Recipe – SV Blue Sky

No Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies

These cookies are the perfect little snack. Easy to make and quick (takes about 20 minutes). Warning, you will get messy hands when you press them into cookies, but it’s so worth it.

Ingredients
1/2 cup unsweetened dairy free milk (I use Almond Milk)
3 TBSP Dairy free butter (if you are not vegan, you can use regular butter)
1/3 cup of coconut sugar (alternate Brown Sugar)
1/3 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 TBSP Cocoa Powder, unsweetened
Pinch of salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
2 1/2 cups rolled oats

Directions
1. Place milk, butter, sugar, cocoa powder and chocolate chips into a medium sized pot.
2. Bring to a rolling boil and boil at rolling for approximately 3 minutes. Stir a few times to ensure the chocolate chips don’t stick to the bottom of the pan before they melt.
3. Remove from heat, add salt, vanilla extract, peanut butter and mix until the peanut butter melts (note: I’ve made the mistake of adding these when it’s doing the rolling boil and it worked out okay)
4. Stir in the oats.
5. Scoop out dollops of the mixture (I get a rounded tablespoon amount) and press them into a ball and flatten slightly and place on a baking sheet or waxed paper. Repeat until you have all the mixture made into cookies.
6. Let sit at room temperature for approximately 1 hour. Move to a plastic bag or container and refrigerate or freeze. I like to keep mine in the freezer as they thaw quite quickly.

Creamy Asian Style Pasta

Our granddaughter calls this the butterfly dish as I use bow tie pasta noodles, but you can use any type of noodle you like. This has a very unique flavour and has quickly become another favourite we make on the boat.

Ingredients:
1 TBSP olive oil
1 yellow onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 zucchini, chopped (can also use 4 cups of spinach, chopped)
1 red bell pepper, diced
4-4 1/2 cups BowTie pasta (about 2 cups uncooked)
1 1/2 tsp red curry paste
1 (15 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 (15 ounce) can coconut milk (unsweetened, whole fat)
1 cup frozen peas
11/2 cup cherry tomatoes, cut into halves or sliced
Salt and black pepper to taste

Direction:
1. Cook pasta noodles to aldente, rinse and set aside
2. Heat oil in a large pan or skillet and saute the onion for 2-3 minutes.
3. Add garlic, zucchini and red pepper and saute an additional 2 minutes.
4. Add remaining ingredients except for the cherry tomatoes and cook 13 minutes.
5. Stir in tomatoes and cook an additional 2 minutes.
6. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Optional toppings:
. Chopped Cilantro, Mint or Parsley
. Squeeze of lime

Tortilla Soup

Fall is the perfect time for a nice hearty soup and this Tortilla soup is one of my favorites. It takes a bit of dicing, but is pretty simple to make. Also freezes nicely if you have any left overs. We eat this soup as a meal. Makes 6 good sized servings.

Ingredients:
1 TBSP Olive Oil
1 Yellow Onion, diced
3 Large Cloves of Garlic, minced
1 Large Red Bell Pepper, diced
1 Jalapeno Pepper, seeded and diced (optional)
1 1/2 cups frozen corn kernels
2 medium zucchinis, chopped bite size
1 (24 oz) can crushed tomatoes
3 cups vegetable broth
2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (optional, omit if you don’t like the heat)
1 tsp sea salt, or to taste
Freshly ground black pepper
1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed

Optional toppings:
Sliced avocado, tortilla chips, squeeze of fresh lime, fresh cilantro

Directions:
1. In a large pot, heat oil, add the onion and garlic and sauté about 5 minutes. Season with Salt and Pepper.
2. Stir in Red Bell Pepper, Jalapeno Pepper, Corn and Zucchini. Sauté for 10 minutes.
3. Add crushed tomatoes, broth, cumin, chili powder, cayenne. Stir well.
4. Bring to a low boil and reduce heat. Simmer uncovered for 10 to 15 minutes.
5. Stir in Black beans and cook an additional 5 minutes.
6. Ladle into bowls, top as desired and enjoy.

CAULIFLOWER BROWNIES

I know it sounds a little strange to have the words cauliflower and brownies in the same recipe title, but trust me on this one, these are fantastic. I’m totally addicted to them. I make them vegan by switching our regular chocolate chips to a vegan version found at Whole Foods. Try it and let me know what you think.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup rolled oats
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup cacao powder (unsweetened)
1/2 cup (or less – I only use slightly more than 1/4) coconut sugar
1 TBSP vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups cauliflower, steamed and cooled
1/4 cup almond milk (or vegan milk of choice)
1/3 cup almond butter
3/4 cup chocolate chips (I use 1/2 chocolate chips and 1/2 cacao nibs)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350, prepare 8×8 baking tin
2. Place all ingredients except the chocolate chips and cacao nibs into a food processor and process until smooth
3. Stir in chocolate chips and cacao nibs
4. Pour into pan, spreading evenly to make nice thin brownies
5. Bake 25 minutes or until brownies firm up
6. Let cool completely before serving

I like to cut them up and freeze them. This way I can take one piece out at a time, making the whole batch last over a few weeks. Be warned, you may discover you like them frozen too. Enjoy!

SCONES WITH CURRANTS

I love currants and I love scones, especially with a nice cup of tea. Most scones are made with real butter and buttermilk. These scones are made vegan style.
I classify this recipe as super easy.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup non-dairy milk (I use Almond Milk)
1/2 TBSP apple cider vinegar
2 cups Spelt flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp sea salt
2 TBSP unrefined coconut oil, solid (chill it in the fridge if in a hot climate)
2 TBSP unsweetened applesauce
1 cup currents, soaked in hot water for 5 minutes, then drained and rinsed
Freshly grated orange zest (from 1 orange)

Directions:
1 – Preheat oven to 375, line baking sheet with parchment paper (or use a silicone baking mat), dust with flour and set aside.
2 – Whisk together non-dairy milk and apple cider vinegar (this makes vegan buttermilk). Allow to sit 5 minutes.
3 – In a medium bowl mist together Spelt Flour, Baking Powder, Baking Soda and Sea Salt. Add the coconut oil. Using your hands pinch the coconut oil into the flour until you get pea size pieces (don’t over work it). Stir in the vegan buttermilk and applesauce until you get a sticky dough. Then fold in the currents and orange zest and form a ball.
4 – Transfer the dough to a prepared baking sheet, dust with a little more flour and flatten to form an 8″ round. Cut into 8 or more equal parts (like a pizza).
5 – Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden. Test with a toothpick (should come out clean).