Budding MasterChef, Abbey cooks close to 200 vegetarian recipes whilst raising money for FoodCycle
After watching the film, Julie and Julia, 13 year old Abbey decided to take on the challenge of cooking her way through the book, ‘200 veggie feasts’ in 100 days.
She started the challenge at the beginning of lockdown as she had some time on her hands, wanted to do something for charity, and loves to cook.
Grandad, David was so impressed with her efforts, that he offered to make a donation of 50p for every meal that she cooked.
We caught up with Abbey to chat about her challenge and why she chose FoodCycle.
Why did you choose to support FoodCycle?
I chose FoodCycle because I wanted to support a food-related charity, given the theme of my challenge, and especially given the challenges some people are facing in buying food during the coronavirus pandemic. I am a keen cyclist and hate food waste so it seemed the perfect match.
What has been your favourite recipe so far?
I have enjoyed lots of the recipes but have particularly enjoyed the sweet potato and coconut soup; onion, pumpkin and sage pie; pancakes with blueberry sauce; tiramisu cheesecake and the triple chocolate muffins! I didn’t enjoy the lavender and strawberry crush- I think lavender is better in a lavender bag or soap!
What has been the hardest recipe so far?
It was hard to find wonton wrappers for the mushroom and ginger wontons and for the sweet wonton millefeille. Deep fat frying is not in my comfort zone, so I prefer to get tempura from the takeaway!
Are you hoping to become a cook/chef in the future or is this just a hobby?
I’m not sure! I certainly want to carry on cooking and baking because I love doing it and feeding people, but I am not sure whether I want to pursue it as my career. Maybe I might cook as a volunteer for a charity like FoodCycle in my spare time.
What are your top cooking tips?
Leave lavender on the bush!
I like to get all the ingredients out before I start so it is handy and I can make sure I haven’t forgotten anything.
Try to clean up as you go along- boring but much better when you have eaten.
Even really simple dishes can be delicious. The mixed berry sorbet only had 3 ingredients but was yum!
Try everything once as you may be surprised. I was not a big fan of aubergine but have made some tasty recipes with it during the challenge.
If those photos are making you hungry, follow Abbey’s progress on Instagram here. And if you feel inspired, why not start your own fundraising challenge to help FoodCycle or get donating here.
