Christmas Eve Salad. Spoon needed :)

This recipe is a family tradition at home. Every Christmas Eve my mom makes this wonderful salad (that could very well be called soup for the way we like to serve it). It is absolutely healthy and refreshing to the stomach. After eating this salad, which is full of fiber, vitamins and antioxidants, there won't be too much room left in your stomach for other maybe not-so-healthy holiday dishes :)  Place your salad bowl beside a beatiful Poinsettia and it will be eye-catching.

Christmas Eve Salad

 

INGREDIENTS:

 

2 beets

2 medium apples
  

1 jícama  (or 1 cup water chestnuts)

1 orange, sliced.

2 cups orange juice

2-3 Tbs lime juice

Turbinado sugar or agave nectar, to taste

¼-1/2  cup raisins

¼-1/2 cup prunes

¼-1/2 cup peanuts or pecans

 

 

1. Peel off both beets and cook them in water (just as you would cook or boil potatoes). Keep the water and let it cool. 
2. Dice the apples, beets and jícama or water chestnuts. Cut the orange slices in quarters.   
3. Mix in a bowl apples, oranges, beets and jicama.
4. Make the dressing (juice) using the beet water, orange juice, lime juice and sugar or agave nectar.
5. Pour the juice on the fruits and serve in a bowl. Be generous with the juice. It is worth it. Top with some raisins, peanuts, and prunes.
6. Now go get a spoon :)

 

Macaroni and "Cheese"

This is an easy weeknight dinner recipe.  The Melty Cheese was a hit when we first made it in the CHIP program in the Spring. The great thing is you can make this recipe for nachos too! or any other favorite recipe that calls for melted cheese.  Nacho Chili??    Enjoy!

Melty Cheese  

 

2 C. water, divided

¼ C. raw cashews

1 4-oz. jar pimientos

¼ C. nutritional yeast

1½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. onion powder

¼ tsp. garlic powder

3 Tbsp. cornstarch

1 Tbsp. lemon juice

1 Tbsp. sesame tahini

 

1. Place 1 C. water & cashews in blender and blend until creamy.

2. Add all other ingredients (except remaining water) and blend again until smooth.

3. Add last cup of water (hot water will shorten cooking time) and blend briefly. *

4. Heat in heavy saucepan, stirring constantly until sauce is hot and bubbly.

 

*Variation: add 1 more Tbsp. cornstarch. After it is blended, add salsa.

Raw Pecan Pie

 Maybe for Christmas?  Enjoy!

Recipe and video by R&J Davis

Vegan Migas (for breakfast)

This dish is very similar to scrambled eggs. Only in appearance. It is made with tofu; very tasty and healthy.

Vegan Migas                                               

 

 

INGREDIENTS:

 

1 Tbs.  olive oil

1 package (12.3 oz.) firm tofu
 
¼ tsp. garlic salt

3 Tbs. fresh cilantro, chopped

½ cup chopped tomatoes

1 tsp. vegetable seasoning

¼ tsp. onion powder

1/3 cup green onions, chopped

¼ tsp. turmeric

Salt (optional, to taste) 

2  cups tortilla chips

 

 

 

1. Using a non-stick pan sautee onion in olive oil.
2. Mash the tofu using a fork and add it into the pan with the onios.
3. Add the remaining ingredients and season to taste. 
4. Cook for about 5 min. on medium heat, stirring a little.     
5. Serve warm on tortilla chips.

 

 

 

 

 

                                                         

 

 

 

Fruits and Oatmeal Cookies

With holiday season just aund the corner, and with the weather getting cooler, baking season is here!

So, here's a recipe for healthy cookies. They are chewy in the middle and a little crunchy on the outside, (unlike those sometimes awful-jaw-breaker-flat oatmeal cookies or almost-soggy kind).   For my taste, these are the perfect oatmeal cookies :D

 

Fruits and Oatmeal Cookies

 

INGREDIENTS:

 

2 cups quick oats (1 minute)

1 cup sunsweetened shredded coconut

1 cup chopped dates

3 ripe bananas

½ cup chopped pecans

1 Tbs. Vanilla

½ tsp. salt

 

 

1. Preheat oven at  350ºF (180C).
2. Mash the bananas and add chopped pecans, dates and coconut.
3. Mix well using the electric mixer.
4. Add salt, vanilla and oats. Continue mixing.
5. Take small spoonfuls and place on cookie sheet. (Use PAM on your cookie sheet if needed)
6. Bake at 350F for 20-25 minutes. Cool on wire rack and enjoy!

 

Raw Apple Pie

Great recipe for this Holiday Season.  No guilt. Enjoy!

Recipe for Thanksgiving/Holidays

I would like to share with you the recipe for my Pecan Loaf. I think it is a really good alternative for Thanksgiving turkey or any Holidays. I hope you guys like it :)
 
Here it is:
 

Vegan Pecan Loaf

 

INGREDIENTS:

 

3 c. TVP (prepared according to packaging and then measured)

½ large white onion, chpped

½ green bell pepper, chopped

3 Tbs. Olive oil

1 c. pecan meal

1 c. vegan mozarella cheese, shredded

½ c. soy milk, plain

1/3 c. bread crumbs

¼ c. oat flour

3 Tbs. flax seed meal

1 tsp. garlic salt

½ tsp. ground sage

 

 

1.      Saute the onion on the olive oil . Add the green pepper.

2.      Add the TVP and cook until golden brown.

3.      Using the blender, mix oat flour and milk.

4.      Mix all the ingredients in a bowl and set aside for 3-5 minutes.       

5.      Prepare a bread loaf baking dish by spraying the bottom and sides with PAM.

6.      Bake at 350 F for 10 – 15 min.

 

Not - Chicken Parmigiana

For those trying to avoid gluten or wheat, you can make this dish using eggplant.
Watch the previous video posting on the blog first to learn how to make Gluten (Seitan).
This is what I used my gluten for:

 

Yummy!!

How to make Quick Gluten Seitan

Here's a video I found  on How to Make Quick Gluten (Seitan) .  It is a convenient and easy way to substitute meat in traditional recipes, and you can control the amount of sodium going into your dish!

Let us know how it turns out and please share with us your recipe for Gluten Seitan. If you have a better, quicker, way of preparing it, please tell us about it.

Thanks!

(The video comes from 3angelstube.com)

Link to a non-GMO shopping guide

Carmen shared with me this link to a non-GMO shopping guide.  For those of you interested in the subject I am passing it along:

http://www.nongmoshoppingguide.com/shopping-guide.html

Thanks for sharing, Carmen

Fall CHIP seminar

Greetings to all former “CHIPpers”

I just wanted to take a moment to encourage all to “stay the course” and to let you know the next CHIP seminar begins Sunday Sept 16 at 6:30 pm. The two nights will be Sundays & Thursday for four weeks. I have attached a copy of the brochure for you information.

Please share this info with friends and family and let me know if anyone wants to register for the program as soon as possible. If enough people “rsvp” for the Forks Over Knives showing, we will be having that on Sunday August 26^th at 3:00 pm with Q & A.

If anyone is willing to help in the next seminar, please email me and let me know in what capacity. We welcome all the help we can get.

Do feel free to contact me with any questions you may have.

Blessings to all,

Shakeela

CHIP Director

Pictures and Caroline's Muffins Recipe

I am finally back after a long vacation. My mom underwent surgery and I got to spend time with her during her recovery. She is doing remarkably well, thank God. Here are some pictures I'm sharing with you all:

Paseo Santa Lucia with El Cerro de la Silla as a background;
this mountain is Monterrey's Landmark

Monterrey is surrounded by mountains

This part of town is characterized by the old architecture;
 colonial buildings, haciendas, stoned paved streets, etc.

Paseo Santa Lucia. Cerro de la Silla (Saddle's Mountain)

There are boat rides available with restaurants and shops alog the way

The public library

MARCO (Contemporary Art Museum)

The Metropolitan Cathedral

Macroplaza's Neptune Fountain

Palacio de Gobierno del Estado
(State's Goverment Palace)

We all enjoyed a while back, Caroline's Blueberry Lemon Muffins (from The Joy of Vegan Baking, by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau) As promised, here it is!

Blueberry Lemon Muffins

Blueberry Lemon Muffins

2 cups  unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
Zest of two lemons
3/4 to 1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup nondairy milk
1/3 cup canola oil (she also made a batch using apple sauce instead of oil)
1 tsp lemon extract
1 tsp white distilled vinegar (I will try lemon juice instead ;)  so I won't use anything fermented)
1 1/2 fresh blueberries, picked over to remove stems

Preheat the oven to 400 F.  Lightly grease your muffin tins.
In a medium-size bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, salt and lemon zest.
In a large bowl, combine the sugar, milk, oil, lemon extract, and vinegar. Mix well. Add the flour mixture, stirring until the ingredients are just blended. Gently fold in the berries using a rubber spatula.
Fill greased or nonstick muffin tins about 2/3 full. Bake until the muffins are lightly browned and a wooden skewer inserted into the center comes out clean, about 20 minutes. While the muffins are baking, lick the bowl clean. No eggs means no salmonella!
Remove from the oven and let sit for 5 minutes. Remove the muffins from the tins and cool on a wire rack.

Yields: 12 muffins

Watermelon Summer Drink

I am taking a break from all the unpacking I need to do, so I'll keep it short, sweet and to the point.

I would like to thank Adona for her help and for sharing her recipes with us in our blog. I will post Carolyn's Blueberry Lemon Muffins recipe as well. Big time favorites :) I know. I still have had no time to type it up. Sorry.   Please email me or Shakeela your recipes (and pictures if you want) you would like to share with us and we'll post them on the blog.  You guys are like cooking ninjas!  :D  I miss you all! 


 The recipe I'm sharing today is a Summer favorite. Great for the 4th of July! I got the idea from the Barefoot Contessa. What I'm sharing is my interpretation of that idea. I changed it up a little to make it CHIP approved ;)


Watermelon Summer Drink. Very refreshing. Ideal for this summer's heat wave :)

 

Watermelon Summer Drink

4 cups watermelon
3-5  limes, (juice)
1/4 cup agave nectar
8-10 fresh mint leaves, rinsed
Cold water, as needed

In the blender, process the watermelon, lime juice and mint with a little water. Gradually add agave nectar and more water as needed to reach the desired thickness of your drink.   

Note: You may start preparing this recipe using only 3 limes' juice and add more to taste. You may also adjust the mint and agave nectar amounts to taste.  Serve cold.  Enjoy!

OK. Now back to my task....  

Last Tuesday we had Mexican food. There was Salad, Rice and Beans, Mexican Soup, Blender Gazpacho, Guacamole, Corn Muffins, Tamale Pie, Enchiladas, Santa Fe burritos, Black Bean and Corn Salsa, Queso de Soja con Tomate....   Oh, my.  Delicioso!!  Can you believe it was all vegan?  I know! Hard to believe, even for this mexican girl :D

I'll be posting the recipes later on.

I took some pictures of the food,  here they are:

Black Bean Nachos and Chesesy Sauce

Mexican Soup

Lemon Pie

Rice and Black Beans

Green Salad and Dressing

Lettuce, Kale, Tomato, Carrots and Beans Salad

Michele has shared with us a link to a Big List of No-Oil Salad Dressings.  Click on the link below to find the recipes. You may print the document :)

https://sites.google.com/site/hgkprintablerecipes/big-list-of-no-oil-salad-dressings


Thanks, Michele  :)

Vegan Swiss Enchiladas

Legend has it, these enchiladas are called Enchiladas Suizas (Swiss Enchiladas) because Swiss immigrants in Mexico started making them this way. (You can make them too using red tomatoes) Others say this dish got its name because the enchiladas are covered with green salsa and then Sour Cream, Cheese, queso fresco, chopped white onions, etc. simulating the snow on the green Swiss Alps. The truth is...  Who knows?  I really like them and would love to share them with you :)


Here is the video:

Serve them with "refried" beans (using water) and a fresh green salad. (I like to shred some cabbage and drizzle a little lemon juice on it)
Enjoy!

Enchiladas Suizas

Salsa:
2 cups water
8 tomatillos
1/2 green pepper
1/2 onion
3 garlic cloves
12 stalks cilantro
1 serrano pepper (optional)

In a pot, cook the ingredients until soft.  Blend the cooked ingredients to make salsa.  In the pot, add 2 tsp. of canola oil and add the salsa, bring to a soft boil. Season with Epazote and a pinch of salt.

Filling:

2 big potatoes, cooked and diced
2 medium carrots, raw and shredded
1/2 onion, raw, finely chopped
1 small can mushrooms (substitute, TVP, etc.)
Cilantro, finely chopped (optional)
Season with:
turmeric, garlic powder, oregano, pinch of salt.


Tofu Sour Cream (from The Seven Secrets cookbook)
12 oz. soft tofu
1/2 cup raw cashews
2 Tbsp. chives
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp salt
1 tsp onion poder

Blend at high speed to obtain a smooth mixture. Refrigerate.

Flour Tortillas!

I make this recipe very often and I would like to share it with you. It is very versatil. You can make them thick or thin; add sweet or salty fillings, toast them, bake them, and eat them as you would eat flat bread.

My favorite fillings are:

For breakfast:
 Sliced banana, chopped nuts, wheat germ and honey or agave nectar.
 Peanut butter and jelly pinwheels.

For lunch:
Veggie wraps: hummus, shredded veggies, tomatoes, etc.
"Quesadilla" using guacamole
Tacos, using taco filling (TVP, pico de gallo, salsa, etc.)

For Dinner:
Mini Pizzas!  Spread Tofu Sour Cream first, add the tomato sauce second and then the toppings at last.

Make your own tortillas at home and share your own ideas!  :)

With 14% of the recipe's total calories coming from fat it stays under the 20% of calories from fat recommended by CHIP.  I'm not sure about the final flavor of this following experiment but I'll try making them with unsweetened applesauce instead of oil and will let you know about the results.

To store them:

Lay them out to cool on a kitchen towel.  When cool, stack them all up and place them on a kitchen towel that has been lined with paper towels. Wrap them with the kitchen towel that's on the bottom of the stack and put them in a Ziploc bag. Refrigerate.

For list of ingredients, scroll down :)

Vegan "Cream Cheese" Icing

Adona baked sweet rolls last Tuesday for our Breakfast Evening food theme, 

Ron's Sweet Rolls topped with Vegan "Cream Cheese" Icing (by Adona),
served with baked fruit  (by Chef A.J.)
Can you tell I'm not a professional photographer?  :)

and served them with this creamy, yummy icing,  so I made it later at home to serve it at breakfast! That's right! Icing for Breakfast :)

(I posted a picture on the previous posting, just scroll down to see it)

Here's the recipe:

Vegan "Cream Cheese" Icing

1 cup cashews

juice from 1 lemon

1/8-1/4 cup maple syrup

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

(I would add a pinch of salt to brake the sweetness down just a little)

Puree the cashews, lemon juice, maple syrup, vanilla extract, and a splash of water in a blender at high speed to create a smooth, creamy, thick consistency, then spread or pour over cake, (rolls, fruit, etc.)   :)

From Forks over Knives

Ron's Sweet Rolls

Preparation Time: 40 minutes

Complexity: Advanced

1. Preheat oven at 350F. Lightly oil-spray two (9"x13") baking dishes.

2. Place dough ingredients in large mixing bowl. Let sit 10 minutes.

Dough:

2 cups warm water

1 Tbsp active dry yeast

1 Tbsp honey (Adona used agave nectar instead)

3. Add:

1/2 Tbsp salt

2 cups spelt flour or whole wheat flour

1/4 cup olive oil

1 Tbsp gluten flour (optional)

4. Knead in a bread mixer for 3 minutes, or hand beat using a whisk for 5 minutes.

5. Add:

1 Tbsp honey  (Adona used agave nectar instead)

2 Tbsp lecithin

1 Tbsp lemon juice

1 1/2 cups unbleached white flour

2 1/2 spelt or whole wheat flour

6. Mix in a bread mixer for 5 minutes or hand knead for 10 min. Add enough flour so dough is not sticky. (Adona had to add water to make dough soft enough to roll out)

7.  Roll dough out into a large rectangle approximately 1/2 inch thick.

8. Sprinkle with filling:

2 1/4 cups dates, chopped (rinse with hot water to soften, if needed)

2 1/2 cups apple, fresh peeled and shredded

1/2 cup pecans, chopped

1 Tbsp cinnamon or substitute

9. Roll up dough into a "log" shape. (Adona drizzled a little bit of agave nectar before she rolled it into log to cut)

10. Slice into 1-inch slices. Lay each piece flat in prepared baking dish.

11. Cover with a towel and place in a warm area.

12. Let rise for about 1 hour, or until doubled in size.

13. Bake at 350F for 20-25 min. or until golden brown. (She needed 5-10 minutes longer  bake time)

Chef's tip: These freeze well when store in tightly sealed containers or plastic bags.

(From Optimum Diet?)  I'll make sure :)

Thanks, Adona!

In the picture there is also a dish from Chef A.J.

Base:

Cut up in large lasagna pan

2 lbs. bananas (aprox. 3 large)

2 lbs. fresh pineapple or other fruit (mango, berries)

10 oz. fruit spread any flavor (apricot, black cherry, raspberry)

Mix together.

Topping:

In blender

2 c. oat flour

1/2 c maple syrup + 1/2 c water or pear juice

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 c unsweetened apple sauce

Blend topping mixture briefly.

Pour over top of base. Bake at 350F for 30 minutes. Refrigerate. Heat before serving.

Note: I liked it cold too!   Nice and refreshing for the summer months  :) 

Breakfast Un-Sausage Recipe

One of the recipes  someone shared and we tasted last Tuesday was the Breakfast Un-Sausage. It was very tasty and I ate it with some delicious hashbrowns :)  Yummy!

Here it is:

Breakfast Un-Sausage

Ingredients:

3 cups water
1/4 cup Bragg liquid aminos
2 Tbs. granulated onion
1/2 Tbs. granulated garlic
1/2 - 1 Tbs. crushed red pepper
1 tsp. Bakon hickory seasoning
1 Tbs. olive oil (used unsweetened apple sauce)
1/4 c. maple syrup
1 tsp. sage
1 tsp. salt (optional)
2 1/2 - 3 cups quick oats

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 F
Place all ingredients in a medium saucepan, except for oats, and bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer for 2 minutes. Add oats and stir. Remove from heat and place lid over pan stirring occasionally. When mixture is cooled enough, place each patty on sprayed cookie sheet using an ice cream scoop, then press with the palm of your hand or hamburger press to make sausage patty. Bake about 15 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Recipe makes 20 - 22 patties.

From Simply Yummy by Melody Prettyman

Apple Squares (Gluten-Free)Recipe

We had a great time yesterday evening. We had "breakfast" and saw a video by Dr. Neal Barnard, MD  on Chocolate, Cheese and Meat  (some of the foods people usually crave, and he expained why) Very good speaker. Not craving them anymore after listening to all that :/  ha,ha!

Lisa has asked for the recipe I made for the Thank You treats I gave away to the people who contributed helping in the kitchen or bringing food to our meetings.   Again, thanks to all.

Here it is: 

1 1/2 c. quick oats
1 1/2 c. raw apples, shredded
2/3 c. dates, chopped
1/2 c. walnuts, chopped
1/4 c. millet flour for a gluten-free version (or whole wheat flour for a non-gluten-free recipe)
1/4 c. orange juice
1/2 tsp. salt

1. Using your hands, combine all ingredients.
2. Press mix into an 8x8-in. baking dish.
3. Bake at 375 F for 25 minutes or until lightly browned.
4. Loosen with spatula and cut into squares or bars while still warm.


I served it with strawberries and Vegan "Cream Cheese" Icing. My husband added a sliced banana too :)

I'll post other recipes of the food we had last night :) before the weekend.  Thank you all for participating. Delicioso!!

Next meeting will be on June 5th. The theme is Mexican food!!  Can't wait :)

Delicious Gluten-Free Burger recipe

We ate this burger in one of our meetings. It was a favorite!

The Veggie Mac 

1 can garbanzo beans

1 C. rolled oats, uncooked

1 C. walnuts, chopped fine

1 C. onion or 1 medium onion, minced

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. dry cilantro (optional)

1 tsp. sage

1 Tbsp. Bragg Liquid Aminos or soy sauce

Fresh parsley, chopped

 

Drain garbanzos and reserve liquid. Mash beans with a fork and add remaining ingredients. Add enough of the bean liquid to moisten mixture so that patties can be formed easily and will hold together. Brown on each side in a small amount of olive oil. Serve on gluten free bread/bun for a totally gluten-free burger or whole wheat bun if your body does'nt mind a little wheat ; garnish as desired.