The Healthy Vegans

Roy's Hawaiian Restaurant

2012-02-10T00:11:00.000-08:00

Rad watermelon sushi like salad MARINATED in citrus!

Many people lament that being vegan bars you from enjoying the tastes of other cultures. Let me assure you that aside from Eskimo's all cultures ate mostly vegan until the Western World ruined them with processed foods and animal bits.

I had never heard of Roy's until my trip to Hawaii. I was surprised to find out they have many locations around the USA. I'm pretty sure most of them have vegan options. Although I am not sure if all of them have the Vegan Prix Fix Menu, but its worth asking and just showing them our blog post if not!

We dined at Roy's Waikiki, (state vegan & oil-free restriction with reservation). Let me tell you, Roy's knows how to treat their guests. They fold the napkin when you get up to use the bathroom, bombard your table with an army of servers, refilling your glass, whisking away plates, etc. I've only encountered the same level of service at a Michelin Five Star restaurant in St. Louis. We went for Kristin's Bday diner with our friends who happened to be a few hotels down from us??? what are the chances!? They also chose the Vegan Prix Fix menu with wine pairing (though not vegans) and thoroughly enjoyed it. It is $57 a person for the Vegan Prix Fix Menu, which included three wines and four dishes ($36 w/o wine) or you can order the dishes separately. Since it was a celebration we went all out.

I could dish about how wonderful the service is at Roys, the waitress was wonderful at communicating with the kitchen and timing all the dishes to perfection. They also brought out a special Happy Bday plate for Kristin! Not even getting into the supreme quality of food, I could gush about how much I enjoyed Roys endlessly! Now to the eats!

Check out this extremely rad watermelon salad! WHAT? Yep, those cubes are watermelon that has been MARINATED in citrus... I could have lined up 100 of them and eaten them all they were so tasty.

For round two we had HOT hearts of palm. Thinly shaved hearts of palm in a searing hot sauce made the speedy water refills all the more appreciated.

The main course were even HOTTER mushrooms w/ a side of Jasmine rice.

Dessert was a soy ice cream in ginger beer float!!! AMAZING!

Roy's you won me over and knocked me out! Everyone there deserves a pat on the back!

Mahalo!

Peace Cafe: Honolulu, Hawaii always has one Oil-Free Option!

2012-02-04T11:24:00.000-08:00

Usually we hack together an oil-free dish at vegan restaurants, on this day we scored big! Other Oil-Free people have paved a nice way for us! We really didn't expect the answer to our question to be met with such a relaxed affirmative, like it was nothing out of the ordinary.

Lex: "Can you recommend anything that would be easy for you to do without any oil?" Peace Cafe: "The Morrocan Lentil is our Oil-Free dish today" Lex: "Do you have a lot of people request oil-free" Peace Cafe: "Yes we have a lot of Oil-Free customers that's why we always have at least one menu item that is prepared with no oil"

This Moroccan dish was so fantastic we went back two days in a row to have it! On top are an assortment of pickles.

Exterior shot, its easy to drive right past it, you need to have ESP and turn just before it so you can park for free in back!

Another photo of the Moroccan dish, brown rice, salad and pickles.

House made ice cream with berry sauce!

Zen interior, reclaimed lumber furnishings.

Peace Cafe

2239 S King St, Honolulu, HI 96826-2346

(808) 951-7555

www.peacecafehawaii.com

Fat Free Pasta Con Broccoli

2012-01-20T14:16:00.000-08:00

This dish takes me back to my childhood in St. Louis and heading out for a family dinner on "The Hill," a famous Italian-American neighborhood with some of the best food on the planet! My sister Jnet and I would always get the same thing every time ..PASTA CON BROCCOLI, of course! Unfortunately, all those years of pounding fatty artery clogging oily pasta did takes it's toll in my early 20's when I was overweight and sick...not to mention dateless, too. WAIT!! I do remember one date to "The Hill", my girlfriend tagged along that evening as a third wheel and my date ended up leaving with her!! Which left me soaking up my tears in oily pasta wondering why boys could just like me for my sparkling personality ;(

Luckily those days long gone as a Healthy Vegan, but my craving for yummy carb loaded pasta is soooo NOT! I've been trying for years to create a Fat Free Pasta Con Broccoli, then finally it hit me... ADD BEANS!! Either white or black will do the trick in achieving that cheesy like texture I oh so miss.

Pasta Con Broccoli Ingredients

16oz (1lb) - Cavatelli noddles
2 1/2 C. - Fat Free Pasta Sauce
1 Can - Black or White Beans
1 TSP - Brown Sugar
1 TSP - Dried Basil
1/4 TSP- Crush Red Chili Peppers
1/2 C. - Frozen Spinach
2 C. - Frozen Broccoli

Bean Marinara

Preparation: Put beans, red sauce, basil, brown sugar, and chili peppers in a blender or food processor and combined.

Pour bean marinara into a sauce pot over Med-Low heat. Add spinach and broccoli. Heat for about 10 mins. until warm.

Cavatelli Pasta Noddles

Preparation: Bring 5 qts. of water to a boil. Add a pinch of sea salt and stir pasta. Boil 10-12 minutes or to desited tenderness. Drain pasta in colander, and mix in a large bowl with bean marinara.

Velvety Carrot Soup...Jazzy Vegetarian style :)

2012-01-18T18:28:00.000-08:00

My good friend Becky gifted me this pretty amazing signed cookbook by The Jazzy Vegetarian.

The recipes are very simple with few ingredients and fortunately most of them are low fat / oil free!! I promised Becky the first thing in the cookbook I would make was the Rigatoni with Lettuce Sauce but Lex wouldn't have anything to do with it..haha!! I know the thought of "Lettuce Sauce" sounds gross but I was actually excited to try it, minus the oil of course:)

VELVETY CARROT SOUP INGREDIENTS

5 large carrots, peeled & coarsely chopped
3 med white potatoes, peeled & coarsely chopped
1 1/2 C unsweetened nondairy milk
1 1/2 C Veggie broth (don't use low sodium, made my too bland)
1 TSP Brown Sugar
1 TSP Italian Seasonings
1/2 TSP reduced sodium tamari
Sea Salt & Pepper to taste
2 TBP chopped fresh parley, garnish

Steam the carrots and potatoes until soft but not mushy, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl. Add the nondairy milk, broth, brown sugar, Italian seasoning, and tamari and stir to combine.

Put half the mixture in a blender and process until smooth. Pour into a soup pot. Repeat with remaining mixture, then stir the two batches together. Put the pot over medium-low heat and simmer, stirring often until heated through, about 10 minutes, adding more broth and nondariy milk if needed.

Season with salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with parsley, if desired.

How to eat Healthy Vegan at a Chinese Restaurant

2012-01-11T20:04:00.000-08:00

If you can't find a Chinese restaurant you are likely in outer space, but don't expect that to be a valid excuse for long because the Chinese are planning a space station and moon & mars colonization.

Eating at a Chinese restaurant couldn't be easier aside from 99% of the menu is crap. To adapt to the American/Western customer they took up FRYING EVERYTHING, they'll even deep fry and then stir fry... Not to worry, a steamed bowl of rice, rice noodles, steamed veggies, soy sauce, orange sauce, and sweet and sour sauce can always be procured with no oil! Occasionally you'll even find a steam bun, which are delectable!

Chinese are especially accommodating and are happy to eliminate anything from a dish because it costs $. If I don't eat my mushroom, they'll say "next time say no mushrooms" It all adds up and with billions of mouths to feed waste not want not!

Here are some pics from our recent outing to Vegetable Delight in Grenada Hills, CA.

Steamed Buns! These are one of my favorite foods in the entire world. They are oil free, low fat, just a mixed veggie slaw (or sometimes beans) wrapped in a light flour bun and steamed to perfection! (make sure the stuff on the inside is oil-free, too!)

This is our goto Chinese Restaurant dish. We eat rice all the time so rice and veggies isn't anything worth going out for, but when you get a rice noodle and veggies combined with an Orange Sauce (also oil-free) then you're talking! You can get this made for you at ANY Chinese restaurant in the world (that is not a chain). Its easy to do at home, as well.

WHAT IS THAT??? It looks like a cake? Yep! This was a TOTAL SCORE! Its an OIL-FREE Green TEA ADUKI Bean cake! The fat is Tofu, which we normally don't eat too much of, but this was pure heaven!

Check out the awesome ingredients for yourself! These are made by a Japanese chef who frequents this Chinese restaurant - go figure?!

Typical Chinese Restaurant interior... don't be afraid, but sit as far away from the kitchen as possible or you'll smell like grease.

Pita Jungle, a healthy vegan oasis

2012-01-03T22:22:00.000-08:00

We first discovered Pita Jungle on a road trip in Flagstaff Arizona where we stopped to fix a flat tire! Now we have one in California, albeit on the other side of town in Pasadena. We are members of Huntington Garden and took our family to see the surreal succulent garden over the holidays and stopped in old town Pasadena to fuel back up at the new Pita Jungle.

I tried a new dish, the Macro Plate, which was smashingly healthy! Beans, steamed veg & rice, HUGE plate, enough for two! Add hot sauce, soy sauce, sirracha to bang it up!

The garden wrap! Next time I'll ask for it w/o foil! (haha in addition to no oil!) Its probably easier on them to request steamed veggies, rice and beans in a wrap to avoid them getting sauteed by ordering this one.

Healthy Vegan Jeanette enjoyed the 1000 beans (which is a bean pita pizza, my personal fav)

Another pic of the Marco! It was totally awesome. Ask for it w/o Tofu, though!

Let me add to how awesome Pita Jungle is in the way they handled the mix up in the Garden Wrap and made it with oil, we kindly requested a new one, not only did they make a new one, they didn't charge us for it and comped my meal, too! That is INSANELY nice. I tried to explain that was beyond what we needed and we love Pita Jungle and are just happy they are willing to make oil free items for us and we're sorry food was wasted. They strive for perfection and customer satisfaction! Rare GEM of a place! For everyone who is stressed about asking for "no oil" go here!

Don't poison yourself with a New Year Cleanse!

2012-01-02T20:26:00.000-08:00

I'm sure everyone has heard about cleansing and many people want to start the New Year with a cleanse thinking foolishly that they'll shed unwanted pounds from holiday overeating or remove toxins from too much partying. Cleanses are poisonous unhelpful injuries to our bodies. Our bodies work perfectly to cleanse themselves all of the time, they do not need any help. In order to restore health and balance to our lives we need to discontinue poisoning ourselves with a toxic high fat, high protein diet that humans in recorded history have never lived on.

Let your body do the cleansing it has evolved to do by eating the foods we have adapted to over millions of years. Follow a whole food, plant based diet centered on the starchy fuels of civilization = rice, potatoes, maize, millet, yams, grains of all kinds. Fruits and vegetables are simply condiments of flavor to a starch centered diet.

There are no short cuts to health, only hucksters bent on getting your money by offering you snake oils in the forms of supplements and cleanses at your financial and physical expense. Starving yourself will only result in a toxic body hungry to add on more famine reserves (weight).

Eat until you are full on the Healthy Vegan diet and be amazed as you shed the weight nature never intended you to have and enjoy restored health and well being from simply eating the food nature intended. Its a miracle...

Happy Vegan New Year!

2012-01-02T12:45:00.000-08:00

Its tough enough to figure out what to do on New Years Eve, much less what to eat? We had Jeanette in town for NYE (a fellow healthy vegan & Pinterest healthy vegan promoter) and pulled up trusty old Nobu Restaurant out of a hat to appease her unhealthy date for the evening and us at the same time.

Nobu is a Japanese restaurant with many locations around the world. Its pricey, but a once a year splurge (especially when the guilt stricken meat eater grabbed the tab!) on a night when everyone wants to do something fancy it hits the spot. The waiters are extremely attentive and you don't even have to order, just tell them your restrictions and they'll come up with a course of dishes.

We, of course, started with Edamame! The first item to come was a fabulous thinly sliced Persian cucumber salad w/ a tangy oil free dressing.

The second item to come up was white asparagus in a yuzu sauce (citrus) with chili pepper that made it a bit too spicy for some at the table.

The next round was divine, roasted eggplant in lettuce leafs. They were so juicy & savory I could have eaten the entire plate myself.

A marinated and roasted heirloom tomato sliced like an apple made for a very interesting and different dish. I never thought of a tomato as the centerpiece of a dish! It was enjoyable. (Healthy Vegans will notice there are a few oil droplets in the surrounding sauce, but non got on the tomato!)

Our final dish, which we were all too stuffed to even finish was a hotplate roasted mushroom medley.

Happy New Year everyone and as this post should attest, you can be a Healthy Vegan anywhere and everywhere! Join us in 2012 to look your best, the way nature intended you to be!

Vegan Christmas Dinner from Stuff I Eat

2011-12-26T09:48:00.001-08:00

With family in town, construction still underway, we hardly have time to inflate a blow up bed much less find holiday recipes, shop, test them out, cook it all up while preparing for and then entertaining out-of-towners! We have been turning to Stuff I Eat's holiday meals for the last year. Two ThanksLivings and one Christmas. If you aren't lucky enough to live within driving distance of this Inglewood, CA vegan restaurant then definitely check HappyCow.net for vegan restaurants in your area that might offer special holiday take out meals!

Stuff I Eat is incredibly special and the best vegan restaurant in Los Angeles. For Christmas they had a healthy vegan selection of black eyed peas, quinoa stuffing, collard greens, BBQ Tofu, sweet potatoes, mushroom gravy and a corn salad along with an amazing selection of salad dressings. The dessert was a banana coconut mouse that was simply divine! All prepared with no oil! These delectable dishes were extremely satisfying and you can serve them to any non vegan to rave reviews!

GIVE the GIFT of HEALTH!

2011-12-19T13:44:00.000-08:00

The Healthy Vegans Gift Baskets

What to get your boss, grandparents, or inlaws?? ..well a Healthy Vegan Gift Basket, OF COURSE =)

IN THE BASKET:

Shadey Farms Maple Butter ..A MUST
Ginger People Ginger Spread
King Leo Soft Peppermint Sticks
Cranberry Mimosa Showers Gel
Poinsettia Soap
Trader Joe's Old Fashion Sweet Sticks
Trader Joe's Green Mangoes
Trader Joe's Fat Free Carmel Popcorn
Trader Joe's Chili Spiced Mangoes
Trader Joe's Old Fashion Holiday Candies
Whole Food's Holiday Lip Trio

* Also, Check out Whole Foods Market Mighty Bowls of Goodness Gift Box
this Year, the looks fantastic!! ...got this for my DAD :)

Santa's Fat-Free Sugar Chistmas Cookies

2011-12-09T09:48:00.000-08:00

I know another sugary treat post! This one is special I promise! After many many tries at perfecting the fat-free cookie we have finally NAILED IT! These are so good you'd swear there was a half a cup of butter in them. Kristin ate the soy yogurt I bought to test as a fat replacement so I scrounged around the kitchen for anything else and found some pumpkin maple butter (just pumpkin puree and sugar) and Ginger Spread. Best sugar cookies you'll ever have!

Here's the ingredient round up.
Pure Pantry Sugar Cookie Mix(Gluten/dairy/soy/nut free)
Stonewall Kitchen Maple Pumpkin Butter
Ginger People Ginger Spread
India Tree Natural Food Coloring
India Tree colored sugar sprinkles
Shadey Farms Maple Butter
Festive Cookie Cutters
Fancy Baking mat

Maple Butter works insanely well for icing. A few drops of food coloring and you're in business.

I put the new pistachio KitchenAid Mixer to work. (not supposed to have opened this until Xmas! Good thing my mom never reads our blog :(

Reserve about a 1/2 cup of the mix to flour your rolling surface.
All you need to do is add about half of the pumpkin butter and tablespoon of the ginger jelly (optional) and mix until a dough. You might need to add a few tablespoons of rice milk or water so the dough picks up all the sugar. Just eyeball the pumpkin butter, adding more as needed. The mix calls for 1/2 cup of butter so that amount of pumpkin butter is what we're aiming for.

Roll it out using the 1/2 cup of mix you reserved! Its STICKY so flour your surface well.

Cut out your shapes and transfer to your parchment paper lined baking tray.

Bake at 350 for 10 to 12 minutes or until they start to brown on top.

Stir up your icing and spread it on and add sprinkles.

Amaze everyone! They are VEGAN - FAT FREE - SOY FREE - GLUTEN FREE - NUT FREE - and simply the best Xmas cookies I've ever had or made!

OIL FREE Sugar Cookies!

2011-12-05T09:47:00.000-08:00

These Christmas Sugar Cookies are a fantastic alternative to the traditional fatty artery clogging butter / eggs filled ones...NO THANKS! I'm keeping my Heart Healthy this xmas while having a fun time indulging in these vegan oil free treats.... heck I might be the only person who loses weight this holiday!! lol. My daughter Jeanette did not care for the added orange flavor but I thought they added a little kick to the traditional sugar cookie. I would of liked to rolled them out into Christmas shapes but unfortunately they were too sticky to do so, I'm going to work on that for next time:)

1 box of Cherrybrook Kitchen Sugar Cookie Mix

4 oz. of applesauce

1/4 cup of soy, rice or almond milk

OPTIONAL: You may add a tablespoon of fresh orange juice and 1 teas. of orange rind. Decrease the milk by 1 tablespoon .

Stir all ingredients together, batter will be thick.

Roll cookies into 1 inch balls and place them onto an ungreased baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Bake at 350 8-10 minutes or until a light golden brown.

Let cool 1 minute and then transfer to a cooling rack.

Icing: 1 cup of powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons of rice, almond or soy milk, and 1/4 teas. of vanilla.

Stir till smooth and add food coloring if desired.

Drizzle on warm cookies. Enjoy!

Fat Free & Gluten Free Vegan Carrot Cake ...yum a lum lum!!!

2011-12-02T11:46:00.000-08:00

Simply Organic Carrot Cake is SIMPLY DIVINE!!! I ran across Simply Organic's cake mixes in whole food yesterday and noticed almost each mix comes with a "Alternate Vegan Recipe" on the box that just happens to be Oil Free!! Therefore, last night Lex and I couldn't help but guiltlessly indulge in a couple slices while trimming our xmas tree.

You Will Need:

Directions:

Preheat Oven to 350 F. Use a non stick or parchment paper (NO GREASE ewww) in a round cake pan. Empty Carrot Cake Mix into mixing bowl. Add apple sauce, water, and carrots. Stir just until mixture is evenly moist.

Pour into cake pan. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until center tests done with a toothpic. Let cool on rack for 10 minutes.

Place on a severing plate. Spread Maple Butter and shredded carrots for decoration.

Shady Maple Farm's Maple Butter is PURE HEAVEN!! It's a MUST buy this holiday season for the absolute perfect stocking stuffer or hostess gift. It's so fantastic that I just ordered a 8- pack from Amazon to wrap up for everyone on my list this year!! Sshhh… it's a supprise:D

Fat Free Christmas Cookies

2011-12-01T19:31:00.000-08:00

The Trader Joes fat free, gluten free, vegan brownie mix has been a favorite of The Healthy Vegans recently. If you don't have a TJ's in your area you can get the premium label from Namaste Foods Brownie Mix on Amazon or Whole Foods.

The holidays are a difficult time to be a healthy vegan with colleagues and family members bringing Xmas cookie cheer all too near! I played around with the brownie mix and some old family recipes to create these fat-free vegan (minus the C&H sugar / there are powdered sugars which are not bone char processed, Mary won't be buying this brand any more) holiday cookies. By dividing the brownie mix in half I was able to create two holiday cookies. A pretzel candy cane & cherry powdered sugar. Enjoy!

Peppermint Pretzel Chocolate Crunch Holiday Cookies

INGREDIENTS:

Trader Joe's gluten free brownie baking mix (or Namaste Mix)

4 oz. applesauce

1 teasp. baking powder

1/4 cup of water
3/4 cup of broken fat free pretzel sticks
3/4 cup of crushed peppermint

Mix till batter is moist. It will be thick, divide batter in half in two separate bowls for each type of cookie.

Add 3/4 cup fat free pretzel sticks ( I broke them into 5 pieces by hand). Mix into batter.

Place by heaping teas. 2 inches apart onto a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper. Bake at 375 for 10-12 minutes or until firm.

To crush peppermint, place in a zip lock bag

... hammer away:)

Remove from oven and while warm put the crushed peppermint on top, press down slightly. Let cookies cool for 10 minutes on cookie sheet and the transfer to cooling rack.

Chewy Chocolate Cherry Fat Free Vegan Christmas Cookies

INGREDIENTS:

Trader Joe's gluten free brownie baking mix
4 oz. applesauce
1 teasp. baking powder
1/4 cup of water
1/4 cup of chopped Trader Joe's dark Morello cherries

mix till batter is moist. will be thick, divide batter in half in two separate bowls.

You will need 3/4 cup of broken fat free pretzel sticks and crushed peppermint for the crunch recipe and 1/4 cup of chopped Trader Joe's dark Morello cherries for the cherry recipe.

In the other 1/2 of dough add 1/4 cup of chopped Trader Joe's dark Morello cherries

stir in gently and place by tablespoon on cookie sheet, covered with parchment paper, 2 inches apart. Bake at 375 for 12-15 minutes. Cool on cookie sheet for 10 minutes. Sprinke with powdered sugar while still warm. Transfer to cooling rack.

Vegan NO FAT Pho & Chow Mein

2011-11-29T23:35:00.000-08:00

I only recently discovered Pho, a Vietnamese noodle dish in a delectable broth. Its happens all too often that fruits, vegetables, grains that I've never heard of before all of a sudden become staples in my diet. Too many people think that they "give up" something when they go vegan and then that making the jump to a "healthy vegan" is just too restrictive. I went through a fat vegan stage where I ate everything vegan from every vegan restaurant on the planet, I don't miss one bite, its mostly repulsive to me now. This Pho find is just more proof that for everything you "give up" you find 10 more new foods that are far better.

Pacific Foods, just launched this FABULOUS Pho soup base. It is DIFFERENT than anything you can imagine. One box makes enough for two servings. The magic begins when you combine it with Annie Chuns new freshpak noodles (in your grocers refrigerated section). The Chow Mein and Udon are both superb and come with two separate packs in each. Simply combining the Pho Base and Noodles is a five minute meal in itself, but for the more adventurous, adding peppers, sprouts, fresh thai basil, etc can turn it into a masterpiece.

VEGAN NO FAT PHO

INGREDIENTS:

1 Box- Pacific Natural Vegetarian Pho

1 Pack - Annie Chun's Udon Noddles

1 Celery (thinly sliced)

1 Carrot (thinly sliced)

TOPPINGS

LIME

BASIL

CILANTRO

RED & GREEN Peppers

HOT SWEET CHILI Pepper Sauce

VEGGIE PHO CHOW MEIN

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/4 Cup - Pacific Natural Vegetarian Pho
1 Pack- Annie Chun's chow mein noodles (refrigerated)
2 Cups - Frozen green beans
2 Cups - Frozen Shitakie mushrooms
1 1/2- Carrot
1/8 TSP- Ginger People Minced Ginger
1/8 TSP- Crushed Garlic
1/8 Cup- Lee Kum Kee Hoisin Sauce
2 T - Less Salt Soy Sauce
2 T- Maple Syrup
1 Can- Water Chestnuts

On medium heat add 1 Cup Vegetarian Pho into a large saucepan, bring to a boil. Stir in garlic and ginger. Add mushroom, carrots, and green beans.

Cook veggies till tender. Add Annie Chun's noodles, flip and stir them several time as they warm and separate. Add Water Chestnuts.

Premix chow mein sauce - 1/4 Cup Pho Broth, 1/8 Cup Hoisin Sauce, 2 T Soy Sauce, 2 T Maple. Add Sauce heat for 2-3 mins till warm.

Sweet Potato Chili

2011-11-28T08:50:00.000-08:00

TAKE THE CHILLY OUT OF THE AIR & INTO YOUR BOWL!!

Winter has reared in it's ugly head this morning with our first official snow fall here in St. Louis. Instead of crying that we have 4 more months of this I decided to celebrate with a quick and easy lunch that would be warming to my body and soul....

LONG BEHOLD MY SWEET POTATO CHILI ....

1 microwave sweet potato, cooked 6 mins

3 cans of beans, black, pinto, and kidney

1 can of tomato sauce

1 can of petite diced tomatoes

1/2 bag of Trader Joe's fire roasted bell peppers and onions

1 package of your favorite chili seasoning

Drain and Rinse Beans, Black/ Pinto/ Kidney. Place in large pot on MED heat.

Toss in TJ's Bell Pepper Mix, Tomato Sauce, Dice Tomatoes, & Chili Powder Mix.

Stir and add sweet potato, simmer for 30 mins to blend flavors

The Toast of Raviolli Town

2011-11-22T17:54:00.000-08:00

Toasted Ravioli is a tradition in St. Louis, it usually involves a deep fryer and plenty of cheese filling. We gave this sacred STL dish a healthy makeover that keeps true to the crispy goodness.

Try Ian's Panko Breadcrumb for extra crispy raviolis

Rising Moon and Whole Foods both make vegan low fat raviolis

Preheat oven to 450. Boil these according to the directions and remove from the water. Drop into bread crumbs, coating both sides. Place on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake until browned (about 5 to 7 minutes) or until ravioli puffs. Enjoy with your favorite pasta sauce!

Fat Free Fries by PEAS OF MIND

2011-11-22T13:32:00.000-08:00

I'm officially voting PEAS OF MIND Veggie Wedges THE BEST HEALTHY VEGAN product of 2011!!! Seriously, they are simply OUTSTANDING...despite being marketed "For Growing Kids" =) Well looks like I must be the biggest kid on the planet because these are my new favorite food!

Peas of Mind Veggie Wedgies are available on Amazon or at most Whole Foods. The come in 4 variety: Cauliflower, Broccoli (my fav), Carrot and Apple. They are so good I've actually started eating them for breakfast:D ..at 280 calories / Zero FAT you just can't go wrong!!

If you live in the mid-west check out Earl's Black Bean dip at Whole Foods, it's delicious.

American Harvest Vegetable Curry

2011-11-22T10:07:00.000-08:00

This Indian influenced dish with a VERY American twist is perfect for those with veggie burger and french fries taste buds. My mid-western mother, Mary, actually created this dish and when she shared this curry recipe with Alex and I we were SHOCKED! Simply because my mom would always bail out every time we had plans to eat Indian. Then, I finally discovered it wasn't the Indian flavors she disliked but the mushiness of the texture...well and the fact she can't stand spicy food:D

INGREDIENTS! (no prep time here:)

1 1/2 teas. ground cumin
1 1/2 teas. curry powder
1 teas. salt
1/2 teas. coriander
Dash of cayenne pepper
1 cup thinly sliced onion (frozen onions, time saver)
3 cloves of garlic minced (pre minced garlic)
1 bay leaf
4 cups of cauliflower florets (frozen)
2 carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch long pieces (baby carrots pre-cut)
1/2 bag of frozen green beans
1 can ( 14 ounces ) petite diced tomatoes
1 cup vegetable broth
1 can ( 15.5 ounces ) garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
2 cups of fresh baby spinach, thinly sliced
TJ's 3 min Jasmine Rice

Since veggie broth is the replacement for oil, I think it best to premix your spices before hitting the non stick saucepan. In a cup pour 1/4 broth, add cumin, curry powder, salt, and cayenne pepper.

Pour mixture in non stick sauce pan on med heat. Stir constantly until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add onion, garlic, and bay leaf; cover and cook until onion wilts, about 3 minutes.

Add cauliflower, carrots, green beans, tomatoes, and remaining broth. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until vegetables are crisp-tender, about 15-20 minutes.

Add garbanzo beans and spinach; cook for 1 minute. Add additional broth if mixture seems too dry.

Remove pan from heat, and remove and discard bay leaf and mix in rice.

Yet another ridiculously easy recipe for all you on the go!

Trader Joe's Portabella Buger

2011-11-21T18:05:00.000-08:00

YOUR TICKET TO MUSHROOM TOWN!! ...NO OIL ALLOWED :D

Seriously dinner can't bet more easy breezy then hitting up TJ's for prepackaged Portabella burgers & Toppings. Tj's Roasted Red Peppers, lettuce, whole wheat slims and tomatoes.

First thing is to lay down some Maple Grove Farms Fat Free Balsamic nonstick pan

Toss in your portabella heads, on medium heat for 5-10 mins till tender

Add the roasted red peppers to warm

Break out this amazing FAT FREE Peas of Mind Veggie Wedgies

Tada! You have one awesomely quick and delicious portabella burger and fries. No added oil, fats or fatty bits.

Trader Joe's Spanish Rice & Beans IN MINUTES!!

2011-11-17T09:15:00.000-08:00

Take a walk on the MILD side with this yummy dish :)

NO SOUS CHEF REQUIRED ..haha! Cooking for healthy dummies, this quick meal is easy enough for anyone to make! THAT IS...if you know how to turn on a stove, push start on a microwave and then open a can, you're ready to be fulfilled & skinny! It prepares in minutes and very easy on your pocket, for today's active lifestyle.

INGREDIENTS:

- 1 packet Trader Joe's Organic Jasmine Rice

- 1 Can Pinto Beans, Rinsed and Drained

- 1/2 Bag Trader Joe's frozen Fire Roasted Bell Peppers and Onions

- 16 oz of your MILD Salsa.

In a saucepan mix together Pinto Beans, Frozen Fire Roasted peppers/ onions, and Salsa. Bring to boil, then simmer for 15 mins.
Microwave rice 3 mins as instructed on package.
MIX together and serve with OIL FREE Corn Chips

Vegan Tea Party!!!

2011-11-14T13:24:00.000-08:00

HEALTHY VEGAN TEA PARTY!!

My mother and I wanted to treat her friend Janine to a tea party, so we had three bite sized delicious snacks. Butternut squash quesadilla, white bean and cucumber sandwiches and pumpkin scones. The conversation ranged from local affairs to the savory flavors on the table. Just goes to show with a little extra preparation and effort you can entice the palate of a any non-vegan to an enjoyable healthy snack!

Oil Free Pumpkin Scones, Butternut Squash Quesadilla, & Basil White Bean Cucumber Sandwiches

FAT FREE PUMPKIN SCONES

1 3/4 Cup -WW Pastry Flour
1/4 Cup- Sugar
1 TSP - Baking Powder
1/4 TSP- Baking Soda
1 1/2 TSP- Pumpkin Pie Spice
1 Bannana
1 Cup- Pumpkin Puree

-In a large mixing bowl, add dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and pumpkin spice).

-Cut in banana, adding a bit at a time until mixed then add pumpkin and combine well..DON'T OVER MIX!

-Put dough on a lightly floured surface, knead dough a few times, pushing it into a large circle, a few inches thick.

-Use a cookie cutter to cut the petite scones.

-Sprinkle the tops with turbinado sugar

-Bake at 425 degrees for 12-15 minutes, or until bottoms are lightly browned.

BASIL WHITE BEAN & CUCUMBER TEA SANDWICHES

1 Can -White Beans
3 leaves-Basil
1/8 TSP - Liquid Smoke to taste
1/2 TSP- Paprika
1/2 - Fresh Lemon Juice
1/4 TSP- Sea Salt

-Mix ingredient in a food processor, use water to attain desired consistency.
-Spread White Bean mixture on top of toasted bread.
-On top add a cucumber, diced grape tomatoes.
-Sprinkle dried basil and dill on top.

BUTTERNUT SQUASH QUESADILLA

1 OR 2 BAGS -Frozen Butternut Squash Cubes
4-6- Sliced Grape tomatoes
1 TSP - Ground Cumin
1 TSP - Paprika
1/8 - 1/4 TSP- Liquid Smoke -to taste
To Taste- Crush Red Chili Pepper

Put the frozen cubes in a nonstick pan on med-low heat.

As they heat up karate chop them with a nylon spatula until they are mush.

Fold in the spices (play with the amounts) and liquid smoke. Use about half a cap of the liquid smoke, but no more than a capful.

Once the spices are well mixed set aside and heat up both sides of a tortilla and spoon in enough to cover half and toss a few tomatoes on top.

Fold over and crisp on each side.

Cut them up and serve with salsa and have a party!

Our Vegan Tea Party was so easy and such a success we are doing it again next Sunday!!!

Oil Free Rice Milk & and little Holiday Soy Nog

2011-11-08T22:23:00.000-08:00

I'm sure all my fellow Whole Foods Shoppers have noticed that SILK is being phased out of all Whole Foods locations because they no longer are using organic soy beans (possibly GMO) and instead using the shady "natural" label*. WTG Dean Foods, I hope you dairy cow torturing & killing bastards ruin the brand and go down with it! Enter Ryza & Earth Balance Soy Milks. Now, I think Earth Balance fat spreads are the most unhealthy thing a vegan can put into their bodies, but they have assembled a team of insiders (from Silk) to continue the organic Soy Milk supply to Whole Foods.

The nice thing about both of these new products is that they are low in fat and OIL FREE! Ryza even makes a point in their FAQ to point this out! It seems ALL OTHER RICE MILKS have OIL! NASTY! I'm surprised Earth Balance didn't glob in a ton... Honestly, I think its a disgusting use of the Earth Balance brand. I think I'm chugging a bottle of fat... They should have just come up with a new name, its a disastrous brand extension. I like the Soy Nog, however!

Ryza is my new "milk". B12 / Calcium (don't know why they bother putting in Vitamin D since the only usable form comes from standing in the sunlight.) WTG Canada, thank you!

Check out this clever new ad from the Dairy Industry. What's in your milk? They make seaweed look like a poison, lol. I edited it up a bit since they left out the parts which are in cow's milk.

There's some truth in advertising that should make you vomit! I have to applaud them for a super clever campaign! Straight out of the Mad Men episode when the government cracks down on cigarette advertising health claims and Don Draper comes up with new components of Cigs to promote! Milk is so poisonous they have nothing left to advertise so they have fallen to this bottom rung = attack their competition by trying to convince people that Carrageenan, a simple sea vegetable thickening agent is bad! Anyone wanting to make their own nut, rice, soy milk at home can simply do it with a blender and strainer (1 part nut to 4 parts water) and know EXACTLY what's IN your "milk"!

Low Fat Vegan Hummus No Oil No Tahini TONS of Flavor SANDWICH!

2011-10-24T13:34:00.000-07:00

In an effort to be nourished on my epic 21.5 mile Santa Monica Mountain / Back Bone trail hike part (2) I decided that sandwiches over performance gels / sugar energy bombs / would be more appropriate since my muscles are filled with glycogen from this WOL (meat eaters and unhealthy vegans can't hang!) and I just want something light and tasty to enjoy along with the nature. I hiked for 8 hours and saw amazing sites. I never felt tired once, despite the endless 1000ft climbs.

The famous EAGLE ROCK. Look close you'll see an eye and a beak!

Low Fat No Oil No Tahini tasty hummus sandwich. (pictured with my red potato fat free potato chips)
This hummus is fantastic alone, as a dip, with veggies, etc!
Ingredients;

1 can chic peas (rinse and drained) [preferably Edun brand]
1 tablespoon of low sodium tamari
1/3rd teaspoon liquid smoke (tiny tiny amount)
Half a lemon squeeze
sprinkle crushed red chili peppers (kind of over the top before mixed lightly)

That's it, blend in the food processor until smooth, add a little water along the way to get to your desired smoothness.
Add cucumber, shredded carrot and tomato to two slices of toasted whole grain no-oil bread and pack in a sandwich baggie for lunch or snack!

Healthy Road Trip'n : Mint Tulip Vegan Cafe in Albuquerque, NM

2011-10-22T13:17:00.000-07:00

I've driven through Albuquerque, NM many times and never stopped until now! The vegan selections were never enough to warrant a departure from the highway. Mint Tulip Vegan Cafe opened recently and now provides a delightful destination for weary and hungry westward travelers. The decor is a Southern Diner hijacked by tattoo'd pin up models with a penchant for minty colors.

We couldn't pass up the Lemonade or purple potato salad nicoise! All oil free with fresh green beans! We just used a little balsamic and hot sauce. It was an extra hot day, so we had a little Chicago Soy Dairy Soft Serve to go!

They bring out the dishes in these little baking trays!

Mint Tulip
http://minttulipvegan.tumblr.com/
Vegan Cafe in Albuquerque, NM.

2110 Central SE 87106 (505) 242-1320

Hours: Mon-Sat 10-4 Fri until 9pm