Vegan chicken salad

Summer is here and I am loving the more relaxed schedule! It hasn’t gotten too hot yet, here in Utah, but warm enough that I’m not wanting to have oatmeal for lunch anymore and am preferring something cold. I often have a mexican salad (romaine greens, a chipotle black bean burger, tomato slices, salsa and guacamole), but when I want to mix things up, I’ll make this for dinner, and eat the leftovers for lunch over the next few days. This is a recipe I got from my sister last year when she was visiting from Seattle. We made it multiple times over the few days she was here, because there were several of us that loved it. But to be completely honest, most of my kids don’t really like this meal, so they’ll eat the croissant with a little bit of this salad. But I love it, so I’m happy to have leftovers to enjoy for lunch for a few days! My kids ask me why it’s called vegan chicken salad, when there’s no chicken in it. I tell them it’s because if I called it vegan salad, that could mean anything. This way we all know what chicken salad is, and it’s that, just minus the chicken with some white beans instead :).

Here are the ingredients you’ll need. If you don’t have a red onion, that’s fine. You can use white or yellow. The color of the red is nice in this salad. Also, some brands of the garbanzo beans (like Walmart’s brand), are a lot harder to mash than others. So you may want to experiment.

Here you see the beans I mashed up with the spices, mayo and onion. Next we’ll stir in the grapes and celery.

 

It’s nice to be able to have something yummy to eat in the summer, without having to turn on your oven and make your house even more hot. I hope you enjoy it!

 

Vegan Chicken Salad
*serves 8

2 cans garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1/3 c red onion, chopped fine (white or yellow is fine too; but I like the color from the red)
2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder, or dried chopped onion
3 Tbsp veganaise or Mayo
1 c grape halves
1/2 c chopped celery (about 2-3 stalks)

Place the garbanzo beans, onion, mustard, spices and mayo in a medium mixing bowl. Smash together with a potato masher. Stir in grape halves and chopped celery. Allow to sit in fridge for an hour before serving on croissant, or bread (I like to put it on a slice of toasted whole wheat bread; open-faced). *You can also eat this right away, but allowing it to sit in the fridge for a short time will not only chill the salad, but also allow the flavors to blend more fully.

Creamy Coconut Korma

My husband and I love Indian food. Our kids are okay with some of the sauces, and they like Naan bread, but they are not big fans….yet. But, just as the author from French Kids Eat Anything says, they’ve got to try it many times (I think 12? And I’m going to go even further and say 20) to develop a taste for it. It’s also good for me to remember that food always tastes better when they’re hungry, so I’ve got to remember to not let them snack an hour or two before dinner.

As you can see, we use a lot of spices in this recipe. You might be wondering where in the world you can even find some of these things, like fennel seeds, and cumin seeds. Most you should find at your local grocery store, Walmart, Target, Sprouts etc and I picked up a couple from an Indian store near by but  you can also use the powdered form of any of these spices, and you should be able to find the powdered form anywhere. I like to use whole spices because they keep their flavor longer, so especially for things like fennel or cardamom, spices you might not use very often, having the whole spice is nice.

Also, you don’t have to use the entire jalapeno. I do. But I like spicy foods. And so does my family. Just as a frame of reference, when I order Indian food at a restaurant, I ask for medium heat, and that’s what you’ll get with this. Which, Indian medium heat, might feel too hot for some. So feel free to use half, a quarter or even less jalapeno if you’re not into the heat. You’ll still get a little from the cayenne and chili powders.

There are a few ‘optional’ things you can do with this Korma. You can add cooked chicken, or steamed veggies, or paneer (a soft cheese), or raisins. If I’m doing chicken, I’ll usually throw it in the crock pot in the morning, on low with some broth, mostly because I’m lazy and I just want to dump it in and forget about it. If I’m adding in steamed veggies, I will steam them as I’m cooking my sauce. The paneer or raisins, I just add once the sauce is nearly done.

Alright, so first thing you’ll do is put your cashews in a bowl with some cool water and let them sit for 15 minutes while you’re putting the other paste ingredients, starting with your water, into your blender. By soaking the nuts, you break down the phytic acid so it can be more easily absorbed. Nuts also have enzyme inhibitors making them hard to digest, but soaking them neutralizes the enzymes for proper digestion.

Once all your ingredients are in there, drain and add the cashews and blend until smooth. As a side note, when I add my ginger, I just peel it and then drop the 1 inch piece in the blender.

Once that’s done,warm your oil over medium heat in a large frying pan. Cut up your onions like so (they don’t need to be diced because they’ll go into the blender), and add them to the warm oil. Next, add your spices to the pan and let them cook together for a few minutes, until the onions are translucent. Add your fresh and canned tomatoes and cook a few minutes longer.

Add these veggies and spices to the blender with your paste.

Blend until smooth.

 

Pour the blender contents back into your pan. Add about 1/2 cup  water to the emptied blender jar, put lid on, and swirl it around to get all the paste sticking to the inside of the jar, and pour into the frying pan. Keep pan on medium-low heat and stir in your coconut milk until blended together.

Add your optional cooked, shredded or cubed chicken/veggies/raisins,or just keep it as a plain Korma sauce. Allow the flavors to cook together another 5 minutes before serving over brown basmati rice (or any cooked rice; I often have it over just steamed broccoli and cauliflower). I don’t like to add a lot of salt to the recipe, so I will sprinkle a little bit on the top before, just before I add my chopped cilantro.  Also great with a side of Naan, or whole wheat pita bread that’s been toasted.

 

Vegetable Korma

*serves 8

Paste:

1/3 cup raw cashews (soaked in a bowl of water for 15+ minutes, then drained)
1 c water
1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1 Tbsp coriander seeds (or 1 Tbsp ground coriander)
2 tsp fennel seeds (or 2 tsp ground fennel)
1 tsp cumin seeds (or 1 tsp ground cumin)
6 whole cloves (or 1/2 tsp ground cloves)
4 green cardamom pods (or 1/4 tsp ground cardamom)
1/4 tsp black peppercorn (or 1/4 tsp ground)
1 jalapeno (can do 1/2 or less if you’re more of a ‘mild’ spice person)
4 tsp minced garlic or 8 cloves
1 inch ginger, peeled

Combine all paste ingredients into your blender and blend until smooth.

2 medium onions, chopped (red, yellow, or white)
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp red chili powder
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 large Roma tomato, chopped
1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes (or any cut)

1 can coconut milk with full fat (I like Thai Kitchen brand)
chopped cilantro to garnish
optional: 1-2 cups chopped and steamed veggies like carrots, potato, peas
optional: 1/3 c golden raisins or 1/2 cup cooked garbanzo beans
optional: cooked, shredded chicken or cubed paneer. (I’ll usually put a frozen chicken breast in the crock pot with some vegetable broth in the morning and cook it on low all day)

In a large frying pan, add 1 Tbsp coconut or olive oil over medium heat. Add the chopped onion with 1/2 tsp sea salt, yellow curry powder, turmeric, chili powder, and cayenne pepper, and cook until onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes and cook until they are mushy, a few more minutes. Add these veggies and spices to the blender with your paste. Blend until smooth. Pour the blender contents back into your pan. Add about 1/2 cup  water to the emptied blender jar, put lid on, and swirl it around to get all the paste sticking to the inside of the jar, and pour into the frying pan. Keep pan on medium-low heat and stir in your coconut milk until blended together.

Add your optional cooked chicken/veggies/raisins,or just keep it as a plain Korma sauce. Allow the flavors to cook together another 5 minutes before serving over brown basmati rice (or any cooked rice; I will also often have it over just steamed broccoli and cauliflower). Sprinkle your serving with a tiny bit of salt, and then garnish with chopped cilantro. Also great with a side of Naan, or whole wheat pita bread that’s been toasted.

Pineapple Julius

We like to call this concoction, Pineapple Julius, because the foaminess reminds us of an Orange Julius. This is super easy and fast, with only a few ingredients, all of which I conveniently always have on hand. Our family loves this drink, which we offer after dinner, as a treat…we don’t normally have treats during the week, but this is an exception as the only sugar is from the pineapple and it’s juice.

Pineapple Julius
*makes about 4 cups. Serves 2- 4

5 oz almond milk

5 oz canned coconut milk (from a can; I like Thai brand. Unsweetened, full fat)

1,  20 oz can pineapple, in its juice (including juice; doesn’t matter how the pineapple is cut as it’ll all go into the blender)

1 c ice

Place in a high power blender and blend until smooth (about 20-30 seconds in my Vitamix.).

Vegetable Pot Pie

I love Pot Pie and being vegetarian, I normally just pick out the chicken when I make this for my family, but this week we didn’t have chicken on hand and I thought I’d just add in some extra veggies and make a veggie pot pie. It was so yummy! My kids liked it too, though one mostly ate the potatoes and one mostly ate the crust…eh, it’s all good. I think this dish is more about the gravy, potatoes and the pie crust anyway! I even found a whole wheat pie crust at the store so this dish was pretty easy to put together.

This is what I put in my pot pie, but you can use a variety of veggies depending on what you have on hand. As you can see I used a little fresh and frozen. I think next time I’ll add in some cauliflower, too.

I made my homemade vegan gravy as the veggies boiled, and then I mixed veggies and gravy together and put them in the bottom of my mostly unbaked pie crust (You bake it for 5 minutes prior to adding in the veggies).

I placed another unbaked pie dough on top, pinched the edges, cut a few slits in the top to let the steam out and then placed it on a baking sheet (in case some gravy dripped out while cooking; I hate cleaning ovens) and put it in the oven.

Vegetable Pot Pie (vegan)
Serves 6-8

1 c diced carrots
1 russet potato, peeled and cubed
2 stalks celery, thinly sliced
1/3 c white or yellow onion, diced
1 c frozen green peas
optional: 1 c diced cauliflower, 1 c corn, etc
2 c gravy (CLICK HERE for my favorite gravy, and it’s vegan)
two 9-inch unbaked pie crusts (I used a whole wheat version but can use gluten-free or regular pie crust)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a jelly roll pan or baking sheet with silicone or foil to keep any filling from dripping and burning in your oven. Place one 9-inch pie dough crust in a pie pan and bake for 5 minutes and then set aside. In a medium saucepan, combine carrots, potatoes, onions and celery(or whatever optional chopped veggies you choose). Cover with water, bring to a boil and cook until the potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes. During the last 3 minutes, add the frozen peas. Remove from heat, drain and set aside. While that’s cooking if you haven’t yet made gravy, do so now. Mix the gravy and cooked vegetables together and pour into the partially baked pie crust. Top with the second unbaked pie crust, pinch the edges together and cut a few slits in the top with a knife so the steam can release. Bake for about 25 minutes or until crust is golden. Allow to sit for 10 minutes before serving. Cut into 6-8 slices and serve.

Vegan Sweet Potato Enchiladas

While taking my whole foods plant based nutrition class( aka WFPB, which I recently finished!!! Woot, woot!!), I searched our library and checked out various “China Study Cookbooks” …a total of 5. All of these cookbooks are WFPB which basically means the recipes not only vegan with no animal products, but also no processed foods including oils, refined sugars, and flours. I’ve been experimenting with the recipes and so far we’ve found a few keepers, one of which, is this recipe for Sweet Potato Enchiladas, which I adjusted some. My husband wasn’t too excited about the idea of having enchiladas without cheese, but he gave them a try and during dinner he commented a couple of times on how good they were, and afterwards he suggested we hold on to this recipe :). So, into my blog it goes because this is where my collection of our favorites are and I love that anyone in my house, can look up the recipe and make it, without mom!

You’ll want to make sure you’ve baked your sweet potato ahead of time. I prick the potato before cooking, put it in a 9×13 pan lined with foil, and cook it in the peel, without washing for about an hour at 400 degrees. You’ll know when it’s done because some of the juice will start seeping out of the holes from where you pricked it. Allow it to cool before peeling the skin so you don’t burn yourself.

Start off by preheating your oven to 350 degrees. In a large skillet, saute onions, garlic, cumin and coriander in vegetable broth over medium-high heat until the onions are light brown. Add the coconut aminos/soy sauce and spinach. Cook for a minute or two until spinach wilts. Remove from heat. Fold in sweet potatoes, black beans and salt.

Place a couple tablespoons of the mixture into the center of each tortilla and roll. Place the enchiladas, seam-side down, in a 9×13 baking dish.

Pour salsa on top and cover with aluminum foil. I like my food with a bit of spice so we used a Medium-heat salsa. I like this La Victoria Brand, and also Pace or Picante. Bake the covered enchiladas for 25 minutes.

Serve warm with sides. We love brown rice/quinoa, black beans, greens, corn and guacamole or chopped avocados.

Sweet Potato Enchiladas
*Serves 6

3/4 c diced onions
4 garlic cloves, minced (or 2 tsp minced garlic)
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
2 Tbsp vegetable broth
2 Tbsp coconut aminos (or soy sauce or braggs liquid aminos)
1 c chopped spinach
1 c baked sweet potato, mashed
1 c cooked black beans (or canned black beans)
1/4 tsp sea salt
14 corn tortillas
2 c favorite salsa (I love the medium heat La Victoria or Pace)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large skillet, saute onions, garlic, cumin and coriander in vegetable broth over medium-high heat until onions are light brown. Add soy sauce and spinach. Cook for a minute or two until spinach wilts. Remove from heat. Fold in sweet potatoes, black beans and salt. Place a couple tablespoons of the mixture into the center of each tortilla and roll. Place the enchiladas, seam-side down, in a 9×13 baking dish. Pour salsa on top and cover with aluminum foil. Bake 25 minutes. Serve warm with a side of brown rice/quinoa, black beans, corn and guacamole.

Muesli

While my husband and I were visiting Italy and Austria last year, we noticed that nearly every breakfast we were offered, in various cities, had Muesli. We ate it regularly. Then we came home and forgot all about it. That is, I forgot until I was reading through some recipes and watching videos from my Whole Foods Plant Based nutrition course and they had one that looked quick and easy so we gave it a try and loved it. Most everything I had on hand, though I did subsitute a couple of things: ground flax for wheat germ, and mixed rolled grains (like triticale, oats, barley etc) for regular rolled oats.

I added all the ingredients to a large mixing bowl, stirred it all together and then stored it in an airtight container. My husband and I have been eating it for breakfast or for a snack. He likes to put warm milk over his, and I’m sure I will too as the weather gets cooler, though for now I’ve been having it with cold milk.

If it’s not sweet enough for you, you can either add fresh fruit to your individual serving (like sliced strawberries, peaches or blueberries), or you can flavor your milk first by adding a couple of dates or some raisins and blending that together before pouring it over your Muesli. 

This will store well in your pantry for a couple of months. 

Muesli
*Makes about 8 cups

4 1/2 c rolled oats (or other rolled grains…I sometimes get a blend of rolled red and white wheat, oats, triticale, barley and rye)

1 c raisins

1 c chopped dried fruit (I like chopped dates and dried cherries…just make sure there is no added sugar)

1/4 c ground flax

1/2 c chopped walnuts

1/2 c chopped or sliced almonds

1/2 c unsweetened shredded coconut

1/4 c raw sunflower seeds

Optional: 1/4 tsp cinnamon

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Store in an airtight container. Muesli keeps for 2 months at room temperature. Serve with unsweetened almond milk (or milk if choice). Can have this cold or warm…if warm, place in microwave for a few seconds after adding milk. You can also top this with fresh fruit like strawberries, blueberries or peaches.

Vegan Tapioca Pudding

I love tapioca pudding! My husband and most of my kids do not; they don’t like the consistency of the tapioca pearls/balls, but I do! Unfortunately, I have a dairy sensitivity and tapioca is generally made with a lot of cows milk, so I rarely get to have this, and when I do, I either have a very small bowl, or I pay for it later. Which, lets be honest, I sometimes do. While visiting my sister this past Summer(who is vegan), I tried a tapioca pudding she makes with almond and coconut milk, and sweetens with pure maple syrup. It was delicious and I was so happy to have found a dairy-free, and refined-sugar-free recipe!

You’ll need these ingredients. The only thing I didn’t have on hand was the Tapioca, and I found this on the baking aisle in our local grocery store. I’ve made this recipe several times and I still have a lot left, so they go a long way. Also, since the real vanilla is currently $35 for this size container, I have been using the imitation vanilla, and I’m totally okay with doing that until the prices aren’t exorbitant! 

Start off by soaking the tapioca pearls in almond milk for one hour. I just do this in the liquid glass measuring dish I used to measure my milk…I’m all about finding ways to use less dishes. 

Once finished soaking, transfer the tapioca and milk mixture to a medium saucepan and add the remaining ingredients. Over medium heat bring this mixture to a boil and then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Chill for at least two hours or overnight; it thickens as it chills. Or if you like it a little runnier, and warmer, dig in after it’s cooled enough that it won’t burn your tongue! 

Vegan Tapioca Pudding
*serves 6-8

1/3 c Tapioca pearls

1 c unsweetened almond milk

1 can full fat coconut milk (I like Thai kitchen brand)

1/3 c pure maple syrup

1 tsp vanilla

Pinch of sea salt

Soak tapioca pearls in almond milk for one hour. Transfer tapioca to a medium saucepan and add the remaining ingredients. Over medium heat bring this mixture to a boil and then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Chill for at least two hours or overnight.

Vegan Gravy

I have this recipe posted at the bottom of a couple of other recipes that call for gravy, but I didn’t have it on it’s own…until now. This makes about 2 cups and is great in Chicken Broccoli Casserole, with Hawaiin Haystacks, and many other things.

In a medium saucepan, warm the oil over medium heat(You can olive or avocado oil, or butter). Stir in garlic and saute one minute. Add the flour and whisk. Whisk in broth, milk, dried onion and salt. Stir over medium to medium-hi heat for about 5 minutes until thickened. This recipe makes a little over 2 cups of gravy.

Gravy (vegan)
*makes 2 cups

4 Tbsp avocado oil (butter or olive oil work too)
2 tsp minced garlic
5 T whole white wheat flour (or any flour including gluten-free)
2 c vegetable broth
1/2 c unsweetened almond milk
2 tsp dried minced onion
1 1/2 tsp sea salt

In a saucepan, warm the oil over medium heat. Stir in garlic and saute one minute. Add the flour and whisk. Whisk in broth, milk, dried onion and salt. Stir over medium to medium-hi heat for about 5 minutes until thickened. Makes about 2 cups.

Chia Seed Pudding

This is a cool and sweet snack that you can feel good about. And as chia seeds expand, they help you to feel fuller, so if you’re trying to eat less, this is a great little snack to have around. Chia seeds are high in Omega 3 fatty acids which is something people will try to get from fish oil supplements, but I prefer throwing chia seeds (or flax seeds) in my foods instead. Try this out, it’s a great summer snack. 

THE RECIPE

Chia Seed Pudding (lightly adapted from Kimberly Snyder)
*4-6 servings

1/4 chia seeds
1 1/2- 1 3/4c unsweetened almond milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 Tbsp pure maple syrup or coconut nectar
optional: 2 tsp cacao powder (can sub carob powder)

Place chia seeds in a quart jar. Add the remaining ingredients and put lid on tight. Shake vigorously until all combined (a few seconds). Let stand at least 15 minutes before mixing again and serving. Store in fridge.

*the amount of almond milk depends on how thick/runny you’d like it. I like mine runny, so I use 1 3/4 cup, but use less if you want it a little thicker.

Lentil Vegetable Soup

Lentils are high in protein, iron, fiber, folate and magnesium(read heart healthy), and they improve digestion so they are something I always have on hand and I try to cook them for the familiy here in there, usually in the form of soups. This is a recipe most of the family likes; like 5/7 of us which is good in my opinion…we have a couple picky eaters who will only eat the allotted 3 bites we ask them to try, but honestly they do that with anything besides burritos or pizza.

Start off with chopping up your veggies: onion, carrot and celery. You don’t need much, just a half cup of each. Then warm your olive oil in a large pot (I use a soup stock pot), and once it’s warm, add your veggies and cook them til they’re tender, about 5 minutes. Add in your garlic, and Italian seasoning, stir for a minute, then add in the lentils, vegetable stock, water and tomatoes. Bring this to a boil and then turn the heat down to low and allow it to simmer, uncovered for about an hour. No need to stand right next to it and stir, I just grabbed a book and sat and read, and helped kids with homework til the buzzer rang. Once done, add in the salt, pepper and spinach and stir to combine; the spinach will wilt which is perfect. And that’s it! Easy, healthy and so yummy and warming! Enjoy!

Lentil Vegetable Soup
*serves 8

1 Tbsp olive or coconut oil
1/2 c yellow onion, chopped
1/2 c carrot, chopped
1/2 c celery, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced (1 tsp)
2 tsp dried Italian seasoning
2 c dry lentils, rinsed (I used red but any will work)
4 c vegetable stock
4 c cool, filtered water
2 Roma tomatoes, chopped
1/2 c baby spinach, rinsed
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp black pepper

Pour oil into a large soup pot, over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot and celery and cook for about 5 minutes, until tender but not burned. Add garlic, Italian seasoning and cook another minute. Add lentils, vegetable stock, water and tomatoes. Bring pot to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer uncovered for about 1 hour. Add spinach, salt and pepper. Stir until spinach is wilted and serve.