gluten free

Oh the Weather Outside is Frightful

December 12, 2012 by Holly Yzquierdo Leave a Comment

Ok, it isn’t exactly frightful here in Arizona but I am cold. Give me 100° F and I am alright, 60° F and we might have a problem. Truthfully, I am thankful to live in such a warm climate; since I am acclimated I spend the “winter” bundled up in sweatshirts (I don’t have a warm coat, it’s Arizona after all).

Chances are you live somewhere much colder; this week’s high is 72° F and the low is 36° F. So if you really need to warm up may I offer you a few suggestions?

This Very Vegan Chili is Texas style and very satisfying. I eat it plain or as a Baked Potato topping.

Make a double batch of this Taco Soup because you will not be able to stop eating it. It’s easily customizable and perfect to serve guests. If the Taco Soup had a cousin it would be this Enchilada Soup.

If you are craving a bowl full of veggie goodness then look no further. This Minestrone Soup is truly amazing. You will love it and love me. 🙂 It is easily made gluten-free by using rice pasta.

If you’d like to pull out a slow cooker and let dinner make itself you must try this Potato Soup. Feel free to add other veggies as well.

Do you have a favorite soup to keep you warm in the winter? If not try any one of these easy, frugal, gluten-free soups. They are all full of fiber that will keep you full and fueled. You wont be sorry. If you decided to name you next child after me I’ll understand. 🙂

Meal Plan Monday: Eating Well When Short on Time

December 4, 2012 by Holly Yzquierdo Leave a Comment

Yesterday was such a busy day I didn’t get to post my meal plan. I attended a Christmas Party with my husband at a nice Italian restaurant. They brought special food for my husband and I so we were able to enjoy salad, dinner and dessert without animal products. 🙂

We have been so busy lately that I don’t have a lot of time to cook. Honestly, I do have time (usually). I just prioritize poorly. I know you know what I’m talking about because YOU do the same thing. Go ahead and admit it.

This week I’m going to (attempt) to pay closer attention to how long it actually takes to prepare meals. I’ll report back on My Plant-Based Family’s Facebook page. A little note, if you already like my page but don’t see regular posts you may need to add it to your interest list. 🙂

Meal Plan

Breakfast is always easy; oatmeal, granola, cereal, toast with nut butter (or seed butter), and fruit. My husband usually eats fruit but he eat several pieces, he loves smoothies too. Oatmeal is my favorite right now, packed with flax and chia seeds, dried fruit and cinnamon.

Lunch is often leftovers that can be quickly assembled. This Mexican Rice and Bean Casserole is great reheated. Veggie Stuffed Pita with hummus is my favorite lunch. Sometimes my boys get a parfait for lunch. I start with 3/4 cup of non-dairy yogurt, about 1 Tbsp of chia seeds, 2ish Tbsp ground flax seeds, 1/4 cup walnuts, some granola if we have it and dried or diced fruit. Almond butter sandwiches on gluten-free bread make a regular appearance too.

Snacks are often fruit sometimes with almond butter, smoothies, or veggies with hummus. Sometimes something like chips and salsa (and guacamole) are just what I need.

Dinner Time! We eat dinner together as a family, have I mentioned that before? It’s important to us to have that time together. It doesn’t always work but it is the norm. Last night we had salad and pasta at a Christmas party. Later in the week I’ll be making dinner for another family so I plan to make the Mexican Rice and Bean Casserole and take some tortillas and guacamole. Today or tomorrow I plan to make BBQ Chickpea Salad and Three Bean Chili. We still have some cooked black-eyed peas and quinoa that are ready to eat.

To save time I plan to use my slow cooker some this week and eat more big salads; also cooking double batches of things like rice and beans to save time on other days. I’ll also use my microwave to quickly steam veggies and “bake” potatoes. I try to keep cooked beans frozen in 2 cup portions for easy meals.

What are your tips to save time in the kitchen?

Easy Mexican Rice and Bean Casserole

November 30, 2012 by Holly Yzquierdo 57 Comments

This casserole is gluten-free, family friendly and made with pantry staples. It takes no time at all to toss together and you can let it cook mostly unattended. I only use one pan for easy cleanup.

The first time I made it in a large casserole dish, the second time I just cooked it on the stove and served it on a bed of greens with some homemade pico de gallo. The oven version is the easier of the two because you just put it in the oven and leave it until the timer goes off. Both ways are incredibly easy, someone just learning to cook can make these and impress everyone at their table.

I love eating this with chips or in tortillas. Add a little avocado or your favorite salsa to spice it up.

Mexican Casserole

Ingredients

1 cup uncooked brown rice
2 1/2 cups water (3 cups for casserole version)
1 8 oz can of tomato sauce
1 tsp salt
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp cumin
2 cups cooked beans (or 1 can drained beans) I’ve used pinto and black beans.
1 cup corn (optional)

For Casserole Version

Preheat oven to 350°
Add all ingredients to a 9×15 casserole dish and stir gently.
Bake for 1 to 1 1/2 hours until rice is tender.

For Stove Top Version

Add all ingredients except beans to a pan (I use a skillet) and cover cooking over medium heat.
Stir occasionally, add more water if necessary.
Rice should be nice and soft after 45 minutes, add the beans and corn if using then stir to mix.
Heat until everything is warm.

Serve

This is an easy potluck meal. You could easily double the beans too. We loved it on a bed of greens with a bit of guacamole and homemade pico or salsa. If you’re on the go throw it in a tortilla. I’ll be having leftovers wrapped up in romaine leaves.

I love how versatile (and delicious) this is; it can easily be made with pantry staples when you have no fresh ingredients in the house.

UPDATE: I now have a Crock-Pot version that is even tastier! Check it out HERE if you love good food! Or if you have an Instant Pot try this version!

Check out my Pico de Gallo for a easy and delicious topping!

November Healthy Cravings Recap: A Thanksgiving Feast

November 14, 2012 by Holly Yzquierdo Leave a Comment

Last week I had a great time with the group of ladies who come to my home for Healthy Cravings. If you’re new here and not sure what I’m talking about Healthy Cravings is a monthly meeting I host to help ladies learn and hopefully transition to a plant-based diet.

My sweet friend Rene came to share her story. She has been eating a plant-based diet for about 4 months and loves it. She told the group that she had always been a dieter but the other diets weren’t sustainable. Eating a plant-based diet is a life-style change for Rene and her husband. After sharing her story she was gracious enough to answer questions for the group. Thank you Rene!

This month’s theme was Thanksgiving foods. I’d been looking for ideas for quite a while and organizing them on Pinterest. Every dish was vegan and gluten-free. unfortunately I didn’t get great pictures since it was already dark but I’ll be remaking many of these dishes over the next two weeks.

These Mashed Potatoes were the most popular dish of the evening. Everyone loved them. They need no accompaniment but I made the Happy Herbivore’s Thanksgiving Gravy that you can find by clicking here along with all of Linsday’s favorite Thanksgiving recipes.

I also made the Sweet Potato Casserole that I shared yesterday. Everyone loved it too and several of the ladies have been patiently awaiting this recipe.

My favorite part of Thanksgiving Dinner has always been the Corn Bread Dressing. I created my own vegan and gluten-free recipe based on my Memaw’s recipe (that is full of eggs and butter). It tasted great when I made it in the morning, unfortunately it dried out through the re-heating process. I’ll continue to tweak this and share the recipe soon.

I made two recipes from Susan at Fat-Free Vegan. First was her Impossible Vegan Pumpkin Pie. It is really easy to make but came out more like a pumpkin mousse that a pie, I even made it the day before like she recommends. Next time I’ll likely cut back on some of the spices because it was a little too “spicy” for us.

Second was The Best Vegan Green Bean Casserole. I made this last year also and it is really good. So much better and better for you that my old recipe that used canned green beans, cans of cream of mushroom soup and french fried onions. I’ll admit I love those french fried onions but they contain wheat so I made my own gluten-free topping featuring GF bread crumbs, onions, and broth made from my broth mix.

Lastly I made Good Clean Food’s Cranberry Maple Compote. Forget your old, canned cranberry sauce this Cranberry Maple Compote is amazing. I have never liked cranberry sauce until now. I soooo wanted to pour this in a flaky crust and scoop some almond milk ice cream on top. I’m getting excited just thinking about it.

Our next Healthy Cravings group isn’t meeting until January but the food will focus on plant-based party and Super Bowl food. Oh yeah, come hungry.

Thanksgiving is just over a week away here in the U.S. so I’ll be enjoying these delicious foods at least once more this year. We are getting together with two other families who have really become family to us. I’m so thankful for them and I’m looking forward to sharing this special meal with them.

Sweet Potato Casserole

November 13, 2012 by Holly Yzquierdo 17 Comments

In previous Thanksgiving’s I would make a Sweet Potato Casserole, packed with butter, brown sugar, and topped with lots of marshmallow’s. This year I wanted to make my traditional, Southern Sweet Potato Casserole plant-strong and relatively guilt-free.

I hear there are vegan marshmallow’s somewhere out there but I decided to make a pecan glaze instead. I was inspired by Fat-Free Vegan’s Susan Voisin and her Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Topping. Her recipe looks beautiful but I didn’t want to add the sugar and margarine so my recipe differs dramatically. I prefer the Sweet Potatoes without the glaze myself but everyone seemed to like it when I served this to a dozen guest last week.

Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Glaze

Ingredients for Casserole

Sweet Potatoes (I used two huge potatoes but 4-6 regular sized would probably work)
1/2 cup rice milk, more if needed
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Ingredients for Glaze

1 cup pecans
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup brown rice flour
2 Tbsp sugar

Bake sweet potatoes, allow to cool slightly until they can be peeled.
If using a potato masher mash peeled potatoes in a large bowl, adding milk a little at a time as needed.
Add maple syrup and cinnamon.
Pour into a casserole dish. I used a 9×9 dish and bake at 350° for 20 minutes.
While casserole is baking mix up the glaze by adding all ingredients to a bowl and stirring well.
Taste glaze, add anything that appears lacking.
Pour onto sweet potatoes and allow to cook for 15 to 20 more minutes.

Serve

This casserole is perfect for Thanksgiving Dinner but is also delicious any other time of the year. It is really easy, can be made ahead of time and re-heats extremely well. Whether you make the glaze or not I think your guest will be impressed. My 1 and 3 year old’s took care of the leftovers in no time at all.

Veggie Broth Mix

November 11, 2012 by Holly Yzquierdo 147 Comments

Do you buy Veggie Broth? I used to but no longer. Introducing my Veggie Broth Mix. This stuff has made cooking soooo much easier for me.

This page contains affiliate links.

One year ago when we first went plant-based I hated giving up the rich flavor I got from my chicken bullion. I switched to the veggie version and was quite happy with that until I learned it contained MSG. Bleck!

Then I switched to a veggie bullion I found at my local Sprout’s but it didn’t provide the same rich flavor I had grown to love. When making soups I’d add plenty of veggie’s but it wasn’t the same, adding nutritional yeast definitely helped the flavor but sometimes I want broth without making a whole pot of soup. My freezer does not have enough space for broth storage.

This veggie broth doesn’t have a lot of veggies but it does have a rich flavor that would be a great addition to sauces, soups, or anywhere you would normally use broth.

UPDATE: I’ve been making this Veggie Broth Mix for over 5 years! We still love it! There are a couple of ways to make it that will have an impact on measurements.

Shake, Stir or Food Processor

If you make this by shaking it in a jar, stirring it together or running it through a food processor you will need to use 1 Tablespoon of the mix for EACH cup of water. So if I recipe calls for 6 cups of water, you will use 6 Tablespoons of dry broth mix.

High Powered Blender or Spice Grinder

Some people prefer to make this in their Vitamix, Blendtec or spice grinder. It works really well but the contents get pulverized. Since it is broken down even more you’ll want to use 1 teaspoon of the veggie broth mix for each cup of water. You can always add a little more if needed. It’s hard to say exactly how much you’ll need because each appliance will create a different product.

This Veggie Broth Mix doesn’t have enough salt for me so I usually add more to the finished recipe. I try to keep my recipes low sodium for my readers on a low salt diet.

Veggie Broth Mix

Try this Veggie Broth Mix once and you will be hooked! Keep it on hand and you’ll have the makings of a delicious meal anytime.

Veggie Broth Mix

Prep Time 5 minutes

Total Time 5 minutes

Ingredients

3 Tablespoons onion powder
1 Tablespoons garlic powder
1 Tablespoons sea salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon tumeric
1/2 teaspoon parsley flakes
1 cup nutritional yeast

Instructions

Mix all ingredients together, adjusting for your taste preferences. (If you hate one of these spices simply omit it.)
Store in an air tight container.

Notes

Use this broth mix by adding 1 Tablespoon of the Veggie Broth Mix for each cup of hot water. For example if you are cooking with 4 cups of water, you would use 4 Tablespoons of Veggie Broth Mix.

Use this broth mix by adding 1 Tbsp for each cup of hot water. I like to add extra salt to the finished product. This recipe makes about 1 1/2 cups of dry veggie broth mix when using the food processor or string it together. That’s 24 cups of broth. I haven’t added up the cost but I think it is a much better value that all of the veggie broth I’d been buying.

Use this veggie broth in any recipe. Some of my favorites include Chickpea Noodle Soup, Minestrone Soup, Potato and Kale Soup but it is also incredible mixed in warm noodles, rice or watch it take your favorite casseroles to the next level. For more ideas check out my Recipe Page!

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Oh the Weather Outside is Frightful