Chile Caribe with Seitan

My husband's family is from New Mexico and they always serve this chili on holidays. It is a childhood favorite of his, and so I set out to veganize it for him. He has been missing it since he became vegan three years ago. Now, we both love this plant based version. The level of spice will vary based on the chilis. I like mine fairly mild and served over mashed potatoes like a gravy. Yum!

Looking at this beautiful red sauce has me wondering why chili peppers aren't more widely recognized as a superfood. Their deep red color is beautiful as well as indicative of the health benefits inherent in these bright red peppers.

Chili Caribe with Seitan

Ingredients:

1.5 oz New Mexico Chili Pods (6-7 chili pods)
2 1/2 cups of water

1 tbsp olive oil
8 oz seitan, diced into small cubes (1/2 inch)
1/4 tsp smoked paprika

1 tbsp olive oil
1 rounded tbsp flour

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2  - 1 tsp salt

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Put the chili pods on a cookie sheet and heat in the oven for 1 minute.  This softens them a bit and blooms their flavor. Then take the chilis and remove the stems and the seeds. Put the water in a blender and start blending on medium. Drop the chilis in one at a time and then increase the speed to high and blend for 2 minutes more. You want it to be nice and smooth.

Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a non-stick frying pan. Add the seitan and saute until the seitan is heated through and starting to crisp up, then add the smoked paprika and stir to coat the seitan with it. Remove the seitan from the pan and set aside. Heat the second tbsp of olive oil in the same pan and add the flour. Stir to combine and brown the flour - this is an important step in adding flavor to the dish. Once the flour has started to brown, add the blended chili slowly while stirring to incorporate. You want to go slow here to avoid creating clumps of flour. When you add the chili sauce slowly and continue to stir /whisk it creates a paste that gets thinner as you add more. Once you have added all the chili stir in the garlic and let it simmer for 20-30 minutes. Add 1/2 tsp of salt and taste before adding more. Then adjust the seasoning to you liking.

Serve with mashed potatoes or over baked potatoes and enjoy!

Dark Chocolate Drizzled Kettle Corn

A couple of weeks ago we picked up some chocolate drizzled kettle corn from Sprouts, and absolutely loved it! It was totally addictive, but also cost around $2.00 for a small bag. I figured I could recreate this sweet snack for a fraction of the cost. It takes a couple of steps, but makes a nice big bowl of salty sweet chocolatey goodness.

Dark Chocolate Drizzled Kettle Corn

Ingredients:

16 cups air popped popcorn

1/4 cup vegan margarine
1/2 cup natural brown sugar
1/8 cup maple syrup
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 cup vegan dark chocolate chips
1-2 tbsp non dairy milk (soy works well)

Directions:

Pop your popcorn. Pre-heat your oven to 250 degrees. Spray a large rectangle glass baking dish with cooking spray.

Heat the margarine over low heat in a small saucepan. Add the brown sugar, syrup, and salt. Bring the mixture to a slow boil and let it simmer until the sugar dissolves. Be sure to keep stirring it so that it doesn't burn on the bottom. Once the sugar is incorporated, take the mixture off the heat and add the vanilla and baking soda. Mix these in. It will lighten in color and puff up a bit from the baking soda.

Put half of the air popped popcorn in the prepared baking dish and pour the sugar mixture on top. Stir gently to coat the popcorn evenly.

Bake the popcorn for 45 - 60 minutes, and stir it every 15-20 minutes. It will come out crisp and sweet when it is done.

While half of the popcorn is baking, spread the other half of the popcorn over a non-stick surface (wax paper or a silicone mat work well). Take the 1/2 cup of chocolate chips and add the 1-2 tbsp (just enough so it will melt, start with 1 and then add another if you find you need it after heating) of non-dairy milk in a glass measuring cup or small bowl. Microwave the chocolate chips for 30 seconds at a time and stir in between. Once they have melted and are smooth you pour the chocolate over the second half of popcorn. You can add a few sprinkles of salt at this point too. Let the chocolate drizzled popcorn cool while you are baking the kettle corn.

Once the kettle corn is done and cooled, combine the two types of popcorn and enjoy! It is an irresistible combination. 

Apple Cinnamon Buckwheat Pancakes

I like to make these on the weekend and make a few extra to have on hand during the week. I will eat these cold - just as is with no syrup. They make a great snack that way. But they are, of course, the best warm with some vegan margarine and maple syrup. I find they keep me very full through the morning.

Apple Cinnamon Buckwheat Pancakes

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cup soy milk
1 1/2 tsp vinegar

2 tbsp flax meal
1/3 cup water

3/4 cup buckwheat flour
3/4 cup oat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3 tbsp sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg

3 tbsp coconut oil, melted

1 cup diced apple (1 average sized apple - you can leave the peel on or off we like the apples peeled)

Directions:

Mix the soy milk and the vinegar in a measuring cup and set aside to curdle while you prep the rest of the ingredients.

Whisk the flax meal and the 1/3 cup of water in a small cup or bowl and set aside to let thicken. This mixture is your egg replacer.

Combine the buckwheat flour, oat flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg in a large mixing bowl. Then add the wet ingredients (the curdled soy milk, the flax mixture, and the melted coconut oil. Mix until you don't see any flour and the ingredients are incorporated. Then fold in the apples.

Finally, heat a non-stick pan on medium high heat and coat lightly with cooking spray. Pour the batter on the pan and heat until bubbles on the top start to pop and leave little circles. Flip and cook on the other side until the pancake is cooked through.

Makes 6 large (4 inch diameter) pancakes.

Whole Grain Sesame Crackers

These little crackers are fun to make and are a great snack to have on hand. The dough is easy to work and totally worth the effort of making your own crackers.

Whole Grain Sesame Crackers

Ingredients:

1 cup oat flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
3 tbsp ground flax seeds
3 tbsp nutritional yeast
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp ground thyme
1/4 tsp rosemary
1/2 tsp oregano
3 tbsp sesame seeds
3 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp vegan margarine (cut into small chunks)
1/2 cup cold water (add a little more a tablespoon at a time to make it pull together into a ball of dough)

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Put the dry ingredients into a food processor and pulse to combine. This will be the oat flour, whole wheat flour, flax seeds, nutritional yeast, garlic powder, salt, baking powder, thyme, rosemary, and oregano. Next add the sesame seeds, the olive oil, the margarine, and the water then run the food processor on low to mix into a dough. Put the dough onto a floured surface and use your hands to work the dough into a disk. Take half of the dough and roll it out. Then use a small round object to cut out little circles about an inch wide. I used the lid from the olive oil to make the circles. Poke 3 holes in the middle of each of the crackers using a toothpick or chopstick and then put the circles on a cookie sheet.

Bake for 14 minutes, turning the pan halfway through for even baking. Let them cool and store in an airtight container.

Healthy Happy Banana Oatmeal Cookies

These are lightly sweetened gluten free cookies that come out soft and chewy. To make the oat flour, simply grind oats in a food processor or blender and use as you would any other flour. I do the same with flax seeds - grind them up in a spice grinder and then store in the freezer. I actually store my oat flour in the freezer as well and then you have what you need ready to go for baking.

Healthy Happy Banana Oatmeal Cookies

Ingredients:

2 tbsp ground flax seeds
1/3 cup water

1 1/4 cup oat flour
1 cup rolled oats
2 tbsp corn starch
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon

2 ripe bananas, smashed
1/3 cup natural sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup coconut oil, melted

Optional: 1/3 cup chocolate chips (you could do walnuts as well if you like)

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Combine the ground flax seeds with the 1/3 cup of water. Whisk with a fork to combine and let thicken while you prepare the other ingredients.

Put the dry ingredients into a large mixing bowl (oat flour, oats, corn starch, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon). Stir to combine. Be sure you don't have any clumps of baking soda.

Combine the wet ingredients, which are the smashed banana, sugar, vanilla, coconut oil and the flax mixture. Stir to combine.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients until just mixed (where you don't see any flour) add the optional chocolate chips and mix them in as well.

Let the dough sit for about 10 minutes so the oats can begin to soak up some of the liquid. Make 12 balls of dough and place them on two lightly greased cookie sheets. Bake for 10-12 minutes, then let cool and enjoy!

Ginger Lemonade

I love to drink this through the cold and flu season. The lemon, ginger and apple cider vinegar have many health benefits with vitamin C, probiotics and inflammatory properties - overall they provide a nice boost to your immune system.

I make a few jars of this at the start of the week and then just grab one a day.

Ginger Lemonade

Ingredients:

3 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp liquid stevia
1 tsp apple cider vinegar (with "the mother" for the probiotics)
1 inch piece of ginger peeled and sliced
32 ounces of water

Directions:

Put all the ingredients in a 32 oz jar and add the water. Let sit in the refrigerator until ready to drink. The ginger flavors permeate the drink more the longer it soaks.

Chocolate Chia Pudding

Having fallen in love with golden milk chia pudding last year, I can't believe I was this slow in trying chocolate chia pudding. Now that I have tried it, I am in love with this version, too. Some folks blend their pudding ingredients, but I like the consistency of the chia seeds as they remind me a bit of tapioca pudding. So I just mix mine up and keep in the fridge for a really good snack, addition to breakfast, or a dessert when you want something a little sweet.

Chocolate Chia Pudding

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups soy milk (or your favorite non-dairy milk)
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup maple syrup

3 tbsp cocoa powder
1/4 cup chia seeds
pinch of salt
dash of cinnamon (optional)

Directions:

Pour the wet ingredients (soy milk, vanilla, and maple syrup) into a container big enough to hold 3 cups.

Add the cocoa powder, chia seeds, salt and cinnamon and whisk vigorously to completely combine. Let it sit in the refrigerator to set (takes a few hours). Check the pudding a couple of times while it is setting up to give it another stir and then once it has thickened, enjoy!

If you use a large mason jar, you can shake it instead of stirring.

Vegan Cheeze Crackers

We love this recipe from Minimalist Baker and make these crackers all of the time for snacking, adding to soups, etc. I have adapted the recipe just a tad and these come out great every time. They are addictive and really do taste like the cheez-it crackers you can buy at the store. I often double the recipe so they will last a bit longer, as my family tends to eat them up quickly.

It is kind of cool to be able to make your own crackers at home and is a fraction of the cost of buying them prepackaged, which is a win-win.

Vegan Cheeze Crackers

Ingredients:

4 tbsp nutritional yeast
6 tbsp corn meal
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
3 tbsp Earth Balance Spread (or your favorite vegan margarine)
3 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup cold water (or more; add water a little at a time until a ball of dough forms)

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Add the dry ingredients to a food processor and pulse to combine. Then add the vegan margarine, olive oil, and a 1/4 cup of the cold water. Pulse to combine and add more water a little at a time until a ball of dough forms. You don't need to knead the dough, but use your hands to shape it into a disk.

Put the dough on a floured surface and roll it out to 1/4 inch thickness. Use a pizza cutter to cut out small shapes such as triangles or squares. I use a chopstick to make a small indent in the middle of each cracker. Put the crackers on baking sheets and bake for 12 minutes, turning the pan halfway through.

Baked Ziti

This recipe has been a new family favorite for the past year. With the tofu and meatless meatballs it has a good amount of plant based protein. It works well as leftovers, too. We like to open a second jar of spaghetti or pizza sauce and add a bit more to each serving when we reheat it.

Baked Ziti

Ingredients:

16 oz ziti - penne works too (cooked aldente according to the package directions)

1 block of firm tofu (about 16 ounces)
2  tsp lemon juice
1/3 cup plain unsweetened soy milk
1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp basil
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
3 tbsp nutritional yeast

1/2 -1 cup vegan parmesan cheese
3 cups pasta sauce (25 oz jar)
vegan meatballs (I have been using the ones from Trader Joe's - Gardein has some good ones too)

Directions:

Cook the pasta according to the package directions, drain, rinse and set aside. Pre-heat oven to 350. Spray a casserole dish with cooking spray.

Make the tofu ricotta by combining the tofu, lemon juice, plain soy milk, garlic powder, basil, oregano, salt, pepper, and nutritional yeast. It works great to pulse the ingredients in a blender or food processor.

Toss the pasta with the tofu ricotta and then stir in the vegan parmesan cheese. Add one cup of the pasta sauce and mix with the noodles. Put the mixture in the prepared casserole dish. Top with your favorite meatless meatballs and pour over the remaining pasta sauce. Cover and bake for 45 minutes in the oven. Let rest for 10 minutes and serve.

Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies

These cookies come out soft and chewy with a nice balance of pumpkin and spice. I made them this week for a back to school lunch or snack option.

Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies

Ingredients:

3/4 cup vegan margarine, softened
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
1 cup vegan sugar
1 tbsp flax meal
2 tsp molasses

1 1/2 cups flour (I have used a gluten free mix before and they still turn out great)
1 3/4 cups rolled oats
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp allspice

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

Combine the wet ingredients and the sugar in a large bowl (margarine, pumpkin, sugar, flax meal and molasses).

Add the dry ingredients and fold them in until everything is combined (flour, oats, salt, soda, cinnamon, and allspice).

Drop rounded spoonfuls onto a lightly greased cookie sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes. These cookies hold their shape in the oven, so I like to lightly press them with the back of a spoon before baking.

Carrot Cake

Carrot cake is my husband's favorite dessert, and I have worked on perfecting a vegan carrot cake recipe forever. This recipe finally checked all of the boxes for carrot cake. It is moist but not oily (some vegan carrot cakes have this problem), sweet with a hint of warm spices and classic carrot cake flavor. The coconut milk does not add coconut flavor - letting the carrot cake remind you of ones from past omni-days.

Vegan Carrot Cake

Cake Ingredients:

1/2 cup raisins (optional)

2 cups grated carrots (4-5 medium sized carrots)

2 1/2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp allspice
pinch of nutmeg

1 cup of coconut milk (full fat, mix before measuring)
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 tsp white vinegar
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup of water

Cake Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease and flour a 9x13 inch baking dish.

Cover the raisins with hot water, and set aside to plump up while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

Peel and grate the carrots.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients. You want to mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, and nutmeg.

In another bowl mix the wet ingredients. These are the carrots, coconut milk, vegetable oil, vinegar, vanilla, and water.

Fold the wet ingredients into the dry and stir until just mixed. Pour the batter into your prepared pan and bake for 45-50 minutes.

Let the cake completely cool in the pan and then frost with your favorite vegan cream cheese or vanilla frosting.

This is the frosting that I like.

Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting

Frosting Ingredients:

1/4 cup vegan cream cheese (Tofutti and Daiya both have good cream cheese)
1/4 cup vegan margarine
Pinch of salt
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups natural powdered sugar
1 - 2 tbsp water

Frosting Directions:

Set out the margarine and the cream cheese to let them come to room temperature. Put them in a bowl and add the vanilla, 1/2 cup of the powdered sugar, and 1 tbsp of the water. Beat with an electric mixer until it is smooth and well combined. Add more powdered sugar a 1/2 cup at a time and continue to beat with the mixers until the sugar is incorporated and the frosting is light and fluffy. Add a little water as needed to get the consistency you want.

Zucchini Noodles with (Mostly) Raw Creamy Alfredo Sauce

This turned out so much better than I expected. I ate two huge bowls and was very happy. Surprisingly a big pile of zucchini noodles filled me up and kept me satisfied for the evening. I have had this a few times since I first tried it and can say it is now a part of my regular recipe rotation; I like it especially in summer when light foods are most appealing.

Zucchini Noodles with Raw Alfredo

Ingredients:

2 medium sized zucchini

1/2 ripe avocado
2 tbsp hemp seeds
3 tbsp tahini (you can buy this with toasted or raw sesame seeds)
2 tbsp Bragg liquid Aminos (could substitute soy sauce or coconut aminos)
1 clove garlic
1/4 of a large fresh tomato
1/4 cup water
2-3 tbsp nutritional yeast

Directions:

Wash the zucchini and cut off the ends (throw the ends in your blender with the other sauce ingredients). Spiralize the zucchini (you can also use a vegetable peeler to make long strips of zucchini if you don't have a spiralizer), and keep the core of the zucchini to add to the sauce mix as well. Sprinkle a little salt on the zucchini and set aside while you make the sauce.

Blend the sauce ingredients until smooth. This includes the ends and middle of the zucchinis, avocado, hemp seeds, tahini, bragg, garlic, tomato, water and nutritional yeast. Pour the sauce over the zucchini and add some cracked pepper and extra hemp seeds.

Basic Chia Pudding

This is a raw chia pudding with wholesome ingredients. This is great for breakfast, a snack, or dessert. The chia seeds fill you up, and I think they are kind of reminiscent of tapioca. In the winter when I am all about the oatmeal, I like to add this on top of that too. It is very versatile, good for you and satisfying.

Basic Chia Pudding

Ingredients:

1 cup pitted dates (around 8 dates)
3 tbsp hemp seeds
pinch of salt
1 tsp vanilla
dash of cinnamon
2 cups of water

1/3 cup chia seeds

Directions:

Blend the dates, hemp seeds, salt, vanilla, cinnamon and water.

Pour into a glass storage container and stir in the chia seeds. Refrigerate overnight to let the chia seeds soak up the water.

Top with hemp seeds, fresh fruit, berries, shredded coconut, nuts or anything else that sounds good to you.

Fennel and Apple Salad with Kale

This summer I have been eating a lot more fresh produce and trying out some raw vegan recipes. I admit I was inspired by these raw vegan women who I came across on YouTube (Raw Alignment, Dr. Elizabeth, and Laura Miller). They absolutely glow, so I thought I would give eating raw a go - just to see how I felt. I am about a week in, and feeling fantastic! I thought I would be ravenous, which I haven't been at all. I thought I would crave, crave, crave all the vegan junk food, which I have a little, but it has been very manageable. I don't know that I am permanently changing my diet, but right now I am loving the lightness and energy from the raw foods I am trying and am going to see where it goes.

Of course, with just getting started I am in a learning curve here of what to eat. I have had a couple of fails (tried to make my own Sunbutter - which did not turn creamy at all, and there was a soaked buckwheat disaster as well) but this salad was one of the highlights so far. The avocado makes it work and ties everything together. The combination of the green apple and fennel with a perfectly ripe avocado is just so so good.

Fennel and Apple Salad with Kale

Ingredients:

1 green apple, cored and sliced into thin pieces (try to mimic the size of the fennel slices)
2 tsp lemon juice

1 fennel bulb, sliced thin
A few fennel fronds, sliced
1 bunch kale, washed, stemmed and cut into thin ribbons
2 carrots, peeled and shredded

1 tsp oil (olive or grapeseed)
2 tsp dijon mustard
1 tbsp light vinegar (rice wine, white, or champagne)
Salt and pepper to taste

1 avocado, peeled and diced
handful of raw pumpkin seeds (pepitas)

Directions:

Wash and core the apple and then slice it into thin pieces. Try cutting it into fourths and then slice those pieces into bite sized slivers. Toss the apples with the lemon juice (the prevents the apples from browning).

Slice a fennel bulb into thin pieces and put them in a large salad bowl. Add the sliced kale and shredded carrots. (If you don't like tough kale, you take take a few minutes to really massage the leaves - this helps them wilt.) Toss the apples in as well.

Pour on the dressing ingredients (oil, dijon, vinegar, salt and pepper) and mix well to coat the salad. Add the diced avocado and pumpkin seeds right before you serve the salad.

Fresh Juice (Orange Detox and Healthy Green)

It is spring, and that means lots of fresh produce - yay! To get the most out of the fresh fruits and veggies on sale at the market, as well as what is coming up in my garden, I have been making lots of fresh juices. Here are a couple of really good combinations to try.

Fresh Juice

Orange Detox Drink Ingredients:

2 golden beets
4 large carrots
2 or 3 navel oranges
1 inch piece fresh peeled ginger
1 inch piece fresh turmeric
1/2 lemon, peeled

Healthy Green Juice Ingredients:

1 bunch of collards, washed
Small handful of parsley leaves
Small handful of mint leaves
2 cucumbers, peeled
2 or 3 apples, cored

Directions:

Clean and prepare your fruits and vegetables before running them through your juicer. That's it! Chill and enjoy soaking up the nutrients.

Quick Ginger Ale

This is more of an idea to share than a recipe, but is something I love to make so I thought I would capture it here. I keep peeled and sliced fresh ginger in my freezer so I always have some on hand, which makes this a quick and easy drink to make. Sometimes I vary the juice and add a little cranberry to it as well.

Homemade Quick Ginger Ale

Ingredients:

12 oz sparkling water
12 oz apple juice
1-2 inch piece of fresh ginger peeled and sliced

Directions:

Pour all the ingredients in a glass jar and refrigerate. Sometimes I start with just the ginger and apple juice to let the ginger flavor come through, and then add the sparkling water right before I drink it.

Makes 4 - 6 oz servings.

Nacho Cheese

This veggie based nacho cheese sauce is amazing! It is a twist on the one from High Carb Hannah and I absolutely love it! It is so good on top of burrito bowls, in wraps or on top of a baked potato.

Ingredients:

2 small potatoes
1 carrot
1/2 onion, diced
1 clove garlic
water to cover

1/2 bell pepper
1/4 cup salsa
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
2 tbsp hemp seeds
1 tsp salt

Directions:

Roughly chop the potato, carrot, onion, and garlic. Put them in a sauce pan with water to cover. Boil over medium heat until the veggies have softened which takes around 10 minutes or so. Put the boiled potato mixture in a blender with about 1/3 cup of the cooking water. Add the pepper, salsa, nutritional yeast, hemp seeds and salt. Blend until smooth.

Butternut Squash Soup

I am just using up the last of the winter squash harvested from the garden last fall. It keeps really well in a cool dark location (like a basement or garage). This soup may be one of my all time favorites with butternut squash. It has simple ingredients that end up tasting rich and complex. This recipe is lightly adapted from this one on Simply Recipes, and their addition of an apple is key! I swapped out vegetable stock for chicken, and added coconut milk. The result is a warming winter soup that is delicious and easy to make.

Butternut Squash Soup

Ingredients:

1 tsp olive oil
1/2 onion, diced small

2 carrots, peeled and diced
1 rib of celery, diced
1 apple, cored and diced

1 butternut squash, peeled seeded and cubed
6 cups water
1 tbsp vegetable bouillon

pinch of cinnamon
pinch of nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste
5.5 oz can of coconut milk

Optional: pumpkin seeds for sprinkling on top.

Directions:

Heat the olive oil in a large stock pot over medium heat. Add the diced onion to the pot and cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Next add the carrots, celery, and diced apple to the pot and cook to let them heat through for another 5 minutes or so. Then you want to add the diced squash, water and vegetable bouillon. Bring the soup to a boil, and then lower the heat to let it simmer for around 30 minutes. You want to cook it until the vegetables and apple are soft and cooked through. Once they are ready, blend the soup with an immersion blender or by processing the soup in small batches in a blender. Once the soup is blended, return it to low heat and add a pinch of cinnamon, a pinch of nutmeg, salt, and pepper to taste. Finally stir in a small can of coconut milk and serve.

Breakfast Fried Rice

I have been working on this recipe for a long time, and it took many tries to get it just right. I finally went back to basics and used this recipe as a jumping off point. I traded the eggs for tofu, used liquid smoke instead of bacon, and added nutritional yeast as well. We have really been enjoying the resulting savory dish for any time of day.

Breakfast Fried Rice

Ingredients:

2 cups brown rice (cooked according to package directions) or 4 cups leftover rice

1 block of firm tofu

1 tbsp toasted sesame oil, divided
5 green onions, thinly sliced

3-4 tbsp soy sauce or Braggs Liquid Aminos
1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
pinch of cayenne pepper
1 - 3 tsp liquid smoke (to taste)

3 tbsp nutritional yeast
1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds (use black ones for a nice pop of color)

Directions:

Prepare the rice and reserve. Drain the tofu and cut into small strips or squares.

Heat a non-stick frying pan over medium heat and add half of the sesame oil. Fry the tofu in the sesame oil until it browns on both sides. This takes about 20 minutes, and it works best if you don't mess with it too much. Give it some time and then flip it. Once the tofu is done, take it out of the frying pan and reserve.

Add the rest of the sesame oil to the pan and add the rice. Cook the rice until it is heated through then add the scallions. Once the scallions have begun to heat add the seasonings, which are the soy sauce, vinegar, cayenne, and liquid smoke. Toss to distribute the seasonings and then add the tofu back into the rice mix to combine. Top with the nutritional yeast and sesame seeds.

Golden Granola

Having recently fallen in love with all things golden milk (golden milk overnight oats, golden milk chia pudding, golden milk the drink, etc.), I thought to try the flavor profile with granola. The turmeric has a wonderful almost nutty quality to it which adds a nice dimension of flavor to this lightly sweetened granola. Try this as a cereal, over vanilla soy yogurt, or on top of an acai bowl.

Golden Granola

Ingredients:

3 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds
1/4 cup hemp seeds
1/4 cup buckwheat
2 tbsp chia seeds
2 tbsp black sesame seeds
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
pinch of ground ginger
dash of nutmeg
1 tsp turmeric powder

1/2 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup coconut oil
1 tsp vanilla

*Optional: crystalized ginger pieces or dried fruit.

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Combine the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. This includes the oats, coconut, sunflower seeds, hemp seeds, buckwheat, chia seeds, black sesame seeds, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and turmeric powder.

Next, pour the maple syrup, coconut oil and vanilla into a microwave safe measuring cup or bowl and heat in the microwave just long enough for the coconut oil to melt so the wet ingredients can be combined. Pour the sweetened coconut oil over the oats and stir well to coat everything evenly.

Spray a large baking dish with cooking spray and pour in the oat mixture. Bake for 25 minutes, and be sure to stir it every 10 minutes or so until the granola is evenly browned. Once the granola has cooled add the crystalized ginger, or another dried fruit to the mix.

9 servings of 1/2 cup each.

Slow Cooked Steel Cut Oats

This is a basic steel cut oat recipe that isn't too sweet. It is a canvas that can be topped with just about anything. Try granola, bananas, apples, berries, nuts, chocolate, shredded coconut, seeds or stir in pumpkin or cocoa. This makes a great breakfast that you can reheat throughout the week. Put it in the microwave for a minute or two and then stir in a tad more water or non-dairy milk to make it nice and creamy.

Slow Cooked Steel Cut Oats

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups steel cut oats
6 cups water
1 cup chopped fresh dates (120 grams) or 1/4 cup sweetener (sugar or maple syrup)
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon

Optional: Add 1tbsp molasses, 1/2 tsp allspice, and a pinch of ground ginger for a richer flavor that hints at gingerbread.

Directions:

Put all the ingredients in and cook on low for a few hours (start checking them at around 4 hours. I find that they have a nice texture after 4 1/2 hours. They can cook a lot longer than that, though. You can leave it overnight, but know that without occasional stirring the oats will stick along the edges. With some effort in the morning you can scrape it off and it's not a big deal. I like to cook them during the day on Sunday when I can check on them, and then eat them reheated throughout the week.

For 6 servings.

With chopped dates:                                                 With 1/4 cup sugar:
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Refried Beans From Scratch

My mother in law recently gave us some new crop pinto beans, and they are so good. The fresh taste of the beans makes it worth the effort to make them from scratch and then fry them up. If you plan ahead for the cooking time in your crock pot, these come together quickly once the beans are cooked through. I find that with these fresh pinto beans, I don't even need to soak them.

Refried Beans

Ingredients:

1 cup dried pinto beans
3 cups water

1 tsp olive oil
1/4 yellow onion, diced (1/3 cup diced onion)

1 tsp liquid smoke
Pinch of garlic powder
Salt to taste

Optional - add a pinch of cumin and a pinch of dried oregano

Directions:

Cover the beans in a slow cooker with the 3 cups of water and cook on low for several hours (older beans can take up to 8, while new crop beans can be done in 4). It is okay to cook them for a long time. On low the water won't evaporate too quickly and you want the beans to be soft for mashing.

When the beans are cooked through, heat the oil in a non-stick frying pan, and saute the diced onion on medium low until it begins to soften. Once the onions are translucent, add the beans to the pan and mash them with a potato masher. Add some of the cooking liquid to get a nice consistency. Keep mashing and adding a little liquid until they are to your liking. Add a tsp of liquid smoke and a pinch of garlic powder. Taste the beans and add a little salt.

Makes 3 cups of refried beans

Cherry Chocolate Granola

This granola is decadent and almost dessert-like. It is great for snacking when you want something sweet, try it on top of yogurt, on a smoothie bowl, or with ice cream. The chocolate and the tart cherries are a perfect match for hearty granola.

Cherry Chocolate Granola

Ingredients:

3 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds
1/4 cup hemp seed hearts
1/4 cup flax seeds
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/4 tsp salt

1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup maple syrup

1/4 cup mini chocolate chips
1/2 cup dried cherries

Directions:

Pre-heat your over to 400 degrees. Combine the dry ingredients (oats, coconut, sunflower seeds, hemp seeds, flax seeds, cocoa powder and salt). Then add the wet ingredients to the dry (coconut oil, vanilla, maple syrup. Mix it well to coat the oats with the oil and syrup.

Spray a large rectangle baking dish with cooking spray and pour in the oat mixture. Bake for 25 minutes, stirring every 10.  Once the granola has started to cool, add the chocolate chips and the dried cherries.