weather cravings

Its getting chilly, and its been raining all day. All I could think of was coming home and having some hearty flavourful SOUP. The only problem was that I didn't know what type of soup I wanted. I automatically cooked up some pearl barley because its a staple comfort food. (even great for breakfast, yum.) I could eat soup all year round, and I do, but usually I go crazy for soups in the fall and winter.

I decided to ransack the canned foods: chick peas, romano beans, crushed tomatos.

I don't have photos, this process happened faster than I expected.

SOOOOO I cooked the barley.
Then I strained the chick peas and added it to the olive oil on the bottom of the pan. I added a premixed tikka misala, cayenne pepper and black pepper. After letting the chick peas get hot and full of flavour. I added the rinsed romano beans, crushed tomatoes, a can of water, 2 cloves of garlic and let it cook. BLEND. Add previously cooked barley. EAT. remember to take a photo half way through the bowl. Eat more.



What food cravings do you get this time of the year?? Do your craving correspond with weather?

Creamy Potato, Broccoli and Green Onion soup

So, ever since I made the tomato soup on Wednesday, I had already decided I would try the potato leek soup recipe from the veganyumyum cook book. I slept thinking about it, talked about it all day on Thursday, so I wouldn't forget to pick up leeks at the market.

Well, they were out of leeks at the market. I had already left work a half hour after my shift, I wanted to get home and cook. I was already half way home, thanks to the wonderful new market on my way home. (Kin's farmer's market, its located in the dennigers & value village plaza on Queenston Rd in Stoney Creek. There is also one in the Burlington Mall. So affordable!! As in 4 bananas, bunch of broccoli and 7 green onion and my bill was $2.59.)

After wandering around the market looking for leeks, I realized I needed a back up plan for dinner. So I grabbed some green onions and a bunch of broccoli and I would improvise my soup recipe.

here is what it looked like when I was finished. It was so yummy, even my cats liked it.

So I do have to give a little credit to Lauren Ulm of VeganYumYum, because I wouldn't have been able to know what steps to follow in making a potato based soup. But here is the recipe as I've altered it from potato leek to Creamy Potato, Broccoli and Green Onion Soup. This make about 3 to 4 servings.

3 tbsps olive oil
3 cloves garlic, peeled and pressed
1 cup chopped green onion (about 6 or 7 onions)
1 - 2 cups of chopped broccoli (include some stock of the broccoli bunch as well)
1 pound potatoes, peeled and cubed
4 cups vegetable broth
1/2 tsp salt
1 bay leaf
1 - 2 cups of water (for blending)
2 tbsp nutritional yeast (optional, but will provide a boost of B12 and thiamine)
1 - 2 tsps of fresh black pepper

STEP 1: heat the oil in a soup pot and add the garlic. Saute for 1 minute and then add green onion. Stir well and cook for about 2 to 3 minutes.

STEP 2: Add the potatos, broccoli, broth along with the salt and the bay leaf. (make sure all the ingredients are covered in broth, if necessary add more water to cover). Boil, covered, until the potatoes are very tender and falling apart.

STEP 3: Blend the soup in a blender or food processor while it's still hot, in batches if necessary. Add nutritional yeast and extra water (if its too thick) and blend until its super smooth.

STEP 4: Season with the black pepper and garnish with some chopped green onion. Serve. Enjoy.:)

SOUP!!!

So a friend and client of mine let me borrow his cookbook "VeganYumYum" by Lauren Ulm. I saw a recipe for "Spicy tomato chickpea soup" and I knew I had to try it. I made this one Wednesday morning and it was sooooo simple. But most importantly, it is mighty tasty. I left out an ingredient that I didn't have, it didn't taste like it was missing anything. The recipe is available online at www.veganYumYum.com.
This was the oil, garlic, onion, cumin & tumeric...it would be where you added the mustard seeds that I left out.

This was how pretty it looks when I added the diced tomatoes and salt. Cook it for about 15 minutes..

Blendy & smooth...:)

Spinkle with black pepper to taste. yummy yummy taste...:) i suggest you try it for cheap & easy & healthy & tasty....

By the way, I'm writing this while making a new soup. Stay tuned. :)

I made cookies!!!

So ever since I bought a facemask from LUSH on Sunday (Oatifix: oats, banana, vanilla and essential oils, fantastic for hydration and calming sensitive skin), I have been craving oatmeal cookies and banana bread.

I decided since its my day off, and I had a few over ripe bananas, that I would make some type of baked good. I found a recipe online for sugar-free banana, peanut butter oatmeal cookies. I had all the ingredients. So I made them. And decided I would add a little sugar by making a chocolate topping for them. Here they are:

http://vegetarian.about.com/od/desertrecipes/r/pbbananacookies.htm

So i am pretty happy with the way these turned out. Next time I make them, I wouldn't use as many oats. So that they were gooier. The recipe called for 2.5 cups of oats, I would probably use just 2 cups next time. Or add another banana.

The recipe didn't call for the chocolate topping. But I had 90% cocoa, so I melted it in a glass dish in boiling water, with some vanilla almond milk and cinnamon and topped the cookies.

I usually don't bake because I have issues with following directions in the right order and you have to be precise while baking, and not while cooking, but this was easy enough.

I now have a lot of cookies...and my apartment smells yummy.