Category: Recipes

Pudding Cookies

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Thanks to sneaky shortcuts like pre-made baking mix and instant pudding, these cookies come together in a flash. You still have to wait for them to cook, though!

Ingredients:

  • 1 tablespoon flaxseed
  • 3 tablespoons water
  • 1 cup baking mix (such as Simple Mills pancake mix)
  • 1 (3-ounce) package instant vanilla pudding
  • 1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
  • 1/4 cup canola oil
  • 1/4 cup non-dairy mini chocolate chips
  • 1/4 cup raisins
  • White sugar
  1. Whisk together the flaxseed and water in a small bowl to make 1 vegan egg. Set aside.
  2. In a large bowl, combine the baking mix, pudding mix, peanut butter, canola oil, and flaxseed egg. Stir in the chocolate chips and raisins.
  3. Shape the mixture into 18 balls and arrange on baking sheets. Fill the bottom of a small dish with sugar. Press the bottom of a wet glass into the sugar, then press down onto the cookies. This will definitely be a favorite step for kids helping out in the kitchen!
  4. Bake at 350 degrees F for 8 to 10 minutes, until set.

Vanilla Maple Rice Pudding

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Here’s the perfect warm dessert for those evenings that need just a little dose of extra coziness.

Ingredients:

  • 4 cups plain unsweetened soy milk
  • 1/2 cup maple syrup
  • 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
  • 1 cup Arborio rice
  • Blueberries, for serving (optional)
  1. Combine the soy milk, maple syrup, and vanilla in an oven-proof pot over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, then stir in the rice.
  2. Cover the pot and transfer to the oven; bake at 325 degrees F for 1 hour, stirring about halfway through.
  3. Serve warm, with blueberries on the side if desired!

Chicky Chili

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My kids have dubbed this “chicky” chili, thanks to the combo of chick‘n and chickpeas in every bite!

Ingredients:

  • 1 tablespoon canola oil
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 2 minced garlic cloves
  • 1 (15-ounce) can corn, drained
  • 1 (15-ounce) can cannellini beans, drained
  • 1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas, drained
  • 1 (4-ounce) can mild green chiles
  • 1 cup Gardein chick’n, cooked and chopped
  • 28 ounces vegetable broth
  • Shredded non-dairy jack cheese, for serving
  1. Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic; saute for 5 minutes.
  2. Add the corn, cannellini beans, chickpeas, chiles, chick’n, and broth. Continue to simmer for 20 minutes.
  3. Ladle into bowls and top each serving the jack cheese to taste.

Quickie Cookies

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Similar to a one-dish recipe like Dump Cake, these are cookies the whole family can help make! To wit, Veronika loved helping stir the ingredients, and big brother Travis took over for the final steps.

To start, combine just these three ingredients in a bowl:

1 package yellow cake mix

1 Ener-G egg

1/2 cup Earth Balance butter, softened

Veronika loves stirring everything together with a big spatula, although you’ll probably need some adult muscle power to combine the ingredients fully.

Shape the dough into 1-inch balls and arrange on baking sheets. Bake at 350 degrees F for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, there’s always just enough dough left over for Veronika to practice rolling and cutting. I hadn’t expected how proud Travis would be to swoop in and show Veronika how to make heart- and tree-shapes with cookie cutters, though. He insisted we bake these shapes up as a final batch!

You can leave the cookies plain or add decorations, as we did with a few Unreal candies.

Pinto Bean Burgers

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These veggie burger patties are delicious, but don’t hold their shape that well out of the pan. The solution I’ve found is to tuck them into pita bread pockets for an easy hand-held meal.

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
  • 1/2 green bell pepper, minced
  • 1/2 onion, minced
  • 2 minced garlic cloves
  • 1 (15-ounce) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed
  • 3 tablespoons water
  • 1/2 cup fresh bread crumbs
  1. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the bell pepper, onion, and garlic; saute for 5 minutes.
  2. Transfer the vegetables to a large bowl, along with the pinto beans; mash with a potato masher.
  3. Whisk together the flaxseed and water, and add to the pinto bean mixture, along with the breadcrumbs. Stir until combined. Note: At this point you can store the mixture in the fridge until ready to shape at cook the patties, which makes it a great make-ahead option for busy nights.
  4. Heat the remaining tablespoon olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Divide the pinto bean mixture into six portions, shaping into patties, and add to the skillet. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes on each side.

Corn Pancakes with Black Bean Salsa

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This savory pancake batter sneaks in not one but two vegetables. They make a great breakfast-for-dinner meal, especially when served alongside your favorite meatless sausage.

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup cornmeal
  • 1/2 all-purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • 1/2 cup butternut squash soup (such as Imagine)
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened soy milk
  • 2 teaspoons Earth Balance butter
  • 1 cup mild salsa
  • 1/4 cup black beans
  1. To prepare the pancakes, combine the cornmeal and flour in a bowl; set aside.
  2. Whisk together the flaxseed and water in a large bowl. Add the soup and soy milk, whisking to combine. Stir in the cornmeal mixture just until combined.
  3. Melt the butter on a griddle over medium-high heat. Add the pancake batter to form 4 to 5 pancakes. Cook for about 3 minutes, then flip and cook an additional 2 minutes or so on the other side. (Note: These won’t form bubbles on the top when ready to flip, as standard pancakes do).
  4. Meanwhile, stir together the salsa and black beans in a small bowl. Serve the pancakes with the salsa on the side, or dolloped right on top!

Strawberry Swimmy Fish

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We adapted this recipe from Travis’s latest Kiwi Crate, all about pond life. The original recipe called for Greek yogurt, but you can use non-dairy yogurt in a pinch to make these little fishies vegan!

To start, place graham crackers in a zip-top plastic bag and crush with a rolling pin. Pour the crumbs into a bowl.

Working with 1 strawberry at a time, dip in a little vanilla non-dairy yogurt, then roll in the graham cracker crumbs. Transfer to a plate and add a mini chocolate chip (such as Enjoy Life) as an eye.

Chances are this snack will go down swimmingly!

Tofu Pasta Shell Casserole

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I love jumbo stuffed pasta shells, but the effort of making them is wasted on my kids since I just need to cut the pasta into smaller pieces. This recipe relies on small pasta shells instead, for a kid-friendly riff on a grown-up favorite.

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 onion, chopped
  • 3 carrots, chopped
  • 1 zucchini, shredded
  • 3 tablespoons olives oil
  • 3 cups marinara sauce
  • 1 (16-ounce) package shell pasta
  • 1/2 cup minced artichoke hearts
  • 8 ounces extra-firm tofu
  • 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
  1. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onion, carrot, and zucchini; saute for 3 minutes. Add the marinara sauce and cook for 10 minutes, until heated through; set aside.
  2. Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to package directions; set aside.
  3. In a bowl, combine the minced artichokes, tofu, and nutritional yeast; mash with a fork until crumbly.
  4. Spoon about 1/2 cup sauce into the bottom of a 9×13-inch baking dish. Top with the pasta, followed by the tofu mixture, and add the remaining sauce on top. Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes.

Herbed Broccoli

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This recipe comes together in minutes, and is a great way to dress up otherwise ho-hum vegetables.

Ingredients:

  • 1 head broccoli
  • 1/3 cup vegetable broth
  • 1 teaspoon dried basil
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 1 teaspoon dried parsley
  1. Cut the florets from the broccoli head and transfer to a large bowl; reserve the stems for another use.
  2. Toss the florets with the broth and the herbs. Cover and steam in the microwave for 5 minutes, until tender.

My kids love this with Gardein chick’n or pasta for an elegant meal!

Tofu Lasagna

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The kids have loved lasagna lately, but lasagna recipes often feed a crowd, and we never quite make it through leftovers. This version bakes up in an 8-inch pan and is just the right size!

Ingredients:

  • 6 lasagna noodles
  • 1 (14-ounce) package firm tofu
  • 1 (14-ounce) can quartered artichoke hearts, chopped
  • 2 cups chopped baby spinach
  • 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
  • 1 teaspoon garlic salt
  • 2 cups marinara sauce
  • 1 cup shredded non-dairy mozzarella
  1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil; add the lasagna noodles and cook for 10 minutes. Drain and set aside.
  2. Meanwhile, mash the tofu with a fork to desired consistency. Stir in the artichoke hearts, spinach, nutritional yeast, and garlic salt.
  3. Spoon a little of the sauce into the bottom of an 8-inch baking pan. Add three lasagna noodles. Top with the tofu mixture, followed by the remaining lasagna noodles. Pour the remaining sauce on top and sprinkle with the mozzarella.
  4. Bake at 350 degrees F for 40 minutes.