2-Ingredient Chocolate Ice Pops (Vegan, Gluten-free, Soy-free, Nut-free) July 27, 2010

These simple ice pops unbelievably use only 2 ingredients, and are insanely rich and creamy-dreamy. Don’t bother trying to find prepared vegan frozen treats when you can whip these up in under 5 minutes.

Makes 4 ice pops

1 cup organic coconut milk at room temperature (full fat)

1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

Melt the chocolate and combine with the coconut milk in a blender or food processor.

Pour into ice pop molds. Freeze completely and run the bottom of the molds under warm water to release.

Double or triple this recipe easily.

My Favorite Garbanzo Bean Salad May 13, 2010

I confess, I am a total Vegenaise junkie. Not vegan mayonaise in general, just Vegenaise. I will even dip crackers or pretzels into it. I like to make this salad all the time and everyone likes it. Serve it plain, with crackers, over greens, or in a sandwich with toast, more Vegenaise and mustard, lettuce, tomato, pickles, avocado, and vegan cheese. Just had it tonight!

1 can garbanzo beans

2 heaping tablespoons Vegenaise

2 teaspoons spicy brown mustard

1 stalk celery, finely chopped

pinch dulse flakes

pinch cayenne pepper

pinch freshly ground black pepper

pinch garlic powder

Mash all ingredients together to the texture you desire. Some chunks are ok in my book!

Love,

Sharon

www.sweetutopia.com

Swathi’s Special Potatoes and Carrots May 12, 2010

All the kids in my son’s kindergarten class had to send in their favorite recipe and the teacher made each child a personal book with their picture on it to give their moms for mother’s day. My son’s recipe was the Delicious Vanilla Cupcakes from Sweet Utopia. He is very excited there’s a vegetarian girl in his class–Swathi–and this is her recipe. I’m baking it for dinner tonight, with some vegan chicken patties.

6 red potatoes, quartered

2-3 carrots, sliced at an angle into chunks

2-3 tablespoons olive oil

2 teaspoons cumin

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

pinch of cayenne

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Scrub potatoes and carrots. Cut up the vegetables and place in an 8×8 baking dish. Mix oil and spices together in a small bowl and drizzle over the vegetables. Mix until evenly coated. Cover pan and bake 45 minutes. Remove cover and bake until tender and slightly crisp. You can also use sweet potatoes, parsnips, squash. Recipe by Swathi’s mom.

Love,

Sharon

www.sweetutopia.com

African Banana Dessert (vegan, gluten free) May 11, 2010

Here’s a quick, easy and exotic dessert!

Serves 4

1 Tbsp vegan butter substitute

2 Tbsp firmly packed brown sugar

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

2 large bananas, medium-ripe

1/4 cup orange juice

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/3 cup shredded coconut

3 tablespoons  finely chopped or partially ground unsalted peanuts

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.In a small bowl, melt butter in the microwave, about 25 seconds. Stir in brown sugar and cinnamon until well blended. Oil a 9-inch square baking pan. Peel bananas; cut each banana lengthwise in half. Place cut-side down in baking pan. Sprinkle the bananas with the orange and lemon juices. Sprinkle the brown-sugar mixture over the bananas. Sprinkle with the coconut and peanuts. Bake for about 10 minutes, or until bananas are lightly browned. Serve warm. Great with nondairy vanilla ice cream too!

Sunny Burgers (Vegan, Gluten-free, Soy-free) May 2, 2010

These burgers are really substantial and super-satisfying, because of the richness and nutritional-density of the sunflower seeds, which are tiny powerhouses of protein, fiber, iron, calcium, necessary fats and other critical nutrients that’ll keep you going a long time. You can serve these burgers with the works – whole wheat buns, gourmet pickles, ketchup, vegan mayo, dark leaf lettuce, tomatoes from the garden and more.

photo: http://www.milanphotography.com

Makes 6-8 burgers

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 small red onion or 1/2 large, chopped

2 large cloves garlic, chopped

1 cup mushrooms, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

1 cup raw, unsalted sunflower seeds

1 stalk celery, chopped

3/4 – 1 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1/4 cup cilantro or parsley, chopped

Olive or other oil for frying

Sauté onion, garlic, mushroom, and carrot in the olive oil in a large sauté pan on medium heat. Cook until softened, stirring often, and add the celery and sunflower seeds. Process the cilantro or parsley in a food processor. Add the vegetable and sunflower seed mixture, in batches if necessary, and process until ground and sticky. Add the salt and pepper. Refrigerate the mixture until it cools, a half hour or more. Form 3-inch patties and cook in a little bit of olive or grape seed oil in a large sauté pan or griddle. Cook the burgers about 5 minutes on each side, or until browned.

Note: These are very grainy, so make sure you grind up all the ingredients very well until sticky, and use enough oil.

Love,

Sharon

www.sweetutopia.com

Sweet Potato Mini Patties with Sage Cashew Aioli (Gluten-Free) April 30, 2010

photo: http://www.milanphotography.com

Sweet potatoes lend these patties a beautifully-colored combination of sweet and spicy, and are jam-packed with nutritional benefits like beta carotene, healthy carbohydrates and fiber. Sage is native to California and Mediterranean climates, but for some reason, grows for me every year in a very peculiar spot, with absolutely no maintenance, in my mid-East Coast garden, so I am always trying to use it in new ways. With pungently potent fresh sage, a little goes a long way.

Yield: 1 1/2 dozen patties

Patties

2 regular sweet potatoes or 1 extra large

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 small onion

2 garlic cloves

1/3 cup brown rice flour

1/3 cup plain soymilk

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon cayenne and/or black pepper

Sage Cashew Topping

1/2 cup unsalted cashews

1 tablespoon vegan butter substitute

3-4 large sage leaves, chopped

2 garlic cloves, chopped

3 tablespoons water

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

Olive oil for frying

Peel and chop the sweet potatoes. Boil them until they are just tender but still firm, about 15 minutes. Remove them from heat, and place them in a cold water bath. Drain and add more cold water. Mash the sweet potatoes until they are smooth.

Heat the olive oil in a sauté pan over medium heat. Cook the onions and garlic until they begin to brown. Combine the pureed sweet potatoes, the onion, garlic and oil mixture, and the rest of the ingredients in a bowl. Form balls with 1 tablespoon of the mixture, then press them to form patties. Heat a few tablespoons of olive oil in a large sauté pan. Cook the patties for around five minutes on each side, or until they are light brown.

To make the topping, process the cashews in a food processor until they are ground. Heat the vegan butter substitute in a sauté pan on medium heat and add the sage and garlic. Cook until the garlic browns lightly. Add the mixture to the food processor, and add the rest of the ingredients. Process the mixture until it is smooth. Use a pastry bag to pipe designs onto the patties.

Love,

Sharon

www.sweetutopia.com