Pasta Primavegan

 2 tbsp. olive oil
1/2 large white onion, diced
2 teas. minced garlic
1 can diced Italian seasoned tomatoes with juice
10 stalks asparagus cut into bite sized pieces, tough end removed (or zucchini or broccoli or carrots...basically whatever veggies you have in your fridge)
1 c. mushrooms
3/4 c. pine nuts
1 tbsp. oregano
drizzle with olive
sea salt
whole wheat or quinoa fettuccine

Saute onion and garlic in olive oil in iron skillet until onions are clear. Add diced tomatoes and allow to simmer until liquid is reduced by half. Scoot tomatoes to open center of pan the sides to saute asparagus and mushrooms until tender. Mix all together and add pine nuts and oregano. Prepare fettuccine according to package directions. Add a little vegan margarine (such as Earth Balance) to the pasta if desired. Just before serving drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt.

Please be kind and don't over cook you veggies.  If you are adding zucchini or summer squash, put it into the pan after your harder veggies are just soften and basically just warm them up.  Veggies just taste better with a little crunch!

Vegan Walnut and Chocolate Chip Cookies

3 Tbs. canola oil
2 cups walnuts
1 cup light brown sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1½ cups oat flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
¼ tsp. ground cinnamon
2 cups rolled oats
3 3.5-oz. bars bittersweet vegan chocolate, chopped, or 1½ cups vegan chocolate chips (12 oz.)

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat 2 baking sheets with cooking spray, or line with parchment paper.

2. Blend walnuts in food processor 30 seconds, or until ground into a fine meal. Add canola oil, and blend 2 to 3 minutes more, or until mixture has the consistency of natural peanut butter, scraping down sides of food processor occasionally. Transfer to bowl.

3. Whisk together brown sugar and ½ cup water in small saucepan, and bring mixture to a boil. Pour brown sugar mixture over ground walnut butter, add vanilla extract, and stir until no lumps remain.

4. Whisk together oat flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in separate bowl. Stir oat flour mixture into walnut mixture. Cool 10 minutes. Fold in oats, then chocolate chips.

5. Shape cookie dough into 2-inch balls, and place 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Flatten cookies with bottom of drinking glass dipped in water. Bake 8 to 10 minutes, or until cookies begin to brown and tops look dry. Cool 3 minutes on baking sheets, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

Credit for this recipe goes to Vegetarian Times!

Black Bean Skillet

1 c. brown rice
2 c. water

1 tbsp. olive oil
1/2 c. diced onion
1 teas. minced garlic
1 c. diced red pepper
2 jalapeno peppers, diced (remove the seeds to reduce heat)
1 c. corn
1 large tomato, diced
2 cans black beans with liquid
1 tbsp. chili
1 teas. balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp. fresh cilantro for garnish
1 avocado sliced
lime quarters

In a medium saucepan bring water and brown rice to boil then simmer with lid on for 40 minutes. In a large skillet saute oil, onion, garlic and both peppers until onion is clear. Add corn, beans, tomato, chili, and vinegar. Simmer for 15- 20 minutes stirring occasionally. Serve with avocado slices and lime squeezed over top.

Eclair Icebox Cake

Okay...this is an emergency!!  Stop everything you are doing and make this delicious concoction of creamy, chocolatey goodness right now.  My friend Heather swears by this recipe for thousands of accolades at the neighborhood bbq.  We have made it several times now and my husband always has me make him a separate 8x8 pan because he never gets enough!


Eclair Icebox Cake

Filling:
3 1/2 cups milk
2-3.8 oz. boxes FRENCH vanilla instant pudding
8 oz. tub Cool Whip
1 box Honey Maid graham crackers

Chocolate Glaze:
2 oz. unsweetened chocolate (2 squares), finely chopped
2 teas. light karo syrup
2 teas. vanilla
3 tbsp. butter, melted
3 tbsp. milk
1 1/2 c. powdered sugar

1. Mix milk and pudding then fold in cool whip
2. In a 9x13 pan layer graham cracker, 1/2 of the pudding, then another layer of graham cracker, then the rest of the pudding, and one last layer of graham cracker.
3. Slowly melt chocolate, karo syrup, butter, and milk until all melted.  Remove from heat and mix in vanilla and powdered sugar.
4. Pour over last layer of graham cracker.
5. Cover and refrigerate overnight to 24 hours. The graham cracker should be soft.

BYU Mint Brownies

At Brigham Young University (my alma mata') I fell in love with these little devils! The mint to chocolate ratio was perfect and the brownies were fudgy and dense...none of this "cake" brownie stuff.   I actually grew famous among our friends for loving them.  If some one attended a BYU catered event they would inevitably bring one of these babies home for me.  After BYU we moved to Cambridge, MA so my husbandito could attend law school. Which meant no more mint brownies :(  One Christmas break, however, my sister-in-law flew from Provo (home of BYU) and brought me...you guessed it...a whole plate full of my beloved brownies! It was then and there that I decided I could not go through my life waiting and wondering when I would be able to indulge in one of my favorite treats. So, after much searching, I came across a recipe for that claimed to be THE brownie.  This is my variation of it:


BYU MINT BROWNIES

1 2/3 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter or margarine, melted
2 Tbs. water
2 large eggs
2 teas. vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Baking Cocoa
1/2 teas. baking powder
1/4 teas. salt

PREHEAT oven to 350º F. Grease 13 x 9-inch baking pan. COMBINE granulated sugar, butter and water in large bowl. Stir in eggs and vanilla extract. Combine flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt in medium bowl; stir into sugar mixture. Spread into prepared baking pan. BAKE for 18 to 25 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out slightly sticky. Cool completely in pan on wire rack.  Spread mint frosting (see below) on top and allow to set up.  Next spread on the chocolate topping (see below) and chill until set.

Mint Frosting:

5 Tbs. softened butter

dash of salt

3 Tbs. milk

1 Tbs. light corn syrup

2 1/3 c. powdered sugar

½ teas. mint extract

green food coloring

Blend butter, one cup of powdered sugar, mint extract and corn syrup until well combined. Add the rest of the powdered sugar alternating with the milk until creamy.  Tint with green food coloring if desired. 

Chocolate Topping:

6 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips

3 Tbs. butter

Melt chocolate chips and butter and mix until smooth in a double broiler or in the microwave.

 

Smores Bars

You are going to die and think you have gone to heaven on a crispy, chocolatey, non-burnt marshmellowy (?) cloud when you try these.  Or at least I did.  Story behind finding this recipe?  Came home from camping with loads of extra Hershey's chocolate bars (don't ask me how) and needed something to do with them.  The only way I like Hershey's chocolate is in a smore and the only way to eat a real smore is around a campfire.  Well, I had just washed all that campfire smell out of our clothes and there was no way I was going to pack up all the stuff to take a 5 month old camping again so the solution was these bars.

1/2 c. butter
3/4 c. sugar
1 egg
1 teas. vanilla
1 1/3 c. flour
3/4 c. graham cracker crumbs
1 teas. baking powder
1/8 teas. salt
5 Hershey's bars
1 c. marshmallow cream

Grease a 9x9 pan with butter or cooking spray.  Beat together butter, sugar, egg, vanilla, flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl.  Press one half of the graham cracker crumb mixture into the bottom of the pan.  Lay the candy bars on top.  Spread the marshmallow cream over the chocolate.  Crumble the remaining graham cracker crumb mixture over top.  Bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minute.  Allow to cool completely before cutting.

Ginger-Lemon Whoopie Pies

Just looking at this picture makes me salivate!!  I never make enough of these at Christmas time.  Well, not enough for ME and to share anyway.  I do not have many memories from my childhood (sad, I know) but one taste I distinctly do remember is warm gingerbread with lemon pudding and whipped cream.  This snippet in time came rushing back to me when I saw the idea for these cookies in an ad in some magazine on some plane ride somewhere (specific I know).  It is one of my mom's favorite combinations of flavors.  This recipe is mash of a McCormick recipe and one from my trusty Better Homes and Gardens cookbook.

For the cookie:

4 1/2 cups all purpose flour
4 teas. ground ginger
2 teas. baking soda
1 1/2 teas. ground cinnamon
1 teas. ground cloves
1/4 teas. salt
1 1/2 cups shortening
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup molasses
3/4 sugar

In a medium bowl stir together flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves and salt; set aside.  In a large mixing bowl beat shortening with an electic mixer on low speed for 30 seconds.  Add the 2 cups of sugar.  Beat until combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally.  Beat in eggs and molasses until combined.  Beat in flour mixture.

Shape dough into 1-inch balls (you want little cookies).  Roll in 3/4 cup sugar.  Bake at 350 degree oven from 8 to 9 minutes.  When cool place upside down on parchment paper.

For the lemon creme:

1-7 oz. jar marshmellow cream
1/4 cup butter, softened
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 teas. pure lemon extract

Mix all in a medium bowl until well blended.

To assemble pies I find it easiest to do the fancy ziploc-baggie technique where you fill a zip-loc baggie with the creme, cut off one corner to make a small hole and then dispense the creme unto the cookies.  If you don't want to do that just place about 1 tablespoon on a cookie and find another that is about the same size and place it on top.  Don't squish it too hard or the creme will ooze out the edges.  When they are all assembled place them in the refrigerator for about an hour so the creme can set up.