No Junk Muesli Bars

When it comes to muesli bars, the ones in the shops are usually so full of junk! But sadly even many homemade recipes use oils or sweeteners in excessive amounts too. Here's a great recipe that has no junk and is still quick & easy to make! You'll wonder why you ever bothered to buy them when they're so easy to make yourself!
 

NO JUNK MUESLI BARS(Makes 8 bars)

                   You'll need:
                   1/2 cup dried dates
                   3 overripe bananas
                   3 cups rolled oats
                   1/4 cup ground flax seeds
                   1 teaspoons vanilla essence
                   1 teaspoon cinnamon
                      
                   Optional: 2 Tablespoons extra dried fruit, any other flavour you like:         
                   raisins, craisins, inca berries.

Place the dates in a food processor and pulse a few times until broken into small pieces.
Add the remaining ingredients and pulse until the mixture comes together and the oats are slightly broken down but not completely turned into mooch! ;-)
Press the mixture evenly into a 20cm square baking tin, either lined or silicone base.
Bake in a preheated 180°C oven for 25 mins until golden brown. 
Once cooled, remove from the baking tin & slice into 8 pieces.

Kids Lunchbox Club: Chocolatey Spread

Apparently lots of kids still take nutella sandwiches to school even when their school is nut free! 
But it's not the nuts in nutella that bothers me (and hey let's face it, the nut content is truly quite pitiful)..... It's the milk and sugar and fat.
So here's a much more healthful version, and one that can be taken to nut-free schools guilt free!

CHOCOLATEY SPREAD

       You'll need:
             1 cup dried pitted dates
             1 1/2 cups cooked black beans
             2 Tablespoons cocoa powder
             1 teaspoon vanilla essense


Soak the dried dates in boiling water for about 10-15 mins until softened. Drain the dates and combine them in a food processor with the other ingredients. Blend until smooth, or until desired consistency. 
Transfer to a air-tight container and store in the fridge for up to a week.
Spread & enjoy :-)
 

"Sausage-less" Rolls

Life has been very busy for me lately - this is reflected in my lack of posts! 
I hope to be more motivated soon and share all the drafts that I have lined up waiting to be published. 

These "sausage" rolls were inspiration enough to get me started back at it again. They are super easy to make and they are very delicious. 

"SAUSAGE-LESS" ROLLS

To make 4 rolls you'll need:

2 tins lentils

1 Tablespoon each: nutritional yeast, onion flakes, soy sauce

1/2 teaspoon each: ground garlic, sage powder, liquid smoke and molasses

8 sheets filo pastry

Drain the lentils and combine them in a bowl with all the other ingredients except for the pastry.

Mash until the lentils have crumbled and the mixture resembles mince. 

Place a quarter of the mixture onto the side-middle of 2 sheets of filo pastry. 

Fold the side of the filo pastry in, then fold the edges up and roll until you reach the end of the pastry.

Repeat for the other 3 rolls.

Place on a lined baking tray and brush the tops with soymilk.

Bake in a 180C oven for 20 minutes until golden brown.

Best served while still hot from the oven.

In My Kitchen - April

For those of you who follow my blog, you may have noticed I have taken a bit of a break lately.
We have lots going on for us so I just needed some down time, and that meant time away from the computer.
I have plenty of recipes lined up to share in the coming weeks, but to get back into things I thought it would be a good idea to share what has been happening In My Kitchen so far this year. 

When life gets busy we find that we fall back onto easy meals. Well, to be perfectly honest the large majority of what we eat is easy, basic meals. But in busy times that means relying on some family favourites.

From Top left:
Red Lentil and Spinach Sauce with roasted potatoes and green beans, Veggie Pizza, mashed potatoes with steamed veggies and thick Mushroom Gravy with spinach added, Salad with Potato Waffles and Lentil Burgers, Red Lentil and Spinach Loaf with corn and potatoes, Rice & Veggie Bake, Eggplant Bean Sauce over roasted potatoes with corn, Lentil Meatballs with potatoes in tomato sauce and steamed veggies. 

Easy doesn't mean that dessert is forgotten! 
We often have banana ice-cream, or mini "puddings" that are made with just fruit, dates, applesauce and oats. I often throw together things like this without following a recipe. However when I made these raisin sweetened brownies my family gave me strict instructions to write down exactly what I had done and make them again and again! Recipe coming soon so stay tuned!

Below is a new family favourite that we are working out how to tweak it to be just right. The problem is, I have been slack with writing down exactly what I do, so no 2 batches ever end up the same!
But this is so good that my husband has made up a little song to go with it!

 
I love seeing all the colours as we are cooking our meals :-)
They are just so inviting!

I have been putting our pressure cooker to good use and making large batches of legumes. 
Sometimes though...... it all goes horribly wrong! 

I find that I am still getting used to the exact number of 'minutes' that I should set the cooker to, in order to get perfect legumes. This batch of fava beans that I put on were clearly overdone and they had completely crumbled into a big blob! So instead of being able to use them in a ratatouille like I had planned, I ended up doing some experimenting! I must admit that it brings me much joy to just experiment in my kitchen and not have to bother with precise measurements!
I made several dips and a batch of mini pita breads to go with them. I took this into work for a meeting and everyone really loved both the dip and the pita bread.
These stuffed foldovers were loved by my family too. They were filled with the gone-wrong fava beans, spinach, carrots, peas and corn. Of course, baked til golden brown (not shown).

Talking about baking, there is rarely a week that goes past without our oven producing wonderful aromas.
We made these animal cookies for a "vegan teddy bears picnic" we went to. They had a wonderful texture, quite true to 'cookies' even without the use of vegan butter replacements. I intend to master this creation and blog the recipe soon. However, since they do contain nuts, it is a rare occasion that we eat nuts at home so it may be a while before a final recipe eventuates! 
The "kale" cake shown is the recipe from the new Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease Cookbook, which I finally caved in and purchased! 
Also shown below is a pile of super yummy oat pancakes which we devoured for breakfast one morning. And one of my daughter's favourite after school snacks recently - apple nachos. Sliced apples, piled with goji berries, homemade chocolate sauce, coconut and a sprinkling of walnuts. 

Here's a glimpse of a few of her lunches lately:

More colourful items. She is really enjoying hommus and salad wraps/rolls at the moment. Pictured is also pita bread, banana loaf, fruit wrap and strawberries.  

I bought a new gadget recently - an air-fryer! I am in love with it! Not only does it NOT totally heat the whole house up (like the oven does) but it cooks my potato chips in less than half the time. It is also great for warming up leftovers for school lunchboxes and also makes wonderful crumbed mushrooms (even if the photo looks wrong, I promise you they were delicious! I used oyster mushrooms on this occasion).

Other new items in our kitchen:

PB2 (Powdered Peanut Butter)- Yes, yes I know - processed food! But alas, I just HAD to try this when I saw it in our health food store recently. And with much less fat than peanut butter it ticks the box for an occasional treat.
I bought these curry paste's to try and they are the only oil-free ones I could find. I have only opened the red one so far and it was HOT HOT HOT! So the other three-quarters of the container is still in the fridge!
These relatively new "flats" - available in Woolies and other stores, are made from veggies or fruit with the addition of seeds and/or nuts. They are dehydrated to become crispy. They are quite tasty. Again, not something I would purchase regularly but none the less a great product for when those occasions happen that we need something to snack on and are caught out unprepared (I'm thinking those days when you end up caught back at work for 2 hours!).
Also shown are these White Corn Tortillas. I pictured these because I have been asked about wraps that are oil-free. These are the only ones that I have had any luck being able to find regularly. To be honest, they don't fold real well and are best used in cooked items such as Mexican Pie.

And to finish off this post - here a few items "out" of my kitchen.
Enjoying a delicious Bean & Potato Salad under the Harbour Bridge just before day-light saving ended.
And an amazing oil-free vegan pizza that was made especially for me at a friends birthday party! I felt so blessed! :-)

It's nice to stop and enjoy the little blessings when life gets busy and the weight of everyday things are getting us down!

Question of the day:
What is something that you can stop and be thankful for lately?

Tell us what's been going on in your kitchen this month! And don't forget to add your link at Fig Jam & Lime Cordial. Thanks for hosting Celia! :-)

Kids Lunchbox Club - Salted Bean Snack

My daughter's latest obsession for morning tea break:

SALTED BEAN SNACK

It seems that she just can't get enough of these lately! 

I'm just glad that she is enjoying healthy food so much!
She calls these "green chips" - far better option than 'chips' if you ask me!

Simply top and tail a large handful of beans, place them in a microwave safe dish with just enough water to cover them. 1-2 minutes in the microwave depending on how crisp you like them to be.
Drain, place in a cool coffee mug (the kids will love that!) and crack some sea salt over the top!


Sometimes simple things really are the most satisfying!

What's something really simple that you enjoy eating?

Kids Lunchbox Club - Quick Mexican Quinoa Salad

My daughter has decided that she quite loves quinoa! This is thanks to her testing out a Dreena Burton recipe. So this means now she requests it for her lunchbox salad. We don't often eat quinoa, but I had a batch made up this week and with a few leftover bits and pieces from a Mexican-inspired meal we had prepared earlier in the week this delicious salad was created.
Nevermind the kids! I reckon this lunchbox meal would please any adult too!

QUICK MEXICAN QUINOA SALAD

To serve one you'll need:
1 cup cooked quinoa
2 Tablespoons of salsa
1/4 cup black beans
1/4 cup corn kernels
1/4 small capsicum - chopped
1/2 small avocado - diced

Stir a tablespoon of salsa into the quinoa and mix well. 
Add the other ingredients and stir through. Top with the remaining tablespoon of salsa.


 

Submitted to Healthy Vegan Fridays
You can add your recipe on these blogs:
Vegan Dollhouse 
Rock My Vegan Socks

Banana Oat Slice

I love to mix up a quick & easy slice. 

They are great for sneaking into lunchboxes, for adults and kids! 

This is a really simple one that doesn't require many ingredients, most of them are just staples in our home so they are always on hand anyway. 

And.... it's easy enough for kids to make themselves!

BANANA OAT SLICE

You'll need:
2 Tablespoons ground flax mixed with 6 Tablespoons boiling water
1/2 cup motherless milk of choice
2 overripe bananas
1 teaspoon each baking powder, baking soda
1/4 cup coconut sugar  (*see below)
1 cup oats
1 cup oatbran

Whisk together the flax and water and set aside til thickened.
Combine all the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Stir until well combined.
In a smaller bowl mash the bananas well.
Add the milk and flax seeds and stir. 
Make a well in the centre of the dry mixture and pour the wet ingredients in.
Gently fold the wet ingredients into the dry until just combined. Do not overmix.
Pour mixture into a 18cm square baking dish either lined or silicone.
Bake in a preheated 180C oven for 30 minutes.

*For a sugar free version omit the sugar and replace with 1 teaspoon vanilla.

Lazy Day Lunch

Some days I'm just not so hungry at lunch time. 
And other days, I'm super hungry in the afternoon.

I love this little treat for either of those occasions.

Crispbread
Topped with hummus,
Sundried Tomatoes
and mixed salad leaves of choice

Here's what I use and why I love them:

Ryvita Crispbread
These crispbread come in 3 varieties - Original Rye, Sesame Rye and Multigrain.
They are made using only wholegrain ingredients. Their ingredient list is minimal. They are low salt and high fibre. 

SSS Foods Hommus
This is my favourite brand of hommus. They are oil free which is a HUGE plus on my list. They come in 3 flavours- Natural, Fresh Chilli, and Coriander, Cumin & Mild Chilli which is my personal favourite.

Sandhurst Sun-dried Tomatoes
Again, here is another oil free product. These sun dried tomatoes are air packed & not sitting in oil. They are really moist and delicious, even without the oil. They do dry out a little after the packet is opened but they can easily be freshened up by soaking in boiling water for a few minutes.


I LOVE discovering oil free convenience foods. And whilst I don't like to promote a convenience diet, I think it's handy to know there are products out there that are good to use when those emergency times call for it!

If you're interested in discovering why I follow an oil-free diet you can read about it at these links:
Engine 2 Diet - Why No Oil
McDougall Newsletter - Why do you avoid adding vegetable oils 
PCRM - Avoiding added vegetable oils
Happy Herbivore - There is no such thing as Healthy Oils

Choc Chip Banana Muffins

Chocolate in a lunchbox is bound to keep kids happy..... but it doesn't have to be an unhealthy type of chocolate! Try this treat to keep them happy :-)

CHOC CHIP BANANA MUFFINS
(Makes 12)

2 Tablespoons ground flax
3/4 cup plant milk
1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar
2 overripe bananas
1/2 cup applesauce
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup coconut sugar
1/2 cup dairy free chocolate chips (I used Sweet William - cacao nibs would work too)
2 cups wholemeal SR flour

Whisk together the flax seeds with 6 Tablespoons boiling water - set aside to thicken.
In a measuring jug combine the milk with the apple cider vinegar - set aside to thicken.
In a large mixing bowl mash the bananas. Add the applesauce, vanilla, milk mixture & coconut sugar. Whisk until well combined, then stir through the flax seed mixture.
Gently fold the flour and chocolate chips into the wet ingredients until just combined - do not overmix.
Using an ice-cream scoop - pour a scoop full of mixture into a muffin tray. 
Bake in a preheated 180C oven for 30minutes or until golden and cooked through.

Kids Lunchbox Club - Nut Bars

A wonderful sugar free treat for your kids (or your own) lunchbox. 

These bars are super easy to make and they are really tasty.

If your school is nut free then just substitute seeds as needed.

VEGAN SUPER BARS (as named by my daughter)

aka NUT BARS

You'll need:

1 1/2 cup oats

1/4 cup ground flax seeds

1/4 cup almonds

1/4 cup cashews

1/4 cup dessicated coconut

2 Tablespoons sunflower seeds

2 Tablespoons pepitas

150g soft silken tofu

1/2 cup apple sauce

1/4 cup pure maple syrup

Blend the tofu, maple syrup and apple sauce together until smooth and creamy.

Smash the nuts. I find it easiest to do this in a sandwich bag, using a 'meat' mallet.

Combine the oats, nuts, seeds, coconut and tofu mixture together in a bowl and stir until well combined.

Pour into a lined 20cm x 30cm lamington tin.

Bake in a preheated 160C oven for 40-45 minutes until browned and mixture holds together.

Cool before slicing.

 Makes 14 pieces (depending on the size you cut them too). 

Wrap in foil and decorative paper for added lunchbox appeal! ;-)

Best served with 'dolphin fruit' ;-)

Submitted to Meatless Monday - Tofu cooking.

Kids Lunchbox Club - Choc Coco Sultana Slice

Who doesn't love a delicious warm chocolately cake coming out of the oven????
And with school starting back this week, what a wonderful treat to pop into a lunchbox.
Treats in our home don't come in packets and they aren't full of fat!
This one even warms the heart of those who aren't fond of fat-free baking!

Choc-Coco Sultana Slice

You'll need:
1 cup wholemeal self-raising flour
3/4 cup dessicated coconut
1/2 cup coconut sugar (or other dry sweetener of choice)
1/2 cup sultanas
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup soymilk (or other plant milk of choice)
50 grams dark chocolate (I used Lindt 70%)

In a large mixing bowl combine the flour, coconut, sugar, cocoa powder and sultanas. Make sure the sultanas are coated well with dry mixture so they don't all sink when baked. 
Pour in the soymilk and vanilla. Stir until well combined.
Break the chocolate into little pieces and stir through the mixture.
Pour into a lined baking dish (I used 20x30cm) and bake in a preheated 200C for 20 minutes.
Slice and serve.
Or allow to cool before putting in a lunchbox!

Quick Savoury Corn Muffins

I really enjoy savoury muffins. My husband is not really a fan.
I think they make a great accompaniment for tomato based meals like chili's and stews.
But, I also quite enjoy eating them just plain.
I think these would also work really well in a lunchbox instead of traditional sweet muffins.

QUICK SAVOURY CORN MUFFINS

You'll need:
2 cups wholemeal self-raising flour
1 Tablespoon ground flax seeds mixed with 3 Tablespoons boiling water
1 cup soy milk (or other plant milk of choice)
1 cup creamed corn

Sesame seeds 

Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl. Do not over mix.
Scoop into a lined muffin tin. Sprinkle tops of muffins with sesame seeds.
Bake at 180C for 25 minutes or until cooked through.

Makes 10 muffins

Meatless Monday - NUTS

Today's Meatless Monday food is nuts.

 FRUIT & NUT MUFFINS

To make 12 muffins you'll need:

2 cups self-raising wholemeal flour

1/2 cup mixed nuts (I used almonds, cashews, walnuts)

1/3 cup sultanas

1/4 cup craisins

1/4 cup currants

2 Tablespoons diced prunes (or sub extra sultanas)

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup applesauce

1 Tablespoon ground flax seeds mixed with 3 Tablespoons boiling water

1 cup unsweetened apple juice

In a large mixing bowl combine all the fruit with the sugar, cinnamon and flour. Crush the nuts into small pieces and stir them into the fruit/flour mixture.

Make a well in the center and add the applesauce, flax mixture and the apple juice. 

Stir until just combined, don't over stir.

Pour into a lined muffin baking tray and bake in a preheated 180C oven for 20-25 minutes until cooked through.

Meatless Monday - Mustard

Today's Meatless Monday food is mustard.

 I was originally going to make a twist on hummus but then I tried this last week and it was sooooo much better than the hummus that I just had to share this first!

I previously shared with you an alternative to chicken nuggets that will make kids happy, now I share with you an alternative to chicken chippees! 

TOFU CHIPPEES 

You'll need:

250g firm tofu

1/2 cup plant milk of choice

2 teaspoons dijon mustard

1 teaspoon sage

1 teaspoon thyme

1/2 cup breadcrumbs

Slice the tofu into long thin sticks about 4-5 cm long and about 1cm thick.

Mix the mustard into the milk until thickens and mustard is dissolved.

Combine the herbs with the breadcrumbs.

Place the tofu strips into the milk mixture, followed by the crumb mixture. 

Make sure the tofu strips are completely coated with crumbs.

Place on a lined baking tray spread apart.

Bake in a preheated 200C oven for 30 minutes.

They will come out golden brown and deliciously crunchy.

Kids will LOVE them!

(Makes 40 sticks)