Baked Vegan Zucchini Boats

My dad brought me a lovely medium sized zucchini from their garden last weekend so I started brainstorming! I came across stuffed baked zucchini's and used it for cooking guidelines.

Measurements are pretty much non-existent this time so read with a grain of salt. I don't actually understand that analogy…










1 Medium sized zucchini
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1 Small yam finely diced (corn sized)
1/4 Cup corn
3/4 Cup black beans
1/2 Celery stalk diced
1/2 Diced zucchini flesh
1/4 Avocado diced

1 Tsp chill powder
1/4 Tsp of cumin
Salt and pepper
Olive oil


Direction:
Preheat oven to 400. Mix yams with a couple pinches of spice and olive oil (4:1 ratio of chill powder to cumin). Bake in oven for 10 minutes then add corn for 10 minutes. Take out the inside of the halved zucchini and bake inside face-down on parchment paper with a little olive oil for 11 minutes.

In a frying pan heat up chopped zucchini, celery, yam, corn with a little olive oil and pinches of powder. Add black beans to heat.

Spoon filling into the zucchini and bake cut side up for 10 minutes at 350. Garnish with fresh avocado cubes and salsa.

Actually a very simple and quick recipe. The zucchini was not mushy at all and the flavours were really comforting for health food! I would consider using a chunky marinara instead of salsa too.

Fresh Ginger and Dried Blueberry Cookies

…and peanut butter, and oatmeal, and cinnamon, and… you get the idea! Tough coming up with a name that sounds good and highlights the ingredients I tell ya! Especially on a Friday morning but baking these after a long hard week was a great escape. Just in time for family gatherings over the weekend too! Everyone benefits.



1/4 cup of butter (or margarine)
1 Cup of peanut butter (natural)
1/2 Cup brown sugar
1 Tsp vanilla
1 Inch finely graded ginger
1/2 Tsp of cinnamon
1 1/2 Tsp baking soda
2 Eggs (free range)
3 Cups rolled oats
3/4 Cup dried blueberries
A pinch of salt!





Dairy & Gluten free (because there's at least one in every family) and could easily be made vegan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 7 - 10 minutes on parchment paper depending on the size. I lean towards smaller sizes because these are pretty dense (and delicious) cookies.

Fresh Fruit Salad

Who doesn't like fruit salad, especially in the summer? It's so simple and easy to forget about but it's really refreshing and tasty! Sweet tooth be-gone!

















There's no limits and I could have kept buying more and more, like pineapple and strawberries today at the market but this is what ended up in my fruit cups!

Mango
Blueberries (fresh/local)
Green Grapes
Gala Apple











Slice! Dice! Done!
Perfect for summer picnic's :)

Sweet and Smokey Beef Chilli

Tis the season for chilli? Yes - if you're me and crazy-busy and meal planning to have good food handy so you don't grab the convient crappy alternative. It freezes nicely for a rainy day - whenever one of those comes around again!

I must start by stating that I used a LOT of spices and didn't measure. I just kept adding until it tasted good.

1 Package of lean ground beef
($7 - to give you a size to go by)
2 19oz cans of diced tomatoes (no salt added and drained)
1 19oz can of crushed tomato
1 Yellow onion diced
1 Large garlic clove minced
1 Green pepper diced
3 Stalks of celery diced
1/2 Red pepper diced
1 Smallish zucchinni
5 White mushrooms
1 Cup frozen corn
1 Can kidney beans
1 Can black beans
2-3 Tbsp italian seasoning blend
2-3 Tbsp chilli powder
1-2 Tbsp cumin
1/4 Cup brown sugar
Salt and pepper
Canola Oil


Directions:

Cook the meat separately - once it is really browned add in cumin and chilli powder with a little salt and pepper.

In a pot soften onion in olive oil with salt and pepper. Add garlic then the rest of the veg. Soften a bit and season as you go. Add in more oil if necessary. Once the tomato's are added then add the italian seasoning blend and the other softer vegetables like mushrooms and zucchini. Add meat and beans last.

Let the ingredients hang out at a light simmer for 30 mins or so. I added about 2 tbsp of brown sugar to balance the acidity. It gives it a sweet and smokey taste. I also added a little extra chilli powder to the pot at the end to richen the flavour.

Berry Banana Fruitscicles

Okay - the title might be a bit misleading that but that was my intention for the recipe! It turned into a batch of frozen yogurt because I couldn't get them out of the popscicle container and am wondering if there's a trick to it? I thought you just twisted and pulled but it has been a while, admit tingly.

Anyways - who cares it is delicious! I just blended fruit with yogurt and a bit of milk and froze it. Portions - smortions. Whatever tastes good.

Blend raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, banana with plain yogurt and a splash of milk. I dropped in some whole fresh blueberries too.

And… ta-daa!