Enjoying a meat-free Ramadan

Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, when Muslims fast during daylight hours. This year it begins in April. Nuhad Sheikh has kindly written this guest blog for VfL about Ramadan as a vegetarian and vegan, sharing lots of her favourite recipes below.

On a personal note, I’ve been vegetarian for 11 years and vegan for 4, and since then Ramadan for me has been about veganising the most popular foods. We consume a lot of yoghurt-based meals so many are already vegetarian (like fatteh and labneh which I have included below) so the only thing extra was to make the dish vegan by creating the yoghurt itself from cashews.

As a whole, fasting and fast-breaking is all about keeping a light stomach even after eating. So it’s all about balance. And balance is also about balancing proteins (legumes mostly and nuts) as well as keeping a good source of vitamins (specifically B12 which may need to come from supplements) and omega-3 (from walnuts or chia seeds).

Photo credit: GiveRecipe.com

Here is an example of some of the dishes that I enjoy during Ramadan:

Suhour (the meal eaten before dawn during Ramadan)

Would be a lighter option so some examples that I like include:

• Overnight oats – use vegan milk of choice, add berries and walnuts, peanut butter or Chia for more protein
• Banana and date smoothie – use vegan milk or yoghurt of choice
• Chickpea flour omelette – chickpea flour, diced veggies of choice and you can even melt some plant-based cheese on top 
• Lebanese fattoush salad – make with salad leaves, chopped cucumbers and tomatoes along with fresh mint, parsley and sumac
• Almond milk rice pudding – or use another plant milk of choice. Coconut milk gives natural sweetness
• Golden turmeric latte – make with plant-based milk of choice
• Pomegranate quinoa salad
• Roasted sweet potato salad with spinach, pomegranate and pumpkin seeds
• Tabbouleh (Lebanese salad)
• Potato kibbeh
• Vegan labneh with bread
• Vegan mushroom soup
• Avocado on toast

Photo credit: TheMediterraneanDish.com | Hearty Roasted Cauliflower and Chickpea Stew | The Mediterranean Dish

Iftar (the meal eaten after sunset during Ramadan)

I would always have dates followed by some light meals. Usually a soup such as lentil, vegetable, mushroom or Moroccan Harira soup, followed by another dish such as:

• Egyptian koshari (lentil and rice dish)
• Chickpea fatteh with vegan yoghurt
• Vegan shawarma
• Roasted cauliflower & chickpea stew
• Eggplant makloubeh (veggies and rice)
• Turkish lentil meatballs
• Spicy roasted garlic and walnut humus, baked potatoes
• Vegan lasagna
• Vegan moussaka
• Vegan mushroom pasta
• Pumpkin kibbeh
• Mushroom fajitas with guacamole
• Mushroom burger

Snack

I would usually have seasonal fruits, water and herbal teas.