Tag: vegan

BLACK BEAN BURGERS

It’s taken awhile for me to appreciate veggie burgers. Store bought burgers never seemed to taste quite appealing. So I’ve tried a few recipes found online and in recipe books and found one that was appetizing, then I modified it to my tastes. Not only do I like it, but non-vegetarians like it too. We like to eat it on a half pita with homemade guacamole and sliced tomatoes. I hope you enjoy these as much as we do. Makes 4 burgers.

Ingredients
1 (15 oz) can black beans
2 TBSP barbeque sauce
1 TBSP yellow mustard
1 tsp onion powder (granulated)
1 tsp garlic powder (granulated)
¾ cup instant oats (take regular oats and process them a few pulses in a food processor to make instant oats)

Directions:
1 – drain and rinse well the can of black beans
2 – place the beans in a bowl and press with a fork to make a mash, leaving some beans partially whole
3 – mix in the remaining ingredients, until the oats are completely wet with the other ingredients. I like to refrigerate for an hour or so to blend the flavors, but this is optional.
4 – divide the mixture into 4 equal parts and form each part into a burger (if using pita, the burger can take on more of an oval shape)
5 – add a small amount of olive or coconut oil to a skillet and fry on medium heat for about 3-5 minutes a side, until nicely browned.
6 – serve up with pita or buns and your choice of fixings.

PUMPKIN OATMEAL

Cooler mornings in October have us craving a warm breakfast. We found this recipe and have been making it ever since. Serves 2

Ingredients:
2/3 cup of pumpkin puree (I use 1/2 14oz can)
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 to 3/4 teaspoons ginger
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/16 teaspoon ground cloves
Pinch salt
1 cup rolled oats
1 cup water
3/4 cup almond milk
5-6 finely chopped pitted dates
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 Granny Smith apple. cored (optional)
1/4 cup walnuts, chopped (optional)

Directions:
1. In a medium pot, heat pumpkin on medium heat for 5-7 minutes, stirring frequently until the pumpkin is reduced by half or a deep golden brown.
2. Stir in spices and cook for another 30 seconds to blend the flavors.
3. Add the salt and rolled oats, water and milk, stirring to bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer for about 5 minutes.
4. Stir in the dates and continue to stir while the oatmeal thicken (about 204 minutes more). Remove from heat and put a lid on it for an additional 5 minutes. Meanwhile chop apple into bite size pieces and chop walnuts for topping.
5. Stir in vanilla extract and serve.

Note: if you have no dates, use 2-3 teaspoons of maple syrup for sweetness.

GLUTEN FREE CRACKERS

I started to feel frustrated with store bought crackers. They always seem to have too much fat or bad stuff in them and if they are ‘gluten free’, they are expensive. I did some research on line and found this recipe on the ohsheglows.com blog. I was busy making granola and had the oven hot, so mixed up a batch of these to pop in the oven when the granola was done. They were super easy to and delish with a little olive tapenade. I had to stop myself from eating the whole batch.

Ingredients:
½ cup brown rice flour
¾ cup almond flour
2 TBSP nutritional yeast
¼ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp kosher salt (I only had sea salt, so used that)
½ tsp dried thyme
½ tsp dried rosemary
Scant ¼ tsp baking soda
2 TBSP sesame seeds
¼ cup water
½ tsp olive oil

Directions
-Preheat oven to 350 and prepare baking sheet with parchment paper (or use a silicone baking sheet)
-Mix together dried ingredients in a medium sized bowl
-Add water and olive oil and kneed/press together with hands until it forms a ball
-Place ball on parchment or mat and roll with a rolling pin until 1/8” thick. Sprinkle with salt if desired (I put some Himalayan salt on top and slightly pressed it into the dough so it wouldn’t fall off)
-Bake for 18-20 minutes or until slightly golden and crisp (mine got crisp more than golden)
-Let cool 10 minutes and store in an air tight container (or serve them at your next sundowner get together)