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I am currently transitioning my blog to a wordpress account and will no longer be posting here.  My blog here on blogger will be deleted but I will keep all the same information at my wordpress blog.  Please check me out at my new website here!

PB Banana Avocado Wrap

Today's post is not really a recipe, it is actually a wrap I made and I absolutely loved the combination.  Usually I enjoy wraps/sandwiches for lunch, but I actually had this one for breakfast and I really enjoyed it at that time of the day.  This wrap had so many of my favorite foods all together and provided healthy fats, carbs and protein to keep me satisfied and energized all morning.

Ingredients:

• 1 brown rice tortilla wrap
• 1 tbsp peanut butter, or more (I used Earth Balance Coconut & Peanut Spread)
• 1/4 avocado, mashed
• 1 small banana, sliced

Directions:

1. Heat brown rice tortilla in the microwave for about 25 seconds. (This helps soften it so it will fold better.)
2. Spread peanut butter on the wrap.  Then, spread on the avocado and top with the banana slices.
3. Wrap it all up and enjoy!

I know this sounds like a weird combination with the avocado, but it paired really well with the peanut butter and banana.  If you love peanut butter, bananas, and avocados I'm sure you will love this wrap as much as I did!  I also highly recommend the coconut and peanut spread because it gave this wrap a tropically taste with the banana and avocado.  Coconut, banana, and avocado make me think of laying out in the sun on a beach...



This recipe yields approximately 375 calories and 6.5g protein.

Buckwheat Waffles

I love making pancakes.  Unfortunately, they are very time consuming so they do not get made except for weekends.  And trust me, it seems like more Sundays than not I am cooking up some delicious pancakes.  However, pancakes can be very tricky to make.  You have to be very careful flipping them, they can burn easily, the outside has to cook enough not to burn but enough so the middle isn't gooey.  Now let's add to that and try to make vegan and gluten free pancakes.  Even trickier!  Especially if you would prefer not to spend a ridiculous amount of money on boxed packages of gluten free pancake mix.  And most gluten free pancake mixes call for eggs or might already have powdered milk in their flour.  So how is it possible to enjoy a fluffy vegan and gluten free waffle?  Well through lots of trial and error, I think I finally figured it out!  Hopefully if you are looking for a tasty, fluffy vegan and gluten free waffle, this recipe will save you lots of time!

I recently bought a waffle maker because I was tired of the outside burning, the inside being gooey, and the difficulty of flipping.  After several trials on my waffle maker, I was still getting the same results minus the fact that I didn't have to do any flipping.  I almost accepted the fact that I just wasn't going to be able to enjoy a fluffy waffle anymore, but would just have to deal with a very crispy-on-the-outside and gooey-on-the-inside waffle.  It was still tasty after all, especially when I added peanut butter flour mixed with almond yogurt and sliced a banana on top.

Well then I discovered buckwheat flour!

This recipe was adapted from here:

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup buckwheat flour
• 1 tbsp ground flax seed
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp pure maple syrup
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
• 4 tbsp almond milk
• 1/2 mashed banana

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and mix until well combined.
2. Heat waffle iron and spray with non-stick spray.
3. Pour batter into waffle iron and cook according to your waffle iron's directions.

I topped my waffles with peanut butter yogurt (2 tbsp almond yogurt, 1 tbsp almond milk, and 1 tbsp peanut butter flour) the other 1/2 banana sliced, and a sprinkle of cinnamon.  Maple syrup and other fruits or even nuts would also be great on these waffles!  I'm sure this batter could also be used to make pancakes if you do not have a waffle maker.

I didn't take a picture because after all my failed attempts I didn't think this one would work either and I was hungry and just wanted to eat.  But a picture will be up sometime soon in the future because this was a really tasty waffle and I cannot wait to make it again!

This recipe makes one waffle and yields approximately 230 calories and 7g protein.

Baked Vegetable Stew

This past Saturday, I posted a recipe for Tomato Soup.  I thought it was kind of ironic that I posted this soup recipe on a day that it was 60 degrees outside.  However, I figured it would be a good chance to get in at least one more soup recipe before the winter ends.  Well after this weekend, the temperatures haven't been that warm and have been quite windy.  I don't think we even got into the 50s (maybe just on Monday).

I guess I had been wishing for warmer weather a little too early, especially now that we have an extra hour of daylight.  But since we are not quite to that warm weather yet and we still have 5 more days until the first day of Spring! I am going to post one more stew recipe I enjoyed this winter.  This recipe was super easy to make and would make a great last comfort meal to celebrate the end of winter.

This recipe was adapted from here:

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 red medium onion, finely chopped
• 4 potatoes, chopped
• 2 medium carrots, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 vegetable stock cube dissolved in 1/4 cup hot water
• 3 cups petite peas, frozen
• 3 tbsp tomato paste
• 2 cups water, divided
• pinch of paprika
• salt, to taste

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan.  Add onion and saute for about one minute.
2. Add the rest of the veggies and lower heat, stirring about every minute.
3. Mix in the remaining ingredients, except for the water.
4. Cover and allow to cook for about 5 minutes, stirring about every minute.
5. Add half the water (one cup), lower the temperature, and allow to cook for 30 minutes.
6. Add the other half the water and stir.
7. Pour mixture into a large baking dish.  Bake in oven at 200F for about an hour, or until the potatoes are soft.

One thing I really like about this recipe is you can easily swap the peas and carrots for different veggies if you would prefer.  Or maybe even add extra veggies like some corn!

I am roughly estimating this recipe makes 4 entree servings.  However, this recipe can also be made into 8 smaller side dish servings.

One entree serving yields approximately 306 calories and 11g protein.

Spirulina Oatmeal

Here is another recipe with Spirulina.  I posted my first recipe using spirulina here and talked about the benefits of this ingredient.  I have been adding spirulina to so many things lately, even my oatmeal!  I love all the nutrition I get first thing in the morning by adding spirulina to my breakfast.

This recipe was adapted from here:

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup GF rolled oats
• 3/4 cup almond milk
• dash of sea salt
• 1/2 tbsp chia seeds
• 1/2 tbsp flax seeds
• 1 tbsp almond butter
• 1 small banana, mashed
• 1 tsp spirulina

Directions:

1. In a breakfast bowl, combine oats, almond milk, sea salt, chia seeds, and flax seeds.
2. Place in the refrigerator overnight.
3. In the morning, add more liquid if needed or if desired.  Then, stir in almond butter, banana, and spirulina.

This is a recipe for cold oatmeal, however it can also be eaten warm if that is what you prefer.  I still recommend letting the oats soak overnight with the chia and flax seeds, but before stirring in the other ingredients in the morning, heat the oatmeal for about a minute and a half first.  Then stir in the almond butter, banana, and spirulina.

If you don't have spirulina you can still make this delicious breakfast.  You can either order some at iherb using my code LWZ362, or just sub the ingredient with spinach.  I recommend blending the spinach with the oats, almond milk, and seeds then placing it in the fridge overnight.

This recipe yields approximately 385 calories and 9g protein.

Broccoli Sticks

Yesterday, I posted about a Tomato Soup I recently made.  It was such a light soup that I decided to make some "breadsticks" to go along with the soup.  These "breadsticks" had no grains and were actually really Broccoli Sticks, or baked broccoli shaped into sticks...

This recipe was adapted from here:

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp chia seeds + 6 tbsp water
• 1 head of broccoli (4 cups, chopped)
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
• 2 tbsp water
• garlic powder, to taste
• sea salt, to taste
• 1/2 tsp baking powder

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, mix together chia seeds and water.  Set aside for at least 15 minutes to allow it to gel.
2. Chop the broccoli and discard the stems.  Place broccoli florets into a food processor and pulse a few times until the texture is similar to rice.
3. Add in the nutritional yeast, water, and chia seed mixture and pulse until well combined.
4. Season with garlic powder and sea salt and pulse to combine.
5. Add in baking powder and pulse a few times to mix together.
6. Preheat oven to 375F and spray a baking sheet with non-stick spray.
7. Spread mixture evenly onto baking sheet using a spatula to make it as thick or thin as you like.
8. Run a knife through the mixture to form "breadsticks".  (This will make it easier to break apart after they bake.)
9. Bake in oven for 20 minutes.
10. Using a spatula, carefully break apart the "breadsticks" and flip them over.  Bake for an additional 15 minutes.

This was a fun new way to eat broccoli!  Plus, I love that they are shaped like breadsticks but are so much healthier than regular breadsticks and they are green!  I love green food and eating green "breadsticks" is so much fun!

These may not have looked the prettiest but they were definitely tasty, especially dipped into the tomato soup.  These also taste great plain or I actually even enjoyed dipping them into ketchup!



Based on making 15 "breadsticks", each "breadstick" yields approximately 22 calories and 1.5g protein.

Tomato Soup

I almost didn't post this soup recipe today because it is absolutely gorgeous outside!  High 50s/Low 60s and sunny with no wind!  Wow!  Haven't seen a day like this in forever and I am absolutely loving it!  Spring is definitely in the air and I can totally feel it as I relaxed on the back porch this afternoon soaking up some sun and relaxing with a good book.  Knowing that we spring the clocks forward an hour tomorrow makes today even that much better.  Sure we lose an hour but hello sunlight!

With all that said (if you can't tell I'm extremely excited for this warm weather) I figured I would post this soup recipe anyway since this may be the last chance you actually want to make soup before saying goodbye until next winter when soups become popular again.  Not only is this soup tasty, but it is super easy to make which makes it great to make if you don't have much time but want something nutritious.

This recipe was adapted from here:

Ingredients:

• 1 15oz can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 2 28oz cans fire-roasted tomatoes
• 2/3 cup nutritional yeast
• 3 cups vegetable broth
• 2 tsp chili powder
• garlic powder, to taste
• salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. In a blender, blend chickpeas until broken down.
2. Add the remaining ingredients, except the garlic powder, salt, and pepper, and blend until smooth and creamy.
3. Pour into a large pot and heat until warm.  Season with garlic powder, salt, and pepper and/or any other seasonings you desire.  Alternatively, you can pour the soup right from the blender into individual bowls and heat in the microwave for an even quicker meal.

I doubled this recipe since it is such a light soup and the original recipe only made 1-2 servings.  

This soup makes 12 cups.  Based on a 2 cup serving, this recipe yields approximately 193 calories and 11.5g protein. 

Avocado Brownies

I absolutely love putting avocados in desserts!  It makes them super creamy and adds some healthy fat.  I usually put avocado in chocolate pudding but this time i wanted to try putting avocado in a different dessert, brownies!  These brownies were eaten so fast, everyone loved them!  I have to go buy more avocados to make this tasty treat again!

This recipe was adapted from here.  I made a few changes to the original recipe.  Here is how I made my Avocado Brownies:

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup GF rolled oats
• 3/4 cup black beans 
• 1 mashed avocado
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 2 tbsp ground flaxseed + 6 tbsp water
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup raw sugar
• 1/4 cup mini chocolate chips, divided (or more!)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking powder

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F.  Grease a 9x9 inch square pan and set aside.
2. In a small bowl, mix together the ground flaxseed and water and set aside.
3. In a food processor, process the oats into a flour.  Add the beans and process until very smooth.
4. Add the mashed avocado, cocoa powder, flaxseed mixture, vanilla extract, and sugar to the food processor and blend until smooth.
5. Melt 2 tbsp of the chocolate chips in the microwave.  Add to the food processor and blend.
6. Add the salt and baking powder and pulse until they are incorporated.
7. Stir in the other 2 tbsp of chocolate chips.
8. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and use a spatula to distribute it evenly and make sure it is smooth.
9. Bake for about 25 minutes.  Allow to cool before slicing.
   

I know the combination of black beans and avocado may sound unusual, but don't be scared off!  You cannot even taste the black beans, all you will taste is creamy chocolate!  And of course you can always add extra chocolate chips into the batter before baking!

This recipe yields 9 brownies.  One brownie yields approximately 128 calories and 3g protein.

Seedy Granola

I love making granola!  Since I make yogurt bowls a lot, I love adding fresh granola to each yogurt bowl for some added crunch, so I go through it quite a bit.  This is why homemade granola is so much better than store-bought.  It is much cheaper to make my own, plus I love being able to control the different ingredients I put into the different types of granola I make each time.

This granola is not one of  my favorites, I think it was more like a savory granola than a sweet granola, and I am totally a sweet snack kind of girl.  However, it was still very tasty and I love how all the nuts and seeds give this granola so many healthy nutrients!

This recipe was adapted from here:

Ingredients:

• 1 cup GF rolled oats
• 1/4 cup raw almonds
• 3 tbsp pecans
• 2 tbsp pepitas
• 1 tbsp chia seeds
• 1 tbsp hemp seeds
• 1.5 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp ground flax seeds + 2 tbsp water
• 3 tbsp maple syrup
• 1/2 tsp vanilla

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325F and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
2. In a small bowl, combine the flax and water.  Set aside to thicken.
3. In a small food processor, combine almonds, pecans, and pepitas.  Pulse for just a few seconds to roughly chop up the nuts and pepitas.
4. In a large bowl, combine oats, nuts, seeds, spices, and salt.  Set aside.
5. Grab the small bowl with the flax.  Add maple syrup and vanilla extract and stir to combine.
6. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.  Mix together until everything is well combined.
7. Spread granola onto prepared baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes.  Remove from the oven, stir, and continue baking for 5-15 minutes, keeping in mind that it will continue to crisp as it cools.
8. Allow granola to cool completely before storing in an airtight container.

I know there are a lot of ingredients in this granola, but it is worth the few extra minutes to mix everything together for a granola with a lot of flavor.

(Picture Coming Soon)

Based on a 1/4 cup serving, I am roughly estimating that this granola yields approximately 106 calories and 3g protein.

Pina Colada Banana Yogurt

I began this blog over a year ago as a place for me to keep my favorite recipes.  Having this collection online has been a great place to store recipes instead of having endless pieces of paper shoved in a folder or binder that can get ruined or lost.  Plus, it can take forever to find the specific recipe you want if you have to flip through endless recipes.  This blog has allowed me to easily find recipes that I have made before with just a few clicks so I can enjoy them again.  Another benefit to having a recipe blog online is I have access to it anytime and anywhere.

Pretty much up until this point, I have always recreated recipes that I have found online with minimal changes to suit my taste buds/preferences.  However, there are several recipes that I make that seem so simple that I wouldn't really call it a recipe, but I enjoy the meal/snack so much that I would love to make it again.  I have decided to start including these "recipes" on my blog so that I can enjoy some of my favorites over and over again.  Plus it might give others who stumble upon my blog some good ideas for interesting new meal or snack ideas.  This might also be helpful to new vegans or others who may just be discovering a gluten intolerance and may not have any idea of the endless amounts of food that can still be enjoyed.

Today, I have decided to share a snack, Pina Colada Banana Yogurt, that is not really a recipe, but it was a delicious combination!

Here is how I made this yogurt snack:

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup non-dairy yogurt
• 1/2 can 8oz diced pineapple chunks
• 1 tbsp shredded coconut
• 1/2 sliced banana
• 2 tbsp granola (Any kind will do but I used Seedy Granola)

Directions:

1. Drain can of pineapple chunks.
2. Mix together all ingredients in a bowl and enjoy!

If you like sweeter yogurt bowls, add some sweetener like stevia or agave.  Or you can leave some of the juice from the pineapple to use a more natural sweetener.  I personally didn't need any extra sweetener with how sweet the pineapple and banana were, plus I used sweetened coconut.

Once again, this is not really a recipe.  Anyone can toss together any fruits/toppings into yogurt.  Most people might find the convenience of buying prepackaged yogurts much easier to buy, but I enjoy creating my own versions and having control over the ingredients.  It really only takes an extra few minutes to mix all the ingredients together.  I hope you enjoy this yogurt snack as much as I did if you choose to try it out!