Sweet Potato Yumminess

I thought I'd do something a little different with the sweet potatoes this year (for Thanksgiving) and I created my new favorite dish.  Here it is:

Sweet Potatoes cubed to a smidge smaller than dice
Oil
Maple Syrup
chopped walnuts
cranberries
water

toss the sweet potatoes in the oil, add walnut pieces, add maple syrup & toss.  Bake at 400 until everything is cooked.  Meanwhile, plump cranberries in the microwave with water.  When potatoes come out of the oven add cranberries and serve.

Unfortunately we ate it all before I took a picture.

Good Brownie Recipe

These turned out pretty tasty!

2 C flour
2 C sugar
3/4 C cocoa Powder
1 t baking powder
1 t salt
1/2 C vegan butter
1/2 C canola oil
1/2 C rice milk
1/2 C water
1 t vanilla
handful vegan chocolate chips

mix dry, mix in wet.  Add chips.  Press into a 9 X 13 pan and bake at 350 for 40 minutes

Tasty Vegan Pot Pie

I just tried this amazing recipe from the Vegan Lunch Box Blog  Holy smokes was it good!  5.5 yr old Adelaide was over for dinner and she kept going on and on about it.  Mark and I loved it, our kids weren't quite as taken but seemed to like it ok.  Instead of following her directions for one large pot pie, I made individual servings.  Which made it fun for the kids.  Here is the recipe with my modifications:

Veggie Filling:
*note that the amounts of the veggies are easy to modify and switch out as needed. You just want about enough veggies to fill up your pot pie serving dish
3/4 cup petite peas, organic (frozen)
1 large carrot, diced
1 small potato, peeled/diced (I used left over sweet potatoes) - about 1 1/4 cups when chopped
1/2 cup chickpeas, drained/rinsed (MORE
1/2 cup shiitake portabella mushrooms, diced
left over asparagus

spices/oil for veggie saute:
1/2 tsp olive oil
1/4 tsp salt
a few dashes of black pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder salt
a few pinches of cayenne (optional)

Cashew Base:
1 cup vegetable broth
2 cups soaked raw cashews
1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar or lemon juice
2 Tbsp white miso paste (adds saltiness and subtle flavor)
additional salt if needed (if you do not use miso paste, you should add some salt)
a few pinches of cayenne (optional)

Crust:
1 cup white flour, organic
1/4 cup virgin coconut oil (used trader joes)
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp lemon juice
4-6 Tbsp warm water
a squeeze of orange juice (brush top of pastry with it, or squeeze over top)


Her dish: measures 9½ inches in diameter; holds 3.88 quarts (I used several different sized individual things

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. (Yes! At the start because this goes so fast!)

2. Add you cashews (about 1 1/2 cups before the are soaked) to a large bowl and cover with very hot water. The hottest setting on your tap. Add a pinch of salt and allow to sit while you do the veggie prep. (note: If you have time and plan ahead, soak the cashews for even longer - 4+ hours is great. This will help ease the blending process just a bit. This is advised if you are not using a high speed blender.)

3. Prep all your veggies. Set aside.

4. Add you potatoes to a deep skillet and cover with water. Bring to a boil and cover with lid. Reduce heat a bit and allow to cook until a tested potato is tender, but not mushy. Drain the water and set potatoes aside with other veggies.

5. Drain your cashews and add 2 cups of the soaked cashews to your blender. If you have any extra cashews you can thrown them in as well or toss them in whole with your veggie mix. Add the veggie broth, miso, sauce spices and acid. Blend from low to high until smooth and creamy. This may take a minute or so. Set aside. (Adjust salt and seasonings if desired.)

6. In that same skillet, add your oil and when the oil is hot add in the carrots, beans and mushrooms. Saute for a few minutes until cooked down. Then add in the peas and potatoes and saute until peas thaw a bit. Over medium heat.

7. Pour the base sauce over top the veggie saute and toss until all the veggies are well coated. Turn heat to high and saute for another 1-2 minutes so that the flavor of the nutty sauce develops a bit.

8. Pour the heated veggie filling into your pot pie serving/baking dish. Set aside.

9. Quickly mix up your dry ingredients for your crust. Then using your hands, mash in the coconut oil. Then one tablespoon at a time, add in the water. Mixing with every new spoonful. Keep adding until your dough in kneadable yet still moist. When this occurs, knead a bit then roll out on a floured surface. This does not to be perfect at all! I very quickly pressed and rolled out my dough (as you can tell by the crumbly state after baking). Add to top of your serving dish and slice a few vent lines in top. Lastly, squeeze a bit or orange juice over top - or brush pastry lightly with it. It gives a subtle orange tint that beats an "egg wash" any day!

10. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Serve after about 20 minutes of cooling. Store in fridge and reheat as needed. Eat within 3 days. This dish probably freezes quite well, but I have not tested freezing yet

Leprechaun Tricks. Year two.

Last year was so much fun I think we have to do it again!  Thankfully, Phoebe isn't frightened of the fictional Leprechaun this year so it's all fun and no tears.

The kids left rainbow bread and little notes

Here are my plans and limericks (shh!  Don't tell the kids):

Tue –shamrock napkins spread out on the table & colleen the wind up st. pattys day doll on the table (we left rainbow bread out)
I came to see the Navin’s place
I left some shamrocks for your face
the bread was great
and now it’s late
I left Colleen here on this vase


Wed – green toys all out
I played with toys the color green
but I made sure I wasn’t seen
I won’t be caught
But fret you not
I’ll come back while you’re in a dream


Th – rainbow with playsilks made into a circle on floor
Rainbows spun around and round
In the sky?  No, on the ground!
I danced all night
into the light
But made sure not to make a sound

Fri- Hats, gloves, scarves all over the house in a line
These things I’ve left upon the floor
You do not need them any more
Spring air will come
soon winter’s done
which one of you did I hear snore?


Sat- Sunglasses on stuffed animals sitting on chairs/table
Today is the last trick I play
I must go, I cannot stay
the tricks were fun
but now they’re done
Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

A working meal plan!

I think I've finally found a plan that works!  Here are my days (for each theme I have 4-6 options and I select which one works best that week:

Sun- Salad	Blackbean & Corn Salad Quinoa salad Blackbean & Quinoa Sala Meat and Salad *green salad with canned beans
Mon- Mexican	Bean Burritos Chili Stuffed Peppers Stuffed Peppers *TJ’s frozen burritos
Tues- Around the World	Egyptian Lentil Stew Mujadara Curry Chana Masala *Take Out Middle Eastern Food
Weds- Soup	Lentil Soup Red Lentil & pumpkin soup Sneaky Black Bean Soup *TJ’s Box Soup
Thurs- American	*Veggie Burgers *Hot Dogs Portabella Mushrooms Sloppy Lentils
Fri- Italian	*Pasta & Sauce Bean Bruschetta Pizza
Sat- Stir Fry	Peanut Ginger Stir Fry Lemon Stir Fry Grilled Veggie Wraps with Honey Mustard Sauce *Frozen Veggies and beans

Amazing Vegan Cookies (Double Chocolate)

Since going dairy/soy/egg free we have tried a lot of vegan baked goods.  Nothing has turned out nearly as good as these cookies.  These are A-MAZ-ING.  Recipe is here and here are my adjustments:

VEGAN DOUBLE CHOCOLATE COOKIES

• 2 cups flour
• 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2/3 cup vegetable oil (CANOLA)
• 1-1/4 cup sugar
• 4 teaspoons ground flaxseeds
• 1/2 cup nondairy milk, like soy or almond RICE MILK
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup nondairy chocolate chips or chunks. TRADER JOES (they are manufactured on equipment that processes dairy but that is ok for me)

Instructions for Making Vegan Chocolate Cookies

Begin by preheating the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Mix the ground flax seeds with the non-dairy milk, and whisk them together well. Set this aside for a few moments to thicken.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir them together with a whisk until well-blended and there are no lumps of cocoa powder remaining.

Combine the sugar and the vegetable oil in a large bowl, and whisk them together until the sugar is nice and moist. Now add the flax seed mixture, and the vanilla extract, and mix them into sugar until it thickens into a smooth, shiny batter.

Add all the dry ingredients at once and stir carefully, mixing until everything is incorporated and you have just a few spots of flour remaining. Finally, add the chocolate chips or chunks and mix them into the cookie dough along with the last of the flour. The dough will be stiff.

Use a cookie scoop to form 1-inch balls of dough and use your palm to gently flatten them slightly into discs, then place them on a parchment-lined cookie sheet.

Bake the cookies at 350 degrees F for 9-10 minutes, until they're puffed and have lost the raw shine in the middle. Remove them from the oven and let them cool for 2-3 minutes on the cookie sheet, then move them to a wire rack to cool completely.

These double chocolate cookies have a soft, rich brownie-like texture, with little pockets of melted chocolate throughout. They're so decadent, no one will believe they're vegan

Chick Pea Curry

This was really really good.  Not often that something I just threw together works so well.

Chickpeas, pressure cooked (not soaked, 40min)
onion, chopped
garlic, chopped (~ 2-3 cloves)
1 inch ginger grated
water
coconut milk (~3/4cup)
curry powder
cumin
salt
tomato
frozen peas

Pressure cook chick peas,
meanwhile, sautee onion, garlic & ginger.  Add all the other ingredients until tomato (including chick peas)- enough water to cover.
Simmer low for 2 hours.
add peas moments before serving, let cook long enough to heat up.