Quick & Easy Haystack Stir Fry [vegan/soy free]

Haystack Stir Fry Friday!!

Quick & easy recipe that can be thrown together in minutes.

While stir frying veggie selection, soak rice stick noodle in hot water (3-5 mins avg).
You will especially want to do this when your veggies are near done if you are going to stir fry the rice stick noodle in the same pan. Alternately, you can fry the rice stick in a separate pan and/or put the cooked veggies off to the side while you stir fry the noodles in the already hot pan and oil.

For this recipe, choose a lighter oil that works well for frying (grapeseed oil on hand).

To make haystack, drop drained rice stick noodle into hot oil to puff and crisp up.

Add sauce (and veggies if they are off to the side).

Any stir fry sauce can be used and should be added in at the last moment and incorporated well.

Especially yummy served with seaweed or traditional salad.

This particularly simple variation from what was on hand consisted of carrots, portabello mushroom and cashew butter/sriracha/coconut amino sauce.


Haystack Stirfry Sauce: (per 1/4 of rice stick noodle pkg)
1-1.5 Tb cashew butter
1/2 tsp Sriracha rooster sauce
1/2 tsp coconut amino acids (soy sauce alternative; slightly sweet but not coconutty)

 It was not necessary to add oil to the sauce since it was added directly to the entire conglomeration of stir fried veggies and rice stick with all the oil in the pan.

Such a simple, refreshing and light meal for a Friday evening!

Fried Spring Rolls with Cashew Butter Sriracha dipping sauce [vegan/soy free]

Dinner tonight was impromptu veggie rice spring rolls fried to a delicate crispiness.

This tasty meal is vegan and soy free.

The filling was short grain sweet brown rice and simple carrots and broccoli as that's what I had on hand.
Rice lightly flavored with no-chik'n broth during cooking enables even the picky eater to still have a flavorful meal should they decide to forgo the dipping sauce.
*Do not forgo the dipping sauce!

The filling was rolled up in moistened rice paper spring roll wraps and then fried in a combination of grapeseed and coconut oil.

The cashew butter sriracha dipping sauce was a variation on a recipe I found online which called for chili paste or powder, neither of which I have on hand right now. Deciding to give it a go with the sriracha turned out to be a major taste sensation!

Ingredients for the dipping sauce with very approximate measurements listed:
roasted cashew butter (1-2+ Tbsp)
sriracha sauce (1-1.5 tsp)
maple syrup (1 tsp)
coconut oil (1 tsp)
grapeseed oil (1 tsp)

Adjust the first three ingredients (cashew butter, sriracha & sweetener) to taste before adding additional oil for consistency. (After adding oil, I added more sriracha but after allowing it to sit for a few moments found it to be too spicy and had to add more cashew butter to compensate.) The flavors will come together if you allow them to sit for a moment so don't be afraid to readjust the seasonings to taste because once you get them right, this will be the hit of the meal!

Veggie Puff Pastry Shell Pot Pies [vegan option]

Tonight I am eating my infamous Veggie Puff Pastry Shell Pot Pies.

Okay, I'm not sure exactly how infamous they are outside my immediate family, but hey, we love them nonetheless.

Back when I used to eat super unhealthy, I'd make this with canned cream of chicken and cream of mushroom soup. Now I make my own home made cream sauce with mushrooms and usually Edward & Sons no-chik'n broth (which has become a staple in my house). The cream sauce can be made vegan with a butter substitute or high grade oil along with a milk substitute. Tonight, I went all out and made the heavenly cream sauce with real butter and cream and a splash of hemp milk. (*When making this dish vegan, it is often necessary to use an additional thickener such as tapioca starch or dry egg replacer.) Add to the cream sauce sauteed vegetables and mushrooms and any herbs (fresh thyme tonight!). Serve all of this up in a puff pastry shell for a beautifully presented and amazingly delicious new spin on the traditional pot pie. Yum yum yum yum.


Here is a link to a pretty good recipe for homemade cream of mushroom soup. I substituted a few ingredients including Edwards & Sons No Chik'n for the chicken broth and rice flour for the flour and left our both the onions (due to an allergy) and the sherry for the fact that I had none on hand. I also added some cashews for crunch and texture and only pureed about 2/3 of the mushroom/cashew mixture in order to leave some body in the soup for the pot pies later.
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/cream-of-mushroom-soup-i/detail.aspx

The AllRecipes site comes in handy in that it allows you to adjust the ingredients by portion size.

Mint Quinoa with Coconut Cream & Veggies [vegan]

Quinoa is a versatile grain packed with protein and nutrition. Buy it pre-rinsed if you can as it is rather difficult to remove all of the bitter saponin at home. My method is to half fill a jar with the quinoa, fill the remainder with water, mix well then allow to settle and gently pour off the liquid. It can take several times doing this to remove all of the saponin, which will form a very slight foam at the top of the water, but will make all the difference in the final product. Quinoa must be rinsed!

Prepare quinoa as directed. Proportions vary depending on quinoa type used but are similar to rice at roughly 1 part quinoa to 2 parts water or other liquid. In this recipe I sometimes replace half the cooking water with coconut milk or some of the canned coconut cream.

Chop and add some fresh mint to the cooking quinoa.

While quinoa cooks, prepare veggies.

Suggestions: carrots, portabello or shiitake mushrooms, zucchini

Another add-in option: chopped cashews for a light crunch

Wash and thinly slice veggies and quickly saute in light oil (recommended: coconut, grapeseed, olive).

Mix all ingredients together adding coconut cream until desired consistency and flavor is reached.
Veggies can be added in or ladled on top.

Add more fresh mint to quinoa mixture just before serving to enhance flavors.

A light and refreshing meal that is filling and sustaining. Enjoy!

Banana Strawberry Chocolate Coconut Bliss smoothie [vegan option]

The banana strawberry smoothie with raw chocolate coconut butter is sure to please the palate any time of day. While a great morning pick me up, it also serves as a wonderful late night snack.


Banana Strawberry Chocolate Coconut Bliss smoothie
[Banana Bliss Smoothie]

1 banana
5-10 strawberries (*fresh is best, but can also use frozen)
dash cream/coconut cream
ice cream (high quality ingredient such as Breyer's brand) or frozen coconut milk or ice
raw chocolate coconut butter
small amount of coconut milk for consistency

Add in options: protein powder such as whey/rice/hemp, herbs such as mint/lavender, other fruits such as blueberries/cranberries/plums

Blend all together and enjoy.


A great site for nutrition data is listed below should you wish to calculate your version of the smoothie.
http://nutritiondata.self.com/

Waves Crash

The waves come, the waves go, but never in any predictable manner and certainly not in the way I've come to expect either. Solace from the anxious exhilaration steers clear of long encounters as my daydreams become the only drifts that feel warm enough to give in to the cradle against my flesh.

Why is it then that monks never sleep yet meditate and daydream throughout..?
I think they know something I don't.. I'm getting back on the mat.

Om tare tuttare ture svaha.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqcWl6VAB_M

Pensively Peculiar

Pensively: expressing deep thoughtfulness, often with some sadness
Peculiar: distinctive in nature or character from others


Feeling overwhelmed and melancholy, begging for release as changes occur so quickly the earth's spinning beneath makes me dizzy, I must succumb to what lies ahead.. life is a journey, not a destination, after all. But this sure is one bumpy ride.