gluten free

Healthy Cravings February Recap: A 5 Course Italian Meal

March 1, 2013 by Holly Yzquierdo Leave a Comment

I almost forgot to share all of the deliciousness that happened at the last Healthy Cravings.

I admit that I was a little nervous, I didn’t know if everyone would like their favorite Italian comfort foods adapted into healthy plant-based versions. I didn’t want to create recipes that were merely “less toxic” than the originals, I wanted them to be truly nourishing. I’ve shared most of the recipes previously and I have a few more I’ll share in the coming weeks.

I want to mention that almost everything was gluten-free. I have several gluten-free ladies who typically attend but if gluten isn’t an issue for you whole grain noodles could easily be substituted. Also I forgot to take pictures of everything before we ate but I got a few leftover shots.

We started the evening with Bruschetta. Half was served on toasted French Baguette and the other half on gluten-free crackers.

Next was soup and salad. This is my new favorite salad by the way! I used a variety of lettuces and greens, pepperoncini’s , olives, artichoke hearts, tomatoes, and red onion. I don’t even need a dressing with this, but I served a homemade oil-free dressing that everyone loved. Can you believe I can’t find the recipe? It’s true, I remember what’s in it but not the amounts so I’ll make it again today and post it soon.

I served Minestrone Soup that was glorious, it may have been the favorite of the evening. I’ve always gotten good reviews from it. I bought new Italian seasoning and I have to say it has a bit more “kick” than my previous seasoning. I may have used less had I known it’s potency.

Before

After

Everyone LOVED the Lasagna! One friend wasn’t able to attend that night but has since made it for her family and they really enjoyed it. Initially she was skeptical and is a self-proclaimed snob when it comes to Italian food but she was pleasantly surprised and plans to add it to her meal rotation.

This isn’t your typical Mac & Faux Cheese. Yes it is still carbalicious but I’m not afraid of carbs. It has potatoes and cauliflower that add veggies and creaminess without the dairy or oil you would typically get in Mac & Cheese. I added a little too much potato the night of Healthy Cravings and it really muted the cheesiness of the nutritional yeast, I should have added more but I didn’t. The reviewers didn’t love this dish as much as the lasagna. My 2 year old couldn’t get enough. Most of the attenders are still eating dairy and haven’t completely transitioned to a plant-based diet. As I warn in the recipe this is better for dairy-free people. If you are used to eating dairy or boxed Mac & Cheese this will not tantalize your taste buds the same way. If you are plant-based I think you will like it, feel free to dress it up or add other vegetables.

I didn’t serve this with peas or mushrooms at Healthy Cravings but you get the idea.

We also had Happy Herbivore’s Fettuccine Alfredo. I have made this numerous times and it has always been fantastic. Until the night of Healthy Cravings. I couldn’t find the kind of tofu I normally use so I tried a different brand and it was a bust. I’m sure it scared everyone away from vegan alfredo. We don’t normally use tofu or soy, maybe a few times a year but this alfredo is (usually) worth it. Maybe that is a good lesson, you can’t let one bad experience scare you away from something.

We finished off the evening by enjoying coffee and dessert. I have to thank my Dad for giving me a Keurig for Christmas, everyone loved the coffee, especially trying the So Delicious Coconut Milk Creamer in original and French Vanilla. They also loved the gluten-free Biscotti I made. It wasn’t as crisp as traditional biscotti but the flavor was great. I plan to give it another go and share the recipe soon.

Now you can imagine you were here with us! Next months food theme is Breakfast! I’ll also pay a little more attention to breakfast on the blog for the month of March.

Chocolate Cake:Gluten-Free and Vegan

February 26, 2013 by Holly Yzquierdo 17 Comments

If you have to avoid wheat/gluten then this is the cake for you. I developed a fascination for GF baking several years ago because I had two friends who couldn’t eat gluten and never got the good stuff at potlucks. I would try to always make something they could eat. They were always so appreciative even though I never loved my creations, they were happy to have whatever I brought.

Fast forward to spring/summer 2012 and I finally discover my son’s eczema is the result of gluten/wheat. He was just under 1 1/2 years old so he wasn’t eating a lot of cakes or cookies but he loved pancakes, banana bread, etc. I was determined that he wouldn’t have to do without “normal” food.

I have a list of favorites I intend to adapt so that they are gluten-free, dairy-free, and peanut-free. I want my little guy to experience donuts, birthday cake, and banana pudding without pain or illness.

I’ve been working on this cake for a while. I wanted to make it as allergy friendly as possible. I have a friend who can’t have apples or bananas so I had been making it without them but I couldn’t get the taste or texture right. I decided to abandon that idea (temporarily, I’ve got some ideas) because I needed to make a birthday cake for my 4 year old.

If you follow My Plant-Based Family on Facebook then you know that I shared this recipe with several people. I got great feedback from everyone who made it. Some people couldn’t make it because they couldn’t find all of the ingredients. I buy some of them from Amazon because I can’t always find them locally. You could probably substitute a store bought GF baking mix with good results.

Gluten-Free, Vegan Chocolate Cake

Ingredients

1 c brown rice flour
1 c sorghum flour
1/2 c tapioca flour
3/4 c cocoa powder
1 tsp xanthum gum OR guar gum
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 c warm water*
3 tsp EnerG Egg Replacer*
1 c turbinado sugar (I’ve also used agave nectar with good results)
1 c unsweetened applesauce
1-2 mashed bananas
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 c rice milk (reduce to 1 cup if you use agave nectar)
1 cup vegan chocolate chips (optional but oh so good)

Preheat oven to 350° and spray two 8 or 9 inch pans with cooking spray. I’ve also made this in a bundt pan with good results (but longer baking time).
In a mixing bowl add dry ingredients, brown rice flour through sea salt.
In a small bowl or measuring cup mix warm water and egg replacer and set aside.
In a medium bowl mix sugar through milk. Add “egg” and mix well.
Stir wet mixture into dry ingredients until well incorporated.
Add chocolate chips and stir until just mixed.
Pour batter, dividing into two pans.
Bake for 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Serve

This cake can be frosted once cooled or enjoyed as is. It is birthday cake worth. I’ve also layered fresh strawberries between the layers and used both Avocado Mousse and Coconut Cream Frosting. My 2 year old got Cococonut Cream Frosted Mini Cupcakes for his birthday and my 4 year old got store bought frosting on his birthday cake; it should be noted that neither kid liked the store bought frosting. Lesson learned: Plant-based kids don’t need over processed, store bought junk food. 🙂

Meal Plan Monday: Soup Week

February 25, 2013 by Holly Yzquierdo Leave a Comment

I don’t know about you but there is something about eating soup that really helps me feel nourished. I think it is because I eat a much better variety of veggies in soup that I wouldn’t eat if they were all cooked separately.

In January of 2012 I proclaimed a Soup Week. I’m really looking forward to this one because I have a few more recipes in my tool belt. I plan to make large pots of soup each night so I can have a nice selection in my freezer.

I won’t post a whole meal plan but you can get Breakfast Ideas here. You can also click on the Meal Plan Monday in the Categories section on the right. It will bring up past meal plans you can browse.

I know I always brag about living in Arizona where the weather is wonderful and it is; however lately I’ve been cold. Not the same kind of cold everyone else is experiencing but I’m a little spoiled so I’m having a hard time handling it. My answer: sweaters, coffee, and soup.

If you use canned broth or bullion these soups will be more expensive for you and possibly less healthy. I’d like to encourage you to give the Dry Broth Mix a try. It is so good and inexpensive. It takes minutes to mix up a batch in your food processor and it lasts for a long time.

Minestrone Soup! I made this last week for Healthy Cravings and we enjoyed the leftovers all weekend. We had a tense moment yesterday when we realized it was almost gone. We shared the last few cups of it then I made the next soup.

Green Chili Cilantro & Lime Soup! This soup is amazing! Truly. I’ll be sharing the recipe this week. I made a large pot last night. My boys didn’t love it but my husband and I did. We both had two large bowls and he took it to work for lunch. I also put some in the freezer. I have yet to get a good picture but I don’t want to wait to share this recipe.

Slow Cooker Potato Soup! This is one of the easiest recipe ever! I may switch it to a busier day but I’ve really been craving potato soup. I’ll be adding more veggies to it though and perhaps more nutritional yeast. I get a look of feedback about this soup everyone seems to love it although you may want to add more seasonings especially if you attempt to make this without nutritional yeast. An immersion blender would make it smooth and creamy.

Taco Soup! Very similar to the Enchilada Soup so you could take your pick. This soup is my favorite, I love it. If someone made this for me I’d become their best friend. It is also full of veggies and beans so you feel immensely satisfied.

Chickpea Noodle Soup! This is a new favorite in our house. I’ll be adding extra veggies this time depending on what is leftover. I use gluten-free noodles, I like these little shells or macaroni instead of long noodles because my boys can handle these easier but you can use any noodles you like.

Do you have a favorite soup? I love using fresh ingredients in my soup but some days I’m happy when I can throw a bunch of canned or frozen goods together and create a warm, delicious, and filling soup. Share your favorite soup in the comments!

Plant-Based Lasagna (Gluten-Free)

February 23, 2013 by Holly Yzquierdo 24 Comments

If you’ve recently switched to a plant-based diet you may be under the impression that there are some foods you’ll never be able to eat again. I’m going to let you off the hook, you can enjoy many of the comfort foods you have always loved with a few modifications.

This recipe does take some work, like any lasagna recipe there are many steps involved, most of the work is done by a food processor. The good news is many can be prepared ahead of time. I even build the lasagna a few hours before company arrives then put it in the oven 30 minutes before dinner time.

Lasagna (Vegan and Gluten-Free)

Ingredients (by step)

Step 1

2 cans white beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 c lemon juice (1 lemon)
1/4 c nutritional yeast
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
1/4 tsp Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp garlic powder

Step 2

4 c tightly packed spinach or other greens
1/2 large onion
1 tsp dried Italian seasoning
1 c or handful of mushrooms

Remaining Ingredients

Large jar pasta sauce
1 package gluten-free no-boil lasagna noodles
eggplant, peeled and diced (optional, I used 1/2 an eggplant)
mushrooms, diced (optional)

Add all the ingredients for step one to a food processor, puree then set aside until ready to build lasagna.
Add all the ingredients for step two to a food processor, puree, then set aside until ready to build lasagna.
Building the Lasagna. Layer ingredients in a large casserole dish, I used a 9×15 dish. I used the following order:1 1/2 cup red sauce, noodles, white sauce, greens, mushrooms, eggplant then finish with red sauce. Repeat layers until you run out of ingredients. Mine had 2 layers of white sauce and 2 layers of greens with 1 layer of veggies (mushrooms and eggplant). I had three layers of red sauce.
Bake in preheated oven at 350° for 20-30 minutes.

Serve

This lasagna is company worthy. I’ve served it to large groups on two occasions and everyone seemed to like it. I don’t think you miss the meat or cheese from traditional lasagna. It also reheats well and keeps for several days in the fridge. It’s easily customizable. It pairs well with a large Italian salad, my salad included olives, artichoke hearts, peppers, red onions, and greens.

For a faux parmesan try whizzing 1 cup of cashews and 1/2 cup nutritional yeast in a high-powered blender and sprinkling it on top of the lasagna.

Do you miss Lasagna since going plant-based? Give this recipe a try, I think you will be pleasantly surprised. What comfort food do you miss the most?

The Birthday Weekend

February 20, 2013 by Holly Yzquierdo Leave a Comment

This last weekend one of my son’s turned 4 years old. There have been a lot of birthday’s lately. We have celebrated all 4 of us in the last two months. Additionally, one of our sons that lives in Michigan with his mom just had a birthday and turned 14.

For the actual celebration we went out for pizza then came home for birthday cake. We have a local pizza place that makes gluten-free pizza so even my 2 year old can have pizza too. My 4 year old ate 3 big pieces of pizza and wanted more but we told him to save it for the next day.

With Store Bought FrostingIt was a Birthday afterall — With Store Bought Frosting
It was a Birthday after all

There was a lot of discussion on Facebook about the Gluten-Free and Vegan Chocolate Cake. I’ll be sharing the recipe next week. I think it is a keeper. I sent the recipe out to several testers but I’m still waiting for their feedback.

My son got to pick out his present from us but was very happy to open a present from his Grandpa. My son LOVES his presents!

We had a lot of fun on Saturday too. We went out to the river, the weather was warm, and we all had a great time. My husband regularly takes the boys out there for a picnic but this was the first time they brought me.

At one point we heard a thundering noise, I noticed the other families were looking behind us. All of the sudden two horses came running down the embankment and crossed the river. The horses were very close, I ran over the boys but they weren’t fazed, apparently wild horses showing up isn’t a big deal to them.

The boys went back out to the river on Sunday too. It is their new favorite place. Pretty soon the crowds will take over so I’m glad they have been able to enjoy it.

Mac & Cheese, Gluten-Free and Vegan

February 13, 2013 by Holly Yzquierdo Leave a Comment

I’ve been wanting to make a gluten-free, dairy-free Mac & Cheese that is actually healthy. Now that I have I’m already thinking of other ideas to spice it up. I plan to serve this at my next Healthy Craving group. If you aren’t concerned with gluten you can use regular whole wheat pasta.

Mac & Cheese (Gluten-free and Vegan)

Ingredients

2 cups gluten-free noodles (uncooked)
2 cups raw cauliflower (diced into small pieces)
1 recipe Faux Cheese Sauce
Cooked potatoes, peeled (I used two small red potatoes peeled) plus water

Preheat the oven to 350°
Cook noodles according to package directions. Cauliflower can be steamed separately or cooked with the noodles.
Prepare Faux Cheese Sauce
Mash potatoes, adding water until a smooth texture is reached.
Pour noodles and cauliflower into an 8×8 casserole dish.
Add potatoes to the prepared cheese sauce and whisk well.
Pour cheese sauce into noodles and gently stir until noodles are well coated.
Bake for 20 minutes.

Serve

This looks like very involved dish but it really isn’t that hard. The most difficult part for me is paying attention to the cheese sauce that needs to be whisked continuously. I served this alone but it could easily be a side dish.

While we enjoyed this if you are still hooked on regular ol’ dairy filled mac and cheese you may not be ready for this. It definitely tastes like nutritional yeast. My two-year old loved it. He had 3 servings! I’ve never been a big mac and cheese fan but I liked it too. I wouldn’t try to pull a switcheroo on my teenagers but if you are raising plant-based kids give this a try, they may just find a new favorite.

And now for a few pictures…

This kid was really trying to take over my photo shoot. He is pretty hard to resist!

Do you miss Mac & Cheese or have you found an acceptable version since changing your diet?

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Healthy Cravings February Recap: A 5 Course Italian Meal