Sweet Onion Jam

Recipe

2lbs sliced yellow onions

1/2 cup veggie stock

1t maple syrup

1T balsamic vinegar

-Heat a few T olive oil over medium heat.

-Add onions and cook covered for 15 minutes stirring occasionally

-After 15 min, add other ingredients and cook uncovered for 30 minutes stirring occasionally

-Let cook and jar it up! keeps in fridge up to 2 weeks

Add to veggie sandwiches, chickpea salad, bean smash sandwiches...salads, roasted potatoes...it's good on so many things!

Mushroom Taco Meat

Ingredients:

1 lb mushrooms 

Taco seasoning:

1T chili powder

1/4t garlic powder

1/4t onion powder

1.5t cumin

1/4t oregano

1/2t paprika

1/2t salt and pepper

(mix it all in a bowl)

Chop mushrooms small.
Sauté in a pan on medium heat until they release some water. Don't use any oil it doesn't need it. After some of the water has cooked off add taco seasoning
Cook a couple more minutes then make up a taco!

If you have a mushroom hater in the fam just make them a taco and don't tell them it's mushrooms? It may work?! It's also super yummy to mix in a can of rinsed black beans to the mushroom Taco Meat and heat through. Mash about 1/2 the black beans with a fork while it's all heating in pan

Homemade Salad Dressing

Three go-to dressings so you never buy store-bought again. These are great on greens packed high with raw or roasted veg, beans, grains...whatever you like on your salads!

Lemon Dressing

1/4 cup lemon juice

4T olive oil

2t dijon mustard

1t honey

splash of water

small grated garlic clove

(this is a great one to massage into kale for a kale greens salad! Cut 1 bunch kale into strips and pour dressing over. Massage with hands for a few minutes. keep in fridge in sealed container until ready to eat. keeps pretty well for a couple days!)

Tahini Dressing

3T lemon juie

2T tahini

small grated garlic clove

1t chickpea miso paste

1/2t maple syrup
water to thin

Yummy Creamy Dressing

3T rice vinegar

pinch of chili powder

1T vegenaise

1T coconut aminos

juice of a lime

Wish each dressing, whisk all ingredients together and pour over salad. 

Keep in sealed jar in fridge for up to 1 week.

Vegan Cheese Sauce

Vegan Cheese Sauce to go on EVERYTHING. Veggie burgers, nachos, tacos, roasted veggies, pasta, baked potatoes....the list goes on. No flour thickeners. LOVING this sauce! I'm toying with the idea of omitting nightshades (peppers, tomatoes...foods that cause inflammation in joints in the body) because I have what I call "runners knees" and because I had arthritic joints during both pregnancies. I'm just curious if food exacerbate the issue....anyway, that's why the tomato paste is optional. It adds a depth of flavor but is not necessary.

3/4 cup soaked raw cashews

1 cup roasted carrots

1T turmeric

1 med sized onion

1 clove garlic

1/2t salt

2 cups veggie broth

1T dijon mustard

3T nutritional yeast

1T tomato paste (optional)

1t dried italian herbs (optional)

To soak cashews: cover with water and let soak for at least 2 hours or overnight

To roast carrots: cut in half lengthwise and then half again across the width. toss in a bit of olive oil, salt and pepper and roast at 400* for 20-25 min, flipping half way through. Until fork-tender and a little browned.

-Chop and saute onion in medium sized pan over med-high heat. after a few minutes, add minced garlic and saute for another minute or so, until onion is translucent. 

-Put sauteed onion and garlic into blender.

-Add roasted carrot, cashews and the rest of the ingredients to blender. 

-Blend until smooth. If it's a little too thick, add more veggie broth 1T at a time until it reaches your desired consistency.  

Heat up the sauce on the stove if you wish. Keep in airtight container in fridge for up to a week.

Flourless Chickpea Cookies

These are so easy to make, you just need a food processor or high speed blender. Throw everything in, fold in the carob chips and then you only bake for 11 minutes! So you can have a warm cookie in your mouth 15 minutes after you decide to make them! Made with only feel good ingredients, high in protein, they are a great cookie to have in your recipe box.

Recipe:

1.5 cups chickpeas

1/2 cup plus 2T peanut butter

2 big scoops carob powder

2t vanilla

1t aluminum free baking powder

1/4 cup maple syrup

1/2 cup carob chips 

Place all ingredients but the carob chips into the blender and blend into a dough. Empty dough into bowl and fold in the carob chips. Form the dough into flattened circles (about 1/5-2" diameter, helps to wet hands) and bake on greased baking sheet at 350* for 11 min.

Raw Kohlrabi Salad

Kohlrabi is one of my favorite vegetables. Eaten raw, it is refreshing with the same crunch as an apple and a mild, crisp, easy to love taste. It is low in calories and rich in vitamins and dietary fiber. To prepare the bulb to eat: cut off the greens and stems (save for smoothies or saute!) and peel the outer layer (purple or green) off. The outside layer is tough but the inside of the bulb is white and tender.

This salad is yummy and refreshing and super quick to throw together. Use a mandolin to julienne the Kohlrabi and apple if you have one.

Raw Kohlrabi Salad:

3 medium Kohlrabi bulbs peeled and julienned 

1 large apple julienned

1 large carrot, grated

handful of cilantro

2 green onions, white and light green parts chopped

2 radishes thinly sliced

lemon vinaigrette

Toss all together in a bowl and enjoy!

Lemon Vinaigrette:

2T olive oil

Juice of a lemon

 1t dijon mustard

1t sweetener (agave, honey, maple syrup)

pinch salt

Add all to mason jar and shake

Fresh & Easy Phyllo Dough Strawberry Pie

 This is a great light and easy pie to bake for your family for an afternoon treat or weekday dessert. It's one you want to eat right when it comes out of the oven...not one I would make and take to a party or potluck. It's a super yummy, quickly made, really fresh tasting, won't weigh you down pie!

Phyllo dough Strawberry Pie Recipe:

2.5 cups fresh strawberries

6 1/2 sheets phyllo dough

2 T melted coconut oil + 1T for greasing cookie sheet

2 T maple syrup

1T tapioca flour

-pre-heat oven to 350*

-Generously grease rimmed cookie sheet with coconut oil

-Dip your fingers into the melted coconut oil and rub a little oil on each sheet of phyllo dough, layering them on top of each other in a clockwise formation on the cookie sheet. Rub a little more coconut oil all around the outside edge of the layered phyllo dough and roll it up to create the circular outer crust.
- Blend up two cups of the strawberries, the maple syrup and the tapioca flour until strawberries are broken down a bit and all ingredients are combined. No need to go crazy blending here.
-Pour the blended strawberry mixture into the phyllo dough
-Slice up the rest of the strawberries and arrange however you would like on the top of the pie. 
-Cover loosely with tinfoil and bake 20 min
-Uncover and bake another 5-10 minutes until edges are golden brown. Check on it while its baking the last 5-10 so the edges dont burn

I had about 1/4 cup of strawberry mixture leftover this time (because of the size of my pie...they always turn out a little differently because you're just rolling the outer edge by hand) and made these SUPER easy little phyllo dough rectangle tartlet things (based off a My California Roots recipe). I'm giving you all the recipe I came up with because they were really yummy and even easier than the super easy pie above!

Phyllo Dough Tartlet Recipe:

(makes 3 tartlets but you can easily make as many as needed)

3-4 strawberries
2 sheet of phyllo dough
1T coconut oil, melted
1/4 cup leftover strwberry mixture from above

-Preheat oven to 425*
-Grease a rimmed cookie sheet generously with coconut oil and set aside
-Slice the two phyllo sheets in half and then slice those in half again so you have 4 long rectangle shapes.
-Place the four rectangles on top of one another and slice those into 3 sections. You should have 3 small rectangles now, each with 8 layers of phyllo.
-Take one of the small rectangle piles and pull off the top 4 layers. Use your fingers and rub coconut oil on the top of the bottom pile. Add back the top four layers and rub with more coconut oil (you are not greasing every layer. Only the middle and the top of the pile). Place on greased cookie sheet.
-Slice a strawberry and arrange on top of the coconut oiled rectangle pile, then spoon on 1/3 of the strawberry mixture. 
-Repeat with the other two phyllo dough piles. 
-Bake at 425* for 10-15 minutes, careful not to burn.

Baked Ziti

The ultimate Vegan Baked Ziti recipe! Seriously soooo good. Warm, gooey, creamy and cheesy (but without any cream or cheese!) Easy to throw together too because you just throw everything for the
"ricotta" into your high speed blender. Non-vegans will love this ziti too! The vegan ricotta recipe is the same one I use for the Ricotta Pie found here.

Recipe:

Box of pasta of your choice (I usually do a whole wheat spiral kind)

1.5 to 2 jars tomato sauce (depending on how saucy you like it)

1 package extra firm tofu

1 1/2 T tahini

2 cloves garlic

3 T nutritional yeast

pinch of nutmeg

1 1/2 t. white miso

juice of half a lemon

pinch of salt and pepper

2T shallot

Two big handfuls spinach (optional) 

-Pre heat oven to 350*

-Spray 9"x13" baking dish with oil

-Cook pasta according to box directions

-While pasta is cooking, crumble tofu into high powered blender, then add the tahini, garlic, nutritional yeast, nutmeg, miso, lemon juice, salt, pepper and shallot. 

-Blend until combined but don't over process. 

-Mix tomato sauce with two handfuls spinach. Spoon about 1/2 cup of the sauce into the prepared baking dish and spread around.

-When pasta is done, drain. Spread half of the cooked pasta into the bottom of the baking dish.

-Scoop out half the ricotta mixture, 1 big spoonful at a time onto the pasta in the baking dish. place each scoop about an inch or two apart in three long rows over the pasta.

-Pour half the remaining tomato sauce into the baking dish. With the back of your spoon, spread the tomato sauce and the ricotta mixture a little bit over the pasta.

-Repeat with the remaining pasta, ricotta mixture and tomato sauce.

-Cover with tinfoil and bake at 350* for 30 min.

(serves 8 or gives your family great leftovers!)

 

Vegan French Toast (no egg)

This French Toast recipe is sweet and warm and comforting...everything you want in a hearty breakfast! The banana mixture creates a light and sweet, caramelized coating on the bread that tastes incredible. 

Ingredients:

  (Makes two servings)

4 slices of bread 

2T ground flaxseed

1 mashed banana

1/2 cup almond milk

1/2t cinnamon

fruit, maple syrup, vegan butter for the top!

-In small bowl, combined flaxseed with 6T warm water and set aside for a minute, then whisk together until gelatinous.

-In shallow baking dish, whisk together mashed banana, flaxseed mixture, almond milk and cinnamon.

-Add in the bread slices to the baking dish one at a time, soaking one side then flipping to soak the other. Let all the slices sit side by side in the mixture for about five minutes. Then flip and let sit another few minutes. (note: if you are using dense bread or day old bread, soak for an additional 5 minutes.)

-Meanwhile, while bread is soaking, heat up large skillet over medium heat and spray with non-stick spray.

-When the bread is done soaking, place the bread slices in the heated skillet and cook for 3-4 minutes per side. 

-Serve with fresh fruit, vegan butter and maple syrup!

Happiness Cookies :)

These are still our favorites!! Updated recipe below. We make these about every other week because in every plant-based diet, there must be a delicious cookie!! ;)

HAPPINESS COOKIES

1/2 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup maple syrup
1T  ground flaxseed
1t vanilla
  3/4 cup plus 2T spelt flour
  1 cup oats
1/2t aluminum free baking powder
1t cinnamon
1/2t fine iodized sea salt
1/3 cup crushed walnuts
1/4 cup raisins or grain sweetened chocolate or carob chips (optional)
 

-Preheat oven to 350* and spray a baking sheet

 -Add 3T hot water to the flaxseed in a small bowl and set aside. 

-In a separate mixing bowl, mix up coconut oil and maple syrup with a hand held mixer (or in mixing bowl) until combined. 

-Whisk the flaxseed and water until it looks gelatinous (30 seconds or so) and add to mixing bowl. -Add vanilla and mix until combined. 

-Add flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt and mix until combined. 

-Add oats and stir until combined. 

-Add nuts and raisins or chocolate/carob chips and mix

-Drop cookie dough rounds onto prepared baking sheet and Bake at 350* for 15 minutes. 

-Should make about 15 cookies.

*I call these happiness cookies because of the DHA/Omega 3s in the walnuts and flaxseed, the dietary fiber and phytochemicals in the oats (oatmeal is one of the foods to nourish the central nervous system) and the lauric acid in the coconut oil which helps your body fight off infection. These cookies help your brain function and help keep your body and brain healthy and happy!

Cardamom Breakfast Cookies

These breakfast cookies are perfect with a cup of tea in the morning or for a nice, relaxing moment during the day.  Just the right little touch of sweetness, they are dense, crumbly and flavorful. Plus you don't even need to get out a mixer to whip them up, you just stir everything together and throw them in the oven. It's really nice having these ready to grab if i'm on the go or if I need a zen moment.  Seriously, with a cup of tea, they are heaven. Cardamom has magical calming powers! ;)

Recipe:

3/4t cardamom

1/4t cinnamon

1/2 cup almond flour or almond meal

1/4 cup whole wheat flour

4T coconut oil, melted

1 flax egg (1T ground flaxseed mixed with 3T water)

3T nut butter

3T maple syrup

1 cup oats

1/4t salt

1/2 cup golden raisins or chopped dates or dried apricots or a combination

1/4 cup chopped raw pecans (optional)

-Heat oven to 350* and spray a cookie sheet

-In a bowl, stir together coconut oil, maple syrup, peanut butter and flax egg.

-Add the cardamom and cinnamon and stir.

-Add the flours, oats, dried fruit, pecans and salt and stir to combine

 -Form cookie dough into balls and flatten a little bit with your hand into a cookie shape (these cookies will not spread out while they cook) and place on cookie sheet.

-Bake for 18 min (makes about 15 cookies) 

*these cookies are crumbly when they are warm, but firm up when cooled.

Hearty Carrot Lentil Soup

I try to cook a meal with lentils at least once a week because they are just so good for your body. This soup is thick and hearty and a great one to make when you barely have any groceries. Somehow I always have a bag of carrots (I guess because I make veggie stock on a weekly basis), and the rest of the ingredients are regular staples that we always have around. Give it a try on a cold day with a nice rustic slice of bread. It's really filling and hearty but wont weigh you down because the ingredients are so clean and healthy!

Recipe: 

1 onion

2 cloves garlic

8 peeled and chopped carrots

1t cumin

1t tumeric

1t coriander

1/2t paprika

1/4t cinnamon

2 cups red lentils

1 tomato chopped or 1 small can diced tomato

6 cups water or veggie broth

unsweetened coconut milk (or almond or soy)

cilantro and crushed red pepper for serving

-Chop and saute onion in olive oil over medium heat in large pot until translucent.

-Add minced garlic and spices. Stir around for a minute or two.

-Add carrots and saute for about 10 min, stirring frequently.

-Add water (or broth), tomato and lentils.

-Bring to a boil and then cover and reduce to simmer for 20 min or until lentils are tender.

-Add salt and pepper to taste

-Carefully pour hot soup into high speed blender and blend until smooth.

-Pour back into pot and add some milk so thin to your desired consistency. 

-Serve with cilantro and crushed red pepper.

Holiday Almond Molasses Cookies

These were inspired by Spiced Chocolate Molasses Buttons which look like the peanut butter cookies that have the Hershey's kiss in the middle but are chocolaty and are rich with yummy molasses. I was going to add Carob so they kept closer to the taste of the Button cookies but I decided it wasn't needed...so they became more of a chewy (and crunchy!) gingerbread cookie and boy are they YUMMY!!

I am the kind of person that needs to always have cookies available in the house and I don't like to bake with refined sugar or butters. I'm always re-doing cookie recipes that look delicious with ingredients that I feel good about. Coconut oil, maple syrup, molasses, cinnamon, ginger....these are all ingredients that are good to our bodies! maple syrup has minerals and antioxidants (1T has 2% of our calcium need!), molasses has even more calcium and tons of iron, Coconut oil is mostly saturated fat so it is a bit contraversial. This is my opinion: It has antimicrobial, antibacterial, and anti-fungal properties and is a plant based source of saturated fat which out body is able to process more efficiently as energy. Fat is essential to our diet and this along with fat from nuts, seeds, avocado, and olive oil are my diet's plant based fat sources. Cinnamon can lower blood sugar levels, reduce heart disease risk factors, and has a plethora of other impressive health benefits. Ginger can act as an anti-inflammatory, has anti-nausea effects, lowers blood sugar and cholesterol levels....it's one of the worlds healthiest foods! As for flours, I bake with whole wheat flour a lot, but spelt flour is even easier for our bodies to digest and has even higher mineral content.

Feel good about what you eat (even cookies!!)

Recipe: 

1 cup spelt flour

1/2 cup plus 2T almond flour

1T ground flaxseed

1t cinnamon

1/4t ground ginger

1/4t grated fresh ginger

3/4t baking soda

1/2t fine sea salt

1/2 cup coconut oil

1/4 cup maple syrup

1/4 cup molasses
1/2t vanilla

Whole almonds for the top after baked

-In small bowl mix together flaxseed with 3T water. set aside

-In large bowl mix together flours, cinnamon, ground ginger, baking soda and salt. Set aside

 -In separate mixing bowl (or with a hand-held mixer), beat together the coconut oil, maple syrup and vanilla. 

-Whisk the flaxseed mixture for about 30 seconds until gelatinous and add to mixing bowl. Beat until combined. Add grated ginger.

-Add dry ingredients into the wet on a low mixing speed until combined.

-Cover cookie dough with parchment (pressing down the parchment onto the dough in the bowl so it's sort of air tight) and place in fridge to firm up for about 30 min. 

-After 30 min set oven to 350*

-Roll cookie dough into 1T balls and place on baking sheets lined with parchment paper (about 12 cookies to a sheet).

-Bake for 14 minutes.

-Remove from oven and press a whole almond into the center.

Purple Cabbage Sauerkraut with Ginger

So many great health benefits to Purple Cabbage Sauerkraut. Purple cabbage is already a superfood in it's own right but when you make it into a raw sauerkraut the health benefits sky rocket! In addition to Vitamins A and C and loads of Antioxidants that the cabbage already provides, fermenting it in its raw state turns it into a powerful probiotic. This means it's great for your gut and your digestive system, feeding it with good bacteria and fighting off harmful bacteria! Probiotics have even been known to help with mental clarity and mood stability! We're all familiar with Kombucha Tea...it's all the rage right now with it's wonderful probiotic benefits. Well this Sauerkraut recipe boosts all the same health benefits and it's easy to make at home (and delicious!)!

Recipe:

1/2 Purple Cabbage shredded

1/4 inch-1/2 inch fresh ginger root, grated

1t salt

big mason jar

-Add shredded cabbage, ginger and salt to a large bowl and mix it and squeeze it and mush it and massage it with your hands for a while (5-10 min). The cabbage will start to release a lot of water. 

-After you've massaged it for a while, transfer it to your big mason jar, packing it all down in there and pouring all the water the cabbage released over the top. 

-Place the screw top on the mason jar and place the mason jar on a plate (the plate is necessary because the jar will leak out purple juices over the next few days).

-Leave it on the counter, out of sunlight for at least 7 days. The Fermentation process will have started on about day 4, but the taste will continue to develop the longer you leave it. 

-Give it a taste on day 7 and see if it's delicious. If it's too mild a flavor, leave it for a little longer...

-Once the flavor is what you like, store in the fridge. 

**Look for ideas about how to eat this Sauerkraut on my IG page: @riverlovesplants

Whole Wheat Flax Bread with Pepita Seeds

Homemade bread fills your house with the most amazing smell.....mmmmmm......and there is nothing better than a slice of bread right out of the oven with (vegan) butter. I make two big loaves every two weeks because we go through about a loaf a week. You can make this recipe into two big loaves or three smaller ones, just divide the dough up into two or three bread pans after the first two rises.

Recipe: 

8-10 cups whole wheat flour (I usually use Bobs Red Mill Whole Wheat)

3/4 cup flax seed (I usually grind my flax seed before putting it in the recipe because it's easier for the body to absorb and makes for a less-seedy bread but grinding is optional)

3/4 cup raw pepita seeds

5 cups warm water

2 T salt

4 T honey (or coconut sugar or raw sugar)

2 T yeast (two packets)

-In a very large bowl add warm water, honey, yeast and salt and whisk until dissolved.

-Add in 8 cups of the flour, the flax and the pepita seeds. 

-Stir with wooden spoon until combined. If it's very sticky add a little more flour and start to knead. You're going to knead the dough (in the bowl because it's less messy!) for 10-15 minutes. Add in more flour (up to 2 additional cups) a little at a time if the dough starts to stick to your hands as you knead. When the dough stops sticking to your hands, you know you have enough flour. 

-After 10-15 min of kneading, cover the bowl with a towel and place in a warm dry place to rise (I usually put in the oven or microwave but make sure they are off) for 1 hour. 

-After the first hour, punch down the dough and knead a few times then cover to rise again as you did before for 1 hour. 

-After second hour, divide dough into two or three even portions (depending on how many loaves you want to make). Spray your loaf pans with non-stick cooking spray and place dough in each one. press the dough down so it spreads over the whole pan and tuck down the sides with your fingers so the top of the loaf looks smooth. 

-Cover and let rise as you did before for 45 minutes. 

-After 45 min, set oven to 375* and bake for 30 min (27 minutes if using 3 loaf pans)

-Take bread out of oven and flip it out of the bread pans and set to cool on cooking rack.

White Bean, Kale and Sweet Potato Soup

Otherwise known in our house as "Superfood Soup"

This soup is a great was to ring in the colder weather and give your immune system a boost!

Sweet potatoes provide not just the A Vitamin they are so well know for, but an abundance of antioxidants and vitamins!

 Kale is widely known as a superfood because it has a little bit of everything that our body needs...vitamins K, A, C, B6, calcium, iron, folate, protein...the list goes on and on!

 ...And we LOVE Beans in a vegan diet for their protein, but white beans like Cannellini Beans are supercharged with antioxidants which protect your body and your skin from free radicals. The destructive actions of free radicals have been linked to the development of a number of degenerative conditions and diseases.*

Recipe: 

1 medium yellow onion

2 cloves garlic diced

2 celery stalks cut up into small pieces

2 large carrots cut up into small pieces

1 tomato diced (or a 15oz can diced tomato)

6 cups water

1 bunch kale torn into small pieces, stems removed

1 medium to large size sweet potato

1 can white beans drained and rinsed

 

 -Heat a little olive oil over medium heat in a large pot. 

-Add onion, celery, carrot and cook for about 8 min. 

-Add in diced garlic and cook for a minute or two. 

-Add diced tomato and cook for about 3 minutes until everything looks caramelized

-Add 6 cups water, sweet potato and beans. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer for about 10 minutes or until sweet potato is tender. 

-Season with salt and pepper

-Add Kale and cook a few minutes, until kale is just tender. 

-Serve with a little bread or even over a grain like farro or rice to complete the protein of the white beans! YUM!

* source: www.healthwithfood.org

Butternut Squash, Apple and Almond Muffins

I recently made these muffins to help celebrate my mom's birthday! They are every bit as sweet and delicious as cupcakes but without any refined sugar!

Recipe: 

3 cups diced and roasted (or steamed) butternut squash

3/4 cup rice flour

1/2 cup almond meal

1/2 whole wheat flour

1/2t salt

1/2t baking powder

1/2t baking soda

1/4t cinnamon

1/8t ground ginger

3T ground flaxseed

3/4 cup maple syrup

1/3 cup coconut oil

1t vanilla 

1 sweet apple peeled and diced

2T chopped almonds 

-Heat oven to 350*

-Line muffin tin with 12 baking cups

-Smash or process roasted (or steamed) butternut squash into puree and set aside

-In a medium size bowl, mix ground flaxseed with 9T warm water and set aside

-In large bowl, whisk together flours, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and ginger.

-Whisk up flaxseed/water mixture for about 30 seconds until gelatinous. add squash puree, maple syrup, coconut oil and vanilla. 

-Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix. 

-Fold in chopped apple.

-Scoop muffin mix into each of the 12 muffin cups

-Top muffins with some of the chopped almonds

-Bake at 350* for 35 min or until toothpick comes out clean.

Zucchini & Tomato "Ricotta" Pie with Quinoa Crust

Quinoa crust is a new thing i'm into these days...it's the easiest crust in the world to make and it's so much healthier for you than traditional flour pie crust. This pie is creamy and full of great flavor. Paired with a nice green salad, it's a really delicious, light and satisfying meal!

RECIPE:

For the Crust: 

3/4 cup cooked and cooled quinoa

2 flax eggs (2T ground flaxseed mixed with 6T warm water. whisk until gelatinous)

pinch of salt 

-Pre-heat oven to 375*

-Spray a 9" round pie pan with non-stick spray

-Mix ingredients together and press into the pie pan. Press it out all along the bottom and up the sides of the pan. 

-Bake in over for 10 min. and then let cool a bit before adding pie filling.

For the veggies on top:

1 med-large zucchini

6-7 small tomatoes

-Increase oven temp to 400*

-Using a mandolin at 1/8" slicing width, slice up zucchini into circles. (or just use knife and cut the thinnest slices you can)

-Toss the zucchini slices in a bit of olive oil, salt and pepper and spread them out on a baking sheet. Roast at 400* for about 10 min. or until they just begin to brown. Take out of oven and set aside.

-Meanwhile, slice up the tomatoes into very thin slices and spread slices on a tea towel (or blot them with a paper towel) to get some of the water off. Set aside while you make Ricotta filling.

-decrease oven temp back down to 375*

For the Ricotta Filling:

(this is an adaptation from the Whole Foods recipe)

1 package extra firm tofu

1 1/2 T tahini

2 cloves garlic

3 T nutritional yeast

pinch of nutmeg

1 1/2 teasp. white miso

juice of half a lemon

pinch of pepper

2T shallot

-Crumble tofu into high powered blender, then add the rest of the ingredients. Blend until combined but don't over process. 

To Assemble the Pie: 

-Spread ricotta filling into the quinoa crust evenly using a spatula. 

-Arrange the zucchini and tomato slices on top however you wish

-Bake at 375* for 30 minutes and enjoy!

 

Superfood Chili

College Football Game Day is coming up (Go GA Bulldawgs) and our house has game-day food on the brain. It is game day food...but with this chili recipe, you'll actually be eating a giant bowl of disease-fighting protein-power goodness...so it's game-day food you can feel GREAT about! Dip chips in it, add some vegan sour cream, fresh cilantro...go crazy! It's SO GOOD!

Beans Beans Beans!!! I cannot say enough good things about beans. Lentils, black beans, kidney beans...this chili has it all plus tons of veggies. There is a hidden eggplant in here too although you would never know it. Eggplants are in season and I have them coming out of my ears with our CSA right now.....BUT the eggplant completely breaks down and adds to the meatiness of the chili and I promise you, you can't taste it, see it or feel it (my husband hates eggplant).

The spices are mild but delicious so this is one recipe that my 2 year old looooves as well. like...lick-the-bowl loves!

Recipe: 

1-2 T olive oil

1 large eggplant chopped into 1/2 in cubes

1 medium onion chopped

1 large clove garlic minced

 1 red pepper chopped

2-3 large carrots chopped

2 celery stalks chopped

1 cup brown or green dry lentils

4 cups water

1 28 oz can diced tomato

1 can kidney beans

1 can black beans

2 cups sweet yellow corn

2 T chili powder

1 T cumin

1 T blackstrap molasses

 - Heat oil in large pot over medium heat. 

-Add chopped eggplant and cook for about 5 minutes while stirring. 

-Add onion, garlic, carrots, celery, red pepper and cook an additional 5 minutes or until onion looks just a bit translucent. (If it starts to stick to the bottom a little, that's ok, it adds to the flavor. But just make sure it's not burning to the bottom. If it starts to burn a little, add a touch of water or a touch of olive oil and stir it up off the bottom.)

-Add the cumin, chili powder and molasses and stir for 1 minute. 

-Add the lentils, water and tomato and bring to a boil, then reduce to simmer for 25 min or until lentils are tender. (could take up to 45 minutes... I've actually had them take over 90 min before (and I never bought lentils from that place again!). It all depends on the age of the lentils and how they were stored.)

-When lentils are tender, add the black beans, kidney beans and corn and cook until just heated through. 

-Take chili off the heat and let sit for 10-20 min or so...then enjoy! It's SO freaking good!

Scratch-Made Tomato Sauce with Breaded and Baked Eggplant Rounds

 

Homemade tomato sauce with these crunchy, chewy eggplant rounds is every bit as satisfying as classic Eggplant Parmesan! Making your own tomato sauce is definitely not as easy as going into your pantry and pulling out a jar of the store-bought stuff...but if you have never attempted your own tomato sauce, this is the season to do it because you will not believe how delicious a tomato sauce made from fresh garden tomatoes tastes!! For the tomato sauce, you have to peel the tomatoes before you make the sauce and the easiest way to do that is to boil them for just a minute and them submerge in ice-water. The skin will start to peel right off on its own. I explain in the recipe below.

If you're not all that familiar with cooking with eggplant, it's really not as intimidating (or tasteless and spongy) as it seems!! The trick to cooking eggplant is letting it sweat out its moisture before you start to cook it. This insures that you'll get a nice chewy, crisp roasted finished produce rather than a soggy one. I explain in the recipe below.

Scratch-Made Tomato Sauce

what you'll need:

10 tomatoes

1t italian seasoning (basil, oregano, parsley)

1 clove garlic

pinch sugar (I used coconut sugar)

pinch salt and pepper

-Get a big pot of water boiling on the stove. 

-Fill up a large bowl with ice water and set aside. 

-Slice a shallow "X" with a sharp knife on the bottom of each tomato. This helps the skin begin to peel off the tomatoes after the boiling process. 

-Submerge all the tomatoes into boiling water for 1 minute then transfer to ice-water bowl. Let the tomatoes sit in there until they are cool enough to handle (a few minutes) and then peel off the skin from the tomatoes. It will come off very easily. 

-Transfer peeled tomatoes to blender and pulse until they are the consistency you're going for. I like it a little chunky so I pulse just a few times. 

-Empty out the pot in which you boiled the tomatoes, return to stove and pour in the tomatoes. 

-Grate your garlic right into the pot

-Add your italian seasoning and the sugar

-Bring the tomatoes to a boil and then reduce to medium-high heat and cook uncovered until it reduces by half, stirring frequently. It will take about an hour. 

-you're done! Sauce is ready to eat!!

Breaded and Baked Eggplant Rounds

What you'll need:

1 large eggplant (long and skinny is great for this but any size will do)

1 cup of bread crumbs (I used fresh whole wheat bread that I buzzed in the food processor)

2 flax eggs (2T flaxmeal in 6T water) (Or 1 egg if you eat eggs....)

salt and pepper

sea salt

-Slice your eggplant into 1/2 inch rounds

-Place the rounds into a colander and sprinkle generously with sea salt. Turn the rounds a couple times to ensure that both sides are covered with the salt. 

-Let the rounds sit in the colander for 15 minutes. 

-Rinse the rounds under water, then place between two towels and press down to dry them.

-Pre-heat oven to 400*

-Spray a baking sheet with non-stick spray and set aside

-Whisk up your flax eggs in a bowl 

-Pour bread crumbs onto a plate and add a pinch of salt and pepper. Mix around.

-Dip the eggplant rounds one at a time, first into the flax mixture to coat, and then into the breadcrumbs, then onto baking sheet.

-Once all the rounds are coated and on the baking sheet, bake at 400* for 20 min on one side, then flip and continue to cook 20 minutes on the other side.