Savoury but sweet Chickpea flour veggie Dinner cake -- vegan, gluten free, grain free, delicious

It's pretty much delicious, and that's about all I can say. My son calls it pasta. Good for you, and good tasting. Does it get any better than that?

ingredients:



2 cup carrot, coarsely pureed
2 cups green cabbage, coarsely pureed
4 cups sweet potato, coarsely pureed
1 medium onions, coursely pureed

2 tbsp extra virgin coconut oil
1 tsp sea salt
black pepper



3 cups water warm water
1/4 cup ground chia seeds
1/4 cup ground flax meal
1 tsp sea salt
black pepper
1 tsp chili pepper
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

2 cups chick pea flour

1/2 tsp baking soda



directions:

1. sauté the onion and garlic in the coconut oil
2. add the shredded sweet potato and carrot and 1 tsp sea salt, and  sauté
3. meanwhile, in a bowl, combine the ground chia seeds and ground flax seeds with the hot water and let sit for 10 minutes. Mix in the seasonings, cider vinegar,  chickpea flour, and baking soda
4. mix with a whisk!
5. when the shredded veggie mix is cooked, add it to the batter, and combine well
6. pour into a greased 3 L glass baking dish
7. bake at 345 for 75 minutes

Lentil Crockpot

yummy.

Anyway, Papa was going to be coming over so we made this because he's a huge fan of lentils. Turns out he had to reschedule, but we still got to enjoy the fruits of our efforts. 

Delicious crockpot!!!

ingredients:

1/4 cup coconut oil

1 1/2 cup finely chopped onion

2 cups lentils
2 cups finely chopped green cabbage
3 cups frozen green peas

2 cups diced carrots
4 cups diced sweet potatoes

1 tbsp sea salt
1 tsp chili powder
1 tbsp oregano

4 cups tomato sauce
1/2 cup coconut butter
6 cups water

3 cups chopped steamed broccoli



directions:

1. as usual, layer the ingredients into the crockpot in the order stated
2. cook on high for 6 hours
3. add the broccoli and turn off
4. adjust salt and pepper to taste

Date and Almond Energy Bars -- raw, vegan, sugar free, hot to trot ...

Brand new energy bars fresh off the press. These ones focus on date, almond, and vanilla, so they have a wonderful mellow flavour, all the richness you want in an energy bar, and will provide a satisfying snack for those who don't want chocolate. Which, for some reason, includes my chocolate loving husband right now. I'm not sure if body-snatchers should be implicated or not ...

Colin says these give him a hit of caramel, and he loves the way the different flavours emerge one by one. He's gone through most of the batch in just a few days ...

ingredients:


1 cup raw almonds
2 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup hemp hearts
1/4 cup ground flax
2 tbsp ground vanilla
2 tsp ceylon cinnamon
3/4 tsp sea salt

1 cup pitted honey dates

1/2 cup coconut oil


directions:

1. combine the almonds, coconut, hemp hearts, flax meal, vanilla, cinnamon, and sea salt in a food processor and process until sand-like.
2. add dates and pulse until evenly ground
3. add coconut oil and pulse until evenly combined
4. press into 2 silicone square pans and score into bars
5. chill or freeze, then break apart into pieces and store in airtight containers. we like 'em frozen, but chilled is also good!!!!

Chocolate Shape School Cookies

These are very chocolatey. They are a very satisfying snack or after meal treat. Super delicious. We made hearts because it's nice to put a little love in the lunch box ...

ingredients:

1/4 cup extra virgin coconut oil
1/4 cup hot water
1/2 cup coconut sugar

1 tbsp vanilla extract

1 tbsp ground vanilla
3/4 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup raw cacao
1/4 to 1/2 tsp stevia powder


1/4 cup ground chia seeds
1/4 cup ground flax seeds
1/2  cup sunflower seeds, finely ground
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds, finely ground
1/4 cup ground hemp seeds

1/4  cup coconut flour


directions:

1. combine ingredients in the order listed
2. let sit for 10 minutes
3. roll out the dough in portions between 2 sheets of parchment andcut into desired shapes
4. place on lined baking sheet
5. bake at 345 for 12 minutes

Socca with sauteed onions and rosemary

ingredients:

1 medium onion sauteed in coconut oil

4 tbsp coconut oil

1 1/2 cups water hot

3/4 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp chili powder

1 cup chickpea flour

2 tbsp  rosemary

2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1/4 cup ground flax seed -- just for fun

directions:

1. combine -- use a whisk if needed to de-lump -- and let sit

2. heat the oven to 345 with the skillet in it so it becomes a little warm

3. oil a skillet and pour it on

4. bake at 345 for 1 hour or so, until crispy and chewy

sauteed baby king mushrooms

baby king mushrooms
coconut oil
sea salt
chili powder
black pepper

Date Squares Redux

So, I decided to make date squares again. I'm nothing if not predictable. Yummmmm ....

ingredients:

date filling:

2½ cups honey dates, pitted and chopped
2 cup water
¼ cup lemon juice
10 drops lemon essential oil
1 tbsp ground  vanilla
pinch sea salt

ingredients:

crust:

1 cup shredded coconut -- lightly ground in a coffee grinder or food processor if desired. I desired!!

2 cups almond flour

1 tsp ceylon cinnamon

1/2 tsp sea salt
1 tbsp ground vanilla

1/4 cup extra virgin coconut oil

1/4 cup coconut sugar

2 tbsp lemon juice

directions:

crust:

1. combine the ingredients for the crust. Use a fork. Add the liquid last after everything else has been successfully mixed together

2. in a greased glass 9 x 13 pan: line with parchment and firmly press 2/3 - 3/4 of the mixture, reserving 1/4 - 1/3 as topping

(last year I used an 8 by 11 pan for this same quantity so this year will be a little thinner. My 8 by 11 was in the freezer full of homemade lasagna ...)

directions:

date filling:

1. combine the chopped dates, lemon juice, vanilla, sea salt, black pepper and water in a pot and simmer for 5 minutes or until the dates are nice and soft and melty.

directions:

combining the two:

preheat the oven to 300

2. evenly spread the date mixture onto the pressed in crust from above

3. sprinkle the date mixture with the crumbly remains of the crust ingredients

4. bake at 300 for 60 minutes

parchment lined and greased 2L baking dish

the crust pressed in

date filling spread on the crust

remaining crust ingredients crumbled on top

after baking

plated with lemon coconut milk ice cream

Green and Orange Layered Terrine -- vegan and sensational!

So, it's sort of like a vegan version of my roasted layered vegetable and goat cheese terrine. I've decided to make it for mothers day lunch. Sort of fancy-ish. It will look beautiful plated on baby greens and sided with some sexy deliciousness such as sauted baby king mushrooms, and baby tomatoes with avocado. Prepare to be amazed!!

ingredients:

2 cups raw cashews soaked in water with a little sea salt for at least 2 hours, drain and rinse
500 g broccoli
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp nutritional yeast
black pepper
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup chia -- finely ground

2 cups raw cashews soaked in water with a little sea salt for at least 2 hours, drain and rinse
250 g carrot
250 g sweet potato
4 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp nutritional yeast
black pepper
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/4 - 1/2 cup water
1/4 cup chia seeds -- finely ground

4 cups tomato sauce -- I still have a bunch of jars in my freezer from last falls plum tomato extravaganza.


1. process the cashews and broccoli mixture, then set aside
2. process the cashews and sweet potato and carrot mixture, and set aside
3. prepare a springform pan -- grease with coconut oil and layer with parchment
4. cover the parchment with 3/4 cup tomato sauce
5. put your first layer (1/2 of one of the colours), then 3/4 cup of tomato sauce, then a different colour (1/2 of the other), 3/4 cup tomato sauce, then the rest of the first colour, 3/4 cup tomato sauce, and finally the last layer, and the rest of the tomato sauce
6. bake in the oven on 345 for 90 minutes
7. allow to cool
8. remove springform, invert onto platter, peel off parchment, and serve

This vegan dish is simple to make although there are steps and there is a process. It is kid friendly, super delicious, and reminiscent of layered pasta such as lasagna. Rich, savoury, and totally delicious.

For mother's day this year, I will prepare this and serve it on a bed of lightly dressed baby greens, sided by sauteed king mushrooms and a salsa of diced avocado and baby tomato.

Lemon Coconut Milk Ice Cream -- a vegan, raw, frozen treat

We made this last year with lemon juice, coconut milk, honey, and lemon zest. This year it's a little different. Coconut milk, yes. But no honey this time -- raw agave. And not a lot of  lemon juice. Mostly  lemon essential oil. The beauty of lemon oil instead of lemon juice is you get the bright lemon flavour without the sourness, so not as much sweetening is needed. Any recipes for lemon sorbets that I've seen require such an astronomical quantity of sugar that it ends up being the worst possible choice of sorbet.

ingredients

2 cans coconut milk (total 800 ml)
140 drops lemon essential oil
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup  clear agave
generous pinch of salt



this will make just 1 L of ice cream


directions:

1. combine the above ingredients. I use an immersion blender
2. chill
3. freeze in your ice cream freezer according to the manufacturers directions.
4. transfer the ice cream to a freezer container
5. serve with the lemon date squares!!

Mother's day luncheon: Tomato and Avocado Salad

 350 g avocado ( weight of 2 large after skinned, pitted, and diced)
350 g cherry tomatoes, cut into 8ths
10 black olives, cut into pieces off the pit
sea salt to taste


directions:

1. combine and serve!

Mother's Day Luncheon, 2013 -- a vegan, kid friendly extravaganza

This Mother's Day I had the privilege of lunching with 3 other moms: my mom, my mother in law, and my sister in law. Included in this fun were my sister in law's kids, as well as my own lovely boy and husband. It was great fun watching the 3 year old and 5 year old play together, and a good time was had by all. I also ended up with 4 floral gifts -- two gorgeous bouquests, a delicate sweetheart rose, and a stunning orchid. All this and hail in May -- what a day!!

On the menu:

gorgeous green and orange layered vegan terrine on a bed of baby greens
sauteed baby king mushrooms
avocado and baby tomato salad
rosemary and sauteed onion socca
lemon date squares with lemon coconut milk ice cream