The Best Spicy Stir Fry

Leslie's Special New Stir-Fry
Serves 3 hungry people (probably 4)

Marinade:
5T tamari (or soy sauce)
2T rice vinegar
juice of 1 lime
1.5t red curry paste (this is the part that gives it spice and ties the recipe together)*red curry paste ingredients: red chili, garlic, lemongrass, thai ginger, salt, onion, kaftir lime, coriander, pepper*
2t agave nectar
1t fresh ginger, grated, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1T olive oil (optional)

Stir-Fry:
1/2c edamame
1c thin sliced bell peppers
1/4t red pepper flakes
14oz rice noodles
2-3 carrots, peeled, cut
1/2 small onion, cut
1t arrowroot
2 more cloves garlic, minced
10oz firm tofu cut into triangles

Method: In a container with a lid, combine marinade ingredients and place pressed and cut tofu in the container. Let sit for at least an hour, shaking or stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, fill a saucepot with water and bring to a boil. Take off the heat and add rice noodles. Soak for 10 minutes then rinse and drain with cold water. Set aside for later.

Heat a wok with olive oil and add stir-fry ingredients, minus the arrowroot. Cook on med-high for a few minutes and then add the tofu. Keep the marinade in the container and add the arrowroot, stirring to dissolve. Add arrowroot-marinade mix to the wok and heat until it is a thicker sauce and veggies are cooked and heated through. Serve over rice noodles or quinoa.

Gyspy Soup

Leslie's Soup of the Gypsies
~serves a lot (use a 6qt pot)~
2T (or less) olive oil
1 large onion, chopped small
3 stalks celery, diced
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 green bell pepper, diced
2 sweet potatoes, peeled, diced small
1 large or 2 small yams, peeled and diced small
2t paprika
1t ground tumeric
1t basil, dried
1t sea salt
black pepper to taste
1/8-1/4t cinnamon, ground
1/8t cayenne pepper, ground
1 bay leaf
5-6 cups water1 bullion cube or stock equiv.
1T tamari
2c chickpeas (or a 25oz can)
15oz can great northern beans (or white beans)
1/2 can diced tomatoes
My variations include: one time I didn't use northern beans, just a lot of chickpeas, the next time I also didn't use any tomato, which I prefer.
The second time I made this I also used 3 purple potatoes which made the soup even more colorful along with a jewel yam and garnet yam, both locally grown at the co-op. My green bell pepper was also locally grown at an aquiantance's home.

Method: Heat olive oil in the soup pot over medium to high heat. Saute the onion, garlic, celery, green bell pepper and sweet potato (or equiv) for about 10 minutes, until semi-soft. Season with paprika, tumeric, basil, salt, cinnamon, cayenne, salt and pepper and the bay leaf. Stir to blend and then add the water, bullion and tamari. Cover and simmer over low heat for about 20 minutes or until potatoes are soft. Add beans and tomatoes if using and simmer for another 10 minutes, uncovered, until all the veggies are tender. If they aren't close to being tender, keep the lid on for a bit longer. Remove the bay leaf and consume.

Quinoa Lentil Patties

Lentil Quinoa Patties
Ingredients are as follows (but not limited to).
I also didn't really measure!
red lentils, cooked
*about 1cquinoa, cooked with lentils because I'm lazy sometimes *
about 3/4c olive oil *about two teaspoons total and just used for saute
garlic *2 cloves and I roasted it first
raw cashews *about a handful.
red, yellow and green bell peppers *about 1/2c minced
one jalepeno, seeded
onion
fresh parsley *about a tablespoon or so
carrots *1.5 diced
celery *just one stalk, diced
hoisin sauce *about 2 tablespoons
rice vinegar *about 2 tablespoons
sea salt *to taste (I used about a teaspoon, but would have liked more)
ground black pepper, to taste
chili flakes *a pinch
tahini *2 tablespoons
whole wheat breadcrumbs for the outside
spelt flour ***note: I ended up using this because I needed a binder. I probably added about 3 tablespoons, 2 more than I wanted to.
Overall, these patties were great. It took me almost 2 hours total but that is because I let the mixture chill in the fridge for a while so it could 1: cool down, 2: bind together better, 3: get me out of the kitchen for a while.

FruitShake

*Leslie's Fruitshake
Soy Delicious Cookies n Cream soy ice cream (my favorite one, but any ice cream will still be awesome)
vanilla soymilk
hemp-seeds, shelled
mangos
blueberries
strawberries
raspberries
cherries
blackberries
boysenberry
(*all items organic except for the hemp seeds and they may even be too, but I get them in bulk so I don't have a label)
Method: Take handfuls of fruit and dump it on top of the soymilk in a blender. Add hemp seeds (or flax seeds) and blend until smooth. Consume.

Let me explain something about the abundance of fruits. I like to keep frozen fruits in the house because of instances like this (Fruitshakes), pancakes, emergency snacks, etc. I get them on sale or buy them even fresh on sale and freeze them.

Almond Oat Balls

Leslie's Special Raw Almond-Oat Balls
3 c. rolled oats
1/2 c. pepitas (pumpkin seeds), raw
1/2 c. raisins
1/4 c. raw sunflower seeds
1.5 t. cinnamon
3/4 c. almond butter (you can get away with only 1/2 c.)
1/3 c. + 1T. brown rice syrup
2 T. barley malt syrup
1.5 t. vanilla
1/4 c. coconut, shredded

Method: Take about 1/3c. rolled oats and 1/4c. pepitas and grind them in a food processor, blender, or use a hammer to turn into a powder. Set aside on a small plate. Forget about this for a while... Combine dry ingredients. Stir. Add from almond butter down to the end of the list. Stir it all together. Grab a shallow bowl and fill with water. Wet fingers and palms and spoon batterfuls into hands and form 1-inch balls. Coat with oat/pepita powdery mixture. Place on cookie sheet and freeze 20 minutes. Take out and store in the fridge. Enjoy.

Chickpea and Bulghar Patties

Bulghar and Chickpea Patties
List of ingredients (no order)
bulgar (cooked first, then cooled)
chickpeas (same process, but then I put these and veggies in the food processor)
carrots
fresh Italian parsley
garlic (a shitload)
olive oil (to fry, just a tad)
red onion
tamari
ground black pepper
sea salt
ground corriander
cumin, ground
paprika
fresh grated turmeric (my fingers and cutting board is yellow. good thing the counter already is)red chili flakes
cayenne
baking powder (a pinch)
fresh lemon juice
I wanted to put tahini in these as a binder, but I was all out. I wanted to reserve it for the sauce. With that said, use a lot of tahini.

Sweet Dinner Pancakes (not diner)

Sweet Dinner Pancakes
2c flour (whole wheat pastry)
1 t. baking soda
1 t. baking powder (non aluminum)
2 c. soymilk (if you use unsweetened it won't stick)
2 T. oil
1/2 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. nutmeg (or less)
pinch of sea sal
t1 T. flax seed, ground
choice of fruit. Handful of each.

Method: Sift flour, baking soda, baking powder, flax seed, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt together. Add milk and oil. Stir. Add fruit. Stir, but don't over do it. Heat oil on a skillet. Pour batter by the spoonful and flip over when bubbly and golden underneath. Serve with blueberry syrup (1:1 ratios).

Organic Chili slash Quinoa Tacos

Leslie's Awesome Organic Chili Recipe
1T olive oil
1 small yellow onion
5 cloves garlic
1t sea salt
black pepper to taste
1t cumin
2t cayenne (could use more!)
1t paprika
1t oregano
1 green bell pepper
1/2 red bell pepper (that's what I had, but use a whole one if you have it)
32 oz canned fire roasted diced tomatoes
1 habanero pepper
1 jalepeno pepper
2 cans black beans
1 can kidney beans
1c frozen corn
handful of chopped fresh cilantro

Method: First heat the oil and add the onions, garlic and spices. Cook it until the onions are clear and the spices fill up your house with awesomeness. Toss in the rest of the ingredients (except for some of the cilantro), bring them to a boil and then reduce to simmer until it is thick (about 30 minutes).
While that is simmering it's a good idea to make the quinoa or other grain. Add the remaining cilantro towards the end of cooking or toss it on top of each individual serving. Taste the chili to make sure it's how you like, then do what you want with it.

Special Pesto

Leslie's Special Pesto Recipe
(it's special because you can use it with pasta, pizza, sandwiches, dip, filling and probably more)

1/4c. walnuts or almonds
1/2c. pinenuts
3 cups packed basil leaves, no stems
2-3 large cloves crushed garlic
1t. sea salt
dash of black pepper
1/3c. olive oil
1/4-1/3c. nutritional yeast flakes
2t. lemon juice

Blend everything except the oil and the nutritional yeast in a blender or food processor. When that all starts to get pureed (or too stiff your blender can't handle it), start to pour the olive oil while blending. Add the nutritional yeast and blend a bit more. Makes about 2 cups.(note: I love pesto with walnuts, pinenuts and almonds. Use all of them, just one, or in their own combos, these raw nuts really tie the pesto together. Feel free to experiment with variety.)

Tofu Noodle Soup (on my Top 5 list of soups)

Tofu Noodle Soup
This yields about 4 quarts.
1T olive oil
3 large celery stalks, diced small
4-5 carrots, peeled and diced small
4-5 cloves garlic, minced
2t. minced or grated fresh ginger
1 yellow onion, small, diced
8c water
2 boullion cubes (or broth equiv)
1 to 1.5t dried dill (you must add this, I use even more!)
1t. oregano (all seasonings are dry)
1t. basil
1/4 to 1/2t. paprika
1t sea salt (I use low-sodium bullion)
1t black pepper
1t tumeric
1/2t thyme
8oz thin noodles broken into 1.5" sticks
8oz firm tofu, pre-baked, pre-fried, or make your own like I do using firm tofu, pressed, heat up a bit of olive oil in a pan, place 1/2" thick squares on the pan and add all of the same spices you put in the soup plus optional breadcrumbs and heat until golden brown. Dice small.

Method: In a large stockpot (I use 6 quarts), heat olive oil and add carrots, celery, onion, garlic and ginger. Heat on medium and add 2T of water (I just grab a bit from the sink in my palm). Put a lid on and let it "sweat" for 10 minutes, stirring once or twice. Carefully take the lid off (the steam is quick and hot) and turn up the heat. Add the boullion or broth, water, and all the spices. Bring to a rapid simmer and then lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes or until the veggies are soft.
Take the lid off, increase the heat again but not as high, and add the noodles. Cook them 5-8 minutes, until al dente. As soon as you throw the noodles in is a good time to start sauteing the tofu. Heat the tofu in a bit of olive oil, and a pinch of each spice in the soup, plus 1T soy sauce (optional, but good) and mix and heat until crispy and brown. The noodles should be soft but not mushy now. Lower the heat even more, add the tofu. Stir, serve immediately. If you don't serve immediately, you can choose not to add the tofu right away. I like to put it in at the last minute but other times I like it soaking, even overnight. It's up to you. There are many spices total, but they totally make the soup wonderful. I even use a lot more tumeric and ginger.

Multi-Fruit Sorbet

Sorbet
Choose your personal preffered amount of fruit.
Per type of fruit, add about
1 T. agave nectar.
Fruit combos used:
peach,
plum,
blackberry,
strawberry,
kiwi-lemon-lime,
blueberry,
strawberry-banana.

Method: Freeze fruits at least 2 hours before preparing. In a food processor, blend fruit with a spoonful of agave nectar (or sugar). Place in a glass, bowl, or container and stick it in the freezer just for a few minutes. You can even eat it right away.

Blueberry Grunt

My Organic Blueberry Grunt Recipe
serves 3 to 4 people
2c frozen or fresh blueberries, organic
1/2c. raw sugar
1/2c. spelt flour
1/4c. stone ground whole wheat flour
1t. baking powder
1/8t. sea salt
1/4t. ground cinnamon
1/8t. nutmeg
1/3c. + 2T. soymilk

Method: In a 2 or 3 quart saucepot, combine berries and half of the sugar. Cook over medium heat, stirring often until the berries come to a boil. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine flours, baking powder, sea salt, remaining sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg in a bowl. Add milk, just to moisten.
Drop tablespoon-fulls of batter into the boiling blueberries. You can let them touch each other, they will seperate. Cover with a tight fitting lid and lower heat to med-low. Cook without lifting the lid for 15 minutes. To serve, use a large, flat spoon and lift out "cakes" and serve with ice cream. It is also good alone, but always better with ice cream.

Quinoa Red Lentil Stew

Leslie's Special Lentil Quinoa Stew
*yields aprox. 3 quarts (probably serves 6, I served 3 super-hungry people and have leftovers for 2 more)
1T olive oil
1 med-large onion, diced
2 celery stalks, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
5c total liquid (H2O, veg broth, etc)
1c red lentils, sorted and rinsed
1/2c quinoa, rinsed for 2 minutes
1t basil, dried
1t oregano, dried
1t sea salt
1t black pepper
2t salsa (or if you actually have real tomatoes use 1)
1/2t cilantro, dried, or 1/4c loose fresh
2T apple cider vinegar

Method: In a large stockpot on medium heat saute onions in olive oil until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the rest of the veggies and spices and stir. Turn heat up to medium-high and add the water (or equiv), lentils and quinoa. Stir. Cover. Bring to a boil and lower the heat. Simmer for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally. With an immersion blender (or in 1/2 batches, carefully), puree only 1/2 of the soup. This step isn't necessary, but blends everything nicely (highly recommended). Turn off the heat and let it chill. Finally, add the salsa (or equiv), cilantro and apple cider vinegar. Stir and serve.

Lentil Veggie Unwraps

Lentil Veggie Wraps
red lentils, cooked
whole wheat tortillas (one per person, unless super-hungry)
sesame oil *(mine wasn't toasted)
rice vinegar
sea salt, iodized
ground black pepper
carrots
romaine lettuce, super-crispy-stem-parts removed*
long, thin cucumber slices
jalepeno pepper*
and leftover red lentil hummus* (garbanzos, red lentils, spanish paprika, garlic, cumin, tahini, olive oil, lemon juice, sea salt)
cilantro

Note: all veggies were raw.
The only thing cooked was lentils, rice and previously garbanzos (for the hummus).

Pile together. Serve wrapped or unwrapped. Serve with some sort of vinegarrete or tahini sauce or dressing.

Faux Apple Crumble (no-bake)

Leslie's Faux-Baked Organic Apple Crumble
serves 4
3 large apples, keep the peel on, diced
3 handfuls of organic rolled oats
1 handful walnuts (toasted yourself or untoasted is ok)
1 handful pecans (same as above)
1/3c maple syrup
pinch of sea salt
1T brown rice syrup
1t blackstrap molasses (for added nutrition)
1t cinnamon, ground
1/4t nutmeg, ground

Method: In a small pot or skillet, toast the nuts and oats until you smell the wonderful aroma, and not anything burnt, about medium-high heat. Mix in the syrups, salt and molasses. Reduce the flame and stir for about 5 minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients, including the chopped apples, and mix around. Heat for a few more minutes and take off the stove. Cover the pot and let the heat steam the apples to get a bit softer for 5 minutes. Serve over ice cream (or plain) and enjoy.

Leslie's Sloppy Lenties

Leslie's Version of Sloppy Lenties... serves a lot (freezes very well)
Ingredients:
1.5 c. rinsed and drained red lentils
3c. water
2c. tomato sauce or fresh tomatoes or whatever you want
1 T. tamari (soy sauce)
3-4 carrots, chopped
1 bell pepper of choice
a few big handfuls of kale, chopped
about 1/2 or 1 whole onion, chopped
pinch of chili flakes
1t. dried basil
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
habenero pepper (if you feel like it)

Method: Combine dried lentils, water, tomato sauce, tamari and bring to a boil.

While waiting, chop (food processor is best to get real small) the veggies and mix together. Add to pot of lentils. Add chili flakes and basil and whatever else you feel like. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes to an hour. Stir every once in a while. Enjoy with a spoon or some bread (or anything else good you can think of, like a bread bowl, see below).

Chocolate Mousse

Chocolate Mousse

12 oz silken tofu
3 oz bittersweet chocolate
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 c boiling water
1 t vanilla
2/3 c raw sugar (or agave nectar)
coconut to top or fruit

Method: Puree tofu in a food processor until smooth. In a seperate bowl, combine cocoa and chocolate and add boiling water, stir. Add vanilla. Add sugar. Add this bowl to the tofu and blend in the processor until mixed. Chill at least 1 hour.

Chickpea and Red Lentil Stew

Leslie's Chickpea and Red Lentil Soup
1/2c green peppers, diced
1/2 medium onion, diced
3 carrots, sliced and peeled
1c veggie broth
2c water
1 15oz can chickpeas
14oz can diced fire roasted tomatos
1c red lentils, rinsed and drained
1t salt
few dashes black pepper
1/2t tumeric
2 cloves garlic, minced
1T olive oil

Method: In a 3 quart stockpot, saute onions and carrots in olive oil until onions are translucent. Add garlic and saute for a few minutes longer. Add the rest of the ingredients and cover. Bring to a boil and then lower the heat to simmer. Simmer for about 30 minutes, or until lentils are soft and soup has thickened. *Edit to add: to make the soup like the photo, simply blend 1/2 the soup with an immersion blender or take 1/2 the soup in batches and carefully blend in a blender or food processor. Enjoy as a soup/stew or serve over a grain. Makes almost 3 quarts.

Fruit Mousse Cups

Fruit Mousse Cups
Ingredients:
tofu, silken
cocoa
vanilla
water
phyllo pastry cups (10 calories each)
blueberries
blackberries
strawberries
kiwi
mango

Method: Make tofu mousse. Add to phylo cups. Cut fruit and arrange on top of mousse. Store chilled.

Boiled Cookies

Boiled Cookies

1/2 c. Earth Balance (or other margarine)
1.5 c. agave nectar
1/2c. soymilk
4 T. cocoa
1 T. flax, ground
1/2 c. peanut butter or other nut butter
1/2 t. vanilla
3 c. oats

Method: Heat all ingredients except for oats until boiling. Lower and simmer for a few minutes, stir a lot. Add mixture to a bowl of rolled oats. Stir together. Place droplets onto a waxed cookie sheet and chill in fridge. Store in the fridge too.

My Best Banana Bread

Best Banana Bread
5-6 ripe bananas, mashed
1 T. fresh lemon juice
1/2 c. oil or apple sauce
1/2 c. sweetener of choice
1/2 c. blueberries
1/3c. grain sweetened chocolate chips
1.5 c. whole wheat flour
1/2 c. wheat germ
1/2 t. sea salt
1/2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda

Method: Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a small bowl, mash bananas, add lemon juice, oil, sweetener, and blueberries and mix together. In a seperate large bowl, stir the flour, wheat germ, salt, baking powder and soda. Add banana mix to the flour mix. Don't over stir. Spoon onto a loaf pan and bake for about 45 minutes, check with a knife. Can also be made with any desired fruit or made into muffins.

Powerhouse Treats

Powerhouse Treats
"Leslie's PowerHouse Treats"
Ingredients:
organic brown rice cereal puffs (like rice crispies)
rolled oats (not instant kind)
cocoa
raw organic almond butter (I squeezed it but melted it down, not raw anymore)
raw organic peanut butter (same as above)
organic brown rice syrup
organic agave nectar
raw almonds (ok, I'm not going to say *organic* anymore, most if not all items are)
raw walnuts
raw pecans
raw sunflower seeds
organic raisins
coconut, shredded
hemp seeds
flax seeds, whole
sea salt
barley sweetened chocolate chips
cinnamon
vanilla, have to say it... organic.

Everything is mixed together. I melted down (on super-low heat) the almond butter, peanut butter, brown rice syrup, agave nectar, cinnamon, vanilla and cocoa. Then I mixed up the rest of the dry ingredients and poured the hot mix over the dry. Then I stood on a step-stool (for better views, reach and method) and I mixed with all my might. And yes, with my clean bare hands.

Killian likes treats too.