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Showing posts from 2014

Lentil Bowl #3- Mexican Red Lentil Stew with Lime and Cilantro

Lentil Bowl #3- Mexican Red Lentil Stew with Lime and Cilantro over Oven Baked Potato Sticks (Serves 8-12, and can be halved). INGREDIENTS: 2 C. Red Lentils   4 C. Water   2 T. Coconut Oil   2 Onions, chopped fine (I did mine in Food Processor)  2 C. Celery , finely chopped (also did in Food Processor)  1 Red Bell Pepper , seeded and chopped  1-2T Garlic , minced (for DIY jar mince, go here  )  1/2 tsp. ground Turmeric   2 tsp. ground Cumin (grind the seed in a Coffee Bean Grinder)  2 tsp. Chipotle spice (or Chili Powder)  2 cans roasted tomatoes or Organic Roma Tomato Sauce (Costco)  2 C. Vegetable Broth   Celtic Sea Salt to taste  1/2 C. fresh-squeezed Juice of Lime   1+ C. chopped fresh Cilantro   METHOD:    Put rinsed and drained Lentils into a medium pot and add 4 cups water. Bring just to a boil, turn heat off, and put lid on. Let lentils sit for 30 minutes.   While lentils sit for 30 minutes, chop onions, celery and red bell pepper.

Lazy Enchilada Casserole (Vegan, Gluten-Free)

Lazy Enchilada Casserole (Vegan and Gluten-Free) I am all for wonderful lazy casseroles (one of my faves is lazy cabbage rolls)-- this enchilada casserole means that you get the same wonderful flavour and texture without actually having to mess around with making the enchilada rolls (unless you are really great at doing them, in which case, go to it!).  You just put down a thin layer of the vegan cheese (queso or kay-so) on the bottom of the casserole pan (either covered already covered with parchment, or oiled), a layer of tortillas, the enchalada filling, a top layer of tortillas, and then the rest of the queso!  You can see how it is pretty much a piece of cake / pastel(?)  Have fun, and enjoy this luscious recipe!  It makes a fantastic potluck entree that will be much appreciated! To make this again I would start by assembling the ingredients the day before, and I would cook the beans (separately, the white beans and the pinto beans) and put them in mason jars (or o

Lentil Bowl #2 with Mushrooms,Caramelized Onions and Quinoa (Vegan, Gluten-Free)

Lentil Bowl #2 with Mushrooms, Carmelized Onions, and Quinoa - on a bed of Baby Greens I got the idea for Lentil Bowl #2 by googling "mushrooms lentils"-- it seemed to me to be a lovely mix.  Of course there are thousands of variations online.  I chose the one with the image that showed a heap of mouth-watering carmelized onions on top of the lentil dish.  Then I went about making changes based on what I had to work with and what I prefer (eg., I added in the quinoa vs. a bed of rice, and amped up the portions so that this recipe makes enough for four to six servings.) Lentil Bowl #2 with Mushrooms,Caramelized Onions and Quinoa Precooked lentils and starches are a boon when it comes to the series of "Lentil Bowls" that I am featuring here on Organic Granny. If you soak and cook extra lentils you will speed up the whole maddeningly* fragrant cooking process the next time, and you will save a ton of money by not buying the tinned organic lentils. Just stic

Lentil Bowl #1: Pineapple Lentils over Coconut Lime Sweet Potato (Vegan, Gluten-Free)

Even if you are not a huge fan of lentils, this particular recipe will answer a deep need on a cool winter's night when you have put out all day for the Man and are just ready for something comforting and satisfying!  It will feed 2 - 4 diners, depending on the hunger and the usual inputs.  I'm calling this Lentil Bowl #1, so expect some more quick and yummy one-dish lentil recipes! The potatoes in the above picture are white 'sweet potatoes' and not the bright orange yams we expect when we say 'sweet potato'.  They have the texture of  sweet potato, and they ARE very sweet (ooze syrup when baked) but they have a more neutral flavour.  Yams work extremely well also, so use either. Ingredients for the Lentil part: 1 T. Coconut Oil 1/2 Small Onion , chopped fine 2     Garlic Cloves, minced 1 C. Pineapple, chopped small (I use Costco's frozen Organic Pineapple-- smells like the tropics!) 3 C. cooked Brown or Green Lentils 2 T. Maple Syrup Shot of Ap

Roast Pepper - Potato Comfort Soup

Roast Pepper-Potato Comfort Soup This roasted pepper-potato soup is a delicious, nutritious, warming comfort food that everyone will love. It is vegan (although you are free to plug in your animal products as subs) and gluten-free. The fragrance while it is cooking will draw everyone in the neighborhood on a cool day. My dog is also much attracted by the fragrance. INGREDIENTS: 3 T. Coconut Oil or Ghee (if not vegan) (Optional: Use an Extra Virgin Olive Oil spray) 3 - 4 Organic Red and/or Orange Bell Peppers 1 Medium or 2 Small Organic Yellow Onion (s) 1 Large Organic Potato , peeled and diced (1 1/2 cups) 3 Cloves Garlic , minced 1 Liter / Quart Organic  Vegetable Broth (or use 2 Organic Vegetable Bouillon Cubes in 1 Liter of Water) 1/4 C. non-dairy Milk , (unsweetened almond, soy, etc.) Cayenne, Celtic Sea Salt and Pepper to taste   METHOD: Roast the Peppers :   Wash and dry them.  Place them each in the oven, close together under the grill on the rack (no pan

Organic Borscht with Basil, Red Lentils and Purple Cabbage (Vegan, Gluten-Free)

Delicious & Fragrant Organic Borscht with Basil, Red Lentils, and Purple Cabbage I was at Costco today and saw a 2-4 servings package of ready-made beet borscht for ... are you ready?... $12+ change!!!!!  I knew I had beets at home in the fridge (thanks to that wonderful organic-vegetable-growing son of mine who harvested close to 3000# of beets this Fall!) and I DO know how to make borscht, so I could hardly wait to get home to make such a valuable-- and delicious of course-- soup. And this borscht I am making is ORGANIC, it does not have any GMO possibilities, or high fructose corn syrup lacings.  This recipe will feed 5 people... so, I guess it must be worth about $25?  You can make it too: Ingredients : 2 Tbs. Coconut Oil *4 small Onions , halved and sliced (3 cups) *1 T. organic dried whole Basil *2 tsp. Celtic Sea Salt *6 cloves Garlic , minced *3 medium Beets , peeled and grated, or pulsed until fine in Food Processor *Greens from beets (or bunch of Swiss Char

Recipe for Homemade Ginger-Grape Jam: Easy Peasy

This luscious Ginger-Grape Jam is made with my own organic seedless green grapes! *Recipe for cakes below The kitchen smells of Jam.   Ginger-Grape Jam.  It is a dark rainy night in the Comox Valley. This is the kind of night that Grandmothers use to make jam.  We have a grape arbour that produces sweet seedless green grapes. This was a long hot, dry summer-- apparently the kind of growing season that these grapes enjoy! Originally the grapes  were used for wine-making. But we call them "Table Grapes". We freeze each little gem and use them in smoothies for most of the winter. And we make Jam.  Please note: This jam was made with ORGANIC seedless green grapes during ORGANIC WEEK!   So, let's get right to the recipe: Pick the grapes (at least 1 Kg/2 pounds) and soak 20 min. in basin of water with 1/4 C. Vinegar mixed in.   INGREDIENTS: 2 pounds/ 1 Kg  Fresh, Ripe Grapes .  1/4 Cup / 60 g  Sugar  or other Sweetener 1/2  Lime, Juiced , Fresh lem

Thornless Blackberry Blessings

Thornless Blackberries are the most prolific fruit in our back garden. Thornless (or prickle-free) blackberries are a cultivar of other blackberries -- maybe wild blackberries, but most often, other commercial varieties, such as loganberries. Wild blackberries still spring up with wily abandon on most empty lots in the Pacific Northwest (Canada and the USA).   When we came to Vancouver Island nine years ago this Fall, I was thrilled to hike around our neighborhood berry patches with a pail every summer.  Most of our neighbours were quite incredulous at my  industry-- why was I picking so many berries?  Most of them picked enough for a pie or a few jars of jam, and that was it.  The novelty had worn off.  They had so many other wonderful fruits and berries to choose from, many growing in their yards.  At the time, my husband and I were falling in love with-- actually, fast becoming addicted to-- green smoothies.  We were amazed by the simple abundance of the FREE blackberries.  W

25 Things You Can Do With Lavender

I love lavender . Beautiful hues of purple. Drought resistant. Heavenly scent. Edible. Organic. What is not to love?  Here are 25 Things You Can Do With Lavender (if you have other suggestions, please add below!) 1. Scent your Linens :  Put sprays of dry lavender in with your sheets for a pleasant, relaxing effect. 2. Protect your Wardrobe: Hang Sachets filled with lavender buds to repel moths and bugs. 3. Make Lavender Chocolate Truffles for that everything-chocolate Auntie with a birthday. 4. Create a beautiful Lavender Bouquet for your wedding. 5. Bake a Lavender Cake for that Summer Tea Party. 6. Stop a Heat Stroke in its tracks with a couple of drops of  Lavender Essential Oil 7. Braid an enchanting Lavender Wand . 8. Chill out with Lavender Ices (ever so elegant!) 9. Spritz home-made Lavender Water to disinfect and before storing linen and clothing. 10. Wash doggie down with home-made Lavender Doggie Shampoo and repel fleas. 11. Relieve a heada

Keeping the Deer Out of Your Garden

Traditional Landscape by Sterling Landscape Architects; Designers SURROUNDS Landscape Architecture + Construction -----------------------------------------------------------------  You may have deer trespassing into your yard, hoping to get a meal around your patio. Or, as in the case of our son, you might have bunnies chomping up your strawberries (leaving the lettuces intact-- there goes that myth)or neighborhood dogs-without-boundaries bouncing through your tomatoes. What to do? What to do? Well, traditionally, an elegant fence (like the one above) is an adequate barrier to roaming, intrusive critters. Here are some suggestions to keep other critters out of your garden area: Cats  are usually drawn to a veggie or flower garden because of the loose soil that is easy to dig up and dispose of their feces.  Cat feces are not suitable to compost or dig in as fertilizer because they are carnivores, and as such, may harbour pathogenic bacteria and viruses in their feces t

Food Wars on the Island

Our smallish Canadian city (12,000 souls) is a battleground for the grocery big stores: Costco, Walmart, Superstore, and Sobey's (via Thrifty's, that used to be a Vancouver Island chain in the not-distant-past). Safeway will be closing May 2014. Read more HERE Safeway recently opted out, or was opted out when Sobey's failed to follow through on the purchase.  Target (or Tar-jay as I hear it called by the 30somethings who shop there) also has a grocery section, but it is nothing much, mostly American brands we've seen on TV for years and already know are poison. We have another large store in town called Quality Foods, and in 2012 (I think) it won a national grocery store award.  However, over the last couple of years QF has been receiving  injections of support from the rival SaveOnFoods cartel (aka Jimmy Pattison).  The irony is that QFcame in and set up in the same mall location that had been vacated by SaveOnFoods.  A greater irony is that another rumor ha

The "Swedish" Bike Helmet

I am in the market for a bike helmet because recently I broke down and bought a bike.  I have been considering doing that for a very long time. True, I walk 5 miles a day and if I need to go to town I can either drive or catch a ride with my hubby.  However, I do want to do my bit for the environment, and bicycling is every so much more eco-friendly than driving a vehicle that runs on fuel (probably more friendly than driving an electric car as well when you consider that the electrical energy is often STILL produced by burning coal).   I need an adult carrier/basket like THIS So, I chose a bike that is easy for me to get my legs over -- I needed a lower type bar than many I have tried.  I also didn't particularly want to have gears to bother with, that is how old-fashioned I am.  And I like handlebars that are curved in the old school way, as well.  So, here is a picture of me on my new bike (which also has a chain guard that extends over the entire chain-- how

Baked Tofu and Spanish Rice- the PERFECT supper!

Fragrant, toothsome baked tofu and spanish rice!  This combination recipe might have been in Frances Moore Lappe's 1971 "Diet for a Small Planet" but if it was, it likely included some cheese and olive oil.  This particular recipe is LOW fat..... way low......... like, the only fat in this recipe is in the tofu and veggies!  But the flavour....... (oui oui... in Canada we use the tasty French way of spelling flavoUr)........ wow! And next to the taste is the fragrance of the marinade-covered tofu as it bakes!  Oh yum yum yum- But on with the recipes!! SPANISH RICE (6-8 servings) Ingredients: 2 cups cooked  Rice  1 red Onion , chopped 1 C. chopped Broccoli , fresh or frozen 3 Garlic cloves , crushed   1 C. Water  1 C. organic vegetarian Pasta Sauce (or 6 oz. Tomato Paste) Sal t, to taste Cook the rice according to directions, or as you normally do In a wok, or large pot, combine the onion, broccoli, garlic and water, and bring to a boil, then s