Quinoa Salad & Chocolate Chip Cookies

I made chocolate chip cookies for the Super Bowl this year, just to prove yet again that vegan sweets can be just as good as the 'normal' ones! I adapted this recipe from one I found on allrecipes.com, made some changes and came out with a great recipe for soft, perfectly cooked tasty cookies! I began by creaming together the earth balance butter substitute, brown sugar, and white sugar until thoroughly combined. Next I added the instant pudding mix, then added the egg replacer and vanilla and combined. Lastly, I mixed in the flower and the chocolate chips- I am a HUGE fan of raw cookie dough, and I must admit that it was incredibly hard to stop 'tasting' this.....so yummy! I used a large spoon to drop cookies onto a sheet and put in a 350 degree oven for about 12 minutes. They smelled and tasted incredible- I would highly encourage you to make these!!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1-1/4 cup whole wheat all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup earth balance, softened
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup turbinado sugar
• 1 (3.4 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix
• 2 eggs worth of Ener-G egg subsitute
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups dark chocolate chips

One of my friends posted this recipe for Quinoa salad on pinterest and I had to make it! I simply made the quinoa with the vegetable stock, and combined everything together once that was cooked. So simple, so delicious (quite an unusual flavor!), but has made a few of my friends into new quinoa fans!

Avocado Lemon Quinoa Cilantro Chickpea Salad

1/2 C. dry quinoa

2 C. vegetable stock

1 can garbanzo beans (drained and rinsed)

1 c. cherry tomatoes cut in half

2 avocados diced (I used 1 'Slimcado')

2 C. spinach

1 bunch cilantro

1/4 C. onion (finely diced)

2 small cloves garlic

For the dressing:

Juice of 1 lemon

2 tsp. dijon mustard

2 tsp. olive oil

1/2 tsp. cumin

Oil Free Morning Glory Muffins

I came across this recipe and had to instantly make this! The original recipe comes from http://www.honeyandjam.com/2010/04/i-really-like-breakfast.html and I adapted it to vegan quite easily. I cut the recipe in half because if I had 12 of these amazing muffins around they wouldn't last too long!! I began by spraying a muffin pan and sitting aside, as well as preheating the oven to 375 F, then I put the raisins in a bowl and covered with warm water and set aside. Next I used the Vitamix to chop the carrots and apples (this was my first time using the vitamix to chop-SO EASY!! Put the machine on level 3, and drop the vegetables in from the top with the blade on, continue to process until desired size). I mixed the chopped apples and carrots with the flour, oats, turbinado, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, coconut, and the walnuts.
In a separate bowl, combine the Ener-G egg replacer, applesauce, vanilla, and orange juice/almond milk. Once combined, I mixed with the dry ingredients and added the raisins (after draining the excess water). The batter was put in the muffin pan and filled to the brim, then sprinkled turbinado on top and baked for 25 minutes.
The smell that filled my apartment was heavenly, and it took every ounce of my being not to eat one right there! I left the muffins out to dry overnight (lots of moisture due to the apples/carrots, etc), and heated one up this morning.....DELICIOUS!!!!! Definitely a healthy, easy, scrumptious go to breakfast recipe!!

Oil Free Morning Glory Muffins (yield 12 muffins)

1/2 cup golden raisins

1 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup old fashioned oats

1/2 cup turbinado


2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups carrots, chopped/grated
1 large apple, chopped/grated
1/2 cup shredded coconut, sweetened or unsweetened

1/2 cup chopped walnuts
3 eggs worth of Ener-G egg replacer


2/3 cup unsweetened apple sauce

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/4 cup orange juice 

(I added a splash of homemade almond milk because the mixture was a little dry for my taste, no more than 1/4 cup)
1 tsp turbinado for muffin top (per 6)

Homemade Almond Milk, Berry Protein Smoothie, and Kale Chips

I always seem to get sucked into Vitamix infomercials even though I already own one- it makes me excited I can already make all of those wonderful recipes =) This particular infomercial was showing how you could make almond milk using the Vitamix and I got online instantly in order to find the recipe and make my own! I soaked the almonds in water overnight as suggested by some blogs I looked at,

then drained them the next time and combined with the water and blended for ~2 minutes on High. This made the milk steam a bit due to the high power of the blender, but I put it in a pitcher and into the fridge. Some people suggest straining the milk (and I would highly suggest this if you are not open to new textures, or in fact are using this to drink as milk), however I tend to only use almond milk in baking, cereal, and smoothies so the texture did not bother me a bit!

 Almond Milk

1 cup raw almonds soaked overnight

6 cups water

Since the vitamix had residual almond milk in the container, I went ahead and made a berry protein smoothie that was delicious!! Just put all the ingredients in and blended on high for about 15 seconds!

Berry Protein Smoothie

1 cup fresh almond milk

3/4 cup frozen berries (blueberries, raspberries, blackberries)

1 scoop raw hemp protein powder

5 large ice cubes

(I had to add a little water to get it to where I could easily drink, ~1/4 cup)

I have been wanting to make kale chips for FOREVER and I finally did it, and I must say I am glad I did...they are SO EASY and really are quite yummy! I used one of the large bags of prechopped Kale (possibly why this process was so easy!) and tore the larger pieces into smaller ones so that they were more or less uniform, and removed any large stems. Next, I drizzled on the olive oil, sprinkled with salt and nutritional yeast, and proceeded to knead the kale with both hands until the mixture was evenly coated. (For those of you not familiar with nutritional yeast, you can get it in powder form from Whole Foods surprisingly inexpensively for how much you get, and it is perfect to sprinkle on fresh popped popcorn- some say it has a slight cheese flavor although I personally think that description is a little bit of a stretch. It is a complete protein and is so easy to sneak into sauces!) I placed the kale onto two separate cookie sheets and placed in a 350 F oven for 18 minutes until it was crispy and some of the leaves were browning. After a taste test, I sprinkled a little garlic salt on top for just a little extra kick- these really are going to be a snacking favorite!! 

Kale Chips

1 large bag prechopped Kale

2-3 tbsp olive oil

2 tsp salt

2 pinches of garlic salt to sprinkle on top

Favorite Holiday Recipes and a new Green Smoothie

It's been a while since I have posted any recipes, but life has gotten a bit hectic over the past few months! I promise these holiday favorites are well worth the wait!
The thought of never having my favorite thanksgiving recipe again, green bean casserole, was not acceptable to me! I sought out different recipes, and had to eventually make up my own to be happy with the results. My family agrees that this recipe rivals the cream of mushroom soup/cholesterol ridden one that we all know so well.
To begin, I clean and de-stem the fresh green beans and steam for 10 minutes (I have also made this with frozen julienne cut green beans and it was equally delicious!). While that is cooking, I whisk together the almond milk and the vegetable bullion cube until dissolved. I then add the cornstarch to thicken. Once the creamy and consistent, I coat the green beans in the mixture and mix in 1/2 cup of the crispy onion and put in an oven safe dish. This bakes for 25 minutes at 350, then topped with another 1/2 cup of the onions and cooked for 5 more minutes. This was the only picture I snagged of it, after it had been well enjoyed!

 

     1 lb fresh green beans

1 large vegetable bullion cube

1 tbsp cornstarch

1- 1 1/2 c. almond milk

salt and pepper to taste

1 c. french fried onions

Pumpkin pie was always one of my holiday favorites, and the past few thanksgivings I had used a recipe I found online, but I wanted to change it up this year. I began by buying a pre-made graham cracker crust (I know that this would be 10x better with a homemade crust!!), and spreading a thick chocolate mixture made out of dark chocolate chunks and almond milk just on top of the crust (heat the almond milk, then stir in chocolate until all combined evenly)- then I put this in the refrigerator to set for 10 minutes while I made the filling which was easy as mixing all the ingredients together at once and putting in the pie shell. Then into the oven at 350 F for 60 minutes. The chocolate added just a bit of extra sweetness and special flavor- perfect combination!

1 premade pie crust

1 cup dark chocolate chunks

1 tbsp almond milk for chocolate spread

2 c. pumpkin puree

1 c. almond milk

3/4 c. brown sugar

1/4 c. cornstarch **sifted to avoid lumps**

1 tbsp cinnamon

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp allspice or ground cloves

Lastly, a new green smoothie recipe! I put the spinach, coconut water, pineapple, peach, and strawberries along with the hemp proetein powder into the Vitamix and blended for 30 seconds on high....Delicious!

5-8 oz fresh spinach

4 chunks fresh pineapple

3 pieces frozen peaches

4 frozen strawberries

1 cup coconut water

2 tbsp raw hemp protein powder

Pumpkin Man-n-"Cheese"

I've had the past week off and truthfully spent a good amount of it relaxing on the couch, watching lots of cruddy daytime TV, but also lots of cooking shows! I came across this recipe from the Rachael Ray show, although I'm NOT a fan typically!, and thought this was an original recipe that I could easily manipulate for a rich vegan treat!

 After cussing out the grocery stores for not stocking pureed pumpkin yet, I sucked it up and made some of my own. (SO glad I did, so easy, and fresh!) Simply I cut a small pumpkin in half, removed the seeds and placed in the microwave on high for 10 minutes. Next I scrapped out the 'meat' of the pumpkin and put into the Vitamix, using the tamper to create a smooth consistency. Here's a picture of the fresh puree, so simple!

I boiled water and made the whole wheat pasta as indicated on the box to al dente. Next, I melted the "butter", and whisked in the flour.  Once combined, I added the beer and allowed to thicken, whisking throughout. Next I added the almond milk and maple syrup. At this time I also added all the spices. Once this cooked down and thickened up to a creamy consistency, I added the pureed pumpkin and the daiya cheddar cheese, whisking until all was combined. I tasted and added a bit more salt, then combined with the pasta. Per request of my boyfriend, I used a soy based Parmesan cheese as a topping before putting under the broiler for ~10 minutes. (you could also top with extra cheddar cheese, or make a crumb/cracker type crust)

 

The final product is creamy, cheesy, and the flavor incorporates so many fall flavors that I encourage you to try this recipe out!!

Pumpkin Mac-n-"Cheese"

1 lb short whole wheat pasta

4 tbsp butter (I used earth balance soy free variety)

3 tbsp flour (I used whole wheat flour)

1 c. amber beer (I used Blue Moon's Harvest Moon Pumpkin Ale to bring out more pumpkin flavor)

2 tbsp maple syrup

1 2/3 c. almond milk

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp apple pie spice

salt and pepper to taste

2 c. fresh pumpkin puree

~2 c. daiya chedder "cheese"

Caramel Popcorn

I've had a recent obsession with popcorn, mainly with nutritional yeast sprinkled on top, but was craving something sweet and came up with this basic, quick, and tasty recipe!
I added the sugar, earth balance, and water into a saucepan and melted them together. Next, I covered and let boil for ~3 minutes, then added the vanilla. I let the mixture cool a bit so that the caramel had time to thicken a bit, and poured it over the popcorn while mixing for even coverage. After sneaking a few tastes, I put it in the refrigerator to cool and let the caramel harden a bit. Easy!

Caramel Popcorn
1 bag natural popcorn
1/2 c. turbinado
1/2 tbsp earth balance
4 tbsp water
1 tsp vanilla

Quick Chickpea Burgers

I have been playing around with the idea of a chickpea burger (the first attempt turned into hummus due to too much liquid and too much blending!!), and think I've come up with a good basic recipe that could be seasoned and spiced many different ways. (Off the top of my head, I REALLY want to make Curry Chickpea Burgers next time!).
I began by taking the chicpeas and mashing them with a potato masher until they were mashed, but not pulverized, with some good texture left. I then added some of the canned liquid to the mixture for some moisture. I added the spices, mixed, then folded in the red pepper and egg substitute (this really gave the good consistency and binding to form into patties with my hands). I put the patties into a frying pan with about 1 tsp of olive oil and cooked on low/medium heat until golden brown and warm throughout. I ate with a side of bar-b-que sauce and it was great! (The next day I used in a spinach salad; FANTASTIC!!) Here they are just finished cooking:

Basic Chickpea Burgers
2 14oz can low sodium chickpeas
~1/4 c. drained liquid
1 medium bell pepper
2 tsp chopped garlic
1 tsp Ener-G egg replacer
salt and pepper to taste
(any other seasonings you desire!)