pear energy balls

 Haven't made these pear energy balls yet, but I'm trying to clear tabs. :)

Ingredients

• 1 cup rolled oats (old-fashioned, not quick oats)
• 1/2 cup dried pears (soft, not rock-hard—check that they’re pliable)
• 1/2 cup almond butter (natural, at room temperature)
• 1/4 cup honey (real honey, not the fake stuff) [i will probably substitute date paste]
• 1/4 cup chia seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• Pinch of salt (seriously, don’t skip this)

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Instructions

1. Toss your rolled oats into a food processor and pulse until they’re finely ground—think flour-like texture with a bit of texture remaining, not turned into complete dust.
2. Add the dried pears, almond butter, honey, chia seeds, cinnamon, and salt right into the processor with the ground oats. Pulse everything together until it’s well combined and the mixture sticks together when you pinch it between your fingers (if it crumbles, pulse more or add a tiny bit more honey).
3. Let the mixture sit for about 5 minutes—the chia seeds will absorb moisture and everything holds together way better (trust me on this one).
4. Roll the mixture into small balls about 1 inch in diameter—roughly walnut-sized—and line them up on a baking sheet with parchment paper. Don’t stress about making them perfectly round; rustic works just fine.
5. Pop the baking sheet in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to set and firm up. This step is key—skip it and you’ll have a smushed mess when you try to pack them.
6. Once they’re firm, transfer the energy balls to an airtight container for storage. Keep them refrigerated and enjoy whenever you need a quick nutritious boost that actually tastes good!

 

quinoa tzatziki bowls

I see reels from various people on Facebook from various sources, and I like to see some of the food preparation ideas.

This was from Liam Layton, reposting from @mariannas_pantry.  

They stacked these in jars which were then dumped out and mixed up for a salad serving.  It looks tasty and satisfying so I may try.  I'll definitely be eating this when I'm drowning in cucumbers this summer, but I may not wait!  I haven't had tzatziki in forever.  

- container of tzatziki

- quinoa (I'd maybe cook a cup of it) 

- chopped cucumber, bell pepper, red onion

- chickpeas 

- Kalamata olives

- banana peppers

- feta

 

protein biscuits

 I am for sure making these "protein biscuits" as they seem like a satisfying breakfast option.  From here.  Seems like I can make a lot of substitutions in them.   

Ingredients

• 3 tsp baking powder + flour to 250 g (2 cups total)
• 1 cup (240g) yogurt (they call for dairy free but I'll use dairy) 
• 1 cup (190 g) red lentils, rinsed 
• 1 1/3 cup (320 mL) vegetable stock  
• 1/3 cup (80 ml) olive oil
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp Italian herbs
• 1 1/2 cup (45 g) spinach, finely chopped (I'll replace with zucchini and other vegetables) 
• 1/2 cup (55 g) sundried tomatoes (not stored in oil ... so perhaps reduce oil if using from oil) 
• 3/4 cup (100 g) sunflower seeds
• 1/3 cup (15 g) nutritional yeast  

Instructions Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Lightly oil paper with olive oil. Set aside. Place the rinsed red lentils in a saucepan with vegetable stock. Cover the pan, bring it to high heat until the liquid boils, reduce to medium heat, and cook covered for 10-12 minutes until the lentils are mushy and the liquid is absorbed. Remove the lid and let it steam out for 10 minutes. Preheat the oven to 400 °F (200 °C). In a large mixing bowl, add flour, onion powder, Italian herbs, yogurt, olive oil, cooked red lentils, chopped spinach, chopped sundried tomatoes, seeds, and nutritional yeast. Combine everything together until it forms a sticky dough. Divide the dough into 8 portions and place them on the prepared baking sheet. Bake the biscuits for 20-25 minutes at 400 °F (200 °C) until golden brown. Let them cool down for a few minutes before serving.

raspberry apple oat dessert

Have some raspberries and apples to use up.  Saw this on Forks Over Knives, and I'm giving it a try with modifications.  I plan to freeze portions in jars to eat in the future with oats.

Apple-Raspberry Crisp 

Ingredients

• 8 medium sweet apples, such as Gala or Fuji, chopped (48 ounces)
• 1 pound frozen raspberries, thawed (4 cups)
• 2 cups oat flour (which can just be oats pulverized in a food processor; I used cassava flour)
• 2 cups rolled oats
• ½ cup pure maple syrup (I did use 1/4 cup maple syrup, and substituted 1/4 cup dried plum puree)
• ¼ cup almond butter (I used peanut butter) 
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon sea salt

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 425°F.
• In a skillet over medium heat, cook chopped apples, stirring occasionally, until they begin to soften, 5 to 7 minutes. Add a bit of water if needed to keep apples from sticking. Transfer apples to an 11-inch square or 13x9-inch rectangular baking dish; top with raspberries.  (NOTE: I'm skipping this step because my apples are a little soft already; I'm going to put them into the pan and bake for 10 minutes, then add raspberries for some more time, and then add the topping and bake as below)
• In a bowl, combine oat flour, rolled oats, maple syrup, almond butter, baking powder, and salt; rub in with fingertips until mixture comes together in small clumps. Spread the crumble over the fruit. Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes.

 

chocolate peanut butter tofu pie

 A vegan friend made this pie for me more than 20 years ago, and it became a favorite though I haven't made it in many years.  I've been craving it for over a year, and I gradually acquired the ingredients, and boom I just made it.  i plan to have a slice tonight and then to slice them and stash with parchment paper in the freezer, to pull out a slice from time to time when I want a rich treat.  

There are a lot of iterations of this but I just wanted to dump things in and not add sugar besides the chocolate.  So here's what I did.

 Ingredients

• a graham cracker pie crust 9" (or another type of crust that goes well with chocolate and peanut butter)
• 1 bag of dark chocolate chips (I got them from Trader JOe's, 10 oz)
• 1/2+ cup of natural peanut butter  
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1 box of silken tofu (mine was about 10.8 oz I think it said) 

Melt the chocolate chips at 30 second increments and stir until melted.  Put all ingredients into a food process and combine.  

Pour into the crust and let chill a few hours before serving. 

lentil recipes

 Saving this here for later.  Recipes written out here.  For sure want to try that Mexican skillet.

red cabbage and quinoa salad

 I saw this video with purple cabbage and quinoa salad which looks good and I want to try it.  She was pretty short on details but I will try to figure it out. NOte: this was pretty bland the first day, but the next day it was really good, ate two bowls of it for lunch and it was satisfying.  Worth making again. 

Ingredients:

• red cabbage
• red onion
• salt
• olive oil
• dates 
• sumac
• garlic (2 cloves minced)
• 1 tsp dijon mustard
• (1 tsp honey, date syrup, etc.) 
• nuts (she seemed to have a mix; pistachios or cashews or almonds or anything seems fine)
• fresh herbs: chives, mint, parsley 
• quinoa 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Slice cabbage and slice red onion and put onto baking sheet.  Add olive oil, salt, and massage.  Roast, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes (?).

Chop herbs, put into a bowl.  Add some dates (she just pulled them apart).  

Cook quinoa (she said a cup - raw or cooked, unclear), add to bowl.  Add roasted cabbage and onion, then season with lemon juice, sumac, salt, pepper, garlic, mustard, date syrup/honey, roasted nuts