Category: Recipes

Easter Nest Cookies

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I meant to post this recipe yesterday, but the Easter holiday ran away from me! Luckily, the nest-themed cookies work great for any point during the spring, as baby birds make their way into the world.

Prepare one package of vegan sugar cookie mix according to package directions and bake.

Immediately after the cookies come out of the oven, indent the centers with a spoon. Transfer to wire racks and cool completely.

Fill the centers of each cookie with frosting (any flavor will do!) and sprinkle with shredded coconut as the “twigs” of the nest.

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Finally, nestle in jelly beans or your favorite round vegan candies as “eggs.”

 

Easy-Freezy Breakfast Burritos

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Make a big batch of this burrito filling on the weekend, roll up the filled burritos in foil, place them in the freezer, and bam! Breakfast all week is solved. Or in a pinch, we love these for dinner!

For my picky preschooler, I leave the scrambled tofu rather plain – just a dash of turmeric for color. Feel free to add additional spices or chopped veggies for older kids and grown-ups. We like to use the slightly-sweet breakfast sausage from Field Roast for these burritos.

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons canola oil
  • 2 cups frozen hash browns
  • 6 ounces chopped vegan breakfast sausage
  • 1 (14-ounce) package firm tofu
  • 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 6 to 8 flour tortillas
  1. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the hash browns and cook for 4 minutes.
  2. Stir in the chopped sausage and cook for an additional 3 to 4minutes, until browned.
  3. Mash the tofu with a fork until it resembles scrambled eggs. Add to the pan, along with the turmeric and salt. Cook for a final few minutes until heated through.
  4. Warm the tortillas for about 15 seconds each in the microwave. Divide the filling evenly among tortillas – depending how stuffed you want your burritos, you’ll have enough to fill 6 to 8 tortillas.
  5. Roll up in foil. Store in the fridge up to 3 days, or place in the freezer until ready to eat!

 

Quick Steel-Cut Oats

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Quick Steel Oats.JPGI used to prep steel-cut oats at night, but somehow this was much easier when my son was a toddler versus now in preschool. And as much as I love the taste and nutrition in steel-cut oats, they’re way too time-consuming to make in the morning. Enter quick steel-cut oats, sold much like quick-cooking barley so that the cooking time is nearly a third. This recipe comes together while your crew is stumbling out of bed and getting dressed.

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups vanilla non-dairy milk
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 cup quick steel-cut oats
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
  • Pinch of ground nutmeg
  1. Combine the milk and water in a saucepan and bring to a boil.
  2. Stir in the oats, cinnamon, salt, ginger, and nutmeg. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 7 minutes, until thickened. Cover and let stand for 1 minute.

We like the oats drizzled with maple syrup and then topped with strawberries and chopped pecans. How do you top your oats in the morning?

Berry Good Baked French Toast

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French Toast (1)

Yes, you can make weekday mornings feel less frazzled and more special. Prepare this dish the night before, pop it in the oven, and a weekend-worthy breakfast is ready on a weekday morning!

Ingredients:

  • 1 teaspoon Earth Balance butter
  • 1 (12-ounce) loaf French bread
  • 1 and 1/2 cups frozen blueberries, divided
  • 4 ounces Daiya cream cheese, divided
  • 4 Ener-G eggs
  • 1 and 1/2 cups plain non-dairy milk
  • 2/3 cup plain non-dairy creamer
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  1. Butter a 3-quart baking dish and set aside.
  2. Cut the bread loaf into 1-inch pieces and arrange half of the bread in the bottom of the prepared pan. Top with 2/3 cup blueberries and 2 ounces cream cheese (cut into small pieces). Repeat the layers with the remaining bread, blueberries, and cream cheese.
  3. In a large bowl, whisk together the Ener-G eggs, milk, creamer, sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Pour over the bread mixture. Cover and refrigerate at least 3 hours, and up to overnight.
  4. Bake the French toast a 350 degrees F for 50 to 60 minutes. Let stand for 15 minutes before serving. Dust with powdered sugar if desired, or top with a drizzle of maple syrup!

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Eat the Rainbow

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In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, we whipped up this meal featuring every color of the rainbow! You can mix and match different components, or serve them over a few days leading up to St. Pat’s.

Red & Orange Salad

Red Orange Salad

Thinly slice one red bell pepper, one orange bell pepper, and 1 red apple. Toss with 1 cup matchstick cut carrots. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil,  2 tablespoons cider vinegar, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. (Note: Bigger kids and adults might also like a little spice – try adding 1/2 teaspoon cumin or 1/4 teaspoon paprika).

Yellow & Green Pasta

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Cook 12 ounces fettuccine or linguine according to package directions, adding 1/2 cup frozen peas toward the end of cooking. Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet and sauté 1 package Gardein chick’n strips and 1 cup sugar snap peas until heated through. Combine the chicken mixture, pasta, 1/2 cup plain non-dairy yogurt, 1/4 cup reserved cooking water, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. My son preferred this served in separate components on his plate!

Green Smoothie

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In a blender, combine 1/2 cup plain non-dairy milk, 1/2 cup water, 1 cup fresh baby spinach, and 1/4 cup mint leaves; process until blended. Add 1/2 a green apple, 1 frozen banana, and 1 tablespoon agave nectar; process until smooth. Drink through a green straw of course!

Blue & Purple Parfait

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For dessert, toss 1 cup mixed blueberries, blackberries, and purple grapes with 1 teaspoon sugar and 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon. Layer the fruit in parfait glasses with vanilla non-dairy yogurt. This also makes a yummy breakfast treat!

Want even more fun? Eat green snacks all week, like roasted edamame, kale chips, or green olives.

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Shamrockin’ Rolls

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These clever clover-shaped rolls came to us from Family Fun magazine, the perfect baking project just before St. Patrick’s Day!

Recipes like these are fantastic for engaging multiple ages of kids in the kitchen. The biggest kids will want to help with every step, from mixing ingredients to kneading the dough to shaping the rolls. Meanwhile, toddlers and babies need not be excluded from the fun! Sit them in a high chair with a small portion of dough to play with, and let the games begin. I loved sitting my son in his Oxo Tot Sprout high chair when he was still too little to help with recipe steps, and so I was quite pleased to see it included in a recent review of the best high chairs, which selected winners from among eight of the most highly-rated chairs.

And now that he’s moved on to his big boy table, he’s standing on one of his chairs to help me out right at the kitchen counter!

Ingredients:

  • 3 and 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 packet rapid rise yeast
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cup warm plain non-dairy milk (between 110 and 115 degrees F)
  • 10 tablespoons melted Earth Balance butter, divided
  • 2 Ener-G eggs
  1. Combine the flour, sugar, yeast, and salt in a large bowl. Whisk together the milk, 6 tablespoons butter, and Ener-G eggs; add the milk mixture to the flour mixture, stirring to form a dough.
  2. Turn the dough out onto a lightly foured surface and knead for 10 minutes. Place the dough in a bowl coated with cooking spray. Cover and let rise for 1 and 1/2 hours, or until doubled in size.
  3. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Punch the dough down and let it rest for 5 minutes. Divide in half. Working with one portion of dough at a time (and keeping the remaining dough covered), roll into a 4×8-inch rectangle. Cut the dough lengthwise into 6 strips. Working with one portion at a time, stretch into a 19-inch rope.Shamrock Roll (3)
  4. Twist the rope into a three-leaf clover (make a figure eight, then loop the dough up for the top leaf, and let the end hang down as the stem.
  5. Repeat with the remaining dough to form 12 shamrocks. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 45 minutes.
  6. Brush the tops of the dough with the remaining 4 tablespoons butter, and bake at 350 degrees F for 20 to 25 minutes, until golden brown.

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Cinnamon-Sugar Sweet Potato Fries

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CInnamon Sweet Potato Fries

This sweet side dish is so easy it hardly merits being called a recipe. It’s the perfect hack for adding a little sugar and spice to dinner!

First, bake sweet potato fries according to package directions. Just after they come out of the oven, sprinkle with cinnamon and brown sugar to taste.

Serve with your favorite vanilla non-dairy yogurt for dipping!

Apple-Spice Mug Muffin

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When you’re craving muffins but don’t want a whole batch sitting around in the fridge or freezer, these individual mug-sized muffins are the answer to your prayers.

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
  • 4 teaspoons brown sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
  • 3 tablespoons plain unsweetened non-dairy milk
  • 1 tablespoon Earth Balance butter
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3 tablespoons shredded apple
  1. The night before, combine the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and baking soda in a microwave-safe mug; Cover and set aside.
  2. In the morning, add the milk, butter (melted), and vanilla, stirring to combine. Fold in the apple.
  3. Microwave for 2 minutes, then let cool slightly before serving.

My son likes his muffin plain…

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…but I like adding a little extra chopped apple and a spoonful of vanilla non-dairy yogurt to serve. Or try a little dollop of soy whipped cream!

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Noodle-y Kugel

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To be frank, I’ve never seen a recipe quite like this in my life! It came to us care of Travis’s March issue of High Five magazine, and has multiple steps that are sure to delight your sous-chef in the kitchen. Pineapple with noodles? Yes, apparently this is a thing.

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You can find eggless egg noodles, but I was unable to this time around. Instead, I chose a bag of curly pasta, both because the curls are reminiscent of the way wide noodles loop after they cook, and because it came in the right kind of bag instead of a box (more on that below!). Curly noodles also have the advantage that you won’t need to cut them into much smaller pieces for young eaters.

Ingredients:

For the noodles:

  • 1 (16-ounce) package eggless wide noodles or curly pasta
  • 6 tablespoons Earth Balance butter
  • 4 Ener-G eggs
  • 1 cup plain unsweetened non-dairy milk
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 (12-ounce) container non-dairy sour cream
  • 1 recipe vegan cottage cheese*
  • 1 (20-ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained

For the topping:

  • 2 cups organic corn flake cereal
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 2 teaspoons Earth Balance butter
  1. Adults: cook the pasta according to package directions in a large pot; drain and set aside. Make sure to reserve the pasta packaging for step 6!
  2. Cut the butter into small pieces and have your child add the butter pieces to the warm pasta. Travis was very interested to see how quickly the butter melted!Kugel (2)
  3. In a bowl, whisk together the Ener-G eggs, milk, and sugar.
  4. Stir in the sour cream, prepared cottage cheese, and pineapple. Travis insisted on stirring all by himself.Kugel (3)
  5. Add the pineapple mixture to the noodles and stir to coat, then transfer the mixture to 13×9-inch glass baking dish coated with cooking spray.
  6.  To prepare the topping, place the corn flakes in the empty pasta bag, and seal; crush with your hands. This was – hands down! – Travis’s favorite part.Kugel (4)
  7. Add the sugar and cinnamon; seal and shake to coat.
  8. Sprinkle the topping evenly over the noodles, and add the remaining butter, cut into small pieces.Kugel (5)
  9. Bake at 350 degrees F for 45 minutes, until browned at the edges. Let stand at least 5 minutes before serving.

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*To make a quick vegan “cottage cheese”, combine 1 package firm tofu and 1 tablespoon lemon juice in a bowl. Mash with a fork until the mixture resembles cottage cheese curds. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Tasty Tacos

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French fries in tacos? Kids and adults alike will say, ‘Yes please!’ to this tasty twist on a weekday staple.

Ingredients:

  • 4 flour or corn tortillas
  • 1/2 cup refried beans
  • 1/2 cup shredded Daiya cheddar
  • 1/2 cup cooked corn kernels
  • 1 cup French fries
  1. Spread each tortilla with about 2 tablespoons beans, and sprinkle each with 2 tablespoons cheddar and 2 tablespoons corn.
  2. Top each serving with about 1/4 cup fries, then roll up burrito style or fold in half like tacos to serve.

Add toppings like salsa, non-dairy sour cream, or guacamole, if your family likes ’em.