salad for dinner

i enjoy a salad that is half lettuce and half everything else from nuts, cucumber, cranberries, tofu, fresh mushrooms, cooked beets, purslane, beet greens or swiss chard, basil, nasturtium leaves…..aka pepper circles and the nasturtium flowers…sometimes grapefruit.  i wish i had the energy to make one every night but sometimes i will not break down and wash the lettuce.  that’s really the thing that holds me back, silly, right?  sometimes a few weeks wil pass and then when i finally break down and make a salad the way i like them….with everything, they taste so good that’s all i want for days…tastey!!!  i love the way it looks in chris’ beautiful grande bowl.

Posted in good for the tum |

chocolate & pop rocks

i’m intrigued and must find time to make this curious little cake…..a chocolate cake made with pop rocks.  say what???

i found this recipe via cup of jo

click on chubbyhubby for the recipe

Posted in good for the tum, i like you may like too, just for fun |

sweet potato & tofu curry

sweet potato & tofu curry

**this recipe makes a lot of curry sauce so you can cut it in half if your not interested in freezing some.  i like making the full recipe since it takes a bit of time it’s nice to have some leftover in the freezer for a last minute meal.

ingredients:
2 strips cinnamon bark
1 tsp cloves
6 cardamom pods
6 black peppercorns
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp mustard seeds
2 bay leaves

4 large onions–red preferably
10 medium tomatoes or 2-16 oz cans of chopped tomatoes
1 bunch of cilantro…sometimes i use basil
10 cloves of garlic
2 jalapeno peppers

1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp corriander
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp cayenne
1 tsp turmeric
2 cans of coconut milk
salt to taste

4 sweet potatoes
1 package of extra firm or firm tofu

dry roast first 6 ingredients in a large pot sprayed with cooking spray. roast until the spices become aromatic….3 - 5 minutes.

blend the next five ingredients (all the vegetables) in a blender til almost smooth.  add to the pot and simmer over med-high heat.  cover with lid to keep mixture from splattering everywhere.

let this cook for about an hour or so to let the flavors meld and some of the liquid to boil off.

while the curry is cooking, remove skin from sweet potatoes & cook in the microwave(or boil if you prefer) once cooked and slightly cool cut into cubes. then remove excess water from tofu and cut into cubes.

next, add the last 6 spices and coconut milk and cook for another 10 or so minutes.

to serve: add a handful of tofu and sweet potato cubes in each bowl and pour desired amount of curry on top and stir a bit……eat up.  i love this yummy curry.  this is for sure a favorit of ours.  it makes such a good comfort food dish.

combine remaining sweet potato and tofu with desired curry and put in fridge for leftovers.  if there is any curry left put in freezer for another day.

*also try with regular potatoes.
**to change it up a bit try with wilted spinach and chick peas instead of the sweet potato and tofu.

Posted in good for the tum |

chocolate truffle ring & recipe

this new ring looks good enough to eat.  it reminds me of a chocolate truffle in all it’s fancy chocolate sprinkle or chocolate ganache lace piped glory.  the chocolate truffle is made out of polymer clay.  i am hoping to set aside some time to make one of these for my collection.  i will soon post it as a listing on my etsy page.

here is my favorite truffles ever:

dark chocolate rum truffles:

3 oz. bittersweet chocolate

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream…..i made these before i stopped eating dairy so if i tried to make this recipe now i would use coconut milk or soy creamer in place of the heavy whipping cream and see what happens.

3 T unsalted butter, softened and cut up………. now i would try margarine or soy butter and see if that works????  if anyone tries this modified vegan version let me know :O)

2 T kahlua or 1 T of instant coffee crystals

1/3 cup nuts (of choice) toasted and finely chopped

3 T unsweetened cocoa

in food processor with knife blade attached, blend chocolate until finely ground.

in saucepan, heat heavy cream to boiling over medium hight heat.  with food processor running, and hot cream, butter and kahlua and blend until smooth.

grease 9 x 5 metal loaf pan; line with plastic wrap.  pour chocolate mixture into pan–spread evenly.  refrigerate until smooth, and cool enough to cut (about 3 hours) or (freeze 1 hour)

remove chocolate mixture from pan, lifting edges of plastic, remove chocolate and discard plastic wrap.

cut into 32 pieces.

roll pieces, one at a time in nuts or cocoa.  store in tightly wrapped container, with waxed paper between layers in fridge.

these are so decadent and delicious…….my dear friend christine made these as our dessert of choice for our after wedding picnic party celebration.  sooooooo good!!!

Posted in good for the tum, new work |

pumpkin chocolate chip cupcakes

bring on the fall colored leaves below our feet. is it time yet?? i know i am rushing, but i can’t wait til it cools a bit, we plant our fall garden, and we can spend some evenings out side with a long sleeved shirt.  okay, so, it’s almost fall.  and i will be celebrating that “almost” when i make these yummy pumpkin cupcakes.  i was one lucky girl when my gal pal trish and a plate full of these came knocking at my door.  these could very well be the best cupcakes i have ever eaten. i can’t wait to set aside some time and make these little babes.  i can’t stop thinking about them so i hope that time comes soon

here is the recipe….it’s from the cookbook “vegan cupcakes take over the world”

pumpkin chocolate chip cookies with cinnamon icing

ingredients for cupcakes…

1 cup canned pumpkin…trish used pumpkin pie filling, so i guess either would work

1/3 cup oil
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup soy milk or rice milk
1 tsp. vanilla…..trish omitted this and i would have been none the wiser  =)

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup chocolate chips

preheat oven to 350F.  line muffin tin with cupcake liners.

in medium bowl stir together pumpkin, oil, sugar, soy milk, and vanilla.  add dry ingredients thru the salt.  stir with fork only….not a beater, it will come out gummy.  once well combined add chocolate chips.

fill liners 2/3 full.  bake for 22-24 minutes.  transfer to wire rack and let cool completely before icing.

cinnamon icing:
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 T margarine, melted
1 T soy milk or rice milk
1/2 tsp vanilla

place sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl.  add the margarine, soy milk, and vanilla and stir with a fork til smooth. keep at room remperature until ready to use.  the mixture should look opaque and honey brown.  if it’s glistening a lot or looks too liquid, add a little extra powdered sugar.

*seems like these would be good without the icing even or with a little powdered sugar dusting

Posted in good for the tum |

tomato & cashew creme pasta with basil

ingredients:

1 large ripe tomato…2 cups rough chop.

1/2 cup raw cashews

1 T tomato paste

1 T adobo sauce…optional (this adds spicy smokey flavor)

1/4 cup water

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

2T olive oil

2 cloves of garlic, minced

6 oz of whole wheat pasta

2-3 T water

1-2 tsp. course black pepper

1 large handful of fresh basil, chopped

heat pot of water til bowl.  add pasta and cook til done.  while waiting for pasta to cook core and chop tomato.  add to blender along with cashews, tomato paste, adobo sauce, and water.  blend til smooth.

then, put olive oil in pan along with minced garlic and saute until golden.  pour sauce from blender to saute pan atop the garlic oil and bring to a simmer.  add salt and let cook for 5 minutes stirring frequently.

taste sauce and season more if necessary.  once pasta is cooked, drain and add to sauce with black pepper and freshly chopped basil.  toss to coat, serve and enjoy.

i adapted this recipe from the veganyumyum website.  i just added the adobo sauce.

this yummy recipe reminds me of a pasta dish chris and i used to get at a restaurant in edwardsville, il when we were dating :O)

Posted in good for the tum |

HHHHHHhhhhay cupcake!!!

friday was cupcake day.  me and my friend trish made about 80 cupcakes apiece for our friend’s jade and robert’s wedding party in austin.  yeah!!! it was fun to spend some time in the kitchen….that hasn’t happened much lately.

golden vanilla cupcakes:

ingredients:

1 cup soy milk

1 tsp. appled cider vinegar

1 1/4 all purpose flour

2 T cornstarch

3/4 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1/3 cup of canola oil

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2 1/4 vanilla extract

preheat oven 350.

wisk soy milk and vinegar and set aside for few minutes.

in large bowl blend sugar, oil and vanilla. add dry ingredients to wet, flour, conrstarch, baking powder, baking soda and salt and mix until no large lumps remain.

fill cupcake liners almost to the top (more than the typical 2/3 full)……these cupcakes don’t rise that much, but are oh so yummy!!!

bake for 22 minutes or until golden.

let cool then frost with white buttercream.

buttercream icing:

ingredients

1/2 cup of nonhydrogenated shortening

1/2 cup of  nonhydrogenated margarine

5 cups of powdered sugar…sifted if clumpy, this will yield a much smoother icing free of lumps…………if doesn’t matter, then don’t bother

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

1/4 cup of soymilk

beat shortening and margarine together until well combined.  add sugar and beat another 3 minutes. add vanilla and soy milk and beat another 5-7 minutes until fluffy.

note: this recipe makes a vanilla cupcake that is fairly dense like a pound cake and super delish.

making these brought back so many bakery memories of decorating birthday and wedding cakes………oh, how i miss that sugar shack :O)  there were many a fun time at that place.

the recipes above are from the “vegan cupcakes take over the world” cookbook by isa chandra moskowitz and terry hope romero

this sweet plate with the subtle word “because” is a piece made by our great friend kirsten jacobsen.

Posted in good for the tum, inspired by, just for fun |

it could be easy being green…..

austin, texas…….lime green polyp earrings

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

my friend rebecca who is a raw foodie is part of an online community that is hosting a contest for the best green smoothie mustache. i wanted to share her picture for fun and as part of my picture pages series(pp11). oh, love it.  the green ’stache, sexy rexy!!!

my new favorite green smoothie is pineapple-celery with a bit of spinach to green it up.

1 1/2 cup pineapple

2 stalks of celery

1 cup of spinach

1 cup + of water…..depending on the consistency you desire

2 T chia gel

and sometimes a bit of cayenne depending on my mood

Posted in good for the tum, inspired by, picture pages |

tahini noodles

ingredients:

1/2 lb. of whole wheat spaghetti

2 carrots, peeled and shredded

2 large leaves of swiss chard, chopped in fine strips.

5 small leaves of mint, chopped

6 large leaves of basil, chopped

sesame seeds

tahini sauce:
1/4 cup of tahini
2 T soy sauce or tamari
3 T water
1 T rice vinegar
1tsp dijon mustard
1 T chile garlic sauce
1 T braggs amino acids
*1/16 tsp of cayenne pepper
1 T agave nectar or sugar
3 T chia seed gel
pinch of salt
healthy pinch of black pepper

cook noodles, drain and rinse in cool water to cool down the noodles. add sauce, shredded carrots, mint, and sesame seeds.

if you would like to try a variation of this you can use peanut butter instead of tahini.

sauce is also really delish as bread dip or salad dressing.

note–i make a double of the sauce recipe because i like to have a little extra on the pasta. the recipe will only make enough to lightly coat the noodles. serve with crusty bread and salad.

yums!!

* if you don’t like things to spicy omit the cayenne and decrease the amount of chili garlic sauce.

this recipe was adapted from the “nearly raw tahini noodles” recipe on the veganyumyum site. if mine doesn’t quite do it for ya you could try hers out.

Posted in good for the tum |

chocolate….

okay, everyone race to the store and grab a bag of these fabulous tasty treats. they are tortilla chips made with chocolate cocoa…sound crazy, maybe?? but they are incredibly delicious. there is a subtle underlying flavor of a deep dark chocolate combined with typical tortilla chip expectation. it’s like dessert and a salty snack all in one. the company that makes ‘em is called “foodshouldtastegood” and they are delish…check ‘em out!

Posted in good for the tum |