Strawberry "Shake"

Just a quickie here from Busyville today...I'm procrastinating cleaning my house for the in-laws tonight (hub's birthday...) and procrastinating the work-out DVD I should be squeezing into my afternoon too.  My daughter stayed home today because of a sore gimpy ankle that miraculously 80% improved about an hour into the morning...after a heating pad and mommy kisses were applied.  We're still arguing about which actually did the trick.  Maybe it was a combination of the two.

Anyway, she asked for a smoothie just now.  And we thought it was going to be a boring concoction, only finding strawberries in the freezer, as opposed to the mixed berries we usually use.  But what was born was some darn yummy!  My first lick off the blender cover brought me back to days of old, stirring up milk and strawberry Nesquik powder from a tin can at my mom's kitchen table. 

I hadn't planned on sharing this simplistic creation while I was putting it together, so forgive the absence of exact measurements:

About 1 cup frozen organic strawberries
1 large frozen banana
About 1 Tbsp maple syrup
Original soymilk (enough to blend it smooth - about a cup?)

Whir in your blender for a couple minutes, til silky smooth. 

This of course is thicker and colder than that strawberry milk from almost three (ouch) decades ago, but nostalgic and delicious just the same. As I'm finishing this entry up, I hear the sounds of a straw sucking at the bottom of an empty glass from the other room...

A kiss from mom, and your afternoon is made.

Drink Your Frog Eggs...er...Chia

We spent a couple days in Maine this past week, and one of the highlights of the trip for me was shopping at the Royal River Natural Foods store in Freeport (yes, I guess that makes me a bit of a food geek).  Really, the ocean and family time were lovely too!  Anyway...I tried to limit my purchases to those that I hadn't seen in our own local co-op, keeping in mind the storage/cooler space in the already-full Trailblazer...and when I checked out I realized most of my purchases were sweet treats (hey, it's vacation!), like this...

(think "Mounds" - MMMM!)

and this...

and a couple packages of Liz Lovely cookies (made in VT...so I buy them in ME?)

I also splurged on a new eco-friendly cutting board (that you'll notice as the lovely brown underdrop in the ingredients pic below), some doggy bug spray, natural sunscreen, lavender oil (supposedly good for keeping ticks away)...I can't remember what else...but mostly sweets.

Oh...and this...a kombucha-based cherry juice/chia seed drink:

This bottle is empty now, of course, but when I got it out of the bag and started drinking it in the car, my husband said "whatcha got there, baby?....frog eggs?"  He knows better (but then, nothing would surprise him these days), but he did have a point.  It did look like bottled frog eggs floating in pinkish water. 

We went on to wonder if the frogs would be laying earlier this year with the unusually mild winter and spring we've had, and how frog eggs are so nostalgic for me.  I remember gathering some into a mason jar with my dad when I was little and moving them to a spring close to our house so we could watch their progress.  I guess I've always loved the nature of eggs, of any kind.

I digress... 

The ingredients of this drink were very basic, so I thought...why not try making at home?  I know nothing about kombucha, however, which was apparently the star of the show here.  So I use regular ol' tea, juice, water, and of course chia seeds. 

If you think your palate might have textural issues with the chia seeds, I urge you to give it a try anyway...they are so soft and smooth after soaking that it's really not all that odd feeling once you get a few swigs in.  And I actually like the flavor of my concoction better than the storebought version too.  But if you're still thinking it'll be "hard to swallow," how about swallowing these facts:  Chia has more than 8 times the amount of omega-3s as salmon, more antioxidants than blueberries, and more fiber than oatmeal!  I say, drink up!

I've made about 3 batches since we've been home, using different juices and teas, so play with it and see what you like.  This is my favorite medley to date:

Makes two 8-oz servings.

1-1/2 cups warm water
2 Tbsp chia seeds
1/2 cup organic apple juice
1 bag oolong tea

Pour the warm water into a glass container (that has a cover).  Add the chia seeds, and screw the cover on tightly.  You'll want to shake the container intermittently throughout this whole process; otherwise the seeds will form into clumps as they soften and gel up.

 Add the juice and the tea bag, and cover again.  Shake some more.  Put the container in the fridge. 

This of course tastes best after a few hours, but overnight is best.  So tomorrow take your jar on a walk...and enjoy the sight of those real frog eggs, pussy willows, fiddleheads, and peepers.  Happy spring!

For the Love of Biscuits (GF!)

I get my love of biscuits from my dad.  I made him a dessert this weekend because today's his birthday, but I'll share that with you another time.  Today is about biscuits.  They are rustic and basic.  They are savory, sweet, buttery, flaky, and dense.  I love them.  I love them.  I love them. I love them most with a big dollop of jam.  I love them with butter too.  I love them with gravy.  But I could even just eat them plain.

We were just discussing this love of biscuits yesterday with some friends and my parents (my mom, however, does not like them - inconceivable!), so they were on the brain.  And then when I realized the strawberries in the fridge were starting to mold this morning, I knew what I had to do. 

I had just clipped a recipe for gluten-free biscuits out of a vegetarian magazine a few days ago, so I thought I'd give it a whirl...altered to be vegan and with an added splash of vanilla to make some uber yummy strawberry shortcakes.

1 cup brown rice flour
1/2 cup garbanzo bean flour
1/2 cup potato flour
2 packets stevia (I use Sweet Leaf)
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup Earth Balance butter
3/4 cup soy milk + 1 tsp AC vinegar
1-2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Lightly coat a baking sheet with EB butter, and set aside.

Mix together dry ingredients in a medium bowl.  Cut in the butter until pebbly.  Add the milk/vinegar, and mix just until the dough comes together.  Work with your hands and form into a disk. 

On a lightly floured surface, pat out the dough until about 1 inch thick.
Cut into rounds (I used a 2-1/2 inch cutter and got about 10 biscuits).

Place on prepared sheet, and bake for 15 minutes.

I was surprised just how good these GF biscuits were...I'm thinking this will be my go-to recipe from now on.  Deeelish!

The omnis in the family topped theirs with sliced organic strawberries and local whipped cream.

I wished I had some whipped coconut cream on hand for a pretty and complete strawberry shortcake picture for you, but really...as far as my tastebuds go...I was quite content with my jam.  A 3-bite count of comfort food perfection.

Clean-out-the-Fridge Cabbage Sausage & Bean Skillet

This recipe actually began as a real recipe...from the "Quick-Fix Vegetarian" cookbook by Robin Robertson.  A neighbor friend was hoeing out some cookbooks and had me peruse them before she brought them to the church's rummage sale.  I picked this one out, only to realize a few nights later when I finally got to look through it that it was all vegan!  Bonus!

Anyway, the original was pretty basic...veg sausage links, onion, and a package of preshredded coleslaw, sauteed up with oil and salt and pepper. 

I had half a head of cabbage to use up, a couple Field Roast sausages (at our co-op they come frozen, and by the time I get home they've mostly thawed out, and I have this idea in my head after something's been frozen it can't be refrozen or ELSE!, and really I only want a sausage once in awhile, not four in one week....hence all the time having "leftover sausages"...how's that for a run-on?), and a bowl of chickpeas I had soaked and cooked and again, never got around to freezing or doing something with all of them.  So, in the end it turned from me following a recipe to searching through my fridge to find other stuff I could throw in the pan.   It went like this:

Coconut oil
1/2 a small green cabbage, sliced thin
2 links Field Roast Italian sausage, diced
1 onion, sliced
About 3 cups of cooked chickpeas
2/3 of a pear (my daughter had started it but didn't finish...and having mostly German blood cells coursing through me, given the cabbage and the sausage, I had been thinking "apples" anyway....I diced it up and threw it in)
Salt and pepper, to taste

Heat the coconut oil in a skillet and saute the chickpeas and onion until onion is softened. 

Add the sausage, and brown.  Add some water if needed.  Finally add the pear and cabbage and cook until tender.  Season to taste. 

I served this over quinoa and alongside some, yes, leftover roasted red peppers.  The first night I sprinkled it with nooch.  For lunch over the next couple days I shook on some liquid aminos (soy sauce). 

My Favorite Cereal

This is another tweaked recipe from Brendan Brazier's Thrive diet.  I have to say, I had my doubts the first time I was putting it together, but those doubts very quickly dissipated after bite #1.  This cereal has become a craved daily staple.  The ginger is effervescent and has an interesting relationship with the cocoa/carob.  You'll never miss a grainy flake with all the crunch from the almonds and seeds, and the fruits provide the perfect balance of soft and sweet.  Topped with some almond milk - I'm just hooked!  And how can you not feel good after all that nutrition you just gave your body to feast upon?

1 banana, diced
1 pear, cored and diced
1 date, chopped (or raisins)
1/4 cup almonds, chopped  (or pecans)
1 Tbsp ground flaxseed
1 Tbsp hempseed
1 Tbsp carob chips (and/or 1/2 Tbsp cocoa powder)
1/2 Tbsp grated fresh ginger (I keep ginger in my freezer and peel and zest as needed - I eyeball the amount here - the more the better, IMO!)

Layer all in a bowl. 

Top with your favorite plant-based milk, mix, devour, and prepare to conquer the world!

"Key" Lime Pancakes

I LOVE key lime pie...and lemon pie...and lemon curd...and lemon bread...you see the pattern.  A week or two ago I was trying out a Secret Agent Key Lime Pudding (remember the chocolate pudding using avocados?).   My 8-yr-old loves lime and lemon as much as I do.  My first attempt at the pudding wasn't nearly puckery/limey enough, but plenty yummy...a work in progress.  One afternoon in particular, said daughter and I were peering into the fridge for a snack.  The conversation went like this:

Me:  "Ooh, I'm going to have some avocado pudding."
Her:  "Avocado?!  Mom!"
Me:  "Uh...did I say avocado?  I meant LIME...I was just looking at the avocados in the fridge, so that's what came out of my mouth...heh"

We giggled as we spooned the last bit of the container into our mouths...such a silly mommy...what a ridiculous notion THAT would be...ha ha...he he...hmm. 

Whew!

Anyway, I never did get around to testing more pudding, but the other night I decided pancakes were the answer to what's for dinner.  I had seem a lemon poppyseed pancake recipe on Pinterest (not vegan), so my wheels started spinning...that would-be pudding could be made into a sauce/curd as a topping.  This is what I came up with, and they were DELICIOUS! if I do say so myself.  Daughter loved the sauce, but turned her nose up at the pancakes because I put the much-dreaded coconut in them, forgetting coconut is one of the trillion foods she claims to dislike. 

Note:  I call this recipe "key" lime pancakes, even though I actually use regular persian limes...I just think the phrase "key lime" gives the reader a better notion of what's being created (the pie flavor).  If you have regular access to real key limes, have at it!

The Sauce:
5 persian limes
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 avocado
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt

Zest the limes and set aside. 
Juice the limes - you should end up with about a 1/2 cup.*
In a food processor, blend the lime juice, syrup, avocado, salt, and vanilla until smooth and well blended.

*Note:  Limes are LA-BOR-I-OUS to juice.  I find if I take a knife to each half, slicing some of the internal membranes, it makes the task of squishing against the juicer a lot easier.  Make sure you save the pulp that collects too, because it'll be added  to the pancake batter.

The Pancakes (makes about a dozen):
2 cups spelt flour
1/2 cup millet flour
4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
6 packets stevia (I use Sweet Leaf)
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup shredded coconut
Zest and pulp of the 5 limes
1/4 cup coconut oil
2 cups coconut-almond milk
2/3 cup water
2 tsp vanilla
Raspberries and/or blueberries, optional

Mix dry ingredients, and then add the wet.  Whisk well. 

Drop batter by 1/4-cupfuls onto a hot oiled skillet.  Cook a couple minutes on each side, until slightly browned and cooked through. 

I made a couple with blueberries and a couple with raspberries and left some plain as well.  My favorites were the plain and raspberry. 

Top pancakes with the lime sauce.  I toasted some coconut for sprinkling on the top as well.

 

Nom nom nom!