vegan banana bread

As the weather gets cooler, baking can be a lovely activity that fills the home with delicious smells. Sometimes when I'm feeling stuck, cooking or baking helps get the energy moving again. 

Banana Bread 

Ingredients:

2 cups flour (sifted) I have tried buckwheat flour, spelt and all purpose (or a combination of them). Whole grain will be more dense and all purpose will be more fluffy.

2 t baking powder

1 t baking soda

4 very ripe bananas

1/3 cup + 1T pure blueberry juice

1/4 cup coconut oil, melted

2 t vanilla

1/4 cup maple syrup

1/2 t cinnamon (optional, try Ceylon cinnamon)

1/4 t nutmeg (if tolerated)

*optional add ins- shredded coconut (no preservatives), chopped walnuts or pecans (to taste, if tolerated)

Preheat oven to 350F

Grease your baking pan (I used a little coconut oil).

Mash bananas.

Mix the dry ingredients together in a bowl (I just use a fork or spoon for mixing).

Mix the wet ingredients together in another bowl, including bananas.

Make a hole or indent in the dry ingredients and slowly pour the wet ingredients in, mixing together until it is just mixed (do not over mix!). Fold in any add ins if you are using them. The mixture is kind of a grey colour at this point. Don't worry, it will be a more appetizing brown once it has baked!

Bake for 45- 50 minutes. Test with a fork or toothpick and see if it comes out clean. Let the loaf cool in the pan for a few minutes and then gently remove it and place on a cooling rack if you have one, or something else like a plate. Bon appetit!

peanut butter oatmeal cookies

 

My mom and I have been creating these delicious cookies for a treat and thought they turned out well. They are a little soft and quite filling. 

Ingredients:

3/4 cup peanut butter

1/4 cup coconut oil
1 cup spelt flour

1/4 cup oats
1/3 cup maple syrup

1 very ripe banana 

1 t vanilla

pinch salt

pinch cinnamon (optional, if tolerated)

1/2 t baking soda

Preheat oven to 350 F. Combine all the dry ingredients in a bowl and stir together until well mixed. In another bowl, mash the banana. Add the peanut butter, maple syrup, coconut oil and vanilla to the banana bowl and stir together until they are well combined (you can squish any lumps of solid coconut oil with the spoon, although you don't have to get them all!). Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet and stir together. You can use your hands to mix and squish the dough together towards the end- this works very well! 

You probably don't need to grease the cookie sheet if it's nonstick. Divide the dough into 14 pieces and roll into little balls (roughly 1.5 inch diameter) on the cookie sheet. Squish the balls into a flat cookie shape with a fork, leaving them about 1/2 inch thick. Bake for 13 minutes. Please note that this time worked for us, but it could be slightly different depending on your oven. If you're not sure, you can check the bottom of the cookies and check if the sides are starting to brown to tell whether they are done. 

Take the cookie sheet out of the oven and let them cool for a few minutes on the sheet before transferring them to a cooling rack.

Enjoy! 

chickpea dip

This is a nice dip if tahini is ok for you.

Ingredients

1 tin chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup soup broth
1 clove of garlic
2-3 T tahini paste
a generous amount of fresh dill
salt and fresh pepper (to taste)

Blend ingredients in a blender or food processor until desired consistency is reached.  If you want it thicker, add more tahini.  If you want it thinner, add more soup broth.  Serve with ic friendly crackers or vegetables.

stir fried broccoli and baby bok choy

Ingredients

1 cup broccoli florets
1 bunch baby bok choy
1 T toasted sesame oil
1 small shallot (optional)
2 garlic cloves
sea salt and fresh pepper (to taste)
1 t sesame seeds (optional)

In a frying pan or cast iron skillet with a lid, heat up sesame oil on a very low heat ( I did it on heat 2 on my stove).  Wash and chop broccoli and add it to the pan.  Peel and thinly slice shallot (if using), add it to the pan. Simmer a couple of minutes, removing the lid to stir.

Smash and chop garlic, add to the pan.  Cook another minute or so, stirring regularly.

Wash bok choy, chop stems and add them to the pan, saving the leaves.  Simmer another minute or so, then add the leaves, a pinch of salt and pepper, plus a little extra sesame oil if desired.  Press the leaves to the bottom of the pan.  Stir, cooking for another minute or so until they are just wilted.

Remove from heat, sprinkle with sesame seeds (if using) and serve.

roasted red pepper tapenade

My boyfriend made this tasty dip originally for a pasta sauce.  It works as both a sauce or as a dip for chips if you are missing salsa.  Requires a blender or food processor.

Ingredients

1 full bulb of roasted garlic (before putting it in the oven, cut off the whole top of the garlic bulb so that the fleshy part of the garlic cloves is showing. Bake for 30 minutes at 400F)

4 roasted red peppers (to make roasted red peppers, broil them for a few minutes until the skin is blackened, then remove the skin)

1 250ml container of green olives - preserved with salt only (optional - add a bit of salt if not using olives)

1/2 cup cashews (soaked beforehand if necessary)

Put everything together in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.

maple roasted nuts

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups each almonds and cashews, or enough to cover a cookie sheet
1/8 cup pure maple syrup
pinch of salt
1-2 T neutral oil, like grape seed

Preheat oven to 400f.  Spread oil over cookie sheet with a flipper.  Spread the nuts over the cookie sheet and drizzle with maple syrup, stirring to coat all the nuts.  Put them in the oven and bake about 20 minutes to half an hour, stirring every five to ten minutes.  Remove from the oven when they are lightly browned and transfer to a bowl or pyrex dish to cool. Add salt (to taste) and stir.