Only Recipes, by Alessandra Zecchini ©

This is an aromatic vegan and gluten free soup, light and delicious. 500 ml vegetable stock 1 can coconut cream or milk + one can of water (rinsing the coconut cream) 1 large yellow courgette (zucchini) 2 fresh red chilies 1 block of tofu a pinch of freshly grated ginger Vermicelli 1 stalk lemon grass a few coriander leaves Cherry tomatoes Simmer all together for a few minutes until the zucchini are soft but not mushy. In the meantime soak the vermicelli in hot water until soft then divide between 6 bowls. chop a few cherry tomatoes, and wash some fresh basil and some thai mint Pour the hot soup over the vermicelli, making sure that each dish has equal parts of tofu and veggies. Decorate with the tomatoes, basil and Thai mint and serve immediately. Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

Something filling yet light, done in a jiffy! I had very little left in the fridge, just a bit of salad mix, but in the pantry I had some rice paper, vermicelli and dried gluten meat. So I put the 'fake' meat in a pot with a little vegetable stock (made with an organic veggie cube) and cooked it until soft. Then I cut it into little strips (actually, Arantxa did it - see photo).  I soaked the vermicelli in boiling water and then drained and rinsed them. To assemble the rice paper rolls you will need to line the table with clean tea towels, then soak the rice paper in hot water until soft, top with salad, the vermicelli and the gluten meat strips.  To see how to fold the rolls (step by step) you can have a look  here . If you have time you can fold the rolls adding herb leaves and flowers. Keep the rolls covered with a tea towel until ready to eat. Serve with soy sauce or sweet chili sauce. Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

 First I started with a simple paste made with a small piece of ginger (peeled), one shallot (also peeled), fresh coriander (with stalks), green chili (not too much for me, maybe one or two), and fresh lemon grass (one stick). If you have kaffir lime leaves or rind, the are good too, apparently, but I didn't have any so I added a little lemon juice. Mush with a mortar and pestle or with a blender (I used the blender, too hot for the mortar and pestle!) adding salt towards the end.  Now, the only thing in the paste that came from the garden was coriander, and frozen (from last year) as this year my plant died! I also have lots of frozen chills to use, and a little plant that don't even have flowers yet!  The veggies: 1 carrot, 2 yellow zucchini, a few tomatoes, a few broccolini, borage tips, green capsicum, Thai mint, basil, onion weed flowers  and borage flowers to decorate. then: organic tofu and coconut cream. I cut the tofu and placed it in a ...

Ingredients: Two blocks of soft tofu 1 shallot 2 fresh red chillies  1 can coconut cream 500 ml vegetable stock 1/2 teaspoon fresh grated ginger fresh coriander fresh Vietnamese mint (or basil) Drain the tofu and cut into slices. Finely chop the shallot, and roughly break up the chili, discarding the seeds unless you like your food very spicy. Place everything in a pot with the coconut cream and vegetables sock and simmer for 20 minutes. Grate the ginger and add to the tofu, finish off with some fresh coriander and Vietnamese mint leaves. If you don't have Vietnamese mint use fresh basil. Serve with Thai rice or noodles. Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini  ©

I had half a pumpkin to use, but just a little bit of Thai herbs mix (ginger, lemon grass, chili, garlic and coriander), certainly not enough to give my pumpkin a spicy flavor! Still, I felt like coconut, so I cut the pumpkin and two celery stalks with leaves and put them in my pot, then I added one can of coconut cream plus one can of water (to rinse the cream out), the remaining Thai herbs mix (about half tsp) and one organic veggie stock cube. I cook the lot until the pumpkin was soft, then I adjusted it for salt and added plenty of fresh basil leaves. I wanted to add some of my Vietnamese mint but it has all dried up (no rain in Auckland either) but the basil was strong flavored and I was surprised how nice this tasted in the end! I though of using this as a side dish (like in the photo) but I run out of time to make the main and since this dish had so much sauce I just added some cubed firm tofu to it when I warmed it up for dinner. I served with Thai rice. Very nice way of e...

Ingredients: 1 tbs green curry paste (see recipe here ) 1 can coconut milk 1 couliflower, cut into florettes half carrot, sliced (I sliced it in the shape of flowers) 1 block tofu, cut into pieces 1 large broccoli, cut into florettes 1-2 chili peppers Thai or regular fresh basil leaves Thai or Vietnamese fresh mint leaves Place the paste in a pot with the coconut milk, the cauliflower, carrot, and the tofu. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the broccoli, cover and simmer for 5 minutes (I like my broccoli to be still green and a little crunchy). Add the chili peppers and the fresh herbs, cover and simmer for 5 more minutes. Add salt to taste and serve with Thai rice. Serves 4 Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

I had some green and yellow beans in the garden, a piece of organic tofu in the fridge, and some leftover green curry paste in the freezer. When I make green curry I usually have too much for one meal so I freeze the rest (it freezes really well). My paste is really simple, some fresh ginger (peeled) some shallot (also peeled), fresh coriander (with stalks), green chilli (not too much for me, maybe one or two), and fresh lemon grass (one stick). If you have kaffir lime leaves or rind, the are good too, apparently, but I didn't have any. You should use a mortar and pestle, but I just added a little salt and blended everything in the food mixer. For the curry 1 tbsp of green curry paste 2 tbsp oil Green and yellow beans Tofu, cut in big pieces 1 can coconut cream Water Fresh Vietnamese mint Chilli (optional) accompany with a blend of long and wild rice. Sizzle the curry paste with the oil, add the beans and tofu, and then the coconut cream. Fill up the empty can of coconut ...

This is Vegan, gluten free, fat free, light, and yet fully balanced and filling (or at least, it is for me :-)). Best consumed with beer, or with a glass of chilled Cracroft Chase Pinot Gris (please scroll to the end of this post for another Christchurch earthquake update). Vegan Thai Salad Rolls On Saturday I went to the Oratia Farmers Market and bought some smoked salt and garlic. The smoked salt is really nice and mixed with a few spices and herbs, so I thought of using it to marinate some organic tofu to put inside my Thai salad rolls. I cut the tofu into thin strips and then I sprinkled the salt on. After 30 minutes I turned the tofu slices over and sprinkled the smoked salt on the other side too. After other 30 minutes I lightly fried the tofu slices with rice bran oil. I put it on some kitchen paper to remove the excess oil, and set aside. I used Thai rice paper wrap, which are gluten free. You need to soak the rice pape...

Photo by Alessandra Zecchini © This is my adaptation of the Thai dip Nam Prik, (there are many versions, this one is more like the ones from the North of the country). I like this version because the ingredients are easy to find in most countries, but the taste is really 100% Asian! Ingredients: 1 or 2 fresh green chilies, 1 or 2 fresh red chilies, 1 eggplant (possibly white, but I tend to use the purple ones which are easier to find) 2 garlic cloves (peeled), 1 shallot (peeled) , 1 or 2 tomatoes, 2 tbsp lemon juice, 2 tbsp light soy sauce, half tsp salt (In Thailand they also put in a littles sugar, but I don't) Wrap the chilies, eggplant (cut into four) garlic shallot and tomatoes in a sheet of tin foil. Seal well and bake at 175°C for 30 minutes. Remove the content and place: 1) in a large mortar, and start pounding with the pestle adding the lemon juice, soy sauce and salt. this way you will get a a chuncky sauce with lots of skins but lovely and spicy. or 2) in a blender, fo...

Photo by Alessandra Zecchini © This is a lovely way to serve rice, one of my favourites in fact! Ingredients 400 g Thai rice 1 x 400ml can coconut cream half tsp salt (In Thailand they also add sugar, but I prefer not to). Wash the rice a few times with cold water, place it in a saucepan and add the content of the can of coconut cream plus half a measure of water from the same can (in this way you can also rinse the coconut cream out). Add salt and cover with a lid. Cook very slowly by absorption, if your lid is not very heavy line it with a tea towel to avoid loosing too much steam during cooking. When the rice is ready turn the heat off and let it rest for 10 minutes before serving. At this point you can also add some fresh leaves of Thai mint, they will perfume the rice and give it more flavour.