Hummus... It's a great snack or a meal!

HUMMUS...

It's that time of year that Mediterranean foods are more appealing to me.  Actually, these foods call me by name. LOL  I especially love hummus.  Hummus is made from beans, usually garbanzo beans (chickpeas).  As a child, my mom would make this and we called it "Garbanzo Bean Spread."  I had no idea what hummus was in college until I saw it and tasted it.  I remember saying, "Oh! Garbanzo Bean Spread!"  From that time to now, I've called it by its proper name.  

Hummus is quite simple to make, but it taste so good.  I eat hummus a number of ways.  For instance, I eat hummus with pita bread (usually with toasted pita bread chips I make myself), but I also use it as a spread on my veggie sandwiches as a healthy alternative to condiments.  I eat it as a dip for my veggies.  However, I love salads and I usually thin my hummus out a bit with lemon juice and eat it on top of salads.  Hummus has a good bit of protein  and fiber and because of this, it is a very filling food.  It could quite easily be a snack or a meal unto itself!

So, without further ado, I hope you enjoy the below recipe as much as I do.

HUMMUS

Ingredients: 

2 cloves garlic, chopped

2 cups or 16 ozs of garbanzo beans (cooked and drained)

Juice one lemon

2  tablespoons tahini

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup water (optional, depending upon desired texture)

PREPARE, and then

About 1 teaspoon cumin (I just sprinkle)

About 1 tablespoons olive oil

About 2-3 whole Green olives, diced or whole

Instructions

1. In a food processor, coarsely chop cloves of garlic. Pour in garbanzo beans. Add lemon juice, tahini, and salt. Process until combined.  Add about 1/4 cup of water for a creamier texture.
2. Serve in small dipping bowls.  Pour olive oil over the top and sprinkle of cumin.  Garnish with diced or whole green or kalamata olives for a bit of added flavor.  Enjoy!

Note: You may also be able to blend these ingredients, though depending upon your blender, this may be a bit difficult. I've always found the food processor easier.

Hummus with celery, carrots, and cucumber sticks.  Yum!

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Comment if you love hummus or if you add extra ingredients to your hummus to make it even more flavorful.  

Taco Sauce like a boss!... Okay, like Taco Bell

TACO SAUCE...

When it comes to taco sauce, well... I'm picky.  Yes, if it doesn't taste remotely like Taco Bell's Mild Taco Sauce, I don't want it.  Yep, leave me be! I truly understand why folks love that stuff.  I would have Taco Bell's bean burritos doused in lots of mild sauce at least three times a week as an undergraduate in college.

I'll admit something here...I'm too chicken to do anything hotter than mild because my sensitive flavor palette is discriminating.  Now, your taste buds and my taste buds may be very different, but mine HAS to have what it likes in order to be happy.  True story, I once paid good money for store-bought taco sauce (with very healthy ingredients) that I threw away based upon the taste.  It did not taste like Taco Bell's.  That began my quest to make my own Taco Bell Mild Taco Sauce without any of the garbage that I didn't want to eat.  I was beginning to think that the taste could not be achieved without the "Spices, Salt, Xanthan Gum, Potassium Sorbate and Sodium Benzoate as preservatives, Potassium Chloride, Yeast Extract, Soy Lecithin, Natural Flavors" (See: http://www.tacobell.com/nutrition/ingredientstatement).  Well, determination is root of all success.  I didn't give up!!!  Nope, it wasn't long before I stumbled on to the below recipe, which I modified from a Food.com recipe.  Imagine how happy I was to find this recipe!  I was happier than a _____ (You fill in the blank).

According to my taste buds, this sauce is the real deal!  I did change the Food.com recipe slightly by substituting organic cane sugar in place of the refine (agave or honey should work as well, but I haven't tried it yet, though I've made this sauce MANY times), and replacing the white vinegar with raw apple cider vinegar.  At present, I am SO UPSET that I've been eating the stuff with all that garbage in it so long!

Now, the original recipe calls for canned tomato sauce, which is fairly cheap to buy.  However, I would like to give a word of caution.  For those of you who truly know me, you know that I prefer to eat things out of glass bottles and not cans.  Canned foods usually contain extremely high levels of Bisphenol A, or BPA, a chemical used as protective coating inside of the cans.  BPA has been linked to a host of major health problems, such as breast cancer, prostate cancer, diabetes, obesity, learning disabilities and other neurological problems (Google this! It's worth knowing). I use canned tomato sauce that is BPA free. The Muir Glen Company began transitioning their tomato products to BPA free cans in September 2010, decreasing the shelf life of these products to 2 1/2 years.  Consequently, an expiration date after March 2013 should have a BPA-free liner that is the color of copper (the old BPA liner is white).  Hopefully, a BPA-free label will appear on their products to make it easier for consumers.   To make your own tomato sauce, see the tomato sauce recipe posted for May 9th.

TACO SAUCE (Tastes like Taco Bell's Mild Sauce)
Modified from Food.com: http://www.food.com/recipe/taco-bell-taco-sauce-60254?scaleto=16&mode=null&st=true

Ingredients:

• 1 (32 ounce) quart tomato sauce (no chunks)
• 1 1/3 cups water
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 2 tablespoons cumin
• 2 tablespoons instant minced onion
• 4 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 2 teaspoons garlic salt (I make my own 3 Tbs sea salt and 1 Tbs garlic powder)
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon cane sugar (or 3/4 teaspoon honey or agave)
• 3/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Instructions:

1. Place all ingredients into a sauce pan, stir well, and bring to a boil.  Turn down heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes.
2. Remove and cool. Pour into the jar.
3. May be kept in refrigerator for several days.

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Tonight I poured some of my taco sauce on my taco salad; so, I'll share that recipe below.  This is one of my very easy go-to recipes. By the way, I use all organic raw produce.

TACO SALAD

Ingredients:

• 2 cups shredded lettuce (I shredded myself)
• Handful corn chips (I use Simple Truth)
• bean-eef
• diced fresh tomatoes
• diced raw onions
• vegan cheese
• a dollop of avocado dressing
• taco sauce   

Instructions:
Build a salad bowl using the above ingredients.  Pour taco sauce to the desired taste as a dressing.  Enjoy!

Today's taco salad, all made up! 

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If you like this recipe, let me know.  If you recommend any brands of bottled tomato sauce, let me know what it is. If you make your own tomato sauce from scratch, let me know that too.  I'll probably post a homemade tomato sauce recipe once my tomatoes are harvested later on this summer.

Yo Quiero Tacos ...Well...Vegan tacos with bean-eef!

BEAN-EEF...

What does this sound like to you?  Right, beef...only it's beef made from beans.

First, I am a lover of tacos.  I could eat them almost every day.  They are such a staple, I make sure I keep the taco-making ingredients handy.  Now, you can make EVERYTHING from scratch for your tacos or you can buy it.  Yes, for me, I can make the taco sauce, the avocado dressing, the flour tortillas, the bean-eef (lentils), and the cheese sauce myself, but I'm only going to share one recipe in today's blog.  I'll devote other blogs to the other taco staples. If I'm in a crunch, I also buy everything except the avocado dressing from the store (just beware of the ingredients).  Though today's blog is dedicated to bean-eef, I'll admit that sometimes I buy the tortillas, vegan beef substitute (soy/wheat), and/or even the vegan cheddar cheese from the store (such as Whole Foods or Krogers).  However, I  even at my laziest, I prefer to make my taco sauce and avocado dressing (I'll share these EASY recipes at a later date).

If you buy it, I would suggest that you stay away from harmful ingredients, such as hydrogenated oil (or partially hydrogenated oils), refined or white sugars, high fructose corn syrup or any artificial sweeteners,  enriched flour, bleached flour, MSG, and any artificial or non-vegetable or non-fruit food dyes or coloring (Some natural coloring are made from bugs...Eww).  Most taco seasonings are made with whey and sugar.  To make matters worse, most "veganized" versions are usually full of yeast extract (another name for MSG...just in a smaller amount) or MSG.  I've only found two store brands without these ingredients, Spice Appeal Taco Seasoning and Simply Organic Southwest Taco Seasoning. It is easy to make your own though  and lots more affordable than the non-whey, non-MSG, non-sugar, non-yeast extract versions, just check out Bargain Briana's site for the recipe (http://bargainbriana.com/how-to-make-your-own-taco-seasoning/).  Good news, in this recipe, you don't have to worry about taco seasoning.  You only need this if you find that your bean-eef (recipe below) does not have the desired taco punch you want it to have or to spice up the store-bought meat substitute.

So, before I begin, I want to warn you that some of these take time.  The good news is that once you make the tortillas, you can have them for a while.  Make a bunch at once and chill for a minute.  Below, I've included a YouTube video of how to make your own flour tortillas, but here again,  you have to substitute the wholesome flour and oils.  Personally, I use COLD-PRESSED oils, which includes extra virgin olive oil or any organic non-hydrogenated oil (avocado, peanut, sesame, coconut, etc.).  The reason I capitalized cold-pressed is because there are olive oils out there that claim to be extra-virgin without being cold-pressed.  Cold-pressed is the best.  You're usually going to pay top dollar for this stuff.  Next, I don't use conventional nonstick cookware because of the toxic PFIB and PFOA chemicals (Google these! This is worth knowing).  I find that a ceramic or a cast iron skillet works great if seasoned correctly (they don't work if not seasoned properly).  There are websites and videos on how to season them properly (Again, google this!).  I may even post something at a later date.  Presently, I use my ceramic skillet to make my tortillas and I never had a problem.  Again, you can simply buy vegan tortillas if you don't have the time to make them.  I've included a YouTube video example of how to make the vegan tortillas, substituting extra virgin olive oil in the place of butter.  You can also use the winter spelt (see picture below) in place of the all-purpose wheat flour.  I have no problem with King Arthur's Organic All-purpose flour, which is both unbleached and unbromated.  It's cheaper than spelt and I use it all the time.

(VIDEO LINK: How to make flour tortillas -http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TcZT9M11vw)

All-purpose Winter Spelt is heavy and expensive,
but a good substitute for the gluten-intolerant.
I use it in  pie crust mostly.

Now, to the pièce de résistance... the bean-eef.  I also give you instructions on how I build my tacos.  So, if you were asking, "Where's the bean-eef!"  Hush up!  LOL! Here it is!...

Showcase of the ingredients and the finished bean-eef

BEAN-EEF (Lentils)


Ingredients:

• 1 cup finely chopped onion
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 cup dried lentils, rinsed
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2-1/2 cups no-chicken or vegetable broth

Instructions:

1. In a large nonstick skillet, saute the onion and garlic in oil until tender. Add the lentils, chili powder, cumin and oregano; cook and stir for 1 minute. Add broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 25-30 minutes or until the lentils are tender.
2. Uncover; cook for 6-8 minutes or until mixture is thickened. Mash lentils slightly.
3. Spoon about 1/4 cup lentil mixture into each taco shell. Top with lettuce (shredded), tomatoes (diced), fresh vidalia onions (diced), vegan cheese (shredded...I prefer vegan cheddar), drizzle with taco sauce, and finish with a dollop of avocado dressing. Yield: 6 servings.

Vegan taco dressed to impress.  Yum!!!

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I'm am about to enjoy my tacos right now, I hope you enjoy them too!!!  By the way, this is MUCH cheaper than buying any meat substitute.  I believe whole foods (unprocessed) are also better for you.

If you like this recipe, let me know!  I'm always happy to hear what you think.  If there's an ingredient that you think makes this better, feel free to post that too.

Herbal tea for me, please!

TEA...

I grew up on tea, herbal tea.  There were lots of herbal teas that we would drink, without anything else to enhance the taste.  We would drink ginger tea, chamomile tea, peppermint tea, mullein, blue vervain, valerian, rosemary, red raspberry, cornsilk tea, spearmint tea, dandelion tea, lavendar tea, rosehip tea, pau d'arco tea, sassafras tea, red zinger, and may more.  To be honest, some herbal teas are not the best tasting; however, others have fantastic flavor!!!!  I still prefer to drink herbal tea before other options.  For starters, they provide a host of medicinal benefits while I am enjoying something other than plain water.  However, anyone who knows me knows that I LOVE my water, but mixing it up from time to time with herbal tea truly helps me.

Herbal teas in my cupboard today

When I was young, my mom was strict with our diet.  She did not let us have soda or Kool-aid, and we generally never had fruit juices outside of special occasions or on cereal (more on this at a later date).  My mom made sure that we ingested nothing with caffeine, artificial coloring, or refined sugars. Yep, as you can imagine the neighborhood children thought we were very deprived, however, we were never sick. If we were thirsty, there were only two things that my mom would generally allow us to drink, water and herbal tea. Usually, the tea could not have anything in it, unless it was a stevia leaf for a hint of sweetness.  However, in the summer time, we were usually able to get an okay from our mother to put honey in the tea, perhaps due to the nutritional benefits of honey and the tea while playing outside in the sun.

Like most children, we loved colorful drinks, and our go-to summer tea was Red Zinger by Celestial Seasonings. We would make gallons of this tea! Celestial Seasoning makes affordable herbal teas and blends.  I especially love their zinger herbal blends.  If you google Red Zinger, you will find that it is a blend of various teas, including  Chinese hibiscus, wild cherry bark, West Indian lemongrass, peppermint, orange peel, lemon myrtle, and licorice.  It has various medicinal properties, including lowering blood pressure and cholesterol, among other benefits to digestion and colds.  Miraculously and despite the medicinal benefits, the neighborhood children drank this without any complaints.  In fact, they seemed to love it!!!

So, if you are looking for healthy drinks that you can make at home for yourself or for your little ones besides the fruit juices, which generally can be highly caloric, or if you are looking for water flavorings besides Crystal Light or other highly chemical packets, you may want to try various flavorful herbal teas. Lavendar, peppermint, and sassafras, which tastes remarkably like root beer are great options. Many herbal blends are also good as well.  You might be surprised about the added medicinal benefit you get with these teas in addition to the flavor.  Do your research first to make sure that the tea you buy tastes great.  For example, blood root tea and golden seal both have wonderful medicinal properties, however, the first sip may end your whole herbal tea experience. 

So, today I was in the mood for red zinger, but I was all out! I was relieved to find that I had a fruit zinger sampler box from Celestial Seasonings.  So, this time I chose black cherry fruit zinger with heaping tablespoon of raw organic honey...just because I could.  I'm in tea heaven right now as I drink this blend while writing this blog. In this way, I feel as if I'm sharing it with you!  I encourage you to enjoy some herbal tea next time you're in the mood for something besides water.

Enjoying some sweetened Black Cherry Zinger with ice!

If you also love herbal tea, leave me a comment.  

Bread. Agave-Spelt Bread, using the bread machine or by hand...

AGAVE-SPELT BREAD...

I grew up on homemade bread.  My mom still has not given me her recipe, but I am waiting patiently for it.  However, I have a favorite of my own-- a go-to bread recipe-- that I concocted from the honey-wheat version.  Okay, in reality it is a mix of organic spelt and organic bread flour, but I call it agave-spelt because the spelt flour does affect the pH of the wheat bread flour.  It lowers the acidity; and therefore, I think the spelt has earned the right to be used in the title.

First a note on the flour and then I'll get into the agave. If you do not buy both flours in bulk, you'll be spending an arm and a leg in order to purchase them.  In truth, I was at Whole Foods the other day and I saw them filling the organic oat canister from the bulk bag of the same company I buy my organic spelt flour, Great River Organic Milling.  Now, a 25 lb bag of organic spelt flour will cost almost $45 on Amazon, but may be more expensive on other sites.  If you are like me and buy multiple things bulk to save money, then you may want to make sure you have somewhere dry, dark, and cool to store these things in order to preserve them.  I have a few armoiries, a freezer, and an extra refrigerator. I store my flour in the armoire, while I store my nuts (all kinds) in the freezer so they will not go rancid. So, if you do not have a place to store these things, perhaps buying in bulk is not for you.  Currently, I buy flour and nuts in bulk online.  I also buy my raw agave online. They are the most expensive of the things I buy.

Now, the agave (and for me, it must be organic raw agave) is a bit tricky.  If you do your research, not all agave is created the same.  You might as well be using high-fructose corn syrup if you purchase some agave products.  The slowly metabolized agave, which has the low glycemic index, is the raw agave. Usually folks like the light agave, which has often been heated to remove the strong agave flavor from the syrup and thereby also removing the nutritional value.  However, the darker agave is often called "raw" agave, which means it hasn't been heated to the extent of removing the nutritional content. I have found lighter agave, which has not been processed, but it is not going to be inexpensive.  Prepare to pay good money (as much as as $84 for a gallon).  However, I have found a cheaper "lighter" raw agave on Amazon for less, but after purchasing a few times, the lightness is subjective.  Right now, I only buy the dark, organic, raw kind and I find it works for me.  They store well in a dry, cool, and dark place.

I used to only buy my baking yeast in bulk. I store this tightly secured, surrounded by plastic, and then in an air tight container in the freezer.  It keeps about a year.  I make bread often. Before, I was paying about $7-$8 dollars a month for yeast.  Now, I pay $9 a year.  I am much happier now.  The yeast is not labeled organic, but I don't think it matters.  If it matters to you, then buy organic.  I'm good with mostly organic ingredients in my bread. I now buy rapid rise or instant as well if I know I'm short on time.

Two ingredients that may make you wonder is my potato water, which makes the bread rise well and adds a softness that I like. The ground ginger also helps the rise. You may exclude it if using potato water (no need for overkill). This is the basic recipe, but you may add bran, psyllium husk powder, wheat germ, and other ingredients as you see fit. I truly love this recipe and so does my family.

Growing up, we never ate the bread on the first day it was baked.  I have met folks who do this, but my mom always said that it was important for the yeast to settle in the bread before we ate it and this is what we do.  We let the bread sit after it is baked for at least 24 hours before we eat it.  If I make multiple loaves, then I let it sit for as much as 48 hours before I freeze them or make croutons.  This just works better.

Now, I make my multiple loaves by hand.  I find I can stretch my flour better for some reason when I do this.  This never works out when I use the bread machine.  I don't know why either.  I make about three loaves each time I make it by hand.  If I use the bread machine, I make two small loaves. I prefer not to BAKE using the bread machine.  The loaves are just too big for my liking. So, if I do use the bread machine, I use the dough cycle...unless the bread is specifically for croutons and I know that in advanced, then and only then will I bake it in the bread machine.  Once the dough cycle finishes, I place the dough in bread pans and let it rise in warm enclosed space, such as a warmed oven, or if it's summer right in the kitchen covered by a damp clean kitchen towel.  I may heat the oven up ahead of time and turn it off (see the below tip), but usually my ritual is to boil water in a small pot and put it in the oven underneath my rising bread.  I find this works VERY well.

AGAVE-SPELT BREAD

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cup warm potato water (or warm water around 80 degrees)

• ½ cup organic raw agave nectar

• 2 tablespoons of avocado oil (or any non-hydrogenated oil of your choice)
• 1/8 teaspoon ginger, grounded (optional)

• 4 ¼ cup flour (I use 2¼ cups of organic spelt flour sifted with 2 cups of organic bread flour, but for softer bread, you may use 1 1/4 cup of organic spelt flour and 3 cups of organic bread four) 

• 2 teaspoons salt (sea salt or Himalayan pink)

• 2 teaspoons active yeast (This is a measurement for loose yeast. I also use instant yeast or rapid rise and if using a packet of yeast, I put the whole pack.)
• Oil spray to coat bread pan(s), I use cold-pressed avocado oil 

BY HAND:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Measure out all ingredients but the oil. In a large bowl, start the process by mixing the warm potato water/warm water (about 80 degrees) with one tablespoon of the agave nectar and the yeast.  Let sit for about 10 minutes. until yeast proofs.  Once the yeast proofs, add the rest of the agave nectar, 1.5 tablespoons of the oil, and salt to this and stir.  Mix in about two cups of flour, just until the mixture thickens, but is not dough or runny.  Once the flour is mixed, put in a warm place* for thirty minutes until it rises and is spongy and sticky.

Once 30 minutes has passed, add one (1) more cup of flour and stir until you cannot stir it any more.  Add more until you cannot stir any longer. Put a bit of the remaining flour on the counter. Set the timer to 8-10 minutes and be sure to knead bread for that long.  Pour out mixture onto the counter and knead while adding more and more flour as needed.  If you run out of  the measured flour, continue to add more spelt flour until the bread is fully kneaded.  Once the dough is well-kneaded (and a bit sticky), then put the 1/2 tablespoon of oil in a large bowl and coat the dough with the oil.  Put the the bowl in a warm place (see tip below) and let the dough rise another 50 minutes until the dough doubles in size.

Punch down the dough aggressively and form into one big loaf, or cut into two smaller loaves.  Spray the bread pan(s) with oil spray and place the dough inside loaf pan(s). Put pan(s) into warm place (again, see tip below) and let rise for about 30-50 minutes or until the dough is about an inch or more above the rim. (If you are not using an included warm space, then cover loaf using either recommendation in the tip below and let rise about 1-1.5 hours.)

Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes, depending upon size of loaf. (I use glass bread pans and so I'm able to check the sides of the pan to see if my bread is truly done. If it's not done, which means the sides are too light or looks like they are doughy or soggy, I'll add 2 extra minutes and check again.) Once done, take it out of oven, coat the top lightly with oil  or agave water to shine, and let sit in the pan for an additional 10 minutes, then remove from pans and place on the cooling rack for about 1-2 hours before bagging.

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TIP: To get that warm place, I heat the oven to 175 and then TURN IT OFF.  I take a small saute pan and boil a bit of water in it and place on the bottom rack of the stove.  This creates a warm moist environment for the bread to optimally rise. Put bread UNCOVERED on top rack in the oven.  I never cover it since it’s in an enclosed space. However, if you are NOT going to use your oven as the warm place, then you need to cover it with cellophane wrap or a towel (if you use a cloth towel, your bread may stick to the towel if the towel is not slightly wet) and double the minutes it takes for it to rise.  I find the oven the best way for the bread to rise.

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BY BREAD MACHINE: This recipe also works well in a bread machine.  If you are using a machine, follow these instructions: In the order shown, add ingredients.  Select your desired crust. (Wet ingredients must be added first!)

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DOUBLE THE RECIPE: You may also double the recipe to make three medium loaves of bread, but DO NOT TRY THIS IN THE BREAD MACHINE! Only do this if you are making bread by hand.  For those novices, I urge you to start with only one loaf! :)

A loaf of my Agave-Spelt Bread in all of its glory!

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HOMEMADE CROUTONS

Making my delicious croutons is a breeze and the easiest if you have the time.  

Ingredients

• Extra Virgin Olive Oil

• Onion Powder

• Garlic Powder

• Oregano, dried

• Basil, dried

• Agave-Spelt Bread, cubed

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 

Cut up the bread in small cubes.  Put into large bowl and lightly spray extra virgin olive oil to coat the cubes. Then sprinkle onion powder, garlic powder, dried oregano, and dried basil (the olive oil helps these ingredients stick to the bread).  

Tear a piece of parchment paper to cover a cookie sheet, and then spread out the bread cubes on it to form one layer of cubes.  This will allow them to evenly bake.  

Bake for 15 minutes.  Then remove from the oven, if they feel a bit soft, move them about on the sheet, and place in the oven for additional 2 minutes.  

Let sit for about 10 minutes and jar.  Enjoy!!!

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TIP:  Though I rarely do this, I do use the bread machine to bake if I am pressed (I mean really pressed) for time and I am out of croutons. If I know that my bread will be used for croutons ahead of time, I would simply make the bread in the bread machine. My bread machine produces big square shapes.  It's easy to cube these for me when compared to the oven loaves.  Also, I get two big canisters of croutons from one big bread machine loaf.  Don't forget to let the bread sit for 48 hours before making the croutons.

My two canisters of croutons. Yum!

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Well, today is Preparation Day for the Sabbath; so I have a bit of cooking to do.  I am happy I got to share the bread I love so much with you today.  If you have any questions or comments regarding the bread or the croutons, feel free to ask.  

Enjoy your weekend!!!

A Caesar Salad Story (But it requires croutons!)

SALAD...

What can I say about salad?  It's healthy and I love it.  It's literally my "go-to" meal when I'm feeling lazy.  There's nothing more "Fast Food" than salad.  You may have to do a bit of preparation upfront, but it all pays off in the end.

My favorite go-to lettuce is romaine.  It HAS to be organic and it HAS to be green and thick.  If it's not those things combined, then I feel like I'm eating nothing. Romaine has several vitamins and minerals in it, including Vitamin A, B-Vitamins, Vitamin C, and Vitamin K.  Romaine lettuce also has protein, calcium, iron, oxalic acid, and omega-3.  Google it and you'll be pleasantly surprised regarding its nutritional composition.

Now, as I continue to blog, you will see that I really enjoy salads and salad dressings.  Not all of my salads are "fat free" by far, but they sure aren't bad for you or not tasty.  I LOVE them!  Yes, love them; love them!  Today's option is something that I never get sick of eating.  I am actually forced to stop when I run out of my homemade croutons (Recipe coming at a later date).  I should let you know that I make a delicious raw agave-spelt bread.  It's not gluten-free, but it's not highly acidic either.  I mix organic bread flour in it at a ration of 60 to 40 spelt or at a ratio of 40 to 60 bread flour, depending upon how soft I want the bread to be.  When I make croutons, I use more spelt than bread flour.  This was indeed a digression, but I love my croutons all the same.  The spelt helps lower the acidity of the wheat-based bread flour.  I started doing this because I thought I was gluten-intolerant for a while, but I was able to eat this mixture with no problem.  Finally, I cleaned out my body and I haven't had a problem since.  That was another digression, now back to the salad...

I am a vegetarian and I am moving into a vegan life-style, therefore, I am seeking to avoid all egg and dairy products at the moment.  I am in love with a vegetarian Caesar dressing, but I had to find a vegan version, which I did at Food.com.  Here is the original version of the dressing I use:

Original recipe from the Food.com site: http://www.food.com/recipe/vegan-caesar-salad-dressing-143126?scaleto=12&mode=null&st=true&oc=linkback

I've only changed four things in the original version of the recipe.  First, I scaled the recipe for 12 servings.  It's not worth my while to make a few servings.  I want it to last a week.  Next, I use Bragg's Amino acid in the place of the soy sauce.  Then, I add an additional ingredient, a dash of sea water.  Lastly, when I make my almond milk, I use the leftover pulp for the paste; however, if I am in a hurry, I use veggie Parmesan from the Galaxy Foods (http://www.galaxyfoods.com/galaxy-products/vegan/) brand.  Now, this is expensive, but muy delicioso!  Now, I am a fan of both Galaxy and Daiya vegan products at the present, but should I discover something I don't like about them, I'll let you know.  At present, I am continuing my work on refining my homemade cheddar and mozzarella cheeses and sauces.  Right now, the only vegan cheese I make that I like is the pimento cheese spread (Recipe coming at a later date).  Yep, tastes the same to me.  I truly hate to compromise flavor.

Well, to make the salad, simply wash and cut up some Romaine lettuce.  I usually do this ahead of time, which makes this truly fast food. (If you have a machine that vacuums out the air of mason jars, then you could wash and cut up your romaine salad, put it in a spinner and spin until dry, stuff into a WIDE-mouth mason jar, put the first lid on, vacuum seal it, put the surrounding lid on it, and refrigerate.  This keeps very well for about 10 days.  I may blog about this one day.)  I eat about three to four cups (a whole mason jar) of salad at a time.  Place the romaine in a bowl, sprinkle the homemade croutons on it to your desire, then pour the salad dressing on it as desired.  My husband likes only a little dressing, while I love a lot. Grind some Monk's pepper (I use Monk's pepper/Chaste Berry Tree Tea in place of peppercorns)  on top. Toss.  Voila!  Done!!! You may now eat! You have a vegan Caesar that will rival just about any anchovy-based version.  Enjoy!

Picture of my Vegan Caesar Salad

Now, at times I'll add some oven-baked or fried meat-substitute to the salad to make it more substantial, if I'm REALLY hungry, but oftentimes, I just eat it with the croutons.  That's what I had last night.  I think I just made myself hungry enough to have some more today.  

Leave me a comment if you loved the recipe or have found something else adds better flavor.  Experimenting with recipes is one of my biggest joys. Somehow, I feel like a mad-kitchen scientist when I'm doing it.  The only thing, I lack the white jacket and goggles. LOL!

Welcome to my blog: Introduction

WELCOME...

Today, I decided to start a blog for those interested in becoming vegan or finding tasty vegan recipes.  Becoming vegan is a journey... a lifestyle change.  I'm in the process of changing my lifestyle back to my vegan roots.  We can journey together in this blogosphere.

In truth, I have been at least a vegetarian all of my life.  I am a child of the mid-1970s and I lived in an integrated area of New Haven, Connecticut, for most of my childhood.  My parents became vegetarians when they were first married based on religious convictions and health.  They became students in the field of medical missionary practices and learned that what we eat affects our body's ability to fight disease or function properly.  Once my mother made the transition from vegetarian to vegan, my siblings and I had had to do some adjustments.  I believe I was around five years old, and my two elder siblings were at least three years older than me.  My twin younger brothers were born at least three years later and they didn't really know any difference.

As a child, my mother did not allow us to even have candy, which led to some unmentionable solutions to obtain the drug-like substances.  My mother made all of our food, even down to her bread-like cakes, which the neighborhood children sneered at upon being invited in to one of our birthday celebrations.  No eggs, meat, or dairy was found on our table or in our refrigerator.   However, on occasion we would go to Captain's to get a cheese pizza pie.

Other times we received a taste of the unknown were during trips down south to visit extended family. These were times of quasi-food vacations, especially in the dessert arena.  When we visited family, we were treated to ice cream, cakes, and cookies made with the ingredients banned from our house.  My siblings and I had a choice to make regarding which food path we would choose once we came to the age of accountability.  By this time, my family had moved south where very few people had ever met a vegetarian, not to mention a vegan.  So, we can all say, we chose the path of dairy and eggs.  It was the easier route.  However, anytime we became ill, miraculously we would return to our vegan eating habits until we were better.  Eventually, once we all exited our 20s, we all began to hearken back to the familiar childhood eating habits, that had remarkably gained esteem across the nation.

All of a sudden, being vegan was no longer sneered at, but suggested as a way to a healthy lifestyle.   Hollywood stars, medical doctors, and even talk show hosts began spreading the glad tidings.  My mother, who had inspired my sister to open her own health-food store, used to have to rely on co-ops and bulk food purchases to put healthy food on the table.  As the years passed, and to our surprise, some of the chained grocery stores began to offer vegetarian options that you once could not find in any conventional grocery store.  Supermarkets dedicated to health and wholesome lifestyles became avenues from which to buy whole foods, though for an exuberant price.

Though each year the packaged vegan cheeses began to taste better and melt, the vegan milk options grew from soy to nut and fruit options, and wheat and soy substitute meat options became more comparably tasty to their animal counterparts, the prices for these options grew and some alien ingredients appeared in them as well.  Being vegan became less affordable than I remembered it being.  Eating the dairy and eggs were more affordable, easier to prepare, and still very tasty.  However, I remembered something I had forgotten...

When I was a child,  my mother relied mostly on fruits, vegetables, grains, and nuts.  What this meant is that everything we ate, she prepared or "processed" herself.  She knew what ingredients were in her veggie burgers; she knew what she put in her vegan cheeses; and she knew how to feed her family of five (at the time) like kings and queens while on a ridiculously tight budget.

That brings me to this blog.  I have just earned my doctoral degree in an educational field, but I am not yet gainfully employed.  I do have a breadwinner in my household, but we are still on a tight budget.  I want to share my knowledge in a way that is helpful to people.  I began veganizing recipes years ago, but my vegan lifestyle has usually been off-and-on again, depending upon what was going on with me.  However, if you visited my dwelling, at times you may have found cage-free eggs, but you would not have found a lick of dairy cheese.  In truth, I am also on the fence with Greek yogurt and keifer because of the benefits they provide, but even here there are vegan varieties.  I am starting this blog to keep me accountable to my vegan lifestyle at least through the summer.  My husband is not vegan, but he is vegetarian and eats what I prepare.  This journey begins on May 1, 2013.  Hopefully the folks who have encouraged me to do this will support me in this journey.  We'll see.  My resilience will depend on how much fun I have doing this.  So, I am going to attempt to make this journey fun and informative for you and for me!

What am I hoping to do?  Well, two to three days a week, I am hoping to come up with a tasty, but healthy vegan recipe.  Truly, the menu options are limitless... there may be entrees, salads and salad dressings, desserts (and we all LOVE desserts), sides, smoothies, and drinks (non-alcoholic).  I hope to provide tips that I find helpful as well along the way.  I will also provide links to external helpful sites and other vegan blogs if I think their recipes outshine anything I tried to do and other vegan informative sites.  You'll get the truth as I see it!  I'm excited to do this and I'm ready to start!

Today, the first entry will be a smoothie that I came across today from VegNews.  Heaven, indeed, if you like cherries.

Cherry Vanilla Smoothie "Experiential Vegan"-style

Original recipe from VegNews site.  See VegNews site for detox plan and more smoothies and juices.   Website: http://vegnews.com/articles/page.do?pageId=5685&catId=2

What VegNews says about this recipe: "Part-milkshake and part-smoothie, this sweet sipper is a deliciously desserty way to sneak vitamins into your morning routine. Cinnamon and vanilla elevate the flavors of creamy almond milk and vibrant cherries, creating decadent flavor for a smoothie packed with protein, vitamin C, fiber, and iron. Plus, while you may not taste the added avocado and kale, they add a boost of vitamins E and K, respectively, for an all-in-one nutritious breakfast experience. For more easy healthy tips, check out The Three-Day Detox Plan Anyone Can Do on VegNews.com."

Serving size: 1

Ingredients:
1-1⁄2 cups organic almond vanilla milk
(See homemade almond vanilla milk YouTube recipe: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WeZCMNB2YO0)
1⁄2 cup frozen organic cherries
2 cups  organic lacinato kale (about three or four leaves)
1/2-1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoons vanilla (or crumble 1/2 -1 vanilla bean in the blender, depending upon preference)
1/4 whole organic avocado (optional)

Instructions:
In a blender, add all ingredients and process until smooth.

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That's it for today, folks!  Enjoy!  If you want to try both the VegNews version and my tweaked version, let me know which one you liked more!  Feedback is always welcomed and encouraged.