Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients

1 cup coconut oil 

6 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce 

1 teaspoon salt 

2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract 

1 ¼ cups rice syrup 

2 cups gluten-free all-purpose baking flour 

1¼ cups + 1/2 teaspoon cup flax meal 

1 teaspoon baking soda 

1 cup vegan chocolate chips (TJ's dark chocolate bark bar cut up has no milk, but does have sugar)

Preparation

Preheat the oven the 325°F. Spray pans with oil or use parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, mix together wet ingredients and dry in separate bowls. Gently mix everything together until dry ingredients are wet. Fold chocolate chips in.
Scoop about 1 1/2 tsp size cookies to baking sheets space every 1 inch. If necessary, push down on top of cookie to help flatten a bit. Bake, on center rack, 15 minutes, rotate 180 degrees half way through. The finished cookies will be crisp on the edges and soft in the center.
Let cool on sheet for 10 minutes, then on wire rack. Cool completely before covering. Store in airtight container at room temp. for 3 days.

Adapted From Babycakes by Erin McKenna, (C) 2009 Clarkson Potter

Raw Chocolate "Birthday Cake"

In food processor:
1C. Walnuts
1 1/2 C. Pecans
1 C. Almonds
3 C. Dates
1t. sea salt

Transfer to large bowl and mix in:
3/4 C. Raw Organic Cocoa
1C. Organic Unsweetened Coconut
1/8C. Agave (optional)
 

Press in a pan or shape into balls.

Rice Flour & Whatever Muffins (wheat-free and potentially milk-free and egg-free)

Ingredients:

• 1 large egg (or use an egg replacement such as 1 Tbsp. ground flaxseed simmered in 3 Tbsp. water for 1 minute, then let sit 5 minutes to gel)
• 1/2 cup liquid of choice (fruit juice, lowfat milk, soy milk, water, etc.)
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar (or banana)
• 2 tablespoons canola oil (or banana)
• 1 cup brown rice flour (white rice flour can be substituted)
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons chopped nuts -- whatever type you have in pantry (optional)
• 3/4 cup fresh or frozen fruit (blueberries or raspberries, finely chopped apples, or peaches, etc.)

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line 6 muffin cups with foil or paper liners or coat the cups with canola cooking spray.
2. In large mixing bowl, combine egg or egg replacement, liquid of choice, sugar, and canola oil, beating on low until smooth.
3. In medium bowl, combine brown rice flour, baking powder, and salt. Add all at once to egg mixture and beat on low just until combined. Stir in nuts (if desired) and fruit of choice.
4. Divide batter among the prepared 6 muffin cups and bake for 15 minutes or until toothpick or fork inserted in the center of largest muffin comes out reasonably clean.

Yield:
Makes 6 muffins

Gluten-free Waffle - the rules

via thedailydietribe.com

Here are my rules for making gluten-free waffles: 

1. Start with 1 cup of a mediumweight flour, such as amaranth, sorghum, or millet. You can use all one type of flour or mix two or more together. For a heartier waffle, try replacing some of the flour with a heavyweight flour such as almond flour or buckwheat.
2. Add in 3/4 cup of starch, such as tapioca or potato starch. Again, you can use all one kind or do a mix. If you want a lighter waffle, you can increase the starch and decrease the mediumweight flour. For a healthier, whole-grain waffle, increase the flour and decrease the starch. Either way, you should end up with 1 3/4 cups total of flour and starch. 
3. Add 2 tsp. baking powder and 1/2-1 tsp. salt. Whisk the dry ingredients together. 
4. For your wet ingredients, you have a lot of options. You want to start with 1/4 cup of pureed fruit, applesauce, oil, or melted butter/Earth Balance. I'm pretty sure yogurt would work well here too, although I haven't tried it myself. If I'm thinking healthy, I go with applesauce or pureed fruit. For savory waffles, I use canola oil. For a richer taste, I would go with melted Earth Balance. 
5. Next, eggs. I've tried the same recipes with and without an egg, and I barely notice a difference. In fact, in some cases, they taste better without the egg. I add one in for extra protein, but if you want to skip it, go ahead. 
6. Liquid. You'll need 1 3/4 cup of liquid, although you may need more or less depending on the types of flour you use. You can use water, any type of milk including coconut milk, even fruit juice in some cases. You can use all one or a combination, although if you're using fruit juice, I recommend mixing it with water or coconut milk to dilute the flavor. 
7. Optional add-ins: If you're planning on drizzling your waffles with maple syrup, they don't need to be that sweet, so 1 Tbsp. of honey/agave nectar/maple syrup should be plenty. You can also skip that and chop up some fresh or dried fruit to add in. Chopped walnuts and pecans, sunflower seeds, flax seeds, even sesame seeds (in a savory waffle) add a nice texture. Play around with spices and herbs: cinnamon is wonderful in a sweet waffle. Fresh dill, basil and garlic powder go well in savory waffles.  
8. This should make 4-6 servings (2 squares each).

Because that was long, I'll summarize: 
1 cup mediumweight flour
3/4 cup starch
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2-1 tsp. sea salt
1/4 cup applesauce, melted butter, oil, etc.
1 egg (optional)
1 3/4 cup water, milk, fruit juice, etc.
optional: chopped nuts, fruit, seeds, spices, and herbs


Whisk dry ingredients. Whisk wet ingredients into dry. Pour onto (greased) waffle iron.

Millet Sweet Vegetable Soup

via christinacooks.com

Ingredients
1/2 cup millet-rinsed well
1/4 cup each onion, carrot, winter squash, green cabbage-finely diced
5 cups spring or filtered water
2 teaspoons barley miso
1-2 fresh scallions-thinly sliced for garnish


Directions
Rinse millet by placing in a glass bowl and covering with water. Gently swirl grain with your hands to loosen any dust. Drain well.

In a soup pot, layer onion, cabbage, squash, carrot, and then millet. Add enough water to just cover, careful not to disturb layering too much. Cover and bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat and cook soup for 30 minutes. Remove a small amount of broth and puree the miso. Gently stir into the soup and simmer for another 3-4 minutes. Serve garnished with fresh scallions.

Quinoa Lentil Burgers

Lentil Burgers

Ingredients:
2 cups cooked lentils (save the liquid)
1 carrot, chopped
1 cup fresh parsley
1/2 tsp dried cilantro
1/2 tsp sea salt
4 Tbsps. lentil cooking liquid (or water)
1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds
1 1/2 - 2 cups cooked quinoa

Directions:

1. Add all ingredients except the sunflower seeds and quinoa to the food processor. Process just until mixed and lumpy. Add in sunflower seeds and process another 30 seconds. Put mixture into a large mixing bowl.
2. Stir quinoa into the mixture until evenly mixed. Form into patties.
3. In a pan, saute 1 tsp. olive oil and cook burgers until browned, a few minutes per side.

Makes approx. 6-8 burgers

Find the original recipe at The Daily Dietribe.
www.thedailydietribe.com

Graham Cracker Recipe from Heavenly Homemaker (adapted)

2 ¼ cups whole wheat flour (I use spelt flour)
1/3 c. cocoa (optional)
1 t. baking powder
½ t. baking soda
½ t. salt
¼ t. cinnamon
8 T. honey
¼ c. water
1 t. vanilla
1 stick butter, melted
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Melt stick of butter in a pan on the stove.  Set aside.
3. In a mixing bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.
4. Add the liquids: honey, water, vanilla and melted butter.
5. Stir well until a nice ball of dough is formed. (If using spelt flour don't over mix, just enough until everything is mixed together.)
6. Cut two pieces of Parchment paper the size of the cookie sheet.
7. Lay one piece of parchment paper on the cookie sheet.
8. Place the ball of dough on the parchment paper.
9. Lay the other piece of parchment paper on top of the ball of dough.  Squish dough down a little with your fist.
10. Use the rolling pin to roll the dough between the pieces of parchment paper.  Roll until the dough covers the whole cookie sheet.
11. Remove the top piece of parchment paper.  Cut rolled dough into 2 inch squares, or cut shapes with cookie cutters, being sure to separate the shapes from the surrounding dough a little.
12. Bake in oven for 18 minutes.
13. Turn oven off, but leave crackers in the oven to get crisp.
14. Remove from oven after 30 minutes to one hour.  Break graham crackers apart.
15. Store in a air tight container.