Category Archives: Vegan

Favourite Non Dairy Beverages: Coconut Dream and Pacific Hazelnut

Posted on January 31, 2013 | Leave a comment

I regularly use a non dairy beverages to help create vegan meals. I have tried many different types of non dairy beverages and one test I have is to see if a carton actually gets finished. My favourite remains Coconut Dream Original for the taste. Interestingly, this product is fortified with calcium, vitamin A, D and B12 in the version sold in the US, but not in Canada. The easily metabolized medium chain fatty acids from coconut are a nutritional benefit in addition to the taste.

http://www.tastethedream.com/products/product/5346/772.php

Another non dairy beverage I discovered recently and really enjoyed the taste of is Pacific Hazelnut Original non dairy beverage. I found this product in a grocery store on Kauai. The colour is not the most appealing. However, the taste excellent, perhaps from its slightly higher sugar content.

http://www.pacificfoods.com/our-foods/nut-grain-beverages/hazelnut-beverage-1

If you regularly use non dairy beverages, give Coconut Dream or Pacific Hazelnut a try to add variety to your diet.

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Posted in Healthy Beverage, plant food, product review, Recommendation, Vegan

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Recipe: Cucumber and Sea Asparagus Salad

Posted on January 28, 2013 | Leave a comment

This is a recipe I put together over the holidays in Hawaii. Sea asparagus or samphire is a veggie (or succulent herb) that grows between salt water and fresh water. It has a natural saltiness and crunch that lends itself well to a simple salad like this one. Sea asparagus is an excellent natural source of iodine. Sea asparagus in available seasonally, when harvested wild in Canada and Europe. Fresh sea asparagus is cultivated year round on the north shore of Oahu http://www.olakaihawaii.com/index.htm and is available at farmers markets throughout the island and at Foodland.

Fresh sea asparagus grown on the north shore of oahu

Fresh sea asparagus grown on the north shore of oahu-the best sea asparagus for taste and texture

1 japanese cucumber, chopped

1 cup fresh sea asparagus, rinsed and roughly chopped

1/4 maui onion, finely chopped

1 small tomato, chopped

fresh lime juice to taste

1 tablespoon Pele’s Fire chili infused macadamia oil (or any other oil you like, spice is adds great flavour to the salad)

chopped fresh cilantro to taste, or chopped shiso for those that don’t like cilantro (thank you Sharon S.)

In a bowl, toss together cucumber, sea asparagus, onion, tomato, and chili oil. Season with lime juice to taste. Top with chopped cilantro or shiso. Enjoy any time with breakfast, lunch or dinner.

 

 

 

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Posted in Greens, Healthy food, healthy recipe, plant food, product review, Recipe, Recommendation, Vegan

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Recipe: Root Vegetable Soup

Posted on December 10, 2012 | Leave a comment

This is a hearty soup recipe that provides an interesting way to eat a variety of veggies all in one bowl. Add any spicing that you think would enhance the flavour.

1 onion, diced

1 carrot, diced

1 stalk celery, diced

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 celeriac root, cut into cubes

1 rutabaga, cut into cubes

1 parsnip, chopped

2 tomatoes, chopped

6 cups vegetable broth

1/2 cup barley

1 bay leaf

1 teaspoon thyme

1 bunch rapini, chopped

Salt, pepper and lemon juice

In a large soup pot, saute onion, carrot and celery. Add root vegetables cook until slightly softened and browned. Add chopped tomatoes, vegetable broth, barley, bay leaf and thyme. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer for 35 minutes. Add chopped rapini. Season with salt, pepper and lemon juice to taste.

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Posted in Healthy food, healthy recipe, Recipe, Vegan

Recipe: Sweet Potato Soup

Posted on November 29, 2012 | Leave a comment

This is a recipe I put together yesterday after having sweet potato soup recently suggested to me as a soup idea. Sweet potatoes contain vitamins B, C, D, magnesium, potassium and beta carotene. I looked through a few recipes and came up with this version. The red lentils add an extra nutritional boost as well. I quite enjoyed the thick texture and rich taste of the coconut along with the spices, which have a slight curry flavour.

Sweet Potato Soup 

4-5 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and diced

1 onion, chopped finely

1 clove garlic, minced

1 apple, peeled and chopped

1 tablespoon coconut oil

4-5 cups of vegetable stock

1/2 cup of red lentils, rinsed

1 tablespoon creamed coconut (concentrated coconut, available at health food stores) (optional)

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground tumeric

1 stalk lemongrass

8-10 cilantro stems

salt, pepper and lemon juice to taste

In a large pot, saute onion, garlic, apple and sweet potato until softened. Add vegetable stock and red lentils, bring to a boil. Add creamed coconut, cumin and tumeric, stir. Add lemongrass and cilantro stems. Simmer until sweet potatoes are very soft. Remove lemongrass and cilantro stems. Use a handheld immersion blender to puree the soup. Season with salt, pepper and lemon juice to your taste.  Enjoy!

 

 

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Posted in gluten free, Healthy food, healthy recipe, Recipe, Vegan, Vivian Law

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Recipe: Tanzanian Hot Sauce

Posted on November 19, 2012 | Leave a comment

I learned of this recipe while sharing lunch with a generous young lady from Tanzania a couple weeks ago. This is a homemade hot sauce that is also known as pilli pilli. It can be served with grilled meats or anything else you enjoy with hot sauce.  Here is my version of the free form recipe with scotch bonnet pepper and tomato being the key base ingredients, then you add other ingredients to your taste. It is important to use scotch bonnet or habanero pepper for their flavour. Lime and sugar are nice additions to round out the heat.

2 tomatoes, diced

2 scotch bonnet peppers, seeded (leave the seeds in if you like it really hot)

1 shallot, minced

juice of 1 lime

1-2 teaspoons sugar

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

salt to taste

In a food processor, puree all ingredients. Adjust seasonings to your taste or add any other variation you enjoy, such as, garlic, onion, ginger, lemon, etc.

 

 

 

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Posted in healthy recipe, Recipe, Vegan, Vivian Law

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Recipe: Guacamole

Posted on November 3, 2012 | Leave a comment

Avocados are a healthy super food with their high monounsaturated (healthy) fat content, fiber content, vitamin A, vitamin E, vitamin B, vitamin C, copper, and lutein for the prevention of macular degeneration. My favourite way to have avocado is in guacamole. Here is my take on guacamole, everyone has their own, so make it your own with your own additions. I use shallot as a cross between onion and garlic. I feel cilantro and jalapeno are required for zip and spice.

2 ripe avocados

Lime juice to taste (1/2 lime)

1 plum tomato finely chopped

1 shallot finely chopped

1/2 jalapeno pepper finely chopped

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

Salt and pepper to taste

In a medium bowl, scoop out avocado, mash with a spoon and mix in lime juice. Add tomato, shallot, jalapeno and cilantro, mix well. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Place the avocado seed in the guacamole if you are not serving it immediately to help prevent browning. Enjoy with tortilla chips, crackers or with tacos.

 

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Posted in gluten free, Healthy food, healthy recipe, Healthy snack, plant food, Recipe, Vegan, Vivian Law

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Healthy Yorkville Lunch: Mela Cafe

Posted on October 25, 2012 | Leave a comment

I am 8 years late in my discovery of Mela Cafe, Italian Vegetarian Magic at 7 Yorkville Avenue 416 916 0619. Perhaps its location where Wanda’s Pie in the Sky once was kept me from coming too close, as I missed Wanda’s very much. I came across Mela Cafe last week after buying DLish cupcakes and looked around the corner for some lunch. Yes, I got dessert before choosing a spot for lunch.

The chalkboard menu and glass display cases at Mela Cafe were very enticing. I tasted a certain magic in the food with the mixed veggie salad and sweet potato mash with rapini topped with homemade tomato sauce I had. I enjoyed my lunch so much that I went back the next day for beet risotto with greens, which was delicious. As was their signature eggplant sandwich, which I enjoyed another time.

Mela Cafe is a great little spot to have some lunch or get takeout for dinner. Their food is prepared with great care to a point where the chefs Roberto and Kim grow their own vegetables. They are real innovators here. The quality shows through in the delightful taste of the food. I highly recommend Mela Cafe for a healthy, delicious meal that inspires us to eat more veggies by showing us how tasty veggies can be. What an amazing accomplishment for Mela Cafe!

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Posted in Healthy food, Recommendation, Restaurant review, Review, Toronto, Vegan, Veggies

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Recipe: Butternut Squash Soup

Posted on October 15, 2012 | Leave a comment

Locally grown butternut squash is available at this time of year and the colder weather makes this soup a natural choice. Butternut squash contains beta carotene, vitamin C, manganese, calcium, magnesium and potassium. This is a simple recipe that was told to me verbally by another foodie who highly recommended fried sage as a secret ingredient. The soup is still good even when you cannot get your hands on fresh sage.

1 butternut squash, peeled and seeded, cut into cubes (bake the squash at 350 for 10 minutes if is hard to peel or cut)

1 onion, finely diced

1-2 apples or 1 pear and 1 apple, peeled and coarsely chopped

1 tablespoon butter or coconut oil (if you prefer a vegan version)

4 cups vegetable broth or stock

salt, pepper, cardamom, to taste

In a large pot, heat butter or oil over medium heat. Saute onion, apple and pear until softened. Add cubed squash and saute briefly. Add vegetable stock. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer for 15-20 minutes or until squash is soft. Let soup cool slightly and puree with an immersion blender until smooth. Season with salt, pepper, cardamom or any other spices to your taste. Enjoy!

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Posted in gluten free, healthy recipe, plant food, Vegan

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Recipe: Three Lentil Soup

Posted on September 20, 2012 | Leave a comment

This is a recipe I adapted from the Canadian Living Slow Cooker Collection. I found it worked just as well on the stove top. I use 3 types of lentils for the nutritional and texture variety. This is a brownish coloured soup that packs a lot of nutrition as a source of fibre, magnesium and folate on a cold day.

1/3 cup brown lentils

1/3 cup green lentils

1/3 cup black lentils

1 onion, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

1 plum tomato, finely diced

1 stalk celery, finely chopped

2 tablespoons olive oil

4-5 cups vegetable stock

1 bay leaf

1/2 tsp dried thyme

Salt, pepper and lemon juice to taste

In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Saute onion, garlic, tomato and celery until softened. In a strainer, rinse lentils thoroughly. Add lentils, bay leaf, thyme and vegetable stock to the pot. Bring to a boil, simmer over medium low heat for 30 minutes. Season with salt, pepper and lemon juice to your taste. Enjoy piping hot topped with finely chopped greens such as watercress or chard (the greens will wilt and cook lightly in the hot soup).

 

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Posted in gluten free, Greens, healthy recipe, plant food, Recipe, Vegan, Vivian Law

Recipe: Spicy Black Bean Dip

Posted on August 16, 2012 | Leave a comment

This recipe is inspired by a great dip that Chef Melissa Saunders has made a few times. Her version changed my mind about black bean dip, as I’m not the biggest fan of black bean dip. Her dip was so tasty that I became open to making black bean dip myself sometime. I used this dip for raw veggies and even more fun, a black bean and cheese quesadilla made with corn tortillas.

2 cups or 1 can of black beans

1 clove of garlic, slivered

1/2 jalapeno pepper minced (remove seeds if you prefer a milder dip)

Juice of 1-2 limes

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 cup chopped cilantro

salt and pepper to taste

In a food processor, pulse black beans, garlic, olive oil, lime juice, and jalapeno on high until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste, add cilantro and pulse again until well blended. Enjoy with fresh veggies, chips or in a quesadilla.

 

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Posted in Healthy food, healthy recipe, Healthy snack, plant food, Recipe, Vegan, Veggies

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