Category Archives: Recipes

Recipe: Vegetarian Brown Rice and Lentil Casserole

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There are several reasons why I love this vegetarian recipe for a brown rice and lentil casserole.

First, it’s ridiculously easy. You should allow about 90 minutes bake time, but other than that, the assembly comes together quickly and effortlessly.

Second, it’s packed with good stuff. The lentils are a good source of protein, dietary fiber, iron, folate and vitamin B1. The brown rice contains magnesium, iron and B vitamins. I always add one 28-ounce can of tomatoes, which provides additional nutrients like vitamin C and carotene lycopene, an antioxidant.

Third, it contains low-cost ingredients and provides leftovers, thus making you a frugal cook who knows how to stretch your dinner dollar!

Finally… it’s yummy, plain and simple. :) Hubby and I have been enjoying this recipe for months now.

P.S.– If you skip the cheese (and use vegetable broth, of course) this makes a delicious vegan dinner, too!

Get the recipe over at Food.com!

Recipe: Chocolate Berry Loaf

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Vegan Chocolate Berry LoafWas doing some reminiscing tonight… and I realized that it was exactly four years ago today that I posted the recipe below on my former blog which, at the time, was still in its infancy. I’ve reposted here most of the recipes that had appeared there, but this one for Chocolate Berry Loaf wasn’t carried over yet, so I thought tonight would be an appropriate night to share it with you. :) This recipe was adapted by me from a women’s magazine, and makes a delicious vegan dessert.

Chocolate Berry Loaf
(makes 3 mini loaves or one standard-size loaf)

1/3 cup cocoa powder
1/3 plus 3/4 cup sugar
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Egg replacer for two eggs
1/3 cup oil
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 cup Tofutti brand sour cream
1/2 cup soy yogurt
1/2 cup dried fruit, chopped
3 tablespoons chocolate chips

1) Heat oven to 350 degrees. Coat the three mini loaf pans with cooking spray or oil.
2) In a small bowl, mix together cocoa powder, 1/3 cup sugar and 1/3 cup water until it’s a smooth consistency. Set aside.
3) In a larger bowl, mix together flour, bakig powder, baking soda and salt.
4) In a medium-sized bowl, mix together remaining 3/4 cup sugar, your chosen eggs substitute, oil and almond extract. Whisk in sour cream.
5) Stir sour cream mixture into the flour mixture until well-blended. Mix 1 1/2 cups of the batter in with the cocoa mixture, along with the chopped berries, until no white streaks remain.
6) Drop alternating spoonfuls of batter into the mini loaf pans, then swirl a knife through the batter for a marble effect. Top each loaf with one tablespoon chocolate chips.
7) Bake at 350 degrees for 35-50, until a toothpick inserted in the center of each loaf comes out clean. Cool loaves on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then remove from pans to cool completely. 

A few of my own notes:
1) Recipe originally called for dried cherries… I found a dried berry mix at my store and used that… couldn’t resist a package of dried cranberries, blueberries, cherries and raspberries all mixed into one!

2) For the eggs, I used flax meal and water… two tablespoons flax meal mixed with 6 tablespoons water, whisked together and heated in the microwave until gooey.

3) Recipe originally called for one full cup of sour cream… I initially wanted to try this recipe with a full cup of soy yogurt in place of the sour cream, but I had a half-used tub of Tofutti sour cream in my fridge and, seeing as how I rarely use sour cream, I didn’t want the leftovers to go to waste so I used half Tofutti SC and half soy yogurt. If anyone tries it with only soy yogurt, let me know how it turns out!

4) Next time, I might try topping the loaves with a combination of chips and nuts, or just chopped nuts. What can I say, I’m nutty like that! ;-p

Recipe: Sweet and Savory Vegetarian Meatloaf

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Vegetarian Meatloaf RecipeThose who visit my blog’s fan page on Facebook got a glimpse of this Sunday night and convinced me to blog about it so, here it is! Originally from Family Circle magazine, this sweet and savory meatloaf recipe converted into a vegetarian meatloaf recipe with ease. The major substitution was using two 12 oz. packages of Boca crumbles in place of 1 1/4 pounds of ground beef. I also kept the egg in the recipe because I’m not familiar enough with alternative binding foods. If anyone could recommend something that might hold this together, I’m all ears!

I made these in mini loaf pans, which unmolded perfectly but, as you can see, were very tender when sliced. Still, they were quite delicious. And, the serving is very generous… could definitely get by eating only half the mini loaf. (For those following the Weight Watchers program, one mini loaf is 9 points according to my calculations.)

Oh, and, as some of you may know, hubby isn’t a squash fan… he hates the stuff, but enjoyed his mini loaf. He said he could taste the squash. Yet, we also debated whether or not he would have “tasted” it if he didn’t know (prior to eating it) that it was made with squash. Next time, I ain’t sharing my secret ingredients with him. :-p

Sweet and Savory Vegetarian Meatloaf – Serves 4
2 – 12oz. packages Boca crumbles
2/3 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup sweetened applesauce
1 large-ish zucchini, peeled and shredded
2 large-ish carrots, peeled and shredded
3 tablespoons ketchup
1 egg
1.5 teaspoons Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon garlic pwder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Mist four mini loaf pans with nonstick cooking spray and set aside. Combine Boca crumbles, oats applesauce, squash, carrots, ketchup, egg, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper in a large mixing bowl. Scoop mixture evenly into the four mini loaf pans, packing it down into the molds. Bake for 45 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for a few minutes before turning the loaves out onto a plate.