Recipes

           How can I not post a delicious Vegan Chocolate Chip cookie recipe in honor of such an important holiday?! In other news, is there a national cupcake day? And if not, can we make it February 24th (my birthday)? Ok, Thanks. On wards to the cookies..

Your Vegan Mama’s Chocolate Chip Cookies

I found this yummy recipe in a wonderful book called “Vegan Cookies Invade your Cookie Jar” by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero but feel free to play around with it because we all know I’m going to! 😉
1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup white sugar

2/3 cup canola oil

1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk

1 tbsp tapioca flour

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup chocolate chips

 

Start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees and lightly greasing your two cookie sheets. Next, combine your sugars, oil, milk and tapioca flour in a mixing bowl. Mix very well (it should resemble caramel when it’s done) now add the vanilla. Finally, add in 1 cup of flour, the baking soda and salt – then mix in the rest of the flour. Fold in your chocolate chips, get in there with your hands because the dough will be a little too hard to mix at this point. Then voila! Roll your dough into little 2 inch balls and palm flatten on your cookie sheets. They should bake for around 8 minutes but use your good judgement.

I should probably say let them cool ten minutes before you eat them but I’m way too big of a fan of just baked, ooey gooey, stomach ache chocolate chip cookies so I’m not going to be a hypocrite here – eat ’em however you like! 🙂

 

Happy Chocolate Chip Cookie day!

 

 

I found this fantastic recipe for strawberry banana muffins on Peta.org! They have a ton of great vegan recipes that you can give your own spin to when you make ’em at home! Strawberry-Banana has got to be my favorite flavor combination so I could not resist these little babies!

 

Strawberry Banana Muffins

3/4 cup light brown sugar

Egg replacer equivalent of 2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla extract

3 ripe bananas, mashed

1/2 cup melted margarine

2 1/4 cups of flour

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. cinnamon

pinch of salt

1 cup chopped strawberries

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line your muffin pan with liners. In a bowl, whisk together your brown sugar, egg substitute, vanilla, and bananas. Next, add your margarine. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Now gently, fold the berries into the flour mixture. Add your first bowl in, and stir until just combined. Fill the cups just a little more than half way and bake for about 20 minutes! Enjoy! These are a lovely breakfast treat with some tea or soy milk!

 

 

I felt like it had been entirely too long since I posted a good old fashioned recipe! With summer just around the corner I figured I would try my hand at ‘skinny-fying’ one of my absolute favorite summertime desserts. Lemonade Pie has been something I’ve eaten in the summer for as long as I can remember. My neighbor/second grandma, Mary, would always come drop off all sorts of pies and crumb cakes for us growing up and this was by far my favorite creation (the chocolate chip crumb cake was a close second but we’ll get to that recipe later). Anyways, another great thing about this recipe is that it’s completely oven free! I don’t know about you, but when it gets hot outside the last thing I want is to be standing next to a hot oven that’s heating up my house, which makes this a great recipe for those unbearably hot days.  So from my house to yours, give this refreshingly tart and creamy pie a whirl at one of your bbqs this summer!

Lemonade Stand Pie

1/3 cup Country Time Lemonade Flavor Drink Mix

1/2 cup water

1 pint of softened vanilla ice cream (get a low fat version or non dairy to tailor this to your diet)

1 tub (8 oz) of fat free Cool Whip, thawed

1 prepared Graham pie Crust (or four/six little mini pies!)

Stir drink mix and water till dissolved. Then, beat lemonade and ice cream in a large bowl with an electric mixer on low speed until completely blended. Gently stir in whipped topping until smooth. Freeze until mixture mounds, if necessary. Spoon into your crust and freeze for 4 hours or overnight (if you can) till firm. Let it thaw for 15 minutes before you serve and garnish with some cut lemons or lemon zest! Feel free to get an additional Cool Whip tub to add a dollop to top the pie off.  (Make sure you store this in the freezer when your done)

 

It’s that time of year again, the holidays have passed and there’s no snow on the ground but you still can’t bear to peel yourself out of the covers when your alarm goes off because it just seems cruel to have to leave that warm cocoon and face the bitterly cold world. I know, it’s rough but somehow we still manage to get up and face the day, and what’s more important than a nice warm, hearty breakfast in the morning? Maybe showering, but barely.

Luckily some skinny goddess invented glorious oatmeal for us! Low fat, full of fiber – this stuff not only fills you up but lowers your cholesterol, could it get any better? Well maybe it could taste a little better. Here are some fun ideas to spruce up your oatmeal so that you can make it through the cold front a little easier this winter.

Strawberries and Cream – add 1/4 cup of non fat greek yogurt, 1 tablespoon of agave and 1/4 cup (or as many as your heart desires) of fresh cut strawberries (you can also try this with blueberries)

Chai – mix a pinch of ground cardamom, cinnamon, cloves and ginger into your oatmeal, add 1/4 cup of fat free soy or rice milk and garnish with some slivered almonds on top

Raspberries and Chocolate -(c’mon we all have THOSE days) add 2 tablespoons of vegan chocolate chips and a handful of fresh raspberries

Pumpkin Spice – add tablespoons of pumpkin butter and drizzle a bit of maple syrup over your oatmeal

Banana Cream Pie – chop up half of a banana, add 1/4 cup of non fat vanilla greek yogurt and drizzle a tablespoon of agave

As you can probably see, I’m much more inclined to sweet in my oatmeal but if your a savory kinda gal, feel free to get even more outrageous with your oats by adding turkey/veggie bacon and maple syrup for some hard core oatmeal or by sauteing some spinach and melting cheese and an egg on top for an oatmeal florentine. The possibilities are endless and I usually make my best creations when I’m just trying to use whatever I have left in the fridge!

Girls’ night is simply not complete with out a pitcher of sangria and huge bowl of freshly made guacamole with chips. Granted, most girls’ night are self professed “calorie free zones” when it comes to my ladies but I couldn’t help but try to find an even healthier lower in fat alternative to our favorite green godliness! Avocados have a ton of good for you fats and the added edamame in the recipe will make you feel fuller faster and give you an extra punch of protein.

Good for You

Guacamole

1 12oz. pkg frozen shelled edamame
1 lime, zested and juiced
1 avocado, halved, pitted and cubed
1/2 cup cilantro
1/2 cup chopped red onion
1/4 cup chopped tomatoes
1/2 cup chopped scallions
2 tbs fat-free or tofu sour cream
2 cloves garlic, peeled
1/2 tsp. hot sauce
1 8oz. bag of baked tortilla chips

Cook edamame and let cool for 10 mins. In a blender, puree edamame, lime juice, lime zest and next ingredients till smooth, adding 1 tbs water at a time if too thick. Season with salt and pepper and serve with your favorite baked tortilla chips.

In case you haven’t already noticed with some of the other recipes on this site, there is not much I enjoy more than pairing a nice sweet fruity something with my old chocolate favorites and this is a delicious example of that past time! Double Chocolate Cherry Cookies are probably as good as a cookie could get for my tastes. I’ve also added some dried cherries to a plain dark chocolate chip cookie recipe before with fabulous results, so feel free to get creative with it! For this recipe, you can mix in some chopped nuts or substitute the cherries for another dried fruit like cranberries or strawberries. You might want to double this recipe, cookies this scrumptious are bound to go fast!

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

basic dough recipe

2 1/2 cups garbanzo bean flour
3/4 cup agave
1 egg or substitute w flaxseed or alternative replacement
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup apple butter
pinch of salt

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
12oz. of carob chips or semisweet vegan chips
1/4 cup dried sour cherries

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper. Prepare the basic dough recipe, adding the cocoa powder to the dry ingredients. Add the chips and cherries last. Using a tablespoon, scoop dough onto sheets and flatten slightly. Bake 12 to 15 mins and let them cool.

Enjoy!

These rosemary and lemon shortbread cookies were just made to be served at tea parties! I can’t think of anything better to pair with a nice cup of Earl Grey, or my personal favorite, champagne oolong. Sophisticated and healthy for you, this is a great little recipe to keep in your back pocket for entertaining all year round.

Lemon and Rosemary Shortbread Cookies


1 cup apple butter
1/2 cup raw sugar
3 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp grated lemon peel
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 cups whole wheat flour
4 1/2 tsp minced fresh rosemary
1/4 tsp salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cream apple butter and sugar in a large bowl and beat in the lemon peel and vanilla. Next, combine the flour,
rosemary and salt, gradually add to the creamed mix and mix well.
Shape into balls and wrap in freezer wrap. Freeze for 30
mins or until firm. Cut into 1/4 inch slices and place 2 inches apart on
ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 8 to 10 mins. till edges are light brown. Let them cool and then they can be stored in airtight containers.

In case you couldn’t tell from my “Come on Irene Banana Cream”, I have a soft spot for bananas. They are by far my favorite fruit and I try to incorporate them in as many desserts and muffins as possible! So when your in the mood for a nice banana cream pie, and you have enough time to do it right,  try my banana dream pie and enjoy!
Banana Dream Pie

1  vegan pie crust (see Tofu Mud Pie for our quick and easy one)

1/2 cup sweetener of your choice (I’d go with Agave though)
5 tblsp of cornstarch
2 cups of rice or soy milk
1/2 tsp vanilla
3 ripe bananas ( add 3 more if you love bananas as much as I do and throw them in the food processor with your tofu)
3 tblsp ground almonds

1/2 lb. firm tofu
Prepare  your pie crust and let cool while mixing the filling. First, mix the sweetener and cornstarch in a saucepan on the stove, stir in milk and salt. Cook over medium heat till very thick,continuously stirring . Remove from heat and add your vanilla. Next, drain tofu  and blend it in food processor till smooth with your optional added bananas, then add the vanilla/sugar/milk mix and blend till very smooth. Slice the bananas thinly ,and place over crust. Spread
mixture on top add almonds on top and chill for 4 hours.

One of my favorite after school snacks growing up was chocolate pudding pie with a graham cracker crust, I even would improvise and dunk some crumbled graham crackers into a chocolate pudding cup when they weren’t on the menu. Naturally, it was important to find a low fat, vegan alternative to this yummy treat. The Chocolate Tofu Mud Pie is just as delicious as those pudding pies growing up and even more protein packed thanks to all the Tofu. This recipe makes one large pie but as a kid I always liked the personal sized portions, so it can be easily modified into six smaller portions by putting the graham cracker crust into a cupcake pan and filling each cup accordingly. Of course, feel free to get fancy on me and top it off with a little whipped topping and maybe some raspberries. It’s delicious and easy as pie!

Chocolate Tofu Mud Pie

Crust:
2 oz. about 1/4 cup margarine or Earth Balance/Soy Butter, melted
1 cup graham cracker crumbs

Filling:
1 1/4 lb. tofu,cubed
1 cup rice syrup
2/3 stick margarine or Earth Balance/Soy Butter
1 1/4 tsp. pure vanilla
2/3 cup cocoa powder

Combine margarine(or soy butter) and crumbs in bottom of a pie plate. Bake 8 minutes in
350 degree oven. Mix filling ingredients on food processor till smooth, pour in pie
plate and chill for approx. 4 hours.

These muffins are a great light treat in the morning, loaded with lots of fresh fruit. Feel free to substitute blueberries for your favorite berry – cranberries strawberries or raspberries all work just as well. Enjoy!

Low Fat, Fresh Blueberry Muffins

1 cup fresh blueberries chopped

1/2 cup powdered sugar

2 cups reduced fat bisquit baking mix (can also use whole wheat or gluten free)

2 tbsp sugar

1/4 cup egg substitute

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Combine blueberries and powdered sugar. Let stand for five minutes. Combine bisquit mix with remainging ingredients and stir till batter is moistened. (Batter will be a bit lumpy) Gently fold in your sweet blueberries and pour into a lightly sprayed muffin tin. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 mins or till the tops start getting golden brown.

* powdered sugar can be substituted for Agave for a healthier alternative.

Oh, those weekend brunches sitting outside of your favorite cafe with good friends and great mimosas! Now fast forward four or five hours and your not quite at dinner but searching your cabinets for a little something to hold you over. Well we’ve got the sweet and skinny answer to your prayers with some of these light lunches. And if your not a big brunch fanatic like myself, feel free to use these in between any meals to tide you over – they can also be great light dinners if you’ve had a big lunch!

AA – Apples + Almond Butter
Once again, adding my biased spin on old favorite. Go ahead, use peanut butter if you must, even cashew butter but almond is my favorite by far! My advice to you is cut your apple all nice the way you like it, spread whichever of the ‘butter’s you choose and then put the jar away. With the fiber from your apple and the healthy fat and protein in almond butter, you should be more than satisfied with this little dish and leaving the jar out for dipping will often leave you falsely un-full and going back for more. Yes, this is a good thing, but indeed, you can have too much.

Hummus + Co
Is there anything you can’t put with hummus? Well I guess, it might be gross sticking a cookie in it or trying to spread it on a cupcake but hey, can you blame it for forcing you into healthy choices? Let’s take a stroll down hummus lane, whole wheat pita bread, pretzel thins, string beans, carrots.. the yumminess goes on and on. Seriously take a walk down the aisle at your local grocery store and check out all the different hummus flavors that are out there right now! So many delicious, healthy choices – you can try ’em all. I have a particular obsession for Sonny and Joe’s brand hummus and my favorite variations are Sesame, Spinach and Artichoke or Roasted Red Pepper. Happy Dipping!

Goat Cheese and Grape Bruschetta
Think of it like grown up cream cheese and jelly, this combination makes me salivate just thinking about it. Ok, maybe that was a little TMI, it’s fantastic, just take my word. Yes, it’s a little decadent so don’t go over board or eat this when your ravenous, cause you might do some serious caloric damage but eaten in moderation, it’s perfection. Buy a small whole wheat baguette and slice thinly on the diagonal. Only cut the amount your allowing yourself to eat, I’d say any where between 3-6 depending on how hungry you are. Wrap the exposed end and put it away. Now thinly spread the goat cheese on each of the pieces and cut seedless red grapes in half and affix them on to. Voila! Painlessly easy and perfectly delicious!

Like many other New Yorkers, I was trapped in my apartment this weekend with whatever happened to be in my refrigerator. I wasn’t too convinced that Irene was going to live up to all the hype so I only haphazardly prepared myself. Lots of candles, a flash light and a few liters of seltzer (because water was sold out by the time I got to the store) but on the food front, I just got some berries, almonds, grapes, raw string beans and hummus. Oh and Twizzlers! My hurricane candy treat! Thank god, it wasn’t the storm everyone was expecting or who knows how I would have actually fared.
Anyways fast forward to Saturday night, a bit past midnight and I am not only stir crazy but craving something sweet. The Twizzlers just aren’t doing it for me, I want dessert! So I whipped up this little low-fat pseudo Banana Cream Pie recipe and I want to share it with you because it ended up being delicious!

Come On Irene Banana Cream Pie

2 low fat graham cracker rectangles (big ones)
1 stage 2 banana baby food
1 ripe banana
1 60 cal Vanilla Jello Pudding
optional ..fat free whip cream

Break your graham crackers into crumbles and place them along the bottom of your bowl. Separately, mix your banana baby food with your vanilla pudding and layer it on top of your grahams. Lastly, slice your banana and toss them on top, adding whip cream if you choose. (I personally didn’t use whip cream this weekend but if I had it, I think it might be a nice topper!)

Enjoy 🙂