Healthy Guacamole

At this point you may be getting the impression that I'm starting a food blog. No worries, every post won't be about food. However, food is an important part of life and we all like to see what other people are eating and enjoying with their families. Well, if you're anything like me you do. I, myself, get in a rut from time to time and get weary of eating the same dishes over and over again. It's then that I go searching the net for new ideas.

I'm not a real avocado lover, but I know they're good for me. So, the way I go about getting those added nutrients in my diet is by making a healthy Guacamole Dip. Unfortunately, sometimes what you find in the store and even in some homemade recipes, are dips loaded with additives and bad fats from oils or sour cream. Tasty though it may be, good for the heart and waistline they're not!

This particular recipe comes from my Country Life Vegetarian Cookbook. I've taken the liberty of adding a couple of extra ingredients. For me, their recipe just lacked that extra punch of flavor that I needed. Feel free to experiment with the ingredients to suite your own taste, but try to avoid ingredients that are high in bad fats.

One of my favorite methods for enjoying this dip is by simply spreading it over toasted whole wheat bread. Mmm, mmmm! Other ideas (besides the usual tortilla chips) are using it as a spread on a sandwich or in a burrito wrap.

GUACAMOLE

2 c. mashed avocado (approx. 2 medium avocados)
1 t. garlic powder
1 1/2 t. onion powder
1 t. salt
1 - 1 1/2 T. lemon juice
3/4 c. finely chopped tomatoes
*1/8 t. cumin
*pinch or more of cayenne pepper

Scoop out avocados into bowl, mash well. Add remaining ingredients and mix together. Chill.

YIELD: 2 3/4 cups
Ingredients marked with an asterisk are my own special touch.

Picture borrowed from: CountryLiving

Southwestern Beans & Rice

I thought I'd share this recipe that I'm taking to Potluck tomorrow for church. The recipe comes from my Light and Tasty cookbook from Taste of Home. I've made it before and one gentleman in particular, always compliments me on it. I usually add some soy cheddar shreds and I'm even considering throwing in some multi grain Penne Pasta today. I may find that it'll need some added water if I go ahead with the pasta.

Southwestern Beans and Rice

1 medium green pepper, diced
1 medium onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 T. olive oil
2 1/2c. water
1 c. uncooked long grain rice
1/2 t. ground cumin
1/8 t. ground turmeric
1 can (15 ounces) black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (10 ounces) diced tomatoes and green chilies, undrained
1 package (10 ounces) frozen corn, thawed

In a large nonstick skillet, saute the green pepper, onion and garlic in oil for 3 minutes. Stir in the broth, rice, cumin and turmeric; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 15 minutes or until rice is tender. Add beans, tomatoes and corn; heat through.

YIELD: 8 servings

Nutritional Analysis: One serving (3/4 cup) equals 198 calories, 3 g fat (1 g saturated fat), 1 mg cholesterol, 339 mg sodium, 37 g carbohydrate, 5 g fiber, 7 g protein.


Photo borrowed from: Knorr

Cranberry Goodness

It's that time of year. The time when Cranberries are plentiful. I wanted to share with you two of my favorite holiday recipes that are loaded with this deliciously, tart fruit.

CRANBERRY APPLE PIE

4 c. thinly sliced peeled baking apples
1 c. fresh or frozen cranberries
1 c. sugar
2 T. cornstarch
1 t. lemon juice
1 t. ground cinnamon
Pastry for double-crust pie (9 inches)
1 T. butter or margarine

METHOD:
In mixing bowl, combine apples, cranberries, sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice and cinnamon. Line a 9-inch pie pan with half of pastry. Spoon filling into crust; dot with butter. Top with a lattice crust. Bake at 400 for 40-50 minutes or until bubbly and golden brown. Yield: 8 servings


This next dessert is a cranberry crumb cake. It's light and easy to prepare. The flavor of cranberry comes through in every sweet-tart bite, and the streusel topping looks so pretty. Simply divine!!

CRANBERRY CRUMB CAKE
Yield: 9 servings

1 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 c. plus 1/3 c. sugar, divided
2 t. baking powder
1/2 t salt
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 c. fat-free milk (or soy)
1 T. orange juice (or 1 t. orange extract)
1 T. oil
1/4 t. almond extract
2 c. fresh or frozen cranberries, chopped

TOPPING:
1/4 c. all-purpose flour
3 T. sugar
2 T. cold butter

METHOD:
In a bowl, combine the flour, 1/2 cup sugar, baking powder and salt. Combine the egg, milk, orange juice, oil and extract; stir into dry ingredients, Spoon into an 8-inch square baking dish coated with nonstick cooking spray. Combine cranberries and remaining sugar; spoon over batter.
For topping, combine flour and sugar in a small bowl; cut in the butter until crumbly. Sprinkle over cranberries. Bake at 375 for 35-45 minutes or until edges begin to pull away from sides of pan. Refrigerate leftovers.


These are both great country desserts and perfect to serve at Christmastime. I know this is Christmas eve and you have probably already baked all that you're going to, but do try these while cranberries are still easy to get. I don't think you'll be the least bit be disappointed.

Have a wonderful Christmas tomorrow, and may the New Year bring you more blessings than you can possibly dream of.

Soy Great! Patties (Burgers)

In anticipation of warmer weather, I've had a hankerin for a vegan burger. I grabbed my Guilt Free Gourmet cook book off the shelf and started flipping through it's pages. My eyes landed on the Soy Great! Patties and since I already had some soaked soybeans on hand I decided that these were the burgers that I would make.

Aside from a little planning, as you will need to soak your soybeans ahead of time, these are very easy to prepare. Perhaps you may think they don't look all that appealing, but remember, you can't always judge a burger by it's color. If I'd had a garden fresh tomato, a few sprouts and a nice round dill pickle, it would have been perfect! Even without them though, the flavor was surprisingly, quite yummy.

INGREDIENTS:
1 c. *Soaked soy beans
2 T. Nutritional yeast flakes
1/2 t. Salt
1/2 t. Onion powder
1/4 t. Garlic powder
1/2 c. Water
1 T. **Chicken-Style Seasoning
3/4 c. Rolled Oats
1 t. Italian seasoning

* Soak 1 C. Soy beans in 4 C. water overnight. Drain and use 1 C. for recipe and freeze remainder for future use.

**See recipe below or you can use any type of vegetarian chicken-like seasoning you have on hand. Bill's Best Chick' nish is popular.

METHOD:
Combine all ingredients EXCEPT oats in blender and grind to fine consistency. Pour over oats, stir, and let stand for 10 minutes. form into patties. Brown on both sides on a lightly sprayed non-stick griddle. Cover while browning. Transfer to sprayed cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes on each side.

YIELDS: 8 medium size burgers

• These patties are even good cold in sandwiches with a bit of Vegenaise
• Serve them over rice with gravy or spaghetti sauce.
• Try breaking them up over a baked potato topped with a dollup of soy sour cream.
• Make up a double recipe of these, and freeze all the extra patties for future use.
• You can eat them plain. They're great as an entree with vegetables.
  

As for the Chicken Seasoning, I like to make a double batch and keep it on hand for many of the dishes I cook. It's very versatile and can be used in anything you want to take on a chicken flavor.

**CHICKEN-STYLE SEASONING
1 1/3 c. nutritional yeast flakes
1 T. onion powder
1/2 t. celery seed
2 t. garlic powder
1/2 t. turmeric
2 T. barley malt powder (opt.)
3 T. sea salt
1 t. dried parsley
1 T. paprika

Combine all ingredients and bled until powdery.

What's For Dinner

I had to make a last minute change to our menu tonight. I was planning to make cream of broccoli soup, but I forgot to soak my soybeans last night so that I could make soy milk with our SoyaPower soy milk maker. Therefore, I had to change things up a bit.

I decided I'd make tomorrow's dinner instead. Along with our baked potatoes, I made curried lentils over rice. Lentils aren't normally something that #2 son enjoys eating and when he saw them cooking on the stove he wasn't very thrilled. I told him to hold off on sharing his opinion until he tried them.

I got this recipe some time ago from The Urban Homemaker. I went back to her website tonight to see if I could find it, but couldn't. Here it is:

CURRIED LENTILS
1 T. oil
1-1 1/2 c. chopped onions
2 cloves minced garlic or 1 t. powder
1-1 1/2 c. rinsed lentils
5 c. water
1/4 c. tomato powder or 1 - 14oz. can tomatoes
1/2 t. cumin
1/2 t. ginger
1/2 t. turmeric
1/2 t. curry powder
dash cayenne pepper to taste

Sauté onions in oil in a large pot for two minutes. Add garlic and sauté briefly. Add all remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Simmer until lentils are soft, yet firm. (In other words, when you remove them from the pot they should still have a nice round shape and not be mushy like mashed potatoes.) Serve hot over rice.

*************************************

To make the rice, put 1 tablespoon of Soy Garden Spread (or whatever kind of butter/margarine you like) in a 2 quart sauce pot and heat just until melted. Then add 2 cups of long grain white rice (not instant) to the pot, stirring until the rice is well coated. Heat rice until lightly browned, watching it carefully so that it doesn't burn. Once rice is browned to your liking, pour in four cups of water. Lastly, add 1/4 cup of nutritional yeast flakes and 2 Tablespoons of your favorite seasoning. (I use Herbamare Original) Stir well and place a tight fitting lid on the pot.

Next, bring your water to a rolling boil, then turn the heat down to simmer and let rice cook until all the water has evaporated. This takes about 20 minutes. Avoid lifting the lid during cooking time as this will let too much steam escape and your rice won't cook properly. Also, it isn't necessary to stir the rice while it's cooking. Rice is better left alone and only stirred just before serving.

Well, I got a resounding A+ from everyone for tonight's dinner. In fact #2 son said, "These are the only lentils I'll ever eat mom." Overall, it was a simple meal to prepare and because it was delicious, it made it on the kids list for "make that again" and on mom's list of "health food". Next time, I'll try to make it with brown rice instead. This will boost the nutritional value, but because of time restraints tonight, I opted for the white rice. Happy eating!

New Recipe

My husband is (IMO) not typical when it comes to things he likes to eat for breakfast. The rest of us are completely satisfied with the normal fare of fruit, pancakes, waffles, French toast, hot/cold cereal, toast and the like. My sweet man however, prefers big dinner type breakfasts that will carry him through for 5-6 hrs at a time. He has told me that pancakes and similar meals just don't do that for him. One of his favorite breakfasts consist of scrambled tofu, fried potatoes and toast. Actually, any meal that has potatoes of some kind is a winner for him. Thankfully, we all like that too!

Being that we are vegetarian (leaning more toward vegan) it has been rather difficult for me to come up with a dish that hits that special spot for my sweetie. The other day I found a recipe and was very hopeful that I'd be able to add this one to our regular menu plan. As I read through the ingredients it had brown rice AND potatoes. Two dishes he loves... this one had potential!

I quickly printed it out and set out to make breakfast. We were sitting there enjoying each other's company, eating away, and the next thing I hear from sweetie is: "I like this, this is really good!" Then the children chimed in with similar sentiments. That was music to my ears! Needless to say, I'll be fixing this dish again, and regularly.

HURRY-UP HEARTY HASH

2 C. cooked brown rice
1/2 C. sauteed onions
1/2 C. chopped celery
1/4 C. brewers yeast flakes
2 C. shredded raw potatoes, unpeeled
2 T. oil
1/2 t. salt
1/8 t. garlic powder (optional)
2 T. soy sauce or Bragg's Liquid Aminos

Wash the potatoes well and remove any spots. Shred on a medium shredder. Combine all ingredients. Stir well enough to mix. Place into a lightly oiled skillet on medium heat. Cover and let cook until nicely browned, about 10 minutes. Scrape from the bottom of skillet and turn. Cover and let cook 10 minutes longer. Stir and reduce heat, let cook an additional 5 minutes. Serve.

Servings: 6

Sunday's Hog Roast/Family Reunion

Photo Courtesy of: FulcrumGallery

This past Sunday we journeyed three hours from home to go to my husband's Aunt Mayme Ruth's farm for her annual Hog Roast. This is always a big event where, not just family, but area neighbors and church goers are invited to attend too. I took vegetarian dishes of course. Things that would go over well with the meat eaters. Surprisingly, my huge bowl of potato salad was the only one there. I also took a pasta salad, a big pot of green beans with garden potatoes mixed in, and a bit of chunky applesauce. There was so much food, no one could have possibly tasted everything.

September 23rd was chosen this year because it was Aunt Mayme Ruth's 89th birthday. You wouldn't know it to watch her though. She's always right in the middle of all the activity and can keep up with the best of'em.

There were games of horseshoes, football and a few rounds of volleyball going on. Of course, if you're a Colts fan, you might have been seen indoors from time to time catching a glimpse to see what the score was. The littlest ones among us had fun jumping in the inflatable bounce house nearby. As for me, I just had a wonderful time laughing and visiting with all of my husband's cousins and catching up on the events of each other's lives since we gathered together last year.

Something that always catches my attention is the closeness of Aunt Mayme Ruth's daughters. She has five girls, (two boys) and they are just the best of friends. For the most part, they all live nearby to one another and from our talks I found that they do a lot of things for, and with each other. I've never once seen a negative look or heard a negative word between any of them. That's a wonderful example and exactly how it should be! :)

Thanks for everything `Aunt Mayme Ruth, Nancy, Ellen, Faye, Louann, Molly, David and Garrell!`

My favorite dish served that day:
(made by my mother in-law)

SWEET AND SOUR "BURGER" LOAF

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 stick margarine
1 c. chopped onion
4. c. dried, herb stuffing mix
1 1/4 c. water
1 1/2 c soy cheddar cheese
4 eggs (may substitute with soft tofu)
1 t. garlic powder
1/2 t. sage
1 20 oz. Can Worthington Veg. Burger (may sub. with Morn. Star Veggie Crumbles)

Saute' onions in margarine. Add to remaining ingredients and mix throughly. Place in greased 2qt. baking dish.

GLAZE:
1/2 c. catsup
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. hot water

Mix all ingredients together and pour over top of loaf, spreading evenly. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.