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BOSH!
WORDS VICKI RAVLICH-HORAN | RECIPE HENRY FIRTH & IAN THEASBY
Described as the vegan Jamie Olivers, Henry Firth and Ian Theasby are a phenomenon. Bosh, Healthy Vegan, is their third book in just three years. Quite a feat for a pair who five years ago were carnivores. The school friends entered their thirties feeling unhealthy, unfit and unhappy so made a switch to a plant-based diet, noticing the health benefits straight away. They lost weight, slept better and woke up in the mornings feeling energised. Wanting to share their discovery, in June 2016, they launched BOSH! an online recipe channel to show just how easy delicious plant-based cooking could be. Their videos went viral with over a billion views in the first year! They currently reach 26 million people a month. Henry and Ian say: “We started BOSH! to show the world just how delicious plant-based food can be. We created videos to prove that you can still have all your favourite foods, but without the meat
and dairy. And with our new healthy recipes, nothing changes. Incredible looking burgers, luscious roast dinners, wonderful stews and curries and even pizza can still be on the menu! This is still BOSH! food: hearty comforting food that you want to eat.” If you’re just dipping your toes into the world of veganism or trying to eat more plant-based meals, the BOSH! books are a great place to start. Bosh! Healthy Vegan recipes have all been nutritionally analysed with each meal indicating if they are particularly high in protein or fibre, are low in sugar or salt along with their calories per serve. A good chunk of their books is dedicated to expanding your nutritional knowledge to help you get the best from a plant-based diet, and in BOSH! Healthy Vegan they cover a healthy lifestyle too, ticking off sleep, exercise and motivation.
MEATY MUSHROOM PIE This Joe Wicks-inspired pie is topped with filo pastry. It’s hearty and filling, but is lower in fat, processed carbs and calories (and cooks quicker!). Make sure your vegan meat is low in salt and saturated fat.
SERVES 4 1 onion 1 carrot 2 celery sticks 400g mixed mushrooms 10 sprigs fresh thyme 1 sprig fresh rosemary 20g fresh parsley 400g vegan meat 1½ tbsp olive oil 1 bay leaf 1 tbsp tomato puree 50ml red wine
250ml vegetable stock 4 sheets filo pastry low-fat cooking oil spray
TO SERVE 200g Tenderstem broccoli 200g frozen peas 200g fresh spinach leaves 1 lemon salt and black pepper
PREHEAT OVEN TO 190°C | LARGE FRYING PAN | 18 X 28CM BAKING DISH | SAUCEPAN | KETTLE BOILED
First, prep the ingredients | Peel and dice the onion | Peel and dice the carrot | Trim and thinly slice the celery | Roughly chop the mushrooms | Pick and roughly chop the thyme and rosemary leaves | Pick and roughly chop the parsley leaves | Cut the vegan meat into bite-sized chunks. Now, brown the vegan meat | Warm half a tablespoon of the olive oil in the large frying pan over a medium heat | Add half the vegan meat and cook, stirring, for 3–4 minutes until the chunks are browning | Transfer the browned chunks to a plate | Repeat this process with another half tablespoon of the olive oil and the remaining vegan meat.
Make the pie filling | Heat the remaining half tablespoon of olive oil in the frying pan over a medium heat | Add the onion and a pinch of salt and cook, stirring, for 3–4 minutes | Add the carrot and celery and stir for 2 minutes | Add the mushrooms and stir for 3–4 minutes | Add the thyme, rosemary and bay leaf and stir for 1 minute until aromatic | Add the tomato purée and stir for a further minute | Add the browned vegan meat and stir for 1 minute | Add the wine and stir for 1 minute | Add the stock, increase the heat and simmer for about 10 minutes until most of the liquid has evaporated | Add the parsley leaves | Taste and season to perfection with salt and pepper | Tip into the baking dish, smooth it out with the back of a spoon and leave to cool for 5 minutes.
Make the topping | Crumple the filo pastry sheets into loose balls and cover the dish | Spray with 4 sprays of cooking spray | Bake in the oven for 20 minutes, until the pastry is crispy and beginning to darken. Five minutes before the pie is set to come out of the oven, trim the broccoli | Put the broccoli and peas in a saucepan, cover with boiling water and allow to warm through for 3–4 minutes | Put the spinach in a colander, pour the broccoli and peas and all the hot water from the pan into the colander (this will wilt the spinach) | Halve the lemon | Squeeze a little lemon juice over the greens, and season with salt and pepper.
Portion the pie onto plates and serve immediately with the greens.
521 KCAL | 31G PROTEIN | 18G FAT | LOW FAT | LOW SUGAR | HIGH FIBRE
