Chocolate Tart (dairy-free)

Chocolate tart 

serves 10-12

Ingredients:

Base:

300g bourbon biscuits

60g spread or coconut oil, melted

Filling:

400g can thick coconut milk (or cream)

400g dark dairy-free chocolate

1 tsp vanilla extract

Method:

Crush the biscuits, either in a food processor or with a rolling pin after putting them in a large ziplock bag. They need to be quite well crushed. Stir in the melted fat, then press into a greased round pie dish or tart pan, around 25-28 cm in diameter. Refrigerate for an hour or two.

To make the filling, heat the coconut milk in a large pan (or container in the microwave) until almost boiling. Meanwhile, break the chocolate into small pieces. Remove the milk from the heat when it's almost boiled, and put all the chocolate in. Leave it for two or three minutes to melt, then stir or whisk well. If some of the chocolate hasn't fully melted you can return the mixture to the heat (or the microwave) for thirty seconds or so, but don't allow it to boil.

Add in the vanilla extract and stir again, then pour into the prepared crust, scraping out the sides of the pan with a spatula, and smooth the top. You need to do this fairly quickly as it will start to set once it's in the crust. At this point you can top it with sprinkles or chocolate chips, if you wish, or ready-made decorations (as I did for the one in the picture above).

Refrigerate again until needed. Serve small portions initially as it's quite rich! We divided ours into 16.

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This is a very quick dessert to make. If you're not dairy-free, then ordinary cream could be used. I assume nut-based or oat cream would also work.  Basically the centre is a ganache with equal amounts of chocolate and cream so it sets well. 

If you're in a country where bourbon biscuits are not easily available, this could also work with something like the American Oreo cookies. You could also make the base from chocolate digestive biscuits, or even ordinary ones if you would prefer a slightly less chocolatey dessert. 

Sardine and Lentil Salad

Sardine and Lentil Salad

serves 2-3

Ingredients:

1 can sardines in tomato sauce
50g lentils, cooked and drained
1 small cucumber, chopped
50g frozen peas

20-30g lemon juice
fresh or dried mint to garnish

Method: 

Mix the first four ingredients together. There is no need to thaw or cook the peas first. Then toss in the lemon juice. Sprinkle chopped fresh or dried mint over to garnish. 

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During the summer months in Cyprus, when temperatures rise well into the 30s (Celcius) I don't use my oven and we eat mostly cold food. For the past few years I have acquired and experimented with a variety of different salads, since we quickly get bored of a diet consisting of lettuce, tomatoes and cucumbers. I've scoured recipe books and the Internet, and adapted what I've found to suit our tastes.

The great thing about salad recipes is that they can be adjusted as much as one wants. Quantities are usually approximate, and substitutions can easily be made depending on preferences. I don't recall where I found the original of this salad, but it's one that's very quick to make, so long as you remember to cook the lentils earlier in the day (after soaking, if necessary; I tend to use the small orange lentils that don't require any pre-soaking). 

If you can't find sardines in tomato sauce,  you could substitute pilchards in tomato sauce, or possibly tuna (with a little tomato puree added). If you don't eat fish at all, leave it out entirely: there is still valuable protein in the lentils and peas. Without the fish, this is a good vegetarian or vegan protein salad.

I usually try to have one 'main' (protein) salad such as this for our evening meal, with at least one other 'side' salad (various vegetables, usually), and some form of carbohydrate, either included in one of the salads or separately. We've eaten this with air-fried potatoes, for instance, or air-fried sweet potatoes, or with a side salad including rice.

Trifle (dairy-free)

Trifle

Makes one biggish trifle

Ingredients:

a medium sponge cake or pack of sponge fingers
a large can of fruit in syrup (eg pineapple)
1 litre dairy-free milk substitute
4 tbsp custard powder
4 tbsp sugar
1 can thick coconut milk or cream, chilled
extra sugar, to taste
dairy-free sprinkles or glacé cherries

Method:

Line a large bowl with sponge fingers or crumbled pieces of cake. Drain the fruit, then pour enough juice over the cake to soften it. Cover with the fruit.

Make the custard according to the instructions on the tin: either make a paste with a small amount of milk in a saucepan and then gradually add the rest, stirring over a low heat, or use a very large jug in the microwave (when the milk boils it will rise very high unless you catch it), stirring every minute until thick. 

Cool the custard for a few minutes, then pour carefully over the cake.  Cool completely and refrigerate. 

If you're using canned coconut milk, open it upside down and drain off any liquid. Turn the remaining cream into a large bowl and whip, using an electric mixer if possible, adding a spoonful or two of sugar, if liked. It won't whip as well as dairy cream does, but should become thick enough to spoon over the cold custard. 

Top with halved cherries or sprinkles, and refrigerate until needed. 

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Trifle is a classic British dessert, quick and easy to assemble, and attractive to look at, particularly if served in a glass bowl so the layers can be seen. It's traditionally made with dairy milk and cream, of course, and an 'adult' variation uses sherry rather than fruit juice to soften the cake at the bottom. 

The last time I made trifle, I forgot to put the fruit on top of the sponge fingers until I'd poured the custard over. No problem: I put the pineapple on top of the custard, instead. 

There are many variations; some people like to use jelly (or fruit in jelly) on top of the cake layer rather than simply fruit. But it's hard, nowadays, to find good quality jelly to make up, without artificial sweeteners, and of course most jelly is not vegan (or, indeed, vegetarian). 

You can make your vegan jelly own using fruit juice and agar-agar instead of gelatine, but I prefer to use just fruit. It's quicker, too; if you use jelly you have to ensure it's fully set before adding the custard, and the custard must be completely cold before you do so, or it will melt the top of the jelly. 

It's possible to make nut-based creams, according to other recipe blogs, but I prefer to keep things simple, in keeping with the idea of trifle. So the discovery of canned coconut milk was a revelation. If you can find canned coconut cream, that probably whips more thickly, but we tend to use Lidl's full-fat canned coconut milk, which is virtually all cream. Even their 'low-fat' version has more of the thick, creamy part than many other brands. 

Fresh fruit can, of course, be used instead of canned; moisten the cake with a little fruit juice (or sherry) if you do so. Fresh fruit such as halved strawberries or sliced kiwi can make an attractive topping. 

If you prefer a chocolate version, use chocolate cake at the bottom, and add a couple of tablespoons of cocoa powder to the initial paste when making the custard. Alternatively make chocolate blancmange and use that. Grated vegan chocolate is a good alternative to sprinkles, although a bit more time consuming, and somewhat messier too.

My most recent variation involved some slightly stale gingerbread (the cake variety) leftover from Christmas. I chopped it roughly and put it in a bowl, then moistened with some home-made (vegan) lemon curd.  I then made some chocolate custard in the microwave using half a can of thick coconut milk, one tablespoon of custard powder, one tablespoon of cocoa powder, and one tablespoon of sugar. The rest of the canned coconut milk was so thick that I just scooped it on top rather than whipping it, so it was very quick to put together. I didn't use any fruit. 

Oat Milk

Oat Milk

makes about a litre

Ingredients:

About 65g (3/4 cup) whole oats
1-2 dates
About a litre of COLD water

Method: 

Place the oats with the date or dates (stone removed) in a high speed liquidiser (blender). Add enough cold water to make it up to about 500ml. 

Blend on high speed for up to about a minute. 

Pour into a fairly large-meshed sieve over a wide jug, then use about 200ml more water to rinse out the liquidiser container and pour over the sieve. Use a teaspoon to collect the pulp on one side so that it all drains through. Do not try to squeeze out any extra, but pour a little more cold water over if liked. 

Now use a fine-meshed sieve such as a tea strainer over the jug or other container where you plan to keep the oat milk in the fridge. Pour the milk from the large jug slowly over it, using the teaspoon to stir gently or remove any more pulp so it all flows through. Use any remaining cold water to pour over the sieve or rinse the large jug to get as much of the milk as possible. There should be around a litre of milk, which needs to be refrigerated. 

Oat milk can be used like any other dairy-free milk as a substitute for cow's milk. 

Chocolate sorbet

Chocolate sorbet
makes about 900ml

Ingredients:
560ml water
160g sugar
40g cocoa powder
pinch of salt
180-200g dark chocolate
1/2 tsp vanilla extract/essence

Method:
Break the chocolate into individual squares or smaller pieces, for easy melting. 

In a large pan, whisk together the sugar, cocoa powder, salt and about 375ml of the water. Bring to the boil, stirring until the sugar has dissolved, then allow it to boil while whisking for about 45 seconds.

Alternatively, make a paste with the cocoa powder and a little bit of the water in a large pyrex or similar jug, then stir in the sugar, salt, and water up to 375ml. Bring to the boil in the microwave, stirring well every minute, then allow to boil for about thirty seconds, ensuring it does not boil over. 

Remove from the heat (or microwave) and immediately add the chocolate pieces, stirring well until completely melted. Add the rest of the water and the vanilla essence. 

Cool for at least an hour, then refrigerate for several hours until well-chilled. Pour into an ice cream churn and it should take about twenty minutes to become thick. Transfer to a litre container with a lid and freeze until needed.

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So long as you use vegan/dairy-free dark chocolate, this recipe is suitable for vegetarians and vegans. I find it works perfectly well with the cheapest own-brand dark chocolate, such as that from Lidl, although more expensive chocolate would make it even more luxurious.

You really do need an ice cream churn for this, although the mixture does thicken a little in the fridge while it's chilling. You could put it in the freezer at that point, but would have to remove it and stir every hour to stop ice crystals from forming. 

But a churn works extremely well. Do ensure the mixture is very well-chilled, down to no more than 3 degrees Celcius, before churning.  The churn itself, of course, should be prepared according to its instructions: mine requires at least 24 hours of freezing before use. In hot weather I put a couple of frozen ice packs underneath it while it's working. 

This is excellent with stewed fruit or any kind of cake. If you don't like the very slightly gritty texture that can sometimes occur, you can use a liquidiser to blend the mixture after adding the vanilla and extra water, before chilling. However, this creates extra kitchen equipment that needs washing. I have made this for several different people, and nobody has mentioned the texture. 

Lemon Slices

Lemon Slices
Makes about 24

Ingredients:
Base:
225g dairy-free spread
150g wholemeal flour
150g plain flour
50g icing sugar

Topping:
4 medium eggs
400g white sugar
4 tbsp white flour
120ml lemon juice
1 tsp lemon zest

Method:
Mix the base ingredients together in a bowl or food processor. It should make a dough-like ball. Press into the base of a greased or lined pan, about 32cm x 22cm and at least 3cm in depth. Use the flat of a large spoon or a spatula to ensure the mixture reaches the whole base, and flatten as much as possible. 

Bake in an oven set at 160C for 18-20 minutes; it should be turning golden but not brown. Remove from the oven and cool slightly.

Meanwhile, beat the eggs in a large bowl, with an electric mixer if possible, then gradually beat in the other topping ingredients. Carefully pour over the base, then return to the oven and cook for about 20 minutes. The top should feel firm to the touch when it's ready, and golden in colour. 

Cool in the pan, then refrigerate until needed. Cut into squares before serving. 

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I read about lemon slices - or squares - in a novel, and searched online for a recipe. I found hundreds of them, all roughly similar but with minor variations. Most had measurements in cups. So I converted the recipe to grams, chose the variations that suited us, used half wholewheat flour in the base, and experimented. 

For my first experiment I made 75% of the recipe which fit perfectly in a 25cm x 20cm pan.  Cutting the squares proved a bit messy, and the resultant squares did not look all that appetising. But they were extremely tasty! 

Lemons are widely available where I live, during the winter and spring, so this was an ideal dessert to make over Christmas. It proved so popular that I made it again, also in smaller quantity, a few weeks later.  When we were given a large crate of lemons, I froze several containers of the juice in the right quantity to make this through the rest of the year. 

More recently I tried the full recipe in a large takeaway pan, to take to a potluck meal. Once again, they slices didn't look all that wonderful, although I cut them and left them in the container to serve, but everyone who tried them were surprised at how good they tasted.  They are somewhat reminiscent of lemon meringue pie, but so much easier to make with the shortbread-style base and the all-in-one topping. 

If you eat dairy-products, you can, of course, use butter in the base, and if you don't have wholewheat flour, all white flour is fine. 

Chocolate fudge cake

Chocolate fudge cake
Makes one 18cm square or 20cm round cake

Ingredients

100g wholemeal flour

70g white flour

10g (2 tsp) baking powder

5g (1 tsp) bicarbonate of soda
25g cocoa powder
125g sugar
pinch of salt
75g softened butter or spread
150ml milk (dairy or otherwise)
2 eggs
1 tbsp molasses or treacle

Icing:
25g butter or spread
1 dessertspoon cocoa powder
1 dessertspoon milk
125g icing sugar, sifted

Method:

Grease and line an 18cm square (or 20cm round) cake tin. Place all the dry ingredients into a bowl, sifting the cocoa powder if you wish, then add the spread, milk, eggs and molasses. Beat for 2-3 minutes or until smooth. Pour into the prepared tin and bake at 150C for 45-50 minutes. Cool for five to ten minutes in the tin, then turn out carefully and cool on a wire rack.

To make the icing, place all the ingredients in a bowl over a saucepan of hot water. Stir and then beat until smooth and glossy. Remove from the heat and leave until it starts to cool and thicken. Spread over the cake.

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Notes: While the original recipe called for butter and cow's milk, I make this with dairy-free spread (in both the cake and the icing) and dairy-free milk. There does not seem to be any difference in texture or taste. I have not tried making this vegan. 

The original recipe used 175g self-raising flour, with 5g baking powder. Since I can't easily get self-raising flour, I increased the amount of baking powder, and substituted 100g of the flour for wholemeal flour to make it more nutritious. But you could use all white flour, or indeed all wholemeal if you don't mind it being slightly heavier. 

I usually cut the cake in half horizontally when it’s cooled (before icing), and put jam or lemon curd in the middle. To make it extra rich you could make even more of the icing and put some of that in the middle too, but we prefer a contrasting taste. Home-made apricot or strawberry jam is particularly good. 

The fudge icing makes enough to cover the top of the cake, but not the sides, so double the quantity if you want it to cover the side too - although it's a bit difficult to get it to stick, as it's inclined to puddle at the base. I prefer to use something like chocolate finger biscuits, broken in half, around the sides, held in place by a little melted chocolate.

This cake cuts into twelve reasonable sized portions, or eight rather larger ones. If you have leftovers, keep them in the fridge.