Best Ever Macaroons

These are so yummy! Truly the best macaroon ever!

Best Ever Macaroons

2 1/2 cups sweetened flaked coconut
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 large egg whites
1 1/2 teaspoons honey
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

In mixing bowl bowl, combine the sugar, flour, and salt. Add the egg whites, honey, and vanilla extract and rapidly whisk the batter until smooth and frothy, about 30 seconds. Add the coconut and toss with a fork, then use a wooden spoon to continue mixing until the coconut is evenly coated. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate it for 30 minutes.

Heat the oven to 300 degrees and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil lightly coated with cooking spray. Use heaping tablespoon or mixture to make loosley packed mounds on the baking sheet. Bake the macaroons on the center oven rack until they’re light golden brown, about 20 minutes. Cool them for about 5 minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool for several hours.

Note: These could easily be made gluten free by substituting the flour for a gluten free flour, which I will be doing for the holidays!

Thai Fried Rice

1/4 cup teriyaki sauce
8 oz.  firm tofu, cubed
1 Tbsp. peanut oil
1 medium  red pepper, cut into strips (about 1-1/2 cups)
1/2 cup (1-inch) green onion pieces
2-2/3 cups  cooked brown rice, chilled
1 can (8 oz.) pineapple tidbits in juice, drained
1/2 cup  peanuts, chopped

Pour teriyaki sauce over tofu in shallow dish. Refrigerate 5 to 10 minutes to marinate. Drain tofu; reserve teriyaki sauce. Heat oil in large skillet on medium-high heat. Add tofu; cook 3 to 4 minutes or until golden brown on all sides, stirring occasionally. Remove from skillet. Ad red pepper to skillet; cook and stir 2 minutes. Add green onion; cook and stir 1 minute. Add rice and pineapple; mix lightly. Cook 2 to 3 minutes or until heated through, stirring frequently. Add tofu, peanuts and reserved teriyaki sauce; mix lightly. Cook until heated through, stirring occasionally.

Split Pea Soup with Tofu Cottage Cheese

 

Split Pea Soup

1 lb. dried green split peas (or 1/2 lb. green and 1/2 lb. yellow)

1/3 lb. dried pearl barley

4 cloves fresh garlic, cut into thin slices

2 carrots, peeled and grated

2 TBSP fresh parsley

1 tsp celery salt

Salt

olive oil

2 TBSP McKay’s Chicken seasoning or vegetable bouillon.

In a large crock pot, cover rinsed split peas and barley with at least 3 times as much water.  Allow to cook at least 6 hours.  Do not add salt to the water or any other seasoning, or it will cause the peas to be firm and gritty.

Once the peas are cooked, saute the sliced garlic and grated carrots until the carrots are beginning to become tender.  Begin adding the liquid from the split peas to finish cooking the carrots.  Once they are tender, add the rest of the mixture from the crock pot.  Salt to taste and add the other seasonings.

I like my split pea soup on the runny side, this soup will thicken by the next day, so plan accordingly if you will eat it later on.

 

Tofu Cottage Cheese

1 pkg. Mori-nu firm tofu mashed

3 TBSP of vegan sour cream (tofutti is my favorite)

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp onion powder

1/8 tsp garlic powder

1 TBSP nutritional yeast flakes

1 tsp chives (optional) – personally I think this “makes” the dish.

 

Mix all ingredients together, be sure to drain tofu of any extra liquid.

This is definitely a savory cottage cheese, it would not be good with fruit, however its the closest vegan cottage cheese that I’ve ever found to the real thing.  It does not melt, however it has a very similar texture.  Its wonderful on potatoes, cooked beans or in a vegetable soup.

Sweet Potato and Black Bean Enchiladas

This has to be one of my favorite meals! When I first saw this recipe, I thought the sweet potatoes and black beans were an odd combination, but the flavor marry extremely well! Since then, I have also tried a sweet potato and Black Bean Salad which was just as yummy! I found this recipe over at Karina’s Kitchen. This is a perfect recipe for my daughter who has Chron’s Disease and needs to eat a vegan diet!
Sweet Potato and Black Bean Enchiladas
Quickie Green Chile Sauce

1 cup light vegetable broth
1 tablespoon arrowroot starch dissolved in a little cold water
1 generous cup chopped roasted green chiles, hot or mild
2 to 3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon cumin or chili powder, hot or mild, to taste

Enchilada Filling

1 (15-ounce) can organic black beans, rinsed, drained
4 cloves garlic, minced
Fresh lime juice from 1 big juicy lime
2 heaping cups cooked diced sweet potatoes
1/2 cup chopped roasted mild green chiles
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder mild or spicy
Sea salt and black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Assembly

2 to 4 tablespoons vegetable oil, as needed
8 white or yellow corn tortillas
4 ounces shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Preheat your oven to 350°F. Choose a baking dish that would hold 8 rolled enchiladas. Make your Quickie Green Chile Sauce by combining the broth, dissolved arrowroot, green chiles, garlic and spices in a sauce pan and heating over medium-high heat. Bring to a high simmer. Simmer until thickened. Taste test and adjust seasonings. Set aside.

In the meantime, for the Enchilada Filling, using a mixing bowl, combine the drained black beans with minced garlic and lime juice. Toss to coat the beans and set aside. In a separate bowl combine the cooked sweet potatoes with the chopped green chiles; add the spices. Season with sea salt and pepper.

Pour about 1/4 cup of the Quickie Green Chile Sauce into the bottom of the baking dish.

To assemble the enchiladas, grab a skillet and heat a dash of oil. Lightly cook the corn tortillas to soften them, one at a time, as you stuff each one.

Lay the first hot tortilla in the sauced baking dish; wet it with the sauce. Spoon 1/8 of the sweet potato mixture down the center. Top with 1/8 of the black beans. Wrap and roll the tortilla to the end of the baking dish. Repeat for the remaining tortillas. Top with the rest of the sauce. Top with a sprinkle of shredded Monterey Jack cheese.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the enchiladas are piping hot and the sauce is bubbling around the edges.

Hot Cheesy Spread

Cheese Spread
2 cups yellow cashew cheese or vegan cheddar of your choice
1/3 c. vegan mayo (veganaise is my favorite)
2 green onions cut into small rings
1/2 c. green olives sliced into rings
2 TBSP diced red pepper (I like to use the kind in the jar, however if you want some crunch, go with fresh)
1 loaf of french bread

Mix all ingredients together and spread generously onto french bread. I like to slice it down the middle longways like a giant sub sandwich. Lay on a baking pan and bake at 400 for 15-20 min, or until it starts to bubble and brown.  Serve immediately.

This goes great with a soup!

Simone’s Stroganoff

Our Church hosts a wonderful event each fall called the Holiday Tasting Extravaganza.  Its an event where we serve about 600 people 1 oz. tastes of about 60+ fabulous vegetarian and vegan foods.  The last fall was my first experience as a cook.  And I must say it was quite the experience, making 650 meatballs, gravy and butternut squash.  But I really enjoyed it, and the food was fabulous.  However, I learned that 67 tastes is more then a normal  meal.

One of my favorite dishes belongs to my friend Simone who is originally from Brazil.  Her stroganoff had a twist that I didn’t expect, the addition of tomatoes, and I left dreaming of it (especially since she packed up some of her leftovers for me to eat the next day, but somehow they got lost in the dismantling of our stations).  It did contain dairy, so I was formulating a way to “veganize” it when she came to me one Sabbath beaming that she’d figured out how to do it herself and it tasted great!  Now I had to get on with making it.  My first attempt was wonderful.  She suggested using Toffutti cream cheese instead of sour cream, a direction I wouldn’t have gone on my own, and it added a wonderful richness.  Unfortunately when I made it the second time, for this post, I accidentally bought the garlic and herb flavored cream cheese.  Oops!  Its great on bagles, but not in my stroganoff!  So I decided to improvise.  I do have a traditional stroganoff recipe that I like that contains tofu and cashews, and I had an extra block and some leftover cashew cheese on hand so I decided to see if it would work.  Its tolerable, but not rich and creamy like we were used to.  So no skimping on this one!  However it looks very similar in the pictures so I’m going forward with this post.

1/4 c. canola oil
1 TBSP garlic, mashed
2 c. chopped Loma Linda Tender Bits (or homemade gluten chops work well too)
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper (I omitted)
2 TBSP finely chopped parsley
1/2 c. diced onion
1 c. sliced mushrooms
2 c. petite diced tomatoes lightly mashed in food processor
1 tsp salt
1 pkg. Toffutti cream cheese (plain)

I recommend getting all your ingredients prepped before starting!  Heat oil in a sauce pan over medium heat.  Cook the onion in the oil for 1 minuet.  Stir in the garlic and cook until the garlic is golden brown.  Add the mushrooms and Tender Bits (gluten, cut into 1 inch cubes) stir for 3-4 minuets; add the petite diced tomatoes, cayenne pepper and salt.  Cover the saucepan, and allow to simmer on low heat for about 10 minuets. If this seems too dry you may add a little bit of water and simmer.  Turn off the heat, add parsley and Toffutti Cream Cheese, stir as it melts into the sauce.  Serve immediately!

Chipotle Black Bean Burgers

This recipe is found in The Ultimate Guide to the Daniel Fast by Kristen Feola.

Chipotle Black Bean Burgers

1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 cup mashed sweet potatoes (about 1 large sweet potato, peeled)

¼ cup oat flour

½ tsp. dried parsley

¼ tsp. chipotle chili powder seasoning

¼ tsp. garlic powder

¼ tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. pepper

Preheat oven to broil setting. With a potato mashed or fork, mash black beans in a large bowl, leaving about ¼ of the beans whole. Mix in sweet potatoes, oat flour, parsley, chipotle chili powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Scoop out 1/3 cup of bean mixture, and place on an 11 x 17 inch baking sheet that has been rubbed with olive oil. Flatten and shape into a circle with spatula. Repeat with remaining mixture to make 6 burgers.

Broil 4 inches from heat about 7 – 8 minutes or until golden brown. Flip burgers carefully with spatula. Broil 2 – 3 more minutes, and serve.

Recipe Notes:

• Spread burger with Guacamole with a Little Kick
• Top with tomato slices, lettuce, and/or onions.
• Make your own oat flour by placing rolled oats in a food processor or blender and process until fine. (1 cup of old-fashioned oats will yield about ¾ cup ground oats.)

Easy Tofu Ginger Soup

1/2 pound of firm tofu cut into 1 inch cubes
2 teaspoons of freshly grated ginger
1 tablespoon of olive oil
4 Cups (1 quart) of low sodium vegetable broth
3 tablespoons of green onions

Heat olive oil in medium sized pot for about 1 minute on low medium heat settting. Add ginger and cook on medium heat for about 2 minutes.

Add broth and simmer covered for about 10 minutes. Then add tofu and scallions. Gently simmer for 10 minutes more and serve.

Cinnamon-Cumin Lentil Soup

This recipe is found in The Ultimate Guide to the Daniel Fast by Kristen Feola.

Cinnamon – Cumin Lentil Soup

6 cups water or Vegetable Broth

1 cup dry lentils, sorted and rinsed

1 (15 ounce) can chickpeas, rinsed and drained

½ cup diced carrots

½ cup diced red onion

½ tsp. cinnamon

½ tsp. cumin

¼ tsp. salt

Bring water or broth to a boil. Add lentils, chickpeas, carrots, onions, cinnamon, cumin, and salt. Simmer gently with lid tilted for 30 minutes, and serve.

Orange-Poppy Seed Salad Dressing

This recipe is found in The Ultimate Guide to the Daniel Fast by Kristen Feola.

Orange-Poppy Seed Salad Dressing

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

¼ cup orange juice

2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice

1 tbsp. diced red onion

½ tsp. poppy seeds

¼ tsp. grated orange zest

1/8 tsp. dry mustard

1/8 tsp. salt

Combine all ingredients in a covered glass jar, and shake well. Refrigerate until ready to use.

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