Ever since cutting out meat, I've found that we have been eating a lot of Mexican inspired meals. This is due to the fact that we eat A LOT of beans.... This recipe is a favorite in our household, and it seems to always get a team effort. I make the filing, and K makes the cornbread topping. There are some things that he feels need to be made a certain way, so I willingly accept the help :)
This meal reminds me of a Mexican Sheppard's pie, but it is waaaaaay better.
Ingredients
Tamale filling
-2 tbsp oil (you can used olive oil, coconut oil, or whatever you like to cook with)
-1 medium onion, diced
-2 tbsp chili powder
-3 garlic cloves, minced
-1 package of veggie ground round (I use either Gardein or Yves brand)
-1 (15 oz.) can of black beans, drained and rinsed
-5 medium tomatoes, diced
-1 C shredded cheese (organic or vegan)
-4 tbsp minced fresh cilantro
Cornbread topping
-3/4 C all-purpose flour
-3/4 C yellow cornmeal
-3 tbsp sugar
-3/4 tsp salt
-3/4 tsp baking powder
-1/4 tsp baking soda
-3/4 C plain, unsweetened almond milk
-1 egg or 1 flax egg (1tbsp ground flax mixed with 3 tbsp water, let sit 10 minutes)
-3 tbsp vegan butter
Directions
-Adjust oven racks to middle position and heat oven to 450 degrees
-Heat oil in skillet over medium heat. Add onion, chili powder, 1/4 tsp salt and cook until onion is soft (about 5 minutes). Stir in garlic.
-Stir in veggie ground round, beans, tomatoes and bring to simmer. Take off heat and stir in cilantro. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Place in large baking dish. Dish must be big enough so that the filing is about an 1 1/2 inches deep. Spread cheese evenly over top. Set aside.
-Whisk flour, cornmeal, sugar, salt, baking powder and baking soda together in a large mixing bowl.
-In a separate bowl, whisk together egg (or flax egg) and almond milk. Stir the egg-milk mixture into the flour mixture until uniform. Stir in butter until just combined.
-Dollop cornmeal mixture evenly over filing in baking dish. Place in oven and bake until cornbread is cook though in the center, 10-15 minutes. Remove from oven, serve.
This meal is still really good the next day for lunch as well. I thought that the cornbread would definitely get soggy, but it held up pretty well.
Enjoy!!!
So, this morning I was looking for something different to have for breakfast. Lately, I have been finding that my regular fruit and veggie smoothie is just not lasting until lunch time.... I felt I needed something more substantial. So, I altered a recipe that I have seen on many blogs.
This recipe is the bomb! That's right, I said it. It almost tastes like a peanut butter oatmeal cookie... now, if only I could add chocolate without totally feeling guilty.... But, in all seriousness, it kept me full, was full of great ingredients and tasted fabulous! I'm pretty sure I could have this for breakfast every morning :)
Ingredients
-1/2 C oats
-1 banana
-1 heaping tbsp peanut butter
-1 C almond milk
-1/2 tsp cinnamon
-2 tbsp ground flax seeds
-1 tbsp coconut oil
-1/4 C water
Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into glass, and ENJOY!!!
During BBQ season, my go to staple was always a veggie burger. However, I have recently been really into reading labels and didn't like the fact that there was such a larger number of ingredients in the burgers, most of which were fillers. So, I decided to make my own :D
This recipe was killer!!! Not only is it super easy, but you can freeze them and use at a later date. The big key to making these burgers is to add lots of flavor, as black beans can be pretty bland on their own. This burger holds together pretty well, as I've found that a lot of homemade veggie burgers seem to fall apart when you eat them. Be warned, this recipe does have chipotle, which is spicy. I will sometimes add more than 1 tbsp, but the amount of spice is up to you.
Ingredients
1 can black beans
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 small onion
1/2 C mushrooms
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 C oats, coarsely ground
1 tbsp chipoltle seasoning
1/2 tsp salt
Directions
-Drain and rinse black beans. Place black beans in food processor or blender, and grind until the beans are somewhere between a coarse and smooth texture. Set beans aside.
-Dice onion and mushrooms. Heat skillet on stove, add olive oil. Add diced onion and mushrooms to skillet, cook until tender (approximately 2-3 minutes). Add garlic to skillet and stir into mushroom and onions. Take skillet off heat.
-Place onion, mushrooms and garlic in mixing bowl. Add black beans, oats, chipotle and salt. Mix all ingredients together. I used my hands, as it was easier to incorporate all the ingredients. If the mixture is a bit dry, add 1 tsp of water.
-Once ingredients are mixed together, form into patties. I normally get 3 or 4 patties from this recipe, depending on how big I make them.
-Cook burgers in a skillet with a small amount of olive oil so they don't stick to the pan. Cook for about 2 minutes on either side, until the brown slightly.
These burgers can be enjoyed with a variety of toppings. Some of our favorites are:
-caramelized onions
-avocado
-mushrooms
-vegan cheese
-lettuce
-tomatoes
And the list could really go on, and on, and on....
Enjoy!!!
Three years ago, you couldn't get me near hummus. Now, it's probably my favorite snack or spread... or well anything! It is so versatile and can be made to fit the taste buds of anyone, plus it's super easy to make. As long as you have a food processor or good quality blender, this recipe will really only take minutes.
My favorite type of hummus of the moment seems to be sun dried tomato. I also really like to make a similar variety but with cilantro. I don't add tahini, like most traditional recipes. Reason being is that the first time I made hummus I didn't have tahini, and I felt that the recipe didn't need it after tasting the end result.
Ingredients
4 cloves of roasted garlic*
1 tsp salt
1/4 C lemon juice
1 can chickpeas, drained
1/2 C olive oil
1/2 C oil packed sun dried tomatoes, drained
1 tbsp fresh ground pepper
*I prefer roasted as it gives it a sweeter taste, but you can use raw garlic as well. If using raw, I would cut the number of cloves in half
Directions
Place garlic, salt, pepper, lemon juice and chickpeas in food processor or blender, and blend . Slowly add olive oil. Make sure the scrap sides of bowl occasionally. Once mixture is smooth, add sun dried tomatoes and mix until they are incorporated in the mixture. Refrigerate at least one hour before serving.
I love the idea of taking a regular, everyday dish, and making it into something new. One of my favourite bloggers/cookbook authors is Sarah Matheny of the website Peas and Thankyou. Her take on a lasagna is fantastic. It's much lighter and tastier than your regular pasta, cheese and meat-filled lasagna.
Zucchini lasagna, filled with vegetables and 100% gluten-free is a fantastic addition to any week night dinner schedule. Believe it or not, my spouse hates both zucchini and quinoa (the two main ingredients in this dish). However, he does like this dish. I think it has to do with the vegan cream cheese, and the other flavours that make it, well, delicious! I had never heard of a lasagna variation like this before. I've had vegetarian lasagna made with eggplant and zucchini (which act as the noodles), but this one sounded much better :)
This recipe always make waaaaaay too much for two people, so it always ends up being the next days lunch. It actually stands up pretty good the next day as well.
The picture had to be of the whole dish, as it just looked too sloppy when I took it out, but boy did it taste goooood.
- 2 large zucchini, cut into 12 thin, 1/4 in. thick slices
- salt
- 1 c. quinoa, rinsed
- 2 c. vegetable broth
- 1/2 c. tomato sauce
- 1/4 c. minced onion
- 1 t. dried oregano
- 1/4 c. fresh basil, chopped
- 1/4 c. fresh parsley, chopped
- 2 T. organic or non-dairy cream cheese
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 jar organic marinara sauce
- 1/2 c. organic or non-dairy cheese
- Preheat oven to 400.
- To prepare zucchini, cut a strip off of one side to make a flat base. Then, thinly slice zucchini into “noodles.” You’ll want 12 noodles in total.
- Place noodles in a colander and sprinkle with salt, layering between paper towels.
- Let this sit and absorb moisture while preparing the quinoa.
- Combine quinoa, vegetable broth, tomato sauce, onion and oregano in a large saucepan and bring to a boil.
- Cover and lower heat, simmering for 20 minutes.
- When quinoa has absorbed all the liquid, fold in cream cheese and herbs.
- Add salt and pepper to taste, and try not to eat the whole pot.
- Pour enough of marinara in the bottom of an 8×8 baking dish to cover the bottom.
- Using a clean dry towel, blot remaining moisture and salt from zucchini and layer 4 noodles across the sauce.
- Put a layer of quinoa across the zucchini, and cover with another 1/3 c. of marinara sauce.
- Repeat with another layer of quinoa, sauce and zucchini.
- Top the final layer of zucchini with remaining sauce and 1/2 c. of cheese, if using.
- Bake lasagna for 30 minutes, until heated through and zucchini is tender.
One of the hardest things with a "diet restriction" (as most like to call it) is going out to eat. It is very easy to whip up a vegetarian meal within the confines of my own home, as I have stocked my fridge and pantry with everything that I could ever need; however, going out for a meal is always a different story.
When it comes to restaurants, I must applaud the fact that many of them are now expanding their menu to include vegetarian, vegan, dairy-free and gluten-free dishes. I also love the fact that almost every restaurant now has their menu online, which allows me to plan out my meal before I arrive, or change our plans as to where we are eating that night. Although this does require a little extra research, and at times a little bit of disappointment. I have found, however, that sometimes I do have to eat some sort of protein before I leave the house, because there are a few places that still only offer a salad for their veggie customers.
Tonight, we made the trip to Fibber Magees to catch up with friends. It is a new Irish pub downtown, owned by the same individuals that own the Black Goose and the Fox and Hound. Looking at the menu the day before brought on a little bit of disappointment; but what did I expect? It's a pub after all.... They did however, have something that would satisfy my diet restrictions :)
The portions were HUGE! And, it was fabulous! I had the vegetarian pie, which was accompanied by mashed potatoes and cabbage. A very traditional Irish meal. The pot pie was filled with veggies, and topped with a puffed-pastry crust. It did have a cream sauce, which I generally try to stay away from, but I have to make some sacrifices when I'm eating away from home.
Now the food wasn't the only great thing about this place, it also had a fantastic atmosphere. It was fairly busy location (considering that it only open about a week ago), and there was a a group of Irish musicians that gave the the pub a very authentic feel.
So, if you get a chance, I would definitely suggest grabbing a pint (or two) and a bite to eat at this pub. I can definitely see many future summer nights spent here...
Enjoy xo
My journey to become a vegetarian all started two years ago.
It originally began with my self-diagnoses that I had allergies (why would I go to the doctor when I could just Google my symptoms and be done with it?). I figured that the simple fix would be to take some sort of allergy medication. This, however, did not do the trick. So off to Google I went again. It is here that I discovered that many people have a mild irritation or allergy to dairy. So I made the decision to try to go a few weeks without dairy (even my beloved cheese). After just a few days I noticed a HUGE difference... Now I was on to something.
The milk in our fridge was then replaced with delicious almond milk, and the cheese... well it was still there for emergencies only.
I shared this discovery with my friend who had decided to go dairy and meat-free. After talking to her, I decided that maybe cutting meat out of my diet might be a good idea as well.
This idea brought on skepticism from my spouse, as he knew (and shared) my love for bacon (not just cheese). So, out the meat went.
Here I am two years later, living to tell about it. Cooking has become my passion, and I feel like I need to share it with others.
Enjoy!!! xo
-Dollop cornmeal mixture evenly over filing in baking dish. Place in oven and bake until cornbread is cook though in the center, 10-15 minutes. Remove from oven, serve.
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