Raw Nut Butter Cookie Balls

Having a sweet tooth doesn’t mean giving into unhealthy desserts. The big not-so-secret secret is using fruit to satisfy your cravings. Naturally sweet and unrefined, dates are a very popular fruit used to achieve the level of sweetness we crave. According to Dr. Michael Greger M.D., though dates are 80% sugar, they have no adverse affects on blood sugar or weight, and actually improve triglycerides and antioxidants (source). In addition, Medjool dates, in particular, contain a variety of essential nutrients such as Copper, Manganese and Potassium (source).

Ready for a sweet treat? Say goodbye to the guilt and make yourself a batch of these Raw Nut Butter Cookie Balls. Not only are they raw, they are delicious and healthy with added protein and a touch of cinnamon.

Raw Nut Butter Cookie Balls
Yields approximately 9-10 balls

1 cup raw, unsalted cashews
1/2 cup uncooked quick-cooking or old-fashioned oats
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 cups pitted dates
4 tablespoons raw nut butter of your choice

Combine cashews, oats and cinnamon in the bowl of a food processor and process for 30-60 seconds, or until the consistency of cornmeal is reached.

Add dates and nut butter and pulse until mixture is combined, stopping occasionally to scrape sides. Mixture should be moist enough to form into balls and hold their shape. If not, add an additional teaspoon nut butter and mix. Repeat if necessary.

Using approximately 1 tablespoon of the mixture at a time, roll into balls and place in an air-tight container and refrigerate until ready to eat.

NOTE: Due to the nature of preservative-free foods, these cookies are best if eaten within one week, otherwise they may be frozen until ready for consumption.

Savory Coconut Okra

Okra, also known as lady’s fingers, bhindi or gumbo, is used in a variety of ethnic cuisines. Appearing in curries, soups, stews, and even salad and tempura, okra tends to have a bad reputation due to the sliminess contained within. This, however can be alleviated in a variety of ways including stir-frying or introducing a few drops of acidic liquid such as lemon juice or vinegar (source). Do not let the threat of a little sliminess keep you away from this delicious and healthful food. Raw okra is a very good source of Calcium, Dietary Fiber, Folate, Magnesium, Manganese, Phosphorus, Potassium, Thiamine, and Vitamins A, B6, C and K. It is also a good source of Copper, Iron, Niacin, Protein, Riboflavin and Zinc (source).

I never really ate okra until recently, but I must say that I really enjoy it. It is excellent battered and fried, but my recent addiction is coconut okra, fashioned after a popular dish served in Indian restaurants. I hope you’ll enjoy it as much as I do!

Savory Coconut Okra

2 tablespoons shredded unsweetened coconut
1 tablespoon unrefined coconut oil
3 cups fresh okra, rinsed
salt to taste

Heat oven to 350º F. Spread coconut in a thin layer on a small baking sheet. Cook in preheated oven for 3-5 minutes or until golden brown. Remove and set aside.

Meanwhile, cut tops off okra just below the ridge and discard. Slice okra in half lengthwise and set aside.

Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add okra and salt and cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes.

Add toasted coconut and continue to cook for an additional 2-3 minutes, stirring often, or until okra is tender.

Vegan-Friendly St. Louis

The city of St. Louis is perhaps best known for its famous Gateway Arch, located on the west bank of the Mississippi river. The monument was opened to the public in 1967 and has remained a popular tourist attraction ever since (source). During my visit to this beautiful city, I had the pleasure of visiting a few vegan-friendly establishments.

Pi Pizzeria

This popular pizzeria has three locations in St. Louis and offers various vegan items including deep dish and thin crust pizzas. Aside from your typical pizza toppings, Pi Pizzeria also offers Daiya vegan cheese and vegan Match Meat sausage. Pi’s traditional deep dish pizza is prepared with a buttered pan, so should you want a vegan deep dish pizza, the restaurant requests that you call at least 6 hours before you plan to eat there so that they can prepare a special crust just for you, sans butter.

With so many delicious toppings to choose from, we settled on Daiya cheese, Match sausage, wild mushrooms, kalamata olives, artichoke hearts, roasted garlic and fresh rosemary. With a thick cornmeal crust, delicious toppings and tasty chunky tomato sauce, this pizza is one you should not pass up.

If you are able to refrain from devouring a whole pizza, I recommend enjoying a couple of their vegan (and gluten-free) chocolate chip sandwich cookies. Who doesn’t love moist cookies with a delicious vanilla cream filling in between? To top it all off, we washed down this delicious fare with some local Schlafly beer. We left with our stomachs full and our hearts happy.

Deep Dish Pizza from Pi Pizzeria

Local Harvest Café

Local Harvest Café came highly recommended by a friend, and after looking at their menus, I knew I had to go. Needless to say I was not disappointed! With two locations, we stopped by the Tower Grove restaurant for dinner one night. As an appetizer we split an order of the vegetable sushi and got to sample some house-made pickled apple, carrots and pineapple. I wasn’t sure what to expect with the pickled items, but found that their natural flavors were nicely accented with fresh dill and vinegar.

For our entrees we enjoyed the Baby Kale and Crispy Potatoes Salad, White Bean Soup, Sage and Parsley Polenta and the Vegan Mushroom Linguini. The salad was good and we loved the crispy potato topping, which provided a nice texture. The soup was deliciously creamy and hearty, but also crunchy thanks to the black pepper croutons on top. The polenta was drenched with roasted butternut squash stew and accompanied by sauteed tat soi (an Asian variety of bok choy or mustard), which had a very nice flavor to it. Finally, the linguini was served with porcini mushrooms, spinach, garlic, roasted pine nuts and fresh herbs, and covered with a nice, lightly-salted oil. Everything we tried was delicious.

Though the prices at Local Harvest are a little high, the food is very fresh and of high quality to match. From what I understand, Local Harvest takes part in a local CSA, where they obtain much of their produce.

White Bean Soup from Local Harvest Cafe

Baby Kale & Crispy Potatoes Salad from Local Harvest Cafe

Sage & Parsley Polenta from Local Harvest Cafe

Mushroom Linguini from Local Harvest Cafe

After viewing Local Harvest’s brunch menu, we were quickly persuaded to visit the Downtown location for brunch a couple days later. After finding out that we are all vegan, our friendly waitress informed us about the vegan specials they had. We chose two of them: the Sloppy Joe Slinger and the Root Beer Float French Toast. Not knowing what a slinger was, we quickly found out that it is a potato hash covered in either chili or gravy. Local Harvest did an excellent job on the slinger as it tasted eerily similar to the Sloppy Joes I grew up with. Accompanied by a couple slices whole wheat bread, the Sloppy Joe Slinger was all you would need in a meal. The french toast was basically dessert for breakfast! Two thick-cut pieces of brioche flavored with root beer, smothered in chocolate syrup and then accompanied by two scoops of coconut ice cream, this breakfast was awesome! Though I could barely taste the root beer (if at all), it was a very memorable dish that I would recommend to others.

In addition to these two dishes, we also enjoyed some house-made coconut granola, potato hash, vegan sausage and a peanut butter banana smoothie. The granola and hash both had wonderful flavors, as did the sausage, however, it was more like a slice of bread (both in look and texture) than actual sausage. It wasn’t bad, however, it definitely wasn’t what I was expecting. To top it all off, the peanut butter banana smoothie tasted mostly like banana and could have used a little more peanut butter, but it was lightly-sweetened however, which was refreshing!

Sloppy Joe Slinger from Local Harvest Cafe

Root Beer Float French Toast from Local Harvest Cafe

Potato Hash & Coconut Granola from Local Harvest Cafe

Vegan Sausage from Local Harvest Cafe

Sweet Art

I had heard rave reviews about Sweet Art so we stopped by in between activities one day, and each of us ordered a Boston cream cupcake. A huge Boston cream pie fan, myself, these moist cupcakes had just the right amount of sweetness with a creamy vanilla center and chocolate topping. I could have easily devoured four of these in one sitting. AMAZING.

Aside from offering desserts, Sweet Art also offers brunch and lunch. We weren’t able to try their brunch this time around but we did enjoy some lunch on the following day. One of the nice things about Sweet Art is that they offer a 1/2 sandwich + salad or side deal for around $8. Wanting to try multiple things, we took advantage of this deal and settled on various combinations of their Mackin’ Cheese, Queen Kale Salad, Jewel and River Monster sandwiches. Sweet Art’s Mackin’ Cheese is rich and satisfying and full of greasy goodness. Since they offer Daiya on some of their sandwiches, I’m assuming the sauce is a Daiya mixture with nutritional yeast in addition to a couple other items. Tasty! The kale salad had chunks of sweet potato with steamed kale and a light dressing. Both sandwiches were also good. I especially liked the River Monster as it had panko-crusted seasoned fried tofu with a curry tartar sauce. I could eat that stuff by the spoon, it was so good. In addition, the sandwich also had organic mixed greens and agave-lime pickled red onions. The Jewel sandwich had caramelized onions, fresh herbs, local organic sunflower sprouts, avocado, cucumber, tomatoes, Daiya cheese and their signature vegan magic spread on house-made hoagie.

Queen Kale Salad & Jewel Sandwich from Sweet Art

Mackin’ Cheese & River Monster Sandwich from Sweet Art

Since we enjoyed the Boston cream cupcakes so much the day prior, we purchased a brownie, cinnamon roll, carrot cake cupcake and strawberry lemonade cupcake to go. Yes, all vegan! These were all moist and absolutely delicious as well. The folks at Sweet Art sure know what they are doing!

Strawberry Lemonade & Carrot Cake Cupcakes from Sweet Art

Cinnamon Roll & Brownie from Sweet Art

Black Bear Bakery

Having heard that Black Bear Bakery has a great Saturday buffet-style brunch with lots of vegan options, we elected to try it out. Unfortunately, however, we were disappointed. Perhaps the bakery was having an off day, but the buffet was small and the only vegan options offered were tofu scramble, potatoes, steamed kale and fruit. Not exactly my definition of “lots” of options, but then again, breakfast is my favorite meal of the day so I have high standards.

In addition, I found the food to be a bit on the bland side. While this can be seen as a good thing (i.e. healthy), everything could have used just a dash of salt and pepper to liven it up and bring out the flavor. The tofu scramble had carrots, green onion and turnips with a few cubes of tofu, the potatoes were plain but nicely roasted, and the kale had what looked to be a little nutritional yeast sprinkled on top. Luckily there was a table at the end of the buffet with a handful of seasonings such as Bragg’s Liquid Aminos and nutritional yeast. After sprinkling some Bragg’s Liquid Aminos on most of my plate, I was happy to finish the rest of my food.

A nice added touch that the bakery provided was musical entertainment. A local folk-type band got their groove on while we all chowed down. We left Black Bear Bakery with a couple cinnamon raisin cookies and a crunchy carrot muffin. Both were actually very good and hearty.

Breakfast Plate from Black Bear Bakery

I Scream Cakes
After an ice cream craving struck, we found I Scream Cakes, thanks to a friendly fellow vegan who waited on us at Pi. Located next door to Black Bear Bakery, I Scream offers 3-4 vegan coconut-based ice creams each day. Those featured when we stopped by were Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana, Strawberry and Tastes Like Purple. According to the gentleman behind the counter, purple tastes like tropical fruit and also describes the color of the ice cream. The flavors we tried were Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana and Strawberry. Both ice creams were nice and creamy, with the chocolate tasting primarily of, well, chocolate and banana. I felt that it needed more peanut butter as it was a little difficult to taste. The Strawberry ice cream was very fresh, and we could tell that I Scream used real strawberries to flavor this ice cream. Very good!

In addition to their frozen treats, this ice cream shop also sells local vegan baked goods such as cupcakes.

Schlafly Bottleworks
Schlafly is a popular St. Louis brewery offering guided beer tastings each Friday, Saturday and Sunday in the neighboring town of Maplewood. According to Barnivore, all of Schlafly’s beers are vegan, yay!!! After being provided with a 5 or 6-ounce glass, then watching a short video about the brewery, we tasted four of Schlafly’s beers: Pale Ale, Hefeweizen, Dry Hopped APA and Oatmeal Stout. There were baskets of pretzels to munch on in between beers, which helped somewhat clear our palates before proceeding with the next beer. My personal favorite was the Hefeweizen as it is a light, unfiltered wheat beer, similar to my beloved Blue Moon. For those of you who enjoy coffee, I recommend the Oatmeal Stout as it tasted like straight coffe and was a favorite among the group.

Measuring Flour: Did You Know?

Did you know that there is a correct way to measure flour? Baking is a science and requires precise amounts of each ingredient. Deviating from the requested amount may cause undesired results.

To correctly measure flour, follow these three easy steps:

1. Using a spoon, scoop flour out of its container.
2. Pour the flour from the spoon into the desired measuring cup, filling it completely. Don’t pack the flour in!
3. Using the back, flat edge of a knife or other flat tool, scrape off the excess flour from the top of the measuring cup (shown below).

Voila! You have exactly the amount of flour you need.

Coconut Peanut Butter Granola

My love for coconut and peanut butter is no secret since I’ve used them together before in these Moist Coconut Peanut Butter Muffins. Coupling the two ingredients creates a magical combination of deliciousness. This easy recipe for Coconut Peanut Butter Granola is a favorite of mine and is delicious by itself, eaten as cereal, or even enjoyed with fruit and yogurt as a parfait. Use your imagination and enjoy!

Coconut Peanut Butter Granola
Yields approximately 6 cups

3 cups uncooked oatmeal
1/2 cup flax meal (ground flax seed)
1/2 cup wheat germ
1/4 cup unrefined coconut oil (using refined will provide less of a coconut flavor)
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter

Preheat oven to 225º F.

Combine all ingredients and spread out onto a large ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Let cool before eating.

All About Agave Nectar

Agave nectar is one of the most popular plant-based alternatives to honey out there today. Sweeter than honey, and, on average, 1.5 times sweeter than sugar, agave nectar also has a lower glycemic index (in other words, it raises blood glucose more slowly) than many sweeteners (source). Due to this, there have been discussions about whether or not agave nectar is safe for diabetics to consume. According to the American Diabetes Association, diabetics can consume agave nectar as a sweetener, however, it should be treated the same as sugar and corn syrup (source).

Agave nectar is commonly derived from the Agave Americana and Agave Tequiliana plants, the latter being the same plant used to make tequila. Agave is produced by first removing the leaves and extracting juice from the core of aged plants, then filtering, heating and concentrating the juice into a syrup-like consistency (source). In some forms of production, this sweetener can be produced with little to no heat, making it acceptable to consume in raw food diets. Agave nectar varies in color from light to dark amber, ranging from mild to strong flavors, respectively. Some varieties are even enhanced with amaretto, berry, caramel, cinnamon, hazelnut, maple and vanilla flavorings.

There has, however, been some controversy surrounding this sweetener. The production process of agave nectar is nearly identical to that of corn syrup, and the nutritional value is said to be very similar as well, with both containing glucose and fructose (source). In addition, while agave nectar does provide trace amounts of vitamins and minerals, this doesn’t mean that it should be considered healthy, as often toted. It is often a highly processed food item.

If you are an agave nectar connoisseur and can’t live without it, I suggest choosing a certified organic, unrefined variety.

Flaky Green Onion Parathas

Originating in the Indian and Pakistani state of Punjab, parathas are a popular type of unleavened flatbread that is commonly consumed for breakfast. The word paratha is a combination of the words parat and atta, which means “layers of cooked dough.” (source)

Traditional parathas often contain ghee, but many are prepared with cooking oil, making them vegan-friendly. These flatbread can be stuffed with various vegetables and served with non-dairy butter, chutney or yogurt, or simply enjoyed plain. They make an excellent accompaniment to curries and other saucy dishes.

This paratha recipe uses green onion, or spring onion as many like to call it, and is perfect even as a snack.

Flaky Green Onion Parathas
Yields 6 parathas

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup white whole wheat flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons + 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided*
1/2 – 2/3 cup regular unsweetened almond milk
1-2 stalks green onion, sliced
extra flour for dusting
oil for the pan

Combine flours and salt in a large bowl and mix to combine. Add 2 tablespoons oil and almond milk and stir until mixture begins to form a ball. Kneed for 5 minutes then cover with a damp towel and allow to rest for 1 hour.

After the dough has rested, separate into 6 sections and roll into balls. On a clean, lightly floured work surface, roll each ball out until approximately 1/8-inch thick.

Spread approximately 1-2 teaspoons oil evenly over the top and sprinkle with approximately 2 teaspoons green onion.

Roll each circle into a log. You should end up with a strip of dough, approximately 1-inch tall by 8 inches wide. Press to flatten dough slightly and stretch so that it is approximately 2 inches wider than before.

Roll the strip into a ball, similar to a cinnamon roll. Repeat with remaining dough until all has been used.

Place balls on a plate and cover with a damp towel for an additional hour.

After resting the second time, again, roll each ball into a circle approximately 1/8-inch thick. Set aside.

Heat a teaspoon oil in a large, non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Add a paratha and cook for approximately 2 minutes on each side, or until golden brown spots appear. Remove paratha from pan and repeat until all remaining dough has been used.

* NOTE: If you wish to have a nice buttery taste, simply substitute vegan buttery spread for the oil and proceed with recipe as directed.

Freezing Tofu: Did You Know?

Frozen (left) and fresh (right) tofu

Did you know that you can freeze tofu?

When tofu is frozen, ice crystals form which create air pockets when thawed. Partly due to this, frozen tofu has various benefits:

• Longer shelf life
  Tofu can be stored in your freezer for up to 5 months.
• Shorter bake time
  Due to the air pockets in thawed tofu, it takes less time to bake.
• Better absorption
  Thawed tofu is spongy so it more readily absorbs marinades and sauces.
• Chewy texture
  After being frozen, tofu has more of a chewy texture, much more appropriate for those recipes being made to imitate meat.

Ready to make some kickass tofu? Try my tofaken recipe. If using frozen tofu, simply reduce the cooking time to 60-75 minutes, depending on your preferred level of crispness.

Green Tea Coconut Cookies

Matcha is a finely milled, high-quality green tea common in Japanese culture. Used not only to flavor various foods and beverages, this form of tea is also utilized as a dye because of its rich green color. It is produced by first growing tea plants under the cover of shade. These plants take longer to grow which causes their leaves to turn a darker shade of green. Once the desired point of maturity is reached, the leaves are stripped away and laid flat to dry. They are then de-stemmed, de-vained, and finally, stone ground to produce the powder known as matcha (source).

These melt-in-your-mouth cookies are fashioned after the ever-popular Russian Tea Cakes, also known as Mexican Wedding Cookies, Butterballs or Snowball Cookies (source). With the addition of matcha and coconut, these green beauties boast an exciting flavor and various health benefits, and are an excellent St. Patrick’s Day treat.

Due to a high amount of Epigallocatechin gallate (an antioxidant), matcha helps protect against cancer and HIV, and is said to protect against bad breath and assist with weight loss. In addition, matcha is a good source of the amino acid L-theanine, which is said to provide an anti-stress and relaxing effect (source).

Green Tea Coconut Cookies
Yields 24 (1½ inch) cookies

½ cup vegan buttery spread
½ cup unrefined coconut oil (not refined)
2 tablespoons matcha green tea powder
¼ cup + ½ cup powdered sugar, divided
¼ cup sweetened shredded coconut (optional*)
2¼ cups all-purpose flour

Preheat oven to 400º F.

Cream together buttery spread, coconut oil, green tea powder and ¼ cup powdered sugar until smooth. Add shredded coconut and flour and mix until combined. Mixture will be somewhat crumbly but should stick together.

Roll dough into 24 balls, approximately 1½ inches in size. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake in preheated oven for 10-12 minutes or just until set.

Meanwhile, place ½ cup powdered sugar in a wide, shallow dish; set aside.

Remove cookies from oven and allow to cool for 10-15 minutes. Roll each cookie in powdered sugar and set aside until completely cooled.

* If you prefer to use unsweetened shredded coconut, increase ¼ cup powdered sugar to 1/3 cup and proceed with recipe as directed.

Chunky Monkey Smoothie

Looking for a sweet and energizing start to your day? First and foremost, eat breakfast as it provides a boost of energy and gets your metabolism going. Secondly, there are many foods you can eat for energy, two of which are bananas and dark chocolate.

Raw bananas are a very good source of Vitamin B6, and a good source of Dietary Fiber, Manganese, Potassium and Vitamin C (source). There are three kinds of sugar in bananas, and both complex and simple carbohydrates, all of which are used as sources of energy (source).

Dark chocolate contains a small amount of caffeine as well as theobromine, a central nervous system stimulant (source).

For this quick and simple morning smoothie, the addition of cacao nibs provides little crunchy notes for a fun change in texture. A product of the chocolate industry, cacao nibs are created when cocoa beans are roasted and de-shelled, then broken into pieces (source).

Chunky Monkey Smoothie

1 ripe banana
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup vanilla almond milk (your choice of sweetened or unsweetened)
2 tablespoons raw cacao nibs

Combine the first three ingredients in a blender and process until smooth, approximately 15 seconds. Add cacao nibs and blend another 5 seconds, so as not to crush all of the nibs. Enjoy!