DIY: Chocolate Energy Ball Easter Eggs

As soon as we saw this recipe from chef Tom Hunt on Instagram we knew we had to give them a try. They are absolutely delicious, easy and fun to make and completely plastic free!

You’ll need a blender, baking tray.

Makes approx 25 mini eggs

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

100g mixed nuts (approx £2) (we did a mix of hazels, cashews and pecans)

50g oats (13p) or other flakes you may have

100g dates, apricots, or other pitted fruit (approx 70p) (we did a mix of dates, apricots and prunes)

50g cranberries (60p)

25g nut butter (make your own)

1 tbsp cocoa powder (approx 20p)

100g dark chocolate (£2)

Toppings- we used local edible wild flowers but could decorate with desiccated coconut, cocoa powder, sea salt etc

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £6

Method:

Pulse blend the mixed nuts in a food processor to rough pieces. Add the flakes, pitted fruit, cranberries, nut butter and cocoa powder and blend to a rough paste. Turn out onto the table, split and roll into 25 balls, then shape into an egg shape.

Melt the chocolate, then dip the eggs into it and cover with chocolate. Remove and place on a parchment lined tray.

Decorate with your chosen toppings. Refrigerate until set and enjoy.

Zero Waste Tips

All ingredients are easy to find without single use plastic packaging.

Use compostable non-bleached baking parchment and look to reuse after initial use, compost when no longer good to use.

If you have leftover melted chocolate use to cover extra nuts or fruits as an additional snack!

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Easy Vegan Cake Mix

We decided to share this easy vegan cake mix as its great for using up over-ripe fruit you may find in your fruit bowl, which is how we came across it! Avoid food waste and get a delicious cake to eat! Recipe found via My Vegan Minimalist.

You’ll need 2 mixing bowls, cake tin.

Makes 1 cake

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

2 tablespoons ground linseed (approx 27p)

100ml boiling hot water

300g plain flour

90g demerara or coconut sugar (27p)

½ tsp salt (approx 5p)

2 tsp cinnamon ground (approx 25p)

3 tsp baking powder (approx 10p)

140ml olive oil (£1.33) or could use rapeseed

120ml unsweetened oat milk (make your own) or other alternative milk

3 tbsp maple syrup or other sweetener of choice

1 tbsp lemon juice (if no lemon juice can use apple cider vinegar)

1 pear skin removed - or whichever over-ripe fruit you have available, can use more for more moist cake or extras for decoration on top of cake.

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £2.15

Method:

Pre-heat your oven to 170°C.

Add ground linseed and boiling hot water to a small bowl. Stir and set aside. This will create a flax egg.

Combine flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon and baking powder in a large bowl.

In a second bowl whisk together oil, milk, maple syrup and lemon juice.

Add your flax egg to your oil mixture and mix well.

Slowly pour the oil mixture into the centre of your flour mixture.

Mix until no more flour specs remain, but do not overmix.

Remove the pear (fruit) skin. Then cut your pear (fruit) into small cubes and add to your mixture and stir gently.

Line the bottom of a round cake tin with a layer of baking paper. Brush the sides with a layer of oil.

Pour your mixture into the tin.

If decorating with extra fruit, brush fruit slices with maple syrup. Can also top with flaked almonds if you have.

Bake at 170°C (fan oven setting) for 50-55 minutes.

Once baked (skewer coming out clean from cake), remove from oven and let cool completely. Can top with layer of maple syrup or chocolate as we did!

Zero Waste Tips

All ingredients are easy to find without single use plastic packaging.

Great to use up any over-ripe fruit- can get creative with other spices added, look to use up what you have in your cupboards!

Can be frozen for up to 2 months - slice and place in airtight container.

Use compostable non-bleached baking parchment and look to reuse after initial use, compost when no longer good to use.

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Vegan Golden Hot Cross Buns

This year we spiced up our hot cross buns for Easter and gave this chai turmeric recipe from the talented Loria Stern via Mud Australia. We are a little lazy when it comes to baking so left out the crosses as didn’t have a piping bag and didn’t want to buy for just one recipe, hence the no cross! This was our first attempt and would say you probably need to add more flowers than we did to make more of an impact, or maybe to add after baking. But they taste amazing!

You’ll need a mixing bowl, baking tray.

Makes 12 buns

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

For Buns:

500g white bread flour

75g coconut sugar (60p)

3 tsp ground turmeric (approx 25p)

2 tsp Chai Tea (we used loose rooibos tea with cardamom, cloves, cinnamon and star anise approx 50p)

1 tsp sea salt (approx 5p)

finely grated zest of 1 orange + 1 lemon

10 g (1 tbsp) active dried yeast (15p)

80g melted coconut oil

300g coconut milk

100g sultanas (50p)

Flowers + Crosses:

60g plain flour

60g filtered water

2 tbsp apricot jam to glaze (if no jam can make sugar glaze mixing demerara and water together and heating to reduce to a syrup)

2 cups of yellow edible flowers, washed and dried (we used primrose and gorse which are easily foraged around Easter)

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £2.37

Method:

Pour coconut milk and sugar in a small saucepan and heat until steamy. Add your chai tea of choice and let steep for 30 minutes or so. Strain through and discard the tea but reserve the coconut milk.

While tea is infusing put the flour, turmeric, and salt in a bowl and mix together. Add the citrus zests and mix to combine.

Once tea has infused and the milk has been strained add your yeast to the milk mix and leave to blossom for 5-10 mins.

While waiting melt your coconut oil.

Once yeast has blossomed add yeast milk mix to bowl together with the melted coconut oil and mix together to create your dough.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 5-10 minutes until it is smooth and elastic.

Place the kneaded dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with a tea bowl and set aside in a warm place to rise until it has at least doubled in size, about 1 1/2-2 hours.

Once the dough has risen, shape into a rough rectangle, scatter over the sultanas. Divide the dough into twelve even portions (about 75 grams each) and roll them into balls. Try to make sure that the sultanas are tucked into the bun and not on the outside of the bun.

Place the buns onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper, loosely cover the tray with a tea towel and set aside to rise until about doubled in size, around 45 minutes. The buns should now be touching each other and spring back slowly if you gently poke one with a finger. If it springs back quickly they need a little longer.

While the buns are rising preheat the oven to 190 C and prepare the paste for the crosses (if doing!):

Place the flour in a bowl and gradually stir in enough water to form a thick paste. Place the paste in a piping bag fitted with a small round nozzle.

When the buns have risen, swipe the top of each bun with some apricot jam and then adhere your edible flowers, the sticky jam will secure the petals to the bun. Now pipe a cross on top of each bun. If your buns are lined up on the baking platter you can just pipe in one long line across the rows.

Bake the buns for about 25 minutes until they are deep golden.

Remove the buns and let cool, they are best served immediately however will stay delicious for up to 1 week if stored in an airtight container in the fridge!

Zero Waste Tips

All ingredients are easy to find without single use plastic packaging.

Can be frozen for up to 2 months.

Use compostable non-bleached baking parchment and look to reuse after initial use, compost when no longer good to use.

If you find your buns are going stale, use them in a bread and butter pudding - yum!

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No Waste 'Milk' Pulp Granola

This is a great recipe for using up the leftover pulp from making your own oat / nut/seed milks. You can even freeze your left over pulp from making milk until you have a big enough batch, or adjust recipe and make little and often. This recipe is a guide based on one found on The First Mess.

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

2.5 cups of pulp leftover from making milk

1/2 cup of nuts/seeds/oats of choice

1/4 cup of coconut oil melted, or use olive oil if looking to make a more savoury granola

approx 6 tablespoons sweetener of choice (maple or date syrup, molasses, malt rice barley, apple juice etc) or if making savoury 1-2 tablespoons of tamari

1/2 teaspoon of salt

optional add ins:

ground cinnamon

vanilla

citrus zest

herbs and spices if savoury

Method

Preheat the oven to 125 C. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

In a saucepan gently melt oil and add your sweeteners, stir to combine and take off heat. In a large bowl mix milk pulp with the remaining dry ingredients and then add your oil and sweetener mix and combine well.

Spread the mixture evenly onto the lined baking sheets and bake for 1 - 2 hours, until golden, stirring every 15 minutes or so for even browning.

Allow the granola to cool, you can then add any optional extras such as coconut, dried fruit, and additional seeds (if using). Store the nut pulp granola in a sealed container for 1-2 weeks.

Zero Waste Tips

Save your parchment paper after use - we often reuse parchment for a few bakes before replacing with a new sheet, composting the old one when finished.

This is a great recipe for using up small amounts of nuts, seeds and dried fruits you may have at the back of your cupboard!

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Coffee Ground Oat Pancakes

Did you know you could eat your coffee grounds?! We didn’t until we saw this brilliant instagram post from Max La Manna, an awesome zero waste chef, definitely worth a follow! In this zero waste recipe you utilise your old coffee grounds in your breakfast pancakes!

You’ll need a blender, mixing bowl and frying pan.

Serves 2 (3 pancakes each)

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

34g used coffee grounds (approx £1, or free as you’ve already got your coffee out of them!)

200g oats (50p)

300ml oat milk; or milk of your choice

1 tsp bi carb (approx 3p)

Pinch of salt

We added 2 teaspoons cinnamon to our mix as cinnamon is a great partner for caffeine (approx cost 20p)

And we like to add a tablespoon of chia or flax seed to our pancake mix too.

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £1.73

Method

Blend oats to a flour consistency then transfer to a bowl.

Mix the other dry ingredients in and then add milk until the batter is pourable but not too thick. If thick, add 1-2 tbsp of milk or water each time and stir.

Add a spoonful of the batter to a frying pan on medium heat and cook on both sides for 1-2 minutes.

For topping we poached a pear and then reduced down the sugar water to a syrup to pour on the pancakes.

Zero Waste Tips

You can make your own quick oat milk by adding a tablespoon of oats to 300ml water and blending, you don’t need to sieve out oats and can use as is.

Avoid food waste and store any leftover pancakes (without toppings) in a container separated with parchment paper to prevent sticking. Will keep in the refrigerator up to 4 days or in the freezer up to 1 month. Reheat in the toaster, oven or microwave until hot.

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Sunflower Mince Bolognese

We’ve been loving this new addition to the van: sunflower mince! Its exactly what is says it is, mince made from sunflowers! Here’s a simple Bolognese recipe found from the Sunflower Family website.

You’ll need a saucepan.

Serves 4.

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

75g sunflower mince (£2.63)

1 onion

2 cloves of garlic

100 g carrots (optional)

100 g celery (optional)

2 tbsp olive oil (approx 20p)

200 g tomato passata

200 g chopped tomatoes

1 tbsp tomato paste

2 teaspoon mixed herbs (approx 5p)

1 teaspoon demerara sugar (to taste) (approx 3p)

Salt pepper

250 ml vegetable broth (approx 5p if using vegan bouillon)

250g spaghetti (88p)

2 tablespoons nutritional yeast or vegan parmesan (approx 10p)

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £3.94 / £0.99 pp

Method:

Peel the onion, garlic, carrots and celery and cut into fine cubes.

Heat the olive oil in a saucepan and sauté the onion, carrots and celery.

Then fry the garlic briefly (approx. 30 seconds).

Add sunflower mince until it turns golden brown.

Then add the tomato paste and tomatoes and mix.

Add about 250 ml of vegetable stock.

Season the sauce with salt, pepper, Italian herbs and sugar and simmer over a medium heat for about 15-20 minutes until the sauce has thickened nicely (add a little vegetable stock if necessary).

In the meantime, cook the spaghetti in salted water until al dente and then drain.

Serve the spaghetti with the sauce and garnish with yeast flakes or vegan parmesan.

Zero Waste Tips

This is a great recipe for using up odds and ends of veggies found in the fridge - carrots, celery, courgette, you could also add in beans if you had any that needed using up.

Scraps and peelings from veggies can be saved to make your own stock.

Save the spaghetti water! Use to water houseplants or you can plan to use it for the stock in the recipe, it can also be used to replace plain water in bread or pizza dough recipes if you’re planning on making!

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Chia Seed Berry Jam

This is a great easy jam recipe from Deliciously Ella’s first cookbook, fab for using seasonal berries! Great on toast, porridge, pancakes - you name it!

You’ll need a large saucepan.

Makes 1 large jar

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

2 tablespoons chia seeds (approx 15p)

400g berries

3 tablespoons thick honey (we’ve also used a mix of honey and elderberry or rosehip syrup)

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £0.15

Method:

Wash and prepare your chosen berries and place in large saucepan with the honey, turn on heat and allow to cook until berries are soft.

Mash berries with masher or fork until mix is smooth as you would like.

Add the chia seeds and cook for a further 20 mins on low heat, stirring every 5 mins.

Remove pan from heat and place jam in bowl and allow to cool, it will continue to thicken.

Store jam in airtight container, it’ll keep for about a week.

Zero Waste Tips

Forage or pick your own berries to avoid single use plastic containers.

Great recipe if you see your berries starting to turn!

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Ramen Noodles

Making your own ramen is a great quick meal and is also perfect for using up odds and ends of vegetables left in the fridge!

Ramen is a Japanese noodle soup using wheat noodles (ours are perfect for ramen as they don’t get too soggy in the soup) served in a broth, traditionally meat, but of course you can go fish or vegetable, often flavoured with soy sauce or miso and finished with various toppings.

The recipe set out below is for a basic ramen where you can swap out ingredients for what you have in the kitchen, all you need is some noodles!

You’ll need a saucepan, frying pan.

Serves 2

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

1 noodle nest (approx 45p)

750ml Broth/Stock (you can make your own or use 3 teaspoon veg bouillon with hot water, approx 20p)

To add to broth:

ginger 4cm piece grated

1 red chilli chopped

1 garlic clove, bashed

2 tablespoons miso paste

For toppings:

1 tablespoon vegetable oil (we like sesame for ramen)

mushrooms approx 100g

shredded greens, we like chard but pak choy, spring greens etc work well

1 carrot, finely sliced

teaspoon soy sauce

2 tablespoons sesame seeds (approx 10p)

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx 75p / 38p pp

Method:

Add broth/stock, ginger, chilli and garlic to saucepan and heat to boiling. Once boiling reduce heat and add noodles to cook around 8mins.

While noodles cook prepare your topping, heating oil in frying pan and adding vegetables and soy sauce cook until soft and then add sesame seeds and cook for further min or two and then remove from heat.

Once noodles are cooked, take off heat and stir in miso.

Place broth and noodles in bowls and add toppings to serve.

Zero Waste Tips

This is a great dish to get creative with and to use up vegetables in the fridge.

Find miso and soy in reusable and recyclable glass containers.

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Mince Pies

Making your own mincemeat and mince pies is surprisingly easy and a great way to avoid plastic wrapped shop bought versions. For us making mince pies definitely marks the start of the Christmas season, Gemma will usually bake them December 1st! The pastry recipe comes from Paul Hollywood and we can’t remember where the mincemeat recipe came from!

You’ll need a saucepan, mixing bowl, rolling pin, muffin/cupcake trays.

Serves 16+ (depending on how big/small you like your mince pies!)

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

For mincemeat

300g mixed dried fruit (approx £1.50-2 depending on fruit)

50g mixed peel (25p)

50g demerara sugar (15p)

1 teaspoon Cinnamon (approx 25p)

½ teaspoon Nutmeg (approx 13p)

1 bramley apple (or 40g apple rings 48p)

50ml alcohol (e.g brandy, port)

Juice of 1 orange

75g fat of choice (e.g butter, suet, coconut oil)

For pastry

375g plain flour

260g unsalted butter, softened

125g demerara sugar, plus extra for sprinkling (38p)

1 large egg, plus 1 beaten egg for glazing

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £3.64

Method:

Make mincemeat first, this can be made ahead of time and stored in glass jars.

Add all mincemeat ingredients apart from alcohol to saucepan and heat slowly bringing to warm temp and stir for 10mins and then let cool. Add alcohol and mix in well. Store in sterilised jar or place to one side to use later.

To make pastry place the plain flour and softened unsalted butter in a bowl and rub together to a crumb consistency. Add sugar and beaten egg and mix together. Tip out onto a lightly floured surface and fold until the pastry comes together, be careful not to over mix. Wrap the pastry in food wax wrap and chill for 10 mins.

To make the mince pies preheat oven to 220C/200C fan.

Roll out the pastry to 3mm thick and use a round cutter to cut out bases and place them into muffin trays. Put around 1½ tablespoon mincemeat mixture into each. Brush the edge of each pie with a little beaten egg. Re-roll out the pastry to cut lids and press them on top to seal. Glaze with the beaten egg, sprinkle with the extra sugar, then make a small cut in the tops.

Bake the mince pies for 15-20 mins until golden brown. Leave to cool before releasing them from the muffin trays and dusting with a little more icing sugar before serving.

Zero Waste Tips

Find butter wrapped in paper or make your own.

Any leftover mincemeat can be stored for later recipes.

Avoid clingfilm for wrapping the pastry as usually instructed and use a food wax wrap instead.

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Beetroot Red Velvet Cake

It was recently our wedding anniversary so we decided to recreate our red velvet wedding cake with a vegan beetroot version! We followed a Sharon Palmer recipe and modified the icing slightly choosing to follow the cashew icing from Deliciously Ellas carrot cake recipe.

You’ll need a mixing bowl, food processor, cake tin.

Serves 16.

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

For cake

3 beets, cooked, chopped with 2 tablespoons reserved beet liquid (we chose to steam ours)

175ml unflavored, unsweetened plant-based milk

100ml rapeseed oil (60p)

2 tablespoons chia seed (approx 10p)

1 tablespoon linseed, ground (approx 8p)

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

100g coconut palm sugar (80p)

250g plain flour of choice

65g ground almonds (£1.04)

1 teaspoon baking powder (approx 4p)

1 teaspoon bi carb (approx 3p)

30g cocoa powder (36p)

¼ teaspoon salt (approx 2p)

For icing

250g cashews, soaked 4hrs/overnight then drained (£3.75)

7 tablespoons maple syrup

2 tablespoons reserved beet liquid

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (approx 15p)

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £6.97 / 44p pp

Method:

Preheat oven to 190 C.

In a mixer puree cooked beets with reserved liquid from cooking beets until smooth. Once smooth add plant-based milk, oil, chia seed, linseed, and vanilla. Mix for 2 minutes and allow to stand for 5 minutes.

Mix in sugar, flour, ground almonds, baking powder, bi carb, cocoa powder and salt just until smooth.

Grease 2 round cake pans and pour batter into pans—dividing the amount equally between. Spread evenly. Bake for 40-45 minutes, until knife inserted into centre comes out clean.

Remove cakes from pan and allow to cool.

To make icing, place the drained cashews in a food processor with the rest of the ingredients and blitz until smooth, about 10–15 minutes – it should be thick enough to hold its shape but thin enough to smooth over a cake. Add a splash of milk or beet liquid if it gets too thick.

When cake is cooled, place the bottom layer on a cake pan. Spread with a layer of icing, top with the second cake layer. Ice top and sides of cake.

Zero Waste Tips

Use your remaining left over beet liquid for veg stock or watering plants!

Any left over icing can be used in porridge or used to stuff dates!

Make your own oat, soy or nut milk to avoid packaging.

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Carrot Cake

Another fantastic recipe from Deliciously Ella, this cake is scrumptious! And the cashew icing is very clever! This recipe is from her The Plant Based Cookbook.

You’ll need mixing bowl, cake tins, food processor.

Serves 10.

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

For Cake

400g plain flour of choice (buckwheat suggested)

1 teaspoon bi carb (approx 5p)

2 teaspoons baking powder (approx 7p)

200g ground almonds (£3.20)

400g coconut sugar (£3.20)

3 medium carrots (approx 250g) peeled and grated

100g raisins (50p)

600ml milk of choice (almond suggested)

100g coconut oil, melted

For icing

250g cashews, soaked 4hrs/overnight then drained (£3.75)

7 tablespoons maple syrup

2 tablespoons almond milk

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (approx 15p)

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £10.92 / £1.10 pp

Method:

Preheat the oven to 200ºC (fan 180ºC). Line two 23cm cake tins with baking parchment.

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, bicarb, baking powder, ground almonds and coconut sugar, stirring well to remove any lumps. Once combined, add the carrots, raisins, almond milk and coconut oil, and stir again until a batter has formed.

Pour the batter into the lined tins and bake for 35–40 minutes, until well risen and a knife inserted in the centre comes out clean – if it doesn’t, place the tins back in the oven for 5 more minutes.

Once ready, remove and leave the cakes to cool in their tins until room temperature, about 30 minutes.

While the cakes cool, make the icing. Place the drained cashews in a food processor with the rest of the ingredients and blitz until smooth, about 10–15 minutes – it should be thick enough to hold its shape but thin enough to smooth over a cake. Add another splash of almond milk if it gets too thick.

Remove the cooled cakes from their tins. Spread half of the icing over one cake to make the cake’s filling then sandwich the two cakes together. Smooth the other half of the icing over the top and serve.

Zero Waste Tips

Use home compostable baking parchment paper.

Make your own Almond Milk to avoid packaging.

If you have left over icing its great to use in porridge or to stuff dates!

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Malt Loaf

We haven’t had malt loaf for ages, a childhood favourite we decided to give baking our own a go. We followed a Meera Sodha recipe found in the Guardian, it was surprisingly quick and easy to make.

You’ll need 2 mixing mixing bowls, loaf or baking tin.

Makes 1 large loaf / 8-10 servings.

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

Rapeseed oil, for greasing

2 tbsp milled chia seeds (approx 15p)

150ml brewed tea, hot (we used 1 tablespoon of loose English breakfast approx 18p)

1 tbsp lemon juice

150ml malt extract, plus extra for brushing

80g coconut sugar (64p)

250g dried fruit (we used raisins, figs and prunes), chopped into raisin-sized pieces (approx £2)

250g plain flour

1 tsp baking powder (approx 4p)

½ tsp bicarbonate of soda (approx 3p)

¼ tsp sea salt (approx 1p)

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £3.05.

Method:

Heat the oven to 180C and grease and line your tin with baking paper.

Put the milled chia seeds in a small bowl with five tablespoons of water and leave to one side to bloom.

Meanwhile, put the hot tea, lemon juice, malt extract, sugar and fruit in a heatproof bowl. Stir until the sugar dissolves, then add the bloomed seeds, flour, baking powder, bicarb and salt. Mix well, then spoon into the prepared tin.

Bake for 50-60 minutes (the timing will depend on the shape of your loaf tin), or until a skewer comes out clean. As soon as the cake comes out of the oven, brush the top with more malt extract (or we used some date syrup for a bit of extra sweetness) and leave to cool. Eat warm with your favourite spread or wrap in baking paper and keep in an airtight tin, where it will get stickier and keep for up to a week.

Zero Waste Tips

Use home compostable baking parchment paper.

Reuse your tea leaves - should be good for a cup of tea to eat your malt loaf with!

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DIY: Bagels

These are so often found in plastic so we were excited to try Jeffery Robinsons recipe in his beautiful new cookbook The Modest Kitchen Journal:Summer.

You’ll need 2 mixing mixing bowls, saucepan, baking tray

Makes 6 bagels.

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

10g active dried yeast (15p)

4 teaspoons demerara sugar (approx 5p)

300ml water

450g bread flour

1 teaspoon salt (approx 5p)

1 teaspoon baking powder for boiling (approx 4p)

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx 29p.

Method:

Bring flour and salt together and set aside. In another bowl pour your warm water with the yeast and sugar and leave to rest for 10 mins.

Make a well in your flour and pour your liquid and kneed for 10 mins. When ready put back in greased bowl and leave to rest for at least an hour, it should double in size.

Once ready tip the dough out and cut into 6 pieces. Work the pieces individually into balls. Next poke a hole into the middle of each ball and gently expand making a bagel shape.

When all bagels are made leave them to rest of a lightly floured surface, you want them to expand slightly but not over prove.

When ready bring a pan of water to the boil, pre-heat oven to 190C and prepare a baking tray with parchment paper. Add your baking powder to the water and when boiling add a few bagels and leave them for no longer than 15 secs and then flip them over for the same time on the other side. Gently lift out and place onto your prepared baking tray, add any toppings (seeds, salt) and pop in oven for 20 mins. Once cooked allow to cool.

Zero Waste Tips

Can be frozen if needed (handy to cut them in half first).

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Nasturtium Buns

A beautiful savoury bun to make while nasturtiums are in bloom! Inspiration from the amazing Loria Stern.

You’ll need food processor, 1 mixing bowls, jug, spatula, baking tray

Makes 12 buns.

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

Dough:

1 cup warm milk (dairy or nut/oat)

1 tablespoon demerara sugar (approx 4p)

1 tablespoon active dry yeast (approx15p)

2 eggs (or flax/chia egg for vegan)

6 tablespoon melted butter (or coconut oil for vegan)

½ teaspoon salt (approx 5p)

bowl full of nasturtium leaves (washed)

600g all-purpose flour

Filling

2 cups loose nasturtium flowers (washed)

Nasturtium pesto, or pesto of choice

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx 24p.

Method:

First mix your nasturtium leaves and your flour together in blender. Then make the dough first by warming milk so that it’s lukewarm and pour into the mixing bowl with 1 Tablespoon sugar and 1 Tablespoon yeast. Stir and let it sit (proof) for five minutes or until it becomes foamy.

Then add the butter and eggs in the bowl with your proofed yeast, and mix until combined. Add the flour and salt and mix.

Knead dough until a large ball is formed and pulls away from the sides of the bowl. The dough should be smooth. If the dough seems too sticky, add 1 tablespoon more flour at a time until a smooth ball is formed.

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead with your hands until it is smooth and elastic (about 3-5 minutes). Form into a ball and lightly grease your bowl and place the dough instead, cover the bowl with a tea towel and put the bowl in a warm place to rise. Let the dough rise in a warm place for about 1 hour or until dough has doubled in size.

In the meantime, organise filling. Gather your nasturtium flowers and pesto.

Once dough is ready star to make the rolls. Sprinkle a flat work surface with flour.

Gently press the air out of the dough and form it into a rectangle.

Roll the dough into a 24” x 12” rectangle that is about ¼ inch thick.

Evenly spread a thick layer of your pesto with spatula/knife.

Add your nasturtium flowers in design of choice.

Roll up the dough tightly and cut into 12 equal sized rolls (each roll about 2” wide). Dividing the dough in half each time for the best (most even results without measuring!)

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and then place your rolls 4 x 3 on the sheet.

Cover with your tea towel and let rise until nearly doubled in a warm place, about 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 175 C.

*Optional: Swipe each roll with egg wash for a more golden, shiny bake

Once the rolls are doubled in size, bake them in the preheated oven until golden brown, about 15-18 minutes.

Zero Waste Tips

Can be frozen if needed.

Make your own pesto, wild garlic, nasturtium, basil.

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Rose Cardamom Buns

A beautiful bun to make while roses are in bloom! From the amazing Loria Stern.

You’ll need 2 mixing bowls, jug, spatula, baking tray

Makes 12 buns.

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

Dough:

1 cup warm milk (105 degrees F) (or coconut milk for vegan)

100g demerara sugar (30p)

1 tablespoon active dry yeast (approx15p)

2 eggs (or flax/chia egg for vegan)

6 tablespoon melted butter (or coconut oil for vegan)

½ teaspoon salt (approx 5p)

1 teaspoon cardamom (we ground seeds from our pods, approx 25p)

600g all-purpose flour

Filling

2 cups rose petals (washed)

50g coconut sugar sugar (40p)

1/4 cup rose water (we didn’t have so left this out)

6 tablespoon softened butter (or coconut oil for vegan)

extra 2 cups loose rose petal (washed)

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £1.15

Method:

Make the dough first by warming milk so that it’s lukewarm and pour into the mixing bowl with 1 Tablespoon sugar and 1 Tablespoon yeast. Stir and let it sit (proof) for five minutes or until it becomes foamy.

Then add the rest of the sugar, butter, eggs in the bowl with your proofed yeast, and mix until combined. Add the flour, salt and cardamom, and mix.

Knead dough until a large ball is formed and pulls away from the sides of the bowl. The dough should be smooth. If the dough seems too sticky, add 1 tablespoon more flour at a time until a smooth ball is formed.

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead with your hands until it is smooth and elastic (about 3-5 minutes). Form into a ball and lightly grease your bowl and place the dough instead, cover the bowl with a tea towel and put the bowl in a warm place to rise. Let the dough rise in a warm place for about 1 hour or until dough has doubled in size.

In the meantime, make filling. In a medium size bowl, stir together rose water and sugar. Then gather 2 cups rose petals, pink and red petals work best, wash off in a colander. Place in the bowl with your rose water and sugar and massage so that the rose petals macerate with the rose water and sugar mixture. Set aside.

Once dough is ready star to make the rolls. Sprinkle a flat work surface with flour.

Gently press the air out of the dough and form it into a rectangle.

Roll the dough into a 24” x 12” rectangle that is about ¼ inch thick.

Spread your softened butter with spatula/knife.

Evenly spread your macerated rose petals on the dough rectangle, trying to cover the surface to the sides. Scatter the other 2 cups of washed rose petals on the dough.

Roll up the dough tightly and cut into 12 equal sized rolls (each roll about 2” wide). Dividing the dough in half each time for the best (most even results without measuring!)

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and then place your rolls 4 x 3 on the sheet.

Cover with your tea towel and let rise until nearly doubled in a warm place, about 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 175 C.

*Optional: Swipe each roll with egg wash for a more golden, shiny bake

Once the rolls are doubled in size, bake them in the preheated oven until golden brown, about 15-18 minutes.

Zero Waste Tips

Can be frozen if needed.

Make your own rosewater by steeping extra foraged rose petals in water.

Find butter in paper or use coconut oil found in reusable glass jars.

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Cornbread Wedges

A fairly quick and easy cornbread recipe, original BBC Good Food recipe used milk and eggs but can easily be made vegan as we did for this meal.

You’ll need mixing bowl, jug, baking tin

Serves 6 people.

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

225g polenta (57p)

140g plain flour (we used wholemeal which is why ours looks a little dark in the image)

1 tbsp sugar (approx 3p)

2 tsp baking powder (approx 7p)

1 ½ tsp salt (approx 10p)

565ml buttermilk ( or milk (dairy or non) with a squeeze of lemon juice)

2 eggs (or chia/flax egg)

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx 77p / 13p pp

Method:

Heat oven to 230 C.

Meanwhile tip all the dry ingredients into a large mixing bowl.

Beat together the buttermilk and eggs in a separate bowl.

Pour over the dry ingredients and mix together until just combined and you have a loose batter.

Pour the batter into a greased/lined baking tin and smooth the top with a knife. Bake for 25-35 mins until golden and a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.

Cool in the pan for 10 mins, then turn out, cut into wedges and serve.

Zero Waste Tips

If you make too much its good to freeze for upto 1 month.

Using home made oat/nut milk is the best way to avoid packaging, or find a milk refill station.

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Marzipan Almond Icing

This marzipan is simply delicious! So much better than the ready made versions you’ll find wrapped in plastic in the shops! Recipe from Delia Online.

You’ll need a large bowl, saucepan, rolling pin.

Makes 375g

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

90g icing sugar

90g demerara sugar (27p) (best if you blend in blender to make finer)

1 large egg beaten

few drops pure almond extract (or we used vanilla)

1 teaspoon brandy

175g ground almonds (£2.80)

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £3.07

Method

If you have a blender pop your demerara in and blend to breakdown into finer particles. Sift icing sugar and demerara into a large bowl, then stir in the egg.

Place the bowl over a pan of barely simmering water and whisk for about 10 minutes, until the mixture is thick and fluffy. Then remove the bowl from the heat and sit the base in about 5cm of cold water.

Whisk in the almond/vanilla extract and brandy and continue to whisk until the mixture is cool. At this point stir in the ground almonds and knead to form a firm paste on a surface lightly dusted with icing sugar.

Roll out the amount needed on a clean surface dusted with icing sugar, and keep giving it quarter turns (to keep it round) between each roll. Once it is rolled to the right size, cover the top of the cake.

Zero Waste Tips

If you have extra left over after covering your cake its great to stuff in dates, make marzipan biscuits or stollen.

Icing sugar is easy to find in a recyclable paper bag.

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Christmas Cake

Gemma made her first Christmas Cake not long ago following a recipe her mum shared with her. It was a great experience tending to the cake in the months before Christmas and it made a wonderful Christmas gift for Jacks parents! We’ve also in recent years adapted the recipe slightly to be vegan and it turned out great too!

You’ll need a large bowl, 20cm cake tin, baking parchment.

Makes 8-10

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

750g mixed dried fruit (approx £4-7 depending on fruit chosen!)

100g whole almonds roughly chopped (£1.40)

100g mixed peel (50p)

200g dried figs (£2.40)

300g plain flour

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (approx 13p)

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg (approx 13p)

zest 1 lemon

250g lightly salted butter or coconut oil

250g coconut sugar (£2)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoon clear honey or agave

1 tablespoon black treacle

4 large eggs or 4 tablespoons of chia seeds mixed with 16 tablespoons water

1/2 teaspoon bi carb (approx 3p)

1 tablespoon milk

3 tablespoon brandy plus more to feed after bake

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £10.59-13.59

Method

Heat oven to 140 C. Line the base and sides of cake tin with double layer of baking parchment.

If doing vegan version pop your chia seeds into a bowl with the water, mix and leave.

In a large bowl mix fruit, almonds, peel and figs. Turn well and add flour, spices and lemon zest.

In a separate bowl, cream the butter/oil and sugar thoroughly, add vanilla, honey and treacle. Still beating add eggs (or chia mix), then stir in the fruit and flour mixture.

Dissolve the bi carb in the milk and add to cake mix. Add the brandy by the spoonful.

Turn batter into the cake tin and make a dip in the middle using the back of a spoon.

Bake for 3.5 hrs, check if cooked, if not give it 10mins and test again.

Once cooked, remove from oven and leave to cool in tin.

Next day remove cake from tin, wrap in fresh baking parchment and put into airtight container or wrap in foil or wax wrap.

Keep the cake for at least a month before icing it, unwrapping and sprinkling further brandy over during the month.

Zero Waste Tips

Find butter wrapped in paper or make your own zero waste vegan butter (we like using a mix of coconut and rapeseed oil with shea butter).

Find refillable milk or make your own zero waste oat or nut version to use.

Buy honey, treacle and brandy in reusable or recyclable glass bottles.

When it comes to finishing your cake, make your own marzipan!

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Almond Biscotti

Avoid plastic wrapped biscuits and make your own. This was our first time making biscotti and we found them super easy to bake and really tasty! We found this recipe on Delia Online.

You’ll need a large bowl, baking tray.

Makes 16

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

50g almonds (70p)

25g ground almonds (40p)

110g flour

75g demerara sugar (23p) (we found this quite sweet and may reduce qty next time)

1 large egg (or you could try vegan alternative)

3/4 teaspoon baking powder (approx 3p)

pinch salt

a few drops almond extract or we used vanilla extract

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £1.36 / 9p per biscotti

Method

Preheat oven to 170 C.

Sieve flour, salt and baking powder into a bowl.

Add almonds, ground almonds and sugar and mix.

Add egg an almond/vanilla extract and first mix with wooden spoon and then with hands to form a smooth dough.

On a lightly floured surface roll dough into log about 28cms long. Place on prepared baking tray and place in centre of oven for 30 mins.

Remove from oven and leave to completely cool.

Pre-heat oven to 150 C

Once cool using a bread knife cut log into slices on slight diagonal about 1cm thick.

Place back on baking tray and back in oven for 30mins until golden and crisp.

Leave to cool, store in airtight container.

Zero Waste Tips

Buy ingredients loose where possible and look for reusable or recyclable packaging if not available.

Use a home compostable baking parchment and you can always keep after first use and use again - ours usually last a few bakes!

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Ginger Cookies

Avoid plastic wrapped biscuits and make your own. These are super tasty, easy to make cookie. The original recipe is from the Every Day cookbook from Deliciously Ella. You could switch out the ginger for another spice if you wanted - cinnamon would be nice!

You’ll need a food processor/blender, baking tray, rolling pin.

Makes 16

Ingredients (when in italics available from the van)

100g almonds (£1.40)

130g pecans (£3.25)

180g flour

95ml maple syrup

2 tablespoons ginger (approx 25p)

1 tablespoon coconut oil

1 tablespoon chia seeds (approx 15p)

optional:

16 dark chocolate buttons (approx 32p)

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (approx 3p) this will make your cookies rise a little and more doughy, if you prefer crunchier biscuit cookies leave out

Total cost from Incredible Bulk approx £5.75 / 36p per cookie

Method

Preheat oven to 200 C.

Place the almonds and pecans in the food processor and blend until a flour forms.

Add all other ingredients (leaving out chocolate buttons if using) plus 95ml of water and blend into a sticky dough.

Get baking trays ready, oil or line with baking parchment.

Dust work top and a rolling pin with flour and roll the dough out until its nice and thin and smooth. Use cookie cutter (or glass) to cut out cookies and put them on the prepared trays.

If using chocolate buttons now is the time to press them into the top of each cookie.

Bake for 15-20mins, until golden and leave to cool, store in airtight container.

Zero Waste Tips

Buy nuts and seeds loose from your local refill shop.

Look for maple syrup and coconut oil in glass jars (great for using as storage once you have finished the contents!)

Use a home compostable baking parchment and you can always keep after first use and use again - ours usually last a few bakes!

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