Shabbat Cooking!

Shavua tov! Hope everyone out there had a good weekend! It's been a while since I've shared a post like this and I hope to get to posting more often. As I may or may not have mentioned, I live in an area where there are many singles and we often do communal meals. This Friday night I ate with some friends, old and new at a couple across town and when I told them I was a vegan, they suggested I bring something that I'd be able to eat. Right away, inspiration struck and I decided to try out Somer's Early Retirement Quiche made with broccoli from Kittee's blog, which can be found here. I loved this recipe! Because I chose to just add chopped frozen broccoli, it gave this dish the flavor and texture of broccoli kugel, something I dearly miss from my pre-vegan days. I would omit the smoked paprika next time as it throws off the flavor a bit. I also left out the crust, but I tell ya, this recipe is a keeper!

For lunch, I was hosted by a lovely family that lives nearby. They didn't ask me to bring anything with but I figured I'd make some sort of dessert. When I go away, dessert is usually not vegan so I decided to rectify the situation and make something that I could eat. I had just made a batch of chickpeas so I decided to use those and found this recipe on Pinterest. Holy cow, is it good! I couldn't photograph it because it was eaten on Shabbat but my my, I am now a believer is beany baked goods! Except for the crust, no one could tell that there were chickpeas in here, I certainly wouldnt have guessed. But the texture was there and so was the delicious peanut butter and chocolate flavor. These are also gluten free and honestly, pretty good for you-- totally guilt free!

Breakfast!

Breakfast around these parts has been pretty dynamic over the last few months. What started out as my most consistent meal of the day has seen some changes. When I started out on this way of life, oatmeal and berries was my morning staple. I bought oats in ten pound boxes, berries in two pound bags and plowed my way through them month after month. (I just noticed that my go to supermarket is out of those boxes of Quaker oats, sad for me!) When the naturopath that I had seen suggested I get off fruit, I was kind of devastated as I really loved having fruit for my morning meal. As it is, I still had almost a whole bag of frozen nectarines and a whole bag of frozen blackberries to use. I decided to try Angela Liddon's Baked Oatmeal from Oh She Glows substituting the pears/apples for blueberries and nectarines. I loved the way it turned out and I find it to be visually striking. I've made this quite a few times until all my fruit was gone and I've enjoyed it every time. You can find the recipe in Angela's book or here.

When all my fruit was gone, I decided to try my hand at granola. I was looking for an oil free recipe and thankfully, I found that in Dreena Burton's Plant Powered Families. Although I left out some ingredients in her recipe, I've made the Almond Zen Granola more times than I can count. It's yum.

When my herbalist encouraged me to get back on fruit, I didn't hesitate. I added berries to my granola and soy milk. In the meantime, I also discovered that grape nuts are a totally McDougall compliant food and I stock up on that whenever I can, enjoying a bowl with berries and soy milk. 

What's with the muffins you ask? I'm dipping my toe into vegan baking and I like to have a batch of muffins on hand in the freezer for speedy breakfasts on lazy days or for days when I have no other options. Those are banana muffins adapted from Isa Does It. I made them with applesauce instead of oil and had to hold back from adding chocolate. I had been craving banana muffins for a long time so those really hit the spot!So there you have it, my evolving breakfast options. I'm glad I have a few go to recipes that I can rotate and depend on for a delicious and healthful start to my day.