Quinoa-Spinach-Arugula-Apple salad

It’s finally summery weather in New England and that means farm stands, farmers markets and lots of salads! Here’s a quick way to add some protein hearty grains to quick and tasty salad.

Ingredients:

2 cups cooked quinoa, chilled

large bunch of fresh baby spinach

large bunch of fresh arugula

2 granny smith apples, diced

1 ripe avocado, diced

1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds (or pumpkin seeds or nuts if you prefer)

2 tsp Gomasio (optional)

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Toss everything in a big bowl, stir well and enjoy! Top with crispy tofu or chickpeas and make it a complete meal.

Quinoa Pancakes

“Quinoa is gluten-free, high in fiber and a complete protein, meaning it has all nine amino acids. Quinoa also contains high amounts of lysine, manganese, magnesium, iron, copper and phosphorus. Due to quinoa being a complete protein, it is an excellent food choice for the gluten-free vegan.”-from celiac.com

One 1/4 cup serving of quinoa contains 7 grams of protein. I’m hoping the added nutritional benefit justifies the fact that I just made these pancakes for dinner. Delicious!

1 cup whole-wheat flour

1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour (For Gluten Free, use 1 1/2 cup all purose GF flour blend plus 1 tsp xanthum gum)

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 tablespoon sugar

1/8 teaspoon salt

2 Tbsp flax meal plus 6 Tbsp water

1 1/2 cups non dairy milk plus 1 1/2 tsp cider vinegar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 tablespoons canola oil

1 cup Bob’s Red Mill cooked quinoa

1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries or other fruit, like sliced bananas, strawberries or raisins (optional)

1. Sift together the flours, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt.

2. In another bowl, whisk the flax meal and water. In another bowl, mix the non dairy milk and cider vinegar and allow to sit for a few minutes to “curdle” like buttermilk. Whisk flax and non dairy milk together, then whisk in the vanilla extract and the oil.

3. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients, and quickly whisk together. Do not overbeat; a few lumps are fine. Fold in the quinoa.

4. Heat a griddle over medium-hot heat. If necessary, brush or spray with oil. Drop 3 to 4 tablespoons onto the hot griddle. Place six to eight blueberries (or several slices of banana or strawberries) on each pancake. Cook until bubbles begin to break through, two to three minutes. Turn and cook on the other side for about a minute or until nicely browned. Remove from the heat, and continue cooking until all of the batter is used up.

Recipe adapted from this article: http://nyti.ms/lw4GwL

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies #2

Yet another recipe that impressed me is the one from Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar. These contain no butter and are lightly sweet and delicious soft and chewy.

Ingredients:

1/3 cup soy or coconut milk

2 Tbsp flax seed meal

2/3 cup packed brown sugar

1/3 cup canola oil

1 tsp vanilla

3/4 cup all purpose flour-or-Gluten Free all purpose blend + 1/2 tsp xanthum gum

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups oats

1/2 cup raisins or chocolate chips

Directions:

Heat oven to 350°F.  In large bowl, mix the flax meal and milk well. Add sugar, oil and vanilla until creamy. Add combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; mix well. Add oats and raisins; mix well.

Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake 10-12 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool 1 minute on cookie sheets; remove to wire rack. Cool completely. Store tightly covered.

Vanishing Vegan Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

These are the cookies of your childhood modified to be vegan and/or gluten free. The best part about vegan baking is also eating the dough without fear of egg related bacteria-which means eating too much cookie dough. This one is especially good!

Ingredients

• 1/2  cup (1 stick) plus 6 tablespoons Earth Balance butter sticks, softened
• 3/4  cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 1/2  cup granulated sugar
• 2 Tbsp egg replacer +6 Tbsp water -or- 2 Tbsp flax seed meal + 6 Tbsp water
• 1  teaspoon vanilla
• 1-1/2  cups all-purpose flour -or- Gluten Free all purpose flour + 1 tsp xanthum gum
• 1  teaspoon baking soda
• 1  teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2  teaspoon salt (optional)
• 3  cups oats (quick or old fashioned, uncooked) I use BRM extra thick rolled oats
• 1  cup raisins-or- 1/2 cup raisins + 1/2 cup chocolate chips

Directions:

Heat oven to 350°F. In large bowl or stand mixer, beat butter and sugars on medium speed until creamy. Add egg replacer and vanilla; beat well. Add combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; mix well. Add oats and raisins; mix well.

Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool 1 minute on cookie sheets; remove to wire rack. Cool completely. Store tightly covered.

Soba Noodles with Crispy Chickpeas and Avocado

With busy schedules, we get home form work after 8pm 3x a week. That means making a super quick dinner to try to eat before 9pm! Often it’s soup so it’s lighter and easy to digest but sometimes I just rummage through the cupboard for something to throw together. That’s how this new favorite was born.

1 package soba noodles. for GF noodles get Buckwheat-they are about 2x the price, though.

1 ripe avocado cut into chunks

1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 tsp favorite spice mix

salt and pepper to taste

Put the chickpeas and oil in a heavy skillet or cast iron pan on medium high heat and cook until they begin to brown, stirring occasionally. Add spices and stir well. Cook until crispy.

In a saucepan, cook the soba noodles according to package directions. DO NOT OVERCOOK! Drain noodles and put into a large mixing bowl.

Stir together the chickpeas, noodles and avocado. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.