Apple Cinnamon Quinoa with Almonds (Paleo, Vegan, GF, Clean)

So I've discovered that being vegan is one of the most delicious lifestyles ever, despite common misconceptions that veganism means eating leaves all day. I'm in love with so many of recipes that I will be posting soon. I hope you'll try them and discover a few new favorites as well! Today, I had what my co-worker referred to as "Apple Crisp" for breakfast. That's how good it smells and tastes… Little does he know… *Cue evil Vegan laughter*

Apple Cinnamon Quinoa with Almonds

Ingredients:

1/4 cup dairy free butter (I used coconut)

3 medium apples, peeled and diced

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

3/4 cups uncooked quinoa

1/4 cup brown sugar (optional)

2 cups unfiltered fresh apple juice

1 teaspoon vanilla

Dairy-free milk (optional, hemp is our favorite!)

Sliced almonds, dry cranberries/raisins (optional)

Start by "melting" the butter in a skillet. If you are using coconut butter, it won't really melt. It just gets all ooey-gooey. Add the apples, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Stir that puppy up to coat every apple in goodness. Cook for about 5 minutes until the apples start getting soft.

 Add in the brown sugar, apple juice, vanilla and uncooked quinoa and stir. Cover.

 Let cook on low to medium heat for about 2 hours or until it has an oatmeal-y (ok, I made that word up) texture. Spoon into a bowl and add almonds, cranberries, raisins, more sugar, and dairy-free milk. If you are SMART like me, you'll keep the leftovers for a hassle free breakfast you can enjoy throughout the work week. Nothing like a good protein packed breakfast to get your day off to a good start!! 

Happy Eating! 

Whole Wheat Italian Cheese Crackers (Paleo, Clean)

If you read my blog regularly, you know that I make snacks to send to school with Roo, since they only serve processed food with no nutrition. A while back I made these Spelt Flour Wheat Thins and sent them to school with her. They were a hit with the adults and some of her friends, but she said they made her too thirsty… Uh, please girl. The excuses toddlers come up with are so entertaining, right? Anyway, she's into cheese crackers currently so I looked up a recipe and gave it a shot. I've made them a few times now and as a warning, these take about 45-60 minutes to make, so I always double up the recipe so the batch lasts longer and I don't have to make them as frequently.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour (or spelt, gluten-free, etc)
1/2 cup flax seed meal (or ground your own flax seed)
*If you want to substitute 1/4 cup of any flour for coconut, that's what I did*
1 cup rolled oats, blended into a fine powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp paprika
2 tbsp finely chopped basil
2/3 cup water
1/2 cup olive oil (or coconut)
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, blended in a food processor into small chunks

Blend the oats into fine powder. Blend the cheese into small chunks.

Mix all ingredients until a dough forms. You may need to add a splash more water if it is too dry.

Roll out the dough on a floured surface. Try to get the dough as thin as possible. The thinner the dough, the crisper the cracker will be. If you want to be SUPER MOM: use a fun shaped cookie cutter to cut out the crackers. I did this the first time and then I realized, ain't nobody got time for that shit. If you want to retain any ounce of sanity: just cut the rolled dough into squares with a knife. Trust me, they will be just as popular in squares as they would be in stars or hearts or whatever the hell else you think your kid wants. I digress.

Place the crackers on an ungreased cookie sheet. They can be super close, almost touching, since they won't puff up at all. I lightly sprinkle salt over the sheet when it is full before popping it in the oven. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes. The thinner the cracker, the less time it will take. I set the timer for 15 and add on 5 minutes at a time if they aren't done. They are done when they are hard to the touch and golden brown- like me after my Hawaiian vacation :D

Let cool completely before storing or they will get soft. Enjoy! Until next time, happy eating!

Crockpot Curry Chicken and Vegetables (GF, Clean, Paleo)

So…. I love my crockpot, but I'm not a huge fan of curry dishes. Regardless, I decided I should be a little more adventurous and try this recipe. For those of you that like Thai food, you'll LOVE this!

Ingredients:
1 pound boneless chicken (thighs, breast, tenders… whatever!)
1 onion, halved and sliced thinly
4 garlic cloves, sliced thinly
16 slices fresh peeled ginger (about 1 oz)
1 1/2 Tbspn curry powder
1 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp salt
1 package frozen peas
1 cup baby carrots
1 cup unsweetened coconut milk
1/2 cup toasted cashews (for garnish)
(I added some cilantro garnish as well, but didn't like it with the curry, FYI!)

Add chicken, onion, carrot, garlic, ginger, curry, and cumin to your crockpot. Stir to coat and cook on high for about 4 hours.

During this time, toast your cashews, if you choose to use them, under the broiler or at 500 degrees. Keep a very close eye on them as they will burn quickly!

Stir in coconut milk and peas. Cook for about 20 more minutes.

Pull the chicken out and use a fork to shred it. At this point the chicken should pretty much fall apart when you so much as look at it… so it shouldn't take too much effort. Return it to the crockpot and stir to coat.

I served mine over brown rice and garnished with cashews and cilantro. As I mentioned before, I wouldn't recommend using cilantro- the flavor profile got confusing with curry and cilantro. I was all like, "Am I eating Thai or Mexican? ….Thaixican? Weird." With that being said, the dish was actually pretty good. And very easy! I made it for my parents and they LOVED it (they are huge Thai fans). If you make this recipe, let me know what you thought! :)

Until then, Happy Eating!