Did I Mention That We've Gone Vegan???

It might be time to change the name of this blog, since two-thirds of our family are now eating a vegan diet. Well, strict vegans probably wouldn't include us in their midst since we still wear leather shoes and have no plans to get rid of the leather couch or strip the upholstery from the cars. So just suffice it to say that we now eat a plant-based diet. The two who now eat no meat are my hubby and me; the kid thinks we're crazy and still isn't willing to give up the pork. Yet. (Insert scheming mom icon here.) So the bacon reference is now kind of inappropriate. I'll have to think of something clever, although "Bringing Home the Tofu" just doesn't seem to have the same zip to it.

We got to this place out of an ever increasing need to improve our ever increasing waistlines and to hopefully reverse the health problems that have been piling up in recent years. A chance encounter of the tail end of a show on PBS led me to Dr. Neal Barnard's "21-Day Weight Loss Kickstart." I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to improve their health. Dr. Barnard has a gift for simply and thoroughly explaining the way your body processes the food you eat. And he seduces you into trying a plant-based diet by offering you a 21-day trial run, giving you an out if you find you can't hack it. But if you're like us, what you'll probably find is that you enjoy it much more than you thought you would. And you'll feel better. And you'll lose a little weight. And your skin will feel smoother, and you'll throw out all those bottles of Tums in your medicine cabinet.

Granted, we started out with the advantage of over 16 years experience of using dairy and egg substitutes, which has been a tremendous help. So overall, this has been much easier than I would have thought, and it's actually more fun not planning our meals around meat. We regularly shop the local farmer's market, and since we live in a semi-tropical climate, we'll have fresh local foods well into the fall season. I'm experimenting with all kinds of things, so I'll try to post the best ones. Last night, I made veggie lasagna, and another new favorite is tomato pie. I'm still perfecting them, so that'll come later.

In the meantime, check out Dr. Barnard's website. Who knows - you might just go vegan with us!

Whole Grain Pancakes

I'm still craving those delicious blueberries I bought at the farmer's market last week, so I tossed some in a batch of pancakes this morning. I have a pancake recipe I've been using for years, but I have to use egg replacer in it, and I'd like to get away from doing that. After my success with the muffins last week, I searched the web for a dairy-free, egg-free pancake recipe that doesn't use boxed egg replacer. I found one at a beautiful site I'd never seen before, so that was a bonus. Now I have a new dairy-free site to peruse. It's called "Alisa Cooks."

Although Alisa's recipe looks yummy, I had a couple of other criteria to fill for mine, namely reducing or eliminating sugar and fat, so I tweaked it a little, and man were they GOOD! I think I've finally got this pancake thing perfected. Good reviews from my boys, too. These are very filling - I made them big, like you'd get at IHOP, and the teenager could only eat half of one. His dad and I put away two each, and we are stuffed. But in a good way. Next time, I'll use bananas and walnuts instead of blueberries, or maybe some apples. This recipe makes 5-6 large pancakes.

Barley and Whole Wheat Pancakes with Blueberries
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 cup barley flour
2 teaspoons baking powder*
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon agave nectar
1 unsweetened applesauce cup (about 1/3 cup)
1 cup vanilla soymilk (add more as needed to thin the batter)
Handful of fresh or frozen blueberries - indulge yourself!

Use a whisk to mix flours, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl. Add agave nectar, applesauce, and soy milk and stir until blended. Let batter rest and rise for a minute while you get your blueberries ready.

I like to use frozen blueberries. They're less juicy before they're cooked. If you toss them in some flour before adding to the batter, that keeps them from sticking to the pan. So toss away and shake out the excess flour by throwing them into a colander or strainer. Now they're ready for the batter. Mix well.

Heat your skillet over medium high heat. I use Earth Balance Buttery Spread to grill my pancakes. Spoon in about 1/3 cup of batter for each pancake. You may need to turn the heat down to medium low as they cook. These are thick cakes and need time to cook through, so you don't want the skillet too hot. Flip them when little holes start appearing on the outer edges and the bottom is golden brown. You may need to flip them a couple of times to make sure they're done all the way through.

Top with a dollop of Earth Balance and whatever syrup or fruit you'd like. Healthy, filling, and delicious!

*I changed the amount of baking powder to 2 teaspoons instead of 2 tablespoons. The larger amount leaves an aftertaste, and you just don't need that much baking powder.

Yummy Blueberry Muffins!

We loves us some blueberry muffins in our house! Even the picky eater will devour blueberries if they're served up in a muffin. I just found a new recipe and tried it out this morning, and oooohhhh baby! These things are good! I think this is the best I've ever made. I like to use whole grains, but sometimes they come out a little too dense for my taste. This muffin is very moist and light, and the fresh fruit flavor just permeates the whole thing. Yum!!!

I adapted the recipe from one I found at Holy Cow Vegan Recipes. Here's my version:

Whole Wheat and Barley Blueberry Muffins
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup barley flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 unsweetened applesauce cup (about 1/3 cup)
1 cup soymilk
1 cup (or more!) fresh or frozen blueberries

Mix dry ingredients with a whisk in a large bowl. Add applesauce and soymilk and mix until just blended. Toss in blueberries and stir gently.

Lightly oil muffin tins or use cupcake liners. Bake in a preheated 350-degree oven for 25-28 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the tops are slightly browned.

Cool for 5 minutes, then ease them out using a thin knife. Makes 12 muffins.

Enjoy!