Vegan 3 Bean Chili - Texas Style

Straight from the Lone Star State, this chili recipe is exactly what you'd expect from a place that perfected the Chili Cook-off. Full of flavor, satisfying, and with just a bit of spicy heat to fight the Autumn chill. 

This dish pair perfectly with my Texas Cornbread Recipe. 

Ingredients:

1 can of Fire Roasted Tomatoes

2 tablespoons of natural Peanut Butter

1 tablespoon of minced Garlic

1 teaspoon of Sea Salt

1/2 teaspoon ground Black Pepper

1/2 teaspoon of Chili Powder

1/2 teaspoon of Red Pepper Flakes

1/2 teaspoon of smoked Paprika

1/2 teaspoon of Basil

1/2 teaspoon of Oregano

1 can of organic Black Beans

1 can of organic Great Northern White Beans

1 can of organic Kidney Beans

1 cup of Sweet Yellow Corn, frozen

1 cup of Cherry Tomatoes, cut in half

Additional: 1 large Avocado & a pan of Texas Cornbread

Directions:

You make this recipe opposite of most recipes by starting with the seasoning and then adding the main ingredients last. (Hint: prepare your cornbread before you start the chili so it can bake while you make the chili. -wink-)

Empty all the beans from the cans, rinse them thoroughly and let them drain while you begin the sauce. 

In a large saucepan over medium heat, add in the canned tomatoes (undrained, juice and all) and the peanut butter. Work them together with a wooden spoon or spatula, a paste should form. Next add all the spices and work them into the tomato/peanut butter paste. As the mixture warms it will grow easier to stir.

Now add all the beans, the frozen corn (still frozen) and the cherry tomatoes cut in half. Heat over of low-medium temperature until the cherry tomatoes are soft and tender. Stirring frequently to make sure all the flavors mingle deliciously. 

Dice the avocado. Serve the chili over a piece of golden, sweet cornbread and sprinkle with fresh chunks of avocado. Enjoy!

This recipe is:

-Vegan

-Gluten Free

Best Cornbread Ever - A Happy Accident

A dear friend needed cheering up. They're a big fan of my Vegan 3 Bean Chili, so I decided to make a kettle full. You can't have good Texas Chili without good Texas Cornbread.

Cornbread is deceptively hard to do well. It's considered a poor man's bread and recipes for it are often quite simple. This leads those new to making it believe it'll be an easy do. However, the trick to cornbread is cooking it so it doesn't get hard and crumbly. While baking, cornbread can go from being just under-done to over-done in minutes.

I'm a Texas darling. I've made cornbread for almost 20 years. I do it quite well, though not perfectly. I've always had Red Hendricks' cornbread in my head as the gold standard of good cornbread. Hers came from the oven fluffy and flaky and it melted on your tongue. And until this week, I never made anything close to it.

Yesterday afternoon, I was busy in my kitchen baking cheer. The Autumn weather had me nostalgic for the smell of home baked bread, I decided to make a small loaf while I started a pot of slow-cook chili.

As it goes in the usual process of baking homemade bread, I set my oven to 200*F, wrapped the dough in a wet towel and set it to rise in the oven. Meanwhile I prepared my cornbread recipe, poured it in the pan and let it sit while the bread dough finished rising. Good cornbread batter should always sit for about 15mins in the pan before you bake it. The ingredients combine beautifully and it does it's own version of rising which is just time for the baking soda to react.

The old rule of thumb to Texas Cornbread and Texas BBQ is to cook it low and slow. My intention on removing the wheat bread dough from the oven was to turn the heat up to 300*F, where the cornbread would bake for 30 mins. Instead I completely forgot and put the cornbread batter in immediately and never adjusted the temp from 200*F.

Twenty minutes into baking, while I'm chopping onions and fighting my watery onion eyes, my brain rings a bell that I've forgotten to raise the temp. In a panic I check the cornbread to find the coloring is good and it's rising slowly. I raised the oven temp to the right temp (300*F) and crossed my fingers that I hadn't ruined it completely.

Another twenty minutes later, I pulled a lovely loaf of soft, golden Texas Cornbread from the oven. I allowed it to cool and sampled my handwork.

Red Hendrick would be so proud of me. (wink) The cornbread was perfect...light, fluffy, and melt-in-your-mouth delicious. 

Eager to determine if this happy accident was the cause of my delicious creation, I put in another pan of batter. I repeated the same process exactly. The cornbread came out perfectly again.

Below is the recipe I've used for years to make cornbread from scratch. I encourage you to try it, along with my Vegan 3 Bean Chili for the perfect cold-weather meal.

Ingredients:

1 cup of stone ground, whole grain yellow Corn Meal (white varieties also work well)
1 cup of unbleached wheat flour (*You can substitute Gluten-Free Flour with Xantham Gum)
1 cup of Sugar in the Raw (or brown sugar)
1/2 teaspoon of Baking Soda
1/2 teaspoon of Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon of Sea Salt
1 cup of Almond or Soy Milk (any milk will do)
1 cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 large brown Eggs

Directions:
Preheat your oven to 200*F. Grease your baking pan. 

Mix all dry ingredients into a large bowl. Stir them with a fork with make sure they're well combined. Dent a deep well in the middle of the mixture to pour in the wet ingredients for mixing.

In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, and oil. Pour them into the well in the dry ingredient bowl. Using the same fork, work the dry ingredients into the wet mixture, keeping attention to the sides and bottom of bowl, until everything is well mixed. 

I prefer to bake my cornbread in a Bundt pan, but you use which ever well-greased pan works best for you. While popular, I would recommend you not make cornbread in a muffin pan. It dries out quickly when baked that way. Pour the batter into the pan and let is set undisturbed for at least 15mins. No need to time it, an approximation works and there's no penalty for letting it set longer.

Place the pan on the center oven rack. Let it bake for 20 mins. Turn the pan in the oven, and raise the temp to 300*F for another 20 mins. The top of the cornbread should be golden brown and slightly tacky to the touch. A toothpick should slide out clear. Let the cornbread cool for 15 minutes before serving. This allows the moisture (steam) to settle in the bread and seal it's moist texture.

Enjoy!

This recipe is:
-Vegetarian
-Gluten-Free

Vegetarian Vegetable Soup

Hearty. Simple. Delicious. 

The weather is slowly turning colder and the hearty warmth of homemade soup is perfect way to chase away the Autumn chill. This simple recipe will fill your kitchen with the amazing smell you remember from childhood. Reach into the back of your cupboard and pull out that old soup kettle. It's time to make something wonderful.

This recipe makes a sizable quantity. The broth is divine and can be used in many wonderful ways. I recommend saving the extra broth and freezing. (Hint: Use extra broth from this recipe to replace the water next time you prepare rice. You'll end up with a savory, herb rice your guests will rave about.)

Ingredients for Stock:

16 cups (1gl) of Water*

2 medium White or Golden Potatoes, skinned and diced as small as possible

3 tablespoons of dried Parsley

3 tablespoons of Sea Salt

2 tablespoons of minced Garlic

2 teaspoons of Ground Black Pepper

2 teaspoons of dried Basil

2 teaspoons of dried Rosemary

1 teaspoon of dried Thyme

1 teaspoon of dried Cilantro

1 teaspoon of dried Chive

1 stick of real Butter or 1/2 cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

 

Vegetables & Noodles:

-You can use which ever vegetables appeal most to you. Below is a list of vegetables I really enjoy, but you can add or subtract as you desire. Try and keep the onions as they provide true weight to the broth and, alongside the potatoes, they provide the creamy texture loved in soups.

- This is a soup recipe and you have a lot of vegetables to chop. Please do not stress about the chopping size or uniformity of your veggie pieces. Big hearty bites appeal to the eye and they work better for lending their flavor to the overall taste of the soup.

4 large or 6 medium Onions, chopped into hearty chunks
8-10 Carrots chopped into 1'' pieces
6 Celery stalks, cut in half length-wise and chopped into 1/2'' pieces
6 Green Onions, chop into 1/2'' pieces all the way up into the greenery
 Other Delicious Add-Ins: 1 Parsnip, chopped into 1'' pieces and/or 1 Leek, chopped into 1'' pieces

1 package of Whole Wheat Egg Noodles or Whole Wheat Gluten Free Noodles.

Directions:

Start your stock before you do anything else.

Many of the soups we know today use dehydrated corn starch or potato starch to create the creaminess we love in soup. Under the Eden Tree we don't use artificial add-ins like these, because we know that nature provides enough of that coveted starch naturally in vegetables. We don't have to use a replacement. The two potatoes you are skinning and dicing very small will eventually boil down until they almost disappear. Nature's own soup thickener -wink- done the old-fashioned way.

Put your water into the kettle and heat it on a medium-high setting. Add the diced potatoes and every bit of the herbs and spices (and any extras that sound good to you). You want to bring the stock to a gentle boil before adding all the chopped veggies. Stir the soup from time to time to mingle all the delicious ingredients. The soup can gently boil away while you begin chopping your veggies.

Please don't add the veggies one at a time as you finish chopping them. Wait until all your veggies are chopped and ready to go, then put them all in at once. Reduce the heat to medium-low and bring it again to a gentle boil. Remember to stir the soup every few minutes to keep the veggies moving around and the flavors mingling. 

When you can easily stick a fork through one of the carrot pieces, you can add the whole bag of whole wheat noodles. Continue to boil the soup over a low heat setting until the noodles are fully cooked.

Serve and Enjoy!

This recipe is amazing when served with warm, fresh bread. And even more delicious the next day as leftovers!

This recipe is:
- Low-Fat
- Vegetarian/Vegan
- Gluten-Free

Raisin Walnut Cake with Orange Honey Glaze

Happy Autumn! 

This is hands-down my favorite time of year. The sights and sounds of the season fill my soul. The harvest is in, and the abundant assortment of fruits, vegetables, and nuts is the perfect canvas for the whole-food palette. 

Since dessert is everyone's part of dinner, I began this season's recipe list with a simple Southern delight straight from the farm. This sweet-salty treat will have your guest begging for another slice. Enjoy it with your favorite cup of coffee or afternoon tea.

Ingredients for Raisin Walnut Cake:
1 cup of finely ground Cornmeal (I recommend Bob's Mill.)
1 cup of unbleached Wheat Flour
1 cup of Sugar in the Raw
1/2 teaspoon of Baking Soda
1/2 teaspoon of Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon of Sea Salt (more for sprinkling)
2 large Brown Eggs
1 cup of Olive Oil, extra virgin
1 cup of Almond Milk
2 tablespoons of real Butter, melted
Additions:
1/2 teaspoon of grated Orange peel
1/2 cup of Raisins
1/4 cup of Walnut Pieces (you can crush whole walnuts for pieces)
Whole Walnuts for garnishment


Ingredients for Orange Honey Glaze:

1/2 cup of water
1 Orange, squeezed
1/4 cup of Honey
1cup of Sugar in the Raw

Directions:
Preheat the oven for 325* F. If your oven runs hot, then I'd suggest you use 300*F. When cooking anything made with cornmeal, cooking low and slow is the key. I recommend using a spring-form pan for this recipe.

Combine all dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. In a separate small mixing bowl, beat eggs thoroughly and then all remaining wet ingredients. Make a deep indention in the dry ingredient mix. Slowly pour the wet mixture into the center of the dry ingredients. Using a metal fork, or a hand whisk, completely work the dry ingredients into the wet mixture, being careful to scrape the sides of the bowl.

Once the cake batter is fully mixed, add the grated orange peel and fold in. Pour about a layer of batter into your non-stick baking pan. (Hint: I prefer to use mini single-serve cake pans to make individual corn cakes. The same affect can be had by using a cupcake pans without using the liners.) Sprinkle the batter with the raisins and walnut pieces. Cover the walnuts and raisins with another layer batter and sprinkle again. Finally cover it with a 3rd layer of batter.

Bake until the cornmeal batter is thoroughly cooked. This will vary depending on the size of the pan you use. A toothpick inserted in the center of the cake should come out clean and the top should be a bright golden color.

While the cake is baking prepare your Honey Orange Glaze. In a small saucepan, squeeze the juice of 1 orange. Add the honey, water, and sugar. Over medium-low heat, stir until a rich syrup forms. Make sure all the sugar is completely dissolved. 

This recipe is best served warm. Remove the cake from the pan and drizzle a healthy portion of the honey orange glaze over the top of the cake (if you make 1 large cake this will take about 1/2 the glaze). The cake will absorb most of the glaze. Lay whole walnuts on top the cake arranged in any way you find attractive. Sprinkle very lightly with sea salt, and drizzle more glaze atop the walnuts.

Serve with a hot cup of coffee or delicious tea. 

Arroz con Frijoles Negros - Black Bean & Rice

World Cup fervor has me daydreaming about my favorite Latin dishes.  The best thing about Latin food is that it's been one-pot, working-woman, quick to prepare for generations. Long before Rachel Ray, women in Latin communities were making delicious, flavorful meals simply and efficiently. This recipe relies on their cooking ingenuity, but adds a whole-food flare. 

This meal is an athlete's dream. If you are as active as me, or you're working hard to strengthen a tired body, prepare this generous dish and serve up a healthy serving of protein, complex carbohydrates, and vegetables.

Ingredients:
2 cups sprouted Brown Rice or long grain White Rice
2 teaspoons of Saffron
1 teaspoon of Turmeric
3 cups of water 
1 can of diced Tomatoes, with green peppers and onions
2 cups of canned Organic Black Beans, drained and rinse
2 Roma Tomatoes, chopped
1/4 cup of Fresh Cilantro, chopped
1 teaspoon Oregano
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon fresh ground pepper

Directions:

Add the turmeric and saffron to the water and bring to a boil. Add the can of diced tomatoes and rice, turn down heat allow to simmer for 25 minutes. Keep the rice covered and allow it absorb the last of the water. 

While the rice simmers, rinse the black beans with hot water and drain them. Chop the cilantro and Roma tomatoes. Combine black beans, oregano, salt and pepper. Fold in the cilantro and chopped tomatoes. 

At this point, you're probably thinking: aren't I supposed to heat the beans? Nope. Black beans, once cooked, do not need a lot of heat to rewarm them. Too much heat makes them mushy. Canned beans are precooked, so once you fold them into the newly cooked rice, the heat and steam from the rice is sufficient to warm the black beans. 

Remove the rice from the stove and fold in the black bean mixture. Allow to sit for about 6-8 minutes and then serve. The rice will finish heating the remaining ingredients. 

Enjoy!

Makes 4 Servings. 

This recipe is:
- Gluten Free 
- Vegan
- Whole Food

Whole Wheat Cinnamon Pancakes (Vegan)

Wholesome!   Hearty!   Delicious!

Ingredients:

1 cup of Whole Wheat Flour

1 cup of Sugar in the Raw

1/2 ground Oats

2 teaspoons of Apple Pie Spice

1 teaspoon of Baking Powder

1 teaspoon of Kosher Salt

1 cup of Almond or Soy Milk

Directions:

In mixing bowl, combine all dry ingredients and stir until the spice is well blended throughout. Add the milk and completely mix. Pour into a hot frying pan greased with a vegetable based oil and fry as you would regular pancakes. 

Serve with raw agave or natural maple syrup.

Recipe makes 8 three-inch pancakes.

This recipe is:

-Vegan

-Whole grain

Roasted Tomato Vermicelli

This dish answers the tough question:

What do I do?!

My doctor said I need to eat whole grain/plant-based diet.

But the foods I love aren't either! 

 

It's daunting when you first face such dramatic diet changes. I promise you the transition doesn't have to be as intimidating as it seems. Starting with small key changes you'll find yourself slowly getting a knack for this new cooking style. This simple, delicious recipe is a great example of how making these key substitutions just takes an extra step to turn old-favorites into new healthier versions. 

 

Most Americans love their spaghetti and pasta sauce. I certainly do! Frankly, there's little to be found nutritionally in a jar of canned/processed tomato sauce and boxed dried pasta. Read their labels. Can you pronounce or define all the ingredients? Honestly, without a chemistry degree, you probably can't. 

 

Substitute the processed semolina pasta for it's whole wheat partner, or better yet, go to a nearby Trattoria and ask the manager a pound of uncooked pasta. Pasta from scratch is a wonderful treat. Not everyone has this available to them, and it can be pricey. Whole wheat (make sure the box says 'whole wheat' not just 'wheat') pasta is a healthy substitute for regular white pasta and it only costs pennies more. Plus, your body will thank you for the extra fiber. 

 

If you have the patience, making pasta sauce at home isn't difficult to do from fresh scratch ingredients, and the end product is delicious! Plus, it can be canned or frozen to use again later.  However, it can be very  time consuming.

 

I'm a busy gal. I'm active and social. If you're anything like me, you probably don't have the time to spend two hours in the kitchen making homemade pasta sauce. This roasted tomato recipe takes 30 minutes and is bursting with fresh flavor!

 

 Enjoy!

 

Ingredients:

6 vine ripe Tomatoes (or 10-12 Compari Tomatoes), seeded and quartered

1 pound of Whole Wheat

1/2 cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil, plus more for the pot

2 tablespoons of Balsamic Vinegar

1 tablespoon of dried Parsley

1 teaspoon of dried Basil

1 teaspoon of Sea Salt

1/2 teaspoon of ground Black Pepper

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 400*F. 

Seed and quarter your tomatoes by cutting them in half first, and using the tines of a fork scoop out the seeds. Once seeded, cut them again into halves or thirds depending on the size of the tomatoes you've purchased. You want each tomato slice to be about 2 bites in size. 

(They will reduce in the oven to bite sized.)

In a small bowl, mix the olive oil, vinegar, and all the spices. Using a basting brush, brush the bottom of a baking pan with a thin layer of the balsamic oil. Lay all the tomatoes out flat, and baste them liberally with the balsamic herb oil. Place them in the oven and roast them for 30 minutes, turning once half way through and basting them again. 

Prepare your whole wheat pasta according to the directions, adding a large dash of olive into the pot at the start so the pasta won't stick together. 

Drain the cooked pasta and return it to the large pot it cooked in. Pour the roasted tomatoes over the pasta and fold it them in. For a stronger sauce flavor, you can pour the remaining balsamic herb oil in as well. 

Serve and enjoy!

Makes 4 servings.

This recipe is:
-Vegan/Vegetarian
-Whole Grain

Vegan Coconut Flan

Yes, it's really Vegan! 

And oh, goodness, it's soooo delicious!

Ingredient for the Caramel:

½ cup sugar

Ingredients for the Custard:

1 can of Coconut Crème

1 cup of Coconut Milk

2 Tbsp. Agar Flakes**

1 cup Silken Tofu
2 teaspoons of Coconut Extract

A pinch of Sea Salt

**For Vegetarians: you can use regular plain gelatin (unflavored Jello).

   Instead of two tablespoons, use two small packets.

Directions for the Caramel:

This is a bit tricky, but if you continuously stir the sugar as it heats you’ll be successful. Pour the sugar into a saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir until it turns golden and runny like dark honey.

Quickly, using a metal spoon, pour enough melted sugar into the bottom of a ramekin or small glass dish to just cover the bottom of the dish. Allow it to cool and harden at room temperature while you prep the custard.

Directions for the Custard:

Bring the coconut crème and coconut milk to a gentle boil. Immediately pour into a blender, add the agar or gelatin, and blend well (about a minute.)

Now add the tofu, coconut extract, and salt. Blend for another minute. Pour about ½ cup of custard mix over the hardened sugar in the ramekins.

Refrigerate about 2 hours before serving. To remove the flan from the ramekins, dip the bottoms of them in hot water for about 20 seconds. You should be able to spin it with your finger. Turn them over on a serving plate and let the delicious, creamy caramel run down the sides and across the plate.

Enjoy!

Makes 3 large (4”inch) or 5 small (3”inch) ramekins of flan.

This recipe is:

- Vegan/Vegetarian

- Whole Food

- Gluten-Free

Sunday Brunch Broccoli Salad

This elegant broccoli salad is the ideal accompaniment to any Southern Sunday Brunch. The light poppy seed dressing adds a sweet and tangy flavor which brightens the crunchy texture.  

Ingredients:

1 head of Broccoli, chopped

1 cup of Fage Plain Greek Yogurt

2 tablespoons of local, organic Honey

1 tablespoon of Poppy Seeds

1/2 cup of Purple Onion, Diced

1/2 cup of Dried Cranberries

1/2 cup of Sunflower Seeds, salted

Directions:

In a small mixing bowl, combine the yogurt, honey, and poppy seeds until thoroughly mixed. Pour over the chopped broccoli florets and stir to completely coat. Add the diced onion, dried cranberries and sunflowers seeds, stirring again to evenly combine. Keep the salad refrigerated until you're ready to serve.

This salad makes great leftovers! Enjoy it over the weekend, and have it again for lunch on Monday. 

Makes four 1 cup servings. 

This recipe is:

- Vegan

- Gluten-Free

- Whole-Food

Snickerdoodles!....Vegan and Gluten Free!!

If these delicious cookies sound too good to be true...

....they almost are!

Baking is my first culinary love. I whipped these up for a friend, and I had loads of fun, working out the science of making a tasty Snickerdoodle. This is a remake on a classic American cookie...but I think you'll agree that for all this recipe is missing: gluten and animal products, it makes up for in taste. 

I dare you to eat just one!

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups of Gluten-Free Flour mix (with xatham gum added)

¾ cup natural Sugar

¼ cup Cornstarch

1 teaspoon of Baking Powder

½ teaspoon of Nutmeg

½ cup of Earth Balance margarine, softened

¼ cup vanilla Soymilk or Almond milk

1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract (GF)

Also needed:  ½ cup of natural sugar 

                       3 tablespoons of ground cinnamon

Directions:

In a mixing bowl, combine all dry ingredients (flour thru nutmeg),

making sure they're stirred together well. Set them aside. 

Using a whisk or mixer, blend all the wet ingredients.

A nice smooth paste should form. Add about a third of the 

dry ingredients at a time and work into nice dough. 

In a small bowl, mix the additional sugar and cinnamon. 

Fold this into your dough, but don't completely stir it. 

You want the cinnamon & sugar to ribbon through your cookies. 

Place your dough in the refrigerator and preheat your oven 

to 325*F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 

When your oven is ready to go, your dough will be too. 

Using a spoon, scoop 1 inch piles of dough onto the 

sheet in neat rows. 

NOTE: these cookies expand while baking so leave sufficient room between 

them or they'll bake together. On a regular 14" baking tray you should only be 

able to get 3 across the tray. 

*If you aren't going to serve these cookies right away, place them in a 

resealable Tupperware and put them in your fridge. They'll stay as moist

and delicious as if they just came out of the oven. 

Enjoy!

Makes 12-14 cookies.

This recipe is:

-Vegan

-Gluten-Free