Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Amazing Almond Chocolate Chip Cookies

I realized the other day that I haven't put many deserts up here!  Then I realized, hey! I haven't made any deserts lately either!  For the last 2 weeks I've been mulling the idea of almond balls (i'll post those next) around in my head and the other night, was the night to start creating!  I added some of this, some of that, smushed into a cookie, baked and voila.....AWESOMENESS in a small cookie!  These are soft on top, crunchy on the bottom and full of delicious flavor!

As a small side note, I made these again last night and found that you have to add and mix each ingredient in.  Adding them all and mixing does not work....just an FYI there :)

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Amazing Almond Chocolate Chip Cookies
1/2 cup Almond Flour - sifted - do not pack
1/4 cup Maple Syrup
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
1/4 cup Almond Butter
1 Tbsp. Herb Stop's Vanilla Sugar
1/4 cup Vegan/Grain-Free Chocolate Chips - I use Sunspire

Blend almond flour and maple syrup together until well mixed.  Add vanilla extract, almond butter, sugar  and blend very well.  Add chocolate chips.  Using a tablespoon to measure, roll each tablespoon into a ball and smush down into 2 inch rounded cookies.  Bake at 350 degrees on a slipmat (silicone mat) for 10 minutes for a crunchy bottom, or 8 minutes for a very soft cookie.  Let stand for 5 minutes.  Transfer to a cooling rack. ENJOY!!

cookie batter

ready for the oven

Bland Can Be Delicious Too!

Whew, it's been quite a month!  After discovering that a friend and fellow herbalist had been lying to me for years, I was hurt and very upset.  Not only because I thought days of retaining my lawyer were over, but I had given so much energy to help her.  That being said, the emotional hurt was over in a couple days, but apparently that darn ulcer I had felt otherwise.  Now that the shock has passed, I have realized that yet again here is a blessing in disguise!

I guess I should also mention that the month of May is always difficult - my brother's birthday is on the 7th. We hardly speak and he lives 1/2 way around the world making his birthday sad because we have not seen him in several years.  Mother's day come next, which is also difficult for the same reasons.....although my mom and I can sure have an awesome time together anyway!!  Then comes the death of my father.  He died on the 18th eight years ago.  So lets throw all those in a pot (or my tummy) and see if we can make that ulcer alive again.  Darn.  It happened.  Luckily - actually unluckily - I have dealt with this before so I know exactly what to do.  Herb Stop's Stomach Relief and bland bland bland food.  Bummer.  So, here I am with a fridge full of food that I can't eat!  Well....maybe I'm exaggerating that a bit.

I remembered this last week how lucky I was to be able to eat foods like tomatoes, vinegar, spicy foods, etc.  Well, I will be lucky again.  As for now, potatoes, squash, potatoes, squash.  That is my mantra.  So to make food still beautiful I have to be reaaaaaally creative.  I'll probably be able to make some neat foods in the next couple weeks.  Please hang in there!

Bland Pretty Foods
6 baby patty pan squashes (1/2 yellow, 1/2 green)
3 broccolini stems
4 purple potatoes
3 mini zucchini

Steam, sprinkle with salt and enjoy!

The classic baked potato!  

Funny enough, I was placed on a diet for 1 year when I was very sick that consisted of 1. potatoes, 2. broth and 3. polenta in the broth.  So you'd think after a year of only potatoes that I'd never want to even look at one again....wrong.  I absolutely love potatoes, lol.  Here is a yummy potato cooking in our new halogen oven.  It only took 40 minutes and it was super fluffy!  Beats and hour and 30-45 minutes in a regular oven!  

I've posted this yummy fella a few times.  Julienned - actually it's more the french fry cut - potatoes and zucchini and the onion was left out.  Simple and easy!

Anyway....I hope that you can all be patient with me while I'm healing <3

~Natalie

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Coconut Ginger Vegetable Stir Fry

Still working on those noodles, lol.  This meal was so incredible, I couldn't wait to post this recipe today!!!  I was really surprised how the coconut milk and orange juice made this flavor really come together.  ENJOY.....

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Coconut Ginger Vegetable Stir Fry
3/4 packet of Quinoa Harvest Spaghetti, broken in half and cooked according to the package
2 tablespoons Grapeseed Oil
2 Scallions, sliced
1/4 cup Purple Onion, finely chopped
2 large cloves Garlic, pushed through a garlic press
1 Orange Bell pepper, sliced into strips
2 heads Broccoli, cut into florettes
1/2 cup Cashew pieces
1/2 cup Purple Cabbage, shredded
1/2 cup Coconut Milk
1/4 teaspoon Herb Stop's Himalayan Salt
1 teaspoon Herb Stop's Orange Juice Powder
1/4 teaspoon Herb Stop's Ground Ginger
1/4 teaspoon Herb Stop's Hot Smoked Paprika
1/2 teaspoon Herb Stop's Ginger Sugar
1/4 teaspoon Herb Stop's Lemon Sugar

To make the sauce add coconut milk, salt, orange juice, ginger, paprika and sugars.  Mix until the sugar and salt is dissolved.

In a large pan, add grapeseed oil and heat over medium high heat.  Add garlic, onion and scallions and stir fry until garlic is golden.  Add bell pepper, broccoli and cashews, mix until well coated.  Add sauce, cover and cook for 3-5 minutes, stirring frequently and checking to make sure the sauce has not fully cooked away. Add cabbage towards the end of cooking the broccoli.  Once broccoli is cooked, but still crisp add noodles and mix well until incorporated.  Add sesame seeds to garnish.

Yummy Sauce

chopped bell peppers on a himalayan salt slab

Cooking away

Almost ready....

delicious!!

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Veggie Plate with Tahini Sauce

After a very prolific trip to Sunflower Market, it was time to get those veggies on a plate!  Getting the timing right on these guys so they're all finished cooking at the same time is a little tricky, but it's such a nice filling meal....mmmmmm. The tahini sauce is a nice accompaniment to the veggies...ENJOY....

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Veggie Plate with Tahini Sauce
1 Corn on the Cob
5 Brussel Sprouts, cut in half
4 small Purple Potatoes, diced
1 Zucchini sliced into medallions
1/4 cup Tahini
Water
2 teaspoons Lemon Juice
1 teaspoon fresh Chives, chopped
2 cloves Garlic, pressed through a garlic press
Herb Stop's Himalayan Salt
Herb Stop's Smoked Paprika

In a large pot, add water and a steamer basket.  Bring water to boil and add potatoes for 5 minutes then add brussel sprouts for 5 minutes.  Add corn for 5 minutes then zucchini for 5 minutes.  While veggies are cooking, make dressing.  Add tahini and lemon juice together.  Add water by the teaspoonful until thin, but not watery.  Add chives, garlic, a dash of smoked paprika and a dash of himalayan salt.  Mix well.  When veggies are done, pour the tahini sauce over them.

yummy sauce

beautiful veggies

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Toasted Walnut Salad Dressing

Deep into my crunch month, I remembered the 25lbs of organic walnuts....yippie!  I decided to make a walnut dressing....10 minutes after cracking shells I wasn't sure it was going to be worth it.......it so totally was!  This dressing was so flavorful and really yummy!

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Toasted Walnut Salad Dressing
6 tablespoons Olive Oil
1 tablespoon Balsamic Vinegar
4 cloves Garlic
1 tablespoon Fresh Basil (or 1 teaspoon dried basil)
4 tablespoons Walnuts

Toast walnuts for 5-10 minutes until browned.  Mix all ingredients in a vitamix or blender.  Pour over salad with any ingredients.

toasting the walnuts

close up with a few added walnuts to the top

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Red Hot Broccoli Pasta

I'm back to the cabinet full of pasta, lol.  After making this, I was so excited that it was so delicious and then the burn came!  Be aware that this is definitely RED HOT!!  The broccoli was delicious in this mix.  Yummy!

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Red Hot Broccoli Pasta
1 package Quinoa Harvest Spaghetti
1 teaspoon Herb Stop's Spaghetti Seasoning
1/4 cup Grapeseed Oil
2 teaspoons Herb Stop's Minced Garlic
1 teaspoon Herb Stop's Smoked Hot Paprika
2 heads Broccoli cut into small florettes
Herb Stop's Himalayan Salt
Herb Stop's Nutritional Yeast

Cook pasta with spaghetti seasoning, strain, reserve 1 cup of the liquid and set both aside.  In a medium saucepan add grapeseed oil and heat over medium heat.  Add garlic and sautee until slightly browned.  Add paprika and mix until well incorporated.  Add broccoli and mix until well coated (if desired add salt to taste).  Add 1/2 cup of the reserved water, cover and cook for 5-6 minutes, or until broccoli is cooked, but still crisp.  If necessary add more of the reserved water.  Mix in pasta until well coated.  Serve with nutritional yeast sprinkled over the top.  ENJOY!!!

 Cooking away....

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Onion Potato Zucchini

This meal is easy, delicious and never fails!!!  The best part is you can season it with whatever you want!

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Onion Potato Zucchini
1 large Russet Potato, julienned
1 Zucchini, julienned
1/2 large Red Onion, julienned
Spices such as Italian seasoning, Mexican seasoning, Curry, etc.

Add all veggies to a large skillet on medium heat.  Add 1/2-3/4 cup water (depending on how large the potato is) and cover.  Allow to cook until potato is cooked and water is absorbed - about 10 minutes.  ENJOY!

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Three Bean Chili

And I'm off to the bottom cabinet....beans beans beans!  What I love most about beans is that you can stick it in a crock pot, turn it on and leave it and when it's all finished you can freeze them!  This chili was really fun to make, it's so rich and very flavorful!  The first night I made tacos and the second night I topped the chili with a salad.  This is definitely worth a taste!

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Three Bean Chili
1 cup Black Beans
1 cup Pinto Beans
1/2 cup Garbanzo Beans
32 oz Vegetable Broth (Vegan & Gluten-Free)
1 White Onion, chopped
1 small Red Onion, Chopped
1 tablespoon Tomato Paste mixed with 4 tablespoons Water
1 Tomatillo, diced
1 Jalapeno de-seeded and slightly de-veined, diced
2 Green Bell Peppers, diced
2 Tomatoes, diced
4 cloves Garlic, pressed or finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon Herb Stop's Himalayan Salt
1/2 teaspoon Herb Stop's Smoked Alderwood Salt
1/4 teaspoon Herb Stop's Cumin Powder
1 teaspoon Herb Stop's Dark Cocoa Sugar
1 teaspoon Herb Stop's Sweet Onion Sugar
3 teaspoons Herb Stop's Southwest Spice Mix
1 tablespoon Grapeseed Oil
1 cup Un-Fried Beans

Place all the ingredients in a crock pot, except the Un-Fried Beans, on low and cook until beans are soft, about 24 hours.  When fully cooked add the Un-Fried Beans and mix well.  This will add the creamy-ness to the chili.  ENJOY!!!

Yes....wear gloves when chopping peppers!

lots of delicious fresh veggies 

Ready to cook!

ready to eat!  really steamy! 

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Creamy Tomato Pasta

Starting on the first shelf of my over crowded pantry, I have boxes and boxes and boxes of of Quinoa Harvest pastas.  So, here we go....a super easy meal that is healthy and delicious....yummmmmmmm

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Creamy Tomato Pasta
3/4 box Quinoa Harvest Spaghetti
1/2 cup Tomato Sauce
1/2 teaspoon Herb Stop's Spaghetti Seasoning
3/4 teaspoon Herb Stop's Minced Garlic
1/2 Tomato, diced
2 Scallions, diced and divided in half
1/4 Onion, diced
2 teaspoons Cashew Butter

Cook spaghetti according to package instructions.  Strain and set aside.  Add tomato sauce to the pan and add in spaghetti seasoning and minced garlic.  Allow to simmer for 2-3 minutes.  Add cashew butter and stir constantly until well incorporated.  Add the rest of the veggies, except 1/2 of the scallions.  Mix well and toss in spaghetti.    Garnish with remaining scallions.  ENJOY!

tomato sauce

all mixed up and ready to go

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Taco Sandwich

When I was younger my parents would have "crunch month."  During this month, we would limit grocery buying to only the essential like fresh veggies and fruits.  This was a great teaching tool to avoid wasting money and to not be wasteful.  So yeah, maybe I didn't want spaghetti for 3 days, but I lived.  Anyway......our kitchen is starting to look ridiculous.  I open the fridge and something falls out, which of course leads to the awesome move: toss it in and quickly shut the door before it falls down.  hahahhahah.  The cabinets are overflowing with quinoa, pasta, tomato paste, beans, etc.  So, it's going to be crunch month in this house during May!   This leads to the freezer.  My recent bean adventures had been prosperous!  I have tons of packages of frozen beans....yeah!  So, I started making a taco and then somehow this taco sandwich came to be!

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Taco Sandwich
Un-Fried Beans
Lettuce
Tomatoes
Scallions
Onions
Cabbage
Herb Stop's Minced Garlic
2 Corn Tortillas

Warm the tortillas in the oven or in a skillet until slightly crispy.  Set aside.  In a skillet heat desired amount of my Un-Fried Beans until nice and hot.  Diced and chop as much of the veggies as you would like.  Spread the beans onto one side of each tortilla and stack the veggies up.  Place together to make a sandwich and enjoy!!!

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Bean & Veggie Enchiladas

My copious amount of beans led me into a bean dish frenzy!  Everything is beans right now!  I remember loving cheese enchiladas back in the day, but now the idea of a corn tortilla stuffed with cheese makes my stomach kinda turn :/.  To make this unhealthy dish healthy I used my un-fried beans and an assortment of veggies and some cashews!!!  This was so delicious, I'm not sure how I ever survived without these!!!

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Bean & Veggie Enchiladas
1 Zucchini, sliced on a mandolini slicer into french fry strips
1 Small Red Onion, sliced on a mandolini slicer into french fry strips
1/4 cup shredded Red Cabbage
2 Scallions, sliced
Un-Fried Beans
10 corn tortillas
1/2 cup Cashew halves, pulverized into a meal
1/4 teaspoon Herb Stop's Himalayan Salt
1/2 tablespoon Nutritional Yeast
1 tablespoon Herb Stop's Southwest Mix
1/2 tablespoon Herb Stop's Minced Garlic
1 packet Vegan/Grain-Free Enchilada Sauce Mix
2 tablespoons Bionaturae Tomato Paste
2 cups Water
1 teaspoon Herb Stop's Southwest Mix
1 Scallion Diced
Grapeseed Oil

Lightly grease a rectangular baking dish with grapeseed oil.  Set oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium pot, add enchilada sauce mix, tomato paste, water and 1 teaspoon southwest mix.  Heat until boiling and reduce to simmer.  Cook until slightly thick, about 5 minutes.  Remove from heat and pour into a pie plate.

In a large bowl, add zucchini, onion, cabbage, 2 scallions (diced).  Set aside.  In a seperate bowl, mix cashews, salt, nutritional yeast, 1 tablespoon southwest mix and minced garlic. Combine zucchini mix and cashew mix and stir until well mixed.

Dip one corn tortilla into enchilada sauce to coat both sides.  Add 1/8 cup un-fried beans to the middle.  Top with 1/3 cup zucchini/cashew mix.  Roll each side in to make a rounded enchilada.  Place in pan seam side down.  Continue with the rest of the tortillas and vegetable mixture - this should make 10 enchiladas.  Pour remaining enchilada sauce over the top. Bake for 40 minutes.  To garnish, sprinkle with the remaining scallions.

ENJOY!!!

veggie mix

cashews with nutritional yeast

veggie and cashew mix

beans on a tortilla

veggies and beans on the tortilla

all rolled up in the baking dish

with the extra sauce poured over the top

fresh from the oven

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Salad Tacos

With my new Un-Fried Beans, my creative juices were flowing!  To add to that, I went to get my salad from Costco the other day and they didn't have my organic romaine hearts!!?!?!?!?!?!?!  Eeeeeeek! What was I to do?  Luckily they had this bag of 6 organic petite heirloom lettuces.  I get home from my costco adventure and there's all these lettuces that are definitely not romaine.  We have a multicolored leaf (which actually was like romaine), a leafy crazy looking red one and a cup like lettuce.  Now, my mom can attest to this, I am a strictly romaine kinda-gal.  As I'm looking at this lettuce I realize, hey! this is really pretty!  Then my mind went into art mode and I made a funny design on the plate.........then my crazy mind went to tacos but with salad!  It turned out delicious and very yummy!  ENJOY!!!

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Salad Tacos
5 leaves of Romaine-like Lettuce
5 leaves of Red Leaf Lettuce-like (I really have no idea what it was called, lol)
Un-Fried Beans (as much as desired), room temperature
1 Avocado, diced
2 Scallions, sliced
6 Grape/Cherry Tomatoes, diced
Lemon juice
1 teaspoon Nutritional Yeast

Lay romaine-like lettuce in a star pattern on a plate.  Decorate in between the leaves with the red lettuce. Scoop beans onto the lettuce down the center.  Layer avocado chunks, then tomatoes then scallions on top.  Squeeze some lemon juice over the top. Sprinkle nutritional yeast over the top and ENJOY!

If you want to further the decoration, cut a lemon in half then into sections - but do not cut all the way through - and place a tomato in the middle.

Pretty lettuce design

with added beans

added avocado

added tomatoes and scallions

so pretty!

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Un-fried Beans (refried beans)

So how exactly do you make beans look pretty in a picture?  Apparently I do not know :/.  Well, honestly these are so yummy and I've made a few dishes out them that turned out unbelievably good, so don't let my lumpy pictures fool you!  hehehhehe.....

I started off wanting to make refried beans, but after these were done, I didn't want to add oil and fry them.  Needless to say we have un-fried beans instead of re-fried beans!  YUMMMMMMMM!

This also makes a wonderful dip!

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Un-fried Beans (refried beans)
3 cups Pinto Beans, soaked overnight
6 cups Filtered Water
1 bottled Bionaturae Tomato Paste
1 Yellow Bell Pepper, diced
3 Sweet Peppers, diced - I used Yellow, Orange and Red
1 small White Onion, diced
4 cloves Garlic, minced
1/2 tablespoon Herb Stop's Dark Cocoa Sugar
1 1/2 tablespoon Herb Stop's Southwest Spice
1/2 tablespoon Herb Stop's Smoked Paprika
1/2 tablespoon Herb Stop's Smoked Hot Paprika
1/2 teaspoon Herb Stop's Himalayan Salt
1 teaspoon Herb Stop's Smoked Alderwood Salt
2 tablespoons Herb Stop's Mexican Seasoning

Mix all ingredients into a large crock pot.  Cover and cook on low heat for 16-24 hours, until beans are soft.  Using a handheld stick blender, puree beans.  ENJOY!

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Avocado Delight

Avocados are so yummy, refreshing, creamy, delicious.....I'm sure there's a thousand adjectives I could use to describe these yummy fruits!  I love to make guacamole, but it's never the same ingredients!  Here is a fun avocado appetizer, or if you're crazy like me and can eat the entire thing (lol) a nice meal when you put them on to toast or a GF and Vegan safe snack like these wonderful Corn Thins made by Real Foods.

Vegan Grain/Gluten-Free Avocado Delight
1 Avocado, diced
1 Scallion, sliced
a handful of Grape/Cherry tomatoes, diced
1 large fresh Garlic, minced or put through a garlic press
1/4 teaspoon Herb Stop's Minced Green Onion
lemon juice

Add avocados and garlic to a bowl and mash well, but leave some chunks.  Add tomatoes, scallions and most of the minced green onion, and mix well. Add desired amount of lemon juice and mix well.  Scoop mixture back into the avocado shell halves and serve in the shell.   Sprinkle minced green onion over the top.  ENJOY!!

you can also serve these on top of the corn thins  decorated with the minced green onion.

Yummy fresh veggies....well technically mostly fruits :)