A Food Pyramid for Vegetarians & Vegans

My Uncle Gene, who is a vegan, sent this to me. I always find his advice helpful and this is another example. Not only does this pyramid make sense, it's easy to remember.

Thank you Uncle Gene!
 
Web MD and the Mayo Clinic Health letter have both been talking about the challenges of a Vegetarian, or Vegan diet, and I found this chart helpful:

Guacamole

Well... how can I post a salsa recipe without guacamole! Silly girl... So I went back to one of my first blog posts and dug it up. Of course, there's a story...

My sister, who lives in Arizona, makes the best guacamole I’ve ever tasted. I've been eating it for years. All this time I thought she used sour cream and Mexican cheese, but during my last visit to Arizona she made it. To my surprise, she doesn't use either one of those ingredients! It's still the best ever, and it's just one of those things... the girl has it down!

Now, I hope this doesn't disappoint you, but what follows isn't her recipe. She really doesn't have one. Figures. So this is mine. It's very good, really! 

Guacamole

3 avocados
1T. lime juice or more to taste
½ C. red onion, diced
1 medium tomato, seeded and diced
1 minced garlic clove
2T. cilantro, chopped
½ t. cumin
½ t. salt
Pepper to taste

Mix ingredients together and serve. I keep it fresh by placing plastic wrap directly on top of the guacamole, pushing down so it's air tight, and placing it the in refrigerator.

Tomato Salsa

We went to my favorite Mexican restaurant last night. I just can't get enough of that cuisine. The beans and rice, the corn tortillas, the sauces and salsa. Ahh yes... the salsa. I could eat salsa everyday. It has an addictive quality. I like making it too!

I've posted this recipe before and I decided to post it again, not just because I love it, but because my daughter was looking for a "favorite recipe" to give to a friend at a wedding shower. Cute idea, right? Everyone brings their favorite recipe to go into a cookbook for the bride. As my daughter brought the recipe card in to the kitchen she went right to my salsa recipe. I love that girl.

The truth is everyone LOVES this recipe. Whenever I make it, it's gone fast! It's an adaptation on a recipe given to me by my sister-in-law. I tweaked it to suit our tastes and I hope it suits yours. Enjoy this easy and delicious salsa!

Tomato Salsa

Easy
15 minutes

1 - 28oz. can Dei Fratelli Seasoned Diced Tomatoes
1 T. cilantro, chopped finely
½ small red onion, chopped finely (approximately ¾ C.)
½ - 1 whole jalapeno pepper, seeded, deveined and chopped finely
1 t. of fresh lime juice
¼ - ½ teaspoon salt
Pepper to taste

Drain the can of diced tomatoes. Add all of the ingredients together in a bowl and mix well. Refrigerate for at least ½ hour. Serve with chips.

Easy Schmeezy White Bean Salad

Looking for a simple, quick, delicious salad? Then try this. It's a light, healthy side dish.
 

 Easy Schmeezy White Bean Salad

2 cans of cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1/3 C red onion, chopped
1/3 C celery, chopped
1/4 C chopped parsley


Dressing
1/8 C + 1 T white wine vinegar
1/4 C olive oil
1 t. fresh lemon juice
1/2 t. sea salt
1/8 t. black pepper

Mix all of the dressing ingredients together in a medium to large bowl. Add the rest of the salad ingredients and stir to combine. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Collard Greens with Beans and Rice

This is another dish inspired by the local farmers market. It's a complete protein meal that's easy to put together. Everyone in my family liked this one!!

Collard Greens with Beans and Rice
Serves 4

2 T olive oil
2 T Earth Balance
2 small sweet Spanish onions, thinnly sliced (or shallots)
4 garlic cloves, sliced
 pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
1 bunch collard greens, stemmed and cut into 1 inch wide pieces
1 C. water
1 vegetable bouillon cube
1 15 oz. can cannellini beans
1 C brown rice, cooked according to package instructions
fresh lemon juice

Begin by cooking the rice according to package directions. In a large saute pan, saute the onion in the oil and Earth Balance on a low heat until lightly browned or caramelized, 5 - 10 minutes. Add the sliced garlic cloves and crushed red pepper. Continue to saute another 4 - 5 minutes. Add the collard greens and stir to coat with the oil mixture. Once slightly wilted, add the water and bouillon cube. Cover and cook over low heat for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, uncover and add the cannellini beans. Continue to cook until the liquid is evaporated (5 - 10 minutes). Add the rice to the mixture stirring to combine. Squeeze a little lemon juice over the mixture, stir and serve.

Fresh Strawberries, Raspberries and Blueberries in Orange Liqueur

I was at the Royal Oak Farmers Market recently. It's an excellent market with lots to look at, think about, sample and buy. I bought some veggies, fruit, wild Alaskan salmon (for my husband) and a beautiful succulent plant arrangement for my kitchen. It's a fun way to spend a morning.

When I got home, I put the fruit together with some sugar and orange liqueur. It made a really quick, fresh dessert that we all enjoyed. In fact, I've made twice since. We tried the fruit compote with three different sorbets and thought mango was the perfect compliment. Enjoy!

Fresh Strawberries, Raspberries and Blueberries in Orange Liqueur with Sorbet
Serves 4

1 half pint raspberries
1 C strawberries
1 C blueberries
3 T sugar
2 T orange liqueur
zest of 1/2 lemon
Sorbet

With the back of a fork, lightly mash half of the raspberries and strawberries to get the juices flowing. Add the blueberries and mix together. In a small bowl, stir together the sugar, liqueur and zest of the lemon. Pour the mixture over the berries and gently stir to combine. Cover and let sit until ready to serve.