chocolate p-nut butter squares

I made these bad boys during a sweet-tooth craving and they certainly did the trick. They are a delicious snack with a base of oats, a layer of peanut butter, topped with chocolate. They give the feeling of a healthy/vegan Reece's Pieces...

Chocolate P-Nut Butter Squares

Oat Base:

1 cup oats

1/2 cup flour (kamut works well)

1 tbsp sugar

1/4 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp baking soda

3 tbsp maple syrup

3 tbsp sunflower oil

Peanut Butter Center:

1/2 cup natural peanut butter

1/3 cup sugar

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 cup non-dairy milk (I prefer almond milk)

Chocolate Topping:

3/4 cup non dairy chocolate chips

1/3 cup non-dairy milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. To prepare the oat base: combine dry ingredients, stir in maple syrup and oil, until well combined (consistency should be crumbly yet hold together when pressed). Transfer to a lightly oiled (or parchment paper) 8x8 inch pan and press evenly. Bake for 15 minutes, then remove and let cool.

While cooling, prepare the peanut butter center: in a saucepan over medium heat, combine all ingredients together. Stir occasionally until it becomes smooth and uniform, and thickens (do not boil). Pour mixture evenly over the oat base and refrigerate for 15-20 minutes.

In the meantime, prepare the chocolate topping; in a small saucepan over low-medium heat, combine the chocolate chips and milk. Stir occasionally, until the chocolate and milk melt together and are smooth with no separation of the mixture. Remove from heat. Once the oat base has chilled, pour the chocolate topping evenly over top. Refrigerate again until completely cool and cut into squares.

Recipe by

Dreena Burton

from her awesome, family oriented cookbook

Vive le Vegan

. Check out her blog at 

http://vivelevegan.blogspot.ca/

Frito Misto by Sublime

Our favorite dish at Sublime Restaurant in Fort Lauderdale was the Frito Misto appetizer the waiter brought over as a complimentary taster to wet our palates. I think he felt bad since our 2 year old fell off his chair and hit his head, which then led to a lot of crying, Levi passing out in my arms, and then lots of free tasters. Unfortunate how it happened, but this is how we came across an amazing way to serve cauliflower. We ended up buying the restaurants cookbook, so naturally the first recipe I tried out was the Frito Misto. I can't say it turned out exactly the same as the original, but it was only my first try...

Sublime

vegan cutlet & lasagna

On our way back from the Bahamas, we had a quick stop over in Fort Lauderdale so I checked my Vegman app to see if there were any vegan restaurants close by. It turned out that the renowned vegan restaurant

Sublime

was just a 15 minute walk from our hotel. The food was delicious, and the waiter kept bringing us over little samples of other dishes on the menu that I wouldn't have ordered for myself, but ended up asking for the recipe! Luckily they had a cookbook which we ended up buying. I haven't tried to recreate any of the meals yet, but two of our favorites (which were both little samples complimentary of the chef) were Mediterranean Polenta Squares & Frito Misto. Next time you're in Fort Lauderdale check out

Sublime

!

so tired from all the traveling, Levi slept through the whole meal

"100% of Sublime's profits support animal welfare. Sublime is the vision of owner Nanci Alexander. In 1989, Nanci founded the Animal Rights Foundation of Florida (ARFF) and has been volunteering as president since. She has been recognized by national and local organizations for her work on behalf of animals. The creation of Sublime is an extension of her efforts to reduce animal cruelty. Animal agriculture today represents the world's greatest source of animal cruelty, and the most significant step any individual can take to reduce this abuse is to move to a plant-based diet. The goal of Sublime is to show that plant-based food can indeed be sublime. Additionally, 100% of Sublime's profits will go to organizations that promote animal welfare and a vegan lifestyle."

Double Whammy Ginger Cookies

These are the best ginger cookies I've ever had. This year I doubled the recipe and gave them out as Christmas gifts to our staff. Everyone loved them!

perfect holiday cookie (but good anytime of the year)

2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp sea salt
2/3 cup maple syrup
1/3 cup molasses
1/2 coconut oil or sunflower oil
1/3 cup minced fresh ginger root
sugar

Whisk together dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients. Mix.
Roll dough into small balls, then roll in sugar to coat before placing on cookie sheet.
Bake 350° for 10 minutes.

Vegan Apple Crisp Muffins

With limited time, these were fast, easy, delicious apple muffins to make. It's like apple crisp in a portable/packable muffin size.

vegan apple crisp muffins from the Happy Herbivore

Vegan Apple Crisp Muffins:

Ingredients

• 1½ cups whole wheat pastry flour
• ½ cup rolled oats
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• ½ cup raw sugar
• ¼ cup brown sugar
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• ¼ tsp ground ginger
• a dash of nutmeg
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1 cup apple, diced
• ¼ cup pure maple syrup

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease muffin tin or spray paper liners to prevent sticking and set aside. In a large bowl, whisk flour, oats, baking soda, baking powder, salt and spices together until well combined. Add applesauce, sugars and maple, then stir until almost combined. add apples, stirring until just combined. Spoon into muffin cups 3/4 full. Sprinkle additional oats and brown sugar over top if desired. Bake 18-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

check out the Happy Herbivore blog and the Happy Herbivore cookbook 

Sesame Noodles

I got this recipe from Jae Steele's book Ripe from around here. It's actually called Spring Sesame Noodles, but it can be altered to be made all year round. I usually cut down on the tahini and add a bunch of extra veggies.

you can replace the  fiddleheads with any veggie (broccoli, brussel sprouts, etc.)

Sesame Noodles with red pepper & yellow zucchini served with  Ginger Glazed Carrots and a spring roll

Banana Pancakes

I made these for Levi's 1st birthday. He loved them! They're super easy to make, and they're delicious. I hope to continue to make them a Saturday morning tradition...

banana pancakes served with fresh fruit

Banana Pancakes recipe from Jae Steele's Get it Ripe cookbook

Roasted Vegetable Curry

This is a delicious curry from Moosewood Restaurants Simple Suppers; fresh ideas for the weeknight table cookbook. All the recipes from this book are designed to be quick and easy. While the veggies are roasting, there's time to make the sauce and side dishes. We've been making recipe for a couple of years and still enjoy it.

roasted vegetable curry with basmati rice and fiddleheads

recipe from Moosewood Restaurants Simple Suppers; fresh ideas for the weeknight table cookbook

Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble

I had a whole bunch of strawberries that needed to be used, and a bag of rhubarb from my moms garden in the freezer (plus I have a sweet-tooth) so this turned out to be the perfect recipe.

strawberry rhubarb crumble - yum

recipe from Jae Steele's Get it Ripe Cookbook

I think there's a typo in the fruit bottom ingredients; it calls for one cup of sugar but doesn't mention it in the preperations, so I just sprinkled the fruit with a bit of sugar, but it doesn't really need it since there's 3/4 cup sugar in the topping.

Quinoa Tabouleh

Quinoa Tabouleh makes an awesome side salad for lunch or dinner. I usually use the suggested cucumber, but since I didn't have one in the fridge, I replaced it with celery. It makes a nice big batch, so there's plenty left over.

fresh herbs from our garden

left over Quinoa Tabouleh

recipe from Jae Steele's Get it Ripe Cookbook

Fettuccini No-Fredo

An awesome take on Pasta Alfredo. It can be a bit heavy on its own, so to lighten it up we add veggies (you can boil them with the pasta, or fry them with the sauce) and cut down on the tahini (1/4 to 1/2 cup instead of 3/4 cup).

Fettuccini No-Fredo with broccoli, mushrooms & green onions

Fettuccini No-Fredo from Jae Steele's Get it Ripe Cookbook

Colorful Stew aka Tofu Stew

It's officially called Tofu Stew, but I don't think that sounds very appealing, especially since there's a lot of people who aren't that excited about tofu, so I've renamed it Colorful Stew. You could make it with or without tofu. The recipe calls for winter squash, but I didn't have any so I subsituted with sweet potato. I also cut down on the salt, changing it from one tbsp to one tsp instead. You can use any kind of miso and vinegar you have - I've never seen umeboshi vinegar, so I substitute with rice or wine vinegar.

Colorful Tofu Stew served with fake chicken and dumplings from Yuan

Tofu Stew from Kripalu Cookbook

This cookbook comes from the Kripalu Center for yoga and health in Massachusetts. I've never been, but heard great things about it.

Hot & Sour Stir-Fry

Our staple stir-fry... The recipe calls for a 'coleslaw mix', but you can use any veggies. We usually do carrots, peppers, zucchini, onions and some tofu marinated in soy sauce. It tastes good with crunchy veggies, so you can just fry them for a couple of minutes, (that way they keep more of their nutrients as well). I stopped adding the suggested cornstarch since I didn't feel it needed it.

hot & sour stir-fry served with black rice noodles & dumplings from Yuan

we usually use plain white rice noodles, but I found these black rice noodles at Que de Bonnes Choses and thought they'd be a fun change

hot & sour stir-fry from Moosewood's Simple Suppers for the Weeknight Table

West African Groundnut Stew

We've been making this dish over the past couple of years and love it. You can use a selection of your favorite veggies, covered with this delicious peanut butter sauce. The recipe calls for tomato juice, I rarely have it in my fridge, so we use canned tomatoes (juice included).

West African Groundnut Stew with couscous and fiddleheads

West African Groundnut Stew from New Recipes from Moosewood Restaurant

Coconut Cauliflower Chana

This is a great recipe to make when you have lots of veggies in the fridge. I didn't have any cauliflower when I made it this time, so I substituted with zucchini. Chick peas are good source of protein. I've been told if you rinse them before cooking they'll give you less gas (not sure if that's true, but worth the rinse!). I usually omit the shredded coconut since I haven't found any non-sweetened kinds that I like. If I don't have any cilantro on hand, I'll substitute with parsley. This recipe calls for 1-2 tbsps of curry powder... I think 1 is enough, otherwise it tastes powdery.

Served over rice, with fake chicken from Yuan, and a spring roll & mango chutney

Coconut Cauliflower Chana from Jae Steele's Get it Ripe cookbook

Quinoa Vegetable Stew

My Mom made this for our Mothers Day dinner, it was yummy and light. She used sweet potato, spinach, mushrooms, onions and a can of tomatoes (we both agreed fresh tomatoes would have been nice), served with a lettuce salad with avocado and walnuts.

colorful and yummy

Quinoa Vegetable Stew from Moosewood Restaurant Low-Fat Favorites

Vegan Apple Crumble

Here's one of my favorite recipes from my #1 vegan cookbook Get it Ripe by Jae Steele. Quick, easy and delicious! Best time to make it is autumn with fresh apples, but it's so good I make it all year round.

Get it Ripe by Jae Steele available at Luna Yoga

Get it Ripe by Jae Steele available at Luna Yoga

Cowgrrrl Cookies

Awesome vegan cookies... People ask me for this recipe often. You can make them with chocolate chips or raisins, or both. If I don't have applesauce on hand (or if the dough turns out a bit dry) I'll use soy or almond milk.

One of the best parts of this recipe is that it makes a lot of cookies, so you can freeze half of them and then when you want them you just put them on a cookie sheet and pop them in the oven (great for when you have lots of hungry musicians coming through your home).

vegan chocolate chips from Viva Vegan Store

second batch for the freezer

from Jae Steele's Get it Ripe cookbook

Barbecued Tempeh or Tofu

I love this recipe. I throw whatever veggies I have into a baking dish and put them right into the oven (skipping the pre-sauté) for 20 or 30 minutes covered, while I make the sauce, then I uncover it, mix it, and add the sauce and bake it for another 20 or 30 minutes. During the second half of the baking I make the rice/quinoa/couscous and salad or throw some spring rolls in the oven while the veggies are cooking. I usually make it with tofu, but this time I didn't have any in the fridge, so I just made it with fennel, zucchini, yellow pepper and tomato.

Served with couscous and a spinach salad with avocado & flax seeds

Super colorful and saucy

Barbecued Tempeh or Tofu from New Recipes from Moosewood Restaurant Cookbook

Lunchtime Vinaigrette, Salad & Sandwich

My staple lunch. I love hummus and bread (and so does Levi). Here I made a hummus, cucumber, tomato, avocado and Dijon sandwich, with a spinach salad topped with yellow pepper, flax seeds and our favorite vinaigrette. The recipe gives the choice of several different vinagers... balsamic is my favorite.

Levi and I eat half the container of hummus while making sandwiches, he even like the garlic flavored one

flax seeds are a good source of fiber and omega 3

Moosewood has a whole bunch of amazing vegetarian cookbooks (I think they were probably my first), this recipe is from New Recipes from Moosewood Restaurant