Spring into Healthier Eating: Peace Salad Party!

First things first…The winner of the Plant Powered 15 by Dreena Burton is Bex of How to Feed a Vegan. Congratulations, Bex!

Now, onto my  next Spring into Healthier Eating review…Peace Salad. Have you heard of this yet? I hadn’t either until I received an email from my only real-life vegan friend (as opposed to my virtual vegan friends – ha!) asking if I wanted to have a Peace Salad party. Um…sure?

Peace Salad is the newest brainchild of raw-food, vegan blogger, Sandy Henson Corso, the owner of  Peaceful Daily and Sandy’s Salad.

In the book, Sandy lists 100 tips for peace. Practiced together, they’re like a salad

To celebrate the book, people are hosting Peace Salad parties all over, so we did, too!

Last Saturday night, we gathered a few friends and enjoyed some lively conversation over an abundance of vegan eats and treats. Ok, there were also some vegetarian cupcake there, but they were from a small business down the street, so at least we were supporting local business

Check out this spread!

Ellen, the hostess of the party, made some of her favorite party foods, including this macaroni salad (from the Forks Over Knives cookbook (I gave her that book as a Christmas gift )) and those crispy apple muffins in the background (from the Everyday Happy Herbivore cookbook).

Ellen also made her famous bruchetta (with a pesto recipe from The Kind Diet) and this super delicious cheeze dip (made with Teeze, soy cherizo, and spicy tomatoes). We couldn’t stop eating this stuff!

Someone else brought giant vegan cupcakes from a local restaurant, and someone else brought hummus and tabouli from a local artisan.

There was also lots of wine!

I brought a giant pan of raw vegan brownies, using my Brown Batter Bites recipes, and frosted them with chocolate cashew cream (made by blending cashews, maple syrup, vanilla extract, and a little date soaking water – left over from the date paste I used in the Brownie Batter Bites).

And a bunch of Gabby’s Pizza Bites.

The mixture was so massive, I had to bust out the beast – my 13 cup Kitchen Aid food processor.

And I made this giant bowl of Asian Rice Noodle Salad, which got rave reviews!

Here’s the recipe!

Asian Noodle Salad

1 pkg rice noodles, cooked according to package directions (I used Brown Rice Noodles)

1 sm pkg shelled edamame (about 1 1/2 cups)

1/2 c shredded carrot

1 small bunch scallions, diced on the diagonal (white and green parts)

2-3 TBSP toasted sesame oil (more or less to taste)

1/4  c tamari (more or less to taste)

Cook noodles according to package directions, and allow to cool. Mix noodles, edamame, carrots, and scallions in a bowl. Add sesame oil and tamari and toss to combine. Add more sesame oil and tamari to taste, or after noodle salad sits for a while. (My suggestion is to make this salad ahead, and let it sit in the refrigerator to allow flavors to meld.)

So easy, and soooo good!

I hope you decide to have a Peace Salad party, too. It’s a great excuse to gather your friends and family and share your ideas on peace and happiness while you enjoy some peaceful, vegan goodies. Enjoy!

 

Brownies

I’ve been craving brownies since December.

First, I tried this fat-free black bean recipe. It was OK. I’ve tried other fat-free black bean recipes, and they’ve been OK too. All have been very cake-like. Good when you’re in the mood for that type of brownie, or even a piece of chocolate cake, but not so good when you aren’t sure what you want. Apparently that wasn’t what I wanted.

Then, I tried a fat-free brownie that used sweet potato instead of beans or bananas. It was OK. But, guess what, I can’t find the recipe. Ugh. I guess you’ll have to settle for some a photos.

I also made this  blondie, which was very interesting. Cooked quinoa. Crazy!

Sadly, I wasn’t super thrilled with either of these recipes either. The blondie was a different flavor I wasn’t fond of – not bad but not great. And, I ended up having to bake them for almost four times the length of time in the recipe. I don’t know what the difference in moisture could have been, but wowza! They were in the oven forever, and I could have left them in even longer. The regular brownies didn’t do it for me either. I probably didn’t leave them in the long enough (the oven had been on all day), and instead of being fudgy, they were gelatinous. I don’t do anything anything gelatinous. Luckily, after a night in the fridge, they firmed up a bit, and I ate them with the mindset of cold chocolate oatmeal.

Finally, I tried making a batch of raw brownies. Just about every vegan food blog, and maybe non-vegan blogs, have a recipe for raw brownies – and why not?! They’re delicious and super easy to make.

The recipes are all about the same: dates, cacao and some kind of mix-in. My recipe isn’t anything special in design, but it sure tastes good!

Raw Brownies

20 jumbo medjool dates (40 regular size) – soaked if hard

1/4-1/2 c raw cacao (or carob – to taste)

1/8 – 1/4 c almond meal or flour (I used dehydrated and processed almond pulp left-over from making almond milk.)

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp vanilla powder

2 TBSP (heaping) raw cacao nibs – optional

1/4 c (scant) sliced almonds – optional

Add dates to food processor first. Process until dates have broken down. (You don’t need to process them into a paste, though.) Add cacao powder and almond meal and process again until mixture forms a ball. Add your mix-ins and combine by hand. Press mixture into a small container, silicone molds, or form into balls and store in the refrigerator or freezer. Allow to thaw a bit before eating  if freezing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Brownie Dough Bites Plus Bonus Recipe

I ran out of raw freezer treats. That’s unacceptable.

Brownie Batter Bites

1/4 c almond butter

1/4 c date paste

4-6 drops liquid stevia

1 TBSP vanilla

2 TBSP raw cacao powder

1 TBSP cacao nibs

Dash salt

Combine everything in a medium sized bowl and stir to combine. Use a cookie scoop to make bite-sized treats and freeze until firm. Store in freezer for optimal desserty goodness.

Notes:

Almond dry? Try warming it (microwave or water bath). Don’t like almond butter, allergic or don’t have any? Use a different nut or seed butter.

Dough too dry? Add some coconut oil. Start with 1TBSP.

Not sure how to make date paste? It’s easy! Soak a few pitted dates in just enough water to cover them for a few hours. Once softened, blend or process dates and soaking water until smooth. You can use the same process to turn any dried fruit into paste. (Try prunes, raisins, dried figs, dried apricots, etc.) Just remember, each fruit will change the flavor of the dough a little.

Don’t want to use date paste? Substitute with your favorite liquid sweetener OR use stevia entirely to sweeten. (Or try xylitol)

Don’t have stevia or don’t want to use it? Use more date paste, or add 1TBSP of your favorite liquid sweetener. (If you want to use a dry sweetener, it may make the batter a little dryer. No problem – just increase the nut/seed butter and/or coconut oil.)

Don’t care if your dessert is raw? Use regular cocoa powder (not processed with alkali) and/or chocolate chips.

Want a warm cookie but want to keep it raw? Try dehydrating or baking on the lowest temp your oven will go. To dehydrate: start cookies on paraflex sheets an dehydrate for a couple of hours at 115F or until firm enough to flip onto mesh screen. Continue to dehydrate until no longer tacky to the touch. (TIP: Begin dehydrating at at higher temp – 145 -  for an hour or so. This temp won’t increase the internal temp of the cookies past 118, so they’ll still be raw, but it will help form a nice crunchy crust on the outside of the cookies.

BONUS RECIPE

I lost the photo for this recipe, so I’m including as a bonus. Bonus!

Vanilla Cake Batter Balls

1/2 c soaked Brazil nuts

2 T vanilla

1 T maple syrup (or other liquid sweetener)

2 T coconut flour (this is the key to the cake batter – try not to sub)

1 T vanilla protein powder (optional)

Blend Brazil nuts, vanilla, and maple syrup until smooth. (I used my Magic Bullet.) Scoop the Brazil nut cream into a medium sized bowl and add the coconut flour and protein powder (if using). Stir to combine. Dough should be thick and soft – like soft play dough. Use a cookie scooper to make the dessert balls and freeze to firm. Store in the freezer to retain freshness.

Important Note: If you decide to use the protein powder, the flavor will be come very evident as the dessert balls age – even in the freezer. If eaten within a day or two, the flavor blends nicely, however.

Notes:

Don’t like Brazil nuts? Try something else! Cashews would work wonderfully in this recipe, as would macadamia nuts or even pine nuts.

Want to keep it sugar free? Use stevia. Start with one dropper full, or about 10 drops or liquid or 1 pkt (about 1/4 tsp) of powdered stevia. (You may need to add a splash of liquid – water or nut milk – if using powdered sweetener.)

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Check out

Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays @ SSGF

Allergy Free Wednesdays @ Laura’s Gluten Free Pantry

Wellness Weekends @ Diet Dessert & Dogs

Allergy Friendly Fridays @ Cybele Pascal: The Allergy-Friendly Cook

Recipe Review: Gluten-Free Brownies

In addition donating to my Peanut Butter Eggs to a recent work bake sale held to collect funds for a group of coworkers participating in a local Walk for the Cure, I also made Angela’s Gluten-Free Brownies from Oh She Glows.

Later last year, I made the glutenized version, and they were a huge hit! So, since I’m trying to be gluten-free, and I know some of my coworkers are too, I thought I’d try the gluten-free version of everyone’s favorite treat.

In her post, Angela said she liked the gluten-free version better than the glutenized recipe, but I’m not so sure. I did REALLY like the gluten-free brownies, and they were all gone by the second day, but I think the texture of the glutenized recipe was better. But, keep in mind, I’m still getting used to the drier texture of the gluten-free flours. I’ve been working with almond meal and oat flour for a while, but that’s about it (except for the garbanzo/fava bean flour mix used in my amazing coating in my Awesome Onion Rings). Regardless, I’d definitely make these again. I might consider frosting them, though. Mmmm….frosting….

MoFo Wrap-Up & Recipe Reviews

I didn’t get a chance to wrap-up the awesome month that was Rocktober Vegan MoFo when I wanted to on Halloween, but better late than never. Right?

My goal was to post as much as possible, given my schedule, and I think I did a pretty good job. I managed 19 posts – just one shy of the MOFO organizer’s goal of 20. Considering I’d been averaging two to three posts per week before October, I’m please with the posts I cranked out. I was able to share some awesome recipes with current readers and a few new ones.

Welcome and thank you to all of you who are now reading Veggie V’s Vegan Adventure! I’m glad we found each out Ha ha ha. Was that too cheezy?!

I also found a few new blogs that I’m excited about through the MOFO experience. I really need to update the look of my blog, which will include a Blog Roll that highlights all of my favorite new and old favorite blogs. Stay tuned for some cosmetic changes to the ol’ blog in the coming weeks.

While I wasn’t posting last week, I was baking. And cooking. But mostly baking. I tried a couple of recipes I’ve been wanting to make in hopes of sharing the delicious results with my students. I promised to make them some tasty vegan treats for my birthday (How does that happen every year?!), but I got side tracked that weekend and didn’t get around to making anything sharable until last weekend.  For their first foray into the wonderful world of vegan baked goods, I opted to share something a little more decadent, so that meant a full fat/full sugar treat was in order. And while this isn’t my normal MO, it was awesome to indulge!

The first recipe I tried was Angela’s Brownies. I went for the gluten version, and OMG, they were amazing! I had to test one (Really. I HAD to!) the first day, and it was all I could do not to test the rest of them! But I was good and made it all the way to the next day. Ha ha! By the time class started, I had indulged in three brownies. And they were worth every bite! That evening I had an all male class (Where were my ladies?!), and they happily wolfed down at least three brownies each. I shared the rest with my co-workers, and even at three days old, they still got rave reviews. I highly recommend making these brownies for a special occasion. I will be making them again in the summer for my husband’s families’ next get together. (Last summer, I made non-vegan brownies with crazy thick frosting, which put everyone in a sugar coma…and skyrocketed me to the position of favorite cousin/niece/daughter-in-law!)

I forgot to take a picture of the brownies. I know. I suck. One of these days I’ll become a real food blogger and remember to take photos of my food! Honestly, they looked like brownies. Use your imagination

The other recipe I tried was Katie’s Pumpkin Cream Cheese Bars. I thought it would be nice to provide a non-chocolate treat in case anybody wasn’t into/couldn’t do chocolate. (I have two co-workers who can’t eat chocolate. I have great sympathy for them.) The first time I made the bars, I followed the recipe exactly, which included a nice amount of coconut oil, and they turned out a little, well, wet. I can’t even say moist because wet is a much better word. The flavor was awesome, though. I took the bars to work anyway, and they were gobbled up. Nobody seemed to mind (or even notice, really) the wetness, and two people who swore they didn’t like pumpkin each a piece and said they were delicious. So flavor wise, the bars were a big hit. Texture wise, I wanted something a little bit different. So I tried again.

I made the Pumpkin Cream Cheese Bars again Thursday (I had to get up in the middle of doing a big pile of assessments and bake. Who has a compulsive urge to bake?!), but this time I didn’t include the oil, and I reduced the sugar quite a bit – replacing it with stevia. The results were a lot better texture wise, and the flavor was still there. Success! But while I was making the second batch, I couldn’t help but think how good they’d be as ginger bread bars. I’ll let you know how they turn out!