Trek Bars

Great Harvest brings their goods to the farmer's market and I had the pleasure of trying. It was good. So-So actually. And for $2.50 a square they really weren't worth it.

But I'm a clever girl. Where there is a will, there is a way.  I found this recipe on another blog and tried it.
It has a peanut butter taste to it, but its really not too bad. I havne't tried it with other nut butters, but I don't see why you could use almond butter or anything else.

They seem like a good snack that could hold you over for a while.

Butternut Squash Pizza

I cheated a little on this one. I used parmesan cheese instead of a nondairy subsitute like Daiya. I couldn't find it in the local stores and am far too busy to make a special to Whole Foods. But I actually think this pizza would be great wtihout cheese altogether.

Its another one from this months issue of Vegetarian Times. See all the recipes I'm posting here..

Butternut Squash Pizza
Candice Garrett
Monterey, Calif

Serves 6
1 small butternut squash, peeled, halved, and sliced 1/8-inch thick
1 medium onion, halved and thinly sliced (1 1/2 cups)
2 Tbs. Eden Selected Spanish extra virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
1 Tbs. finely chopped fresh rosemary
1 16-oz. pkg. refrigerated pizza dough
1/2 cup fresh spinach leaves
1/4 cup shaved Parmesan cheese

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.

2. Toss together squash, onion, oil, and rosemary in bowl. Spread in large baking dish, and roast 30 minutes, or until  tender.

3. Increase oven temperature to 450°F. Divide pizza dough into 2 pieces, and shape each piece into 8-inch round. Place dough rounds on baking sheet, and top with squash mixture. Bake 13 to 17 minutes, or until crust is crisp. Drizzle pizzas with oil, scatter 1/4 cup spinach over each, and garnish each with 2 Tbs. shaved Parmesan.


Per 1/3 pizza (2 SLICES) 295 cal; 9 g prot; 8 g total fat (2 g sat fat); 47 g carb; 2 mg chol; 448 mg sod; 3 g fiber; 5 g sugars

Sweet Potatoes!

I'm back to a recipe I found in my VT magazine this month. Evidently the mag had a contest - create a recipe with 7 ingredients or less.  I love this contest - so far I'm 2 for 2 in what I've tried from this contest. The biggest plus is that the recipes are simple and I've had most of the ingredients already.  I thought this was really good - although was skeptical at first - cumin can be so over powering. But in my opinion the flavors are really well balanced. I prepped the whole thing in the morning and kept  it in the fridge until it was time to pop it in the oven. Viola- Dinner!

Here's a new one by Jennifer Plantenberg of San Mateo CA.

Cumin & Lime Roasted Sweet Potatoes

1 large sweet potato peeled amd cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 large yellow onion, coarsely chopped
1 t safflower oil (I just used canola oil)
1 t ground cumin
1 t paprika
1 lime, halved.
1/2 C chopped cilantro

preheat oven to 425. Line baking sheet with parchment paper or cooking spray (I used an 8x8 pan). Toss potato and onion with oil on prepared baking sheet. SPrinkle with cumin and paprika and season with salt if desired. Squeeze juice of 1/2 lime over the top and roast for 45-60 minutes. Toss half way through cooking time.

Remove veggies from oven squeeze juice of remaining 1/2 lime over top and sprinkle with cilantro.

Fruit Calzones - Pink-a-yummy!

I subscribe to Vegetarian Times magazine (Thanks Shannon for introducing me to VT!).  They have many new recipes and many of them are vegan. So when I saw this recipe in this month's issue I thought "how perfect! easy and my kids will love it!".

Well, my daughter nibbled on hers, surprisingly.  My son however devoured it. At least one of them liked it!

My husband liked them. Too easy to put together and quite yummy.
I had to reproduce the recipe - the magazine doesn't publish their recipes while the current issue it out.

Here it goes

1 pkg refrigerated pizza dough
8 t all-fruit spread
1 apple, grated
1/2 C berries of your choice, sliced if they are large
1/4 C sugar (opt)

1) Preheat oven to 500. coat baking sheet with cooking spray
2) Divide dough into 8 balls. roll out to 4x6 oval.
place 1 t fruit spread on inside and top with 1 t apple and 1 T berries.
3) Wet the edges of the dough with a little water and fold over the top half and seal. Crimp the edges with a fork.
4) Brush the calzones with water and sprinkle sugar on top.

5) Bake 8-10 minutes or until golden. Let stand 10 mins before serving. (mine got a little too done - still getting used to a new oven, I guess!)

Magic Kale Salad

I'm trying to eat more kale. I hear its supposed to be good for you - like spinach only better. I tried it once last summer - it wasn't the greatest. I used a recipe from my favorite vegan chef Moskowitz (some enchilada recipe out of Veganomicon). It was okay. I had an issue with the texture - very tough. And the curly bits on the ends got stuck in my craw. But I'm going to give it the old college try and really get into it this time.

Now, I'm not as big of a fan of Momma Pea as Kerri is.  I think her recipes are hit or miss. But she's a great writer and fun to read so I keep up with her as my schedule allows.  Lately I haven't been doing much cooking at all. Moving half way across the country takes its toll. I gave Shannon most of the ingredients out of my pantry and fridge before we left (can't take it with you on the truck), and restocking has been painfully slow. It would be one thing if I didn't care what I put in my fridge, but I really try to buy organic, wholesome foods and that is expensive. Additionally my children seem to have hollow legs - my 3 and 4 year olds are eating me out of house and home. I'm having to go restock basic fruits and veggies every 2 days. Plus, with unpacking and organizing the house, trying to get to know a new community blah, blah, blah . . . .  you know how slow things can go.

But I digress. I've been hanging onto this one for a while now.  My mom grew some kale in her garden and brought me some. This recipe was super simple and a very good basic salad. I wouldn't give it 5 stars, but I would make it again if I had to throw something together in a pinch. I used walnuts instead of pistachios because thats what I had. It was fine.

http://peasandthankyou.com/2012/02/23/magic-kale-salad-with-pistachios-and-apples/

Spiced Chickpea and Tomato Soup

So I don't have a picture. Tomato soup looks the same no matter how you photograph it - unless you are food photographer and stylist, then you have all the right lighting and know-how.

As you know we are moving in a couple of weeks and I'm trying to use up everything I have in my pantry and fridge so nothing goes to waste. I can bring some pantry good with me, but not everything.

So I had everything already to make this soup. It was good. I didn't love it, but my husband did. Not your traditional tomato soup. It is kinda cool though that a tomato soup can be nontraditional (as in no cream or basil). That Martha sure can shake things up.

I used fresh tomatoes that I had frozen from last summer (wanted to use them up), instead of the canned. And used vegetable stock instead of the chicken stock it calls for in the recipe. Voila - vegan.

http://www.marthastewart.com/353560/spiced-chickpea-and-tomato-soup

Sweet Potato Black Bean Burritos

I'm not trying to steal Shannon's thunder here - really I'm not. But she made these for me just after I had my baby and I LOVED them. Now I make them quite frequently. They freeze really well and heat up easily for a low-effort dinner. The filling is not exactly a cinch to make, but this recipe makes a ton, and its nice to have all those extras to freeze for later. They are from the Moosewood Restaurant Low-Fat Favorites Cookbook.

Try them here.