Have you seen Food Inc? Most people tell me they loved it because it made them think. If you enjoy movies that make you question things then you need to see Forks Over Knives, it’s a life-changing film! Here’s the trailer for the movie…
Have you seen it? What did you think?
I love my greens! I enjoy hearty meal-type salads and I’ve been making a few lately that we really enjoy! Kale is my go-to salad green but I’ve been trying to venture out. I came across this Raw Collard and Apple Salad from my latest favorite vegan food blog MELOMEALS: Vegan for $3.33 A Day. You can use collard greens or kale – I used collard greens. I love the spiciness of the dijon mustard with the sweetness of the raisins! I’ve been eating this with my collard wraps for lunch, it’s just so awesome that it keeps in the fridge and doesn’t wilt and sog like regular salad!
Raw Collard and Apple Salad
Yummy!
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Raw Collard Salad
4 c finely chopped collard greens
½ c diced celery
2 c diced or shredded carrots
2 c apples, diced ( toss with ½ t apple cider vinegar before adding to salad )
4 T toasted sesame seeds
1 c golden raisins
1 t chunky sea salt ( less if using fine salt )
2 t onion powder
Pinch stevia powder or 3 T agave or honey
¼ t cinnamon
Pinch nutmeg
¼ t white pepper
3 T olive oil
2 T Dijon mustard
3 T apple cider vinegar
Toss everything together with your hands. Allow salad to sit for an hour ( or overnight ) before eating. Taste and adjust seasonings.
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Collard Greens... in case you didn't know 🙂
Strip leaves off of the tough stem (chop stem and add to soups for extra fiber)
I roll the leaves and chop them this way, then chop them again into smaller bites
Add chopped celery
then carrots... I like extra carrots...
chop your apples and add
toast your sesame seeds until fragrant - I use my cast iron pan (dry)
Add sesame seeds and golden raisins
Combine dressing ingredients
Add to salad
Mix together with your hands, let sit in fridge for a few hours or overnight before serving
Yummy!
It was yummy with my leftover sushi!
Raw Collard and Apple Salad
My latest favorite vegan food blog is MELOMEALS: Vegan For $3.33 A Day. She has awesome recipes and I love everything I’ve made off of her site.
Protein Pancakes
Tried out her Protein Pancakes yesterday morning, they were delicious! My daughter loves them and ate them again for breakfast this morning! I put the extra pancakes in the freezer so I can just pop them in the toaster oven when I need a quick breakfast.
This recipe calls for chickpea flour (also known as besan, garbanzo or gram flour) which is nutrient dense and reasonably higher in protein than other regular flours – 21 grams per 1 cup. It also has almost 10 grams of fiber per 1 cup, that’s 40% of your daily fiber needs. It’s also gluten-free for those who are avoiding gluten in their diets.
I found 2 – 35oz bags of Organic Chickpea Flour on Amazon for $14.62 / free shipping. I plan on using it to make flatbread pizza and wraps next!
I love collard greens almost as much as I love kale. They are awesome for making wraps, I’ve been experimenting with all sorts of stuffings for my daily collard wraps. Right now I’m into my Tempeh Salad mixture, similar to a chicken or tuna salad but without the chicken or fish.
Tempeh Salad Mixture – for sandwiches or wraps
* I cut up 2-8oz blocks of Tempeh (Trader Joe’s Organic Tempeh) into cubes and boil them for about 20 minutes in salted water.
Tempeh Salad Mixture
* I drain these cubes and let them cool a bit. Then I mash them with a potato masher until crumbly
* I add (eyeballing along the way) Veganaise (vegan mayo) – about 1/4 to 1/2 cup
* Green onions, minced – about 6
* Half of a red or yellow bell pepper, diced
* 4 stalks of celery, diced
* About 3-4 Tbsp pickle relish
* 1-2 Tbsp each dijon mustard and spicy brown mustard
* 1 tsp garlic powder
* 2 Tbsp dried parsley flakes or fresh parsley
* Juice of half a lemon or more to taste
* Salt & Pepper to taste
** Add it all together, mix well and let sit in refrigerator for at least an hour. Overnight is best, if you can wait that long!
– My hubby and daughter like this between two pieces of toasted wheat bread with sprouts and avocado on top. We keep this in the fridge at all times, I make a batch of it about once a week. This is one of my husbands favorite things to take to the station.
I like to take a large collard green leaf, wash it, dry it and cut off the bottom part of the stem and slice the stem flat on the veiny side of the leaf.
I slather a bunch of Kale Spread on the bottom, slap a sandwich sized amount of the Tempeh Salad Mixture on top of that followed by Daikon Sprouts, Avocado and a little Salt & Pepper. After I finished rolling the green wrap I realized I forgot bean sprouts! I’ll add that next time as well as some leftover blanched asparagus!
Collard Wraps with Tempeh Filling
I’ve noticed that the leaves roll better after sitting in the fridge for a couple days. I’ve been making a few of these at a time, wrapping them in plastic wrap and storing them in the fridge for lunches or snacks on the go.
YUMMY!!!!
I’m always thinking about how I can make more spreads to go on our veggie sandwiches/wraps. Plain or Red Pepper Hummus is generally our go-to spread but I’m learning to venture out a little. I’m always looking for ways to get more healthy greens into my daily diet so I came up with this “Kale Garlic Sandwich Spread”. (I’ll go into detail about kale soon – all the details you need!)
First I start with one bunch of kale – I like to use Lacinato Kale the most, also called “Black Kale” or “Elephant Kale. There are two other kinds of kale – red and green. The red and green look similar except for the color. They are a little more prickly than the lacinato and provide a little different texture. I used green kale for this recipe because that’s all I had on hand.
I also love garlic… who doesn’t!?!
I threw this little mixture together yesterday and it came out pretty good!
Kale Spread
* 1 bunch of kale – I used green kale
* 4-6 cloves garlic
* Juice of half a lemon
* Splash of bean-cooking liquid (or water)
* 1 can white beans – drained
* Salt & Pepper to taste
I mixed all these ingredients in my food processor until smooth, scraping the sides along the way.
I wonder if my toddler will eat this on pasta or toast with avocado? Hmmm… I”m going to try that tomorrow!
End Result:
Garlic Kale Spread
I’ve accumulated a few good fake cheese recipes over the years, some are nut based others are bean/potato based… all are really good! So good that I don’t even miss the real thing! My latest favorite recipe is from one of my favorite vegan food blogs, Healthy Happy Life (a.k.a. The LunchBox Bunch). Kathy, the lady who writes the blog, has a TON of really yummy recipes! Her Fake-Out Cheese Sauce is my daughter’s favorite! It’s a white bean (or cannellini bean) based “cheese” made with either sweet potato or instant mashed potato as a thickener – I prefer the sweet potato base myself. My hubby and I use this recipe when we have “Vegan Nacho Night”.
Fake-Out Cheese Sauce
vegan, makes 5 cups
3/4 cup nutritional yeast flakes
1 can cannellini beans, drained (about 1 1/2 cups)
2-3 Tbsp tamari (replaces added salt)
1 tsp garlic powder
1 1/2 Tbsp mustard powder
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1/4 tsp fine pepper
1 cup mashed sweet potato OR 1/2 cup instant mashed potato (unflavored) + 1/2 cup water – (I’ve used both and I like the sweet potato better!)
*see note below
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup vegan butter (Earth Balance) softened
1-2 Tbsp agave syrup
2 Tbsp tahini (adds a tang to the sauce – just as real cheese would)
Last step: thin out to desired thickness with soy milk, soy creamer or water
Potato note:
* The first go around I used dehydrated potato flakes as a thickener. The white potato flakes are quite bland so they act as a neutral base for the sauce. Silky sauce. Then the next few tries, I used my go-to sweet potato instead. I actually like the sweet potato version better because I gravitate towards sweet dishes. But my husband loved the white potato flake version better. Choose your potato as you wish. Or use a mix of the two.
To Make:
1. Bake your sweet potato – if using that method.
2. Add all ingredients to a blender or food processor. I used my Vitamix. Blend on low and increase gradually until mixture becomes smooth.
3. You can do a taste test and adjust spices, sweetness. Lastly, thin out the sauce to your desired thickness using soy milk, soy creamer or water. I added in a splash of soy creamer.
4. If serving with pasta, add directly to hot, just drained pasta and the pasta will heat the sauce. Otherwise, you can simmer the sauce on your stove top until ready to be served or used in a recipe. Simmering the sauce is great if using for a cheesy dip or fondue.
I mix it with my homemade pesto and serve it over whole grain noodles for my daughter. She loves it!
Toddler Approved Mac n' Cheeze with Pesto!
I make my own pesto, the recipe is different every time I make it because I just eyeball the ingredients. I use avocado instead of cheese (to add healthy fats to my daughter’s diet) and pine nuts or walnuts depending on how expensive pine nuts are at the time. I’ve used almonds before, I just make sure and blanch them first.
We use pesto on sandwiches and pasta, my hubby is obsessed with veggie sandwiches and loves to slather on a thick layer of it.
Kid Tested Firefighter Approved 