Banana Ice Cream

I am never disappointed and always amazed at how delicious this simple dessert tastes. And it’s not just the taste. The texture is so smooth and creamy, like a nice soft-serve ice cream. I know how many people out there love their ice cream, especially at night. This would make a good substitution, although, because bananas are high in sugar, this would be best eaten in moderation like anything else.

Still, if you look at the nutrition data for a cup of mashed banana, you’ll see that it offers lots of vitamin C, B6, riboflavin, and folate, as well as potassium, magnesium, manganese, and copper. There’s fiber and a bit of protein there as well with a small amount of fat.

I very often will simply whip the bananas and have them plain, but it’s simple enough to add flavorings and spices of your choice. In the above picture, I’ve added cocoa powder and a tablespoon of honey. Cinnamon would be a nice addition as well.

Banana Ice Cream

5 bananas, peeled, sliced and frozen

2 T cocoa powder

1 T honey

Allow the bananas to sit at room temperature for a few minutes to defrost a bit.

Place them in a food processor or high-speed blender and blend on high until the pieces break up and begin to look creamy.

Add the cocoa powder and honey if desired and whip until a smooth, even consistency is achieved. Serve immediately.

The one thing I’ve found about banana ice cream is that it doesn’t freeze well. It freezes very hard and needs to be defrosted for quite a while before eating. Therefore, I recommend making just enough to serve at one sitting. One banana per person is a good guideline to use when planning how much to make.

Everything But the Kitchen Sink Cookies

Several years ago, while visiting my daughter, Ariel, in California, I tried an amazing cookie that was born at “The Red Radish”, a vegan/vegetarian restaurant where my daughter was working. She was able to take the recipe with her when she left the restaurant and over the years, it’s evolved a bit. In fact, we made some major changes to it today and the result was amazing.

You can watch Ariel make the cookies in the video below:

And of course, here is the recipe:

Everything But the Kitchen Sink Cookies

1 c oil (coconut, grapeseed, olive)

½ c real maple syrup

½ c molasses

2 T tahini

3 C rolled oats

2 c whole grain spelt or other flour

1 t baking soda

1 t baking powder

2 t kosher or sea salt

¼ c raw sugar (I almost think this can be left out, but I haven’t tried yet)

2 T ground flax seeds

1 c raisins or other dried fruit

1 c pumpkin or sunflower seeds

1 c chocolate chips or chunks

Mix the wet (first 4) and dry (next 7) ingredients together in separate bowls. Combine the wet and dry ingredients together.

Add the fruit, seeds, and chocolate and mix well.

Tightly pack the bowl of a small ice cream scoop with batter, then turn it out onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Space the cookies ~3” apart.

Bake at 350°F for ~15 minutes, or until lightly browned and the middle does not look raw.

Allow the cookies to cool completely on the baking sheet (they will fall apart until cooled). Then, dig in!! Store in an air tight container.

Bread by Ariel

I hadn’t seen my oldest daughter, Ariel in over two years, so it was a nice surprise to have here visiting from California. For the last week, we’ve been catching up and cooking together which is a lot of fun because we’re very similar in the foods we like to eat.

What surprised me was that one of the first things she wanted to make was bread. These days, I eat very little bread unless it’s made with sprouted grains, or something really special. Well, the bread she made definitely fit that bill. She made it with wild-crafted nettles that she picked back home and dried, flax and sunflower seeds, garlic, thyme and Himalayan salt.

It was, by far, one of the best breads I’ve had in a long time, especially when it was sliced while still warm and smothered in butter. In fact, I made similar breads following her recipe for Mother’s Day and she made more bread last night!

To me, this is a real treat since it’s not something I would eat everyday but something we are thoroughly enjoying for this week. And because it’s homemade, it’s made with basic, whole-food ingredients, with nothing artificial and without preservatives or other chemicals. If you’re going to eat bread, this is the way to go!

The recipe is below and you can also watch Ariel make the bread in this video below:

Bread by Ariel

2 c warm water (~110°F)

1 T Himalayan or sea salt

1 T honey

1 package yeast

~5.5 c organic bread flour

¼ c flax seeds

dried nettles, or other dried, green leafy herb (optional)

¼ c sunflower seeds processed with 2 cloves garlic (optional)

fresh thyme (optional)

extra virgin olive oil

Begin by pouring the warm water into a large, glass mixing bowl. Add the yeast, salt, and honey and mix well. Allow the liquid to rest for a few minutes for the yeast to become active.

Add ~2.5 cups of the flour to the bowl and mix with a spatula to incorporate most of the flour, then add another 3 cups of flour.

With oiled hands, combine the mixture until the flour is completely incorporated and it forms a soft dough that is not sticky.

Turn the dough out onto a clean, floured surface and knead the dough for 5 minutes by folding one corner over diagonally and kneading. Then rotate the dough 90 degrees and repeat this process for the entire kneading time.

Place the round of dough into a clean, oiled bowl and transfer some of the oil onto the dough. Cover the bowl with a clean, dry cloth and place the bowl in a warm place for 1 – 2 hours to allow the dough to double in size.

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Punch down the dough and knead it several times to remove any air bubbles. Knead flax seeds and dried nettles into the dough until incorporated.

Split the dough in half with a knife, then form loaves. Place the loaves onto a large baking pan coated with corn meal or oil.

Make several slices into the bread and stuff them with the sunflower seed, garlic, thyme and sea salt mixture. Bake the breads for ~30 minutes, or until they are nicely browned all over and sound hollow when tapped. Allow the breads to cool on a wire rack. Slice and Enjoy!!

Creamy Kale Salad

I have been eating a lot of kale lately either cooked, raw in salads, juices, or smoothies, cultured with other veggies, or occasionally as kale chips. It’s a nutritional powerhouse. Just one cup of raw kale has only 33 calories and far exceeds the recommended daily value for vitamins A, C, and K. And it doesn’t stop there. The basic nutrition data can be found here.

The creamy kale salad below is made with a dressing I whipped up on a whim. Actually the idea came to me in yoga class. I know I’m supposed to be focusing on class, but I get so many ideas when I’m lying on the mat : ) The mango and milk (coconut) reminded me of a lassi so I added cardamom, but it can easily be left out.

The dressing is mild and a little tangy from the mango and lemon juice. If it’s made thick enough, it could even be used for a dipping sauce for fruit or vegetables.

Creamy Kale Salad

1 avocado, sliced, pitted and flesh removed

1 mango, peeled and chopped

¼ cup coconut milk

1 T lemon juice

salt and pepper to taste

½ t cardamom (optional)

small bunch kale, washed, dried and stems removed

1 small red pepper, coarsely chopped

½ medium red onion, peeled and coarsely chopped

Combine the first six ingredients in a food processor or blender and blend until it reaches a smooth consistency.

Tear the kale into large pieces, then chop it finely in the food processor. Transfer to a large bowl.

Process the peppers and onions into fine pieces as well, then add them to the kale.

Add the avocado/mango dressing to the salad and mix well.

Serve on a bed of salad greens, wrapped in lettuce leaves, as a side salad, as a condiment in a veggie wrap, or on top of a crusty bread.

Vegan American Chop Suey

I had no idea what to call this dish until I saw it prepared. American Chop Suey immediately came to mind. The “meat” in this dish is shiitake mushrooms combined with onions and herbs. This is a pungent, clean-tasting sauce that works well with the lighter, less-starchy quinoa (actually quinoa-corn) pasta.

I actually added at least double the parsley than I call for below, but it may be too much for you. Experiment to see how much you can handle. If not concerned about keeping this vegan, a sprinkle of freshly grated cheese would go nice here too.

Vegan American Chop Suey

2 oz dried shiitake mushrooms (about 15-20), rinsed then soaked in 2 – 3 cups of boiling water

grapeseed or olive oil

1 medium onion, sliced

vegetable broth concentrate to taste (I like to use Better than Bouillon)

¼ c fresh parsley, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

sea salt and pepper

chopped thyme to garnish

1 box of quinoa pasta, cooked

Allow the mushrooms to soak in boiling water until fully rehydrated. Drain and save the water. Slice the mushrooms.

Heat the oil in a dutch oven or fry pan until medium hot, then add the onion and sautee until soft.

Add the mushrooms and sautee an additional 3-5 minutes, then add ¼ cup of leftover mushroom water to the pan and allow it to reduce for a few minutes.

Transfer the mixture to a food processor and add the parsley and garlic. Process until finely chopped.

Transfer the mushroom mixture back to the pan. Add ~1/2 teaspoon of broth concentrate (or to taste) to the remaining mushroom water then add it to the pan and mix well.

Season with salt and pepper. Add the hot, cooked pasta to the pan and mix well. Garnish with chopped thyme.

Comfort in Cauliflower and Millet

Since I got the original recipe for this dish from a client of mine who found it in the newspaper, I’ve made it three times. She had never tried millet, so I made it and brought it to our next meeting. It’s currently one of my favorite recipes. One, because I adore roasted cauliflower (which is one thing I changed with this recipe), and another, because I’ve never really cared for mashed (white) potatoes but like the idea of them as comfort food. This beautiful concoction, though, has the look and feel of mashed potatoes, but tastes even better, is much higher in protein, and provides all the benefits of a cruciferous vegetable, including fiber.

As mentioned, the original recipe called for boiling the cauliflower, however, I decided to roast it instead. I also substitute almond or nut milk for the soymilk and use it to replace the water, but any milk would work. I also recommend adding the caraway seeds. It adds a nice taste to the mild flavors of the millet and cauliflower.

Mashed Cauliflower and Millet

½ c uncooked millet, soaked for several hours and rinsed

1 c water

1 head cauliflower

1T grapeseed oil

1 teaspoon sea salt

½ teaspoon caraway seeds

½ to ¾ cup almond or other milk

Freshly ground pepper and nutmeg

1 tablespoon nutritional yeast flakes, optional

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bring the water and millet to a boil in a small saucepan. Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer until cooked, ~10-15 min. Set aside.

2. Meanwhile, cut cauliflower into florets, coat lightly with the grapeseed oil and sprinkle with caraway seeds and a little salt. Transfer to a baking dish and roast in oven until tender, ~30 min. Transfer to a food processor.

3. Add the cooked millet and milk to the cauliflower. Blend until they reach the desired consistence, then add pepper and nutmeg to taste. Add nutritional yeast flakes if desired.

Chocolate Oat Pancakes

It’s not that often that I take the time to make pancakes for breakfast, but when I’m craving them, I give in. If they’re made from scratch using healthier alternatives to white flours and sugars, they can actually be both delicious and nutrient dense.

I think it must have been a full moon when I was craving the pancakes below, which is why I made them chocolate : ) You can even add chopped walnuts, pecans, or berries to the batter to add more fiber and enhance the flavor, texture, and nutritional value. Rather than the microwaveable options that provide little or no nourishment, try serving these to your kids with real maple syrup that will also pack in the minerals. They’ll think they’re getting a treat for breakfast!!

Chocolate Oat Pancakes

1 cup whole grain spelt flour (optional: replace 2 – 3 T of the flour with oat bran or ground flax seed)

1 cup oat flour

2 T unsweetened cocoa powder

¼ c plus 1 T sugar, such as sucanat or turbinado

1 t baking powder

1 t baking soda

1 t salt

1.5 cups almond or other milk

4 T melted butter or grapeseed oil

2 eggs, beaten

2 t vanilla

In a medium bowl, whisk the dry ingredients together. Combine the wet ingredients then gently fold into the flour mixture until well incorporated. Allow the batter to sit a few minutes.

Melt 1 teaspoon butter (or use grapeseed oil) in a skillet over medium heat. For each pancake, pour 1/3 cup of batter into skillet. Flip when the batter is set around the edges and the center is bubbling. Cook until the bottom is brown and the center is cooked. Serve with butter, maple syrup, fruit or yogurt.