Chickpea and Corn Chili

Made this last night: http://happyherbivore.com/recipe/chickpea-and-corn-chili/

...and loved it! The flavors are really good, the beans are really good, it's filling, and it made me happy. :-) It's also pretty easy to make, you just throw stuff in the pot and let it simmer for an hour and then add a few more things. Do it, you won't regret it!

Baked French Fries & Ketchup by Cathy Fisher Serves 4 Instructions: Ketchup: 1 6-ounce can no-salt-added tomato paste 1 half of an apple diced (with or without skin) 1/3 cup water 1 tablespoon lemon juice 1⁄4 teaspoon garlic powder 1⁄4 teaspoon dried oregano Baked French Fries 3-4 potatoes washed and unpeeled; any variety (russet, Yukon Gold, sweet potato, or yam), cut into 1⁄4-inch x 1⁄4-inch lengths Ketchup: Combine all ingredients in a blender or Vitamix until smooth. Preparation: 5 minutes; makes: 1 cup Fries: Place cut potatoes on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes. Take out and flip the fries over and bake for another 15 minutes, or until they are golden brown and puffed up. Serve immediately with ketchup or mustard. Preparation: 10 minutes; cooking time: 30 minutes; serves: 4 Notes: For the ketchup: 1/3 cup apple juice may be substituted for the apple and water. / 1 tablespoon vinegar may be substituted for the lemon juice. / For the fries: add some flavor by placing the cut potatoes into a plastic bag with 1⁄2 teaspoon garlic powder (or dried herb/spice of your choice) and shaking to coat the potatoes before baking. I haven't tried this yet, but it came from the Forks over Knives website and I know how we all like fries---it just looked interesting to me. If someone tries it and doesn't like it, just delete it--we probably ought to have a policy of trying it before posting it---then we know they will always be something we love---taking out the guesswork!

Mighty Muffins for Mother’s Day By Rip Esselstyn | Posted on May 11, 2012 Makes 6 large muffins or 1 enormous loaf Ingredients: • 3 cups oat bran
 • 1 teaspoon baking powder
 • 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
 • 4 tablespoons sweetener
 • Juice of 1 lemon
 • 1 large apple, grated
 • 6 brown bananas, lightly mashed (leave some chunks) 
 • 1⁄4 cup walnuts, chopped or halved
 • 1⁄4 cup raisins
 • 3⁄4 cup water Instructions: Preheat oven to 375F. Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Squeeze the juice of the lemon onto the combined apple and bananas. Add walnuts, raisins, and water. Combine the wet and dry ingredients into one bowl. Pour into sprayed muffin tins and bake for 45 minutes or until golden brown on top. I have tried these---I really liked them and so did Cameron---but Sarah didn't much care for the consistency, it isn't like a flour muffin!

Black Bean Enchiladas

Here is the ingredients that Melissa used to make the Black Bean Enchiladas! They were super yummy and very filling!  Cut out the cheese if you want it to be 100% vegan! YUM!

Ingredients:

1 carton of Mushrooms

2 Cans of Black Beans (rinsed and drained)

1 onion chopped

1 green pepper (cut into thin strips)

1 small can of green chilis

Enchilada Sauce (recipe below)

Low Moisture Mozzarella Cheese

5-6 Whole Wheat Tortillas

Directions:
1) Chop mushrooms to desired size. (I cut mine pretty small for the kiddos) Heat a tiny bit of oil in pan and add mushrooms. Cook 1-2 minutes. Add beans and cook 4-5 more minutes until liquid is almost gone.
2) In second saute pan heat tiny bit of oil. Cook Diced Onion, and green pepper. Cook until soft, add green chilis and cook for a couple more minutes.
3) Place a little bit of sauce in bottom of casserole dish. Take a dish plate and ladle a little sauce on it. Dip both sides of tortilla in sauce. Place bean mixture and pepper mixture in tortilla. Top with a little cheese and roll. Place in casserole dish. Continue with all the tortilla's.
4) Top with a little more cheese if desired and bake at 350 for 45 minutes.
ENJOY!

Enchilada Sauce:

(adapted from vita mix cookbook)

2 C Chicken/Veggie Broth

1 Tbl of Olive Oil

1 Tbl Red Wine Vinegar

1 Roma Tomato, halved

1/2-1 Can of Tomato Paste (taste sauce to see how much you want)

1 Garlic Clove

1/4 tsp Dried Oregano

1/4 tsp Cumin

1/8-1/4 C Chili Powder (depending on how hot you want it)

1/2 tsp Salt

1/2 C Whole Wheat Flour

Blend all ingredients. If you have a vitamix turn on high for about 6 minutes until steam is coming out of lid. Slow speed and watch it until it thickens. Add a little cornstarch if needed. Taste and adjust seasonings if needed.

Serve with Low Fat Greek Yogurt! That made it the best!!

ENJOY!

Sweet Potato Veggie Lasagna

Here is a link to what is supposedly Rip Esselstyn's (one of the main guys in Forks Over Knives) lasagna: Sweet Potato Veggie Lasagna

I made it last night and it was really good! Jayce thought so too--you know that's a plus! I had a hard time finding tofu and in the end just decided to do it without it, so feel free to do the same. I also halfed the recipe and put it in an 8x8 pyrex. I still had a ton of the veggie mix left over that wouldn't fit into the dish, so I froze it for next time. I don't know what kind of a casserole dish Rip uses, but mine could only hold so much! I know it seems weird to put in sweet potatoes and cashews, but it tasted great! Also, don't stiff the mushrooms, I decided to give them a chance and was glad I did! I highly recommend it, but it is a little more time consuming of a meal.

Video

Hey, I thought you ladies might find this interesting/fun. It is probably pretty biased, but I thought it was neat!

http://youtu.be/2zVxA6yipv4

Healthier Eating

Okay ladies, here we have it! Time to start sharing some recipes that we think are healthier than our normal eating habits! Jessica had the idea to get the blog going so that we could have a go-to site of healthy recipes. Add some of your favorite tried and true healthy meals and we can all benefit! Plus whatever tips you have on the preparation, substitutions to use, where to get anything funky that's in them, what the good brands are of different ingredients, etc. Let's share the wealth of our knowledge because sometimes the world wide web with so many opinions can seem really overwhelming.



Okay, Jayce and I have tried a quick and easy one a couple of times now that we really like. I can't find the link to it for some reason, so I'll just tell you how it goes with no exact measurements or anything--but they are not really needed any ways!

Grab a whole wheat tortilla and put a nice amount of hummus in it. (Gives it a tasty and creamy feel without the calories of sour cream). Then add some slices of avocado, lettuce/spinach, tomato, slices of green/red pepper, and some salsa. Squeeze some lime juice on it, add a sprinkle of the spice cumin, wrap it up and voila! It is really yummy and surprisingly filling.

Black beans and corn are also really yummy additions.

Happy eating!


P.S.
After I posted this, I found the link to the original recipe...go figure. :-) Here you are if you want to take a look and get more ideas!

http://petitelefant.com/vegan-hummus-and-avocado-taco-recipe/