This is what you get with several leftovers put together … you get a feast!  We had this meal quite literally on the shores of the mediterranean.  I had made a chunky tomato vegetable sauce the night before for pasta - a ragu.   Along with that was a chickpea salad from the day before. I threw in a few nice dark calamata olives and it was served with some nice baguette smothered in Hungry Soul. Yes, a true feast.
 
You do not need to heat this up, just have it at room temperature, so good!
 
Will make 4 plates
 
 
INGREDIENTS 

• Ragu – a tin of whole tomatoes, one onion, one garlic clove, a small courgette, ½ an aubergine, olive oil, salt and fresh basil
• Chickpeas salad – a tin of chickpeas, ¼ of red onion, 2 or 3 fresh tomatoes, olive oil, salt
• Calamata olives, with the pits, a big hundful
• Baguette – sourdough, if you can get it ( pain au levain )
• Hungry Soul – they are all very good, I used the Cracked Black because I had it on hand.

  
 
METHOD

• Ragu – a ragu is really just a chunky sauce. Soften the onion and garlic, add aubergine cubed and cook a few minutes, then add the courgette also cubed and when they are a little cooked, toss in the tin of tomatoes, the basil, a pinch of salt and a good drizzle of olive oil. Let it simmer 20 minutes, then allow to cool completely … even better the next day.

 

• Chickpeas salad – drain your chickpeas, finely chop the onion, cube the tomatoes then mix it all together with a good drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of salt.

 

• Calamata olives, with the pits, a big handful

 

• Baguette – 4 slices each should do nicely …or more if hungry

 

• Hungry Soul – Spread a nice layer onto each slice of sourdough.

 
 
PLATING IT ALL 
By looking at the photo you get a good idea of how it was presented… but just in case you need a little help; 

• Ladle a nice amount of the ragu onto you plate, over it or on the side, add the chickpea salad and add the olives and ring the plate with the slices of baguette and Hungry Soul …

 
So tasty, really a perfect dish for hot weather – a complete meal, yes, 100% vegan and delicious!
 
 
Bon appetit!

Jacques Brennan ​Hungry Soul Vegan

This is the time of the year for nettles. They are shooting out of the ground.
 
I was discussing the nutritional value of nettles with my brother, who said, “ nettles, they have nothing in them!”. As is my way, I kindly informed them of their mistake. Unconvinced, they Googled and, to their amazement, had to admit that I was right!
 
Nettles … an Irish superfood.
 
This recipe was inspired by a friend who posted a few food photos of nettle soup she had made. In the bowl were a few dollops of Hungry Soul … what a great idea. Using a culinary licence, I have borrowed the essence and reproduced it here.
 
Enough for 4 Hungry Souls
 
INGREDIENTS

• 1 onion - finely chopped
• 1 celery stick - finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves - minced
• 2 medium potatoes, scrubbed and cubed ( use organic and leave the skins on )
• Nettles - As many leaves to fill your colander ( I would say two big handfuls but that would sting too much !)
• A little salt
• A few tbsp of Natural Hungry Soul soft cheese
• Water to cover the veggies and a little more
• A little salt to taste

 
METHOD 

• Rinse the nettle leaves and, while still wet, wilt them in a pan on medium heat. You want them cooked nice and soft, if needed add a little more water.
• Place them onto a cutting board and mince them with a good, sharp knife … keep chopping until they are like a sauce.
• In your pot, soften the onion, celery and garlic in a drop of oil. After a few minutes, add the potato cubes, stir well and allow to cook for a minute or two, then add enough water to cover everything and about another cm above that.
• Bring to the boil, then simmer for 10 minutes.
• Remove from the heat, add two tbsp of the Hungry Soul soft cheese and taste; you may want a little more salt.

 
When serving, you can garnish each bowl with another tsp of that special soft cheese.
 
 
NOTE:   A video showing it made is available on the Instagram, go to @hungrysoulvegan_  Just scroll down through the posts, and you will find it.
 ​
  
HUNGRY SOUL  - Making it easier and tastier to adopt that vegan diet the world hungers for!

Jacques Brennan

Pesto has become very popular lately, maybe because it just tastes so good.

It is not easy to find dairy-free / vegan ones, but it is so easy to make it yourself.
​
Wonderful with linguine or in gnocchi, on warm potatoes or in a mixed bean and veggies dish.

Ingredients

• 2 bunches of basil
• 1 or 2 garlic cloves
• a handful of pine nuts
• Juice from ½ a lemon
• a pinch of salt
• a heaped tablespoon of Natural Hungry Soul.
• a good drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, ½ cup or a little more

Method

1. Put everything except the Natural Hungry Soul into your food processor and blend a few times until you have a uniform, runny sauce.
2. Add the tablespoon of Natural Hungry Soul and blend once more.

That is all that is required …


​Jacques Brennan

​ When our family started eating tofu this was one of the dishes we made.
 
Everyone in the family loved them. Some preferred plain, only tomato sauce and a cheesy topping, but the marinated and fried tofu was always a hit.
 
When we became vegan, we just had to replace the cheese, and today with Hungry Soul the taste is even better!
 
Enough for 3 or 4
 
INGREDIENTS

• One block of tofu, pressed, sliced into at least 6 slabs
• Marinade – 4 tbsp tamari soya sauce, 2 tbsp wine vinegar, 1 garlic clove minced, a thumbs length of ginger minced.
• 1 courgette cut into rounds
• A handful of mushrooms, sliced
• Tomato sauce
• 1 tub of Hungry Soul garlic & chives, or any flavour you prefer, they all work well.

 
 
METHOD

1. Marinate the tofu for an hour or more then fry slightly on both sides.
2. Prepare a tomato sauce – it can be as easy as a tin of tomatoes, mashed and a little oregano.
3. Slice the courgette and mushrooms and fry them for a minute or two and set aside.
4. Assemble it all by laying out the tofu slices on an over tray, then cover each one with tomato sauce, courgette pieces and a few mushroom slices and finally drizzle with Hungry Soul sauce ( basically Hungry Soul with equal amounts of water )
5. Bake at 180 C for about 20 minutes.
6. Serve with few roast potatoes and a nice fresh salad.

 


 Jacques Brennan

HUNGRY SOUL … Making it easier and tastier to adopt that vegan diet the world needs!

I  was planning on making a vegetable soup, one made from onion, carrot and potato.
 
Discussing this with my mother, I mentioned something about adding a few red lentils to bulk it up. She replied,  “and they are full of protein and why not some sweet potato, they go well together ”.
 
When talking to my mother, we often discuss food preparations, as we have since I was a little boy, that is how I learnt to cook. Today, she is 92, a staunch vegan and still an avid cook. When she recommends something, I listen.
 
So, my soup changed to a ‘Lentil and Sweet Potato Soup’.
 
Enough here to feed 4 people at a sitting.
 
INGREDIENTS

• 100g red lentils (  ½ a cup )
• 1 onion - chopped
• 1 carrot - chopped small
• 1 sweet potato – cubed ( washed, unpeeled )
• 1 clove of garlic
• 1 Litre of water
• Spring of thyme/pinch if dried
• 1 bay leaf
• A lemon
• Sea salt
• A drop of olive oil

 
 
METHOD

1.  Soften the onion and garlic in the drop of olive oil
2. Add the lentils to the onion and give it a minute
3. Now add the carrot, sweet potato, thyme, and bay leaf, along with 1 litre of water.
4. Bring to the boil, then simmer for approx. 15 minutes until carrots are cooked
5. Remove the bay leaf and the sprig of thyme
6. With a hand blender, blend it nice and smooth
7. Add ½ tsp of salt then taste it and see if you want more
8. Squeeze ½ the lemon and add juice to the soup. Cut the other half into wedges and serve with each bowl.

 
Serve with a few slices of bread sandwiched with a nice lick of Hungry Soul cream cheese!
  
Note – when peeling vegetables, I try to use organic vegetables as much as possible, so I simply wash the potatoes or carrots and use them as is. The outer peel has plenty of nutrients and also gives food a nice, whole-food taste.
  
HUNGRY SOUL … Making it easier and tastier to adopt that vegan diet the world needs!
 
Jacques Brennan 

Enough for a few hungry souls during the festive season. Your guest will be very pleased with this on the platter; it will be the first to go!  Not only for vegans, why deprive others of such tasty morsels?
 
SMOKED PARIKA CHEESE LOG with NUTS & CRANBERRIES
 
INGREDIENTS 

1. A tub of HUNGRY SOUL – Smoked Paprika
2. A good handful of roasted nuts
3. A similar amount of cranberries

 
METHOD 

• Empty the entire tub of Hungry Soul into a bowl
• Chop the nuts and cranberries and put half of each into the bowl and mix into the cheese.
• Place the cheese mix onto a sheet of cellophane / clingfilm, wrap it and shape into a log before placing in the fridge for 30 minutes or so to set.
• Remove the cheese from the film and roll it over the remaining chopped nuts and cranberries.
• Wrap it this time with a sheet of grease proof paper and set it back into the fridge for another few minutes and serve on your cheese board with some nice crackers.

 
NOTE:   A video showing it made is available on the Instagram, go to @hungrysoulvegan_  Just scroll down through the posts and you will find it.
 
 
GARLIC, CHIVES & LEMON CHEESE SPREAD
 
INGREDIENTS 

1. A tub of HUNGRY SOUL – Garlic & Chives
2. Lemon rind
3. Fresh dill

 
METHOD 

• To a tub of Hungry Soul – garlic & chives, add the shavings / rind of approx. a ¼ to a ½ of the skin of a lemon and a small handful of fresh chives, finely chopped.
• Mix it well and allow to rest in the fridge for 20 minutes before serving.
• Serve with light fine crackers.

 
 Note: Use organic unwaxed lemons and wash well before shaving.
 
HUNGRY SOUL
‘Making it easier and tastier to adopt that plant-based diet we all aspire to!’
 
To serve make a bed of the wilted Swiss chard and top it with a nice ladle of the chickpeas. Finish with a sprinkle a little fresh chopped mint and a squeeze of lemon.
 
Voila, that easy … and it always tastes great!😊

​Jacques Brennan 

This recipe is from On The Pulse by Georgina Fuggle. I bought the book some years ago, and this is one of my favourites. Fantastic, this time of year, we served it on Christmas Day, and it was a roaring success.

Prep Time 20 minutes  ¦  Cook Time 1 hour  ¦  Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

• 300G butternut squash, ideally the base end that holds the seeds
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus a little extra for brushing and drizzling
• 2 onions, finely sliced
• 3 large garlic cloves, sliced
• 1 large green chilli, sliced into rounds
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 400g can green lentils, drained and rinsed
• 160ml coconut cream
• Freshly chopped coriander, to garnish
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

METHOD
Preheat the oven to 200⁰C/180⁰C fan/gas mark 6. Line a baking sheet with greaseproof paper.
 
Prepare the squash by peeling the skin using a vegetable peeler (I used organic squash and washed it; I didn’t peel it). Slice into 2cm rounds, removing seeds – aim for 5 slices. Brush each round with oil and lay on the prepared baking sheet. Roast for 25 minutes, turning halfway through until soft.
 
Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large, heavy-based frying pan. Add the onions and gently fry over a medium heat for 4-5 minutes until soft and golden. Add the garlic, chilli and ground coriander and fry for a further 3-4 minutes. Add the lentils and combine. Stir through the coconut cream with 3 tablespoons of cold water and season generously.
 
Transfer the mixture to a 2-litre ovenproof dish. Remove the squash from the oven and nestle the rounds into the lentil mixture. Return to the oven and bake for a further 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and scatter over a little fresh coriander. Serve with a little extra drizzle of oil if liked.

Enjoy

Geraldine Fitzpatrick

This is the season when strong greens are plentiful – spinach, kale and chard. Though kale is all the rage and spinach has always been there, Swiss chard is less common and less used. 
 
 
Yet, it has its own special flavour. Wilted Swiss chard, along with a little garlic and maybe a few pine nuts, makes a wonderful side dish. Topping them with a nice portion of tahini chickpeas is a perfect, easy, and very tasty meal.
 
Start by preparing the chickpeas, then set aside. Wilt the chard and then serve together with a little fresh mint sprinkle over top and an extra squeeze of lemon juice. The mint and the lemon juice give it that fresh Mediterranean flavour.
 
Enough for 2 hungry souls!
 
TAHINI CHICKPEAS

1. A tin of chickpeas 400g
2. 2 or 3 scallions - chopped
3. Fresh mint leaves - chopped
4. Tahini sauce  ( sesame seed sauce, see below

 
Tahini Sauce :   1/4 cup of tahini, 1/2 cup water
Juice of 1 lemon, a clove of garlic, pinch of salt, 1/2 tsp of date syrup - optional ( or maple syrup, agave is good ) – just blend it all together to make the sauce.
 
METHOD
Empty tin of chickpeas into a pot and bring to the boil, immediately drain the water and set aside.
Soften the scallions in a little olive oil, then add the chopped mint, the chickpeas and the tahini sauce ... mix all together.
 
SWISS CHARD

1. One big bunch of Swiss Chard, when they wilt, they reduce quite a lot..
2. 1 or 2 garlic cloves – minced
3. Pinch of salt

 
METHOD
Rinse the chard, do not bother to dry. Chop the thicker stalks into small pieces and the leaves into larger sections. Soften the thick stems in a drop of olive oil or water. After a few minutes, add the leaves and the garlic and stir until all the leaves are wilted and then sprinkle a little salt at the end.
  
To serve, make a bed of the wilted Swiss chard and top it with a nice ladle of the chickpeas. Finish with a sprinkle a little fresh chopped mint and a squeeze of lemon.
  
- Voila, that easy … and it always tastes great!😊

​Jacques, from Hungry Soul