Grandma J's Bundt Cake

Okay...this isn't exactly a "healthy" recipe, but it's my favorite cake in the whole world, and it's VEGAN! Woo hoo!

1 can applesauce (16 oz.)
2 cups flour (I use 1 cup whole wheat flour & 1 cup all purpose flour)
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 cup chocolate chips
2 tsp. baking soda
2/3 cup vegetable oil
1/2 tsp. cloves
1/2 tsp. nutmeg

Cream sugar and oil. Add flour, salt, and spices. Heat applesauce to a boil. Add baking soda and stir into hot applesauce. (Make sure the pan you boil the applesauce in is big enough so that when you add the soda it doesn't overflow!) Pour the hot applesauce mixture into the flour, sugar, and oil mixture. Stir together. Add the chocolate chips to the warm mixture. (They will melt). Grease and flour a bundt pan and pour the mixture into the pan and bake at 350F for 45 minutes. Let cool. Frost with (Vegan) cream cheese frosting: I use about 3 oz. non-dairy cream cheese, 4 cups powdered sugar, 1 tsp. vanilla, a little salt (maybe 1/4 tsp.), and almond milk (a little at a time so it doesn't get too runny). If the cake is a little warm when you frost it (not hot), the frosting melts a little and sets up quite nicely. YUM!

Refried Bean and Cornmeal Waffles

I've often said that my kids will eat ANYTHING if it's in the form of a pancake or waffle. This recipe was no exception, and was a super fast, easy, and tasty dinner!

Here's the recipe from waffleparty.com:

3/4 cup whole wheat flour

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup cornmeal

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 3/4 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp onion powder

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

3/4 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups plain almond milk (or soymilk, rice milk, etc.)

1 can (15 oz) refried black beans (I only had refried pinto beans on hand...still worked great)

1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp canola oil

3 Tbsp lime juice

3 Tbsp sugar

Sift or whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, soda, cumin, onion powder, cayenne, and salt in a large bowl.

In a medium bowl, mix the (almond) milk, beans, canola oil, lime juice and sugar.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix just until blended.

Cook on a waffle iron for 1 to 2 minutes past the iron manufacturer's suggested average cooking time, GENEROUSLY SPRAYING BOTH GRILLS with oil before each waffle. Reduce the salt if using refried beans that are already heavily salted.

We topped our waffles with fresh salsa, avocados, and cilantro lime dressing. YUM! The whole family LOVED this easy dinner, and the savory waffles were a delicious twist on one of our favorite breakfast foods!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls

I love cookie dough! Raw eggs always make me a little uneasy, though, so I was excited when I came across this recipe from love veggies and yoga. These are Averie's Raw Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls.

2/3 cup raw cashews, 1/3 c oats, 2 Tbsp agave nectar, 1 Tbsp maple syrup, 1 tsp vanilla extract, 1/4 c semi-sweet chocolate chips.

Blend oats and cashews in high power blender or food processor. After you have the oat and cashew flour, add the agave nectar, maple syrup, and vanilla extract. Blend again. Stir in the chocolate chips by hand, then roll into cute little cookie dough balls. Refrigerate, or dehydrate for more of a "cooked taste" chocolate chip cookie.

My opinion: These were just OKAY! My blendtec blender actually had a hard time mixing the oats and cashews, so I had to keep stopping the blender to scrape it all down. A food processor or vitamix blender would probably work better. They tasted pretty good, and definitely satisfied my sweet tooth, but weren't quite the same as real cookie dough! Healthier, though, and I didn't worry about my kids getting salmonella! The recipe really doesn't make very many little balls, though!

Salsa, Guacamole, and rice, oh my!

Here are a few of my favorite Mexican dishes! For my birthday, I requested these!

SSSSSSSalsa
1 (26 oz) can crushed tomatoes, or about 10 fresh tomatoes chopped (if you have a garden overflowing with tomatoes, this would be a great recipe to try!)
2 (7 oz) cans salsa verde (I use Herdez brand)
2 (4 oz) cans diced green chilies
1 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 anaheim chili, chopped (discard the seeds if you don't want it to be too spicy)
2 limes, juiced
1/4 t. salt

Mix all together, and refrigerate until ready to serve!

Guacamole
3 avocados--peeled, pitted, and mashed
1 lime, juiced
1 t. salt
1/2 c. diced yellow onion
3 Tbsp fresh chopped cilantro
2 tomatoes, diced
1 t. minced garlic

In a medium bowl, mash together the avocados, lime, and salt. Mix in the remaining ingredients, refrigerate, and serve.

Black Bean Corn Salsa
1 large bag petite white corn thawed
2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
2-3 avocados diced
4-5 tomatoes diced
2 packets dry good seasonings Italian dressing mix
4 limes juiced
1/2 cup oil (I use EVOO)
1 bunch cilantro chopped

Mix all together until well blended. Refrigerate 1 hour. Makes a lot!!!

Cilantro Lime Rice
2 Tbsp. butter
1 1/4 cups rice (I used brown rice)
2 1/4 cups veggie broth (I added another 1/4 cup of water since it was brown rice)
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
juice and zest of 1 large lime
2 Tbsp chopped cilantro
1/4 teaspoon cumin

In a skillet, melt butter and add rice. Let cook for 1-2 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and cook for 18-20 minutes (I cooked it for about 45 minutes with brown rice). Fluff with a fork and serve.

Cilantro Dressing
1 buttermilk ranch dressing packet (make as per recipe...I substituted the mayonnaise with vegenaise, and I made buttermilk using 1 Tbsp. lemon juice + enough plain almond milk to make 1 cup)
2 tomatillos
1/2 bunch cilantro
1 clove garlic
juice of 1 lime
1 jalapeno (use the seeds if you like it spicy. I usually just throw in 1 or 2 seeds. You could also add a few drops of green tobasco instead of the jalapeno)

Use a food processor or blender to mix all the ingredients well. Refrigerate.

We piled all of the stuff listed above on top of fresh tortillas, lettuce, and a few tortilla strips. Yummmmm!

Hawaiian Haystacks

I'm WAY overdue in posting some of my favorite recipes of late. I just want to get a few on here for you to enjoy, so they'll have to do without any pictures!

Hawaiian Haystacks were a lifesaver a few weeks after my baby was born. I made the sauce on Sunday, and we ate them all week long!

Sweet and Sour Sauce
2 Tbsp smart balance butter
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
2 cups veggie broth
4 1/2 cups pineapple juice
1/4 vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup sugar
6 Tbsp. cornstarch

Combine ingredients in sauce pan without heat. Stir until cornstarch is completely dissolved. Heat sauce on high until it boils and thickens. Serve with fresh pineapple, mandarin oranges, olives, coconut, tomatoes, raisins, green onions, celery, chow mein noodles, any other fresh veggies you like, and rice/quinoa.

We all LOVED this meal. My husband would have liked having cheese and chicken on the side, but was actually really satisfied without! My kids liked choosing their own toppings and building their haystacks. The sauce makes a lot, but can easily be frozen for later!