local love – The Vegan Love Project

Cream of Zucchini Soup

Cream of Zucchini Soup

This is the perfect way to use them, showcasing their sweet summer flavor. Roasting the zucchini first enhances the entire flavor of the soup but it is also an additional step in the preparation and is not necessary for a delicious soup.

Wheat-Free, Gluten-Free

1 large onion, coarsely chopped

1 large zucchini, chopped

1/4t chipotle powder *optional

3T coconut oil

6c boiling water

1 veg bouillon

1t salt or to taste

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1/4c cashews

1/2-1 whole fresh jalapeño

large handful fresh parsley or basil *optional

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Bring 6c of water to a boil.

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In a large soup pot, add the oil and sauté the onions until golden and soft. Add the zucchini, salt, and black pepper. Continue to sauté until the zucchini softens and turns bright green. Add the boiling water, the bouillon cube (or powder). Bring to a boil and reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

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In a blender or vitamix, add the zucchini mix, the cashews, and the jalapeño. Blend first at low speed and finally walking it up to full power. Let run for about 30 seconds.

Adjust the seasonings again after blending.

*Caution: blending hot liquids can be extremely dangerous. Fill the blender only half way and proceed in batches if necessary.

Summer Quinoa Salad

Summer Quinoa Salad

1 ripe avocado, pitted, and cubed

1 1/2c steamed quinoa

1T fresh basil

1/2c cooked, drained, chickpeas

½ tomato, small dice

2t fresh lemon juice or limejuice

1T Extra Virgin Olive oil

1/4t pink salt

Black pepper to taste

1T nutritional yeast

In a medium sized bowl, add the cooled quinoa (room temp is best), and all of the other ingredients. Toss well and season to taste. Serve with additional avocado and tomato slices. Summer Love.

Black & White Bean Soup with Greens

Black & White Bean Soup with Greens

This soup is wonderfully hearty and delicious. The rice can be substituted with gluten free pasta or another grain of your choosing. Adding in a mix of greens would be amazing but I am partial to kale.

Wheat-free Gluten-free

1 large onion, medium dice

1c tomato puree or crushed tomatoes

2 cloves garlic, minced

1c cannellini beans, cooked and drained

1c cooked brown rice

1c black beans

2c greens (kale, spinach, swiss chard)

2t smoked chipotle powder

1/4t black pepper

1/4t cayenne pepper

3T extra virgin olive oil

1-2 vegetable bouillon cubes

1/4c fresh basil *optional

1t-smoked salt

6c boiling water

1t salt or to taste

Bring 6c of water to a boil.

In a large soup pot, add the olive oil and sauté the onions and garlic with until golden and soft. Add in the cleaned greens and sauté until wilted. Remove just the greens from the pan and set aside, reserving for later. Add the beans, rice, salt, black and red pepper, and sautéing for 2-3 minutes. Add the tomatoes then the boiling water, the bullion cube (or powder), smoke flavor if using. Bring to a boil and reduce heat and simmer for 20-30 minutes.

In the last 5 minutes of cooking, add the sautéed greens and the fresh basil. Garnish with fresh basil and nutritional yeast.

Pine Nut Basil Pesto

Pesto is a sure sign summer is here, with it’s fresh beautiful taste. Basil also has a whole host of healing properties including anti-bactieral, anti-inflammatory, and anti-aging as it is filled with antioxidants…..Good news for all of us, and as easy as Pesto! I picked this beautiful bag of basil up yesterday at the local farmer’s market and whipped up this fabulous easy pesto. I ate it over brown rice penne, and I honestly don’t know how it could have been improved upon. #nocheese #noneed

Pine Nut Basil Pesto

1-1/2-2c fresh basil, lightly packed

1/3c raw pine nuts, sprouted if possible

2T sweet mellow white miso

2T nutritional Yeast

1/2c extra virgin olive oil

2 cloves garlic, chopped

½ lemon, juiced

2t brown rice vinegar

Salt and pepper

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In a blender, add the basil, oil, garlic, vinegar, lemon and miso. Blend until smooth and creamy. Adjust the seasoning adding more salt, pepper or lemon juice if needed. Pour out into an airtight container- keep in the fridge. Can easily be frozen.

Strawberry Maca Cacao Power Smoothie

Still obsessed with strawberries..This one add a little bit more umpf to the morning, natural energy from raw cacao and chia seeds make for a sustainable energy high. D E LI C I O U S.

Strawberry Maca Cacao Power Smoothie

1c nut milk

1T hemp seed

2-3 t raw agave or raw local honey

1c strawberries

1T gold flax seeds

1T chia seeds

2T raw cacao powder

2t maca powder

1T coconut oil

1t vanilla

1scoop protein powder

1c ice

Blend all ingredients together except the ice and process until smooth- taste and adjust if needed

Add the ice and blend just until smooth.

Strawberry Coconut LOVE Power Smoothie

June is STRAWBERRY MONTH!!! I can literally pound a quart back in the car before I even get them home so around this time I buy them every time I see them. I clean, trim, half and freeze them so I can have them all through the year. A good freezing tip is to place them on a cookie sheet or plate and place them in the freezer so that they are just frozen enough to handle. Remove them from a plate and into a storage container- this way you don’t have a giant block of strawberry ice to contend with. The local berries are just incredible. I am planning a pick your own trip to maximize my habit.

Strawberry Coconut LOVE Power Smoothie

1c nut milk

1T hemp seed

1t raw agave or raw local honey

2c strawberries

1T gold flax seeds

1T coconut manna

1t vanilla

1 scoop protein powder

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1c ice

Blend all ingredients together except the ice and process until smooth- taste and adjust if needed

Add the ice and blend just until smooth.

Gluten Free Flour Free Jam dots

Gluten Free Flour Free Jam dots
makes 20 one oz cookies
1c coconut flour
1c roasted almonds
1 cup oats
1/4t cinnamon
1/2t salt
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1/2c maple syrup
1/2c coconut oil
1/2t vanilla
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3T jam
preheat oven to 350º
If you are starting with raw almonds, roast them on a cookie sheet @ 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes, careful not to let them burn. Cool thoroughly before running through the food processor.
In a small bowl, mix all of the wet ingredients together, the maple syrup, oil, and vanilla.
Put all of the dry ingredients into the food processor, the roasted almonds*, coconut flour, cinnamon and salt and process until a fine meal is achieved. *Be sure that the almonds are completely cooled before processing; otherwise you will end up with a pasty mess. In a large bowl, sift the flours, the salt and the cinnamon. Add the nuts to this bowl.
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix with a spatula until everything is well incorporated.
With a one ounce ice cream scoop or two spoons, place batter balls onto a *parchment lined cookie sheets. With a one cup measuring cup, slightly flatten each cookie-This process is a little easier when the cup is dipped into warm water between each cookie. Using a one-teaspoon measure, press the dome side into each cookie, this is where the jam goes. This process is a little easier when the teaspoon is dipped into warm water between each cookie.
Using a 1/2-teaspoon measure, scoop your choice of jam or fruit preserves into the center of each cookie.
Bake for 12 minutes and then rotate the pans in the oven (to insure even baking) and continue to bake for another 5 to 7 minutes. Let cool on the pans for another 5 minutes then remove to a cooling rack.

Tomato Red Lentil Soup

This soup is so easy to make and a quick cooking source of vegetable protein. Delicious on its own, or packed with freshly steamed, or sautéed greens.

Tomato Red Lentil Soup

1 large onion, coarsely chopped

1 large can or 1 jar (28oz) strained, pureed tomatoes

1 clove garlic, smashed

1t black pepper

1/2t cayenne pepper or fresh jalapeno

1c dried red lentils, rinsed

3T extra virgin olive oil

1t chipotle powder

1-2 veggie bouillons or broth equivalent

6c boiling water (in place of liquid broth)

1t smoked salt or pink salt to taste

OPTIONAL: 2 c fresh greens- 1 bunch kale, bok choy or escarole, coarsely chopped and (pan sautéed in olive oil and garlic is optional)- added in at the end

Bring 6c of water to a boil.

In a large soup pot, add the olive oil and sauté the onions with the garlic and hot pepper until golden and soft. Add the lentils, tomato puree, black pepper and chipotle powder. Add the boiling water and the bouillon. Bring to a boil and reduce heat and simmer for 30-40 minutes. Adjust the seasonings. You can puree the entire soup until super smooth or simply run a burr mixer through it to incorporate the vegetables and lentils or serve it as is.

To serve, in a bowl, place the greens and ladle the soup over. Top with nutritional yeast and season to taste.

Pasta Con Tanti Funghi alla Crema / Pasta with Many Mushrooms Cream Sauce

Pasta with Many Mushrooms Cream Sauce

I made this pasta on my birthday and I am telling you, NO ONE, unless they were crazy, would miss the dairy, butter, or cheese in this recipe. The cashews offer a super creamy, velvety texture; paired with the divine savory intensity of the mushrooms is SUPER FRICKEN YUM. Shitake, porcini, and maitake mushrooms are going to lend the most flavor, however, the combo of onion, garlic, mushroom and wine is LEGENDARY and I wouldn’t be to concerned about your selection. Clearly the above picture was prior to me getting the parsley on it- the parsley adds a level of freshness that is SO YUM, but not required. I have even squeezed fresh lemon into the mix prior to serving- it brightens the deliciousness up but is so not necessary. You could totally make this as a fettucini or linguine, just be sure to thin the sauce a bit so that the mix isn’t too heavy for the pasta. Oh, also…crack a TON of black pepper into the mis ALL ALONG THE WAY.

HAVE FUN!!! I LOVE THIS DISH!

4c mixed fresh mushrooms (shitake, maitake, crimini, portobellos, button), thinly sliced

3T extra virgin olive oil

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

2 cloves garlic, smashed and minced

1c white wine

1t smoked salt *optional (can use reg pink salt)

1t smoked chipotle powder *optional or 1/2t red pepper flakes

Fresh cracked black pepper- LOTS OF IT

1/4c fresh parsley, minced- reserved for end

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1c raw cashews

2T nutritional yeast

1 clove garlic

1T mellow miso paste

1t ume vinegar

1t brown rice vinegar

1-2c water

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1-pound gluten free pasta- rigatoni, linguine or farfalle- cooked al dente

tossed in 1T vegan butter or olive oil

In a large, heated, skillet or cast iron pan, over medium heat, add the olive oil, hot pepper and onions and sauté until they onions begin to soften. Add the minced garlic and the sliced mushrooms and sauté until the mushrooms have a golden crust on the edges. Add the wine and sauté and move the mix quickly around the pan. Season the mushroom mixture with salt and pepper to taste. Remove about 1 cup of the mushrooms and set aside.

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In a blender, add the cashews, garlic clove, miso, vinegars and about a ½ cup of water to get the mix blended. Process until smooth and taste- it should be on the saltier side, you will be adding more water to the sauce.

Add about another cup of water to the cream mixture to thin it out. Add the cream to the mushrooms remaining in the skillet and over medium low heat, incorporate the mushrooms into the cream sauce., add water if it seems to thick, if it seems to watery, let some of the water cook out, gently stirring frequently.

Add the cooked pasta into the skillet of cream sauce and cook just until heated through. Finish with a little bit of vegan butter or olive oil and add in the fresh parsley. Serve immediately. FRICKEN UNBELIEVABLY DELICIOUS.

Sticky Sesame Ginger Tempeh

This is so delicious, fast and easy to make. I eat this with sprouted quinoa or brown rice with a big side of fresh or sautéed greens.

SO FRICKEN YUM.

Sticky Sesame Ginger Tempeh

1 package of tempeh, cut in half, then evenly into slices

1large clove garlic, smashed and minced

3T extra virgin olive oil

2” piece of fresh ginger, grated

2T unhulled sesame seeds black or white

2T shoyu or tamari

1t hot sesame oil

3T grade B maple syrup or agave

In a large cast iron skillet or frying pan, heat up over medium heat, add the oil and the garlic and distribute the garlic around the pan- add in the tempeh, face down neatly in the pan.

Pan fry for about 2-3 minutes or until browned, then flip- add more oil if the pan is dry, and continue to pan fry until the 2^nd side is golden brown.

Add in the sesame seeds, grated ginger, and the hot sesame oil and turn the heat up to medium high and then deglaze the hot pan with the shoyu/tamari- toss the tempeh in the pan until the pan is dry and all of the sauce is coating the tempeh. Add the maple syrup all over the top and toss quickly to coat. Cook only until the maple syrup begins to caramelize and thicken, about 1-2 minutes. Turn out into a serving dish.

CAREFUL NOT TO TASTE OFF OF ANY SPOONS! CARAMEL IS REALLLLLY HOT AND STICKY!