Kale & Artichoke Baba Ganoush Dip With Roasted Garlic

This all started with a recipe I saw for a vegan version of a spinach-artichoke dip. This particular one called for avocado instead of the cheese mixture. I made it and it was tasty, everyone loved it, but it is a cold dip, it was more like a different kind of guacamole. I'd definitely make it again. Anyway, the seed was planted to come up with something else that would be good warm and bubbly like the traditional spinach-artichoke dip.

Not long after that I ate at a Mediterranean restaurant and ordered some baba ganoush. As I was nibbling on it, it hit me... what could be more perfect than baba ganoush as a base for a warm, bubbly, vegan version of spinach-artichoke dip!? For those of you unfamiliar with baba ganoush, it is a dip like hummus but instead of chick peas as the base, they use roasted eggplant. It is creamy and gooey, great cold or warm. So, the idea was born and I couldn't wait to create it! For this version I switched the spinach for kale since that is what I had on hand, but either spinach or kale would be delicious!

Kale & Artichoke, Baba Ganoush Dip:
1 large roasted egg plant
4 steamed artichoke hearts
1/2 bunch of steamed kale (more if desired)
1 head of roasted garlic
3-4 tbsp tahini
2 tbsp olive oil
1 lemon- juice only
Himalayan salt to taste
fresh ground pepper to taste
capers, a sprinkle of fresh ground pepper and drizzle of olive oil for garnish if desired

Directions:
This takes a little time to prepare, but overall is a very easy. Start by roasting the eggplant whole for 45 min to an hour. No need to wrap it or anything. I like to use my toaster oven to roast them, it's nice to not have to heat up the entire big oven for one eggplant. When done, the skin should look wrinkly and peel off easily. Also put the entire head of garlic, peel and all in to roast at the same time as the eggplant. After getting these started, prepare the artichokes for steaming and de-stem the kale for steaming. It will take about 30-40 minutes for the artichokes, 20 mins for the kale. After everything is done cooking, you may want to allow it to cool for a few minutes to make it easier to handle.

Once the veggies have cooled a bit, add the eggplant and peeled garlic to your high speed blender. The roasted eggplant should have a kind of slimy texture. Blend for 2-3 minutes until it is really creamy. Add in the tahini, lemon juice, olive oil and salt and blend for another minute or two or until everything is mixed well. Add in the kale and blend a little bit to leave it slightly chunky. Add in the artichokes hearts last and pulse a couple times to blend it and chop it just a bit.

You can then put this in a glass baking dish and warm it in the oven until it is slightly bubbly before serving. Enjoy this with blue corn tortillas, gluten-free crackers or veggies! Serves 8-10. Great for a party or get together!

GF, Summer Ranch Veggie Appetizer Pizza

It's been a while since I have posted anything new. I was pretty busy the last couple months with my trip back home to Michigan to visit family and friends. I came back in the beginning of July but I brought my son with me. We did plenty of cooking but I didn't want to take time away from him to work on my blog. So, he is finally gone, and of course I am pretty sad. But I feel fortunate that I got to spend the last two months with him! So, anyway, now I can get back to my blogging!

Quinoa - Black Bean Salad

An easy summer salad great to have made up for quick meals or get together! Goes great over a bed of lettuce, eat with tortilla chips, in a lettuce wrap with some avocado, you name it!

GF Baked Sesame Humus Crackers

I was on a homemade cracker kick- stocking up on healthy goodies for my road trip to Michigan with my daughter. I am visiting for a month so I stocked up on quick foods that I could nibble on during the road trip and when I'm in town running around visiting. It's harder to eat healthy when you're not at home and around people that do not eat the way you do. I'm sure some of you can relate to this.

Homemade Almond Milk & Berry Milk Shake

I have been wanting to start making my own almond milk for quite some time now. That way I can get the freshest and purest milk with NO additives. This can be done easily with a blender and a nut milk bag. The only thing stopping me was that I did not have a nut milk bag yet.

Simple Raw Homemade Horseradish Sauce

I was in the grocery store wandering through the produce section when I came across some horseradish root. It looks a bit like a parsnip root. I love horseradish sauces, for dipping, in sandwich spreads and for wasabi.

Egg-less Deviled Egg Salad

Before I went vegan I used to enjoy my home made egg salad and deviled eggs. I have been contemplating how to re-create the taste and texture of these in a vegan recipe. And I think this is pretty darn close, and it is delicious!

Oil Free Raspberry Vinaigrette

When making a salad with nuts or other fats, sometimes it's nice to pair it with an oil free dressing. You need healthy fats, they help you absorb the fat soluble vitamins in your veggies, but if you are putting nuts on your salad, then you are getting plenty of fats. You don't have to have any oil in your dressing especially when you can make a delicious oil free dressing.

The Real Almond Joy - Chocolate Almond Bliss Bars

Coming up with this energy/snack bar has been in the back of my mind for a while now. I have contemplated a few different ways to accomplish this. Would I use pre-made chocolate chips? Should I make my own chocolate chips? Or make a chocolate topping that would be delicious but possibly quite messy for an on the go snack? I churned over these thoughts and a few others until my most recent trip to the health food store where I saw a package of raw cacao nibs...

"Cheezy" Pizza Hemp Kale Chips

For my trip to Michigan I have been preparing lots of snacks so I can continue to eat healthy on the road and while I'm away from home. If you eat like I do, you know how hard it is to eat out with friends and family who eat the SAD (Standard American Diet). So, to make it a bit easier, I've been dehydrating fruit, sprouting and drying nuts, making energy bars and today... kale chips!

Creamy Thyme Infused Portabella Mushroom & Rice Soup

I've been dreaming of making this soup for quite some time now, and finally I had the chance to attempt it tonight. Since going dairy free, I've missed some of the "creamy" soups like cream of mushroom, cream of broccoli, etc.

Sweet Carrot Cilantro Juice

Just a quick post today with a delicious juice recipe! If you love cilantro the way I do, you will most likely love this juice! The sweetness of carrots and apple, the saltiness of the celery with the herby flavor of cilantro are a perfect combinations for a smooth, creamy flavorful juice!

GF Chocolate-Banana "Cheesecake"

I decided to make a dessert to celebrate Mother's Day with my mom, and we had a couple of birthdays as well. It came out pretty yummy. This dessert was inspired by the amazing dessert creations by Emily at This Rawesome Vegan Life and by another of my favorites The Detoxinista. I didn't follow one particular recipe, this is more of a conglomeration recipes from both of them. Emily makes the most beautiful raw desserts, there are so many to try! And I got the idea to add the zucchini from the Detoxinista... and I have to say I am sold. You have no idea it's in there, but the texture is amazing! It's kind of like ice cream and feels a bit less "heavy" than just the cashews which I personally love. This is also my mom's favorite version so far as well!

Curried Coconut Sprouted Kitchari

So, I decided to try out making my own variation of Kitchari. It is an Indian dish originally and is a dish highly recommended for cleansing by the ancient, holistic, healing principles of Ayurveda. I have been considering making it for some time now, and had a friend suggesting it to me as well, to help ease my symptoms from chemo, eating and digestion can sometimes be a challenge. Although this particular chemo was a rather mild one, which I am pretty happy about. I still have had moments of tiredness and nausea, but not nearly as much as normal. Anyhow, just feeling up to cooking is a huge thing! I attribute this to juicing!

Home-Made Raw V-8 Juice & Synergy Kombucha Review

I've been wanting to make a homemade V-8 juice and today was the day! And all I can say is YUM! If you grew up loving V-8, then you will love this even more, as will your body! All fresh, and all raw! There are tons more nutrients in this juice than the traditional V-8!

Zesty Lemon Cilantro Ginger Blast

Today's juice, a bit similar to yesterdays with a few changes. I decided to make a "prettier" green juice. Yesterday's was delicious but sweeter, today's is slightly sweet, lemony and herby with a cilantro twist!

Zesty Lemon-Ginger-Basil Green Juice & Natural Vitamin D

So, if you have read my "My Story" page, you will know I am battling a terminal illness. So there are days when eating is a challenge. It's hard to tolerate all raw when I'm not feeling well, and I crave more starchy foods like rice and potatoes. I also get food aversions to some of my favorite things, which bums me out when it's something like cumin. Today is a chemo day. Surprisingly, I haven't felt quite as yuck as normal which I am really happy about. I have tons to do and usually I am a sickly couch potato for about four days. So, what does this have to do with my yummy juice recipe? Well, today I felt good enough to make a juice and drink it which is rare the day of my chemo!

GF Almond Nut Bread with Coconut Butter

Ok, I am finally getting around to this. I have been meaning to post this recipe for a while now. I have been making this bread for a couple months and it is delicious! It makes amazing toast. If you like toasted almonds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, you will love this! I like to bake this, slice it thin with a non-serated, super sharp knife (my favorite is a ceramic knife!), save out a few slices then toss the rest in the freezer to pull out  a piece or two at a time.

GF Sweet & Spicy Pad Thai Noodle Bowl

Ever since I made my Sweet & Spicy Thai Coconut-Peanut Dressing I have been craving it even more! I have had it on salad a couple times and decided to make another batch. It just made me want Pad Thai even more! So for dinner tonight I decided I was going to make a quick simple version of Pad Thai. One of my favorite dishes that I love to drown in Sriracha sauce! So here it is!

Sweet & Spicy Thai Coconut-Peanut Dressing

I was down to my last fresh goodies before I go shopping again and pondering how I would make my salad for dinner. Spring lettuce mix, carrots, celery, purple cabbage, and, hmm. apples. And yes, you guessed it, ANOTHER salad dressing recipe! As many salads as I eat, I need to keep it interesting! So most of the time, I start each salad fresh. And I only make enough dressing to last me for about 2-3 salads. This works because one, they are fresh and won't last as long as the store bought ones, and two, I like to change things up frequently and I love getting creative and trying new recipes!

Creamy Curried Chickpea Chowder

This all started with a sort of a stone soup method. So to begin, I randomly decided to soak a bag of chick peas last night. I had no idea what exactly I was going to do with it. I was a bit low on fresh produce so I kept thinking ok, I can make some simple chick peas, but what do I have that can I add to this. Then flashbacks of all the recipes I've seen recently of curries on the interwebs came to mind. Yum, I love curry. So my course was set. I would make some sort of simple chickpea curry. Then as I started digging around I added some carrots, my last onion, some garlic. Then while rummaging around the pantry I decided to add a blend of rice to it. As I rummaged further I discovered a can of organic coconut milk... Okay! Now we are getting somewhere! Anyhow, you get the idea!

This soup is based on chick pea curry and Thai curry soup. I can not take credit for this soup, but I can't give anyone in particular credit. These types of dishes have been around for ages and are all over vegan recipe blogs which I frequent. This recipe was a culmination of ideas from many different recipes that I have looked at the past few months and of what I had in my cupboards! The closest credit I could give would be to Vegan Gone Wild for adding wild rice to her chick pea soup which I thought would be divine! I didn't have wild rice, but I used a blend with brown & wild rice which was delicious! I can say this is worth a do-over, and a do-over of the do-over.. I couldn't stop "testing" this soup it is so good! This soup definitely got a thumbs up from others around here who are picky, meat & potato eaters! As a matter of fact, they loved it and I have a new favorite!

Creamy Curried Chickpea Chowder:
water.. and more water
2 cups of dried chick peas
1 onion diced
4-5 cloves garlic minced
2-3 carrots diced
2 tbsp chick pea miso
2 tbsp Bragg's Liquid Aminos
1 can full fat organic coconut milk
1/2 lemon juiced
1-2 tbsp sea salt (or to taste)
1-2 tbsp of a good curry blend
1 tsp coriander
1 tsp ground ginger (or fresh minced)
1 tsp fresh ground black pepper
1 tsp red pepper flakes
3-4 sprigs fresh basil
1 1/2 cups cooked brown-wild rice blend

Directions:
Start the night before by soaking your chick peas in 2 to 3 times as much water. They will expand so use a large bowl! The next day drain them and rinse them well. Put them in a large stock pot and cover them with twice as much water again, add one tbsp of salt to the water. Bring it to a boil then reduce to a simmer. Let this simmer gently for around two hours or until the chick peas are soft. I usually leave the lid on cock-eyed so there is room for the steam to escape. You can steam your rice while the peas are cooking. After the peas are soft, stir in the rest of the ingredients except the rice and basil. Bring this to a slow simmer for about another hour. Your broth will most likely be a bit thin. Remove about half of the chick peas & other veggies and put into a blender. Puree this for 2-3 minutes or until it is really smooth and creamy. Stir it back into the broth. This gives you a nice thick broth and leaves you with some whole veggies for a very hearty soup. Add in your rice and simmer for about ten minutes. Serve with torn basil leaves on top to stir in. This serves about 6-8. Enjoy~

Sautéed Asparagus & Artichokes With Red Quinoa

Quinoa is so simple, it really can be used in place of rice or even pasta. It's great with stir-fried or sautéed veggies. It's great so many ways really. I have been eating a lot of it lately and my appreciation for how versatile it is has grown. So today, I kept thinking about the package of frozen baby asparagus I had in the freezer and how I wanted to prepare it. Normally I just steam or roast it with a drizzle of olive oil, which is delicious but I wanted to do something different his time. I also had a package of fresh mushrooms that needed to be used up and the two together just sounded good.


Anyway, for those of you who know it is healthy and want to eat it more, but are unsure of what to do with it, here is another recipe for you!

Quinoa:
1 cup red quinoa
2 cups water
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp olive oil

Asparagus Sauté:
2 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp tamari or other gluten free soy sauce
3-4 garlic cloves minced
1 onion sliced
1 small pkg button mushrooms
1 pkg fresh or frozen asparagus
1 can artichoke hearts
2-3 sprigs of fresh basil

Directions:
Cook 1 cup of quinoa in two cups of water. Add the salt and simmer until quinoa is soft, about 20 minutes. Add the olive oil when all the water has cooked out. Sauté the garlic and onions in the sesame oil until they soften, add the mushrooms and continue to sauté until the mushrooms are soft. Add in the asparagus and tamari and cover to steam for about 5 minutes. Rinse and drain the artichokes. Remove cover and add artichokes and sauté until artichokes are warm. Tear up the basil leaves and sprinkle on top. Serves 2-4 people.

Avocado Toast

This is one of my very favorite meals. It is really simple, not really a recipe, more of an assembly. I just had to post this because I absolutely love my toast this way. I try not to eat a lot of bread, but when I do, it's either homemade gluten free or from my favorite local bakery that makes gluten free breads. This particular bread bread is white in color, but it is actually made from whole grain millet flour, brown rice flour and water. That's it! I really want to know their secrets so I can bake my own! It is not soft like white bread, but it makes amazing crunchy toast. I usually keep a loaf in the freezer since I don't eat it often. It's perfect for grabbing a piece or two to toast when I want it.

Sweet Sautéed Beets With Greens

This is a dish I have been craving since the first time I made it. Sweet and savory, so delicious a new favorite! I grew up eating pickled beets that my grandmother made fresh from her garden. I could have eaten the whole jar if she wasn't looking. I have always been a fan of beets. But after I grew up I rarely ate them. I guess I never really knew how to prepare them or what to do with them until recently. I decided one day to try this out and I am so glad for a successful experiment!

Also, I recently bought an iron skillet that I found at a flea market for ten dollars! It was unused and "unseasoned". I seasoned it initially by coating it in oil and baking it in my oven upside down, with a sheet of tin foil on the rack below it, for about an hour at 400 degrees. This gave it the nice black coating. Since I have been using it, it has gotten blacker and more non-stick. I love it now that it is easier to cook in! I will be using this instead of my old cheapy non-stick pans with all of the unknown toxins leaching slowly into my foods. Iron is good for you, so a little bit of iron leached into your food can only be a good thing. As the guy at the flea market said "the original iron supplement"!

Sautéed Beets
2 tbsp coconut oil
1 medium onion sliced
2 garlic cloves minced
2 tbsp water
1 bunch of beets with the greens
2 tbsp maple syrup or other sweetner
sea salt to taste

Directions:
Cut the greens off the beets at the base and rinse very well. Scrub the beets with a vegetable brush or peel with a vegetable peeler. Cut off the roots and the stems then slice. Depending on the size of the greens, leave whole or chop a bit if they are large.

In a skillet, saute the onions and garlic in coconut oil until they start to caramelize or brown, stirring frequently. Add in the beets and saute for a couple minutes stirring frequently. Then add the water, cover with the lid and let them steam for about 5-6 minutes. Stir again and add in the beet greens on top and cover and let it continue to steam for about another 5 minutes. Once the beets are soft and the greens wilted, add in the maple syrup, sprinkle with some sea salt and stir, saute for about 2 more minutes. I listed this as a side, but I eat this as an entree I love it so much! Warning this dish is highly addictive if you like beets!

Raw Strawberry Chia-Hemp Breakfast Pudding

This pudding is so creamy and light at the same time. You'd almost think there was dairy in it. My daughter, who is very skeptical about everything I eat, said it made her think of yogurt (without the tang), which was my goal! This pudding is lightly sweet and makes a great breakfast topped with some fresh strawberries. You can easily substitute the strawberries for your favorite fruit. Blueberries would be delicious also! It just so happens that this is strawberry season and they are one of my favorites. Right now the prices for organic are $2.50 per pound which is super cheap! I keep buying them and devouring them!

Quinoa With Red Lentils & Basil

This is a fairly simple and tasty recipe for quinoa. If you like lentils, you will love this. The combinations of garlic, onion, lentils and basil is YUM. I highly recommend the fresh basil for this dish. If you are not a fan of basil - you are crazy... kidding! Anyway, you could try substituting with fresh cilantro, another of my favorite herbs.

Raw Fig Energy Bars

Ok, this is not to my credit whatsoever, credit belongs to the Detoxinista for sharing her recipe for Cherry Pie Larabars. I absolutely love her blog and encourage everyone to check out her recipes. I keep links of my favorite recipe blogs of some amazing chef's and nutritionists on my blog, so be sure to check them out!. Anyway back to the larabars. I did not know what a larabar was until I read her post. From what I get, they are pretty tasty, healthy treats. I guess there has been a lot of speculation about Larabars since the company was purchased by General Mills. GM is fighting to stop the labeling of GMO's which as we all know, means they are not looking out for the consumer but only their own pocket book. The good news is that the questions about GMO products used to make Larabars have been answered. Larabar has issued a statement on their website that they are enrolled in the Non GMO project and will continue to be GMO free. But, as always, making them yourself is always cheaper and best!

Hot & Sour Meets Pho

What can I say about the most beautiful soup ever? This is a treat for all the senses. I have been dreaming of making this soup since I first saw a slightly different version on My New Roots blog. She has a beautiful "Pho-Inspired Noodle Bowl" that looks amazing. I have to give her some credit for my recipe. My broth is quite different than traditional Pho broth. There are not many things I do not like, but I am not a fan of the black licorice flavor that anise has. I didn't want to end up with a pot full of something I won't eat! So, I actually set out to make a simple ginger broth. But the creative juices were flowing and, as things go, I had a sweet vision.. for a sweet, hot & sour type of broth. Anyhow, sampling as I went, I altered my direction! And it came out delicious!

Purple Rainbow Salad with Orange-Ginger Poppy Seed Dressing

I was excited to finally make my first trip to Hoover's Market, which is about an hour away, but I wasn't nearly as excited as when I saw their fresh organic produce section... not to mention their bulk section and all the other healthy goodies! I am lucky to belong to a good local organic co-op which allows me access to a large variety of produce. But at Hoover's, they had all the things I had been wanting and more! I came home with a load of produce, my fridge was almost bulging! This will have to be a once a month trip.

Tomato-Herb Cannellini Dip

I saw a post on a recipe for hummus. I have made my own in the past, this one called for smoked paprika and yum! I had never thought of using smoked paprika in a bean dip. Anyhow I went to make some hummus and realized that I did not have any chick peas. What I did have was cannellini beans.

Blueberry Pineapple Smoothie - The Secret of the Perfect Fruit Smoothie

Today I wanted a fruit smoothie for breakfast. The secret to making a good fruit smoothie without adding a sweetener is to not use ice! Instead, keep some frozen fruit on hand. I buy bananas when they are slightly green. I love eating them before they are fully ripe. So I eat one or two until they just barely start to get brown spots. Once they start getting speckled, I peel them, break them in half and toss them in a large ziplock bag and freeze them for smoothies! Depending on your blender you may want to slice them before you freeze them. I also try to keep frozen blueberries and strawberries in stock. Frozen bananas make a great smoothie base. They add all the extra sweetness I need.

Green-Carrot Juice

Creamy Almond "Ranch" Dressing

I like to switch up my dressings frequently since I eat so many salads. I love salads and I have always loved a good ranch dressing. Almonds are loaded with essential nutrients like calcium, vitamin E, manganese, magnesium not to mention the protein and fiber. They make a great base for a "ranch" dressing instead of dairy. Here are some nutrition facts on almonds.

Spicy Cranberry BBQ Tempeh

I realized the other day that I had a couple of bags of fresh-frozen cranberries that my mom sent home with me. I pulled one out to defrost and was planning on making some dried cranberries. As I let them defrost something else popped into my head... and I had a new mission.

Keep the Doctor Away Green Smoothie

As always, I start my morning with a 16oz glass of water with lemon. The latest talk is that it is a good way to help your body detox and re-hydrate from the night, before you begin to put food in. And... Strawberries are in season here in Florida, YUM one of my favorite fruits. I can't resist having these around, even organic prices on them are decent! So I had to have a few of these fresh with my smoothie! I didn't want to add any in my smoothie, I just wanted to enjoy them as is! I usually save the frozen ones for smoothies and eat the fresh ones! (And yeah, old Coca-Cola glasses haha, I will NEVER put that stuff in my body again ever! The glasses are cute though! :) Anyhow, back to the topic of smoothies! There are a lot of great things about smoothies.

Creamy Roasted Squash Soup

I have been on a soup kick lately and squash soup is one of my new favorites. Talk about comfort food! This is one that fits the bill. Move over chicken-noodle! The great thing about this soup is that it is ..."souper" easy! Minimal chopping and dicing, to start you simply toss the whole squash into the oven! I actually use my toaster oven for this. It's far more efficient for this recipe, it has a convection setting and the squash fit perfectly. Then simply saute the onion and garlic, then toss everything into the blender and voila!

Hearty Vegan Minestrone Soup With Parsnips

I love homemade soups. There is just something comforting about them.  There is not much to say that most people don't already agree with. When I'm not feeling well, I love soup. This one is warming, filling and satisfying. I made this for visiting family and it was a hit. And so much better than Campbells! Parsnips are so delicious in homemade veggie soups, if you haven't had them before, they have a flavor similar to a carrot, they are a bit sweet but have a more "herby" flavor to them.

Creamy Coconut Cilantro Lime Dressing

I eat a lot of salads, no surprise there I'm sure! I have my favorite dressings, one being my homemade balsamic vinaigrette, and I will get on a kick for days wanting the same dressing. But I love changing things up after that. Before I became vegan, another one of my favorites was a cilantro ranch dressing. So I have been on a quest to come up with a healthy, vegan creamy garlic-herb dressing to replace that. And YUM! This dressing is everything I wanted it to be, creamy, thick, garlicy, herby with a mild hint of coconut! The ingredients that make this work are the hemp seeds and the fresh Thai coconut meat. They blend up smooth and creamy!

Creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing:
1/8 cup hemp seeds
1/4 cup fresh young Thai coconut water
1/4 cup fresh young Thai coconut meat
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 small garlic clove
1 small lime juiced
3-4 sprigs fresh cilantro
1-2 sprigs fresh parsley
sprinkle of sea salt
sprinkle of pepper

Directions:
Simply add all of the dressing ingredients except the fresh herbs to a good blender. Blend 2-3 minutes until smooth and creamy. Once the desired consistency is reached, add the cilantro and parsley and pulse a few times. The dressing makes enough for about 4-6 small salads or 2-3 large salads. I store my extra in a mason jar for to use later. It will last 2-3 days in the refrigerator.

The salad is baby spinach, tomato, shredded carrot, avocado & red pepper in a huge cabbage leaf! Now it you can eat this with a fork, but I wrapped mine up in the cabbage leaf and ate it like a giant wrap! I love using the outer beautiful leaves of fresh cabbage like this. I always pull those off and save them for wraps! I have been eating my cabbage many ways! I add it to stir-fry, soups, salads and came up with a tasty fully raw, vegan coleslaw recipe I will be sharing soon!