Vegan Pumpkin Pie With Gluten Free Graham Cracker Crust

Can you imagine Thanksgiving without Pumpkin pie? Wrong on many levels I say. 

There needs to be pumpkin pie and you have to make extra so you can have some for breakfast the next day. Vegan, gluten free and deliciously addictive!

                                              

For the Crust

2 cups of gluten free graham cracker crumbs 

1/4 cup of coconut sugar 

6 TBS of melted earth balance or coconut oil

For the Pie Filling

2 cups of pumpkin puree

1 cup of almond, soy or coconut milk

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 tsp of egg replacer mixed with 1 tbs of warm water

1/4 cup tapioca flour (or cornstarch)

1 tbs unsulphured blackstrap molasses

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp ginger powder

1/4 tsp cloves

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp salt

Directions

To Make The crust

Preheat oven to 350(F)

Place your gluten free graham crackers into a food processor and process until fine

Add the sugar

Melt the earth balance or coconut oil and add to the crumbs. Process until combined.

Press the crumb mixture into the pie tin and bake at 350(f) for 10 min

                         Place all of the filling ingredients in the blender and puree on high for a few min

Pour the filling into the crust and bake for 45 min to one hour.

You know it is done when the center does not jiggle

Let pie cool and then chill in the fridge overnight. It is best served cold.

This would be lovely with coconut cream on top.

To make coconut cream simply put a can of full fat coconut milk in the fridge overnight.

The next day empty the can into a mixer bowl and beat on high with 1/2 cup of maple syrup.

Serve with pie!

Happy Thanksgiving! Eat Pie

Vegetable Miso Noodle Bowl

Everyone has their go to comfort food meal. Mine is soup. I'm particularly fond of Asian flavors and big vegetarian noodle bowls with lots of greens.  When I was following a macrobiotic diet at one point, I started eating lots of miso soup. Miso soup from a restaurant typically has a few mushrooms, scallion, wakame and tofu in a miso broth. When I began to make my own I added daikon radish, carrots, shiitake mushrooms, bok choy and wakame.  I have also done it with parsnips and kale or watercress. You can change the ingredients based on what you have on hand. I use gluten free ramen style noodles but you can use rice, udon or buckwheat noodles as well.

The best part about this meal is it only takes about 20 minutes from start to finish! Its a lifesaver when you want something nourishing and you have no time. Basically I eat this soup 3 times a week!

The other wonderful thing about this soup is that it is very healing. If you have had too much sugar, or acidic forming meals, or just feeling sick , this soup will literally bring you back to life and alkaline your body.

Miso is a paste made from soybeans or aduki beans or chickpea and is often mixed with rice, barley and other grains.  The mixture is allowed to ferment for 3 months to 3 years. This process produces an enzyme rich food that contains all essential amino acids making it a complete protein.

Miso is also High in B vitamins, reduces risk of certain cancers, strengthens the immune system and is high in antioxidants that protects against free radicals. When you also add tons of vegetables and greens this soup is your prescription in a bowl. 

If you want a really fast really nutritious satisfying soup, this is for you!

Just remember, never boil miso as it will kill all the beneficial enzymes.

RECIPE

5 Cups of filtered water

1 piece of kombu seaweed

1 bunch scallion sliced , white and green part

1 carrot peeled and sliced into half moons

1 daikon radish peeled and sliced into half moons

2 bunch of baby bok choy cleaned and white parts sliced and kept separate from the greens. Greens should be sliced also. 

1 bunch watercress

pinch of dried wakame soaked in water for 10 min

1/2 block tofu cut into cubes (this is optional)

Miso of choice, I use sweet mellow miso ...to taste (see directions below)

optional additions to make the soup extra tasty

drizzle of sesame oil

shot of sriracha sauce

tsp of crushed ginger people ginger

Procedure

First step 

Soak a pinch of wakame in cold water and set aside to reconstitute.

Next place your water in a medium pot with a piece of kombu seaweed (as pictured below). Bring this to a boil and then turn off the heat and let sit 5 min. After 5 minutes, remove the kombu and discard. This stock known as Dashi is now used as the base for the soup.

Clean, peel and chop veggies

Place the scallions, carrots, daikon, shiitake and cubed tofu in the pot of kombu stock. At this time also add the bottom part of the bok choy that has been sliced. Reserve the greens you are using as these will be added last.

Bring this to a simmer and cook only until the vegetables are tender about 8 to 10 min. Once the veggies are tender turn off the heat and add your greens to the pot. The hot liquid will cook the greens.

While your soup is simmering, cook your noodles and set aside. Take some of the hot soup and add to a mug or bowl with some miso paste. Start with a generous tbsp of miso and stir until dissolved in the water.

Place your noodles in a bowl and ladle your hot vegetable soup right on top. Stir in your miso paste to taste. If you feel more is needed go ahead and add it in. At this time also add the wakame, sesame oil drizzle, crushed ginger and sriracha.

There will be more soup leftover for the next day. You can store the vegetable and kombu stock in containers without the miso. The next day when you are ready to eat again you simply heat the soup in a pot and go through the same process as above with adding miso and the optional flavorings to taste. 

Raw Nut &Pumpkin Seed Chews

So I said this was a healthy food blog right? Eating the food your body needs to feel good and nourished......

Well last week this body needed some chocolate! It was Halloween and every halloween
week I get the urge for some sweet in my life. Back in the day when we were left to our own devices trick or treating in groups of kids with no parents, I would eat candy until I passed out. Chocolate all over my face , dots in my teeth. There were no organic healthier candy treats. If someone gave you an apple you threw it at their house(well not me of course).
Ahhhhh, the 70's. Well times have changed. My sons favorite candy is Justin's Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter cups. I have to say these are pretty darn good and you can feel better about the ingredients for sure. Its still sugar but it's also Halloween and I say ,

EAT
CANDY.

For me personally I always try to make something sweet that is homemade so that I don't OD on Peanut butter cups. I like to get in the spirit with the kids , get to their level. What better way than to eat candy, dress up and roam the streets for more candy!

 This candy treat is one you can feel good about. I find a little goes a long way as it is pretty sweet from the dates and the chocolate. You can play with the filling as well as the crust part. If you don't have  macadamia nuts use almonds or cashew. I wanted to use peanuts in the filling but did not have any so I used pumpkin seeds. It's all good. Do what you like or what you have on hand. But a Big tip...eat them from the freezer. They are best that way to keep the chewy texture.


THE RECIPE
For the cookie layer:
In the Food Processor Blend 1 Cup of Macadamia Nuts,
1 Cup of Gluten free oats
Pulse until Fine
Add in 2 Tbs Coconut Flour
1/3 cup raw coconut nectar or try 1/3 brown rice syrup
Blend well until a sticky paste is formed
Press this onto a cookie sheet and
 into a thin square shape.
Freeze for 30 min

For the caramel layer:
Blend 15 pitted dates
with 15 dried apricots (the dark brown kind not bright orange)
pulse a few times to chop up
add in 4 tbs of raw coconut nectar or brown rice syrup
add a pinch of pink salt (optional)

Blend until smooth.
Spread this on top of the cookie layer.
now on top of that add chopped peanuts, or walnuts
or as pictured raw pumpkin seeds.

Freeze for about an hour or until you can cut into squares.
Dip the squares into melted chocolate and then place back on a cookie sheet with parchment.
put them back into the freezer. They are ready within an hour. But as mentioned they are best stored in the freezer until you want them. When you are ready for a treat,  remove and cut into pieces. They are quite large for one bite. But hey if that's what you want then that's fine too.
May The Force Be with you....