Charlotte Bates, Author at Good Carma

Hi and some information about me and my business

25th March 2022 by Charlotte Bates Leave a Comment

So just wanted to say Hi to all our new followers.

I’m Charlotte and I’ve been running my business in 2013. I started my business in memory of my beautiful Mum and followed my dream of running my own business. I’m not going to lie, it’s been hard in places but has been totally worthwhile. I am passionate about food and especially making natural nut based cheese alternatives that are healthy without sacrificing flavour. I am passionate about the environment and animals. My husband and I live in South West Wales and have rescue animals. My best advice is follow your dreams and always remember to be kind. 💕

These reviews make it all worthwhile 😊

23rd March 2022 by Charlotte Bates Leave a Comment

What a fabulous review from @gees_journey_ about our Great Taste Award winning cashew based mature cheddar alternative. 🌱🧀✌️🙏🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

‘I had the honour of meeting this lovely lady behind the brand at a vegan festival and her passion for her product is incredible just like the taste , this spread is the perfect flavour as I like a lot of vegan cheeses doesn’t have that strong overwhelming coconut oily flavour and is instead mild , creamy and just like how I remember cheese 🧀 to be , the closest thing I’ve tried and have the approval of my non vegan parents who are cheese a holicks so high praise indeed and great paired with pickle on crackers and toast 😉 ‘

Vegan Frittata Recipe

16th March 2022 by Charlotte Bates Leave a Comment

Thanks to v @eatwellrevolution

🌱Vegan Frittata🌱

I’ve taken some inspiration from my good friend @dawnsplantkitchen after looking at her new recipe blog over the weekend.

Do pop over to her page if you haven’t seen it yet. There are some mouthwatering vegan delights to be found there! 😋

My recipe is slightly different though as I’m feeding the whole fam…

Ingredients:
1 cup chickpea flour (gram flour)
1 cup of cold water
1/2 tsp turmeric
Pinch of kala namak salt (optional)
2tsp dried parsley
4tbsp avocado oil
Sea salt and black pepper to season
1 cup of cashew cream (1/2 cup raw cashews softened in boiling water then blended with 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk & 4 tbsp nutritional yeast)
2-3 cups of roasted veg of choice

Method:
Pop everything except the veg into your blender and blitz to smooth.

Pour over your roasted veg (I’ve used red peppers, courgette and also some wilted spinach) into a lined round 8” cake tin, and this bit is optional but I do like to sprinkle a good helping of @goodcarmafoods Flavour Fusion in top, before it’s baked at 180c for 25 minutes.

You can check it’s set with a skewer or sharp knife.

Allow to cool for 10 minutes, gently remove from the cake tin then enjoy with a tasty side salad. 💚

Reviews like this are so lovely about our products

12th March 2022 by Charlotte Bates Leave a Comment

Review like this one below males all our hard work worthwhile.

“Hi Charlotte
My wife and I are not vegan, and are fortunate to not need to be dairy free. However, we are now baking our Sweet Potato fries with a sprinkling of your chilli Flavour Fusion, and have roasted cauliflower with the garlic Fusion Flavour (per your suggestion), and found both to be full of flavour, and were really impressed with the products. Thank you for your creativity in making these great products.”

Another Happy Customer!

9th March 2022 by Charlotte Bates Leave a Comment

Hi Charlotte
“My wife and I are not vegan, and are fortunate to not need to be dairy free. However, we are now baking our Sweet Potato fries with a sprinkling of your chilli Flavour Fusion, and have roasted cauliflower with the garlic Fusion Flavour (per your suggestion), and found both to be full of flavour, and were really impressed with the products. Thank you for your creativity in making these great products” thanks to Andrew and Sara Macpherson

Message from Dalai Lama

2nd March 2022 by Charlotte Bates Leave a Comment

I have been deeply saddened by the conflict in Ukraine.

Our world has become so interdependent that violent conflict between two countries inevitably impacts the rest of the world. War is out-dated – non-violence is the only way. We need to develop a sense of the oneness of humanity by considering other human beings as brothers and sisters. This is how we will build a more peaceful world.

Problems and disagreements are best resolved through dialogue. Genuine peace comes about through mutual understanding and respect for each other’s wellbeing.

We must not lose hope. The 20th century was a century of war and bloodshed. The 21st century must be a century of dialogue. I pray that peace is swiftly restored in Ukraine.

The Dalai Lama February 28, 2022

Happy St David’s Day!

1st March 2022 by Charlotte Bates Leave a Comment

Happy St David’s Day from Wales!

As you know we are based in West Wales and so this is why we are celebrating today and it’s Shrove Tuesday. I shall be having gluten free pancakes later with our Spread Sensation on. Yummy!

What are you having for pancake day? 🙂

I wanted to share these facts with you because I found them interesting and thought you would too.

6 St David’s Day Facts

St David is the only British/Irish saint to be born in the country he is patron of. …
There are many stories of David performing miracles. …
David was an early vegetarian. …
The humble leek forms an important part of St David’s Day. …
St David’s last words have become famous.
St David died in 589 and is buried at St David’s Cathedral in Pembrokeshire

Have a lovely week everyone!

Beetroot Bourguignon Tortilla Pie

10th January 2022 by Charlotte Bates Leave a Comment

Recipe kindly shared by @eatwell revolution

https://goodcarmafoods.com/shop/flavour-fusion/flavour-fusion-multipack/

Ingredients:
2 tbsp avocado oil
4 crushed garlic cloves
1 white onion – diced
2 cups of closed cup mushrooms- sliced
3 beetroots (I used pre-cooked, vacuum packed)
2 large carrots – peeled and chopped
1 tbsp tomato purée
0.25 ltr of low sodium veg stock
1 tsp yeast extract
Big handful of chopped fresh parsley
1 cup of fresh cranberry sauce (or you can use red wine if you prefer)
1 can of puy lentils (drained and rinsed)

Method:
Heat the oil in a large saucepan and sauté the garlic, onions until the onions are translucent. Add the mushrooms and continue to sauté until they are cooked.

Add the carrots, stock, yeast extract and tomato purée then simmer for 10 minutes.

Add the cranberry sauce, beetroot, lentils and parsley and continue to simmer until the carrots are nice and soft.

You could have it just like this, with some rice, quinoa or potatoes…but I decided to try making it similar to the M&S pie…

So I used a wholemeal tortilla to line a baking dish, brushed with a little oil, filled with the stew, sprinkled with crushed walnuts and some @goodcarmafoods Flavour Fusion (nooch would work too) then baked for 25 minutes and 200c.

Absolutely delish! 😋

Veganuary and the reason why I decided to be vegan

6th January 2022 by Charlotte Bates Leave a Comment

Welcome to Veganuary everyone! Whether you are doing Veganuary as a once a year thing or going all the way, It is great. The image above is what we will be doing more of at Good Carma this year.

I often get asked why I decided to go vegan. Well it’s a long story but basically it made sense to me as i wanted to help the environment, animals, health and leave somewhere beautiful for future generations.

I’ve always had an affinity with animals since i was a child and being an only child and living in the country meant that i spent a lot of time with farm animals which most of them are rescue animals.

I have been on a plant based diet since I was a teenager and have been fully vegan since 2008. Nutrition and health I have always been passionate about and making nut based cheeses seemed a good way to be able to not only provide healthy, nutritious, cheese alternatives but be able to help the planet and animals as well.

Slowly my range of vegan cheeses is growing and I am hoping to expand into vegan retreats this year as well as more rewilding to be able to provide a habitat for all the beautiful flora and fauna that we share this beautiful planet with.

🌱Chilli Mac n Cheeze by @Eat Well Revolution🌱

9th December 2021 by Charlotte Bates Leave a Comment

Easy and yummy winter warmer for a chilly day.

The cheeze sauce is made by soaking a cup of raw cashews in boiling water for an hour, draining off the liquid then blending with half a cup of unsweetened almond milk, 2 tbsp of https://goodcarmafoods.com/shop/spread-sensation/spread-sensation-multipack/ ‘Spread Sensation Mature Cheddar Alternative’ and 2tbsp of nutritional yeast.

Add to a saucepan of your favourite cooked pasta then gently heat and mix through with a generous helping of chilli flakes.

I’ve used organic GF oat based pasta, plus I’ve also added some lovely fresh spinach and mushrooms. 😋