Date Balls

After seeing pictures and recipes for date balls and having dates in my cupboard waiting for me I decided to meld a few together to create my own. It took two tries for me to land on this recipe as my favorite mash up. The requirements when I was looking for reference recipes: no coffee, ingredients I already have, nutritiously dense, few ingredients. After comparing recipes I came up with this a 5 ingredient and simple recipe. You can omit the coconut if you want but with the addition of coconut it reminds me of Samoas Girl Scout Cookies.

1 cup pitted dates (I use Madjool)
1 cup oats
1 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tbsp flax meal
2 tbsp unsweetened coconut shreds


Place dates, oats, flax meal, and cocoa powder in a food processor and process together. It will eventually form a ball within the food processor which is perfect for shaping. Shape into balls, roll in coconut shreds and enjoy. Store in the fridge

Make ahead breakfasts

In the mornings it can be hard to get up early enough to make quality food. So here are some ideas for what to make the night before. The great thing is if you use the right container you can take it with you too.

 CHIA SEED PUDDING:
1 cup non dairy milk
2/3 cup chia seeds
Splash vanilla (optional)
Toppings

Mix together everything except the toppings and refrigerate. Wait at least 5 hours to eat. Top with desired toppings and enjoy.

OVERNIGHT OATS:
1 cup non dairy milk
1 cup oats
1 1/2 tbsp chia seeds
2 tbsp peanut butter
Toppings
Mix everything together in to a container of your choosing. Refridgerate for at least 5 hours or overnight. Top and enjoy.



Notes:
Chia seed pudding: It is good to eat in a few hour (4-5) if desired. Also if it turns out too think of too runny change the amount of chia seeds as desired. The more chia seeds the thicker it becomes.
Overnight Oats: I made my first cup (pictured) in a peanut butter jar when only a little bit was left.

Vegan Baking with Nadine: Peaches and Cream Macaroons

Makes about 20

My recent discovery has been Aquafaba! Where do you find it in the grocery store though? Surprise! It's in your can of garbanzo beans (or chick peas) for about a dollar! Just drain the liquid into a separate bowl instead of washing it down the sink and save the beans/peas for another use!

With this relatively cheap and healthy alternative, imagine how many delicious recipes you can make? This opens up so many more options for vegan-friendly sweet treats! And if you've already succeeded in making macaroons, this should be a breeze! If you're newer or this is your first time, it's tedious, but so worth the treat in the end!

I highly recommend reading the instructions first!

If you omit the filling portion of the recipe, this is a basic recipe for vegan macaroons. Feel free to explore recipes and share in the comments!

Peaches and Cream Macaroons

Ingredients:
1 15 oz can of chickpea water (aquafaba)
1/2 Cup sugar
1 1/4 Cup almond flour
1/2 Cup powdered sugar
1/2 Cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
peach colored food gel

For the filling:
1 Tbsp vegan friendly cream cheese, room temperature
2 Cup powdered sugar
2 Tbsp dairy free milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 Tbsp favorite peach jam

Macarons:

1. Start by boiling the aquafaba in a small pan over medium heat, reduce until 1/3 cup is remaining, this takes 5-7 minutes. Transfer to mixing bowl and set aside until room temperature, about 10 minutes.
2. Prepare the dry ingredients. Sift the almond flour and powdered sugar together until no clumps remain, discard any pieces too large to pass through.
3. Once the aquafaba is at room temperature, attach a balloon whisk and whisk on medium speed until fluffy (should not take more than 5 minutes). Add the sugar and whisk on high until the meringue is extremely stiff and glossy (5-10 minutes). Preform a simple ribbon test, it should take the ribbon 5 or more seconds to disappear in the mixture.
4. Add vanilla and color gel, whisk until combined.
5. Fold in half of the dry ingredients to the meringue mixture, using a spatula, go slowly. Continue folding until the dry ingredients are incorporated. Fold in the second half and repeat. Preform a simple ribbon test, the batter should take 3-5 seconds to disappear into the mixture. If your mixture takes less than 3 seconds to disappear, you've over mixed and have to restart.
6. Spoon the mixture into a piping bag, snip off the end, and pipe one-inch circles on backing trays lined with parchment paper.
7. Once the trays are lined, pick the tray up to elbow height, and drop on the counter. This process is important because it gets the extra air bubbles out of the mixture. Repeat twice more.
8. Leave the macaroons to dry out at room temperature for one hour.
9. Firstly, place your first tray in the oven and then set the temperature to 210F. Bake for 30 minutes. Do not take the macaroons out of the oven yet!! Turn the oven off and leave the macroons in the oven for 15 minutes. Then open the oven door and leave the macroons in the oven for 15 more minutes. Take the tray out and let cool fully on counter. Repeat the process with remaining tray(s).
10. Pair like-sized macaroons together, placing one upside down to easily pipe frosting

Filling:

1. Cream together the cream cheese, vanilla and powdered sugar.
2. Add almond milk until mixture is a thick, smooth cream.
3. Place into a piping bag.
4. Pipe around the edge of the macaroons, creating an empty center.
5. Dab a small amount of jam in the center.
6. Gently sandwich the top shell with the base shell. Repeat until all macaroons are filled.

Recipe: Barbeque Pulled Jackfruit

It's crazy how with plants you can recreate so many different textures and flavors. This was so similar to pulled pork that I was shocked when I tried it. I will definitely be making it again in the future. The jack fruit doesn't have the same color as cooked meats do so be careful when adding barbecue sauce. It adds flavor quicker than it does color to the pale fruit. Adjust the sauce to your taste, it doesn't take a lot to get a good flavor though. 
You can pair it with so many different things, when making this we didn't want to get anything special so tortillas were used; perfect for other dished since I don't eat a lot of bread in my household. 
Some recipes you find will use fresh jack fruit. After looking over multiple recipes we found that it was easier to use canned jack fruit and not worth it to use fresh. This has to do with the ripeness of the fruit and the preparation can be labor intensive. 

2 20 oz cans of young green jack fruit in water

2 cloves minced garlic

Olive oil

1 onion, chopped

1/2 top cumin 

2 try paprika powder

1 top chili powder

1 pinch red pepper flakes

2 top brown sugar

1/2+ cup Barbecue sauce

Black pepper, to taste

Drain and rinse jack fruit. Remove the core from the prices but do not shred.Stir in spices and brown sugar until evenly coated.

In a pan heat olive oil over medium heat and sauté onions until translucent. add garlic and cook until fragrant. add the jack fruit and cook for 3 minutes. Add barbecue sauce and vegetable broth and cook for 15 - 20 minutes. shred the jack fruit and add more barbecue sauce if desired. 

Serve in a bunch or in vessels of choice, top and enjoy.

Chickpeas and Spinach

I saw this online and decided to make it and it turned out great. It's a simple and inexpensive meal to make while being filling and nutritiously dense.

Olive oil
1 can chickpeas, drained
3 tsp paprika (see note)
2 cups spinach

In a heated pan saute chickpeas in olive oil, sprinkle with paprika. Add spinach, cover with a lid to wilt the spinach. Mix together and add more paprika as desired. Enjoy.

Note:
There are many kinds of paprika and they can range to being spicy to just colorful. Keep this in mind for when you make this dish and keep in mind your preferences.

Peppermint Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

Happy Holidays. This is the last weekend before Christmas and if you want some cookies for a cookie exchange I recommend these. They are easy to make and a have wonderful chocolate-peppermint flavor.
If you don't like or don't want that peppermint flavor you can leave out the peppermint extract. The original recipe called for some crushed candy canes in the dough but I omitted them and it still tasted fantastic. The next time I make them I may only use powdered sugar to roll them in; the granulated sugar was a nice surprise but I almost wonder if it was too much. If you try it let me know!

1 cup cocoa powder

2 cups sugar

½ cup vegetable oil

¾ cup applesauce

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp peppermint extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

2½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

Sugar Coating

½ cup granulated sugar

½ cup powdered sugar

in separate dishes for rolling

In a small bowl combine flour, salt, and baking powder and set aside. In a medium bowl or stand up mixer stir together cocoa powder, sugar, applesauce, oil, and extracts until well blended. Add flour mixture and mix until just combined. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill for 4 hours.

Getting ready to roll after chilling all night.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Place the granulated and powdered sugars in two separate bowls.

Remove chilled dough and roll into balls about one tablespoon each. Toss first in the granulated and then second in the powdered sugar, coating fully.

Bake for 12-13 minutes  at 350F allow to cool on the cookie sheets. They will be slightly under cooked. Transfer to a wire rack if needed to prevent over cooking.

Confit Byaldi (Baked Ratatouille)

Not all foods have to be super complicated or be heavily modified to be vegan. Confit Byaldi is also known as a baked ratatouille. For anyone that's curious, a true ratatouille is more similar to sauteed veggies than the arrangement that is made here. The ingredients are very similar though.              In the recipe I reference it says to use oregano, I just used a mix of herbs that I thought would complement the dish well. Some include oregano, parsley, basil or anything I had available.

Also, it's important to slice the vegetables thinly, about 1/8 inch, so that they bake quickly but also that the sizes are consistent. A mandolin makes this really safe, quick, and easy to do.

1/2 onion, finely chopped                               

2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

1 cup tomato puree

Herbs                                                            

 Olive oil                                                            

1 small eggplant, thinly sliced                          

1 zucchini, thinly sliced                                    

1 yellow squash, thinly sliced                           

l red bell pepper, core removed and thinly sliced

1 green bell pepper, core removed and thinly sliced

Salt and pepper

In the bottom of a baking dish mix the tomato puree with the onion and garlic. Season with salt and pepper. Layer vegetables in a pattern of your choosing until the dish is filled, overlapping but still exposing the upper portion of the previous slice. sprinkle with herbs and drizzle with olive oil. Bake at 375 for 45-55 minutes, the vegetables should be cooked but still hold their shape for serving.

Serve and enjoy.  This dish can be enjoyed both hot or after being refrigerated. There are many pairings you can make with this dish. I haven't tried many so let me know your favorite pairings. 

Cut veggies. They were broken into smaller
pieces to better fit in the baking dish.

The final dish.