Anything You Can Make, I Can Make Vegan: Mayo

Even though mayo grossed me out for a looooong time (thanks mostly to my high school days working in a certain sub shop) and actual mayo still does, even I get a hankerin' for some sort of creamy dressing every once and in a while. Thankfully I found and tweaked this recipe to fill the void!

What am I talking about? Tofu mayo of course! (Oh tofu, is there anything you can't do?)

"Chicken" Salad and the Scenic Route

This morning while rummaging though my fridge I happened to see that I had both grapes and celery... And briefly I longed for the days of homemade chicken salad sammiches... Mostly fir the wonderful contrast between the sweetness of the grapes and the savory of the celery all mixed together in creamy harmony.

Happy 'Merica Day!!

Hey all, here's a festive little breakfast/snack idea for a healthy happy refreshing 4th!!

Happy Forth Toast: (serves 1)

• 1 slice bread (I used a whole wheat sourdough... AH-MAZ-ING)
• 2T peanut butter (or other favorite nut butter)
• 4-8 fresh strawberries, sliced thin
• 1/4 of an apple, cut into thin strips
• a few blueberries
• Small mint sprig (to garnish, optional)

Toast the bread (totally optional), spread on the peanut butter and layer straw berries, apples and blueberries to create an American flag, or get creative and make your own design.

P.S. I promise I'll be posting more soon! Have a safe and happy holiday!! 'Merica!!

Sometimes I Feel Like A Nut: Homemade Nutella

I feel like I'm super obsessed with nut butter spreads... since I've posted a few now haha... (aaannnd I still have more that have yet to be posted)

But it didn't stop me from making another. Nutella seems to have a cult-ish following, I mean it does taste good but when your ingredients include sugar and chocolate it's hard to mess that up :) Seriously it's like dessert in a little plastic jar.

Sadly Nutella contains milk, and thus makes my stomach wanna punch it's way out of my body.... so I did what I do best and came up with a version without dairy! HA

Homemade Nutella:

• 2c roasted hazelnuts
• 1T oil
• 1/4c unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2c - 3/4c non dairy milk (I made my own hazelnut milk for this recipe)
• 3/4c - 1c sweetener of your choosing (agave, maple, ect.)
• 1/4t of salt
• 1t vanilla

Place nuts and cocoa powder in a food processor. Begin to incorporate remaining ingredients and keep your eye on the consistency. The more liquid you add the thinner the spread.

Italian Recipe Round Up: Bruschetta, Minestrone, and Grilled Veggies

So I think I've discovered that I can never go back to eating dairy or eggs again. I tried eating dairy on Thursday, woke up sick Friday... But felt better yesterday morning. Then yesterday afternoon I made fried rice for my husband and couldn't resist having a bowl myself... bad idea. So here I sit nauseated and all sorts of unpleasantness... But it's not all bad, at least I now I'm fairly positive I've nailed down the source of my mysterious stomach pains. Also while I was feeling better I made a slew of Italian goodies.

Nut Butter Goodness: Raw Sunflower Seed Butter

 
Are you sick of peanut butter yet? I didn't think so. But by chance you feel like changing it up? Give sunflower seed butter a shot!

A Hummus of a Different Kind: Kidney Bean Hummus

So this morning I was out of hummus, and I had a half hour to make lunch for me and the husband. Tough, me being me, instead of running to the grocery store (which is exactly one mile away) I decided I would just make my own. Oh also, I was also out of chickpeas (canned/cooked) but what I did have was a can of kidney beans. Hooray for the internet! Because I came across a recipe from here. I only altered it a tad, but not much.

This recipe is a southwestern take on hummus. It turned out great! I've already had 3 servings to myself. Though next time I think I wish add more cayenne and lime juice.

What to do with a 3 lb bag of apples? Applesauce and Apple Butter

Tired of the same old jam/jelly you keep spreading on your toast? Are you a fan of apples? Then you should probably give apple butter a shot.