Ella Mills on demystifying plant-based diets

By Katie Wright

Ella Mills celebrated a major milestone this year, marking 10 years since she posted the first recipe (spiced sweet potatoes with an avocado cream) on the blog she titled Deliciously Ella.

Now a multi-million pound company with a staff of 50 run by the food writer and her husband and business partner Matthew, the brand was born out of a “horrendous situation”, when Mills, now 31, was forced to drop out of university due to ill health.

“I had lots of digestive issues, I had chronic fatigue, chronic pain, I had a consistent UTI for four years,” she says on a Zoom call from Deliciously Ella HQ. “I was on antibiotics, I went into hospital for antibiotic drips, I was on steroids, I tried beta blockers…”

Eventually diagnosed with postural tachycardia syndrome and prescribed drugs that still weren’t working a year later, the then 21-year-old was running out of options. “I just hit an absolute rock bottom with my physical health, but also with my mental health,” she recalls.

Taking matters into her own hands, Mills decided to overhaul her diet, cutting out meat and processed foods, which she found worked wonders for her health, and gradually she came off all medication.

Teaching herself to cook from scratch and sharing her experiments online, the culinary seeds were sown and the novice cook’s following began to grow – today Deiciously Ella has 2.1m followers on Instagram.

Six cookbooks, an app, a restaurant and a supermarket product range later, the mum of two daughters is as surprised as anyone about her phenomenal success.

The bestselling author’s latest title is something of a departure from the standard cookbook format. How To Go Plant-Based: A Definitive Guide For You And Your Family features advice from a range of doctors, nutrition experts, and a psychologist.

“There obviously are so many myths out there and so many concerns, you know, do you need to take supplements? How do you get protein? How do you get calcium? Is it safe for me to do when I’m pregnant? Can my children do it? What about my teenagers?”

Along with answers to those questions, the seventh Deliciously Ella book is packed with easy, one-pan dinners like roasted squash and dhal tray bake, and family favourites regularly wolfed down by Mills’ own little ones, such as 10-minute pea and pesto orzo.

Cauliflower and Cashew Pilaf Tray Bake

Serves 4

1 onion, finely sliced

1 cauliflower, tough outer leaves discarded, cut into florets

1 thumb-sized piece of ginger, peeled and finely grated

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1½ tbsp coconut oil, melted

1 cinnamon stick

2 bay leaves

1tsp cumin seeds

½tsp turmeric

1tsp ground coriander

50g cashews, roughly chopped

40g sultanas

250g white basmati rice, rinsed and drained

200g green beans, trimmed and cut into 4–5cm lengths

500ml hot vegetable stock

1 lemon, halved

Small handful of coriander, roughly chopped

Harissa, to serve (optional)

Preheat the oven to 180C fan.

Put the onion, cauliflower, ginger and garlic into a large roasting tin. Add the coconut oil, cinnamon, bay leaves, cumin, turmeric, coriander and cashews. Mix everything until well combined and spread out in a single, even layer.

Place the tray in the oven and bake for 10 minutes, until the onion and cauliflower have taken on a little colour.

Take the tray out and add the sultanas, rice and green beans. Stir them through the veg, then spread everything out in an even layer. Pour over the hot stock.

Cover the tray with foil and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the cauliflower and rice are tender. Season and add a squeeze of lemon juice to taste, then serve with a generous sprinkling of coriander, and a drizzle of harissa, if you like.

Banana and Olive Oil Loaf

Makes 1 loaf

200g self-raising flour, sifted

1tsp baking powder

3 very ripe bananas, mashed

4tbsp coconut yoghurt

75ml olive oil, plus extra for greasing

1tsp vanilla bean paste

100g prunes or medjool dates, chopped

1tbsp ground flaxseed

75g sultanas or raisins

Preheat the oven to 160C fan.

Grease a 900g loaf tin and line with baking parchment.

In a large bowl, mix together the flour and baking powder.

In a separate bowl, mix together the banana, coconut yoghurt, olive oil, vanilla, prunes and flaxseed. Stir in the sultanas.

Add the banana mixture to the flour and mix well – it will seem dry at first but it will come together.

Pour the mixture into the loaf tin, level out the top and bake for 50–60 minutes, until risen and golden. Test with a skewer – if it comes out clean the loaf is ready.

Leave to cool in the tin for 15 minutes before turning out.

How To Go Plant-Based: A Definitive Guide For You And Your Family by Ella Mills is available now