then you're a free agent!
100g raisins or sultanas (soaked in rum or vodka if you like)
A couple of handfuls of chopped pistachios (or you can use different nuts if you like)

Buddha bowls are so in fashion at the moment. This beans dish goes really well with our green rice and some sweet potato wedges and greens to make the perfect spicy buddha bowl!

This dish is by far the best if you take the time to toast the spices from seed and grind them yourself. We make batches every month or so and enjoy the resulting spice mix in the mean time. It makes every dish so much more full of flavour.

Start with an onion and a dash of oil in a fry pan and cook for a few minutes. You can add garlic too if you like. While that's getting going you can strain your beans. Depending how big you want to make the dish you can add more veggies or more beans.

Even if you've never done this before I promise it is so easy and you're thank yourself for going to the effort every meal you eat for the next few weeks.

We do a batch every now and then and just enjoy the extra flavour it adds to each and every meal. Our favourite mix to do is two parts coriander seeds to one part cumin seeds. It's so easy, you literally toast them in a dry fry pan until they smell fragrant, then put them in a spice grinder, coffee grinder or use a stick mixer if thats all you have to grind them up. It doesn't have to be a super fine mix to be tasty and enhance your dishes so much. Try it compared to ground spices bought from the shop and you'll be amazed!

Use them on vegetables that you're roasting, with avocado on toast (or sweet potato toast) in the morning, as part of the seasoning in any dish you're making or even in salad dressings. It'll become the most reached-for container in your pantry.

They'll keep well in an airtight container for about a month or so, even after three months they'll still be better than the shop bought variety!

Buddha bowls are all the rage these days and if you're going to have one this is a must add. Along with our buddha bowl beans and some sweet potato wedges and greens this makes an amazing dish for any time of year.

It goes well with pretty much anything else too and it a great way to sneak more greens into your life. Fry a diced onion in a little oil until it is lightly cooked. Chuck it into a food processor or blender, or just a bowl and use a stick mixer with a cup or two of spinach, kale or pretty much any green that you have and like, we like doing it with sweet potato leaves because we have an abundance in the garden and they are apparently very good for you.

For some unknown reason every vegetable is simply better when you have it two ways. Cooked and uncooked, mashed and fried, dehydrated and roasted...it doesn't matter what the combination is it's just better! This one takes the cake though. Roasted and raw cauliflower all in a salad with pomegranate seeds, pistachios or pepitas (for nut free) and a load of herbs. It just doesn't get much better.

Start by grating a third of the cauliflower, or if you're not allergic to using a food processor due to the crazy amounts of washing up they produce you can use that instead. Then break or cut up the remaining cauliflower and toss it in a little oil and salt before popping on a baking tray and baking it until perfectly cooked (that will depend how big your florets are but usually around 20mins at 180 degrees C).