recipe: vegan chocolate mousse

I decided to post a recipe after determining I am sure that this is truly a great recipe.  I now have tried this recipe out on my extended family, all who loved it (with one request to make it sweeter), and all were amazed one of the main ingredients is avocado.  I first heard of this recipe on Dr. Oz or some sort of similar talk show and the sweetening was from Medjool dates.  This certainly made the consistency quite thick.  I have looked on-line for similar recipes and made some minor variations.  I have also made this recipe to accommodate the diabetics and those who are lactose intolerant in my family.

Vegan Chocolate Mousse
(now you can indulge and feel healthy about it!)

makes about 8,  1/2 cup servings

6 ripe avocados (the smaller sized ones)
1 1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp (if that) of stevia powder (if this is not in your pantry, you can always double the ingredient you decide to use for sweetening)
1/4 cup agave syrup (which may be substituted by honey, maple syrup or the like)
1/2 cup almond milk (which may be replace by rice milk, soy milk etc.)

This can work in a blender, however I found it mixes up better in my food processor.
Blend the avocados in the food processor.   Add the vanilla, stevia and agave syrup. Add cocoa powder 1/4 cup at a time alternating with the almond milk, also being added little by little (I used about 1 Tbsp at a time). Blend thoroughly and make sure there are no clumps of cocoa left. Adjust the mixture to your taste: adding more sweetener if you like sweeter, or more almond milk if the consistency is too thick.
Serve mixture in individual cups.  I like to add some berries on top.
Enjoy.

Just Being Home-made

The past couple of weeks my days have been full.  I find I have been spending a lot of time just being.  That doesn’t mean that I am in a permanent state of meditation, nor am I glued to the television watching daytime talk shows (although that has occurred a few times after overextending myself).

I decided to really embrace the acts of creativity that I used to relish.  This wave of creativity started with deciding to make my son’s Halloween costume, then making home-made Christmas cards and home-made birthday cards.  I am pondering some Christmas gifts that are home-made too.

On the thought of home-made, I recently, successfully, made my own yogurt.  I have been exploring various natural/low chemical cleaning options for my home and for my self care.  Recently I tried a yogurt, witch hazel, oatmeal cleanser and another moisturizer/make up remover consisting of grapeseed oil, betacarotene tablets and lavender essential oil.  Interestingly enough, friends have recently commented on my skin looking great. (recipes found through the Marilyn Denis show http://www.marilyn.ca/Beauty/Segment.aspx/Daily/October2011/10_21_2011/FallSkin2). So perhaps this is a good change.  It certainly is chemical-free, which has been a big motivator.

On the home cleaning front, I have now been making my own laundry detergent since summer (Borax, washing soda and a bar of laundry soap ground up in my food processor), have found a decent “natural” stain remover, and have been cleaning with natural products around the house (mostly white vinegar, baking soda and/or borax).  The most difficult to replicate has been dishwasher detergent, but I have found a great detergent at my local health food store that cleans as well as the liquid brand name stuff, only no phosphates and other concerning chemicals.  My rinse aid is white vinegar. The other home-made product that I have used successful for a couple of years is a shower cleaner of water, hydrogen peroxide and tree tea oil... my shower curtain is still stain-free after two years. Of which, I’ll mention that tea tree oil is a natural disinfectant.

As I review what I have written today, I think that I am not just being, but have come to some new ways of being.  Definitely welcome changes in my life.

Recipes

Today I'm sharing recipes, as requested by my cousin Kim.  They are all recipes that my three year old little guy has enjoyed. Although keep in mind he is generally an adventurous eater. And, they all meet my guidelines for diet. I have the measurements for two, but all the recipes can easily be doubled.

Spiced Israeli Couscous with Prunes and Ginger, adapted from Alive magazine’s recipe.

½ cup Israeli couscous (this is the larger pearl couscous – somewhat hard to find, I found mine at my local butcher who carries lots of organics.)

1 cup vegetable stock

2 carrots, grated

1 tsp butter

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 small onion, diced

2 cloves of garlic minced

1 tsp ground ginger (or freshly grated)

½ tsp ground cardamom

½ tsp cumin powder

½ tsp turmeric

1 tsp honey

1 cup of pitted prunes, cut into bit sized pieces.

Salt and pepper to taste

Chopped cilantro to garnish

In a small pot, cook grated carrot with butter and enough water to just cover the carrot. After carrot is soft, puree and set aside.

In a saucepan, first light toast couscous in a dry pan. Set aside. Then, sauté onion, garlic and ginger in olive oil until onion is soft. Stir in cardamom, cumin and turmeric, salt and pepper. Then add couscous and stock. Continue to stir until stock is absorbed and couscous is tender.  Stir in honey and prunes. Add carrot puree. When serving, top with cilantro. Makes 2-3 servings.

Yellow Coconut Curry with Baked Tofu (my recipe)

Baked tofu:

½ block of firm tofu cut in 1 cm cubes

Marinade for at least 2 hours in:

2 cloves garlic minced

2 tsp of minced ginger

1 tsp honey

1/8 cup soya sauce or tamari sauce

1 tsp olive oil or sesame oil

After, baked on a cookie sheet at 350’F for ½ hour, turning tofu pieces about ½ way through

Curry:

1 tbsp canola or olive oil

1 small onion sliced

1 tbsp yellow curry

1 tsp turmeric

Ground pepper to taste

½ tsp cardamom

½ can lite coconut milk

1 small zucchini, cut in diagonal slices

1 carrot, peeled cut in diagonal slices

1 small head of broccoli, cut in to florets

In a wok or large saucepan, heat oil and sauté onions on med-high heat. Once the onions are soft, add spices: turmeric, curry, pepper and cardamom. After about a minute of heating spices add coconut milk to pan, stir until well combined and add vegetables.

Once cooked add baked tofu, serve on rice or try quinoa. Recently I cooked quinoa just like rice in the rice cooker. It worked out well.

Bengali Beef (adapted from the Cooking with Foods that Fight Cancer)

1 Tbsp olive oil

½ lb. of lean ground beef

1 large onion, sliced thinly

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp curry powder

1 tsp turmeric

1 tbsp flour (or tapioca starch)

¾ cup beef or vegetable stock

1/8 cup vinegar

¼ cup raisins

1/8 cup pine nuts

¼ pistachios, shelled (although I’ve been using cashews)

½ cup plain yogurt or plain kefir

Heat olive oil in a large pan. Cook the onions and garlic until browned, try a medium low heat.  Add curry and turmeric. Cook for another minute.  Push onions and garlic to the edge of the pan and add beef.  Cook on medium to medium high heat until beef is cooked through.  Sprinkle flour on beef and onion mixture. Add salt, pepper, cardamom, broth, vinegar and raisins. Mix well, cover, and let simmer on low heat for 20 minutes. After add the pine nuts and pistachios. Serve on basmati rice, top each with about 4 Tbsp of yogurt.

As I typed out these recipes I realized there are a number of substitutions that I use to help reduce the amount of processed foods (including white flour). I use a variety of substitutions on a regular basis.  Here are a few of the top of my head.

• white flour: use spelt or kamut flour. I have also been experimenting with brown rice flour and quinoa flour, whihc are heavier and need to be mixed with other flours. If the flour is being used as a thickening agent then try tapioca flour
• white rice: use quinoa or at least parboiled or basmati which have a lower glycaemic index. If I recall from a relative who has diabetes, one cup of white rice is something like eating 9 packets of sugar.
• any oil can be substituted for olive oil or canola.  I'm also experimenting with coconut oil which has a higher burn point and some sources are indicating it has health benefits unlike what was previously thought
• if reducing salt intake us Bragg's or tamari sauce in place of soya sauce
• use yogurt in place of sour cream to reduce fat
• sugar: try agave syrup or I'll use a combination of honey and agave
• there are more health benefits to eating/keeping tree nuts raw and seed (or pod nuts) to be cooked. This influences how I make muesli.

These are just a sample of some of the changes I make when cooking.  Of course I am trying to keep all meet and meat by-products organic as well as the fruits and vegetables that are known to have a higher pesticide load.