Banana Pancakes

Banana Pancakes with Veggie bacon

It seems like there is always a banana in the fruit bowl that is just a little too ripe to eat. A banana like this is perfect for banana pancakes! Slice it into the batter. It adds a little sweetness and also potassium, fiber and vitamins.

Banana Pancakes

1 cup organic buckwheat flour
3/4 cup almond milk (more if too thick)
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. baking powder

1) Mix all ingredients together.
2) Pour about 2/3 cup of batter on heated griddle (grease griddle with canola oil or non-stick spray
3) Cook a few minutes, then flip and cook the other side. Should be browned on both sides.
4) Serve with maple syrup or honey.

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Easter Brunch

Easter comes at a different time each year, and this year it’s early in the calendar. But it’s not too late to plan a lovely brunch. All the recipes below are healthful and vegan.

Easter Brunch Menu

Oatmeal Pancakes
Berry Sauce
Veggie sausage or veggie bacon
Fresh juice and coffee

Oatmeal Pancakces

2 cups oatmeal (quick cooking is fine, but don’t use instant oatmeal)
3 cups vanilla, unsweetened or regular almond milk
3 tbsp. ground flax seed whisked with 8 tbsp. water (substitute for 2 eggs)
½ cup oat flour
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
1 tbsp. Canola oil
1 tbsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. Nutmeg
¼ tsp. Ginger
¼ tsp. Allspice

1) Mix oats and almond milk together in bowl until blended. Place in refrigerator overnight.

2) The morning of your breakfast, add all ingredients together with oat mixture and blend. You may need to add a splash or two of almond milk if it is a little thick.

3) Grease a flat skillet and make the pancakes just like you make regular pancakes. If you like silver dollar, make those. If you like one great big pancake, have at it. Generally I used about ½ cup of batter per pancake.

4) Flip pancake and cook other side. Both sides should be golden brown.

Serve with maple syrup or berry sauce.

Berry Sauce

This sauce is packed full of antioxidants and contains very little sugar. It’s good for you and tastes great!

1 pint of blackberries
½ pint of blueberries
1 tbsp. sugar (optional)(maple syrup is a good sugar substitute here)
1 tbsp. honey
1 tsp. cinnamon
¼ tsp. nutmeg
¼ tsp. ginger
1/2 cup water

1) Wash berries and mix together with sugar in a medium-sized bowl. Let set about 10-15 minutes so berries macerate.
2) Place berry mix in a medium-sized kettle. Add honey and spices and 1/2 cup of water and bring to a low boil.
3) Boil for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4) Then reduce heat and simmer about 20 minutes.
5) Berries will burst and you will have a delicious sauce.

Happy Easter!

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Banana Nut Muffins

There is probably a banana or two on your counter right now that is too ripe to eat, but not rotten enough to throw away. These bananas are perfect for making banana nut muffins! Make a batch for quick and healthy on-the-go snacks and breakfasts.

Banana Nut Muffins (Vegan)

1 ripe banana
1/3 cup chopped walnuts (or your favorite nut)
1 tbsp. apple butter (or applesauce)
2 tbsp. Canola oil
½ cup unsweetened almond milk
1 tbsp. ground flax seed plus 4 tbsp. water, whisked together (this is an egg substitute)
1 tsp. vanilla
¼ cup white sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white flour (Note: If you follow a gluten free diet, use oat flour in place of the white and wheat flours)
1 cup white whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. cinnamon
¼ tsp. ginger

1) Mix all wet ingredients together (except banana). Whisk in sugars.
2) Mix all remaining dry ingredients together, except nuts.
3) Gradually add wet ingredients to dry ingredients.
4) Break ripe banana in small pieces into batter. Add in  nuts. Mix everything together.
5) Spoon batter into muffin cups.
6) Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes.

Enjoy!

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Tofu Scramble with Spinach, Mushrooms and Red Peppers

Tofu Scramble with Spinach, Mushrooms and Red Peppers

Even if you eat eggs and do not have to watch your cholesterol, you will LOVE this recipe. Better than real scrambled eggs. Seriously. I only tried tofu scramble once before – at a vegetarian restaurant in Washington, D.C.–and this version is way better (even though that one was good). That said, feel free to change this up however you like. For instance, if you can’t stand mushrooms, leave them out, or substitute a vegetable you do like.

Tofu Scramble with Spinach, Mushrooms and Red Peppers (Vegan)

1 14 oz. package of extra firm or firm tofu
¼ cup diced onion
¼ cup diced red pepper
5-6 mushrooms, stems removed, cut in cubes
¾ cup fresh spinach, cut into ribbons (or chopped)
1 tsp. turmeric (adds flavor and the yellow “egg” color)
¼ – ½ tsp. cayenne pepper (depending on if you like spicy food)
¼ tsp. garlic powder
¼ cup daiya cheddar or mozzarella or a blend of both
extra virgin olive oil
salt & pepper (to taste)

1)      Drain tofu of all water and pat dry with a paper towel. You may go through several paper towels while removing moisture from the tofu.

2)      Heat about 1-2 tbsp. of olive oil over medium heat in a frying pan or wok. Add the diced onion and sauté a couple of minutes.

3)      Heat about 1 tbsp. of olive oil over medium heat in a second frying pan or wok. Simply crumble the tofu into the pan. Stir every minute or two.

4)      Meanwhile, add the diced red pepper to the pan with the onions. Saute together a few minutes. Then add the mushrooms.

5)      In the tofu pan, add the turmeric, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, salt & pepper and stir together.

6)      Add the spinach to the pan with the onion mixture and stir together. Cook another minute or two or until spinach wilts.

7)      Add the vegetable mixture into the tofu scramble mixture and stir everything together.

8)      Add the daiya cheese and stir together.

9)      Plate with toast and your favorite hot sauce on the side (I used Louisiana brand.) Delicious!

Two large servings.

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Lazy Vegan Biscuits (who knew they could be so good?)

As a housewife in the 1960s and 1970s, my mom embraced Bisquick and all of the other modern shortcuts to a good suburban meal. So, until today, it did not occur to me to try to make biscuits from scratch. I figured they would be too time-consuming, difficult or fattening.

Inspired by a delicious-looking blog entry at the Amateur Gourmet , I decided to try to make some biscuits.

Of course, being a health nut and vegan-ish, I had to change his recipe around to make it “lighter” and vegan, but even without the butter and buttermilk, these biscuits were darn good! More than darn good. Especially with honey and apple butter. Yum!  And I’ll add that they only took minutes to prepare (that’s why I call them “lazy” – they were just too easy!)

Lazy Vegan Biscuits

Lazy Vegan Biscuits

1/2 cup white flour
1/2 cup white whole wheat flour
1 tbsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. sugar
2 tbsp. Smart Balance
3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk

Lazy Biscuits Turned out Good!

1) Mix together dry ingredients.

2) Melt Smart Balance in the microwave and add to the dry ingredients.

3) Gradually stir in the unsweetened almond milk. (You may need to add another tbsp. of flour if it looks too wet).

4) Spray a cake pan with non-stick cooking spray. Drop the biscuits by big spoonfuls into the pan.

5) Bake at 500 degrees for 5 minutes. Reduce heat to 450 degrees and bake another 10-15 minutes (check after 10 minutes).

6) Try with apple butter or honey. Yum!

Makes 5 good-sized biscuits.

Biscuit with Honey

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Easy Stewed Cinnamon Apples

It’s apple season in Virginia. After a trip to Carter Mountain in Charlottesville, I have lots of Fuji (sweet and crisp) and Pink Lady (a little tart and crisp) apples. I plan to share a few recipes over the next couple of weeks related to apples. To start, here’s a super easy–and versatile–recipe: stewed apples.

Use these stewed apples as an ingredient in apple bread, as a topping over pancakes (or an ingredient in pancakes!), as a stir-in in oatmeal, as a topping for ice cream or as a side dish. As you can see, there are lots of ways to use stewed apples and you can probably come up with even more. I hope you enjoy this easy recipe.

Easy Stewed Cinnamon Apples

This recipe is super easy, delicious and healthy. And no added fat!

2 apples
2 tbsp. apple cider or water
2 tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. ginger
½ tsp. nutmeg
½ tsp. ground cloves
2 tsp. ground flaxseed
2 tsp. brown sugar (optional)

1) Chop apples. You can peel, if desired.
2) Add in remaining ingredients and stir.
3) Cook in microwave on high for about 1 minute 20 seconds.
4) Serve immediately or save for later.

Great stirred in oatmeal, over pancakes, over ice cream, as an ingredient in bread or cakes or as a side dish.

Try adding in golden raisins, currants or chopped pecans or walnuts. Yum!

To make it even easier, follow the youtube video at: http://youtu.be/cPUE-1kZsjo.

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Sweet Potato Bread (vegan)

Ground Cinnamon

It’s the time of year when baking seems like a good idea, particularly when it involves cinnamon and spices that fill the house with warm, yummy fragrance. Anyone walking into a home where sweet potato bread is baking will want to sit down and stay a while. It’s a scent that says  ”make yourself comfortable.”

And there’s nothing like a slice with a cup of tea or vanilla almond milk for a mid-afternoon or late night snack.

The version below is vegan and healthful. Treat yourself today!

Sweet Potato Bread

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

• 1 cup whole-wheat flour
• 1/4 cup white flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
•  ½ tsp. baking soda
• ½ tbsp. cinnamon
• ¼ tsp. ginger
• ¼ tsp. ground cloves
• ¼ tsp. nutmeg
• ½ cup firmly-packed brown sugar
• 1 tbsp. ground flaxseed plus 3 tbsp. water (egg substitute)
•  ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1/4  cup unsweetened almond milk
• 1 medium sweet potato
• 1/3 cup chopped currants (I used Zante currants)
• 1/3 cup chopped toasted pecans

Sweet Potato Bread: the dough

1) Combine wheat and white flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices in a large bowl.

2) Cook sweet potato in the microwave for about 3 minutes (or until baked). Peel sweet potato and mash it. (Cook the potato a little ahead of time and it won’t be hot when you peel it!)

3) Place ground flaxseed and water, milk, applesauce, and brown sugar in a small bowl. Add mashed sweet potato.

4) Add wet ingredients to dry. Stir in dates and chopped pecans. Spoon batter into a 9 x 5 loaf pan coated with nonstick cooking spray.

5) Bake at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes.  Bread is done when a knife comes out clean from the middle.

Makes one 9 X 5 loaf.

Beautiful sweet potatoes

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Nutty Glazed Banana Bread

Nutty Glazed Banana Bread

The other day I noticed a banana in my fruit bowl and I knew in a day it would be too soft to eat, so I decided to make Banana Bread.

I had seen a recipe in an old Cooking Light magazine that looked pretty good, and pretty light. But I decided to make the recipe even lighter–less fat and less sugar, one egg instead of two, oat and wheat flour instead of white. Plus I added nuts and a few more spices. I have to tell you, it turned out fabulous. I think it was the best banana bread I’ve ever eaten. And healthy too! I think it would freeze well, but I didn’t need to freeze it because it didn’t last. Great for breakfast, afternoons, midnight snacks, etc.

Nutty Glazed Banana Bread

1 ripe banana
½ cup chopped toasted pecans (or your favorite nut)
½ cup apple butter (or applesauce)
4 tbsp. Smart Balance, melted
1 tbsp. Canola oil
1 egg
1 tbsp. ground flax seed plus 3 tbsp. water, beaten together (this is an egg substitute–double this and omit the 1 egg if you want to make the recipe Vegan)
½ tsp. vanilla
¼ cup white sugar
½ cup brown sugar
¾ cup white flour
½ cup white whole wheat flour
¼ cup oat flour
¼ cup ground flaxseed
¾ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. cinnamon
¼ tsp. allspice
¼ tsp. ginger
¼ tsp. ground cloves

For glaze:
1/3 cup powdered sugar
1 ½ tsp. almond milk

1) Mix all wet ingredients together.
2) Mix all dry ingredients together, except nuts.
3) Gradually add wet ingredients to dry ingredients. Add in nuts.
4) Pour into bread pan sprayed with non-stick cooking spray and bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Knife inserted in middle of bread should come out clean.
5) Allow to cool for 30 minutes. Mix together glaze ingredients and pour onto bread.

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Homemade Granola Bars

Homemade Granola Bar

If you are looking for a healthy vegan snack that tastes great and is easy to make, these granola bars satisfy. I attended a cooking class at Whole Foods that focused on healthy recipes and the chef made granola bars. I changed his recipe around to create this one, and I have to say, they turned out really delicious. I eat one before a workout or when I get the mid-morning hungries, and the combination of oats, nuts and fruits gives the energy I need to power through the step class or finish my work.

 

Homemade Granola Bars

 These bars are so good, you will never want to buy them pre-made again. Perfect high energy food for breakfast, before a workout, on a hike, in a school lunch, or for a healthy snack anytime.

½ cup oat flour or white whole wheat flour
¼ cup ground flax seed meal
1/3 cup fruit preserves, your choice of fruit
½ cup currants
½ cup dried cranberries or other dried fruit cut into the size of cranberries
1 cup chopped nuts (I used pecans, but almonds or walnuts would work well too)
1/3 cup water 

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Homemade Granola Bars

 1)    Spray an 8-inch x 8-inch pan with non-stick cooking spray.

2)    Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and knead the ingredients together with your hands until a dough forms. You can add a bit more water if it seems too dry.

3)    Spread the dough evenly into the pan.

4)    Bake for 25-30 minutes. Cut into squares while still warm (will be easier to cut than if you wait til cool). Delicious!

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Cooking with Jesse

Last night I attended the Whole Foods Cooking class, taught by Jesse. Wow, it was great! The theme was healthy cooking for the new year, and everything he made was both healthy, delicious and vegan.

• First he made Raw Kale Salad with Garlicky dressing.
• Next “Save the Tuna” Salad Lettuce Rolls (no fish).
• Next Vegan Chili.
• Then he made Chiang Mai Buckwheat Noodles (spicy with curry and shitakes).
• Finally, the best homemade granola bars I’ve ever had!

I will share my two favorite recipes below.

Raw Kale Salad with Garlicky Dressing
Raw kale leaves with stems removed
4 oz. garlic, peeled
3 oz. liquid aminos (this is a soy sauce alternative, with less sodium)
4 oz. water
4 oz. tahini
5 oz. nutritional yeast
3 oz. lemon juice

Puree dressing ingredients in a blender. Pour over kale and toss about 30 minutes before serving.

Fruit & Nut Bars
1 cup whole spelt flour
1 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup prune puree or one 2.5 oz. container baby prunes
1/2 cup currants or finely chopped raisins
1/2 cup dried apricots, chopped fine
1 cup walnuts, chopped
1/3 cup water

Preheat oven to 325. Lightly coat an 8-inch X 8-inch pan with nonstick spray.

1) Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and knead with your hands until a good, stiff dough forms. Add a tablespoon of water if the mixture is too dry.
2) Press dough firmly and evenly into the prepared pan. Cut into squares with a sharp knife before placing in the oven.
3) Bake for 25-30 minutes, until baked through but still soft (don’t overbake or the bars will be tough).

Store leftover bars in the fridge.

Hope you enjoy these healthy recipes.

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