Veggie no-bread BLT

Veggie BLT

Yea, I could have used bread, but I didn't. It's delicious with bread, but if you're GF or cutting carbs, or simply just want a lighter lunch, this works great! 

And did I mention that I grew these lettuce leaves? In my garden? WITH MY OWN TWO HANDS?!

Impressed? No? Well that's ok, I was happy about it :) 

So that's it. Lettuce, bacon (I used Veggie Morningstar bacon, Veganaise, and tomatoes. 

Yum!

Italian Chickpea "Bread"

I feel like I haven't posted in forever! For the 3 people that follow my blog, I DO truly hope you make this. It's really, really good. 

And easy :)

You'll need:

2 1/2 cups of Chickpea (garbanzo bean) flour. I found mine at a tiny healthfood store, but I would guess it's at Sprouts, Whole Foods, etc....

3 1/2 cups COLD water

Salt

Pepper

Olive oil

Pour the flour and salt and pepper into a bowl and slowly whisk the cold water into it...

 Now THIS IS IMPORTANT! Let it sit for about 3 hours. Walk away. Go to the gym, Read a book. Watch a movie. Don't skip this step!!

After 3 hours have elapsed, put the olive oil into a baking sheet (or a couple, I had a lot of batter). Be generous! Pour the batter in about 1/2 inch. Don't make it too thick. 

Bake at 350 for about 30-40 minutes. Let cool and slice into little squares.

It's tempting, but please, let it cool a bit!

Serve with a delicious spread. Maybe it's pesto. Maybe it's tapenade. Maybe it's cheese! Hummus would be ok too but that might overload the beany-ness of it all.

It's not really "Bread", but damn, it's good.

Enjoy!!!

Superfood Pesto!

Superfood pesto

 

 1/3 cup pine nuts, 2 cloves garlic, 2 handfuls baby spinach, one handful kale leaves, salt, pepper, drizzle of olive oil and juice of 1/2 lemon. Blend!

Eggplant "Pizza"

This has to be the 3rd, 4th, possibly even 5th pizza recipe I've posted. What can I say? I love the stuff ;)

Ingredients:

1 Eggplant, not the small ones, a bigger one

Salt

Water

Pesto, tomato sauce, cheese, WHATEVER you'd like to put on it.

Slice up the eggplant into rounds, place in lightly salted water for about 30 minutes. Put a bowl or plate on them to keep them submerged. When you take them out dry them pretty well.

Place on lightly oiled (or nonstick) baking sheet, bake for about 15 minutes. Take them out and arrange your toppings. I put pre-made pesto on one with fresh mozarella, and tomato sauce with fresh mozz on the other. Turn the oven to broil and put them in for another 5-10 minutes. Keep a close watch! These burn easy...

Then enjoy :)

These go great with wine!

Mini "No-meat" pies

These aren't particularly pretty, or fancy, or even that healthy. But they sure are yummy! I'm hoping they will be a crowd pleaser at my NYE tomorrow :) 

Mini "No meat pies"

Ingredients:

Store bought pie crusts, I got 2 boxes, made a TON of tiny pies and used up all the filling. 

About 10 black olives

1 clove garlic

A "handful" of sun dried tomatoes

A "handful" of fresh basil

1 Can canellini white beans

Juice of 1/2 a lemon

Gather your ingredients then put in a food processor.

Pulse a few times or until relatively smooth, chunks are ok. Now, it won't be pretty, but it's SO DAMN GOOD. Next time I'm just going to spread this on crackers as a kind of vegetarian pate. Fancy, huh?

 

Cut your dough into circles.

 

Fill each one up with goodness.

Close, press with a fork and bake (according to your dough's specifications)

YUM!

Now you have a mini little pie, no meat! Enjoy :)




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Asparagus, Arugula, Pesto Pizza

I lucked out! I picked up asparagus and arugula for 99 cents each, and then knew, I had to make a pizza :) 

Ingredients:

Arugula

Asparagus

Pesto (you can buy or make your own, I have a recipe here: http://greenveggiespirit.blogspot.com/2013/04/edamame-pesto.html)

 Dough (I used the whole wheat from Trader Joe's)

Cheese (optional, I used about a handful, that's all I had left in the fridge! I used a mix of parmesan and mozzarella)

Tiny bit of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Follow instructions for the dough, then spread the pesto on, top with asparagus.

 It's already so pretty! Now bake until crust is brown and your kitchen smells like heaven.

Top with Arugula. That's it!

Slice up and serve. Beautiful and green and delicious, who says being vegetarian is boring?!?! From my heart to yours, happy eating! 

 

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Crispy Rosemary Parmesan Polenta

These were so easy!

Ingredients:

Polenta (I got mine already made from Trader Joe's)

Fresh Rosemary, chopped

Grated Parmesan

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Pinch of Salt and Black Pepper

Heat the oil in a pan, should be enough to barely cover the bottom of the pan. Drop in polenta, then turn over after about 2 minutes and cook the other side. When done, put on some paper towels to blot off excess oil. Sprinkle on Parmesan and Rosemary, and a teeny tiny bit of salt and pepper. I suppose you could also bake these ;)