Vegan Chili

This is a recipe that keeps on giving.  My friend Claire made this for a birthday celebration with friends.  We all immediately asked for the recipe.  I've made this for my family, for friends, for new parents, and am always asked for the recipe. 

This was originally an instant pot recipe, but I don't have one so I adapted for my crock pot.  It worked beautifully.  For instant pot instructions, follow the link to the original recipe below.

Here it is!  Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 2 Green peppers diced
• 1 yellow onion diced
• 2 tsp crushed garlic (4 cloves)
• 1 Tbsp chili powder
• 1/2 Tbsp paprika
• 1 Tsp cumin
• 2 tsp salt
• 3 cups vegetable broth
• 4  (15 oz) cans crushed fire roasted tomato
• 2 (15 oz) cans black beans
• 1 (15 oz) can canneli beans
• 1 (15 oz) can kidney beans 
• 1 (15 oz) can corn

Optional:

• 1/2 jalapeno minced
• 1/2 cup quinoa
• 1/2 Tsp red pepper flake
• Cilantro diced

Instructions

1. Saute onions and garlic in 2 Tbsp oil until translucent.  
2. Turn off heat, add spices to warm
3. Pour onions, garlic and spices into crock pot
4. Drain and rinse beans and corn.  Add to crock pot 
5. Add the remaining ingredients
6. Cook on high for 5 hours
7. Serve over rice

Adapted from Show Me The Yummy

Corn Casserole - gluten and refined sugar free

Ingredients:

• 1 cup milk (cow or substitute)
• 5 Tablespoons cornstarch
• 2 Tablespoons maple syrup
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1 14.75-ounce can cream corn
• 1 15.25-ounce can whole kernel sweet corn, drained
• ¼ cup butter or butter substitute

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a saucepan, mix together the milk and cornstarch over low heat stirring continuously for 5 minutes.

3. Add all the other ingredients (in order) and stir until the mixture thickens.

4. Bake in casserole dish for 45-55 minutes (when bubbly and brown).

Vegan Tagine

Thank you Amanda for sharing this recipe with me.  It is fantastic!

4 Servings - I like to double this recipe.

Ingredients

• 5 Tbsp Olive or Sunflower oil
• 1 Large onion, thinly diced
• 2 garlic gloves, finely chopped (or 2 tsp chopped garlic)
• 2 tsp ground coriander
• 2 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 3 14oz can chick peas
• 1 26 oz can chopped or crushed tomatoes
• 4 cups vegetable stock
• 1 large eggplants (12 oz) diced
• 8 oz button mushrooms sliced 
• 3 oz dried apricots
• Salt and Pepper

To Serve

• 8 oz cous cous (this is NOT gluten free) or Quinoa (gluten free) 
• 1 oz sliced almonds
• 1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
• Salt and Pepper

Directions

1. Heat 2 tbsp Oil in pan.  Add onion and garlic.  Fry over medium heat for 5 minutes until golden. Stir in spices for the last minute.  Set aside.
2. Heat 2 tbsp oil in pan.  saute mushrooms for 4-5 minutes until browned.  Set aside.
3. In a different pot, heat 3 tbsp oil.  Add eggplant and saute, stirring over high heat for 5 minutes until evenly browned.  Add Onion mixture, chickpeas, vegetable stock, tomato, apricots and mushrooms to pot. 
4. Cook for an additional 10 minutes.  
5. Salt and pepper to taste.
6. Prepare cous cous and serve with almonds and parsley.

Coconut Curry Lentil Soup

This!  All I want to eat these days is this.  Bowl after bowl.  It is so yummy!

I just updated this recipe to reflect the measurements I actually use.  This is a very flexible recipe.  Feel free to experiment with ratios and ingredients.

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp coconut (or olive) oil
• 1 large onion, diced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tbsp ginger, minced
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
• 3 tbsp curry powder
• 4-5 cups vegetable broth (depending on how thick you want it)
• 2 can coconut milk
• 1 large can of fire roasted diced tomatoes (at least 400 g - id use 758g)
• 1 large can of fire roasted crushed tomatoes (at least 400 g - id use 758g)
• 2 cups dry red lentils

Directions

1. Heat coconut oil
2. saute onion, garlic and ginger until softened
3. Add curry, and red pepper flakes and stir until combined
4. Add in coconut milk, broth, diced tomatoes, and lentils
5. Bring to boil
6. Let simmer for at least 45 minutes, but up to 90 minutes, stirring regularly
7. EAT ALL THE SOUP!

Recipe adapted from Veganela.com

chocolate chip cookies (Dairy Free, gluten free)

Ingredients:

• ¼ cup coconut oil
• ¼ cup coconut palm sugar
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1 large egg 
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1½ cups almond flour
• 2 tbsp coconut flour
• ½ tsp baking soda
• ½ tsp sea salt
• ½ cup chocolate chips (check for dairy or sugar content – I like Ghirardelli semi sweet)

Direction:

1. Heat oven to 350F.
2. Mix together coconut oil, coconut sugar, honey, egg and vanilla until smooth (I use my kitchen aid mixer)
3. Mix in almond flour, coconut flour, baking soda and salt
4. Mix in the chocolate chips  
5. Bake for 9-12 minutes, until edges are a light brown

Adapted from Against The Grain Real-Deal Chocolate Chip cookies

Cauliflower Soup

This soup is awesome. I made it a lot when I was pregnant and shortly after giving birth to my son. So easy, so satisfying, so tasty!

Ingredients

2 Tbs. olive oil
2 shallots, minced
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 medium potato, peeled and chopped roughly
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 cups vegetable or chicken broth
3/4 head cauliflower, chopped
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 tsp Dijon mustard
Kosher salt and ground black pepper

Directions

Saute shallots and onion in olive oil until slightly softened(4-5 minutes).
Season with salt and pepper
Add the potato, garlic and vegetable broth
Cover and bring to a boil
Lower the heat to a simmer (covered)until the potatoes are tender (8-20 minutes)
Add the cauliflower and cook until the cauliflower is tender (5-10 minutes)
Stir in the cheese and dijon mustard.
Blend until desired consistency

Recipe taken and very lightly adapted Pink Parlsey

Quinoa Salad

Ingredients

2 cups quinoa
4 cups water
Kale - 2-4 stalks
2 tightly packed tablespoons of fresh parsley (not dried)
1 can black beans (drained and rinsed) - possible improvements - precook dried beans or look for BPA free cans
1 can kidney beans (drained and rinsed) - possible improvements ... same as above
1 cucumber - diced
2 tomatoes - seeded and diced
1 1/2 cups of corn (I used frozen)
1 red onion - diced
5 medium carrots. Diced.
olive oil
sea salt
pepper
avacado - diced


Directions
1) Bring 4 cups of water and 2 cups of quinoa to boil. Then simmer for 10-15 minutes (until water is cooked out and quinoa is uncoiled and fluffy). Toss with olive oil. Set aside to cool.
2) drain and rinse black and kidney beans. Pour into bowl. Add corn, cucumber, tomatoes, red onion to bowl.
3) Boil diced carrots until soft, but not mushy. Drain, cool, and add to bowl.
4) clean and destalk kale. Chop up the kale leaves into bite size pieces. Massage with 1-2 tbsp olive oil. Add to bowl.
5) Rinse parlsey. Chop and add to bowl.
6) add cooled quinoa to bowl.
7) Add olive oil and stir until lightly coated.
8) Salt and pepper to taste.
9) Serve with avacado for topping. Don't add the avacado to the bowl because it will get brown fast and make it seem like the salad doesn't stay good for as long.

NOTE: This is a BIG salad. It will stay good in the fridge for almost a week.

Lentil Salad

Vegetarian optional by leaving out bacon.

Ingredients
2cups lentils
1 small onion
5 carrots (2 cut into 3 pieces each, the other 3 diced and set aside)
3 celery stalks (1 cut into 3 pieces, the other 2 diced and set aside)
Sea Salt
4 strips of bacon (or more if wanted) -- THIS IS OPTIONAL
4 tbsp olive oil (+ 2 TBSP olive oil if not using bacon)
Ground pepper
4 tbsp Balsamic vinegar
8 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tsp honey
Salad (either mixed greens or spinach)

Directions

1) Place lentils in bowl with whole onion, big carrot and celery chunks. Cover with water. Cook until lentils are tender (maybe 30-40 minutes depending on your stove). Add more water if it cooks off.
2) drain lentils, run cold water over them to stop the cooking process. Discard onion, celery and carrots. Set lentils aside in large bowl. Season with salt.
3) Cook bacon (I like to bake in the oven at 375-400 for 10-15 minutes or until crispy). Reserve bacon grease. Cup up bacon into bite size pieces and set aside.
4) Put bacon grease (2 tbsp or so) in pan. Saute diced celery and carrots (use olive oil if not using bacon in recipe). 5-7 minutes or until tender.
5) Dressing: Mix 4 tbsp olive oil, 4 tbsp balsamic vinegar, 8 teaspoons lemon juice, 1 heaping tsp honey. Add salt and pepper to taste.
6) combine lentils, onions, celery, salad, and toss with dressing. Salt and pepper to taste.
7) Mix in bacon if you are using. Or serve on the side if you prefer.

Recipe lightly adapted from Alice's Tea Cup Cook Book

Kannelbullar - Swedish Cinnamon Buns Recipe

I love Swedish Cinnamon buns. Sweet, but not too sweet. Light and fluffy. I made this recipe for midsummer and loved it so much I've made it twice since then. My friends and family rave about it! This recipe has been lightly adapted to make it vegan/dairy free from Kokblog.

Makes about 30-40 buns

Ingredients

Dough

2 1/8 cup (500 ml) unsweetened Almond Milk (Or regular milk if you prefer)
2 envelopes dry active yeast (1 package of dry active yeast = 2 1/2 tsp) (or 25g fresh yeast)
2/3 cup (130 g) brown sugar
5 7/8 cups (840 g) flour
2 teaspoons whole cardamom seeds
½ teaspoon salt
10 TBSP Earth Balance no soy butter substitute at room temperature (or butter or other dairy substitute such as coconut oil if you prefer)

cinnamon filling

8 TBSP Earth Balance no soy butter substitute at room temperature (or butter or other dairy substitute such as coconut oil if you prefer)
1/3 cup (65 gr) sugar
2 ½ teaspoon cinnamon

topping
pearl sugar (Raw Sugar can be a substitute, but its just not the same)
Almond milk (or regular milk) for brushing

Directions

Dough

1 - Heat almond milk until it about 110ºF. Add yeast and stir until yeast has dissolved.
2 - Crack open cardamom seeds. Pull out seeds and pulverize in a mortar and pestle.
3 - Mix together flour, sugar, cardamom and salt.
4 - Add flour mixture to the milk and yeast mixture.
5 - Add in the Earth Balance in small cubes. Mix either with KitchenAid mixer or by hand.
6 - Knead for about 5-10 minutes.
7 - Cover the dough and place in a draft free place and let it rise for at least 40 minutes.
8 - Mix all of the filling ingredients into an even batter. It is important for the butter to be at room temperature so it’s easier to spread.
9 - Divide the dough into two pieces and using a rolling pin, roll each of them out separately to the shape of a rectangle.
10 - Spread half of the filling onto each piece of rolled out dough so that it covers the entire area. Roll the dough up beginning with the long side.
11 - Slice the roll into about 20 equal sized (about 1 inch wide) slices and place them with their cut side up on baking sheet.
12 - Repeat above procedure with the last piece of dough.
13 - Let them rise for about 30 minutes.
14 - Brush each roll with almond milk and sprinkle pearl sugar on top.
15 - Bake them in the oven at 440F for 8-10 minutes.

Whole Wheat Bread

This is my favorite bread to make right. Very lightly adapted from the Brown Eyed Baker's Recipe to make it dairy free.

Ingredients

2-1/3 cups warm water (about 100-110 degrees)
1½ tablespoons instant yeast
¼ cup honey
4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) Earth Balance (NO SOY) (OR butter or your favorite butter substitute)
2½ teaspoons salt
¼ cup rye flour
½ cup wheat germ
3 cups whole-wheat flour
2¾ cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the work surface

Directions

1. In the bowl of a standing mixer, mix the water, yeast, honey, butter, and salt with a spoon or spatula.
2. Mix in the rye flour, wheat germ, and 1 cup each of the whole-wheat and all-purpose flours.
3. Add the remaining whole-wheat and all-purpose flours. Knead at low speed with dough hook for about 8 minutes (until the dough is smooth and elastic).
4. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface. Knead just long enough to make sure that the dough is soft and smooth, about 30 seconds.
5. Place the dough in a very lightly oiled large bowl; cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm, draft-free area until the dough has doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
6. 6. Heat the oven to 375 degrees.
7. Gently press down the dough and divide into two equal pieces. Gently press each piece into a rectangle about 1 inch thick and no longer than 9 inches. With a long side of the dough facing you, roll the dough firmly into a cylinder, pressing down to make sure that the dough sticks to itself. Turn the dough seam-side up and pinch it closed. Place each cylinder of dough in a greased 9 by 5-inch loaf pan, seam-side down and pressing the dough gently so it touches all four sides of the pan. Cover the shaped dough; let rise until almost doubled in volume, 20 to 30 minutes.
8. Bake until an instant-read thermometer inserted at an angle from the short end just above the pan rim reads 205 degrees, 30 to 40 minutes. Remove the bread immediately from the baking pans (I let them cool on a clean towel on our butcher block); cool to room temperature.
9. Slice whatever bread isn't eaten on the first day. Transfer slices to gallon ziplock bag. Freeze until ready to eat. Take frozen slices and place on cookie sheet. Add a tablespoon of water to the pan and bake at 350 degrees for 5-10 minutes until warm and soft.

Linda's Spinach Hummus

1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1-3 cloves garlic
1 c packed org. spinach leaves
1 T lemon juice
1/2 t ground cumin
1 t kosher salt
1/2 t black paper
1/4 c EVOO (olive oil)
in a food processor puree chickpeas and garlic. add all other ingredients except oil and puree. drizzle oil in while blending until creamy.

Mixed Berry Oatmeal Scones

I've already professed my love for scones from Alice's Tea Cup, now... here is another recipe adapted from their cookbook. The cookbook recipe is for Oatmeal Scones, but I like fruit in my oatmeal scones so I've adapted this recipe to reflect my preference.

Ingredients

3 cups flour
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter (12 tbsp)
1 cup old fashion oatmeal
1 cup berries - whatever is in season (I used 1/2 cup raspberries & 1/2 cup blueberries)
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup buttermilk (reserved)
2 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup heavy cream (for brushing)
1/4 cup raw sugar (for sprinkling)
Smuckers Raspberry Preserves
Alice's Unclotted Cream

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 F

2. Combine flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in a large mixing bow.

3. Grate the cold butter. Then work into the dry mixture w/ your hands until it has the consistency of fine breadcrumbs. I find that grating the butter makes it easier to mix in.

4. Add the oatmeal until mixed. Then add the berries -- gently combine in flour mixture so that they are evenly distributed and the berries are coated.

5. Add 3/4 cup buttermilk and vanilla to the flour. Gently turn the mixture (DO NOT KNEAD!) until everything is damp, but not sticky. Add some of the reserved buttermilk to get the right consistency (I would use about 1/4 cup, but it depends on how moist/dry you like your scones to be).

BE VERY CAREFUL TO NOT MIX - OTHERWISE THE SCONES WILL BE TOUGH

6. Gather and place the mixture on a floured surface. Pat the dough into a disk and flatten until about 1.5 inches thick. Use a cup and cut out as many scones as you can. Place onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or a silimat.

7. Gather remaining dough and repeat step 6 until all dough is used. Be careful to not over work the dough or it will get tough.

8. Brush the top of each scone with a little cream so that sugar will stick.

9. Sprinkle the top of each scone with a little raw sugar.

10. Bake for about 15 minutes. BE CAREFUL TO NOT OVER BAKE, otherwise the scones will be dry. When in dough, take the scones out of the oven and let cool. Test a scone to make sure it is done. If it isn't, pop it back into a pre-heated oven for another 5 minutes.

11. Serve with Smuckers Raspberry Preserves (very important that they be preserves) and Alice's unclotted cream.

ENJOY!!!

Banana, peanut butter, chocolate chip scones

One of my favorite places to go with friends is Alice's Tea Cup. I've been going with my bestie Ducky since 2007. I've since been taking all of my friends and family there to experience the delight of Alice's. Now, those of my family and friends that live out of town always demand to be taken there when they are visiting me (and I of course am more than happy to have an excuse to go myself). If you go, the thing to order is the two scones and a pot of tea combo. It's what I almost always get. And the bakers are always switching up the scone special of the day (although, buttermilk, pumpkin, and ham & cheese are on the menu every day).

A year ago, the bakers at Alice's served up a scone that blew my mind! It was the Banana, peanut butter, chocolate chip scone. And it was AMAZING! And then, oh then the owners of Alice's Tea cup went and published a cookbook. I was in heaven, and I've browsed the pages of this cookbook over and over again. Though thrilled, I was so sad when I realized that the amazing banana, peanut butter, chocolate chip scone didn't make it into the cookbook ... but there was a banana and butterscotch recipe that I adapted to bring you these perfectly wonderful scones. I hope you enjoy!


Ingredients

3 cups flour
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp kosher salt
1 1/2 unsalted butter
2 bananas - sliced
1/2 cup gharidelli 60% chocolate chips
1/2 cup hersheys peanut butter chips
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup buttermilk (reserved)
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup heavy cream (for brushing)
1/4 cup raw sugar (for sprinkling)
Smuckers Raspberry Preserves
Alice's Unclotted Cream

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 F

2. Combine flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a large mixing bow.

3. Grate the cold butter. Then work into the dry mixture w/ your hands until it has the consistency of fine breadcrumbs.

4. Add banana slices, chocolate chips, and peanut butter chips -- gently combine in flour mixture so that they are evenly distributed and the bananas are coated.

5. Add 3/4 cup buttermilk and vanilla to the flour. Gently turn the mixture (DO NOT KNEAD!) until everything is damp, but not sticky. Add some of the reserved buttermilk to get the right consistency (I would use about 1/4 cup, but it depends on how moist/dry you like your scones to be).

BE VERY CAREFUL TO NOT MIX - OTHERWISE THE SCONES WILL BE TOUGH

6. Gather and place the mixture on a floured surface. Pat the dough into a disk and flatten until about 1.5 inches thick. Use a cup and cut out as many scones as you can. Place onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or a silimat.

7. Gather remaining dough and repeat step 6 until all dough is used. Be careful to not over work the dough or it will get tough.

8. Brush the top of each scone with a little cream so that sugar will stick.

9. Sprinkle the top of each scone with a little raw sugar.

10. Bake for about 15 minutes. BE CAREFUL TO NOT OVER BAKE, otherwise the scones will be dry. When in dough, take the scones out of the oven and let cool. Test a scone to make sure it is done. If it isn't, pop it back into a pre-heated oven for another 5 minutes.

11. Serve with Smuckers Raspberry Preserves (very important that they be preserves) and Alice's unclotted cream.

ENJOY!!!

Tomato Corn Pie

I love it when I find a tasty meal that is easy to make. This tomato-corn pie (from eatingwell.com) that my mom makes is both. I always cheat when making this recipe and use a store bought pie crust. I think the store bought crusts are smaller than a traditional pie pan so I've adjusted the recipe, decreasing the amount of milk in the egg mixture, to prevent the egg from bubbling over the pan. I've also increased the amount of cheese from 1/2 a cup to 1 cup (because I just like cheese).


Ingredients

3 large eggs
2/3 cup low-fat milk
1 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese, divided
2 medium tomatoes, sliced
1 cup fresh corn kernels (about 1 large ear; see Tip) or frozen
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Directions

1) Preheat oven to 400°F.
2) Whisk eggs and milk in a medium bowl.
3) Sprinkle half the cheese over the crust
4) Layer half the tomatoes evenly over the cheese
5) Sprinkle with corn, thyme, 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper and the remaining 1/4 cup cheese
6) Layer the remaining tomatoes on top and sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt.
7) Pour the egg mixture over the top.
8) Bake the pie until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean, 40 to 50 minutes.
9) Let cool for 20 minutes before serving.

(Recipe adapted from Eatingwell.com)

Vegetable Crustless Quiche

Another post baby favorite recipe. My mom found it in the September 2006 edition of Cooking Light. B and I make this in bulk and freeze in individual servings. We've made a bunch of substitutes with the vegetables used in the recipe, these changes are noted below. The best part of this recipe is that you can really switch up the ingredients to use vegetables that you like.

Ingredients

1 ½ cups egg substitute
3 large eggs
3 cups of Mexican mixed shredded cheese (the recipe called for 1 ½ cups Monterey Jack cheese and 1 ½ cups extra-sharp cheddar cheese)
½ cup 2% low-fat milk
½ cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
16 ounces fat free cottage cheese (1 carton)
cooking spray

Assorted vegetables (what I use)
• 4 cups sliced zucchini (about 4)
• 1 medium yellow onion (diced)
• 2 cups broccoli florets
• 2 cans sliced mushrooms
• 1 package frozen shredded spinach
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley
• 2 tomatoes, thinly sliced

OR

Assorted vegetables (what the recipe called for)
• 4 cups sliced zucchini (about 4)
• 2 cups diced potato with onion
• 1 cup finely chopped green bell pepper
• 1 (8 ounce) package pre-sliced mushrooms
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley
• 2 tomatoes, thinly sliced

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400F
2. Beat egg substitute and eggs in a large bowl until fluffy.
3. Add half the cheese, milk, flour, baking powder, salt, and cottage cheese to the mixture
4. Heat skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray
5. Add zucchini and all the vegetables except for the parsley and the tomato. Sauté until tender
6. Coat 3 quart casserole dish with cooking spray
7. Pour vegetables into the casserole dish
8. Pour the egg mixture over the vegetables
9. Top with the remaining cheese
10. Arrange tomato slices over the cheese
11. Bake at 400 for 15 minutes
12. Reduce heat to 350 and bake for 35 minutes or until lightly browned
13. Let set

Vegetable Lasagnia

My friend Swati made vegetable lasagnia at a party 4 years ago and I enjoyed it so much that I stole the recipe from her. Now think I make this recipe more often than Swati does. It's soooo tasty!!! Also, this is a great dish to cook in bulk and freeze in individual serving sizes!

Ingredients

Lasagna noodles (I prefer the no bake kind because it's easier)
Butternut squash 1 large, or 2 small
Tomato sauce (what ever you prefer)
2 tablespoons pesto 2 tablespoons
2 bags shredded cheese (I prefer the Mexican mix, but mozzarella works too)
Parmesan cheese
1 medium container ricotta cheese (I prefer the low fat/part-skim ricotta)
Frozen chopped spinach

Directions

1. Cook butternut squash until soft. You can either peel, cube and boil the squash or halve and clean out the squash and then bake in a glass pan (skin up) with about an inch of water until soft (approximately 30-45 minutes.

2. In a bowl, smash butternut squash. Mix in pesto and the thawed and squeezed spinach.

3. In a large glass pan, put one layer of tomato sauce.

4. Add a layer of lasagna noodles.

5. Add a layer of ricotta cheese.

6. Add a layer of butternut squash mixture.

7. Add a layer of shredded cheese.

8. Add a layer of tomato sauce.

9 Repeat steps 3-8 until you have 3-4 layers.

10. Top with tomato sauce, shredded cheese, and a little parmesan cheese.

11. Cover dish with foil. Bake for 30 minutes at 375 degrees.

12. Remove foil. Bake 10-15 minutes or until hot and bubbly.

13. Let stand 5 minutes.

14. Serve with additional tomato sauce if desired.

15. Enjoy!

Super Tasty, Super Easy Bean Dip

Tauren made this on Christmas eve this year and I fell in love. It is so tasty, so easy, and not too bad for you (depending on how much cheese you add). I LOVE THIS BEAN DIP!!

Ingredients
1 can of black beans
1 can of refried beans (make sure to look at fat content because some have low or none and some have high because of lard)
1 jar of salsa
1 8 oz package of shredded cheese (I like sharp cheddar)

Directions
Mix all of the ingredients together and heat stirring regularly (in microwave or on stove top) until the cheese is melted.

Serve with pita chips, tortilla chips, or veggies

Melissa's Homemade Grape Juice

Melissa just moved to a new house which has a huge garden including a grape arbor. 2009 has been filled with all sorts of awesome cooking projects. Among them is homemade grape juice!

Ingredients & Tools
2 big pots
one big bowl
4 or 5 lbs of grapes

Directions
1. Place grapes into large vat or sink. Fill it with water and separate all the good grapes into the big bowl.

2. Mash grapes with a potato masher

3. Place into one big pot and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Let simmer for at least 10 minutes.

4. Mash mixture a few more times while simmering, and stir every occasionally to ensure nothing sticks to the bottom.

5. Place a fine strainer or cheesecloth (strainer would be easier) over the other big pot and strain out all the seeds and skins. There will still be a bunch of sediment, so you may want to strain twice. A third straining will make the juice less thick feeling.

6. Let it cool, or pour over ice and enjoy!

7. Add sugar if you need to, but taste it first without sugar.

Note: 1lb of grapes only makes about a cup or so of juice.

This recipe was obtained from Simply Recipes

Spinach Dip

1 package Knorr Vegatable Soup Mix
1 package frozen chopped spinach (make sure it's chopped not whole)
16 oz sour cream (reduced fat if desired)
8 oz mayonaise (reduced fat if desired)
1 can water chestnuts

Thaw spinach, drain and squeeze all excess water out of it.

Chop water chestnuts into small pieces

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients. Refridgerate for at least an hour.

Goes great with sourdough bread and veggies.

Blackbean and Corn Salad

My mom just came to visit and made a blackbean and corn salad that was super tasty and super easy. This is going to be one on our regular meal rotation.

Ingrediants

1 can blackbeans
1 1/2 cans sweet corn
1 cup grape tomatoes
8 leaves fresh basil
8 scallions
2 tsp olive oil
1 tsp white balsalmic vinegar
Sea salt

Directions

1. Drain corn and blackbeans, pour into bowl
2. Chop Basil, add to bowl
3. Chop scallions, add to bowl
4. Add olive oil and white vinegar to bowl
5. Mix
6. Salt to taste
7. Cut grape tomatoes in half. Add to each individual bowl.
8. Enjoy!

Note: The corn and blackbeans stay good in the refrigerator for a few days, however the tomatoes get wonky after a day or so. Therefore, to make the salad last longer add the tomatoes only when ready to serve.