Cyd Notter

Author and Nutrition Educator, Founder of The "Plan A" Diet™

Easy Tostadas are Muy Bien!

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Are you craving a crunchy taco?  I sure was, but I had given up searching for crispy taco shells years ago since most store-bought shells contain lots of oils.  And I although I could bake my own shells using the small corn tortillas, I decided to once again peruse the grocery shelves to see what's out there.

Then I stumbled upon these Charras oil-free, baked corn tostadas in the ethnic section of the grocery store.  Oh. My. Goodness.

These baked corn tostadas are incredibly yummy and so versatile!  You can top with your own mixture of rice/beans; or sautéed burrito spiced veggies; or make incredible nachos with Mexican Cheese Sauce; or break into chips for use with your favorite guacamole or salsa recipes.

One of our new personal favorites is to top a crispy tostada with: 

  • Fat free refried beans (any variety, just be sure they're oil-free).  Spread as thick as you wish.
  • Add 1-2 TBSP of Taco Meat  (see note)
  • Drizzle a bit of Fat-free Mexican Cheese Sauce
  • Add chopped tomatoes, green onions, shredded lettuce.  Oh, and jalapeno if you like the heat.
  • Your favorite taco sauce (optional)

(Note:  For the taco meat, I used 3 cups of "riced cauliflower" that I purchased in the frozen section of Walmart, 4 oz. mushrooms, and 1 cup of walnuts, along with the spices as shown in the link).

So far I've seen the Charras Baked Tostadas at Fresh Thyme and at certain Walmart stores; they're reasonably priced between $2.20 - $2.70 a package.

I'd love to hear some of your ideas or see a photo of what you create!

 

 

Three Thumbs-Up Recipes, and Our Next Potluck

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If you're like me, you might have a file folder (or computer file) labeled "Recipes To Try".  Well I went into the folder this week and decided to make three recipes from Chuck at the "Brand New Vegan" website.  Here's how they turned out:

Creamy Fat Free Macaroni and Cheese

The 'cheese' sauce for this recipe is really good.  The base of the sauce is potatoes and carrots, and as Chuck points out in the recipe, it's creamy, cheesy and decadent.  I agree!  The recipe calls for a bag of frozen veggies to be stirred in at the end of the pasta boiling time, but instead I bought a bag of carrot/broccoli/cauliflower steamers, microwaved them, and stirred them in after the pasta was drained.  The nice thing is that you can add it whatever veggies you want!  Also, I did not have brown mustard on hand, but used Dijon and it worked fine.  NOTE:  The cheesy sauce recipe does make more than you'll need, so you can either make additional pasta, or save the extra sauce for potatoes, nachos, or wherever you like to eat cheese sauce!

Crispy Baked Onion Rings

I've been craving some really good onion rings, so when I saw this recipe in the "To Try" file, I quickly pulled it out and decided today's the day.  I followed the recipe pretty much to the tee (except that I forgot to cover the onions while they were soaking in the fridge for an hour).  I'm not sure if that mattered, I'll find out next time I make them.  In any case, these turned out really well, and yes they are crispy!

Easy Veggie Lo Mein

 I typically haven't chosen Lo Mein dishes in the past when we ordered Chinese....but this recipe looked like an interesting comfort food and I had almost everything on hand.  One item I had to purchase was "chili garlic sauce", and I'm not sure if I used too much, but it proved to be a bit too spicy for my delicate palate.  I can tolerate a little heat, but this one made me break into a sweat; again, perhaps I added too much.   I was also expecting a sweeter tasting sauce, but I'm not sure why since I've never ordered Lo Mein!  The recipe calls for only 1 tsp. of brown sugar, which should have been a clue.  Anyway, I added a little "sweet chili sauce" to my own plate which made mine a bit sweeter (but still very spicy for me).  This is a great recipe, I just need to tweak the sauce by cutting back on the chili garlic sauce.  My advice is to start with just a little and add as you go.

I also used mixed greens instead of spinach, just because I had the mixed greens on hand.

Lastly, I found both the Chili Garlic Sauce and the Sweet Chili Sauce in the Asian section at my local Walmart.

Have you tried any new whole-food, plant-based, oil-free recipes lately that you feel are "keepers"?  If so, we'd love to hear about it!

OUR NEXT POTLUCK:  If you live in the area of Wilmington, IL, we're hosting our next "World's Healthiest Potluck" on Friday May 12, 2017.  More details can be found here.   (Seating is limited.  RSVP's are requested, and the deadline to reserve a spot is Sunday May 7).

Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well.  (3 John 1:2)

Chinese or Mexican?

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We tried a few new recipes recently, and here are the keepers!

Vegan Orange Chicken

This recipe from Brand New Vegan.com is very tasty.  The 'chicken' is actually battered and baked cauliflower bites, and the thick orange sauce is easy to prepare.  I found it to be just a tad bit time consuming, since there are several separate components (making batter and baking cauliflower, sautéing vegetables, making rice and preparing the orange sauce).  Still, I will definitely make this again; unsalted peanuts and/or water chestnuts would make a nice addition.  Note that the recipe is served over rice (although 'rice' does not appear on the ingredient list).

 

Mexican Style Bean and Rice Casserole

This casserole is delicious as is, but can also be used as a burrito filling (and topped with salsa, lettuce, guac or whatever you prefer).  The  only things I did differently are as follows:  I used a 9x13 casserole (the mixture wouldn't fit an 8x8 pan, as called for);  and I did not use the 'no-cheese sauce' recipe linked to the recipe.  I used an alternate cheese sauce because I had all the ingredients on hand.  Whichever cheese sauce you use, be sure it makes enough for the casserole (which is 2.5 cups).  Also, there are comments on this recipe to cut the zucchini smaller than suggested.

 

You can also find 'cheese' sauces here (both are tried and true, we enjoy them both):

Easy Vegan Mexican Cheese Sauce

Fat-free Vegan Cheese Sauce

PS - I'd be interested to know if you give these recipes a try!

Visit our website to learn more about the 'Plan A' Diet™ 

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What's on your Thanksgiving menu this year?  Here are some favorites that are being considered at our place (keeping in mind that GRAVY is a must!)

Main Dish:

Either Mary McDougall's Tofu Loaf (which we sampled last month at the Advanced Study weekend, and it was delicious.  OR, the vegan 8's "Oat Free Spicy Vegan BBQ Lentil Loaf", which is also wonderful.

Roasted Mashed Potatoes (or garlic) mashed, topped with Creamy Golden Gravy or Rich Brown Gravy. 

Soup:  Sweet Potato and White Bean Curry Soup - with roasted broccoli - one of my personal faves.

Side Dishes:

Berry Apple Relish - a wonderful side dish!  The combo of green apples, cranberries, frozen raspberries and apricot jam is a winner.

Garlicky Green Beans is on the radar as a possibility, as well as

Tossed green salad with all the trimmings, topped with any of these oil-free dressings.

Chef AJ's Maple Glazed Brussels Sprouts - YUMMY.

Rolls - try the whole-wheat Artisan rolls found in the freezer at Whole Foods.  Or a healthy whole-grain, oil-free bread can be found in many grocery stores.

Dessert:

Impossible Pumpkin Pie - a tried and true favorite for my hubby, who LOVES pumpkin pie.  (I used canned pure pumpkin and it works fine).

Vanilla Cream Sauce - to top that pumpkin pie!

Mary McDougall's Chocolate Cream Pie (tried this at the Study Weekend - VERY good).

Baked Stuffed Apples - Although I haven't tried this version, it looks similar to many others that have proven to be delicious.

These are just a few suggestions to consider.  Of course there are HUNDREDS  (probably thousands) of other whole-food, plant-based, no-oil recipes that are equally as scrumptious, including "Sweet Potato Bakes" and "Stuffed Squash" recipes that would certainly fit the occasion.

Give thanks to God this year for our bountiful harvest of delicious foods which nourish and promote health in our bodies.  What a gift!

~ Happy Thanksgiving from our home to yours ~

 

 

https://cydnotter.com/2016/11/1192/

What Shall we Eat?

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WHAT SHALL WE EAT?!

I have been experimenting with plant-based recipes for over 23 years. And since my husband and I have slightly different palates and texture preferences, a recipe has to please BOTH of us in order to be considered a "keeper". I will only print the keepers; however, I encourage you to do your own experimenting as you get more familiar with a variety of foods which may be new to you.

People tend to eat the same 6 - 8 dinner recipes over and over, so it won't take long to find the ones you like - then you're really on your way! To stay motivated and enjoy food to the fullest, experiment with at least one new recipe each week! Lasagnas, burritos, pastas, soups and stews, casseroles, appetizers, desserts, 'meat' loaves, enchiladas..........it's amazing what you can do with plants!

There are thousands and thousands of whole food, plant based, oil-free recipes on line. I'll be posting a few of our favorites, but you can also View our Recommended Resources for some links to find great recipes!

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