Vegan Bowl Attack, Vegan Blender Recipes, Vegan Curry, & Random Oddity!

I've had the sniffles over the last couple of days which is odd for me.  It doesn't really feel like a head cold but I have never been one to have sinus issues so I don't know what the difference in how I feel would be if it were sinus issues.  It's not bad, really, it's just different.

Here is one of the cookbooks I purchased recently and the more I thumb thru it the more excited I am about it!  I need more bowls in my life and this book has some great ideas!  Plus, Jackie, over at Vegan Yack Attack is the author! 

I know you aren't supposed to judge a book by its cover but I have to say this one really drew me in!  Do you have this book?  If so - what are some of your favorites from it?

Earlier this week I wanted some sort of Broccoli Soup based on what I already had on hand so here is what I made all in a blender:

1 C Cashews
1 Can Chickpeas
4 T Nutritional Yeast
1 T Mild Miso
1 T Lemon Juice
3 T Minced Garlic
1 Carrot
1 Celery Stalk
2 C Water
3 C Broccoli
Sea Salt, Smoked Paprika, Nutmeg to taste

After our trip to Taste of India last weekend I was hungry for more curry type dishes so I threw this dish together - the cheaters way:

1 Can Garlic/Roasted Tomatoes with liquid
1 Can Chickpeas
1 Small Onion
1 Frozen Minced Ginger Cube
2 Cloves Garlic, Minced
2 t Garam Masala
1 t Curry Powder
1 Can Lite Coconut Milk
Black Sea Salt, Lemon Juice, Grapeseed Oil*
*if and as needed*

Last night I needed a snack and didn't really want to think about it so I grabbed some corn chips and made this Vegan Cheese Sauce:

1 C Cashews
Small Handful Nutritional Yeast
1 T Mild Miso
1 T Minced Garlic
1 t Onion Powder
1 T Lemon Juice
5 T Water

Nutmeg, Smoked Paprika, Black Sea Salt to taste

I stumbled across this lil guy while walking around downtown the other day.  He was standing all by himself in between a lamp post and trash can.  Upon further inspection, I noticed it was Rodney Dangerfield. 

I think originally he was supposed to talk and move but either he didn't have batteries in him or he was broken.  Regardless, seeing this, where I saw it, was random yet comical, and much needed that day!

There are antiques and oddity shops nearby so I don't know if the one store owner decided to put this there to make people stop OR if someone thought it was broken and wanted to dispose of it.  Regardless, it's not something you see every day so I had to take a photo!

My New Favorite Vegan Cheese Sauce Recipe!

I know I have posts a LOT of vegan cheese sauces, dips, spreads, etc over the years and there are many I like for many different reasons.  I also seems like I do them a little different each time I use them or make them.

Today I threw together another vegan cheese sauce and absolutely LOVED it!  I don't know if there has been another attempt I have enjoyed this much in a long time - if ever!  Here are a few photos of the Mac & Cheese I covered it in!

All in a blender...

1 C + 1 Handful Cashews, Soaked
1 C Water
1 T Garlic Tahini
3 Handfuls of Nutritional Yeast
1 T Lemon Juice (more to taste)
2 Squirts Yellow Mustard
1/2 t Turmeric
1 T Dried Minced Onion
Black Himalayan Sea Salt (to taste)

I think the Garlic Tahini addition really took it to the next level and helped with the over all creaminess!

It also kept the same creamy consistency and didn't dry out like some of the other cashew sauces I have done tend to do.

I had some left over and used it to dip pretzels in!  I didn't have any corn chips in the house or I would have try it on them, too!

I know I will continue to try different combos but I have to say - for the foreseeable future - this is my new favorite vegan cheese sauce!

I can't wait to try it on a baked potato!  Another pair I can think of is on top of cooked broccoli!

I can't wait to try and make this again!

Things Are Getting Kinda CHEESY Again!

After a few days of 'technical difficulties' I'm back posting!  Very sorry about that!  I'm excited to get 'back to it' tho!

This post is partially a TEST as well as a post to show you some of the random foods I have been eating as of late.

These are literally 'thrown together' but I will say that the 2nd photo that you see below was darn YUMMY so I will be doing it again and post the recipe down the road!

First up is a Mac & Cheese of sorts...and vegan of course!  I used a handful of the remaining Daiya Shreds I had left and built the vegan cheese sauce from there!

Even more YUMMY is this 2nd dish!  I enjoyed this one WAY MORE than I thought I would and I hope to post the recipe soon!

The cheese sauce does NOT contain Daiya or any other 'fake cheese' to make it.

The secret ingredients are organic liquid smoke and a splash of chunk salsa!  Yes...there IS Nutritional Yeast in this recipe!

Over the next several months my recipes will focus on 'eating from your pantry' and 'vegan eats on the cheap' for the most part.  There is sure to be some strange food combos and odd ball ingredients - but that's all part of the FUN...isn't it?

Random Foods Without Appropriate Recipes!

Last week I was notified that one of my writing gigs has come to an end.  This was one of my FAVES.  It's because of this that I have been in a funk.  I spent a lot of time writing for this place and eventho I understand the need to end it at the moment I am missing it very much!  I have been a little 'off' because of it I guess.  So today I thought I would post a few random vegan dishes I have eaten the last few weeks and have yet to blog about here.

First up is this lil diddy!  It's Multi-Colored CousCous topped with a Veggie Burger cubed up.  I added Wildtree Golden BBQ Sauce to the CousCous and on top is a blop of Garlic Just Mayo!

An interesting tidbit about this pic...Shannon Elizabeth LIKED it on Instagram. You remember Shannon Elizabeth from the American Pie Movie?  Yup!  Her!  She's a Vegan!!!  AND she LIKED my photo!  Woot!

Next up is one of the many attempts at a vegan mac and cheese.  This wasn't my best work but it was still edible.  It was VERY cheesy and I added vegan bread crumbs but it made it a bit salty and a strange texture.

Another side note...I have been putting a sprinkle of nutmeg on just about everything these days!

These are some of the Cacao Balls my mom and I made a while back and I will probably be blogging about them more in length in the future because I used the Indigo Herbs Cacao Powder and they turned out yummers but I don't have the recipe with me at the moment.

We rolled some of them in Cacao Powder some of them in a combo of Coconut Shreds, Red Pepper Flakes, and Sea Salt.

This was a great base recipe and I'm looking forward to trying out more toppings!

And last but not least...a simple pasta with vegan marinara!  I got the sauce from Wegmans and sprinkled - you guessed it - Marinara on top!

So sorry I don't have the recipes for these dishes at the moment but I will have some soon!

And don't forget tomorrow is a NEW MidWeek Munchies Week!  Tomorrow I will be featuring my haul from Dollar Tree!  I couldn't believe everything I found there!

Indigo Herbs Recipe Campaign 2015 & Vegan Cheese Sauce!

TGIF!  It's been another stressful week but as I move onward and upward I'm excited to announce that I am one of many bloggers participating in Indigo Herbs Recipe Campaign!

Indigo Herbs sent me product to try, review honestly, and come up with some recipes while using some of their vegan products!  How cool is that?

I've already worked with 2 of their products and will be testing out some of their others ones VERY soon!

I have some wonderful Cacao Recipes coming up but today I thought I would share a Vegan Cheese Sauce using their Hemp Seed Butter.

YUMMERS!  Their Hemp Seed Butter is pretty amazing!  It's on the more 'solid' side than some of the other hemp seed butters I have tried from a jar.  I prefer the Hemp Seed Butter being more solid because I have found that it's easier to spread and/or scoop for teaspoon and tablespoon measuring.

Indigo Herbs offers a Organic, Raw, Vegan Hemp Seed Butter that is rich in minerals, Vitamin B1, Protein, and Dietary Fiber!

The flavor is bold yet creamy!  Their product description says that its flavor is comparable to Rocket Leaves or Watercress.  I actually had to Google what Rocket Leaves were and they are what us Americans call Arugula.  "Learn something new everyday!"

So here's a photo of the Vegan Cheese Sauce I made using Indigo Herbs Hemp Seed Butter!  I LOVE how it turned out and it's such a versatile cheesy sauce that is for sure!

Recipe:

1/4 C + 2 T Nutritional Yeast
1/4 C Garbanzo Bean Flour
1 C Almond Milk
2 T Indigo Herbs Hemp Seed Butter
1 Clove Garlic
1/2 t Smoked Paprika
Up to 1 t Black Himalayan Sea Salt
Sprinkle Nutmeg

Exciting News! Participants NEEDED! And Vegan Jabber!

I figured I would quickly start off today's blog post with one of my million and one different attempts at a vegan cheese sauce.  The beauty of home made vegan cheese sauces is that there are so many different ways to make them.

Sure...some are better tasting than others and some are just more-so for nutritional benefit and quickness but there are ways of vegan cheese survival out there!  I know this probably looks weird since I'm using spaghetti noodles but it was what I had on hand that day.

I know we just debuted this yesterday but I wanted to let you know that I created a NEW logo for it!  The current PICK 3 MoFo'ers Off Season Community LINK UP is now LIVE thru 10/19/15.  Click on the logo on the sidebar and it will take you to directly to the post.

In other news - we now have 4 Welcome Wagon Greeters and Co-Hosts to the MoFo'ers Off Season Community.  Helping me with this project is Mary Ellen, Deborah, and Kyra!  Thanks ladies!  We have some really fun prompts and link ups on tap to keep us all blogging and in touch in the off season months of MoFo!  Be sure to check out their blogs, too!

One of the MANY things I thought would be FUN would be to bring back MidWeek Munchies.  It's something I did years and years ago thru a different blog and hope to start back up again STARTING TOMORROW!!!!  Check out THESE POSTS to get some ideas but basically what it is...is...a bunch of us sharing on our blogs what we have purchased or tasted or tested that happens to also be VEGAN over the past week or week ahead!  It's a great way to meet new people and learn about potential new vegan products and companies!   I hope you will join me tomorrow!

And FINALLY...this is in the works for later this week thru the 31st of the month!  It's the MoFo'ers Off Season Vegan Halloween Link-up! This will be for any and all Vegan Halloween related posts!  Multiple posts welcome!

It's Gettin' a Little Cheesy Around Here...

I'm still trying to catch up on blog posts - especially the foods and recipes I have been tinkering with.  I figured I would combine two of them in this first post of today.  There will be multiple posts today...be sure to check back! 

In this first photo you will see what looks to be Mac & Cheese.  Welllll...sorta-kinda...but better!  I used Brown Rice Pasta Shells and did a Sriracha Cheese Sauce and here's how I did it...

1 C Cashews
1 C Water
1/2 C Nutritional Yeast
1 T Lemon Juice
1 T Sriracha Sauce
1 tea Paprika
1 tea Onion Powder
1 tea Garlic Powder
Sprinkle Chili Garlic Sea Salt
Sprinkle Turmeric Extract
Sprinkle GoL Raw Meal Protein

I've been on a Grits kick for a few weeks now since I smuggled in some Earth Balance and Nutritional Yeast to a local eating establishment and threw my additions into the plan grits they served me.  So I have been working on different flavors of Grits at home and here's another one I really enjoyed!  Of course you have the grits but then you mix in...

1/4 C (or more) Nutritional Yeast
2 T (or more) Earth Balance
1 tea Garlic Powder
1/2 tea (or less) Garlic Chili Sea Salt
Sprinkle GoL's Wheatgrass

What do you think of these creations?  What kind of flavored Grits do you think I should try next?

Veggies & Shells with Cashew Cheese

Some of these veggies might look familiar.  There were the leftovers I had from a few other dishes and added a Cashew Cheese that I will be using again that's for sure!  It was very tasty!  The veggies included Cauliflower, Spinach, and Carrots.  I also used some Brown Rice Pasta Shells in this too.  I topped it with vegan bread crumbs.  It was awesome.  For the Cashew Cheese Sauce...here's the recipe all made up in my Vitamix!

1 1/2 C Cashews
1 T Lemon Juice

1 C Water

1/4 C Nutritional Yeast *

1 tea Dijon Mustard

1 tea Wildtree's Garlic & Herb Blend

Pinch of Frank's Chili Garlic Salt *
Pinch of Turmeric Extract Powder *

* (Items available at The Raw Food World - see clickable banner on sidebar)

When I was cooking the Spinach (from frozen) I made a broth out of water and about a teaspoon of  GoL's Perfect Food Energizer just for an extra boost.  I absolutely LOVED this vegan cheese sauce!!!!

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That's NOT a Vegan Omelet!

Wait...that doesn't look like an omelet!  Well, it was supposed to be...it didn't turn out that way.  But I didn't give up on it.  I morphed it into something else and it ended up being edible.  I think my problem was that I wasn't patient enough.  Since I goofed on this recipe I won't post it here but I will say that it ended up being pretty tasty and I made two meals out of it.  I was originally going for an omelet but it ended up being a non-tofu Scramble, instead, I guess.  With a little more liquid it was sort of like broccoli and cheese soup but with spinach, cauliflower, and carrots instead of broccoli.

Here's the first meal I had with it.  I just did plan white rice and added 'cheese' sauce to it.  It was a packaged powder that I doctored up as well.

One of these days I will gain enough courage to try a vegan omelet again but it might be a while.  

I did use the vegg in this as well as coconut flour.  That could have been the issue...the coconut flour...I haven't gotten the substitute ratios down yet.  I wanted to use Almond flour but I didn't have any.

Eventho there is spinach in this dish I wanted to 'up' the greens count so I sprinkled a bit of Garden of Life's Perfect Food.  One of my favorite things about the GoL products you can add it to anything for a little extra boost...this one contains over 8000mg of greens per serving.

Eventho this didn't turn out like I hoped it ended up being a tasty dish - with leftovers!  I have lots more to share and will have multiple posts today so stay tuned!

PARTICIPANT:
Healthy Vegan Friday's

Random Vegan Creations & Pear Walnut Balsamic PIZZA

I had a message from a reader of the site that checks-in often but rarely-if-ever-comments asking if I could post more of my vegan food creations.  She mentioned that she enjoys the other daily living posts but missed the vegan foods I use to post.  No Problemo!  The reason I haven't been adding as many to the site is because I haven't been all that creative in the kitchen as of late.  I have been throwing together a bunch of things or referring back to old favorites.  BUT...here are some random foods I haven't posted about yet.  First up is this Vegan Cheese Sauce.  It turned out WONDERFULLY!  I can't wait to make more!  And YES...I poured it over top of Grits!  

Here's the Recipe:

2 C Raw Cashews

1/2 C Nutritional Yeast

1/2 tea Garlic Powder
1/2 C Almond Milk
1 T SeaClear (Fermented Kelp Chlorella Miso)*

To purchase SeaClear CLICK HERE.  The ingredients include: Organic non-GMO soy and barley miso, raw apple cider vinegar, fermented kelp (Kombu), Chlorella, Tumeric, Black pepper.  But you could also just use your favorite Miso, too!

Not too long ago I made some Chickpea Sandwich Spread...with a twist!  Here's that recipe:

2 C Chickpeas

1/2 C Dried Cranberries

1/4 C Chopped Walnuts

1/2 T Wildtree Garlic Garlore (or Minced Garlic)

This was tasty, too, and I have found myself craving more.  I wasn't sure if I would like the walnuts and cranberries in there but they were REALLY great!

And finally...we had to go to Erie for my husband to see a Crohn's Specialist...afterwards we went for lunch at a place called The Public House.  They had some veganizable foods on their menu which was very neat and I opted for this.  It's one of their pizzas that I had them 'hold' the cheese on.  The other ingredients I kept on were the baked pears, onions, walnuts, and balsamic and it was pretty darn awesome!  I've never had anything quite like it but I would LOVE to have it again!

Multi-Purpose Vegan Cheese Sauce, Raw Vegan Veggie Burgers, Trip to Labyrinth, and Gabby Update

Yes...I need to start doing a little catch up once again!  I was going to put this recipe on my blog last week but the week got away from me.  Sorry about that.  Last week I made this Vegan Mac & Cheese.  I used Orgran Vegetable Noodles but the real flavor was in the sauce.  Here's what I did for this sauce...

1 C Almond Milk
1 Yellow Onion
3/4 C Nutritional Yeast
1 Yellow (or Orange) Bell Pepper
3 T Cashews
1 T Tahini
1 tea Wildtree Garlic Galore
1/4 tea Turmeric

It was reminiscent of a "Sharper" type tasting cheese.

It made more than I was ready to use for the Mac & Cheese so I added about a teaspoon of Red Jalapeno Powder and used the rest as a Nacho Cheese Sauce for Tortillas.

I would make this again!  I think this is a good Multi-Purpose Vegan Cheese Base of sorts.

Last night I made Raw Vegan Burgers in my Excalibur.  For years I have had a hard time making veggie burgers at home because they have always fell apart.  These worked nicely in the Dehydrator!  I'm quite excited!  Here's what's in these...

1.5 C Almonds
1.5 C Pecans
3 Handfuls of Baby Carrots
1 Onion
1/4 C Parsley
1/4 C Lemon Juice
1 tea Curry Powder

I had a slew of Baby Carrots I NEEDED to use SOON and thought this might be a good way to try it.  Again...I think this is a neat base to play with and I would like to try them again with some spicy ingredients as well as maybe some corn and other veggies such as broccoli, peppers, maybe some beans or sprouts, even.

It was a weird weekend and I am sure I will share more of it as this week progresses.  One of the BAD things that happened is I whacked my 'pinky toe' on DH's Recliner and my foot is turning BLACK.  OMG...it hurts!  And with this ongoing COLD it sure isn't helping it!

On a GOOD side - I was able to visit The Labyrinth in Jamestown yesterday and ordered one of their Vin Diesel's for lunch/dinner.  It was great!  It's loaded with Grilled Chick Pea Salad, Avocado, Bell Peppers, Red Onions, Cranberries, Diced Tomatoes, Baby Spinach, Vinegar, Sunflower Seeds, Vegan Sour Cream, and Hot Sauce!  It was a 'Party In Your Mouth'. 

In addition to the wonderful wrap...I ordered one of their Soups of the Day which was their Vegan Lentil Chilli and I get for my lunch today!  While I was waiting I thought I would treat myself to one of their Espressos.  I don't do that often at all but I will tell you it would totally worth it!  They have their own Coconut Cream that they do as a milk alternative and the size of this Espresso was something I have never seen before!  It was AMAZING!  So yes...I am a happy camper after that visit.

An update on Gabby - she's been eating much better since we started giving her wet/canned food but now I think there is something else wrong with her.  Not sure if it's a blockage or worse so tomorrow she has an appointment.  She doesn't appear to be in any pain as she's the happiest cat I have ever seen!  She's constantly purring and the sweetest girl!

I just don't have a good feeling about this.  I've read up on Persian Cats often having problems with Poly-cystic Kidney Disease for which there is no cure.  I'm wondering about a blockage now that's she's gaining weight from the wet food but it's all collecting in her stomach.  She's NOT a young cat.  We've had her for about 10 years and when we adopted her they said she was around 2 or so and had been homeless for what they thought was most of her life.  I'm really worried about our little girl!

Homemade Sauces and Such

WOWZA!  What a Week and THEN Some!  Glad I'm able to take a few moments to start trying to catch up on my blog and many other things around the house!  I was extremely busy with work and our county fair last week but I will be chatting about that throughout this week, I am sure!  For now I would like to share a few things I did last week for quick food in between all of the CRAZINESS!  I didn't crop these photos - sorry about that!  This DARK Sauce was VERY rich and flavorful.  I used it as a dip, a dressing, and a sauce.  It's a variation of a recipe in one of my many Moosewood Cookbooks I have laying around the house. 


Here is what's in it...
6 Sun-Dried Tomatoes
1 Tomato
2 Cloves Garlic
A Few leaves of Sweet Basil
2 T Balsamic
Water for Consistency

Here's a strange angle on my funky pasta noodles I had the one night.  I did a Chunky Tomato Marinara which included:

1 Onion
3 Cloves Garlic
1 C Crushed Tomatoes
2 T dried Basil (ran out of fresh)
1/4 tea Thyme
1/4 tea Oregano
1 T Parsley
2 tea (or less) of Grapeseed Oil
Raw Cane Sugar to taste from Wholesome Sweeteners

This is just a little something I threw together - sorry I didn't have the exact measurements.  But I used what was left of the Daiya Shreds, a bit of Almond Milk, a few Tablespoons of Medium Salsa, and a bit of Earth Balance and melted it down.  It was thin but super flavorful.  It was a nice comfort food that night.

I'm still re-cooperating from all of the hustle-bustle last week.  Actually it was Saturday the 3rd thru Yesterday!  I did quite a bit of volunteering, tho, so that felt good.  I worked in two food booths for the fair in between all of my other responsibilities between work, concerts, and helping the hubby with his stuff, too!

"Cheesy" Veggies & Rice

Last night I made this for my lunch today.  It's Vegan "Cheesy" Veggies & Rice!  For the veggies there are Broccoli, Cauliflower, and Carrots.  For the Rice I used Brown Rice eventho it's hard to see in the pic because it's covered with "cheesy" sauce...and because it was taken with my iPhone.  (Speaking of which...I hope to be getting a new iPhone in the next few weeks so my iPhone pics should be better!)

I did the tasty Vegan Cheese Sauce I did for the Mac & Cheese I posted yesterday but kicked it up a notch.  I used more of each ingredient but then I also used Instant Mashed Potato Flakes as a thickener.  It worked really well in this case.  Plus I really like the potato flavor it added to this dish.

Is it wrong of me to want to eat this as BREAKFAST?

I'll hold off as long as I can...

YUM!