Corn Chiliiiiii!

Dude.  I am so exhausted, but also couldn't be more content with my life.  (Ok, so I got some bad grades today, but that was not unexpected...)  I won't disclose why I'm feeling like this, but life has just gotten better.  Let's just go with... I have some EXCELLENT friends :)

Alright, and now the food!

Adapted from 86 Lemons

Veggies

• Onion
• Carrot
• Sweet potato
• Frozen corn
• Canned diced tomatoes (no salt)
• Celery
• Red bell pepper
• Garlic

Seasonings:

• Cumin
• Chili powder
• Home made veggie broth powder

Beans - any kind will do.
Corn starch slurry
Seitan, of course.

Oatmeal ATTTTAAAAAAAACK!

So, here's what I did... made a quadruple batch of Bottomless Oatmeal, and just reheated the stuff every day, with a different flavour each day!  It worked out great, and oatmeal tasted normal.  Saved sooo much time too!  I also added a splash of almond milk when reheating, to loosen it up a bit.

 

#1: Pina Colada.
Pineapple, cinnamon, stevia, reduced fat shredded coconut, sunflower seeds

#2: Mocha
Instant coffee powder, cocoa powder, banana (roughly mashed), vanilla extract, low fat shredded coconut

#3: Loaded PB and J
Granola (actually leftover oatmeal cookie crumbs!), frozen banana, frozen strawberry, peanut butter, vanilla extract, cinnamon, sugar free strawberry jelly, peanuts

#4: Banana Split
Frozen banana, frozen strawberry, fresh pinapple, cinnamon, stevia, dark cocoa powder, vanilla extract

#5: Peach Pie
Cinnamon, nutmeg, frozen peach, mashed banana, cinnamon, walnuts, sugar free maply syrup, butter extract

#6: Banana Peanut butter
Banana, peanut butter, vanilla extract, dark cocoa powder, stevia

#7: Chai
Instant coffee powder, mashed banana, cardamom, cinnamon, vanilla extract, cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon

#8: Orange
Chopped glow orange, walnuts, maple syrup, vanilla extract

#9: Sweet Potato and Cranberry
Mashed sweet potato, dried cranberries, nutmeg, cinnamon, sugar free maple syrup

#10: PB and J
Strawberries, banana, peanut butter, sugar free maple syrup, vanilla extract

#11: Blueberry and Chia
Frozen blueberries, chia seeds, walnuts, cinnamon, flax seeds, dried goji berries, sugar free maple syrup

Two Serving Veggie Pot Pie-Thingy

Hey.  I got up at 4am this morning, and couldn't go back to sleep.  Bleck.  The worst part of it is I didn't get to sleep until 10 or so last night, since I was working on an English project, then had to come home and make soup, salad dressing, pizza, and salads (the pizza was AMAZING, by the way.  but more on that later).

 

 

Anyhoo, here's a lovely little dish that makes 2 servings... in an effort to get though all of my saved recipes I am cutting most things down to 2 servings... 

I added a gravy sort of thing, and I think that made this dish taste SOO much better than the original recipe.  But to each his own, I suppose.

 

Adapted from Sunday Morning Banana Pancakes

 

For the crust:

mix 1/4 cup flour, 1 tbsp applesauce, and 2 tbsp cold water.  Spread into 2 ramkins coated with nonstick spray, and bake for 10 minutes, until firm.

For the Tofu:

Mix crumbled tofu, stemmed/wilted spinach, nooch, lemon juice, and garlic.  You should total about 3/4 cup-ish tofu mix

For the veggies:

Peel, cube, and boil a very small sweet potato until tender.

Saute bell pepper, red onion, and mushroom until almost tender.  Add chopped rosemary, paprika, vegan worchestire sauce, home made vegetable broth powder, a few drops butter extract, and a small corn starch slurry.  Add a few tbsp water as needed to make it a sort of gravy.

 

Add the tofu mix to the ramkins, then top with veggies.  Bake at 375 for 25 minutes, until heated through.

Welcome Fall! Split Pea Soup

Ok, so I'm not so big on pureed soups - you can probably tell.  They are just too... well... uniform.  No chunks, no excitement.  Boo hoo.  So that kind of ruled out split pea soup for me - and then I tried this recipe.  Nom nom nom!  Good stuff, this soup.  And quite simple to make, too.

Adapte from WTHDAVEA

Drizzle with sugar free maple syrup and roast at 425 for 20 minutes:

• 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cubed
• 1 onion, roughly chopped
• 3/4 lb parsnips, peeled and coined
• Quite a few carrots, coined
• A few russet potatoes, diced

Soak 2 cups green split peas overnight.  Drain, and cook until soft with ~ 4 cups water.  Add:

• 2 tbsp homemade vegetable broth powder (GOOD STUFF, just use about 1/2 of the salt called for, and I left out the tumeric because I hate it)
• A dash of cloves
• Liquid smoke (hickory flavoured, if possible)
• Dried rosemary

Puree the soup base, and let it thicken by cooking with the lid off if needed.  This will thicken up a lot over night.
Serve: veggies, broth, seitan of choice, and sugar free apricot jam

Sweet Potato Balls and Spaghetti

So, I've got some pasta for you guys tonight!

 

 

Although I made this ages ago, I seem to remember that is was super yummy, sooo..

Quite a good first 'meat'ball recipe for me!  They stuck together, which was really nice.

 

Sweet Potato Balls from Fat Free Vegan

Sauce from Ambitious Kitchen

 

For the sauce: blend until smooth, and heat:

• 1 roasted hatch chili pepper
• 28 oz can salt-free tomatoes
• 3/4 cup chopped onion, sauteed
• 5 cloves garlic, chopped, sauteed
• 2 cups water
• Chick'n bouillon for 2 cups of broth
• Cumin to taste
• ~1/4 cup cilantro

For the 'meat'balls, mix together, shape into balls, and bake at 350 for 30 minutes:

• 3/4 cup chopped mushrooms, sauteed
• 1 small sweet potato, peeled, boiled, mashed
• 1/2 cup cooked quinoa
• 1/2 onion, chopped, cooked
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped, sauteed
• 1 cup chickpeas
• 1 tbsp flax meal
• 1 tbsp nooch
• oregano, paprika, fennel, sage, liquid smoke to flavour

Serve sauce over pasta, topped with 'meat'balls

 

Zesty Sweet Potato Burgers

I honestly think that these are some of the best burgers I have ever made. 

 

 

Bursting with flavour...

 

And full of veggies!

Adapted from Sunday Morning Banana Pancakes

Blend until smooth:

• 1 small sweet potato, peeled, cubed, and boiled until tender
• 1 cup crimini mushrooms (~5), sauteed
• 2 dates
• 1 lime, peeled
• 1 tbsp cilantro
• Chipotle powder
• 1/2 cup oat flour
• 1 tbsp maple syrup
• Cumin

Mix with 1/4 cup millet, cooked, and a handful of pepitas. Shape into patties, and bake at 350 for 20 minutes or so, until firm. Serve on buns with ketchup and pickles.

Meat n' Potatoes Salad

Yes, this is vegan.  ;)

And we can just pretend that I didn't forget the sweet potatoes in the picture...

I remembered them before I ate though...

Adapted from HHL

Base: iceburg
Toppings: a few sliced sausages, diced granny smith [apple], boiled fingerling [potatoes], boiled/cubed sweet potatoes
Dressing: well, just sprinkle the salad with nooch, a southwestern-ish seasoning mix, and drizzle with mirin.

BBQ Baked Tofu and Pintos

Ok, I have a confession to make...

I CAN'T GET ENOUGH BBQ SAUCE

Dang, that stuff is so addicting...

Adapted from That Was Vegan and The Wednesday Chef

Alright, first up, cut up enough 1/4 inch-ish tofu slabs to cover a 9*13 casserole dish.  This should be about 1 block, depending on what size you buy.  Then press the tofu.  Lay the tofu in a single layer in the casserole dish, and *smother* with bbq sauce (can you tell I'm trying to use it up?)  Bake for 20 minutes at 375, flip, bake for another 15 minutes, then broil for 3 minutes. 

While that is going, saute up a chopped small-ish red onion, and a chopped bell pepper - about the same amount of bell pepper as onion.  Mix the veggies with ~3 1/2 cups cooked pinto beans, 1/4 cup ketchup, 3 tbsp molasses, 3 tbsp sugar free maple syrup, ~1 tsp liquid smoke, 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar, 1 tbsp paprika, 1 tsp dried mustard, and a 4oz can of hatch chilis.  If you can get your hands on fresh hatch chilis, all the better, but I couldn't :(.  Anyhoo, spread this over the tofu, and then top with sweet potato tater tots (again, I WOULD link to a recipe here, but they turned out kind of bad...) - or, you could just smaaaaaaaaaall dice sweet potato and mix with cinnamon and call that done...

Bake this entire thing for about 20 minutes.  It should be nice and bubbly!

Rice 'n Bean Burgers

What's that?  You're tired of seeing burgers, you say?

Meh. 

My burgers, though, are like snowflakes...

Each one is different! ;)

Adapted from HHL

Mash up 1 1/2 cups red kidney beans until only a few remain whole.  Mix with 1 1/2 cups cooked brown rice, a generous 1 cup mashed sweet potato, ~1/4 cup nooch, ~3 tbsp chili powder, liquid smoke, paprika, a few tbsp bbq sauce, a splash of cider vinegar, and sauteed garlic and shallot.  The mixture should be fairly sticky - if not, throw in some sugar free maple syrup (or just add some anyway...).  Now, drop the burgers (like drop cookies, only bigger!) onto a baking sheet, and bake at 375 for 20 minutes or so.  They should be nice and crunchy!  Serve on buns, with pickles, avocado, and tofu mayo.

Weeeird Pizza

Is there such a thing as a weird pizza?

Well, my friends, I think I found it.

Pizzas are like stir frys: you can pretty much throw anything on them!

Adapted from That Was Vegan?

(all is cooked on the panini press, except tater tots)

I used the normal crust.

Slathered with bbq sauce.

Topped with cooked setian, bell pepper and onion.

Cheese.

And sweet potato tots.  I WOULD link a recipe here, but the one I used didn't turn out all that great... they kind of fell apart.  But they were seasoned with chili powder and cinnamon - the flavour was excellent!



What's Up Wednesday #3

Hm... first time making almond cheese!  I made a lightened up version by Healthy Hipster (using lemon juice instead of lime, Italian seasoning in place of curry powder, and sweet potato), and put it on this pizza!  It was pretty good - obviously, not EXACTLY like cheese, but it had an excellent flavour.  I was highly pleased.

Made a single serving chocolate cake from CCK for my b-day!  It was alright, but I think I'm not a HUGE fan of baking in the microwave.  Things just don't turn out as well.  But I made her Reeses Pieces frosting (using sugar free syrup, and PB2), and that was super yum - I ended up just dipping my cake in it.  You have NO idea how long it's been since I had cake with frosting - it was such a treat!

Speaking of my birthday, lookie at what M got me.

I AM NOW THE PROUD OWNER OF A VITAMIX!

That's right... be jealous.  I can't wait to play with my new toy! Squee!!

And oatmeal continues to pour out of my kitchen.  Not literally.  But I did make bottomless oats again, this time Banana Bread flavoured (using maple syrup instead of molasses, and using 1/3 of a banana).  I have found that the oats are best simmered really low with the lid on the pot for about 1 1/2 hours - then they get nice and thick, and no liquid is gone - hence, more food ;) !

(lots of pictures!)

And, I made Chai Oatmeal with the bottomless oats - nixing the fennel, and adding maple syrup, using pre-ground spices, and Foodie Fiasco's low cal cookie butter

Coconut Veggies, Beans, Tofu

Meh.  AP exams.  Take.  Over.  My.  Life.
But I can still cook!...  So, about this dish.  I slightly overcooked the broccoli, undercooked the beans, and should've added more coconut milk.  But it was still good, and I would totally eat this again.  :)

Adapted from WTHDAVEA

Cook some brown rice.  Boil a small chopped/peeled sweet potato.  Press 4 slices of tofu.
Saute chopped garlic and broccoli florets until the broccoli starts turning green, then add 1 1/2 cups black beans.  Stir together and add: coconut milk, corn starch, maple syrup, 'cowboy' seasoning mix, chili powder, thyme, and butter extract.  Add in the cooked sweet potato.
Slather the tofu with maple syrup and grill on a panini press.
And then it's all done...

Black Bean, Sweet Potato, Rice Soup

This one was much better than I thought it would be.  Exceeds expectations!  Adapted from I Eat Food

Veggies were chopped leeks, carrots, lots of garlic, red bell pepper, cabbage, and sweet potato.  The soup also got tomato sauce and diced tomatoes, brown rice... let's see, the seasonings were ground fennel, smoked paprika, veggie bullion, liquid smoke... I believe that was all.  Obviously, I added fake meat - leftover corned setian, in fact.  There's still a LOT left... I'll be eating it for a week, at the rate I'm going!  Which might not be such a bad thing, after all...

Orange Tofu, Orange Sweet Potatoes

Continuing with the orange juice theme...  Tonight's dinner was pretty orangey.  The tofu was pretty good, and I ended up eating it with my fingers... which was fun.  I liked the slightly burnt taste, as well.  The sweet potatoes were better than I had thought possible - the orange juice turned, rather unexpectedly, into a glaze, which was oh so good.  Inspired by HHL and A Veggie Venture.

The tofu was cut into slabs, pressed, and marinated in orange juice with a bit of pepper for 30 minutes.  It was sprinkled with nooch and grilled on the panini press for 7 minutes, then served.
The sweet potato was peeled and cut into rounds.  about 1/2 - 3/4 cup orange juice was brought to a boil in a Dutch oven, and the sweet potatoes were added.  The were boiled for about 20 minutes, uncovered, until tender and the juice reduced to a glaze.  The heat was reduced, and then they were sprinkled with cinnamon and brown sugar.

Fish and Chips... erm... Breaded Tofu and Sweet Potato Fries

These turned out GREAT!! The tofu was actually super crispy, and both the fries and tofu had great flavour...  Adapted from Oh She Glows

The tofu was pressed and cut into thin slabs.  Dip #1 was soy milk, and dip #2 was Italian flavoured  1/3 cup bread crumbs, 1/3 cup corn meal, cinammon, chili powder, and cumin.  Make sure to coat the tofu really well...

The fries were sweet potato wedges coated in mirin, cinammon, cumin, and paprika.

Both were baked for 40 minutes at 400F, flipping halfway through, then broiled for 3 minutes (the original recipe called for five minutes but the fire alarm went off after three because the tofu started burning, so M and I decided to call them done...)

Serve with ketchup

A Massive Cooking Session Today.

And only one thing that I actually ate... so I can only post one thing!  I made soup, spaghetti salad for M's lunch, and mac n cheeze. Here's the mac recipe, adapted from here, which I thought was really REALLY good.  Nice and creamy, and it tastes quite like cheese.

Blend together until creamy: 1 cup tofu, 3/4 cup almond milk, 1 medium-small sweet potato (peeled, cubed, and boiled), 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar, garlic powder, 1/2 cup nooch.  Mix with about 5 cups cooked ww spiral pasta in a casserole dish.  Top with sauteed broccoli mixed with cilantro, 2 vegan hot dogs (coined), and a bit of caramelized onion (no oil, just cooking spray).  Cover with foil and bake until hot.

Serve with a dab of salsa.

 :)

Simple Grilled (Baked, whatever) Sweet Potatoes

So, I have been wanting an indoor grill for quite some time now, because all the other bloggers that I know are making kabobs or other grilled things of some sort.  Since I live in an apartment, I obviosuly don't have a real grill.  But you would think that one of those small grilling thingies would be alright... right?  But there's just the little problem, which also comes along with living in an apartment- there's noooo room whatsoever.  And I have already filled up the entire kitchen with stuff.  Literaly, all of the little gadgets that I have gotten over the past few yearshave taken up all the available nooks and crannies in there, and I honestly don't really want to throw anything away.  (How am I going to survive college?  I guess that is a bridge I will cross when I get there...)  In fact, things have gotten so full that I am keeping the bread machine and popcorn popper in my closet.  Isn't that sad?  So, obviously M is not likely to let me have an indoor grill.  Boohoo.  But the oven does work as a rather decent replacement, so that is what I would recommend to anyone who is not fortunate enough to have a legit grill.  (Yes, let's all commiserate and cry together, and perhaps we can get past this huge barrier to our personal happiness eventually.) 

Ok, enough about my woes.  Like I have written in the title, these are some pretty quick and easy sweet potatoes.  Well, I mean, they are quick to pop in the oven.  Not to bake in the oven.  But it's super fast to peel, chop, and stir up the sauce for these potatoes, and within an hour of baking you will have a dish that is a great addition to any meal.  I love to use wine in cooking because of its unique flavour, especially after baking/simmering for a long time.  I woudn't really call this dish all that sweet, but then I don't really know how to classify this flavour.. perhaps savoury?  I'll just leave it up to the imagination.  Another thing I loved about this dish, that never really occured to me as I was chopping the bell peppers- you end up with roasted red bell peppers at the end of the day.  And roasted bell peppers have got to be some of the most heavenly foods on earth, so that's another major benefit of this dish.  Plus they're really pretty, along with the basil.  Can you see both of them in the pictures?

Simple "Grilled" Sweet Potatoes

Adapted from Kalyn's Kitchen

Serves 3-4

3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 3/4 inch coins
1/4 cup red wine
1/4 cup mirin
2 tbsp rouchly chopped fresh basil
1 tbsp chopped fresh thyme
1/2 small bell pepper, finely chopped
Shredded cheese, opt

Preheat the oven to 375.  Coat a casserole dish with nonstick spray.
In a small bowl, mix together the wine, mirin, basil and thyme.  In a large zip-lock bag, put the sweet potatoes and wine mixture with the bell peppers, and shake well to coat.  Put the sweet potatoes with the extra sauce in the casserole dish, and spread in an even layer.  Bake for about 45 minutes, until the potatoes are tender.
Serve hot, sprinkled with cheese if desired.

Feta Twice "Baked" Sweet Potatoes

“Twice-Baked” Sweet Potatoes with Feta


Adapted from Kalyn’s Kitchen

Serves 2-4

2 small sweet potatoes
2 oz. feta cheese
pinch of ground fennel seed
pinch of ground coriander
1/2 tsp pressed garlic
pinch of crushed red pepper flakes

Poke holes in the sweet potatoes with a fork, and bake in the microwave until tender.
Preheat the oven to 350.

Scoop out the pulp from the skins after the potatoes have cooled a bit, and blend with an immersion blender or something similar until smooth and creamy. Stir in the feta and seasonings, and put the pulp back in the skins.

Bake the potatoes for 20 minutes, until heated through. Serve.