Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

This recipe is always a hit. It's been in my cookbook for so long that I can't remember where it came from. You can make other varieties by substituting the roasted red peppers with other ingredients. I've made hummus with sun dried tomatoes (the kind packed in oil) and green olives. If you're using an ingredient that already has a lot of salt in it (like the olives), just omit the salt from the recipe. Hummus is great eaten with pita bread, carrot sticks and celery. It also makes a great spread for sandwiches. It's very easy to make, and should only take about 10 minutes from start to finish. Enjoy!

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

Makes about 2 cups

• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 heaping Tbsp. of tahini
• juice from one lemon
• 1 15 oz. can of chick peas
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup roasted red peppers

Blend garlic, salt, tahini and lemon juice in a blender until thoroughly mixed.

Add the chick peas and oil and blend until smooth.

Add the peppers and blend once more until incorporated.

Transfer to a bowl and garnish with a couple strips of peppers.

Mom's Veggie Stew

I can't take credit for this one since I've never made it myself, but my mom has on several occasions. Last night being the most recent. For years now the family has been gathering for dinner almost every Friday night. Mom usually does the cooking for my dad, three brothers, Grandpa, Uncle Mark and cousin Liam. It's always a vegetarian dish since Grandpa is a vegetarian, and has been since he boycotted the meat market in the 70's. This particular Friday night she made a vegan dish to accommodate Logan, and to support my dietary changes. She's always been a very obliging chef, especially during my vegetarian phase that lasted three years.

This vegetable stew recipe came from a cook book that my mom has had since the 70's. It's called Vegetarian Gothic, and is full of meat free recipes and sayings about peace, love and all that other cliche hippie stuff.
 

It's been so used that the cover is missing, it's torn into two sections, and the pages are splotched with mystery food stains, but it's still a great cook book. The page displaying the veggie stew recipe is discolored and so with so many stains, adding even more character to the book.

Like me, mom never follows recipes exactly. She used oil instead of butter to make it vegan. The rosemary was omitted. I'm all for rosemary, but there's a time and a place for everything, and that herb does not have a place in this stew. Tamari was replaced with soy sauce, it's less viscous and more salty cousin. The dish came out perfect. It was thick, hearty and had a creamy texture. I can't think of a better meal for a chilly, windy night. This will definitely be made again in my own kitchen. I borrowed the cook book, so you can look forward to other recipe inspirations from it. So for our sisters and brothers, we wish you much joy (with this recipe).

Mom's Veggie Stew

Serves 12

• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 large onion
• 2 green peppers, chopped
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 4 tomatoes, diced
• 1 sweet potato, cubed
• 2 yellow squash, chopped
• 2 cups brown rice
• 1 tsp. sea salt
• 1/2 tsp. pepper
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 4 cups water

Saute the onions and green pepper in oil in a large dutch oven until tender.

Add the rest of the ingredients and cover.

Bring to a boil.

Reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes, until everything is tender.

Home Made Ginger Ale

Another great recipe I found on Big Girls Small Kitchen. I love ginger ale, but I'm not a fan of the ingredients in store brought brands, like high fructose corn syrup. Most of the store bought brands don't even contain real ginger! You're not even getting the benefits of ginger's anti-inflammatory properties and nausea reducing qualities, as well as the other numerous health plusses of the root. As I have an affinity for everything home made, I bought some ginger and made my own. It was incredibly easy and didn't require any special equipment. It tasted more like ginger beer, not necessarily a bad thing. I'm not sure what the thyme added to it, but it made it look nice. I guess you don't really need it. After making the syrup, we mixed it with club soda made with the SodaStream Genesis Soda Maker. That machine is great. It turns water to soda in seconds, and it is much more environmentally friendly than buying bottled soda. Store bought club soda would work just as well with this recipe though.

Home Made Ginger Ale

Makes 4 glasses

• 1/2 cup peeled, sliced ginger
• 2 sprigs of thyme
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 cup water
• 1 liter of club Soda

Combine the ginger, thyme, sugar and water in a small saucepan.

Simmer gently for 20 minutes.

Pour the syrup in 4 glasses over ice.

Fill the rest of the glass with club soda to your taste.

The thing I love most about ginger ale is how well it mixes with rum to make a Dark and Stormy. My Uncle Mark turned me on to the drink when I was visiting him in the Virgin Islands. Every time I drink it   I feel like I'm back in Cinnamon Bay on St. John, even in this frigid January weather. I usually mix the ginger ale with Cruzan Aged Rum, a rum produced on the island of St. Croix. It's pretty hard to find around here (another excuse to take a trip to the USVI), so I used Black Seal Black Rum that Andrew's mom brought us back from her last cruise. It's not a bad substitute. Don't forget to add lime.. LOTS of lime!

Spinach and Chick Peas

I came across this recipe while browsing through the vegan link of the Big Girls Small Kitchen website. It's a great site by the way, and I'll definitely be getting more ideas from them. The recipe detailed a few steps that I didn't have time for, so I changed the cooking method and a couple ingredients to make it my own. Prep time was less than 10 minutes, and it was super easy. It was delicious, too! The entire dish was gone by the time the three of us finished dinner. Logan probably ate as much as Andrew and I did. He couldn't get enough of the chick peas! The only thing I would do differently is add more spices next time to boost the flavor, but this will definitely become a regular in our house. It's perfect if you're looking for a quick, light meal. The original recipe calls it a stew. The liquid in this version never thickened enough for me to consider it a stew, but that could be because I skipped the oven step. When serving I just scooped everything out, leaving the small amount of liquid behind.

Spinach and Chick Peas

Serves 3-4

• 1 Tbsp. oil
• 1 large onion
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 bunch of baby spinach
• 1 15 oz. can of chick peas, drained
• 3 tomatoes, diced
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1tsp. paprika
• 1 tsp. ground cumin

Heat the oil in a large skillet with a lid and cook the onions until translucent.

Add the water and spinach, and cook until the spinach begins to wilt.

Add the chick peas, tomatoes, salt, paprika and cumin. Stir until combined.

Cover and cook over low heat for 30 minutes.

Serve warm.

Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

I have an insatiable sweet tooth. As healthy as I resolve to make my diet, I won't even try to exclude sweets. It'll never happen. I unfortunately passed my sweet tooth on to my son. He had sugar for the first time shortly before he turned one, when I did a trial run on vegan cupcakes to make for his birthday. Up until then, his diet consisted of breast milk and the homemade organic baby food I laboriously prepared for him. With the video camera rolling, he bit into his first cupcake and loved it! My normally messy eater didn't waste a crumb, picking every last drop off the high chair tray. His love for sweets began that day. It was no surprise that his first two syllable word was "cookie".

Andrew, who normally doesn't go for sweets, requests chocolate chip cookies all the time. I inherited this amazing recipe from my mom, who seemed to make them almost every day. I'm sure that every single one of my childhood friends remember these cookies. They were always in the house, and always requested when anyone came over. When my mom copied the recipe in a cookbook for me when I moved out of the house, I thought I was being privileged to a exquisite family recipe. Then one night far into my pregnancy I was bingeing on Nestle chocolate chips (that could explain Logan's sweet tooth). I turned the package around and started reading the recipes. The chocolate chip cookie recipe was exactly the same as my mom's! I felt like my whole life had been a lie.

Anyways, I make chocolate chip cookies every so often for Andrew. Logan always sees them on the counter and yells "cookie!", and a temper tantrum ensues when he doesn't get one. I decided to alter "mom's recipe" to eliminate animal products.

The first step was finding vegan chocolate. I checked the label of a bar of an Endangered Species chocolate bar that was in the cabinet, and was pleased to see no milk fat! Whole Foods sells vegan chocolate chips, but I doubt it's as good as this stuff. I just chopped up this bar and added it to the batter.

The next step was finding ingredients to substitute for the eggs and butter. Eggs are easily substituted with applesauce or bananas without altering the taste. 1/4 cup of applesauce or 1/2 a banana for each egg. The harder decision rested with the butter. Oil is easily substituted for butter in cakes and muffins, but I was afraid it would make the cookies too dense. I decided to use vegetable shortening. Not the healthiest choice, but chocolate chip cookies aren't exactly good for you anyways. For some people, anything with white sugar isn't considered vegan, since it's filtered with animal bone char. The bone char isn't in the sugar, but it is used as a filter. I'm not one of those people, so to me, this recipe is vegan.

Right away I could see a difference in the batter. It was so light and fluffy, and I could eat as much as I wanted without fear of getting sick from the eggs. Logan loved it, too. He kept running up to me to lick my fingers.

The end result was amazing. The cookies taste the same, if not better than the regular recipe. They have a lighter feel, and are crunchy and chewy at the same time. Imagine that. And they pair very well with homemade almond milk. I'll definitely make these again, even for non vegans. Sorry mom, but I've found a new recipe to pass on!

Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

Makes 4 dozen

• 1 cup of vegetable shortening
• 3/4 cup of white sugar
• 3/4 cup of brown sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup applesauce
• 2 1/4 cups of flour
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• vegan chocolate bar/chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Cream the shortening and the sugars with an electric mixer. Add vanilla, followed by the applesauce.

With a wooden spoon, mix in the flour, salt and baking soda.

Add the chocolate.

Drop tablespoon sized balls of dough on a greased cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes.

Mmm Brussels Sprouts

While rummaging through the fridge I noticed that I had A LOT of brussels sprouts. They've been in there for awhile, and I wanted to use them all up. A resolution of mine is to reduce food waste, so they all needed to be used. I have a recipe for a brussels sprout casserole from Martha Stewart Living that bakes them in a béchamel sauce. As much as I love creamy, cheesy béchamel, another resolution is to eat less animal product. I googled brussels sprouts recipes, while trying my hardest to resist cheese cravings. I came across a recipe for a brussels sprout orzo salad. Orzo is not an ingredient in the pantry, but there is more brown rice than I know what to do with. I made a few other changes, including ingredients and cooking methods.

This dish, along with a creamy vinaigrette I made with it, were big hits. Andrew and Logan couldn't get enough of it. We ate it as a side dish with fish (so much for a vegan meal, but it looked so delicious in the seafood section at Stop and Shop!), but this could be eaten as a main course.

When I'm cooking it's very rare to see me with a measuring cup or spoons. I just don't have the patients, nor do I have a dishwasher. The less dishes I use, the better. I'll try to guess how much of each ingredient I used, but it's basically to taste.

By the way, I always thought it was brussel sprouts, not brussels sprouts. Who knew? Thanks spell check.

Brussels Sprouts and Brown Rice Casserole

Makes about 6 servings

• 1 butternut squash, peeled, seeded and diced
• 1.5 lbs. of brussels sprouts
• 1 15 oz. can of chickpeas, drained*
• 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
• 1 tsp. salt
• 2 tsp. cinnamon
• 2 tsp. nutmeg
• 2 Tbsp. honey
• 1/8 cup to 1/4 cup of olive oil
• Brown rice (enough for 6 servings

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Cook rice according to package directions.

Mix remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Spread on a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes.

Return mixture to the bowl and combine with the cooked rice.

Serve warm.

*note: I avoid canned food whenever possible to reduce BPA exposure, but canned organic Green Way chickpeas are what I had on hand. You can also use 1 cup of dry chick peas, soaked overnight.

Mustard Vinaigrette

• 4 Tbsp. ginger, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1/2 cup walnuts
• 2 Tbsp. honey
• 4 Tbsp. dijon mustard
• Juice of 2 limes
• 6 Tbsp. cider vinegar
• Dash of salt
• Dash of cayenne pepper
• 1/2 cup to 3/4 cup of olive oil

Pulse ginger, cloves and garlic in a blender.

Add the rest of the ingredients, ending by slowing adding the oil to achieve desired consistency.

Serve on top of the casserole.

Home Made Almond Milk

Making the switch from cow's milk is pretty easy given all the great options in grocery stores. What's not so great about the other options is the price. I only nurse Logan at night now (and occasionally during the day when he's cranky, pulling at my shirt and screaming "bubbies!"), so he sucks down those cartons in no time. While we will drink soy milk every now and then, I don't feel comfortable giving it to Logan since soy is full of things like hormone mimicking phytoestrogens and enzyme inhibitors that block mineral absorption. You can read more about the adverse health effects of soy here. I found almond milk to be a tasty substitute. Almonds are packed with protein, Omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin E and calcium, but even the plain, unsweetened almond milk contains 7 grams of sugar. I decided to make my own.

I've made home made Nutella by grinding up hazelnuts before. Seeing how creamy the nuts became inspired me to do the same to almonds. I looked it up online, and browsed through a few recipes before deciding to use one and a half cups of almonds and four cups of water. I began the process by soaking organic almonds I bought from Stop and Shop in one cup of water overnight. Soaking the almonds not only makes them easier to grind, but it makes them easier to digest, thereby ensuring maximum absorption of nutrients.

This morning I added the almonds, along with the water they soaked in, to the blender. I let them grind for a minute or so before adding three more cups of water and letting the blender run for a couple more minutes. Then came the hard part. No matter how long I let it blend there were still little bits of almond in  the mixture. Filtering them with cheese cloth over a pitcher seemed easy, but the mixture was so thick that it took forever! I kept having to squeeze out the cheese cloth and empty the solids from it. Overall it produced about three cups of delicious almond milk!

I will definitely be keeping almonds in the house from now on to make this again. I'll try to come up with    a more efficient method of filtering for next time, but if anyone has any suggestions please let me know!

Home Made Almond Milk

• 1 1/2 cups of organic almonds
• 4 cups of water, divided

Soak the almonds in one cup of water overnight, or for at least 8 hours. Pour the almonds and the soaking water in a blender and blend at a high speed until the almonds appear mostly chopped -about 1 minute. Add the other 3 cups of water and blend for another 2 to 3 minutes, until a white foam appears at the top. Filter through a cheese cloth and chill. Done!

The almonds taste great on their own, but Andrew added about a teaspoon of organic, fair trade cocoa to his glass for a chocolate variety. Grocery stores also sell vanilla flavors. This can be made by adding a small amount of pure vanilla extract, to taste.


Update: 2/16/12
As my friend Lorraine informed me this morning, it's "national almond day". I guess Hallmark (in an effort to sell more greeting cards, maybe?) has made every day a national holiday. Yes, it's silly, but I never turn down an opportunity to celebrate anything, So happy national almond day everyone! I've been meaning to post an update for a couple days now, so I guess today is the perfect time.

I didn't measure it, but it seemed
to make a lot more.

Andrew and I finally got a new juicer, so my mom can have hers back now. I had almonds soaking to make almond milk with, but was feeling unmotivated. Straining the blended almonds through a cheese cloth was so tedious. I figured I would try throwing them in the juicer. I don't know why I never thought of it before.. it was so easy! I soaked a cup of almonds overnight in water like usual, but instead of putting them in the blender, I threw them in the juicer. Alternate between throwing in almonds and water (3 cups for every cup of almonds), and you have almond milk in less than a tenth of the time!





And don't throw out the leftover almond pulp! Scrape it out of the scrap container and spread it over the fruit roll tray that comes with most dehydrators. Leave that in the dehydrator until it's completely dry, about 4 hours. When done, blend it through a blender until you're left with a fine powder (I used the Baby Bullet), and voila! You have almond flour. Not sure what I'll be using that for yet, but I'm sure it will come in handy eventually.