VEGANISM is a lifestyle choice which is gaining more and more prominence in the headlines at the moment.

The charity Veganuary has reported a total of 225,000 people made a pledge to go vegan for a month this January.

Whether everyone who makes the pledge sticks to it is up to them, but Peter Marezana at Haverfordwest's vegan and gluten-free cafe, Unpretentious, has cooked up some recipes to inspire the budding vegan.

Vegan and Gluten Free Mango and Lemon Lassi

 

"This is a twist and a kick on a yoghurt based drink that is found in the Indian subcontinent," said Peter.

"Perfect for veganuary and can be made gluten-free. It’s refreshing, yet filling and the lemon gives it a zesty kick. Just what you need for a lunch time boost.

"Lassi is traditionally made with spices like ground cardamom but I’ve found cinnamon to be a worthy substitute."

Preparation time: 5mins

 

Ingredients:

  • 250g of unsweetened plant based yoghurt- we used coconut but you could perhaps use soy
  • 200g of mango slices (can use tin variant or fresh)
  • 50ml of plant based milk- we used coconut again
  • 1 small lemon

Directions:

  1. Slice the mango into smaller sections and remove the outer skin.
  2. Cut the lemon into thin slices
  3. Pour plant based yoghurt into a jug and mix with plant based milk
  4. Add all the ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth
 

You can also adorn the drink with a topping of your choosing.

This should be ready to serve right away or you can keep the vegan and mango Lassi in the fridge for two days as long as it’s in a sealed container.

Vegan penne Pesto

 

"For a quick meal, nothing beats pasta," said Peter.

"It is relatively simple and a great way to to get closer to your five a day, or use up all the veggies left in your fridge."

Preparation time: 30mins

Ingredients:

  • Pasta (recipe uses penne)
  • 100g of pine nuts
  • Handful of fresh basil
  • 1 clove of garlic
  • 125ml of olive oil
  • 3 teaspoons of nutritional yeast
  • Salt
  • Pepper
  • Lemon
  • Olives
  • Pumpkin Seeds
  • Spinach
 

Directions:

  1. Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the packaging.
  2. Roast the seeds in the mean time.
  3. Chop the basil and garlic. Place them in a bowl and use a hand blender to mix in lemon, salt, nutritional yeast and pepper. Blend until smooth.
  4. Once blended you can add it to the pasta.
  5. Dress with pumpkin seeds and spinach