Nadine's No Bake Chocolate Cookies

Long ago before she became a vegan Nadine made these cookies. I got the recipe from her and morphed it in to a vegan one my using non dairy milks. I like to make them when I want a simple chocolate cookie. They are super easy to make and aren't super crumby cookie so they are great for on the go.

2 cups sugar
4 Tbsp cocoa
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup milk
2 1/4 cup minute oats
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup grated coconut

Mix sugar, cocoa, and salt in a 1 1/2 qt sauce pan. Add milk and bring to a simmer, stirring with a wooden spoon.  Remove from heat and sample (see note below). Mix remaining ingredients. Drop spoonfuls on to lined cookie sheets and let set until firm and enjoy. Store in an air tight container.

Notes:
Only once has it ever happened to me but I have cooked it and then it turned in to a brick in the fridge There was no way to cut it and I had to throw it away and lost all of the ingredients. Remove a small sample of heated mixture and place on to a small piece of parchment paper. Place sample in the fridge to see if it remains soft after 10 minutes of longer. If hardened do not use the heated mixture, you will get hard cookies. If still soft continue making cookies.

A.L.T. Sandwich: Vegan Cooking with Nadine

Avocado, Lettuce, Tomato Sandwich

       What Is better than a quick, simple vegan meal? The answer is nothing... except possibly midnight chocolate snacks, but that's besides the point....
      After spending all day at school (where they don't yet provide true vegan alternatives) I wait to eat dinner at home. But after spending 12 hours on campus, the last thing I want to do is spend a long time making myself food. Typically wanting to cheat on being vegan just to eat a quick meal, I've found the perfect solution! (Be aware, I usually have to have two of these... they're that good!)

Serves: 4

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 0 minutes

Total time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

8 slices of your preferred bread (I like Sourdough best)

1 ripe avocado, cut into thin slices

1-2 ripe tomatoes, cut into thin slices

1/4 head of romaine lettuce, washed and dried

4 tablespoons Vegenaise (I use about a tablespoon per sandwich)

Vegan bacon of your choice (optional)

Cracked pepper (optional)

Instructions:

1. Toast the bread of your choice in either your toaster or in the oven at 350°F for 5 minutes.
2. In the meantime, prepare the rest of the ingredients.
3. Once your bread is toasted, spread desired amount of Vegenaise on both slices of bread.
4. Layer the avocado (bacon if desired) on one slice of bread and the lettuce and tomato on the other slice.
5. Crack the pepper over both slices.
6. Close the sandwich, cut in half (if desired) and enjoy!

Manicotti: Vegan Cooking with Nadine

Vegan Manicotti

       My sister, who has no interest in any vegan choices, actually requests for me to make this when she comes over to my house. This easy to follow beginners recipe is simple, clean eating. I usually pair it with a garlic bread and some fresh fruit, along with a chocolate dessert.

       The recipe calls for tofu, and if you don't like tofu, you're in luck! The tofu is mashed up to make a cottage cheese and then mixed with spaghetti sauce, so you don't even process it as tofu!

      I gave myself a bit more than hour (maybe 90 minutes) to prepare this dish my first time, but after that, I got the hang of what would make this dish quicker: get water boiling before you start cutting your vegetables. This saved me about 15 minutes because the first time I made this recipe, I didn't read the instructions all the way through (oops!) and I ended up having to wait for the water to boil, then for the noodles to partially cook, and lastly waiting for the noodles to cool down enough that I could handle them. 

In short, learn from my mistakes and boil water first!

Serves: 6-8

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 40 minutes

Total time: 1 hour

Ingredients:

1/2 package of manicotti noodles (24 shells)

2 20oz jars of spaghetti sauce

1 recipe Vegan Cottage Cheese (see recipe below)

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

1-2 Tablespoons oil

2 cloves garlic, crushed or finely chopped

1 onion chopped (1 1/2 cups)

1 pound spinach, chopped or whole

1 teaspoon basil

1/2 teaspoon oregano

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon Chicken Style Seasoning (found commonly in bulk seasonings).

Vegan Cottage Cheese:

1 pound extra firm Tofu

1/2 cup Vegenaise

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons lemon juice

• Mash tofu and mix in other ingredients.

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees
2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook pasta (to fill the pasta, it's easier if the noodles aren't fully cooked, and just a few minutes under cooked).
3. Sauté the last 8 ingredients above in the oil until onions and spinach are tender.
4. Add tofu cottage cheese and parsley to the saucepan and mix well.
5. Pour 1/2 a jar of spaghetti sauce into the bottom of a 9x13 inch casserole dish 
6. With a large spoon, fill pasta with the mixture from the saucepan. Place the shells in the tomato sauce.
7. Pour the remaining sauce over the shells. Make sure the shells are covered with the sauce, otherwise when they're done cooking, the exposed parts will turn hard.
8. Cover with foil and place in preheated oven for 40 minutes.