Peachy Keen Green

A nice vegan  chocolate cake recipe from Isa that I adjusted slightly -- by doubling it (because her recipe makes just one 8" round), making it in a square pan (easier!) and poking holes all over the top of the cooling cake so that the ganache will drip into it throughout. Ingredients 2 cups plain, unsweetened almond milk 2 tsp vinegar (apple cider or white balsamic) 1 1/2 cups sugar 2/3 cup canola oil 3 tsp vanilla extract Dry mix: 2 cups flour (I use white whole wheat) 2/3 cup cocoa powder 1 1/2 tsp baking soda 1 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp salt Ganache: 1 1/3 cups plain, unsweetened almond milk 16 oz semi sweet chocolate chips (we prefer 60%  TJ Chocolate Chunks) Note: YUMMY with 10 oz chocolate chunks + 4 oz 100% Montezuma's Absolute Black! Instructions Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk together the almond milk and vinegar in a large bowl, and set aside to curdle. Add the sugar, oil, and vanilla extract and mix well. In a separate bowl, mix flour,

Sightly adapted from a recipe in Vegan with a Vengeance  mostly to add some greens and tomato, and a little more turmeric. Nice served with toast potatoes, guacamole and salsa. Ingredients 1 T high heat oil (e.g., canola, grapeseed) 1 medium onion, chipped 2 C mushrooms 2-3 cloves minced garlic A few leaves of kale or chard or spinach 2 tomatoes, chopped 1 pound extra firm tofu, drained 1/4 C (heaping) nutritional yeast Juice of 1/2 lemon Spice blend: 2 t cumin 1 t dried thyme 1 t paprika 1 t turmeric 1 t salt Instructions Saute onions over medium-high heat for about 3 minutes; add mushrooms and sauté for 5 minutes. Add garlic, leaves and tomato, and saute 2 minutes. Add spice blend and mix. Add 1/4 cup water to deglaze the pan, scraping the bottom to get all the garlic and spices. Crumble in tofu and mix well. Don't crush the tofu, just kind of lift and mix; you want it to remain chunky. Let it cook about 15 minutes, stirring occasional

A wonderful chocolate oatmeal, or make it plain with maple and brown sugar. I found the chocolate version first, on Happy Healthy , and made up the plain version when I needed a change. Both are wonderful with berries on top. I add walnuts and chia to the chocolate version, and flax seeds to the maple and brown sugar version. I also tend to use more water and less almond milk for the plain version. Sometimes I make extra and freeze muffin-size portions like Trader Joes  does, to microwave during the week. Ingredients 1 cup steel-cut oats 2 cups water 3 cups vanilla almond milk* 2 T maple syrup Chocolate version:  1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder  Plain version: 2 T brown sugar *I use more water, less almond milk here Toppings: Berries (Strawberries, blueberries, etc.) Walnuts Chia seeds Flax seeds Instructions For the chocolate version, heat 1 cup of the water in the microwave, 1 minute. Slowly mix the cocoa in the water to pre-dissolve it

A berry crisp that combines elements of a few recipes I've tried, including Judi's. Delish! Ingredients Fresh apricots or pears OR Mix of fresh or frozen berries (24 oz)  2 T canola oil (opt. - I rarely us) 1/4 C brown sugar  Topping: 1 C all-purpose flour 1 C quick-cooking oats 1/3 - 1/2 C brown sugar (opt. but wonderful): 1/3 C sliced toasted almonds 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/2 C canola oil 1/4 C water Instructions Pour oil in pan. Put in fruit and mix. Mix up the topping and spread it over the fruit. Bake at 350 until the juice is all bubbly, about 20 minutes or so.  With fresh apricots, ready to go in the oven:

Our friend Arul made this for us one night, and I loved it. And it's so easy to make. Thanks, Arul! January 2019 update: True Food Kitchen cauliflower is delish, with a tahini-based dressing. Could try tossing some of this in a tahini dressing (added below) and fold in some mint and roasted pistachios. April 2016 update: My friend Sherry made delicious roasted cauliflower for us last night. She marinated the cauliflower in curry, garlic, and olive oil. It was milder, and delicious. She said "I find that if you break the cauliflower up into smaller pieces and roast a little higher at 425, and watch like crazy (so it doesn't burn), it gets more tender." Ingredients 1 large head cauliflower, cut into florets 2 T canola oil or olive oil Spices (or just use curry mix + garlic + salt) 1/2 tsp turmeric (heaping) 1/2 tsp chili powder (heaping) 1/2 tsp coriander powder (heaping) 1/2 tsp cumin powder (heaping) 1 tsp crushed garlic (optional) 1 tsp salt fresh

Happy Healthy and Oh She Glows both have recipes for chocolate chia pudding. One serving gives you all the omega 3's you need in a day! Happy Healthy has her  Overnight Chocolate Berry Breakfast Pudding for breakfast, and Oh She Glows dresses up her Healthy Chocolate Chia Pudding for dessert with a little shaved chocolate (see photos below). They're similar, and I can verify that even the breakfast version works for dessert! You can omit the chocolate if you want a change; it's fine plain. You might also try using white chia seeds then, and maybe a bit more vanilla extract. 11/20/16 update: Oh my goodness. Stop the presses! Judi's Blended Chocolate Peanut Butter Chia Pudding is the best of them all. Dangerously good! I've modified the recipe below to add optional peanut butter and using a blender. Ingredients 2 cups almond (vanilla or plain) or coconut milk 1 T maple syrup 4-6 T chia seeds (use high end for dessert version) 1 T peanut butter (optional

Mashed cauliflower and potatoes are delicious and even healthier than potatoes-only. I steam the cauliflower and potatoes in batches in the microwave using a microwave steamer, and toss them in a big bowl when they come out (after a few minutes to cool) for mashing. Ingredients 1 head cauliflower, coarsely chopped 2 medium or 3 small white potatoes, coarsely chopped (I leave the skin on) 3/4 cup regular soy milk (not flavored or sweetened) 2 T vegan margarine (I use Earth Balance) Salt and pepper to taste (fresh ground if possible) Instructions Steam the cauliflower and potatoes until soft but not mushy, 8-10 minutes. (I steam in batches in the microwave, but cook them however you prefer; you could boil, but you lose more nutrients to the water.) (Optional) Heat the soy milk in a small saucepan over medium-low heat until steaming hot but not boiling. (Do this if you're serving immediately; but it's also okay to just pour it on if the potatoes and cauliflowers are

Judi made this tart from Plant-Powered Kitchen for Thanksgiving, and we loved it! It's delicious with cranberry sauce on it, but super delicious on its own, too. This is my a slightly adapted version. Note the pie crusts come in 2, so you could double, or make a pumpkin pie with the other one! Serve with home-made cranberry sauce (recipe on the bag),  roasted veggies ,  mashed cauliflower potatoes , and/or  kale salad . Ingredients 1 T olive oil 1 cup onion, diced 1/2 C celery, diced 4-5 garlic cloves, minced 2 cups chickpeas, reserve 1/3 cup 2 T fresh squeezed lemon juice 1/2 tsp salt 1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper 2 tsp tamari 3/4 cup walnuts, toasted 1/3 cup rolled oats 1 bag fresh chopped spinach (or kale) 1/4 cup dried cranberries (optionally soak them in a little water) 1 tsp thyme Pie crust: We like this easy homemade whole wheat crust or Whole Food's  Wholly Wholesome 9" Whole Wheat or Spelt Organic Pie Shell Topping 1/2 tsp olive oi