Purple Buddha Bowl with Avocado Caesar Dressing

This recipe is a great one to make ahead as there are several components - which might seem a little daunting - but they all come together to make the effort worth it in the end. With the deep colors of the black rice, purple kale, and purple potatoes, you can see the antioxidants right there on the plate.

Purple Buddha Bowl

Ingredients:

2 cups black rice and 1 cup brown rice (or do 3 cups black rice)
6 1/2 cups water

3 carrots, diced
1 large purple potato, peeled and diced
1/2 kabocha squash, seeded, peeled and diced
Salt and pepper

1 head purple kale
Freshly squeezed lemon
Salt and pepper

Baked tofu (you can buy tofu seasoned and baked, or you can bake your own with a recipe like this one - which has been a long-standing favorite of mine).

Avocado Caesar Dressing:

1/3 cup hemp seeds
1/2 cup water
2 tbsp nutritional yeast
2 tbsp capers
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp vegan Worcestershire sauce
1 clove garlic
1 tsp dijon mustard
1 tsp white vinegar
1/2 ripe avocado

Directions:

Cook rice according to package directions.

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees and cook the carrots, purple potato, and squash in a baking dish sprayed with cooking oil. Sprinkle some salt and pepper on the veggies before you put them in to bake. Stir the veggies every 20 minutes and cook until they are fork tender. It can take quite a while depending on how large the pieces are. Plan for them to cook for around an hour.

Bake the tofu if you are making your own.

Wash the kale and rip or cut it into bite-sized pieces. Place the kale in a steamer basket fitted in a pan with some water on the bottom. Bring the water to a boil and steam the kale for 7-10 minutes. Once the kale is tender, toss it with freshly squeezed lemon juice and sprinkle on some salt and pepper.

Avocado Caesar Dressing Directions:

Place all of the dressing ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.

Buddha Bowl Directions:

Place a serving of the rice in a bowl and add some roasted veggies, steamed kale, and tofu. Top with avocado caesar dressing and some diced veggies (red onion and cucumber are nice), pickles, or sauerkraut. Enjoy!

Granola Bars Au Naturel

These bars are not too sweet,  nice and chewy, and have no added sugar or oil, which makes them super satisfying and good for you. These make a great snack, breakfast or dessert. I had never tried mulberries until High Carb Hannah mentioned them in her granola recipe. I found them at Sprouts and am hooked. They are sweet and chewy and remind me of a cross between a raisin and a fig. Yummy! If you can't find mulberries, you could sub 1/2 raisins and 1/2 chopped figs.

Granola Bars Au Naturel

Ingredients:

2 cups rolled oats
1 cup mulberries
8 dates
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
2-3 Tsp hemp seeds
Pinch of salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 cup water

Directions:

Place all ingredients in a food processor and pulse until combined.

Press into a rectangle baking dish and bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. These are slightly chewy and really yummy - store in an airtight container. Enjoy!

Oil Free Corn Chips

These are easy to make and taste so fresh. They are great with vegan nacho cheese sauce, fresh salsa, or for the base of a taco salad. These skip the oil so they are low fat, but still have great corn flavor. You can add other seasonings such as garlic salt, onion powder, and smoked paprika if you would like. They are great plain, too.

Oil Free Corn Chips

Ingredients:

18 count corn tortillas
1/3 cup hot water
1/2 tsp salt

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Cut the tortillas into 8 triangles.

Mix the hot water with the salt until the salt dissolves. Place the tortilla triangles in a single layer on a baking sheet and use a basting brush to coat them with the salt water. Add a few sprinkles of salt and bake for 7-10 minutes (until they are golden brown and crisp). Repeat until you have baked all of the tortilla triangles.

Chocolate Buckwheat Pancakes (Gluten Free)

This recipe is based on the one from the Starch Solution, but with a couple of adjustments such as the added cocoa powder and chocolate chips. Plus this is made to be gluten-free and low-fat, as well.

Chocolate Buckwheat Pancakes

Ingredients:

1 tbsp flax meal
3 tbsp water

2 ripe bananas, mashed
1 cup non-dairy milk (soy works well)
1/2 cup sparkling water
3 tbsp natural sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice

3/4 cup buckwheat flour
3/4 cup oat flour
2 tsp baking powder
dash of salt
1/3 cup cocoa powder

1/3 cup non-dairy chocolate chips (optional)

Directions:

Combine the flax meal with the water, and set aside to let thicken. Mash 2 bananas and put them in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Add the non-dairy milk, sparkling water, sugar, and lemon juice and mix it all together. Add the flax mixture and mix that in as well.

Combine the dry ingredients in a separate container. This is the buckwheat flour, oat flour, baking powder, salt, and cocoa powder. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix until there are not any large lumps of flour remaining.  Add the optional chocolate chips if using.

Heat a non-stick pan over high heat and pour 1/2 cup of batter into the heated pan. Watch for bubbles to form on the top of the pancake. You know it is time to flip the pancakes once the little bubbles pop and leave little holes on the top.  Serve with syrup, fresh berries, banana slices, or with a drizzle of nut butter.

These make 6 large pancakes.