Veg for Life

I was very worried that making vegan ice cream would be very difficult and require strange and hard to find ingredients.  It doesn't.  I recently purchased Lick It! Vegan Ice Creams by Cathe Olson.  I tried her recipe for Mint Ice Cream.  At the last minute, I decided to add chopped chocolate chips.  I use Sunspire Dairy Free and Gluten Free Chocolate Chips.  I have to say if this recipe is any indication you should run, not walk to the nearest bookstore and order a copy today.  Every member of my family loves this ice cream. I will be posting a new recipe in the next few days.  Don't get out in the cold, stay home in front of your ice cream maker.  :)

I have to admit I have missed casseroles, especially the cheesy Mexican casseroles.  I have found a solution to this craving and it is good.  The sauce takes a little longer than your standard dump from a soup can type casserole, but in my opinion it is totally worth it if you have leftover textured vegetable protein (TVP) and beans already made.  For a soy free version use two types of beans or beans and seitan, instead of the TVP. Vegan Nacho Casserole 2 cups Vegan Mushroom Broth 1&1/2 cups Water (For Queso only add 1/2 cup of water or it will be too soupy) 1 cup So Delicious Unsweetened Coconut Milk 2 Tbsp Soy Sauce 1 tsp Oregano 2 tsp Cumin 1 tsp Chili Powder 1 tsp Garlic Powder 1 tsp Onion Powder Salt and Pepper to taste 4 Tbsp Earth Balance Margarine (soy free if you are allergic to soy or just double the Olive Oil) 4 Tbsp Olive Oil 1/2 cup Flour 1 cup Red Star Nutritional Yeast 1 14 oz Can Ro-Tel Diced Tomatoes and Green Chiles optional 3 Tbsp Di...

Posole about forty five minutes before done.  When it is ready you mostly just see the hominy on top. I like to think this is the perfect way to warm up on a winter night.  I love spicy food, so Mexican stew is right up my alley.  Making this one vegan, simple.  I eliminate the pork and the chicken broth from the traditional recipes, then add mushrooms.  Easy right?  My family, however does not love spicy, in fact they actively avoid spicy foods.  The solution?  I made a very lightly spiced stew and added Cholula Hot Sauce and extra chiles to my bowl.  Everyone happy with one pot of soup and batch of cornbread, priceless. Posole  2 Tbsp. Olive Oil 1 medium onion, diced 2 Celery Stalks, chopped 4 cloves of Garlic, minced 6 oz. Portobella  Mushrooms, sliced into chunks 8 oz. White Button Mushrooms, sliced 1/2 tsp. Chili Powder (Add 1 tsp if you like yours spicy) 1/2 tsp. Cumin Salt and Pepper to taste 6 Cups Wate...

I promised I would post my recipe after I finished tweaking it, sorry that it took so long. My family dived into these brownies like ravenous wolves on meat.  Watch your fingers when serving them to young chocolate fiends or you might end up needing band-aids.  I hope you will like it as much as we do. Vegan Brownies 1/2 cup Earth Balance Margarine, melted (use Soy Free Earth Balance for a soy-free version) 1/2 cup Canola Oil 2 cups Demerara Sugar 1 cup So Delicious Coconut Milk Unsweetened 1 tsp. Vanilla Extract 1 cup Unbleached All Purpose Flour 2/3 cup Spelt Flour 1/3 cup Coconut Flour 3/4 cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder (Please use Fair Trade Cocoa Powder) 1 tsp. Baking Powder 1 tsp. salt Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease 9x13 inch baking pan.  Stir together first 5 ingredients in a medium sized bowl or large liquid measuring cup. Set aside.  Sift dry ingredients into a large mixing bowl, then stir in sugar mixture.  Stir until thoroughl...

He has been singing the praises of Green Smoothies to everyone we know since we first tried one last May. We have been drinking green smoothies for breakfast everyday since then, except for the horrible week we had to return our Blend-Tec blender for repairs. Trust me, we were not thrilled to part with our beloved blender and even less happy to have to suffer through the days without our green smoothie fix. Happily, the blender was repaired and returned to us and we were back in the smoothie groove in no time. Greens Guide Is a great spot to learn about a few of my favorite greens for adding into smoothies. They also have some starter green smoothie recipes to try so you can see what you like best. Green Smoothie Recipes With our Smoothies I rotate the greens we use every week. We also try out different fruits whenever we find some. Kiwi is my son's favorite addition. But our basic recipe is 4 bananas chopped and frozen overnight 1 granny smith apple peeled if not o...

As a new vegan reworking your old recipes can be a difficult process.  You have to find the right substitutes for your old non-vegan ingredients, this can be filled with pitfalls of disappointment when the finished product doesn't turn out just the way you want.  This took some time and effort but the cornbread tastes just like I remember from my pre-vegan days. :)  Recipe Adapted from Southern Buttermilk Cornbread recipe in Betty Crocker's New Cookbook   Vegan Cornbread 1 1/2 cup Organic Corn Meal 1/2 cup Unbleached All Purpose Flour 2 teaspoons Baking Powder 1 teaspoon Salt 1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda 2 Tablespoons ground Flax Seed 6 Tablespoons hot water 1/4 cup Demerara Sugar 1/4 cup Light Olive Oil 1 1/2 cup So Delicious Unsweetened Coconut Milk 1/2 Tablespoon Lime Juice Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Combine corn meal, flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in a medium sized mixing bowl, then set aside.  Stir ground flax seed into ho...