Tasty Lentil Tacos

• found on allrecipes.com
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• makes 6 servings
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• 1 cup finely chopped onion
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 teaspoon canola oil (I use water)
• 1 cup dried lentils, rinsed
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 1/2 cups chicken broth (I use vegetable broth)
• 1 cup salsa
• 12 taco shells
• 1 1/2 cups shredded lettuce
• 1 cup chopped fresh tomato
• 1 1/2 cups shredded reduced-fat Cheddar cheese (I don't use this)
• 6 tablespoons fat free sour cream (I don't use this)
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• In a large nonstick skillet, saute the onion and garlic in oil until tender. Add the lentils, chili powder, cumin and oregano; cook and stir for 1 minute. Add broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 25-30 minutes or until the lentils are tender. Uncover; cook for 6-8 minutes or until mixture is thickened. Mash lentils slightly.
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• Stir in salsa. Spoon about 1/4 cup lentil mixture into each taco shell. Top with lettuce, tomato, cheese and sour cream. We add avocado as well.

Almost-Instant Chickpea-Tomato Soup

This is from a recipe book called Vegan on the Cheap.

makes 4 servings

1 1/2 cups cooked or 1 (15.5 oz.) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1 (14/5 oz.) can crushed or diced tomatoes

1 teaspoon ground cumin

2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 tablespoons olive oil (I never use this)

1 cup plain unsweetened soy milk

Salt

Ground cayenne (I never use this)

2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro or parsley (I never use this)

In a high-speed blender, combine the chickpeas and garlic and process until finely ground.

Add the tomatoes, cumin, lemon juice, oil, 1/2 cup of the soy milk, and salt and cayenne to taste. Blend until smooth.

Add as much of the remaining 1/2 cup of soy milk as needed to achieve desired consistency-not too thin or too thick-and blend until smooth and creamy. Taste and adjust the seasonings, adding more salt and cayenne, if necessary.

Transfer the soup to a large saucepan over medium heat and cook, stirring, until hot, about 5 minutes. If serving hot, ladle into bowls, top with minced cilantro, and serve at once. If serving chilled, let the soup cool to room temperature, then transfer to a serving bowl. Cover and refrigerate until chilled, about 3 hours. Then ladle into soup bowls and garnish with the cilantro.

Lemony Roasted Potatoes

(From the cookbook “Veganomicon- The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook” by Isa Chandra Moskiwitz & Terry Hope Romero)

2 1/2 pounds Russet potatoes (medium to small potatoes work best)
1/3 cup olive oil
6 cloves garlic, chopped finely
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 cup vegetable broth
2 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp salt
1 tsp tomato paste
Freshly ground black pepper
Chopped fresh parsley or dried oregano (optional)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Peel the potatoes, slice in half lengthwise, and slice each half into wedges no more then 3/4″ thick.

In a large, deep baking pan or casserole dish (at least 10 17-inches or bigger), combine the olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, vegetable broth, oregano, salt, and tomato paste. Add the peeled, sliced potatoes. Sprinkle with freshly ground pepper and toss the potatoes to cover with the sauce. Cover the pan tightly with foil (or use lid of casserole dish), place in the oven, and bake for 30-35 minutes until the potatoes are almost done. Several times during the baking process, remove the pan from the oven, uncover, stir the potatoes, place the cover back, and return the pan to the oven.

Uncover the pan one last time, stir the potatoes again, and bake, uncovered, for an additional 15-20 minutes, until most of the sauce has evaporated and some of the potatoes have just started to brown on their edges. Sprinkle with chopped fresh parsley and/or more dried oregano before serving.

serves 4-6

I never use the tomato paste. I use about half the oil. 1/2 cups lemon juice is about two lemons. This is Frances' most requested recipe! She LOVES it!

Almond Butter Cookies

1 cup almond butter or peanut butter
3/4 cup sucanat, or other granular sugar (white sugar, whole cane sugar)
1 tablespoon flax mixed with 3 tablespoons water
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. sea salt
3 oz. chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Blend first 5 ingredients. Add the chocolate.
Drop in balls. Bake for 10-12 minutes.

I've used a little cocoa powder instead of the chocolate chips and it turned out well. These are really good frozen!

Chocolate Dip

1 1/2 cups raw almonds

3/4 cup vanilla soy milk (or any other kind of milk)

2 cups raw spinach

2 cups frozen strawberries or blueberries

2/3 cup pitted dates

3 tablespoons cocoa powder

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Blend almonds and milk in blender until smooth (add more milk if needed, can be very thick). Add remaining ingredients and blend until thoroughly mixed. Use as a dip for fruit: bananas, strawberries, apples, etc.

Pizza

Whole Wheat and Honey Pizza Dough (I found this recipe at WinCo next to the honey.)

1 (.25 oz.) pkg. active dry yeast

1 cup warm water

2 cups whole wheat flour

1/4 cup wheat germ

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon honey

Preheat oven to 350. In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes. In a large bowl combine flour, wheat germ and salt. Make a well in the middle and add honey and yeast mixture. Stir well to combine. Coven and set in a warm place to rise for a few minutes. Roll dough on a floured pizza pan and poke a few holes in it with a fork. Bake in preheated oven for 5 to 10 minutes, or until desired crispiness is achieved.

No-Cook Pizza Sauce

1 cup tomato sauce

1/2 cup tomato paste

1/4 teaspoon garlic salt

1/4 teaspoon oregano

3/4 tablespoon basil

Place ingredients in a blender or food processor and pulse 10 times.

Best Bread Recipe

4 cups flour (I used whole wheat)

1 tbsp. yeast

1 tbsp. salt

3 tbsp. sugar (I use honey)

1 tbsp. oil

Mix vigorously together in a bowl. Then add:

3 cups hot water

Mix again until combined. Add

2-3 cups flour

Knead until it is the consistency of a slightly sticky play dough. Let rise in a covered bowl until doubled (about an hour). Punch down and roll out on a flat surface. Shape into two loaves. Place into two greased loaf pans. Cover and let rise until doubled (about 1 inch above the pan). Bake at 350 for 35 minutes. Let it sit in the pan for 5-10 minutes. Remove from pan and let it cool most of the way on a wire rack before slicing.

Rockin Moroccan Stew

*taken from Crazy Plates by Janet and Greta Podleski

1 c. chopped onion
1/2 c. each diced celery and chopped green bell pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
3 c. veg broth
3 c. peeled, cubed sweet potatoes
1 can (14-1/2 oz) diced tomatoes (look for the no salt added kind), do not drain
1 can (15 oz) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 T lemon juice
2 tsp grated gingerroot
1 tsp each ground cumin, curry powder, ground coriander, and chili powder
1/4 pepper
1/4 c. raisins
2 T each natural peanut butter and chopped, fresh cilantro

Heat water or broth in soup pot over med heat. Add onions, celery, green pepper and garlic. Cook and stir until vegetables begin to soften, about 3 minutes.

Add all remaining ingredients, except raisins, peanut butter and cilantro. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, covered for about 20 minutes.

Stir in raisins, peanut butter and cilantro. Mix well. Simmer for 5 more minutes. Serve hot. Makes about 6 servings (4 large)