This recipe came to me while I was working out, as many recipes do (I should be thinking about the workout and not food, I know!). I wanted to throw something together for an easy lunch and this is what I came up with. They are easy to make but taste like they were a lot of work. They’re moist but hold together well. Really yummy. I like serving them with avocado and Sour Un-Cream, or my Toasted Pepita Avocado Sauce as pictured.
Honestly, I don’t know anybody who doesn’t l like hummus. I’m sure they exist but I’ve never met them. Such a simple thing – chickpeas and a handful of ingredients, whirled through a blender. And so many ways to eat it: with raw veggies, crackers, chips, on a sandwich or wrap, thinned out as gravy to top greens or grains…so many possibilities. There are also many flavors of hummus, and this one is really delicious. I love anything with a smoky flavor and the smoked paprika does a great job here, but the lime really makes this hummus come to life. I used about 2.5 TBS of lime juice and it’s pretty limey….use more or less depending on your tastes. Same with the cayenne. 1/8 tsp is quite mild. Now go make some hummus. 🙂
As I’ve said before, I’m in love with all things pumpkin. This savory dressing is no exception. Other than my Pumpkin Soup, I’d never made a non-sweet pumpkin dish before. I was very happy with the results. Start small with the cinnamon and work your way up, tasting as you go. And, depending upon how much tang you like, start with 1 TBS lemon juice and go from there. I made this for a salad in which I put pomegranate and toasted pumpkin seeds – delicious! It would also be tasty on greens like kale, or steamed broccoli and cauliflower.
This is a recipe I’ve had on my website for a long time but I revamped it last night and it’s so much better now. I recommend topping with a squeeze of lime, a drizzle of Sour Un-Cream and Cornbread Muffins ((find in Recipes). Make sure to read the NOTES at the bottom of the recipe for important tips.
One of my favorite restaurants Native Foods has an African Peanut Soup that I adore. It tastes very fattening though so I wanted to try and make something similar, but with less fat. As well, theirs is a very smooth soup and I prefer chunkier soups – I like chewing! This version is thick and chunky, while still being creamy. And this can vary depending on how much of it you want blended, using your immersion or regular blender. Feel free to play around with spices and amounts. Those listed here result in a mild flavor.
Whenever I serve this thick and creamy potato chowder to guests (non plant-based), they can’t believe it doesn’t contain dairy or cheese. For an even lower-fat version, leave out the cashews. The result will still be delicious.
I had never made pumpkin soup before. Shocking, I know, considering what a pumpkin freak I am. Well, I gave it a go recently. As per normal, I was determined to listen to my culinary instincts rather than follow a recipe…not sure if that’s big ego or just a can-do attitude talking :). Either way, my instincts paid off, big time!!! This soup rivaled any pumpkin soup I’d ever had, including the non-vegan, really fattening varieties I’d had in years past. Try it! As you know, I don’t cook with oil as a rule, but the small amount of truffle oil stirred in just prior to serving MAKES this soup, in my opinion.
This recipe for baked tofu is one of the first things I made when we switched to a plant-based diet. I found the recipe in Dreena Burton’s Eat, Drink & Be Vegan, which has great recipes. I made a few adjustments but Dreena gets all the credit for the dish.
Recipe ideas come to me at odd moments, usually when I’m not even thinking about food (which, if I’m being honest, isn’t all that often). The idea for this one came to me on an airplane in the middle of reading a novel. Pretty random considering the story took place in 1940 Nazi Germany. Anyway, it occurred to me I’d never seen or heard of a recipe for twice baked SWEET potatoes, only russet. I’ve since done some searching and found many recipes (can’t believe I’d never seen any before) but most of them have more fat than a cheeseburger, with ingredients that just didn’t sound appealing to me (I will never understand adding brown sugar to sweet potatoes, especially when consuming them as an entree not a dessert. Hello!?! They’re already sweet!).
This recipe has the right combination of sweet, savory, tangy, spicy and salty. Honestly, it turned out better than I could have hoped. I was so excited for leftovers today. It’s a more time consuming meal since baking of the potatoes is required before anything else, but it’s not difficult by any means; just takes some planning ahead. Note: I prefer the lighter colored sweet potatoes as opposed to orange yams. I will be making this again VERY soon!
I realize hummus recipes are a dime a dozen, and store-bought versions are widely available. However, the one thing they all have in common is a lot of fat. The average prepared hummus contains 4 grams of fat for 2 tablespoons. I don’t know about you, but I could eat that much in a few bites! Most varieties contain oil, which as I’ve said before, is not a health-promoting food. It’s concentrated fat and calories (14 g of fat for just a tablespoon), and truly unnecessary in a dish like this. Prepared hummus also contains tahini, or sesame seed paste. My recipe does too, but only 1-2 tablespoons for the whole batch, which is much less than other recipes or store-bought versions. Use 1 if you want a really low-fat version, or 2 for a little more fat. You’ll see I list truffle oil as an optional addition. You don’t need it but it adds wonderful flavor. I like mine on the lemony side so I use 3 tablespoons lemon juice. Also, the amount of water you add is dependent upon how thick/thin you want the hummus. I always have a batch made up and ready to go. Recently, I spread about 2 TBS on a piece of whole grain bread, laid sliced tomatoes and sweet onion on top, drizzled with balsamic, and sprinkled with basil and pepper. I broiled it for 6-7 minutes. DELISH! See photo below.
2/21/13 UPDATE: I’ve always known cooking your own beans, as opposed to using canned, was a nutritionally superior way to go but I didn’t fully grasp how much better a dish would taste!! Oh my. I recently got a pressure cooker (best. thing. ever.), and after soaking my chickpeas during the day (8 hours), I cooked them with water in the PC for 14 minutes. Then I made my hummus. SO creamy and flavorful. I really had no idea there would be such a marked difference. You don’t need a PC to make your own beans, but you do need to plan ahead. The forethought and time is worth it, trust me. If you use your own beans, use about 2 cups cooked for this hummus.
This recipe came to me while I was working out, as many recipes do (I should be thinking about the workout and not food, I know!). I wanted to throw something together for an easy lunch and this is what I came up with. They are easy to make but taste like they were a lot of work. They’re moist but hold together well. Really yummy. I like serving them with avocado and Sour Un-Cream, or my Toasted Pepita Avocado Sauce as pictured.
