Winter Squash and Sun Dried Tomato Lasagna

As usual I have not been blogging about food lately, but I ordered some new vegan cookbooks pre-Thanksgiving and I tried this recipe for a not-so-traditional lasagna.  When I cook, I am always tasting so I can adjust seasonings if necessary.  This recipe needed some salt, so I added some Creole Seasoning to taste.  I used Whole Foods no-cook lasagna noodles and butternut squash for this recipe and I enjoyed the finished product.  It was slightly sweet from the squash and very creamy or cheese-like.  One of my best friends tried the recipe and didn't seem to care for it, but I encourage you to try it and let me know what you think.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 lb. kabocha or other winter squash (I used Butternut Squash)

1/2- 1 cup sun dried tomatoes (depending on your preference)

2 cups chopped onions

1/4 cup chopped fresh sage

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 tsp. dried thyme

1 cup dry white wine

1/2 cup + 2 Tbsp all-purpose unbleached flour

6 cups almond, rice or soy milk

1 tsp salt

12 no-cook dried lasagna noodles

1-2 tbsp of olive oil

serves 8-10

 

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Peel and cut the squash into 1/2-inch cubes. Soak the dried tomatoes in hot water, then drain and squeeze them out. Chop the tomatoes and reserve.

2. In a large frying pan with a lid, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and saute for about 5 minutes to soften. Add the squash cubes and cook for a few minutes. Add the sage, garlic, and thyme and cook for about 3 minutes. Add the wine, bring to a boil, and cover for about 5 minutes, or until the squash is just tender.

3. Sprinkle the flour over the squash in the pan and coat. Cook, stirring gently, until the flour is smooth and lightly toasted, about 3 minutes. Gradually stir in the milk, bringing it to a simmer. Add the salt and cook until the mixture is thick. Remove it from the heat.

4. Lightly oil a 9 x 13" baking pan, then cover the bottom of the pan with a light layer of the squash mixture, then add a layer of the lasagna noodles. Add another layer of the squash mixture and half of the sun-dried tomatoes. Cover with another layer of noodles, half of the remaining squash sauce and the remaining tomatoes. Top with the noodles to cover and finish off with the remaining squash sauce.

5. Cover with foil and bake for 25 minutes, then uncover and bake until the lasagna is bubbly and golden on top, 20 minutes more. Remove it from the oven. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Vegan Cholent from Veganomicon (almost)

This is the second time I have made this stew and I liked it a lot both times.  It is very hearty and filling.  I only substituted 1 cup vegan veggie burger crumbles for the TVP (textured vegetable protein) and added some extra seasonings at the end.  Added the frozen veggie burger crumbles at the same time as the potatoes, lentils, tomato sauce, etc.

Ingredients:

2 Tbs Olive Oil
1 large onion, cut into medium-dice
3 garlic cloves, minced (I used pre-minced garlic in the jar)
1/2 tsp of tarragon
1 tsp of caraway seeds
1 tsp salt
several pinches of freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup vegetable broth (I used sherry cooking wine to deglaze, but this works well too)
2 bay leaves
1 cup peeled, sliced carrots (about 1/2 inch thick)
1 cup french lentils, rinsed and drained
2 medium sized white potatoes, peeled and cut into 3/4 inch chunks
1 (15-ounce can) tomato sauce
3 cups water
1 cup textured vegetable protein (TVP) chunks (used Boca brand veggie burger crumbles here)
1 cup canned and drained lima beans or green peas (I used frozen)
1 (15 ounce) can kidney beans, drained and rinsed

Directions:
Preheat a large soup pot over medium heat. Saute the onions in the oil until translucent, 5-7 minutes. Add the garlic, tarragon, caraway seeds, salt, and pepper. Saute until the garlic is fragrant, about a minute more.

Deglaze the pot with the veggie broth. Add the bay leaves, carrots, potatoes, lentils, tomato sauce, water, and TVP. Mix together. Cover and simmer for about 30 minutes, until the potatoes and carrot are tender (it took about 45 mins to an hour for my veggies to get tender). Add the lima and kidney beans and cook until heated through. I tasted for seasonings and added some garlic pepper and garlic and onion seasoning (use whatever you like).  Can be served over rice, but I can eat this all by itself!  

New recipes coming soon!

I have been missing for a month, but I am trying out some new recipes this weekend.  If anything makes the cut, I will share on Monday.  Stay tuned!

Week #6 on Dr. Fuhrman's plan

In a nutshell, I have not followed Dr. Fuhrman's plan exactly as he prescribed.  I have definitely had some salt and more starches than allowed.  This 6 week journey has made me more aware of my bread, starch, sugar, and sodium intake so I am truly thankful for that.  I think I will try to continue his plan for another month and add some more exercise to my weekly routine.  His plan and frequent exercise combined might be the the best way for me to drop a few more pounds and reach my goal of 200 lbs by December.  I definitely need a lot of discipline when I try to lose weight, so the stricter the diet the better.

Butternut Squash Pasta Sauce

I ran across this recipe in the spring and since Butternut Squash was still readily available I gave it a try.  I really enjoyed this unique twist on pasta sauce and the result was a creamy, flavorful pasta sauce.  We served this over whole wheat linguine and threw in a side of garlic bread.  I definitely tasted and adjusted the seasonings several times.  A good toss in is some creole seasoning such as Tony Chachere's.  This recipe would maybe serve 4-6 depending on the portions of pasta you serve.

Butternut Squash Pasta Sauce (From http://www.theveganversion.com/)

Ingredients:
20 oz pre cut butternut squash  (I bought a whole squash, cut it into chunks, and measured out 20 oz.)
1 tbsp Earth Balance Vegan Buttery Spread
1/4 cup water
1 rib celery rough chopped
1 shallot rough chopped
2 tbsp tomato paste
1/2 cup vegetable stock
1/2 + 1/4 cup non dairy milk (I used unsweetened Soy milk)
1 tbsp fresh thyme, chopped plus some for garnish
Salt and pepper to taste

In a large pot boil the butternut squash until fork tender. Drain and set aside. In the same pot you cooked the squash in melt the Earth Balance over medium heat. Add the celery and shallot. Give a stir and season with salt and pepper. Add 1/4 cup of water and let the vegetables cook until very soft. Add the squash chunks, tomato paste and thyme. Stir to incorporate. The squash should be cooked enough that it starts to fall apart.

While still on the heat add the vegetable stock and 1/2 cup of non dairy milk. Continue to stir until the mixture is heated through.

Pour the mixture into a food processor or powerful blender and blend until smooth. Add the additional 1/4 cup of non dairy milk and blend an additional few seconds until fully incorporated.

Serve over pasta or gnocchi. Garnish with fresh thyme.

How does one begin the transition to a vegan diet?

I have been asked on several occasions....how did you guys start the transition to a vegan diet?  why did you change your diet? How do you stick to it?

Well let me start off by saying I have faltered several times, but the idea here is small changes can get you going on the right path  My hubby changed his diet cold turkey, some can do this but I wasn't one of them.  In the beginning all I could think about is what I was giving up, but I never could see what I would gain by changing my diet.  I have discovered quite a bit about what my body and digestive system doesn't like by removing the dairy and meat products.  Lets just say things "moved" 100% better without meat and dairy in my diet and this alone was enough to keep me on the vegan path (for the most part).  I mean we all have weak moments, so I cannot claim to be perfect.  So here are my tips for getting started.

1.  Buy a big vegan cookbook.
I started with 1,000 Vegan Recipes by Robin Robertson and helped tremendously when trying to figure out things to cook for my family meals.

2.  Find your neighborhood grocery store that stocks vegan products such as nutritional yeast, meat substitutes, vegan buttery spreads, vegan breads, etc.
For me this is Whole Foods, but many grocery stores have a health food section that stocks some of these items.  I personally like one stop shopping, so I go to Whole Foods once a week to get what I need.  They have a little of everything.

3.  If cow's milk is a staple item in your diet, figure out which non-dairy milk you like best (rice, almond, coconut, hemp, etc.  I think rice milk has one of the more "neutral" flavors if you are trying to transition your kids.

4.  Think about some of the favorite foods that your family likes and see if there is a vegan version of the item or recipe. For example, you can still make your favorite spaghetti sauce with veggie burger crumbles and not have to give up spaghetti sauce and pasta.  Or try a lentil bolognese and serve over spaghetti.  The lentils offer a nice meaty texture to your sauce and you can toss in some other vegetables that you like.  There are plenty of vegan recipes floating around online and in cookbooks.  Search for vegan blogs online and browse different bloggers recipes.  I have discovered some great recipes this way.  I found a great vegan pancake recipe that we love (see below).  Other typical foods that have vegan versions are sloppy joe's, waffles, and french toast.

5. Get your butter substitute.  For me this was Earth Balance..I love this stuff!

Here are some other random things that might help and a couple good websites if you need some more inspiration and recipes.  The PPK website even has some recipes for vegan versions of mac & "cheese", haven't tried one yet though cause mac and cheese wasn't a favorite of mine anyway.

http://www.theppk.com/

http://vegweb.com/index.php?action=recipecategories

If you are currently addicted to dairy Ice Cream:

Some common brands of vegan ice cream include: Soy Dream, Rice Dream, Whole Soy, Soy Delicious (which is now being marketed as So Delicious in some flavors), and Tofutti.

Here is the link to the milk ingredients/derivatives:

http://www.avoidingmilkprotein.com/ReadingIngredients.htm

And below are a few recipes....

Vegan Pancakes

In my search for a vegan pancake recipe for my husband, I discovered this recipe on a blog called AppleCrumbles.com. It was very easy to make and quite tasty. The hubby thought they were great and was very happy since pancakes were one of his favorite breakfast items before becoming a vegan. If you are serving more than 2 people, definitely double the batch because this only makes 8-10 pancakes.

·         1 cup all purpose flour

·         3 tsp baking powder (2 tsp is acceptable if you baking powder is fresh)

·         1/2 tsp salt

·         3 TBS sugar

·         1 tsp vanilla (I used 3 tsp. for extra vanilla flavor)

·         1 egg replacer (I used 1 TBS Bob’s Red Mill flaxseed meal + 3 TBS Warm water) I mixed them together and let them set for 5 minutes before adding to the wet ingredients)

·         1 cup vanilla soy milk (almond milk in vanilla flavor works too)

·         2 TBS canola oil (avocado oil is great too)

Directions:

Mix wet ingredients in a medium sized bowl. Mix dry ingredients in a larger bowl. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix until smooth.  Cover you batter with a damp dish towel when you are not using it.  This will prevent the batter from absorbing to much air which causes flat, tough pancakes.

Drop about 1/4 cup of batter per pancake onto a medium preheated NON-STICK pan. (I used a griddle heated to about 425 degrees, but test your temp first with a test pancake)

Flip over when each pancake begins to bubble on top.

Serve with vegan buttery spread, berry compote, or maple syrup.

Note:  1-2 small mashed bananas can be added to the batter for a banana flavored pancake

Snobby Joes

I personally haven't tried this one.  The recipe I use uses veggie burger crumbles and bulgur wheat for the "meat".  This version thinks its better than everyone because it contains no meat. And there’s no soy, either. Lentils are the perfect texture for vegetarian sloppy joes.  (You could substitute veggie burger crumbles (2-3 cups) for the lentils if you want something that resembles meat.  Look for them in the frozen foods section at your grocer.)

Ingredients:

1 cup uncooked green lentils
4 cups water
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, diced small
1 green pepper, diced small
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 Tablespoons chili powder
2 teaspoons oregano
1 teaspoon salt
8 oz can tomato sauce
1/4 cup tomato paste
3 tablespoons maple syrup
1 tablespoon yellow mustard

4 to 6 kaiser rolls or sesame buns (optional – for serving)

Put the lentils in a small sauce pot and pour in 4 cups water. Cover and bring to a boil. Once boiling, lower heat and simmer for about 20 minutes, until lentils are soft. Drain and set aside.

About 10 minutes before the lentils are done boiling, preheat a medium soup pot over medium heat. Saute the onion and pepper in the oil for about 7 minutes, until softened. Add the garlic and saute a minute more.  Add the cooked lentils, the chili powder, oregano and salt and mix. Add the tomato sauce and tomato paste. Cook for about 10 minutes.

Add the maple syrup and mustard and heat through.Turn the heat off and let sit for about 10 minutes, so that the flavors can meld, or go ahead and eat immediately if you can’t wait.

Red Lentil Thai Chilli (From http://www.theppk.com/)

Ingredients:

Olive oil (1 teaspoon to 2 tablespoons, however much you feel like using)
1 large yellow onion, diced medium
1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced medium
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 ½ lbs sweet potatoes cut into ¾ inch chunks
1 cup red lentils
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups vegetable broth
2 15 oz cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons Thai red curry paste
1 15 oz can lowfat coconut milk
28 oz can diced tomatoes
½ cup fresh cilantro, plus extra for garnish
Limes for garnish (optional)

Preheat a 4-quart pot over medium heat. Saute onions and pepper in oil with a pinch of salt, for 5 to 7 minutes. Add garlic and saute a minute more.

Add chili powder, sweet potatoes, lentils, salt and vegetable broth. Cover and bring to a boil. Let it boil for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent burning. When lentils are cooked and sweet potatoes are tender, add the remaining ingredients and heat through.

Taste for salt and seasoning, top with cilantro and lime and serve!

Fruit and Veggie Smoothie
This is my smoothie recipe that I make for breakfast or anytime of day.  We use a 56 oz. blender.  If your blender is smaller, everything may not fit so adjust amounts accordingly.

Ingredients:

3 bananas

1 cup bag of frozen mixed berries

1 cup bag of frozen pineapple or mango chunks

1/2 cup up to 1 cup of kale, spinach, or collard greens (fresh or frozen)

16-oz. of liquid (we use coconut water, but you can experiment with other liquids)

1. Place bananas, frozen fruit, and greens in the blender first and followed by the coconut water.

2. Blend for about 3 - 5 minutes until the mix is to a favorable consistency, I like my smoothie more liquid than frozen.

Enjoy!

Chickpea and Vegetable Curry
I discovered this recipe in a book called 1,000 Vegan Recipes by Robin Robertson. I thought it came together easily and the flavor was very good. I served it over brown rice for a very filling meal.

Makes 4 servings.

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon canola or grapeseed oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 medium carrots, chopped

1 large potato, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch dice

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger

1 tablespoon hot or mild curry powder

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

1 cup water

3 cups cooked or 2 (15.5-ounce) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed if canned

1 cup frozen peas, thawed

1 (4-ounce) can chopped mild or hot green chiles, drained

1 (13.5-ounce) can unsweetened coconut milk

1/2 cup raisins

1 teaspoon sugar

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. In a large saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, potato, and garlic. Cover and cook until softened, about 5 minutes.

2. Stir in the ginger, curry powder, cumin and coriander and cook, uncovered, 1 minute longer. Add the water and simmer, covered, until the vegetables are soft, about 2o minutes.

3. Add the chickpeas, peas, chiles, coconut milk, raisins, sugar, and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer, uncovered, for about minutes longer to allow flavors to intensify and reduce the liquid. If a thicker sauce is desired, puree a small amount of the solids with an immersion blender or blend 1 teaspoon of cornstarch in 1 tablespoon of water and add to the saucepan, stirring to thicken. Serve immediately.

Notes: I used canola oil, canned chickpeas, mild curry powder, and hot green chiles for my ingredients.

Vegan Key Lime Pie

This pie was quite tasty, with a bold lime flavor and a rich texture like cheesecake.  I can't remember which website we found this on but I am glad we discovered it.  We opted to garnish the pie with fresh strawberries that I marinated in some raw sugar for about 4 hrs.  All of the ingredients were readily available at Whole Foods Market and surely you could find them at several other high end grocery stores. Let me know what you think if you decide to try it.

Ingredients:

2 8-oz. containers of plain non-dairy cream cheese (try Toffuti Better Than Cream Cheese) at room temperature 1 cup sugar 1 tsp. vanilla 4 Tbsp. lime juice (about 2 limes) 2 tsp. lime zest (about 2 limes) 2 Tbsp. cornstarch 1 9-inch vegan graham-cracker crust 3-4 kiwis and/or strawberries, sliced

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Blend the cream cheese, sugar, vanilla, lime juice, lime zest, and cornstarch in a blender until smooth. Pour the mixture into the crust. Place the filled pie shell on a cookie sheet (to catch spills) and bake for 45 minutes. Let cool. Refrigerate overnight, then top with the sliced fruit for garnish and serve with the fresh marinated strawberries if you desire.

Week 2

Things are going pretty well on the Fuhrman 6 week meal plan.  We were out visiting this past Saturday an ended up ordering some Chinese take-out, which of course the sodium content alone was a no-no on this plan.  We stuck to vegetable entrees and vegetable fried rice, but we still fell off the wagon for that one meal.  We were back on track on Sunday.  I cooked one of the soup recipes on the Dr. Fuhrman website.  It was a quick creamy vegetable soup.  I thought it was a little bland but this was probably my craving for salt.  It might have been a little better served over some brown rice, but we are trying to avoid the rice all together (excluding Saturday's Chinese food).  Still eating a lot of salads during the week and making the homemade dressings.  My 18-month old daughter actually loves eating my salads with the dijon-date dressing...go figure!

Haven't missed the sugar, but I am missing the salt!!!

Day 5, and the first week on Dr. Fuhrman's 6 wk plan has gone pretty well.  I have been craving salty stuff like crazy though!!  Every time I wal past the bowl of peanuts in the office, my mouth almost salivates..lol.  The bags of potato chips from leftover office parties stares at me when I go in the kitchen to wash off my fruit!  I am planning to weigh in on Monday morning to see if there had been a reduction in weight over the course of the week.  After 2 weeks in Jamaica I had picked up a few extra pounds, so my starting weight was 213.2 lbs.

Day 3

Feeling ok on my salad and veggie diet.  Had a handful of nuts today and 4 pieces of fruit for breakfast, large salad for lunch, and dinner will be another salad along with some zuchini squash I steamed in a pan with some italian seasoning, chopped onion and minced garlic.  I am craving bread and salt today and not sure how to fix that craving...hmmmm.  I will just drink some more water..lol.

Eat to Live: My 6 week journey on Dr. Fuhrman's program

So while I was in Jamaica for 2 weeks, I picked up my husband's book Eat to Live by Joel Fuhrman, M.D.  Most of the information in Dr. Fuhrman's book wasn't new to me, but the case studies he included were so amazing and moving.  I got inspired to try his 6 week program for weight loss and my hubby is doing it with me.  My hubby has already reached his ideal weight from being vegan for over a year, so he is joining me for support only.  I still have to prepare some foods for my 18 month old daughter that we will not be able to eat, so I will definitely need all the support I can get!

The basic premises of Dr. Fuhrman's plan are no animal products, no dairy, no sugar, no fruit juice, no oils, and no salt!  In addition to these rules, you are supposed to eat 1 lb. of raw veggies ( a huge salad for example) and 1 lb. of cooked veggies every day.  The other allowed foods are beans, legumes, fresh fruits, and raw nuts and seeds.  Limited foods include breads, starchy vegetables, whole grains, cereals, potatoes, rice, pastas (no more than one serving or 1 cup per day).

So Monday July 11 was our first day on the plan.  No major problems on day one but I did crave salt late last night.  One success from day one was trying one of Dr. Fuhrman's salad dressing recipes.  The dijon date dressing was really good.  It is made from water, raw cashews, balsamic vinegar, a few different no-salt seasonings (I used salt free garlic pepper and mrs.dash), dijon mustard, dates, and minced garlic.  Yummy!  Stay tuned for more updates over the next 6 weeks.