Vegan Guacamole

Vegan Guacamole PinThis Vegan Guacamole recipe is simple and delicious. It’s sure to be a big hit at your next party or gathering of friends and family…even non-vegans will love it!

Guac is a special treat, especially with the high cost of avocados in the states. But if you have a craving for a rich, savory appetizer that’s perfect for your corn chips, look no further. This recipe is amazing!

You start with 3 medium sized avocados that are pretty soft when squeezed. That means they need to be ripe, but not over-ripe or they turn black and stringy on the inside, which isn’t very appetizing. Scoop out the yummy goodness into a large mixing bowl and discard the seeds.

Some people suggest saving the seeds and putting them in your guac to keep it from turning brown, but that’s an old wives-tale. The lime juice will keep your guac from turning brown, not the seed.

The reason guac (and avocados) turn brown is because of oxidation. Since the flesh of avocados have very few antioxidants (like apples and bananas), they turn brown when exposed to oxygen (the air we breath). The seed doesn’t generate a magical force field alla Star Trek to keep the oxygen from touching the guac. That would be cool, but that’s not physically possible. Instead, the lime juice is loaded with antioxidants and it coats the guac, preventing it from being assaulted by oxygen.

Squeeze the lime juice over the avocado and blend with a fork or potato masher until smooth but still lumpy. Fresh lime juice is ideal, rather than the lime juice from concentrate. If you’re going to fork out the dough for avocados, just buy a lime while you’re at it.

Finely dice a medium onion, a medium tomato (seeds removed) and a small jalapeño (seeds removed). If your jalapeño is large, you may only want to use half of it. That depends on how spicy you like your guac. Add these to your avocado/lime juice mixture.

It’s important to remove the seeds from your tomato or your guac may be too runny/liquidy. The seeds also don’t look great in the finished product. You can peel the tomato if you don’t like the peeling, but if you finely chop the tomato, it’s not necessary.

Mince your garlic and add it to the mixture as well. I used 3 cloves of garlic, but you can use more or less to your taste. 3 is usually my minimum for any recipe since Amelia and I love garlic.

The spices (salt, cumin and cayenne pepper) add a lot of flavor. I especially like the taste of cumin and love any recipe with it, so it’s extra good in this Vegan Guacamole. Add your spices to the bowl with everything else and stir to combine well.

Optionally, some fresh chopped cilantro would go great, but we didn’t have any on hand.

Let it sit for 30 minutes to an hour for all the flavors to combine.

This Vegan Guacamole recipe goes great with your favorite corn chips, oil-free corn tortilla corn chips or as a condiment on your Burrito Bowl or your favorite sandwich.

If you make this recipe, please let us know your thoughts in the comments below. And please share with your friends to help spread the word about healthy plant based eating.

Vegan Black Bean Soup

Vegan Black Bean Soup PinThis Vegan Black Bean Soup recipe is like a party in your mouth! It’s loaded with savory flavors and lots of protein. Top it with a little diced avocado for some extra deliciousness and you’ve got one delicious bowl of soup!

Beans are a great source of protein, calcium and fiber. That’s why they’re such an important part of a plant-based diet. It can take your body a few weeks (or months) to adjust to the flatulence caused by beans in some people, but the short-term discomfort is well-worth the long-term health benefits.

Before we transitioned to a whole-food plant-based (WFPB) diet, I never ate beans because of the horrible stomach and intestinal discomfort. Within a few months of switching our diet, I slowly started adding beans into the mix. Now we eat them every day and only occasionally do they cause gas. I’ve found that red beans still seem to be the worst offenders, while black beans, chickpeas and lentils are now fine.

According to the Harvard Health Letter, “A little bit of extra flatulence could be an indication that you’re eating the way you should!” So if you accidentally let one slip while waiting in line at the bank, just smile and say “Hey. I’m plant-based.”

This Vegan Black Bean Soup pairs well with a salad or cornbread.

If you make this recipe, please let us know your thoughts in the comments below. And please share with your friends to help spread the word about healthy plant based eating.

Cauliflower Quinoa

Cauliflower Quinoa PinThis Cauliflower Quinoa recipe is a real palate pleaser. It’s savory and delicious, with lots of protein and other nutrients, but without many calories. One cup is only about 183 calories. That makes it a great weight loss recipe.

Due to its high protein content and nutritional value, quinoa has risen in popularity over the last few years, which has also led to an increase in its price. Quinoa can be quite expensive now, but Whole Foods has a Super Grains blend that’s much less expensive. Feel free to substitute that for pure quinoa.

This is a great one dish meal for lunch, or paired with a soup or side salad if you have a bigger appetite.

If you make this recipe, please let us know your thoughts in the comments below. And please share with your friends to help spread the word about healthy plant based eating.

Vegan Locro de Papa Soup

Vegan Locro de Papa Soup PinThis Vegan Locro de Papa Soup recipe is a plant-based version of a traditional Ecuadorian potato soup. It’s a delicious and satisfying soup for a cold rainy day.

We learned about Locro de Papa Soup on our first trip to Ecuador. Due to a language barrier, we didn’t know it was traditionally made with cheese. We asked the server in our broken spanglish if it had cheese, but he must not have understood us because he assured us it didn’t. I’m pretty sure it did, though.

Despite having cheese (we think), our very first traditional Ecuadorian dish was a real palate pleaser! So Amelia decided to figure out how to make it “sin queso” and this was her creation thanks to a little help from Laylita’s Recipes (an Ecuadorian native from Vilcabamba).

The traditional recipe calls for little cubes of mozzarella or similar cheese, but we’ve replaced that with cubes of tofu to give it the same texture without the saturated fat. It’s best to use organic tofu if you can find it. Most tofu sold in grocery stores in the states is organic.

The key to getting the traditional locro color and taste is the achiote powder. We had a hard time finding this in Denver, but we eventually found some in a Whole Foods. Two of the three Whole Foods and none of the other grocery stores we checked carried it.

We used olive oil to saute the onions and garlic, but you can replace that with a 1/4 cup of veggie broth to make this an oil-free dish.

Like any soup, this pairs well with a salad or some whole grain bread for dipping.

If you make this recipe, please let us know your thoughts in the comments below. And please share with your friends to help spread the word about healthy plant based eating.

Cauliflower Potato Soup

Cauliflower Potato Soup PinWe created this delicious Cauliflower Potato Soup with a beautiful head of cauliflower we got at the market. It looked so pretty we hated to cut it up!

We spent most of New Year’s Day 2018 in the kitchen experimenting with new recipes and this was one of them. We also made Ginger Vinaigrette Beets, a Spinach Salad and a failed attempt at Sweet Potato Pie.

Cauliflower is a cruciferous vegetable in the same family as broccoli and Brussel Sprouts. That means it’s one of the best vegetables you can eat. And with only 156 calories, this filling soup is also great for your weight loss goals.

It pairs well with a Hearty Side Salad or Spinach Salad.

If you make this recipe, please let us know your thoughts in the comments below. And please share with your friends to help spread the word about healthy plant based eating.

Vegan Shepards Pie

Vegan Shepards Pie PinFeatured On NutritionStudies.org…

This Vegan Shepards Pie Recipe is a savory and satisfying dish for a special occasion or Sunday dinner. It pairs well with green beans or roasted broccoli.

Timing is important so the lentil mixture and Vegan Mashed Potatoes are finished at about the same time. When you’re ready to bake the Shepards Pie, it works best if all the ingredients are close to the same temperature.

You can also prepare the ingredients ahead of time and refrigerate until you’re ready to bake it. You’ll need to remove the casserole dish from the refrigerator about an hour before you’re ready to bake to let it warm up a little. That makes this a perfect dish to take to a friends house.

For even more flavor, top it with some Vegan Brown Gravy.

If you make this recipe, please let us know your thoughts in the comments below. And please share with your friends to help spread the word about healthy plant based eating.

Celery and Potato Soup Recipe

Celery and Potato Soup Recipe PinThis Celery and Potato Soup Recipe is creamy and delicious. And with only 44 calories for 1 cup, it’s a great recipe for weight loss!

Celery is highly nutritious, but I’ve never liked eating it raw. Luckily, it’s healthier when cooked! According to Dr. Greger, “Celery contains beneficial antioxidants, enzymes, vitamins, and minerals. Celery actually increases in antioxidant power when it is cooked; therefore, adding celery to vegetable soup, for example, actually boosts the soup’s nutritional value.”

That makes celery a superfood in our opinion, so finding new and creative ways to eat it is a challenge we’re happy to take on!

This soup pairs well with a delicious hearty salad for a nutritious soup and salad lunch, or as a side dish for your favorite main dish.

If you make this recipe, please let us know your thoughts in the comments below. And please share with your friends to help spread the word about healthy plant based eating.

Coconut Curry Lentil Soup Recipe

Coconut Curry Lentil Soup Recipe PinThis Coconut Curry Lentil Soup recipe is a delicious Indian dish that will fill your kitchen with the savory aroma of curry. We love Indian food, and it’s one of the easier types of cuisines to eat at restaurants since they typically have lots of vegan/vegetarian options.

But if you’re craving some curry, you don’t have to go out to eat. Now you can make your own!

We served it over brown rice to make it a little more filling and to spread out the delicious flavor, but you can eat it plain without the rice to save calories.

If you’re watching your saturated fat intake, you can also skip the coconut milk, but it won’t be as creamy or flavorful. We tried it without, but that seemed to be the missing ingredient.

If you make this recipe, please let us know your thoughts in the comments below. And please share with your friends to help spread the word about healthy plant based eating.

Vegan Broccoli Soup

Vegan Broccoli Soup PinBroccoli is one of our favorite veggies, and we created this Vegan Broccoli Soup so we can eat more of it! At only 75 calories per serving with 5 grams of protein, 3 grams of fiber and 116% of your daily Vitamin C, it’s also a nutritional powerhouse!

You can make this recipe with 2 small heads of broccoli or one big head. Since you’re going to blend the ingredients, you can use the broccoli stalks, too. It’s a good use for them so they don’t go to waste. You can also save them for your homemade Easy Vegetable Broth from Scraps. Set aside 2 cups of the broccoli florets for garnish to give your soup a little more visual appeal and texture.

We used unsweetened almond milk, but feel free to use your favorite non-dairy milk. This gives the soup a creamier texture.

Our recipes are very flavorful…sometimes too flavorful for tender palettes. We used cayenne pepper to spice it up a little, but you can skip that if you want. You can also reduce or eliminate the salt if you’re avoiding it.

If you make this recipe, please let us know your thoughts in the comments below. And please share with your friends to help spread the word about healthy plant based eating.

Tex-Mex Jackfruit

Tex-Mex Jackfruit PinThis Tex-Mex Jackfruit recipe is a veganized version of the old standard Tex-Mex Pulled Chicken. We served it over rice but it would go great wrapped up in a tortilla. It’s savory, satisfying and delicious!

The key to getting the jackfruit to mimic the look and texture of pulled chicken is to steam fry it until it’s soft, and then use a fork to pull it apart. This will string-a-fy the jackfruit.

Once you add in the remaining ingredients and serve it over rice or in a tortilla with some extra salsa, it’ll fool just about anyone. Our non-vegan family loved it! Amelia’s dad honestly thought it was chicken! He was shocked when we told him it was a fruit!

A lot of vegans don’t like the idea of eating things that mimic meat, but if you’re trying to get someone to taste new cruelty-free foods, or you’re cooking for non-plant-based eaters, these types of recipes really help bridge the gap. They also show people just how tasty and creative plant-based foods can be.

If you make this recipe, please let us know your thoughts in the comments below. And please share with your friends to help spread the word about healthy plant based eating.