Plant Based U

Fat-Free and Low Fat Vegan Plant Based Recipes

Veronica Grace

Gluten Free Vegan Yam Black Bean Burgers (Adapted From TheGlutenFreeVegan.com)

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Here we go with another yam recipe! Ahem… “sweet potato” if you are in the states and kumara if you are in Australia. This recipe is an adaptation of fellow blogger Megan Lust whom I met at the International Food Blogger conference in Portland, Oregon last August.

Funny story, so we sort of found each other with a few other vegan bloggers (there weren’t many!) and bonded over the lack of vegan food at the conference and being pretty hungry. We hung out and then after we saw each others’s business cards we were like hey you sound familiar…. I found out we’ were both Canadian and she was from Saskatoon. Then I thought odd… I swear I know a gluten free vegan in Saskatoon.

And we find out we had actually been vegan food swap buddies a few months before. We tried it out this Canada blogger vegan food swap for 2 months when it first started before giving up (because too many people were sending prepackaged vegan junk you could easily get at the store.) But the cool thing was she had lovingly made me some HOMEMADE ginger pear jam because I begged to not be sent anything junkie with oil and said anything else would be awesome. Here is my previous blog post about the lovely things she sent me.

Faster forward to a few months later and the other day I was cruising her website The Gluten Free Vegan and saw these yummy homemade “sweet potato” burgers. (We Canadians use that word online generally so Americans know what we’re talking about! and most of our blog traffic comes from the USA and not Canada) and I decided to make them myself.

I wanted to try these. I JUST HAD TO.

So in my version of course I stripped the oil out of it and tried to make it lower fat, and also changed up the seasonings to it as well. If you like smokey black bean yam burgers that have a South Western taste you’re going to love these!

These vegan patties also stay together really well because Megan (the genius that she is) uses spiralized or shredded yam pieces in the patty to help it stay together without needing breadcrumbs which makes for a tasty gluten free vegan yam burger! (Much tastier than my previous attempt of yams with black beans and breadcrumbs, that recipe has never seen the light of day because it just wasn’t delicious enough lol.)

You end up with a delicious and crispy on the outside moist in the middle veggie patty that is perfect to serve between burger buns, or even set it atop of some rice or pilaff. So check it out!

Gluten Free Yam Potato Black Bean Burgers

Adapted from Megan Lust’s recipe at The Gluten Free Vegan

Makes 6-8 patties

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups grated or spiralized yams/sweet potato (about 2 small ones)
1 19 oz.(large) can low sodium black beans, drained and rinsed well
6 green onions/scallions/spring onions, chopped
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
6 cloves garlic
3/4 cup walnut pieces
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/4-1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder
¼ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground pepper

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400°F/205°C.
2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
3. Add walnuts to the bowl of your food processor and pulse until finely ground.
4. Add in the carrot, celery, green onions and garlic and pulse to finely chop. Be careful not to let it become a paste. Remove contents and set aside in a bowl.
5. Add in the black beans to the food processor and gently pulse until chopped. Add 1 1/2 cups of the grated yams and pulse into a chunky puree. Scrape out into same bowl.
6. Add the remaining 1 cup  of grated yams and seasonings. Stir and combine well.
7. Form into 8 patties with your hands and place on the parchment-lined baking sheet.
8. Bake for 25 minutes until lightly browned and set.
9. Garnish with condiments and serve as desired. (I use hummus instead of Veganaise, ketchup and relish or pickles and lettuce.)

Additional Tips:

If you don’t have smoked paprika or chipotle pepper, I recommend it, but you can use regular. It just won’t have that full bodied smokey flavor to it.

For a gluten free option, serve patties in a large lettuce leaf or use gluten free buns.

Additionally you can serve these like sweet potato cakes over top of rice.

Store remaining patties in between sheets of parchment paper, either in the fridge or seal and place in freezer. To reheat, place into a non stick pan and heat over medium heat until warmed through.

Have you ever made your own vegan burger patties? What do you put in them?

Product Review: Amy’s Tofu Scramble With Hash Browns and Veggies

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Here’s my product review of Amy’s Tofu Scramble with Hash Browns & Veggies.

From Amy’s website: “Generous portions of tofu scrambled with organic vegetables with hash browned potatoes on the side make up this delicious meal.”

I have never seen the tofu scramble before and since it was on sale I thought I’d try it to see if it was a good quick breakfast. It comes with tofu scramble, some shredded hash browns and 3 raw tomato slices.

Looking at the ingredients it looks like a lot of normal sounding whole foods and doesn’t contain any fillers, sugars or strange chemicals. This is good.

Nutritional info. This dish is pretty high in fat (I’m guessing from the olive oil in both the scramble and hash browns) but has a good amount of protein if you’re looking for that in a breakfast meal. It’s also a little too high in sodium for the amount of calories.

Taking it out of the box this is what it looks like frozen.  It says to microwave for 4 minutes on high and turn it 1/4 turn half way through.

All ready to eat! Once the meal is microwaved there is a little too much liquid at the bottom coming from the tomatoes so it makes it kind of wet. I drained it out before eating.

The flavor of this product is fairly mild (which seems the norm with Amy’s cuisine). You can tell that there is oil in both the scramble and the hash browns, I believe that’s why this is a much higher fat recipe than others. The scramble portion is not bad, it has some chewiness to it and veggies so that’s good. The hashbrowns are what you’d expect shredded potatoes microwaved to taste like. Similar to shredded mushy potatoes. The raw tomatoes I couldn’t eat. I don’t know of anyone who enjoys the taste or texture of microwaved raw tomatoes. Maybe they are there for color.

Personally I don’t think the hash browns add anything to this dish, they are not very flavorful or appetizing. Having just tofu scramble in a frozen meal is probably what I’d prefer instead. But they probably wanted to create a whole breakfast.  Perhaps roasted potatoes would have stood up better in the microwave compared to the shredded ones which became mushy. I don’t find any benefit to adding oil to sautéed shredded potatoes if they are still mushy and never get crispy.

Basic Nutritional Info: 320 calories 19 grams of fat 53% fat by calories 22 g of protein

Price: $3.74 USD on sale ($4.99 reg) In Canada about $6-$7

Taste: Tofu Scramble 3/5 Hash browns 2/5 Tomatoes 1/5

Texture: Tofu Scramble 3/5 Hash browns 1/5 Tomatoes 1/5

Healthfulness: 2/5 (high in fat and sodium)

Looks: 3/5

Low fat: No, high fat recipe

Vegan: Yes

Gluten Free: Yes

Soy Free: No

Nut Free: Yes

GMO Free: Yes

Would I eat it again? I’m not sure. I don’t find the hash browns or the tomato appealing so probably not.

What could be improved? Use less oil in the recipe and switch out the hash browns for mini roasted potatoes. Also skip the raw tomatoes in favor of a vegetable that microwaves better.

What do you think? Have you ever had Amy’s Tofu Scramble?

Product Review: Amy’s Bowls Brown Rice & Vegetables

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I wanted to do a few reviews on some vegan products my readers might be interested in trying. This one is a frozen dinner by Amy’s and is a brown rice and vegetables bowl.

From Amy’s website “Organic brown rice, tofu and vegetables in a delectable sesame tahini sauce. A flavorful, nutritious high protein meal, containing no dairy or gluten. Satisfying at any time of the day. (Amy’s dad eats his for breakfast on the way to work.)”

Let’s check out the ingredients:

ingredients

So the ingredients look pretty good overall, considering most frozen dinners have things like high fructose corn syrup, sugar, MSG, preservatives and chemical flavors in them. It also has food ingredients first and not oil or sugar, so this is good.

nutritional info

Now let’s check out the nutritional info.

This is not a low fat meal, but it is not a high fat meal either. The fat in this product is mainly coming from olive oil, tahini and safflower oil. I’m not sure why there are two kinds of oil in this food. That’s the only thing I find strange about this product.

Now let’s see what it actually looks like out of the package.

frozen, removed from box

Microwave directions: Cut slit in package and microwave on high for 4-5 minutes.

Now that my frozen dinner is hot and ready it’s time to eat!

While it has a nice mild taste and some colour, I would say it tastes more like a creamy mushroom sauce rather than a sesame tahini sauce (tahini means sesame paste.) The tofu had a nice flavor. It kind of reminded me of the tofurky flavor, but maybe that’s just me.

In any case it’s a nice mellow flavored bowl and if you like mushrooms, broccoli and flavored tofu you will like this. Here’s a little review breakdown for you.

Basic Nutritional Info: 260 calories 9 grams of fat 31% fat by calories

Price: $3.74 USD on sale ($4.99 reg) In Canada about $6-$7

Taste: 4/5

Texture: 3/5

Healthfulness: 3/5

Looks: 3/5

Low fat: No, medium fat recipe

Vegan: Yes

Gluten Free: Yes

Soy Free: Yes

Nut Free: Yes

GMO Free: Yes

Would I eat it again? Sure for a quick mini meal on the go. But I won’t likely buy it again soon as I enjoy homemade rice bowls better.

What could be improved? More rice so it’s not so moist and wet (and more filling) and remove the two kinds of oil which is kind of overkill and unnecessary.

*Disclosure, I’m doing this review of my own accord, I was not given any free product nor was I paid to do this review.

Hope you enjoyed my review! Let me know what you thought of your Amy’s Bowls Brown Rice And Vegetables.

Inspirational Vegan Documentaries Review on Netflix

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I’m down in Texas right now (hiding from winter)and getting some sunshine. I brought my handy little apple tv device with me and have been watching Netflix documentaries lately.

I have to say how thoroughly impressed I am that Netflix (in the USA at least) has tons of awesome documentaries to choose from that are well done and inspirational.

In these documentaries they show that anybody no matter who they are can make a change and start on the path to a plant based diet. And when you have full access to information like this for one low price on Netflix, you really can’t go wrong.

If you don’t have Netflix you can watch some of these documentaries online or probably rent them on iTunes. I’ve also provided their websites so you can get more information on them as well.

Here is a list of the documentaries I HIGHLY recommend you check out if you’re looking for some entertainment style education and inspiration to get on track with a healthy diet.

Forks Over Knives

www.ForksOverKnives.com – website features some of my recipes and many other oil free plant based recipes as well.

This is a great documentary because it features both interviews from heavy hitters such as Dr. John McDougall, Dr. T Colin Campbell, Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn and Dr. Pam Popper and follows 3 people who are led by Dr. Matthew Lederman in eating a whole foods plant based diet to regain their health, get off medication and lose weight.

This film is jam packed with great information about how you can lose weight, cure type 2 diabetes, cancer and heart disease with a low fat plant based diet.

It is a very easy to watch film and I suggest your family and friends watch this (if you can manage it). There’s no vegan propaganda or animal rights focus, it’s all about eating plants for health and how it works.

This film alone got my family on board of accepting my vegan eating habits and understanding why I wanted to be in the business of teaching people how to eat healthy. So I think it’s very important to share this message and I highly recommend this film to anyone and everyone!

Forks Over Knives The Extended Interviews

This is also highly recommended! You get the full interviews that went into this film and more detailed answers.

Vegucated

http://www.getvegucated.com

This is actually a very entertaining documentary to watch by Marisa Miller Wolfson. She creates a social experiment where 3 individuals from New York (who don’t think they could ever be vegan but are curious to try it) are educated in veganism and shown how to eat for 6 weeks. They are extremely skeptical in the beginning and you get to watch them through their growing pains of this lifestyle. They get a health checkup from Dr. Joel Fuhrman before and after their 6 week journey with some pretty good results.

Initially, I did not expect to be as impressed with this film as I was. I don’t teach the ethical side of veganism because I feel it is such a personal choice for people, but the way it was depicted in this movie was very touching. Becoming vegan and eating vegan made such sense to these 3 individuals at the end of this movie they couldn’t even imagine not continuing. It resonated with them at such a deep level. In the end they felt better, they understood factory farming and they found a way to make the diet work for them.

I highly recommend this film for you and your friends or family to watch because it covers many of the struggles of eating out or eating with family and really shows you how you can be successful and happier with food choices.

Foodmatters

 

This documentary is mainly compiled with interviews from health experts and leaders such as Andrew Saul, Ph.D., Charlotte Gerson (The Gerson Therapy) Dr. Dan Rogers and David Wolfe. They recommend a high raw plant based diet for optimal health and disease prevention.
It makes a great case for using diet as therapy for reversing serious chronic diseases and talks a lot about cancer and how people can use diet and vitamin therapy to cure it. If cancer affects you or anyone in your family you should watch this movie!

Hungry For Change

http://www.hungryforchange.tv

This film focuses on a lot of individual interviews with health leaders such as Mike Adams (Natural News), David Wolfe, Daniel Vitalis, Dr.Mercola, Kris Carr (Crazy Sexy Cancer) and more.

While it does not talk about a vegan or vegetarian diet, it does recommend a whole foods based diet and living a natural lifestyle. Even though I don’t necessarily agree with all of the leaders’ personal lifestyles in this video, it is still a good documentary to watch and if you’re unfamiliar with some of them.

Fat Sick & Nearly Dead

http://www.fatsickandnearlydead.com

Joe Cross a native Australian, wants to turn his life around and go on a 60 day juice fast in the land of the hamburger (the USA).

He starts out getting some tests from Dr. Joel Furhman and with a goal to lose weight and cure his debilitating skin rash he’s had for 9 years that no previous doctor could cure. He goes on a road trip across the states shopping at farmer’s markets and grocery stores along the way and makes juice in the back of his SUV. He spends a lot of time interviewing people about their current diet and lifestyle and why it’s hard for them to change.

Joe also encourages a woman he meets (who is a wife and mother) to go on a 10 day juice fast and check in with him on her progress. Half way through the film another man named Phil (who is seriously obese and has the same skin condition as Joe) also wants to go on a juice fast and see if he can save his life by making a change. The second half of the film follows his journey on a 60 day juice fast as well.

While this film is not as fast paced as some others, it does have a great message and might inspire you to go on juice fast or start juicing regularly for health benefits. Joe loses an incredible amount of weight (82 lbs) over the course of this movie (Phil loses even more) and it is quite inspirational if you feel hopeless and are looking for a fresh start!

Non Health Related Documentaries:

Craigslist Joe

http://www.craigslistjoe.com

This film was intriguing to me because I have used Craigslist in the past to find housing, list household items and meet friends. It follows a young man named Joe who wants to see if he can survive for 30 days on the generosity of people he meets exclusively on Craigslist.org through posting and reading other user’s posts.

He has no money and takes only his cell phone, laptop, the clothes on his back and his camera man friend and they go off on a journey across the USA.They rely on strangers for their shelter, food, transportation and companionship throughout the film.

Often Joe lends a helping hand for a meal or helps drive on a road trip and meets some really

It’s actually a really touching story about the generosity of others and how genuine people can be if you just give them a chance. It really makes you want to get out there and connect with new people because generally strangers are good at heart, so it was a pretty beautiful journey.

Inspirational juice recipe from Fat Sick & Nearly Dead. I use a Breville juicer that I got from Amazon to make my juices (nothing too fancy), but better than a cheapie juicer, so it lasts.

Mean Green Juice

by Phil Staples

Ingredients:

1 cucumber
4 celery stalks
2 granny smith apples
6-8 leaves kale
1/2 lemon
1 tbsp ginger

Directions:

Wash all the produce well

Peel the lemon (optional)

Juice, starting with the kale

Pour over ice

Enjoy!

For more juicing for weight-loss info go to: http://www.rebootwithjoe.com

I hope you’ve enjoyed these recommendations. I know so many of us watch far too much tv these days, and I think it’s important to see some quality documentaries once in a while.

Especially if you’re not the kind of person who wants to read a book or program on health, you can easily sit down for an hour and watch a health documentary instead and get informed and inspired.

If you want to jump in and get started today on a plant based diet? Check out my Low Fat Vegan Starter Kit here:

http://www.plantbasedu.com/LowFatVeganStarterKit

Vegan Soy Curl Fajitas With Yams (Sweet Potatoes)

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I don’t often use “fake meat” substitutes and prefer to make almost everything from scratch.  But my favourite “just like chicken” product is Soy Curls because they do have a great taste and texture once they are seasoned.  They don’t contain a lot of ingredients, just soy and they are gluten free (and GMO free as well).

So far everything I have put Soy Curls in has turned out delicious. You really can’t screw up Soy Curls.  Essentially you take the dried product and soak it in warm/hot water for about 10 minutes to plump up and you drain them.  I like to add some salt and seasonings to them while they soak, or else they don’t taste like anything. They do need some salt to have flavor.

Then you can just sauté these dry in a pan (they taste better if you cook some of the water out) I cook them for 10-15 minutes until they seem done and have a good texture. You can then add the Soy Curls to any recipe you desire, but they taste best if you season them or put a sauce over them. See my previous Soy Curl recipe here that is one of my favorites.

If you don’t want to buy Soy Curls you can omit them and just use the veggies and yams in this recipe instead.

It’s also really hard to make fajitas look appetizing when you have so many brown/beige colours with the whole wheat tortillas, mushrooms, onions and Soy Curls! At least my new colorful plates help…

Vegan Soy Curl Fajitas With Mashed Yams (Sweet Potatoes)

Serves 4

Ingredients:

3 small yams (orange sweet potatoes/kumara)
Roasted cumin (I use McCormick’s) to taste
Herbamare or Sea salt to taste
Chipotle chili powder or chili powder to taste
1 1/2 cups Soy Curls (dried)
1 sweet onion, sliced
2 bell peppers, sliced
1 cup mushrooms slices
9-12 small corn or small wheat tortillas
1-2 tbsp fajita seasoning (recipe found here)

Directions:

Peel and slice the yams. Place in a pot or steamer basket and steam until fork tender. 15-20 minutes depending on size. Set aside when done.

Soak the Soy Curls in warm/hot water for 10 minutes. Season with some salt if desired (I do). Drain.

In a large non-stick skillet or wok saute the Soy Curls over medium heat for about 10 minutes. Add the mushrooms and saute for another 2-3 minutes. Add the onions and peppers and season to taste with fajita seasoning. Cook until peppers and onions are at desired tenderness (about 1-3 minutes).

Place the yams in a bowl and mash them and season to taste with cumin, salt and chipotle powder. (Don’t over season, just give it a little flavour.)

Lay out a tortilla, spread some mashed yams and add the fajita ingredients.

Serve with guacamole or salsa if desired.

Repeat with remaining tortillas.

Additional Tips:

For warm tortillas you can microwave them for a few seconds until warm or heat them in an oven wrapped in tinfoil on low while you prepare your ingredients.

Feel free to add other veggies as desired like zucchini or carrots. Cook longer if necessary.

Soy Curls can be cooked a lot without burning because they are so moist so keep cooking them until your vegetables are at desired tenderness.

 

What are your favorite ingredients in veggie fajitas?

Don’t Be So Sure Sugar Is Making You Fat

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I was watching this series on Netflix this week called “Freaky Eaters”.

It’s a little bit of a buzz word title for a show I know.

No they don’t eat weird things like spiders or insects or anything scary.

They just have severe eating disorders where they compulsively eat junk foods all day everyday.

One middle aged women was so unhappy in her life that she found happiness only eating candy, chocolate, cake and cookies every day and nothing else.

Another middle aged man only ate plain cheeseburgers 3 meals a day. He was afraid of all vegetables and couldn’t even let a tiny strand of shredded lettuce touch his bun without being paranoid it would alter the taste of his burger. (It also looks like he ate fries and a cola with his meals as well.)

A young 20 something year old ate nothing but pizza (of any kind, restaurant, fast food microwavable) for 3 meals a day. He actually made himself so sick that he was throwing up every morning and could no longer play volleyball, but he didn’t think it was in anyway related to his diet.

The last woman I watched was another 20-something who lived at home, and was completely addicted to Coca Cola. It was so bad that she was drinking upwards of
30 colas a day or more and she denied that she had any kind of problem. (She also ate twinkies, ho ho’s, oreos and chips for her meals)

Now these are all extreme cases. My gut tells me that this is not that wide spread. These are severe food addictions and since it is “reality TV” it’s probably embellished a lot to make it look more dramatic.

One thing that I noticed was though that the two women eating and drinking nothing but sugar and white flour were not really overweight.

The one soda girl was told she was pre diabetic but miraculously she didn’t have it yet with all the cola she drank. She was also a normalweight.

The man who ate the cheeseburgers and fries every day was actually diabetic and veryvery overweight.

This is not a scientific analysis by any means, it is just my observation.

But the body actually has an easier time burning off excess sugar (even if it’s white refined sugar) than it does excess calories from deep fried foods(and oil and cheese).

These two women who were not overweight, ate in excess of 6000 calories a day, almost all coming from simple sugars like white flour and white sugar.

Even the young man eating pizza all day every day was not overweight, he was normal weight. (He ate a lot of white flour in the form of pizza crust 3 times a day so it was still a substantial amount of simple sugar.)

So this is why I find it is SO IMPORTANT to teach people to cook without oil and  get them off of eating fried foods day in and day out.

If there is one type of cooking that is REALLY holding you back from weight-loss it is that super high calorie fried food.

That means any of your favorites such as:

-fried chicken
-french fries
– “fish and chips” 
-potato chips
-tortilla chips or “Doritos”
-donuts and fritters
-hush puppies or fried corn cakes
-onion rings
-fried calamari
-fried mozzarella sticks
-anything battered and fried

HAVE GOT TO GO! Right now.

I’m dead serious!

If you are still eating any of these foods they are seriously sabotaging your health and your efforts to weight loss. I suggest not letting them even be an option
for you when making food at home or going out to restaurants because deep fried food is highly addictive.

If you eat these foods regularly, you are likely to not stop at just one piece, or one bite. You might even feel compelled to eat the whole plate. (Often very quickly and it disappears right before your eyes…)

And when you eat these foods regularly your body will actually CRAVE them.

We are still designed to seek out the highest calorie dense foods, as if we were living in the wild trying to stave off starvation.

So super salty, fatty and rich foods make our brains and bodies go crazy, that once they get some they want more and more and MORE.

The most important thing to do when trying to give up a food addiction is to make it very difficult to get. This is SO important.

That means get any and ALL of these foods out of your house right now!

(Even if you have a spouse or children who want to eat these foods. It’s just too tempting for you to eat them if it’s around). Don’t allow these foods in the house. If someone wants to eat them they should be eaten outside the house only occasionally, thus making it harder for them to get instead of always being in the cupboard or freezer.

That also means not going to you “favorite” restaurant where you typically get that fried chicken, fried fish etc. Try an alternate route if you often drive near places that cause you to feel tempted.

Don’t walk down the junk food aisles at the grocery store, stay away from the convenience store and don’t go down the frozen meat and frozen french fries aisle.

The best way to succeed is to replace these bad habits with good habits.

 

-Find a new favorite meal to eat (and of course make sure it’s healthy.)

-Find a new place to eat out at, (that is of course healthier too.)

-Only shop at the healthy parts of the grocery store such as the produce aisles.

You cannot expect to change and lose weight and get on track if you are in the same situation every day and doing the same things.

You need a fresh start.

And the first thing I want you to do kick is fried foods to the curb.

ALL of them.

They are the most addicting because they combine crunchy and salty flavors that make you eat more and are filled with white flour and oil (the two highest calorie nutrient devoid foods.)

We can work on the rest later.

But if you’re concerned about high blood pressure, cholesterol, heart disease, diabetes etc., and want to lose weight, you’ve got to ditch that fried food.

The best way to do succeed is to find and learn some new healthy recipes that you and your family will enjoy.

So that’s why I’ve put together my Low Fat Vegan Starter Kit.

It’s full of recipes you can use for breakfast, lunch and dinner to get back on track and to start losing that weight NOW.

It just takes a little bit of trying and a desire to make changes in your life for the better.

I’ve already done all the hard parts of figuring things out and creating delicious healthy meals.

All you have to do is buy the ingredients and follow the instructions.

Just go to:

www.lowfatveganchef.com/LowFatVeganStarterKit

If you want to do something good for your health, start by taking out the #1 unhealthy type of food.

No more fried foods. Especially battered and fried meats and cheeses. Those are the worst.

It actually could make a big difference for you.

I bet more than a few of you have a hard time resisting eating these foods compulsively when you see them.

It’s ok. We’re wired to want more of these foods when we have them regularly. So you just have to start removing them from your diet and the cravings will
go away.

Just like any other addiction like alcohol, drugs or cigarettes. You have to stop ingesting them to get rid of the cravings!

How can you possibly stop this addiction if you keep purchasing these foods instead of learning how to make healthier new foods?

I can help with that.

Just go to:

www.lowfatveganchef.com/LowFatVeganStarterKit

And take charge of your health today…

I know you can do it!

Sincerely,

Veronica Grace

P.S. If you’ve already purchased one of my ebooks in the Starter Kit you CAN upgrade. Just contact me for details and I’ll get you set up no problem!

Homemade Fajita Seasoning Mix

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Who needs to buy Fajita or Taco seasoning mix? Did you realize it’s super easy and inexpensive to make yourself if you already have the following ingredients in your pantry?

I find seasoning mixes often too hot and spicy for my tastes so this is a perfect way to adjust how spicy you want your mix to be. So feel free to add more or less depending on what you like.

Use this fajita seasoning instead of Old El Paso Fajita Seasoning Mix. You can make it as tame or spicy as you like by adjusting the amount of chili powder and cayenne.

Sprinkle this seasoning on fajita veggies, soy taco “meat”, Soy Curls, tempeh, roasted potatoes, roasted vegetables and more.

Faijita Seasoning Mix

 

Ingredients:

2 tbsp cornstarch
2-4 tsp chili powder
2 tsp sea salt (fine)
2 tsp smoked paprika
2 tsp granulated sugar (or raw sugar)
1 tsp roasted cumin
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

Directions:

Combine in a bowl and whisk together. Store in a glass jar or airtight container.

Uses:

Sprinkle 1-2 tbsp of this mixture over your veggies as you stir fry them for fajitas. Also great to use for flavoring potatoes, roasted vegetables, tofu scramble, soy curls and more.

Additional Tips:

I really like the smoked flavour of the smoked paprika. If you don’t have it or don’t like it you can omit it or add more chipotle or chili powder. I just find it adds so much flavor without adding a lot of heat.

Fat Free Vegan Whole Wheat Banana Blueberry Muffins

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Oh my… these banana blueberry muffins are delicious. I don’t know about you but I just love the little pop of the blueberries when you bite into them! Mashed bananas (make sure they are very ripe so they mash well) are a great substitute for oil and fat in baked goods.  So I often use them for this purpose. Plus they add a nice natural sweetness as well which is nice.

I use stone ground whole wheat flour in this recipe, but you can use any whole grain flour that you like.  If you want a lighter muffin you can look for whole wheat pastry flour, it’s not as dense as regular whole wheat flour.  For gluten free versions you can use gluten free oat flour or an all purpose gluten free flour.  I still like to use whole grain flour as most gluten free flours are highly processed and more like white flour.

These muffins also freeze well so you can portion them out and save them for later. I love adding blueberries to baked goods and smoothies, but feel free to use any other berries you like instead.

For truly oil free muffins you can use silicone non stick muffin trays, or paper muffin cups. But I like to use the silicone trays so there is no paper waste (and they also get stuck and tear off the muffins.)

Free Vegan Whole Wheat Banana Blueberry Muffins

12 muffins

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups overripe (fully brown) mashed bananas (about 3 large, 4 medium)
1/3 cup almond milk (original unsweetened)
1/2 cup maple syrup (or 1/4-1/3 cup honey or agave as they are sweeter)
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups whole wheat flour (or ww pastry flour or GF flour)
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp ceylon cinnamon (or reg cinnamon)
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1 cup frozen blueberries

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F/ 204 C.

2. Combine wet ingredients in a large size bowl and mix together.

3. Combine dry ingredients (except for blueberries) into a medium size bowl and whisk together.

4. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and stir just until combined. Gently fold in the blueberries.

5. Spoon batter into non-stick silicone muffin trays or a lightly oil spritzed muffin tin.

6. Bake for 25-30 minutes until a knife or toothpick in the middle comes out clean.

7. Allow to cool for 10 minutes and then turn out onto a cookie rack to completely.

8. Serve.

Additional Tips:

For a truly sugar free version you can try using more banana and omit the maple syrup/sweetener. For a whole food sweetener you can blend pitted dates with some water to make your own date syrup.

What’s your favorite way to use blueberries?

 

Asian Vegetable Stir Fry in Tahini Sauce

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Stir fries can vary widely from delicious and tasty to boring and bland, and as a vegan it isn’t always the most appetizing dish to make (if you’ve eaten it a thousand times before.)

I find the solution is to vary the sauces you use and I like to make different ones. You can also change up the rice you serve them on by using brown rice, white rice, red rice or a combination of any of them.

You can use this tahini sauce over steamed vegetables or stir fried vegetables in a non stick pan. (You don’t need to use oil in non stick pans, you can cook the vegetables by themselves or in a little water if necessary).

Use your favorite veggies and get creative!

Asian Vegetable Stir Fry in Tahini Sauce

Serves 2

Tahini Sauce Ingredients:

1/3-1/2 cup water (I use the lower amount, my Vitamix pulverizes everything, only use higher amount for low powered blender)
2 tbsp tahini
2 large medjool dates, pitted (and chopped if necessary for your blender)
1 large clove of garlic
2 tsp of fresh chopped ginger
1 1/2 tbsp low sodium tamari or soy sauce (GF if desired)

Stir Fry:

3-4 cups frozen or fresh mixed vegetables
1 1/2 cups cooked brown or white rice

Directions:

1. Combine sauce ingredients in a Vita-Mix or blender and blend until smooth. If using a basic blender you may need to use the higher amount of water and chop your garlic, ginger and dates to ensure that it blends properly.

2. Saute fresh or frozen vegetables in a wok or non-stick skillet with 1/2 cup water. Cover with a pot lid and steam until tender. Add additional water if necessary.

3. Assemble bowl. Add brown rice to a bowl or plate, top with vegetables and drizzle with tahini sauce.

4. Serve.

Additional Tips:

You can customize this sauce by adding more or less garlic or ginger or dates, or by swapping out the tahini for almond or peanut butter instead for variety.

To make this recipe really quickly you can use frozen stir fry veggies or pre cut fresh veggies from the produce section of the grocery store.

What’s in your favorite stir fry recipe? 

The Best Low Fat Vegan Chef Recipes of 2012

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A little bit of a prelude:

2012 was an incredibly crazy year for me.

Here’s the short versionof it: My website really started growing back in January 2012. I went to Dr. John McDougall’s 3 Day Advanced Study Weekend in February and started promoting my site to the McDougalls and others I met there. I released my first solo recipe ebook in March, Comfort Soups To Keep You Warm. I moved into a new house just outside of Vancouver at the end of May. By July I was on my own and working full time to support myself with this website. (I haven’t really told you everything that happened, but I was left by myself outside Vancouver, BC with zero notice from my husband and no money.) In August divorce papers were filed against me. At the end of September I moved back to my home town in Calgary, AB. to be near my friends and family and start over. In October I launched my second major ebook Vegan Comfort Foods From Around The World and sold over 300 copies myself in the first few weeks. (I had never felt so loved by you guys, seriously you made my year!) In December I moved all my products (twice) to test out different systems and streamlined everything so it was much easier for you guys to access my ebooks. And here we are in January of a New Year!

Now I know this is all a condensed version and filled with lots of ups and downs, and I’m sure I surprised many of you. Maybe I will talk about some of what happened last summer later but I’m really not sure what to say about that right now. It’s a very shocking story and might be hard for you to believe.

Well push came to shove, and I needed my own actual income (I didn’t have any personal income for a few years, I worked for free essentially) and to be able to support myself immediately, so I started promoting my recipe ebooks along with giving free recipes each week and thanks to you I have made it so far (and not crashed and burned!)

I have to say a really heartfelt thank you because I honestly don’t know what I would be doing without your support and kind words. Probably waitressing or something before I figured out what else I wanted to do, but being a health minded vegan you can see how unappealing that line of work would be!

But I wanted to highlight my top favorite recipes on the blog to celebrate all the delicious food we’ve made together and to remind you that we’re just getting started.  We’re really just into the second year of this blog (as there wasn’t much happening back in 2011.) And this was something that I thought I would just poke away at and it’s really taken off!

Chef’s Pick of The Best Low Fat Vegan Recipes of 2012

 

From January:

Low Fat Vegan Deluxe Dijon Tofu Scramble With Veggies

Over the holidays I had made a few vegan breakfasts for my family while visiting in Texas. (They are Canadian, they just have a winter home in Texas) and it was my mom’s first season eating plant based so I did most of the cooking.  This recipe is inspired by a recipe I tried by another vegan chef I met in Vancouver from VeganMischief. It is still my favorite tofu scramble and I really wish that more vegetarian restaurants would season their tofu as most of the time it’s so bland and not tasty! Tofu needs seasonings if it’s going to be in breakfast foods. 🙂

How To Cook Quinoa Perfectly Every Time

Quinoa is something that often eludes newbies as to how to cook it properly. I did some research and testing found out the reason most people don’t like or overcook quinoa is that they add a 2:1 ratio of water to quinoa. This mistake is perpetuated by grocery stores and manufacturers as instructions often say use a 2:1 ratio. It just yields mushy overcooked quinoa people! So I show you exactly how to cook quinoa perfectly and by using a 1:1 ratio of water to quinoa. Even today this is still one of my number one searched for blog posts. So spread the word!

From February:

Fat Free Vegan Eggplant Chickpea Indian Curry With Fire Roasted Tomatoes

This is a variation on one of Susan V’s (from Fat Free Vegan) recipes I made as I had previous created a chickpea curry and an eggplant curry for Vegan Comfort Foods From Around The World and I was curious what it would taste like to put both ingredients together. The result is absolutely delicious and quite stunning when you garnish it with fresh cilantro. 🙂

Fat Free Vegan “Clean Out The Refrigerator” Fuhrman Style Soup

I had spent most of December and January at my mom’s place in Texas working on recipes for both Comfort Soups To Keep You Warm and Vegan Comfort Foods From Around The World, so I hadn’t been blogging much. Just cooking like crazy! I was finishing up a few more recipes and photos to put in Comfort Soups and this was one of them!

From March: 

Tofu Omelette

The Best Low Fat Vegan Tofu Omelette

Omelettes are something you may miss at first on a vegan diet, so I wanted to make a delicious alternative. I have made this recipe for my family many times and it tastes very much like an omelette.  The secret is using silken tofu, because it can be blended and poured just like beaten eggs or pancake batter, so you can make them as big or small as you like. These tend to work best if you make them small to medium sized.  The bigger they are the longer they take to cook, so you have to be patient. The possibilities for filling your omelette are endless so give it a try!

Low Fat Vegan Chef's Mexican Black Bean Corn Soup

Mexican Black Bean Corn Soup

In March I launched Comfort Soups To Keep You Warm, with over 30 homemade soup recipes. It was my first solo recipe ebook and I had a lot of fun making it. I still make soup regularly because it’s so much tastier than what comes out of a box or a can (not to mention healthier too) and it’s easy to freeze and keep for later. My mom makes these soup recipes all the time as well as she’s on the go and needs quick and healthy meals.

Mexican Black Bean Corn Soup is one of my favorites from the ebook, so definitely check it out.  This recipe is also featured on the Forks Over Knives website!

From April:

Low Fat Vegan Apple Strawberry Strudel

Low Fat Vegan Apple Strawberry Giant Strudel Pie in Phyllo Pastry

This recipe has gotten rave reviews from everyone and is a great alternative to apple pie. Phyllo pastry is lighter and lower in fat than traditional crusts and this can be a better for you dessert if you’re trying to watch your fat and calories. Don’t be intimidated by working with phyllo, I’ve got excellent instructions for you to make assembling this strudel pie very easy. This is one of my favorite desserts and adding strawberries or another berry really makes this a beautiful dish.

Oil Free Low Fat Chickpea Hummus

Oil Free Low Fat Vegan Chickpea Hummus

This hummus recipe is from my new recipe ebook Vegan Comfort Foods From Around The World, which is full of comforting entrees, snacks, dips, spreads, sauces and gravies to help spice up your menu repertoire. Hummus is quite popular nowadays, but most recipes contain a lot of oil, so I wanted to show you how to make your own low fat recipe at home and then you can season it to taste with lemon, garlic, salt and seasonings.

From May:

Quick Vegan Pad Thai Recipe

Quick Lower Fat Vegan Pad Thai Recipe 

Pad Thai can be quite delicious, but it’s usually really greasy and contains far too much oil. In this recipe I’ll teach you how to quickly “fry” your rice stick noodles without any oil and serve them with vegetables in a tangy Thai-like sauce.

Oil Free Vegan Fudgey BlackBerry Brownies

These brownies are a real treat. The blackberries add a natural sweetness to it, so they don’t even need to be iced and they still look really delicious. The secret to having them turn out fudgey is to not over-bake them and let them set in the refrigerator until they have firmed up in the middle. When served they are nice and fudgey in the center.

From June:

Fat Free Vegan Indian Tarka Chana Dal Curry

This is a deliciously spiced and thick dal curry that is really easy to make and is great served with fresh basmati rice or Indian flat bread. There are a million different ways to make dal and I think you’ll enjoy my version.

Fat Free Vegan Slow Cooker Indian Dal With Mixed Vegetables

This is a really easy recipe to make using the slow cooker or crock pot. Some lentils such as chana dal and split peas can take longer to cook, so this is an easy set it and forget it recipe you can make early in the day to have a warm dinner to come home to. It’s inspired from a thick dal soup from one of my favorite Indian places in Vancouver.

From July:

Super Protein Packed Spinach Salad With Quinoa, Chickpeas and Creamy Orange Hemp Seed Dressing

This is one of my favorite salad recipes, it’s hearty and filling and packed with lots of different textures and flavors. If you find salads a little unappetizing or boring to eat, you should definitely try this recipe. I especially love the creamy homemade dressing, which is quite easy to whip up in the blender too.

From August:

The Best Raw Vegan Caesar Salad Dressing

The Best Raw Vegan Caesar Salad Dressing

This is probably my most popular salad dressing recipe. I have made it many times and it’s always a hit no matter who I’m serving. It’s a great alternative to bottled dressing and it can also be used as a dip for veggies or pita chips. The seasonings are really what take this recipe from ordinary to extraordinary. I know you’re going to love it!

From September:

Low Fat Vegan Easy Mini Lasagna Casserole

I love homemade vegan lasagna, but it can take quite a while to prep and put together. So i designed this recipe to be much faster and go together like a casserole instead. You still get all that delicious lasagna flavor in less than half the work and time. If you can find mini lasagna noodles, use them, but you can easily substitute any other shape of noodle you desire.

How To Cook Dried Chickpeas From Scratch

Fresh chickpeas are incredibly tasty and much better for you than canned ones. I try to make fresh chickpeas as often as I can and have created instructions for cooking them in a pressure cooker or on the stove top. You can use fresh cooked chickpeas to make your own hummus, add to soups, add to curries, salads and many more dishes. Chickpeas are so versatile you can add them to almost any meal. If you’ve never had fresh chickpeas, you’re missing out so definitely check out this recipe.

From October:

Low Fat Vegan Greek Stuffed Eggplant 

I love eggplant in any recipe. It was once a vegetable I was apprehensive about and didn’t think I would like. But the key to enjoying eggplant is cooking it properly. I loved having Greek stuffed eggplant in Greece so I designed this recipe as a fat free version with lots of flavor.

Low Fat Vegan Baked Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese

Low Fat Vegan Baked Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese

This is one of my favorite recipes, and I often make it for guests unfamiliar with vegan food. The butternut squash helps add color, flavor and thickens the cheesy sauce and baking it with panko bread crumbs on top makes it have a nice crunch. You can easily make this recipe gluten free as well and it’s a delicious healthier version of an old classic.

Low Fat Vegan Stuffed Quinoa Zucchini Boats

I made this recipe for Canadian Thanksgiving and it was so good I wanted to share it. I really love making stuffed vegetables for entrees as they are quite pretty and it’s a good way to show omnivores how to make an actual entree instead of just having vegetable sides served together on one plate for holiday meals. This recipe can easilly be made in advance and reheated the next day for a quick lunch or dinner.

Red Lentil Indian Tarka Dal Curry

Red Lentil Tarka Dal Curry

This is a different spin on lentil curry, this time using red lentils (the fastest cooking split lentil). I often make this when I’m looking for a quick meal and serve it along with basmati rice. It’s very colorful and flavorful and you can make it as mild or spicy as you like.

From November:

Low Fat Vegan Carrot Pumpkin Spice Muffins

I love both pumpkin and carrot muffins, so I decided to combine this into a delicious new recipe. It’s very low in fat, high in fibre and packed full of vegetables. Who knew you could have a healthy muffin that tasted just as great? These are easy to make and can be frozen individually for quick snacks or a light breakfast on the go.

Quinoa Chickpea Pilaff

Quinoa is great to use for variety instead of rice and cooks very quickly. Most people don’t cook quinoa properly and it can become too soft and mushy. I’ll show you how to cook it perfectly and then use it in a variety of ways such as a side dish or cold salads.

From December:

Fat Free Vegan Whole Wheat Banana Bread

Banana bread was one of my favorite treats as a kid, so in this recipe I show you how to make it much healthier and completely oil free. This recipe yields a moist dense loaf and is very tasty.

Pomegranate Apple Green Salad With Raspberry Walnut Vinaigrette

I love making colorful salads and pomegranates are a nice addition to many holiday recipes. You can buy them whole or get them pre-peeled to make things easier. I love the accompanying dressing for this recipe too as it’s very bright and flavorful.

 

Well those are my top recommended recipes from the blog for 2012. I hope I listed some of your favorites and some you’ll want to try out. We did a lot in 2012 and I’m looking forward to creating many more delicious recipes to share with you for 2013!

Which ones have you tried or want to try this year?