Shiitake
bacon is a thing. But honestly, Portobello bacon is way better– because
portobellos are larger, meatier, and therefore able to stand up to the
bacon-making and fig-wrapping process. This recipe is super simple, quick,
and a great way to enjoy all those figs that are starting to ripen in your
yard, or starting to pop up at the market. Read More
Who loves that nuanced taste of
ricotta cheese blended with herbs, tomatoes, and garlic? Who doesn’t
actually? This recipe for vegan zucchini lasagna rolls delivers on the nuance
while providing a more refreshing, more nutrient dense, clean version, that
highlights the awesome natural flavors found in some of our favorite herbs
and vegetables. These rolls are better suited for a lunch, brunch, or
appetizer, but you could also have them for dinner along with some cooked
grains, cannellini beans, and-or a green salad. Don’t let the small size fool
you. The almond ricotta in these makes them quite rich and energy dense, and
one can fill up on just a few. Get ready for a fantastic blend of fresh
flavors! Read More
Looking for a quick comfort food to whip up after a stressful day at work? This Vegan Cream of Mushroom soup delivers creamy, delicious comfort the right way- with clean, wholesome plant-based nutrition. Check out the instructional video below for step by step instructions!
Here is a fun and extremely easy
variation on the bacon-wrapped fig. Actually, I wanted to see if I could
wrap a fig in a shiitake bacon, but the bacon pieces aren’t quite big or
flexible enough. Next time I will try making a portobello bacon. In the
meantime, this is what I ended up with, and to my delight, it came out
very tasty. Try this as a snack, or a vegan and Paleo-friendly summer hors
d’oeuvre, if you go with the vegan cheese, or I would imagine that
goat cheese would be equally amazing. You can google shiitake bacon
recipes and experiment, or just use the one I came up with here. Making
shiitake bacon is much easier than it sounds if you use this quick
method.
This green beans with lemon
recipe is another one of those super simple, “too tasty and easy to be
true” dishes for an easy lunch or dinner side dish. Sometimes
demonstrating that you can grab one vegetable from your garden or the Farmers
Market, and easily turn it into a fairly complete meal or tide-over, is the
best way I can use my blog space! The chia seeds provide extra complete
protein and healthy fats to this, making it a decent light meal. And you can
always add more chia seeds to suit your own nutritional preference and taste.
So enjoy this one and let me know in the comments all the different ways you
did! I used some rattlesnake
beans from my garden for this recipe.
Basil, basil, and more basil!
When a basil plant decides to take hold it really pumps it out. So, I
schedule a few minutes each day to go out and cut the flowering basil tops,
to keep the plant going all summer long. Which winds me up with a lot of
extra basil hanging around the kitchen. Here is a great
sweet-meets-savory idea for a lazy afternoon salad, with vegan hazelnut pesto
as the star of the show. You can also do a non vegan version of this by using
parmesan or another hard aged cheese in place of the nutritional yeast.
Enjoy! Read More
I know you are probably thinking
that I post too many things with mushrooms, and you are right! But when I
glanced at my bag of dried porcini mushrooms the other day, I couldn’t help
thinking how great they would be as a rich, flavorful foundation for riced
cauliflower! This recipe for riced cauliflower with porcini mushrooms, fennel
& peas makes a nice springtime side dish or vegan entree. Porcini
mushrooms have a natural, rich, gamey flavor and the higher quality ones give
off a roux when cooked, that naturally adds some thickness to the dish.
Read More
Many of my recent clients are
following a Paleo-leaning or AIP (Autoimmune Paleo) diet, part of which
requires obtaining high nutrient density per calorie. So, I have been delving
into meals that fit that profile. I am finding that this style of cooking
does not have to be complicated at all. I love it when something really
simple comes out delicious and nutritionally complex. Enter this quick, rainy
day soup. Not only is it Paleo, but it’s clean, weight management friendly,
and can be converted to vegan very easily. If you want to go vegan and are
not concerned about avoiding certain plant based foods, you can replace the
sausage with cannellini beans, but since the sausage brings some flavor to
the soup, you may need to ramp up the herbs and garlic to compensate.
Read More
Have you ever picked up some
fresh turmeric root at the market, just to have it sort of sit in your
kitchen and shrivel up? Well, here is an easy, season-appropriate way to put
that turmeric root to really good use. This soup will make you want to curl
up under a blanket and turn the phone off. Read More
“Vegan-Paleo Squash Blossom
Fritters” is about as complete a description as I could get for these
very interesting, chewy-yet-crisp treats that were basically an experiment.
But I guess that is how it’s supposed to work on here, right? I started
thinking I was going to make a gluten-free, vegan squash blossom pancake, but
the texture of these, coming from the tapioca flour, is definitely more
“fritter”- like. These seem best right out of the oven, but I’ll
bet they would be great cold or reheated also. The problem is, I gobbled them
up so fast I didn’t have any to save for later, so now I have to wait until I
get some more fresh squash blossoms on my hands. Technically, these only
fulfill the ingredient guidelines of being “Paleo.” In order to be
truly paleo from a macronutrient standpoint, they wouldn’t be so heavy on
carbs. But, they are gluten, grain, dairy free and totally vegan as well. So
enjoy these as a healthier indulgence and as a great way to enjoy the
season’s squash, zucchini and other blossoms from the garden or the Farmers
Market. I’ll bet the chewy texture of these is unique from many things you
have tried before. Read More
