Detox Kitchen, founded by Lily Simpson, has just released its second cookbook, Detox Kitchen Vegetables and this one is for the herbivores. The book has over 150 vegetarian recipes that look so tasty even the most kitchen-shy might feel inspired to don an apron. They say the recipes "celebrate the versatility and deliciousness of vegetables", we say even your most die-hard meat eater friends will be happy when you put these in front of them. The recipes free from wheat, dairy and refined sugar too.
Click through for three of our favourites...
Cauliflower tortillas
Serves 4
These tortillas are great if you are feeding some hungry people. With five different toppings to mix and match, they are a fun dish to share. You can prepare the pickled onions, black beans and ranch dressing well in advance, so all you need to do at the last minute is fry the battered cauliflower and make the avocado salsa. Warm the tortillas through and you are good to go!
Ingredients
2 eggs
150g gluten-free flour
1 cauliflower, cut into small florets
12 small corn tortillas
Fresh coriander, chopped, to garnish
Lime wedges to serve
For the pickled onions
1/2 red onion, finely sliced
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp honey
For the ranch dressing
150ml soya yoghurt
A handful of fresh chives, finely chopped
1 tsp dried parsley
1 tsp dried tarragon
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp onion powder
For the black beans
Rapeseed oil for frying
1 spring onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 red pepper, seeded and diced
400g tinned black beans, drained and rinsed
For the avocado salsa
1 avocado, peeled and diced
1 spring onion, sliced
1 large tomato, diced
A small handful of fresh coriander, finely chopped
1 gherkin, finely chopped
Flaked sea salt and cracked black pepper
Instructions
1. Prepare the pickled onions by placing the onion in a bowl with the lemon juice, honey and 1/2 teaspoon salt and leaving to soak.
2. In another bowl, mix together the ingredients for the ranch dressing. Set aside for about 20 minutes.
3. For the black beans, heat a little oil in a frying pan and fry the spring onion and garlic until the garlic is golden. Add the red pepper and black beans and cook on a low heat, stirring frequently, until the beans begin to break down. Remove from the heat and set aside.
4. Combine all the ingredients for the avocado salsa in a bowl and set aside.
5. Whisk the eggs and flour together to make a thick batter. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add the cauliflower florets to the batter, turning them to make sure each is completely coated. Place a good glug of oil in a frying pan set over a medium heat. When the oil is very hot, add the battered cauliflower and fry until golden all over (do this in batches). Drain on kitchen paper.
6. Cook the tortillas in a dry frying pan to slightly brown on both sides and soften.
7. To assemble, smear the black bean mixture over the tortillas. Add the cauliflower and the avocado salsa and drizzle over the ranch dressing. Top with pickled onions and coriander. Serve with lime wedges for squeezing over.
Flatbreads topped with spinach and egg
Serves 4
This is my take on a Florentine pizza. Instead of the traditional pizza base, I use flatbreads made from chickpea (gram) flour, which is coarser than normal flour and has a distinct nutty flavour that tastes, unsurprisingly, a lot like chickpeas. The bright green topping is made from spinach and butter beans, with a baked egg to finish.
Ingredients
A handful of caraway seeds
250g chickpea flour
125–175ml cold water
400g jarred butter beans, drained and rinsed
1 tbsp rapeseed oil, plus extra for frying
200g spinach
4 eggs
Toasted pumpkin seeds to sprinkle
Flaked sea salt and cracked black pepper
Instructions
1. Toast the caraway seeds in a small dry frying pan until fragrant. Tip into a bowl and add the flour and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Gradually mix in enough water to create a thick batter. Chill for 2 hours.
2. Preheat the oven to 200°C/Fan 180°C/Gas 6.
3. To make the spinach mixture, place the butter beans, oil and a pinch each of salt and pepper in a food processor and blitz until smooth. Add the spinach and blitz again. Set aside.
4. Heat a little oil in a 20cm frying pan. Spoon in about a quarter of the batter, spreading it out with the back of the spoon to create a large pancake. Once golden on the base, flip over and cook the other side. As the flatbreads are cooked, transfer them to a baking tray.
5. When all the flatbreads are on the tray, smear the spinach mixture over them. Crack an egg on top of each. Bake for 2–3 minutes until the eggs are cooked. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with pumpkin seeds and serve.
Mushroom curry
Serves 2
Mushrooms add a hearty texture to a dish, which you need in a curry. They also have a subtle flavour that lets other flavourings do the talking. Here it is coconut, tomatoes, and fragrant cardamom and cloves that give this curry its distinctive fresh, floral taste.
Ingredients
Rapeseed oil for frying1 onion, diced 1 garlic clove, finely chopped 1 tbsp grated fresh root ginger 250g chestnut mushrooms, larger ones cut in half 1 tbsp curry powder 4 cardamom pods 2 cloves 4 large tomatoes, roughly chopped 1 red pepper, seeded and sliced 200ml coconut milk Juice of 1 lime 250g brown rice Flaked sea salt and cracked black pepper
Instructions
1. Heat a little oil in a sauté pan or saucepan over a medium heat and cook the onion, garlic and ginger until the onion has softened.
2. Heat a little oil in a frying pan and fry the mushrooms until slightly browned. Stir the mushrooms into the onion mixture along with the curry powder, cardamom pods and cloves. Cook gently for 1 minute.
3. Add the chopped tomatoes and red pepper and bring to a simmer. Cook for 10 minutes. Stir in the coconut milk and lime juice, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Simmer gently for a further 5 minutes to heat through.
4. While the curry is cooking, put the rice in a pan with a pinch of salt and cover with three times the amount of water. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 20–25 minutes until the rice is tender and fluffy. Drain.
5. Remove the cloves and cardamom from the curry. Leave to stand for 10 minutes before serving with the brown rice.
Detox Kitchen Vegetables by Lily Simpson is out now, published by Bloomsbury
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