Strawberry Spinach Salad

Merry Christmas!!! This is the perfect side dish to your yummy holiday dishes. Enjoy!

Salad
Spinach
Lettuce - red leaf, green leaf, and/or Romaine
16 oz. strawberries, sliced thin
1/2 cup Candied pecans (recipe below)
Strawberry Dressing (recipe below)

Candied Pecans
1/2 cup Pecans, chopped
2 TB butter (I use Earth Balance)
2 TB Brown Sugar (I use Succanat)
Brown on Med-Med High til Pecans seem caramelized. Careful not to burn.

Strawberry Dressing
1/3 cup Strawberries
3 TB balsamic vinegar
1/3 cup olive oil
1 TB sugar (I use Turbinado/evaporated cane juice)
Sea Salt, dash
Pepper, dash
Blend in Vita Mix til creamy

Banana Pumpkin Bread

Tastes best the second and third days...

2 ripe bananas, smashed
Equivalent of 2 egg replacer
1/6 cup Sunsweet Lighter Bake (buy at WinCo)
1 1/3 cups canned pumpkin puree
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup turbinado sugar
2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 cup raisins or dates(optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 9x5 inch loaf pan or two smaller loaf pans (I actually got three small loaves out of this).
2. In a large bowl, stir together the mashed banana, egg replacer, Sunsweet lighter bake, pumpkin, honey and turbinado sugar. Combine the whole wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, pie spice and cinnamon, stir into the banana mixture until just combined. Fold in the dates or raisins if desired. Pour batter into the prepared pan.
3. Bake at 350 degrees F for about 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean. Cool loaf in the pan for 10 minutes before moving to a wire rack to cool completely.

Whole Wheat Rolls

I never thought I'd find a home-made roll where I liked the taste and texture. I was wrong. These rolls are so soft. They are perfect - and don't have any oil or animal products OR high fructose corn syrup OR hydrogenated oils. Amazing! They are perfect veggie sandwich rolls too or they fit in just right with a savory Sunday meal comprised of mashed potatoes and gravy.

2 cups boiling water
1/2 cup Sunsweet Lighter Bake (you can find this at WinCo - it an oil/butter substitute - if using butter, use 1 cup)
2-3 egg replacer substitute - I like flax meal - use 3 heaping TBSP flax meal, 6 TBSP water and allow to sit for 5 minutes
2 Tablespoons yeast
1/3 cup water
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon sea salt
6 cups whole wheat flour

In a bowl, pour boiling water over honey. Mix and allow to cool. Soften yeast in 1/3 cup water, then add to bowl along with Sunsweet Lighter Bake and the egg replacer mixture. Add baking powder, sea salt, and one cup of flour, and beat with a spoon. Stir in remaining flour and let rise for two hours.

Shape into rolls and put in greased pans. Allow to rise until light. Bake 15-20 minutes at 400*F. This makes 3-4 pans of rolls depending on the size. We like larger rolls for sandwiches, so it makes 2 pans for us.

Queso Dip with Raw Cashews

I can't find the link to the blog I got this recipe from - but thanks to some blog in cyberspace I have a new yummy dip to serve at parties, gatherings and just for fun. My son claims it is his "favorite" and loves to dip tortilla chips in it. It is amazing!

Makes approximately 7 ½ – ½ cup servings

Ingredients:

½ cup raw cashews, soaked and drained
½ cup oatmeal, ground into flour
1 ½ cups water
2 teaspoon onion flakes, dried
½ teaspoon turmeric powder
1 clove garlic, peeled
14 ounces diced tomatoes or about two cups salsa if you like heat (Pace, Mild is great)
1 teaspoon paprika
1 crushed red peppers to taste (optional)
½ teaspoon chili powder
1 dash cayenne
1 teaspoon real sea salt

Directions:

Combine the cashews, oatmeal, water, onion flakes, turmeric, and garlic in your blender. Puree until the mixture is smooth. Pour the mixture into a heavy bottom saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring often to keep it from sticking. Add the canned diced tomatoes with their liquid (or salsa if using), paprika hot crushed peppers, chili powder and cayenne and stir to combine. Taste the mixture and add salt and pepper, as you desire. Cook the mixture (continuing to stir) until it is hot and the texture you want. You can add more liquid if it gets too thick.

Nutritional Information:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 65.95
Calories From Fat (39%) - 25.78

Total Fat - 3.08g
Saturated Fat - 0.55g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 5.32mg
Potassium - 209.9mg
Total Carbohydrates - 8.69g
Fiber - 1.68g
Sugar - 2.01g
Protein - 2.35g

Comments:

This dip is thick and rich and tastes much more decadent than it actually is. We like to eat it with corn chips, but more often it shows up on a baked potato stuffed with broccoli.

Each serving of the queso dip contains 600IU of vitamin A, and 70mg of phosphorus.

Vegan Aebleskiver

I converted Maple Spice's metric recipe to American measurements...

Makes 2 pans of aebleskiver (14 balls):

2/3 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 heaped tsp baking soda
1/8 heaped tsp sea salt
4 tsp turbinado
2/3 cup plain, unsweetened soy yogurt
1/2 cup soy or almond milk - use a little less than 1/2 cup (can be sweetened or unsweetened)
1/3 cup melted vegan margarine - Earth Balance
1/4 tsp vanilla extract

Mix the dry ingredients together. Whisk the yogurt, milk and vanilla together then slowly whisk in the melted margarine until fully incorporated. Pour this into the dry ingredients the fold in with a rubber spatula until no more flour shows. The batter will be very thick and lumpy, it may even look slightly curdled if using soy milk - that's ok. Heat your aebleskiver pan till hot then turn down to the lowest heat. Brush the holes with leftover melted Earth Balance then spoon in the batter till level with the top. Turn with a toothpick. Cook until golden all over and a toothpick comes out clean. Keep warm in the oven while you make the next pan.

Serve with Earth Balance and warmed maple syrup over top, and of course the applesauce and sugar!!

** May also use this recipe to make blueberry pancakes. Increase the milk to a full 1/2 cup, butter the frying pan, spoon on some batter, you'll have to spread it out a bit. Dot the top of the pancake with blueberries (don't add the blueberries to the batter), cook till golden underneath then flip over. Serve with Earth Balance and warmed maple syrup.**

CREDIT GOES TO: http://www.maplespice.com/2009/01/vegan-aebleskiver.html

Banana Coconut Bread

Melts in your mouth! Mmmmmm. My favorite version is with flax meal because the bread is super moist and soft. If you like bananas and coconut you will not be disappointed! I actually make this in four little loaf pans and cook it only for about 45 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out perfectly clean.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup Earth Balance (healthy butter OR use 1/4 cup applesauce + 1/2 cup Earth Balance)
• 2/3 cup agave nectar
  
• 1 1/2 cups mashed super-ripe bananas (about 3)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 egg replacer equivalent - Ener-G Egg Replacer and Flax meal (1 heaping Tbsp. flax meal with 2 Tablespoons warm water - let sit for 5 minutes) both work well
  
• 1/2 cup soy milk (Silk brand)
  
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar (I like Bragg brand)
• 1 cup unsweetened coconut flakes or coconut flour (I used coconut flour)
  
• 1 cup spelt flour
• 1 cup all-purpose flour - I want to try whole wheat or brown rice flour
  
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 tsp sea salt
• 3/4 cup chopped nuts (almonds or walnuts)

Combine soy milk and cider vinegar and set aside. In a mixer, cream the butter, agave nectar, and bananas. Add egg replacer and vanilla. Add all dry ingredients. THEN add soy milk/apple cider vinegar mixture. Mix well. Pour into loaf pans (makes 2 loaves) and bake at 325 for 1 1/4 hours.

Taco Salad

Sweet Lime Cilantro Rice

1 quart vegetable broth (4 cups water, 4 low sodium vegetable bullion cubes)

2 cups brown rice (short grain is lighter)

2 limes squeezed or 2 Tablespoons of lime juice

2 Tablespoons veganaise

2 Tablespoons honey

1 Tablespoon cilantro

1 teaspoon sea salt, optional

Stir ingredients together in rice cooker or on stove top and cook until tender.

Black Beans

2 cans black beans, drained

1 cup tomato salsa

1 Tablespoon cumin

Warm and Serve.

Tortilla Strips

Slice corn tortillas (white or yellow) in ¼-1/3” strips. Spread thinly on cookie sheet and toast in 350* oven for 10-12 minutes. Cool and store in pantry for up to two weeks.

Serve with Romaine, green leaf or red leaf lettuce, tomatoes, avocados, onions, salsa, Tofutti Sour Cream.

Raspberry Banana Ice Cream

If you're looking for a dairy free/natural sugar alternative this recipe is fabulous. We rated it an 'A' considering it has no milk or sugar. Compared to "real" ice cream it gets a B+. Guar gum is a must! - it will make the ice cream smoother and creamier. When you need a light and refreshing treat - try it!

1 (13 ounce) can coconut milk
1 quart rice milk (Rice Dream)
1 (12 ounce) can raspberry apple juice concentrate (100% juice)
1 (10 ounce) package frozen raspberries
3-4 bananas
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon guar gum (Good Earth has this)

Combine, blend in blender, pour into ice cream freezer, and freeze according to directions.

Sun-dried Tomatoes

Sun-dried tomatoes are sooo delicious. I use these in my Stromboli recipe.

About 6-7 Roma tomatoes sliced (or garden tomatoes)
2 cloves garlic minced
1/4 cup fresh basil finely chopped
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt

Put all ingredients in a freezer bag and toss until well coated. Lay on dehydrator sheets and dry 125 degrees for about 18 hours.


CREDIT GOES TO: Tandi