Spinach Gnocchi

October 16, 2015…

Spinach is a vegetable that I am fairly proud of when it comes to being a health nut. Yes, it’s a plant food so it has non-heme iron (which is less absorbent naturally by the body but absorption can be improved with vitamin C so eat your strawberries, oranges and bell peppers!) but that is absolutely no reason to hate spinach, in fact, I would be proud if I was a single piece of spinach. This vegetable is not only delicious, it is also very convenient – it can be found in any grocery store, in pretty much any salad mix, frozen or fresh- and it is so versatile. Lately I have been putting spinach in everything from my smoothies, to a special vegan thanksgiving spinach dip,  and even in pasta dishes, like this gnocchi.

Yes, for all those wondering, this does have an interesting flavor and slightly different texture if you use oat flour like I did, but it also makes it gluten free, and healthier (in my opinion – although there is not much wrong with wheat for the typical person, but unless you are using whole wheat I would prefer to stick to oats, which are often less processed and genetically modified than our modern wheat, and they are delicious in my opinion!)

I have also made this gnocchi with yams (which you will learn are my favorite food… in a past life I almost believe I was a yam) but that is for you to decide. With all my recipes, although you can cook with them with the exact amounts and ingredients I list, I would consider making it your own, substituting something and see how it turns out.

I even added a little picture of my baby basil plant, although its getting colder out it is not growing as well and will need to be covered soon, however it is still adorable and growing plants is exciting no matter what time of year it is! 

 | Gluten Free | Veggie Filled | Vegan Recipe |

               

Ingredients:

For the Gnocchi:

1 and 1/4 cup flour (I use oat but white flour works)

4 potatoes, baked or steamed and peeled

 

For the sauce:


2 cups spinach

1 cup tofu (firm) (can substitute milk here, but use only about 3/4 cup of milk)

2 cloves garlic

A few leaves of basil (optional)

Tomatoes

Cauliflower, washed and cut into bite size pieces

Salt and pepper to taste

 

Instructions:


1. First, to make the gnocchi, mash the potatoes and mix with your flour until the dough comes together. You don’t want it to be very sticky but avoid adding too much flour or else they will be slightly dry.
Next, once the dough is ready, take small amounts (about half of a hand full) and roll out into logs


2.Slice the logs into small bite size pieces (about 2 to 3 inches big). This is now your gnocchi.


3.Put a pot of water on to boil and once the water is boiling, add the gnocchi to the boiling water a few at a time (about 10-15 is good) and they will be ready once they float up to the top.


4.Take out the gnocchi that are ready, using a spotted spoon and place into a second pot.


5.To make the sauce, mix all ingredients besides tomatoes and cauliflower into a food processor or high speed blender until it all becomes a smooth sauce.


6.Place the sauce into the second pot (the one that now contains all your cooked gnocchi) and turn heat onto low.


7.Add your cut cauliflower along with sliced tomatoes to your gnocchi and sauce and allow to warm up.
Stir slightly but avoid over stirring as the gnocchi is very soft and can become squished easily.


8.Serve warm and enjoy!

 

 

Lentil Burgers

             October 17th, 2015…

Today i spent most of my time on homework, as students know its midterm season and although i am not complaining (i actually enjoy spending my time doing homework) it is a stressful time. Even when i am sitting doing homework all day i make an effort to get up and move around to stretch my bones every once and a while. Today stretching consisted of yoga and man, does yoga feel great. For those of you who  have not tried yoga, i would highly suggest it to anyone. It is not only relaxing, but it just feels so great. I feel like a whole new person every time i do yoga, even if its only for five or ten minutes at a time. 

Now about food (that is why you’re here anyways isn’t it?)

Oh do i love food, love smelling it, love cooking it, and love tasting it. Lentils are something special because they are delicious but full or protein and so tasty with quinoa or as a meat substitute for someone not consuming meat! (Well, to be honest, lentils are great even if you do consume meat but that is besides the point). 

What is my dream burger you ask?

Something tasty, something big and something full of vegetables. I was never one to enjoy those veggie burgers that you can buy frozen in stores…. although they would always say ‘full of vegetables and wholes grains’ or ‘natural and delicious’ i always thought they tasted like plastic… and i do not really want to eat plastic. Instead, i cook my own, from scratch and they really are natural and delicious this time. So its probably time for you to give it a try….what have you got to lose anyways?

 | Vegan |

Ingredients:

2 carrots (can substitute this for any kind of root

 vegetable you have on hand, like potatoes, or yams)

 ½ onion

 2 cloves garlic

 2 cups of cooked lentils

 2 flax-eggs

 ½ cup flour (here you can use oat flour, all purpose flour, whole wheat flour, anything!)

 A few of your favorite spices (optional, but great for flavor)

 Salt and pepper

 Olive oil

 Hamburger buns, or pieces of toast, or flat bread, i personally enjoy wrapping it in fresh lettuce, use bread by all means but

a nice piece of crunchy iceberg lettuce adds such a nice texture!

 Other vegetables to put into your hamburger


Instructions:

1. If lentils are not cooked, cook them according to directions on package – may need to do this a day or a few hours ahead of time

2. If using a carrot: grate with a cheese grater into thin pieces –if you have a food processor, you can use it to this as well

If using a root vegetable such as a potato, peel it and either bake it, or steam it (you can boil but you will learn that i am not a fan of boiling anything….just like i am not a fan of microwaves) Then mash it into a bowl.

3. To the carrot (or potato) mix in any of your spices (salt, pepper, and your favorite spices)

4. Whip the eggs in a separate bowl, and add to the carrot-spice mixture.

5. Add the cooked lentils to the carrot mixture

Note: if you do have a food processor, it works great to add the above mixture of carrots, lentils and eggs into the food processor to fully mix everything. If you do not have a food processor, try to mash the lentils before incorporating, although you can leave them whole but this will add a different texture to your burgers

6. Add your flour into the carrot-lentil-egg mixture and incorporate well.

7. To cook the burgers, add a little oil to a large skillet and spoon your batter of desired size onto the skillet with hot oil.

8. When the first side is cooked, carefully flip them over and cook the other side fully.

9. An alternate way to cook them is in the oven, although it does take longer and they will be more soft than crunchy. If you want to cook them in the oven, set oven to 425 degrees and cook the burgers until they are fully cooked –you may need to slice one to see the center-

10. When the burgers are cooked, add to a bun with any desired vegetables and enjoy

Pumpkin Seeds (3 styles)

  October 19 2015…

Halloween is just around the corner… in about two weeks. I thought it was time to start coming up with a few Halloween recipes to share. The first being a very popular recipe around this time of year….. PUMPKIN SEEDS (Hopefully from a fresh pumpkin that you are carving! But if not of course that is okay too!)

What is so great about pumpkin you ask? Besides the fact it’s full of B-Carotene (which the body converts into a usable vitamin A form) it is delicious for dinners, desserts, breakfast… just about everything.

How about pumpkin seeds? Well you can dress them just about any way you want, and they are pretty much guaranteed to taste delicious, plus they are full of fiber,

protein and lots of vitamins and minerals like Zinc, Vitamin E and Manganese! All the more reason to carve a pumpkin and enjoy!

Last night we carved our pumpkin and it looks adorable, apparently his name is ‘Jack’… because he is a Jack-O-Lantern, get it? I thought it was a cute name and I love it. I also thought that we needed to carve pumpkins last night because I had the idea that this weekend was Halloween, sadly I was wrong but none the less here is Jack and here are his seeds!

Enjoy and go have some fun carving pumpkins, it is kind of messy and kind of makes your whole house (or apartment or room) smell like pumpkin but it is October and I think that is A-OK!

| Vegan | Gluten Free | 


        

Ingredients:

(Although I wouldn’t really say there is a specific recipe for pumpkin seeds, it is best to make up your own flavors but I will show you what I did)

Type 1:

Turmeric and Curry Powder

Type 2:

Salt and Vinegar

(requested by the spoonready cover guy, seen in all the pictures)

Type 3:

Chili flakes, Oregano and Italian Spices, Coconut Oil ( a very small amount, about 1/2tsp)

And of course…. PUMPKIN SEEDS

Instructions:

All I did was mix the ingredients together in three separate bowls, start my oven at 350 and after it was pre heated, I cooked them for about 20-30 minutes.

Wait for them to cool slightly, and enjoy! You can eat them by themselves, on a salad or on some pasta! 🙂

Overnight Oatmeal

October 23rd 2015….

Yes, Halloween is creeping up on us, but breakfast is still important whether or not it is Halloween. For me, breakfast has always been a pretty big thing. I love it, I wake up hungry and eating something that is filling, healthy and delicious is what I am craving.

I am sure many people have heard about oats and all their magical wonders. Yes OATS are delicious, they can be cooked in Desserts like Apple Crisp, or made for breakfast, Raw, Cooked or in Smoothies and they can even be eaten for Dinner (sure why, not, who says I cannot eat oats for dinner??)

Today, I am going to show you my favourite breakfast. It is simple. It can be made more complicated but hey why? Life and its magical wonders can already be complicated enough, why does a delicious breakfast need to be complicated too? Its early, we are hungry so lets get cooking.

| Vegan | Gluten Free | Breakfast | Personal Favorite |

     

                                                 A personal Favorite

Ingredients:

(Approx. 3/4 cup) Oats (Dry – now there are many kinds, I would suggest ones less processed, like whole, steel cut oats, but hey we all are different people with different desires and different lives so this one is up to you!)

(1/2-1/4 tsp) Cinnamon

Fruit (bananas, strawberries, raspberries, dates)

Nuts or Seeds (Hemp hearts, Almonds, Walnuts)

(1 cup or more or less depending on consistency desired) Milk (I use Silk Almond Milk, but this is again up to you!)

Instructions:

1. Place oats in a container with a lid

2. Pour in Milk – I like to use a lot more milk, the oats with soak it up over night and I like my oatmeal a little more fluid like

3. Mix in cinnamon (this is optional, but cinnamon is really good for you, can help lower blood pressure and food cravings even by smelling it, so I would suggest to add it in!)

4. Place lid on and leave in fridge overnight

5.In the morning, cut up some fruit and place on top of oatmeal with nuts and seeds.

Yes its that simple! Now ENJOY

Some alternatives are:

     To add the fruit in the nighttime, this will provide a different flavor as the juices of fruit may mix into the oatmeal so it will add a more fruity flavor)

     Mix up the spices you use- try maybe cloves and nutmeg and mix it with some canned pumpkin from a pumpkin pie you made!

     Another thing you can do is to add a tablespoon of (hopefully natural) peanut butter in the morning instead of fruit, then chop up a banana and eat your peanut butter oatmeal alongside your banana

     If you are not vegan, another really good idea and tasty is to add a scoop or two of yogurt onto your oatmeal before you leave it in the fridge overnight. This will add a slightly different taste (a little more thick and another layer of textures which is always nice!) and a good amount of protein too!

  

Jack O Lantern- Stuffed Peppers

  October 24th, 2015…

Busy day.

I am really sad when there are sunny days and I do not seem to make it outside before the sun goes down. Today was one of those days, where by the time I had a second to go out, the sun was already gone. I find myself singing “Oh Mr. Sun, Sun, Mr. Golden Sun, PLEASE SHINE DOWN ON ME, sadly it rarely works.

However, I cannot say today was bad. I got a lot done and still had time to make these wonderful little jacks for dinner and man, were they delicious or WHAT. I fed them to many non vegans with only positive comments in return (and sometimes its hard to convince non vegans to eat vegan food, I get it, you guys like meat and that is okay but sometimes plants are nice (to me its more than sometimes) but you get my flow.

Episode 2.0 of Halloween Treats 🙂

ENJOY MY SPOONREADY COMMUNITY!


| VEGAN | Gluten Free | Whole Grains | Vegetables | Dinner | Snack |


A Personal Favorite.

Ingredients:

1 onion

1/2 tbsp. coconut oil

4 jalapenos (I removed the seeds and would suggest wearing gloves…. or not touching your eyes for a few weeks after because I made that mistake, already 10 times today and its not that great)

2 cloves garlic

2 cups chopped cilantro

3tbsp thyme

1 cup pasta sauce

2 cups brown rice

2-3 cups lentils and beans

Instructions:

1. In a medium saucepan, add the coconut oil and cook until heated up. Add the chopped onions and cook till almost transparent

2. Add in garlic and sliced jalapenos and cook for another few minutes

3. Add in Pasta sauce and cook over medium heat for another few minutes (about 5-10)

4. Add in Thyme and, beans, rice and any other spices you desire

5. Cut off tops of peppers and cut out faces (use the smallest knife you have or else your jacks will have cut faces which is still pretty cute and kind of fits the spooky Halloween idea)

6. Fill peppers, place in an oven safe dish and cover with tin foil

7. You can pour some vegetable broth in the dish (only about 1/2 cup) or leave as is.

8. Cook for about 45 – 60 minutes and enjoy!!!!

Fall Pumpkin Cake

November 9th 2015…

This recipe was made first for the HIV center in my regular volunteering making recipes based on certain grocery items- but I have been wanting to make something with the left over pumpkin from Halloween -not from Jack above like the pumpkin seeds but from his relatives-

I was particularly excited about making my recipes for the HIV center today because we are just learning about food security in one of my classes today, It is crazy how many people are left malnourished, with limited availability to food, money or health. Some of us complain about being too busy or working too jobs but the reality is that many people do not have one job, they do not have access to this blog because they do not have Wi-Fi or a computer. There are definitely two sides to every story but being able to provide people with access to utilize the food they have is something I am passionate about and it is great to get a reminder of that every once and a while.

Here is to pumpkin, and how delicious they are!

 | Dessert | Possibly Vegan | Vitamin A rich | Fall recipe |

Ingredients:


Just over 1/4 cup of oil (any kind– coconut, olive, etc.)
2 1/4 cups flour (again any kind)
2 teaspoons baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 tablespoon of your favourite dessert spice—this can be a combo of nutmeg or cinnamon and cloves or even pumpkin spice!
2 eggs (or sub for flax eggs– one tablespoon flaxseed to two tablespoons water for one egg)
1 1/2 cup to 2 cups fresh pumpkin puree—see recipe to the right step 1 and 2.

Optional for topping:
Coconut milk– refrigerate the night before
Cinnamon
Maple syrup

Instructions :

1. I would suggest cooking the pumpkin ahead of time, then storing it in the fridge for future used.

2. To cook pumpkin: Peel and cut into small pieces and let it sit in crockpot for about 6-8 hours until very soft. Let cool slightly and mash, blend or mix until smooth. Alternative: if you do not own a crock pot, steam pumpkin until very soft, similarly, mash, blend or mix until smooth.

3. Once pumpkin is cooked, you can begin with the loaf: Pre heat oven to 350 degrees and line or spray a 9 inch square baking dish.

4. In a bowl, whisk flour, baking soda, salt and spices. In a separate bowl, mix eggs, sugar, oil and cooked, mashed pumpkin until well blended

5. Add dry ingredients into wet, and mix until just blended

6. Pour batter into prepared 9 inch pan and bake for about 40-50 minutes

7. Let cool and top with coconut whip cream (my favourite), maple syrup, or just sprinkle with cinnamon and a touch of sugar if desired

8. Note: to make coconut whip cream: Take a can of coconut and place it in the fridge a night or two before making the cake– take the can out when the cake is cooked and cooled, and flip over the can. Pour out the water slowly and use the thick coconut part as your whip cream!

Hungry for Hummus

November 11th, 2015…

What is so good about legumes? What is a legume? Why should i eat this weird named food?

Well let me tell you.

Legumes are my favorite so I can rant on for days about them. To save you the trouble of reading that i will tell you a few things you should know about legumes.

First of all, what the heck is a legume? Basically they are like peas in a pod. This category describes your peas, chickpeas, lentils, black beans etc. 

Legumes are delicious, they can be used in many recipes such as black bean brownies (yum!) and chickpea cookies. They can also be in savory dishes such as lentils and quinoa in a chili or soup. 

Legumes also have the benefit of being high in plant protein, which enables you to get a ton of nutrients including iron, magnesium and generally a bit of calcium without added cholesterol or saturated fat. 

Hummus is a great way to utilize these magnificent little legumes. It is an easy snack to take with you, and can be eaten in a variety of ways.

 | Vegan | Gluten Free | Snack | Meal | 

Ingredients :

1 can chickpeas, drained and washed

2 tsp cumin

1 tbsp olive oil

1 minced garlic clove

Juice of 1 lime

cilantro 

a dash of salt and pepper

2-4 tbsp tahini (sesame seed paste)

1 tbsp sesame seeds 

other spices you enjoy! (cayenne, paprika, avocado, celery salt)

 

Instructions :

Blend all together in a high speed blender or in a food processor 

Let it sit overnight for best flavor

Enjoy!!

Serve with whole grain tortilla chips, freshly sliced vegetables, in a wrap or a burger, anything you can imagine!

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