Green Chile Soup

Last summer I decided to venture out to New Mexico. While not much was there that I would ever return for, there is one thing that I can say would prompt me to go back again: green chile. Oh. my. gosh. SO good. And thus a sick and twisted addiction began where any bit of mexican food tasted empty and tarnished without green chile in there somewhere. Breakfast burritos and even subway sandwiches became victims in my uncontrollable need for chiles. I was clean for a little while, but I have come back for more.

So, on a serious note, I usually do thicker more stew like variations of a green chile soup/stew. This time, however, I used less chile and added in a few other spices for variety. I thought it turned out pretty good, and a heated tortilla was the perfect companion. Here are the ingredients:

In soup pan:

3 cups warm water
2 tbsp of chicken boullion
3 russet potatoes, diced
1/2 can of black beans, drained
1/2 can of kidney beans, drained
1 can of green chiles
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tbsp garlic salt
1 tsp gound cumin
jalepenos to taste
cabbage to taste

the great thing about soup is so long as you get the spices right, you can pretty much to everything to taste. I managed to burn my tongue, won't lie, but it turned out good. Next time I think I will stick with more green chiles, but it wasn't a failed attempt by any means.

Enchilada casserole

No meat, no cheese, no deliciousness? Even I find it hard to imagine a world where mexican food sans it's two most delicious ingredients can even be remotely successful. Flavorless, low fat, boring....le tear. Alas, I have found a way to create a guilt-free {Guilt in the sense that none of our farm animal friends were tortured to make this meal delicious} way to create enchiladas that even managed to satisfy one of my cheese-loving best friends.

So the tortillas I used were flour tortillas, but corn tortillas would work really well too, to make this recipe both gluten free and vegan. I oiled the pan with some olive oil, pre-heating the oven to 375. I tore two tortillas into 4 pieces, covering the bottom of the dish. Then I added a mixture of black bean, pinto bean, onions and green chile to the top of the the tortilla. Keep the layer sort of thin, because you want to add another layer soon. Repeat with the tortilla, then add the other half of the bean mix and cover with tortilla once more. For the final step I added a bit of green enchilada sauce, baked for about 30 minutes and topped with salsa. It turned out good! No meat, no cheese, no joke ;-)

ingredients:
1 can black beans
1 can pinto beans
1 small can of green chiles
1/2 chopped onion
1 can green enchilada sauce
4 large tortillas
salse- to taste. I would also recomment adding guacamole to it, basically because guacamole makes everything taste good.

vegan pizza

So to my utmost glee, I have come to the conclusion that I might not be glucose-intolerant. I am a bit of a self-diagonising hypochondriach whose most recent kick was glucose intolerance. There is a history of chron's disease in my family, and hey, better safe than sorry. However, due to the nature of my blog and the more adventurous side of me- I will still continue to strive to create recipes without gluten. However, the first thing I wanted when I decided I was able to digest this ever common protein- pizza. The dough is delicious, cheap, and handmade, but it's not gluten-free. This recipe is however,vegan.

For the crust, I used a pre-packed crust mix which is basically just flour, baking soda and yeast. I added 1/2 cup of hot water, and oil. Not to be too obvious, but I would just follow whatever is on the packet- there shouldn't be any need for milk or eggs, but typically oil can subsitute eggs fine. For the topping I just added a little bit of marinara sauce, cut up some mushrooms, cale and asaparagus. It was simple, but pretty delicious. I also brushed a mixture of garlic salt and oil on the pre-baked crust too which added a little extra. Pretty straightforward, but good! Maybe it will give you some ideas of making your own pizza.

Farmer's Market

All week I waited on edge for the Saturday morning, Irvine Farmer's Market to approach. I hadn't been before which is crazy since when I'm home {in Colorado} I live for the thursday evening farmer's markets. I woke up early, went with my roommate, and found myself tempted by WAY too many stalls and booths. I could go on and on, but I think some of the pictures I took will explain themselves pretty well....

my first cake {I call it the pineapple, peach, strawberry, glaze right-side up cake}

Today marks the day in every sweet-toothed gluten free, vegan's life (yes all 6 of us :-P) when they realize that it is possible to bake. Not just bake, but also bake something that tastes good. Today I attempted to bake for my dear vegan friend, a birthday cake. Since I am on a gluten free kick too, heck, why not also make it gluten free? So I ventured all the way out to Albertsons (yes, they had options there) and bought a Gluten free, Betty Crocker yellow cake mix. This lady is my new hero. The cake called for 3 eggs, and 1/2 cup of butter, but instead I added 1 cup of unsweetened applesauce and the cake turned out wonderful.  For the topping I added about 7 fl ounces of canned peaches, chopped and the juice with about 2 tbsp of apple sauce, about 10 fl ounces of diced pineapple and the juice with 4 chopped strawberries. I added 2 tbsp of agave syrup and about 2 tsp of cornstarch. It was sweet, and really good, and added the right touch since the cake seemed less sweet to me than normal cake does. VICTORY!

Here is a summation of my ingredients:
 for the topping-
3 chopped strawberries
10 fl ounce of canned diced pineapple and the juice
7 fl ounce of canned sliced peaches and the juice (both had no added sugar, and were in their own juice)
2 tbsp agave syrup
2 tsp cornstarch

 for the cake-
1 box betty crocker gluten free yellow cake mix
1 cup of unsweetend applesauce
2/3 cup of water

I baked the cake for about 30 minutes at 350 and heated the juices, syrup and cornstarch over the stove top briefly to thicken before adding in the fruit.

I have a sweet tooth

I'm not impervious to chocolate. I can't just bid adieu to my wheat, barley, rye, oats, meat, dairy AND processed sugar all at once...can I? If I say no to milk chocolate or the occasional soda, I WILL go insane with sugar withdrawals. Lie. Found a chocolate bar (well my roomate, rather) last night at an organic grocer. She handed it to me and the lable was like music to my.....eyes (?)... it said: no added sugar, gluten free. OH MAN. It's also dairy free as it's not milk chocolate, but instead dark chocolate with almonds. The brand is "Simply Lite" and I found it at Trader Joe's, but I'm sure it's sold elsewhere. It's actually GOOD; as in, I think about eating it even when I have "put it away". So for anyone looking for a chocolate fix that comes with less guilt than normal......enjoy!

brownies {ugly, but yummy}

There is a specific reason I post the photos below the blog. While some people have mastered the art of making their food look absolutely wonderful and everything, I haven't (hence why I think you non-chefs will relate here). So I really decided to test the boundaries of my newly gained vegan-gluten-free knowledge and bake something of confectionary delight....BROWNIES. I actually purchased a gluten free brownie mix, deciding to wait on getting my hands messy in almond flour and xangthan gum. Trader Joe's had a great mix, and I merely substituted the egg with 1/3 cup of un-sweetened apple sauce. The flavor was spot on, but the texture slightly chewy. It didn't throw off the overall goodness of the brownie, but it did make them pretty ugly. And the Pan was pretty hard to clean.