KISS – Keep It Simple Silly

Big news, I had my first article posted on another blog site! My current employer The Chopping Block, has given me the opportunity to write a monthly article. Want to know what organic foods you should by, check out The Organic Debate.

Well the Holidays are in full force and I found it easy to slip back into my hosting routine. The changes I do see are that while I like to come up with elaborate food events in my head based on budget and lack of time the mantra “KISS” has to be repeated over and over… Keep It Simply Silly (made some change to make it positive). While keeping it simple definitely limits the stress and maximizes my socializing time, it does take work to stay on track. With that in mind I thought I would start posting some easy fun Thanksgiving Food options for those who may need an extra side dish or some Vegan alternatives.

Our simple menu for my Halloween dinner party consisted of:

 – Roasted Apple and Butternut Squash Soup

– Arugula Salad with Apples and Celery

– Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Our simple menu for the Bi-Election Party consisted of: 

– Italian Comfort Popcorn (not vegan, but it one the vote that night, its simple – plain popcorn, olive oil, salt, fresh ground pepper and freshly grated parmesan cheese, it one in a landslide) 

– Coconut Curry Carmel Corn 

– Mama Emmy Lou’s Special Spaghetti Sauce (it’s a secret for now)

– Chocolate Cupcakes with Salted Carmel Frosting (this recipe is still a work in progress)

Stay tuned for some Thanksgiving specialties and if you have any requests I’m up for a cooking challenge.

Voices In My Head

***Hi All, so there will be more Vietnam to come, I can’t not tell you how I may have gone a little over board when having clothes made for me in Hoi An or how a woman shoved meat skewers into my mouth, vegan doesn’t translate in Vietnamese. But I thought I would get some up to date blogs posted. So stay tuned.

Voices were pounding in my head, news feed after news feed all the reporter could do was talk of death, remembrance of those we had lost and constant cut ins with presidential address updates. More images, the President speaks, and then we jump back to the morning news show and some man is jumping around with the newest dance moves, while everyone else is painfully trying to imitate him. My head was spinning; this was my introduction back into US news and television. I’d been home for a week but my assimilation process was a slow one. When I walked off the plane in Los Angeles and through customs I wanted to kiss the ground, what can I say being abroad has both negative and positive affects on your beliefs of you own country. But reading the customs sign Thank You and Welcome to the United States had me brimming with joy. When the customs agent asked, “why were you traveling in India, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam?” I smiled and said, “I was trying to figure out my life.” Ok yes the smile held a hint of sarcasm and my response earned me a confused look, but then he said, “welcome home,” and it felt so right.

So after the tearful embrace and love from my parents and Lulu I was whisked home where I enjoyed a veggie meal and after 30 hours of travel and very little sleep I fell into bed ready to crash for what I had hopped would be about two days worth of shuteye. Lying in bed wide-awake at 3 am I realized it was going to take time to adjust. So after a week of very little interaction with the outside world I decided to watch my favorite morning news show, Good Morning America with my favorite morning news anchor, Josh Elliott, he is just so dreamy, gotta love those really tall men. Dreamy-ness aside, I was overwhelmed by the images, sounds and entertainment. As I tried to process the fact that my travels had sealed me in a bubble of protection from all things US, my protective layer was now popped. First realization, I’ve missed a lot; see, I used to have a reputation of being the entertainment queen, ask me a question about Hollywood I could tell you who, where and when. Now I was at a loss, but the weird part was I wasn’t that concerned about getting caught up. Instead I became completely overwhelmed with questions of my own unsteady future, as well as images, media reports and social media updates of injustices of the present. While abroad there were many behaviors I experienced that I had to accept because this was “their” culture. Well honey not anymore this is my culture and I was blatantly aware that everything was wrong. All of this culminated into a completely irrational battle of wills in my head. As I drove along trying to process all of these emotions and thoughts I realized I was surrounded by silence, there was no honking, no chaos, and no people. I realized that I while the chaos of the streets, sounds and experiences of South East Asia were gone, I now was facing a new chaos. While the world around me was no longer new and unknown, the chaos was now in my mind and I didn’t know if there was anyway to be free of it.

At that very thought, I realized that the chaos in my mind was all self induced. A major theme in the yoga philosophy is to gain purification through the mind with the right attitude. In yoga attitude is acceptance, and a major part of acceptance is that we need to understand and accept what we can and cannot control. I cannot change the world around me; I cannot change the way that my neighbors treat their neighbors (figuratively). All I can change and control is myself. So first things first, maybe limit my television news time. While I can’t become ignorant to what is happening in this world, I can be more particular about where I get my information from. Second, I can take a breath, relax, and maybe take another breath, and then smile, because I’m home.

 

Welcome Summer – Coconut Lemon Fruit Tarts

Happy First Day of Summer! Like most American’s we have finally been hit by the heat wave that has been slowly moving across the country. While the heat will drive most of us out of the kitchen I thought I would post these final two recipes before I head off on my adventure.

Summer Fruit Tarts with Coconut Lemon Cream:

Cookie Shell:

–       1 ¾ c. Flour

–       ½ tsp. Baking Powder

–       ¼ tsp. Salt

–       ½ c. Earth Balance

–       ¾ c. Sugar

–       2 T. Almond Extract

–       2-3 Flax Eggs (1 Flax Egg equals 1 T. ground Flax Seed with 3 T. warm water)

1. Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees
2. Cream butter and sugar together in a mixer, add in almond extract once sugar and butter are fully combined
3. Combine dry ingredients, flour, baking powder, salt
4. Combine dry ingredients with butter and sugar recipe
5. Add in two flax eggs, if the dough is still crumbly and not coming together add in third flax egg.
6. Using a mini muffin tin, roll the dough into small balls as seen below.
7. Bake for ten minutes, then take the dough out and using a teaspoon measuring spoon press the center of each ball down creating a cup
8. Bake for another 6 to 10 minutes, you want to take the cookie out while they are still soft and make sure not to over cook them
9. Set aside and cool

Coconut Lemon Cream: 

–       1 can Coconut Milk (place can in refrigerator until you are ready to use)

–       2 T. Tapioca Flour or Arrow Root, these fours are used as a thickening agent and are very similar to corn starch which you could use if you don’t have the other two flours

–       2/3 c. Powdered Sugar

–       ¾ container of Tofutti Cream Cheese

–       1 lemon, you’ll need the zest and the juice

1. Using a mixer, pour the entire can of Coconut Milk into the mixing bowl, you will see that the can is half a thick white cream and the other have a murky white liquid. Once the entire can is in the bowl pour out the murky white liquid, you can leave some but drain out the majority of the liquid.
2. Start the mixer and add in the Tapioca Flour/Arrow Root and powdered sugar until completely combined
3. Add in the Tofutti cream cheese and lemon juice and zest, whip together until there are no lumps from the Tofutti cream cheese
4. Scrap the Coconut Lemon Cream into a large Ziploc bag and place in the refrigerator until ready to serve

Once you are ready to serve the tarts cut off one corner of the bottom of the Ziploc bag and pipe the cream into the cups. Then add any variation of fruit to each tart. I like using strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and kiwi based on the colors. You can prepare the tarts earlier before serving just make sure to refrigerate them between the prep and the serve time.

Enjoy!

The Best Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

Like peanut butter and jelly, bagels and cream cheese and french fries and ketchup, some foods are better in pairs than alone. This I find true with a cold glass of almond milk and a freshly baked chocolate chip cookie, the sweet and saltiness of the cookie is only complimented more with a refreshingly cold glass of milk.

 A dear friend and continual food sampler made a request last week for my Vegan Chocolate Chip cookies, I was slightly confused because I didn’t have a go-to recipe that was Vegan, but of course I was up for the challenge. I came up with one of the best chocolate chip cookies I have ever had, and that is saying a lot as my Mother is the chocolate chip cookie queen. You all be the judge.

 

The Best Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

makes about 20 cookies

• ¾ c. sugar
• ½ c. maple syrup
• ½ teaspoon molasses
• 8 tablespoons of Earth Balance butter
• 3 flax eggs – 3 tablespoons of ground flax seed mixed with 9 tablespoons of warm water
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• ¾ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 3 cups flour – next time I will use white whole wheat flour or whole wheat pastry flour for extra health benefits
• 2 tablespoons apple sauce (optional)
• 1 c. vegan semi-sweet chocolate chips
• ½ c. walnuts (optional)

– Preheat oven at 325

1. Combine sugar, maple syrup, molasses, Earth Balance and vanilla in mixer and mix until smooth
2. Make three flax eggs combining 3 tablespoons ground flax seed with 9 tablespoons warm water, let stand for a couple of minutes and then add to butter mixture 
3. Sift together flour, salt and baking soda 
4. Add flour mixture in parts to butter and sugar mixture, when fully combined add some more until all ingredients are combined
5. At this point if you find the dough to be a little dry add in the apple sauce to make the cookies softer
6. Add in the chocolate chips and if you also want to add walnuts add about ½ a cup
7. I used a silicone baking mat on the cookie tray and made my cookies larger, but create any size cookie you like and bake for 15 to 20 minutes; check after 15 minutes, the goal is for the cookies to be soft so you don’t want to over bake them.

Enjoy with a cold glass of any of your favorite non-dairy milks!

Quick Vegan Spinach and Mushroom Risotto

As the saying goes “time flies when you having fun,” for me and my lack of blogging the excuse would be, time flies when your life is consumed with work, training for a half marathon, friends, family and traveling. Obviously nothing that I could ever complain about, but when I wake up in April with piles of clothing and unpacked suitcases surrounding my bed I start to wonder how four months have passed in the blink of an eye. My biggest complaint about a hectic schedule is that I find it hard to cook and eat healthy. I will admit that the Thai food delivery guy knows me pretty well. But no more! I will find quick easy ways to cook satisfying meals even when I am struggling to find clean undergarments because I can’t remember the last time I did laundry!

For my first speedy meal my taste buds were inspired or craving risotto. A warm hearty meal that is categorized as one of the most time consuming dishes to make. Well with a little help from Lundberg Florentine Risotto we are going to have a satisfying meal in 30 minutes!

Quick Vegan Spinach and Mushroom Risotto 

What you’ll need is the following:

Lundberg Florentine Vegan Risotto (I normally buy this at Whole Foods)

Olive Oil

Nutritional Yeast: nutritional yeast is a vegan wonder, it can be found at some health food grocery stores, but I buy it on amazon.com, two containers at a time to stock up. Nutritional Yeast is an inactive yeast that is yellow in color. It can be bought in a powder or flake form, although I have only used the powder form. It has a nutty, cheesy flavor and therefore is a great substitute for parmesan cheese which could be added to this recipe. It is a great source for protein, vitamins and B-12.

3-4 cloves Garlic – chopped

8 to 12 ounces mushrooms (I like crimini, but I have also done a mix of cimini and shitake or any other type of mushroom) – roughly chopped

2 to 3 handfuls of Spinach – roughly chopped

Ground Pepper and Salt to taste

1. Follow the directions on the box for the vegan risotto

2. In a sauté pan add the chopped garlic, the chopped mushrooms and 2 tablespoons of olive oil and sauté. Keep on a medium temperature so that the garlic does not burn. Cook until the mushrooms juicy and soft.

3. Add the chopped spinach to the cooked mushroom mixture, mix together and then add about five grinds of pepper.

4. Stir the risotto carefully, check to make sure the rice is not crunchy (if you have seen Top Chef you know this is a Risotto nightmare), once the water is absorbed, turn off the heat and add 1/4 cup nutritional yeast (base this off your flavor pallet and preference, if you want a stronger creamy flavor add more). Stir until well combined and then add the risotto to the mushroom/spinach mixture.

5. Add salt and pepper to taste and enjoy!

I’ve been craving mushrooms lately so I like to take portabella mushroom caps drizzled with olive oil, salt and pepper and the add a scoop of the risotto mix to the top. Then place in the oven at 350 for about 10 minutes. Once the mushroom caps and cooked take out and enjoy.

Cranberry Kale Salad

Tree trimmed, check, house decorated, check…. oh great that’s where my list ends and when I saw a count down clock with the number 14 next to it I began to panic. Cookies need to be made, shopping needs to be done, gifts need to be wrapped and I need to breathe. Remembering my resolution to slow down and enjoy the season brings me back to my holiday place of nirvana. 

On top of trying to slow down and breathe, I feel as if I have been over indulging in all things sugary and sweet. My body is starting to feel a little off balance. Therefore this next recipe is the perfect cure for holiday sugar shock. I know what you may be thinking Kale, gross, or as my sister would say “Kale Sucks” but Kale gets a bad wrap, and because it is full of vitamins and nutrition we should be a little nicer to the poor vegetable. Kale also helps detoxify your body, which is probably needed if you are hitting the Soy Egg Nog pretty hard this season. Try it out, I promise you this salad of citrus balanced with the sweetness of the cranberries and the smooth silky flavor of the olive oil will have your taste buds praising Kale.

Cranberry Kale Salad

serves 4

         – 1 bunch Kale

         – 1 juiced Lemon

         – 2 tablespoons Olive Oil

         – ½ teaspoon Salt

         – ¼ cup Dried Cranberries

         – 2 tablespoons Pine Nuts

– ¼ Red Bell Pepper

 1. Prepare the Kale by cutting out the stalk (center) of the Kale. Once you have the pile of Kale leaves, roll them up and thinly slice the roles giving you long strips of the kale leaves.

 

2. Add Kale, Lemon juice, Salt and Olive Oil in a bowl. Message the liquid into the Kale and set aside. This will break down the toughness of the Kale.

3. While the Kale is marinating thinly slice a quarter of a Red Bell Pepper.

4. After about 15 to 30 minutes add Cranberries, Pine Nuts and Red Bell Pepper to the Kale salad and toss together.

5. Enjoy immediately or refrigerate and enjoy for 1 to 3 days.

Next on the list of to-dos is my oh so famous Linzer Tort cookies for my annual cookie exchange party. Stay tuned, I’ll be posting tips for baking delicious vegan treats and I have a great pasta meal that will have all eaters alike asking for more.

Here are a couple of the holiday projects I started to get me into the spirit. 

Popcorn and Cranberries strung together with care. Cinnamon Cloved Oranges and Apples making the house smell festive and warm.

Roasted Butternut Squash and Apple Soup

I dropped my first Thanksgiving Turkey on the floor. It was a very dramatic drop, the turkey and all the brining liquid exploded from the bottom of trash bag they were in as I was trying to move it from the sink to the refrigerator. The crashing flood of brining liquids and turkey had me yelling at my roommate for help as she stood over me laughing. It was my very first Thanksgiving away from home and my sister and cousin were coming to join in the festivities. I wanted everything to be perfect and in my first cooking act the turkey was on the floor. This years cooking blunders where not as dramatic but included trying to make vegan pastry dough and although my creation looked nothing like the picture, I’ve learned in the kitchen you can’t control it all and you have to go with the flow.

Going with the flow is my holiday wish. As you may know I try to be a perfectionist in the kitchen and in every other way during the holiday season, my tree, my treats even my wrapping leaves for sleepless nights and ultimately I realize too late that I didn’t sit back and enjoy the season. I think it is hard for everyone to find balance this time of year. I always hear people complain that they eat too much, drink too much and exercise too little; this ultimately leads to the inevitable New Years wish of dieting, which crashes and burns by the 5^th of January. Rather than eating your way through the next five weeks, why don’t you find some balance between the sweetly festive treats and this delicious, healthy, but I promise, tasty soup. Roasted Butternut Squash and Apple soup has an explosion of flavor that will make your tongue smile. The hint of garlic mixed with the slightly sweet tone from the apple and the smooth creaminess of the butternut squash will only make you want more and you can indulge as much as you like.

Roasted Butternut Squash and Apple Soup

Serves 6-8

          1 Butternut Squash

         2 ½ Honey Crisp or Red type Apples

         1 Yellow Onion

         4 ½ cups Vegetable Broth

         1 teaspoon Salt

         1 tablespoon Cinnamon

         2 cloves Garlic

         1 15 ounce can Cannellini Beans

         ½ cup Organic Apple Juice

         1 teaspoon Curry Powder

         ¼ teaspoon Garam Marsala

1. Preheat oven at 400 degrees

2. Cut off the skin of the Butternut Squash and cut into cubes
 (Butternut Squash can be difficult to cut into. I reccomend peeling the squash first and then cut the squash in half and scoop the seeds out of the bottom of the squash before you start to cut squash into cubes)

3. Peal and core Apple and cut up into cubes


4. Roughly chop Onion
 

5. Place Butternut Squash, Apple and Onion in glass

Pyrex dish and add 1/2 cup Vegetable Broth, Cinnamon and Salt

6. Roast Veggies and Apple covered under foil for 30 minutes, after 30 minutes remove foil and cook for another 10 to 20 minutes or until soft

7. In a food processor combine can of Cannellini Beans drained and rinsed, two cloves of Garlic and Apple Juice, mix until smooth

8. Add in scoops of the roasted Veggie mix in batches and mix until smooth

9. Once everything is mixed move to a pot and add in 3 to 4 cups of Vegetable Broth, adjust broth depending on how thick you like the soup, heat and serve

10. Add cranberries or pumpkin seeds as a garnish to the soup for more flavor

Now I am going to set up my tree and then sit back and enjoy the twinkle of the white lights and the comforting smell of pine coming from the candle rather than my fake tree, the lights come pre-strung, see I am already starting to let go!