Craisin Coconut Oatmeal

Yummiest oatmeal combination I've tried yet. I was inspired by a delicious cookie recipe I had tried out last month, which I will post soon. This is definitely healthier than the cookies.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 c. oats
• 1/2 c. water
• 1-2 Tb. craisins 
• 1-2 Tb. shredded coconut
• Honey, for drizzling 

Directions:

1. Put oats, water, craisins, and coconut in a microwavable bowl. Mix together.
2. Cook on high for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes.
3. Drizzle with honey. Enjoy!

Veggie Pot Pie

This recipe was sent in by Katie M. She found it at All Recipes.

Ingredients:

•  2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 8 ounces mushrooms
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 large carrots, diced
• 2 potatoes, peeled and diced
• 2 stalks celery, sliced 1/4 inch wide
• 2 cups cauliflower florets
• 1 cup fresh green beans, trimmed and snapped into 1/2 inch pieces
• 3 cups vegetable broth
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 recipe pastry for double-crust pie

Directions: 

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
2. Heat oil in a large skillet or saucepan. Cook onions, mushrooms, and garlic in oil for 3 to 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in carrots, potatoes, and celery. Stir in cauliflower, green beans, and vegetable broth. Bring to a boil, then turn heat down to a simmer. Cook until vegetables are barely tender, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
3. In a small bowl, mix the cornstarch, soy sauce, and 1/4 cup water until cornstarch is completely dissolved. Stir into vegetables, and cook until sauce thickens, about 3 minutes.
4. Roll out 1/2 of the dough to line an 11x7 inch baking dish. Pour the filling into the pastry lined dish. Roll out remaining dough, arrange over the filling, and seal and flute the edges.
5. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until the crust is brown.

Notes about this recipe:

1. I didn't follow the recipe exactly as written when it came to the veggies, but it still turned out great (seems like most pot pie recipes are flexible like that). I would say that the mushrooms and potatoes though are pretty important to give it that thick, filling texture.
2. For the crust I used my basic pie crust recipe but used half whole wheat flour and half white to up the nutrition value a bit as it is a dinner dish. The dough was slightly more fragile than normal but overall tasted and worked great for this.

Slow Cooker Bean & Cornbread Casserole

(Picture from That Was Vegan?)

This recipe was sent to me by Katie M. She found it at That Was Vegan?  She says it was "a nice, easy, cheap, tasty, make-ahead, crock-pot meal. Oh and SUPER filling!" 

Ingredients:

• 1 large green or red bell pepper
• 1 large sweet or white onion
• 3 cloves garlic (or more, if you’re a garlic fiend!)
• 1 can (16oz) red kidney beans (drained and rinsed)
• 1 can (16oz) pinto beans (drained and rinsed)
• 1 can (16oz) black beans (drained and rinsed)
• 8-10 oz tomato sauce
• 16 oz diced tomatoes with chilies
• 1/2 can cream corn
• 2 t chili powder (I used a “NM” blend, but any kind will work)
• 1 t pepper
• 2 t salt
• 1 t hot sauce
• 1/2 cup yellow corn meal
• 1/2 cup AP flour
• 1 1/4 t baking powder
• 1 t salt
• 1 T sugar
• 3/4 cups non-dairy milk
• 1 egg replacer mix of choice
• 1 1/2 T vegetable oil
• 1/2 can cream corn

Directions:

1. Chop onions and bell peppers, and mince garlic cloves.
2. Spray inside of slow-cooker with non-stick spray.
3. Sautee onions, peppers and garlic in water in a pan until tender, then add to the slow-cooker.
4. Add beans, tomatoes, tomato sauce, 1/2 can of corn, spices and hot sauce.
5. Cover, and cook on high for about 1 hour.
6. In a separate bowl, combine cornmeal, flour, baking powder, salt and sugar, then stir in  the milk, egg replacement, oil and the rest of the corn.
7. Ladle over the bean mixture in the slow-cooker, making it nice and smooth.
8. Cover again, and cook for about another 1.5 hours, but sometimes my cornbread takes a little longer to cook all the way through. (ETA: This could take up to an additional 30 minutes, but you can slice into the cornbread to see if it’s cooked)

Makes 5-6 servings

Notes about this recipe:

1. I am afraid of making things too spicy so I only added a fraction of the hot sauce called for. It turned out mild and could have used a teensy bit more kick but was still yummy.
2. Also, it says to use your choice of egg replacer to the amount of one egg; one real egg works just fine too.

Roasted Chickpeas

The first time I heard of roasted chickpeas was when I found a recipe for Roasted Chickpea Fajitas, which I will definitely be posting soon. Then I needed them again for Cauliflower Power Tacos. And that's when I discovered how delicious these are just as a snack. After several attempts to get the flavoring to my satisfaction I have finally found the perfect combo.

Ingredients:

• 2-15 oz cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 2 Tb olive oil
• 3 Tb lime juice
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp chili powder

Directions:

1.  Put chickpeas in a medium bowl. 
2. Combine olive oil, lime juice, salt, cumin, oregano, and chili powder. Pour over chickpeas. Stir till all coated.
3. Pour out on a baking sheet. Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes. Then stir and return to the oven for 10 more minutes. If they aren't crispy enough for your liking at this point put them back in for another 5 minutes or so.
4. Cool on pan and enjoy!

Blueberry Muffins

I adapted this recipe from the muffin recipe in my Better Homes and Gardens cookbook.

Ingredients:

• 1 c. white flour
• 1/2 c. wheat flour
• 1/4 c. wheat germ
• 1/3 c. brown sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4-1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 beaten egg
• 3/4 c. milk or rice milk
• 2 Tb. vegetable oil
• 2 Tb. applesauce
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1 c. blueberries (frozen or fresh)

Directions:

1. Grease your muffin tin or line with paper liners. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Mix dry ingredients (white flour to cinnamon) in a medium bowl.

3. Mix wet ingredients (egg to vanilla) in a smaller bowl.

4. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients. Mix until just moistened--batter should be lumpy. Fold in blueberries.

5. Spoon batter into muffin tin until each cup is about 2/3 full. Bake for 15-20 minutes.

Apple Spinach Salad with Spiced Nuts

 (Photo from Redhead Recipes.)

This recipe was recommended by Katy L. She found it at Redhead Recipes. She paired it with White Pizza Grilled Cheese Sandwiches, which I will post as soon as I get permission from the blogger.

Ingredients and Directions: 

Apple Spinach Salad with Spiced Nuts

• 1 bag prewashed spinach
• 1-2 granny smith apples, cored and sliced thinly
• 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
• 1/2 cup spiced caramelized nuts (recipe below)

Place all ingredients in a bowl. (Now that's a difficult recipe!) And top with apple cider vinaigrette (see recipe below)

Spiced Caramelized Nuts

• 1/2 cup pecans (or favorite nut)
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 small pinch of cayenne (don't get scared!)
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

Combine sugar, cayenne, cinnamon, and nutmeg thouroughly. Place in skillet over medium heat. When sugar starts to melt stir in nuts. Stir occasionally. Once all sugar has melted and nuts are coated, place nuts on parchment paper to cool. Eat plain, in a salad, or on top of ice cream.

Apple Cider Vinaigrette 

• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 tsp dijion mustard
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• salt and pepper

Place all ingredients in a curet and shake.

Roasted Chickpea and Avocado Salad

Roasted chickpeas add a fabulous bit of crunch to this salad. Roast a batch and you can use it on various salads for the week.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cucumber, sliced
• 1 roma tomato, sliced
• 3-4 large handfuls of chopped romaine lettuce
• 1/4 c. to 1/2 c. roasted chickpeas

Roasted Chickpeas

• 1 can (14.5 oz) chickpeas, drained and rinsed.
• 1 Tb olive oil
• 1 1/2 Tb lime juice
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp chili powder
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp oregano

Directions:

1. Start by roasting your chickpeas. Mix the olive oil, lime juice, salt, chili powder, cumin, and oregano together. Put chickpeas in a bowl and pour mixture on top. Stir to coat. Then pour the chickpeas onto a pan. Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes. Stir on pan, then put back in the oven for 10 more min. Stir again, and do 5 more minutes in the oven. Take them out and let cool.
2. Put romaine lettuce in a bowl, and top with the cucumbers, tomato, and roasted chickpeas.