Best Hummus Ever

I love hummus and I love this hummus recipe. Matt hates hummus and he loves this hummus recipe. And I don't think there is really much else I can say about it. Normally I prefer hummus on pita but this recipe is fantastic with chopped veggies of any kind. Especially celery.

The last time I made it, we ate it so fast that these were the only pictures I could get. Sorry.

Best Hummus Ever



Ingredients
1 15 or 19 oz can of chickpeas (whichever your supermarket carries) or about 2 cups of cooked chickpeas
1/4 cup tahini
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 - 1/2 tsp paprika
1-2 tsp garlic, minced (or more, to taste)

Directions
1. Place all ingredients in a food processor or blender and blend until well-mixed, about 2-3 minutes depending on the power of your processor. Scrape down the sides as necessary to make sure all the spices get mixed in. 

Double Chocolate Muffins and a Confession

I have a confession. And I'm bribing you with healthy double chocolate muffins. 

I thought I could get away with posting a couple of recipes from my Mennonite cookbook and saying “oh yeah, I eat local” and no one would be the wiser. But after reading my first blog post, Matt (who eats everything I eat) said “I didn’t realize you were trying to eat local” and I knew I had to provide a bit more of an explanation. He never lets me get away with anything. So, along with a recipe for amazingly delicious double chocolate muffins containing an obviously imported avocado, I thought I’d include an explanation about why I’m not a "locavore" (someone who eats only local food, however “local” is defined – usually food grown within 100 miles).

But I’ll start with why I do (sometimes) eat local (in the summer):

1) I like supporting local farmers.

2) I like fresh produce. Even if I probably couldn’t tell the difference between a peach and a plum if blindfolded, let alone a fresh peach and a peach that had traveled across a continent. 

3) During the summer, I love visiting farmer’s markets and community gardens.

4) I can’t think of many better ways to use public spaces, especially if your local food is from an urban garden.

Now, whether I want to eat local all the time is a different story. There are two main reasons for this:

1)  I live in Alberta (for now!). We all know I can’t subsist on mustard and canola alone (though I do love mustard). I suppose my dad would be perfectly happy eating nothing but Grade-A Alberta Beef all winter but it’s really not my thing. We obviously grow more than 2 crops in Alberta, but I’m trying to make a point here. It is important for everyone, and particularly vegetarians, to get a wide variety of foods in order to get all the nutrients we need. But also, I like eating lots of different things. And chocolate. 

2) Sometime between entering grade 1 and finishing my Master’s degree, I learned that complex questions rarely have simple answers. I don’t believe that simply eating local would solve all of the environmental problems associated with our current food system. Because I know you don’t care about my opinion, I’m also including some points that Dr. James E. McWilliams of Texas State University makes in his fantastic book Just Food. 

• The environmental impact of transporting food from where it’s produced to where you purchase it actually doesn’t matter that much in the grand scheme of things. Dr. McWilliams quotes transportation analyst Lee Barter and argues that if there is any benefit to buying locally grown food, it is likely lost as soon as you drive past the supermarket on your way to the farmer’s market or stop to pick up toilet paper. But let’s say that you can walk to the farmer’s market and you don’t need toilet paper. Read on. 
• Some places are better suited to growing certain foods than other places. Food production in colder climates is much more energy-intensive than food production in climates where food already grows naturally, even when you include the energy used to transport food. So it can be less energy-intensive for me to buy sweet potatoes from China even if someone in Alberta is growing them.
• Imported food often comes in larger quantities, which means fewer trips, which means less energy used.

Obviously Dr. McWilliams had a lot more to say than that, but I'm pretty sure you're ready for the double chocolate muffin recipe now. I tried really hard to keep my rant as short as possible. I even considered leaving it out completely but then I figured that this is exactly the kind of conversation I have with friends and strangers all the time (yes, I really am that fun) that made me think I should start a food blog.

Muffins! I saw these on Eat me, Delicious and made them this weekend. As usual, I took some liberties with the recipe. I had never made any kind of double chocolate muffin before but I’m no stranger to vegan baking. I usually make super healthy muffins that taste like delicious healthy muffins. These were somewhat healthy muffins that tasted like bakery cupcakes. They were a hit with everyone, including my dad who hates avocado (you can't taste the avocado). I wanted to make them completely vegan but carob chips are disgusting and the Camino chocolate chips I used were vegan but had a “may contain milk ingredients” warning on it. Can anyone recommend a completely vegan chocolate chip brand?

Double Chocolate Muffins

I made 30 mini-muffins but the original recipe stated 12 regular-sized muffins.

Ingredients

Dry:

1 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup spelt flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt

Wet:
1 ripe avocado, pitted and peeled
2/3 cup liquid sweetener such as real maple syrup or agave
3/4 cup almond milk
1/3 cup coconut oil, melted
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup chocolate chips

1/2 cup dried cherries, optional

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°. If you’re like me, you’ll leave this until you finish the batter and then stare impatiently at the oven as it heats up.  

2. In a large bowl, mix dry ingredients.

3. In a food processor or blender (I used my Vitamix!), blend the wet ingredients until smooth.

4. Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture and mix by hand until the ingredients are just mixed. Over-mixing muffin batter can make muffins dense. If the mixture seems dry, add a little more milk. Fold in chocolate chips and dried cherries.  

5. Grease the muffin tin with coconut oil or line with muffin cups. I filled the mini-muffin tins to the top but I generally fill full-size muffin tins about 3/4 full.

5. Bake mini-muffins for about 12 minutes (regular-sized for 22 minutes) or until a tester comes out with just a few crumbs. Let cool before removing them from the pan.
6. Try to freeze some so you don't devour them in one sitting.

Edamame Fried Rice

This isn't the fried rice you're used to. This recipe is adapted from the Vegetable Fried Noodles recipe from Mark Bittman's The Food Matters Cookbook. I added lots of veggies (as you can see in the picture) because I didn't have as much leftover rice as I thought I did and I like a large veggie-to-grain ratio anyway. Edamame is essential in this recipe (in my opinion) because it is 1) delicious and 2) full of protein and iron. I'm not a doctor and I'm not particularly interested in nutrition (my doctor wanted to check my iron levels 11 months ago and I still have not got around to booking an appointment) but if you're interested in learning more about vegan/vegetarian nutrition, I highly, highly recommend Vegan for Life by Jack Norris and Virginia Messina. It contains a lot of information about nutrients that vegans should pay particular attention too as well as some information on food labels which I found helpful. I really liked it, especially because they emphasized that a manageable plant-based diet is best and didn't make me feel bad for breaking the rules. With that in mind, here is a stress-free, rule-free vegetarian/vegan recipe.

Add the veggies you want, in the amounts suitable to your appetite. The amounts listed are just guides. We thought it was quite flavourful with the fresh ginger so you don't need to worry about diluting the flavour with extra veggies or rice, but you can always double the ginger or garlic if you like a lot of flavour.

This is best and easiest with leftover rice but it works with fresh rice too. If the rice is freshly made, I wouldn't bother adding it to the pan because it can get sticky. Just make the recipe as is, but skip the step 4 and spoon the veggie mixture onto the rice before serving.

To make this recipe vegan, omit the eggs. I made it with 4 eggs because I was cooking for four and I wanted leftovers for 2 lunches, but I don't think they added much to the recipe so could definitely be omitted. I wouldn't say it is the yummiest thing I've ever made, but it is easy and fast to prepare, and really filling. I will definitely make it again.

Ingredients
1-2 cups of cooked rice or quinoa (I used a mix; use your appetite to guide you)
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1 Tbsp minced ginger
1 cup diced onion, optional
2 carrots, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
1 small zucchini, chopped
1 cup frozen peas
1 cup frozen corn
2 cups frozen edamame
1/4 cup organic or homemade vegetable stock (because it is usually made of actual vegetables)
2-3 Tbsp soy sauce
2-4 eggs, beaten, optional
Black pepper, to taste
1/4 cups chopped peanuts, optional

Directions
1. Put the vegetable oil in a large skillet on medium heat. When it gets hot, add the garlic, ginger and scallions. Stir for about 15 seconds and then add the rest of the veggies, the vegetable stock and soy sauce.
2. Cook the veggies, stirring frequently, for about 5-10 minutes or until tender.
3. If you are using eggs, push the veggies to the edges of the pan, leaving an empty circle in the centre. Add the eggs into the circle and scramble them by swirling your cooking utensil around. When they set, mix them in with the veggies.
4. Add your rice and toss or stir until everything is mixed together.
5. Serve with pepper and peanuts sprinkled on top, to taste.

I'm submitting this recipe to Wellness Weekend, an event which I am not even remotely familiar with so I hope I'm doing this right! Anyway, follow that link to a big pile of vegan recipes! And now I won't feel so bad for telling people who ask me about vegetarian cooking that I have a blog that can help them. "Yes, please check out my blog. I post vegetarian recipes!" ... I've posted two vegetarian recipes. People like eating the same thing over and over again, right?

I will be away next weekend but I'm going to try to save another blog post that will automatically upload on Saturday. I spent today making delicious vegan muffins and taking glamour shots of them to make up for the lazy photos I've been posting.