Black Bean and Pumpkin Lasagna

Who thinks of these things??? Pumpkin? But of course it's another great recipe! Mmmmm

12 lasagna noodles (I used brown rice lasagna noodles)

1 tbsp olive oil

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

1 medium red bell pepper, chopped (I didn't add this because I didn't have one)

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 1/2 cups cooked or canned black beans

1 (15oz) can crushed tomatoes

2 tsp chili powder (divided)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 lb firm tofu, well drained

3 tbsp minced cilantro

1 (160z) can pumpkin puree

3 cups tomato salsa (recipe in last post or store bought)

1/2 cup coarsely ground pumpkin seeds

1. In a pot of boiling salted water, cook the noodles until al dente, about 7 minutes. Drain and set aside. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

2. In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion, cover and cook until softened. Add the bell pepper and garlic and cook until softened, 5 minutes longer. Stir in the beans, tomatoes, 1 tsp of the chili powder, and salt and black pepper to taste. Mix well and set aside.

3. In a large bowl, combine the tofu, cilantro, the remaining 1 tsp chili powder, and salt and pepper to taste. Set aside. In a medium bowl, combine the pumpkin with the salsa and stir to blend well. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

4. Spread about 3/4 cup of the pumpkin mixture in the bottom of a 9 X 13 inch baking dish. Top with 4 of the noodles. top with half of the bean mixture, followed by half of the tofu mixture. top with four of the noodles, followed by a layer of the pumpkin mixture, then the remaining bean mixture, topped with the remaining noodles. Spread the remaining tofu mixture over the noodles, followed by the remaining pumpkin mixture, spreading ti to the edges of the pan.

5. Cover with foil and bake until hot and bubbly, about 50 minutes. Uncover, sprinkle with pumpkin seeds, and let stand 10 minutes before serving.

My very first SALSA

I have never made Salsa before because there are so many good and fresh salsa's available. BUT today I thought I would give it a try. It's easy. VERY easy and looks so good. I can't believe how one little, tiny, baby pepper can give this recipe such a kick! I love it.

Fresh Tomato Salsa

5 ripe tomatoes, chopped

1 serrano chile ( I don't know what kind I used, it was dried. I got it from my asain friend)

1/4 cup chopped red onion (I used yellow because that what I have in the house)

1 garlic clove, minced

1 tbsp minced fresh cilantro

1 tbsp fresh lime juice

1/2 tsp salt

In a glass bowl, combine all the ingredients and mix well. Cover and let the flavours combine for at least 30 minutes or refrigerate until ready to use.

Forget the eggs....Scrambled Tofu

What a fun dish! I had it with chicory coffee and spelt flour toast, a perfect breakfast - except I had it for dinner :)

1 tbsp oil olive

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

2 cups thinly sliced, cremini mushrooms

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 lb extra-firm tofu, drained

1/4 cup nutritional yeast

juice of 1/2 lemon

1 carrot, peeled and grated

SPICE BLEND:

2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp ground paprika

1/2 tsp ground turmeric

1 tsp salt

Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Saute the onions for 3 minutes until softened; add the mushrooms, saute for 5 minutes; add the garlic, saute for 2 minutes. Add the spice blend and mix it up for 15 seconds or so. Add 1/4 cup water to deglaze the pan, scraping the bottom to get all the garlic and spices.

Crumble in the tofu and mix well. Don't crush the tofu, just kind of lift it and mix it around. Let cook for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally and adding splashes of water if necessary to keep it from sticking too much. Add the lemon juice and nutritional yeast and mix it up.

Grate the carrot into the tofu mixture and fold.

Add a cup of salsa at the end, cook for 1 minute extra for a Mexican entree.

Tastes Like Tuna Salad Sandwiches

It was so good I ate it all and didn't get a photo. Another winner. This actually tastes like tuna...ok I haven't had tuna for awhile...but even my carnivore husband says it tastes GREAT and like tuna. It tastes so good in a toasted sandwich with lettuce and tomato. I used spelt bread. Mmmm.

This recipe uses kelp powder. Kelp powder has an abundance of health benefits. It contains natural iodine ( which is way better then the chemical iodine) plus virtually every mineral in the ocean. From calcium, vitamin K, iron, folate, zinc and many more.

1 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas
2 celery ribs, minced
1/4 cup minced onion
1 tsp capers, drained and chopped
1/2 cup veganaise
2 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp kelp powder
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

In a medium bowl, coarsely mash the chickpeas. Add the celery, onion, capers, veganaise, lemon juice, mustard, and kelp powder. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Mix until well combined. Cover and refrigerate at least 30 minutes.
Tastes good on bread with lettuce and tomato.

Today Is DIP DAY

After starting my day off with a healthy breakfast of steel cut oats, barley flakes, buckwheat mixed with apple, cinnamon and of course my favourite protein Hemp Hearts, I decided to have dips for the rest of my meals.
For lunch I had hummus. Chickpeas have 11g of protein per cup!!! I made my other favourite dip Mushroom Pate. It is so rich and one of the best things I have eaten (find the recipe in my past posts). Then for dinner I had spinach-tahini dip (it's kind of like gomai) and served it with Chickpea & Rosemary bread.

CREAMY SPINACH-TAHINI
1 (10oz) package fresh baby spinach (I used lots of spinach)
2 garlic cloves
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup tahini
Juice of 1 lemon (always use fresh lemon juice!!!)
Ground cayenne
2 tsps toasted sesame seeds, for garnish (I forgot to add these)

Lightly steam the spinach until wilted, about 3 minutes. Squeeze dry and set aside.
In a food processor, process the garlic and salt until finely chopped. Add the steamed spinach, tahini, lemon juice, and cayenne to taste. Process until well blended and taste. Transfer the dip to a serving bowl and sprinkle with the sesame seeds.

CHICKPEA & ROSEMARY BREAD
1 cup water
1 cup chickpea flour
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp salt
2 tsp fresh chopped rosemary
Freshly ground black pepper

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the water and the chickpea flour until the mixture is very smooth. Add the oil, salt, and rosemary and mix until smooth and well blended. Set aside at room temperature for at least 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Lightly oil a 12-inch pizza pan or large oven proof skillet and heat in the oven until hot. Carefully remove the pan from the oven and pour the batter into the pan. Bake until the top is firm and the edges are golden brown, about 15 minutes.
To serve, sprinkle with pepper and cut into slices. Serve immediately.

Langley Times - A vegan triathlete's healthy fuel

Langley Times - A vegan triathlete's healthy fuel

Curried Tofu "egg salad" pitas

Another wow weeee recipe.
I'm not a big fan of tofu (trying to stay away from packaged products) but this is such a nice change for lunch.


1lb extra firm tofu, drained and patted dry
1/2 cup veganaise
1/4 cup mango chutney (recipe in last post)
2 tsp dijon mustard
1 tbsp curry powder
1 tsp salt
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
3/4 cup shredded carrots
2 celery ribs, minced
1/4 cup minced red onion
8 small boston or butter lettuce leaves
4 whole wheat pita breads, halved

1. Crumble the tofu and place it in a large bowl. Add the veganaise , chutney, mustard, curry powder, salt, and cayenne, and stir well until thoroughly mixed.
2. Add the carrots, celery, and onion and stir to combine. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to allow the flavours to blend.
3. Tuck a lettuce leaf inside each pita pocket, spoon some tofu mixture on top of the lettuce, and serve.