Falafels and sunflower beet cheese

I've started this thing, since new years, to write down my goals the night before every day, and list out ways that I can lower my ecological footprint. One way to do this is through food. 

Where I am currently living -- Brazil -- there isn't a compost collection. However where I am staying there is a small garden, but composting isn't an always. One goal that I have is to stop throwing organic material away and finding a way to always compost the material. 

The other goal, at least in the coming future is to become more and more plastic free, here in Curitiba, I have not found sources of non packaged organic foods -- like grains, beans and nuts. This is something that I would like to research more and find out how I could obtain them in something like cloth bags. However in the meantime before I figure out either how to live without foods that come in plastic or find a way to obtain healthy package free foods, I'm making use of the foods in the cupboard already available. 

Falafels 

3-4 cups of soaked chickpeas

3 tbsp flour

1 tsp salt

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp alho (garlic) powder (portuguese popped out for a second ;))

1 red onion chopped.

Put all ingedients into a food processor and process until finer than couscous and almost a paste, but not quite. 

Shape into balls and put into the oven 200 C for 30 minutes – roughly estimated. They should be well cooked and not taste raw on the inside and slightly browned on the outside.

Sunflower Beet Cheese – 

1 cup of raw unsalted sunflowers soaked for atleast an hour

1 small beet chopped

½ tsp turmeric

 ½ tsp curry powder

2 garlic cloves

½ tsp salt

juice of 1 and ½ limes

enough water to reach the top of the ingredients in a blender, 1 tsp of agave.

Blend until smooth.

Serve falafels with cheese and can add some cilantro and sliced limes as garnish :)) 

And it's Monday again

For breakfast I had:

Apricot Mesquite chia cereal
2 tbsp chia seeds
soaked in 1 cup water
4 sliced apricots
1 sliced mango
1/2 tbsp of mesquite

I also had a small bowl of millet cereal with flax milk-- at breakfast late and wasn't sure when I'd be getting lunch.

Fo lunch I made:

Refried Black Bean Quesadilla with pumpkin seed cheese smothered swiss chard
Makes 2

2 rice tortilla
1 tomato chopped
6 tbsp refried black beans
1 small bundle swiss chard

cheese--
1 cup pumpkin seeds
 2-3 tbsp water
3 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp nutritional yeast
2 teaspoons agave
1 dash braggs

Mix the cheese ingredients in a blender until chunky -- consistency of ricotta.

Wash and chop the swiss chard, and pour cheese mixture on top, mix well.

Spread out 3tbsps refried beans onto the middle of the tortilla and put it in the oven
or broiler for 5-7 minutes until rice tortilla gets soft in the middle and crispy on the outside.

Remove tortilla from oven and spread tomatoes, in the middle and half of the swiss chard cheese mixture.


Dinner:

Veggie burgers
Sauerkraut
Daiya swiss cheese
ketchup
bread
bread and butter pickles

I got home late tonight.. so picked up some of my favorite veggie burgers, put on the cheese -- can throw them in the oven or microwave and then add the rest of the ingredients :)

Super easy.

The pizza creation

This recipe makes a bit of extra veggies that can be placed in a separate pan to bake at the same time as the pizza.  

Super Green Pizza with Red Pepper Cashew Cheese

Toppings

1 head of broccoli finely chopped

4 cups of greens (kale, spinach) ripped into bite size pieces

2 heirloom tomatoes diced

1/2 green pepper chopped

1/2 jar/can of tomato paste

1/4 tsp italian seasoning

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1 garlic clove minced

1/4 cup parsley

1/2 cup to 1 cup daiya

Cheese Sauce

1 red pepper

2 tbsp nutritional yeast

1 tbsp oil

2 tbsp agave

1 cup cashews

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp amchur (dried mango) (2 tsp lemon juice can be used instead)

Dough

1 tsp salt

2 tsp yeast

1 tsp sugar

1/4 cup warm water

1 cup wheat flour

1 3/4 cups garbanzo bean flour

1/4 cup ground flax meal

1 1/4 cup warm water

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 tsp italian herbs

1 tsp oregano

To make the bread, first mix the yeast, with 1/4 cup warm water and sugar. Let it stand for 10 minutes.  Mix the rest of the dry ingredients together.  Add the yeast mixture to the dry mixture plus 1 1/4 cup of water.  Knead the dough with flour on your hands until elastic and smooth.  Place the dough ball into a container and cover with a cloth for 1 hour.  

Spread the dough out onto an oiled pizza pan.  Lather the tomato paste on top.  Evenly spread the tomato pieces and the green bell pepper on the pizza.  Sprinkle the garlic powder and the italian seasonings over the pizza.  

To make the cheese sauce, blend the ingredients together (from red pepper to salt). Sprinkle the amchur atop.  Pour the cheese sauce into a bowl with the greens, broccoli, minced garlic and parsley.   

Put this mixture evenly on top of the pizza --- there will be extra of this cheesy greens, so they can be put in another pan in the oven :) 

Cheese sauce

Cheese Sauce:

This is something that I have made in the past I can't quite remember the exact recipe that I used, but I think this get's pretty close!  

1/2 block of vegan cheese, roughly chopped

1 cup of water

1/2 cup of ground cashews

2 tsp of vegetable broth powder

1 tbsp tapioca starch

Simmer the cheese in the water with broth, it should become a runny consistency.  Slowly add the ground cashews to make it creamier and thicker, and add the tapioca starch.  Turn off heat, and make sure it is adequately stirred.  

Savory Breakfast

Cheesy breakfast potato scramble

This is a hearty breakfast, great for celebrations.  If you like vegan sausage, this is a good one to add it to, but it’s not missing if its not added.  Guacamole or chopped  chives would be a fabulous adornment but not necessary.

1 bunch dandelion greens chopped

1 russet potato chopped small

Steam the potato pieces, and once done, put them in a bowl.  Put the greens in the steamer for just a few minutes enough time that they just barely wilt. 

Cheesy sauce:

½ cup nutritional yeast

1 cup water

1 ½ tsp Dijon

½ tsp of salt or kelp ‘salt’

dash of zesty spice (ground lemon)

dash of pepper

1 tbsp of tapioca starch (this gives it’s stringy cheese texture)

1 ½ tsp braggs

‘Scrambled Eggs’

1 lb tofu

½ tsp sage

2 tbsp nutritional yeast

¼ tsp basil

½ tsp turmeric

1 tomato chopped.

1 small onion chopped

2 cloves garlic

1 ½ tsp brags

Saute the garlic and onion in 2 tbsp of water until onion is rather clear.  Mix tofu and seasonings in another bowl and then add to the pan.  Cook until hot.  Add chopped tomato to end. 

These dishes can be served side by side or mixed, based on preference. 

Chikn Tomatillo Quesadillas

Chikn Tomatillo Quesadillas
makes one quesadilla
3 vegan gluten free chicken strips (we used 'beyond meat' brand)
1 tortilla (the good life, rice tortillas)
3 tbsp tomatillo salsa
3 tbsp daiya cheese
1/4 tomato chopped or sliced
1/4 avocado sliced

Fry or the microwave (lazy style) the chicken strips until hot. Spread out one tortilla on a pan.  Put cheese on one side of the quesadilla.  Put it into the oven for broil, for 3-4 minutes or until the cheese starts to sizzle/bubble.  Remove from the oven, add salsa, tomato, avocado and chikn.  Fold in half and eat with sriracha sauce, BBQ sauce or more salsa :)

Quick and easy dinner.  

Jalapeño Hummus Quesadillas

I haven't been that great lately at making proper meals. My last final was yesterday and now I have a proposal to really hash out and get done asap.  It's due in 10 days, and proposal writing is a whole new endeavor on my end.

Breakfast was the same old chia plus chocolate plus apples.  See  Busy Mondays for the recipe.

Today I put closer to 3 tbsp of cocoa powder and it was amazing, so chocolatey.  Somehow I've misplaced my stevia.. so I haven't been using it, but apparently with enough cocoa powder it's still amazing.

Lunch I was super lazy today, I had 3 half face toasted sandwiches with coconut peanut butter and vegan chocolate chips.  I know, what can I say, finals.

Dinner I had made some very easy

Jalapeno Hummus Quesadilla
makes 1 quesadilla

1 brown rice tortilla (I use Food for Life brand)
2 tbsp of Jalapeno garlic havarti 'cheese' (Daiya brand)
1/2 zucchini sliced thinly
1/2 tomato chopped
2 tbsp of Jalapeno cilantro hummus (Hope Foods brand)
2-3 tbsp salsa (I thought I had some, turned out I only had tomato sauce, I know completely college student of me, but I used it, and it was actually pretty good as a dipping sauce)

Spread the 'havarti cheese' on half of the rice tortilla.  Place the zucchini and the tomato pieces on the other half.  Put it in the oven on 'broiler' for 3-4 minutes or when the 'cheese' starts to melt/bubble.  Remove from oven, sweep the vegetables atop of the cheese and add the hummus to the empty side of the tortilla, close the tortilla, put it onto a plate and serve with salsa -- or in times of no salsa, tomato sauce will do :)

Hopefully I will find my battery charger for my camera sooooon