November 3, 2024November 10, 2024 by betsy

Healthier Banana Pudding (plant-based & vegan)

Healthier Banana Pudding (plant-based & vegan)
Yield: 2 servings

Made with Silk brand Greek yogurt–so thick, creamy, tangy, not too sweet, and loaded with protein–this dessert is quick, easy, tastes indulgent, and is fun to serve and eat.

2-5.3 ounce containers plant-based Silk Greek style vanilla yogurt (make sure it is Greek style)
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon almond extract
2 bananas, thinly sliced; reserve 2 slices
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons non-dairy whipped topping Cocowhip

In small bowl, stir together yogurt, sugar, and extracts. *Spread 1/3 yogurt mixture in small clear bowl, top with one sliced banana. Repeat both layers, spread with the last third of yogurt, and then with 1/2 cup non-dairy whipped topping. Top with a dollop of 2 tablespoons more non-dairy whipped topping, 1 tablespoon plant-based graham cracker crumbs, and garnish with reserved 2 slices banana and nuts if desired. Serve immediately or refrigerate until serving time.

*Alternatively, prepare in two clear glass bowls or glasses, like a martini glass or Mason jar. And consider arranging some of the banana slices against the sides of the glass bowl as in the photo below.

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July 30, 2024September 21, 2024 by betsy

Quick “Overnight” Oats: Ready in Under 1 Hour (vegan & plant-based)

Note: you don’t want to do this too often because, unless you soak raw oats about 12 hours, they can be difficult to digest, causing bloating and building up in your system, as well as preventing the absorption of key minerals.

I woke up craving so-called “overnight” oats. But I wanted this vegan and plant-based treat today, not tomorrow!

Surely, I thought, I could speed up the softening process by heating the soymilk (or almond, oat, etc) and still not turn the oats into a bowl of gruel. Indeed I could!

How It Works: My Simple Method

A loose recipe follows but, essentially, just heat non-dairy milk barely to a simmer in the microwave–about 60-90 seconds on high–or stovetop, stir in oats, sweetener if desired–I use granulated stevia–and pinches of spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, or pumpkin pie spice.

At this point, you can also stir in fresh or frozen fruit or canned pureed pumpkin, a couple tablespoons cocoa powder or 3 tablespoons of peanut butter. Layer mixture with plant-based yogurt–I like Silk vanilla Greek style–and more fresh or frozen friut in a glass container for a pretty presentation. I use mugs, Mason jars, or even martini glasses, depending on my mood.

Pop in the fridge and leave for an hour–45 minutes if pressed or starved–while you get ready for work, school, or just the rest of your day, garnish if desired with a few nuts, like slivered almonds or pecans (especially good with pumpkin), and maybe a mint sprig if you want to get fancy. Then enjoy this creamy, textured nutritious treat that tastes like dessert, but will keep you satisfied for hours!

Quick “Overnight” Oats

Yield: 2 servings (1 if you are famished; easily mutiplies)

3/4 cup non-dairy milk

1 to 1 1/4 cup old fashioned oats or slightly more to absorb virtually all liquid

Optional: 1 tablespoon sweetener (I use granulated stevia)

Pinch ground cinnamon, nutmeg, pumpkin pie spice, etc.

If making pumpkin spice oats: 1/4 cup canned pureed pumpkin

If making PB&J: 3 tablespoons peanut butter

If making brownie: 2 tablespoons cocoa powder and a little more sweetener

1/2 cup fresh or frozen berries or diced fruit

3/4 cup non-dairy yogurt, any flavor (I especially like Silk vanilla Greek style)

Optional garnishes: 2 tablespoons chopped or slivered nuts (or about 4 pecan halves), additional berries or fruit, mint sprigs, sprinkle of ground spice

Heat non-dairy milk barely to a simmer in the microwave–about 60-90 seconds on high–or in a pan stovetop, stir in oats to drsired thickness, sweetener if desired, pinches of spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, or pumpkin pie spice, and optional pureed pumpkin. If using berries or fruit, stir in half and reserve remainder. In 2 small glass serving containers (mugs, jars, or martini glasses), place 1/4 oat mixture in bottom of each, top with 1/4 yogurt, 1/4 remaining fruit (about 1 tabkespoon each), and repeat. Refrigerate for 45 minutes to an hour, garnish as desired, and serve.

June 13, 2024June 13, 2024 by betsy

10-Minute Riced Cauli & Kimchi: a Summer Obsession

If lite, nutritious, colorful, and filling is your jam, this dish–warm or cold–is ready to devour in 10 minutes…you’re welcome! Plus the texture contrasts and bursts of layered flavors makes this “throw together” exciting to eat and share.

I can eat an entire recipe when famished, but it should serve two. I doubled the recipe for a luncheon with a pair of dear friends yesterday–they are retired and I am on summer break–and we had one serving left over (which will be my lunch today).

To my delight–and surprise in one case–they both asked for the recipe.

I hope you will enjoy this dish often this summer as I already have! When I dreamed it up while trying to devise a dish to go with my husband’s bulgogi for an upcoming supper club party, it quickly became my go-to.

Enjoy!

-Betsy

10 ounces frozen riced cauliflower, steamed in the bag in the microwave for 5 to 6 minutes, according to directions

2.5 ounces baby spinach, wilted for about two minutes in bowl in microwave

2 tablespoons non-dairy cream cheese, flavored or not (I use Tofutti “Smoke”)

1/2 cup mild kimchi with vegetables (I use Cleveland brand from Harris Teeter; in Eastern VA and NC, it is in the cold case in the produce section where vegan items hang out)

1 tablespoon chili crisp (more or less to taste)

Garnishes: Peanuts, sliced scallions, sesame seeds–I like “tuxedo” (black & white mixed)–and optional carrot chip

Stir together cauli and spinach with cream cheese until melted. Stir in kimchi and chili crisp, reheat if necessary, or chill, and serve garnished as drsired.

October 17, 2012October 17, 2012 by betsy

Outstanding Cholesterol, HDL, LDL and Triglyceride Levels Bloom on My Vegan Platter!

I didn’t become a vegan for my own health. It was animal welfare that drove my decision.

But, I am beyond grateful for the healthful “side effects” of this beautiful and nutritious diet.

As a vegetarian, as best as I can recall, my cholesterol level was 200ish. And, by the way, I am hereditarily predisposed to high cholesterol and high blood pressure, especially on my mother’s side (Mama takes medication for both), though my 84 year old father recently started taking medication for the latter.

Tough I have a severe needle phobia (my doctor’s nurse called my a whiny baby…jokingly), the “carrot” of a new $500 health insurance credit based on a health screening convinced me to combine the latter with my annual visit to my gynecologist, Theresa Whibley (yep, the Norfolk City Councilwoman) last week. Part of that screening included a cholesterol panel.

Dr. Whibley’s nurse, Sandra, called me with my profile yesterday practically giddy. Not only have I long had textbook blood pressure, which can tip a little toward the low end, but get a load of these numbers which, incidentally, have varied little since my January 2009 numbers (in parentheses) or improved:

Cholesterol: 154 (153)

HDL (the “good” cholesterol): 89 (79)

LDL (the “bad” cholesterol): 53 (62)

Triglycerides: 62 (58)

I’ll drink (a glass of red wine) to that!

If you aren’t up on the new target numbers, these are off-the-charts fantastic. According to the Mayo Clinic, below 200 is “desirable.” For HDL, 60 or above is considered “best.” for LDL, 100-129 is “near ideal,” but 70 is ideal for those at very high risk for heart disease. And below 150 is desirable for triglycerides.

Wow. I feel incredibly fortunate. And so healthy! But pride cometh before a fall, so I am taking nothing for granted. Still, can we all agree that the vegan diet–not to mention exercise–is truly the heart healthiest way to go?

Here’s to all of us…may we long live in the full bloom of rosy good health!

November 8, 2011January 3, 2014 by betsy

Vegan Cookbook Author “Comes Clean” about Pre-Colonoscopy Diet

Sorry about the indelicate topic folks, but it’s important on many levels. And since we’re all foodies here, and the pre-colonoscopy diet causes many folks high anxiety–me among them–I wanted to share 3 Tips and some other incidental information.

If you are 50 and have no history of colon cancer in your family, it’s time. If you’re not yet 50 and have a family history of the disease–or any other reason to be concerned–then it’s past time.

So, alas, with my “big” birthday last May, and a “staff day” today at school, I scheduled the appointment for 8 a.m. this morning because I hate to leave my students with substitute teachers, however good they may be. Though doctors probably have different protocols, especially in countries outside the U.S., mine requires a clear liquid diet fast for 24 hours in advance.

Ever try finding more than 1 gram of vegan protein per serving on a clear liquid diet? Well, I don’t think you can. Veggie broths are right about 1 gram. Too late, it did occur to me that miso, at 2 grams of soy protein per serving, might have been acceptable. But I would ask your doctor.

As a vegan with low blood sugar–controlled by the optimum ratio of protein, carb and fat, I was really concerned about making it through the day at school without all of the hypoglycemic symptoms. When I called my doctor, the nurse recommended Iso Pure , a protein drink in a rainbow of clear colors. Turns out that it’s great for vegetarians but its whey-based protein makes it off-limits for vegans.

So, Tip #1: on the day before the procedure, rise early enough to eat or drink a high protein breakfast before the clocks strikes the 24-hour prior mark. I recommend drinking that meal for reasons that will become obvious to you later. My beverage of choice was a venti Green Tea Soy Frappuccino–hold the classic syrup and whip, of course–yesterday morning.

For both lunch and dinner, if you can call it that, I drank warm veggie broth with plain hot tea in the afternoon. At school, I dissolved faux chicken bouillon cubes in hot water for lunch. Mmm… But dinner was more satisfying, so here is Tip #2: the day before, I boiled 4 ounces of Udon noodles in 2 quarts of water plus 8 of those bouillon cubes. When I drained the noodles, I reserved the broth, cooling it, and then storing it in an airtight container in the fridge. The added starch and fat in the broth made that a much more satisfying “meal.”

Now for the truly fun and indelicate part. First, whatever you do, don’t get online and start reading about other people’s experience of “the cleanse.” That will do nothing but contribute to your rising anxiety or, in my case, rising panic. My doctor’s protocol began at 5 p.m. the day before. At the appointed hour, I had to take 4, count them, 4, Dulcolax tablets with 2 to 3 glasses of liquid. I decided to take them with my liquid dinner, as I knew I was about to have to drink more than was entirely comfortable.

Immediately after that, I had to drink 4 cup (32 ounces) of a clear liquid–Gatorade was recommended–with a half of a bottle of Miralax dissolved in it! But, guess what? My cocktail was actually quite delicious and here’s why. Tip #3: the nurse had advised really chilling the mixture. I can’t stand Gatorade on a good day, so I chose Healthy Balance apple juice which I chilled the day before. After I mixed in the powdered solution, which is about the same texture as superfine sugar, I poured it over ice. I think I’ll serve it at my next party! Not. But, truly, it wasn’t only “not bad”–and I had been warned by lots of friends that it is “nasty”–but it was actually tasty and satisfying. Maybe it helped that I hadn’t eaten all day.

Then I went ahead and mixed up the other 32 ounces of apple juice and half bottle of “the stuff” as I would be rising at 3 a.m.–5 hours before the procedure–to drink it. I didn’t try it hot which might have been more satisfying on a chilly fall morning. But, as it was, I sat in bed with my dogs piled around me and read the December issue of VegNews. It was quite pleasant.

Now, what follows both of those large doses isn’t the most fun, but only because it prevents a good night’s sleep. Yet, I definitely wouldn’t want to have scheduled my appointment for later in the day and be trying to conduct normal activities. And besides, I don’t know about any of the rest of you about my age, but sleeping through the night is not something I do anyway. I’d say it’s been 8 years since I did that, though part of that was probably starting my new career as a teacher, not to mention adopting the first of our Great Danes who has slept with us from Day 1.

Well, it’s about time for my husband to drive me to the doctor’s office–note that you are required to have a driver take you home after the procedure because of the sedation (something else I’m not thrilled about, as I’m a bit needle phobic). But everyone says that the prep is the worst part…and it wasn’t half bad! I hope my 3 Tips will ensure smooth sailing on your end–sorry, I couldn’t resist–when the time comes.

…

Oh, and for the record, I’ve now been home since about 10:30 or so this morning, the procedure is a piece of (vegan) cake. Seriously. “Conscious sedation” for me meant “lights out.” I don’t remember anything until I woke up in the recovery area, and I certainly didn’t feel a thing except next-to-nothing when the nurse inserted the IV, twice as it turns out, as I was dehydrated and she couldn’t get what she needed. Honestly that was the part I dreaded the most and it was a non-event. I do remember one embarrassing thing I said and they hadn’t even started drugs through the IV yet because they wanted me to meet the doctor. When he came in to chat and shook my hand, I instantly liked him and he was so handsome. So before I knew it, I was saying to him, “Oh gosh, I wish you weren’t so cute.” He laughed, blushed a little, and looked at his nurse saying, “I think that’s a compliment.”

So if your time has come or will soon come, relax. But don’t plan a big lunch afterwards. Everyone said I would be starving. I wasn’t; instead I was ever-so-slightly nauseated, but just for a minute or so when I got home and was moving around a little too much. I took one anti-nausea pill provided by the doctor which did the trick, and then I fell asleep for a nice long while.