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.
Summer Fruit Cobbler. Vegan. Oil-free. Gluten-free*
A fruit cobbler is one of my favorite desserts. I take it or apple pie over something chocolatey any day! We were having company and I wanted a dessert that would be nice for a chilly evening, and that incorporated seasonal fruit. Most fruit crisps are loaded with fat and lots of sugar, but not this one! The only fat is naturally occurring in the oat flour. No added oils or butter. I used peaches, mango and blueberries and they tasted wonderful together, all warm and saucy. For an extra special treat, serve warm with non-dairy ice cream. 🙂
*gluten-free if using certified gluten-free oat flour.
I’ve been craving lemon lately, which isn’t normal for me. I’m guessing it’s because I associate lemon with spring and the outdoors, which are two things I also crave. Living in SoCal the winters are really no big deal, but it’s still winter, and we have our days of no sun, with plenty of rain and even some cold temps (all relative, I understand). Whatever. I’m over it. However, since I have a ways to go until fairly consistent warmth and sunshine ensue, I will satisfy my cravings with muffins like these. To me, they taste like sunshine. The cardamom flavor paired with the fresh lemon is quite delicious. And the best part is they are healthy, using whole grain flours, no animal products and no added fat. The sun is shining in my kitchen!
Extras: 1) Top muffins with candied lemon zest just prior to cooking for extra lemony goodness. 2) Add 1-2 TBS poppy seeds to batter for Sunshine Poppy Seed Muffins. 🙂
UPDATE 2/12/13: Apparently the cardamom I used the first few times I made these had been around awhile. I purchased fresh (as fresh as you can get in the store) and used it in the recipe yesterday and the cardamom flavor was way too strong for my tastes. If you like it strong, stick with the 2 tsp, but I’m adjusting the amount to call for 1/2-1 tsp. Also, I felt the need to improve texture a bit. I wanted to lighten them a little; do something to help them rise a bit more (always tricky with fat/free, vegan baking). I added ground chia seeds/water and was very happy with the end result. You can grind them in a clean coffee grinder or blender.
A delicious spin on basic hummus. Make sure to use fresh basil! Dry just won’t give you the same, wonderful flavor. Hummus is so easy to make – there’s really no need to ever buy pre-made, especially considering how much fat is in most store-bought varieties.
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 used to LOVE sour cream. It was my favorite part about mexican dishes (other than the cheese, of course). I’ve learned to live without since the store-bought vegan brands are highly processed and fattening, with added oil and junk. And quite frankly, I don’t think they taste a thing like sour cream! This recipe is much closer to the real thing, in my opinion. Is it exactly like it? No, but it’s a nice, healthy substitute. And considering it’s got about 16 calories and 1 gram of fat per tablespoon, you can’t go wrong! We enjoyed it on our BBQ Lentil Tacos or with Chili (see Recipes).
I came home from a 2-hour appointment that took place during the time I would normally eat lunch. It was 2:30, I was grumpy and nearly passing out from hunger (ok, so I’m exaggerating a tad – but you get the picture. I was HUNGRY!). I needed to put something together fast! Anyone who knows me well, knows I do NOT skip meals. If and when I do, it’s not pretty. Sure, I could have shoved my fist in the peanut butter jar (this may, or may not have happened previously), but I wanted to make a good, nutrient dense, low-fat choice.
I pulled mashed yams out of the freezer – sold by Trader Joe’s. The bag contains frozen “pucks” of cooked sweet potatoes and you simply reheat as little or as many as you need. Genius. Then, I grabbed the frozen chopped kale, also a Trader Joe’s item. And lastly, thank you Trader Joe’s – the frozen brown rice. I threw all these items with some water in a pan and had lunch in 5 minutes. I seasoned it with some hot sauce, Bragg’s Liquid Aminos, lemon juice, sea salt and pepper. I was ready to eat in literally 5 minutes. Not only was it quick, and healthy with no fat, it was GOOD! Since I was basically delirious from hunger while preparing it, I didn’t measure or really even pay attention to amounts used. I will do my best to recount the details in the recipe here, so that you too can have a super quick and healthy meal next time you’re in starvation mode. It would be difficult to screw this dish up so play with it and enjoy!
I was inspired to create these tasty muffins as I was preparing for a 5 hour flight for which I would be leaving my house at 5 a.m. I knew it would be too early for my usual breakfast smoothie, and I was already planning on packing a PB&J sandwich for later in the day….what would I eat for breakfast?? God knows there wouldn’t be options on the plane. Sure, I could have brought Starbuck’s oatmeal or McDougall’s instant oatmeal (great for travel) on with me but I wanted something different; something substantial, not too sweet, and didn’t need to be warmed. Thus, these Cinnamon-Raisin Oatmeal Muffins were born!
