Having Guests for Dinner? (Oh, and Enter the Raffle to Win)

I love having guests for dinner! It gets me in the kitchen and allows me to express my creativity in ways I don't do when I am cooking for just my husband and I.

This Friday, a friend is driving in from Albuquerque on a road trip. I know she likes Mexican food. I also know she's a vegan ;-) Friday night is dinner and a movie.

On Wednesday, I bought some beautiful produce at Farmer's Market, and found some organic Butternut squash, so I decided to make a tray of Butternut Squash Enchiladas (a recipe found in my book).  They are easy to make and I set them up the day before baking so that I don't have a lot to do the day of entertaining.

I'm garnishing the enchiladas with green scallions and red peppers before baking.

Here's what's on the menu:

• Mixed green salad with Macadamia Jalepeno Dressing
• Guacamole
• Spanish Rice
• Enchiladas with Cashew Sour Cream
• Blood Orange Ice Cream

Sounds tasty, right?

This week, I also decided to have a raffle for all of those vegan chefs out there cooking up their own original recipes everyday. All you have to do is let me know what was on your vegan menu the last time you had guests for dinner (use the contest form below).

PRIZE: A signed copy of my book, Vegan Bite By Bite, an Amazon/Kindle "Best Book of 2011 - Editor's Pick" (a great Mother's Day gift!)

DEADLINE:  Friday, May 6, 2012 @ Midnight

Winner will be notified and announced on Monday, May 7, 2012.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Holiday Time

Cranberry Banana-Blueberry Cheesecake

It's nearing the Christmas holidays and I am starting my celebrations early this year. Today I'm in the kitchen preparing for guests. Here's the menu:


Salad with sesame ginger mustard dressing
Whipped Mashed Potatoes
String Beans
Neat Loaf
Cranberry Banana-Blueberry Cheesecake
Hot chocolate (non-dairy)


For those of you who have my book - Vegan Bite By Bite - The Neat Loaf recipe is on page 141.
I just documented the dessert recipe and here it is below:


CRANBERRY CHEESECAKE
Crust
Coconut flour to dust 7" spring form pan (bottom and sides)
15 dates
2 cups shredded coconut
5 tablespoons water
Filling
3 cups raw cashew nuts
2 cups pure water
1 cup maple syrup
3 tablespoons coconut oil
1- 7.5 oz. pkg. fresh cranberries
1 large banana
1 - 6 oz, pkg. blueberries


Directions:
1. In a food processor puree dates and water and place in a medium bowl. Add shredded coconut and mix together by hand. Dust a 7" spring form pan with coconut flour. Press the crust mixture tightly on bottom and high sides of the pie pan.
2. Blend filling ingredients EXCEPT blueberries and banana and leave in blender until step 3.
3. Add sliced banana and add blueberries to pie pan and pour filling in blender into the pie pan, stir lightly.
4. Refrigerate at least 24 -48 hours for the pie to set up properly. The longer it is refrigerated, the firmer it will slice.
5. Use a serrated knife along the edges of the pie crust before releasing the pie from the spring form pan - for easy release.

Serves 12 - 16


My husband Wendel makes up a delicious hot chocolate out of cacao powder, almond milk, dates, pinch of cumin and cinnamon and a teeny, teeny, teeny pinch of cayenne pepper. Lately we have been having this treat since it seems rare to be able to order this when we are out and about.

Farmer's Market

I feel so grateful to be able to shop at a Farmer's Market. The produce is farm and morning fresh, and I can know that the words "Organic" are reputable because I have a relationship with the farmers.  I get a 'rush' of ecstatic feelings seeing the lush vegetables and fruits and I get excited with the ideas of what I can prepare from the plant potpourri of selections.

I feel that shopping at a Farmer's Market can be a money saver. It is certainly a quality saver.  I ask my organic stall farmer's if they have the green tops of beets, (because many shoppers aren't aware of the health value of the greens, they have them cut off and they get discarded). All leafy greens are a good source of calcium. I also ask for daikon and turnip greens, which by the way, are delicious steamed or sautéed in a tiny amount of coconut oil.  When I buy radishes, if the leaves are young and fresh, I will steam them or add them to a fresh salad.  My son Stewart has an organic garden and when I visit him in Rhode Island I add radish greens freshly cut into my salads, which create a delicately spicy flavor.

Underneath many stalls there are sometimes boxes that may contain either discarded cut greens for cooking, or perhaps bruised vegetables.  There are times I have been happy to bend down and sort through the give-away produce.  Only my false pride keeps me from bending low to discover the possible rich harvest that may be available.

I allow the best savings and lush produce to guide me about what I will make with the selected produce.  For instance, if the organic kale is tender and robust, especially if it is priced well, I may make a kale salad and kale-barley soup.  I may also add some kale to a pineapple-coconut smoothie, or design a recipe where I use my dehydrator to make kale chips. If I get an especially good buy on some produce or shopping ingredients, I may do some quantity cooking for the freezer.  This is the only way I do "fast foods!"

You can search for locations at Farmer's Markets and CSA's (Community Supported Agriculture) @ http://www.localharvest.org

Especially during these times of GMO affecting the quality of our food and our health – it is a good time to create a relationship with your farmer so that you can confidently know about the source of your food, and how it is grown – and the importance of the effect it will have on your future health.

Organic Consumers Association is a website that you consider looking at to educate yourself about GMO's and their potential harms to our health. http://www.organicconsumers.org
Signing necessary and important petitions may be the only way we have any food rights for the future of our food.

I have a chapter on the subject of GMO'S in my various e-book formats and paperback, Vegan Bite By Bite. www.veganbitebybite.com

Welcome

Once on the path to personal health, using my background and spontaneous experimental methods, I spring-boarded from experience to experience, cooking for doctors, catering, consulting and teaching, privately and with groups. http://www.veganbitebybite.com/workshops.html