July 31, 2012

VeganVita.com's Chocolate Beet Dip

Looking for an awesome way to use your summer garden beets?  This dip when served with crackers, crudités or fruit is sure to please any crowd.

Ingredients


4 whole beets, cooked and peeled
2 whole dates, pitted
2 Tablespoons peanut butter or any kind of nut butter of your choosing
1 McIntosh apple, chopped



Directions

Place all ingredients in the food processor; pulse until smooth.
Transfer to a serving bowl.

June 29, 2012

VeganVita.com's Hemp Seed Pesto Sauce

It's summer time and it is time to start making use of our blooming vegetable garden items including those delicious herbs.  Since hemp seeds are often described as having a similar flavor to pine nuts, they work well in pesto recipes.  

Ingredients:

1 cup of extra virgin olive oil
2-4 garlic cloves
Juice from 2 lemons
2 cups of fresh basil
Sea salt and black pepper to taste

In a food processor, mix the organic hemp seeds, extra virgin olive oil, garlic cloves, juice from 2 lemons, fresh basil, salt and ground black pepper.  Process until smooth or desired consistency.


June 28, 2012

VeganVita.com's Camu Berry Lemonade

With the dog days of summer coming on us, we like to enjoy a nice, cold glass of camu berry lemonade to cool us down.  Camu berries have a tart citrus-like flavor which necessitates a touch of sweetness to bring all the flavors to life.  



Ingredients:

2 Tablespoons of Camu Camu Powder
1/2 Tablespoon of stevia
1/3 cup of fresh squeezed lemon juice
2 Tablespoons of agave
1 quart of water

In a blender, combine all of the ingredients and blend.  Add additional sweetner to taste.  Chill before serving.

Makes one quart.  

June 02, 2012

VeganVita.com's Mulberry and Walnut Granola

Looking for a good start to your morning?  Try this recipe and you won't be disappointed.


Ingredients:

4 cups raw walnuts
1/2 teaspoon of sea salt
1/2 cup water
4 dates, pitted
5 dried apricots, chopped
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions:

1. Soak walnuts and salt overnight in a large baking dish.

2. Rinse the walnuts.

3. Place nuts in a dehydrator and set to 115 degrees Farenheit and dehydrate for 24 hours or until crispy.

4. Once nuts are dehydrated, remove from the dehydrator and set aside.

5. Place dates and water in food processor and pulse until a smooth paste forms.

6. Add walnuts, apricots, mulberries and cinnamon and pulse until coarse, like granola.

7. Place mixture in a dehydrator and dehydrate again for 24 hours or until crispy.

Makes four servings.

April 14, 2012

VeganVita.com's Cacao Pudding Recipe

This makes a wonderful end of the week treat that you don't have to feel guilty about.  This recipe makes about four servings and will keep in the fridge for three days.

2 cups of almonds
1 cup of water
1 tablespoon of carob powder
1/4 of pitted dates
1 tablespoon of cacao nibs or cacao powder



Blend the water and almonds in a blender until smooth.  Then, add the dates, cacao, and carob.  Blend the mixture until it is smooth.

April 07, 2012

VeganVita.com Recovery Power Shake Recipe

We enjoy this shake after long training sessions such a running or heavy weight lifting.  The addition of maca powder is essential to rebuilding the adrenal gland, which is the body's stress handling center.

3/4 cups of water
1/2 of a banana
1/2 tablespoon of hemp seeds
3/4 tablespoon of spirulina powder
1/4 tablespoon of maca powder

Blend the soy protein powder, spirulina, hemp seeds, banana, and water until smooth and enjoy immediately.  Makes 1 serving.



April 07, 2012

VeganVita.com's Raw Orange Chocolate Goji Berry Fudge

With the holidays just around the corner, we've been getting requests for some raw dessert recipes.  A big hit with our extended family, vegans and omnivores alike, is our raw orange chocolate goji berry fudge.


Ingredients
1/2 cup of goji berries, ground
1/2 cup of organic cacao cocoa butter, shredded
1/2 cup of organic raw cashews, ground
1/2 cup of agave nectar
1/2 cup of soaked goji berries
Orange zest, to taste



Begin by grinding up the goji berries in a blender or food processor.  Set aside.  Then, grind up the organic raw cashews.  Next, combine the ground cashews, ground goji berries, shredded cocao cocoa butter, and agave nectar and blend.

Place the mixture in a serving dish or brownie pan and hand mix in the soaked goji berries and orange zest.  Chill for at least an hour before serving. Garnish with orange slices.

April 07, 2012

VeganVita.com's Vegan Chick'n Soup Recipe

As temperatures begin to fall outside, we're all looking for a little comfort as we come indoors.  That is why we're sharing our very special soup recipe with you today.  Whether you are recovering from a bad day at work or you are feeling a little under the weather, you'll find a nice warm hug in our soup recipe.


Ingredients

4 tablespoons of vegan butter
2 medium yellow onions chopped
6 celery stalks chopped
4 carrots chopped
1 red bell pepper chopped
8 ounce package of chopped mushrooms
2 red potatoes diced
32 ounces of hearty vegetable broth
1 package of seitan cubes
1/2 pound of chopped kale
3 chopped basil leaves
1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste

In large stew pot saute the butter, onions, celery, bell pepper, mushrooms, and carrots on medium-high heat, stirring as needed. Cook until the veggies are soft.  Stir in the vegetable broth, carrots, potatoes, and seitan. Adjust heat as needed to produce a very low simmer.  Add chopped kale one handful at a time stirring it in as it wilts.  Next, add red pepper flakes, basil, salt and pepper. Cook for a minimum of 30 more minutes. For a richer flavor let slow cook on low heat for longer, say 1 hour. Keep the lid on, keep on very low heat, and check every so often for a stir.

Serve and enjoy the warmth!


April 07, 2012

VeganVita.com's Cacao Nib Cookies Recipe

Halloween is just around the corner and we thought it would be nice to share our favorite cookie recipe with all of you out there. Obviously cookies don't fall into the health food category, but they sure are a treat for your cheat day.  Additionally, the little ones will love this recipe.  In this recipe, we use cacao nibs instead of chocolate chips.  Cacao nibs are healthy, gourmet, and simply delicious.  Just open a bag and your olfactory senses will transport you back to your favorite chocolate memory. I attended college near a chocolate factory and a bag of these brings me back to those days.

Ingredients
2 1/4 cup of whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon of sea salt
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1 cup of vegan organic dark brown sugar, firmly packed 
1/2 cup of evaporated cane juice
1 cup of softened vegan butter
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
3 teaspoons of egg replacer mixed with 4 tablespoons of water
1 package of cacao nibs

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees Farenheit.  

Combine the flour, sea salt, and baking soda in a bowl and set aside.  Combine the brown sugar, evaporated cane juice, softened vegan butter and vanilla and beat until the mixture is creamy.  In a separate bowl, mix the egg replacer with the water and whisk until white and frothy. Add the egg replacer to the vegan butter and sugar mixture and beat until well mixed.  Next, add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix well.  Slowly stir in the cacao nibs. Drop the mixture by rounded teaspoonfuls onto a non-greased cookie sheet and bake for 8 to 10 minutes.  This recipe makes about two dozen cookies.

April 07, 2012

VeganVita.com's Pinole Recipe

If you have read the book, Born to Run, by Christopher McDougall then you've heard of the energy bar that the Tarahumara Indians consume as they run long distances.  There are plenty of recipes for pinole out there, but none comes close to this one.  Our secret ingredient is coconut oil.  It binds the bars together to make them much more manageble to carry out on runs (without it they tend to crumble) and much easier to swallow as other recipes are too dry.  Who wants to interrupt their run with a coughing fit?  Moreover, this recipe is sugar free and comes out tasting like a churro.

Ingredients:

1 cup of masa (corn flour)
2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon
1/8 cup of chia seeds
1/4 cup of coconut oil
1/2 cup of water

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Toast your 1 cup of masa in pan over medium heat, stirring often, until the color changes from light yellow to golden brown.  The time it takes to accomplish this is dependent on the pan you are using so don't feel that it should take five minutes.  It could very well be shorter or longer.

Remove the toasted masa from the flame and immediately transfer it to a bowl.  Mix in the cinnamon and the chia seeds.  Once mixed add the coconut oil. Next, gradually add the water, stirring often, until the mixture becomes a sticky paste.  If the mixture is still too dry, you can add more water.

Transfer the mixture to a brownie pan.  Evenly spread it out in the pan, by hand, until it is an even thickness.  Don't worry, unless you increase the size of this recipe, the mixture will not touch the sides of the pan.

Bake the mixture for 15 minutes.  Immediately cut the pinole into bars and let them stand until cooled.

Enjoy your run!