Cherry Pie Bites & Pizza

 We were invited to my brother and sister-in-law's for New Year's Eve and I made these ridiculously easy Cherry Pie Bites. Usually I make my Triple Ginger Gingersnaps every year but I didn't even have the energy to do that. Even so, everyone raved over these sweet treats. Crescent roll dough (which is vegan) and a can of cherry pie filling topped with a glaze of powdered sugar and soymilk. You can find the recipe here. 

I was craving some pizza so I was good and made my own! I used a pre-made pizza crust and for the sauce I had some "Fast and Fresh Tomato Sauce" from La Dolce Vegan in the freezer. I had frozen the leftover sauce with a few Gardein meatless meatballs chopped up in it after eating pasta one night. It was perfect for the pizza sauce with the bits of meatballs. 

~ Italian Sausage, Meatball, Zucchini Pizza ~

I chopped up two Tofurky Italian sausages, some zucchini and red onion and sauteed them with a little onion seasoning and some red pepper flakes. I layered that over my sauce and topped it all with some Daiya shredded mozzarella. It satisfied my pizza cravings. YUM!!

Zucchini-Corn Cannelloni

It seems like the days are just zooming by. If I get up early enough in the morning I can feel a hint of fall in the air. If I wait too long it turns into a blazing inferno! 

I haven't tried many new recipes lately but I found this pasta recipe from Vegetarian Times. You can find it here. 

I replaced all the dairy ingredients with some vegan parmesan, Tofutti ricotta and Daiya mozzarella.  

 The mixture of sauteed zucchini, onion, corn and creamy ricotta.

The sauce is so simple to make using a can of fire-roasted tomatoes. 

The recipe makes an 8-9 inch pan which is nice; not a ton of leftovers! 

~ Zucchini-Corn Cannelloni ~ 

Mmmm~delicious! 

The hubby said it had too much ricotta in it; what is he thinking?!

Curry and Brussels Sprouts

Vegcookbookclub December 2013 ~
Curry and brussels sprouts?! These two recipes shouldn't go together but surprisingly they worked well and tasted delicious.
Eat, Drink & Be Vegan:  Zucchini Chickpea Tomato Curry
Crazy Sexy Kitchen:        Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Pistachios & Cipollini Onions

Love the flavors of this curry. Lots of spices~garlic, ginger, curry powder, fenugreek (a new one for me), coriander and cumin seeds, turmeric and cloves. The aroma in the kitchen as these were sauteeing was intoxicating! Yukon Gold potatoes, zucchini, green beans and chickpeas added the bulk to this recipe. I served it over brown rice. I thought it would be too spicy but the hubby actually liked it. The cilantro and fresh squeezed lime really accented all the flavors. 

Two of my favorite condiments~cilantro and lime!!

This brussels sprouts recipe had several substitutions. First, I pre-cooked the sprouts in the microwave a little bit so they would be done after roasting; I don't like hard sprouts. I couldn't find raw pistachios so I used toasted pine nuts. I tossed them in after roasting was done. I had no idea what cipollini onions were so I used shallots. I just read about cipollini onions and wish I had tried to find some. It sounds like they would have been sweet and carmelized. I used marsala cooking wine instead of the sherry which gave everything a sweeter flavor. Even with all the subs, these roasted brussels sprouts were yummy. I want to try this again with all the original ingredients.

Zucchini Apple Bread ~ pg. 326

VegCookbookClub August recipes from Betty Goes Vegan by Annie & Dan Shannon:

I'm so excited we're cooking out of this cookbook this month! I don't know why it appeals to me so. Maybe it reminds me of my grandma and mom and watching and helping them cook in their kitchens. And I love the movie Julie/Julia. It just makes me want to cook through the entire book! We're heading to Sedona again but I'm taking this cookbook with me and try and do some cooking or at least enjoy reading through all of the delightful stories and recipes.

I wanted to make some bread to honor Lammas, the first of the season's harvest festivals and this recipe sounded perfect. It has zucchini, Granny Smith apple, applesauce, walnuts and uses whole wheat flour.

I used the convection setting on my oven for a cool kitchen and these loaves still took almost an hour to bake. I cooled them completely and then wrapped them in foil like she suggested and stored them in the refrigerator. After they chilled, I sliced the loaves. Moist and delicious, and it is better if you keep these in the fridge. I love the addition of the Granny Smith apple for a little bit of texture and extra flavor.

Even my grandsons loved this bread and got their veggies, too!

Zucchini Spelt Muffins~pg 40

VegCookbookClub July recipes from eat, drink & be vegan by Dreena Burton:


These muffins have just the right amount of sweetness to them. I added chopped walnuts for a bit of crunch and the recipe made nine big muffins. I like to freeze the muffins and then I can have one for quick breakfasts.

Look at those little flecks of green zucchini!

A basket full of warm Zucchini Spelt Muffins

Roasted Squashes and Peppers

VegCookbookClub December recipes from Nava Atlas-Vegan Holiday Kitchen:

Mmm-roasted peppers and squash!

 

Love the smell of roasting veggies. Now that the holiday season is almost over it's time to focus on some good, clean eating. Too many sweets-ugh! Next month the Veg Cookbook Club is cooking out of Kris Carr's new cookbook "Crazy Sexy Kitchen." Of course that is one of the few vegan cookbooks I don't have yet and being the cookbook junkie that I am, I immediately ordered it. She is such a powerful example of what clean, healthy eating can do for you. I'm trying, I'm trying! I can't quite get into the green juicing (yet!) I need to add a juicer and maybe a Vitamix to my wish list. :)

 

I served my roasted veggies with Swiss Chard with White Beans & Barley.

Here's to a new year of eating healthy and getting back in the gym!

Tempeh Toss

From "The Garden of Vegan"-pg. 145:

As you can see, I didn't use tempeh. I have tried tempeh before and I love the taste and texture but wouldn't ya know, I would be allergic to it. I'm sensitive to foods that have been fermented like tempeh. I used firm tofu but it still crumbled up a little. I served this over brown rice and doctored mine up with some sriracha hot chili sauce and Braggs. The recipe called for 1/8 tsp. red pepper flakes but that wasn't hot enough for me! Next time I might try using Gardein Homestyle Beefless Tips.

Veggie Goulash~pg. 140

Vegan Culinary Institute La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:

Bubbling away on the stove!

Sorry it's messy I was hungry!

I added some minced shallots to my chopped onion because I hate to waste food and it looked so lonely in my crisper! I also used a can of tri-blend beans (kidney, pinto, black) instead of just pinto beans. I sprinkled a good helping of No-Salt Shaker (pg. 303) on top and ta-da~ my favorite starch to serve it over~quinoa!

Eat one cup of quinoa (a single serving size), and you’ll consume:

• 220 calories (70 percent carbs, 15 percent fat, 15 percent protein)
• 40 grams of carbohydrates (13 percent daily value)
• 8 grams of protein (16 percent of daily value)
• 3.5 grams of fat (5 percent daily value with no saturated fat)
• A glycemic load (blood sugar spike) of only 18 out of 250
• 5 grams of fiber (20 percent of daily value)
• 20 percent of daily value of folate (various forms of Vitamin B)
• 30 percent of magnesium daily value (beneficial for people with migraine headaches); 28 percent daily value of phosphorous; iron (15 percent); copper (18 percent); and manganese (almost 60 percent)

Quinoa is stocked with life-sustaining nutrients all across the board, including all eight essential amino acids. There are other highly beneficial compounds, vitamins and minerals in this food that the Incas reverently called "chisaya mama" (mother of all grains). www.mnn.com/food/healthy-eating/stories/quinoa-nutrition-facts