Nacho Cashew Cheese

I had a major craving for some nachos the other day! A woman I work with, Connie, suggested I try nacho cashew cheese and use a red bell pepper. The red bell pepper gives the cashew cheese a nice nacho looking color and adds just the right amount of sweetness.

Nacho Cashew Cheese

Ingredients

• 2 cups raw cashews
• 1 cup water
• 1 red bell pepper (diced)
• 3 cloves garlic (if you don't have garlic on hand use garlic powder or garlic salt to taste)
• 4 tbs nutritional yeast
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp of Mexican chili powder

Soak raw cashews for 1 - 2 hours in a bowl of water (not the 1 cup of water that you will use when blending) and drain.

Then place all the ingredients in a blender or food processor and mix til smooth (several minutes). Taste and add more salt or chilli powder to your liking.

Pour into a bowl and let sit a few minutes to thicken up a bit. Bake onto chips for nachos like I did, dip with veggies, spread onto bread for sandwiches, or whatever you'd like!

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Vegan Quinoa & Kale Patties

Happy New Year!

For my first recipe post of 2013 I am featuring quinoa, because 2013 has been declared, "International Year of Quinoa" by the UN! The purpose of the of the International Year of Quinoa is to "focus the world's attention on the role that quinoa´s biodiversity and nutritional value plays, in providing food security and nutrition, the eradication of poverty in support of the achievement of the internationally agreed development goals." "The International Year of the Quinoa (IYQ) was proposed by the government of Bolivia, with support from Argentina, Azerbaijan, Ecuador, Georgia, Honduras, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay, and FAO, and approved by the United Nations General Assembly in December 2011. The Conference took note of the exceptional nutritional qualities of quinoa, its adaptability to different agro-ecological floors and its potential contribution in the fight against hunger and malnutrition."

Quinoa is a golden grain!

This protein packed, gluten free grain was considered the "golden grain" by the Incas. Quinoa is now considered a superfood!!! Quinoa is a complete protein containing all nine amino acids. It contains 2x as much fiber compared to other grains. Quinoa is rich in nutrients like iron, lysine, magnesium, B2, and manganese.

Vegan Quinoa & Kale Patties

 (Recipe adapted from Yummy Supper)

• 1 cup quinoa (I used Trader Joe's Organice Tricolor Quinoa...6 grams of protein in 1/4 cup!)
• 2 cups water
• 6 teaspoons of Ener-G egg replacer (equivalent to 4 eggs)
• 4-8 tablespoons of water
• 1/3 cup nutritional yeast
• 1/2 of a yellow onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 cup steamed kale, chopped
• 1 cup breadcrumbs
• 1 teaspoon olive oil

I topped mine with fresh squeezed lemon juice and avocados. Yum!

Cook 1 cup of quinoa and 2 cups of water in a rice cooker. If you don't have a rice cooker...go out and buy one! You can find small rice cookers for as cheap as $12. Once you use a rice cooker to cook grains you will never go back to the stove top! When the quinoa is done cooking, remove from rice cooker, place into a bowl, and let it cool to room temperature.

In a large bowl whisk together 6 teaspoons of Ener-G egg replacer and 8 tablespoons of warm water. Then, mix in cooked quinoa, nutritional yeast, garlic, salt, steamed kale, and breadcrumbs. Let everything sit for a few minutes to absorb the liquid. You want the batter to be moist, but not runny. You may need to mix in more water a little bit at a time to make it a little more moist. Form patties and set aside for cooking.

Heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Cook up to 4-6 patties on the pan depending on how larger your skillet is. Cover the pan and let the patties cook for 7-10 minutes until the they are golden brown. Flip and cook the other side for another 7-10 minutes until both sides are nice and brown. Let patties rest on a cooling rack or paper towels while you finish the next batch.



***Stay tuned to my next 30-day blog challenge, but until then enjoy my vegan recipes!***

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Recipe 30: Vegan Chex Mix Galore

I'm getting ready for our first Ugly Sweater Christmas party that we will be having at our apartment in 2 weeks. I wanted to start practicing making some inexpensive, yet tasty treats for the party so I thought I'd try out a party favorite Chex Mix! I made a salty and a sweet recipe. They both turned out great, and I'm eating some as I type. It's quite addicting!

Chocolate & Peanut Butter Chex Mix (Vegan, Gluten & Soy Free)

Takes about 5 minutes to make!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup vegan/gluten free chocolate chips (Try Enjoy Life Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips, which are Gluten/Dairy/Soy Free. I picked some up at Vons grocery store).
• 1/2 cup organic creamy peanut butter
• 1/3 cup Earth Balance
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 7-8 cups of rice Chex
• 2 cups of powdered sugar

Method:

Melt together chocolate chips, peanut butter, and butter in the microwave. Stir every 30 seconds until melted well, approximately 1 1/2-2 minutes. After melting, add in the vanilla extract and mix. Pour mixture over rice chex and carefully mix together. Transfer to a plastic baggie with powdered sugar. Shake up the bag well and it's ready to eat!

Vegan Original Chex Mix

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup Earth Balance butter
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1-1/4 teaspoons garlic salt
• 3 cups Corn Chex cereal
• 2 cups Rice Chex cereal
• 1-1/2 cups peanuts
• 1-1/2 cups small pretzels

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 275 degrees F. Melt butter in a shallow pan. Stir in Worcestershire sauce and garlic salt. Add Corn Chex, Rice Chex, nuts (peanuts, pecans or cashews), and pretzels. Mix until all pieces are coated with the butter mixture. Place on a baking sheet. Bake for 40 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Cool...enjoy!

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Recipe 29: Vegan Guilty Breakfast Sandwich

This breakfast sandwich will blow your mind!!! Guilty breakfast sandwich without the added fat of pork sausage or chicken eggs that are high in cholesterol.

Vegan Guilty Breakfast Sandwiches

YIELD: 2 sandwiches

Ingredients:

• 2 English muffins
• 2 thick of slices firm tofu
• 1/2 teaspoon each Lawry's seasoning salt, pepper, and turmeric
• 2 slices of vegan cheddar cheese (try Rice Vegan American Flavor slices)
• 2 vegan breakfast sausages (try SoL Cuisine's Veggie Breakfast Patties and they are non-GMO)
• 1 teaspoon of Organic Earth Balance buttery spread
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil

Method:

Sprinkle the tofu slices with a small amount of the spice mixture. Heat a pan over medium-high heat with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Once it's heated, place the tofu into the pan, grill until golden brown on each sides. Place vegan cheddar slice on top and cover with a lid. Allow the cheese to melt and then remove from heat. In a separate pan heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Cook 2 vegan sausage patties until browned. While sausage patties are cooking toast muffins.

Slice the muff in half, place a piece of tofu and sausage. Serve and enjoy!

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Recipe 28: Sara's Tofu Noodle Soup

This soup is great for a sore throat or cold! It's a hearty, vegan version of chicken noodle soup with kick of ginger. I made it tonight for dinner, because my boyfriend and I are both starting to get sick. I hope that the soup is a miracle worker, and we wake up healthy and not sick! Fingers crossed!!!

 

 

Sara's Tofu Noodle Soup

(Adapted from Sarah's Tofu Noodle Soup on allrecipes.com)

Ingredients:

• 6 cups of water
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1-2 sliced carrots
• 1/2 of a medium onion, chopped
• 1 celery stalk, chopped
• 3-4 cups baby bok choy, chopped
• 1 clove minced garlic
• 2 teaspoons of grated ginger
• 2 cubes of vegetarian chicken-flavored broth (Try Not-Chick'n Bouillon Cubes)
• 12 ounces of fresh rice noodles (Try Trader Joe's Fresh Rice Noodles)
• 1 (14 ounce) container extra-firm tofu, drained and cubed
• 1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram
• 1/4 teaspoon poultry or Italian seasoning
• 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 3 tablespoons cold water

Method:

Heat the olive oil, garlic, and onion in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook for approximately 5 minutes or until browned. Stir in the carrots, celery, ginger, and bok choy and cook until just tender, about 10 minutes.

Pour ingredients from the saucepan into a medium-large pot with the water and bring to a boil over high heat. Once boiling add the tofu, seasonings salt and pepper. Dissolve the cornstarch and water in a small bowl. Stir the cornstarch mixture into the soup. Return soup to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes. Stir in the rice noodles to cook for the last 5 minutes at medium heat.


Prep: 15 min
Cook: 40 min
Ready In: 55 min

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Recipe 27: Sweet and Sour Teriyaki Tofu in the Slow Cooker

This is my second slow cooker meal that I've tried from The Vegan Slow Cooker . This is super healthy and super easy to make. This dish is not as saucy as sweet and sour tofu is at an Asian restaurant, so if you are looking for a little more sauce to add on top before serving try this recipe here. I plan on making extra sauce to top it off next time! 

Sweet and Sour Teriyaki Tofu 

(Recipe Adapted from The Vegan Slow Cooker by Kathy Hester)
Ingredients:

• 1 can (20 ounces) pineapple in juice
• 2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
• 2 to 3 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
• 1 package baked teriyaki tofu (Try Trader Joe's Organic Baked Teriyaki Tofu)
• 1 medium onion, cut in half and thinly sliced
• 1 large green bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 2 large carrots, sliced
• 1 medium-sized head broccoli, cut into bite-size pieces
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 3 tablespoons cold water

The Night Before:

Open the pineapple can and drain the juice into a small bowl. Add the soy sauce and ginger to the juice to make the sauce. Store the sauce, pineapple chunks, and cut-up tofu, onion, people, carrots, and broccoli in an airtight container in the fridge.

In the Morning:

Combine the sauce, onion, carrots, and tofu, in the slow cooker.

About 30 to 45 minutes before serving, turn up the slow cooker to high and add the pepper, broccoli, and pineapple chunks. Dissolve/mix the cornstarch and water in a small bowl. Then, add it to the slow cooker and mix well. It's ready when the sauce has thickens and the broccoli is tender.

Serve on top of brown or white rice.

Yield: 4 servings
Total Prep Time: 15 minutes
Total Cooking Time: 6 to 8 hours

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Recipe 26: Caramel Corn

Happy World Vegan Day!!! Today, November 1st, marks the start of World Vegan Month. World Vegan Month celebrates the coining of the term, ‘vegan’ and the founding of The Vegan Society in November 1944. Celebrate this month by trying one of my recipes!

I hope you had a nice Halloween! Now that Halloween is over I am ready for the holidays to start. I have some great recipes to post. I can't wait!

My boyfriend and I went to Disneyland the other night and we were both dying for some caramel corn popcorn. I decided I would make some homemade for us on Halloween night. It was super easy and turned out so delicious. We brought some to his parents and shared it with our friends.

 

Seriously Addictive Caramel Corn (Vegan)

(I found this recipe here at it's a Greyt Vegan Life, which they Adapted from Recipe Rhapsody)

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup organic popcorn kernels (about 12 cups popped)
• 1 cup lightly salted peanuts or cashews (I like the sea salt varieties)
• 1/2 cup non-dairy butter
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup agave nectar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 6 ounces semi-sweet or dark chocolate

Method:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 250F. Spray a large rimmed baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray; set aside.
2. Use an air popper to pop the corn into a large bowl. Pick out the un-popped kernels, then sprinkle the nuts over the top and set aside.
3. In a large saucepan, melt the non-dairy butter over medium heat. Stir in the brown sugar, agave nectar, cinnamon and salt. Bring to a boil while stirring constantly, then allow to boil for 4 minutes (reduce the time by half for higher altitudes) without stirring. Remove from the heat and stir in the baking soda and the vanilla.
4. Pour the caramel over the popcorn/nuts and stir well to coat. Spread the mixture out on the baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and stir the caramel corn, then return the baking sheet to the oven and bake an additional 15 minutes. At the end of the baking time, transfer the caramel corn to waxed paper on the counter and spread evenly.
5. Place the chocolate pieces in a microwave safe bowl and heat for 45 seconds; stir. Heat in 30-second intervals, stirring in between, until smooth.
6. Using a spoon, drizzle the melted chocolate over the popcorn and allow it to cool completely before breaking apart.
7. Store in an airtight container or Ziplock bags.

I made my own popcorn on the stove top. Much cheaper than buying microwave popcorn bags. Click here to see how to pop popcorn on the stove. 

 One last picture of the yummy caramel corn!

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