Vegan Macaroni and Cheese

Mac and Cheese is one of my ultimate comfort foods and I am always up for trying out different vegan versions 🙂 I love that this recipe uses 20 ounces of squash for the sauce so you “sneak” in the veggies and help make it a creamier sauce without needing extra vegan cheese. (although we didn’t really skimp on that:))  Check out Cheesy Baked Penne with Cauliflower (one of my fave versions ever!) and Quick, Easy & Healthy Vegan Mac & Cheeze (I also used winter squash in this one).

Vegan Macaroni and Cheese
adapted from Skinny Bitch in the Kitch
Serves 8

• 1 tablespoon refined coconut oil
• About 2 tablespoons fine sea salt
• 1 pound whole-wheat or brown rice elbow macaroni
• 2 (10-ounce) packages frozen pureed winter squash
• 2 cups soy, rice milk or almond milk
• 8 ounces vegan Cheddar cheese, shredded
• 4 ounces (about 1/2 cup) vegan cream cheese
• 1 1/2 teaspoons powdered mustard
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

  1. Preheat oven to 375 F. Oil a 2-quart casserole dish; set aside.
  2. In a 4- to 6-quart stockpot over high heat, combine 3 quarts of water with about 1 1/2 tablespoons of the salt. Bring the water to a boil, add the macaroni, and cook according to the package directions.
  3. Meanwhile, in a 3- to 4-quart saucepan over medium heat, combine the squash and milk, stirring and breaking up the squash with a spoon until the squash is defrosted. Increase the heat to medium-high and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat and whisk in the Cheddar, cream cheese, mustard, cayenne, and the remaining 1/2 tablespoon of salt.
  4. When the pasta is done, drain it, then return the pasta to the pot. Stir the cheese sauce into the macaroni. Transfer the entire mixture to the prepared baking pan.
  5. Sprinkle with more cheese and salt and pepper and then bake for 20 minutes.

Bring on the troops!

Spring/Summer Cleanse 2011: Week 1

It is that time of year, cleansing time! I love to do fasts and detoxes a few times a year. I have done so many different cleanses ranging from green smoothie cleanses, to juice cleanses, to the master cleanse and even gallbladder and liver cleanses. I decided this time around to embark on a longer more sustainable cleanse. It is a combo elimination diet and detox. This is helping me cleanse easily and effectively while I am continuing to eat. But I have cut out foods that would interfere with the cleansing process and that I feel I rely too much on in my diet. I used Dr. Alejandro Junger’s, Clean Program as a loose guideline. I am hoping to maintain eating primarily the foods of the Elimination Diet even after I finish the cleanse, while occasionally enjoying some of the other foods.

My Plan for the Cleanse:

Weeks 1-3 (21 days): (I plan on doing this part for 4 weeks)

  • Breakfast: Smoothie/Juice or Protein Shake
  • Lunch: Clean meal made of detox friendly foods (see list below)
  • Dinner: Smoothie/Juice/Soup/Blended Foods
  • Snacks: anything from the approved list, but only snack when truly hungry, not just bored. (I can certainly relate to this!)
  • Drink A LOT of water and/or herbal tea.
  • Also ideally lunch should be the real food meal, but of course since this is an extended cleanse, if you need to switch lunch and dinner sometimes it is fine, BUT make sure you keep
    a 12 hour window between dinner and breakfast free of food for optimal digestion and detoxing. (This actually makes this so much easier to sustain for weeks at a time, knowing that you can still go out for dinner sometimes!)
  • The shakes/smoothies/juices are meant to help decrease the amount of work your digestive system has to do so it can rest and  restore.

The general list of foods to remove for Elimination Diet includes: grains with gluten, anything processed (including all soy products), fatty nuts, nightshades (potatoes, tomatoes, peppers and eggplant), condiments, sugar and obviously no dairy, animal products, alcohol, caffeine or soda. Click here to see Elimination List. and here to see the Shopping List.

Weeks 4: Juice Cleanse

I love my juice cleanses! See this post for more details.

Weeks 5: Back to the Elimination Diet Cleanse detailed above

With all stages I will include lots of Yoga of course and some cardio exercises.

Here is my first week of the cleanse broken down meal by meal to make it super easy for you to cleanse! Of course adjust times and recipes for your life and preferences. Meals in Bold have recipes listed below. I will post a few more recipes next week to add more variety 🙂

DAY ONE

8am Upon Rising: room temperature lemon water &/or herbal tea
10am Breakfast(at least an hour after waking): Morning Green Smoothie
1:30pm (lunch): Romaine with Caesar Dressing and Capers
8pm (dinner): Apple and Butternut Squash Soup

DAY TWO

8am Upon Rising: room temperature lemon water &/or herbal tea
10am Breakfast(at least an hour after waking): Morning Green Smoothie
2:00pm (lunch): Kitchari from JivamukTea Cafe (they use brown rice instead of white basmati! perfect!)
4pm (snack): A handful of mixed seeds and nuts
7pm (dinner): Shake: 1 serving UltraClear and MetaFiber mixed with water

DAY THREE

8am Upon Rising: room temperature lemon water &/or herbal tea
10:30am Breakfast(at least an hour after waking): Morning Green Smoothie
2:00pm (lunch): Raw Sesame Nut-meat salad from Bonobos
7:30pm (dinner): Shake: 1 serving UltraClear and MetaFiber mixed with water

DAY FOUR

5 am Upon Rising: room temperature lemon water &/or herbal tea
7:30 am Breakfast(at least an hour after waking): Morning Green Smoothie
12:00pm (lunch): Kitchari and a kale side from JivamukTea Cafe
4pm (snack): A handful of mixed seeds and nuts
8:30 pm (dinner): Cucumber and Avocado Soup

DAY FIVE

8am Upon Rising: room temperature lemon water &/or herbal tea
10am Breakfast(at least an hour after waking): Shake: 1 serving UltraClear and MetaFiber mixed with water
1:30pm (lunch): Berry Protein Shake
4pm (snack): A handful of mixed seeds and nuts
7pm (dinner): Coconut/Avocado Raw soup & Lover’s Salad from Caravan of Dreams

DAY SIX

9am Upon Rising: room temperature lemon water &/or herbal tea
11am Breakfast(at least an hour after waking): Berry Protein Shake
1:30pm (lunch): Chocolate Protein UN-Milkshake
4pm (snack): A handful of mixed pumpkin and sunflower seeds
7pm (dinner): Soba Noodle Soup at Souen Ramen

DAY SEVEN

9am Upon Rising: room temperature lemon water &/or herbal tea
11am Breakfast(at least an hour after waking): Mango and Coconut Smoothie
2:30pm (lunch): Leftover Soba Noodle Soup & Small Salad  with Caesar Dressing
5pm (snack): A handful of mixed seeds and nuts
9pm (dinner): Leftover FROZEN Berry Protein Shake (so fun! I was able to eat it like a creamy sorbet instead of drinking it :))

RECIPES

Morning Green Smoothie (2 servings)(We drink this most days as it is now :))

1 cup frozen Blueberries or raspberries
1 cup frozen Mango or Pineapple
big handful of baby spinach or 3 stalks of kale or chard
2 heaping tablespoons Synergy Green Powder, Vitamineral Green or other green powder
1 tablespoon Maca
1 heaping teaspoon Crystal Manna Blue green algae or E3AFA2 heaping tablespoons Psyllium Whole Husks or MetaFiber1 serving of Vegan Protein (soy-free) powder; Vega, UltraClear, Life’s Basics
2 cups Almond, Hemp or Coconut milk
1/2 cup water or coconut water

optional: coconut (unsweetened) or avocado

Blend everything together and Enjoy! Feel free to play around with ingredients (adding or ommitting them) but pay attention to the elimination diet guide (ie no bananas for this smoothie)

Berry Protein Shake
Recipe adapted from Dr. Alejandro Junger

1 cup nut/rice/hempseed milk of your choice (either homemade with 1/2 cup nuts and 1 1/2-2 cups water, or unsweetened)
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries
1/2 cup fresh or frozen blackberries (optional)
3 pitted dates
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 serving of Vegan Protein Powder
1 serving of Fiber powder, Psyllium Husks or 2 ounces aloe juice
Handful of Spinach or serving of green powder

1. Blend all ingredients until smooth.

Mango and Coconut Smoothie

  • 1 cup frozen mango
  • 1/2 frozen pineapple
  • 1/2 cup dried unsweetened coconut
  • 2 teaspoons agave
  • 12 ounces almond, coconut milk or coconut water
  • handful of baby spinach

Blend and Enjoy!

Chocolate Protein UN-Milkshake

This was out of control deelish! It was so creamy and chocolatey! I would not have it everyday, but for a treat, especially when cleansing, it was amazing!

4 ounces of water
8 ounces of almond milk (unsweetened)
1/2 of an avocado
2 teaspoons organic almond butter
a pinch of sea salt
1 serving Chocolate Protein Powder – Vega Chocolate is Great!
1 serving MetaFiber
1 tablespoon Agave
1 heaping tablespoon raw cacao powder

1. Blend all ingredients until smooth.

Apple and Butternut Squash Soup
Recipe from Clean Book; Dr. Alejandro Junger

2 cups Butternut Squash, peeled and chopped
2 stalk celery
2 green apples, peeled
1/4 cup pine nuts
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 cup fresh tarragon, chopped
4-5 cups water

  1. Blend all ingredients except tarragon in a high speed blender.
  2. Check Seasoning
  3. Add the tarragon and blend again for 10 seconds, just enough to be mixed in.
  4. Serve in a bowl or mug slightly warm or at room temperature.

Cucumber and Avocado Soup
Recipe from Dr. Alejandro Junger
1 serving

zest of 1/2 lime
juice of an entire lime
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cucumber, peeled and seeded, roughly chopped
1/2 avocado, peeled and roughly chopped

Blend everything together until totally creamy and smooth.

Kim’s Vegan Sugar Cookies

My wonderful friend and reader, Kim, has shared some really great recipes with me in the past. I am super excited to have her Guest Post here 🙂 These cookies look absolutely amazing!!!! I think these would be great for any holiday or event as they are so versatile!! YUM!!!!

———————————–

So I always find family holidays a bit tough because they always revolve around candy and sweet baked goods.  So every year I usually try out a new recipe of some sort to see how it comes out and to test it on my family.  My goal is to find the perfect vegan holiday recipe that not only will I enjoy, but my family will as well (and they are picky eaters).  So I found this recipe in VegNews and decided to give it a go.  Not only did it come out fantastic but my family can’t get enough of them.  My Grandmother and myself were up to our elbows in cookies for Easter, with frosting everywhere.  We spent a good amount of time trying to design the perfect cookie to be photographed, but got so tired by the end of the night that we only shot a few cookies and decided that we would just slap some frosting on the rest for the family.  They are so delicious that we didn’t think the family would mind or notice.  Hope that you enjoy this recipe as much as me and my family does.

Vegan Sugar Cookies

For the cookies:
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup vegan margarine, softened
3 teaspoons ener-g egg replacer, mixed with 1/4 cup water
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup vegan sour cream
4 1/3 cups flour
2 teaspoons lemon zest
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

For the frosting:
1/4 cup vegan margarine
3 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 teaspoons soymilk (I use almond milk)
1 teaspoon lemon zest
(for the frosting I think they messed up the amount of milk. It  makes
a crumbly consistency so i usually follow it and once it’s mixed I
slowly pour in more milk until it becomes a nice smooth frosting)

  1. To prepare cookies, preheat oven to 350. In a large bowl cream margarine and sugar until fluffy.  Add egg replacer, vanilla, and sour cream and mix well.
  2. In a separate bowl, mix flour, lemon zest, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add dry mixture to wet
  3. Mix for 1 to 2 minutes or until combined then roll dough into large ball, wrap with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 30 minutes
  4. Remove dough from fridge and roll out 1/2 inch thick on floured board.  Cut using cookie cutters.  Bake for 8 to 10 minutes until golden.  Allow to cool before frosting.
  5. For frosting mix all ingredients with mixer on medium speed until creamy and soft (will need to add more milk I have yet to calculate how much I usually add so just eye it)
  6. This makes a lot of cookies and I usually put the dough in the freezer  while each batch is in the oven so that while your waiting the dough doesn’t get too soft ( just don’t leave it too long or else you will have iced cookie dough)

And be warned these are addicting, be prepared to eat at least 5 before you even offer them to anyone else because they are that good. My grandmother ate at least 2 handfuls by Easter and she doesn’t usually eat that much sweets.

Mushroom Stroganoff

HOLY deelish!!! This was soooo good!! You can also use any combo of mushrooms and I’m sure it would turn out really good! Michael and I could not get enough of this pure, vegan, comforting goodness! I would suggest eating this with a spoon to make sure you get all that lip-smackin sauce 🙂

Mushroom Stroganoff
Makes 4 servings

2/3 cup water
1 large onion, chopped
4 cups sliced white mushrooms
2 cups sliced shiitake mushrooms
1 cup sliced oyster mushrooms
1 dash cayenne pepper
3 tablespoons white wine
3 tablespoons tamari
1 cup soymilk
1 cup Vegetable Broth
2 tablespoons cornstarch mixed with 1/4 cup cold water
1 freshly ground black pepper, to taste
12 ounces dry fettuccine noodles, cooked

  1. Place the water and onion in a large non-stick skillet and cook for 2 to 3 minutes.
  2. Add mushrooms and cook until mushrooms are slightly limp.
  3. Add cayenne, wine, tamari, soymilk, and broth and mix.
  4. Cover and cook over low heat for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  5. Uncover and add cornstarch mixture to pan, cook, and stir until thickened. Season with black pepper to taste.
  6. Serve mushroom mixture over fettuccine.

Vegan Mini Broccoli Quiche

Vegan Quiche!! Seriously! How fabulous are these! So perfect!!! They were amazing to have as breakfast or as a side next to some veggies or as a quick go-to snack. Plus, they were super tasty!! The crust is a little crumbly, but it was worth it.

Vegan Mini Broccoli Quiche
Recipe from http://www.glueandglitter.com

Crust

2 2/3cups all-purpose whole wheat flour
2 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. sugar
1 cup canola oil
1/4 cup soy milk

filling

1 package soft silken tofu
2 Tablespoons nutritional yeast
1/2 tsp. tumeric
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp. salt
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 Tablespoons olive oil

1 1/2 cup frozen or fresh broccoli, cut into small florets and peeled stems

  1. Preheat the oven to 350.
  2. Mix the crusts – dry ingredients together, then add the wet and stir until well combined. Press about 1/3 cup crust into each cup of a regular muffin pan. With your hands form the cups up the sides and make sure they are pressed well together, without cracks or holes.
  3. Vita-mix or blend all the filling ingredients except the broccoli until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and stir in the broccoli.
  4. Spoon the filling into each cup, and bake for 20 to 30 minutes, until the tops start to brown.
  5. Cool for 10 minutes and then using a knife remove from cups and Enjoy 🙂

raw crust

before the oven

Chocolate Banana Oatmeal Cookies

One of my fabulous readers, Kim sent me this deelish cookie recipe! They came out so great! Plus these were super simple and fast to make. This is a recipe you can whip up any time in no time 🙂

I ended up quadrupling the recipe to bring to Prema & Alex’s engagement party. I never even mentioned they were vegan and all the boys couldn’t get at them fast enough. Always so nice to see that! Some people hear that something is vegan and are immediately turned off. Have them taste them first and then let them know just how amazing vegan food can be! YUM!

Thanks Kim!!!


Chocolate Banana Oatmeal Cookies
Prep: 10 min
Cook time:  25 min
Makes 16 cookies
Recipe from Susan Sarandon (love her!!)

1 cup oat flour (I use half white flour and half whole wheat flour)
¾ cup old fashioned rolled oats
½ teaspoon baking powder
1/3 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup raw sugar
1/3 cup canola oil
1/3 cup plain soy milk
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
½ banana, cut into small pieces (I mash them, it makes the cookies more moist)
¼ cup walnuts (optional), chopped
1/3 semisweet chocolate chips (dark chocolate tastes good as well)

Preheat oven to 350°. Combine first 5 ingredients (up until sugar) in a bowl.   Whisk together oil, soy milk, and vanilla in a separate bowl.  Add wet mixture to dry ingredients; stir to combine.  Fold in banana, walnuts, and chocolate chips.

Line baking sheet with parchment paper or grease the pan.  Scoop dough onto pan.  Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden brown,  turning baking sheet halfway through.  Let cool and enjoy.

For a healthier cookie:
Honey, or agave syrup can be used to replace sugar.  Dried fruits or nuts can be used in place of chocolate chips as well.

Lettuce Wraps with Almond Butter Sauce

This was such a super fast and deelish meal! The sauce is perfect and very similar to a Thai Peanut Sauce. It is nutty, tangy and sweet! YUM! If you keep the veggies cut and ready to go this makes a snack in seconds! The sauce is also perfect to dip crudite in.

Almond Butter Sauce

Lettuce Wraps with Almond Butter Sauce

Lettuce Wraps

  • Boston Lettuce
  • Jicama, julienned or shredded
  • Carrots, julienned or shredded
  • Cucumber, julienned or shredded
  • Almond Butter Sauce

Place lettuce leaves and stack the Jicama, cucumbers and carrots in them. Drizzle almond butter sauce on top. Enjoy!
Almond Butter Sauce

  • 1/2 cup Almond butter
  • 3 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1 ounce chopped onion
  • 1/2 tsp Curry powder
  • 4 T Almond or any non-dairy milk
  • 4 tsp Lime juice
  • 2 tsp Agave
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

Blend or process all the ingredients until smooth.

Parent’s Dinner Party – Vegan Seitan Piccata, Creamed Spinach & Creamy Polenta

YUM YUM YUM!!! If you want a meal to impress here you go 🙂

Candle 79 is one of my favorite vegan restaurants! And one of my fave dishes there is the Seitan Piccata.  I adapted this dish from their recipe and it was super deeeeelish! I am sure this sauce would work on tofu, tempeh, etc…  soooo yummy!!

I knew both our dads love Creamed Spinach and Polenta so I wanted to make it for them vegan style 🙂 It was super creamy and super amazing!! I doubled the recipes below to make sure we had enough and we were happy to have some left over! They were sooo good!

I love meals where people are like…”How is this vegan?!” This wasn’t the most low-fat of meals but it sure was amazing!! Creamed spinach and creamy polenta is not everyday food for us, but it was perfect for a special occasion.

I LOVE my warming drawer! Everything was ready to go for dinner, yet I had a clean kitchen perfect for the party!

This made a lot of sauce! Was great for meals that week as well 🙂

I cooked this down a little further, but it was still so rich and creamy! YUM!

YUM! Polenta Goodness!

Vegan Seitan Piccata
adapted from Candle 79 in NYC
Serves 6
1. Dredge seitan cutlets in flour, shaking off excess.
2. Heat 2 Tbs. olive oil in skillet over high heat. Sauté cutlets in oil 30 seconds per side, or until crisp and golden brown. Remove seitan from skillet, and drain on paper-towel-lined plate.
3. Add remaining 2 Tbs. olive oil to skillet, and return to high heat. Add shallots, onion, capers, and garlic, and sauté 1 to 2 minutes, or until softened, stirring frequently. Whisk in wine and lemon juice, and cook 3 to 5 minutes more.
4. Add broth, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium, and simmer 1 minute to combine flavors. Whisk in parsley, margarine, salt, and pepper. Pour over seitan cutlets, garnish with large caper berries or lemon slices, and serve.

  • 6 seitan cutlets, rinsed and drained (I used 12 cutlets – Gardein Lightly Seasoned Chick’n Scallopini)
  • Whole-wheat flour for dredging
  • 4 Tbs. olive oil, divided
  • 1/2 cup chopped shallots
  • 2 Tbs. drained capers
  • 1/2 tsp. minced garlic
  • 1/2 cup dry white wine  (I used red instead)
  • 2 Tbs. fresh lemon juice
  • 1/2 cup low-sodium vegetable broth
  • 2 Tbs. nonhydrogenated vegan margarine
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
  • Large caper berries or lemon slices, for garnish, optional

Vegan Creamed Spinach

  • salt
  • 1 1/2 pounds fresh spinach
  • 3/4 cup soy creamer
  • 3/4 cup plain soy milk
  • 2 tablespoons canola oil
  • 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
  • grated nutmeg
  • fresh pepper

1. Large pot of water with salt – boil
2. Put spinach  for about a minute then drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process, then chop spinach
3. Place oil in broad saucepan on medium-low, add flour and cook stirring consistently till golden, then stir in creamer/milk
4. Add spinach and bring to a boil until spinach has absorbed most of liquid and sauce is thick, about 15-25 minutes
5. Add nutmeg, salt and pepper and season to taste

Vegan Creamy Polenta

  • 1 cup vegan creamer
  • 1 cup plain soy milk
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 1/2 cups coarse cornmeal
  • 4 tablespoons Earth Balance
  • fresh ground black pepper

1. In a medium saucepan bring the creamer, soy milk and the water to a boil.
2. Add the salt and then gradually add the polenta while stirring.
3. Reduce the heat to maintain a simmer, stirring constantly.
4. The polenta should be smooth and large bubbles will pop on the surface.
5. Cook until very thick but not stiff, about 5 to 7 minutes.
6. Remove from heat and add earth balance and pepper.
7. Enjoy!!

Quick, Easy & Healthy Vegan Mac & Cheeze

This was so super fast and I whipped it up with ingredients I had in the house. Love that! I bet this would be great for kids and those peeps who are not into their veggies. The squash is just folded right into the cheeze sauce, perfecto!

Quick, Easy & Healthy Vegan Mac & Cheeze

1 lb. whole wheat/quinoa or rice rotini
1 cup soymilk
12 oz package frozen or canned butternut squash
2 cups Cheddar Daiya
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp dry mustard
pepper to taste

  1. Prepare pasta according to package and Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees
  2. In a medium saucepan, simmer soymilk with butternut squash until combined
  3. Remove from heat and mix with Cheddar Daiya, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp dry mustard and pepper to taste
  4. Pour drained pasta into a baking dish and stir in cheeze mixture
  5. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 min
  6. ENJOY

Banana French Toast

These were amazing! The banana was thick enough to really coat and soak the bread. It also gave the french toast the most deelish flavor. I highly recommend this!

Banana French Toast
Makes 4 slices

2 medium bananas
2/3 cup soymilk
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
4 slices whole-wheat bread
1 vegetable oil spray

Blend bananas, soymilk, syrup, and cinnamon until smooth. Pour into a flat, shallow dish and soak bread slices 1 minute on each side. Transfer carefully to a vegetable oil sprayed skillet. Cook first side until lightly browned, about 3 minutes, then turn and cook second side until browned.

Recipe from Food for Life, by Neal Barnard, M.D.

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