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New Menu September

We begin the last quarter of the year with a new menu, which brings all the flavour of an autumn meal. Sit in our dining room or backyard if the weather allows and enjoy a delicious artichoke soup accompanied by our baked seed crackers. If you have more space, you can order our already classic lemony lentil curry!

Take a look in our Today's menu section, where you will find not only our homemade main courses but also our variety of desserts and snacks. Our kitchen is open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Wednesday to Saturday. Sunday until 6 p.m!

You are very far from our store but would you like to try our menu? Find us at Thuisbezorgd, we deliver throughout Amsterdam. 🚲

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New Collaboration! – The Nourishing Garden

When you think you have tasted everything in terms of vegan cheeses you discover The Nourishing Garden and say to yourself: β€œWhere have they been all this time?”

The founder and creator of this lovely artisan cheese factory is Mariluz, a passionate chef who is also interested in meditation, spirituality and leading a healthier lifestyle.Β 

When approaching the raw vegan world, she noticed that there were a lot of sweet bites but very few savory options. There was a need to fill! After experimenting with different ingredients and fermentation methods, Mariluz hit the spot! Thanks to his creativity, dedication and perseverance, today you can enjoy a wide range of vegan cheeses made entirely by hand and available in our store.

From mozzarella cheese balls, through the exquisite chèvre and the impressive pizza cheese (it really melts!) to her latest creation: feta cheese!

But The Nourishing Garden lives not only on cheeses: we also have available her water kefir in two flavours: hibiscus and natural.

Come to our store and ask for a taste! In the meantime, find out more about The Nourishing Garden and Mariluz in this interesting interview done by Flavors From The Earth: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUJdMRUC6ak

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Recipe of July: Vegan Pasta Bolognese

Many people have asked at the store how to use the soy chunks we sell. Say no more! Here you have an easy recipe that will surprise everyone, vegan or not!

This recipe was planned for 3 to 4 portions.

Ingredients:

Start by mincing the onion and garlic. The carrots and parsnip can be grated, but personally I use a small food processor to mince them and save time.

In a pot, heat up the olive oil and fry the onions for about 5 minutes until they soften and get some light brown color.Β 

Add in the garlic, minced carrots and parsnip. Keep frying until the rest of the vegetables have soften and get some color. Next, add in all the spices you are using, mix around and also add in the pot the soy mince. Here is a tip: there is no need to soak the soy mince; this way the soy really sucks up the flavors and spices and stays crispier.Β 

Add in the puree and crushed tomatoes. Rinse the cans with water and add it in to the pot. I like to add a generous amount of homemade ketchup to tomato based sauces for the acid it needs and everyone usually has some ketchup at hand. If you don’t have ketchup use apple cider vinegar, wine or lemon juice instead.

Let the sauce simmer on low heat for up to an hour, half an hour minimum and taste.Β 

Serve with some cooked spaghetti, fresh basil and vegan parmesan.

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Recipe of June: White Asparagus with Tomato Vinaigrette

Surprise your diners with this appetizer of asparagus with hot tomato vinaigrette that we bring you this month. A very easy recipe to make that will give a fine touch to your starter.

This recipe is for 2 to 3 people. You only need very basic ingredients:

Start by peeling the asparagus carefully, making sure to remove the first layer completely. Then, cut the last 3 cms. of the stem away, as it is usually too hard to cook. Reserve for later.

Chop the onions along with the garlic in small cubes and add them in a small pot with the two tablespoon of olive oil. Stir everything over low heat and leave it for about 5 minutes or until the onion is soft. Add salt and black pepper to taste while increasing cooking to medium heat. Next, add the apple cider vinegar, coconut sugar, chopped tomatoes and stir for a few seconds, letting the mixture to boil a bit for a couple of minutes. You can add a bit of water if it looks too thick. Let it boil slowly for extra few minutes. Finally, add the herbs, a pinch of lemon juice and turn the heat off.

You can adjust the level of sourness or sweetness by adding apple cider vinegar or coconut sugar to taste.

Let's jump to the asparagus! Very easy: just put them to boil for 3 minutes, adding at least 6 teaspoon of salt to the water to let the asparagus absorb as much as possible.Β  The asparagus must be crunchy so be careful to not over boil them.

Finally, serve and decorate as you wish. We suggest accompanying this entry with a refreshing Chardonnay, totally ad-hoc for summer evenings!

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A new edition of an old acquaintance – JARA Sauces

An old friend is back, now under a new brand name: JARA. This is AndrΓ©s, a Colombian chef and farmer with years of experience adding flavour to meals.

With his new brand JARA, AndrΓ©s brings us three of his iconic and delicious sauces: Tomatillo Salsa, Salsa al Funghi y Salsa Picante.

He explains how his business was took off. "JARA was started during the first Corona lock-down in spring 2020, when many small sustainable farms in the Netherlands had an unsold vegetables surplus due to the closing of the Horeca. Using vegetables from our urban farm in Amsterdam West and buying this surplus we created delicious, healthy and plant rich products. When restaurants reopened, the immediate problem disappeared. We continued production by purchasing ingredients from our farming community in the Netherlands at fair prices, while turning the organic waste from our production process into compost that goes back into the soil, creating a circular food chain"

After a while, AndrΓ©s turned into a farmer with the goal to revolutionise the way food is produced and consumed - to make sure that everyone from the farmers, to the sellers and the consumers make a conscious and responsible choice benefiting everyone in the process including and especially our planet. In addition, by purchasing his products you support local farmers that grow their crops using regenerative agriculture techniques. This way everybody, including children, can enjoy tasteful food that supports both the planet and a healthy lifestyle! His products are 100% natural without any artificial additives or flavour enhancers, directly from Dutch farms to your kitchen table.

JARA only works with local, sustainable partners within The Netherlands that share the same values. Together they work to improve the current food system and offer you better food choices.

Have you tried these delicious and sustainable sauces yet? If you haven't, you can find them in the pasta corner at our store, together with a booklet with recipes. Do you live very far? No worries! You can always order online.

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Recipe of May: (Gluten free) almond chocolate bar

Many of our customers have surrendered to the taste and, above all, texture of our almond chocolate bars. That's why May brings this delicious and completely vegan recipe which can be done in no time obtaining up to 20 bars. How easy can be? Check by yourself! You just need the following ingredients:

For the chocolate coating:

We have available at the store are gluten free, but you can make the regular version as well.

Start by grinding the flax seed in case you don't have the powder version. Place the grind flax seed along with the maple syrup, almond pulp and peanut butter. Continue by adding in the same bowl the rest of the ingredients: chocolate chips, (gluten free) fine oats, cinnamon, salt and mix for a while using a mixer or just with your hands if you want to have more fun!

After all the ingredients are well mixed,Β  put a baking paper in a tray that has some edge to contain the mixture (the edge of our tray is 2 cms. high), spreading the dough totally, reaching every corner of the tray. Put to bake for 30 to 40 minutes at 160 degrees and let it cool at room temperature. Next, put the tray in the fridge and leave it until next day, to make sure the dough is hard enough as the next step is to take the baked dough out of the tray and proceed to cut it in bars.

To prepare the coating you just need to melt the chocolate chips with the coconut oil in a pot. Stir well until the chips are totally melted and introduce the bars one by one until they are totally covered. Garnish on top with the ingredient you want. We suggest: hazelnuts (like at the store), peanuts, coconut flakes, etc. After that, place the bar in the fridge as long as it needs to solidify.

Final step: enjoy!

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Recipe of March: Chickpea Mushroom Curry

This month we reveal the recipe for what was our star dish for all of last year: Chickpea Mushroom Curry! It is an easy meal that everybody will enjoy. The ingredients are as follows:

 

Start by chopping the onions and garlic finely along with your preferred amount of chili. Also cut the mushrooms in quarters. Heat up one or two tablespoons of coconut oil in a large pot and add the onions, garlic, and chili. Let caramelize slowly until it turns lightly golden brown.

At this point we like to add all the spices to really release all the flavour! We don't really measure the spices but as a big fan of all the mentioned ones, we would add at least 1-2 tbsp cumin, 1 tbsp curry, 2 tsp garlic, 1 tsp thyme and few pinches of jalapeΓ±o flakes.

Let simmer for a few minutes turning constantly to avoid burning but toasting the spices. Add the mushroom and keep turning to get everything coated in the spice mixture.

Add the tomato puree, crushed tomatoes (we like to use whole tomatoes and just chop them roughly) and chickpeas. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Stir for few minutes, add some water and let simmer for 20-30 minutes (add more water if it seems too dry). Lastly add a can of good quality full fat coconut milk and plenty of fresh spinach. Finish up with a pinch of lemon juice and enjoy!

This recipe is for about 3 to 4 good portions. At Little Plant Pantry we used to serve it with quinoa or basmati rice, however you can eat this delicious curry with any side dish.

 

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Recipe of February: Hot Chocolate

hot chocolate

The cold season hasn't gone yet and many of you have asked how we make our hot chocolate, why it tastes so good and what it is the secret behind. The true is there is not secret! We keep our homemade products simple and natural and the hot chocolate is not the exemption. Today we will share the recipe with you.

You need very few ingredients. Go and check in your pantry if you have: cocoa powder, almond milk, coconut sugar, cinnamon and cardamom. This recipe is for 1 cup.

 

Add 250ml of almond milk (we make our own one as you might know) to a saucepan, together with 2 tabespoon of raw cocoa powder, 2 tablespoon of coconut sugar and few dashes of cinnamon and cardamom. Heat up on medium heat while whisking well to get rid of any cacao lumps. The warmer the milk gets the easier the cacao dissolves. Bring to a boil, lower the heat and let simmer for a minute or two to thicken up a bit. Pour through a small sieve and enjoy!