My Vegan Cookbook

http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/cookbooks.asp?cookbook=326341

Visit my online cookbook titled The Vegan Chef! So far just a couple of recipes but you will find nutrition information for each recipe!

Low Fat Oatmeal Cookies

If you are like me you eat healthy most of the time, you workout 4 or more times a week but every now and then you want or even crave something sweet. BUT you don't want to undo all the hard work you have put into the week.

Today I made up some low fat VEGAN oatmeal cookies, I find these to be a wonderful way to treat yourself and not throw off your hard work for the week.

Donna who is by no means vegan is my tester for most of my recipes, sometimes to her delight sometimes not so much, but gives these cookies a 9 on a scale of 1-10. These cookies are as easy to make as they are delicious to eat.

What you need:
1 Cup Whole Wheat Pastry Flower
1 Cup Rolled oats but not the instant kind
1/2 teaspns baking powder
1/2 teaspns cinnamon
1/4 teaspns nutmeg
1/2 Cup molasses
4 Tblspns corn oil
2 Tblspns water
1 1/2 teaspns vanilla
1/2 Cup walnuts coarsely chopped
1/2 Cup raisins

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees
Place the flower, oats, baking powder, cinnamon and nutmeg in a mixing bowl and stir together and set aside.

In a small bowl mix the molasses, oil, water and vanilla together. I like to put the oil in first so the mixture comes out of the bowl easier. Oh and don't forget the water the first time I made these I forgot and while they will come out ok, and have the same flavor they will be dryer. The water is going to make these cookies retain their moisture.

Once all the wet ingredients are mixed together well add to your dry ingredients and mix well, add the nuts and raisins and incorporate throughout. I tried these a number of ways the first time I spooned out a heaping teaspoon of mixture and made flat disks, I have also spooned out a tablespoon and made balls and even placed all the mixture onto wax paper and made a roll then cut out disks. Whatever you go with make all the cookies even so your cooking time is even. I would say start with no more than a tablespoon of mixture and cook for 10-12 minuets or until lightly browned but still moist.

Remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack, you can keep for up to a week in the pantery.

Bon Appetite!

Nutrition Facts Low Fat Vegan Oatmeal Cookies
20 Servings
Amount Per Serving
Calories		116.9
Total Fat		5.2 g
	Saturated Fat	0.6 g
	Polyunsaturated Fat	3.0 g
	Monounsaturated Fat	1.1 g
Cholesterol		0.0 mg
Sodium		15.9 mg
Potassium		165.2 mg
Total Carbohydrate		17.1 g
	Dietary Fiber	1.5 g
	Sugars	7.2 g
Protein		1.9 g

Vitamin A	0.0 %
Vitamin B-12	0.0 %
Vitamin B-6	4.1 %
Vitamin C	0.3 %
Vitamin D	0.0 %
Vitamin E	3.4 %
Calcium	2.9 %
Copper	5.1 %
Folate	0.8 %
Iron	4.3 %
Magnesium	6.5 %
Manganese	12.6 %
Niacin	0.9 %
Pantothenic Acid	0.8 %
Phosphorus	2.0 %
Riboflavin	0.7 %
Selenium	2.3 %
Thiamin	2.4 %
Zinc	0.9 %

*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

Mixed Veggies, Roasted Brussel Sprouts... OOOoooo So Good!

Tonight's dinner was a little hope a lot praying and a whole bunch of trust in cooking experience. I know your thinking oh no this can't be good but in fact it was delicious. Scale of 1-10 a solid 8.

So what is it you ask, well I came home from working out at the gym feeling like I have a healthy start on the evening and wanted to keep that going. So I took a look in the fridge, found the following: 

2 large porta bella mushrooms

1 medium yellow squash

1 small to medium sweet potato

1 head of cauliflower

1/2 medium or 1 small onion

2 cloves garlic

1ear of corn

1 cup sweet pea pods

3 Mexican red peppers

1 pound brussel sprouts
1/2 cup vegitable stock

What I did, take the brussel sprouts cut the ends off each then cut each sprout  in half. Place into a deep roasting pan and drizzle with EVOO and balsamic vinagor then place in a preheated oven at 350 for about 20 min. When you take them out you can sprinkle garlic salt over them and serve. If you've never liked brussel sprouts your not alone, when not cooked correctly these can be repulsive. THIS recipe is my go to recipe each mouthfull of sprouts is delectable! You won't be disapointed!

For the rest start with the sweet potato and cauliflower as these are going to take the longest. Peal the sweet potato then cut into cubes, place into a wok with EVOO and cook on high heat. Cut the cauliflower down into shoots and place these into the wok.Cook for about 10 min on high heat then add the vegtable stock. The stock will help soften these vegtables.

 For the yellow squash cut it into cubs and toss in the wok let all the veggies now in the wok cook for about 5 min while you prep the onions and garlic. For the onions cut into pices, mince the garlic. 

Once the first set of veggies start to brown and the sweet potatos are tender toss in the onions and garlic. Once the onions start to become translucant toss in the mushrooms and sweet pea pods, Mexican red peppers and corn. simmer for about 10 min. 

This was an amazing grouping of veggies the peppers added flavor but not much heat, if you want it to be hotter or spicer then you can add more to your liking.  

VEGAN RESTURANT

Okay here is the Menu for this VEGAN resturant! Spiral Diner and Bakery, LOVE that this exists! This is a must visit location for me this weekend, and I will let you know what I think once I have gone.

Eating Out - Asian Mint

Okay while I LOVE to cook and experiment, sometimes I just want to sit and enjoy the company of my family and not cook. One of our favorite restaurants is Asian Mint, we like to go to the one located at 75 and Forrest but there is another located on Oak Lawn in Highland Park. We like the one on Forrest because they have a more relaxed feel than the one in Highland Park. Plus the Highland Park location is very small and feels cramped.

One of my FAVORITE dishes is a Stir Fried Rice, Yellow Curry with Tofu and Veggies. I ask for this dish to be specially made vegan style which means of course no eggs, dairy or meat. So they oblige me and give me the best stir fried rice you have ever put in your mouth. WOW what flavor!

Donna ordered Kung Paw Chicken with tofu, which was fantastic with the Tofu! Just goes to show you that ANY dish can be made specially for you VEGAN style!

Next time I go it will be Stir Fried Asian Veggies and Tofu which is also a favorite of mine. For now Bon Appetite!

Vegeterian spaghetti that taste like the real thing?

Okay so I have the most amazing wife EVER!!! Get this I walk in and not only has she made dinner, again, she made SPAGHETTI!!! Well if you know me you know Italian is a basic food group which makes going vegan challenging. Spaghetti is her speciality and the thought of not having it again was well distasteful.

She had plated the spaghetti, had a salad, a reasonable glass of wine along with garlic bread. Now I know what you are thinking YUMMY and CALORIE CITY! Well you would be mistaken my friend on the calorie city part anyway. She found items that were not only vegan relatively low in calories, so this entire meal was not only worth having but figure friendly.

Lets start by discussing the noodles she found a company called Ronzoni Smart Taste with added calcium, vitamin D and fiber with 170 cals per serving. The "meat" was by Morning Star called Meal Starters this was 80 cals per serving. Add her sauce ingredients and you have spaghetti for around 300 cals and it's not a frozen dinner! Sorry no way I could ever give this recipe out as it is a true Italian secret. There is no way I want anyone called Vinnie or someone with a last name of Sarafini coming after me to have any discussions on family secrets. I love the ocean but in no way do I want them to take me swimming with the fishes if you get my drift... Kidding.

The bread is 35 cal per slice with a spread made by Best Life added to that was of course garlic.

So what she said she did to ready the "meat" was to add some EVOO, a necessary step since this product has no actual animal fat. Brown the "meat" and use as you would any other ground beef, chicken or turkey. Make your spaghetti sauce as you normally would, again friends sorry cannot give the actual recipe on this one.

I am sure by now you are wondering, as I was seconds after entering the door, how this is going to taste. Well let me be the first to say, you absolutely could not tell the difference. Wow what a statement! Well okay there is a difference, but not in taste. The difference for this meal vs. the original beef laden, high fat content, calories out the wazoo meal is that right now I don't hate the fact that I ate it, I am not sleepy, bloated, burping or weighed down with a heavy lump of animal content in my stomach. BRAVO!

Not your tofu and carrots of vegan times gone by but a great way to enjoy meals that are tasty, low calorie and simply devine to make and eat. BON APPETITE!

Frozen FOOD?!?!? Good Solution?

I came home tonight and Donna had made me dinner, what wonderful surprise!

She had visited out local grocery and found some chicken tenders by Morning Star that makes vegetarian "meat" product that is 100% meat free. She pre-heated the oven and followed the directions on the package. These were very tasty.

For the mixed vegetables she found a company called Alexia that makes Chipotle Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Vegetable she followed the directions put them in a pan and sauteed them with the seasoned oil that came in the package for 8-10 min. These were wonderful and a great healthy way to add vegetables fast and easy!

For the noodles she found adding Ramon Noodles was a fast way to as she puts it "jazz up any meal quick". This was nice but not something I could recommend very often as they are very high in sodium so not the healthiest solution.

All in all this was a good solution for a night you don't want to cook. Donna gives this an 8 on a scale of 10; compared to fresh cooking I would give this a 6 or 7. Compared to fast food or frozen TV dinners I would give this meal a 7 or an 8.

Nicely done Donna! Love you!