Tag Archives: gluten free

Yum, who wants some delicious vegan, gluten free Thai curry?  Bursting in flavor, this sauce is very versatile and so easy to make!  I have eaten it with quinoa and with noodles. Of course, you can also go the traditional route and eat it with rice.  This makes quite a bit of sauce, so it is enough for several servings.  And as long as you know how to chop and stir, you should be able to make this dish!  Be careful, because once you start eating it, you might find it hard to stop!  This recipe is made without curry powder or paste, since I don’t have any on hand and am reluctant to go buy something that can only be used for one type of dish.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium red onion, 1/2 thinly chopped and 1/2 thickly chopped
• 2 tbsp fresh ginger, minced
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 cup raw creamy almond butter
• 2 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 cup water
• 1 can full fat coconut milk
• 3 tbsp lime juice and their zest (about 1 1/2 tsp)
• 1 tbsp maple syrup (optional)
• crushed red peppers, to your taste
• 1 package tempeh
• 3 medium carrots, sliced into 1/4″ thin strips
• 1 red bell pepper, sliced into 3/4″ long thin strips
• 1 potato, largely chopped (optional)

1. Heat oil in large skillet or wok over medium-low heat and add thinly chopped onion, ginger, and garlic, cooking until tender (about 10 minutes).
   
2. Add almond butter, turmeric, and cumin and stir for a few minutes.
3. Whisk in water, coconut milk, lime juice and zest, maple syrup, and red peppers, and bring to simmer.  Season with salt.
   
4. Add thickly chopped onion, carrots, and bell pepper, simmering over medium-low heat and stirring occasionally until carrots are tender, about half an hour.  Season with salt.  If you are adding potatoes, you may want to add a little more water so that there is enough curry to coat all the vegetables.
   

And there you have it!  I served mine with quinoa – delicious!

Oh My Deliciousness!!  This is so amazing, you’d have a hard time believing it’s whole and nutritious!  Gently cooked vegan, gluten free pancake cinnamon rolls – now you can have your guilty pleasure breakfast food without the guilt!  I LOVE it when food not only bursts with flavor in your mouth BUT your body also gets to reap the benefits of the nutrients.  I didn’t bother cleaning my blender between uses, aside from a quick rinse.  For those of you who are against using raw honey, you can replace it with maple syrup but the taste will be significantly different.

Ingredients to be done first:

• 3/4 cup raw almonds, soaked at least 1 hour (preferably overnight)
• 1 1/2 cup filtered water

Batter Ingredients:

• 1 cup rolled oats (or oat flour)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp nutmeg
• 2 small ripe bananas
• 2 tsp maple syrup
• 1/2 tbsp coconut oil, melted
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Filling Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup raisins
• 3 tbsp raw honey (I use the solid kind, so if you prefer the liquid kind, I do not know how runny the result will be)
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• pinch sea salt

Icing Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp raw coconut butter
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp maple syrup

Directions:

1. Drain almonds and blend with water.  Strain through a nut milk bag and set aside liquid.  This is your almond milk.
2. Preheat oven to 225º and heat a little coconut oil on a large pan on low heat.
3. Grind oats, then add baking powder, sea salt, cinnamon and nutmeg and blend.  Set aside.
4. Add remaining batter ingredients plus 1/2 cup of the almond milk to blender or food processor and blend.
5. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients in blender and blend.
6. Pour half the batter onto the pan and cook it on medium low until bubbles start popping and the bottom of the batter becomes light to medium brown in color.  You want to spread out the pancake wide and fairly thin.
7. Flip batter and cook on the other side for a few minutes, leaving it mostly undercooked.
8. Repeat with the rest of the batter, making 2 large pancakes.
9. Meanwhile, blend the filling ingredients until it is fairly smooth.
10. Spread the filling mixture evenly onto both pancakes, stopping about half an inch from the edges.
11. Roll the pancakes and cut the roll about 2″ apart, making 2″ high cinnamon rolls.
12. Place the rolls back onto the pan and put the pan into the oven for about 10 minutes.
13. While that is cooking, melt coconut butter.  An easy way to do this is to place coconut butter in a shallow cup or bowl, and place the cup or bowl inside a larger bowl filled with very hot water.  If you stir constantly, the coconut butter should melt within a couple minutes.
14. Blend melted coconut butter with the remainder of the ingredients and 1.5-2 tbsp of the almond milk.  If you have any leftover almond milk and feel uneasy about throwing it out, add a little bit of vanilla extract and maple syrup and enjoy a small beverage!
15. Once the rolls are done baking, remove and drizzle icing over the rolls for some soft, gooey deliciousness!

I’ve never been one for salads, but I think this is semi-salad.  It has a fresh taste to it.  The vegetables are barely cooked and the lime adds a fresh, almost dressing-like flavor to the sauce.  Very easy to make and of course it’s delicious.  It is very close to raw vegan, the only thing is that the quinoa is cooked and the vegetables are VERY slightly cooked.  But all you’d have to do to make it vegan is to replace the quinoa with raw noodles instead, like kelp or zucchini noodles.  I like more starch-like flavor in my food, I guess.  Plus, it’s gluten free!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup quinoa
• 2 1/2 tsp ginger root
• 1 large garlic clove
• 1/2 cup raw creamy almond butter
• 2 – 2 1/2 tbsp tamari
• juice from 3 medium limes
• 1 tbsp maple syrup
• 2-3 tbsp water
• 1 bell pepper, chopped
• 1 red onion, diced
• a few stalks bok choy, chopped
• sesame seeds

1. Cook quinoa according to directions.
2. Meanwhile, add ginger and garlic to a food processor or blender and blend.  Then add almond butter, tamari, lime juice, maple syrup, and water.  Sprinkle with sesame seeds, if desired.
3. Once quinoa is finished, turn off heat and stir in remaining vegetables, until the bok choy leaves become a little wilted.
4. And that’s it!  Serve cold.  To serve, drizzle desired amount of sauce over the quinoa.  Otherwise, keep them separated.  Enjoy!

I seriously, seriously love these quesadillas.  When I first started going vegan, these were my go-to meals.  They are so delicious and very easy on the digestive system.  Cleanse-friendly!  For those who are having trouble weaning off dairy, I highly suggest these quesadillas.  It took a while for me to create a salsa I would like that would mimic the jarred salsas, and I think this one does the trick.

The quesadillas themselves are not raw vegan, but I do not cook the vegetables or the cheese I use in them and instead let them get heated up within the tortillas.  The salsa is raw vegan, however.  This entire recipe can be made gluten free by using the brown rice tortillas.

Quesadillas

Makes 6 servings.

Ingredients:

• 2 packages of tortillas (brown rice, sprouted grain, or whole wheat)
• 2 packages vegan shredded cheddar cheese, each package divided into thirds
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1/2 red onion, diced

Now, I use a quesadilla maker to make my quesadillas.  It’s an inexpensive piece of equipment which saves me a lot of time and hassle, since it’s so easy to clean and I won’t have to worry about all my ingredients falling out of my tortillas when I flip them.

Here’s how to make it with the quesadilla maker:

Place one tortilla on quesadilla maker.  Add a couple tablespoons of shredded cheese, followed by a third of the vegetables, and then the rest of the third of the cheese.  Place another tortilla on top and press the quesadilla maker closed.

Alternatively, you would heat a large pan on medium high heat with a small amount of olive oil (or none if you prefer).  Assemble the quesadilla accordingly and then place on the pan, pressing down on the quesadilla until the bottom becomes a golden brown.  Flip and repeat the process for the other side.

Serve immediately, or wrap in aluminum foil and store for later.  To reheat, simply place the quesadilla on a sheet of foil and heat in a toaster oven.  I put it on Toast for Medium-Low.

Saucy Salsa

Makes about 8-10 cups.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup sundried tomatoes, soaked at least 2 hours
• 2 medjool dates, pitted
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/2 cup fresh basil
• 1 1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1/3 tsp dried thyme
• 1/3 tsp dried oregano
• 1/3 tsp dried rosemary
• 1/3 tsp dried basil
• crushed red peppers, to taste
• 3 tomatoes, 1 of which is largely chopped
• 1/2 red onion, diced

1. First add the sundried tomatoes, dates, and garlic into the food processor or blender to break them up.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients except for the tomatoes and onion and blend.
3. Cut 2 tomatoes into quarters or however size that will allow them to fit and move around in your food processor or blender and blend.
4. Add the last chopped tomato and onion and pulse until all ingredients are incorporated.

I can’t think of many things better than guilt free, healthy dessert.  I mean, how can you go wrong with dessert that’s actually GOOD for you??  So I have a thing for raspberry jam.  These bars are basically bars with raspberry jam, topped with icing.  The awesome part is that they’re made with chia seeds, which are superb for your body and contain the essential omega fatty acids.  Plus, raspberry has lots of antioxidants and coconut water has electrolytes.  Then you got nuts for more protein and fiber…it’s crazy that dessert can do so much good to your body.  So definitely try out these raw vegan, gluten free bars.  Your body AND your taste buds will thank you!  Eating clean never tasted so good! So check out this awesome and easy recipe below.

Base Layer

• 9 medjool dates, pitted
• 1 1/4 cup dried coconut
• 3/4 cup raw walnuts
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• pinch sea salt

Blend all ingredients and press onto a wax/parchment lined pan. Set in fridge to firm up.

Raspberry Jam Layer (can be made ahead of time; lasts 3-4 days in refrigerator or can be frozen)

• 1 cup fresh raspberries
• 1/4 cup medjool dates, pitted
• 1/8 cup coconut water
• 1 tbsp chia seeds

1. Blend water and dates until the dates have broken up.
2. Add raspberries and chia seeds and pulse until it gets that chunky jam look.
3. Place in a glass container and cover. Place in fridge for at least 30 minutes for the flavors to infuse and the chia seeds to thicken up the jam.
4. To assemble, spread this on top of the base.

Topping

• 1/3 cup dried coconut
• 1/3 cup raw walnuts
• pinch cinnamon
• pinch sea salt

Pulse until crumbly. Sprinkle over the raspberry later. Optional to sprinkle a couple tablespoons of raw cacao nibs as well if you like dark chocolate.

Coconut Icing

• 2 tbsp coconut oil, melted (melts at a little above room temperature)
• 2 tbsp raw coconut butter, softened
• 1 tbsp maple syrup

Mix together. Drizzle at the top. Place your bars in the fridge to set.

I love this easy to make vegan dish for those days when I’m craving some pad thai!  It tastes amazing.  Most pad thai sauces are made with refined sugar and fish sauce but this has none of that. You wouldn’t believe that it’s that healthy!  I wish I could call this a 1 pot wonder because basically everything is put together in a single pan, but you do need an extra pot to boil the noodles in while you’re assembling everything else.  It takes about 20-30 minutes to make, and would still taste great cold!  So without further adieu, here’s the recipe so you know how to make it yourself!

Makes 4 servings.

Ingredients:

• 1 package flat brown rice noodles
• 5 tbsp Nama Shoyu (or Tamari for gluten free)
• 5 tbsp fresh-squeezed lemon or lime juice
• 2 tbsp raw creamy almond butter
• 1 tbsp tahini (or more almond butter)
• 4 tbsp maple syrup
  maple syrup
• crushed red peppers to your liking
• 2 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 4-8 garlic cloves, minced
• 1-2 inches ginger root, minced
• 1 package tempeh, chopped
• 2-3 carrots, thinly sliced or grated
• 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 1 green bell pepper, thinly sliced
• limes, chopped scallions, peanuts (optional garnish)

Instructions:

1. Boil hot water for the noodles, then pour boiled water into pot and set aside for 5 minutes.  Add noodles and let sit for about 20 minutes.
2. Stir the nama shoyu/tamari, lemon/lime juice, almond butter, tahini, maple syrup, and red peppers together.
3. In a large saute pan or wok, heated on low, add sesame oil and onion, garlic, ginger, and tempeh.  Stir for about 5 minutes.
4. Add carrots, bell peppers, and a little water to the pan or wok and stir for another 5 minutes.
5. Add drained noodles and sauce, mix until sauce thickens to your liking.
6. Serve with optional garnish.