Salisbury.Fake food, snacks

Nut and Seed Bars/Trail Mix

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So, the fun thing about these is I can never get my granola bars to stay in bar form.  I have tried sticky sweeteners with baking and not baking, and I’ve tried egg whites and flax eggs.  I left out the oats this time, and I used a flax egg to bind everything.  I used brown rice syrup as well, since I discovered it was the stickiest sweetener.  To me, anyway.

I wanted to make this since I’m going on a camping trip this week, and I wanted to have some snacks to take on the trail with me while I go hiking.  I’m excited for the upcoming trip, and I plan on making a bigger post for it when I come back.  It might take time for me to post it, so I’m hoping this one will be okay enough till I can get my thoughts together.

Nut & Seed Trail Mix Maybe Bars

1/4 cup sunflower seeds, roasted
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds, raw
2 tbsp hemp seeds, shelled
2 flax eggs (mix 2 tbsp ground flax with 6 tbsp water and mix. Let sit till gelled, about five minutes)
1 1/2 cups crispy rice cereal
1/4 tsp kosher salt (a pinch, really)
2 cups cashews, roasted
1 1/2 cups almonds, roasted
1/2 cup brown rice syrup (or other sticky sweetener, I just find this one holds better)
2 tbsp vegetarian/vegan friendly butter

Melt together sweetener and butter, then add in flax eggs.  Add all ingredients to a large mixing bowl and add syrup mixture.  Mix everything well together and spread evenly into a half sheet pan.  Place in fridge to set, then bake at 350* F for ten minutes.  Cool and either cut into bars or break into pieces for trail mix.  Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

 

Salisbury.Fake dinner, food, Uncategorized

Black Bean and Walnut Burgers

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Life being what it is, and my lack of motivation for blog posting, here’s a simple recipe for some burgers.  They’re easy.  All you need is a food processor, a mixing bowl, spatula, baking sheet, and that’s pretty much it.  Measuring spoons, too, if you’re in the mood for precise measurements.

Black Bean and Walnut Burgers 

1 cup walnuts, lightly toasted (you don’t want them completely raw, but not completely toasted either)
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup quinoa, cooked
1/4 cup plain bread crumbs (the can I have isn’t vegan, which makes me wonder why milk is sneaked into everything like it knows the deal)
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp white vinegar
1 heaping tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 heaping tsp smoked paprika (optional, but it adds in that nice kind of charred taste you get from a grill without having a grill)
1 flax egg (1 tbsp ground flaxmeal, 3 tbsp water, mix and set aside for two minutes)

In your food processor, mix together all of the ingredients aside from the bread crumbs and quinoa.  You want it to resemble a wet dough almost.  Scrape sides if you’ve got some errant spices (my paprika likes to cling to the sides). Some chunks are okay.  Texture and whatnot.

After this, add the mixture to a mixing bowl and add in the quinoa and bread crumbs.  Mix together pretty well.  You don’t want to have bread crumbs hanging out.

Scoop out 1/3 cup of the mixture and press into a patty shape.  You get about six patties out of this mixture.  You can bake them at 375* F for 15-18 minutes, flipping halfway, or you can pan fry them for 2-3 minutes a side.  I didn’t have time to babysit a pan today, so I made mine in the oven.  They freeze spectacularly well, and work well as ground “beef” crumbles in spaghetti sauce.

Fair warning, they do dry out a little in the oven, so pan frying is recommended, but if you’re okay with dousing things in barbecue sauce like I am, then you’ll be fine with oven baked.

Salisbury.Fake dinner, food

Basil Pesto Fettucine and White Beans

 

 

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Basil Pesto Fettucine with White Beans

For the beans:

1 12 oz can white beans (great northern, I think they’re called), drained and rinsed
3 medium cloves garlic, minced
3 tbsp olive oil

Heat the oil in a skillet.  Add the beans and cook for 2-3 minutes.  You’re looking to dry the beans out a bit.  They’ll start to brown and get crispy, which is completely fine.  Add the garlic and continue cooking on low heat till the beans are tender crisp, and then remove from heat.

For the pesto:

About a cup and a half of loosely packed fresh basil leaves
2 small cloves of garlic
1/2 cup walnuts
salt, pepper to taste
1/4 cup olive oil

Blend in a food processor the basil, garlic, walnuts, and salt and pepper.  Slowly drizzle in the olive oil until a ball forms.  You don’t want it to be too loose.

Cook about a pound of fettucine to al dente.  Drain and set aside.

Add the beans to the pasta, then stir in the pesto.  Add about 1 1/2 cups of cashew milk, or other non dairy milk of your choice.  Or if you drink dairy milk, feel free to add that instead.  You’re going to stir everything together and then let it come to a simmer for 5-7 minutes, or until the sauce thickens slightly.  This is why you want your pasta almost cooked.  You’ll finish cooking it in the sauce.

Serve with salad, or just on its own.  This recipe makes four servings.

Salisbury.Fake dinner

Stuffed Poblano Peppers

Sorry there’s no photo with this one.  Melted cheese is hard to photograph before it turns kind of gloppy, and people wanted to eat right away.  Next time, though!

25 ounce can hominy, drained and rinsed
15 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 pint of mushrooms, sliced thin
1 mango, small dice
1/2 cup onion, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup vegetable stock
8 ounces shredded Monterrey Jack cheese
vegetable oil, as needed
5-8 poblano peppers

Heat the oven to 375 F, and line a sheet pan with either foil or parchment paper.  Rub the peppers with oil until coated, then place on the sheet pan.  Roast for about half an hour, or until the skins start to blister.  Remove the peppers from the oven and place in a large bowl.  Cover with plastic wrap and set aside.

In a large skillet, heat about 2 tablespoons oil over medium-high heat, and then combine the hominy, black beans, mushrooms, mango, onion, garlic, and the spices.  Cook for about three minutes, and then add in the vegetable stock.  Cover and let cook for three more minutes, and then remove the cover.  Continue cooking until there is very little liquid left in the pan, and the onions and mango are soft.

Remove the peppers from the bowl and peel the skins off.  Cut a slit along one side and open carefully.  Remove the seeds and the core.  Once the peppers are all deseeded and peeled, spoon some of the filling onto the inside of the pepper, and top with some cheese, about a tablespoon.  Fold over the sides so the filling is tucked in, and top with more cheese.  Do this for all of the peppers.  (You may have leftover filling, but that’s okay, this makes a great burrito or taco filling as well.)

Bake the peppers at 375 for about ten minutes, or until the cheese is melted and starting to brown.

Salisbury.Fake dinner, food

Quinoa with Red & Green Peppers, Onion, and Garlic

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1 small onion, diced
1 quarter of a red pepper, diced
1 quarter of a green pepper, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup red and white quinoa
1 1/2 cups vegetable stock
1/2 teaspoon of ground coriander
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

In a medium sauce pan, heat the oil and then add in the peppers, garlic, and onion.  Cook for a few minutes until the vegetables start to soften.  Add the quinoa, stock, and coriander.  Bring to a boil and then cover with the lid tilted so steam can escape.  Reduce the heat to simmer and cook until the quinoa has expanded and white threads appear around it (10-15 minutes).  Add any salt and pepper if you’d like.

This makes several servings.  Store leftovers in the fridge for up to a week.