Quite possibly one of the best cookies I've ever had!

I really do have to get away from baking sweets, but I did it again. Last night before discovering and joining Dr. Fuhrman's Six Week Holiday Challenge I had already combined all the dry ingredients for the Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe Keri posted the other day over at her I Eat Trees blog. I figured I might as well go ahead and whip them up.

Please note, just because something is "vegan" it does not automatically mean that it's healthy. Cakes and cookies are essentially junk food and to be avoided or at least reserved for very special occasions, and I don't mean "let's celebrate, it's the weekend!"

Of course I wasn't going to eat any. Then I decided to have a very small piece so I'd know if they turned out okay. I took something of the equivalent of a 1 square inch piece to test it out. That little morsel sent my taste buds soaring into realms of delight! It tasted like toffee! Jon says they taste like a Skor bar! It just may be the best tasting most delectable cookie I've ever eaten! It's crunchy because it's not loaded with fat, but it's chewy at the same time. My teens gave them an enthusiastic thumbs up. [Don't get used to them kids!!]

Mine look kinda flat compared to Keri's much prettier specimens, but I'm figuring that's because instead of half the flour being whole wheat pastry flour, I used whole wheat flour. Where does a Canadian get whole wheat pastry flour anyway? Oh I just noticed that I forgot to flatten them slightly before putting them into the oven! No matter, they turned out really well, unfortunately.

Veggie Burgers, Caesar Salad Dressing, and Naturally Fat-Free Ice Cream!

Believe it or not, this meal absolutely had me stuffed! I could barely finish my cauliflower! I share the salad dressing recipe below.
The other evening I tried one of Dr. Fuhrman's recipes. I have his book, "Eat to Live". It put me on the track to becoming a vegan.

The recipe is for Walnut Lentil Veggie Burgers (recipe below). They were very yummy! I may add some more herbs and spices next time, maybe not. It has lots of potential for becoming outstanding!

Jon (hubby) really liked them, so much so that my hopes of having leftovers for another meal were dashed. They're pretty darn good. The kids ate theirs all up. They have definitely made it into our meal rotation.

They look a little overdone, but really they weren't.
Dr. Fuhrman's Walnut Lentil Veggie Burgers

Makes 8

2 cups onion, diced
2 carrots, diced
1/2 bell pepper, diced (I didn't have any)
5 large cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons VegiZest (I used 1 veggie bouillon cube in the water)
2 teaspoons Italian Seasoning
3 tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar
1-1/4 cup water
4 tablespoons no-salt added tomato paste
2 cups cooked lentils, drained
1-1/2 tablespoon ground flax seed
1-1/2 tablespoon raw sesame tahini
1-1/2 tablespoon nutritional yeast
1 tablespoon no-salt mustard
1/2 cup walnuts, finely chopped (I used pecans)
1/4 cup oatmeal, ground
2 tablespoons whole wheat pastry flour
2 tablespoons parsley, minced (I used 1 Tbsp dried parsley)

Directions

Sauté onion, carrots, bell pepper and garlic in a large pan until softened, adding water, if necessary, to prevent sticking, about 5-6 minutes.

I sliced the carrots in the food processor, and then put in my S-blade and pulsed them until they were finely chopped
I prepared all the wet ingredients in advance (not including the tahini and mustard)
Add VegiZest, Italian seasonings, balsamic vinegar, water, tomato paste, and stir well. Simmer, covered, for about 5-7 minutes. Uncover and cook an additional 5 minutes until thick.

I mixed up all the dry ingredients up together. In hindsight, I should have processed the nuts a little finer
Transfer to a mixing bowl and let cool a few minutes. Add lentils and remaining ingredients and mix well by hand. Cover and refrigerate at least 30 minutes, or until ready to bake.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray a baking pan with oil. Take about a rounded 1/3 cup of the mixture, form into balls, and place on baking sheet. Using a moistened flat bottomed glass or jar, flatten balls into a burger shape. Bake for 12 minutes, turn over and bake an additional 12 minutes until lightly browned.

* Serves 8.

Vegan Caesar Salad Dressing

I have no idea where I got this recipe from! I have adapted it somewhat, that I do know. No matter, it's very yummy! As a nutritarian-vegan I have to limit my use of it due to the processed oil, but it's nice for an occassional fancy treat for the family (okay and me!).

2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
2 Tbsp nutritional yeast flakes
2 Tbsp ground almonds
2-3 garlic cloves, crushed
2 Tbsp water
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1/2 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
1 Tbsp oil
1/8 tsp pepper
(I have yet to do this but you could add a pinch or two of salt)

With a hand mixer, combine the first 4 ingredients. It will form a paste. Beat in remaining ingredients--I usually combine them first and gradually pour it all in while beating.

Pour into small mason jar and refrigerate.

Moving onto ice-cream...

Who doesn't love ice cream?! Take a look at this dish of scrumptious non-dairy fat free ice cream down yonder. It's frosty and creamy, everything you'd expect from a really good soft ice cream. It's Dr. Fuhrman's Banana Fluff recipe with a little unsweetnened cocoa powder thrown in.

I don't have a VitaMix yet, but I did well using my food processor. I tried using my blender but it could not deal with the frozen banana even though I had broken in up into 1" pieces before freezing. You'll need 1 banana per serving.

I'm definitely going to be on the lookout for more non-dairy frozen dessert recipes!

I detest flash photography but
the urge to try this recipe
struck at night!
Chocolate Banana Fluff

1 serving

1 frozen chopped or broken up banana*
1/4 cup almond, rice, or other non-dairy milk
a splash of vanilla extract
2 tsp cocoa powder (next time we're upping it to 1 Tbsp)

Throw it all in your food processor or high-powered blender and process until smooth. Pulsing it seems to help. Dish out and enjoy!

My teens loved it even though they're not big fans of banana. What a great way to treat your little ones to a healthy frozen dessert!

*do this a day ahead, peel and chop up (if you just have a food processor like me) a ripe banana, throw into a ziploc baggie and toss in freezer.

Lilibeth's Low Fat Vegan Chocolate Cake

Mmmmmm, vegan chocolate cake! No eggs, no dairy, no vegan margarine. Whole wheat flour even makes an appearance.

I chose to use both unsweetened applesauce and mashed banana in my recipe. It may seem odd to utilize 2 different types of pureed fruit, but the applesauce subs in for some of the oil, and the banana is a substitute for eggs and helps with moistness. Cornstarch has been used as an egg substitute also, a bit of insurance if you will!


It calls for half the sugar of most recipes and is sweetened by the fruit which provides extra nutrition. Also, using a good portion of fruity sweetness allows for increasing the amount of cocoa! Always a plus!


Lilibeth's Low Fat Vegan Chocolate Cake

Like many cakes, they taste better after 24 hours. Make this a day ahead if you can.

DRY INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup white flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
4 Tbsp. cornstarch
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking powder

WET INGREDIENTS
1 ripe banana
2 Tbsp. almond or rice milk
3 Tbsp. oil (I use canola)....I may add an extra tsp. next time
1/2 cup organic cane sugar (or white sugar)
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350. Grease or line with parchment paper an 8x8 square pan.

Blend dry ingredients together. Tip: I often sift the cocoa if it has any lumps.

Mash banana, leaving the least amount of chunks possible, and put into large bowl. Add 2 Tbsp. almond milk. Using hand mixer, blend these together well. Add oil, sugar, applesauce, and vanilla extract. Blend these together with mixer.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet and gently blend the two together by hand just until combined.

If you have kids, make sure you let them lick the beaters, spoon and bowl clean! It's one of the bonuses of vegan baking!
Pour into pan and spread evenly. Mine was done in 20 minutes, so check it to see if a toothpick comes out clean then. I also covered it with foil midway through.

Let cool, cut into bars, eat....unless you just can't eat cake without frosting. I've included a bonus Vegan Chocolate Frosting recipe below.

frosting was an afterthought and since the cake was already cut up, it stayed in the bowl to be used at will.
Lilibeth's Vegan Chocolate Frosting

I asked my hubby to taste test this on a piece of chocolate cake but he was already quite stuffed from our supper. He did stick a finger in the bowl to give it a little taste. He suddenly had room for more cake and scrambled to get himself a piece to slather some icing onto. He said the icing is amazing, and it's one of the best I've ever tasted.

Yeild: 1 cup (let's try to be modest, but double if you have to!)

1/4 cup oil
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup cocoa
3/4 cups icing sugar
2 Tbsp almond, rice, or hemp milk (plus a little more if needed)

Measure out the oil, vanilla extract, and cocoa into a bowl. Mix with a hand mixer until well blended. Add icing sugar and blend. It will end up being crumbly. Add almond milk and whip. You'll probably need more, just keep adding by the teaspoonful. You don't want it too thick or it'll make a mess of the cake when you try to spread it.

If you want to test it out first, or you eat some unfrosted cake and decide to indulge in adding frosting, here are the quantities for a half batch:

2 Tbsp cup oil
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
2 Tbsp cocoa
6 Tbsp icing sugar
1 Tbsp almond, rice, or hemp milk (plus a little more if needed)