Sustainable Table by Green Karma

16/09/2026

Come and chat!
Have a banana biscuit while you're here (thanks chef Julia Grueskin).

04/09/2026

Green Karma presented on plant-based eating for human and planetary health to staff at Banyule Council earlier this week.

Our evidence-based seminar culminated in a cooking demonstration for making 'ceviche with heart of palm' then we all shared a plant-based Mexican feast.

Not pictured: Mexican hot chocolate.

Approximately 80% of this feast was prepared with rescued produce.

04/09/2026

Come and chat to us at the Volunteer Expo!

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1CAWRKy7BZ/

Join us at the Volunteer Expo 2026, a free community event where we connect local residents with a wide range of meaningful volunteering opportunities.

📅 Wednesday 16 September
🕘 10am – 1pm
📍 Streeton Room, The Centre Ivanhoe

This is your chance to explore how you can get involved, give back, and make a positive impact in our community.

Register here: banyule.vic.gov.au/VolunteersExpo

21/08/2026

Recipe time!

For those of you who joined us for our Spice Journey last Saturday, what was your favourite dish?

As a general note, we dialled down the heat in these recipes.

JAMAICA: JERK JACKFRUIT
We pre-roasted the jackfruit, used a few mild chillies and skipped the ACV.
https://theveganlarder.com/jamaican-jerk-jackfruit-with-rice-and-peas/

ETHIOPIA: ATAKILT WAT (potato & cabbage) scroll to the third recipe.
We made our own berbere spice mix (see photos) and used much less cayenne. We used the veggies we had (slightly different).
https://goodhealthrecipes.com/vegan-ethiopian-recipes/

OMAN: MADROUBA (spiced rice porridge)
We cut the limes in half and deydrated instead of leaving whole - to save time and power. You may be able to buy whole dehydrated limes at Middle Eastern grocers.
https://veganphysicist.com/oman-vegan-madrouba/?fbclid=IwVERDUATJYZhleHRuA2FlbQIxMABzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAwzNTA2ODU1MzE3MjgAAR4FQMI3P1Pzx5rDGPNEbdL4VVnIh7oh2G5DfdFIMlSoV8f3XLFMLqe3DjFcpQ_aem_2MV4oDmUMO2UKQRKi932sQ -recipe-container-3549

INDIA: 'BUTTER' CHICKPEAS

https://www.veganricha.com/butter-chickpeas-1-pan-30-min/?fbclid=IwdGRjcATb_IBjbGNrBNv8R2V4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkDDM1MDY4NTUzMTcyOAABHiF7xFTF48BJ7zysv4MBarAACLUxKPWElklN5jcM8QVh9Y5umYBPpZ5qjWOe_aem_baVgM-nLViu0q69gz422nQ -recipe-container-52096

SYRIA: M'NAZAELEH (capsicum & eggplant stew)
We had a lot more capsicum than eggplant. We also roasted the eggplant whole until soft and squishy, as opposed to salting and frying. https://www.bhg.com.au/recipe/food/eggplant-tomato-stew/

INDIA: PEANUT 'PANEER'
Raw peanuts are required for this recipe. We got ours from a bulk store, you may also find at an indian grocer.
Paneer can be made from many bases, including soy milk. We also browned the paneer (on sandwich press) to firm it up.
https://www.alienrecipes.com/the-2-best-ways-to-make-vegan-paneer-no-tofu/

INDIA: Charu’s Vegan PALAK Paneer (sauce only)
4 to 6 serves

INGREDIENTS

2 cups of spinach, silverbeet, warrigal greens or a mix of all
Blanched and pureed

1/2 cup mung daal, yellow huskless
boiled and pureed

1 medium-sized onion
1 can of pureed tomato
1 inch ginger
5 cloves of garlic

1 long red pepper, sweet or spicy
2 tbsp olive oil
salt to taste
1/2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp coriander
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp curry powder
1/4 tsp asafoetida
1 tsp garam masala

METHOD
Blend onion, garlic, and ginger into a puree or a chopper if you want a textured sauce.
Add oil in a pan, fry the puree, and add all the spices and salt except garam masala. Cook till the raw smell of the puree is gone.
Add tomato puree. Mix and cook til oil separates.
Add spinach puree and dal to the masala and protein of your choice; bring to a boil, then simmer covered for 10 min.
Turn the hob off and add garam masala.
Enjoy!

UK: SPICED BREAD & 'BUTTER' PUDDING
Variations:
Added cardamom to the cream when heating. Omitted sugar on top.

https://www.thevegspace.co.uk/recipe-vegan-bread-butter-pudding/

The sorbets were made with frozen fruit and a little sugar syrup.

17/08/2026

A huge, heartfelt thank you to everyone who not only made Saturday's lunch happen, but made it special.

We see EVERYONE who pitched in.

It's a reminder about how good humanity can be.

About how (hopefully) kindness is contagious.

We shared food, resources and skills and started conversations around a shared vision of making the world a better place.

We'll share recipes very soon too.

What started with bay leaves became a laden SHARING TABLE. Thank you to everyone who contributed.

Nothing was wasted. The tiny amount of left overs were distributed. Scraps went to a garden.

Did you try Mikoto's roasted Madeira spinach roots?

Read her story about them below ⤵️

Finally, if you started a conversation you'd like to continue, please comment below or send us a DM. Likewise, if you're interested in volunteering in any capacity.

💚🌿

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This one day I discovered Madeira vine tubers I harvested from my garden were amazingly delicious when roasted! 😋🌿🔥

Yes, the underground rhizomes and tubers of the Madeira vine (Anredera cordifolia) are edible when properly cooked, tasting somewhat like a mild potato, though they contain a very sticky, slimy mucilage that requires high-heat roasting or thorough boiling to break down. However, the aerial bulbils (the small, wart-like tubers that grow along the vine stems above ground) are generally considered inedible and are reserved only for traditional medicinal uses.This video explores harvesting and preparing the edible parts of the plant:Take a look at this video, https://youtu.be/JTcLcV6W1_g?si=awi_MG5KjYvdu4qW

14/08/2026

The correct address for our lunch today is 233 Southern Rd, Heidelberg West.

Type this into google maps and you'll find us.

There are 3 Olympic Neighbourhood Houses - if you search that name you'll get a different location.

See you soon!

12/08/2026

Folks, we're super close to being FULLY BOOKED for this Saturday's community lunch - Winter Spice Journey.

If you can no longer make it, please let us know.

SHARING TABLE - we'll hopefully have a little garden produce to share with you, including these bay leaves.
Please BYO containers or bags.
Do you have surplus produce in your garden? Bring it along to share!

07/08/2026

What do our volunteers eat?

Left overs 😁

We recently had a small gathering with some current and new volunteers to discuss ideas.

Lunch was left over soup; (thank you Carolyn), toasties and quesadillas using (frozen) leftovers from previous lunches and rescued bread.

That fabulous cake?
We also celebrated the birthday of Green Karma's Program Coordinator - Carolyn. Carolyn ordered the cake from Chay Plant Based Cakes https://www.facebook.com/share/1Ew3xrKt62/(at her own expense), we can definitely recommend!

We're all here to make a difference and in doing so we're making wonderful connections.

If you're interested in volunteering we'd love to hear from you. We're flexible with committment. Drop us a DM.

07/06/2026

You don't have to wait for our next community lunch to eat greener.

Transform your favourite meal with simple swaps or head to the Veg Kit site for recipes and inspiration.

Going plant-based for the planet is one of the best ways we can help the environment on an individual level. Here's all the reasons why...