Vegenaise Salad Dressing

I pray everyone had a fantastic time with family celebrating the holiday and reflecting on the many things for which we each have to be thankful. I spent time with my family and friends this weekend and enjoyed some great food as well.

For a transitioning person, I think the holidays (which hold many fond traditions regarding food) will be the toughest to get used to. So ... this holiday was a mixed bag of raw, vegan, and traditional items in our household.

One really scrumptious item was something Tricia made: Vegenaise Salad Dressing
It tastes much like ranch dressing but yummier!

She mixed up the following items to taste:

• Vegenaise (grapeseed oil)
• Rice Milk
• Tarragon
• Mrs. Dash original seasoning

She said that she just added the last three items to the Vegenaise in a blender and continued adding until she had the amount, consistency, and taste that she wanted. I don't know that I can replicate it exactly but plan to give it my best shot.

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I've located a few more local resources that might be of interest to some of you out there.

Local Resources:
Shannon Rose Live! -- local lady with raw classes, recipes, and information.
Beautiful on Raw -- featuring reviews, resources, books, and more from Cordova, TN

Nashville Raw Foods Support Group -- found on meetup.com
As stated on their website:
"Gain support and encouragement from other raw fooders in the area and share meals, recipes, books, ideas and friendship together on a monthly basis. This group is for everyone interested or just learning about raw foods as well as for those that are stuggling or have already "gone raw." You don't need to be 100% raw, all eating paths and lifestyles are respected."

You can also find a list of other local farms and such on these posts:
Local & Noteworthy, part 1
Local & Noteworthy, part 2

Recipe link from Trisha G.:
Trish recently sent over a recipe that her crew liked a lot and I tried it with mine. I'm including the content of her email in this post so you can see the substitutions she made. I think I will try these substitutions next time with my family too.

Hi ladies! Just passing along a recipe that I served tonight. The kids and I loved it, Brian ate it all and said it was good, but said it's not his favorite. I'm ok with that. ;-)

Here's the link. I grew up with my Polish step-dad's family serving cabbage rolls at family meals. LOVE those! This is very similar, but in a much easier casserole form.
I made a couple of substitutions. I used a bit more cabbage than the recipe called for, substituted Kashi pilaf for the rice and used two cans of diced tomatoes and one can of tomato sauce and added a bit more water. It says to cook until the liquid is absorbed, but with all the liquid from the tomatoes and extra water, that would have been hours. I just watched it for the cabbage to be good and tender. It was yummy!! My boys asked for more and more until we finally just had to make them stop eating. That's when I knew they liked it.

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Chock Full of Raw Recipe Goodness

The site that follows is just like the title of this post implies. It contains a plethora of raw recipes (I think it has over 1200) and has a forum, blog, and more. So, because it is so huge it probably warrants a post all its own. Therefore today we'll keep it short and sweet with a link and some highlighted recipes.

Gone Raw:
"Gone Raw is a website created to help people share and discuss raw, vegan food recipes from around the world."

Here's the link to their recipe page: http://goneraw.com/recipes
The cool thing is that beside the recipe it has an icon for any special equipment needed (food processor, juicer, etc). So, you can tell at a glance what you will need to have for each recipe. You can also search by category (holiday, party, smoothie, snack) or ingredient which is doubly helpful.

Here are links to a few I noticed while perusing the site that interested me.
"Tuna" Salad Sandwiches
Spicy Avo-Mango Salsa
White Hot Chocolate
Rawtella (raw version of Nutella)
Grilled Steak! for stir frys, BBQ Beef, Kebabs, etc.
Purple Pina Colada Smoothie
Mango Colada Smoothie
Italian IceBox Salad

That's probably enough for now. While you look through the recipes, be sure to add a comment or email with some of the ones that stand out to you.

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Whoops ... maybe not for everyone

We have our first review by Sandye tonight. She and her family gave the Yellow Split Pea soup with Sweet Potatoes and Kale a go. Here's what she has to say:

First let me start by saying that I truely am enjoying all new cuisine that we
will be diving head first into in January.

Second, the soup went over
like a lead balloon!!! LOL I did not like it, the kids did not, and Randy put
mustard in his and then said he liked it. Whatever! If you have to doctor food
up, it does not taste good! HA

It was thick and tasteless. You could
smell the ginger, but you tasted nothing. We ate it reluctantly because it was
not going to be wasted and it did have veggies in it, and veggies are good for
us! My kids each had half of a half of a bowl including lots of crackers in it
and Sam broke out the hot sauce praying it would help! I even put a few drops of
hot sauce in mine too, thinking I would love it then! I did not love it, I hated
it.

So, try for yourself if you like, everyone has different taste buds,
but as for me and my house.... no more split pea/sweet pot. soup! AMEN!

So, there you have it! Decide for yourself but I think that you probably have to enjoy split pea soup to start with to really enjoy this recipe. I might still give it a whirl since my hubby digs sweet potatoes, but I'll keep ya posted.

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Another Recipe Review

Just thought I would compose a quick post about the raw cookies that some of you got to taste last night. I forgot to take pictures of the dough and the process, so we'll have to save that for next time.

I used a slight variation on the recipe that I featured from Raw Nirvana on this post. It basically consisted of the following: (BTW, this is what I did -- it isn't necessarily the recipe as they have it. Watch the video if you want an exact replica)

1. Take about 1/2 cup almonds and 1/2 cup walnuts and a dash of salt
2. Process in food processor until the consistency of meal
3. I added four pitted dates and 1/2 cup (give or take) of raisins and a dash of almond extract
4. Process that well with the nut meal
5. Add to that 1/2 cup of shaved (grated) coconut
6. Blend well in food processor

Voila! You are done!

From there you will most likely want to keep it refrigerated. At least, that is, whatever is not consumed outright! I rolled some of mine in a ball and then rolled it in coconut again, but the majority of it I placed in the fridge and plundered from time to time when I was feeling peckish.

I found it to be surprisingly sweet and rich and it really satisfied my sugar cravings.

Big thumbs up and simple to boot!

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Odds and Ends as we wrap up the week

Whole Food Markets in Green Hills is officially open now. Be sure to check it out online and register for their e-news. Also, I just got an email from Brinda noting the cooking class schedule will be posted soon. Check it out here.

Many of the folks I've talked to are intrigued by the Raw Food end of this new healthy way of living. So we are considering doing a 30-day Raw 'adventure' after the first of the year. We'll also have a tasting night to go along with it.

If you are interested in participating in either the tasting night or the 30 day Raw, just email me or reply to this post (either way is cool). The tasting night is simple: prepare enough of a raw food recipe to share and bring it, along with copies of the recipe to give out. This way we get to try new recipes and have recipes to take home from the tasting night.

I figure we might as well have some fun as we go, eh?

Green Smoothies:
I know a lot of us are trying them. Share some recipes of your favorite green smoothie concoctions and we'll put it on the blog for all to try. I have found a few sites that feature them but would rather hear what you all enjoy. Email or reply to this post with your fav!

Ciao~

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Whole Foods, Kale, and Soup Reviews

Melodie located a page over at the Whole Foods Market website featuring Thanksgiving and other holiday recipes.
Check it out here: http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/freshnew/index.html

* Not all of them are vegan (or even vegetarian) so read carefully if you are staunchly vegan for the holidays. For everyone else that is transitioning these might make for good inclusions for this holiday season.

Whole Foods Market also has a list of quite a few blogs they publish. Here is one for the "Whole Body." The latest entry is for mineral makeup that is good for you.


Kale
Kale is a little powerhouse of a plant. If you need proof, just follow this link to learn more
(link was on a post from Fat Free Vegan Kitchen blog)

I gotta tell ya ... I love that blog and the recipes she's postin'. If you haven't looked through her stuff, you SO need to. Last night both Sandye and I made the Rustic Red Kale and White Bean Soup (see post below that links to her recipe) for our families. It was SOOOO yummy!!!

We both had two thumbs up from the entire family on it (except Steph because I totally overdid it on the pepper with mine -- yowser was it hot!) It was so good that my hubby said I could make it everyday if I wanted to.

But I gotta tell ya ... it is one of those soups that makes you want to snuggle under a blanket while enjoying a roaring fire in the fireplace and watching a good movie with family gathered around. It's also one of those that makes you crave a hunk of crusty bread to go along with it.

YUM!!

Now, go on, rush out to the store and get the ingredients because you know you want to make it!

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Dabbling in the Vegan

So, in making the move to healthier living I'm making a list to try an entire week of Vegan only dinner meals. I'm still using things up that are in my pantry and working toward a much better form of cooking. So, this is my first week of full-on purposeful recipes.

With the cooler temps and leaves turning to fall colors, I find myself drawn to soups this week. Here are two that I plan to put on this week's menu:

• Rustic Red Kale and White Bean Soup
• Yellow Split Pea Soup with Sweet Potatoes and Kale

I'll be sure to post reviews on the soups once I make them.

Two thumbs up for Miso Soup, by the way. My hubby and I have made a couple different concoctions (dependent of veggies in the crisper) with the Red Mellow Miso and found it quite palatable. :o)

Recipe from Melodie B:
Melodie submitted this recipe for Taco Nut Meat

• 1/2 cup almonds, dry
• 1/2 cup walnuts, dry
• 1 Tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 Tablespoon coriander
• 1/3 cup EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil)
• 2/3 teaspoon Sea Salt
• 1 Teaspoon Soy Sauce

Process all nuts in food processor. Place nut meat into mixing bowl and add the rest of the ingredients. Mix well.
Will keep for 4 days in fridge. We used it in a wrap and totally enjoyed it --- Melodie B.

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Going to the Amazon (.com, that is)

So, I figured now is as good a time as any to highlight some books over at Amazon.com. Some are cookbooks, some are instructional, but all feature even more "healthy discoveries." So, enjoy!

I don't own all of these but they looked interesting. I did see the Miso one at church - Pastor had it.

You can click on the slideshow below to activate it and then hover over the book you want to know more about. Additionally, you can click directly on the book to go to that page in Amazon.com



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iTunes Finds

I have this love/hate relationship with podcasts. I love them for their content and convenience (I don't have to remember to check each website), but hate them for incessant downloads of irrelevant items. I find myself constantly halting the download midstream ... but I digress.

Anyway, I checked out iTunes to see what goodies it might be hiding in regards to healthier living. Here are a few I unearthed:
(The iTunes link will take you directly to their podcast info on iTunes. We'll revisit the websites in a minute.)

• The G Living Network: iTunes
  Website: http://gliving.tv/


• The Eazy Vegan: iTunes
  Website: http://tastebetter.com/features/eazy-vegan


• Delicious TV (Vegetarian Video): iTunes
  Website: http://delicioustv.com/


• A few honorable mentions:
  Vegan Cooking School: http://www.podsumer.com/vegancookingschool/
  SuperCharge Me: http://www.30daysraw.com/
  

Each of these websites and podcasts offer a different look at healthy cooking (or uncooking, as the case may be). Let's take a little closer look at each one and I'll highlight some of my favorite parts of each.

Delicious TV:
Chef Toni Fiore's television show highlights Mediterranean cooking with a vegetarian flair. The recipes look simple enough and her on-air personality is pleasant to watch. She also makes the recipes look easy for any skill level. I have yet to try out any of the recipes (this "journey" is still so new) but I am adding the Pumpkin Chili and several of her soups to my 'must-try' list. Plus, who wouldn't want to try her Tofu Cannoli with Chocolate Bits!!

The website offers an Episode Guide and full Recipe Listing. I imagine not all of the recipes featured there coincide with uber-strict vegan or raw diets but not everyone perusing this blog does either.

Her blog also features some interesting recipes not listed elsewhere on the site and helpful tidbits of info as well.

The Eazy Vegan:
This is actually a subpage of another website (please see caveat in upper right-hand corner of this blog). Basically, their subpage recaps the latest entry in their podcast/rss feed. They have a lot of recipes and the podcast is in video format which helps.

I might give the Apple Cinnamon Granola a whirl or the Carob Walnut Fudge.

*As with any of these sites, if you do try out a recipe, please comment on this blog to tell us what you thought about the recipe (taste, ease of preparation, etc)

The G Living Network:
I think I saved the best for last on this short list of sites today. True gourmet and LOTS of variety. This site features multiple chefs and each one has some exceptional looking recipes! I actually have started a HUGE list of recipes to try from this site. (Pastor, if you're reading this, I know you'll like this site) :)

Where to start on this one ...

Some of the links inside the site don't work, but don't let that deter you. The layout is a little overwhelming but cool at the same time. The first thing you will notice is that this is Green LIVING -- so not everything on here pertains to cooking/food.

oh yeah ... one other note: This is listed on their website

G Living is the next generation lifestyle simply called “G”.

Sounds a little like some Sandye might have, eh?

OK, let's jump right in!

Under the Green Chefs category, they list recipes and have videos for you to watch. I've already watched several videos (and I just found this site about two hours ago).

Of course, Ani Phyo (mentioned yesterday) is listed here and her Portabella Mushroom Steak with Mushroom Gravy is featured.

Vanessa Sherwood's "Some Like It Raw" also looks interesting and has several recipes I want to try. Among them are: Asian Noodle Salad, Chocolate Walnut Biscotti, Mango-Avocado Salad, Lemon-Strawberry Trifle, Vietnamese Spring Rolls, and Fresh Raspberry Tart.

I'll review more of the chefs tomorrow, but in the meantime, check out the site and comment back with some of the recipes you are looking to try!

Oh, and be sure to check out the INDULGE section of the site. I think I want to make just about every recipe listed there!

Ciao~

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