Sunday, February 22, 2009

Caramel Bars

If I had to pick a favorite, of my collection -- this is probably it. These are Sooooo good!

Cook one 12 oz can of coconut milk with 1 cup of unrefined sweetener (sucanat, etc) for about 20 minutes over medium heat.

Meanwhile, in a bowl combine:

3 c. quick oats
2 c. whole wheat flour
1 c. all purpose flour
1 tsp. Salt
2 tsp. Baking soda

Stir until evenly mixed.

Add:
3/4 c. honey
3/4 cup oil


Mix together.
Place half of crumbly mixture into an 10 X 13 pan. Press down.
Bake 10-15 min. in 350 oven until lightly browned.

Stir 1/4 cup of flour & 1 tsp. Vanilla into caramel

Pour caramel over crust. Spread if it doesn’t cover evenly. Sprinkle with 1 c. carob chips and
1 c. chopped nuts.

Cover with remaining crumbly mixture. Bake about 15 min. more.

Easy Scalloped Potatoes

In a 9 x 13 glass baking dish, place frozen hash brown potatoes. I usually fill it within a ½ inch or so of the top. Sprinkle with onion (I use dried onion). Add about a cup of frozen corn.

In Blender place:

1 c. raw cashews
1 T. Chicken-like seasoning
2 T. Flaked yeast
2 tsp. Salt
4 cups of water (start with one cup and then add more, saving the last cup to rinse out the blender)

Blend well. Pour over potatoes. On the top, I usually sprinkle a little diced vege-meat (usually chicken patties; boca sausage, etc).

Bake 350 for at least an hour.

Tofu Tomato

This is my version of a tofu dish that we fell in love with at a Chinese Restaurant.
My girls call it "Nummy-Nummies" (because it's so yummy!)

1 lb. Firm or X-tra firm water pack tofu (best frozen & then thawed)
2 T peanut or canola oil
onion
1-2 T minced garlic
2 qrts of canned tomatoes
1/4 tsp Chinese Five spice
2 T sesame oil
½ tsp. Ginger
Sriracha hot chili sauce to taste (I use at least a half tsp)

Cut tofu into small cubes. Saute until lightly browned in the peanut oil. Add the sesame oil, onion & garlic. Stir fry until lightly browned. Add remaining ingredients. Simmer for 30-40 minutes. Serve over rice. Sprinkle fresh cilantro over the top when it’s served.

Roll-out Cookies

2 c. Sucanat (or similar product)
2 tsp. Soda
1 tsp. Baking powder
1 tsp. Cream of tartar
¼ tsp. Salt
2 c. whole wheat flour
3 c. white flour (approx.)
¼ c. flaxseed
½ c. hot water
½ c. oil
12 oz. Silken tofu

In a bowl, place the sucanat, soda, baking powder, cream of tartar, salt and flours. Mix together. In a dry blender, buzz the flaxseed until it looks like meal. Add the hot water. Blend well. Add the oil and tofu. Blend again. Mix this into the dry ingredients.
These can be rolled into balls and flattened with a glass. Or rolled out and cut in shapes. Bake at 350 for 12-20 min. (watch carefully)

Ice "Cream"s

Raspberry Banana Ice "Cream"
1 c. cashews
1 c. dates
2 c. boiling water
2 T. Raspberry Flavor
½ tsp. Salt
1 can coconut milk
2 bananas
½ c. Sucanat
2 c. water
2 c. frozen raspberries

In a blender (I use VitaMix) place the cashews, dates and boiling water. Blend until smooth. Add remaining ingredients and blend well. If your blender container is too small, you will need to blend part at a time and mix together in a separate container.

We freeze in ice cube trays. Once frozen, we run through our Champion Juicer for awesome soft serve. Can be done in an ice cream maker, too.


Funky Monkey

1 c. cashews
1c. date pieces
2 c. boiling water
1/3 c. carob powder
1/3 c. peanut butter
1 tsp. Vanilla
½ tsp salt
1 can coconut milk
2 bananas
½ c. sucanat
2 c. additional water

In a blender (Vita Mix is good) place the cashews, dates and boiling water. Blend until smooth. Add remaining ingredients and blend well. If your blender container is too small, you will need to blend part at a time and mix together in a separate container.

We freeze in ice cube trays. Once frozen, we run through our Champion Juicer for awesome soft serve. Can be done in an ice cream maker, too.

Banana Pancakes

1 ½ cups whole wheat flour
1 ½ cups all purpose flour
1 T baking powder
1 tsp. Baking soda
3 T. Cornstarch
2 T raw sugar
3/4 tsp. Salt
3 c. soy milk
3 T oil
1 T vanilla
1 large or 2 sm-med. Ripe bananas, mashed

Mix flour, baking powder & soda, cornstarch, sugar & salt together in a large bowl. In another bowl place the remaining ingredients. Mix. Stir liquid into dry. Fry pancakes on a hot griddle.

I like to sprinkle a few chopped walnuts or pecans on the top of the cake right after I pour it on the griddle. For an extra treat I add carob chips. Serve with your favorite topping.

Creamy Potato Soup

onion
8 stalks of celery, chopped
6-8 potatoes - peeled & chopped
5 cups water
1 T. Salt
1 tsp. Sweet basil
½ tsp. thyme
1/4 tsp. oregano
½-1 c. raw cashews
1 c. soymilk

Steam onion & celery 5-10 min. in a little of the water. Add potatoes, water & seasonings. Cook until potatoes are tender. Blend cashews in soymilk. Add to soup and simmer a bit.