Sweet Tooth

We needed a simple snack to cure our sweet tooth...and I had a fresh bag of flower just waiting to sift.  It's a wild Tuesday night, y'all!

I found this recipe for maple cinnamon cookies somewhere on the internets and took a screen shot.  It was so simple, everything is pretty much a staple item in my kitchen, and they are delicious!  Nothing like warm cookies and cold almondmilk—am I right?

Maple Cinnamon Cookies

Ingredients:
3/4 c. canola oil
1 tsp. vanilla
2 T applesauce
1/4 c. maple syrup
3/4 c. sugar
2 1/2 c. flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
cinnamon for sprinkling

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Mix wet ingredients:
3/4 c. canola oil
2 T applesauce
1 tsp. vanilla
3/4 c. sugar (I know, this isn't a wet ingredient but we're pretending today)
1/4 c. maple syrup

In a separate bowl, mix dry ingredients and then add to wet:
2 1/2 c. flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda

Mix to combine.  Then, place dough by spoonful onto baking sheet.  I used my hands to roll them into balls.  Bake for 10 minutes.  Sprinkle with cinnamon.

During the first batch, I check at the halfway point and noticed they weren't spreading at all.  I pulled them out and pressed them with a fork (peanut butter cookie style) so they would bake through in the time allotted.  For the second two trays, I pressed them prior to baking.  You can sprinkle the cinnamon before baking or after.

Next time: I think I will form the dough into a tube and wrap and place in the fridge for a few minutes to chill.  Then, I'll slice and bake instead of pressing.  For some reason, the pressed hash marks on cookies don't taste right if they're not peanut butter.  Yep, I'm quirky. ;)

Enjoy!

Dinner for a busy evening

I am a homeschooling mom of 3 with a pilot husband.  We are busy, just like so many other families.  Last night after Punky's gymnastics class and before Sunshine's martial arts class was dinner time.  I menu plan every week but sometimes I'm just not feeling it.  Last night was one of those nights.  The menu said spinach fettuccine.  This is a family favorite (it used to include shrimp but is absolutely delicious veganized) but I wanted to change things up.  Plus, I was avoiding the grocery store (forgot to pick up the noodles earlier in the week).  Anything to avoid the grocery store, right?

I had about 1/3 pkg. of fine, whole wheat spaghetti noodles that I cooked to al dente.  In a large pan, I melted about 1 T seasoned Earth Balance spread and 1 tsp olive oil.  I added about 5 oz. fresh spinach and the grape tomatoes (halved) that I had on hand.  The spinach wilted down and the tomatoes swam in the seasoned "butter".  As soon as the noodles were ready, I strained them and added them to the seasoned veggies and tossed.  Delicious!

We used an extra sub roll to make garlic toast under the broiler (more Earth Balance spread, olives, and non-dairy cheese of your choice), and our busy evening meal was complete!

Tip: Add freshly ground pepper, to taste, after plating the food.  My Punky does NOT like pepper in her food, so we use it sparingly during the cooking process.

Bún Chay

Tired of the same old lunch menu (PB&J, hummus & dippers, chickpea salad sandwiches, etc), I decided to google "vegan lunch recipes" during my menu planning last week.  It's been fun reading through new recipes, but I was most excited about this one!  I have been looking forward to it since I typed it in on Sunday.

Bún Chay (Vietnamese Noodle Salad) was a hit with the kids!  I did find rice sticks and we tried those today, but decided that we don't care for the texture so we won't be using them again.  We also sautéed the tofu bits instead of deep frying.  Otherwise, we pretty much followed the suggested items and then I let the kids choose how much of each item they wanted in their bowl.

I was proud of my littlest sidekick, who tried everything and only turned her nose at the cilantro. ;)  My 10 year old didn't care for the mint or cilantro, but was the only one of us who liked the rice sticks (noodles).  My 13 year old liked everything except the rice sticks.  Their favorite was the dressing...mine too! :)

Comfort Food

Our family's comfort foods have slowly started evolving as our menu has changed.  One thing that has remained consistent: our kids find comfort in a warm bowl of soup.  Taco soup, noodle soup, veggie soup...we love soup!  Soup that cooks in a crock pot is even better!

I decided to switch things up a bit and check out a new recipe for lentil-veggie soup.  This is a crock pot recipe, but I had to finish it up on the stove top.  If I had it to do all over I'd soak my lentils overnight, and make sure my veggies were chopped small enough to cook in a crock pot in the time allotted.  Otherwise, the flavor was wonderful.  The kids loved it and have already asked when I'm making it again.

Alongside our big bowls of soup were steaming, delicious corn muffins.  One of the girls helped me whip these up from a box mix.  We used applesauce in place of the eggs.  They were delicious!  Very dense and moist.  Yum!