Look, Ma! No Eggs!! Vegan Omelette

I woke up to some vegan documentary on TV. I have no idea what it was but it then inspired me to make a delicious vegan breakfast that even my non-vegan boyfriend would enjoy. It wasn't the healthiest of breakfasts (to me a healthy breakfast would consist of all raw fruits and veggie juices or smoothies) but it was a rainy Saturday morning and we both were off work for once so we decided to have a treat. I made pancakes with blueberries and bananas, hash brown potatoes and a vegan omelette. My favorite omelette was always spinach and mushrooms. Luckily, I had a portobella mushroom, some spinach and Daiya (gluten-free, soy-free and dairy-free) cheese, hanging around in my fridge. So, I whipped this up  and it was so delicious I had to share the recipe. Of course you can top with whatever you like. Here are a few ideas I had: chorizo and salsa, sauteed veggies, sauteed eggplant and cheese, chili with cheddar. You could do whatever you like with the toppings, get creative!

Vegan Spinach, Mushroom and Cheese Omelette
"Egg" Mixture
10 ounces silken tofu
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp smoked paprika

Place all "egg" ingredients in a blender and puree until smooth. Add 1-2 TBS water if necessary.

Topping
1 portobella mushroom cap sliced
1//2 C baby spinach
1/4- 1/2 C Daiya cheese

Sautee mushrooms and once they are cooked to your liking, reduce heat and add the spinach to wilt it.

Assemble
Pour about half the mixture into a skillet over medium heat, it will be thick so spread it out a little with a spatula or spoon (don't spread much as it will spread very thin as it heats). When it starts to bubble (kinda like a pancake) add the mushrooms and spinach watch closely until it begins to brown around the edges it will stop bubbling in the middl. Add the cheese then use the spatula to lift the edge of the omelette and fold over. Cook until the cheese begins to melt and flip to the other side. Once cooked you will have a tasty omelette crisp on the outside and soft and cheesy in the middle. FYI- the "egg" mixture also makes a fantastic cheese sauce for vegan quesadillas or mac and cheese.

Make Your Own Dole Whip!

Sorry I haven't posted in a while. When you work in a theme park occasionally it just eats your life for months or so at a time. Don't get me wrong, it's a lot of fun but sometimes your life just isn't your own.

So, to make it up to you, this post is about a delicious theme park treat you may have tried just outside the Disneyland Tiki Room. Made with Dole pineapples, this stuff is really popular and refreshing so as you can imagine there is always a line for this one hot days at Disney. It does contain extra ingredients that are not so healthy though. What I discovered recently is that I can make a comprable treat without anything but pineapple... well, and a Champion juicer.

All I had to do to make my own pineapple whip was put the blank on and push frozen pineapple through the juicer and that was it. So for breakfast I had delicious whipped pineapple and clean up was simple, everything just rinsed clean. Love the simplicity of raw foods. For added creaminess and sweetness, you can add a frozen banana but I like it just like this. Pineapple is naturally sweet so no need for sugar. I bet it would be yummy topped with raspberries and slivered almonds. For fun, and because I love chocolate, I added chocolate syrup. I just bought this Santa Cruz organic chocolate syrup. It still sugar but if you have ever as a vegan missed thick creamy hot fudge, this stuff is a great replacement. Mmm. Oh and you could also make a yummy pineapple float just swap out the blank for the screen and make some pineapple juice to add to your frozen confection. Simple and refreshing. If you don't have a juicer that will work for this, I apologize. You should consider getting one. If you can't afford the over $261. price, just keep checking places like craigslist and Ebay. It's worth it! Anyone out there know of other juicers that can do what the Champion does? I love the Omega but not sure it has the same features. Maybe a Vitamix would work?

Home made Dole Whip. Yummy!

Raw Three Ingredient Chocolate Mousse

Need a easy, decadent chocolate fix, without all the sugar and fat? Today I looked in my fridge and saw my raw cacao powder. Knowing how healthy it is and how it makes my cramps and headaches go away in minutes, I wanted some. I also saw my date butter so that's how this happened. It's really simple and so delicious. Try it!!

Chocolate Mousse- Vegan, Sugar-free and All Natural

Vegan Raw Chocolate Mousse:
(Single serving)
1/4 C date butter
1 tsp raw cacao powder
1 tsp vanilla
1-2 tsp water

Pour ingredients into a bowl and mix with a spoon until blended. Eat. Be happy. Ok so it's four ingredients but water doesn't count. ;-)

Raw Fettuccine With Meatballs And Creamy Marinara Sauce

Vegan, Raw, Gluten-Free, Paleo-Friendly Fettuccine With Meatballs And Creamy Marinara Sauce

I know I am posting a lot of uber-healthy recipes rather than decadent sweet treats. Trust me I have a ton of sweet recipes, which will be coming up soon but this summer it has been so hot and all I feel like eating is fresh, raw wholesome meals that won't heat up my kitchen and that take advantage of my amazing raw organic produce. So, if you're looking for junk food, hang tight I'll post those recipes later even though I might be switching over to a more plant based, less (or no) grain, soy, etc. I still have written down many vegan junk food recipes so I don't want them to go to waste. I will post eventually. I must clarify, when I say vegan junk food, I don't mean junk like the equivalent of fast food or twinkies. I always use quality ingredients which are healthier, they just are a little more processed than say Raw Fettuccine With Creamy Marinara and Meatballs. This recipe is vegan which means dairy and meat free. Also, it is gluten-free, grain-free, and 100% raw. It probably took less time to make than real fettuccine and didn't heat up my kitchen which is very important as we've been in a bit of a heat wave lately. Anyway, I am very excited about this recipe. I hope you enjoy.

Pasta:

4-6 zucchini 

juice of 2 lemons or limes

dash of salt

1 T olive oil (can be left off if you are cutting back on fat)

Peel zucchini and toss or eat the skins or feed to pets (I have a rabbit and guinea pig who love my veggie scraps). Use your veggie peeler to shred the zucchini into noodles then mix noodles in with the lemon or lime juice, salt and oil and set aside while you prepare the sauce.

My cute veggie lovers: Piglet and Thumper

Creamy Tomato Basil Sauce:

8-10 oz of cherry or grape tomatoes

1 T  red onion minced

1 zucchini peeled and sliced

salt to taste

1 clove of garlic minced 

5-7 leaves of fresh basil

5-7 leaves of sage

6-8 olives

Place all ingredients (minus the sage and olives) into a blender, Vitamix or Blendtec  (I know I'm pushing this blender a lot but it is my favorite you may also find a used or refurbished one cheaper on Amazon) and puree. Mix sauce into noodles. Add a few whole leaves of fresh sage and the olives chopped in half.

Italian Sausage Meatballs:

1 C Walnuts

1 C sunflower seeds

1/4 C sun dried tomatoes

2 cloves garlic minced

2 T onion minced

2 T fennel seeds

1 tsp basil

1 tsp oregano

salt and pepper to taste

water as needed

Soak your nuts and seeds while you prepare the noodles and sauce. If you don't remember to soak them, it's ok you may just need to add water while you are blending this mixture. Add all ingredients to a blender, Vitamix, etc or food processor and blend thoroughly. It should have the texture of a thick almond butter or something like that. Once mixed, roll into 1/2" balls.

Serve noodles and sauce over a bed of spinach and top with "Meatballs." There you a have a satisfying, delicious meal that is filling, wholesome and doesn't heat up your kitchen.  

Decadent German Chocolate Cheesecake- Raw, Gluten-Free and Vegan!!

     My boyfriend told me he was craving cheesecake just a few days before his birthday. Hmm... I started tossing out all these ideas (do you want strawberry, cherry, chocolate, chocolate chip?) I was imagining all kinds of tasty ideas. He was just like, "Stop! You're making me hungry." Well, he's no help. :-p So anyway, he mentioned cheesecake and I love raw, vegan cheesecake and have been wanting to experiment making my own. I also love this amazingly decadent vegan german chocolate cake that my sister has been making for everyone's birthday for the past year or so. It's full of bad things like sugar and processed flour but it's vegan and so delicious.

     I have been thinking that I could probably quite successfully make a raw version of this incredible cake. Of course it would have to be a cheesecake type cake because I don't have a clue how I would make a delicious chocolate cake that was spongy, moist, still raw and doesn't taste healthy. So, a silky cheesecake kind of texture would have to work. It turned out great! I would only change one thing. I made a tasty crust for it however, I think I would prefer a dark chocolate coating where the crust would be, just to make it more true to the delicious cake my sister makes as well I believe it would better compliment the texture of this cake. So, I will be adding the chocolate coating recipe to this one later. I have an idea of how I want to make it but want to test it first before I post. Anyway, this recipe has lots of healthy fats and is free from the most common allergens: milk, dairy, eggs, soy

Crust:

1 C raw oat groats (if you can't find these, you can use whole oats)
1/2 C raw coconut oil (I like Artisana brand from Whole Foods)

Pour oat groats into blender or food processor and blend a minute or so until it has more of a floury consistency. It will be a bit grainer than flour then mix together with the oil in in a bowl. Sometimes I need to add a little extra coconut oil. Once the dough is mixed, press into the bottom of your pie pan and refrigerate while you prepare the filling.

Filling:
1 C coconut oil
1 C shredded coconut
2/3 C raw cashew or macadamia nut butter ( you can make this by soaking nuts overnight and blending in a vitamix or food processor)
1 C raw cacao or cocoa powder
1 C raw agave syrup
1/4 tsp sea salt

Blend the shredded coconut and oil in the blender or food processor until smooth then blend the rest of the ingredients together. You can also melt the ingredients together with a spoon over heat no higher than 98 degrees. Blend until smooth. Spread mixture over crust and place in fridge again.

Topping:

1 C honey dates or medjool work well too
1/2 Tbsp raw whipped honey* (optional)
1 Tbsp vanilla extract**
2/3 C raw pecan pieces
1/3 C shredded coconut

Soak pecans and dates separately overnight. I actually skipped this step but it does usually make a difference. Place dates, honey, and vanilla in the blender and blend until smooth then stir in coconut and pecans. Spread this mixture over the top and serve right away or refrigerate until you're ready to serve it.

*Honey comes from bees so is not vegan
**Vanilla extract is not raw but is tasty so I use it you can leave it out if you eat strictly raw foods

Delicious No-Sugar Raw Vegan Pecan Pie

     Thanksgiving is right around the corner and my favorite food to bake, now un-bake, is pecan pie. I have made many tasty vegan pecan pies because I love pecan pie and have always been trying to perfect my recipe but this is my favorite and just happens to be the easiest too!
   
        I had the idea for this recipe when I went through the farmer's market and tried some tasty honey dates. They tasted like delicious caramel or like the gooey part of pecan pie filling plus I was kinda on a raw food kick and just discovering many amazing things that could be done with coconut oil, like make a delicious buttery-tasting crust. The best thing about this pie is it's easier to make than regular pecan pie and equally, if not more, delicious.

Crust:
2 Cups raw oat groats (if you can't find these, you can use whole oats)
1 Cup raw coconut oil (I like Artisana brand from Whole Foods)

Pour oat groats into blender or food processor and blend a minute or so until it has more of a floury consistency. It will be a bit grainer than flour then mix together with the oil in in a bowl. Sometimes I need to add a little extra coconut oil. Once the dough is mixed, press into your pie tin (it works best in a disposable pie tin) and place in refrigerator while you make the filling.

Filling:
2 C honey dates or medjool work well too
1 Tbsp raw whipped honey* (optional)
1 Tbsp vanilla extract**
1 1/2 C raw pecan pieces

Soak the pecans and dates separately overnight or for at least an hour or two. This step can be skipped if there are time constraints but it does make a tiny difference in taste.

Mix the dates, honey and vanilla in a blender or food processor. You may need to add a little water if using a blender to get everything to blend. Then stir in the pecans. Once the filling is mixed to your liking,

You can also make it a chocolate pecan pie by mixing a cup of raw cacao nibs in the food processor with your dates, honey and vanilla. It has a very dark chocolate flavor.

*honey is not considered vegan to some people so if this is you, omit it
**If you're strict about being all raw, vanilla extract is not raw so you may want to omit this.