VEGAN 4-INGREDIENT BROWNIES

With love to my dear friend, Brigette!  She made a special effort to make these as a treat for my vegan kids when we visited her house.  What a great way to make us feel welcomed and loved!! 

I sent my husband to the store for milk and bananas and he came home with the ingredients for these and left them conveniently on the counter for me.  I took the hint!

VEGAN BROWNIES
1 package chocolate cake mix (check box to make sure it is vegan)
1 small box instant chocolate pudding mix
1/2 bag mini chocolate chips (vegan)
2 c. soy milk (soy works best in this)
Powdered sugar to sprinkle on top.

Mix cake mix, pudding mix, chocolate chips and soy milk together until batter is thick and creamy. Spread batter into a 9 x 13" cake pan that has been sprayed with non-stick spray and lightly floured. Bake at 350 degrees F. for 35 minutes or until done. Cool completely before sprinkling on powdered sugar.

Quinoa Salad

QUINOA SALAD
1 c. quinoa, soak for 15 minutes, rinse and drain
3/4 c. cold water
Bring quinoa and water to a boil in saucepan, turn heat to low and cover with a lid. Simmer 20 minutes, then turn off heat and let cool for 10-20 minutes. Refrigerate for 2-3 hours.

Toss a variety of chopped veggies into chilled quinoa. I used the following:
1/2 c. cucumber, chopped
1 small can sliced olives
1/2 red pepper, chopped
2 green onions, chopped
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/2 c. cherry tomatoes, chopped
1/2 c. edamame
1/2 c. sliced carrots

Whisk together Dressing and toss with quinoa and veggies:
1/4 c. olive oil
2 T. fresh squeezed lemon juice
1-2 t. Dijon mustard
Salt and fresh cracked black pepper

Serve over a bed of kale or other greens.

Easy Roasted Ratatouille

This dish is so easy and yummy and versatile.  Eat it up as is, or serve it over pasta.  Layer the veggies all nice and make it a "fancy" dish for guests.  It is fresh and healthy and we love it here. Try it!

ROASTED RATATOUILLE
2 T. olive oil
1/4 c. cooking wine (or your favorite Chardonnay)
1 white or yellow onion, cut into 1" pieces
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Chinese eggplant, sliced
1 zucchini, sliced
1 yellow squash, sliced
3 Roma tomatoes, sliced
1 sweet red pepper, cut into 1" pieces
1 sweet green pepper, cut into 1" pieces
1-2 c. sliced baby portabella mushrooms (optional)
Fresh thyme, basil and parsley, chopped finely
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Easy method:  I put all ingredients in a bowl and toss together until olive oil is evenly distributed. Then I spread it on a baking sheet and baked at 425 degrees F for 20 minutes. Serve with pasta or bread.

Fancy method:  Layer or stand the slices on edge in a nice pattern in baking dish that is sprayed with non-stick spray. Then drizzle olive oil, wine and herbs over the top.  Bake at 425 degrees F for 25-30 minutes.

Vegan Orange Cookies

VEGAN ORANGE COOKIES
2 c. all-purpose flour
1 1/2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
3/4 c. vegan butter
1 1/4 c. sugar
2 T. ground flax mixed in 1/2 c. fresh squeezed orange juice
1 T. orange zest
cranberry sauce (optional)

Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt together. In a separate bowl, mix together butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add egg substitutes and orange zest to butter sugar mixture and mix well.  Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet and blend until combined.  Drop by spoonfuls on a baking sheet.

OPTIONAL: Press the middle of the dough with your thumb and fill with 1 t. cranberry sauce in the middle.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 9-12 minutes. These do not get very browned, so be careful not to burn them.  Cool on a rack before serving.

VEGAN LEMON BLUEBERRY BISCUITS

LEMON BLUEBERRY BISCUITS
(makes 12-18 biscuits depending on size)

2 c. all-purpose flour
1/3 c. sugar
2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda
1/4 t. salt
1 T. fresh lemon juice
1 c. soy milk
1 T. ground flax dissolved in 1/4 c. water
1/4 c. vegan butter or butter flavored Crisco, softened
1 t. grated lemon peel
1 c. frozen blueberries

GLAZE
1/2 c. powdered sugar
1 T. fresh squeezed lemon juice
1/2 t. grated lemon peel

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Add 1 T. lemon juice to the soy milk and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a small bowl, combine the flax, butter or Crisco and lemon peel.  Stir the soy milk mixture into other wet ingredients. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix just until moistened, Carefully fold in blueberries.

Drop by tablespoonfuls about 1 inch apart onto a greased baking sheet. Bake at 400 degrees F. for about 15-18 minutes or until lightly browned.  Let cool 10 minutes, then glaze.  (I also sprinkled mine with powdered sugar at the end.)

CASHEW CREAM

I've seen all sorts of information for cashew cream as a "staple" of vegan eaters.  I thought maybe I was missing out since I never really ate it and thought I would give it a try.

I've used the cashews in my nacho cheese sauce but hadn't just made cream with them. Well, it turns out it was super simple and super versatile.

As a vegan, we miss out on a lot of those "creamy" foods that are normally made with cow's milk--cheeses and Alfredo sauce and creamy soups. But this cashew cream turned out very creamy, had a great texture, and the flavor can be modified to make whatever you please. 

Today I added Italian seasonings, nutritional yeast and a can of diced tomatoes to make a creamy tomato sauce for some bow tie pasta.

I'm going to test it tonight on my family with some creamy green chili sauce with some Mexican style foods.

As I use it in various recipes I'll post those and link to this.  Give it try. I was very pleasantly surprised!

CASHEW CREAM
In the blender:
1 c. raw cashews, soaked in water in the refrigerator overnight
Just enough cold water to cover them
Blend for about a minute, scrape the sides of the blender and then blend another 2 minutes. My blender made it creamy enough without texture left, but if your blender isn't that powerful you may want to then put the cream through cheesecloth to separate out any nut meal left.
More water will give you thinner cream and less will make it thicker.  

VEGAN FRIED RICE

 
VEGAN FRIED RICE
1 package firm or extra firm tofu, drained and pressed and cubed
2 T. oil or veggie broth
1 t. sesame oil
2 T. low-sodium soy sauce
1 small onion, diced
1 t. grated fresh ginger
1 clove garlic, grated or minced
3 c. brown rice, cooked according to directions and cooled
1 c. carrots, diced
1 c. frozen or fresh peas
1 small can water chestnuts, sliced
1 small can bamboo shoots
(Or other vegetables of your choice)

Add the oil, sesame oil and soy sauce to a large fry pan and heat until hot. Add tofu and stir-fry over high heat for a 2 minutes per side.  Add in onion, ginger and garlic and stir-fry 1 minute more. Add in rice and veggies. Cook until heated through. Taste and season with white pepper and more soy sauce if needed. Serve with chili-garlic or other hot sauce of your choice.