When dried herbs are substituted for fresh, the rule of thumb is one part dried, to three parts fresh.

Last night I roasted peppers, onions and potatoes in the oven with olive oil and fresh rosemary, thyme and tarragon. I separated and chopped small the onions and peppers, then roasted a pan of mushrooms. Oh yum the mushrooms were so fragrant and released such intoxicating juices. I was thinking of making a simple clearish soup with the roasted vegs thrown in, but end up making a White Bean, Roasted Mushroom and Kale Soup: Continue reading →

I use spices that have been proven to possess therapeutic and healing properties. Spices help you elevate any dish from the ordinary to a feast for the senses of sight, smell, and taste. Spice your meals to enhance your food with better taste and medicinal and healing properties without adding calories. Spices and herbs contain antioxidants, minerals and multivitamins. Because spices are nutrient dense, they are thermogenic, which means they naturally increase your metabolism. Centuries old eastern medicine and now recent studies and scientific research both boast the medicinal healing benefits of spices. My faves:   Continue reading →

About 4:00 am this morning I went outside for a beautiful 4th quarter moon meditation, and the moon was straight overhead. I picked some fresh rosemary while I was out there and went inside to make a roasted veggie soup. OMG the soup: roast a rough chopped onion, carrot, medium potato, red pepper, yellow squash drizzled with oil and 1/2 tsp each rosemary, basil, tarragon, garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, smoky paprika 400 degrees for 20-30 minutes (watch it, don’t burn.) Separate roasted veggies and chop small. Place in a blender the potato, the squash and half the onion. From a 32 oz carton of Swanson vegetable broth, add enough to blend into a gravy consistency. Heat the rest of the carton of broth, stir in the gravy and the chopped carrot, red pepper and remaining onion. Season to taste with pepper and Bragg’s liquid aminos. I also added a handful of green beans and 6 cherry tomatoes, chopped.

The last couple of months, fresh watermelon has been my snack of choice. It’s the only thing I let myself eat when I’m watching tv.  The problem is I’ve been cutting up so many watermelon rinds to compost that I thought ” I need to try pickling some”.  I did and they turned out surprisingly awesome.  I am not one for complicated recipes or something that has lots of steps and keeps me in the kitchen for hours.  I went online and began looking at recipes for pickles and saw everything had to be soaked overnight and boiled and fermented for weeks.  Forget that.  I remembered an episode of Chopped where someone made a  pickled relish during one of the challenges, so I Googled “quick pickles” and began reading at the links that came up. Continue reading →

This pic shows carrot coins but there is NO carrot in this dish

Brown the veggies in 1 tbsp of coconut or olive oil on medium heat. Do not let the garlic burn. When the onions are golden, add the Veggie Ground and other ingredients,  cover and let simmer about 20 minutes. Remove the lid and let the extra liquid evaporate. Serve on rice or inside a tortilla. You can also add a diced potato or squash in with the vegetables if you like. See ingredients etc below. Continue reading →

Mushroom “scallops” shown here topped with chopped scallion and sesame seeds

King oyster mushrooms, sliced into fat coins and cooked like fresh scallops in a coconut milk, white wine and lemon garlic sauce.  Serve over your favorite pasta – I like linguine and bowties.  Sometimes I add a handful of fresh cut green beans or red pepper strips to this.  Here’s the recipe.   Continue reading →

Vegan Carmelized Brussels Sprouts
Vegan Spinach Stuffed Mushrooms
Vegan Maple Roasted Carrots with Fennel Seeds 
Vegan Black Rice Recipe with Roasted Acorn Squash
Vegan Butternut Squash, Brussels Sprout, and Bread Stuffing with Apples
Low Fat Indian Spiced Homefries with Kale
Pita points and celery stalks with roasted veggie dip 
A good clear soup would be a Lemon Ginger Scallion Soup

A friend asked me to cater a dinner party for him.  My first thought was “Good grief, I don’t know anything about catering.” My second thought was “Oh, how fun I get to cook some favorite recipes for a friend!” I knew what he was up to. We’ve spoken before that I don’t like to commit ahead of time to events, especially anything between the hours of 4 and 10pm. That’s been my sleeping time for decades, so I can never guarantee I can be awake during those hours until the day of an event. He asked if I’d come to dinner and my first response was No, due to the time. But he knows how I am.  He asked if I could cater it and have foods prepared for him a day ahead of time. Yes!  That way I can be attuned to the event and will likely end up awake in time to attend dinner, yet not committed if I’m not.  Clever deduction! I asked what he’d like me to prepare.  “Anything, you’re the one with the food blog.” LOL Right! Some of the guests will be vegan, some vegetarian, some, like me, omnivores. I made a list of some favorites, these happen to be favorite vegan Thanksgiving dishes.  Continue reading →

2 Tbsp olive oil or coconut oil
3 cups fresh Brussels sprouts, sliced in half
1 onion, chopped
2 Tbsp sesame seeds
1/2 tsp coarse sea salt Continue reading →