Simple Split Pea Veg Soup

Six ingredients + time. Effortless, flawless, scrumptious and a one-pot mess! SOLD.

True to this blog's form I have never made split pea soup before. I've daydreamed about it for years sadly but never attempted. This soup cannot be screwed up, I'm telling' ya. Yes it does need to simmer for an extended period of time, but watch some netflix and have a cuppa this is a bowl of relaxation in the making. Sorry, I haven't blogged for a while so I'm obviously over-excited about this post!

Six Ingredient Split Pea Veg Soup from scratch! 

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups of green split peas
1 Onion diced
1 Clove of garlic minced
2 Cups of diced carrots
2 Cups of diced celery
Stock (I used chicken)
6 Cups of water (add more if needed)

Directions:
Saute diced onions in olive oil for five minutes, add garlic, carrots, celery. Saute for another five miinutes. Make sure to season as you go with salt and pepper. Add rinsed split peas, stock cubes and water. If using boxed stock use half stock/half water. Bring to a boil then let simmer for 40-50 minutes string periodically. When the texture is right for you, the soup is ready! I didn't even blend this mushy goodness. It may look distasteful to some, but it is anything but! Enjoy :)

I feel like if you garnished it with a drizzle of maple syrup you wouldn't be disapointed. I am stealing that from the much loved Vancouver restaurant Burgoo's.

GF Peanutbun Cookies

A sweet fusion of flavours! Yes, you can.

I used my GF peanut butter oatmeal raisin cookie recipe from my old blog "live wheat free" and incorporated a cinnamon glaze frosting because I really obsess over thinking about cinnamon buns with a sugary icing. I hope I didn't lose you… these aren't too indulgent, but they sure do taste it!

Cookie Ingredients:

1/4 Cup butter
1 Cup peanut butter
1/2 Cup brown sugar
2 Eggs
1 1/2 Tsp Vanilla
1/2 Tsp cinnamon
1 1/4 Tsp baking soda
3 Cups of oats
3/4 Raisins (thompsons)

Glaze Ingredients:
1/2 Icing sugar
1/8 Tsp cinnamon
2 Tbsp milk







Directions:
Roll a tbsp scoop of dough, place on parchment paper and gently press down with a fork. Bake for 14 minutes at 350. These cookies do expand and so you can make smaller and adjust the time.

These do not taste like 'flourless' cookies [disclaimer]

Go make some friends!

Blueberry Banana Muffins

Purple muffins! A pinch of fun, a scoop of healthy and a dollop of delicious! This big blueberry banana oatmeal muffins are a weekend treat!

Ingredients:
1 1/2 Cups flour
1 Cup of oats
1/2 Cup sugar
3/4 Cup milk
3 Medium frozen bananas
1 Cup frozen blueberries
1 Egg
1 Tsp vanilla
2 Tsp baking powder
1 Tsp baking soda
1/3 Cup butter
1/4 Tsp cinnamon

Directions:
Cream butter and sugar, ass defrosted bananas, egg, milk and vanilla. Add dry ingredients then bake at 400 degrees for 22-25 minutes.

Roasted Beet + Cauliflower Soup Du Jour

That's means a soup offered on a particular day, and today kind of inspired this creation so it's a fitting title for a wonderful blend of flavour!

Ingredients:

5 Medium beets

1/2 Head cauliflower

4 Cloves of garlic

1 Yellow onion

1 White potato

1 Carrot

2 Stalks of celery

2 Chicken stock cubes

1 1/2 Tsp of dried parsley

Olive oil, salt and pepper

Directions:

Roast the cauliflower, carrot, beets and potato for about 45 minutes at 350. The garlic only gets roasted for 25 minutes. 

In the pot slowly soften the diced onion in olive oil, salt and pepper then add diced celery, top with about 8 cups of water and 2 chicken cubes (or veg). Add the remainder of the ingredients and let simmer until everything is tender, cool, then blend!

Happy Valentine's Day! 

Vegan Black Bean Quesadilla with Roasted Garlic and Sweet Potato

Ding ding ding! Winner of the longest title goes to….

This dish was inspired by lack of groceries and a good old friend coming for lunch - lucky us!



Ingredients:

1 Sweet Potato
6 Cloves of garlic
1 Small zucchini
1 Red pepper
1 Can of black beans
1/2 Can refried beans
1 Cup of corn kernels
1 Packet of fajita mix
1/2 Avocado

Directions:
Dice the sweet potato and toss with oil, salt and pepper. Roast for 25 minutes with garlic cloves (wrapped in tin foil, tips chopped off with a little oil) at 350.

In a fry pan, saute diced pepper and zucchini in a bit of oil, add corn, black beans then potatoes. Mix with packet of fajita mix (which is totally cheating, but it's organic and msg free so give a sister a break)!

Take large whole wheat tortilla (or spinach) and evenly cover the entire side with refried beans (1/4 of can). Fill ingredients on half the tortilla (add a few roasted garlic cloves and fresh avocado) and then fold. Place in oven on parchment paper for 15 minutes at 350 flipping half way through. 20 minutes if you like it a bit crispier. Top with salsa (and you can refer to my homemade guacamole recipe!



























Look who made the blog! Ta-daa!

Flourless Vegan Banana Nut Bars

…a Hipsters dream treat ;)

I made this for my tea party this afternoon as many people are GF these days and it just so happened to turn out vegan as well. Lucky ducks! These baked granola bars don't taste like anything is missing so don't let the label limit you - this snack is easy and delicious! (And healthy if that's something you also care about.) OK!



Ingredients:
3 Medium ripe bananas
2 Cups of oats
1 Cup of natural peanut butter
1/2 Cup slivered almonds
1/2 Cup roasted sunflower seeds
1 Tbsp honey
1 Cup dried apricots
1/2 Cup raisins (re-hydrated)
1 Tsp vanilla
1/2 Tsp cinnamon

Directions:
Finely dice apricots (and re-hyderated if not soft). You can use a food processor if you have one but I just diced by hand.

Heat through the peanut butter and honey over low heat.

Mash bananas with cinnamon and vanilla, add rolled oats and dried fruit. I re-hydrated the raisins in boiling water to help bind.

Combine all ingredients and evenly press down on parchment paper in a 8x11 dish. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes and wait until completely cooled before cutting.

Southwest Veg Hash

I've been feeling uninspired and tired of eating routinely so I made my first hash ever (veg).

Ingredients:
1 Sweet potato cubed
1 Yellow onion diced
1 Clove garlic minced
1 Yellow bell pepper diced
1 Can of black beans rinsed
1 Cup of frozen corn kernels
Cumin
Chili powder
1 Fried egg…

Directions:
Roast the sweet potato in oil and 1 tsp each of cumin and chill powder for 40 minutes at 360.
Sautee diced onions until softened then add garlic, bell pepper and other ingredients. (salt and pepper). I served this with fresh avocado and a fried egg on top because that seems  luxurious enough to get someone out of a food funk, right? T'was!