Steph, gave me the idea for this one. While she was preparing for her last comp she was mixing cauliflower in with her oats and eggs. I suggested she made the mix into pancakes and the idea took off.

• 2 cups of cauliflower, cut up stems are fine to include (don’t use FROZEN)
• 2 tablespoons coconut milk (optional)
• 2 scoops/60g pea protein*
• a pinch of salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 egg**
• 3 egg whites**

Place the cauliflower in a saucepan with the coconut milk or equivilant water. Cover the saucepan and place over a medium heat to steam for 15-20 minutes or until very soft.

Place the cauliflower in a food processor and puree until smooth. Add in the egg and egg white and whizz a little longer. Add in the pea protien, salt and baking powder and puree until smooth.

Lightly grease a non-stick frying-pan/skillet and cook the mixture in 1/3 cup batches, flipping once the mixture has set.

*Pea protien can be replaced with plain soy protien or your favourite (gluten free) flour such as wholemeal, amarenth or besan.
**Or 2 whole eggs

I’d actually been considering a more plant based diet, since working on the latest issue of Spezzatino magazine. I found the whole process eye opening as it showed me how much I’ve learned about ingredients and nutrition since my days as a cheese and pasta eating vegetarian in High School and University. However, one of my fondest memories from uni days is mornings spent at Vego’n'lovin’ it on Rundle Street with one of my dearest friends, Carolyn. We both spent a lot of our spare time (when we were procrastinating about assignments) trying to re-create their soup. We never cracked it.

With my return daliance to plant-based eating I added more beans in my diet. My pantry started to develope a fair collection. I thought I’d give the recipe one more crack and have something pretty special to start my day. I LOVE soup for breakfast.

1tb oil
1 onion, diced
3 stick celery, diced
2 carrots, diced
3 small cloves of garlic, chopped
1tb malaysian style garam masala
1/4 ts cinnamon
1/2 ts ground coriander
1/4c dry fava/broad beans (soaked overnight)*
1/4c dry red kidney beans (soaked overnight, or 1/2c canned)*
about 3l chicken flavoured stock
1/4c dry mung beans, washed**
1/4c dry brown lentils, washed
1 tomato, diced
1 ear of corn, or 1 small can

Heat the oil in a pressure cooker and cook the onion until golden.

Add in the diced carrot and celery and saute for a further 5 minutes or until soft, then stir in the spices and toast until aromatic.

Add the stock, kidney beans and broad beans. Bring the liquid to the boil then cook under pressure for 15 minutes. Add in the lentils and mung beans and cook under pressure for a further 15-20 minutes.

Add in the corn and tomato and simmer uncovered for 10 minutes.

NOTES: *If you don’t have a pressure cooker pre-cook all these beans for 45 minutes after soaking overnight.
** Carolyn rightly emailed me back saying she didn’t remember mung beans. These are my current favourite bean. The ‘correct’ recipe would be to replace the mung beans with more brown lentils.

I had leftover ‘cauliflower mash’ and woke thinking something warming was in order, but that I didn’t need the carbs of quinoa or oats. The creaminess of the cauliflower and coconut paired perfectly with the slight crunch from the apple, while the egg whites made this a substantial feed.

1/2 cauliflower
1/4 cup light coconut milk
1 ts natural peanut butter
2 tb cashews
1 apple, grated
1 1/2c egg whites
cinamon

1. Cook the cauliflower until soft (3-4mins in microwave).
2. Place in a blender with the coconut milk, nuts and nut butter and blend.
3. Stop at this point and you’ve got creamy rich mash.
4. Place the mixture in a small non-stick frying pan and stir in the egg whites and apple.
5. Continue to stir as if it where scrambled eggs until the egg whites are just cooked.
6. Sprinkle on the cinnamon and drizzle with maple syrup.