This burger recipe is as always vegan and gluten-free but can also be made without using any oil. The secret is the super quality non-stick frying pan. And patience. Because you need to cook these burgers slowly on low-heat from both sides. And if you let them cool down and heat them up the next day or so, they will be even better. Because they will hardly squish or fall apart

This recipes makes a good batch of about 10 burger patties, ideal to be frozen and whipped out when needed. And as I said above, they will then have an even better texture, eg not falling apart or squishing out of your burger bun

The burgers taste amazing with this raw radish dip. You gotta try it

Makes approx. 10 burger patties:

1 broccoli
1/2 teaspoon salt

1 can kidney beans (or other beans)
1/2 red onion, finely chopped
2 tablespoon tahini or nut-butter
1 tablespoon mushroom powder (alternatively any flour)
1 tablespoon psyllium fiber husk
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon ground chilli (optional)
approx. 10 drops liquid smoke (alternatively 1 teaspoon smoked paprika)

1 tablespoon water, only if needed

Preparation:

1. Chop the broccoli very, very fine. Transfer to a bowl, sprinkle with salt and let sit for at least one hour (or in the fridge overnight).

2. Add the beans and mash them with a potato masher. Add remaining ingredients and mix well.

3. It should become a thick mixture that is easily shaped into patties. If it should be too dry, add a tiny bit of water.

4. Preheat the frying pan. Form and place patties into the frying pan, pressing them lightly. Cook on low heat for approx. 30 minutes before flipping them over. Press them lightly into the frying pan again and cook for another 30 minutes or until golden brown.

Please note: To do this without any oil you will need a very good non-stick frying pan.

Enjoy!

Please let me know what you think about this recipe, I’d love to hear from you! And if you remake this recipe, please share the picture with me on Pinterest, Instagram or Facebook.

I’ve been playing with the idea of some kind of bliss ball that is nut-free and relatively low-fat for some time. Millet seems to be a fabulous ingredient for this kind of recipe. Add the chocolate layer on top and you enter a whole new level of treat! Yum!

The millet allows for a super fluffy, soft and light interior. The additional chocolate adds flavour and an ultimate surprise when popping one of those delicious truffles into your mouth. These could make a perfect home-made gift for your valentine!

As always this recipe for millet chocolate truffles is vegan, gluten-free, without refined sugar and this time also nut-free and mostly low-fat.

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Millet Chocolate Truffles (Vegan, Gluten-free, Nut-free)

The millet of this vegan and gluten-free chocolate truffles allows for a super fluffy, soft and light interior. The additional chocolate adds flavour and an ultimate surprise when popping one of those delicious truffles into your mouth. These could make a perfect home-made gift for your valentine!

Course Truffles

Cuisine American

Diet Gluten Free, Vegan

Keyword Balls, chocolate, fruit-sweetened, Millet, No Refined Sugar, nut-free, Truffles

Servings 30 Truffles

Equipment

• high-speed blender

Ingredients

For the truffles:

• 100 g uncooked uncooked
• 250 ml water
• 140 g dates pitted and diced
• 30 g FAIR-TRADE cacao or cocoa powder
• 2 tablespoon water

For the chocolate:

• 50 g cacao butter melted
• 50 g FAIR-TRADE cacao or cocoa powder
• 30 g coconut sugar preferably finely ground (or more if you like it sweeter)

Instructions

• Place millet and water in a small pot, cover with lid and bring to the boil. Let simmer on low heat for 10 to 15 minutes until the moisture is soaked up, with the lid slightly opened. Then let rest covered for 10 minutes. The millet should have become fluffy. Let cool down completely before the next step.
• Pulse the dates in a high-speed blender to fine crumbles. Add to the millet.
• Sift in cacao or cocoa powder and mix well. Add just enough water to form a knead-able dough.
• Form the balls and place in fridge or freezer while preparing the chocolate.
• For the chocolate place all ingredients into a cup that sits in a bowl with hot water. Stir well to dissolve.
• Use a wooden skewer to pick up one ball and then dip it into the chocolate. Allow to cool a little before picking up the next ball (I use a whole bunch of wooden skewers and place them into a glass to let cool down the chocolate). Garnish to your liking while the chocolate is still soft. Best kept chilled.

Notes

Enjoy!

Please let me know what you think about this recipe, I’d love to hear from you! And if you remake this recipe, please share the picture with me on Pinterest, Instagram or Facebook.

A sweet sour tingle, followed by the aroma of fine chocolate is simply heavenly

This Dark Chocolate Pudding recipe is as always vegan, gluten-free and without refined sugar. It is fairly easy to make and it only needs 6 ingredients!

And should you like the idea of this flavour combination, you might also want to have a peak at this recipe for Blueberry Chocolate Cake.

Please note that it makes quite a rich dessert. You can actually split it into four portions, especially if it is intended to be enjoyed after a meal

For 2 large or 4 small portions you’ll need:

1 1/4 cup (310 ml) filtered water or plant-based milk
1/2 cup (70 g) dates, pitted and diced
1/2 cup (70 g) cashews
1/2 cup (50 g) FAIR-TRADE cocoa powder
2 tablespoon (20 g) corn starch (or other starch)

1 cup (approx. 130g) blueberries

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 190°C.

2. Blend all ingredients, but the blueberries, until smooth.

3. Fill the mixture into oven-proof ramekins. Gently place blueberries on top.

4. Place onto a baking tray and bake in the oven for approx. 20 minutes. Enjoy warm or cold

Please let me know what you think about this recipe, I’d love to hear from you! And if you remake this recipe, please share the picture with me on Pinterest, Instagram or Facebook.

And even though there are many chocolate cake recipes on my blog, there is none like it yet. Because it isn’t only vegan and gluten-free, but also oil-free. It is pretty easy to make and has an amazingly soft and moist texture – no oil needed! Even Mr Vegan Monster agreed, that this is one of my best chocolate cakes that I have made so far. And you can imagine, that he had a good share of tasting over the years

For garnish I used some edible flowers from the garden. They added instant eye candy and took the cake to next level

Please note: I recommend to cook the sweet potato without peeling in a pot of water until tender (approx. 30 to 45 minutes). Then let cool down and peel. If it is still firm enough to slice, but soft enough to squash into your measuring cup, the texture is perfect

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Chocolate Cake (Vegan, Gluten-free, Oil-free)

And even though there are many chocolate cake recipes on my blog, there is none like it yet. Because it isn't only vegan and gluten-free, but also oil-free. It is pretty easy to make and has an amazingly soft and moist texture – no oil needed

Course Baked Sweet

Diet Gluten Free, Vegan

Keyword cake, chocolate, without oil

Servings 1 Cake

Ingredients

For a 21cm spring from you’ll need:

For the cake:

• 1 cup (packed) cooked kumara (sweet potato) (see note above)
• 3/4 cup buckwheat flour
• 3/4 cup coconut sugar
• 1/2 cup +1 tablespoon FAIR-TRADE cocoa powder
• 1 tablespoon psyllium fibre husk
• 1 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/4 cup water

For the chocolate frosting:

• 1 cup dates, pitted and diced
• 3/4 cup water
• 1/2 cup FAIR-TRADE cocoa powder

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 200°C (top/bottom heat). Line base of spring form with baking paper.
• For the chocolate cake, sift all dry ingredients into a medium sized bowl and mix well.
• Blend the cooked sweet potato with the water until smooth. Pour into bowl with dry ingredients and mix well. The dough should be fairly moist but not runny.
• Scoop dough into spring form and spread evenly. Place in oven and bake covered (I use a loosely placed sheet of aluminum foil) for approx. 20 to 25 minutes. Then bake another 10 to 15 minutes, or until an inserted skewer comes out dry (testing recommended).
• Take out of spring form (it helps to run the wooden skewer between the rim of the spring form and the cake) and let cool down properly.
• For the frosting, let the dates soak in the water until softer. Then blend until smooth. Add cocoa powder at the end.
• Spread frosting on cake and garnish to your liking (I used shredded coconut, cacao nibs and flowers of borage and white alyssum). If you place the cake in the fridge for a few hours, the frosting will set a little more than what you can see on the photos

Notes

Enjoy!

Please let me know what you think about this recipe, I’d love to hear from you! And if you remake this recipe, please share the picture with me on Pinterest, Instagram or Facebook.

Well, I love the flavour of mushrooms! And they make a great ingredient for burgers….if you like the soft and juicy consistency of cooked mushrooms. Because these vegan burgers are crisp on the outside and juicy on the inside! At the same time they won’t fall apart or squish out of your burger buns

I highly recommend to cook them in a high quality frying pan. I’ve had it for years and it still works very well. Not a single drop of oil was needed and I think it was worth the investment

For best results, cook them on a low-medium heat for at least 20 minutes on each side.

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Mushroom Burger (Vegan, Gluten-free, Low-Fat, Oil-Free)

Well, I love the flavour of mushrooms! And they make a great ingredient for burgers….if you like the soft and juicy consistency of cooked mushrooms. Because these vegan burgers are crisp on the outside and juicy on the inside! At the same time they won’t fall apart or squish out of your burger buns.

Course Burger

Cuisine American

Diet Gluten Free, Low Fat, Vegan, Vegetarian

Keyword Barbeque, Burger, Fritters, Mushroom, oil-free

Servings 6 burgers

Equipment

• high quality frying pan

Ingredients

• 400 g mushrooms
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice or water
• 1/4 teaspoon salt optional
• 1 chilli finely chopped (optional)
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano or thyme
• 35 g rice flour
• 1/2 small onion finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon psyllium fiber husk

Instructions

• Chop the mushrooms super fine and place in a bowl.
• Sprinkle with lemon juice, salt, chopped chilli and oregano. Mix well. Then let sit for at least one hour or place covered in the fridge overnight.
• The mushrooms should become fairly juicy. If not, add just a tiny little bit(!) of water. Stir in the rice flour, psyllium fiber husk and chopped onion until it becomes a sticky dough. If it is too moist, add a little more flour.
• Form patties and place aside. Heat high quality frying pan and cook for at least 20 minutes on each side on low-medium heat.

Notes

Enjoy!

Please let me know what you think about this recipe, I’d love to hear from you! And if you remake this recipe, please share the picture with me on Pinterest, Instagram or Facebook.

A Versatile Vegan & Gluten-Free Bolognese That’s Tomato-Free

This time I wanted to add a few more extras. The sauce is not only vegan and gluten-free, but also free from soy, nuts, seeds, legumes, and tomatoes. Don’t worry though – it’s still packed with flavour

Please note: This recipe is low-fat, meaning no oil is used.
If you are interested in cooking with less oil, I highly recommend investing in a high-quality, non-toxic non-stick frying pan.

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Meat-Free Bolognese Sauce – Vegan, Gluten-Free, No Tomato

I really love pasta, and this Bolognese-style sauce is one of my favourites when I want something rich in flavour but still light on the stomach. Completely free from meat, gluten, soy, nuts and even tomato, this sauce relies on mushrooms, peppers and a good mix of herbs to create a satisfying texture and taste. It’s oil-free, easy to prepare, and perfect with your favourite pasta or side dish.

Course Main Dish

Cuisine Italian

Diet Gluten Free, Vegan, Vegetarian

Keyword Bolognese, Mushrooms, oil-free, Plant-Based Sauce, Red Pepper, Tomato-Free

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes minutes

Total Time 35 minutes minutes

Servings 2 generous portions

Author The Vegan Monster

Equipment

• non-stick frying pan for oil-free cookingKnife
• Cutting board
• stick-blender or immersion blender
• Measuring spoons & cups

Ingredients

• 250 g mushrooms cut in small quarters
• 2 sweet red peppers diced
• 1/2 onion finely diced
• 1-2 garlic cloves minced
• 1-2 tablespoon ground sweet paprika
• 1 tablespoon rice flour
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1 teaspoon basil
• salt & pepper to taste
• 375 ml water

Instructions

• In a good non-stick frying pan, heat one tablespoon of water and cook/roast the onions until golden brown. Then add mushrooms and cook while stirring almost constantly until they are much smaller and juicy (approx. 15 minutes).
• Add diced paprika and let cook for another 10 minutes, or until slightly soft.
• Sprinkle with ground paprika and rice flour and stir well. Add 1 1/2 cup water and stir once more. Bring to the boil.
• Add garlic, oregano, basil and salt & pepper to taste. Using a stick blender, roughly blend it until is forms a chunky sauce. Serve with pasta or side dish of your choice

Notes

Enjoy!

Please let me know what you think about this recipe, I’d love to hear from you! And if you remake this recipe, please share the picture with me on Pinterest, Instagram or Facebook.

For the topping I have used sliced peppers, sweet corn and basil leaves. My way of say good bye to summer here in New Zealand. But there are so many options for toppings, feel free to try your own combinations

Homemade Whole Grain Pizza – Vegan, Gluten-Free & Full of Flavor

I already have a recipe for vegan and gluten-free pizza on my blog, but I wanted to try a whole meal only version. Turns out, it works and tastes very well

The amount of dough is enough for either 2 thick and doughy crusts or 3 thin and crispy crusts.

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Vegan Wholegrain Pizza – Gluten-Free & Homemade

Yes, I love pizza and pasta! Even with a vegan and gluten-free diet, you can still enjoy them fully. I prefer making everything from scratch — it just tastes better

For this pizza, I used bell pepper, corn, and fresh basil leaves – my way of saying goodbye to summer here in New Zealand. Of course, you can get creative with your toppings — the possibilities are endless!

I already had a vegan and gluten-free pizza recipe on my blog, but this time I wanted to make a wholegrain version. It turned out beautifully — hearty, wholesome, and so delicious! The recipe makes either two thick, soft crusts or three thin and crispy ones.

Course Dinner, Main Dish

Cuisine Italian, Mediterranean

Diet Gluten Free, Low Fat, Vegan, Vegetarian

Keyword Crispy, dairy-free, egg-free, Pizza, plant-based, plant-based cheese, wholegrain

Prep Time 1 hour hour

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Resting (dough rising) 1 hour hour

Total Time 2 hours hours 25 minutes minutes

Servings 2 Pizza

Ingredients

For the pizza dough:

• 1 cup warm water
• 1 teaspoon coconut sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoon active dried yeast
• 200 g buckwheat flour
• 210 g rice flour
• 1 tablespoon psyllium fiber husk
• 2 teaspoon guar gum
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup warm water
• up to 1 cup rice flour for dusting and working the dough

For the pizza sauce:

• 3/4 cup passata
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 teaspoon dried oregan or basil or thyme
• 1-2 garlic cloves, minced minced
• some freshly ground black pepper

For the ‘cheese’:

• 90 g cooked agria potato approx. 1 small to medium sized
• 1/2 cup water more if needed
• 3 tablespoon nutritional yeast flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon mustard
• 1/3 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
• salt to taste if desired

Instructions

• In a cup, mix the sugar, active dried yeast and warm water and let sit until it turns foamy on top (approx. 10 minutes).
• In the meantime, in a medium sized bowl, whisk the remaining dry ingredients for the dough. When the yeast is ready, pour it into the bowl with another cup of warm water and mix well.
• Cover with a damp tea towel and let sit in a warm spot until the dough has doubled in size (approx. 45 minutes). Temperature should be at least 25 C. You can also let it sit in the oven, after you allowed it to warm up for just a little bit.
• When the dough has doubled in size, stir it again. Then sprinkle the work bench with rice flour and drop dough onto it. Sprinkle generously with rice flour and start kneading it for a few minutes. Add more flour whenever it gets too sticky.
• Half (or third) the dough and place on pizza tray, spreading it evenly. Keep sprinkling with flour if it gets too sticky. Then cover with damp tea towel and place in warm spot for another 15 – 20 minutes. Preheat oven to 220C (top- bottom heat).
• In the meantime prepare the pizza sauce by mixing all ingredients in a small bowl.
• Prepare the ‘cheese’ buy blending the potato and water in a high-speed blender until smooth. Then add remaining ingredients. The mixture should be just thick enough to pour it, without it being too runny. Add more water if needed.
• When the pizza dough has risen, spread the pizza sauce on top. Add toppings of your choice and sprinkle with ‘cheese’.
• Place in oven for approx. 15 to 20 minutes. If it gets too brown too quickly, cover top (you can use a piece of aluminum foil).

Notes

Enjoy!

Please let me know what you think about this recipe, I’d love to hear from you! And if you remake this recipe, please share the picture with me on Pinterest, Instagram or Facebook.

In this dish they play the major flavour role and also add a beautiful bright color. And while it looks quite decadent, this dessert recipe is for raspberry jelly actually makes for a light treat that will still fit in after (possibly) any meal and make your taste buds happy

I served it with cashew vanilla sauce and some fresh mint which combined deliciously well. If you are looking for a nut-free custard sauce, you may want to try this one here.

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Raspberry Jelly (Vegan, Gluten-free, No Refined Sugar, Oil-free)

In this vegan and gluten-free dish raspberrys play the major flavour role and also add a beautiful bright color. And while it looks quite decadent, this dessert recipe is for raspberry jelly actually makes for a light treat that will still fit in after (possibly) any meal and make your taste buds happy

Course Desserts

Cuisine German

Diet Gluten Free, Vegan

Keyword Dessert, Jelly, Low-Fat, No Refined Sugar, oil-free, Raspberry

Servings 4 portions

Equipment

• Blender

Ingredients

For the raspberry jelly:

• 200 g approx. raspberries
• 70 g dates pitted (or less if your raspberries are quite sweet)
• 500 ml water
• 1 teaspoon agar agar

For the cashew vanilla sauce:

• 45 g cashews soak them in filtered water for at least 3 hours, then rinse and drain
• 35 g dates pitted
• 125 ml + 1 tablespoon water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla paste or essence

Instructions

• Blend raspberries, dates and water until smooth. Pour into nut-milk bag or alternatively line a sieve with a clean tea towel. Squeeze as much as possible of the juice into a small pot.
• Add agar agar to the pot, stir well and let soak for approx. 10 minutes. Then gently bring to the boil and let simmer for approx. 5 minutes, stirring constantly.
• Transfer to dessert bowls and let set, best chilled in the fridge. To achieve an angle I used a loaf tin that I had lined with a tea towel and then I carefully put the glasses into it in a slight angle.
• In the meantime prepare the cashew custard by blending all ingredients until smooth. This works best in a small powerful blender. Serve chilled with garnish of your choice.

Notes

Enjoy!

Please let me know what you think about this recipe, I’d love to hear from you! And if you remake this recipe, please share the picture with me on Pinterest, Instagram or Facebook.

I call this recipe a roasted cherry tomato pasta soup & sauce, because it actually works brilliantly as soup as well as a simple pasta sauce! And all that while being vegan, gluten-free and low-fat

If you are interested where I got my beloved heritage seeds from, you can check out Koanga Institute, based in New Zealand, they are my go to herb, vege and flower seed supplier

Best results with high-speed blender.

For 4 portions you’ll need:

1kg cherry tomatoes
a few fresh thyme sprigs (alternatively 1 teaspoon dried thyme)
a few fresh basil leaves (alternatively 1 teaspoon dried basil)
1-2 garlic cloves (optional)
salt & pepper to taste
1/2 to 1 cup water (depending on how thick you like it)

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 200°C (top-/bottom heat).

2. Line baking tray with baking paper and place cheery tomatoes, thyme and basil on it.

3. Bake for approx. 20 to 25 minutes, until some of the tomatoes are slightly browned.

4. Transfer tomatoes to high-speed blender. Remove thyme leaves of stalks and add as well basil leaves, garlic cloves and water. Then blend until smooth. Season with salt & pepper to taste.

Enjoy!

Please let me know what you think about this recipe, I’d love to hear from you! And if you remake this recipe, please share the picture with me on Pinterest, Instagram or Facebook.

Soups are amazing, winter or summer! They are super easy to make, offer a whole bunch of variation and allow to pack them with lots of healthy stuff.

Dark leafy greens are one of my favourite ‘superfoods’, they are loaded with important nutrients and should be part in a healthy diet. I love them in my breakfast smoothie, but they are also amazing in soups. And lets face it, it isn’t that easy to have a good daily amount in our meals. But with this green power soup you can quickly add dark leafy greens to your lunch or dinner

For 4 portions you’ll need:

400g kumara (sweet potato, alternatively normal potato)
1 broccoli
1 onion
1 big bunch leafy greens of your choice (kale, chard etc.)
1-2 cups green peas

1 tablespoon coconut oil  (for low-fat option use water instead)
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
salt & pepper to taste
4 cups water

Preparation:

1. Peel sweet potato and cut into even sized chunks. Peel and chop onion into small cubes.

2. Heat  coconut oil (or water) in pot and cook onion until golden brown. Add cumin seeds, 4 cups water and sweet potato and bring to the boil. Let simmer until softish (approx. 5 minutes).

3. In the meantime cut the broccoli in smaller chunks. Add to the pot when the sweet potato is softish. Let simmer for a few minutes until slightly tender. Don’t overcook.

4. When broccoli is tender, take off stove and add the dark leafy greens. Stir them into the soup until wilted. Then use a stick blender to blend until smooth.

5. Add green peas and salt & pepper to taste.

Enjoy!

Please let me know what you think about this recipe, I’d love to hear from you! And if you remake this recipe, please share the picture with me on Pinterest, Instagram or Facebook.