Heirloom Tomato Sauce:
1 pound heirloom tomatoes
sea salt
6-8 garlic cloves
Fresh herbs, such as basil, chives, oregano and sage
* Instead of using fresh tomatoes, I used a 15 ounce can of diced tomatoes, drained. I mixed it with salt, minced garlic and just a sprinkle of all the above mentioned herbs. This easy step omitted step number 1, below.*
Poltenta Crust:
4 C water or unsalted vegetable broth
1 tsp sea salt
2 C organic polenta or cornmeal
*Instead of making the polenta, I bought a pre-packaged version. This saved me from step 2, and 4, below*
Herbed Cashew "Cheese", optional
1 C organic cashews
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 tsp Himalayan sea salt
1 tsp fresh basil or your favorite seasonal herb
1/4 C spring water
*I placed the cashews in a bowl, covered with water, and let them soak for a few hours. This makes them easier to chop.*
Toppings of choice, such as finely sliced red onions, zucchini rounds, sun-dried tomatoes, thinly sliced Chinese eggplant, or fresh baby artichokes, fresh basil.
The toppings I used were, chopped green onions, sliced black olives, black beans, and fresh pineapple.
1. For the tomato sauce: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. quarter the heirloom tomatoes and place faceup on a roasting pan. Sprinkle with sea salt. Add the whole cloves of garlic and roast for 30 minutes or until lightly caramelized. Scrape the roasted tomatoes and garlic into a bowl and pulse with an immersion blender or mash with a fork. Chop some of your favorite seasonal fresh herbs and stir in.
2. For the crust: Bring the water and sea salt to a boil in a 10-or 12-inch pot or sauté pan. Whisk in the polenta slowly until all is incorporated. Stir for about 1 minute, then turn the heat to low, cover the pot, and leave it for 40 minutes. Turn off the heat and allow to sit for another 10 minutes.
3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
4. Carefully turn the pot upside down, dropping the polenta onto a cutting board. Slice the polenta n half, parallel to the cutting board, into two round pizza crusts. Place the crusts onto a cookie sheet and bake for about 30 minutes, or until crispy around the edges.
5. For the cashew "cheese": Put all the "cheese" ingredients into a food processor and puree, adding water slowly, until they reach a thick, cream-cheese-like consistency. (You want to be able to form little "cheese balls", so be careful not to add too much water.) Adjust seasonings to taste. (I enjoy a clove or two of garlic and sometimes more lemon juice, depending how juicy the lemon is.)
6. Assemble the pizza: Spread the tomato sauce over the polenta crust, then use a teaspoon to form little balls of the cashew "cheese" and arrange them on top. *I just spread this on the top instead of forming balls.
*
* Add toppings of choice.
Bake the pizza for 10 minutes just to heat the toppings. Garnish with whole fresh basil leaves and serve.
By using the canned tomatoes and the pre-packaged polenta, this saved me a lot of time and was very easy to make. You can always use pre-made pizza crust or English muffins as your crust. For non-vegan pizzas, add reduced fat cheese, ham, turkey sausage, etc.
I served these little pizzas with corn on the cob, green beans, and baked veggies.
This serves 6-8...I halved it and used an 8X9 Pyrex dish.
Tomato Sauce:
Two 8-ounce cans tomato sauce
3 Cups water
1/4 Cup cornstarch
3 T chile powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp garlic powder
4 Cups mashed cooked pinto beans (I used canned)
1 Cup chopped green onions
1 1/2 Cups frozen corn kernals, thawed (I used canned)
One 2 1/4 ounce can sliced black olives, drained, optional
1 to 2 T chopped green chiles, optional
10-12 corn tortillas
salsa, optional
tofu sour cream, optional
To make the sauce, Put all ingredients for the sauce into a saucepan. Mix well with a whisk until well combined. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 5 minutes. Taste and add more chile powder if desired. Set aside.
To assemble the casserole: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Put the beans, green onions, olives (I used the olives as a garnish since my husband doesn't like them), and green chiles into a large bowl and mix gently until well combined.
Spread 1 1/2 Cups of the sauce over the bottom of a oblong nonstick baking dish (I went ahead and sprayed my dish with non-stick spray). Place 3-4 corn tortillas in the bottom of the dish. Spread half the bean mixture evenly over the tortillas. Place another 3-4 tortillas over the bean mixture, then spread the remaining bean mixture over the top. Cover with 3-4 more tortillas, and then pour the remaining sauce over the tortillas. Cover the baking dish with parchment paper, then cover with aluminum foil, crimping the edges over the baking dish. Bake for 45 minutes. Remove the baking dish from the oven and let the lasagna rest for about 15 minutes before cutting. Serve with salsa and tofu sour cream, if desired.
I used black olives, tomatoes and tofu sour cream as a garnish. I served this with corn on the cob, asparagus, Portobello mushrooms and sugar snap peas. Really easy recipe and tasted great!
Ingredients:
3 C loosely packed kale or spinach leaves (spinach was used in ours)
1/2 C applesauce (sugar free was used)
2 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 C water
3 T ground flax
3/4 C vegetable or coconut oil
1 C coconut flour (whole wheat flour was used)
3/4 C cocoa powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 C xylitol or sugar (stevia was used)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9x13 pan with parchment paper, or grease well. Blend together the first 6 ingredients. If using coconut oil, make sure applesauce and water are not cold.
In a large mixing bowl, stir together remaining ingredients. Pour wet into dry and stir until just evenly combined, pour into the prepared pan, then use a full sheet of parchment paper or wax paper to press down firmly until the batter evenly covers the pan. Bake 19-20 minutes. Pat down hard with a pancake spatula or another sheet of parchment paper. Let brownies sit 15 minutes before cutting into squares. They taste better the next day, so make them in advance if possible.
Frosting:
1/2 C cocoa powder
2 T pure maple syrup or agave
1/2 C virgin coconut oil, melted
Mix the frosting ingredients to form a sauce. Spread over the kale brownies, then refrigerate or freeze 10-20 minutes. The sauce will transform into chocolate frosting. These brownies will melt and need to be kept refrigerated. They are high in fiber and Vitamins A, C, and K, cholesterol-free, vegan, low in sugar or sugar free and also offer Omega 3's.
These were quite good!
Ingredients:
8 corn tortillas (this recipe actually made 12)
1, 19 ounce enchilada sauce (I used La Victoria)
vegetable oil (I used non-stick spray)
1 medium onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp cumin
1 package (14 ounce) silken tofu
1 T nutritional yeast
salt and pepper
Optional toppings: sliced green onions, sliced black olives, avocado, vegan sour cream, vegan cheese, fresh cilantro.
Instructions:
In medium saucepan, heat the enchilada sauce over medium-low heat for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat 1 T oil in frying pan on medium-high heat. Saute onion until soft, about 2 minutes. Add garlic and cumin and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes.
Using a food processor or immersion blender, blend the onion mixture with the tofu and nutritional yeast. Season with salt and pepper.
Heat a few tsp of oil on medium heat, and once hot, dip the tortilla in the oil until it is soft. Drain it on a paper towel. (I just sprayed a skillet with non-stick spray.) Pour small amount of enchilada sauce into a pie plate. Dip the tortilla in the enchilada sauce and place on plate. Spoon small amount of tofu mixture onto the tortilla. Roll and place in 9x13 baking dish, seam side down. Repeat until all tortillas are filled. Pour remaining sauce on top of enchiladas and bake at 350 for 30 minutes.
Add optional toppings and serve. I topped with green onions, cilantro, vegan sour cream, avocado,
and diced olives.
I served this over cooked greens (kale, spinach and shredded cabbage), with baked veggies and corn on the cob, as a side.
Very good...will definitely make these again!
1 C freshly squeezed orange juice (3-4 large juicy oranges)
1 T freshly grated ginger
2 tsp tamari (or soy sauce)
1 1/2 T mirin
2 tsp maple syrup
1/2 tsp ground coriander
2 small garlic cloves, crushed
roughly 10 ounces of tempeh (or extra firm tofu)
2 T olive oil
1/2 lime
handful of cilantro leaves
Put the orange juice in a small bowl. Squeeze the grated ginger over the bowl to extract the juices, then discard the pulp. Add the tamari, mirin and maple syrup, ground coriander, and garlic. Mix together and set aside.
Cut the tempeh (or tofu) into thin, bite size pieces, and if working with tofu, pat dry with a paper towel. *I like to bring some water to a boil, add tempeh and boil for about 15 minutes, before using in recipes. This will help whatever you are cooking it with, to take on the flavor better and also to lift some of the bitter flavor out of it.*
Put the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot but not smoking, add the tempeh and fry for 5 minutes, or until golden underneath. Turn and cook the other side for another 5 minutes, or until golden. Pour the orange juice mixture into the pan and simmer for 10 minutes, or until the sauce has reduced to a thick glaze. Turn the tempeh once more during this time and spoon the sauce over the tempeh from time to time.
Serve the tempeh drizzled with any remaining sauce and a squeeze of lime, with the cilantro scattered on top.
I served this over cooked greens (kale, spinach and shredded cabbage), with baked squash, baked veggies, and corn on the cob,
as a side. Loved it!
Ingredients:
1 block firm tofu, sliced into 6 equal pieces
1/4 C maple syrup
1 tsp curry powder
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1/2 C shelled pistachios
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with non-stick spray.
Place tofu on foil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. In a bowl, stir maple syrup with curry powder and Dijon. Coarsely chop pistachios and set them aside. Spoon half of maple mixture over tofu, then sprinkle with pistachios. Spoon remaining maple mixture over nuts. Bake in center of preheated oven for 15 minutes.
I served this with grilled asparagus, grilled Portobello mushrooms, fruit and green beans. *See green bean recipe below*
So easy and tasted great!
Herbed Green Beans with Cranberries-About.com/Vegetarian food
Ingredients:
1 pound fresh green beans, trimmed and sliced
water for boiling
1/4 tsp salt
3 T margarine (I used non-stick spray instead)
1 1/4 C cranberries (I used about a cup of dried cranberries)
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 T fresh parsley, chopped
1 T marjoram
salt and pepper to taste
Preparation:
Bring a pot of water to a boil and add 1/4 tsp of salt. Add the green beans and cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Remove the beans and rinse under cold water. Melt the margarine over medium low heat and add the beans. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Allow to cook for another 5 minutes. Enjoy your green beans with fresh parsley and marjoram.
About a month ago, my husband and myself decided to try a Vegan way of eating. I can see the eyebrows raising and the private messages flying!! ;) Eddie had already cut all dairy out, about 6 months ago, thinking it may help his allergies, which it has. We had kind of lost our taste for meat and noticed the last couple times that we had chicken, it just didn't taste very good. After watching a couple of very good documentaries, "Forks over Knives" and "Vegucated", I decided to cut dairy, animal products and animal byproducts. As many of you know, I love coffee. No, I really LOVE coffee! The thing I was most worried about was finding a non-dairy creamer that I would like and could still enjoy my coffee...ha ha! I found that Silk, who makes the almond milk that we use, also makes a coffee creamer. It took a couple times for me to get used to it, but I really like it now. Just a few days after cutting dairy out of my diet, I no longer had to use OTC products that I needed for some bowel issues. This tells me that I may have had a slight allergy to lactose.
The question we get asked the most are, "How do you get enough protein?"
People don't realize how much protein there is in vegetables, beans, nuts and seeds. One cup of broccoli has 2.62 grams of protein. One cup of mushrooms has 2.03 grams of protein, while a cup of asparagus has 4 grams of protein! One cup of spinach has 5.35 grams of protein. We have always eaten huge amounts of vegetables and now along with beans, tofu and other soy options, such as seitan and tempeh, we are getting plenty of protein. One thing to remember in regards to protein, is that plant based proteins lower cholesterol, while animal proteins raise cholesterol.
"A plant-based diet is a very simple one. It consists of avoiding anything that came from a source that ever had a face or a mother. In other words, avoiding all meat (including fish), dairy and eggs. What you do eat are the very best foods that Mother Nature offers: grains, fruits, vegetables, and legumes. Often relegated to side dishes by a meat-devouring American public, these foods actually create the best-tasting and most nutritious meals possible." Quoted from Dr. John McDougall/ Forks over Knives.
We feel good and I have to say, slightly empowered! I'm having fun trying out new recipes. Thank goodness most of them have tasted really good. I used to think that Vegans were weird...I guess I'm one of those weirdos now...ha!
