Cream Of The Crop

Well, not the crop, but cream of the cashew.

Much to much horror, I woke up Sunday morning and stumbled to the kitchen, my sleepy brain aching for a cup of coffee, and realized that I'd forgotten to pick up almond milk to whiten my coffee.

Rather than having a crying fit and going back to bed I decided to take matters into my own capable hands.

Here is the recipe that my pre-coffee brain put together.

Dolce Cashew Coffee Cream

1 cup of cashews, preferably soaked in water
1.5 teaspoons cinnamon
3-4 dates
1 teaspoon of vanilla
About a cup of water

That's my new homemade bamboo cutting board in the background. Thanks Dad :)

Toss everything in your Vitamix and let it rip for quite a while, you want the cashews and dates to be absolutely pulverized.

The consistency should be that of coffee cream so add enough water until you get to that point.

Add to your coffee and enjoy. It really reminds me of the Starbucks Cinnamon Dolce Latte without all the gross animal products and chemicals. Keep the excess in the fridge in a really cute cream boat.

So now with caffeine coarsing through my veins I was ready to hit a yoga class and meditate on my life.

However, all I could think about was getting home for round two of the best coffee I've had in ages.

When I took the mixture out of the fridge, I saw that it had seriously thickened up, almost to a whipping cream texture and so, my next invention was created.

Slice up a crisp green apple into tiny chunks and pour some of the cashew mixture over, toss and sprinkle with cinnamon.

I'm not really a dessert person, but this was amazing!

Simple and fresh and perfect for a guilt free dessert.

Sunday crisis averted.

Stallion Salad

Before you judge me on the weird names that I assign my salad recipes, you try making one up. It is not easy.

I chose Stallion Salad for this one because I decided while making it that if I ever land a hot Italian Stallion boyfriend I will make this for him.

He's going to love it.

Stallion Salad

Ingredients:

1 cup of quinoa
8 stalks of asparagus
1 zucchini
5 mushrooms
1 red pepper
1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes in oil
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
Pepper

There is spinach pictured but I left that out in the end. That's what happens with you invent as you go. Also, I left out red onion because I don't like onions but if you do, toss some in there.

First, add the quinoa and 1.5 cups of water in a pot and let it boil. Once boiling, turn the heat to low and put a lid on it. It will be ready in 15 minutes so hurry up and get your veggies and dressing ready.

I decided to get fancy on this one and used a potato peeler on the asparagus and zucchini, shaving them into ribbons.

Chop up the mushrooms and red pepper, add them to the bowl.

Next, put the sun dried tomatoes, olive oil, vinegar, garlic, mustard, and pepper into a blender and blend until combined.

Hopefully this is all done by the time the quinoa is cooked.

Add the hot quinoa to the vegetables and mix. The quinoa will slightly cook the vegetables making them delicious to eat.

Add the dressing and mix well.

This takes only 20 minutes to whip up which leaves you lots of time to entertain your Italian Stallion however you please.

He will love that as well.

Spanish Fever

Long ago at the cute age of 21, while studying abroad I was given the opportunity to spend Christmas in the beautiful Spanish town of Zaragoza with some of my fellow students.

It was a huge moment for me, not just because I had a lovely group of locals to show me the culture, but because it was the first and only Christmas that I have ever spent away from my own family.

Fortunatley for me, the town's spectacular sights and my tour guide's hot older brother left me little time to mope and miss my family.

I would show a photo of me in the town but I am much too horrified over what endless baguettes and chocolate bars had done to my figure at the time. The Euro-diet did not do good things for me.

As sad as I thought I would be at the time, I am more sad now thinking about how certain I was that I would be back to visit shortly, but yet have never returned.

Rather than letting it get me down I decided to take a walk down memory lane by digging out my old photo albums and pouring myself a memorable drink.

The drink of choice is the very spanish Kalimotxo.

Fill a glass with lots of ice and add equal parts red wine and Coca Cola. Set yourself up on the couch looking out at the places where you've lived and loved and take a sip.

Sometimes its helpful to reflect on and appreciate the good memories rather than be sad that they are in the past. And in reflecting I feel completely happy.

Which reminds me of one of the only Spanish sayings that I actually remember from that time, "Sólo un idiota puede ser totalmente feliz." It means, only an idiot can be totally happy.

Well, call me an idiot but this Kalimotxo has made me muy, muy, happy.

Salud.

Fiesta Soup

Arriba! Arriba!

I don't even know what that means, but I do know that I say that a lot when cooking Mexican food and it makes me feel very authentic.

That phrase was belted out numerous times when putting together this lastest recipe and it's probably why it turned out so well.

Here is the recipe for a soup that is perfect for Cinqo de Mayo.

Fiesta Soup

Indredients:

1 cup rice, cooked
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can black beans, drained
1 can corn, drained
2 cups vegetable broth
1 zuchinni
1 red pepper
1 bundle of kale
3 green onions
1.5 teaspoons hot sauce
1 tablespoon lime juice

This is one of the easiest soups EVER!

Simply toss all of the ingrediants minus the kale into a large pot and set the heat to medium. Leave it for thirty minutes to an hour and right before serving, add the kale.

The bean/rice/corn combo creates a perfect protein source which makes this a go to for vegans.

I also added a handful of chopped cilantro at the same time as the kale for some extra flavor.

Happy Cinqo de Mayo hombres!

My Milkshake Brings All The Boys To The Yard

Well, its not exactly a milkshake.

And my yard is not exactly crawling with boys.

But dairy products and creepy men have never sat well with me anyways.

What does sit well with me a power smoothie that get these engines revving first thing in the morning or on a sluggish afternoon.

Ultimate Energy Smoothie

Ingredients:

1 scoop of vanilla protein powder
1 pear
1 huge handful of spinach
1.5 teaspoons of ginger
1 teaspoon of cinnamon

Throw everything in the blender and let it rip. You may need to add water to get the consistency that you desire.

Voila.

This is my favorite health smoothie. Not only is it packed with protein, the cinnamon and ginger are metabolism boosters.

More muscle and less fat??

That's a combo that will definitely have some boys showing up in your yard ;)

Sensational Stirfry

I don't know about you, but my love for all things Asian knows no bounds.

Asia created one of my best friends in the whole world (Hi Bobo!), all of my electronics, and the magnetic compass, one of my favorite references. I love their fashion styles, their great walls, their long thick hair, their metabolisms, their Green Tea KitKats, and Hello Kittys.

And most of all (aside from little Bobo), their stir frys.

Here's the recipe created by me, a wannabe Asian. Or Whasion as Bobo calls me.

Sensational Stir Fry

Ingredients, 2 parter, there are lots:

1/4 cup lite tamari
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp sriacha
1 tbsp garlic, minced
1tbsp lemongrass, minced
1 tbsp giner, minced
3 heaping tbsp chunky peanut butter
1 tbsp Braggs Amino Acid
1 block of tofu, drained and cubed
1 can of baby corn
2 tbsp olive oil

Now the veggie ingredients:

Small head of broccoli, chopped
1 pack of snap peas, cut in half
1 yellow bell pepper, chopped
1 package of celery, chopped
1 zuchinni, chopped
1 package of mushrooms, chopped
1 large bundle of bok choy or another leafy asian green. I can't remember what I used.

I'm going to add here, that if you are gunning to be my next boyfriend, a boquet such as the one above will get you a hell of a lot further with me than your standard boquet of flowers.

First let's get saucy. Into an large jar add the tamari, lemon juice, sriacha, garlic, lemongrass, ginger, peanut butter, and Braggs. Close the lid and shake what your momma gave you. But only if your mom buys your groceries for you.

Once it's blended, or when your arms grow tired, whichever comes first, toss in the cubed tofu. Lid back on, couple more shakes, and put it in the fridge.

While thats marinating, you can chop your vegetables. This is by far my favorite household chore. I read an article a long time ago about how chopping veggies uses only the left side of your brain, allowing the right side that is usually running on overdrive to chill out. Leave it to the scientists to analyze the serentiy out of a perfectly relaxing time. Now all I think about is whether or not I can feel the actual sides working and that just completely grosses me out. Barf.

Ummm... ok, so back to stirfry. Chop all of your veggies and toss in a bowl. Heat up the olive oil on medium heat in a super large fryin pan or wok and start adding veggies. You may need to wait for some of the veggies to cook down before you can fit them all in.

Now that the veggies are cooking, it's time to toss in your marinated tofu and sauce.

Stirring frequently, let the stir fry cook on medium heat until the veggies are cooked but still crisp.

Dish this out onto rice or noodles, whichever you prefer, pour yourself a glass of sake and invite over all your favorite asian friends! Or your favorite wannabe asians (me perhaps), whichever you prefer.

Enjoy!!

And PS, I promise not to say barf in any more recipe posts!

Spag To The Hetti Sauce

I love spaghetti. And I love that I was the only kid in grade two that knew how to spell spaghetti.

Break it up kids: SPAG HETTI.

There, you've already learned something and I haven't even gotten to the recipe for my home made spag hetti sauce.

There are many reasons that I prefer make homemade spaghetti sauce, rather than picking up a boring old jar from the store.

They have to do with me being a control freak, and having underdeveloped biceps.

Let me clarify.

The more I delve into the vegan world, the more I notice the long list of ingredients that go into the products that I so often bought before. Many of those ingredients I cannot pronounce and many sauces have sneakily added animal products which I am NOT ok with. I only want high end natural fuel going into this Ferrari.

Also, I have no boyfriend. I have no upper body strength. This makes opening jars a very strenuous process, one that I avoid at all costs.

SPAG TO THE HETTI SAUCE

Ingredients:

5 roma tomatoes
2 large red bell peppers
3 plus 3 tbsp of olive oil
Salt and pepper
2 tbsp of tomato paste
Huge handful of fresh basil
.5 cups of red wine
2 tbsp minced garlic
1 small red onion chopped
1 zucchini, diced
1 cup of mushrooms, chopped
1 cup of grape tomatoes, halved
1 tbsp of jalapeno flakes
1 cup of water
1 package of gluten free spaghetti
3 cups of spinach

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Halve the roma tomatoes and slice each red pepper into about 6 pieces. Toss them in 3 tablespoons of olive oil and place on lined baking sheet. Shake on salt and a lot of pepper. Roast for 40 to 50 minutes until they are blackened on the bottom.

Once they are finished, toss them in the blender with the tomato paste, basil, and wine. The alcohol in the wine will burn off as the sauce cooks, so if you're having a bad day I suggest you swap the wine for water and drink it straight. Blend until smoothe.

In a large pot, heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil and add onions and garlic.

Add the tomato mixture, zucchini, mushrooms, grape tomatoes, jalapeno flakes, and water. Cover and cook for 30 minutes. Sauce complete!

 Now boil your noodles and when they are just about done add the spinach and continue cooking for a couple of minutes until the spinach is cooked. This is a tricky way to add more greens to your life.

Dish out the spinach and noodles onto a plate and top with the sauce, and pour yourself a glass of the good stuff, whatever that means to you. For me, it's my bestie named Shiraz.

Why work on your biceps when making a sauce is this easy?

Bon appetit!

Creamy Dreamy Mexican Rice

It's still chilly here in Calgary and I am in need of some major warming up.

I was going to mix up a Hot Toddy, but then I realized that I am out of rum.

I was going to going to hop on my private jet and head to the Bahamas but then I realized that I am not a millionaire.

I was going to call up my hot Brazilian lover, but then I realized that he doesn't exist.

What now? After a steaming hot bath I threw on my sexiest flannel jammies and headed to the kitchen to create something that would warm me from the inside out.

Creamy Dreamy Mexican Rice

Ingredients:

1 cup of dry rice, cooked
1 container of grape tomatoes
3 tbsp of olive oil
Salt and pepper
2 large or 3 small avocados
1/4 cup of chipotle peppers
Juice of 1 lime
1 cup of cilantro
1 cup of frozen corn, thawed

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Put on your favorite Ricky Martin CD. That part is very important.

Cut the tomatoes in half and toss in olive oil, salt, and pepper and place on a baking sheet.

Roast in the oven for 20 minutes until crispy and black on the bottom.

Before:

After:

Start cooking the rice according to the package. I would give you instructions for this but rice cooking is not my greatest skill. You're better off listening to Mr. Ben, not Miss Lu.

Next, take a couple of minutes to shake your bon bon, shake your bon bon, shake your bon bon.

Toss into your blender the roasted tomatoes, avocados, lime juice (squeeze the hard, this can double as a bicep exercise), cilantro, and chipotle peppers. Blend until smooth and creamy.

Pour this mixture into a baking dish and once the rice is finished cooking, add that and the corn and mix thoroughly.

Finito.

This can be served as a side dish to a lovely tomato soup, or wrapped in a tortilla with some lettuce, or as I often do, lay it down on a bed of spinach.

Not quite as sexy as Seal laying it down on a bed of roses, but this will also do your body good. Just in a different way.

Temperature is coming up. Flannels are coming off. Starting to feel like I've been kissed by a rose on a grave.

Now THAT is some powerful rice.

Enjoy!

Creamy Coconut Curry Soup

Mmmmnn. .. there's nothing like a dreary cold snap to make me want a big pot of spicy soup simmering on the stove being stirred by Eddie Vedder while I sip on a goblet of Shiraz, listening to the new song he has just written about my sparkly eyes.

And clearly there's nothing like a cold snap that has the ability to make me highly delusional.

One thing that is in my power to make happen is soup. I try to make a soup most Sundays because I have no brainer lunches all week. This is a new recipe that the cold weather and my new Vitamix have inspired.

Creamy Coconut Curry Soup

Ingredients:

2 cups of vegetable stock
1 can of light coconut milk
1 can of chick peas, drained
2 tbsp tomato paste
2 tsp curry powder
.5 tsp garam masala
.5 tsp red chili flakes
dashes of pepper
3 tbsp chia seeds
1 sweet potato, diced
1 red pepper, diced
3 cups of spinach, torn up

First things first, buy a Vitamix, it will change your world.

Next, add to that Vitamix the vegetable stock, coconut milk, chickpeas, tomato paste, curry powder, garam masala, pepper, and chili flakes into the Vitamix and let it rip for about 5 minutes.

Pour this creamy delicious mixture into a large pot and add the chia seeds, sweet potato, and red pepper. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes.

Add in the spinach about 10 minutes prior to serving, this will prevent the leaves from becoming overcooked. This is a very thick soup so if you can't handle it, add some water, this will also help it last longer.

And that's it! Easy as I would be if Eddie ever came over looking for soup and singing about sparkly eyes!

Enjoy!