Vegan Freezer Meal: Vegan Thai Green Curry with Tofu on Brown Rice

May 16, 2013 in Dinner

Vegan Freezer Meal: Thai Green Curry on Brown Rice
Time to make: 40 minutes
Time to heat from frozen: 40 – 50 minutes in oven

Thai Green Curry atop brown rice and ready for the freezer...or to eat!

Thai Green Curry atop brown rice and ready for the freezer…or to eat!

This rich, savory, and mildly spicy dish is a convenient, healthy alternative to store-bought frozen dinners.  It’s high in protein, complex carbohydrates, and fiber.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups of cooked brown rice
  • 1 tablespoon Thai Green Curry Paste, store bought (watch out for brands that include shrimp paste and avoid) or homemade
  • 1 tablespoon coconut oil (refined or unrefined)
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2 cup onions, sliced
  • 1 Chinese eggplant, sliced into 3” long and ¼” thick pieces. (use a small regular eggplant if you can’t find the Chinese kind)
  • 1 block of firm tofu, cubed
  • 1 tablespoon sugar (or agave)
  • 165 ml coconut milk
  • 1 cup water
  • 3 cups chopped, uncooked, dark leafy greens (snow pea leaves, kale or spinach works well here)
  • salt to taste

You’ll also need 4 individual-sized containers to freeze each portion in.

Directions

Divide your cooked brown rice into the four containers and set aside.

In a medium-sized sauce pan, break up the curry paste and mix with the coconut oil over medium-high heat. Let it heat up for a minute to open up the flavours of the spices.  Add the onions and garlic; cook for another minute while stirring occasionally.

Curry paste with onions and garlic

Add the tofu, eggplant, sugar, coconut milk, and water. Stir to combine all the ingredients.

Add the coconut milk and sugar.

Add the coconut milk, water, tofu, eggplant, and sugar.

Turn the heat to high until the curry starts to boil. Turn down the heat to a simmer and add the greens.

Remove from stove as soon as the greens turn bright. Mix well and add salt to taste.

Divide the curry into the containers. Allow it to cool for 12-15 minutes before sealing with aluminum foil, labelling, and freezing.

To reheat in the oven, cook in a pre-heated oven at 375 F for 35-40 minutes. It’s done when the middle is hot. I find it doesn’t take as long if you use a toaster oven. You can also speed up reheating time by popping it into a covered microwave-safe dish. Nuke for 3 minutes, stir, and then nuke for about 3 more minutes or until the middle is hot.

This will smell so good that you may want to forgo the freezing and have some tonight.

Thai green curry with a side of brown rice.

Have some Vegan Thai Green Curry tonight!

Best topped with raw bean sprouts, a squeeze of lime juice and some smashed peanuts. Enjoy!

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Raw Vegan Zucchini Pasta with Tomato Basil Date Sauce

May 15, 2013 in Dinner, Lunch

There is something about a blissful new relationship that makes the heart sing and the weight pile on! The last nine months of impressing my SO with homemade pizza have taken a toll on my own waistline. Tonight, we’re having something much healthier. Luckily, healthy can also mean effing delicious. This is how.

Zucchini Noodles with Tomato Basil Date Sauce

Zucchini Noodles with Tomato Basil Date Sauce

Raw Vegan Zucchini Noodles with Tomato Basil Sauce
Serves 4
Time to make: 15 minutes
I used a spiralizer for this recipe. If you don’t have one, use a vegetable peeler to create linguine-like strips.

Ingredients

  • Pasta:
    • 3 small zucchini
    • juice from 1/2 lime
    • pinch salt
  • Sauce:
    • 8 ripe cherry tomatoes
    • 2 dates, pitted
    • 5 basil leaves (or more!)
    • 1 tablespoon chives, finely chopped
    • 1 clove garlic

Directions

Spiralize the zucchini. If you don’t have a spiralizer, you can create pasta strips with a vegetable peeler by peeling strips lengthwise along the zucchini.

Zucchini Noodles

Zucchini Noodles

Toss the zucchini noodles in a bowl with the lime juice and salt. Set aside.

In a blender, combine the tomatoes, pitted dates, chives and garlic. You can add salt to taste, but I encourage you to try it without.

8 cherry tomatoes and a few other things.

8 cherry tomatoes and a few other things.

Divide the noodles into four equal servings and top with the tomato sauce.

Enjoy!

Nutrition Information per serving (1/4 recipe)

Calories: 40.3; Total Fat: 0.1g; Cholesterol: 0.0mg; Sodium: 43.1; Potassium: 383mg; Carbohydrates: 10.2g (Dietary Fiber: 2.3g, Sugars: 5.5g); Protein: 1.1g

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Sugar-free Strawberry Mint Ginger Ale

May 15, 2013 in Drinks

Strawberry Mint Ginger Ale
Servings: 2 cups
Time to make: 5 minutes

Strawberry Mint Ginger Ale

Strawberry Mint Ginger Ale

It was a puffy white cloud kind of day here in Calgary, Alberta. The kind of day that requires something deliciously refreshing. Enter, Strawberry Mint Ginger Ale. This recipe is simple; only four ingredients (five if you count the garnish). It’s fresh and healthy with no refined sugar.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups of sparking water
  • 2 strawberries
  • 1 mint leaf cut into long strips (chiffonade)
  • 1 tablespoon of freshly squeezed ginger juice (squeeze that from about 4 tablespoons of minced or grated ginger)
  • optional:1/2 lime

Directions

In a pitcher, mash together the ginger and strawberries.

Freshly squeezed ginger juice.

Freshly squeezed ginger juice.

strawberry-mint-ginger-ale-strawberries
Add the mint chiffonade.

Mint chiffonade added.

Mint chiffonade added.

Add sparkling water.

Add sparkling water.

Add sparkling water.

Optional:Slice two lime slices from the 1/2 lime for garnish. Squeeze the juice from the rest of the lime into the pitcher.

Garnish with lime and serve.

Enjoy!

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Vegan Freezer Meal: Chick’n Quinoa with Spinach and Mushrooms

May 10, 2013 in Dinner

Vegan Freezer Meal: Chick’n Quinoa with Mushrooms and Spinach
Time to prepare: 30 minutes
Time to heat from frozen: 30 minutes

Chick'n Quinoa with Spinach and Mushrooms

Let this cool before sealing, labeling, and freezing.


I LOVE cooking. When I’m eating breakfast, I’m already thinking about what to make for lunch and dinner. BUT there are occasions when I’m too darn busy to cook or (more likely) there are dirty dishes in the sink that I just don’t feel like washing. For those days, there are these.

This savory dish is a convenient, healthy alternative to store-bought frozen dinners.  It’s high in protein, complex carbohydrates, and fiber. It’s also delicious and satisfying. The mushrooms burst with garlicky goodness and the quinoa is infused with yummy veggie stock. Add a cup of soup or a fresh salad and you have a complete meal!

Ingredients

  • 1 package of Gardein Chick’n Strips (or other chick’n alternative)
    Not a fan of meat analogues? Use cubed marinated tofu instead
  • 145 grams mushrooms, chopped (about 6 regular sized button mushrooms)
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2 cup onions, minced
  • 2-3 scallions, minced
  • 1 cup uncooked quinoa
  • 1 cup vegetable broth
  • 1 cup water
  • 3 cups chopped spinach (uncooked)
  • ½ tablespoon canola oil

You’ll also need 4 individual-sized containers to freeze each portion in.

Directions

Prepare quinoa with 1 cup of water and 1 cup of vegetable broth in a medium sized pot with a lid. Bring the liquid to a rolling boil, then turn down the heat to low. Let simmer for about 20 minutes or until the water has evaporated and you’re left with fluffy quinoa. As soon as the quinoa is cooked, be sure to fluff it with a spoon. Divide the cooked quinoa into the four containers and set aside to cool.

Chopped up mushrooms, scallions, onions, and garlic.

Chopped up mushrooms, scallions, onions, and garlic.

In a skillet, add the oil and turn heat to medium-high. When the oil is hot, but not smoking, add the onion and garlic. Let the onions turn golden before adding the chopped mushrooms (about 4 minutes). Let the mushrooms sweat down for about 2 minutes. When the mushrooms are done, turn off the heat. Fold in the chopped spinach and scallions. The residual heat will cook the spinach.

Sauteed mushrooms and onions

Saute the mushrooms and onions.

Divide the chick’n strips into the four containers, then layer the cooked mushrooms, onions and spinach on top.

meatless chicken atop quinoa

Layer the chick’n on top of the quinoa.

Seal the containers with aluminum foil, label and freeze.

To reheat in the oven, cook in a pre-heated oven at 350 F for 35-40 minutes. Since every oven is different, check on it after 20 minutes to see how far along it is. It’s done when the middle is hot. I find it doesn’t take as long if you use a toaster oven.

Enjoy!

Nutrition Information per serving (1/4 recipe)

Calories: 298; Total Fat: 6.0g (Saturated Fat: 0.5, Polysaturated Fat: 1.4g, Monosaturated Fat: 1.8); Cholesterol: 0.0mg; Sodium: 317.6; Potassium: 576.8mg; Carbohydrates: 38.7g (Dietary Fiber: 5.3g, Sugars: 2.5g); Protein: 17.6g

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Vegan Sushi – Vegan Negitoro Maki

April 13, 2013 in Dinner, Lunch

Vegan Negitoro Maki
Time to make: 15 minutes (not including time to cook rice)
Servings: 2 rolls

Vegan Negitoro Rolls

Vegan Negitoro Rolls – They’re negi-tofu!

As referenced in a previous recipe/blog post, I am flipping addicted to sushi. I must admit that I had a moment of sadness when I realized that I would never have some of my favourite rolls (maki) again. But with some experimenting, I’ve been able to experience the same (or close) sushi flavours and textures again!

Negitoro rolls used to be my fave. These negi-tofu rolls have that same fresh green onion flavour cutting through smooth tofu. The sesame oil adds the fatty texture of toro. The end result is convincing and super satisfying. I hope you try them sometime!

Ingredients

  • 1 cup of cooked sushi rice, cooled (better tasting with sushi rice, but you can use any short grain rice you have)
  • 1 tablespoon of sushi vinegar (or use white vinegar with a teaspoon of sugar dissolved in it)
  • 2 sheets of nori (roasted seaweed sheets for sushi!(
  • 1 block of pressed tofu (85g), drained
  • 1-2 stalks of green onion
  • 1/2 tsp roasted sesame oil

Directions

Mix rice vinegar with cooled rice and set aside.

Cut up the tofu into small cubes, as fine as 1/2 cm cubes. Mince the green onion. In a bowl, mix the tofu, green onions, and sesame oil until combined.

Lay out one sheet of nori on a flat surface or your sushi rolling mat. Using wet hands (this stops the rice from sticking to your fingers), take a half of the seasoned rice and spread it on the half of the sheet closest to you. Try to spread it as evenly as possible and take the rice all the way to the edges.

Fill the center of the rice with half the negi-tofu mixture.

Then, taking the edge of the nori closest to you, roll it up and over the filling. Press the outside of the roll firmly as you roll it up, away from you. Repeat with the second sheet of nori. Set the rolls aside.

To cut the rolls into one inch sections with a sharp, non-serrated knife. If the rice sticks to the knife, rinse the knife off with water and continue. Arrange on a plate and garnish with some pickled ginger and copious amounts of wasabi.

Enjoy!

Nutrition Information
Calories: 215; Total Fat: 3.1g (Saturated Fat: 0.4, Polysaturated Fat: 0.5g, Monosaturated Fat: 0.4); Cholesterol: 0.0mg; Sodium: 11.2mg; Potassium: 28.7mg; Carbohydrates: 36.6g (Dietary Fiber: 1.2g, Sugars: 0.2g); Protein: 8.1g

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Vegan Pancake Recipe (English-style)

April 12, 2013 in Breakfast

Vegan English-style Pancakes
Servings: 3 5-1/2 inch pancakes
Time to make: 10-15 minutes

English-style pancakes are traditionally made with just flour, eggs and milk (no rising agent). In this vegan pancake recipe, I’ve simply replaced the eggs with flax seed meal, and the milk with vanilla almond milk. The result are thin and soft pancakes perfect for rolling in a little sugar and topped with a squeeze of lemon, or topped with vegan buttery spread and maple syrup.

Vegan English-style Pancakes

Vegan English-style Pancakes

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup vanilla almond milk (or your favourite milk alternative)
  • 1 tablespoon of flax seed meal
  • 1/2 cup of white flour
  • 1 teaspoon of coconut oil (or your favourite cooking oil)

Directions

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and whisk together until smooth. Pour 1/4 cup of the mixture into a heated pan coated with the coconut oil. The batter will spread on it’s own. Cook on medium-low heat until the top loses it’s wet look and goes from translucent looking to opaque. Then flip with a spatula and cook for about one minute until done. Repeat with the remaining batter.

Half done pancake

Half done pancake

To serve, I like to roll them up in some granulated or powdered sugar and squeeze some lemon juice on top. A bit of lemon zest adds a nice finish. Or eat them with some butter alternative and maple syrup. Or fill them with some blueberry compote. The possibilities are deliciously endless!

Vegan English-Style Pancakes all rolled up in sugar and lemon

Vegan English-Style Pancakes all rolled up in sugar and lemon

Enjoy!

Nutrition Information (per pancake)

Calories: 102; Total Fat: 3.0(Saturated Fat: 1.4, Polysaturated Fat: 0.7g, Monosaturated Fat: 0.3); Cholesterol: 0.0mg; Sodium: 39.8mg; Potassium: 69.0mg; Carbohydrates: 16.8g (Dietary Fiber: 1.4g, Sugars: 0.1g); Protein: 2.9g

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Vegan Caramelized Onions Recipe

April 10, 2013 in Condiments

Vegan Caramelized Onions
Time to make: 1 hour

Caramelized onions are an almost magical food. They will transform any dish from ordinary to gourmet. The trick to perfect, melt-in-your-mouth, sweet and savory caramelized onions is to take things slowly. So save this recipe for some time when you have at least an hour or two. Try them on pizza, crostini, in savory pie, sandwiches, or anything else your heart desires.

Caramelized Onions

Caramelized onions; I put that sh*t on EVERYTHING.

Ingredients

  • 3 onions (use any kind of cooking onion about 4” in diameter)
  • ½ tbs. refined coconut oil
  • Dash of salt

Directions

Slice the onions up into small uniform pieces. They should all be about the same size so that the onions will cook evenly. Break up the slices with your fingers and set aside.

In a sauce pan on medium heat, heat the coconut oil until completely melted. Add the onions and sprinkle the salt evenly.

Cook on low heat, stirring very occasionally just to prevent the onions from burning, until they turn into a caramelized, gooey, sticky mound of deliciousness. This takes about one hour; yes this is a recipe for the patient. But it’s so worth it!

Enjoy!

Nutrition Information (per 1/4th recipe)

Calories: 57; Total Fat: 1.9g (Saturated Fat: 1.5, Polysaturated Fat: 0.1g, Monosaturated Fat: 0.1); Cholesterol: 0.0mg; Sodium: 150mg; Potassium: 176.6mg; Carbohydrates: 9.7g (Dietary Fiber: 2.0g, Sugars: 0.0g); Protein: 1.3g

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Vegan Mint Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Chocolate Glaze Recipe

April 10, 2013 in Snacks and Desserts

Vegan Mint Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Chocolate Glaze
Time to make: 40 minutes including baking time
Servings: 12 cupcakes

These cupcakes have a soft, fluffy interior with melty mint chocolate chips and a light glaze of scrumptious chocolate peanut butter glaze that is creamy, yet not too rich. Best of all, they are incredibly easy to make.

Chocolate Mint Cupcake Inside

Super fluffy vanilla cake with melty bits of mint chocolate and the perfect amount of chocolate peanut butter glaze.

Ingredients

    For cake:
    • 1/2 cup Earth Balance Buttery Spread/Stick or other vegan butter substitute
    • 3/4 cup organic granulated sugar
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
    • 1 1/2 cups of all-purpose white flour
    • 2 teaspoons baking powder
    • 3 teaspoons of egg replacer (such as E-nergy Egg Replacer) with 3 tablespoons of water
    • 1 cup of soy milk
    • 1/2 cup vegan mint chocolate chips (such as Presidents Choice Mint Chocolate Chips)

    For glaze:

    • 1/4 cup vegan chocolate chips (mint or otherwise)
    • 1 tablespoon smooth peanut butter

Directions
Preheat oven to 350F. Line a cupcake/muffin tin with parchment liners.

In a mixing bowl, cream the Earth Balance (or other vegan butter alternative), sugar, and vanilla extract until light and fluffy. If you have a mixture, this will take a couple minutes. If all you have is a fork and elbow grease (like me) it might take five minutes.

In another bowl, mix the egg replacer, water, and soy milk until it’s thoroughly combined and frothy. Add this to the butter mixture and whisk together well. Add the 1/2 cup of mint chocolate chips and mix well.

Sift the flour and baking powder together. Then add this to your wet ingredients, a little at a time, until it is combined. Mix this together until smooth.

Fill each liner 3/4 full. Place the tin in middle of the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes. They are done when you can stick a toothpick in the middle of the largest cupcake and the toothpick comes out clean.

In a Pyrex (or other heat proof container) cup, melt the peanut butter and chocolate chips by heating in the microwave for about one minute. Or, you can melt them in a double boiler. Once melted, stir so that the mixture is smooth and consistent. Top the cupcakes with the glaze using a spatula or the back of a spoon.

Chocolate Mint Cupcakes with Chocolate Peanut Butter Glaze
Serve them warm or cold. These are great with hot black tea or a cold glass of non-dairy milk. Enjoy!

Nutritional Information (per cupcake)
This is not diet food! LOL

Calories: 270; Total Fat: 12.5g (Saturated Fat: 4.7g, Polysaturated Fat: 2.1g, Monosaturated Fat: 3.8g); Cholesterol: 0.0mg; Sodium: 163.7mg; Potassium: 51.3mg; Carbohydrates: 36.3g (Dietary Fiber: 1.6g, Sugars: 21.1g); Protein: 3.5g


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Vegan Chocolate Banana Ice Cream Recipe

April 7, 2013 in Snacks and Desserts

Vegan Chocolate Banana Ice Cream
Time to make: 5 – 10 minutes
Servings: 2

Chocolate and bananas go together perfectly in this creamy, delicious vegan ice cream. The texture and taste will fool your taste buds into thinking you’re indulging in a fatty, sugary dessert. But this simple 4-ingredient soft serve is low in fat and free from any refined sugars. Plus, bananas are an awesome source of energy (in the form of healthy carbohydrates), gut-friendly fiber, B vitamins, potassium, and other nutrients.

Be sure to use completely ripe bananas (completely yellow with speckles of brown, no green spots) or won’t be as delicious. Help your bananas ripen more quickly by placing them in a paper bag with an apple.

As this is a soft serve style ice cream, you’ll want to serve this immediately after making it. By serve, I mean ravenously devour.

Vegan chocolate banana ice cream
Ingredients

  • 3 ripe bananas, peeled and completely frozen (ripe bananas are yellow with brown speckles and no green)
  • 2 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1/4 tsp organic vanilla extract or vanilla bean powder
  • 1/2 cup water (or non-dairy milk alternative for an even creamier texture)

Ingredients for vegan chocolate banana ice cream
Directions

Place all the ingredients in a blender. Pulse for a few seconds, then use a spatula to push down the banana towards the blades. Keep at it until the mixture turns into a smooth, creamy ice-cream consistency.
Vegan chocolate banana ice cream blended
Garnish with some vegan chocolate shavings if you feel like being fancy. Garnish with some fresh mint chiffonade if you feel like being even fancier without adding any refined sugars.

Enjoy!

Nutrition Information (1/2 recipe, made with water)

Calories: 155; Total Fat: 1.5g (Saturated Fat: 0.8g, Polysaturated Fat: 0.2g, Monosaturated Fat: 0.4g); Cholesterol: 0.0mg; Sodium: 2.8mg; Potassium: 684.7mg; Carbohydrates: 38.7g (Dietary Fiber: 5.4g, Sugars: 19.0g); Protein: 2.6g

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Vegan Cherry Vanilla Soft Serve Ice Cream Recipe

April 7, 2013 in Snacks and Desserts

Vegan Cherry Vanilla Soft Serve Ice Cream
Time to make: 5 – 10 minutes
Servings: 2

Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream with a Cherry on top

Healthy vanilla ice cream? Yes, Please with a cherry on top!


Vanilla ice cream; it’s simple, but heavenly. Ripe bananas serve as a soft base for creamy vanilla, while the unexpected mango give it freshness. The cherries on top? Well, they’re the cherry on top! The texture and taste will fool your taste buds into thinking you’re indulging in a fatty, sugary dessert. But this simple, 5-ingredient, vegan vanilla ice cream is low in fat and full of healthy carbohydrates, gut-friendly fiber, B vitamins, potassium, and other nutrients.

Be sure to use completely ripe bananas (completely yellow with speckles of brown, no green spots) or won’t be as delicious. Help your bananas ripen more quickly by placing them in a paper bag with an apple.

As this is a soft serve style ice cream, you’ll want to serve this immediately after making it. By serve, I mean ravenously devour.

Ingredients

  • 3 frozen very ripe bananas
  • 1 tsp./ organic vanilla
  • 1/4 cup frozen mango
  • about 1/4 cup water
  • a couple maraschino cherries

Ingredients for Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream
Directions

Place the bananas, vanilla, mango, and water in a blender. Pulse for a few seconds, then use a spatula to push down the banana towards the blades. Keep pulsing until the mixture turns into a smooth, creamy ice-cream consistency. Hint: It’s much more difficult if you use a Magic Bullet like I did this time. Using a blender will get you quicker, better results.

Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream Blended
Divide into bowls and garnish with a cherry or two. Add a little vegan chocolate syrup if you’re feeling nostalgic.

Enjoy!
Two Servings of Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream with Cherries on Top
Nutrition Information (1/2 recipe)

Calories: 188; Total Fat: 1.0g (Saturated Fat: 0.5g, Polysaturated Fat: 0.2g, Monosaturated Fat: 0.3g); Cholesterol: 0.0mg; Sodium: 2.5mg; Potassium: 735.8mg; Carbohydrates: 47.3g (Dietary Fiber: 4.7, Sugars: 27.0g); Protein: 1.9g


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