Cashew Cheese

I actually made this "cheese" a while ago, but haven't gotten around to posting it.  I first wanted to make vegan cream cheese, but this turned out not to be quite right for that. This is the kind of cheese that's good on crackers, or an English muffin, if so desired. I also dipped little pretzels in it (that's a great combo!).

Cashew Cheese


1 cup cashews
1/4 cup water
3 TB lemon juice
1 tsp dill
1 TB chives
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
salt to taste


Put the cashews in a food processor and blend until very fine. Then add the rest of the ingredients and process well. Put it in the fridge for about 4 hours to harden. Though if you want it pretty soft, just eat as is.

I'm still looking for a great cashew-based vegan cream cheese recipe. I think if I want a really creamy consistency, I'll have to use the Vitamix. What do you think?

Eat smart,
T.

Vegan Parm and lots more stuff

Before I forget, remember to enter my Bob's Red Mill giveaway! There will be THREE winners, so you've got a pretty good chance.

I have to catch up here....I even ran across a couple of photos I took of stuff I made and I can't remember what it was, because I never wrote down the recipe!! Hahaha....oh well.

First, I made up some awesome vegan parmesan:

Vegan Parm:

1 cup raw almonds
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
black pepper/salt to taste


Pulse in your food processor until almost in powder form (you still want a little bit of texture though). Store in a glass jar in the fridge. 

Next up, homemade sweet and sour sauce.  It was all for me, since S hates this kind of sauce :)

Sweet and Sour Sauce:

3 TB ketchup (I used Organicville with agave)

2 TB Bob's Red Mill date sugar (or any raw sugar)
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/2 cup water
3 TB arrowroot (or cornstarch) mixed with 3 TB water


Put the 1st four ingredients into a small saucepan and heat on medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves.  Add in the arrowroot mixed with water and stir/heat until thick.

I finally sprouted lentils for the first time! They're so good....I put them on my salads:

I recently bought two raw "cookbooks":

"Raw Food For Real People" by Rod Rotondi and "Raw Food: A Complete Guide for Every Meal of the Day" by Erica Palmcrantz and Irmela Lilja.

Both are great books. From the second one I made a few things:

Pumpkin Seed Dressing (so good!)

Indian Cauliflower Mash (a good snack)

Ranch Dressing (which I put on potatoes, because it's so good that way-not raw, I know!)

From the first book:

Hale Kale Salad (amazing!!)

(same kale salad, but with my added sprouted lentils)

I really want to add more raw meals to my diet.  S doesn't like that idea. More for me :)

More stuff I've been eating:

My Kale and Tomato Barley Risotto

Bob's Red Mill Steel Cut Oats (so good!!)

I recently found these "burgers" at the store and thought I'd try them, since they're soy-free:

They were pretty good...not a ton of flavor, but with the added "materials" on the sprouted grain bun, a pretty good lunch. I like the idea of a soy-free burger. Do you know of others?

Eat smart,
T.

Tasty Stuff

Last week we got a HUGE amount of produce at the market: lettuce, mixed greens, radishes, turnips, sweet potatoes, butternut squash, shiitakes, kale, swiss chard, satsumas, sprouts, mustard greens, broccoli, green beans, and cucumbers.

I sort of made Robin Robertson's Fusili with Potatoes, Green Beans, and Lemon Basil Creme from her cookbook, "Vegan On the Cheap". I made noodles...udon noodles.  I left out the potatoes. I left out the oil & used almond milk instead of soy. Basically, I made her sauce and spooned it over the udon noodles with steamed vegetables (yellow squash, zucchini, & carrots). Then I had leftover sauce spooned over a baked potato with steamed veggies. Both were delicious! I'll definitely make this one again.

The other night, we had a friend over and I needed something quick for a starter, while I finished cooking my main meal. I found a recipe for Sun-Dried Tomato Hummus in "Ani's Raw Food Kitchen."  I thought I had sun-dried tomatoes.....I KNOW I have them.  I couldn't find them. Oh well, it's basically made from zucchini, which I DID have.  So I made the recipe, and just left out the tomatoes.  It was pretty good....perhaps a bit too much tahini for my taste. Next time I won't put in as much, and will add maybe a bit more salt or lemon juice.

Then for the main meal I made two parts: my mix 'n mashed potatoes and one of my Indian dishes. You can find them on my recipes page.

(the curry is in the front, the potatoes in the back)

BROWNIES! I've been craving something sweet and chocolate for a while now. I hadn't baked anything in a while, so I finally made some brownies the other night.  Found a recipe in Alicia Silverstone's "The Kind Diet" for Coffee Fudge Brownies.  They're excellent! And I just happened to have some decaf coffee from the morning, still around. How convenient :)

I used whole wheat flour only and used raw cane sugar (1 1/4 cups).  I did add oil (what??). I mean, the recipe called for oil and I used some, but not all. I usually leave out the oil entirely. I also left out the nuts & glaze. Didn't really need the extra calories on top of the brownies themselves. The brownies were very cake-like. So if you like dense brownies, these are not for you. They are delicious though!

Remember when I went to NYC and brought back Murray's whole wheat everything bagels??? I finally pulled one out of the freezer the other day and smothered it with Tofutti Cream Cheese.  The fine folks over at Tofutti sent me some coupons for free products so I thought I'd pick up some of their cream cheese and sour cream.  They both use NON-HYDROGENATED oil! I don't use these products all that often, but for once in a while use, like my 'once every couple of weeks'  bagel n' cream cheese, it's really delicious!

(my half bagel with Tofutti Cream Cheese)

And for the sour cream, I made my Sour Cream Dip! So good!

Coming up: My CSN Store item review. It's a very cool item!

If you missed it, check out my own recipe for Vegan Queso.

What are your thoughts and experiences with these stores? Which are your favorites? (I've only shopped at Pangea & Cosmo's so far)

Pangea Vegan Store
Cosmo's Vegan Shoppe
Vegan Essentials

Eat smart,

T.

Happy World Vegan Day!!! (and some vegan queso)

I'm sure you've all heard of Nacho Mom's Vegan Queso by now.  It's amazing stuff. I just can't tell you how much I love it.  And since it's not yet available down here in stores, I had to come up with my own recipe temporarily. Don't worry, it certainly doesn't replace that delicious thick sauce in the jar. But I think it's pretty darn good :) Anyway, I'll get to that later....

This week's market produce: cucumbers, sweet potatoes, bay leaves, kale, zucchini, yellow squash, green onions, satsumas, turnips, spinach, green beans, mixed greens, and cremini mushrooms.

Made some eggplant caponata today with eggplant my friends, Yuki & Doug, gave us. Served it over leftover brown rice with some Parma Zaan (love the stuff) sprinkled on top! Yum.

And here it is, my little recipe for Cheeezy Sauce (new and improved):

2/3 cup nutritional yeast

1/2 cup whole wheat flour 

1/2 large tomato, chopped

2 TB dried jalapenos (1 TB if you only want it slightly spicy)

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp onion powder

1 tsp Creole Seasoning

2 1/2 cups water
1/2 tsp Tomato Powder (optional, but gives a good flavor and added color)

salt to taste

Mix the dry ingredients in a small pot (except the salt & jalapenos).  Add 1 cup water and whisk well so there are no lumps.  Turn heat on medium-low.  Slowly whisk in the rest of the water.  It will take a little while for the mixture to start slowly boiling.  When it thickens some, stir in the tomatoes and jalapenos and continue to stir for another few minutes. When it reaches your desired thickness, it's done. Now add in your salt to taste!  *mixture will thicken overnight in the refrigerator, so it will be even thicker the next day.(PS-it's quite spicy. Halve the jalapenos or leave them out entirely if you don't do spicy.) The key is almost constant stirring, so there are no lumps. Start with a whisk and after adding the tomatoes, use a spoon and make sure to scrape the sides and bottom of the pot as you stir.

I hope you enjoy it.....I did.  It's not Nacho Mom's, but it's tasty nonetheless.

Happy World Vegan Day :)

Just returned from tasting several Belgian beers....I do love a good sour ale.

Eat smart,

T.

Risotto for the Fall and upcoming Vegan Queso!

First off, here's what I got at the market this week (I know, I'm going again tomorrow...I can't seem to catch up!): apples, turnips, kale, cucumbers, sweet potatoes, green beans, satsumas, mixed greens, mustard greens, and yellow squash.

Next up, a great recipe for this time of year, especially with all the sweet potatoes I've been getting at the market!

Sweet Potato Barley "Risotto":

1 cup hulled barley
3 cups water (or broth)
2-3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 large bunch of kale
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp chili powder
1 TB Creole Seasoning (less, if you add salt)
garlic & onion powder
juice of 1 lime (or lemon)
some extra water, possibly

Put the the barley and water in a pot and bring to a boil.  Cover and simmer until chewy (1-1 1/4 hrs). It will take less time if you use pearl barley-follow package directions for that.


Put the cubed sweet potatoes in a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and cook until soft (30-40 minutes, depending on size of cubes). When done, drain and set aside.


When the barley is done, add in the sweet potatoes and stir well, mashing it up. You may need to add a bit of water so it doesn't stick to the bottom and to make it a bit creamier. Add in the seasonings and mix. Add the kale, cover, and cook another 5 minutes. When done, add the lime (or lemon) juice.  Add salt if needed at this point. Serve!


Other stuff I've been eating:

Amazing salad dressing from Ani's Raw Food Essentials: Asian Greens with Lemon-Tahini Dressing-

(goes great with hemp seeds on top!)

Made my whole wheat pizza again, with Daiya, of course:

Sometimes I crave mac n' cheese, so here's my version:

1 cup cooked brown rice
2 TB almond milk, unsweetened
1 slice Galaxy Nutrional Foods Vegan Cheddar
1 TB nutritional yeast
1 tsp each garlic powder & onion powder
salt & pepper


Heat up the rice (unless you just cooked it)
Mix in the almond milk. Tear up the slice of cheese and add it in. Stir well. It may take several minutes for the cheese to melt in.  Then add in the rest of the ingredients. Add more almond milk, if you like it creamier. Enjoy!


And I am currently addicted to Robin Robertson's Tahini-Miso Sauce. Yup, I've been making tons of brown rice and steamed veggies with that stuff all over it! Delicious. It's in her 1,000 Vegan Recipes cookbook.

And last but not least.....who wants VEGAN QUESO??? ME!!! Ok, so I ran out of the best stuff ever: Nacho Mom's Vegan Queso. That's a disaster right there. I had to think of something. So I made my own! Yup. But it still needs another test, so I'm not putting up the recipe yet.  Now, it's not going to be nearly as delicious as Nacho Mom's, but I'm doing my best. And as soon as it's available here, I will buy it up :) But here's a sneak peek:

Eat smart,
T.

Lots of good food and some great Fall recipes!

I know! I know! I'm lazy. Posting barely once a week....what is that?? Now that I'm back at work, it's a bit more difficult to post every other day. So sorry. I'll do my best.

Anyway, be sure to go all the way to the bottom of this post for an amazing Fall recipe!! One of my better ones, if I don't say so myself :)

Remember I bought Nacho Mom's Vegan Queso??? It's so amazing....one of my new addictions. Unfortunately, I only bought 2 jars. One jar is gone....I'm waiting to open the other because I know when I open it, it will be gone...sniff....and then there will be none.

And I've been eating my awesome Dr. Cow Cashew Cheese (Kale flavor).....so good, you gotta try it:

Other stuff I've been eating-

(Teese and Arugula Quesadilla on a Sprouted Grain Tortilla)

(Cold rice salad with leftover zucchini spirals)

(filling for a burrito:rice,black beans,peppers, onions,squash)

(millet with a creamy cashew tomato sauce based on VeganYumYum's sauce)

And this week's Blogger Recipe is an awesome Alfredo Sauce from Healthy.Happy.Life. 

(served with sprouted grain pasta)

This was really delicious! The Vegenaise gives it a nice tangy flavor. I don't use Vegenaise all that often, but it's a real treat when I do. Thank you, Kathy :)

Here's a great recipe for couscous salad, using the Toasted Pine Nut Couscous from Near East!! Really tasty stuff.

Cold Couscous Salad

1 pkg couscous (toasted pine nut is great in this)
2 small tomatoes, chopped
2-3 green onions, chopped
1/2 cup golden raisins
1/4 cup slivered almonds
3 Tbsp Orange Juice (or juice from tangerine,satsuma,etc.)
pinch of cloves
1/2 tsp orange zest (I used dried)


Cook the couscous according to the directions, adding the raisins in with the water. Add the rest of the ingredients to the cooked couscous. Mix well. Cool before serving.


I also made an amazing sauce for my grains & veggies bowl from Robin Robertson's 1,000 Vegan Recipes: Miso-Tahini Sauce. SOOOO good. I doubled the recipe and added lots of extra lemon juice.  Wow was that delicious over my veggies and brown rice!

And now for that awesome Fall recipe:

Autumn Rice and Beans

1 1/2 cups cooked brown rice
1 1/2 cups cooked black beans
2 medium sweet potatoes
1 tsp cumin powder
1/2 tsp each: paprika, cinnamon, chili powder

1 tbsp Creole Seasoning (or some cayenne and salt)
garlic & onion powder to taste
juice of 1 lime
1 bunch of kale, chopped


Peel the sweet potatoes and cube them.  Put them in a pot and cover with water. Bring to boil. Boil lightly until soft (~30 min).  Drain.  Put the rice and beans into the pot you cooked the sweet potatoes in.  Add 1/2 cup water. Cook on medium heat until heated through, adding water as needed.  Add in all spices. Stir well. Add in the kale and let it wilt for a few minutes. Then, add in the cooked sweet potatoes. Stir very well. At this point, the sweet potatoes will mash up very easily in the pot. That's ok. I like it mashed up well. Add in the lime juice last. Again, stir. Serve with more lime juice on top!


Phew.....that took forever. Hahaha....but at least it's done.  I'll be out and about this weekend eating some great food....can't wait to post about it!!

PS-Have any of you been to Ireland?  (thinking about a possible future trip) We've never done any actual escorted tours on buses....but I'm tempted to do one or two there, since a lot of the great scenery/coastline is not accessible by train.  Thoughts?? Have any of you done coach tours before?


Eat smart,
T.