Here’s another Miguel Barclay recipe from his ‘Vegan One Pound Meals’ cookery book. I love the fact that he keeps his list of ingredients short and the method easy – his book is full of recipes that have just a handful of steps to create a tasty dish. These are simple and affordable vegan recipes that anyone can master.

Vegan food is fast becoming the mainstream.  It’s good for animals (that we stop eating them), good for the environment and good for our health. Miguel Barclay was featured on ‘Football Focus’ yesterday – in a piece about footballers who want to eat vegan meals. That kind of TV feature would have been unthinkable just a few years ago.

I’m not yet vegan or vegetarian but I’m trying to make eating meat the alternative. I’m gradually working my way though Miguel Barclay’s vegan recipes (and ideas from other chefs and bloggers), sometimes adapting recipes with a few tweaks. For example I’ve tried this houmous recipe with garlic and another time with some chopped red chilli. I like the version with the chilli best I think.

I’ve made this houmous many times now. I’ve been hard at work on my day job (working from home), wondering what I could have for lunch and then realised I have all the ingredients to put together a delicious little mezze. I’ve whizzed up this houmous and then quickly put together a platter of artichokes and roasted peppers from a jar, some warmed mini pittas, a few spoonfuls of kalamata olives, a handful of celery sticks, and as Miguel Barclay suggests in this recipe, roasted spring onions and carrots. I really love the giant spring onions you can often buy in the supermarket.

Here’s my spiced up version of Miguel’s recipe.

Ingredients

• Tin of chickpeas, drained (but save the juice to make vegan meringue – recipe to follow or search online)
• Sun-dried tomatoes from half a 280g jar, and a tablespoon or two of oil from the jar
• Chopped red chilli
• Salt and pepper

1. To serve with roasted carrots and spring onions – pre-heat the oven to 190C, toss 2 or 3 sliced carrots and spring onions in a splash of olive oil and roast on a tray for 10 minutes. Don’t let the spring onions get over-cooked (it’s easily done).
2. Make the humous by blending the chickpeas, sun-dried tomatoes, chilli, oil, salt and pepper in a food processor.

I’ve guzzled this houmous down with a range of mezze food – warm pitta bread, falafel, kalamata olives, tabouleh, the roasted carrots and spring onions, celery sticks, artichokes and roasted peppers. Makes me feel good to be alive.

Do you have a cheap, fresh and easy recipe I can try? I’m particularly looking for vegan recipes – so please get in touch with your suggestions. Let me know your recipe and I’ll feature it on the site and link back to you.

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