Madeira Cake

This cake makes a great Christmas cake alternative for people who don’t like dried fruit. If, as in our family, you end up doing both fruit and madeira, try making this one square for a different look:

For this recipe there are two alternative methods: with and without a food processor. Both ways give […]

Chocolate Log

This is every bit as delicious as the original (indeed, the original swiss roll is fat free in the first place). The icing is the adjusted part.

You must be organised to make a good swiss roll. Don’t start this recipe without reading it all the way through first. You must have everything you […]

Custard

“Achieving dairy-free custard which will pass muster in comparison with the real thing is possible. It’s taken me about four years of tweaking to get the recipe right, but now I have something which even sceptical non-dairy-free relations have to admit tastes very much like proper custard. ”

That’s what I said about four years […]

Tiramisu

I have to confess to being rather proud of this one. I’ve fed it to friends without any indication that it was dairy-free, and they couldn’t tell. So, if you’ve been hankering after the indulgent creaminess of this dessert, you need hanker no longer!

For this recipe you will need a small dish/bowl, a medium/large […]

Shortcrust Pastry

There are some ready-made versions which are dairy-free, but if you have a food processor pastry is so easy that there is really no excuse. Without the processor it takes longer, but tastes exactly the same.

For making pastry you need cold ingredients. It does work with dairy-free spread, but the texture can be more […]

White Bread

Of all the day to day foods which are hard to find dairy-free, bread is probably top of our list. We were reduced to just one (other than speciality breads) which was readily available near us and would keep for more than 24 hours. As a result, we bought a bread machine and I can […]

Parsnip Gratin

This is a lovely way of serving parsnips for a winter dinner party.

For this recipe you will need a heavy bottomed frying pan, a food processor (or a lot of patience and a grater) and an ovenproof dish.

Recipe: Parsnip gratin

Summary: An excellent side dish for a casserole

Ingredients 1lb parsnips, peeled […]

Carbonnade

This traditional Belgian dish makes a very satisfying winter meal. It is good served with crispy baked potatoes and either green beans or broccoli.

To make this dish you will need either a flameproof casserole (e.g. le Creuset) or both a frying pan and an ovenproof casserole. It is easier in the flameproof version since […]

Lasagne

This is not a vegan/vegetarian lasagne since our main interest is in replacing the dairy content of meals whilst retaining as much as possible of the original dishes. However, if you replace the meat sauce part with a lentil or Quorn based tomato sauce, the end result will be as good as your sauce is […]

Cheese Sauce

Cauliflower cheese made with our "cheese" sauce!

Cheese sauce is one of the trickier things to do without dairy products. However, we think we’ve cracked it, starting with a roux-based white sauce as a base. This recipe is slightly fiddly, but persevere as the results are well worthwhile. This sauce […]