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!

Chocolate Mousse Pie

This recipe was inspired by a great dish on VegFamily called Amazing Chocolate Mousse Pie. To be perfectly honest, I didn’t bother changing anything in the filling because it was perfect just the way it was. The crust, however, was problematic for me. I still find it difficult to add dextrose directly to a recipe while trying to call it healthy. I thought we were trying to avoid that stuff, right? So I experimented using dates and agave nectar instead with mixed results. The crust wasn’t moist enough with my first experiment. While tasty, the crust was more of a “crumble”. The second attempt, I mixed the dates longer in the food processor to make a paste before adding the crackers. I also added water. That worked much better, but I still wouldn’t say it’s the perfect graham crucker crust. If you have a favorite graham cracker crust recipe that approaches healthy, let me know. I’m still on the hunt.

Alas, I was never able to find graham crackers without honey either so while still healthier than traditional mousse pies made with heavy cream and sugar – this one isn’t vegan either. I went to multiple stores including two natural grocers. Someone tell me where to find graham crackers without honey in Denver!

What  you need

Graham Cracker Crust

• 1 cup dates
• 1/2 package graham crackers
• 1 Tbsp agave nectar
• 1/4 cup water

Filling

• 1 package semi-sweet vegan chocolate chips
• 1 package firm silken tofu (the boxed kind)
• 1/4 cup Kahlua (I used cheaper Kamora and didn’t sacrifice on flavor)
• 2 Tbsp maple syrup
• 1 tsp vanilla

How to make it

We’re going to start with the crust ,so you have something into which you can pour the filling. Preheat oven to 375. Place dates in a food processor and blend until a thick paste. Add graham crackers and process until crumbled. Add agave nectar and water until mixture sticks together.

Lightly spray a 9 inch pie pan or similar size rectangular baking dish. Press the crust into dish and bake for 8-10 minutes, then cool while preparing the filling.

Start your filling by melting the chocolate chips. I don’t have a lot of fancy kitchen equipment like a double broiler. If you do, go for it. If you don’t, just use two medium saucepans on top of each other. Put a couple cups of water in the bottom saucepan over medium-low heat. Place the second saucepan over the first and add your chocolate chips to it. Stir frequently until completely melted.

Meanwhile, add the rest of the filling ingredients to a food processor.When chips are melted, add them to the food processor and blend all ingredients well.

Pour filling into prepared crust. Cover with saran wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving. This one can easily be made the night before.

My family and friends were delighted with this dish. Most agreed that the filling resembled a smooth and creamy fudge – sufficiently decadent to be satisfied with just a few bites.

Peanut Butter Banana Green Smoothie

It may not be much to look at, but you can immediately see that this smoothie is creamier than some of its more wholly veggie and fruit based smoothie counterparts. Homemade almond milk and organic creamy peanut butter make this one smooth as silk.

What you need

• 3 handfuls fresh spinach – I use organic because spinach has been found to be very high in pesticide content.
• 1 banana
• 1/4 cup peanut butter
• 1/4 cup apple sauce
• 1 tbsp cinnamon
• 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa
• 1 tbsp agave nectar
• 1/2 cup almond milk

How to make it

Add all the ingredients except agave and milk to your food processor or blender. Gently pulse until most ingredients are mixed. This is a good time to scrape the sides of the blender. Begin blending, then pour in agave nectar and milk until smoothie is well-blended and frothy. Pour in a glass and enjoy.

What you need

The cake (inspired by Bianca from Yahoo! Answers)

• 1 cup almond milk
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup softened margarine
• 1 cup turbinado sugar
• 1/4 cup agave nectar
• 3 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 oz beet juice (I have a juicer and simply bought fresh beets – this was the juice of one beet)
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 cup oat flour
• 1/2 cup tapioca flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp vanilla

 The frosting (inspired by MyVeganPlanet.com)

•  8 oz vegan cream cheese, softened (I used Tofutti brand)
• 1 cup margarine, softened
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 cup almond milk
• 4-6 cups powdered confectioner’s sugar

How to make it

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a cup pour the almond milk and add the lemon juice and vinegar. Let sit while preparing the next dew ingredients. This curdles the milk, making “buttermilk”. Cream together the margarine and sugar and then add the applesauce.

In a small bowl mix together cocoa and beet juice to form a slight paste. Add it to the creamed mixture. Mix the flours, salt, baking soda and powder together and add it to the batter alterately with the ‘buttermilk’ in three batches mixing after each addition. Add vanilla extract. Pour batter into 2 greased cake pans (I used rectangular) and bake for 30-40 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Let the cakes cool on racks while making the frosting. Simply beat the butter, vanilla, and cream cheese until smooth.  On a medium speed setting, mix in the sugar about 2 cups at a time.

This cake is great served in layers. Simply frost between the layers, then frost the top and sides.

What you need

• 8 oz Thai rice noodles, cooked
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 1/2 can coconut milk
• 3/4 cup wild mushroom sauce
• 3/4 cup mung bean sprouts (commonly marketed as just “bean sprouts”)
• 3/4 cup carrots, julienned
• 1/4 cup fresh thai basil, chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 8 oz silken tofu, cubed
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger
• 3 tbsp braggs amino acid
• 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 2 tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 tbsp thai chili oil
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• Salt and white pepper to taste
• Serve topped with fresh cilantro and peanuts

How to make it

This one isn’t rocket science. Simply heat the vegetable broth in a large pot over medium heat. Add all ingredients. Simmer for 15-20 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings as desired.  I served it topped with fresh cilantro and crushed peanuts. Here’s a favorite tip of mine – adding a low effort topping like fresh herbs and nuts makes a meal look and taste much more special and is worth the few extra minutes it takes. Even when you’re only serving yourself.

Thanks to Zeke Koch for providing this simple, yet elegant recipe for Vegan Truffles.

Vegan Chocolate Truffles

What you’ll need

• 1 pound of bittersweet chocolate. Check the labels and find one you’re comfortable with.
• 3/4 cup raw cashews
• 3/4 cup water
• Flavoring of your choice (optional)
• Cocoa powder, crushed almonds or other dusting of your choice

How to make it

You can check out Zeke’s original instructions on RecipeZaar. They are pretty straightforward – basically, you’re going to:

• melt the chocolate
• blend the cashew cream
• fold the two together til you get the desired consistency
• chill for a couple hours
• roll the chocolate into bite-sized truffles
• lightly dust with cocoa powder, almonds or other

I don’t have a double-boiler to melt the chocolate, so I simply used two saucepans on top of each other with about an inch of water in the bottom pan on low-medium heat.

Macadamia Creme with Black and Red Seedless Grapes and Fresh Mint

It took three experiments with this recipe before it resembled something I was willing to call my own. Truthfully, this can’t be called a healthy recipe. However, if you have a need for sweets – this recipe is a good option if you want or need to stay away from dairy cream or eggs.

Raw macadamias can be hard to find. I was hoping to pick some up on my trip to Hawaii early this month, but they seemed easier to find in Denver than they were in Honolulu. If you find dry roasted, try it out and let me know how the recipe goes.

I served this at a wine and food charity event this past weekend with strawberries and a Shiraz Port. Later I paired it with the leftover grapes from the Rose and it was fabulous. Then I tried it with the leftover Vegan Chocolate Truffles from the Cabernet Sauvignon and it was divine. My roommate and best friend recommended an entire chapter devoted to breakfast foods that contain it – blintzes, waffles, pastries, you name it. I’m looking forward to the experimenting for that one. Let us know about your favorite exploits.

What you’ll need

• 1 cup raw macadamia nuts toasted in a 350 degree oven, constantly and lovingly turned to a golden brown perfection (or buy dry roasted to start with if that sounds dauting to you)
• 1/2 cup almond milk (I make my own – it’s incredibly easy and you’ll save money) or buy your favorite dairy alternative
• 1/2 cup confectioner’s powdered sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 1/4 cup canola oil

How to make it

First, grind the macadamia nuts to a fine powder or paste  – I use a coffee grinder. Or try a spice mill or food processor. After having tried this a few times and getting it wrong, I can’t emphasize enough the importance of this step before combining the nuts with any other ingredients. Having a fine nut powder creates a fine paste which will create an exceptionally creamy sauce.

Combine the nut powder with your milk alternative and blend for a couple minutes. I used a food processor and scraped the sides multiple times during blending to get the smoothest creme possible.

Add powdered sugar, vanilla and cinnamon and continue to blend and scrape. Feel free to substitue whatever spices or flavors sound good to you at this step depending on what you’ll be serving with the creme.

Add the coconut oil and canola oil and continue to blend. If you don’t want a coconut flavor, use canola oil or other oil of your choice.

When finished blending, pour the mixture into an air-tight container and refridgerate for at least a few hours – preferably overnight.

Serve with fruit, pancakes, chocolate pudding or other sweet delights. Let me know about your experiments!

Happy eating in b-e-d…

What you’ll need

• 1 cup raw cashews
• 1 pound firm or extra hard tofu, drained and crumbled (get this in the refridgerated section – it’s not the cartoned silken variety)
• 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 3 cloves roasted garlic
• 1-2 tsp dried basil
• 1-2 tsp salt

How to make it

Cashews are much easier to blend in the food processor than other nuts. I’ll take the time with almonds or macadamias to grind them in the coffee grinder before adding them to a recipe, but I’ve never needed to do that with cashews. Start by blending the cashews, lemon juice, olive oil and roasted garlic together. You can use minced garlic instead of roasted garlic if you don’t have any prepared, but it is so easy to roast garlic that I have a new goal to always have some onhand. It smells great, it tastes great and it makes any recipe or meal extra special when you serve it with roasted garlic. It’s too easy not to do it.

Be sure to stop and scrape the sides in your food processor or blender while blending. It’s worth the extra time it takes and will provide a much richer creaminess in the end result. 

Add the tofu while blending continuously. Adjust the amount of tofu and oil based on your desired consistency. The ricotta will harden slightly when served cold, but stays soft and paliable at room temperature.

Finally, add the dried basil and salt. I always do a taste check at this step. If you want more lemon, basil, garlic or salt, add as desired then blend, scrape and blend.

Store in an air-tight container in the refridgerator overnight. I’ve used this right away for dips and spreads, but the flavors really coming out after it’s had a day to settle. It’s worth preparing in advance.