CallMeIshbel | Cooking, travelling and the art of being

Kawakawa Tea Cakes

2 months ago by ishbel

The definition of teacakes varies between countries, a yeasted sweet bun in the UK or a small cake eaten with tea is the US, my little cakes are glazed with a kawakawa tea syrup, hence the name. Kawakawa (Piper excelsum) is a New Zealand native plant t...

Wild Green Pie

3 months ago by ishbel

I have a vivid childhood memory of watching an episode of a food programme where women with headscarves and aprons plucked wild greens from hillsides and carried them back to their homes in woven baskets. They were making hortopita or wild green pie. At the ti...

Kumara Steaks with Harissa Cauliflower & Turtle Bean Hummus

4 months ago by ishbel

Kumara Steaks with Harissa Cauliflower & Turtle Bean Hummus Serves 4 – 6 people Most people are aware of the saying “you eat with your eyes”, these ingredients could be chopped up and stewed together in a one-pot for a meal, or with very little ...

Sticky Date Pudding Cake with Chocolate Whisky Sauce

7 months ago by ishbel

The first birthday cake I ever baked for my (now) husband, the recipe was from a cookbook by the resturant Pitt Cue in London. I discovered this book, at almost exactly the sametime as we decided to transition to a plant-based lifestyle. At the time, it fe...

Zucchini Cannelloni with Tomato & Red Pepper Puree

8 months ago by ishbel

This Italian classic has been given a wholefood plant-based makeover. The dish is perfect for a dinner party, a herby tofu ricotta filled zucchini cannelloni; paired with an earthy tart tomato and red pepper puree, garnished with salty black olives and crisp...

Potato & Red Onion Vegan Tortilla

9 months ago by ishbel

I sometimes find that I still miss eggs. It's not actually about the eating an egg , it's about what the egg brings to the dish. It's that savoury "something" that an egg brings a dish together and binds all the ingredients into a form that you slice, dice...

Cucumber, Spinach & Herb Salad with Lemon Ginger Dressing

11 months ago by ishbel

I often get my inspiration for dinner side dishes from what needs to be harvested or has to be used from the fridge. In this case I also took inspiration from the Great British Chefs Cookbook Club book of the month: "Ottolenghi Simp...

Buckwheat-Banana Pancakes

1 year ago by ishbel

A stack of fluffy pancakes crowned with colourful fruity toppings always impresses. This easy vegan gluten free pancake recipe is very adaptable, it can be flavoured with different ingredients and smothered with numerous topping combinations; definitely a ...

Lentil + Mushroom + Potato

1 year ago by ishbel

I've come to realise that regardless of where I live, whether it's New Zealand or Scotland, there are three ingredients that I'm seldom without. Lentils, potatoes and mushrooms are ingredients that I know I can reliably find in my kitchen (or easily purchase)....

Vegan Tomato Tart

1 year ago by ishbel

Whenever I can, I love to walk past our town's independent grocery store - to see what new produce they have on display out in front of the store. At the start of spring they began setting out boxes of tomatoes each week. The tomatoes are beautif...