cheesy kale chips (raw food)

24 hours +

similar to the cashew cheese recipe.......

1 cup raw cashews, soaked in water 8-12 hours
2 - 3 bell peppers
1 tablespoon lemon juice
4 tablespoons nutritional yeast
salt and pepper to taste
1-2 bunches of kale

 cut bell peppers in to small pieces and dehydrate while cashews are soaking. before starting, drain cashews. combine peppers, cashews, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, salt and pepper in vitamix or food processor until smooth. you can also use tamari in place of some of the salt for a saltier flavor. tear kale in small pieces and massage to soften (and make easier to digest). combine kale and cheese mixture. spread onto teflex sheet and dehydrate overnight. transfer from teflex to screen to encourage more air cicrulation.

tempeh scallopini

1 hour

marinade:
1/2 cup tamari or soy sauce
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 cup mirin (rice wine)
1/2 cup water

main:
2 16 ounce packages of tempeh
2 cups sliced mushrooms
1 1/2 cups sliced yellow onions
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, chopped
1 tablespoon minced garlic
salt
pepper
flour
olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
2 ounces sweet white wine or mirin
6 ounces vegetable broth

slice the tempeh in to about 6 strips. mix together all of the ingredients for the marinade and add the tempeh. refrigerate for 20 minutes or longer. while the tempeh is marinating, slice mushrooms, chop rosemary and mince garlic. set aside. set griddle to medium heat. put about 1/4 cup of flour and salt and pepper to your liking in a shallow dish. take the tempeh out of the marinade and coat it in the flour. place well coated tempeh on lightly oiled griddle. cook for about 2 minutes on each side, for a total of 8 minutes. while tempeh is cooking, heat a large saute pan over medium heat. add garlic, mushrooms, onion and rosemary. saute fro about two minutes. add wine and reduce fro about 5 minutes. add veggie stock and lemon juice and simmer for 5 minutes. to serve, place tempeh on plate (or bed of mashed potatoes!) and pour mushroom and onion with sauce over the top. sprinkle parsley on top and serve immediately.

carrot cake

2.5 hours, including prep, cook, cooling and frosting time

cake:
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup cinnamon applesauce
3/4 cup canola oil
4 large eggs
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup unbleached white flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3 cups grated carrots
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup raisins

frosting:
2 cups powdered sugar
2 8 ounce packages of low fat cream cheese
1/2 cup butter, unsalted at room temp (use 1/4 at a time - i think it is fine with 1/4 cup only)
4 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

preheat oven to 325. lightly grease three 9 inch cake pans or 2 cupcake pans. if using cake pans, line the bottom with waxed paper, lightly greasing waxed paper. using an electric mixer, beat, sugar, oil and applesauce until combined. sift in all remaining dry ingredients. stir in remaining ingredients. pour batter in to pans. if using cake pans, bake approximately 45 minutes, cupcakes for 18 minutes or until toothpick inserted in to center comes out clean.

to prepare frosting, beat all ingredients with electric mixer until creamy.

green curry

1 hour +

1 pound potatoes, washed and quartered lengthwise, then chopped thickly
1 pound green beans, trimmed and cut in to 1 inch pieces
3/4 pound zucchini, thickly sliced
1 pound spinach, washed and coarsely chopped
5 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 pound onions, halved and thickly sliced
10 medium cloves garlic
2 teaspoons turmeric
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh ginger, peeled and grated
4 tablespoons green chilies, chopped
2 tablespoons lemon juice
3/4 cup water

boil potatoes and green beans in salted water for 5 minutes. drain and set aside. boil zucchini in salted water for 3-4 minutes. drain and set aside. melt butter in a large pot. add onion and garlic and saute until they begin to brown. add next 6 ingredients (turmeric through salt) and stir over medium heat for a few minutes. add prepared veggies, ginger, chilies, lemon juice and water. Stir thoroughly. simmer until most of the water is gone and veggies are tender.

i found this recipe in "the vegetarian epicure: volume 2" which i took from my mom last summer. I love this book, especially the indian recipes. they taste very authentic. my only complaint is that there is a lot of prep work so i have to have some time to prepare for this. it is very much worth it when I do have time! serve with spiced rice and some naan.