Deadly Chocolate Peanut Butter No Bakes

Hello everyone! I'm Micah, a vegetarian Kate managed to find in Idaho. I'm also allergic to gluten and rice, which makes life fun. This does mean I cook a lot, and I'm not complaining about that.

As I finish the last year of my undergrad, I've found that almost anytime a student organization needs money a bake sale is in order. As a member of a couple groups on campus, I've been wrangled into baking far more often than I'd like. (Mostly because anything I bake I end up eating in oh about a day.) I've made funfetti cake cookies, cake truffles, rice crispies. All sorts of delicious foods come out of my oven... All sorts of gluten and rice filled treats. This time around, I had my biggest challenge yet: my charge was to bring an item that was gluten-free, rice-free, and vegan.

I decided to go with the classic no bake cookie. And considering what wasn't sold at the bake sale this afternoon has already been demolished by my roommate and I (okay, mostly me), I would call them a success.

Deadly Chocolate Peanut Butter No Bakes 

(Gluten-free, Rice-free, Vegan)

Ingredients:
1 stick of vegan margarine (1/2 cup)
1/2 cup soy or almond milk
4 tablespoons dairy-free cocoa powder
2 cups sugar
1 cup chunky peanut butter
1 tablespoon vanilla
3 cups Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Quick Cooking Oats

Equipment:
1 large sauce pan
Waxed paper lined cookie sheets

1. Over medium high heat, combine margarine, milk, cocoa powder and sugar in a large sauce pan. Stir until all ingredients are mixed. 
2. Let the mixture come to a foaming boil for two minutes and then remove the sauce pan from the burner. Stir occasionally to frequently during this process. **This step is really important. If you don't boil for long enough, the cookies won't hold. If you boil for too long, they will crumble**
3. Combine chunky peanut butter, vanilla, and oats with the mixture. Stir until well mixed.
4. Place tablespoons of the mixture on waxed paper lined cookie sheets. 
5. Place in the refrigerator. Let set for at least twenty minutes. Keep cookies cool until ready to serve.

This recipe makes a batch of about 30 cookies, but trust me, they don't last long. If you're feeling daring, consider adding shredded coconut and/or chocolate, peanut butter, or butterscotch chips. Also, if you aren't vegan, feel free to use butter and milk instead of margarine and soy milk. The same ratios will work just fine.

Leap Day Soup!

So most who know me (Kate... though Lynne often falls in this category as well) realize how incredibly indecisive I can be. This can become especially painful when hungry and I can't decide what exactly I want to eat. Tonight was one of those days. And it's not like the options weren't limitless... I looked through my vegetarian cookbooks (several of them at that... so in combination, hundreds of recipes to choose from) and couldn't choose. Thats until I came across a creamy carrot soup in my vegetarian bible: "How to Cook Everything Vegetarian" by Mark Bittman. With an abundance of orange sticks, I went for it. Excellent decision! And with a KFo twist and using the 'little bit of this, little bit of that' method -- I came up with a rather delicious soup for a cool Leap Day evening.

I name this recipe...

Leaping Bunnies for Carrots Soup 


Servings: 4


Ingredients


4-5 large carrots, roughly chopped
1 Idaho sized baked potato (aka HUGE.... or 2 'everywhere else' sized ones), roughly chopped
1 small onion, chopped
4 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
Salt and Pepper
Butter or vegetable oil (if you want vegan)
2-3 cups of vegetable stock, broth, or water

Things I added, didn't measure, and am not sure whether contributed to the tastiness of the soup. Proceed with caution....

Soy milk, plain flavored (If I were to guess, about a little less than a 1/4 cup)
Rosemary
Thyme
Garam Masala
Coriander
Nutmeg

Method

• Heat butter or oil in large saucepan.
• Add vegetables then salt and pepper to taste. 
• Let cook for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally until carrots become tender
• Add stock/broth/water and let cook until potatoes and carrots are soft
• Pour into blender (be careful and do in batches if needed) and puree until smooth
• Return to saucepan and warm up, adding whatever spices and soy milk you desire.

This will leave you satis-thai-ed.

So last weekend I had my supervisor/pseudo-Mom over for dinner with her choice of whatever she wanted me to make. She decided on thai and from there, I served up this killer meal! I assure you... it will leave you tongue thai-ed for words to describe it's delightfulness. And I promise I'll stop for the 'thai' puns... please don't kick me out-thai-ed. 

Vegetable Spring Rolls

1-package of spring roll wrappers (I found them in the international section with the Asian food)

Lettuce (I used a spring mix)

Shredded carrots

Cucumbers, sliced thin 

Bean sprouts

(Any other vegetable you would like to add)

• The method is quite simple. Rehydrate the wrapper per the package instructions (submerge into warm water until pliable)
• Fill with desired amount of ingredients and roll.
• Voila! Spring roll. You can fry these, but it tasted great au naturale. 

Indonesian Peanut Sauce (for dipping your spring rolls)

2 tsp peanut (or vegetable) oil

1 shallot, minced

1 clove garlic, minced

3/4 tsp red pepper flakes

1/2 cup creamy (or chunky!) peanut butter

1/2 cup light coconut milk

1 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce

2 tsp dark brown sugar

2 tsp fresh lime juice

• Heat oil in saucepan
• Saute shallot for 2 minutes
• Add garlic and red pepper flakes, saute for 1 minute
• Add remaining ingredients (except lime juice) and whisk into pan with 1/2 cup water
• Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes
• Stir in lime juice
• Remove from heat and put in serving dish

* You can make this as thin or thick as you want by simply adding more water for thinner dressing, such as for a salad

(Courtesy of Vegetarian Times...)

Pineapple Fried Rice (this is very much one of those little bit of this, little bit of that recipe. I didn't actually measure... so I guessed on measurements. Use your judgement)

1 cup cooked brown rice

Vegetable oil

1 shallot, sliced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp ground ginger

2 tsp red pepper flakes

1 green or red pepper, diced

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 tsp sugar

1 1/2 cups of pineapple chunks (fresh or canned)

1/2 cup raisins

1/2 cup green peas

1/2 cup cashews

Green onions, sliced

• Heat oil in wok.
• Add onions, garlic, ginger, red pepper flakes, and peppers. Cook until fragrant.
• Add egg and stir for about 1-2 minutes (until it's not too runny)
• Add soy sauce and sugar, then add rice.
• Add remaining ingredients and combine well.

Amazing Protein Packed Bean Dip

After graduating from college and forced to cook my own meals (thanks to Kate moving to the other side of the country) I enrolled in a vegetarian cooking class.  Although the class didn't provide me with a ton of recipes to take home, I did get two really great things from it: I learned the fastest way to cut an onion....and this bean dip recipe!  The measurements are a little funky, but if you adapt it to your own taste preference it's molto bene!

Ingredients:
-2 pounds cooked black beans--or 2 cans rinsed
-1 1/2 teaspoons chopped garlic (I used about 2 cloves)
-1 1/2 cups roasted onion (I used about one large onion or two small...roasted in garlic oil)
-1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
-1/4 cup cilantro leaves (I love cilantro, so I add to taste)
-1/4 cup soft tofu
-1/2 jalapeno pepper, chopped (I've used less spicy peppers when jalapenos aren't available--in this case I've used the whole pepper)
-Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:
Put all the ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth.  Reserve some of the juice from cooking the beans, or if you are using canned beans use 1/2 cup vegetable stock or water if liquid is needed.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.

I've served this with scoops or I've cut french bread and toasted it in the oven with a little olive oil, garlic, and thyme.

Enjoy!

Living in rural America has taught me many things; specifically that it's not easy being vegetarian when your surrounded by hunters and their trophies (and I don't mean the kind you get after a season of youth soccer). Yet despite the weird looks when you say "Pass" to the deer jerky and "So you're vegetarian, but you eat chicken... right?" comments, the people I've encountered are truly and genuinely nice... just not to game animals. Anyways, there's a point: farmers vegetable gardens. There are perks to living in a place where the majority of the population are over the age of 65 (so basically everyone acts and takes care of you like your own Grandma or Pop) and farmers who know how to (1) grow vegetables and (2) grow so many vegetables you end up with bags and boxes on your desk, in your car, and outside your doorstep. Score! So when I had an overabundance of broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini, onions, potatoes, garlic... you name it, I got it.... I taught myself how to blanch and preserve what I could so I could enjoy this overwhelming amount of produce all year! And boy am I glad I did because today I discovered the grated zucchini I froze especially so I could satisfy my zucchini bread fixes in the winter time.

So this recipe originated from Whole-Foods and, though I generally stick to the basics, I've adapted it to be completely vegan and super-powered with good nutrients! It could totally be made gluten-free and made as either a muffin, cake, or bread. I actually find the vegan version moister than the non-vegan way and even more delicious. But experiment, and I know you'll love it.

Zucchin-alicious Bread

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 egg*
1/3 cup canola oil
1/3 cup applesauce
2 tablespoons nonfat, vanilla yogurt*
3/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup grated zucchini

Optional additions:

Grated carrots
Dried cranberries
Chocolate chips
Chopped walnuts
Raisins
... whatever your heart desires :)


* So to make this vegan:
-- Instead of an egg, combine 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseed meal (I use Bob's Red Mill -- which has this egg recipe on the back) with 3 tablespoons of water.
-- Instead of yogurt, use soy yogurt or another dairy-free variety. I've used coconut yogurt before and it tastes great.

Method:


Preheat oven to 325 degrees
1. Mix flour, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a bowl.**
2. In a separate bowl, combine egg, oil, applesauce, yogurt, sugar, and vanilla.
3. Add wet ingredients to dry and mix until well combined.
4. Stir in zucchini and optional additions!
5. Pour batter into greased (for the full vegan effect: don't use butter (duh!)! Use a vegetable oil cooking spray) loaf pan or muffin pan or whatever kind of pan!
6. Cooking times: muffins -- about 30-35 minutes, bread -- about 50-60 minutes (depends on the size of your loaf pan), or until a toothpick comes out clean when you poke it!
7. Let cool and... ENJOY!

The ultimate, not-so-traditional, good-on-anything... PESTO

Came across this recipe on the Country Living website when I had an abundance of parsley given to me. So from now on: when life gives you parsley, make pesto! I've used this on pasta and pizza (home-made whole wheat pizza dough, of course) and it's amazing. I've even turned picky eaters and hunters on to this stuff... enjoy!

The essential kitchen appliance necessary for this recipe (which has recently turned me incredibly domestic): the Food Processor!

Parsley-Walnut Pesto

Ingredients:

2 cups of parsley leaves (flat or curly)
3/4 cup toasted, chopped walnuts (to toast: cook in fry pan until fragrant and not burnt)
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons of lemon zest

• In food processor, pulse parsley, walnuts, cheese, garlic, and salt for about 30 seconds until everything is coarsely chopped
• In a bowl, combine olive oil, lemon juice, and zest. 
• Slowly pulse oil mixture into parsley mixture in food processor. 
• Enjoy!

This can also be prepared and frozen for up to 3 months. 

Flashback: Senior year. Endicott College. The Cliff House.... kitchen.

Singing. Cooking. Dancing. Laughing. Burning the stack of CDs Ang borrowed from the library... 

Really, you never know what might transpire when you walked up the forested path (that later became a obstacle course of fallen trees) and entered the cliff. Inevitably you'd veer into the kitchen to check what one of us might be concocting from our college-budget ingredients or whatever we happened to take from the Callahan that day. After a few months, we got crafty -- in the Julia Child kind of way. Lynne became infamous for conveniently timing her return home from work just as Kate was about to plate up dinner. 

"So uh Kate, whatcha got there?" Lynne would say. 

"Oh you know, just some (insert meal). Want some?" Kate offered.

"Well, I mean... sure!" And that was that. 

Over the year, the two went from carnivores to omnivores, college students to graduates, then ultimately living on opposite coasts. But we haven't left our love for cooking and sharing on the north shore of Massachusetts. Tempting each other with text messaged photos of our latest creations, we found it time to commit to a food blog to talk about our love of food (veggies only, of course!) and the memories that brought our friendship together. 

So Read on. Cook on. And eat your veggies, too.

Namaste!

Kate and Lynne

... aka the Vegginators