I went out with a friend last night to India’s Pearl and wanted to try something new. I chose Bhindi Masala – okra cooked with onions, tomatoes and spices. I envisioned something akin to the wonderful vegetable casserole dish I had while with my parents in Istanbul. What I got was a dish so salty that I couldn’t even eat it.

In questioning the waiter about it, he advised me that the dish is supposed to be salty and that Indian food uses a lot of exotic spices. I’m a big fan of exotic spices and have frequented my fair share of Indian buffets. However, I had never experienced this level of saltiness.

Rather than throw the leftovers away, my friend suggested “watering” the leftovers down by making a soup out of them. So that’s what I ate for dinner tonight.

First, I added two cups of water and one cup of vegetable broth. Then I added a 28-oz can of stewed tomatoes, a cup of cooked lentils and a 1/2 cup of red quinoa. The results were outstanding. I didn’t need to add an ounce of additional spices, let alone salt.

So before leaving your leftovers on the table and wasting both food and money, consider how you might be able to take a fresh spin on them.  The results might surprise you.

Side note: If you try visiting India’s Pearl and don’t like a lot of salt, ask your waiter for light salt in advance!

I find that the difference between a good meal and a heavenly meal is frequently the toppings. The few extra minutes required to make a special home-made sauce, or to chop up a few nuts or fresh herbs, will enable both your guests and your tastebuds to reap the rewards.

Tonight, I had one of those occasions. I chose Vanilla Bean Hempmilk Cream this time, but also enjoy rice milk cream or my favorite, coconut milk cream. Coconut milk cream is still an indulgence. I’d love to pretend it’s low-fat, but no such luck. Still, I’m fortunate. Because I regularly eat a healthy, whole-food, plant-based diet and exercise 4 or 5 times a week, I don’t really have to worry about fat. On average, I’ve found that my expeditions into the land of non-dairy desserts offer far superior richness of flavors and are far creamier than most of the traditional ice creams I’ve explored.

It’s really the leisurely visit to the ice cream store that I miss the most. I’m still waiting for someone to open a shop of non-dairy healthy frozen desserts that I can eat to bring that experience back to me. Ann?

In the meantime, here are ten healthy topping recipes I use at home to make vanilla “ice cream” go from good to heavenly. Still use ice cream? Learn about all the great reasons to explore the alternatives. Feel free to mix and match to find your own divine inspiration. I use a lot of molasses, because it’s loaded with minerals and just so darned good for you. If it’s too strong for your taste, try a milder natural sweetener like agave nectar, brown rice syrup or maple syrup. They’re much better at preventing those highs and lows that come along with processed, bleached sugars.

1) Morning Mint

• 1 Tbsp dark molasses
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1-2 sprigs of fresh mint leaves, chopped

2) Berry Tart

• 1/2 cup mixed frozen berries
• 1 Tbsp frozen apple juice concentrate
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 cup water

Bring all ingredients to boil and reduce to thick liquid

3) Coconut Cookie

• 1 - 2 Tbsp raw coconut flakes
• 1 – 2 Tbsp raw macadamia nuts
• 1 Tbsp dark molasses

4) Gingerbread Dream

• 1-2 Tbsp candied ginger, with sugar rinsed off and chopped
• 1 Tbsp molasses
• 1 Tbsp raw almonds or pecans, chopped

5) The Great Outdoors

• 1 – 2 Tbsp granola (check ingredients carefully – avoid heavy syrups!)
• 1 Tbsp goji berries, chopped
• 1 Tbsp currants
• 1 Tbsp cashews, chopped

6) Grandma’s Applie Pie

• 1 Tbsp apple sauce
• 1 Tbsp peanut butter
• 1 Tbsp coconut milk or light coconut milk
• 1 tsp cinnamon

Heat and blend all ingredients over low heat to drizzly perfection

7) Wait, did I say 10?

Insert your ideas here…

There are so many great ideas, I’d love to hear yours.

Drop me a suggestion and I’ll round out the last few.

I based this on a recipe from Ethnic Vegan, but didn’t want to boil all the nutrients out of the dates. So instead of adding a bunch of unnecessary sugar, I took a lesson from my raw diet friends and pulsed them in the food processor with some agave nectar.  These were delicious treats – similar to a Fig Newton bar – but much healthier. I left the sugar in the crust this time, but will be experimenting with that as well for future versions. I was also out of walnuts, so used almonds and cashews instead. Turned out to be a great substitution, as many times walnuts make my tongue itch slightly. If you’ve got folks with walnut allergies, simply try other nuts.

Warning! I rarely measure anything when I cook, so these amounts are approximate. Don’t be afraid to experiment with the amounts. Let me know how it works out.

What you need

Filling

• 2 cups dates
• 1 cup prunes
• 1/2 cup figs
• 1/2 cup almonds
• 1/2 cup cashews
• 2 Tbsp agave nectar
• juice of one lemon
• 1/2 cup hot water

Crust

• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup tapioca flour
• 2 Tbsp ground flax seed
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 3 cups rolled oats
• 1/3 cup applesauce
• 1/3 cup margarine
• 1 cup turbinado sugar

How to make it

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 13 x 9 x 2 baking dish.

Next prepare your crust. Combine flours, flax seed, baking soda and salt. Stir in oats, applesauce, margarine and sugar until ingredients are well blended and mixture is crumbly.

Then combine all filling ingredients except water in a food processor and mix. Slowly add water until ingredients are well blended and you have a thick paste.

Add half the crust mixture to the baking dish and press evenly. Spoon the filling on top of the crust layer. Tip! Use a wet rubber spatula to prevent the filling from sticking and making a mess of your crust while you do this. Finish with a layer of crust mixture.

Bake for 30 minutes, or until golden brown. Let cool then cut into squares and enjoy.

Tags: healthy snacks, vegan

I became a vegan in January 2009 after beginning a 3-week vegan-inspired detox diet. I simply felt too good to stop. I cut out caffeine and processed sugars in addition to changing from a vegetarian to vegan diet.

This year, I’m giving up alcohol for 3 weeks. I’m not sure what my relationship with alcohol will be when I’m done, but my goal is to connect with how good I feel without it and take it from there.

What are your resolutions this year? Do you want to eat healthier? Give your body a rest from the constant barrage it gets? Why not pledge to eat healthier this year by learning one new healthy recipe each week? In fact, I challenge you to try it.

Take the “eat in b-e-d” challenge
Each week, find inspirational recipes on the pages of this site or others that have healthy, wholesome ingredients and let your taste buds be your guide. If you like it, cook it more often! But still commit to trying a new, different healthy recipe each week. Your goal is to begin a lifelong journey with food – finding healthier ways to enjoy it each week.

Make a pledge to eat healthier for the benefit of your body, mind and spirit…

Tags: detox diet, eat better, lose weight, vegan

I enjoy fries just as much as the next person. But I’m trying to make healthier versions. This one was a fresh, new experiment and turned out quite well.

What you need

• 1 sweet potato, sliced into steak-size fries
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 yellow onion, sliced thinly
• 1 large clove garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp maple syrup
• 2-3  tbsp hot water
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp white pepper
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

How to make it

Sautee the potato in olive oil covered, over medium heat for 5 minutes, stirring well to coat. Add onions and sautee covered for another 2 – 3 minutes. Add garlic and sautee for another 1 - 2 minutes. Add maple syrup and water, stir well, cover and sautee for another 5 minutes, stirring regularly to prevent burning. Add spices, cover and sautee for another 5-10 minutes until potatoes are browned and onions are slightly caramelized.

The spiciness of the pepper, onions and garlic was a beatiful compliment to the sweetness of the cinnamon, nutmeg and maple syrup. And cayenne pepper is great for vitamin C.

Next time, I’d love to drizzle it with a peanut butter-coconut milk sauce. Delicious.

Tags: vegan

November and December are great months for vegans. Not only was World Vegan Day November 1, but we get to display our vegan prowess by making all sorts of holiday comfort food feasts that don’t have a lick of meat, dairy or eggs in them. I’m happy to report that my Chocolate Mousse Pie got just as many rave reviews as my friend’s did even though hers had eggs, heavy cream and a couple cups of sugar in it.

And even my steak-and-potato dad loved the Thanksgiving Pot Pie which Vegetarian Times lists as low calorie as well as delicious.

The Fruit and Toasted Almond Stuffing wasn’t as much of a hit, but still managed to get eaten after a couple meals of leftovers. Don’t you love the week after Thanksgiving? For the first time since going vegetarian five years ago, I felt like I ate as much as everyone around me. I’m satiated and love it.

The real hit of the party was Rachel’s cupcakes. At fourteen, she’s already a rockstar. Not vegan so I didn’t get to try them, but how beautiful was the presentation? I mean – seriously? Amazing.

I have to thank Vegetarian Times for much of this year’s Thanksgiving inspiration. Vegetarian Times is a great magazine for vegetarian, and even vegan, inspiration. Subscriptions are a bargain on Amazon.com right now if you want to pick one up. I gave some as Christmas gifts this year to folks I know that have been wanting to eat healthier and are looking for new recipe inspiration. There’s still dozens of recipes I need to try. With 27 recipes in the latest issue, 20 of which are vegan, I could almost try a new recipe every day for the next year straight out of the magazine. Hmmmm – something to think about for 2010?

Happy eating in b-e-d (aka browse the recipes)…

What you need

• 1/2 cup lentils
• 1/2 tsp vegetable seasoning
• 1-1/2 cup water
• 1 medium russet potato
• 1 small sweet  onion
• 1-2 cloves garlic
• 1-2 Tbsp curry powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• Olive oil

How to make it

First cook the lentils. I use a rice  cooker and have learned that adding a bit of olive oil to the bottom saves an enormous amount of cleanup time and prevents ruining your rice cooker from scraping the crap out of it every time the rice sticks to the bottom. Add lentils, vegetable seasoning and water and cook.

Meanwhile, peel and cube the potato and boil in water until soft. Then sautee the onion in olive oil over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Add garlic and sautee for another 5 minutes until soft and translucent.

When everything is ready, combine the ingredients – mixing and mashing until everything is well blended and sticks together. Add curry powder and salt and blend well. Modify seasonings to taste.

Form the lentil-potato mixture into 4 cakes and sautee in olive oil over medium heat until brown on each side.

Serve with a sour cashew cream sauce.

Tags: healthy, high protien, vegan

It’s blistery cold out. I don’t like to go out on cold days. And there’s not much left in the cabinet – this is when my most creative recipes come to life. I do have plenty of coconut milk for some reason. And following up  on my lentil kick from the weekend, I decided to lookup some recipes using coconut milk and red lentils. So I found this Red Lentil Coconut Curry recipe to use as a base, and modified from there based on what I had in the kitchen. This is a very mild curry recipe. If you like it spicy, add more chili oil, cayenne pepper and other favorite heat spices as you wish.

What you need

• 1 1/2 cup red lentils, cooked
• 1 Tbsp coconut oil
• 1 medium onion, quartered and sliced
• 1 Tbsp minced garlic
• 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1 cup tomato sauce
• 1/4 cup braggs amino acids
• 2 Tbsp fresh lime juice
• 1/2 tsp Thai chili oil (or more to taste)
• 1 cup hot water
• 2 cups cauliflower florets
• 2 celery stalks, sliced

How to make it

First, cook your lentils. The original recipe uses a stove-top method which you are more than welcome to try. I prefer the rice cooker method so I can walk away and forget about it while moving on to the next step.  The original recipe also called for extra water for the lentils. I simply cooked the lentils and added an extra cup of hot water at the end of the recipe.

Sautee onions in coconut oil in a large soup pot until clear.  Be sure to stir frequently to avoid browning. Add garlic, curry powder, cumin, turmeric, red pepper, cinnamon and bay leaves and sautee for another 3 minutes. Stir constantly to avoid browning.

Turn temperature down to medium-low. Add coconut milk, braggs aminos and tomato sauce and simmer for 20-30 minutes. I didn’t have any tomato sauce. But I had 5-6 cherry tomatoes that were extremely soft and not quite ripe sitting in my window. The last of my cherry tomato harvest from the garden. So I put them in a cup of boiling water, chopped them up, and added organic ketchup.  Thank you cherry tomato plant for getting me through one last creative recipe. May you rest in peace in my compost bin.

Add cooked red lentils and vegetables and cook over medium heat until vegetables are just tender. Ready to serve! Try it over brown rice like the original recipe suggests, or add some asian rice/vermicelli noodles to the pot and serve when softened.

Yummy. And warm!

Tags: vegan

Lentils, Cashew Cream Sauce & Sauteed Vegetables

I’ve been having a hankering for lentils lately. I like to get my protien from as many different plant-based sources as possible and it’s been awhile since I’ve had lentils. I thought the lentils would be a nice pairing with a sauteed mushrooms and onion red-wine reduction, contrasted with a creamy cashew-based sauce. The results were superb. The beauty of this dish is in versatility of serving. I started simple, layering the lentil base with the cashew sauce and sauteed vegetables on top. For lunch the next day, I mixed the whole thing together and ate it with spelt crackers. And for round three, I’m going to try making a patty out of it and frying it in olive oil. Wish me luck!

What you need

• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 cup lentils
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 1 cup cashews
• 2-3 Tbsp olive oil, divided
• 1/2 cup hot water
• 2 Tbsp braggs amino acid
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 cup mushrooms (button, cremini, etc)
• 1 small onion, quartered and sliced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 3 Tbsp red wine
• 1 tsp sherry vinegar
• 1 tsp molasses
• 2 celery stalks, sliced
• 1 cup fresh spinach

How to make it

I like to simplify things by cooking lentils in the rice cooker. The same way you cook rice. Start by adding a Tbsp of olive oil to the bottom of the rice cooker to prevent the broth from sticking or burning on the bottom. Then add lentils and broth and cook.

While the lentils are cooking, make cashew cream sauce in a food processor or blender. Add cashews and pulverize. Then slowly add hot water while blending. Add braggs and lemon juice and salt if desired. Check your sauce consistency at this point. If you’d like it thinner, add more hot water. Thicker, add more cashews. Blend until very creamy.

Now it’s time for sauteeing vegetables. Start by adding the remaining olive oil to a pan over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and cook for 3-5 minutes, until softened. Add onions a cook for another 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook for another 2 minutes. Add red wine, sherry vinegar and molasses. Blend well. Cook for about 5 minutes, until liquid is mostly evaporated. Add celery and cook for another 2 minutes. Add fesh spinach and cook for another minute.

Layer ingredients and serve. Enjoy!

Tags: healthy, non-dairy, vegan

Fruit and Toasted Almond Stuffing

This recipe came straight out of the holiday issue of Vegetarian Times. While it was flavorful, I don’t think it was exquisite enough to find a place at the table at next year’s Thanksgiving. In fact, my mom made a batch of vegan stuffing that was much more popular than either my version or the sausage stuffing that sat beside it on the table. I need to get that recipe from her. In the meantime, if you have a favorite stuffing recipe to share, please send it my direction!

Note: I halved the original recipe and baked it in a square casserole dish. I still thought it was a little too bready – but it is stuffing after all, right? The original recipe also called for fresh parsley which I left out because I didn’t have any. If you decide to add parsley, add it along with the apples, sage, thyme and other spices after you’ve sauteed the vegetables.

What you need

• 6 cups oat bread, cubed
• 1/2 cup almonds, coursely chopped
• 3 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium red onion, quartered and thinly sliced
• 1 celery stalk, cut lengthwise in half and sliced
• 1 large apple, peeled and diced
• 2 Tbsp fresh thyme leaf, chopped
• 2 Tbsp fresh sage, cut into thin strips
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1 Tbsp maple syrup
• 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup dried cherries, chopped
• 1 1/2 cup vegetable broth

How to make it

First, toast the bread in a 225 degree oven for 30-45 minutes until dry and crisp. Transfer to a large bowl.

Increase the oven to 350 and toast aonds for about 10 minutes or until pale brown and fragrant. Be sure not to leave them in too long. Almonds forgotten in the oven can burn quickly – trust me.

Coat a large square casserole dish with cooking spray. Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook 5 -7 minutes, or until soft and translucent. Add celery and sautee another 2 minutes. Add apples, sage, thyme and remaining spices. Cook 5 minutes. Add maple syrup and vinegar and remove from heat.

Combine apple mixture, bread cubes, almonds and dried cherries in large bowl. Transfer to prepared baking dishd pour broth over the top. Cover with foil and bake 40 minutes.

Serve immediately or remove foil and bake another 10 minutes if you prefer crisper stuffing.