Chili Cheese Fries?? Yes please!

Hello! Couple of yummy things I've cooked up to post here. Other than that, not much going on. Getting ready to head to the mountains for a long weekend to retrieve my little black and white buddy.

So generally I try to eat healthy, but sometimes I get a craving for something very, shall we say, unhealthy! And it's not like I can just go to a restaurant and order, let's say, chili cheese fries, so I had to make my own. And they were delicious! Earth Fare has finally started carrying Daiya non-dairy shredded cheese and I was so excited to try it! So I picked up a bag of the cheddar style, a can of Amy's black bean chili, and a bag of frozen french fries. I just tossed the fries in the oven, meanwhile heating the chili on the stove. When the fries were done, I put the cheese on them and chili on top, and that was enough to melt the cheese, yes folks, it melted!

Ahem, peeps at Daiya and Amy's, please feel free to send me free samples for featuring your products. Just kidding, not really.

Now on to healthier things....

Zucchini Crisps

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 25 – 30 min
Total Time: 40 min

Servings: 4

Ingredients:

• 2 medium zucchini, sliced into ¼ inch thick rounds
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ¼ cup nutritional yeast
• ¼ plain bread crumbs
• Pinch of sea salt

•Freshly ground pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450 F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

2. In a large bowl combine sliced zucchini with olive oil until evenly coated.

3. In a medium bowl combine, nutritional yeast, bread crumbs, salt, and pepper.

4. Dip each zucchini round in the bread crumb mixture until evenly coated on each side, place on baking sheet.

5. Bake until brown and crispy, 25 – 30 minutes.

6. Eat, drink, and be merry!

Notes: This is a modified version of a recipe from Ellie Krieger, a nutritionist who has her own show on Food Network, I love her! Vegans often use nutritional yeast in place of cheese in certain recipes. I know the name kind of sounds gross, but it’s not, check out this link for more info http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nutritional_yeast

 Garden and Grain Cakes


Prep Time: 15 min
Cook Time: 45 min
Total Time: 1 hour


Servings: makes 10 patties

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ cups water
• 1/3 cup millet
• 1/3 cup quinoa
• ½ teaspoon dried oregano
• ¼ - ½ teaspoon dried thyme
• Freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
• Pinch of sea salt
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ½ medium onion, finely diced
• 1/3 cup carrot, finely diced
• 1/3 cup celery, finely diced
• 1/3 cup bell pepper, finely diced
• 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
• 1 cup fresh spinach, roughly chopped
• ½ cup raw almonds, chopped
• ½ cup raw pumpkin seeds
• ½ cup raw sunflower seeds
• 3 tablespoons whole wheat flour (or any kind you have on hand)
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon dried parsley
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• ½ cup cornmeal (optional)


Directions:


1. In a large sauce pan bring water to a boil. Add millet, quinoa, oregano, thyme, salt, and pepper. Cover and turn to low. Simmer for 15 – 20 minutes, until all the water is absorbed. Place in a large bowl to cool.


2. Heat oil in a skillet; add onion and sauté for 2 minutes. Add carrot, celery, and pepper, sauté for 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 1 more minute.


3. Add the sautéed veggies as well as the remaining ingredients (except cornmeal) to the grain mixture. Stir well to combine.


4. Preheat oven to 375. Form into burger type patties, makes about 10 patties. If desired, sprinkle both sides with cornmeal and place on cookie sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake for 20 – 25 minutes, until lightly brown.


Notes: Yes there are a lot of ingredients. Yes this gets messy. But they are SO worth it! There is this yummy crunchy nutty goodness to them. I highly recommend trying these out! Oh, and 1 out of 2 non-vegans who tried these approved....you can't win them all I guess.

I hope the summer solstice fairy will bring me a camera that actually makes food look appetizing instead of, well, the opposite of appetizing.

Sun Dried Tomato Pesto Pasta
Prep Time: 5 min
Cook Time: 10 min
Total Time: 15 min

Servings: 4



Ingredients:

• 8 oz whole wheat pasta
• ½ cup sun dried tomatoes (the kind packed in oil)
• ½ cup pine nuts
• 1 cup fresh spinach
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• ¼ cup olive oil

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to package directions.

2. Combine the remaining ingredients in a food processor and blend for a few minutes, until you get a pesto like consistency.

3. Drain pasta and mix with pesto.

4. Eat, drink, and be merry!

Notes: Instead of spinach you can use basil, as is most common in pesto, but a) I don’t care for basil, and b) you get lots more nutrients from the spinach! You can use whatever shape pasta you like, I used penne for this. Also, you can eat this warm or cold, it’s delicious both ways!

And along with this i made.....

Roasted Cauliflower Bites


Prep Time: 15 min
Cook Time: 15 min
Total Time: 30 min

Servings: 4

Ingredients:

• 1 head of cauliflower
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• ¼ teaspoon dried sage
• ¼ teaspoon dried marjoram
• ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cups plain dried bread crumbs

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 F. Place parchment paper on a baking sheet.

2. Chop cauliflower into bite size pieces and place in a large bowl

3. Combine garlic, herbs, and olive oil in small bowl. Mix well.

4. Pour oil mixture over cauliflower and toss until well coated. Use your hands!

5. Pour bread crumb mixture over cauliflower and toss until well coated. Use your hands again!

6. Place cauliflower on baking sheet and roast in the oven for 15 minutes, until they become fork tender.

7. Eat, drink, and be merry!

Notes: Who knew cauliflower could taste so good?!? I made a quick little sauce to dip them in out of tomato sauce and non-dairy shredded cheddar cheese I needed to use up. I just melted it together in the microwave and dipped away. You can use whatever kind of bread crumbs you have, I used whole wheat panko bread crumbs.

I hope everyone has a safe and stupendous Memorial Day weekend!! Have fun memorializing and whatever else you may be doing.

Random Movie Note: I FINALLY saw The Blind Side. I may be one of the last few remaining people but anywho, it was sooooo good. Sandra Bullock lost me at Miss Congeniality, but she got me back after this one. And Tim McGraw, great actor, ok no he's not, but he's Tim McGraw, enough said.