Multi- bean salad

We're getting ready for Hawaii and I'm determined to not buy any groceries until we leave and try to eat what is already at home in order to empty the fridge and freezer. It's not that easy but preparing the weeks menu in advanced helped but sometimes you will still have to make changes and today was one of those days. I have a lot different kind beans left so I decided to make a multi-bean salad and ate that with home baked bread, spinach, sprouts, carrots and tomatoes. Phew!!! Do I have to say it was very colorful, a perfect fall meal. Unfortunately my camera is broken so no picture today. The good news is my new camera is arriving today.

Warm multi-bean salad

1/2 cup Purple beans, steamed

1/2 cup Garbanzo beans, cooked or canned

1/2 cup Green beans steamed

1 Tbs Honey

1 Tbs tsp Earth's Balance margarine

1 Tbs Parsley, chopped very fine

Salt and pepper to taste

Melt the margarine in a frying pan on medium heat. Fry the beans for a few minutes. Make sure they don't get brown. Add the honey, salt and pepper and blend well. Sprinkle the parsley over the beans and serve right away.

This weeks menu

I love it when I'm already with the menu on early Sunday. However this week will be short since we're flying to Hawaii on early Thursday morning. We'll be gone for a week but I will try to blog from the island about cooking and eating hawaiian food. Yummy!!!!! For kicks I added what we ate on Sunday too. I wish you all a great and healthy week!!!!

Sunday:

Lunch--Quorn turkey burgers, avocado, salad made with arugula, carrots, beets and sprouts

Dinner--Bean and tomato soup served with avocado sandwiches

Monday:

Lunch --Quinoa salad with vinagrett dressing, avocado, tomatoes, arugula and grape fruit

Dinner--Indian Lentil stew, served with sprouted brown rice and chapati

Tuesday:

Lunch--Fava bean hummus sandwich served with spinach salad, tomatoes and carrots

Dinner--Quinoa pasta with chanterelle sauce

Wednesday:

Lunch--Barley and mushroom soup

Dinner--tortilla wraps with beans salad, rice and vegetables

James's ginger lemonade

We had family from the east coast come and visit us so James made up some refreshing lemonade to treat them since it was a nice and warm day here in San Diego.

Ginger lemonade

4 cups water

3/4 cup maple syrup

1 1/2 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice.

1 tsp ginger powder

In a large pitcher, blend water, ginger powder and maple syrup and stir until syrup and ginger has completely dissolved. Add lemon juice and stir again. Place in fridge for an hour before serving. If you feel it's too tart then just add more sweetener.

Lunch for mommy & toddler day

Daycare is closed today for Veteran's day and me and Bella celebrating all the brave men and women by eating a nice savory broccoli and bean pie. It's vegan, healthy and yummy. I made the pie shell with spelt flour to make it more hearty as well as more nutritional. Spelt contains more protein than wheat but is easier to digest than wheat. It contains large amounts of vitamin B-complex. I now use for everything I cook or bake.

Broccoli and black bean pie

Pie crust:

100g Earth balance margarine, room temperature

1 1/4 cup white spelt flour

3 Tbs ice cold water

Preheat oven to 400F

Place flour in a food processor or kitchen aid and add margarine in pieces and then water and blend well until it's a crumbly dough. Press the dough evenly into a pie mold. Poke the pie crust with a fork a couple of time all over. Place in middle of oven for 20 minutes. Remove from oven.

Filling:

1 Tbs olive oil

1/2 yellow onion, chopped fine

1 garlic clove

1 cup black beans

1 tsp chili pepper

1 tsp smoked paprika

salt to taste

3 Tbs white spelt flour

1 cup almond milk

1 cup broccoli crown, steamed

1 cup cherry tomatoes, cut in half

1 cup non-dairy white cheese ( I used daiya cheese)

On a pot, heat the oil and fry the onion and garlic on medium heat. Add beans and spices, stir. Sprinkle flour over bean mix and blend well. Add almond milk and blend well and bring to a boil, stirring once in a while. Pour the bean mix into the baked pie crust. Place broccoli and tomatoes evenly over the pie. Place in oven 400F and bake for 15 minutes. Bring out of oven and sprinkle cheese all over. Bake for another 5-7 minutes or until cheese is melted. Enjoy with a nice and crisp salad.

Vanilla dream cookies

These are Bella's and mine Swedish Father's Day gift to James. They are incredibly delicate and melt in your mouth kind of cookies. They are also easy to make so even a toddler can help mommy do it.

Vanilla dream cookies, about 30 cookies

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 white spelt flour

1 vanilla bean, scraped

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

50g earth balance margarine, room temperature

1/2 cup canola oil

Preheat oven for 300F

Mix all the dry ingredients and then add the margarine in pieces. Mix well and then add the oil and mix until you have a crumbly dough. Use your fingers to cream small round balls. You kind of have to roll and press together at the same time. place cookies on parchment paper clad cookie sheet. Place in middle of oven for about 20. The cookies will remain pale.

Tikka masala

It was Father's Day in Sweden on Sunday and I like to celebrate it then as well as in June. This is what my husband asked for father day's dinner, Seitan tikka masala. This is the first time I made this dish and I think you can probably use whatever protein you have a round; great white beans, quorn or tofu. Enjoy this dish with rice and

naan bread.

Seitan Tikka Masala, serving 4

Marinade:

1 package seitan chicken style

1 cup plain soy yogurt

1/2 cup cilantro leaves, chopped

2 Tbs grated ginger

3 Tbs grated garlic

1/2 tsp Sambal Oelek

2 Tbs lemon juice

1 tsp turmeric

2 tsp canola oil

Blend everything, except the seitan, oil and yogurt, in a blender to a paste. Blend paste and yogurt well and place seitan pieces yogurt marinate in fridge for at least one hour. Drain seitan from marinate and fry in a frying pan on medium heat until browned. Set aside.

Sauce:

1 Tbs olive oil

1 yellow onion, chopped fine

2 garlic cloves

I large tomato, chopped

5 cardamon pods

1/2 tsp Sambal Oelek

1 Tbs agave nectar

3/4 cup vegan cream such as Mimic cream or use 1/2 cup vegan sour cream mixed with 1/4 cup milk.

3 Tbs blanched almonds, grounded into a paste

2 tsp chili pepper

1 tsp smoked paprika

salt to taste

First grind the almonds in a food processor to paste, if dry add little bit of the cream. Set aside. Heat oil in a large pan on medium heat and fry onion and garlic until glossy, not brown. Add tomatoes and remaining ingredients and blend well. Simmer, but do not boil. Place 2/3 of the sauce in a blender and process until completely creamy and smooth. Return sauce to pot and blend with remaining sauce. Add seitan pieces and enjoy hot.

Weekly menu

Per popular demand here is our menu for this week. I have to plan it out in advance because between me and James we run a tight schedule on who is home mornings, lunch and dinner with Bella and who is is working or taking a yoga class. I'm also the only one who cooks so planning each day saves me some time and stress for James. This week is different because daycare is closed on Wednesday so I'm home with Bella until 3pm and then James will take over. So lunch that day is Bella's favorite and I get a feeling we might not eat it at home. For breakfast we usually eat oatmeal with almond milk and always a fruit or a green smoothie.

Monday;

Lunch--Hummus sandwich and kale salad (yup same as the sampling)

Dinner--Quinoa pasta, tossed with vegetables, olive oil and garlic

Tuesday:

Lunch--Pasta salad

Dinner--Quorn meatless balls served with baked sweet potatoes and broccoli

Wednesday:

Lunch--Veggie burgers, bun, avocado and raw cut vegetables with a vegan ranch dressing for dipping

Dinner--Indian stew with spinach and chick peas served with rice and broccoli

Thursday:

Lunch--Rot vegetable with seitan sausage served with sauerkraut's

Dinner--Carrot and ginger soup served with bread with hummus

Friday:

Lunch--Quinoa pasta with artichoke pesto and a green salad

Dinner--Potatoes Au gratin with lentils