Cocoa Chocolate Chip Banana Waffles & Italian Inspired Veggie Tomato Stew on Brown Rice

Oh man, for dessert last night I made - you guessed it - WAFFLES again! Sadly no picture since I was charging my batteries.

I can't help it but get excited everytime I say the word waffles, ha ha! I look up into the air and look like Spongebob...



I made Cocoa Chocolate Chip Banana Waffles.
Had them with maple syrup (heavenly) and fresh raspberries, banana slices and blueberries (whatever comes after heavenly, this was it)

Ingredients (for 2 waffles)

3/4 cup flour (I use spelt)
2 heaped Tbsp. natural cocoa powder
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 cup soy milk (I used Soy Macchiato which gave it a lovely coffeeish flavor)
1 Tbsp. mashed banana (I used about 1/4 of a big one)
2 tsp. maple syrup (more or less depending on the sweetness of your milk)
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract (optional)
2 Tbsp. chopped chocolate or chocolate chips

This was chocolate heaven on a plate. Seriously, waffles combine everything awesome: crispyness/chewyness of cookies and doughyness like pancakes or cupcakes.

I know I will make these again! Probably tonight, because how else could I use up the leftover half banana? Ha ha! I'm also thinking of cutting up cherries and throwing them into the batter... mhhh!


For dinner I cooked up some brown rice and threw together a bunch of vegetables to accompany it.

I used
- 2 cans of tomatoes in juice
- 2 chopped onions
- 5 crushed cloves of garlic
- 1 huge zucchini, chopped
- some leftover frozen italian vegetable mix which fit very well (it was zucchini, onions, string beans, bell pepper, mushrooms (eh!) and black olives seasoned with oregano)
- 1/2 cup frozen spinach
and seasoned everything with thyme, rosemary, salt and pepper.

It was very garlicky, but not in an overpowering way. Very delicious, the rest agreed with me!



My dad asked my mom for Parmesan cheese, but there was none. I couldn't really feel for him because I had tons of nutritional yeast to sprinkle over my food ;)
Seriously, sprinkling nooch on stuff makes it so much better, at least if one's looking for a cheesy kind of flavoring.



My boyfriend even asked for another serving at 1 AM. Ha ha! Luckily I still have a small serving leftover for myself tonight.

Grilled Veggie Bagels, Sundried Tomato Zucchini Mix & Linguine with Pesto

Half the fun is getting there... even if it means you have to sit between bikes!



Amsterdam was so much fun! I went with my best friend, the one I made all the PB birthday treats for. He gets along perfectly well with my sister so we explored the city together and enjoyed lovely hours at Cafés & Bars and the Vondelpark of course, where I also spent my birthday lying in the sun!



Ha ha, loved it!



The parrots were there, too! I woke up, looked out of the window and was like "See, the parrots came to greet you!" "Huh, PARROTS???" Ha ha =p



I also experienced Queensday for the first time. Lovely, great weather, great music! Like a small Loveparade ;)



I did not eat out a lot though, because I had to watch my money. I got this Avocado & Tomato Bagel the first day we got there which was 4.40 or something and very tasty!





I spent lots of money at Albert Heijn, basically living on the typical soft toast-like bread that I spread with a tomato pasta sauce, ready-to-eat salad mixes and fresh tomatoes. Oh, and not to forget the tasty ontbijtkoek!

I was more than happy to come home and find a wrapped Veganomicon upon my birthday gifts =D
I was looking at the recipes and pictures going "Ohhh, I craved something like that all week!" at basically each and everything that contained veggies =p

So as much as I missed preparing my own meals I now miss my sister a whole lot and would happily go a week without vegetables again if it meant I could see her again.
Oh well, I'll see her in two months hopefully!



So after my craving for veggies and the rediscovered love for healthy bagels I finally used my grill pan I got at IKEA and it works so well, I can say I'm in love!

The grilled veggies: eet smakelig!!!



I marinated a sliced zucchini, asparagus, scallions, a can white beans, a jar roasted bell pepper and fresh mushrooms (for le boyfriend) in a Tbsp. olive oil, 3 or 4 cloves of minced garlic and lots of rosemary (fresh aswell as dried) and thyme.

With an everything bagel.



My whole-wheat sunflower seed bagel.





Het waar lekker!

Then I made this a few days ago. I don't know what I should call this. Stir-Fry? Side dish? Anyway, it was good ;)



Long grain white rice, wild rice and some special red rice which I can't remember the name of.
I used 1 zucchini, 1/2 cup asparagus and 1 cup sundried tomatoes cut into small pieces. I mixed the vegetables with 2 Tbsp. tomato paste and 3 heaping Tbsp. of a spicy sundried tomato-walnut paste I had bought, along with black olives marinated in garlic on top. This was pretty spicy! I liked the taste, but my stomach isn't used to even the slightest heat so I didn't feel too well after eating it. I gave the rest to my parents and they both liked it very much, it being spicy in particular! Seeing people happily eating my food and complimenting me always makes me wish I had my own vegan Café/Bistro =) Someday... he he!

After buying fresh basil again I finished off the whole plant in one sitting because I craved pesto. I bought whole wheat linguine because I was really in the mood for pasta.
As for the preparation... I had VwaV, HiaV and a vegetarian cookbook lying open looking at the recipes and in the end didn't follow one.



I used 3 1/2 cups basil, 2 cloves of garlic, 2 Tbsp. pine nuts and 3 Tbsp. grated almonds (estimated, I just tipped them into my blender from the bag) and about 1/3 cup water and a little salt.

Then I mixed under some zucchini sautéed in garlic and topped it off with fresh tomatoes!



This was exactly what I had needed! Pesto never fails to make my day when it's homemade. So much better than the jarred stuff!
The boyfriend ate it too. And you know what? He didn't say anything about the noodles. He HATES (better yet fears for a to me unknown reason) anything whole-wheat like so many people do. Just another proof that What the eye does not see, the heart does not grieve over. Hope the translater gave me the right saying here =p

It's good to be back! Hope everyone's doing good!

Bean Quesadillas and the fruitiest Berry Birthday Crisp

For my mom's birthday I made VwaV's Quinoa Mango Black Bean Salad as requested!
Don't the colors of the flowers & salad match perfectly? Ha ha!



I wrapped it up in a Tortilla later: a tasty idea! I really enjoyed it this way.

I usually hate peeling and cutting mango, but the skin was easily removable this time and left the mango flesh looking funny.



Doesn't it totally look like mango sorbet inside of a mango? =p



The Berry Crisp goodness! Frozen blueberries & raspberries and fresh blackberries & blueberries.





Before it went into the oven.



We had so much fun eating this dessert and couldn't stop laughing over each others blue teeth and lips =p

And about dinner two days ago. I must apologize. When I made quesadillas with my leftover salsa I made my boyfriend's first. Took a picture, then made mine. Forgot to take a picture of it, erm... anyway, mine looked basically the same minus the mushrooms and the cheese on top.

As he ate he went "I'm eating so healthy because of you!" "Well, sorry.." "No no, you can be proud!" Ha ha =p
I'll never understand why so many people fear healthy and nutritionous food (such as whole wheat for example)!?



Sorry, you can't even see the filling =( I spread it with salsa that I had mixed with kidney beans before, put bell pepper slices and corn on top and that was it. Very tasty!



This will be my last post for a week as I am going to visit my sister! I'm so excited, my best friend is coming along and I'm sure this will be such a fun week!! With LOTS of pictures!
So have a great week everyone and take care! =)

Mexican Pizza makes my night!

The pizza pan came to the rescue last night. And the result did not diappoint!



I felt the need for a change, not the regular broccoli bell pepper pizza again so I looked through the cupboards and the fridge and decided to make... Salsa (or whatever you want to call it)



Ingredients
1 can chopped tomatoes (omit the juice)
4 cherry tomatoes, chopped (ha ha not neccessary, I just found them in my fridge)
1 Tbsp. tomato paste
1/4 cup premade tomato sauce (or tomato puree seasond with a little oregano)
1/4 cup chopped scallions
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
chili powder (about 1/2 tsp.)
salt & pepper, to taste

I topped our pizza with salsa, black beans, corn, yellow and green bell pepper, scallions, a little onion and put vegan mozzarella on my half, the other half was my boyfriend's with regular cheese and additional mushrooms and peperoni.



Mhh, close-up! The crust was so perfectly crispy, just the way I like it!



This pizza was so delicious! I loved the beans and corn, so good!
I have a little salsa left over, as well as black beans so I'm thinking tonight will be the night I'll finally make burritos. I bought an avocado for guacamole and now all else I need is tortillas.

On another note it's my mom's birthday tomorrow. She requested Vcon's Quinoa Black Bean Mango Salad which she couldn't stop raving about ever since we first had it, ha ha =)
And for dessert I think I'll go with another one of her favorites: the delicious berry crisp by the Happy Herbivore!

Cabbage Rolls & Sauerkraut

Mhh, this leftover stuffing did a good job serving as a filling for cabbage rolls!





I love this meal, despite of the smell that lingers in the kitchen afterwards.

Equilinia-Veggie Stuffed Bell Peppers

A winner!!!



My mom said "Oh, yummyyyy!" between each and every bite and my fathers only complaint was that it wasn't salty enough. They both really appreciate the fact that I cook for them. In particular that I cook very healthy!
My mom said after dinner "That's what I love about meals like these... you don't feel so full and bloated afterwards!"
My father already thought of additions "Falafel would taste great with this!"



My boyfriend came over with a steak (the sight of that bloody red piece of flesh seriously made me sick) and fries his mom got him that he wanted to make for dinner.
He asked if he could have a stuffed pepper first and inhaled it within a matter of minutes!



Another dinner he really enjoyed, because after he ate his steak and fries - he kept complaining that the steak didn't taste good because it wasn't medium anymore - he asked if he could have another plate of my delicious vegan veggie food! Well that's not how he put it, ha ha! But he wanted more of it.

So he got it, topped with fresh basil! Mhhhhhh!!!!



The stuffing itself would have made a delicious dinner. I bought this Uncle Bens mix a while ago (a mixture of brown & wild rice, spelt, oats, barley, rye & wheat) and mixed it with the following:

Ingredients
1 can mushrooms, finely chopped added to 2 medium sauteed onions, seasoned with salt & pepper
1 cup asparagus, chopped
1 green and 1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 cup cherry tomatoes
1/3 cup paprika-hot pepper spread (based on sunflower seeds)
1/3 cup tomato puree
1/3 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped

I prepared the mushrooms seperately, sauteed the bell pepper with the asparagus and just cut the fresh tomatoes in small pieces and folded them into the rice mixture along with the basil.

I preheated the oven to 428°F

Then I cut the bell peppers in half. I didn't fill whole ones because that would've made only three. That way we had six =)

I filled the halfs with stuffing, lined them up in the baking dish I had filled with about 1/3 cup tomato puree (I'd usually use half a can of tomatoes but I only had a pack of tomato puree on hand), put more filling into the middle of the dish (I still have leftovers - my mom had the fantastic idea last night to make cabbage rolls with the stuffing, I LOVE IT!) and poured the rest of the tomato puree (I used one pack, 1/3 cup for the stuffing) over it.

Covered it up and baked it for about 25 minutes.

Mhhh, can't wait to have that in cabbage rolls =)

Mushroom Pierogi & Borscht

I've seen many Borscht recipes and they all had a long list of ingredients. This is the recipe from my polish grandma, may she rest in peace. We traditionally make this dinner every Christmas, the way she used to.

Note: This is a quick version. I used red beets in jars, unlike my grandma who prepared fresh ones.
This version is simple, very simple. But in my eyes, incredibly good.




Sorry for the crappy picture. It's the only one I took of a filled plate, because we were all eager to dig in!

Ingredients | Borscht
2 jars red beet
2 1/2 cups water
3 medium onions, quartered
4 or more cloves of garlic (just throw in the whole cloves)
bay leaves, about a small handful
pimento, also a small handful
salt and pepper, to taste
soy creamer

Ingredients | Pierogi
for the dough:
1 pound all-purpose flour
1 cup water

for the stuffing:
2 cans whole champignons
2-3 medium onions, chopped
salt and pepper, to taste



Preparation

start with the stuffing:
1. cut the onions
2. cut the mushrooms into small pieces
3. heat up a pan with a little canola oil, add onions and mushrooms
4. on low/medium heat turn the mixture occasionally until the champignons are done
5. add salt and pepper to taste and set aside

now to the Borscht:
6. empty the two jars into a pot (including the liquid) and add about 2 1/2 cups water
7. with a knife, cut the beet slices into smaller pieces (or if you have red beet globes I recommend you to grate them, tastes awesome!)
8. bring to a light boil, throw in the quartered onions, the cloves of garlic, bay leaves and piment
9. cover up and let stand on very low heat

prepare the dough:
10. in a bowl, mix flour with 1 cup water (use less first to prevent using too much or you'll end up adding more flour, then more water, then more flour again...) and knead until the consistence is right (very doughy)
11. spread a thin layer of flour on a clean cutting board(to prevent the dough from sticking to it) roll dough until it's about 0.2 inches high
12. with a glass (or anything round with a diameter of 4-5 inches) cut out dough circles
13. get another flour layered board to place the filled Pierogis on
14. take a cut out circle, stretch it a little, take a teaspoon of the mushroom mixture and place it in the middle of the dough circle
15. carefully fold it and press the rims together (you can use a fork to do that, but using your fingers is just as fine)
16. place it on the doughy board and continue filling the doughy circles with the mushroom stuffing
17. in a large pot bring water to boil, add salt and about 1/4 cup canola oil (the Pierogi will stick together like crazy otherwise, but you can also leave out the oil and add lots and lots of soy margarine when they are done)
18. put your stuffed Pierogis in the pot and wait until they come to the surface, wait for about a minute and take them out

back to the Borscht:
19. add salt and pepper to taste
20. add 1/2 cup soy creamer (or more, depends on how creamy you like it), add more water if neccessary (last night I ended up adding some more water and soy creamer to my plate because the taste of vinegar was a little too strong)

Et voilà! That's it, you're done! Enjoy!

I know I did. I think I refilled my plate 3 or 4 times. All in all I consumed about 12 Pierogis maybe. I was so full, but satisfied to no end.
Ha ha, my dad and I totally fought over the Borscht and the last Pierogis. I was like "Now I finally know what my sister feels like on Christmas Eve... the fear of not getting one's comeuppance." Because she always inhales Pierogis within a matter of minutes ;)