One Pot Gluten Free Vegan Mac-n-Cheese

I have wanted to try this one for a while and it was really great. After too many leftover meals in a row this was super welcome and I had all the ingredients already at home! This was so quick and so good, I know it will become a regular!

One Pot Gluten Free

One Pot Gluten Free Vegan Mac-n-Cheese
Serves 4
Recipe adapted from www.pure2raw.com

4 cups water
2 cup quinoa

  1. In small saucepan over high heat bring the water to a boil. Once boiling add quinoa and return to a boil. Then reduce heat to low and let simmer for 15 minutes *There might be some water left over, but that is okay.
  2. Remove from heat and pour the quinoa into a bowl and set aside.

The cheezy sauce

1 1/2 cups coconut milk (I was a little short so I used some almond milk mixed with coconut milk)
6 tablespoons nutritional yeast
4 tablespoons tahini
4 tablespoons arrowroot
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Using the same pot that the quinoa was in, place it back on the stovetop over medium heat and add coconut milk and tahini. Whisk together. The tahini will melt into the milk. Then add remaining ingredients and whisk. Raise the heat to be medium high. It will start to thicken, takes about 1-2 minutes. Once it starts getting thick pour the quinoa back in the pot and stir till well combined.

Italian Potluck Night!!

As you know I LOVE Potlucks! And now we have a pretty regular Vegan Themed Potluck Party happening 🙂 Last nights theme was Italian Night! (last month was Asian) SUPER YUM! Not kidding this meal was out of control. We didn’t end up having dessert, but we all happily had seconds of the deelish food!

Lisa Dawn made this OUT of this world lasagna! We have seen her amazing Ricotta Cheese in her Stuffed Shells, but to taste this you would think that this was gourmet ricotta cheese made in Italy. But happily it was Vegan (but still super gourmet :)) And the homemade tomato sauce was also deelish!

Joey made this amazing pesto pasta sans cheese of course. It was so gorgeous with the fresh grape tomatoes and basil! Beautiful and super tasty!

I made my favorite Raw Crisp Caesar Salad with Pinenut parmesan and Artichoke Guacamole with mulit-grain pita chips. Yum!!!

On a side note, I can’t help but brag about Lisa & Paul’s overly impressive and adorable son Luke! Lisa had this great deck of cards with all the US Presidents pictures on them. Luke was able to go through all of them and name them!!! SO CUTE!! And he is under 2 years old!

Such a super great night with friends and deelish vegan food!

Amazing photo courtesy of Lisa's fabulous husband Paul!

Kelp Noodles & Veggies in Peanut Sauce

Kelp Noodles are AWESOME! They are just seaweed yet you can eat them like noodles! Love it 🙂 They would go great with many different sauces. Have fun and experiment with them. They come out of the package a little crunchy. But after you rinse them and mix them with a sauce (containing some citrus or vinegar) they soften up and are super yummy!

I can never get enough ‘Peanut Sauce’ haha so I had to give this one a try. YUM! And with the grated daikon and carrot it was the perfect meal. I put the bowl in the Dehydrator for 30 minutes and it was great to have a slightly warmed meal.

Right out of the package they need a little help. But afterwards they were so good!

Kelp Noodles & Veggies in Peanut Sauce
Adapted from The Sunny Raw Kitchen

1 package kelp noodles

‘Peanut’ Sauce
3 tbs almond butter
2 tbs tahini
2 garlic cloves
2 1/2 tbs lime juice
1 tbs tamari
1 tbs raw sesame or coconut oil
1 tbs olive oil
1/2 tbs grated fresh ginger root
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 – 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (depending on how hot you like it)
1/2 tsp salt
3 tbs agave
1/4 cup water

Blend until smooth. If necessary, add more water until desired consistency is reached.

Veggies
1 cup grated carrot
1 cup grated daikon

Place rinsed noodles and veggies in a large bowl. Toss with desired amount of Peanut Sauce. Let sit on the counter or in the Dehydrator for 30 minutes before serving.

Vegan BBQ Burgers with Amazing Barbecue Sauce

These are amazing!!! The gardein was a super ingredient in these burgers. They came together really easily when making them into patties. The best part was how unbelievably tasty they are!

And the BBQ sauce is so deelish and perfect for everything else you would ever want with a condiment! It was great that I had extra left over sauce to savor for weeks 🙂

I served this with Cucumbers with Creamy Dill Dressing and Summer Corn & Zucchini Salad with Citrus Dressing. Pretty much the perfect meal!!!

Amazing BBQ Sauce bubbling away

Vegan BBQ Burgers
Makes 8 -12 amazing burgers

1 ½ cup onions, chopped
1 ½ teaspoon Earth Balance
1/3 cup nutritional yeast
½ cup tahini
2 tablespoons paprika
2 teaspoons salt
4 cups Chick’n Scallopini Gardein, roughly chopped
2 cups Barbecue Sauce (recipe below)

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a baking sheet with oil spray. In a skillet, sauté onions in Earth Balance until soft. In a bowl, combine nutritional yeast, tahini, paprika, and salt. Add onions and combine.
  2. In a food processor, combine half of the mixture and 2 cups of Gardein and blend together, adding Gardein gradually. Set aside and repeat with the other half of the mixture and Gardein.
  3. Form mixture into 1-inch-thick patties, and place on prepared baking sheet. Bake uncovered for 45 minutes. Pour 2 cups of barbecue sauce over patties, and increase heat to 375 degrees. Bake for 20 minutes or until well done. Serve with extra barbecue sauce on the side.

Amazing Barbecue Sauce
Makes about 3 cups

2 teaspoons corn oil
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1 teaspoon garlic, minced
2 1/2  cups tomato sauce
2 cups water, divided
1 cup agave
2 tablespoons molasses
1/2 cup mustard
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon allspice
2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon tamari
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon liquid smoke

  1. In a medium pan over high heat, add oil. Sauté onion and garlic until onions are translucent. Add tomato sauce, cup of water, agave, molasses, mustard, salt, allspice and red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and let simmer for about an hour.
  2. Add second cup of water, tamari, lemon juice, and liquid smoke. Cook for 10 to 15 minutes longer. Allow to cool slightly and serve generously over burgers.

Cooked Burgers before the Sauce

Uncooked

Babaganush

During my Yoga Teacher Training I was obsessed with The Hummus Kitchen that was 1 block away. We would all go at least 2-3 times a week! As any of my friends can attest I won’t stop talking about it. I really only eat 2 dishes there but I am sure all they serve is wonderful. I always order The Hummus Kitchen (hummus sampler) which is 4 different kinds of super creamy and delightful kinds of hummus. You can have this served with regular pita or their amazing whole wheat variety. I also LOVE their Super-Healthy Salad, an Amazing salad of quinoa, apricot, walnuts, butternut squash & mint tahini sauce. Pure Yummyliciousness! This is truly the best Hummus in NYC! I am always up for going if anyone is interested!!

Recently I decided to make my own Babaganush. I served this with whole wheat pitas and store bought hummus and it was deelish. I did think it was more work than I figured but it was a really large portion and very yummy. I would suggest only using 1 eggplant instead of 2. Babaganush is super tasty and way less fat than hummus alone.

P.S. We are having a 2lb Chia Seed Giveaway that ends on 4/2 – so don’t forget to enter HERE!!!

Babaganush
Serves a crowd!

2 large eggplants
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup tahini
Juice of one lemon
Salt and pepper to taste

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Poke several holes all over the eggplants and bake on a cookie sheet or shallow pan for 45 minutes
  2. Remove eggplants from the oven and place in a large bowl. Let cool for 5 minutes. Cut off the stem tips and slice each eggplant in half lengthwise. Scoop out the flesh and transfer to another bowl. Discard the skin.
  3. Cut the eggplant into inch size pieces. Place in a food processor. Add garlic, tahini, and lemon juice and pulse chop. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
  4. Chill until ready to serve. Enjoy!

Halva Raspberry Thumbprint Cookies

AMAZING!!!!!!!! Michael and I loved these!!! Growing up in a Jewish household halvah was always one of our go-to desserts and this is a fabulous raw substitute 🙂  I know when I make these for my family they are going to freak! These were (as in they are already gone haha) one of the best cookies ever! I used frozen raspberries and the raspberry sauce tasted sooo fresh and soo BRIGHT! YUMM!!! Plus how cute are they !?!??! Try these asap and let me know what you think.

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Halva Raspberry Thumbprint Cookies
These were thankfully inspired by Ani Phyo’s Halva Chia Thumbprint Cookies

Raspberry Sauce:
1/2 cup fresh or frozen raspberries
1/3 cup pitted semi-soft Medjool dates
1/8 cup agave syrup
1/4 cup water

Combine well in blender. Chill till ready for use.

Cookies:
3/4 cup flax seed powder
1/2 cup tahini
3/4 cup almond meal
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup pitted semi-soft Medjool dates
Recipe for Raspberry Sauce

Combine dry ingredients with tahini in a food processor and mix well. Add in dates and mix till combined. Roll dough into 10-15 balls. Place on sheet preferably lined with parchment paper. Use your thumb to make an indentation into the center of each cookie. Fill each with generous amount of sauce. Chill in the refrigerator for 20 min. or more to firm up. Will keep for several days or many weeks stored separately from jam if you can keep them that long haha 🙂 Enjoy!!!

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These are the cookies up close, so easy to make!

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a close-up of these little gems! mmmmmm

Raw Cheddar Cheeze Dip

As gross as it sounds I have always loved nacho cheese! This dip is similar and of course made with much healthier and non-processed ingredients. I ate this with raw corn tortilla chips and carrot sticks. I am sure this would also be delightful over broccoli, mmmm! Enjoy!

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Raw Cheddar Cheeze Dip
Recipe adapted from Vibrant Living by James Levin & Natalie Cederquist

1 cup red bell pepper
3/4 cup cashews, soaked
1/2 cup water
3 tbs rolled oats
2 tbs nutritional yeast
2 tbs lemon juice
2 tbs tahini
2 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt

Blend all ingredients until smooth. Add more water or oats until desired consistency is reached.

Raw Food Dinner Party part 3

Ahhh Dessert!! Even when I am so full I can always manage a bite or two! These were super yummy and plus this recipe gave us leftovers, which we love! The chocolate sauce could have been thicker to coat better, but I don’t think anyone would complain, it was deelish!

candy bar 3

Raw Chocolate Candy Bars

Recipe By Ashley Skabar, About.com Guide to Dairy Free Cooking Makes about 8-12 bars
Base
4 1/2 cups raw cashews, finely ground
6 T. agave nectar or maple syrup
1 T. cold water
1/4 t. sea salt

Caramel
3/4 cup raw tahini
3/4 cup maple syrup or agave nectar
1/8 t. sea salt

Chocolate Topping
1 1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 1/4 cup maple syrup
1/3 cup coconut oil or cold-pressed oil
1/4 cup cold water
1/8 t. salt

1. Line an 8″ x 8″ pan with parchment paper. In a bowl, combine the finely ground cashews, agave or maple syrup, cold water and salt, stirring until the mixture is very thick and just holds together. Press the mixture into the prepared pan and place the pan in the freezer for at least 1 hour.

2. Make the “caramel.” In a small bowl, combine the tahini, syrup and salt, mixing until smooth. Spread the “caramel” over the cashew mixture and return the pan to the freezer for 1 hour more.

3. Make the chocolate topping. In a small bowl, mix together the cocoa powder, syrup, oil, water and salt until smooth.

4. Line a plate or casserole dish with parchment paper. Remove the pan from the freezer, and, using a sharp knife, cut the mixture into bars. Dip each of the bars into the chocolate mixture, then place on the prepared plate or casserole dish. Pour any excess chocolate sauce over the bars, then return the plate or dish to the freezer for 1-2 hours more or until set. Serve from the freezer, and enjoy!

My note: I did not feel that the chocolate was thick enough, so next time I may leave out the water. I ended up basting the bars in order to keep coating them with the chocolate.

So that wraps up my Raw Food Dinner Party fun. It was such a blast! I cannot wait to do it again!!

menu

Raw Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

Raw Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
servings 2

Who does not love raw cookie dough!! Well here is the ‘raw’ version!! This recipe is beyond decadent and super fast to make! Whenever you get a sweet craving you can whip this up in 2 minutes, literally! We made this the other night and Michael has been asking for it ever since, I think it is addictive!!! If you do not eat honey you could substitute agave, but it would not be as thick.

cookie dough

2 tablespoon raw tahini
2 tablespoon raw cacao nibs
2 tablespoon raw honey
5 teaspoon coconut oil (I used Artisana brand because it is thicker, made with coconut and its oil!! the best)
a couple drops organic vanilla extract

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl. Eat with a spoon. ENJOY!!!

Flatbread Pizza with hummus, green olives, cherry tomatoes and za’atar

This was soooo good! I made the complete recipe for the crust and halved the rest as I knew there was never anyway we would eat all of this deliciousness. But I figured we could use the crusts for other recipes as they are very versatile. I love everything Pure Food and Wine and can’t wait to check out Sarma’s new cookbook, Living Raw Food! But this is recipe is from Raw Food Real World. All their recipes are pretty complicated but I am guessing that 99% of them are amazing! Due to the complexity level and the gourmet heaviness of some of the foods they are not everyday recipes for us. But when we make them we sure love them! I could see this dish being served at a fancy Middle Eastern restaurant or you can make them bit sized and serve them as hor o’dourves!!!! How fun!! So deeelish! I loved the use of Za’atar (a Middle Eastern spice blend of sumac, sesame seeds and the wild Syrian hyssop plant) in this recipe. I had bought some the last time I was in Israel and this was the first time I got to break it out and use it. Ahhhh… 🙂 The crusts were delicious and the hummus was the best raw hummus I have ever had! Such a great recipe! You could always break this recipe down and use just one component when you need it.

Flatbread Pizza with hummus, green olives, cherry tomatoes and za’atar

 pizza close-up

pizza crust on dehydrator sheet

The crust still on the dehyrdrator sheet

For the crusts:
5 cups walnuts, soaked 1 hour or more (I soaked them overnight – when soaking nuts, make sure to rinse well after)
5 cups cubed yellow squash or zucchini
3/4 cup golden flaxseed, finely ground (1 cup ground)
1/2 cup hemp seeds
1/4 to 1/2 cup filtered water
1 tablespoon sea salt

1. Pulse the walnuts in a food processor to chop into tiny pieces (like couscous), but not completely smooth. Transfer the nuts to a large bowl. Add the squash to the same food processor bowl and grind into tiny pieces, but again not completely smooth. Transfer the squash to the bowl with the walnuts. Add the flaxseed, hemp seeds, salt and about 1/4 cup of water, stirring to combine. Add more water until a sticky dough forms – like wet muffin batter. You may need more or less water.

2. Divide the batter between four 14-inch Teflex lined dehydrator trays. Using an offset spatula spread the dough to the edges of the trays. The dough can be a bit gummy and sticky, so it helps to dip the spatula in water as you spread the dough (the excess water will all evaporate in the dehydrator)

3. Dehydrate the flatbread at 115 degrees for 6-8 hours, pr overnight. When the tops are dry, flip over and peel away the Teflex liners. Dehydrate on screens for another 2-4 hours.

4. Once both sides are dry, slide the flatbread onto a large cutting board. With a large chef’s knife, cut into 3×5 rectangles (or whatever size and shape you want). Place them back in the dehydrator trays and dehydrate for another hour or more, as necessary for firm crusts.

hummus

For the hummus:
4 cups cashews, soaked for 2 hours or more (when I woke up I starting soaking them, so around 8 hours)
1/2 cup lemon juice
2 small cloves garlic
1/4 cup sesame tahini
1 teaspoon sea salt
Up to one cup filtered water

In a food processor, add the nuts, lemon juice, garlic, tahini, and salt and process, adding water 1/4 cup at a time until you get the smooth, fluffy consistency of hummus. You may need to add more water, or you may want to add olive oil for a richer hummus – just make sure it has enough stiffness so it will hold the topping on the pizza without running off the sides of the crust

olive tapenade

For Green Olive Tapenade: (You only need a half cup for recipe, so reduce if you want, or make the entire batch to have on hand.)
makes 3 1/2 cups

3 cups putted green olives
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 small handful of parsley (optional) (I used the parsley. I think it added a nice texture and color)
freshly ground pepper

1. Process the olives in a food processor. With the motor running, add the olive oil and lemon juice and process until smooth. Add the parsley (if using) and process to combine. Season with pepper to taste

2. Transfer to a covered container and refrigerate. Will keep up to 1-2 weeks.

For serving:
1 pint cherry, teardrop or grape tomatoes, halved
1/4 of a large bulb of fennel or 1/2 of a small bulb, shaved very thin on a mandolin
1/2 English cucumber, peeled, seeded and finely diced
1/2 cup Green olive Tapenade
1/2 cup Green olives, pitted and halved
2 tablespoons za’atar seasoning
fennel fronds for garnish

Spread each crust with hummus and top with tomatoes, fennel, cucumber, olive tapenade and olives. Sprinkle with za’atar and top with fennel fronds

pizzas

za'atar from Israel
My Za’atar from Israel

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