Posts by admin:
- Hummus
- Roasted Potatoes
- Fattoush
- Tabbouli
- Pita
- Write an e-cookbook
- Learn conversational German
- Learn how to crochet
- Finish Lord of the Rings books
- Learn 5 new arias or more
- Record a CD
- Learn conversational German
- Document the year with one picture a day (365 project)
- Read God’s word daily
- Make more jewelry
- Lose more weight
- Continue a disciplined workout schedule
Mediterranean Lover’s Pizza {Hummus included!}
January 4th, 2011
The snow has finally decided to come back to us. As I sit here writing this post, the beautiful snowflakes are coming down.
Since the new year has arrived and holiday binge eating no longer exists, we have been focusing on delicious vegetables and salads in our home. It seems as though these foods do not look quite attractive while traveling but once in the comfort of one’s home, all is well.
I probably should be working on soups and warm foods, but my body has been asking for salads and Mediterranean fare. We are actually have had this yummy fare twice this week already!
Every time I venture making this meal I seem the make the same recipes over and over again.
When we were in Houston, Ryan and I and my in-laws all had a chance to eat at California Pizza Kitchen. I know many of you like this place, and who wouldn’t? It has SO many choices, and mostly all for the meat lover.
As I searched for options, I realized I was complicating it. Have you found, as a vegan, that we tend to be the most creative when there is something you have not quite seen on a menu? I do this ALL the time!
I noticed on the menu an option for Greek Salad Pizza, but it had feta, chicken and pesto. I liked the salad part. I quickly decided I would ask the waitress if they could make the pizza with hummus instead of the pesto, and she gave me a quizzical look and said “Are you sure?” and I assured her I had eaten it like that before.I then asked her to leave the greek salad and to add to mentioned avocado.
When I received the pizza it looked delicious, but somewhat bare. I wondered where the lettuce was. The waitress said it did not come with lettuce. Sigh. All is well. She brings me lettuce and I am happy.
Well folks, I decided that when I got home I would make my own creation based on my own creation from CPK with my own flatbread recipe and yummy ingredients.
The result: The recipe made 2 flatbread pizzas for 2 people, enough for a whole meal. I asked Ryan whether he enjoyed and if it was enough and he said he really liked it! Ryan is not a chickpea lover but he has learned to really like hummus. Thumbs up!
I hope you make this pizza. It really is very healthy and very satisfying.
Mediterranean Lover’s Pizza
makes 2 individual pizzas
Print recipe
Flatbread
1 1/2 cups whole wheat white flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 tsp dried parsley
1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
6oz plain SO Delicious coconut yogurt (or any other dairy-free version)
Olive oil (for grilling)
Cornmeal
Sift first 4 ingredients into medium bowl. Stir in parsley and garlic. Add yogurt and stir with fork until small clumps form. Knead mixture in bowl just until dough holds together.
Heat pizza stone in oven on 450 degrees or heat olive oil on stovetop grill on medium heat.
Divide dough into 2 portions. Sprinkle cornmeal on flat and clean surface and roll out dough until close to 12 inches in diameter.
Add dough to pizza stone (sprinkle cornmeal on pizza stone before placing dough on stone) and bake for 10 minutes or until golden brown.
Or, add dough to stovetop grill and grill pizza for 7-10 minutes, flipping flatbread after 5 minutes. When completely cooked. Place in warm oven to keep warm. (Option 1: add hummus at this point and heat in oven at 350 degrees while making the other flatbread pizza) Make the 2nd flatbread.
Option 2: Add 1/2 cup cold hummus to each flatbread and slice in 4.
Make Mediterranean salad and add 2 Tbsp of salad to each slice and serve.
Mediterranean Salad
1 cup romaine lettuce, chopped
1 tomato, chopped
4 radishes, diced
1/4 red onion, diced
1/2 English cucumber, chopped (1/2 inch)
1/2 cup parsley, chopped
1/2 cup kalamata olives, sliced in half and pitted
1 lemon, juiced
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1/2 Tbsp Za’atar spices (or 1/2 teaspoon salt and oregano)
Hummus
makes 1 1/2 cups
1 16 ounce can chickpeas, reserve 2 Tbsp of liquid
1 Tbsp Tahini butter (sesame seed butter)
1/2 cup olive oil
1 lemon, juiced
1 tsp cumin
2 garlic cloves
1 tsp salt
1 tsp paprika
olive oil for drizzling
Place chickpeas in processor and add chickpea liquid, garlic cloves, lemon juice, tahini, and spices. Process until combined. Keep processor on and little by little add the olive oil until the mixture becomes smooth. It should not be grainy.
Do you have any favorite Mediterranean recipes that you make often?
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Happy New Year! {Monkey’s Cocktail & Chilean Fruitcake}
January 3rd, 2011
Happy New Year friends! I scarcely can believe that a new year is upon us! As Ryan was reading a satire on the events that transpired in 2010, I forgot several events. Whoa, lots happened this year!
What will the year 2011 hold for us? Even though we have lots of events and trips planned this year we ask God to bless our plans because plans can change.
Yesterday we went to a New Year’s Eve party and we played a game called Two Truths and a Lie and used New Year’s resolutions as the theme. My three were the following:
Can you guess which one is the lie?
It was great celebrating New Year’s Eve amongst friends with laughter, games and some yummy appetizers and champagne. I told Ryan that I would like to celebrate by going to a ball and dressing up really fancy like in When Harry Met Sally, remember?
I was surprised to celebrate the last day of 2010 with no vision of snow. Apprently we brought the warm weather from Texas because a rain hit Michigan and melted the snow and the temperatures rose to the 50s. No worries. Today is the 2nd and it is back to snowing! I hope it has made its mind up.
When I was preparing for the New Year’s Eve party, I decided I would arrive with 2 traditional Chilean recipes usually eaten on that evening.
Cola de Mono, or otherwise known as Monkey’s Tail, is usually consumed at parties and is usually so heavily spiked with pisco (Chilean liquor) or aguaardiente (a grape-distilled spirit) that it would have everyone acting crazy like monkeys. Yes. Well pisco is usually is hard to find outside of Chile so I decided to use rum even though vodka or brandy could be used. I made a veganized version using So Delicious Coconut milk.
This nog is like a spiked coffee beverage similar to Bailey’s but BETTER! It has several spices and lots of love in it.
My grandmother would normally have this prepared by the time we came around the house so it was chilled and ready to be sipped, mind you, sipped! Another recipe she would have prepared is Pan de Pascua, Chilean Christmas Bread.
After 25 years of living in the states, my grandmother started cutting corners and made the bread using cake mixes. I am shocked even to remember that fact because I believe after a certain time WE can all do that. Cooking is hard work especially when it is made from scratch. I actually had to look up several recipes and compare and remember how my grandmother made it. I came up with a veganized version.
Pan de Pascua resembles fruitcake and stollen and makes a perfect accompaniment with the cola de mono.
I was glad to be able to use al natural dried fruits and none of that candied crap you see at the stores. I liked my version and I believe it is a keeper!
I will not be sharing these recipes because I am going to feature them in my cookbook. Yes. I know everyone and their mom is coming out with their own cookbook, but I am hoping to add a little twist and incentive for presenting my cookbook so stay tuned! I WILL need recipe testers.
This is one of my goals for this year. Want to see some more?
These are just some of the things that have been in my mind lately. As I write this, a verse came to mind from the book of Proverbs, 19:21 “Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the LORD’s purpose that prevails.”
Ultimately, God knows all that will happen and if it is His will these thing will come to pass. Here is to a blessed New Year!
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Christmas in Texas 2010 [The Best Chocolate Cream Pie]
December 31st, 2010
Wow, I actually took a break from blogging. I guess I do like being around family. Ha ha ha.
Well seeing that I have been away for a while, it has been hard to get to blogging knowing there are alot of pictures of fun events and eats. Where to start? Even though I was away for 2 weeks visiting family and very busy, I still enjoyed some cooking and hanging out with friends and family.
Three days after I arrived I had a little get-together / cookie exchange, but it was more of an excuse to bake and see friends. I had an old high school friend come which was wonderful since I had not seen her in a LONG time. She is learning to cook gluten-free so I decided to make a gluten-free and vegan cookie recipe I had been eyeing from Spunky Coconut’s website called Scandanavian Thumbprint Cookies. Mom did not have the tapioca flour it called for so I risked using quinoa flour instead. A few days later I made them again like the original recipe and there really was not much difference. They tasted DANG good. I used up all my mom’s strawberry rhubarb preserves she had in her fridge. I have to say that this cookie recipe was pretty popular! Besides my 3 friends that came over, some neighborhood friends stopped by and I could not help watching these non-vegans enjoying this cookie. Score!
The next few days proved busier than ever. My mom needed a lot of help around the house and I had to catch up on some work too. We planned the menu for Christmas Eve dinner and I set to preparing the meal starting the 23rd.
Since I was the only vegan in the family, my mom still wanted to make meat, so she made a meatloaf type meal filled with veggies and hard-boiled eggs, typically made in Mexico.
I pretty much then made all the salads and desserts. Desserts! Yes, my favorite!
I made my Papa Rusa (Russian Potato Salad) and the Green Beans with the Dried-Cherry Vinagrette.
I then prepared the desserts on the 24th and had them ready. We decided to have dinner early since Ryan was in charge of choosing a new church for us to worship on Christmas Eve.
My sister was in charge of decorating the dinner table. She obviously has a great gift for this. I am glad she got to do this. Every year it is a different combination of colors and decorations.
After we came back from our Christmas Eve service at First Presbyterian, we opened gifts and ate dessert. I served a small slice of each dessert so that we could enjoy.
I made an Gingerbread Caramel Pineapple Upside Down Cake using the Pear recipe I made back in October. This seriously had to be Ryan’s favorite. He remembers the pear dessert and he said he preferred with with pineapples! Just substitute the pears for 6 big slices of pineapple when preparing the dessert.
This Chocolate Cream Pie was a last minute decision. My mom had been asking me to make a pie but since I was short on time I had to figure out a quicker recipe. My mom had purchased 2 gluten-free pie crusts from Whole Foods and she really wanted something special. While I thought, I baked the pie crust in the oven. I then ran across a marvelous recipe from Elana’s Pantry.
This was BY FAR the BEST pie recipe I have ever made. It was VERY easy too. Everyone kept on asking if it was vegan and how it tasted gourmet, etc etc. Ryan was even surprised I had prepared it that very morning. It is a decadent dessert but it was worth it. One slice never killed anyone!
Here is my adaption of the recipe. I used a pre-made gluten-free pie crust but feel free to make Elana’s gluten-free recipe from the same recipe.
Chocolate Cream Pie
Adapted from Elana’s Pantry
serves 12
1 pre-made gluten-free pie crust (from Whole Foods) or pie crust recipe
Chocolate Cream Filling
2 cups So Delicious Original Coconut Milk
pinch celtic sea salt
¼ cup arrowroot powder
½ cup maple syrup
1 Tablespoons vanilla extract
2 cups dark chocolate chips 73% cacao (Whole Foods brand or Ghiradelli)
Bring coconut milk and salt to a boil in a medium pot.
Sift arrowroot powder into the pot, whisk vigorously by hand or with a hand blender for 2 minutes.
Whisk in maple syrup and vanilla.
Remove from heat and let stand for 1 minute.
Add chocolate, stirring vigorously until completely melted.
Chill in refrigerator for ½ hour until cool.
Place in cooled pie crust and serve.
What was your MOST favorite recipe during Christmas?
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Hickory Cheese Stuffed Prunes with Crumbled Tempeh Bacon and WINNER!
December 21st, 2010
Congrats Erin!! Email me your full name and address so I can send the company your info and they will get this to you soon! Thanks!
So I know everyone has been on some sort of sugar overload when it comes to all the sweet treat recipes that have been posted so I thought I would share one of the appetizers I created for our Christmas Eve dinner.
I waited to get to Texas to try a new product I really did not have available in Michigan, or at least close to where I live. A Whole Foods in Houston only had one type of Wayfare cheese so I decided to try and work with the Hickory-Smoked Cheddar-Style Spread. Check out the website to see where they sell this priduct near you!
The company uses no fake ingredients in their products. It is mostly made from oats, nutritional yeast, beans, sesame seeds, coconut and olive oil and many more natural ingredients. This is NO Tofutti folks. It is a creamy texture with no aftertaste but with wonderful flavor. Granted, I was only able to taste one flavor.
I created a recipe based on a recipe my Chilean grandmother would make on Christmas. She would wrap prunes with bacon and bake them until perfect. What was a girl to have now?
I bought some tempeh bacon, prunes, and hickory cheese and put them together for a PERFECT appetizer. You can substitute this with dates as well if that is your preference but the prunes are a little softer and make bigger boats for filling with cheese and bacon! A big plus!
Hickory Cheese Stuffed Prunes with Crumbled Tempeh Bacon
25-30 pieces
1 package Newman’s Own Dried Prunes
1/2 cup Wayfare Hickory Cheddar
1 package smoky tempeh bacon strips
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line baking sheet with TFX Non-stick or w/parchment paper.
On a non-stick grill or skillet add 1 Tbsp olive oil and heat on medium heat. Add the tempeh bacon strips and cook until slightly crispy but not dark brown. (about 7-10 minutes) Make sure to flip strips at mid point.
Set aside strips and cool.
Meanwhile, take each prune and create a small bowl of each prune and fill with 1-2 teaspoons of cheese. Repeat with the rest of prunes.
Crumble tempeh bacon and sprinkle on top of each prune. Place on the baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes.
Remove from oven and let cool a bit before devouring! Your company will not know it is vegan. My mother and sister both liked it!
I hope you enjoy this!
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Creamy Broccoli and Mushroom Bake
December 13th, 2010
Hello on this snowy day! I love the fact that it is sunny today despite the 5-6 inches of snow. Ryan had a nice 8am final so he had to be out in that mess!
Our weekend was successful busy and full of music. After 2 days of rehearsal with Ryan and the orchestra we proved to be ready to perform 2 back-to-back Christmas programs.
When we headed back home we embraced the snow storm we had heard was coming and arrived home with EVERYTHING covered in snow. It looked like people had not even ventured out of their homes. I do not blame them!
In the next few days I will be focusing on meals I have been preparing in the last 2 weeks. Seeing that I will be traveling soon and not really cooking anything fancy, I feel like that would be the best thing.
As you plan for your holiday meals, I really suggest you try this Creamy Broccoli and Mushroom Bake. When Ryan took a bite he said it reminded him of green rice even though the dish is made with Italian rice, orzo. 🙂 It is amazing how creamy and cheezy this bake almost tastes and it has no dairy!
Eating vegan is not hard it is having to be creative and finding options to warm the tummy. This meal is super easy to prepare and would go perfectly with Christmas dinner.
Amber at Almost Vegan featured the recipe when I ran across it, but I had also seen it in Lauren Ulm’s new cookbook Vegan Yum Yum, which is a pretty fantastic cookbook. It has beautiful pictures and EASY recipes.
Anyway, when I read Amber’s opinion of the combination of ingredients and flavors I knew I had to try it.
I had a bag of colorful orzo from my Farmer’s Market that I had ready to use.
I cut up some broccoli, mushrooms, and onions and garlic and sauteed. If broccoli is not your favorite veggie, try cauliflower or carrots or simply try a different combination.
While the veggies are cooking, the creamy mixture is prepared and then the creamy sauce, orzo, and veggies are mixed together and placed in a 9×9 glass dish.
Breadcrumbs are sprinkled on top along with some paprika and baked for 30 minutes. This is probably the best comfort food I had had in a while! I cannot wait to make it again. You will not be disappointed!
Creamy Broccoli and Mushroom Bake
from Lauren Ulm’s Vegan Yum Yum cookbook
serves 6
For the casserole:
1 cup orzo pasta (dry)
1 large stalk broccoli, stem peeled, stem and florets chopped
1 cup mushrooms (any kind), cleaned
½ medium onion, roughly chopped
2 Tbsp olive oil, divided
¼ cup panko breadcrumbs
¼ tsp paprika (optional)
1/8 tsp sea salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
For the sauce:
1 cup almond or coconut milk, or non-dairy milk
¼ cup nutritional yeast
¼ cup raw cashews, soaked 6 hours ( I did not soak and just used Vitamix)
2 Tbsp arrowroot (or cornstarch)
2 Tbsp Earth Balance margarine
2 Tbsp Coconut Aminos (Bragg Liquid Aminos or soy sauce)
2 Tbsp tahini paste
1 Tbsp lemon juice
2 cloves garlic, peeled
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and thoroughly grease a 9×9-inch (or similar sized) baking dish. Cook the orzo in boiling water for about 9 minutes, then drain and set aside.
Meanwhile, pulse the broccoli, mushrooms, and onion in a food processor until chopped into small pieces. Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a large skillet. Add the vegetable mixture and cook, stirring frequently, until softened, about 5-7 minutes. When done, remove from the heat.
While the veggies are cooking, combine all sauce ingredients in a blender and purée until smooth.
Add the drained orzo to the vegetables, then pour on the entire batch of sauce.
Stir thoroughly to combine.
Transfer the mixture to the greased baking dish. Sprinkle the breadcrumbs evenly across the top, then drizzle with the remaining tablespoon of olive oil. Sprinkle with paprika, salt, and pepper as desired.
Cover tightly with foil and bake for 25 minutes, then remove the foil and bake for an additional 5 minutes to brown the top slightly.
Let rest for at least 10 minutes before slicing and serving.
