Sluttishly Savoury: Vegan Pepper and Courgette Quiche

If you already subscribe to our rather fabulous monthly newsletter, then you'll already know that this week is National Food Allergy and Intolerance Week. (And if you haven't already signed up, then why not, eh? You're missing out. Do it now using the box on the sidebar. Go on. I'll wait.)

So, with the intention of providing more sluttishly easy recipes for the veggies and vegans among our ravishing readers, here's a quiche recipe which is simple, straightforward and speedy to prepare, not to mention delicious. Although the baking takes a while, once it's in the oven you can knock up a salad to accompany it, or simply kick back with a glass of wine whilst you wait and drool in anticipation about feasting on its tasty pastry.

All you'll need is:

For the pastry:

• 225g plain wholemeal flour
• 130g margarine
• (If you're feeling lazy or strapped for time, you can buy ready-made quiche cases in most supermarkets, but make sure you check the ingredients to make sure they're vegan-friendly)

For the quiche filling:

• 2 red onions
• 2 peppers (red, orange or yellow work best)
• 2 courgettes
• 350g cubed tofu
• 200g vegan cheese (the brand of choice for my favourite vegan cohort is red cheddar-style Cheezly, but if you're not vegan yourself ask whoever you're cooking for their preferred brand, as opinion seems to differ wildly on which one is the best)
• 2tbsps tomato purée
• 1tsp salt
• 20ml soya milk
• Herbs for seasoning with

All you need to do is:
1.Pre-heat your oven to 200C. Rub the margarine into the flour until it looks like breadcrumbs, then slowly add water a tablespoon at a time until you've got a soft dough which isn't too sticky. Roll onto a floured surface and then use to line a greased quiche/cake/pie tin. Bake for 10 minutes until the pastry's set.

2.Whilst the pastry's setting, chop the courgettes, pepper and onions, and start 'em frying until they begin to soften. Meanwhile, grate the cheese and chop the tofu into cubes.

3.Take the frying vegetables off the heat and mix in the cheese, tofu, tomato purée, salt and herbs. Slowly stir in the soya milk until the mixture forms a paste.

4.Spoon into the quiche case and then bake for 30-50 minutes until the surface of the filling is golden brown. Boast to your vegan friends about how much trouble you've gone to on their behalf until they've been blackmailed into sorting the pudding.

(Image via notahipster's Flickr photostream)