Slow Cooker Veggie Pasta Sauce

This is our favorite super simple, very tasty pasta sauce recipe.

Ingredients:

• Two 28-ounce cans crushed tomatoes
• One 14-ounce can fire-roasted diced tomatoes
• One 6-ounce can tomato paste
• One bag of frozen veggies
• One or two handfuls of frozen pearl onions
• Whatever spices you like such as oregano, basil, and garlic powder.

Directions:
Place all ingredients in a slow cooker on high for 3-4 hours.

Garlicky Kale Salad

This is one of our favorite kale recipes! It is easy and super flavorful!!!

Garlicky Kale Salad (recipe from Mrs. Plant)

Ingredients:

• 1 bunch of kale
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp tahini
• 2 Tbsp low-sodium tamari or coconut aminos (can omit)
• 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 4 Tbsp nutritional yeast
• 2 cloves of garlic
• Toasted black sesame seeds for garnish

Directions:

1. Wash the kale, dry it well, and rip it into small pieces. Place kale into a bowl.
2. Blend all other ingredients in a blender until smooth. Massage into the kale.
3. Refrigerate AT LEAST one hour. Garnish with toasted sesame seeds before serving.

Quinoa Cornbread

This is our favorite cornbread. It is easy and tasty!

This recipe is from Straight Up Food:

Ingredients:

• 1 cup nondairy milk
• 6 Medjool or 12 Deglet Noor dates, pitted
• 1 cup water
• ½ cup dry/uncooked quinoa
• 1 cup cornmeal
• ½ cup rolled oats, ground into a flour in the blender
• 1½ teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• Optional: ½ cup corn kernels or blueberries (for added flavor and color)

Directions:

1. Place the nondairy milk and dates into a blender, and set aside while you prepare the other ingredients (make sure your oats are already ground in the blender before doing this).
2. Combine the water and quinoa in a medium saucepan, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, then cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside for 10 minutes with the lid still on.
3. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line an 8×8-inch baking dish with parchment paper and set aside (or use a silicone baking dish).
4. Mix the cornmeal, oat flour, baking powder and soda with a fork in a medium bowl.
5. Blend the milk and dates until smooth.
6. Pour the date mixture into the bowl of dry ingredients, and stir; add in the cooked quinoa and corn kernels or blueberries if using, and mix everything together.
7. Spread the batter evenly into the pan (it will be thick), and bake uncovered for 30 minutes. The cornbread will not rise very much, and it will have cracks in the top when done. Set aside to cool at least 10 minutes before cutting.

Enjoy 🙂

Easy Marinara Sauce

Here’s an easy marinara sauce that is totally worth making rather than buying the jarred stuff that contains salt, oil, and sugar.

Recipe from here:

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup onion, diced
• 1 T. garlic, minced
• 1 t. dried basil
• 1 t. dried oregano
• 1/8 t. freshly ground black pepper
• 1 – 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes

Directions:

1. In a medium saucepan, saute the onion in water for 3 minutes to soften.
2. Add the garlic and saute an additional 1-2 minutes while stirring constantly, or until fragrant but not browned.
3. Add the dried herbs and pepper and saute an additional 30 seconds.
4. Add the crushed tomatoes and stir well to combine.
5. Reduce the heat to low and simmer the mixture for 10 minutes to blend the flavors.

This makes about 3.5 cups of sauce.

Add this easy sauce to your favorite pasta, add to beans, rice, and greens, or add as your sauce for pizza.

Enjoy 🙂

Chef AJ’s Yummy Sauce

This recipe is great on anything! We like serving it with beans, rice and, kale.  Ashley made a bowl that included rice, beans, kale, sweet potatoes, avocado, cilantro, and this yummy sauce.

This recipe is from Chef AJ:

Ingredients:

• 1 – 15 ounce can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained (or 1.5 cups of cooked beans)
• Juice and zest of one organic lemon (if the lemon does not yield 1/4 of a cup of juice, then add more lemon juice)
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 Tablespoons salt-free mustard (we use Westbrae Stoneground)
• 3/4 ounce pitted dates (approximately 3 deglet noor dates)
• 1 clove garlic

Preparation:

1. Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.

Note: If you are using a high-powered blender, you can make this sauce warm to serve over rice and veggies. It is also delicious cold massaged into shredded cabbage for “Yummy Slaw”.

What would you put this yummy sauce on?

Hot Spiced Apple Cider

This is a sweet and warm drink to enjoy on these upcoming cold winter nights!

This recipe is from Kitchen Treaty:

Ingredients:

• 2 quarts (64 ounces or 8 cups) apple cider
• Six 3-inch cinnamon sticks, plus more for serving if desired
• 1 medium orange
• 2 tablespoons whole cloves
• Rum of your choice (optional)
• Additional cinnamon sticks for serving (optional)

Directions:

1. Pour apple cider into a 2.5-quart or larger Crock Pot or other slow cooker. Add cinnamon sticks to cider.
2. With a toothpick, poke holes all around the orange, about 1/2 inch to 1 inch apart. Carefully poke the cloves into the toothpick holes in the orange.
3. Place orange into the cider in the slow cooker.
4. Cook on low until hot and spiced through, about 4 hours. Ladle into mugs along with an ounce or so of rum if using. Place a cinnamon stick in each glass if desired and serve.

If you want to take this to a potluck, the recipe is simple to make and can easily be doubled!

 

Enjoy 🙂

Pizza Hummus

This is one of our favorite hummus recipes!

This recipe is from our friend at Eat Well, Stay Well:

Ingredients:

• 3 cups freshly cooked chickpeas (or 2 cans, drained and rinsed)
• 


1½-2 cups water, adjusted for desired thickness
• 2 cloves garlic
• Handful of sun-dried tomatoes (not in oil)
• 


About half a medium red onion
• 4 Tbs nutritional yeast
• 


½ tsp dried oregano
• 1 Tbs dried basil

Directions:

1. Puree in food processor or high speed blender until creamy.
2. Serve over greens/salad, in a 
collard green leaf (raw or lightly steamed) as a roll up, or on sprouted grain bread/tortillas.

Note: If using a food processor, soak sun-dried tomatoes first.

Enjoy 🙂

Quick Hummus

Have you ever tried hummus on salad? Hummus works great as an alternative to dressing! It’s amazing how hard it is to find oil free and salt free hummus.  It is just easier to make your own. Especially when it is this easy!

This recipe was adapted from The Engine 2 Diet:

Ingredients:

• 2 cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 3 cloves garlic
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons coconut aminos
• 1/4 cup water or vegetable broth

Directions: Combine all ingredients in a high-powered blender and blend until smooth.

You can use this hummus on salads, as a spread for sandwiches, or as a dip for veggies! Enjoy!

Vegan Parmesan

We love sprinkling some of this Vegan Parmesan on pastas, salads, soups/stews, rice & beans, or basically anything!  We always keep a fresh batch in the fridge because it is just so easy to make.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups walnuts
• 1-1/2 cups nutritional yeast
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp miso

Directions:

1. Mix together in a food processor.
2. You can add any other spices you want to the parm.