Makes 8 tacos
1 13-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 cups salsa*
8 soft tortillas (corn or wheat)
2 avocados, diced
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 lime, cut into 8 slices
1 handful of cilantro, chopped
– Place the beans and ½ cup of the salsa in a saucepan and heat over medium-low heat until they are warm. Set aside.
– Warm tortillas according to package directions.
– In each warm tortilla place a heaping spoonful of each of the warm bean and salsa mixture, avocado, salsa, and tomato. Squirt some fresh lime juice on top, and then bring it home with a healthy dollop of Cashew Sour Cream (see below) and garnish with cilantro.
1 cup cashews
½ cup water (not the cashew-soaking water)
Juice of ½ lemon
½ teaspoon apple cider vinegar
Cashew Sour Cream Directions:
– Place the cashews in a bowl of water, making sure they are covered by the water, and let them soak for 4 hours. Drain and rinse cashews and place in a blender with the remaining ingredients. Blend until smooth.
1 cup raw cashews
¼ cup nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 cup water
1 teaspoon agar powder
¼ cup chopped fresh dill
Directions:
– Lightly grease 6 spaces in your muffin tin using vegetable oil like sunflower or safflower.
– Place the cashews, nutritional yeast, salt, and onion powder in a blender or food processor and process until you have a fine cashew texture (not a cashew butter).
– Heat water in a small saucepan to a boil and add the agar. Stir with a whisk and reduce the heat to a simmer, continually stirring for 5 minutes.
– Add the cashew mixture into the agar and water mixture and stir with whisk to fully combine. Then add the dill and stir a few times.
– Spoon the mixture into the 6 muffin tin spaces and place in the fridge. Let the cheese set for about an hour uncovered in the fridge and then turn out the cheese onto a plate and enjoy!
– Tips and Tricks: Sub out the dill and onion powder and try adding your own flavors and spices. For instance, use a store-bought taco mix and instead of allowing the cheese to set in the fridge, serve warm as a nacho dip. (My personal favorite.)
Serves 4–5
3 tablespoons vegan butter or vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
10 mushrooms, sliced
4 stalks celery, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
½ loaf rye or gluten-free bread, toasted and cut into small cubes
1 cup vegetable stock
3 tablespoons tamari
1½ teaspoons poultry seasoning
Pepper to taste
– Heat up a large frying pan over medium heat, and add the vegan butter or vegetable oil and the onion. Sauté until onion is clear. Stir in the green pepper, mushrooms, celery, and garlic. Cook for a few minutes and then add the cubed bread, vegetable stock, tamari, poultry seasoning, and pepper. Continue to sauté until the bread absorbs all of the liquid. Remove from heat and cover with foil to keep moist until serving.
Serves 4
4 cups vegetable broth
2 cups water
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 winter squash,* peeled, seeded, and cubed
1 5.5-ounce can tomato paste
1 sweet potato, cubed
3 carrots, chopped
1 tablespoon curry powder, or more if you like it spicy
Directions:
– Pour ¼ cup of the vegetable broth or of the water into a soup pot over medium heat and add onion and garlic. Simmer for about 5 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients, including the rest of the broth and water, cover, and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes more.
Makes 1 wrap
½ tablespoon Bragg Liquid Aminos or any soy sauce
¼ package of smoked tofu,* thinly sliced
1 tablespoon eggless mayonnaise (such as Vegenaise or Just Mayo)
Pepper to taste
1 tortilla (flour or gluten-free)
1 handful of lettuce
½ tomato, sliced
– In a pan over medium heat, add the Liquid Aminos or soy sauce and the smoked tofu and fry for just a couple of minutes. This will make your smoked tofu taste amazing.
– Spread the eggless mayo (with pepper added to taste) over half the tortilla, add lettuce, tomato, and fried tofu slices, and roll the tortilla up like a burrito.
Makes 4½ cups
1 cup raw cashews
5 cups water (not the cashew-soaking water)
3 dates, pitted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Makes 4 small ice cream bars
1 13-ounce can full-fat coconut milk
4 tablespoons maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2½ tablespoons maple syrup
2½ tablespoons coconut oil
2½ tablespoons cocoa or raw cacao
¼ cup almonds or pecans, finely chopped
1 pinch of sea salt
– Refrigerate the unopened can of coconut milk for at least 3 hours or overnight, so the cream rises to the top inside the can. Once chilled, open the can and remove the firm cream, which will be at the top of the can, leaving the coconut water behind. (You can save the coconut water for another purpose, such as using it in your next smoothie.)
– Place the coconut cream, maple syrup, and vanilla extract in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Pour into 4 small Popsicle molds, insert the Popsicle stick, and freeze for at least 2 hours, until frozen solid.
– When the bars are frozen, combine maple syrup, coconut oil, cocoa, nuts, and sea salt in a small pot over medium heat. Stir until coconut oil is melted and everything is well mixed. Set pot aside to cool for about 20 minutes.
– Remove frozen ice cream bars from their molds and cover with chocolate coating using a knife the way you would ice a cake. Place the bars on a plate or tray lined with parchment paper and return to the freezer for 20 minutes or until chocolate coating has hardened.
– I dare you to eat just one.
Makes 30 turtles
12 soft, fresh dates (such as medjool), pitted
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 cup pecans halves
¾ cup dairy-free chocolate (semi-sweet chocolate chips or a couple of dark chocolate bars)
Directions:
– Place the dates and vanilla extract in a bowl and mix together with your hands. You want to soften the dates and mix in the vanilla flavor. Form 30 small balls about the size of a large marble and then slightly flatten them. These will be your “caramel” centers.
– Cut two pecan halves lengthwise to form the four legs and stick one end of each piece into the caramel center. Use the rounded end of one half of a pecan for the turtle head.
– Melt the chocolate in a double boiler or very carefully in a small pot over low heat, stirring continuously so it does not burn. Once melted, remove from heat.
– Place a dab of melted chocolate on the bottom of the turtle. This will help hold the legs and head in place. Set the turtle bottom side down on tray covered with a sheet of parchment paper. Dab with melted chocolate to cover the top of the turtle. Repeat the process of adding pecans and melted chocolate to the rest of the caramel centers. Once all the turtles are formed, place in the fridge to set.
Serves 6
½ cup natural peanut butter
1 prepared graham cracker pie crust (such as Keebler Ready Crust Graham Pie Crust)
1 cup dairy-free chocolate chips
15–20 ounces soft or silken, non-GMO tofu, drained
½ cup sugar
¼ teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions:
– Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
– Spoon peanut butter into graham cracker pie crust and spread gently to cover the base of the crust.
– Melt chocolate chips in a saucepan over low heat. Transfer melted chocolate to a blender and add tofu, sugar, sea salt, and vanilla extract. Blend until smooth. Pour over peanut butter in prepared pie crust and bake 40 minutes. Allow to cool and then place in fridge for approximately 1 hour to chill before serving. Can also be served frozen, if desired.
Serves 6
½ pound soft or silken tofu
1 approximately 8-ounce tub of Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese
¾ cup sugar
Juice of ½ lemon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 prepared graham cracker pie crust (such as Keebler Ready Crust Graham Pie Crust)
1 10-ounce can cherry pie filling
Directions:
– Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
– Place the tofu, Tofutti cream cheese, sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla extract in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into graham cracker crust. Bake 40–45 minutes. The filling will look firm and the crust will begin to brown. Allow to cool slightly and then refrigerate until completely cool. Top with cherry pie filling and serve.
Makes 12 cookies
1 tablespoon ground chia or ground flaxseeds for making chia or flax egg*
3 tablespoons water for the chia egg, plus 1–2 tablespoons more for the final mixing of the dough
1⅓ cups oat flour (You can simply grind rolled oats in a blender, food processor, or coffee grinder to make the flour.)
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon sea salt
½ cup tahini
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup sugar (best with less-processed and unbleached sugar such as unrefined brown sugar or Sucanat)
½ cup dairy-free chocolate chips
½ cup toasted coconut (toasted in dry frying pan or toaster oven)
1–2 tablespoons water, as needed when doing the final mixing
Directions:
– Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
– Make 1 chia or flax egg.
– In a large bowl add the flour, baking soda, and salt and stir until combined.
– In a smaller bowl combine the tahini, vanilla extract, and sugar and stir until combined.
– Add the wet ingredients from the small bowl and the chia or flax egg into the dry ingredients of the large bowl and stir until well mixed. (You may want to consider using your hands to combine these ingredients as it really speeds things up). Add the chocolate chips and toasted coconut and mix until well combined. If the mixture seems too dry, feel free to add 1–2 tablespoons of extra water here to help the cookie dough come together.
– Form each cookie by creating a ball with about 2 tablespoons of the cookie dough and then pressing it into a cookie shape on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. The cookies will not spread much, so create them in the shape you would like to see them when they come out of the oven.
– Bake for 12–14 minutes or until they begin to brown.