Vegan

Vegan Product Review: Goji Azelaic Serum

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Second Product in Ann Webb’s arsenal that I have found that is fabulous! Her Goji Azelaic Serum is great – it gets rid of pimples like you would not believe, and makes my life very very happy! If you get break outs, this is a product you should think about trying! You can get it online or at Whole Foods 🙂

Recipe: My favorite Vegan “meat” sauce

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One of my favorite foods in the world is spaghetti with meat sauce – always has been, always will be. I thought when I went Vegan I would never be able to have this again – but THANKFULLY I was wrong! I made my own recipe, it’s simple so I can make a bunch of it on Sunday, freeze it, and eat it throughout the week. This is my very easy recipe for Vegan “meat” sauce. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

  • 1 T EVOO
  • 1 1/2 T minced garlic
  • 1 package soy crumble “meat” substitute (I use Trader Joe’s, it has less sodium)
  • 2-18 ounce jars of your favorite marinara sauce
  • 1 medium spanish onion chopped (I use spanish onions because they are mild, but you can use whatever you have on hand)
  • 2 1/2 cups of chopped up mushrooms (I LOVE Mushrooms – feel free to cut down on this if you want less)
  • 1 t garlic powder
  • Fresh ground chili pepper
  • Fresh ground black pepper
  • Kosher salt
  • 1 T Italian seasoning

Directions:

  • In a large sauce pan, heat olive oil until warm
  • Add in garlic until it just begins to sizzle
  • Add in chopped up onion and cook until translucent
  • Once onion is completely cooked, add in the soy substitute, crumbling it up with the onion/garlic so it forms a “loose meat” type consistency.
  • I cook my soy product until it is very well done – cook this as long as you feel comfortable, seasoning it as you cook it with 1 teaspoon of italian seasoning, some salt, pepper and chili pepper.
  • Once the meat is cooked – add in the mushrooms and allow to cook down (usually about 5 min)
  • Reduce heat and add in your marinara sauce
  • Add in the remaining Italian seasoning, and the garlic powder along with salt/pepper/chili pepper to taste.
  • Cover and let simmer for 30 minutes (the longer you can simmer it the better – it just gets better as you go).
  • Cook your favorite pasta and top with vegan parm substitute!

Note: if you are trying not to eat a ton of carbs, another fav of mine is to put this over Spaghetti Squash – DELICIOUS!

Recipe: Mixed Berry Compote

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I love hot things on top of ice cream! My hot fudge/chocolate sauce recipe is coming later 🙂 This is dedicated to a healthier topping: Mixed berries!

Ingredients:

  • 12 inch saute pan
  • 5 cups frozen mixed berries (I used the large bag of blackberries/blueberries/raspberries from Costco)
  • 2 T Vegan butter (I used Soy Garden)
  • 1/2 cup Organic brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup brandy

Directions:

  • Heat saute pan on medium heat for a few minutes until it is warmed
  • Add all of the berries to the pan and cover until the berries have started to thaw (when you can no longer see they are frozen)
  • Begin stirring
  • when you have a some liquid starting to show, add in the sugar and continue to stir (Note: you may need a little water, depending on how frozen the berries were).
  • Add Brandy and turn up the heat
  • Heat at a medium high heat so the compote can “boil” and burn off some of the liquid, including the alcohol in the Brandy.
  • When the Compote begins to thicken, it is done. It should still have a bit of liquid to it, so don’t let it get to be “solid” in ANY way, otherwise, it doesn’t go that well with the ice cream 🙂

Enjoy!

Recipes: Best Vegan Pancakes

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Ok, let me start by saying that I got this recipe from the Food.com recipe “5 minute vegan pancakes” – it’s an awesome and easy recipe, especially for a single person! 🙂 The only difference between what the original author says to do and what I do is that I use a specific kind of flour: cake flour. The reason for me is simple – I like really light pancakes, and this does it. For me normal flour is WAY too heavy. I also tell you exactly how much I use per pancake. I hope you love it! 🙂

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup flour (whichever kind you prefer – I use cake flour, per above)
  • 1 tablespoon sugar (I used organic cane sugar)
  • 2 tablespoons baking powder
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup soymilk (I use unsweetened)
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil (I actually use canola oil, not vegetable oil)

Directions:

  • Set a stove element with a pan to medium heat.
  • Combine the 4 dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder — two Tablespoons, not two Teaspoons as some have suggested, salt) in a bowl.
  • Add the soy milk and vegetable/canola oil to your mixture.
  • Mix until smooth (should be bubbling slightly if you use cake flour).
  • Now the pan should be ready for your batter, so spoon 1/8 cup (enough for one pancake) worth of the mixture into the pan – I can fit 4 in mine. Make sure you leave enough room for flipping!
  • Flip [carefully] when you see bubbles in the middle of the pancake, or if the edges are looking stiffened.
  • Repeat until the batter is gone, and try not to eat them all while you’re cooking them.

These also stay great (cooked) in the fridge for up to 5 days – they reheat great 🙂 Let me know what you think.

Recipe: Vegan Chocolate Fudgey Sauce

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So here we are over the holidays and I am CRAVING chocolate – – oh, and I’m sorry when I say “holidays” I mean Christmas day when EVERYTHING IS CLOSED and I have no chocolate. This is bad! Call out the National Guard, she’s gonna blow!!! Thankfully cooler heads prevailed and I started looking in my pantry…I (again) won’t post the recipes that totally failed, but I will post what finally resulted in what is now my FAVORITE chocolate fudgey sauce.

In the pan, what it loos like, done, sorry, not a great shot...

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup cocoa powder (I use Ghirardelli unsweetened)
  • 4T Vegan brown sugar
  • 1 t of Vegan butter (Earth Balance – I use the Soy Garden)
  • 4 T and 1 t Vegan Soy creamer
  • 1/2 t pure vanilla extract

Directions

  • In a small pot – on medium heat – combine the cocoa powder and brown sugar. Whisk together until combined (this will be dry)
  • Add in the Soy creamer a tablespoon at a time, whisking as you go.
  • Once all is mixed together, add in the remaining teaspoon of Soy creamer and vanilla extract – combine
  • Continue whisking until you have all the elements combined and no lumps exist.
  • Add in the butter (for gloss) and whisk togehter

This yields about 1/2 cup of Chocolate Fudgey Sauce – but it is very easy to multiply, and does so simply by doubling or tripling. My one note of caution if you decide to double or triple: Don’t make so much that it will sit for more than 5 days or so, soy creamer still does bad like all other creamers :).

I keep mine in a glass container, shown below. It makes a great topping for ice cream, or added together with Soy Milk for some Vegan Hot Chocolate 🙂 Enjoy!

This is a small jar - and again a crappy photo :S...but this is what I make when I really feel the need...it's really good cold. By itself, with a spoon.