The vegan recipes that could lower your biological age and help you lose weight as study reveals huge health benefits of going plant-based for just two months

METHOD

Giuseppe Federici is a digital creator and author of upcoming vegan cookbook Cooking with Nonna (pictured L-R: Giuseppe Federici; his nonna Marianna)

(Serves 4) 

Preheat the oven to 180°C fan/200°C.

Slice the pumpkin in half and scoop out the seeds. Cut the pumpkin into 2–4cm crescents.

Place on a lined baking tray, add a drizzle of olive oil and season with salt and black pepper. Combine everything together with your hands, then roast for 20 minutes, or until fork tender, flipping halfway.

Meanwhile, make the dressing: put the vinegar, water, salt and sugar into a bowl, then slowly pour in the oil while whisking until it emulsifies. Finally add the pomegranate molasses, and gently mix with a spoon.

Wash and dry the radicchio leaves. Quarter the figs and roughly chop the roasted hazelnuts. Put the radicchio into a large bowl and scatter over the figs, hazelnuts, pomegranate seeds and pumpkin slices.

Drizzle the salad with the pomegranate dressing, season with salt and pepper, and enjoy.

This hearty dish - which is somewhere between a soup and a stew - is delicious, affordable, and nutritious

METHOD

(Serves 6) 

Put the olive oil into a large casserole dish over a medium heat. Finely slice the onion, chop the celery and carrots, and add them to the pot. 

Fry for 10–15 minutes on a medium-high heat until the onion is golden and the veg is all soft. Crush the garlic and add to the pan with the tomato purée, fennel seeds and chilli flakes. Continue to fry, while stirring, for a further 2 minutes.

If using veg stock cubes, dissolve them in 1.2 litres of hot water. 

Pour the veg stock and chopped tomatoes into the pan, followed by the chopped rosemary and nutritional yeast. Season with salt and black pepper and leave to bubble and reduce for 25 minutes.

Meanwhile, drain and rinse the cannellini beans and add two- thirds of them to the soup. 

Place the rest of the beans in a small bowl and, using the back of a fork, mash them into a paste. Stir this paste through the soup – this adds a creaminess and helps thicken it.

Another classic Italian dish, Tiramisu can be made without the animal products - and is still delicious

According to vegan foodie Giuseppe, Biscoff biscuits can be used as an alternative to lady fingers in tiramisu (pictured: Giuseppe, right, with his nonna, left)

METHOD:

Prep your coffee. It’s best to use freshly brewed espresso coffee in a cafetière, but if you’re in a rush, you can use instant. You’ll need around 300ml.

In a separate bowl, add the cream cheese, sugar, vanilla and maraschino (if using) and whisk to combine. Then gently fold in the whipped cream using a spatula until all combined.

Dip each Biscoff biscuit in the coffee for no more than 1 second – just a quick dip in and out is enough, otherwise they will get too soggy. You may think it’s not long enough, but trust me – in and out! Make two layers of biscuits in the bottom of a dish roughly 27 x 20cm, and cover them with half the cream cheese mixture. Make another two layers of the dipped biscuits, and finally add a second layer of cream cheese mixture.

Cover with cling film and refrigerate for 2 hours minimum, but ideally overnight. Dust with cocoa powder and crumble over some crushed Biscoff biscuits just before serving.

Serves four

A Sambar (pictured) is a stew or chowder-type dish, typically found in South Indian and Sri Lankan cuisine

For the sambar 

 For the spiced oil

METHOD 

 For the sambar, heat the oil in a large pan, set over a medium-low heat. 

Add the onion and cook until softened and turning brown. 

Then add the garlic, grated ginger and coconut, and stir to combine. Heat through till fragrant.

Add the turmeric, curry powder/garam masala, and tamarind. 

Cook for 1 minute before adding the lentils, stock and coconut milk and bringing the mixture to the boil.

Reduce the heat, add the cinnamon stick and leave to simmer for 30 minutes.

While the sambar is simmering, prepare the spiced oil. Heat the oil in a small frying pan, set over a low heat. 

Add the onion and fry for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until golden. 

Stir in the cumin seeds, mustard seeds and chilli. 

Cook for a few minutes until you hear the mustard seeds pop; then remove from the heat.

After simmering the sambar for 30 minutes, once the lentils have softened, pour over the lime juice, stir, and remove from the heat.

Spoon the spiced oil over the sambar. Serve alongside flatbread, chapatti or naan, with a wedge of lime and a dollop of yoghurt.

You don't need animal products to make a delicious chocolate mousse - instead, try using aquafaba

METHOD:

Pour hot water into the pan until it’s about 3cm deep and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer. Put a heatproof bowl on top of the pan, ensuring the water doesn’t touch the bottom.

Break 85g of the dark chocolate into the bowl and leave it to melt | Remove and leave to cool a little.

Pour the aquafaba into a large bowl and use the electric beater (a hand whisk won’t cut it this time) to whisk the liquid for 10–15 minutes – it will gradually firm up, as if by magic. Stop when the mixture makes stiff peaks if you lift out the beaters. 

Gently fold in the melted chocolate, sugar, vanilla and salt using a large metal spoon or spatula, making sure you don’t beat out too much air.

Spoon the mousse into serving glasses or bowls and chill for 2 hours

Grate the remaining 15g chocolate. Dress the individual mousses with a handful of blueberries and a touch of grated chocolate just before servin

These Buffalo cauliflower wings created by vegan cookery duo BOSH! were one of the recipes included in the duo's second cookbook, Bish Bash Bosh!

METHOD: 

Preheat the oven to 180C/gas 4 and line 2 baking trays.

Add the cashew nuts to a small saucepan of boiling water on a high heat. Boil for 15 minutes, then strain and run under cold water to cool slightly. Meanwhile, break the cauliflower into florets and cut the stem into bitesized pieces.

Put the flour, plant-based milk, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, paprika, salt and pepper into a bowl and whisk to a batter.

Pour the panko breadcrumbs into another bowl and rub them between your thumb and fingers to break into slightly smaller breadcrumbs.

Tip the cauliflower into the batter and toss to coat. Transfer to the bowl of breadcrumbs, a few pieces at a time, and toss gently until well coated. Spread the cauliflower pieces over the lined baking trays and bake for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, melt the dairy-free butter in the microwave and stir in the hot sauce.

After 20 minutes, remove the tray from the oven, pour over the hot sauce and carefully roll the cauliflower around until the pieces are fully coated. Put the tray back in the oven for 20-25 minutes, until a sharp knife glides into the thickest parts of the cauliflower and the outsides are really golden brown and crispy. Remove from the oven.

While the cauliflower is cooking, put all the ingredients for the ranch sauce except for the herbs into a food processor or liquidiser and whiz for 1-2 minutes until smooth and creamy, then transfer to a serving bowl. Finely chop the parsley and chives and add most of them to the sauce, reserving a little for garnish.

Dish up the cauliflower wings on a serving plate while they’re still hot, sprinkled with the remaining herbs and the ranch dip on the side.

These tofu tacos contain calcium-set tofu and fortified soya yoghurt, which are 'some of the richest calcium sources you can get from a plant-based diet' according to The Vegan Society

METHOD 

Serves four 

For the sour cream mix the soya yoghurt, lime juice and nutritional yeast together.

Make a marinade for the tofu by mixing paprika, cumin and chilli powder, crushed garlic, black pepper and oil together. Take the block of tofu and remove excess water by patting it dry. Grate the tofu into the marinade, mix and coat well.

Heat a pan and fry the minced marinated tofu until browned. Drain and wash the kidney beans and add to the pan along with the chopped tomatoes and heat through.

In a separate pan, lightly fry the onions and peppers in oil.

Heat the tacos in a preheated oven for 5–6 minutes until warm and crisp.

Fill the tacos with the cooked mixture and top with peppers, onions, sour cream and chopped coriander.

METHOD

Another veg-packed dish, this aubergine and peanut curry can be served alongside rice, roti, vegan naan, or simply enjoyed on its own

 Peel the onion and finely dice it into pieces smaller than 3mm across. Roughly crush the whole peanuts using a pestle and mortar.

Wash the aubergine. You can check if the aubergine is bitter at this stage by tasting a small piece, including some of the skin. If it tastes bitter, try to find a new one. Then halve the aubergine, leaving the crown on. While firmly holding the crown, slit the aubergine into three equal parts and then chop it into approximately ½-inch wide pieces. Store the aubergine pieces in a bowl of water to prevent them turning brown.

Roughly chop the tomatoes and pulp them using a blender or hand-blender. Finely chop both the leaves and stalks of the coriander sprigs.

Add the oil to a large frying pan which has a lid, or something suitable to cover it later on. Heat the oil on medium heat. To the heated oil, add the mustard, fenugreek and cumin seeds. When the mustard seeds sizzle, immediately add the curry leaves, diced onions and crushed peanuts. Cook on medium heat until the onions soften and the peanuts become a toasted golden colour.

Drain the water from the stored aubergine pieces and add the aubergine to the pan. Add 200 ml fresh water. Cover the pan and leave to cook on medium heat until the aubergine (including skin) is soft. This could take several minutes. Check if the pieces are soft enough by seeing if a sharp knife can easily pierce the skin and flesh.

Add the pulped tomatoes, coriander and cumin powder, turmeric, chilli flakes and jaggery (optional). Leave to simmer until the tomatoes are cooked, then mix in the vegan cream. You can add the remaining 100 ml water if the curry is becoming too dry.

Taste the curry and add salt. Garnish it with finely chopped coriander, and serve hot.

This peach cobbler has been described as 'Summer in a bowl' by The Vegan Society, which provided the recipe

METHOD: 

Serves four

Heat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/gas mark 4. Grease an approx 24 cm round baking dish with a little vegan spread, then lay the drained peach slices in the base. Sprinkle with 2 tbsp of the sugar and the ground ginger, mix and set aside.

Place the flour, remaining sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and a pinch of salt in a bowl. Stir to combine, then add the vegan butter or spread, rub it in using your fingertips until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs and no lumps of fat remain. Add the soy milk and stir to make a thick but scoopable dough.

Spoon the dough in dollops on top of the peaches, creating a good covering, but leave some gaps for the dough to spread into. Bake for 30 minutes, until golden and bubbling.

Serve and enjoy!

This decadent Summer desert includes a creamy lemon pudding, paired perfectly with seweet shortbread biscuits

METHOD

For the lemon possets: 

Blend all the ingredients, except the raspberries and icing sugar, together in a food processor until smooth. 

Divide the mixture equally between 4 glasses and chill for at least an hour or overnight. 

To serve, top with fresh raspberries, a sprinkling of icing sugar and 2 shortbread biscuits (see recipe below). 

For the shortbread biscuits: 

Preheat the oven to 180C and line two baking trays with baking paper. 

Mix the vegan margarine and icing sugar together in a large bowl. 

Add the rest of the ingredients, except the dairy-free milk. 

If the mixture is too stiff, add the dairy-free milk to help thin it out until you have a soft but firm mixture. 

Transfer to a piping bag with a large star nozzle. Pipe the mixture into small circular spirals. 

Starting from the outside, working your way in. Try and keep them all the same size. Bake for approx 12-15 minutes until lightly golden. 

Leave to cool completely.