disarmed and delicious

Vegan Black Bean Quinoa Burger

2011-11-06T20:11:00.000-08:00

Recently I bought the cookbook Big Vegan, and so far everything I have made has been delicious!! I have made this burger twice now. The first time I made it, I use the sesame seeds as the recipe recommended. However my older daughter and husband did not like it, and since I LOVED it; I had to try again. Whew! The second time my husband declared that it was the most delicious sandwich he had ever eaten! I agreed! YUM!

can of black beans drained and rinsed
1/2 cup quinoa
2 scallions or spring onions
1/4 cilantro
2 tbsp gluten flour
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin (I used 1/2 tsp so my kids would still eat it!)
1/2 tsp chili powder (I used a couple of shakes of red chili pepper flakes)
salt to taste
onion
tomato
hummus and or salsa
bread or bun

I cooked the quinoa per the box, but I only cooked half of a cup. Then put the drained and rinsed beans in a bowl with the chopped cilantro, spring onions, chili pepper flakes, cumin and salt. While the quinoa was still cooking I cut and onion to saute them. I sauteed it in a pan with olive oil and a very small amount of german rock sugar once the onions were translucent. When the quinoa was done I added it to the bowl and used and potato masher to mash them.

Preheat the oven to 425. Make 4 patties and put them on a greased baking sheet and bake them for 15 minutes and flip them over for another 10 minutes. I lighted toasted the buns and spread hummus on them. My husband also had salsa on his. Add the sauteed onions and sliced tomato, unless you have salsa on it as well.

Vegan White Bean Spread Sandwich

2011-11-06T19:49:00.000-08:00

I first had a white bean spread sandwich at Sweet Butter in Sherman Oaks and loved it so much I had to try and make it at home! It was a delicious success and I am now obsessed!!

bread (Rudy's 7 grain with flax or whatever you prefer)
white Beans (raw)
garlic 2-3 cloves
1 lemon
1/4 cup olive oil (or more)
1 tbsp balsamic vinaigrette
salt and pepper to taste
onion
grape tomatoes
onion
water
wild arugula

I bought a bag of white beans and soaked them over night and then the next day cooked them for about an hour and a half. Then in a food processor I added 2-3 gloves of garlic, olive oil, balsamic vinaigrette, lemon juice squeezed from a lemon, salt, pepper and water. Pouring the water in slowly to make sure you don't make it too runny, is a great idea.

I sauteed the onion in a pan with olive oil. Once the onions were translucent I added a little german rock sugar and then the tomatoes that I cut in half.

I lightly toasted the bread, spread the white bean spread on the bread, added the sauteed onions and tomatoes and then the arugula. YUM!

Kale Mango (Pear) Salad

2011-10-16T20:28:00.000-07:00

1 bunch kale (stalks removed and discarded, thinly sliced)
1 lemon
1/4 olive oil

kosher salt
2 tsp agave nectar or honey
freshly group pepper
1 mango
handful pumpkin seeds

This is one of my favorite salads. My mother in law found it on foodnetwork.com for me one day when I wanted to make something with fresh kale. It is amazing! Tonight when I made it; our mango turned out not to be ripe so I used pear instead and it was just as yummy!

In a serving bowl, put the kale, half of the squeezed lemon, a drizzle of olive oil and some kosher salt and massage for 2-3 minutes until it softens and kind of wilts. For the dressing whisk together the other half of lemon, the 2 tsp of agave nectar, lots of fresh ground pepper and the 1/4 cup of olive oil. Pour the dressing over the kale add the mango and top with pumpkin seeds. YUM!

Vegan Beet Salad

2011-10-14T13:32:00.000-07:00

I found this salad in Whole Living Magazine and I LOVE it! I have already made it a second time! I admit the first time I toasted the bread a little less and I do think that is better.

1 small bunch beets (1 lb)2 slices rustic bread, torn into 1 inch pieces (2 cups)1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil coarse salt (I use kosher salt) and freshly ground pepper
2 tsp. balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp. orange juice
2 avocados, sliced
2 navel oranges, peel and pith removed, segmented
2 cups fresh spinach (I used a lot more than 2 cups)
1 tbsp. toasted salted sunflower seeds

1. Heat oven to 425. Wrap beets in foil with a little butter and salt and roast until tender. About an hour. Once cool, remove skin and slice. 2. Meanwhile, toss bread pieces with 2 tbsp oil, season with salt and pepper (I only used pepper), and toast until golden brown about 6 minutes. 3. Whisk vinegar, orange juice and remaining 2 tbsp oil. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle over beets, avocados, oranges, spinach and croutons. Season with salt and pepper. Top with Sunflower seeds.

The first time I made this salad I tossed the whole salad. It was very tasty that way, however not as pretty.

Vegetarian Lemon Pepper Chicken Salad

2009-01-26T20:58:00.000-08:00

baby spinach

quorn vegetarian chicken

avacado

chopped candied walnuts

goat cheese

I didn't have any when I made this, but mandarin oranges would have been a great addition.

I baked the chicken with a little oil on each side and lemon and pepper on each side. I used the bake time that was on the box. I think it was at 400 for 18 minutes, flipping at 9 minutes.

Wash the spinach, if you have a salad spinner, spin it. Chop the walnuts, avacado and then do what you can do crumble the goat cheese. We actually didn't do use any dressing, which is highly unusual! I think the avacado was just at that peak ripeness that it didn't need any.

Grilled Portobello with Goat Cheese, Tomatoes and Glazed Walnuts

2009-01-13T21:13:00.000-08:00

This is delicious, but since I made this recipe up it's not exact measurements.

If you want to marinate the mushrooms you can but it's not a must. I used 1/4 cup olive oil, a few drops on each portobello cup of balsamic vinegar and minced garlic sprinkled in each cup. I put it in the fridge for about 4 hours.

1/4 olive oil

balsamic vinegar

2 garlic cloves (minced)

1 1/2 tbsp olive oil

tomato

goat cheese

glazed walnuts (chopped)

basil

Coat the skillet with olive oil (approx 1 1/2 tbsp) and heat. When hot put the portobellos in the skillet, flipping until done. Place a sliced tomato in the cup of the portobello, spoon some goat cheese and sprinkle with chopped glazed walnuts and sprinkle some basil on top. Turn the fire off and place the lid on for about 5 minutes. Enjoy!

Vegetarian Five-Spice Chicken and Green Bean Stir-Fry

2008-12-05T15:44:00.000-08:00

Tuesday night dinner with my mother in law and we made Five-Spice Chicken and Green Bean Stir-Fry. The original recipes calls for pork but we used Quorn Vegetarian Chicken instead. It was quite a tasty dish!

For sauce
3 garlic cloves
2 teaspoons minced peeled fresh gingerroot
2/3 cup water
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup mango chutney such as Major Grey's
1 teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder (I couldn't find this so we made our own using recipe below)
1/2 teaspoon sambal oelek (Indonesian chili paste)

Chinese 5 spice recipe (I still didn't have everything for this but this is what we used)

1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground white pepper

1 medium red onion
1/2 pound fresh green beans
a 3/4-pound piece green cabbage (about 1/2 medium head)
1/4 cup packed coriander leaves
4 1/2 tablespoons peanut oil
1/2 pound fresh bean sprouts (about 2 cups)
1 cup snow-pea shoots or daikon (Asian radish) sprouts
2 teaspoons Asian sesame oil
Accompaniment:Rice (I used quinoa)

Make sauce:Mince garlic and in a small bowl stir together with remaining sauce ingredients until combined.
Halve onion lengthwise and cut into thin slices. Diagonally cut beans into 1 1/2-inch pieces. Core cabbage and cut into 1-inch pieces. Chop coriander.
Heat a wok or large heavy skillet over high heat until a bead of water dropped on cooking surface evaporates immediately. Add 1 1/2 tablespoons peanut oil, swirling wok or skillet to coat evenly, and heat until hot but not smoking. Add onion and stir-fry until slightly softened. Add beans and stir-fry until crisp-tender, about 4 minutes. Transfer mixture to a large bowl. Add 1 tablespoon peanut oil to wok or skillet and stir-fry cabbage until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Add bean sprouts and stir-fry until sprouts are slightly wilted, about 30 seconds. Transfer cabbage mixture to bowl.
Add 1 tablespoon peanut oil to wok or skillet and heat until just smoking. Stir-fry chicken, transfer to bowl.
Add sauce to wok or skillet and bring to a boil, stirring. Return chicken-vegetable mixture to wok or skillet and stir-fry until heated through. Stir in coriander, snow-pea shoots or daikon sprouts, sesame oil, and salt and pepper to taste.
Serve stir-fry over rice, quinoa or whatever grain you would like.

Baked Yam and Potato Casserole

2008-12-02T21:41:00.000-08:00

This recipe is also a great holiday dish, it originated from all recipes. The only thing I changed was adding a sweet potato.

1 large sweet potato, thinly sliced

1 yam
1 large potato, thinly sliced
1 onion, thinly sliced
4 tablespoons butter, divided
salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3/4 cup vegetable broth
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
2 tablespoons dry bread crumbs
1 tablespoon dried parsley (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.
In the prepared dish, make a single layer of sweet potato slices. Place a few onion slices on top, dot with butter, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Repeat, alternating layers of white and sweet potatoes. In a small bowl, or measuring cup, combine flour and broth. Pour over potatoes.
Sprinkle cheese, bread crumbs and parsley over the potatoes. Dot with remaining butter. Cover. Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour, or until potatoes and onions are soft.

Roasted Beets

2008-12-02T21:33:00.000-08:00

Roasted beets are DElicious! I admit I really only make them around the holidays.

beets (as many as you want)

foil

butter

salt (preferably kosher salt)

Preheat the oven the 350. Wash the beets and take off the ends, place on a piece of foil, spread a little butter and sprinkle a little salt. Then close up the foil and bake for 50 minutes, turning at some point.

Portabello Fettuccine with Spinach Pesto, Roasted Peppers & Romano Cheese

2008-11-25T21:00:00.000-08:00

I found this recipe on eat me, delicious too which is an amazing collection of very tasty recipes!! I usually don't like recipes that take longer than an hour, for the sole reason that my daughter watches tv from 5-6 so I can make dinner so if it takes longer than that it's a challenge to concentrate! The first time I made this it seemed complicated and it took me a while but it was soooo yummy that I have made it again and managed to make it in under an hour. A few things I did different was I did not peel the peppers, roast the garlic, toast the pine nuts, I used lemon instead of lemon zest and I did not have white wine. These are all what I would call lazy chef changes; but we all thought it was yummy anyway!!!

1/2 lb whole wheat fettuccine
2 portabello mushrooms, marinated and roasted (Recipe below)
2 red or yellow bell peppers, roasted and peeled
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 onion, julienned
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1/4 cup fresh basil*1 recipe spinach pesto (Recipe below)
1/2 cup grated Romano cheese
2 tbsp pine nuts, toasted

Preheat oven to 400F. Put the marinated mushrooms in an oven safe dish. Slice the bell peppers in half and seed them. Place them cut-side down on a baking sheet. Roast the mushrooms and peppers (separately) for about 15 minutes (long enough for the skin to blister on the peppers). Remove the mushrooms and peppers from the oven. Transfer peppers to a bowl and cover with a plate or lid for 10 minutes - this makes it easier to peel off the skin (though you can leave the skin on if you want). Peel the skin off.Heat a large pot of boiling water to cook the pasta. Slice portabello mushrooms and roasted peppers into long, thin strips and set aside.Heat olive oil in skillet and saute the onion until translucent. Add the mushrooms, peppers, and cherry tomato halves, toss to heat through and keep warm over low heat. Meanwhile, cook the fettuccine.Strain the pasta and toss with enough pesto to liberally coat the noodles. Add the vegetables and basil and toss to combine. Divide among 2 pasta bowls, sprinkle with Romano cheese and toasted pine nuts.*I used the same amount of freeze dried, though fresh is best. If you want to use dried, maybe do a couple of tablespoons.

Marinated Portabello Mushrooms
2 portabello mushrooms
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 tsp red chile flakes
1 garlic clove, minced
1/8 cup white wine
1/8 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp lemon zest

Clean mushrooms and lay gill-side up in a shallow pan. Whisk together the marinade ingredients, pour over the mushrooms, cover and marinated in the refrigerator up to 4 hours.

Spinach Pesto
1 cup spinach, packed (or use a frozen package of spinach, thawed with the water squeezed out as I did)
1/4 cup pine nuts
1/4 cup grated Romano cheese
4 cloves roasted garlic
1 clove fresh garlic
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp chile flakes
1/4 tsp cracked pepper
1/4 cup olive oil

Pulse all ingredients, except oil, to form a coarse paste. Add oil and pulse to blend. Keep refrigerated if not using right away.

Andes Chocolate Mint Cookies

2008-11-24T20:40:00.000-08:00

Yum!!! I found this recipe on eat me, delicious and they are delicious!!! The only thing I changed was the time I baked them, I think I found that 11-12 minutes was perfect for my oven leaving them still soft in the middle. Dipping these cookies in Mexican hot chocolate with fresh whipped cream makes an excellent dessert!

Makes 50-60 small-ish cookies, or 30-40 large-ish cookies.

3/4 cup butter
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons water
12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 large eggs
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
Andes mint candies, broken in half (about 1 package)

Heat oven to 350°F.Over low heat, combine butter, sugar and water. Heat until melted and add chocolate chips until partly melted. Remove from heat and stir. Pour into large mixing bowl. Let stand 10 minutes to cool slightly.Beat in eggs one at a time on high speed. Reduce mixer to low speed and add flour, salt and baking soda. Beat until well-blended. Chill 1-2 hours (dough is almost liquid before chilling but hardens and is easy to shape after chilling).*Roll into balls, place two inches apart on parchment paper-lined baking sheets. Bake for 10 minutes. Place an Andes Mint half on top. Allow to melt slightly and spread with a spoon.*Mine wasn't almost liquid before chilling so don't worry if yours isn't.

Butternut squash chowder with pears and ginger

2008-11-19T18:53:00.000-08:00

This soup was really good and very easy. I got the original recipe from epicurious, although I did make a few modifications but nothing major. This soup goes perfectly with a grilled pear goat cheese sandwich. I think next time I would use a little more ginger and garnish with some goat cheese! Yum!

2 Bosc pears, diced
Juice of 2 lemons
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup peeled and diced sweet onion
1 stalk celery, diced
1 small carrot, peeled and diced
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon peeled minced fresh ginger
2 small butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and diced (about 3 cups)
1 baking potato (about 12 ounces), peeled and diced
5 cups Vegetable Stock or store-bought
1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 cup heavy cream
Salt to taste

Place the pears in a bowl with the lemon juice, cover with water, and set aside.

In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over high heat until lightly smoking. Add the onion, celery, and carrot, and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the onion is translucent. Add the garlic and ginger and sauté for 1 minute longer, stirring constantly.

Drain half of the pears, reserving the other half in the lemon water for garnish. Add the drained pears to the pan with the squash, potato, and stock and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes, or until the squash is tender. Transfer half of the soup in batches to a blender and puree until smooth. Add the orange juice, lemon juice (tablesppon NOT the lemon juice the pears soaked in), cream, salt, and the reserved pears and gently warm the chowder through (do not boil).

Grilled pear and goat cheese sandwich

2008-11-18T20:26:00.001-08:00

I made this sandwich to go with a soup that did not turn out quite right. My sweet husband ate it anyway and said it was good!! However I intend to throw the rest out and make it again, maybe tomorrow. But this sandwich that I made to go with the soup turned out quite well and was the perfect compliment to the soup.

french bread

goat cheese

bosc pear

butter

Slice the pear, spread goat cheese on one side and put pear on the other side. Spread butter on the grill and grill it.

Puttanesca

2008-11-16T20:25:00.000-08:00

The original recipe is from here but I have changed it a little bit. Here is my version.

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 onion finely chopped
2 cloves garlic minced
1/4 tsp soy sauce
a few shakes red chili flakes

2 teaspoons capers—rinsed and drained
10 pitted black olives—quartered
14 oz (420g) canned tomatoes—crushed
a few shakes parsley
7 oz (200g) angel hair

Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a frying pan over a medium heat and cook the onion for 6 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and cook for a minute, stirring. Add the chili, capers, olives, tomatoes, soy sauce, parsley and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. While the sauce is simmering, cook the pasta. Drain the cooked pasta into a colander and put the sauce in the bottom of the pot. Top with the hot pasta and reserved tablespoon of olive oil, and toss together gently to combine. I topped with parmasan cheese.

They call them brownies...

2008-11-15T16:13:00.000-08:00

On my daughters friends birthday we all had lunch at Le Pain Quotidien bakery where they passed out a card with the recipe on it. Today I finally decided to try them and they are incredible! It says to bake them 30-35, but 37 was perfect!

Makes 14 brownies

9 ounces bittersweet chocolate (60 - 64% cacao)

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces

5 eggs, beaten lightly with a fork

1 1/3 cups superfine sugar

3 tablespoons pastry flour

Roughly chop the chocolate into pieces. Transfer to a medium-sized bowl and add the butter. Place the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, until the two ingredients have melted. Mix well and transfer to a large bowl; set aside. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Sift the sugar and flour together, then stir into the chocolate. Add the eggs and mix well. Cover and let rest at room temperature for 30 minutes. The batter will thicken as it stands. Line a muffin tin with cupcake papers. Spoon 1/4 cup batter into each paper-lined cup. Bake 30 to 35 minutes. The brownies will still be moist when done; they will puff up and fall slightly as they cool.

Vegetarian Peanut Chicken

2008-11-14T20:22:00.000-08:00

I realize that this picture does not make this dish look the most appetizing but I swear it is good!!

quorn vegetarian chicken cutlets (from whole foods)
peanut sauce (I use 365 from whole foods)
2-3 tbls peanut butter
2-3 tbls heated milk
2 tbls canola oil
rice (enough for 4)
1/3 cups peanuts
¾ onion (cut to your preference)
6 mushrooms
a dash Red chili pepper flakes

I usually coat the chicken, mushrooms and peanuts with the peanut sauce first individually. Then put the oil in the pan and let it get hot, then saute the onion for about 3-4 minutes. Add 1 tbls of peanut butter at a time, letting it coat the onions. Then add a tbls at a time of the milk. Make sure that this has all coasted the onions. Add the dash of chili flakes. Add the mushrooms and let them get coated with the sauce, then add the chicken. i usually have some peanut sauce left in the container and I pour that in too. The last thing I add is the peanuts. Serve over rice. You can see from the picture that it's a little brown, so I usually make a salad or some vegetable to go with it.

Roasted Vegetables and Couscous

2008-11-12T18:34:00.000-08:00

Tonight I made one of my favorite recipes. It originated from here, but I have changed it a bit. Here is my version.

Roasted Vegetables & Couscous

1 purple onion
1 yellow pepper
1 orange pepper
1 yellow squash
1 zucchini
2 portobello mushrooms
6-8 white mushrooms
2 garlic cloves (minced)
2 tbls olive oil
near east toasted pine nut couscous
mandarin oranges
feta cheese
fresh basil (optional)

Preheat oven to 425.

You can cut the vegetables to your liking, but I dice the peppers, slice the onions, quarter the white mushrooms, slice the Portobello mushrooms, quarter the yellow squash and the zucchini. Then put in a 9x13 baking dish, sprinkle the minced garlic and drizzle the olive oil. Bake at 425 for 45 minutes. Stir every 15 minutes.

I make the couscous according to the package, and then put that in the center and the roasted vegetables around it. I then sprinkle with feta cheese and decorate with mandarin oranges and if I have some fresh basil I add a little of that.