Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Pancakes

Pumpkins, eggs, and oil in the mix makes for a moist, flavorful pancake with a crepe-like texture.  Credit is due to the wonderful book Practical Paleo for the recipe.  Easy, healthy, and delicious, these pancakes have become a Sunday morning staple in Veggie Wonder-land.  They're also grain-free and paleo, with lots of fiber and protein to boot.  

Most pumpkins and squashes will do, and the recipe works especially well with a butternut squash base.  The brand and texture of squash mixed in does influence the taste - the Kroger organic brand I tried this morning resulted in a thicker, more substantial pancake than the standard Libby's brand version.  

Enjoy!

You will need:

• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup canned squash (pumpkin or butternut squash work very well)
• 2 spoonfulls of melted butter or oil
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• dash vanilla
• equal amounts of pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon, to taste
• sweetener to taste (maple syrup recommended)
• chocolate chips or chunks (optional)

1. Mix wet ingredients, and then stir in the dry ingredients.
2. Fry in greased or nonstick skillet on medium heat.  A 2-3'' diameter cake works well.  Sprinkle with chocolate chips if desired.  Flip after a few bubbles appear.
3. Enjoy!

Frozen Pear Mocha

This is good stuff.  Sweet, creamy, and super healthy to boot!  I enjoyed this coffee drink much more than a standard Starbucks Frappuccino, and I'll definitely repeat the combination of frozen fruity pears infusing my blended coffee beverages.  It's so easy, and most things you'll have around the house anyway.  If you chop and freeze the pears yourself, you can freeze and blend with skin (frozen fruit is often already skinned) for an extra fiber boost.

You will need:

• Chopped frozen pear
• Milk of choice (I used unsweetened Silk Almond Milk)
• Unsweetened cocoa powder to taste (I used Hershey's Special Dark)
• Instant coffee or espresso, 1-2 servings worth
• Optional: cinnamon to taste (I used it), additional sweetener (I didn't include)

1. Put all ingredients in a blender.  I used my Magic Bullet.
2. Pulse until blended.
3. Enjoy!

Super Fudgy Steel-Cut Oats

Nutty + chocolatey +... healthy?  Yes!  Cocoa + coconut oil work so well with the steel cut oats here.

Steel cut oats have a wonderful nutty flavor and a satisfying crunch.  While I generally prefer them to the standard rolled variety, I would avoid them because they were too much work.  That is, until I realized I could make steel cut oats easily in my single serving rice cooker (stay tuned for some more details in a future post!).

To make these chocolate oats, you will need:

• Plain oats of choice, cooked as you like them and warm (steel cut oats are wonderful!)
• Unsweetened cocoa powder, to taste
• Sweetener of choice, to taste (I used Splenda)
• Coconut butter, a small dab for richness or to taste

1. Mix everything together.
2. Taste and adjust ingredients as necessary.
3. Enjoy!

Hard Breakfast Oatmeal

 This morning I used up the last bit of my beloved almond milk to make oatmeal.  There wasn't enough milk left to put in almond milk in the usual ratio of 2 parts milk to 1 part oats, so I improvised and just used what I had on hand.  I think the ratio was 1 to 1.5 parts milk to 1 part oats.  The result was a delicious oatmeal, in which the oats were nicely cooked and somewhat moist and yet I could taste each oat separately.  What a tasty textural variation on the standard breakfast oatmeal!  I will definitely be making oats this way again!

To follow suit, you will need:

• rolled oats
• milk of choice (I used unsweetened almond)
• cinnamon (optional)

1. Mix rolled oats and milk in a ratio of approximately 1-1.5 parts milk for each part oats.
2. Microwave for 2 minutes, or until oats achieve desired level of doneness.
3. Sprinkle with cinnamon if desired.
4. Enjoy!

Wild Rice Pilaf with Goldenberries

 Mmmmm...  Salty, tart and yet slightly sweet, chewy, wholesome, original, filling, and beautiful, this wild rice pilaf is truly a keeper recipe.  The addition of dry goldenberries to the dish makes it just that much more delicious and unique.  The goldenberries plump out while cooking but intensify in flavor, becoming sweeter and nicely complementing the savoriness of the rice.  The pilaf comes out tasting like you've spent hours slaving over a hot stove.  Who knew it could be so easy to prepare it?

To make the pilaf, you will need:

• 1-1.5 cups of wild rice
• 2 oz. or so of dried goldenberries
• sweetener to taste (optional, I used one packet of stevia)
• 1-2 cubes of vegetable bullion
• 3-4 cups milk of choice (I used almond)

1. Put everything into a small (1.5 qt) slow cooker.  Be sure the cooker is 2/3 full.  If you want to use a different size cooker, scale your ingredients accordingly.
2. Cook on low until the wild rice achieves a desired level of doneness.
3. Stir well.
4. Enjoy!

Simple Italian White Bean Stew

I was craving a good old fashioned bowl of paste e fagioli, the Italian pasta and white bean soup with tomatoes that is so very good and served at most Italian joints.  Having no pasta on hand and limited prep time, I came up with this healthy slow cooker dish, which turned out to be quite tasty, satisfying, and much healthier than the original.  To make the soup you will need:

• 1 cup Dry white beans (I used fava, I think)
• 1 cup chopped tomatoes (I used frozen chopped tomatos)
• Garlic powder, salt, oregano, and black pepper to taste
• 1 spoonful of oil of choice (olive oil works well here)

1. Rinse and sort the white beans and add them to the slow cooker (I recommend a 1.5 quart cooker here - if you wish to use a larger crockpot, you'll want to scale the quantities of everything else accordingly).
2. Add tomatoes and a few shakes of the salt and spices, going a bit heavier on the garlic than on the others.
3. Add the oil and 3 cups or so of water to the pot.
4. Cook on low until the beans are tender.
5. Adjust the seasoning to taste.  You will probably want to add extra garlic, salt, and pepper.
6. Enjoy!

Magical Mint Quinoa Pudding

Quinoa for breakfast is always fun and creamy.  I decided to jazz it up recently with some mint.  The mint flakes made this all natural filling breakfast taste light and refreshing as well as satisfying.  Make some now!  You will need:
Quinoa of choice (I used basic white/yellow quinoa)

• Milk of choice (I used almond)
• Sweetener of choice
• Mint flakes
• Pinch of salt (optional)
• Vanilla (optional) 

1. Rinse and sort the quinoa, and then place it in the slow cooker with milk in a ratio of approximately 1 part quinoa to 3 or 4 parts milk, and so the slow cooker is ~3/4 full (note that this is a greater ratio of milk to quinoa than prescribed on most boxes, to get a soft, pudding-type consistency; if you want a more traditional quinoa texture, follow box directions for the proportion of milk to quinoa).
2. Add remaining ingredients to taste.
3. Cook on low overnight or until soft and creamy.
4. Stir, taste, and adjust seasoning if necessary. 
5. Enjoy!

Citrus Garlic Broccolli

 Wow, this stuff is good!  This broccoli recipe has transformed me from a broccoli fearing, wannabe vegetarian into an absolute broccoli fiend.  Seriously.  It's salty, tangy, garlicky, crunchy, and, for added addictiveness, can even be a tad sweet.  I prefer this to french fries and find that if I don't make it for a few days, I start to really crave it.  I make this recipe at least a few times a week, and each time I do, I eat a whole plate of broccoli at once!  Inspired by the best vegan broccoli of my life, I took things one step further to simplify.  This is even better than the previous version!  This is my go-to, healthy, lazy, deeeleeeeshous ahhhmazing broccoli for busy, daily life.

To share in the glory of this broccoli dish, you will need:

Washed and chopped broccoli (the pre-washed and dried bags at the grocery store work really well here; if you insist on washing everything yourself, be sure you dry the broccoli quite thoroughly before roasting it!)

• Nonstick olive oil spray or olive oil, or both
• Salt (I used sea salt)
• Pepper (I used freshly ground pepper)
• Garlic (either thinly sliced or chopped fresh cloves or powder)
• Citrus fruit of choice (lemon or orange work wonders here)

1. Preheat oven to 425F.
2. Line baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray with nonstick spray.
3. Cover sheet with broccoli and garlic.  
4. Spray everything again, generously to coat (or toss with some olive oil - more fatty but very delicious!)
5. Salt and pepper everything.
6. Bake for 20 minutes or so, or until the outer edges of the broccoli are crisp and brown.
7. Cut the citrus fruit of choice in half and squeeze the juice over the broccoli.
8. Toss to coat.  Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.
9. Enjoy!

Psychedelic broccoli?  I inverted the colors using Picasa for this photo.

Coconut Quinoa Pudding

This is a healthy, creamy breakfast pudding, reminiscent of a rice pudding.  Unlike standard white rice pudding, this pudding is made from nutrient-rich quinoa, so comes with loads of protein and fiber.  The flavors are pretty comparable, and the texture is a little more creamy than standard rice pudding.  To make the pudding, you will need:

• Quinoa of choice, uncooked (I used basic white quinoa)
• Milk of choice (I used unsweetened almond)
• Coconut flakes
• Sweetener of choice (I used a mix of stevia and agave)
• Ground ginger
• Vanilla (optional)
• 2-3 Green cardamom pods

1. Fill small (1.5 quart) crockpot until 2/3 full with quinoa and milk, with approximately 1 part quinoa to 3 or 4 parts milk 
2. Stir in remaining ingredients to taste
3. Cook on low overnight or on medium or high heat for a few hours, until the pudding is soft and creamy.
4. Taste and adjust seasonings; sprinkle with some extra coconut flakes.
5. Enjoy!

Pancake Milk Shake

Behold the ultimate healthy comfort food: the pancake milkshake.

This thick and creamy, high protein, sugar-free maple shake was born out of a mostly empty kitchen and some desperation.

It's been a busy few weeks, with less time than usual for fiddling around in the kitchen.  I also hadn't been able to go food shopping as much as I would have liked to, either.  So left without my go to breakfast cereals, limited time, and an overwhelming craving for comfort food, I began to experiment.  This shake is the delicious result of a few quick minutes of mixing one morning.  I highly recommend this shake!

You will need:

• Milk of choice (I used unsweetened almond)
• Unsweetened soy protein powder (either plain or vanilla would work)
• Maple syrup of choice (I used a sugar free variety)

Stir everything together and enjoy!  If desired, swirl in some extra maple syrup after you have mixed everything together.  The soy protein powder has a dry and flour-y consistency that makes this shake thick and satisfying.

Deep Chocolate Truffles

 I'm a huge fan of Chocolate Covered Katie, so as soon as I saw her recipe for fudge babies and friends, I knew I wanted in.  They're easy, healthy, natural, and delicious.  So one day, when I get a super high powered blender and can pulverize some walnuts, I totally plan to make them.  Several varieties of them.  However, until then, I'll be making this recipe and calling on the same CCK concepts and deliciousness in spirit.  This recipe yields a truffle that's pretty tasty in its own right.  Your truffles will also be rich and delicious.  As with the originals, you'll need no added sugar and no blender.  You only need:

• Almond butter (choose a variety according to taste - e.g. salty or not, roasted or not...)
• Mashed dates (if they are difficult to mash to the consistency of applesauce, soak them for a few hours first)
• Unsweetened cocoa powder (I used Hershey's Special Dark for rich color)
• Instant coffee powder (optional, for a mocha flavor)

1. Mix the first three ingredients in approximately equal portions with a fork (possibly use less cocoa depending on how bitter you like things, a little goes a long way here) until a chocolatey batter forms.  
2. Taste and adjust the proportions, adding some coffee granules if desired.
3. Role into balls.
4. Enjoy!