Grain Free Collard Green Sushi

I am turning 60 in nine days. NINE DAYS! 60! So I've decided in the days leading up to my birthday I'll clean up my act. Eat super clean. Always delicious. Always vegan. Mostly raw. Easy on the grains.
This morning I was banging around the kitchen and trying to figure out what to have for breakfast. I came up with this concoction and I must admit, it's pretty darn good, filling and satisfying.

1) Clean, de-stem and steam some collard greens. Some folks eat collards raw, so feel free to do that.

2) Prepare your filling. I used:
Finely chopped:
Celery
Asparagus
Cauliflower
Mixed with:
Raw Tahini
Chopped Walnuts
Raw Sunflower Seeds
Pink Salt

3) Add your base spread. I used avocado, but you could use hummus, nut butter or a vegan cheese spread.

4) Top with your prepared filling. I used approximately 2 T per roll.

5) Roll up using even pressure, not too tightly.

6) Slice or eat whole and enjoy!

Vegan Malai Kofta - Potato Dumplings in Coconut Tomato Sauce

        

Kofta (Crispy Potato Veggie Meatball/Dumplings):

• 2 cups russet potato, unpeeled and chopped
• 1/2 cup carrot, chopped
• 1/2 cup peas, frozen
• 2 Tbsp toasted cashews, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1/2 tsp salt, or to taste
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/4 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 cup chickpea flour
    

  Spiced Tomato Sauce/Gravy:

• 1 tsp whole cumin seeds
• 1 tsp ginger, peeled and finely chopped
• 1 cup yellow onion, diced finely
• 1 tsp serrano chili, finely chopped (or pinch of cayenne)
• 1 cup tomatoes, chopped or pureed
• 2 Tbsp cashews, toasted and ground (coffee grinder works well)
• 1 cup canned coconut milk
• 1 cup water, or as needed
• 1/4 tsp garam masala (leave out if you don’t have it, or put pinch cinnamon)
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• 1/4 tsp coriander, ground
• 1/4 tsp salt, or to taste
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
  
  

    Preparation

    Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Bring a medium pot of water to boil and add potatoes and carrots, cook for 10-15 minutes until easily mashable with a fork. Add peas and cook 1-2 minutes more, then drain water and transfer to a large mixing bowl to cool.

    Meanwhile start sauce in a deep skillet, sauté pan or wok. Heat 1 Tbsp of medium-high heat oil over medium heat. Add cumin seeds and cook until they begin to sizzle. Add onion, ginger, and serrano pepper if using. Cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally until onion begins to brown. Add tomatoes and cook for 3-4 minutes more. Transfer mixture to a blender (or food processor) and carefully blend until smooth. Return to pan and add remaining ingredients, saving water for the end and adding as much as you need to make a nice gravy consistency (it will continue to thicken as it cooks). Combine ingredients and stir well, let it bubble gently over low heat while you prepare koftas. If too watery, you can add additional cashew powder to thicken it.

   Add remaining ingredients to koftas, stir and a thick dough will form. Oil a metal baking sheet and form koftas into golf ball sized balls, placing a few inches apart on sheet. Bake at 450 degrees for 10-12 minutes until crispy on the bottom and flip over. Bake an additional 10-15 minutes until crispy on all sides.

 When koftas are done, drop them in the heated gravy and serve immediately with rice or bread of your choice

Hearty Vegan Split Pea Soup

 Hearty Vegan Split Pea Soup

Serves 6

1 Pound of Green Split Peas - sorted and rinsed well
7 C Water
1 T Olive Oil
1 C Carrots - diced
1 C Celery- diced
2 Bay Leaves 
2 Better than Chicken bouillon cubes
1/4 t Celery Salt
1 to 2 t Smoked Paprika
Sea Salt
Cracked Black Pepper

Combine the peas, water, oil, carrots, celery and bay leaves in a large soup pot. Slowly bring to a boil.
Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 1 hour. If the peas and vegetables are soft, add the remaining ingredients and simmer for another half an hour. If the peas are still tough simmer them until they are soft, then add the remaining ingredients. Some people like to puree the soup in a blender when finished. I like to take a large spoon and simply mash some of the peas and veggies against the side of the pot, leaving some chunks of both to give a more complex texture to the soup. Do whichever you prefer and enjoy!

Lentil Ragout with Polenta

Lentil Ragout with Polenta

 2 C Green or Brown Lentils (dried)
1 - 14.5 oz. can or box of Crushed Tomatoes
1/2 C each of Celery and Carrots
1/4 C Diced Onion
2 cloves of Garlic , finely chopped
3 C Water 
1 C Red Wine
1 tsp Dried Rosemary
1 Tblsp Balsamic Vinegar
2 tsp Maple Syrup
Sea Salt to taste

 Lentil Ragout

Saute the celery, carrots, onions and garlic until soft. Add the lentils, tomatoes, water and wine. Cover and simmer on low temperature until most of the liquid has been absorbed. Test to be sure your lentils are tender, if not add a bit more water (start with 1/2 C) and let them continue to cook. When the lentils are tender add the balsamic vinegar, rosemary and maple syrup and remove from heat. Salt to taste and return the cover. Let the lentils continue to steam in the pan while you make the polenta.

Polenta

4 C Water 
1 C Cornmeal
1-3 T Vegan Margarine or Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper to taste

Bring water to boil. Slowly whisk in the cornmeal and reduce the heat to a fairly rapid simmer. Continue whisking until the polenta is smooth and creamy looking. Whisk in the margarine or olive oil, salt and pepper. Keep whisking until the polenta seems to pull away from the pan. Remove from heat and serve immediately.

To serve spoon a generous serving of polenta on to a plate and ladle some ragout on top. Enjoy!

Left over polenta can be sliced and grilled, broiled or pan fried.