Tag Archives: recipe

Dark Chocolate Pistachio Truffles

Source: Slightly altered from this recipe at My Whole Food Life. We used almond butter and regular dates.

Notes: These are pretty good.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup almond butter
1 dark chocolate bar
1 8oz bag of dates (pits removed)
1/3-1/2 cup pistachios (Chopped fine or ground into dust)
1/4 tsp salt

Directions:
In the food processor or blender, combine the pecan butter and dark chocolate. Once they are mixed well, add in the dates and salt and mix until well combined. A ball of dough will form. Spread your chopped pistachios onto a plate. Roll the dough into balls, then roll the balls through the chopped pistachios. Once that is done, place the balls on a lined baking sheet. Once all the balls are done, stick the baking sheet into the fridge to firm up.

Black Bean and Sweet Potato Quesadillas

Notes: Nova liked this better than I did. I just thought it was so-so. I used whole wheat tortillas.

Ingredients:

1 large sweet potato
1 cup brown rice, cooked
8 ounces vegetarian, no added oil, re-fried beans
1 cup of salsa
1 cup fresh spinach
8 ounces black beans, drained and rinsed
¼ teaspoon onion powder
¼ teaspoon chili powder
¼ teaspoon cumin
1 jalapeño pepper, diced (optional and HOT)
6-8 Flour or Grain Tortillas

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 375ºF
2. Prepare a sheet pan with parchment paper
3. An hour before you plan to eat, peel and quarter the sweet potatoes
4. Bake sweet potatoes in the oven for 45 minutes to one hour, until soft
5. In the meantime, prepare rice in a rice cooker or on stove top as directed
6. Remove sweet potatoes from oven and toss into a mixing bowl
7. Mash sweet potatoes with the salsa, rice and fresh spinach
8. Place sweet potato mash in a sauce pan and mix in black beans and refried beans, heating mixture thoroughly over medium heat
9. Add onion powder, chili powder and cumin to taste and stir
10. Place a tortilla in a frying pan on medium heat, and slather the side facing up with sweet potato and bean mixture
11. Add jalapeños if desired
12. Place another whole wheat tortilla on top
13. Press down on top tortilla with spatula with pan on medium heat for about 3 minutes
14. Flip with spatula and cook for another three minutes
15. Voila! Cut into desired number of sections
16. Serve topped with salsa

Tip: Also try this with black-eyed peas instead of the black beans or any other favorite beans.

Source: Engine 2

Quinoa Burgers

Quinoa Burger on skinny bun and tater-rounds.

Quinoa Burger on skinny bun and tater-rounds.

Ingredients:
2 cups cooked quinoa
2 flax eggs (2 tbsp of ground flaxseed with 6 tbsp of hot water)
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
2 green onions sliced thinly
1/2 cup finely chopped mushrooms
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp cayenne
1 tsp Liquid Smoke
1 TBSP Tamari
Oil for cooking

Directions:
Place all ingredients in a large bowl and stir well to combine.
Form the mixture in to balls and then flatten in to patties.
Cook quinoa burgers in a medium heat skillet about 4-5 minutes per side.

Italian Style Quinoa Cakes

Notes: We both thought these were really good. Pictured served with Spaghetti Squash.

Ingredients:

2 cups cooked quinoa
1 flax egg (1 tbsp of ground flaxseed with 3 tbsp of hot water)
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
2 green onions sliced thinly
2 Tbsp sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
8 fresh basil leaves, chopped
1/2 cup mozzarella Cheese-Style Shreds
1/2 tsp sea salt, 1/2 tsp black pepper and 1/2 tsp cayenne
1 tsp olive oil, for cooking

Directions:

Place all ingredients in a large bowl and stir well to combine. Form compact cakes with about 1/2 cup of the mix per cake. Heat a frying pan over medium heat with 1 tsp olive oil. Place quinoa cakes in the pan and cook about 4-5 minutes per side, until golden brown.

Mexican-Lime Soup

Notes: Makes 4 or 5 servings. Nova likes it and I thought it was ok for soup.

Ingredients:
1/2 large onion, chopped
4 ounces mushrooms, quartered
2 bay leaves
2 cloves garlic, chopped or pressed
2 poblano chili peppers, toasted, seeded, and skinned (see Cooking Tips), and cut into strips
2 32 ounce cartons vegetable stock
2 cups of corn
2 large cooked red potatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 bunch cilantro, rinsed and chopped
Juice of 3 limes
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 avocado, peeled and sliced
Corn tortillas strips – baked

Directions:
Sauté onion, mushrooms, and bay leaves on medium heat with a little water or low sodium vegetable broth in a large soup pot for 5 minutes, until onions brown.
Add garlic, chilies, and 1 cup of stock. Stir intermittently for 5 minutes, until peppers begin to soften.
Add remaining stock, corn, and potatoes. Cover and cook on medium heat for 10 minutes, until potatoes are tender.
Remove from heat and let sit covered for 5 minutes.
Stir cilantro & lime juice into soup immediately before serving.

To Serve:
Place a handful each of tomatoes, avocados, and tortillas strips into large bowls.
Pour hot soup directly over vegetables and corn tortillas strips and serve.

Chickpea Avocado Sandwich Spread

Notes: I made this for myself and like it.

Ingredients:
1 can chickpeas
1 avocado
2 garlic cloves minced
2 green onions chopped
1 celery stalk chopped
1 Tablespoon nutritional yeast
Squirt of lemon juice
Black pepper

Directions:
In a bowl mash the chickpeas slightly with a fork. Add the avocado and do the same. Then add in the other ingredients and mix.

Pumpkin Bars

Notes: These were just ok. Not “bar” like in my opinion though. They were soft and I ate with a fork. More like a pie. Maybe I used to much pumpkin? Nova wouldn’t try them.

Ingredients:

• 15 ounces white beans (any)
• ½ cup canned pure pumpkin
• 2 whole bananas
• 3½ teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
• ¼ cup pure maple syrup
• ¼ cup brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons peanut butter
• ½ cup instant oats (If you only have rolled oats, send them through your food processor first to chop them up so they are smaller and more granulated like instant oats.)

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Drain and rinse beans. Combine all ingredients except oats (and cocoa if using) in a food processor, blending until smooth and creamy. Stir in oats (and cocoa if using) then transfer to a square baking dish. Bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean and the center is firm to the touch. Allow to completely cool before slicing or eating (the bars firm as they cool). The pumpkin flavor also intensifies the next day (make in advanced if possible).

Basic Vegan Chocolate Cake

Notes: Pictured the cake is iced with a simple vanilla, powdered sugar and rice milk frosting.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
3 tablespoons unsweetened coca powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2/3 cup pure maple syrup
6 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
1 tablespoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup cold water

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, cocoa and baking soda and mix well.
Add in the maple syrup, applesauce, vinegar, vanilla and water. Mix well to combine.
Pour the batter into a 9×9 inch nonstick cake pan.
Bake for 30 minutes.

Biscuits & Gravy

Notes: I’ve used both white and whole wheat flour in the biscuits and the gravy. Not a big noticeable difference once I top with salsa.

Biscuits…
Notes: Makes 4 biscuits.

Ingredients:
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 – 3/4 cup applesauce
Rice Milk as needed

Directions:
Mix flour and baking powder in bowl.
Stir in applesauce until a nice doughy consistency. Add rice milk if needed to reach constancy.
Bake in preheated oven at400 degrees for 10 – 15 minutes.

Gravy…

Ingredients:

Cooked sausage
2 cups milk
6 tablespoons flour
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
S&P

Directions:

In a saucepan whisk all other ingredients together and cook over medium heat.
Continue to whisk until the gravy has just started to boil and thickens up.
Stir in sausage.