Tag Archives: Vegan

Glowing Green Smoothie

Posted on by

0

WP_20150201_013

The easiest way for me to make sure I’m getting more fruits and veggies into my diet is blending lots of them all together. This blend seems popular among the green smoothie believers; and it does taste better than it looks thanks to the banana and all the other fruit. You can add some coconut oil to the mix or chia seeds if you’d like. I keep mine pretty simple 🙂 Thanks for reading, enjoy!

WP_20150201_005

Glowing Green Smoothie – adapted from Kimberly Snyder

  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1/2 a lemon, juiced
  • 1/2 head romaine lettuce, cut into chunks
  • 1/2 cup baby spinach
  • 2 celery stalks, cut into chunks
  • 1/2 apple, cut into chunks
  • 1/2 pear, cut into chunks
  • 1 small banana
  • ice
  • chia seeds (optional)
  • coconut oil (optional)

Directions –

Liquids first, followed by the softest/lighter produce and top with ice. Blend until it’s perfectly smooth – about 30 seconds.

Avocado Super Smoothie

Posted on by

0

WP_20150124_029 1

This is amazing! It’s thick and creamy without the dairy and even my kids couldn’t detect the “green” in this smoothie. Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Avocado Super Smoothie –

  • 1 cup kale, washed and stems removed
  • 1 cup baby spinach, washed and big stems removed
  • 1 medium banana
  • 1/2 avocado
  • 1 small apple, cut into chunks
  • 1/2 cup coconut milk
  • 1/2 cup water, or more depending on how thick you prefer
  • Ice

WP_20150124_005

Directions –

Place all your ingredients in a blender carafe – starting with the liquid and topping off with the heavier items. Process for about 30 seconds until well blended. Pour into a tall glass and enjoy!

I Bought A Juicer!

Posted on by

0

WP_20150122_018

I bought a juicer! I wasn’t sure how this would turn out because I haven’t tried beets since I was a kid…and those were the gross canned kind that you find in salad bars. The finished juice was the most gorgeous magenta color, and I hoped that it would taste as good as it looked! The first taste of anything new is usually off-putting, but as I continued to sip it, it tasted better and better. It’s not my new favorite, but I know I will make it again. The other recipe is a great starter juice, especially for kids. My daughter enjoyed this one, but I didn’t add the ginger because she wouldn’t have appreciated the spiciness of it. Thanks for reading, enjoy! 🙂

 

WP_20150122_016

Ginger Beet Juice – adapted from Wonky Wonderful

  • 1 small beet, peeled and trimmed
  • 2 apples, washed and cut
  • 2 carrots, washed and trimmed
  • 1 orange, juiced
  • 1 lime, juiced
  • 1 inch piece of ginger, peeled

Directions –

  1. Put all of the ingredients into the juicer according to the manufacturer instructions.
  2. Serve the juice cold over ice.

WP_20150121_022 1

Carrot Apple Ginger Juice – adapted from The Roasted Root

  • 3 carrots, washed and trimmed
  • 2 apples
  • 1/2 inch piece of ginger, peeled (*optional*)

Directions –

  1. Put the ingredients through the juicer according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
  2. Drink immediately, or store in a sealed container in the refrigerator. Keeps for about 2 days.

Simple Amaranth and Quinoa Porridge

Posted on by

2

WP_20140420_18_35_32_Pro

Wow – this is so creamy and surprisingly tasty! I used full fat coconut milk instead of the recommended almond milk. Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Amaranth and Quinoa Porridge – adapted from Choosing Raw

  • 1/2 cup dry quinoa, rinsed well
  • 1/2 cup dry amaranth
  • 2 cups water
  • Pinch salt
  • 2 cups
  • 2 cups coconut milk (*My can was just under 2 cups, so I made up the difference with water*), or your milk of choice
  • 2 TBSP coconut sugar or sweetener of choice

WP_20140420_18_22_01_Pro

 

Directions – 

Combine water, salt, and grains in a medium pot and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to a simmer, cover the pot, leaving the lid slightly ajar to let air escape, and cook for 25-30 minutes, or until water is absorbed and grains are tender. At this point, you can use the grains in any way you’d like, or move straight into the porridge.

To make the porridge, combine the milk and sweetener in a medium pot and add the cooked grains. Simmer over low heat for a few minutes, or until most of the milk is absorbed a bit.

Divide the porridge into four bowls or glass jars. Top with fruit, nuts or anything else you like!

Hummus

Posted on by

0

hummus

This was really easy to make and I enjoyed eating it with lots of raw carrots. Now if I can only get my kids to try it, that would be great! Thanks for reading, enjoy 🙂

Hummus – adapted from The Kitchn

  • 1 15-oz can of chickpeas, drained
  • 1/2 of a fresh lemon, juiced
  • 1 small clove of garlic, minced finely
  • 2 tbsp. olive oil
  • 3 tbsp. tahini
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon finely ground black pepper

Tools

A food processor or blender

Directions –

Combine all ingredients. Blend until smooth. If it is a little dry, just add a little more lemon juice or olive oil, a teaspoon at a time, until you have the desired consistency. Add more salt and pepper if you like. Scrape out the hummus in a serving bowl and sprinkle the sumac on top. Serve with raw veggies, or spread on some pita bread.

Carrot Ginger Dressing

Posted on by

7

Quick Post: One of my favorite things to order at local Japanese restaurants is the side salad with carrot ginger dressing. I don’t know why it’s so good, I just accept it! Now that I have a recipe for it that tastes so good, I can enjoy it in the comfort of my own home and I can make it cheap! Really, the most expensive ingredient was the miso paste. Now that I have a huge container of it, there is plenty to go around for lots more of this; and my next experiment – miso soup! I doubled the recipe and I’m glad I did. Between the three of us, half the jar was put away 🙂 Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Carrot Ginger Dressing – adapted from Smitten Kitchen via GOOP.com
  • 1 large carrot, peeled and roughly chopped
  • 1 small shallot, peeled and roughly chopped
  • 2 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh ginger
  • 2 tablespoons sweet white miso
  • 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons toasted sesame seed oil
  • 1/4 cup grapeseed or another neutral oil
  • 2 tablespoons water

Salad:

  • Romaine lettuce
  • avocado
  • cucumber

Blitz the carrots, shallot and ginger in a blender or food processor until finely chopped. Scrape down the sides, then add the miso, vinegar and sesame oil. While the machine running, slowly drizzle in the grapeseed oil and the water.

Divide the lettuce among four bowls, add some of the onion and a quarter of the avocado. Drizzle with plenty of dressing and serve.

 

 

 

Vegan Apple Crisp

Posted on by

3

(It’s still raining here, so no decent pictures – boo!)

I haven’t made an apple crisp since last year, so I decided it was time 🙂 This smells amazing while baking. My hands smelled like lemon, apple, cinnamon and nutmeg for quite sometime after making this, too 🙂 I love Fall flavors and this is a perfect example of them. I used coconut oil for this instead of canola and we didn’t miss the butter. It’s not a thick crumb topping like the typical crisp with flour and butter; but it was flavorful, slightly sweet and delightfully crunchy. We enjoyed the walnuts in this, too – and the vanilla ice cream brought it all together nicely. Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Vegan Apple Crisp – adapted from What Would Cathy Eat?

  • 2 ½ pounds apples (about 7), peeled and thinly sliced
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 2 teaspoons flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
  • Small pinch cloves
  • 2 teaspoons lemon juice
  • 2/3 cup rolled oats (old fashioned, not quick cooking)
  • 2/3 cup whole wheat pastry flour
  • 2/3 cup light brown sugar
  • ½ cup chopped walnuts
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ cup coconut oil
  • 2 tablespoons water
Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350.

Mix the apples with the next seven ingredients (through lemon juice). In a separate bowl, mix the oats, flour, brown sugar walnuts, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Drizzle the organic canola oil over the dry mixture and combine with your fingers until crumbly. Add the water and stir briefly with a fork. Put the apple mixture in an 8×8” baking dish, then sprinkle on the crumbly topping. Bake for 40 minutes, or until the top is golden and the apples are tender.

Quinoa – My 200th Post!!

Posted on by

4

I picked up some quinoa from my local health food store the other day – it’s so much cheaper buying from the bulk bins. I have used quinoa once before to make a quinoa pudding – kind of like rice pudding, only slightly healthier. I remember that tasted great, so I’ll have to find another recipe to share with you – preferably a vegan version.

Quinoa takes a few more steps to prepare than a box will tell you, and since mine didn’t come in a box I used this website for basic cooking instructions. All these steps listed are necessary to ensure mush-free, perfectly cooked quinoa. The only change I made was adding a pinch of kosher salt to the water. Rather than copy all her listed instructions down, here’s the link that’s full of helpful tips and nutrition information on this “super grain”.

The first picture is the product of all those steps – it really was perfectly fluffy 🙂 I used a cup of the cooked quinoa to make this quinoa breakfast bowl. It was tasty and super filling with out the bloat. I was satisfied for hours after eating this. Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Quinoa Breakfast Bowl –

  • 1 cup cooked quinoa
  • unsweetened almond milk (or milk of your choice)
  • raisins, walnuts, cinnamon, maple syrup

Directions:

1. Spoon your cooked quinoa in a bowl, top with your desired amount of milk and microwave for 1 to 2 minutes to heat through. Add your desired toppings and enjoy!

Banana Bread Oatmeal

Posted on by

0

Quick Post: This breakfast requires a little more time than the average, so it’s perfect for the weekend. Mine took at least 15 minutes for the liquid to absorb. My husband commented: “It looks like you’re killing your oatmeal”, to which I replied “I’m supposed to.” There is no oat texture left in this when it’s done and the bananas get all mushy, so if you have texture issues – fear not! The addition of walnuts helps cut the near slimy-ness of this oatmeal. After I took the pictures, I thought to add raisins which also helped add textural interest and a little sweetness. I can tell you that this is filling, but I’m not full – to me there is nothing worse than feeling full and bloated; especially in the morning when there is things that need to be done.
Banana Bread Oatmeal – adapted from The Edible Perspective
    • 1/3 cup rolled oats (*you can use 1/2 cup oats and 1/4 cup steel cut for a chewier texture)
    • 1 large egg, whisked
    • 1/2 banana, thinly sliced
    • 1 tsp cinnamon
    • 1 tsp vanilla extract
    • 1/2 cup water
    • 3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk (*or cow’s milk if you’d prefer)
    • 1 TBSP ground flax meal (*I bought flax seeds and ground them up in my blender)
    • 2 TBSP pure maple syrup
    • 1/4 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:

In a small pot, over medium heat, whisk the oats, cinnamon, sliced banana, water + almond milk together. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to a low boil. Stir a few times while cooking, until almond all the liquid is absorbed – about 6 to 10 minutes. Stir in flax meal and continue cooking for 1 minute. Temper your egg – In a small bowl, whisk your egg quickly and add about 1/3 cup of the hot oatmeal mixture slowly; being careful to avoid scrambling the egg. Slowly add the egg/oatmeal back into the pot and stir until thoroughly combined. Let cook, without stirring, for 2 more minutes then pour into a bowl and top with nuts and maple syrup. Enjoy!

Banana and Peanut Butter Soft Serve

Posted on by

2

I am so surprised at how good this is and my kids loved it – even my husband thought it tasted good. It’s not too banana-y or peanut buttery. The texture is smooth and creamy, like a nice custard style ice cream. This was a good fake out dessert because ice cream is my absolute favorite  – I miss it! It’s been about four weeks since I have had any “real” dessert, but I was pleasantly satisfied with this treat. I added the chocolate chips mostly for visual interest, I gave the chocolate chips to my kids because the soft serve didn’t need anything. My son wants me to make this again soon – score 2 for mom! Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Banana Soft Serve – adapted from The Novice Chef

  • 2 to 3 frozen bananas, (*cut up before freezing for easier processing)
  • 1 heaping spoonful of natural peanut butter
  • optional: top with granola, slivered almonds or any of your favorite toppings
Directions:
1. I used my food processor for this, but you could use a blender to make it too. Place all the banana in the work bowl and pulse until nice and smooth. It took a little while at first, but once the peanut butter was added it