Eggplant in Coconut Sauce

* Served here with brown rice and collard greens*

1 large onion, cut into thin slices

1 tbsp finely grated ginger

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 large eggplant cut into large dice

1/2 cup coconut

2 green cardamom pods

2 cloves

1 1-inch piece of cinnamon

1 tbsp coriander seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp fennel seeds 

1 tsp Asofetida

1-2 tsp chili powder to taste

1 tbsp Agave

1 tsp turmeric

1 to 2 cups light coconut milk

Place eggplant on baking rack and sprinkle with a little salt and half of the turmeric and roast at 400 till almost tender

Heat heavy pot and  add the cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, chili powder, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, fennel seeds and asoefita and toast until they start to get darker. Set aside

Add the coconut to the skillet and toast, stirring constantly, just a few seconds until the coconut starts to get lightly brown. Don’t leave the coconut on the stove unattended because it will burn in an instant.

Place the toasted spices,  coconut, agave, and the remaining turmeric in a blender. Add enough light coconut milk and blend into a very smooth paste.

Heat a heavy pot on medium high heat till very hot- add the mustard seeds. When they sputter, add the sliced onions. Saute them until they start to brown. Add the garlic and ginger and saute another minute. Adding water by the teaspoon if they begin to stick.

Add the ground spice mixture and when the come to a boil, add the eggplants. Add more coconut milk,  if the sauce is too thick.

When the sauce boils, turn down the heat so it just simmers, slap on a lid, and cook about 10-15 minutes or until the eggplant is really tender.

Adapted by recipe from HolycowVegan

Spicy Cabbage Subzi

1 Tbsp. Cumin seeds

1 tsp. turmeric powder

1/2 onion, diced

1- 1" cube fresh ginger, minced

6 cloves garlic

1 medium head of cabbage, shredded

1 tsp. coriander

1 tsp. ground cumin

1 tsp. black mustard seeds

1 tsp. black pepper

1 tsp. red chili powder

1 tsp. or more salt to taste

Heat a heavy pan, add the cumin and turmeric and cook until the seeds sizzle, about 30 seconds.
add the onion, ginger and garlic and cook for a couple of minutes, add teaspoons of water if they begin to stick. Add the cabbage and stir well. Add the chili, coriander, cumin, mustard seeds pepper, and salt. Turn heat down to low and partially cover and cook until cabbage is done to your liking. Adjust seasonings and salt to taste.

Mushroom & Eggplant Curry

Ingredients
3 cups of assorted mushrooms, cleaned and sliced into chunky strips (I used crimini and shiitake, but you could use portabella or even button mushrooms)
2 medium potatoes, cubed and microwaved with some water for about 5 minutes until they are barely

1 large eggplant, cut into chunks and roasted till tender.
1 tsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. coriander seeds
1 tsp. cumin seeds
2 red chillies
5 cloves
5 pods of green cardamom
1 tbsp. black peppercorns
1 onion, thinly sliced
½ cup coconut milk
1-inch piece of ginger, thinly sliced
6 large garlic cloves, sliced
½ tsp. turmeric
1 14-oz can of diced tomatoes or 2 medium tomatoes, diced

Instructions
Heat oil  in a skillet. Add the coriander, cumin, chillies. cardamom, cloves and peppercorns and roast until they start changing color and become fragrant. Remove and reserve.
Heat a large heavy pot and stir-fry half the sliced onion, garlic and ginger until they are golden brown. Adding water as necessary if they begin to stick.
Reserve.
Put the spices, onion, garlic, ginger and coconut in blender and coconut milk, and  grind to a smooth paste.
In the same skillet used for toasting the spices and onions, Add the remaining onion and cook until the onion starts turning golden-brown.
Add the diced tomatoes and turmeric. Cook until the tomatoes start to break down.
Add the sliced mushrooms and stir to coat with the spices. Add the potatoes.
Cover and let cook until the veggies turn quite tender.
Now add the ground spice-onion mixture. Stir thoroughly.
Cover and let it cook another 10 minutes for the flavors to meld together.

Original recipe by: Holy Cow Vegan

My All Time Favorite- Curried Sweet Potato Salad

This may be my favorite side dish of all times!  Serve warm or cold

3 very large Sweet Potatoes, cubed, boiled and drained

1 Jalapeno, chopped

1/2" to 1" piece of fresh ginger, according to taste

1 clove garlic

1/2 Tbsp. curry powder or more to taste

1 to 2 tsp. apple cider vinegar

Salt and Pepper to taste

1- 2 Tbsp. Vegan Oil Free Mayo or Veganaise

Put the ginger, garlic and jalapeno, in a mini chopper and pulse till finely chopped

Add all ingredients to taste in a large bowl and mix to combine well.



Three Bean & Brown Rice Salad

3 Cans of assorted beans, Rinsed and drained

1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 can organic corn, drained
1 red onion, chopped
1⁄4 cup red wine vinegar

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
Juice of 1 lemon
1-2 Tbsp. Agave, to taste
1 tsp. sea salt
1 clove garlic, minced
1⁄2 tsp. ground cumin
1⁄2 tsp. black pepper, ground
1⁄2 tsp chili powder, to taste

1- 1" piece fresh ginger, minced

1/2 Jalapeno, minced

1 Tbsp. Minced cilantro if desired

1.In a large bowl, combine beans, bell peppers,  corn, and red onion.
Add all other ingredients and mix very well. Adjust with seasonings to taste.

Flavors get better when it sits for a day!

Indian Spiced Eggplant with Potatoes

Ingredients:

1/2 tsp asafetida

1 tsp. cumin seeds

1/2 tsp. turmeric powder

1 two Inch piece of ginger, peeled and sliced into very thin matchsticks

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 medium potato, peeled and chopped into small dice

1 onion, peeled, chopped

1 Jalapeno, minced

3 whole tomatoes( from whole canned tomatoes) or 1 large fresh tomato

2 medium-large eggplant, roughly chopped

2 tsp. sea salt

1 Tbsp. coriander

1 tsp. chili powder

1/2 Tbsp. garam masala

1/2 to 1 cup vegetable stock

Heat a heavy pan over medium heat, add the asafetida, cumin, and turmeric. Cook a minutes or so, then add ginger and garlic. Cook stirring for about a minute or so, adding water by the teaspoon if necessary, if they begin to stick.
Add the potato and cook and stir to coat with spices. Add the onions, jalapeno and cook for several minutes, again adding water if mixture starts to stick.
Add the tomato and their juices and stir. Add the eggplant, stock,  salt, garam masala, coriander and chili powder. Stir well to combine all ingredients, and turn heat to low and cook, partially covered until potatoes and eggplant are tender.


Recipe adapted from : Vegan Indian Cooking

Fudgy, Chewy Raw Vegan Brownies- Gluten Free, Oil Free

1 cups walnut

1 cups raw cashews

3/4 cup cacao powder

2 pinches Sea salt

2 cups dates

1/2 cup prunes chopped

Seeds from 1 Vanilla bean or 1 teaspoon vanilla

1 to 2 Tbsp Agave

Shredded unsweetened coconut- Optional

Process the nuts in the food processor until finely ground.

Add cacao and salt . Pulse until combined.

Add vanilla and  dates, 1/4 cup at a time until all ingredients are well combined. Add prunes and pulse until well combined. Add 1 to 2 Tbsp. Agave while pulsing until mixture starts to come together.  Press into 8 x 5 pan top with shredded coconut if desired. Chill and cut .

High Protein Vegan Sandwich Bread

High Protein Vegan Sandwich Bread

Don't let this lousy picture fool you...These loaves were amazing. I made them after coming home from work and they didn't finish baking till almost bedtime LOL ( hence the terrible lighting)

Ingredients:

Mix in a large bowl and set aside for five minutes until it begins to froth:

4 tsp active dry yeast

1/4 cup warm water

Mix in another bowl:

1 cup warm soymilk

1 cup warm water

2 tbsp vegetable oil

2 tbsp maple syrup (use sugar or agave nectar if you’d rather)

1 tbsp salt

Add the soymilk mixture to the yeast. Add to it:

2 cups whole-wheat flour

Mix in a stand mixer on low speed or by hand. Then add:

1 cup vital wheat gluten flour

Knead on low speed or by hand, adding a little at a time until the dough is no longer sticky:

1 to 1 1/2 cups of whole-wheat flour (add more flour if the dough’s still sticky).

Continue kneading for another 10 minutes. You should have a really smooth, supple dough.

Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl, turning once so the top of the dough is coated with oil.

Cover with a kitchen towel and allow it to rise in a warm place for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, until doubled in volume.

Now punch down the dough, and put it back in the bowl to rise for another hour.

Grease and flour two standard (6-cup) loaf pans. Now punch the dough down again and divide it into half. Shape each half into an oval, tucking the seams underneath.

Place each oval into a loaf pan, cover loosely with oiled plastic wrap, and set it aside to rise for about 90 minutes until the dough rises above the pan, forming a nice dome.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Bake the loaves for 10 minutes, then turn the oven temperature down to 350 degrees and continue baking for another 30 minutes or until the bottom sounds hollow when tapped.

Cool on a rack for about 10 minutes, then remove the loaves from the pan and continue cooling.

Recipe by HolyCow