Sweet or Savoury No Cream, Cream Sauce

I absolutely love cream sauce but not the cream. The dairy industry is so cruel and unsustainable. In search of alternate methods of cream sauce I came across these recipes. All animal-based foods are acid-forming and dairy is no exception.

After looking at 34 published studies in 16 countries, researchers at Yale University found that the countries with the highest rates of osteoporosis – including the United States, Sweden, New Zealand – were those in which people consumed the most dairy and other animal products. How could that be?! That’s because animal protein foods such as cow’s milk are acid-forming which causes the body to borrow calcium from the bones and teeth to counteract the acidity. Over time, the bone structure weakens, making us more susceptible to fractures. To read more about this, go to www.milksucks.com.

To neutralize one cup of milk we need to take 20 cups of something alkaline such as green vegetable juice for instance. Since it takes 10 pounds of milk to produce a pound of cheese and 12 pounds of milk for a pound of ice cream, that ratio can get out of control! The more acid-forming foods we consume the weaker our immune system becomes, making it easier for bacteria, fungi and viruses to cause havoc in our body.

If you are still skeptical about the health dangers of consuming dairy, I encourage you to begin your own research into the matter.

Nut Cream Sauce

(Serves 2)

1/2 Cup Raw Cashews
1/4 Cup Water

Any blender or food processor will do, place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth, add more water if sauce gets too thick, keep adding water for desired consistency. Add anything you want to this sauce, truffle oil, herbs, pesto, tomato paste, morel mushrooms, curry, garlic, anything you would a reg cream sauce. Place in stove top pot and heat. Or make it sweet!

Sweet Nut Cream Topping

Cashew Cream, Tal Ronnen (serves 2-4)

2 cups of cashews or walnuts

1/4 cup agave nectar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Put nuts into a blender and cover them with enough water to cover them by 1 inch, add vanilla and agave nectar, blend on high for several minutes until smooth. You will see this transform into a creamy whipped cream like mixture. Serve over your favorite dessert. I like it over fresh papaya.

Jan 31

Homemade Tomato Soup With Salad

It’s so easy to eat well and eat healthy. We just need to think outside the box. I used to be hungry all the time and since I have been cooking my own meals at home I’ve realized the constant hunger was actually lack of fiber. I always try and make all of my food at home with the freshest ingredients. Here is my recipe for homemade tomato soup with Arugula Salad and Crostini.

Tomato Soup

10 large vine tomatoes

5 stalks of celery

2 shallots

1 whole garlic

6 fresh basil leaves

2 tbl spoons paprika

Chop celery, shallotts and garlic into pieces, and saute in an olive oiled pan until El Dante, add fresh basil. Bring a large pot of water to boil, dip your tomatoes into the water until the skin cracks and remove from the water, you will notice the skins of the tomatoes come right off, remove all skins, place the skins in a separate bowl and cut your tomatoes in quarters, I always core mine first with an apple core, add to the garlic, celery, basil and shallots.

After all your ingredients have mingled, take all the ingredients from the pan and puree in a food processor or blender, if your using a blend be sure to not fill to much or it will spill up under the lid. Doing a little at a time is best. Blended ingredients go into a soup pot. Your almost done, at this stage I add the paprika and sometimes if you have some add a little brags seasoning. Let simmer on low for 15 min.

Mushroom Arugula Tomato Skin Salad:

You have the left over skins, no point in letting them go to waste, I take mine and put them in my food processor blend them with seal salt. I leave those sit and I saute mushrooms in a pan, I place my arugula leaves in my bowls, top with the mushrooms a spoon full of my tomato skin puree and grate a little vegan or Asiago cheese on top. I dress with a little olive oil and balsamic.

Crostini:

I cut a fresh baguette into slices, place on a cookie sheet, sprinkle with sea salt and balsamic and broil for 8 minutes or until crisp. Great For dipping in your soup.

Jan 29

Polenta With Mushrooma

15 mushrooms of any type, I used brown

3 handfuls of spinach (reduces into nothing)

polenta

3 garlic cloves

Vegan or Asiago Cheese

Balsamic

Directions:

Saute mushrooms with a little olive oil , add a pinch of sea salt, remove from pan. Slice polenta, brown on both sides. In a food processor place about 7-9 mushrooms with a pinch of sea salt and a splash of olive oil to puree, heat and plate, remove polenta from the pan and place on top of the pureed mushrooms. Now that your pan is empty take 2 heaping handfuls of spinach and saute in pan with a table spoon of balsamic don’t over cook, takes about a minute, place spinach on top of polenta add your sauteed mushrooms to top and sprinkle with fresh asiago or vegan cheese. Enjoy! Recipe is for 2

Jan 15

Vegan Spaghetti Quattro

I thought Id share this recipe with you, it’s one of my favorites. The recipe is originally taken from Quattro’s menu. Here is my version of “Spaghettie Quattro” Enjoy!

This spaghetti dish features a sauce made with Yves chicken and black beans. It’s savoury and spicy. A little twist on your everyday spaghetti.

I haven’t heard a single person say that they didn’t love this dish. Everyone ask’s me for the recipe. It’s a cold night in Whistler favorite. We make it all the time, it’s even better the next day!

Ingredients: (Serves 4-6)

1.5 lb spaghetti noodles ( I use whole wheat)

1 cup olive oil

1 package of flakey Yves chicken

2 large garlic cloves

2 tsp chili flakes or more for spice

1 tbsp Italian parsley

4oz black turtle beans (cooked)

1 cup of pureed tomatoes (canned is fine I use Hunts)

1 small canned or 1/2 cup of fresh black olives (fresh is best)

pinch of sea salt

Method:

Heat oil in a fry pan, add mock chicken, salt and parsley then sauté for about 1-2 minutes. Add beans and garlic, chili pepper, tomato sauce and stir well until cooked. (About 5 more minutes.)

Add cooked pasta to the pan then swirl around to coat the noodles with the sauce.

Dec 17

7 Sustainable Ways To Help The Environment

1) Use local, seasonally available ingredients as standard, to minimise energy used in food production, transport and storage.

2) Specify food from farming systems that minimise harm to the environment, such as certified organic produce.

3) Limit foods of animal origin (meat, dairy products and eggs) served, as livestock farming is one of the most significant contributors to climate change, and promote meals rich in fruit, vegetables, pulses, wholegrains and nuts. Ensure that meat, dairy products and eggs are produced to high environmental and animal welfare standards.

4) If you must eat fish. Exclude fish species identified as most ‘at risk’ by the Marine Conservation Society, and choose fish only from sustainable sources – such as those accredited by the Marine Stewardship Council.

5) Choose Fairtrade-certified products for foods and drinks imported from poorer countries, to ensure a fair deal for disadvantaged producers.

6) Avoid bottled water and instead serve plain or filtered tap water in reusable jugs or bottles, to minimise transport and packaging waste.

7) Promote health and well-being by cooking with generous portions of vegetables, fruit and starchy staples like wholegrains, cutting down on salt, fats and oils, meat and cutting out artificial additives.

Dec 16

Chef Tal Ronnen’s “The Conscious Cook”

The Conscious Cook shows that avoiding the health risks and ethical dilemmas of eating meat and dairy does not mean sacrificing taste and appetite.

I tried this recipe, It’s really great. I did decide to switch my “Chicken” to the Eves Veggie Skewers because of the taste. I prefer these much better. I just wish they made them bigger!

Dec 8

Sweet Potato Hash

People often ask so what do you eat if you don’t eat meat? I always reply LOT’S, The earth provides us all the things we need to survive. This beautiful dish is filled with colorful vegetables and aromatic spices.

Ingredients:
4 cups sweet potatoes, peeled,and diced
1 1/2 tablespoons safflower oil
1 1/2 cups onions or red onions, diced
2 cups zucchini, diced
1 cup cut corn (fresh or frozen)
1 cup red pepper, destemmed,deseeded,and diced
1 cup green pepper, destemmed,deseeded,and diced
1/4 cup jalapeno pepper, destemmed,deseeded,and diced
3/4 cup green onion, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
1/4 cup freshly chopped cilantro
1/4 cup freshly chopped parsley
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions
In a large non-stick skillet, saute the swe et potato in the safflower oil for 5 minutes.
Add the onion and saute an additional 5 minutes, stirring often.
Add the zucchini, corn, all of the peppers, and continue to saute the mixture for 5 additional minutes, stirring often.
Add the green onions and garlic, and saute an additional 3 to 5 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.
Add the remaining ingredients and cook an additional 2 minutes to allow the flavors to blend.

Dec 6

Eating Out Doesn’t Have To Cost The Earth

Looking for a restaurant for your Vegan or Vegetarian life style can be hard but with the number of restaurants popping up and growing and everyone realizing that being sustainable is a good way of ensuring our future, I have listed a group of sustainable restaurants in Vancouver. Most of which would be also happy to cater to your diet needs.

As consumption increases and life-sustaining resources decline, we are faced with a growing crisis for the earth to sustain the demand for its resources.

The concept of “eating well” now encompasses a much broader spectrum, entailing more than taste alone.

A new emphasis on quality ingredients combined with an awareness of the social, cultural, ethical and environmental impacts of food production is changing restaurants.

Here is a list of sustainable restaurants that almost all have a non meat choice on the menu:

Bishop’s	www.bishopsonline.com
Bistro Pastis	www.bistropastis.com
Boneta	www.boneta.ca
C Restaurant	www.crestaurant.com
Cactus Club Café	www.cactusclubcafe.com
Capilano Suspension Bridge	www.capbridge.com
Chambar	www.chambar.com
Chow	www.chow-restaurant.com
Cioppino’s Mediterranean Grill	www.cioppinosyaletown.com
Culinary Capers Catering	www.culinarycapers.com
Curry 2 U – Granville Island	www.curry2u.com
Edible Planet Catering	www.edibleplanet.ca
Elixir at the Opus Hotel	www.elixirvancouver.ca
Emelle’s Catering	www.emelles.com
Le Gavroche	www.legavroche.ca
Goldfish Pacific Kitchen	www.goldfishkitchen.com
Grouse Mountain Resorts Ltd.	www.grousemountain.com
Hamilton Street Grill	1009 Hamilton Street, Vancouver
Indishpensable	www.indish.ca
Joey’s Restaurant	www.joeysrestaurants.com
O’Doul’s Restaurant & Bar	www.odoulsrestaurant.co
Major the Gourmet Catering	www.majorthegourmet.com
Mr. Pickwick’s Fish & Chips	www.mrpickwicks.bc.ca
NU Restaurant + Lounge	www.whatisnu.com
Ouisi Bistro	www.ouisibistro.com
Peake of Catering	www.peakeofcatering.com
Radha Yoga & Eatery	www.radhavancouver.org
Rangoli	www.vijsrangoli.ca
Raincity Grill	www.raincitygrill.com
Rocky Mountain Flatbread Co.	www.rockymountainflatbread.ca
Roundel Café	2465 East Hastings Street, Vancouver
Salt Tasting Room	www.salttastingroom.com
Savoury City Catering	www.savourycity.com
Tapastree	www.tapastree.ca
Terra Breads – Kitsilano	www.terrabreads.com
The Lazy Gourmet	www.lazygourmet.ca
UBC Foodservices	www.food.ubc.ca
Vancouver Aquarium	www.vanaqua.org
Vij’s	www.vijs.ca
West	www.westrestaurant.com
Whistler Cooks Catering	whistlercooks.com
Wild Rice	www.wildricevancouver.com
ZIN Restaurant & Lounge	www.zin-restaurant.com