Raw Hemp Crusted Squash Cassarole

The original recipe for Brazil Crusted Squash looks amazing. Brazil nuts are a wonderful source of selenium and hemp for the omega 3's, we only had hemp. We altered the recipe to fit our needs. This would make a wonderful side dish for any holiday meal. If raw isn't your thing, bake at 350 for 20 minutes.

Herby Squash Ingredients:

• 4 cups summer squash, thinly sliced
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/2 cup red onion, sliced thin
• 1/4 cup filtered water
• 1 tbsp unflavored kombucha
• 1 tsp fresh rosemary, minced
• 1/2 tsp fresh sage, minced,  or 1 tsp dried
• 1/2 tsp fresh thyme, or 1 tsp dried

Breading Ingredients:

• 1 cup hemp seeds
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning
• 1 tsp dried parsley, or 1 TBS fresh
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper

Directions:

1. Mix all ingredients in a mixing bowl.
2. Cover and let sit out for at least three hours to soften. Or you can use a dehydrator the speed up the process, but make sure it is covered so it doesn’t dry out.
3. Make the breading by putting breading ingredients in food processor and process until it becomes a crumbly texture.
4. Put the zucchini mixture on your serving dish and top with breading.
5. Dehydrate at 105 for 4-6 hours to warm, overnight to soften and warm

Sweet Potato, Acorn Squash, Mushroom, and Wild Rice Soup

This is the original recipe from Jackie Gonzalez-Geezer Winter Vegetable Soup with Squash, Garbanzo Beans, and Quinoa . We altered it to fit our needs.

Ingredients

• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 small acorn squash, peeled, seeds removed, and cubed
• 3 small sweet potatoes, cubed
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 2 cups crimini mushrooms
• 2 cups cooked wild rice

Instructions

1. In a large pot, combine the minced garlic and the chopped vegetables. Stir to combine, and cook over medium-high heat until the vegetables start to soften, about 6-8 minutes. Use vegetable broth to saute.
2. Stir in the vegetable broth, parsley, and a few pinches of salt and pepper. Bring the soup to a boil, then partially cover the pot and simmer on medium heat until the vegetables are fork-tender, about 20 minutes.
3. Taste the soup and add a few more pinches of salt, if needed. Stir in the cooked wild rice, and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Serve, and enjoy!

Buddha Bowl

There are so many Buddha Bowls out there. We like this one from Crazy Vegan but altered it to what was in our refrigerator and our taste. For my hubby, we marinated a 1/4 pound of pork in the chickpea marinade but used the remaining ingredients. This was delicious!

Spicy Buddha Bowl loaded with Brown Rice, Maple Sriracha Chickpeas, Roasted Sweet Potato, Veggies and a creamy Turmeric Tahini Dressing. Vegan | Gluten Free

Author: Crazy Vegan Kitchen

Recipe type: Vegan Meals

Serves: Serves 4

Ingredients

• 2 cup Cooked Wild Rice

Sweet potatoes

• 2 Sweet Potato, cut into large chunks
• 2 teaspoon water
• Salt/Pepper

Chickpea marinade

• 1 can Organic Chickpeas, drained
• 1 teaspoon Sriracha
• 2 teaspoons Maple Syrup
• ½ teaspoon Paprika
• ½ teaspoon Garlic Powder
• Salt/Pepper

Lightly stirred veggies

• 2 cup chopped onions
• 1 cup  red bell pepper
• 2 cup broccoli 
• 1 cup haricot vert beans
• 2 cup sliced mushrooms

Turmeric Tahini Dressing

• 1/2 cup Tahini
• 1/2 cup Warm Water
• 2 teaspoon Maple Syrup
• 1 teaspoon Turmeric
• 1/2 teaspoon Sriracha
• Salt to taste

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350. Coat sweet potato in 1 tsp oil and season with salt and pepper. Place on baking tray and pop into the oven to roast for 35 minutes, turning once halfway through the cooking time.
2. Whilst sweet potato is cooking, prepare chickpeas.
3. In a bowl, combine chickpeas, sriracha, maple syrup, paprika, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Mix to combine. Heat a saucepan and transfer chickpea mixture into saucepan to cook for 5-10 minutes. Make sure to keep the chickpeas moving so they don't burn. Cook until chickpeas are slightly sticky and no longer watery. Keep aside. We also sauteed the mushrooms with the chickpeas.
4. In a clean saucepan, lightly water saute and season the veggies. Transfer to a bowl.
5. Once sweet potato is cooked through, prepare your Buddha Bowl by placing your rice in the bottom of a bowl and then topping with the sweet potato, chickpeas, and veggies.
6. To make dressing, whisk all ingredients together. Liberally splash on Buddha Bowl and enjoy!!!

This one from Oh How She Glows has been recommended to us as well, but we haven't tried it.

Cook Once and Eat Healthy All Week

These recipes are wonderful from Mind Body Green cook-once-eat-healthy-all-week-heres-how-to-actually-do-it-for-under-35 by Leah Vanderveldt, Associate Food Editor

Sunday Prep

Cook-ahead ingredients

• 4 zucchini
• 4 bell peppers
• 1 large red onion
• 1 medium delicata squash
• 2 cups uncooked quinoa
• olive oil
• salt + pepper

Fresh ingredients to buy ahead

• 16 oz. fresh baby spinach
• 1 bunch of cilantro
• 1 avocado
• salsa or tomatoes
• hummus
• harissa (a North African chili paste) or other hot sauce
• za'atar (a Middle Eastern spice blend) (optional)
• scallions
• lemon
• ginger
• garlic

1. Heat oven 425 F. Slice zucchini, bell peppers, red onion and delicata squash into even-sized pieces.

2. Coat baking sheets in olive oil and arrange vegetables on baking sheets. Place in the oven to roast (2 baking sheets can go in at a time). Roasting times vary depending on the size of your pieces, but this in how long mine took: 

• Zucchini: 20 minutes
• Bell Peppers: 20 minutes
• Delicata squash: 25-30 minutes

3. While vegetables are roasting, bring 2 cups of quinoa and 4 cups of water to a boil. Reduce heat to low, and cook for 15 minutes until the water is absorbed. Cover and let stand for another 15 minutes.

1. Curried Quinoa Bowls

Cooked ingredients

• 1 cup quinoa
• 2 big handfuls of baby spinach
• a big spoonful of each roasted vegetable per bowl

Added Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon coconut oil
• 2 teaspoons fresh ginger, finely chopped or grated on a microplane
• 1 teaspoon Madras curry powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/2 teaspoon salt + pepper
• 1/2 cup coconut milk
• Cilantro, chopped (optional)

Preparation

1. Heat coconut oil in a large pan over a medium heat. Add ginger, curry powder, cumin and turmeric and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.

2. Stir in coconut milk, salt and pepper. Add quinoa, and cook for about 2-4 minutes until the coconut milk has absorbed a bit and the quinoa is a golden color. Stir in spinach and allow it to wilt (about 1 minute).

3. Remove from heat and put quinoa into bowls with the roasted vegetables (you can reheat these before adding to the bowl or let the quinoa warm them). Top with cilantro.

2. Mezze Bowls

Cooked ingredients

• 1 cup quinoa
• 2 big handfuls of baby spinach
• a big spoonful of each roasted vegetable per bowl

Added Ingredients

• 1/4 cup hummus
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• salt + pepper
• 1 cup chickpeas (if canned, drained and rinsed)
• 2 teaspoons harissa or other hot sauce
• 1 teaspoon za'atar (optional)
• fresh cilantro (optional)

Preparation

1. Make the hummus dressing by combining hummus, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper.

2. Combine chickpeas and harissa in a small bowl. If you want a warm salad, reheat vegetables and chickpeas in a pan and add spinach just long enough to wilt.

3. Arrange quinoa, spinach and roasted vegetables in bowls. Top with chickpeas, hummus dressing and a sprinkling of za'atar and cilantro.

3. Quinoa Stir Fry

Cooked ingredients

• 1 cup quinoa
• 2 big handfuls of baby spinach
• a big spoonful of each roasted vegetable per bowl

Added Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon oil
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons tamari
• 1/2 cup frozen peas, thawed
• 2 scallions/green onion finely chopped
• Pinch of red chili flakes (optional)
• 1 fried egg per bowl (optional)

Preparation

1. Heat oil in a large pan over a medium-high heat. Add ginger and garlic to the pan and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds.

2. Add cooked quinoa, tamari and peas and stir, cooking for 2 minutes. Add spinach and other roasted vegetables and cook for another 2 minutes.

3. Fry an egg for each bowl, if desired. Fill bowls with fried quinoa and top with scallions, chili flakes and an egg.

4. Fajita Salad Bowls

Cooked ingredients

• 1 cup quinoa
• 2 big handfuls of baby spinach
• a big spoonful of each roasted vegetable per bowl

Added Ingredients

• 1 avocado
• 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro leaves
• 1 tablespoon finely diced red onion (optional)
• Pinch of red chili flakes (optional)
• 1 cup cooked black beans (if canned, drained and rinsed)
• Salsa or fresh tomatoes, chopped
• 1/2 lime or lemon

Preparation

1. Make guacamole by combining avocado, cilantro, red onion, chili flakes, salt and pepper, smashing with a fork as you go.

2. Arrange quinoa, spinach and roasted vegetables in bowls. Top with black beans, salsa and guacamole and spritz with a little lime or lemon juice.

Photos courtesy of the author

Halloween Candy

Happy Halloween!!!

We hosted a "Making Healthy Candy" class last week. 

We made Cacao Peppermint Sticks, mock mini Milky-Way bars, and two different types of Cacao bark, one with fruit and seeds and the other with crispie buckwheat. 

Fully Raw Kristina Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcakes

Here is Kristina's recipe for Chocolate Peanut Butter Filled Cupcakes

We made a few changes. These are so good. Here is our recipe.

Ingredients for the cupcake:
2 cups dried mulberries
1 cup pitted dates
6 dried figs
1 cup chia seeds
1 TBS cinnamon
1/4 cup carob powder
1/4 cup cacao powder
2-4 TBS water, for the desired stickiness
Directions: Place all the ingredients in the food processor, process until sticky
Press 1-2 TBS into a cupcake cup liner, leaving a hollowed area for the almond butter.
Place 1-2 TBS almond butter in each cupcake
Cover with 1 TBS cupcake mix. Gently pat

Ingredients for frosting:
1 cup soaked cashews
6 pitted medjool dates
dash of cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla or ~ 1 inch of vanilla bean
1/3-1/2 cup water, for desired thickness
1/4 cup grated carrots (for green wheat grass powder, for red shredded beets)

Directions: place all ingredients in a high speed blender. Blend to frosting consistency. Frost cupcakes and decorate with cacao nibs

Fall Fiesta Sweet-potato-chorizo-soup

The recipe for sweet-potato-chorizo-soup was sent from Andrew Wilder from Eating Rules. My husband will love this.

Fall Fiesta Sweet Potato Soup

Author: Heather Vander Wey

Recipe Type: Soup

Cuisine: Southwest

Prep Time:  35 mins

Cook Time:  45 mins

Total Time:  1 hour 20 mins

Serves/Yield: 6-8 Servings

A nutritionally dense Fall soup packed with flavor and color. Uses chorizo and powdered chipotle.

Ingredients

For the Soup

• 6-8 cups organic chicken broth (depending on desired thickness)
• 3 large organic sweet potatoes peeled & diced (approximately 9 cups diced)
• 1 medium organic onion
• 4 medium cloves organic garlic
• 1 pound organic chorizo
• 2 tablespoon organic extra virgin olive oil we water sauteed instead)
• Juice of 2 large limes (approximately ½ cup)
• 1 teaspoon organic coriander
• 1 teaspoon organic cumin
• ½ teaspoon organic powdered chipotle, for mild heat (1 teaspoons will make medium heat, 1½- 2 teaspoons will make hot heat)

For the Garnish

• organic cilantro
• organic roasted red peppers
• organic pepitas
• organic plain Greek yogurt
• diced avocado
• organic tortilla chips
• limes

Instructions

1. Peel sweet potatoes, dice into small chunks- place into 10-12 quart stock pot. Set Aside.
2. Dice onion. Set aside.
3. In a large frying pan over med-med/high heat, add olive oil. Take chorizo out of casing, add to frying pan. Break apart meat with spatula while sautéing. Once meat is cooked remove to a plate with a paper towel to absorb extra fat. Refrigerate until needed.
4. While pan is still hot add diced onion. Sauté until caramelized. Add coriander, cumin and chipotle towards the end of sautéing and heat for 1 addi-tional minute. Deglaze pan with about ½ cup of chicken broth to ensure all spice flavor is picked up. Add to potato stock pot.
5. Peel and crush garlic, add to stockpot along with remaining chicken broth.
6. Bring to a boil over high heat. Cover and lower heat to med/low Cook for approximately 45 minutes or until potato is extremely tender. Juice the limes and add at the end of cooking process. Turn off heat.
7. With an immersion blender, blend until smooth. Add cooked chorizo and warm soup over medium heat until desired temperature.
8. Garnish with favorite toppings.