Creamy Peanut Soup

I seriously can't get enough of this soup.  Everyone in my house (including the wee one) goes nuts for the stuff. Try it, you'll love it!

1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped and seeded
2 medium russet potatoes, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 quart (4 Cups) no-chicken or veggie broth
1/2 cup creamy natural peanut butter
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt, or more to taste
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/4 cup nutritional yeast (optional)
Dash of cayenne (optional)
roasted peanuts, chopped, to taste (optional garnish)

•  Place onions, potatoes, garlic and bell pepper in a large pot with broth. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.
• Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 30 minutes, or until veggies are soft.
• Add the peanut butter.
• Either stick a hand-blender right into the pot and blend until creamy, or transfer in small batches to a blender.
• Add salt and pepper to taste, as well as nutritional yeast and cayenne (if using).
• Makes about 4 large servings. Top each bowl with chopped peanuts. Delicious!

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Easy 3-Bean Chili

 

This takes only a few minutes to get it going, it's jam-packed full of fiber, and it's delicious! What more can you ask for?
If you're really daring, pile in some corn chips for an old-fashioned Southern Frito Pie.

1/8 C olive oil
1 medium white or yellow onion, diced
2-4 cloves of garlic, minced, to taste
1 14.5oz can diced tomatoes
1 15oz can black beans, drained
1 15oz can kidney beans, drained
1 15oz can pinto beans, drained
2 tsp paprika
2 tsp all-purpose seasoning (I used Simply Organic)
1/2 tsp powdered cocoa (just trust me on this)
1/2 tsp fine sea salt
dash of ground black pepper
vegan cheddar cheese, shredded (optional) 

• Heat olive oil in a large saute pan or skillet. Add onions and garlic, cook until soft.
• Add remaining ingredients.
• Bring to boil over medium heat, stirring frequently. 
• Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until desired consistency is reached. I usually let it simmer for about half an hour, but you probably don't have to wait that long if you're really starving!
• Ladle into bowls and top with shredded vegan cheddar, to taste.

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Pretty Little Peanut Butter Cookies

This peanut butter cookie is great because it's gluten-free, and free of refined white sugar as well (though they're not "sugar free" per se, just sans the yucky, over-processed stuff). Now, if you don't have any sucanat on hand, and you aren't worried about using processed sugar, you can substitute half a cup of white sugar and half a cup of brown sugar for the one cup of sucanat I put in the recipe. You could also try substituting 3/4 cup of agave or maple syrup, but I haven't tried it yet, so you're on your own with that one.

If you've never tried sucanat before, here's a bit of info I found on Wikipedia:

"Sucanat (a contraction of "Sugar Cane Natural") is non-refined cane sugar. Unlike refined and processed white sugar, Sucanat retains its molasses content; it is essentially pure dried sugar cane juice... Of all major sugars derived from sugar cane, Sucanat ranks the highest in nutritional value."

1 cup sucanat (or sub white and light brown sugar)
1/2 cup creamy natural peanut butter
1/4 cup Earth Balance vegan butter, softened
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 tablespoons soy or nut milk (I used almond milk)
1 1/2 cup rice flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Throw everything into a large bowl and mix it with a beater until well-blended.
• Use a medium cookie scoop to scoop out the dough, leveling the dough on the side of the bowl as you scoop. This ensures that every cookie is the same size. You want them to be "pretty" after all!
• Place dough balls 2 inches apart on an un-greased cookie sheet.
• Bake 10 minutes or until light golden brown.
• Allow to cool for 1 or 2 minutes on baking sheet before transferring to a wire cooling rack.
• Gobble 'em up!

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Easy Peasy Granola Squares

Forget store-bought granola bars. They're overpriced and junky. These granola squares are healthy, super-easy to concoct, and make your whole house smell amazing while they bake!

2 C old-fashioned oats
3/4 C toasted wheat germ
3/4 C chopped walnuts
3/4 C raisins
1/2 C maple syrup or agave nectar
1/2 C canola or vegetable oil
2 Tbsp sucanat (packed light brown sugar will work too)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp fine sea salt
1 Tbsp flax meal
4 Tbsp warm water

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Coat a 9 x 13" baking pan with non-stick baking spray, or lightly oil and flour the pan. 
• In a small bowl, combine flax meal and water. Stir until no lumps are present. Allow to sit for a few minutes until the mixture forms a soft gel. 
• Combine all remaining ingredients in a large bowl and stir until well-mixed.
• Add flax meal mixture to large bowl and combine all ingredients.
• Transfer mixture to prepared baking pan and bake, uncovered, for 30 - 35 minutes, or until golden brown and crisp.
• Cool in pan on a wire rack. 
• Do not cut until mixture has cooled.
• Enjoy!

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Country-Style Mac and "Nooch" Casserole

This delicious dish came about completely by accident when I was trying to make my classic Creamy Mac N "Nooch" Casserole and discovered that I had run out of soy sauce. Instead of dashing to store to buy some, I made a few adjustments and turned out what tastes like something you'd eat at a country barbecue picnic. It was really yummy! Give it a try.

1 lb macaroni noodles (quinoa elbows work great!)
1 1/2 cups unsweetened soy milk
1 cup veggie or no-chicken broth
1/2 cup vegetable oil (or whichever oil you prefer)
1 1/2 cups nutritional yeast ("nooch")
1 tablespoon liquid smoke
1/8 cup fresh or dried parsley (optional)

1 tablespoon paprika

1 tablespoon garlic powder

1 tablespoon black pepper

1 tablespoon salt

1 box silken firm or extra-firm tofu

1/2 cup Japanese bread crumbs

5 slices of cooked vegan bacon, chopped
Dash of cayenne pepper

• Heat oven to 350 degrees
• Prepare noodles according to package directions.
• In blender combine all ingredients (except noodles, bacon and bread crumbs)
• Pour liquid mixture over cooked noodles and stir together. 
• Put the whole mess into a casserole dish and top with bread crumbs and chopped bacon
• Stick in the oven for 20 minutes.
• Remove and enjoy.

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Curried Israeli Couscous

Israeli couscous can be hard to find (many natural food stores carry it in bulk) but it is super tasty and a neat distraction from the "usual" fare. My favorite local grocery sells it at $3.74 per pound, and a pound is about four cups. Four cups of the dry stuff will net you a couple of huge pots of the cooked stuff! So it's definitely worth the money.
I adapted this recipe from one I found at Gourmet Sleuth. I was skeptical when I read the ingredient list (raisins?!), but I have to admit that the dish turned out really nicely. It made a great soul-warming lunch on what has turned out to be a super wet, cold and rainy day here in Texas.
Give it a try!

2 cups Israeli couscous (I've included links at the bottom if you can't find it locally)
5 cups vegetable broth, divided
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 white or yellow onion, chopped (about half a cup)
1 green bell pepper, diced
1/2 cup raisins
1 clove fresh garlic, minced
1 tablespoon curry powder
1/3 cup dried or fresh cilantro
salt and pepper, to taste
8-10 cherry tomatoes, cut in half  (or more, to taste)
1/4 cup chopped walnuts

• In a large saucepan, heat 4 cups vegetable broth and couscous to boiling. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 10 minutes.
• Remove from heat, fluff couscous with a fork, cover and put aside.
• In a skillet or saute pan, heat olive oil. Add onion, garlic, pepper and raisins. Saute for five minutes.
• Add 1 cup vegetable broth, curry, cilantro, salt and pepper. Cover and simmer on medium-low heat for five minutes or until heated through.
• To dress the dish, first fill the bottom of your bowl with couscous. Next, ladle some vegetable mixture and broth over the top. Top it off with tomato halves and walnuts.
• It's unbelievably delicious and filling! It's the perfect dish for a drizzly winter afternoon.

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Homemade Vegan Cheese Pizza

We love pizza around here, and when it doesn't come vegan-style from the local parlor (seriously, when are the big chains going to catch on to this?!) you have to find new-fashioned ways of doing it the "old-fashioned way." As you know, bread is Jason's thing and he's found a great basic recipe for any homemade pie. Here's how he does it...

1 C warm (hot, but not boiling) water

1 T active dry yeast

2 1/2 C all purpose flour,  with 1/2 C separated
(we tried making this with all whole wheat flour and it turned out great, so if you're watching your intake of the white stuff, feel free to substitute)

1 T salt

1 T sugar (or preferred sweetener - we use agave when we have it)

• Combine the hot water and yeast in a small bowl, then let it sit for about 5 minutes.
• Combine 2 C flour, sweetener and salt in a large bowl.
• Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and pour the yeast mixture into it.
• Combine ingredients with a spoon until it can no longer be properly stirred by that method. Then dump it out onto a floured surface and start kneading, adding more flour in small increments if it's really sticky.
• Once the dough has come together and lost its stickiness-factor, shape it into a ball, place it into a large bowl (the one you already used is fine), and cover it with a towel.
• Allow the dough to sit for one hour.
• Heat oven to 400 degrees.
• While oven is warming up, take out your dough and cut it in half. 
• Use a rolling pin to shape your dough to fit either on a large cookie sheet or (like we do it) on a large round baking stone.
• Use a fork to poke a few holes here and there on your crust.
• Cook the crust at 400 degrees for 10 minutes.
• Remove the crust from the oven and add your toppings (we use Muir Glen Pizza Sauce, Vegan Gourmet Cheddar, Vegan Gourmet Mozzarella and sometimes we throw on a bunch of veggies when we have them).
• Place well-topped pizza back into the oven and continue baking for another 10 minutes, or until your toppings are piping hot and your crust is just the way you like it. I can't ever seem to make that vegan cheese melt, so that's why it looks weird in the picture, but melted or not it still tastes pretty good.
• Enjoy!

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A Little Love from the Bakery

The Wholly Wholesome Baked Goods Co. liked my last post so much that they featured a link to it on their Facebook Fan Page!
Check it out right here...
Wholly Wholesome Facebook Fan Page
And they put a link to the Easy Mixed Berry Pie recipe on their website too!
Check it out here...
http://whollywholesome.com/baking/recipe-shells.php
Thanks, Wholly Wholesome! I really appreciate the love.

Easy Mixed Berry Pie

This pie is so easy, just mildly tart and delicious, it will probably get gobbled up in one sitting. But, that's okay because you can make another one! No biggie.

First, buy or make a pie crust. The one I buy is perfect, if you can find it. It's from the Wholly Wholesome Baked Goods company. It's whole wheat, vegan, trans fat free and really wonderful. It won Fifth Place in Good Housekeeping Magazine's Pie Crust Taste Test (the traditional Wholly Wholesome crust won First!) and First Place in the Epicurious Whole Wheat Pie Crust Taste Test. It comes two crusts to a pack and costs three bucks and some change. You seriously can't beat it. I was not paid or bribed to say any of this, I swear. I just really love this crust!
But, regardless of whether you find this crust or not, have a favorite of your own, or prefer to make one yourself, go ahead and have your crust baked up and ready to go before you start the filling. Now, on to the recipe...

1 10-ounce bag of frozen strawberries
1 10-ounce bag of mixed berries
2 1/2 tablespoons corn starch
2/3 cup maple syrup or agave nectar (if sugar is preferred, use 3/4 cup)
2/3 cup water
2 tablespoons vegan butter
1 tablespoon lemon juice

• Let berries thaw on the counter top for a while before you begin the recipe.
• In a medium saucepan, whisk together the corn starch, agave and water.
• Add the berries and stir over medium heat until the sauce begins to thicken.
• Once the berries are hot and the sauce is nice and thick (it will have the consistency of a thin pudding) turn off the heat and add the butter and lemon juice. Gently stir everything together.
• Allow the berry mixture to cool for about half an hour, uncovered. Then pour it into your prepared pie crust.
• Stick it in the fridge, covered (I use an overturned dinner plate to cover mine - plastic wrap and tin foil are a waste of money and can't be recycled), and leave it until it has set, which will probably take several hours. I usually make my pie in the evening and then leave it in the fridge overnight. I'm not going to lie to you - it makes an awesome breakfast!

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Onion Soup with Croutons and Vegan Mozzarella

 

This soup is so perfect for a cold winter day. While I ate it, my daughter kept coming by the table and plucking the croutons out of it. She'd stick one in her mouth and run back to Yo Gabba Gabba on the TV. When she was finished with one crouton, she'd come back for another. Great stuff! Here's the recipe...

4 C vegetable broth

1/2 C plain soy milk

1 large yellow onion, diced

5 cloves garlic, minced (or more, to taste)

1 bay leaf

2 T dried or fresh parsley

1 T olive oil

1 T fine sea salt

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

Several pieces of bread (I used the 3-seed bread from Central Market)

1/4 C vegan mozzarella, shredded (optional)

• Toss everything except the bread and mozzarella into a large pot. Heat to a boil, stirring occasionally. 
• When the pot boils, reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for half an hour.
• While the soup is cooking, cut the bread up into large pieces. Place it on a cookie sheet in a 425 degree oven for 10 minutes.
• When everything's cooked up, remove the bay leaf and discard. Then just top the soup with croutons and mozzarella. It's so yummy! Beware wayward toddlers as they will steal your croutons.

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The Enchilada Experiment, Part 1

 

I love enchiladas, and before I became vegan I often indulged in the cheesy, gooey tastiness of the family enchilada dinner from a restaurant called Pulido's just down the street. Since turning vegan it's one of only a very few things that I miss, and I have yet to find a great substitute. So, I am experimenting on my own, looking for a way to make healthy vegan enchiladas that satisfy my Mexican food cravings.

This first experiment was based strictly upon what I happened to have on hand in the kitchen. I didn't have anything to make a sauce from, and I really missed having it, but I managed to turn out some fresh and yummy enchiladas anyway. In future experiments I might try adding soy crumbles or refried beans, or maybe even avocados (if they ever go down in price, ugh...) and I definitely want to try it with sauce. Perhaps a tomatillo or red sauce of some sort. I'll be sure to post all future experiments here for you to try too! Eventually, I know I shall achieve vegan enchilada perfection. *flexes muscles* But, in the meantime, enjoy Part 1 of The Enchilada Experiment...

 

2 T olive oil
Half a large white onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 yellow squash, diced
1 zucchini, diced
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can whole kernel corn, drained
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
2 T dried or fresh cilantro, chopped
1 T lime juice
1 T paprika
1 tsp fine sea salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
Dash of cayenne pepper, to taste
16 corn tortillas
1/2 block of vegan cheddar, shredded (I used Vegan Gourmet)

• In a large skillet, heat the olive oil. Then saute the onions and garlic until soft. 
• Add squash and zucchini, and saute until soft.
• Add remaining veggies and spices. Cover and simmer until everything's nice and steamy, about 10 - 15 minutes.
• While your enchilada innards are heating up, go ahead and shred your cheese. You may want more or less, depending on your taste preferences. We love the stuff around here. Lila eats handfuls of it whenever I have a bowl of shredded laying around. The Vegan Gourmet claims to melt, but I haven't been able to make it melt. It still tastes pretty good, though, and it's a lot cheaper than its counterparts! 
  
• In a large casserole dish, start rolling your enchiladas. Just spoon about a third a cup of veggie mix into a tortilla, then roll it up and flip it over in your casserole dish so it can't come undone. Or, if you prefer, you can do it taco-style, like this...

  

• Sprinkle with cheese (I added vegan mozzarella to the batch in the picture up there) and bake for about 15 minutes in a 350 degree oven.
• Enjoy!

 

Nutty Carrot, Raisin and Flax Muffins

These are super-duper healthy and tasty good. I only used 1/4 cup of maple syrup to sweeten, so they're refined sugar-free and, thank to the flax seed, full of fiber and omega 3's. I adapted this recipe from one I found in my Quick and Easy Vegan Comfort Food cookbook and I'm so glad I did! The whole family loved them - my daughter kept shoving a bite into her mouth and then running out of the room. I take that as a toddler thumbs up! Here's my adapted recipe...

1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup ground flax seed

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 cup pure maple syrup

2/3 cup plain soy milk

1/4 cup canola oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups grated carrot

3/4 cup raisins soaked in warm water for 10 minutes and drained

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
• Lightly grease a 12-cup muffin pan with oil or line with paper baking cups
• Mix the flours, flax seed, baking soda and cinnamon in a large bowl.
• Create a small well in the center and add agave nectar, soy milk, oil and vanilla.
• Hand-stir until smooth. 
• Fold in the carrots, raisins and walnuts.
• Fill the muffin tins three-quarters full. (I used a large cookie scoop)
  
• Bake for 20 minutes.
• Enjoy with vegan butter! Delicious!

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