Easy Pineapple-Coconut Cake

Yesterday, we were invited to dinner with some friends. I offered to bring dessert. Unfortunately, I got wrapped up in a little blog clean-up and waited until the last minute to find a recipe. Fortunately, I found this recipe over at allrecipes.com.

All ingredients on hand? Check!

Easy to put together? Check!

Relatively short baking time? Check!

PERFECT!

Easy Pineapple-Coconut Cake

Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 30-35 min
Yield: 1 9-inch round cake

Ingredients

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cups sugar
• 1 egg
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 (20oz)can crushed pineapple
• 1/4 cup flaked coconut
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• cream cheese frosting

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9-inch round cake pan.
2. In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, sugar and baking powder. Add egg and mix until well blended. Fold in the pineapple, coconut and walnuts. Pour into the prepared pan.
3. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes in the preheated oven, until center springs back when lightly touched or an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
4. Spread cake with frosting, once cool.

Fluffy French Toast

I wanted something different for breakfast this morning. Actually, I was out of cereal and didn't feel like eggs. How about french toast? Yeah. That sounds good! Besides, I had some hamburger buns in the cupboard that were nearing the end of their lives, so this would be perfect. I hit to the Internet and found a recipe to try. I modified it ever-so-slightly and was very pleased with the result. 

Fluffy French Toast

Yield: 2 servings (2 slices per serving)

Ingredients

• 1 T + 1 tsp flour
• 1/3 cup coconut milk
• 3/8 pinch salt
• 1 egg
• 1/4 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp sugar
• cinnamon
• 4 thick slices bread (I used hamburger buns.)

Directions

1. Measure flour into a bowl. Slowly whisk in the milk. Whisk in the salt, eggs, vanilla extract, and sugar until smooth.
2. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium heat.
3. Soak bread slices in mixture until saturated. Sprinkle with cinnamon, to taste. Place bread on hot pan, cinnamon side down. While cooking first side, sprinkle top with more cinnamon. Flip once bottom is golden brown, and cook second side until golden brown. Repeat for all 4 slices of bread.
4. Serve hot with syrup or toppings of your choice. 

Original recipe can be found on Allrecipes.com. Fluffy French Toast by Bonnie.

Cheezee Sauce

Want to be vegan, but can't give up cheese? Here is a great recipe for when you need a cheese sauce substitute. We had this on top of Salsa Rice and Red Beans and it was TASTY!! It's even Jeff approved. Now, it's not exactly like cheese, but it's very good. Go ahead. Give it a try.

Cheezee Sauce

Yield: 1 1/4 cups

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup nutritional yeast*
• 1 1/2 T cornstarch
• 1/2 tsp + 1/8 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup plain coconut milk
• 1 1/2 tsp olive oil
• 1 tsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 tsp yellow mustard

Directions

1. In a medium saucepan, combine the yeast, cornstarch, salt, and garlic powder. Whisk in the water and coconut milk, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring, until the sauce thickens, about 1-2 minutes.
2. Remove from the heat and stir in the oil, lemon juice, vinegar, and mustard. The sauce is now ready to use. if not using right away, refrigerate the sauce in a container with a tight-fitting lid, where it will keep for several days.

Recipe Credit: Cheezee Sauce. Vegan on the Cheap. Robin Robertson. pg. 36

*Nutritional yeast is not the same as the yeast used in baking bread. It can be found at most natural food stores I think in the bulk section.

WIAW #3

Ok. Seriously. I have not to start eating better and healthier and MORE. I do recall that last week was a pretty bad day. Today, too. BUT Tomorrow is another day, right? A fresh start...

Watermelon
Three Bean Loaf with melted cheese
Peanut M&Ms not the whole bag, thank goodness!
Sandwich Creme Cookies more than I should've had.

What did you eat today (or last week)?

Head over to Peas and Crayons where I'm sure you'll find far more inspiring eats.

Salsa Rice and Red Beans

Another Vegan score for dinner tonight!! This was very tasty, and bonus - Jeff really liked it! Of course, he did add some Frank's Red Hot sauce to it, but he adds that to everything. I no longer take any offense. :-) Seriously, though, this was super easy to make. You won't be disappointed. The original recipe said it yields 4 servings, but I think it yields closer to 6.

Salsa Rice and Red Beans

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

• 1 T Olive oil
• 1 med yellow onion, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 cup long-grain white rice
• 2 cups water
• Salt, to taste
• 2 (15.5-oz) cans dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (28-oz) can crushed tomatoes
• 1 (4-oz) can diced green chiles, drained
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 cup Cheezee Sauce, optional (recipe coming soon)
• 1 large ripe tomato, diced

Directions

1. In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion, cover, and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds longer. Stir in the rice and water. Add salt to taste, cover, and simmer until the rice is tender, 35 to 45 minutes.
2. Stir in the beans, tomatoes, chiles, chili powder, oregano, cumin, and pepper. Simmer to heat through and blend the flavors, about 10 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings, if necessary.
3. Serve hot, topped with the diced tomato and drizzled with the cheezee sauce, if using.

Recipe Credit: Salsa Rice and Red Beans. Vegan on the Cheap. Robin Robertson. pg 132.

Three-Bean Loaf

Once again, I did not have the right size pans or bowls to make this, and, of course, I didn't adjust the recipe quantity. In the midst of preparing this, I had to put it on hold, run to Wal-Mart, and buy large pans and bowls. Oops! BUT now I should be all set for future recipes. Yay!

I thought this was quite tasty! Jeff didn't care for it nearly as much, so I doubt I'll be making it with any frequency. The thing with a bean loaf is to remember that it is NOT meat and will not likely have the same consistency or flavor. If you're expecting meat, you might be disappointed. If you're expecting flavorful beans in a different form, then you might be pleasantly surprised.

This was actually taken the next day, after I'd warmed up a slice in a fry pan.

Three-Bean Loaf

Ingredients

• 1 T Olive oil
• 1 med yellow onion, finely chopped
• 1 celery rib, finely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 (15.5oz) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1 (15.5oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (15.5oz) can dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 2 T soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1 cup dry bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
• 1/2 cup wheat gluten flour (vital wheat gluten)
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 2 T yellow mustard
• 1 T brown sugar
• 2 tsp apple cider vinegar

Directions

1. 1. Preheat the oven to 375F. Lightly oil a 9-inch loaf pan. Set aside.
2. In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, celery, and garlic. Cover and cook until softened, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
3. Place the three varieties of beans in a large bowl. Mash well, leaving some texture. Add the onion-carrot mixture, then stir in 1/4 cup of the ketchup, soy sauce, salt, and pepper. Add the bread crumbs, oats, flour, and parsley. Mix until well combined. Spread the mixture evenly in the prepared pan and smooth the top.
4. In a small bowl, combine the remaining 1/4 cup ketchup with the mustard, sugar, and vinegar. Mix well. Spread the topping mixture over the loaf. Bake until firm, 50 to 60 minutes. If the top begins to brown too much, cover loosely with foil. Remove from the oven and set aside on a wire rack for 10 minutes before slicing.

Recipe Credit: Three-Bean Loaf. Vegan on the Cheap. Robin Robertson. pg 155.

WIAW #2

I can't believe it's been nearly 8 months, since I participated for the first time. I thought I'd make this a regular  thing, but I guess I dropped the ball.

Here's to trying it again...

What I Ate ... Last Wednesday

Orange juice
Kashi cereal
Almond milk
Sliced banana

Garden Rotini and Chickpea Salad

Better Bean Burger on a whole wheat bun
Doritos
Pickle spear
Coke

Marble cake (2 slices)

Writing up this post, it certainly seems like I would have had more to eat, but I'm positive this is all I had. Must have been all the water I drank. :-) I did include a few bad-for-you splurges, but overall I'd call it a relatively healthy day. 

How will I do this week?

Pasta e Fagioli

This one comes with a bit of a funny story. When we left MN, we anticipated being on the road for a long time and space was very limited. We got rid of most everything - including most of our kitchen stuff. We kept one small fry pan and one small pot (2qt). I didn't think much of it when I began making this recipe, but when I still hadn't added the pasta, I was in some trouble. I had to get a little creative. It was humorous (at least to me). I had to try to divide the partially cooked ingredients between a bowl and the pot and hope I got it divided evenly. It was a mess! :-)

The end result was really tasty, though. This comes even Jeff-approved. Don't forget the salt and pepper!

Ingredients:

• 2T olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 (28-oz) can crushed tomatoes
• 1 (15.5-oz) can white beans, drained and rinsed
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp dried basil
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• Salt and black pepper
• 8 oz elbow macaroni or other small pasta
• 1 tsp dried parsley

Directions:

1. Heat olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until softened, about 1 minute. Reduce the heat to low and stir in the tomatoes. Add the beans, oregano, basil, bay leaf, stock, and salt and pepper. Simmer over low heat for about 20 minutes.

2. In a large pot of boiling water, cook the macaroni over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until it is al dente, about 7 minutes. Drain well and add to the bean mixture along with the parsley.

3. Simmer gently to blend flavors and finish cooking the pasta, about 10 minutes. Remove the bay leaf and discard. Taste and adjust the seasonings, if necessary, before serving. Serve hot.

Recipe credit: Pasta e Fagioli. Vegan on the Cheap by Robin Robertson. Pg 64.

Better Bean Burgers

The last time I attempted to make non-beef burgers, Jeff thought they were disgusting. I, of course, loved them! When I found this recipe for black bean burgers, I thought it was worth a try. We both enjoyed them this time. Score! The consistency is slightly different from a regular burger, but the taste was good - especially with the condiments. :-)

Ingredients:

• 1 (15.5oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 3 T wheat gluten flour (vital wheat gluten)
• 1/2 c dry bread crumbs
• 1/4 c red onion, minced
• 2 tsp dried parsley
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 2 T olive oil
• 4 burger rolls
• Condiments of choice

Directions:

1. Place the beans in a medium bowl and mash well. Sprinkle the flour on the beans and mix well to combine. Add the bread crumbs, onion, parsley, salt, and pepper. Mix well. Use your hands to shape the mixture into 4 patties, no more than 1/4 inch thick. Set aside.

2. In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the burgers, cover, and cook for 5 minutes. Uncover, use a spatula to flip the burgers, and cook, uncovered, for an additional 5 minutes.

3. Serve on burger rolls with your favorite condiments.

Recipe credit: Better Bean Burgers. Vegan on the Cheap by Robin Robertson. Pg 178.