Cooked Vegan Recipes

(Oil-Free) Low Fat Vegan Chickpea Hummus Recipe

April 30, 2012 by Veronica Grace 96 Comments

Ah hummus! The classic Mediterranean staple dip (and staple of many vegan sandwich lovers). I usually always make my own hummus at home as the store-bought ones are #1 usually expensive for the amount you get, and #2 have a lot of oil and salt in them and make each tablespoon higher calorie than necessary.

Hummus is basically cooked chickpeas, pureed with tahini (sesame seed butter), garlic, lemon, salt and sometimes olive oil. Babaghanoush (Eggplant Hummus) is very similar but it has roasted eggplant in it for a slightly different flavour. If you’ve never seen tahini before it’s generally in the nut butter/peanut butter section of the health food store, or some grocery stores. Tahini also available at ethnic markets and Indian and Middle Eastern stores. You can also find tahini on Amazon.

If you’ve made your own homemade hummus before you probably use olive oil in it too, but I want to show you a way to make a much lower fat hummus that is great if you REALLY like hummus and put it on everything. This way you’ll cut out excess calories you won’t even miss and still get that delicious creamy hummus flavour.

So I got into the kitchen and made this chickpea hummus using canned chickpeas, as that’s what most of you are going to do. (I use the salt free variety.) BUT you are more than welcome to use fresh cooked chickpeas. I prefer them and cook them with some kombu (seaweed) and bay leaves to give them a delicious flavour.

If you’re into really decadent high fat dips, you should try switching to my hummus recipe to have a new better for you dip to serve to your friends and family with fresh pita, veggies or chips.

For this recipe you’re going to need a food processor. I use an 8 cup Cuisinart that I bought in Costa Rica (when I lived there) and it’s not a recent model or anything but it does the job. A hand crank food processor will probably not be good enough as this is quite a thick dip. You can get a basic Hamilton Beach food processor fairly cheap on Amazon like this one.

BTW this recipe is featured in my Vegan Comfort Foods From Around the World recipe ebook. So check it out! It’s got over 60 deliciously savory and satisfying recipes you’re going to love!

(Oil-Free) Low Fat Vegan Chickpea Hummus

From Comfort Foods From Around The World

Ingredients:

1 15 oz./425 g can chickpeas (no salt) or 1 3/4 cup of fresh cooked chickpeas
1-2 small cloves of garlic (depending on how spicy you like it)
1 1/2 tbsp filtered water (this is replacing the oil)
3-4 tbsp lemon juice (depending on how lemony you like it)
1 1/2 tbsp tahini (sesame seed butter)
1/4 tsp Herbamare (original) or salt (or none if you are using salted canned chickpeas)
Fresh ground pepper to taste *optional

Directions:

Drain and rinse the chickpeas (only drain if fresh cooked) and set aside.
Add the garlic clove(s) to the food processor and pulse until chopped up. Stop the food processor.
Add the chickpeas, filtered water, lemon juice (start with less and add more if desired) and pulse the chickpeas until they are fairly broken up. Depending on how strong your food processor is when they are broken up you can let it run for a few seconds or just keep pulsing until it’s a little smooth. Stop the food processor. Taste test and add more lemon if desired.
Add the tahini, Herbamare (if desired) and a little fresh ground pepper. Let it run until everything is creamed up. Taste test and adjust any additional salt, pepper, lemon or water (for consistency). Your hummus should be creamy with no chunks left.
Serve with veggies, pita or baked chips if desired.

Generally people will not be able to tell there is no oil in this dip. It will be creamy and tangy, it will just seem lighter and fluffier to them. Skipping the oil in recipes is a great way to trim that waist line and satisfy your desire for savory dishes without the guilt!

Do you like hummus? What do you serve it with? Have you ever made oil free hummus before?

Low Fat Vegan Cheezy Sauce For Steamed Vegetables

April 23, 2012 by Veronica Grace 23 Comments

Today I wanted to share a recipe with you from my upcoming second recipe ebook: Low Fat Vegan Chef Presents: Vegan Comfort Foods From Around The World. All the recipes are done and photographed, I just have to write it and put it together. In total there is going to be about 60 recipes in it all with photos! It should be available in a few weeks, so keep your eyes out if you’re missing some home cooked comfort meals!

As I’m currently in Kauai (our second stop in Hawaii) and pretty much away from the kitchen (aside from throwing together cut up fruit, basic salads and steamed vegetables) I haven’t been making any new actual recipes in a week. I kind of feel like I should be making food, but when you’re on vacation you’d rather be snorkelling, swimming or taking pictures! (If you’re like me I guess!)

I thought this would be a great recipe for those not sure what to put on their steamed vegetables for dinner. Most of you have probably had some sort of cheese, Cheese Whiz or cheese sauce on your vegetables prior to eating vegan and have a craving for something cheese-like at the dinner table. Also sometimes kids (and even grown ups!) like to dip their veggies into a sauce or dip and don’t enjoy eating them plain.

Growing up my mom would always make this homemade butter+flour+milk+grated cheese sauce for us when we had pierogies, ham, mixed vegetables, or even a dish called Welsh Rarebit (essentially a fried egg on toast topped with cheese sauce. Her version anyways and no we’re not Welsh or Polish. I have no idea where these recipes came from!). We loved this sauce. We asked for it all the time, we wanted to pour it on everything and we wanted to dip everything into it.

Pretty much everything about my mom’s cheese sauce that made it delicious isn’t really healthy or vegan, so I wanted to create something that was much much healthier and still tasty for those who miss cheese sauce.

The trick to getting a cheese-like taste in your sauces is to use nutritional yeast (this is yellow yeast flakes that are sold at the health food store, this is not brewers yeast, quick rising yeast nor does it have anything to do with baking) and miso paste. Nutritional yeast has a cheese-like tangy flavour and can be used in sauces, dips, dressings, or even shaken onto salads and pop corn. The miso paste is what gives it a strong fermented salty flavour and gives the cheesiness more depth. Nutritional yeast and salt is really not enough, miso paste is essential. You can find this at the health food store or any local asian market. I usually buy yellow/mild or brown rice miso. I don’t use white shiro miso or red miso. But use what you can find. The miso won’t go bad and will last a while and you can use it for more asian sauces, dips and add to soup stocks or make miso soup with it. If you use my recipe ebooks you will find it in several of the recipes as well.

For this recipe I just used a pre pack of fresh mixed vegetables that I got at the store. I wanted to make it simple for people who are new to preparing fresh vegetables and don’t have a lot of time. You can also cut up your own assorted fresh vegetables, or use frozen vegetables as well. The key is to make sure you don’t overcook them and make them mushy. I am constantly checking on them while they steam and testing them with a knife to see if they are soft in the centre. When they are al dente and ALMOST cooked turn off the heat and take off the lid. The veggies will continue to cook with all the hot steam in the pan and they will be overcooked if you continue to leave the heat on them. Leave the cover off so you dissipate some of the steam. No one likes overcooked veggies! This takes some practice, but if you can set a timer and find out the exact time it takes when the water boils you will make things easier next time you make them. Broccoli is the first to overcook and cauliflower is sturdier so I usually put it in the pot for a minute first and then put the broccoli on top to cook.

Low Fat Vegan Cheezy Sauce For Steamed Vegetables

From Comfort Foods From Around The World

Serves 3-4 for a side dish of veggies

Ingredients:

1 cup almond milk, unsweetened original (I used Blue Diamond brand. Don’t use sweetened or vanilla)
1/4 cup nutritional yeast flakes
1/4 tsp smoked paprika (available at Indian stores, spice markets and Amazon. McCormick also makes one available at Walmart)
1/2 tsp miso paste
Fresh ground pepper (if desired)
1 1/2 tbsp flour (GF if desired)

Directions:

Add almond milk to a sauce pan and heat over medium (or medium low on gas stove) heat until warm. Sprinkle in the nutritional yeast and smoked paprika. Whisk it in.
Add the miso paste and try to break it up so there are no large clumps. Let it heat through a little and keep whisking it. Taste test and add a little more smoked paprika and some ground pepper if desired. If you add more miso it will make it saltier so use caution. (You want a tangy zesty flavour.)
Gently sprinkle in the flour and whisk in to combine. Try to ensure there are no clumps. Heat through for a minute or two until it’s thickened up. Stir it to prevent it from sticking or burning at the bottom.
Have your steamed vegetables ready or turn off the element and cover to keep warm until your veggies are ready.
Drizzle over vegetables and serve. (Have extra ready for your dinner guests to add more if they wish.)

Variations:

Feel free to use soy milk, rice milk, hemp milk etc as desired. I just have a preference for almond milk and don’t enjoy the taste of soy milk myself. To change some of the flavours in this sauce you could omit the smoked paprika and add some garlic and onion granules instead or add some tabasco or chipotle chili powder to make it spicy.

What do you think of this recipe? Did you ever have cheese sauce before you were vegan? What do you like to use now on vegetables?

Restaurant Worthy Raw Vegan Strawberry Pecan Spinach Salad

April 18, 2012 by Veronica Grace 32 Comments

I wanted to share this special and healthy salad recipe with you today for a few reasons. It’s also my friend Karmyn Malone’s top favourite raw recipe. She is a raw foodists and is always on the look out for delicious and simple oil free raw recipes, so this is right up her alley.

Another great thing about this recipe is that it has few ingredients and is easy to make. You don’t have to spend a lot of time making it and the ingredients are fairly easy to find at the grocery store.

As spring is here and it’s looking like it’s going to be a nice warm summer you’ll be able to make this recipe many times for yourself or for entertaining. It’s perfect to bring to a potluck, barbecue or to serve as a first course for dinner guests.

The problem with most salads is that they rely on store bought dressings that are neither nutritious or great tasting. The ones that people generally do like are full of cream and fat and are not part of a healthy life style if you eat them every day. The oil free ones are basically vinegar, sugar, salt and flavourings and after a while most people can’t stand another vinegary dressing!

I prefer to make my own salad dressings at home with fresh ingredients and combine them in a blender. You can even use a basic blender or a hand blender to make this recipe.

This Raw Vegan Strawberry Pecan Spinach Salad recipe is delicious AND nutritious! Even Karmyn’s young son Andrew loved this recipe, and as you know it can be hard to get some kids to eat raw greens and vegetables. But not Andrew, he was begging for more!

This recipe is part of my Savory Raw Dinner Recipes DVD and book collection that has received many rave reviews from friends and customers. They’re 100% oil free and much lower in fat than traditional gourmet raw salad and nut heavy entree recipes.
———-

For more yummy recipes go to:

Savory Raw Dinner Recipes

(We even have a 100% digital version for those who don’t want to wait for shipping!)
———

With this set of recipes you’ll be on your way to enjoying more fresh salads and learn my tips and tricks for making delicious oil free low fat vegan dressings that you will actually enjoy eating! No more buying expensive store bought dressings that only last a few meals that don’t tickle your taste buds anymore.

I have to say that I wish I could have this salad right now as we bought a big bag of spinach and I’m having a craving for it! (Sadly I did not bring any chia seeds with me to Hawaii!)

Raw Vegan Strawberry Pecan Spinach Salad

Makes 2 dinner servings or 4 side servings

Ingredients:

Strawberry Pecan Spinach Salad:

11 oz. container baby spinach leaves
2 cups of sliced fresh strawberries
1/2 cup red onion, diced or sliced (your choice)
1/3 cup raw pecans

Strawberry Chia Dressing:

1 cup fresh sliced strawberries
1/4 cup clementine mandarin orange juice (use the sweetest FRESH oranges you can find)
4 small dates, pitted (or you can sub 1-2 tbsp of liquid sweetener)
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp chia gel (or 1 tsp chia seeds)

Directions:

Slice pecans lengthwise on a cutting board so they are in long halves. (This makes them go farther and you’ll use less in the recipe)
Arrange salad ingredients into 2 large bowls or 4 medium sized bowls for starter salads.
Blend dressing ingredients together and drizzle over salad.
Serve immediately.

Additional Tips:

I don’t recommend using frozen strawberries for this recipe as they are usually too tart and sour. Use dark sweet strawberries. Store bought orange juice is also not a good base for this dressing. I don’t like store bought orange juice because it’s highly processed and quite acidic compared to fresh squeezed orange juice. Clementines or mandarins are preferable because they are mild and sweet, but you can also use Cara Cara or Valencia oranges if that’s what you can find.

You can make this dressing and keep it for 2-3 days in the fridge. Raw dressings ARE perishable and will not stay fresh for weeks like cooked salad dressings. So this is best enjoyed soon after making it.

What is Chia Gel?

Chia gel is just chia seeds mixed with water. I learned this from Victoria and Valya Boutenko when I met them in my home town of Calgary. When chia seeds absorb water they create this gel that suspends them and it great to add to dressings because it will hold it together much like oil would. So when you use blended fruits or juices for the base of your dressing it will be a little thicker and a better consistency. You can also use psyllium husk powder if you don’t have or don’t want to use chia gel. Psyllium husk powder is something people often add with some flavour to water to get extra fibre in their diet (not something we generally need as a whole food vegan) BUT it is useful in making dressings because it add some bulk to the liquid and holds it together nicely. You cannot taste it and it will not affect the flavour of your dressing. It just makes it more into a thin gel than just stay a watery dressing.

To make chia gel I mix 1/3 cup chia seeds into a container (that can go in the fridge) with 2 cups of water. You have to add chia to the water, and not pour water over the chia to prevent it from clumping together in uneven clumps. This lasts for 2-3 weeks in the fridge and you can add a tablespoon or two to your dressings or smoothies to get some whole food omega 3’s into your diet. This is more of a recommendation for raw foodists, if you’re not into raw food and won’t use this amount of chia gel you can just add 1 tsp of chia seeds to your dressing or smoothie if desired instead.

————-

For more information go to:

Savory Raw Dinner Recipes

————-

What do you think of this recipe? Have you ever had strawberry spinach salad before or chia seeds?

Easy Vegan Rainbow Bowl: Steamed Veggies Over Yams & Squash With Peanut Dressing

April 9, 2012 by Veronica Grace

I wanted to have a quick and healthy lunch yesterday, but I did not have any rice ready. So instead I decided to serve my veggies over some delicious steamed yams (sweet potatoes) and Kobocha Squash (Thai/Japanese pumpkin). It’s kind of Macrobiotic, it just doesn’t have rice, beans, or fermented veggies. I guess it’s like a lazy version of a Macrobiotic dish instead.

This is a nutritious and easy way to get a lot of veggies all into one dish. I’ve got broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, asparagus, yams (sweet potatoes) and squash, topped with a light peanut dressing to give it some nice flavour.

Basically my Rainbow Veggie Bowl is like a vegetable stir fry, but with steamed vegetables and nothing is fried! This is an easy meal idea for you when you’re not sure what to make, but just want something that still tastes good while being healthy at the same time. It’s also really easy to use up extra vegetables in the fridge, or use a whole bag of fresh mixed vegetables like I did and then they’re already washed and chopped for you.

You can also make the peanut dressing in advance and then use it throughout the week if you want to make this even quicker.

This is the steamed yams and squash before I topped it with the veggies.

Veronica’s Easy Rainbow Veggie Bowl

Serves 2

Ingredients:

1 large yam/sweet potato, peeled and chopped
1 small Kabocha squash, peeled and chopped (Thai/Japanese pumpkin) or 2-3 cups frozen butternut squash cubes
1 12 oz./340 g mixed vegetables (I used broccoli, cauliflower and baby carrots)
1/2 bunch asparagus, ends trimmed and cut in half (or other vegetables as desired)
1/2 recipe of Thin Peanut Dressing (see recipe below)

Directions:

Steam yams/sweet potatoes and squash in a medium-large pot in a steamer basket (if you have one) just until tender.
When yams and squash are starting to cook, place other vegetables into another pot with a steamer basket (if you have one) and steam just until cooked. Be sure to check on them so that the broccoli doesn’t fall apart.
Arrange steamed yams and squash into bowls and top with steamed vegetables. Drizzle with thin peanut dressing and serve!

Variations:

Use any other vegetables you desire instead of the asparagus, broccoli, cauliflower or carrots. You can also use ones like kale, Swiss chard, collard greens, Bok Choy, cabbage, onions, zucchini, etc.

Feel free to top your bowl with other goodies like seasoned tofu, tempeh, or black beans.

Kobacha squash can be substituted with Butternut squash, or even more yams/sweet potatoes if you like.

You can also serve with brown or white rice if you don’t want to use yams or squash.

(Oil-Free) Thin Peanut Dressing For Veggies

Serves 2-4

4 tbsp peanut butter
4 small dates, pitted or 1-2 tbsp of liquid sweetener of choice
1 clove of garlic
2 tsp light tamari or light soy sauce
2/3-3/4 cup water (to thin as desired)

Directions:

Add all ingredients to a blender and combine. Taste test and adjust seasonings if desired. Use as much or as little water as you like depending on how far you want your sauce to go.
Serve over greens or steamed vegetables.

Additional Tips:

Refrigerate any leftovers for up to 3 days.

Variations:

You can also try almond butter, or tahini if you prefer instead of peanut butter. You can also add fresh ginger or a splash of apple cider vinegar if desired for different flavours.

What do you think of my Easy Rainbow Veggie Bowl with Peanut Sauce?

viagra

A Healthier Alternative to Special K, Frosted Flakes And Other Processed Sugary Cereals

April 9, 2012 by Veronica Grace 6 Comments

Who needs to eat Special K for breakfast every day for 2 weeks to lose weight? You certainly don’t have to. You can find any low sugar, low fat cereal of your choice, top it with some fruit and a little almond or soy milk and use that as a low calorie breakfast to start your day. Fresh fruit is always preferable, but you can add things like dried raisins, goji berries, sliced up apricots, prunes, figs etc. as well.

Sugary cereals were never healthy, they were just an excuse to get children and those concerned with fibre intake to eat some grains and get their servings of dairy in. If you’re vegan and still want to eat some cereal from time to time, make up a healthy one of your own. I have some organic corn flakes here (because they were low fat, low sugar and low salt) and dressed them up wish fresh sliced strawberries and served it with some original sugar free almond milk. I also like using sliced bananas, but I didn’t have any that were ripe. Raspberries or other berries work great too. This recipe is gluten free and soy free as well.

Homemade Special K – Corn Flakes With Fresh Strawberries and Almond Milk

Serves 1

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups organic corn flakes (low fat, low sugar, low salt)
1/2 cup fresh sliced strawberries
2/3-3/4 cup almond milk (I used Blue Diamond Almond Breeze Unsweetened Original)

Directions:

Add cereal to a bowl. Top with strawberries, add almond milk and any additional fruits or sweeteners if desired.
If you want to add a sprinkle or brown sugar you can, or you could try the sweetened original version of almond milk if that’s more to your taste.

Enjoy!

Low Fat Vegan Apple Strawberry Giant Strudel Pie in Phyllo Pastry

April 1, 2012 by Veronica Grace 17 Comments

Low Fat Vegan Chef's Apple Strawberry Strudel

Low Fat Vegan Apple Strawberry Strudel In Phyllo Pastry

Now, before you start drooling all over the keyboard on my delicious (lower fat vegan) Apple Strawberry Giant Strudel Pie recipe, I want to make a quick reminder that my new recipe ebook Comfort Soups To Keep You Warm is now available for sale. I am so happy with the response I’ve recieved on this book so far. People are in love with the delicious and filling soup recipes and blown away by my 40+ pages on tips and tricks on exactly how I cook, what you need and how anyone can make soup and even create their own recipes with anything they have in the fridge! It also contains 30 oil free soup recipes and even some additional bonus recipes you won’t want to miss out on. I know you’re family is going to love these soups recipes so much, they won’t even notice they are healthy or vegan!

Ok, I have a very special recipe for you today… This would be GREAT for a special vegan Easter or holiday dessert.

It was my friend’s birthday a while back and he wanted me to make something yummy for dessert that had apples and cinnamon in it. I started thinking, how could I possibly make an apple pie low fat, but that tastes good? Pie crusts have lots of fat in them from margarine or shortening and raw pie crusts are really fatty from using nuts, so neither were a good solution.

I started thinking of apple crumble, but then you still need margarine to make the crumble crispy and delicious too. (Oil free oat crumble turns out like little muffin bits and rises because of the lack of oil, I’ve already tried it.) So I thought, hey I bet a few layers of phyllo (film or fillo) pastry would do the trick and make the apple strudel delicious without being too heavy. I was inspired by Susan’s recipe for Apple cranberry strudel pie.

But most people’s recipes want you to layer on the margarine or butter in between the phyllo and add lots of nuts.

Well PFFFT to them! Because you don’t even have to do that. The trick to getting a crispy phyllo pastry, is well, just baking it and let is crisp up in the heat. It doesn’t even need oil or butter to get crispy and flaky. I’ll show you how!

Low Fat Apple Strawberry Strudel Pie

So the key to working with phyllo pastry is to make sure ALL of your fillings and baking dish are ready to go. Phyllo dries out very very quickly and you have to work fast or it can tear and fall apart. I had some phyllo in the freezer that I bought months ago (as I had no idea what I would use it for and it became a little warped and ugly). Make sure you let the phyllo rest for a bit and come up to room temperature if you defrost it overnight in the fridge because it is inflexible when it’s so cold. Even though I ripped some of it… I managed to make it work anyway, even though I had never used phyllo before. See? Just fake it til you make it and you can make this apple strawberry strudel too… Even if you rip the phyllo and make a big mess, as long as you get some layers of phyllo sheets in there it will still taste good.

As always I wanted to pack in some more fruit into it, so I decided to use 2 different kinds of apples and some strawberries as they looked pretty fresh at the store. Who doesn’t love fresh summer strawberries? Anyone? I didn’t think so… I also think this would work well if you had frozen cherries, or really sweet peaches, or pears. I’m going to try an apple-pear combo next.

Although I made a bottom crust and a top for this, I decided that the crust (bottom layers) aren’t necessary to make this strudel tasty. They don’t really crisp up and they all stay flat anyway, and the most important part of the strudel is really the top crust. So next time I make it I’m going to skip the bottom crust.

Also the nuts aren’t really that necessary either, the reason we add a little crumbled “something in between” the layers it to keep them separate so hot air can get to them and crisp up the phyllo sheets. You can easily just use rolled oats and skip the nuts to make the recipe even lower in fat.

(Low Fat) Vegan Apple Strawberry Strudel In Phyllo Pastry

Serves 8

Ingredients:

12 (or 6 if you use no bottom crust) 9 x 14″ sheets of phyllo pastry dough (thaw overnight in refrigerator or 5 hours on the counter)
2 tbsp. almonds or other nuts (optional)
2 tbsp. rolled oats (the big flat type oats)
4 medium apples, peeled, cored, and diced (I used Granny Smith and Golden Delicious)
1/2 cup turbinado sugar (raw cane sugar) or other coarse sugar (not white sugar or powdered sugar)
2 teaspoons all purpose white flour, unbleached or cornstarch
2 teaspoons maple syrup, honey, agave or brown rice syrup (any liquid sweetener)
1 tbsp. ceylon cinnamon (my favourite available here) or 1/2 tbsp reg. cassia cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1 1/2 cups diced strawberries
2-3 second spray of canola oil or non-stick spray

Cinnamon-Sugar Topping:
1/4 teaspoon ceylon cinnamon
2 teaspoons regular sugar/white sugar

Directions:

Step #1. Preheat oven to 350 F /177 C. Use a rectangular (not square) baking dish and spritz the bottom with non stick spray (only if making a bottom crust, if not omit). Get the box of phyllo out of the fridge and let it warm up before using so it’s more flexible. Don’t take it out of the plastic package until you are ready to use it.

Step #2: Use a food processor or Vitamix to process the nuts and rolled oats until they are coarsely ground. (You can also just use rolled oats and skip the nuts if desired.)

Step #3: In a large sized bowl, toss the apples, turbinado (raw) sugar, flour, liquid sweetener, ceylon cinnamon, nutmeg and strawberries together gently. In a separate small bowl, mix the ceylon cinnamon and sugar together for the cinnamon-sugar topping.

*If you don’t want a bottom crust, you can skip this next part and go to Step #6.

Step #4: Get out a large piece of parchment paper and unroll the phyllo pastry over it (have a damp towel ready to cover the rest) and take out two sheets at a time and place them into the bottom of the baking dish. (Cover the remaining pieces with the damp towel to prevent them from drying out and cracking.) The sheets will probably be too big for your dish, but you can try and lean them on the side like I did. Also you can use scissors and trim any large ends that stick out.

Step #5: Sprinkle a tablespoon of the nut/oats (or just oats) over the phyllo pastry, layer another two sheets, sprinkle 1 tbsp again, and layer another 2 sheets. You will have 6 sheets total for the bottom of your pastry, in 3 layers.

As you can see my dish is a little small for the size of the pastry sheets. Feel free to trim.

Step #6: Pour in the apple strawberry mixture on top of the 6th sheet (if using a bottom crust). If you’re not using a bottom crust, just pour the apples and strawberries into the bottom of the baking dish.

Step #7: Cover the apple strawberry mixture with 2 more sheets of phyllo and push the edges down a little. If they are too giant, you can trim them. If the edges of the layers are all crammed together in a bunch at the top they won’t cook and will be like raw dough. So use your judgement, you want some tucked in, but not too much. Sprinkle another tablespoon of the nut/oats mixture and cover with another 2 sheets of phyllo. Repeat and cover with another 2 layers, another sprinkle of nuts/oats mixture, and another 2 sheets of phyllo.

Step #8: Spray just the top layer of phyllo with a 2 second spray of canola oil or non stick spray and with a sharp knife, cut the strudel into 8 pieces. (This is so it doesn’t shred when it’s cooked. It’s better to cut it beforehand.)

Step #9: Sprinkle it with the cinnamon-sugar topping. Ooh doesn’t that look pretty!

Step #10: Bake for 45-50 minutes until the apples are tender. You can test them with a fork after 45 minutes in the middle.

Step #11: Allow the strudel to cool a bit before serving (20-30 minutes). Serve warm.

Additional Tips:

Use whatever rectangular baking dish you have to make this strudel pie. Mine is like an oval casserole dish, and it worked ok. I could have used a larger dish because the phyllo sheets are a pretty big. I will trim a little of the excess overhang next time. If you use a large lasagna like pan (9″ x 13″), you should be fine and not have so much extra phyllo on the edges.

*To reheat the apple strawberry strudel you have to do it in an oven. You cannot microwave it or the crust will get all soggy and not be flakey anymore.

Variations:

Use whatever other fruit you like if you don’t want to use strawberries. It’s nice to have two flavours. You could also use some stewed rhubarb. My Nana used to make Apple Rhubarb pie and I loved this combination.

I also made this recipe with apples and Bosc pears. It was quite delicious too!

To Make Traditional Individual Apple Strawberry Strudels

You can also make little strudels with this recipe instead of a giant strudel-like pie.

If you want to make individual strudels, take 3-4 sheet of phyllo pastry per strudel. Place a large piece of parchment paper (larger than the phyllo) underneath it and fill the bottom side of the phyllo (the long side of the rectangle), but leave a 2″ gap on all sides and then roll the strudel up and away from you until it’s like a burrito. Tuck the short ends of the phyllo under the roll. Spritz with a little cooking spray and top with cinnamon-sugar. Pierce the strudel every 2″ to vent along the top and cover loosely in tinfoil. Bake at 375 F/ 190 C in the centre of the oven for 15 minutes. Take off the foil and bake for another 15 minutes until golden. Remove from the oven and let cool before slicing and serve warm.

The top crust of the Apple Strawberry Strudel Pie is really pretty. You can barely see the bottom crust, but it is there. It’s pretty flat and soggy so this is why I don’t think it’s essential to be delicious.

Side view of the apple strawberry strudel. Is your mouth watering yet? Hee hee.

What do you think of my Low Fat Apple Strawberry Strudel Pie recipe?

Also what do you think of the new printer function of the site? Pretty cool huh!

How To Bake A Russet Potato Without Oil For Baked Jacket Potatoes

March 27, 2012 by Veronica Grace 16 Comments

Oil Free Vegan Baked Potato Hummus Salsa

Oil Free Vegan Baked Potato with Red Pepper Hummus and Salsa

Just a reminder that my Comfort Soups To Keep You Warm recipe eBook is out! I’m already getting lots of great feedback on how delicious the soup recipes are!

Today I’m going to show you how to bake healthy baked potatoes in the oven without all the oil and fat!

I think baked jacket potatoes are something that most people love or have fond memories of eating. It’s a comfort food for them and I know Dr. John McDougall is certainly very fond of them as well! Potatoes can be healthy, or unhealthy depending what you put on them though. If you’re on the McDougall Program you might be interested in baking russet potatoes regularly and without oil of course.

Or maybe you just really like having something warm and filling for dinner, either way baked russet potatoes are a good way to go for a low fat, satisfying meal or side.

The baked potato above is topped with roasted red pepper hummus (that’s oil free and low fat) and salsa and is served with a side of my Low Fat Vegan Tangy Collard Greens With Coconut Milk and Mushrooms . (It’s also delicious to pour some of the coconut cooking liquid on top of your baked potato.)

So the main reason people like to oil and salt their potato skins before baking them is because it makes the skin all crispy and taste, well salty! The other reason is that it cooks it a bit faster but it raises the temperature it cooks at. Baking in oil at such high temperatures can create carcinogens and adding excess oil to a potato skin is not the best for health.

It’s also not beneficial to your health if you load your baked potato or potato skins with bacon, cheese, butter and/or sour cream. These things are far too rich and the negative effects of these toppings outweigh all the health benefits of eating a baked potato for vitamins and fibre. If you’re watching your weight, cholesterol or salt intake, please don’t add those things to your baked potato. There are many healthier alternatives.

While leaving their rich potato toppings out won’t make it taste exactly the same, it will be healthier for you and you can dress up your potato skins with some healthy low fat vegan alternatives like:

Fat free salsa (homemade or jarred)
Tobasco sauce
Hummus (original or roasted red pepper, low fat of course. Look for oil free or make your own.)
Baked beans (homemade or canned)
Salt and Pepper
Fresh chives or green onions (scallions)
Nutritional yeast
Fat free vegan queso or “cheezy” sauce
Steamed veggies like broccoli or kale

What Potato Do I Use For Baked Potatoes?

Use the dark brown rough skinned russet potatoes you find at the grocery store. They make the best baked potatoes and are also good for mashed potatoes. Don’t use the smooth waxy skinned yellow or red potatoes for baked jacket potatoes, these are better suited for potato salad, mini roasted potatoes, steamed or boiled potatoes and used in stews and soups.

Make sure that you select russet potatoes that are about the same size so they cook at the same time. If you bake medium and large ones together the large ones will not be done when the medium ones are ready.

Should I Cover My Russet Potato In Tinfoil For Baking?

No. I have no idea why people think they should do this, much less why some grocery stores sell russet potatoes in tinfoil. Maybe if you want to barbecue them, but when you put tinfoil on it you are STEAMING the potato from the inside out and not BAKING it. So it is not going to turn out like a baked potato and be all dry and fluffy inside. It will be more watery and dense like potatoes steamed in water. Don’t do this. Bake them uncovered for best results.

How To Bake a Russet Potato Without Oil

from Comfort Foods From Around The World

Step #1: Preheat your oven to 400 F/ 205 C (375 F on a convection oven)

Step #2: Wash your russet potatoes well and cut out any “eyes” or bad spots in the potatoes.

Step #3: Use a fork and poke a lot of holes all over your potatoes. This stops them from cooking unevenly and possible exploding in the oven.

Oil Free Baked Oven Roasted Potatoes

Step #4: When your oven has come up to temperature, place them directly on the rack in the middle of the oven. Leave enough space between them that they are not touching.

Step #5: Bake your potatoes for 50-70 minutes (depending on size) and check on them between 50 and 60 minutes. Using a pot holder or oven mitt, you want to gently squeeze the potatoes and see if they give. If they seem soft all the way through to the middle they are done. If you are not sure you can cut one in half and check. If they need more time, continue to bake, or you can microwave for a few minutes more to finish them off if you’re in a hurry. (Once you know the exact cooking time for your oven and this size of potato, write it down or remember it so you don’t have to check on it and guess next time. Usually they will be done within 60-70 min).

Step #6: To fluff your potato you’re going to make a slit across the top of it, and using pot holders or oven mitts gently squeeze the bottom of the potato together (like how a crab would close it’s claws) and this will push the insides up and open it for filling. (This is something I learned when I worked in a restaurant and had to plate food.)

Step #7: Fill your potato with your (hopefully healthy and vegan) seasonings and serve.

When I bake giant potatoes like this it become a whole meal when served with a side of greens. So this makes it a really easy AND cheap vegan meal!

Time Saving Tip:

You can bake multiple potatoes and keep them for future meals in the fridge and just reheat them for a quick lunch or side dish the next night.

I know a lot of Americans like to “nuke” their raw potatoes, but I really don’t like this. They can get all hard on the bottom and be a different texture. I prefer to bake mine and only reheat if necessary and not to use the microwave to cook anything that was raw.

Oil Free Vegan Baked Potato With Baked Beans

Here’s another oil free baked potato served with homemade baked beans. The baked beans recipe will be in my upcoming “Comfort Dinner Recipes From Around The World” eBook.

What do you like putting on your oil free baked potatoes?

Sneak Peek Recipe: Mexican Black Bean Corn Soup From Low Fat Vegan Comfort Soups To Keep You Warm

March 22, 2012 by Veronica Grace 36 Comments

And the winner of my first copy of Comfort Soups To Keep You Warm is….

….Meena Sharma! Congratulations Meena, I will be contacting you shortly to let you know you’ve won.

Thank you to everyone who entered! I really appreciate your support and excitement. My Comfort Soups To Keep You Warm recipe eBook is now ready so check it out!

After all of those tantalizing soup photos I showed you on Monday, I bet you are craving a delicious bowl of soup by now! So I wanted to share one of my soup recipes with you. This oil free vegan Mexican Black Bean Corn Soup is one of my favourites, it’s so hearty and filling and bursting with flavour. You’re going to want to make this soon!

An insider tip I have for you is to make your own vegetable broth (my recipe is here) and fresh black beans (instead of canned) for the absolute best taste. But if you’re in a hurry, you can always use canned black beans. For packaged vegetable broth the best substitute seems to be Pacific Natural Foods Organic Low Sodium Vegetable Broth. Roasted cumin and chipotle chili powder bring great flavour to this recipe. If you can find it over the regular versions it adds a really nice smokey flavour to the soup. I use McCormick roasted cumin, you can get it on Amazon or at places like Walmart or some grocery stores. This is probably my favourite seasoning and I go through more of it than any other spice. You’ll definitely use it a lot if you make my recipes. I also use Frontier organic chipotle powder in all of my Mexican dishes and it’s amazing in vegan chili too.

Now on to the recipe!

Low Fat Vegan Mexican Black Bean Corn Soup

Serves 8

Ingredients:

1 large onion, diced
6 cloves of garlic, minced
3 stalks of celery, diced
2 carrots, diced
5 cups/1.25 qts./1.2 L of vegetable broth (homemade or low sodium)
4 15 oz./425 g cans of black beans, low sodium (or 7 cups cooked) undrained
1 15 oz./425 g can of whole sweet corn, drained (salt free, unsweetened)
1 14.5 oz./411 g can of fire roasted tomatoes, diced (I use Muir Glen Organics)
1 tbsp. + 1 tsp. roasted ground cumin (or regular cumin)
1 to 1 1/2 tsp. chipotle chili powder or smoked paprika
1/2 tsp. Herbamare or salt (to taste)
1/2 tsp. sugar or sweetener (if needed)
Juice of 1 small lime
Fresh ground pepper to taste
1/2 bunch of cilantro, chopped to garnish

Directions:

1. In a large pot, sauté the onion, celery, carrots and garlic in 1 cup of vegetable broth over medium heat for 6-7 minutes. Add chipotle chili powder, roasted cumin, and black pepper and cook for another minute or two. Stir in the remaining vegetable broth, 4 cups (or 2.5 cans) of beans, and sweet corn. Turn to high heat and bring to a boil.

2. Add remaining 3 cups (or 1.5 cans) of beans and crushed tomatoes to a Vitamix or blender and process until smooth. Stir into soup when boiling, reduce heat to medium, and simmer for 15 minutes until beans and vegetables are done to your desired tenderness.

3. Taste test. Add Herbamare or salt to taste and lime juice. If your soup is a little too tangy or bitter, you can add a little sugar to balance the flavor if desired.

4. Serve in bowls and garnish with fresh chopped cilantro

Nutrition Facts: 8 Servings Amount Per Serving: Calories 225.8 Total Fat 0.2 g Saturated Fat 0.0 g Sodium 485.5 mg Carbs 42.6 g Dietary Fiber 16.9 g Sugars 4.1 g Protein 13.6 g

——————–

So now on to the contest for the second copy of my Comfort Soups To Keep You Warm eBook! This second contest entails a little more than the last one. If you complete it, your chances of winning are much much higher!

—–>How You Can Win The Second Copy of My eBook<—–

Contest is Closed

To be entered you need to post a comment on this article and let me know what you think of the Mexican Black Bean Corn Soup, AND you need to pick 4 other recipes on my blog and comment on them as well. If you can number your FIFTH (#5) comment (to show you are done) when you post it on another recipe, it will also help me track them. Comment #1 can be done here.

But, good new for those of you who have been following along and commenting on my recipes, your old comments on my recipes count too. So if you’ve already commented on one or two recipes, those count and you just have to comment on this one and make sure you have 5 comments total. If you number your 5th comment to let me know you’ve completed the challenge, it will be helpful for me to track.

I will take all of the commenters with 5 comments on recipe posts (including this one) and enter them into a random draw to win a second copy of my recipe eBook. The contest closes on Saturday March 24th at midnight EST/9pm PST and then I will announce the winner on Monday March 26th. Make sure you’re signed up to my newsletter to find out if you’ve won! (You can sign up on the top right of this page in the bright pink box.)

—————————————–

The winner of the second copy of Comfort Soups To Keep You Warm is Vicky Johnston! Congratulations Vicky!

My recipe book is now available!

Preview Photos From My Low Fat Vegan Comfort Soups To Keep You Warm Recipe Ebook

March 18, 2012 by Veronica Grace 141 Comments

I’m REALLY excited about my new Comfort Soups To Keep You Warm recipe eBook. It’s actually going to be part of a series of many recipe eBooks (each containing 30+ recipes, tips and how to’s) later on.

I’ve spent over 3 months working on these recipes, testing them, making them for family and friends, photographing them and putting together this eBook. It’s a lot of work really. I had no idea just how much until now!

So while you may have thought I was just doing a few recipes here and there (which you’ve seen on my blog), I have actually been secretly hiding all of my BEST recipes on my computer!

You may have noticed there’s not a lot of low fat vegan soup recipes on my blog so far, but we’ve actually been eating oil free vegan soups almost every day for months!

I feel like I have actually perfected the art of designing and seasoning oil free vegan soups. From making my own oil-free homemade vegetable broth and fresh cooked beans to putting them together in soups that are 100% healthy AND delicious.

I’ve even tested them out on my parent’s omnivorous friends and they wouldn’t have realized they were oil-free or vegan, until I told them! All they wanted to know was where can they get more, and like right now!

I know you are going to love these soup recipes, there’s something for everyone and I took inspiration from cultures all over the world, including our world trip we did a year and a half ago.

Most of these vegan soup recipes are naturally gluten free, or gluten-free friendly, nut-free friendly and most of them are soy-free as well.

Let’s take a look at my delicious soup recipes now:

Mexican Black Bean Corn Soup

Kale White Bean Soup

Tuscan Roasted Tomato Chickpea Soup

Roasted Garlic Cauliflower Soup

Red Wine Minestrone Soup

Low Fat Vegan Oil Free Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup With Garlic Croutons

Low Fat Vegan Oil Free Vietnamese Pho Noodle Soup

Vietnamese Vegan Pho (Noodle Soup)

Creamy Potato Corn Chowder

Low Fat Vegan Chef's Oil Free Potimarron Carrot Soup

Potimarron (Red Kuri Squash) Carrot Soup

Just-Like “Chicken” Noodle Soup

Gourmet Cream of Mushroom Soup

Indian Dal Soup

Cream of Asparagus Soup

Low Fat Vegan Chef's Oil Free Yam Sweet Potato Chickpea Cabbage Soup

Yam Chickpea Cabbage Soup

Low Fat Vegan Chef's Oil Free Cream of Potato Leek Mushroom Soup

Potato Mushroom Leek Soup

Vegetable Bean Barley Soup

Thai Pumpkin Soup

Moroccan Chickpea Soup

Curried Carrot Leek Soup

Low Fat Vegan Chef's Oil Free Chinese Asian Vegetable Noodle Soup

Chinese Vegetable Noodle Soup

Cream of Artichoke Soup

Split Pea Carrot Yam (Sweet Potato) Soup

Greek Fasolada (White Bean) Soup

Cream of Broccoli Soup

This is just a sample of all the soups in the book, there are a few more, including 2 vegetable broth recipes and some bonus recipes you can use for sides and garnishes for the soups!

I have to say, it’s VERY difficult for me to choose a top favourite of all of these soups. I would eat them all again and again! After traveling all over the world, including Canada and the USA I can say that these recipes are MUCH MUCH better than the vegan soup offerings currently available at most restaurants. Most of the time their vegetable soups are rather watery and bland and need more seasonings and vegetables!

My soups are packed full of both vegetables and flavour that you will want to make these soups regularly as well. And who doesn’t love one pot meals with few dishes to clean up? I know I do!

————————————

Here’s How You Can Enter To Win A Copy Of My Low Fat Vegan Comfort Soups Recipe eBook

The contest is now closed.

Simply comment on this post below and tell me which one or two soups you are the MOST excited to try and why and you’ll be entered to win! I will select from one of the comments below, so PLEASE make sure you put in your real name and a correct email address so I can contact you, should you be chosen. (These emails are viewable by myself only, no one else on the blog will have access to them.) The contest closes at Midnight EST Tues March 20 (9 PM PST the blog shows PST time stamps).

Comfort Soups To Keep You Warm is now available! Make sure you’re signed up to my newsletter to find out how you can get a copy and get a free special bonus for ordering during the launch.

The Best Low Fat Vegan Silken Tofu Omelette Recipe!

March 12, 2012 by Veronica Grace 27 Comments

I’m going to show you just how YOU can make a delicious vegan tofu omelette. I have to confess, this omelette looks WAY better than my first attempts at making vegan tofu omelettes. Making pancake-like things including crepes, omelettes, Indian dosas and Ethiopian injeera bread have all been things that were a little hard for me to get right at first. I realized the problem was my insecurity and lack of patience in making them! Once you tell yourself you can do it and just try it, it works out much better. And hey as long as it tastes good, it’s all that matters the first time!

Making this recipe does take a little bit of practice if you are:

1.) Inexperienced at pouring and flipping pancakes, crepes or omelettes in general

2.) Impatient and paranoid about the omelette sticking and burning to the pan and want to peek and move it around (which it will not, so do not panic and don’t touch it.)

These are things you must learn by experience and you have to accept that it will take a bit of practice being able to pour it, spread it, let it cook (and not mess with it!) and then fold it in half and slide it off the pan.

It took me about 3 cracks at this recipe before I got it right and learned to just trust the process of cooking and the tofu omelette was going to be fine, and stop panicking if it seemed stuck and trying to move it around with a spatula. Don’t do this.

I’ve now got it down pat and even made some for my mom and I over the Christmas holidays (it was her first vegan omelette ever) and she enjoyed it. I think she also enjoyed having some Daiya cheese and mushrooms in it too, but also the novelty of having something omelette-like as she’s been avoiding eggs.

This is a recipe I will make occasionally for a special vegan brunch or breakfast. It’s best for 2-3 people as it can take much much longer if you are trying to use multiple pans or cook for more people.

Tofu scrambles and tofu omelettes seem to take longer to cook than eggs (as they are not raw and drastically changing structure) so they are more forgiving and don’t really overcook. As long as it’s not turning black and you’re cooking it on medium or medium low heat it will be ok.

Also the trick to this is using silken tofu. Do not use regular tofu. You will NOT enjoy the flavour.

Like I said, I’ve made this recipe many times, I have adapted it from Susan V’s recipe at FatFreeVegan.com and made it even LOWER in fat and still delicious. I think I found the perfect vegan tofu omelette recipe! This omelette is gluten free as well!

Hurray!

Low Fat Vegan Silken Tofu Omelette Recipe

Serves 2-3 Makes 2 giant (full pan size) or 3 medium sized omelettes

Ingredients:

1 12.3 oz/349 g package FIRM Mori-nu silken tofu (must be firm or extra firm)
3 tbsp. almond or coconut milk
3 tbsp. of nutritional yeast
3 tbsp. cornstarch or tapioca starch
1 tsp. dijon mustard (essential)
1/4 tsp. turmeric
1/2 tsp. Herbamare or salt, or to taste
1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper
1/8 tsp of smoked paprika (This makes it more delicious)

Filling:
fresh spinach
sauteed mushrooms
sauteed onions
any other desired toppings
vegan cheese *optional

Directions:

1. Place all of the ingredients into a Vitamix or food processor and blend together until smooth.

2. Heat a wide shallow non-stick pan or non-stick crepe pan over medium heat. Make sure it’s very hot before using. Sprinkle a little water on it to test. If it bubbles off right away it’s ready. If not, wait until it’s really hot.

3. Pour batter onto pan about the size of a large pancake. Don’t pour too much or it will be hard to pick up and fold . Spread it out a little very gently into a circle using a small spatula. It will be quite thick, this is ok as there is a lot of air in the mixture. Don’t spread it out thinly.

4. Cook for at least 5 minutes until it almost dries out on top and sets. Turn the heat down to medium low. You have the option of flipping it over if you want the tofu to be cooked firm, or you can add your filling now to the bottom half and flip the top half of it over to cover and cook until the ingredients soften and your vegan cheese (if any) melts. I usually just cook it on one side only and then fill the bottom half.

5. When the omelette is cooked and sturdy enough to move, slide it onto a plate. If your fillings aren’t warm enough you can pop it into the microwave for 15-20 seconds to warm up and set the omelette a little more if necessary. The spinach will wilt from the heat of the cooked omelette.

6. Serve. (Be careful! The tofu will be very hot! Let it cool a bit before eating, I don’t want you to burn your mouth.)

Additional Tips:

Mori-nu silken tofu is sold at almost every store. Whether it’s a health food store or just a regular grocery store. Most commonly it is in the “health nut”/gluten free/vegetarian product section of the store with other dried goods. Sometimes it’s in the refrigerated section with tofu and fake meats, but it doesn’t have to be refrigerated so it’s usually in the dry goods section.

If you need a little extra water or milk to blend your tofu add another tbsp or two. Not much it still needs to be thick enough to set.

If your pan is not very good or tends to stick you may need a spray of non-stick spray. But if it’s a good pan, you’ll be ok. Give your pan a wipe with a wet paper towel in between omelettes and let it come back up to temperature again before making the next one. Make sure your pan is clean and doesn’t have black bits on it, or it will get on your omelette.

Practice makes perfect! Even if you mess up a little it will still taste good as long as you cooked it. Give yourself the first one and then save the nicer ones for your family.

If you have any leftover “batter” you can save it in the fridge for another day. Let it sit on the counter and warm up to room temperature before making.

Variations:

You can use any favourite omelette fillings for your vegan omelette. Get creative. Spinach and mushrooms are just my favourites. Make sure your veggies (aside from spinach) are cooked first before adding them to your omelette and season them a little so they will be delicious.

———

Here was my previous attempt where I kind of ripped it while flipping the top half over. It’s ok, it still tasted great!

Have you ever made a tofu omelette before? What are your favourite omelette fillings?