Guilt Free Gluten Free Vegan Cornbread

Savor freshly baked Maple Cornbread with no guilt and no gluten. Follow along to discover how easy it is to prepare and serve this treat. 

Cornbread goes great with a piping hot bowl of Split Pea, Lentil, or Black Bean Soup, and makes the perfect side with Vegetarian Chili or a plant-based stew.

Perhaps you prefer cornbread as a snack, when you’re craving delicious taste without the bloat of wheat based bread and no cholesterol. This recipe is simple to make and doesn't include refined sugars. An added advantage is that home cooked meals save bucks. 

Prep time is approximately 15 minutes and cook time is 30 (cook time varies, and depends on your stove accuracy and elevation). There's nothing finer than munching on freshly baked homemade cornbread.

Slice of Cornbread with Organic Blueberries on Top

Ingredients:

2 Tablespoons ground flax seeds
4 Tablespoons warm water
1 cup ground cornmeal (if you like very flaky cornmeal use coarsely ground, for more cake-like batter use finely ground cornmeal)
1 cup gluten free flour of your choosing
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ground sea salt
1 1/2 cups almond milk or other nut milk
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup apple sauce
Optional ingredients for a sweet tasting cornbread: cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg, and coriander. For a southwestern style taste: add roasted poblano and red bell peppers, corn, and a pinch of cayenne.

Note: I use organic ingredients when available, because organic means nutrient content is higher and product is not genetically modified, not sprayed with chemicals, and is not grown in soil that contains chemical fertilizers.

What to Do:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Start by selecting a loaf pan (1.5 qt.-2 qt. size), and spray it with cooking spray or use a drop of olive oil on a paper towel to coat bottom and sides of pan.
3. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flax meal and water and set aside for 15 minutes. This combo acts as your binding agent. 
4. While that's setting, get a large bowl, and place corn meal, flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into it. Whisk ingredients together.
5. Then, get the bowl with the flax seed mixture and add milk, maple syrup, apple sauce, and any optional spices you like to it. Whisk to combine.
6. Pour milk mixture into flour and fold until there are no dry spots and batter is slightly lumpy.
7. Pour batter into loaf pan and bake for approximately 30-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean.
8. If you're not eating it right then, place in an airtight container and refrigerate. To serve as a dessert or sweet snack, eat a delectable slice of cornbread with berries or fruit spread. Makes about eight-ten slices. For a Southwestern style cornbread add roasted poblano and/or red bell peppers, corn, and a touch of cayenne.

Wishing you a hearty appetite and mouthfuls of good flavor. Serve this scrumptious cornbread at a family dinner, solo meal, snack food, or at your New Year's Eve Potluck, and don't forget to give thanks for this bounty.

What type of cornbread do you enjoy? Sweet or savory? I must admit I like them both. I like savory with soups, casseroles, stews, and chili. Sweet is neat as a snack and dessert. Please comment below. When you try this recipe, please let me know how it worked for you.

The quote for today is from Jeremy Jackson. "But since you're asking me, I'll tell you my opinion: all cornbread is authentic, as long as it's good, hot, and made with love and fresh ingredients."

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Gluten free Vegetarian Chili that's Fast, Flavorful, and Protein Rich

The multilayered flavor of this vegetarian chili comes from basic pantry ingredients including vegetables and spices. This dish is simple and inexpensive to make, gluten free, vegan, and loaded with plant-based taste, protein, and fiber. Feel free to leave out or add additional vegetables or seasonings, and know any beans you like fit in well. The recipe is adaptable and forgiving so relax and have fun in the kitchen. 

The way this dish is set up now, it yields 4 large or 6 moderate servings. It contains approximately 10 g of protein in every portion, and makes great leftovers too. 

Ingredients

·       1 medium organic red onion, chopped

·       1 large organic red bell pepper, chopped

·       2 medium organic carrots, chopped

·       1 4 oz. can organic mushrooms chopped

·       1 ½ cups organic frozen corn kernels (defrost in refrigerator for a few hours)

·       4 squirts Braggs Liquid Aminos (or 2 tablespoons gluten free low sodium soy sauce)

·       2 large or 4 small cloves garlic chopped

·      3 tablespoons chili powder

·       2 teaspoons ground cumin

·        a few sprigs fresh oregano

·       1 small can (15 ounces) organic diced tomatoes with juice (I used fire roasted tomatoes)

·       1 can (15 oz.) organic black beans, drained

·       1 can (15 oz.) organic mixed beans, drained (the mixed beans I selected contained kidney, black, and pinto beans)

·       1 can (15 oz.) organic kidney beans, drained

·       ½  to 1 jalapeño pepper (use gloves to take out the seeds and cut in half, then chop fine) Omit this ingredient, if you like a milder chili or increase the amount if you like it hot)

·       1 cup water

·       1 bay leaf

·       1 to 2 teaspoons lemon or lime juice (use the juice you like best)

·       Garnishes can include: sliced avocado, guacamole, corn chips, scallions, radish, red onion, gluten free vegan cheese, nutritional yeast. 

What to Do:

      1.  In a large Dutch oven or other heavy-bottomed pot, put in chopped red onion and sauté dry over medium heat until soft (about 2 minutes). Add chopped garlic, red bell pepper, carrots, mushrooms, and stir. Continue to sauté  without oil by  adding a drop of water to fry pan. See more by clicking this link and going to step 2 (directions for browning onion and garlic without oil).

2.   Add chili powder, cumin, and a half to a whole (depending on how hot you like it) jalapeño pepper finely chopped. Stir until fragrant, which should take approximately 1 minute.

3.    Add three cans of beans, water, and bay leaf. If you'd prefer to use cooked dried beans, see how to prepare dried beans.

4.  Stir in canned or cooked dried beans to combine and let the mixture come to a simmer (covered). Add the diced tomatoes and juice. Cover and continue cooking, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat as necessary to maintain a gentle simmer. Cook for 25 minutes. Add corn kernels and lemon or lime juice and cook 5 minutes more. Correct seasoning by adding salt and fresh ground pepper to taste. Remove chili from the heat.

Gluten Free Mixed Bean Chili (Topped with Radish and Onion), Salad with White Bean Dressing, and Quinoa/Corn Chips

Serving Suggestion: This dish is hearty, filling, and tastes great. Place chili in colorful dishes and serve with sides of guacamole, salsa, and steamed brown rice. If you want to keep it real simple, mix cooked brown rice, salsa, and guacamole into chili for a flavorful meal!

Spicy Mixed Bean Chili and Brown Rice, Topped with Guacamole

Why not try this recipe too? Colorful-Tasty-Tucson-Tacos.

Please Note: I write and publish topics of interest for those who want to create and maintain a healthier lifestyle. My Website is www.nancyandreswriter.com. To see information about my writing services, details about the interactive self-care journal, Colors of Joy: A Woman's Guide for Self-Discovery, Balance, and Bliss, and health tips and ideas visit often.

The quote for today follows:

Margaret Cousins, novelist. "Chili is not so much food as a state of mind. Addictions to it are formed early in life and the victims never recover. On blue days in October, I get this passionate yearning for a bowl of chili, and I nearly lose my mind."

Do you eat beans often? What are your favorites? Do you have a go-to chili recipe you'd like to share? Please let me know by commenting in the space provided below.

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Versatile Vegan Tomato Sauce with a Secret Source of Veg Protein

Yum, yum. This is Scrumptious Pasta and Sauce!

Want to prepare a sauce that's packed full of nutrition, and looks, smells, and tastes great? It features the bright Mediterranean flavors of tomatoes, basil, garlic, and crushed red pepper flakes. A secret ingredient, pinto beans, adds deliciousness, heartiness, and increased protein. Beans make the sauce a perfect thing to combine with pasta, legumes, veggies, brown rice, and many other foods. All beans provide a powerful helping of plant based protein, so perhaps this blog post will encourage you to eat beans more often. 

Look below to see how easy, cost effective, and fun it is to cook with them. You might be tempted to keep the sauce ingredients on hand to enhance the taste of all your favorite veggies. I revealed my secret ingredient so you'll try it. Maybe it will be your clean eating go-to gravy. One I love so much.

Versatile Vegan Tomato Sauce with a Secret Source of Veg Protein, Served on Gluten Free Fusilli Pasta

Ingredients

For Pasta

1 12 oz. package gluten free pasta (I used organic brown rice and organic quinoa mix fusilli) and fresh water to cook it in.

For Sauce

2 14.5 oz. Organic San Marzano Style Diced Tomatoes

2 14.5 oz. Organic Tomato Sauce

12 Organic cherry or grape tomatoes or 2 small whole ones

1 4 oz. can Organic Sliced Mushrooms or 1/2 cup fresh ones

1  15 oz. can Organic Pinto Beans

Sprig of Fresh Organic Basil

1 teaspoon Dried Organic Oregano or sprig or 2 of Fresh Oregano 

1 teaspoon Dried Sage and 1 teaspoon Dried Thyme (optional)

2 Organic Garlic Cloves minced

2 Organic Zucchini 

2 Organic Carrots

1/2 Organic Yellow Onion (can substitute red onion or scallions)

Salt to taste (I prefer mine with no added salt, because canned tomatoes and tomato sauce have a lot of added salt)

Freshly ground Black Pepper to taste

1/2 teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes

Notes: Feel free to add other veggies if you like. A few ideas are red pepper, string beans, kale, capers, and celery. When you add additional veggies, it makes the sauce thicker, increases nutrients, and heightens taste even more.

I always use organic ingredients when available, because organic means produce is not genetically modified, not sprayed with chemicals, and is not grown in soil that contains chemical fertilizers.

How to Make It

1. Open diced tomato cans, tomato sauce cans, and rinse fresh tomatoes. If you're using fresh tomatoes, chop them in the bowl of a food processor until chunky. Place all in a large saucepan that has a cover. Add minced garlic, red pepper flakes, and bring all ingredients mentioned in this step to a boil. Stir and turn heat to simmer. Then cover and cook for 15 minutes. While tomatoes are simmering on the stove top, do the next step.

Note: Select fresh tomatoes that are bright red in color. This is a signal that they have ripened fully and are loaded with a valuable nutrient called lycopene, an antioxidant that helps prevent cancer and lowers unhealthy cholesterol. Cooking tomatoes for at least 30 minutes  releases more lycopene than cooking for less time. That's why my recipe suggests you cook tomatoes for 30 minutes total. Canned tomatoes are picked when at the peak of freshness and can be used when you don’t have fresh on hand. I buy only those that are packed in BPA free cans, because bisphenol A, a synthetic estrogen found in the epoxy coating of food cans, has been linked to many health problems. Many companies have publicly pledged to stop using BPA in their cans, but check to see that the ones you buy are labeled BPA Free.

2. Rinse canned beans, mushrooms, and all fresh veggies in cool water. Prep zucchini and carrots by washing and scraping off sand and dirt with the side of a knife. Keep as much skin on as possible, as it contains fiber and nutrients. Peel onion and garlic. Rinse basil and any other fresh herbs and veggies you want to include. Put all remaining ingredients except pasta in the bowl of a food processor and chop until they reach a consistency that you like. I like to see little chunks of veggies in my sauce as it adds bright splashes of color and texture. Chop as fine or as chunky as you wish, but for 2 minutes max. Pour veggies into simmering pot of tomato sauce, mix, and cover. Bring to a boil again and simmer for 15 minutes more. 

Zucchini on the left is scraped clean as is the carrot on the right

Basil, Pinto Beans, and Mushrooms

3. While veggies, beans, and tomato sauce mixture is cooking (the last 15 minutes of the cooking process) put up a large pot of fresh water to use to cook the pasta. Follow the package directions (the package of fusilli I used stated that 1/2 cup of dried pasta is one portion and to cook fusilli from 7-10 minutes). It's best to test pasta for doneness at 7 minutes, so it doesn't get overcooked. When done, place pasta in a colander and strain. Put individual portions of fusilli into dishes, top with sauce, and serve while still piping hot.

This is Freshly Made Versatile Vegan Tomato Sauce 

Right below is another way I used my versatile vegan tomato sauce, a day later.

I combined 2 cups of Tomato Sauce with 2 cups of Lentil Soup for this Mouthwatering Soup Transformation

For information about lentil soup see this link:

Surprising-Features-and-Recipes-for- Organic-Red-Lentils

A few days later, I served the remaining sauce on steamed green cabbage and red skinned potatoes. It looked fabulous and was so delicious. I seasoned the dish with organic garlic powder, 1 teaspoon of extra virgin organic olive oil, freshly ground black pepper, and a pinch of Himalayan Pink salt.  

Organic Green Cabbage, Organic Red Skinned Potatoes, and Sauce

When you tabulate the cost of a home-cooked meal like this to meals that have been processed commercially and frozen, or eat a similar meal in a restaurant, you'll realize you come out way ahead of the game by eating at home. You save money, are eating real food, and can trust the quality of the ingredients that are in it. My secret ingredient protein tomato sauce recipe only takes 30 minutes to prepare, so you save time too. Refrigerate extra sauce, as soon as you're finished making it. It will stay fresh for up to four or five days. Have fun inventing new ways to serve it. Other ways to use it might include to put it into gluten-free burritos or organic corn tortillas, or use it to top off spiralized zucchini. 

Don't forget to let me know what you think of my "secret ingredient" vegan tomato sauce. This is how to do it. Scroll down at the end of this post and write in the space that says "enter your comment." Then, click on "publish" after you've written your comment. Thanks so much.

The quote for today follows: "Putting even one thing in your shopping basket that's locally produced or organic makes all the difference. It's a vote for the future, for animal welfare, for the environment, for your children's children." Sheherazade Goldsmith

Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/s/sheherazad614251.html

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Spaghetti Squash Magic

Here's an eye-catching recipe for spaghetti squash marinara that's sure to please your senses as well as make your family, friends, or potluck crowd jump to their feet and applaud (this post has been updated 9/13/17).

Spaghetti Squash, Create Magic in a Casserole Dish

The other day I wanted to have pasta, but discovered long ago that eating semolina (a form of wheat that most pasta is made from) makes me feel bloated or sleepy or both. Some might say I have a gluten allergy, but I like to call it gluten sensitivity. I know what's good for me to eat and what isn't. I'm in tune with my body and my body is in tune with me. 

Anyway, as luck would have it, I spotted this fresh organic spaghetti squash on sale at my local Market. Yahoo. I couldn't wait to get it home.

Since there was going to be just the 2 of us (hubby and me) for dinner, I decided to cook the whole squash, string it, but transform only enough of it (2 days' worth) to make a Meatless Monday meal and Fun Tuesday meal. On the first day I served it for dinner. The following day I presented it at lunch and got rave reviews. The real reason I know it was good, was because my hubby wanted to eat it two days in a row and wanted two helpings each time.

Now on to My (Nancy A's) Recipe for Spaghetti Squash Marinara

Ingredients:

1 large spaghetti squash

sufficient water to coat the bottom of a baking pan and have the level of water come up  1/2 inch when the squash is placed inside on its side

salt, pepper, and mixed seasoning of your choice to sprinkle on the squash, after it is stringed

ingredients for my homemade marinara mushroom tomato sauce are provided at this link. best recipe for homemade marinara sauce

nutritional yeast to sprinkle on after it's all ready (I buy a brand fortified with B-12) and use it for its good taste and nutritional value

What to do:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Wash the outside of the squash under cool water (use a vegetable brush to scrub dirt off). Put squash in a baking pan on its side. Pour in enough water to come up 1/2 inches so squash doesn't burn while it roasts.

2.Pierce the squash in a few places with a fork, so it releases any trapped air. This avoids having it explode, while it cooks in the oven. I cook all squash uncut, because I find it's hard to cut it in half or remove peel. No need to peel it. You can string it without removing peel.

3. Roast the squash whole, anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour, depending on how large it is. You'll know the squash is ready, when its skin starts to turn light brown and the fork you use to pierce it goes in easily. If you cut it open and it's hard to string it, don't hesitate to cook it for a few more minutes.

4. Slice the squash lengthwise like the photo below indicates. Remove pulp and seeds by scooping them out with a spoon or knife. 

5. Take a fork and string the cooked spaghetti squash like I did in the photo below. 

6. When half the squash was prepared, I put the strings of spaghetti squash into a casserole dish and mixed in the marinara sauce. I made my own marinara sauce and let it simmer on the stove top while the squash cooked in the oven (use ingredients mentioned in the link above). After both parts of this recipe were cooked properly, I combined them and reheated it. I served each portion with a little bit of nutritional yeast sprinkled on top. Here's what it looks like both as a lunch and dinner main dish idea.

I portioned out the remaining squash into freezer containers (without sauce) and put the containers into the freezer. 

Cooked and Stringed Spaghetti Squash in Casserole Dishes

Next time I want to serve it, I'll defrost and heat as much as I need. It can be used as a quick fix veggie or added to soup for its nutritional benefits and texture. Another way to mix it up is to incorporate the spaghetti squash into a simple sauté, one made from a clove of minced garlic, a teaspoon of organic olive oil, and fresh chopped basil or other fresh herbs like oregano, tarragon, or cilantro. Perhaps you'd rather top the spaghetti squash with Arrabiata (spicy) Sauce or Primavera (loaded with fresh veggies like carrots, red pepper, peas, string beans, onions) Sauce. Use any extra tomato mushroom marinara sauce on string beans, in soup, veggie chili, or any time you want good taste and added antioxidants.

Squash is so versatile and economical. You'll probably be surprised at how many ways you can fix it. Cooked and stringed spaghetti squash keeps well for a few weeks or even months in the freezer. Once defrosted, it tastes yummy, prepared as I mentioned above.

Plain cooked spaghetti squash contains only 42 calories per cup. That's much fewer calories than regular pasta (220 calories per cup). It's low in saturated fat, very low in cholesterol and a good source of Niacin, Vitamin B-6, Pantothenic Acid (B-5), Potassium and Manganese, and a great source of Dietary Fiber and Vitamin C.

Have you ever made spaghetti squash? If not, are you inspired? If you've cooked spaghetti squash before, how did you prepare it? Please share your comments, questions, and get social with me. I'd love to hear from you.

The quote for today is:

"One of the very nicest things about life is the way we must regularly stop whatever it is we are doing and devote our attention to eating.  (Luciano Pavarotti and William Wright, Pavarotti, My Own Story)" Quote listed at 
She Cooks He Cleans

Before I go I'd like to wish you all a Joyous Holiday Season and 

Many Blessings in the New Year! 

Now and throughout 2016 reach out to others. Your kindness

will light up the world.

Check out my Facebook Page to Get More Tips for Good Eating and Wellness Here .

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