Vegan Chocolate PB Chex Mix, Broccoli Salad, Sweet Potatoe Fries

How's it going cuties?  I'm glad the cute Raw Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls caused such excitement!  Sounds like they brought some cheer to an otherwise hum-drum Monday.  Couple reports back from the field already were that they do work with almond or even just whole wheat flour.  So for anyone who asked about subbing out flours, there ya go!  Another yummy thing for these bad boys would be to whip up some softserve and make yourself some dairy free raw cookie dough ice cream.  Hello, delish!!!!!  I bet my friend Diana and her new ice cream maker can hardly wait to get started.

And it was also a pleasure reading there are other body spray and Victoria's Secrets fans out there.  Thanks for all your girlie talk on that one!

Moving along....
Recently I was on Sarah the Foodie's blog and saw she made Puppy Chow, aka Chex Mix.  I just cannot eat something I call Puppy Chow so I renamed it and tweaked the recipe in order to veganize it.  If you're interested in the official recipe from the Chex site, check that out.  But here's what I did...

Averie's Vegan Chocolate & Peanut Butter Chex Mix (Gluten & Soy Free)
Melt Together: 1 c dark chocolate chips, 1/2 Peanut Butter, and 1/3 c Earth Balance ( Vegan & Soy-Free Spread)
After melting, add 1.5 Tbsp Vanilla Extract to the mixture

Pour Mixture over 7-8 cups of Rice Chex

Transfer to a Plastic Baggie & Add 2.5 Cups of Powdered Sugar to the Bag and Shake It Up, Baby!

Super easy and realllllly good!  Is this health food?  No.  Is it ok to have splurges?  By all means I think yes indeed!

And every once in awhile I find a few Chex pieces that were stuck together by the chocolate and PB gooey-ness and didn't get the appropriate sugar dousing.  Poor babies.

So I just eat those or shake it some more, baby!

Moving right along to something much healthier...Broccoli Salad.

I love cruciferous veggies which include brock, Brussels's, cauli, you get the picture.  It depends on my mood, sometimes I lightly steam them for 30 seconds in the micro, or sometimes I eat them raw.  One of my favorite ways to eat broccoli is with this awesome salad dressing recipe because the ACV (apple cider vinegar) actually "cooks" the brock.  The acidic nature of the vinegar breaks down the tough plant fibers so you get to enjoy raw brock, that's been "cooked" a little, without any stinky house action going on.  

But back to Averie's Raw Broccoli Salad & Dressing Recipe
3 Heaping Tbsp Vegan "Mayo" (Spectrum or Veganaise are nice.  In general I avoid soy, but in this small quantity, I am ok with it.  If you really wanted to avoid the soy all together, I would soak and then Vita-Mix or food processess 1/4 c raw cashews + 1 Tbsp water)
3 Tbsp Sugar (or Lucama or Agave to preserve raw status)
1 Tbsp ACV (Apple Cider Vinegar)

Whisk ingredients together

Add about 2 c Brock (basically most of 1 big stalk)

Spoon the mixture over the Brock and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, but this is one of those salads that is better the 2nd Day.  Sort of like chili, the flavors marry better and it just gets better with age.  Kinda like all my lovely bloggie friends do.

When you're ready to eat your Brock Salad, here are some garnishes and add-in's to consider:
Red Onion, Raisins, Sunflower Seeds, Slivered Almonds, (Soy-Based) Bacon Bits (all the aforementioned are very traditional if you look up brock salad recipes on the internet.  If you know me, you know I hate onion and bacon is outta the question, but just brainstorming for you to help you jazz it up!)
Other Dried Fruit like cranberries or craisins
Other seeds/nuts such as pine nuts, cashews, walnuts
Black Pepper or Salt to taste

Even after all those add-ins & extras, I opted for Plain Jane Brock.  I love the way the brock has been softened but is still crunchy, and there's a definite bite to the dressing because of the ACV but it's balanced really well with the sugar or sweetener of your choice.  The plain brock was all I needed.

I also decided to make some Roasted Sweet Potato Fries.  I sliced a gigantic sweet potato into fry pieces, drizzled heavy-handedly with EVOO, dash of salt & pepp.

After roasting at 350F for an hour, the first 30 minutes covered with foil, and the second 30 minutes, I flipped the fries over and uncovered them.  Voila.

And plated them up with a salad big enough to make all the rabbits jealous.  Greens, cukes, carrots, orange & yellow peppes, dressed it with the juice of half an orange, agave, and cracky blacky.

For dessert after getting in on a little bit of the Vegan Chex Mix Action...

...I got in on the Raw Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ball action.  Yummmmmy.

VeganMofo in the house today.


Yoga Today is Tolasana (Scale Pose)

Tip of the Day:  Avoiding the stinky house smell when cooking broccoli.  Yeah, that smell.  When cooking brock in the micro or steaming it in general, the minute you smell it, it's done.  Do not keep cooking it!  Actually, it's done before you smell it.  The reason why the broccoli stinks is because of the sulfur content.  The more you cook it, the more sulfur that is released as the plant fibers are breaking down through the cooking process.   So try to anticipate, and get it outta the micro, stat.  You're scared it won't be cooked enough and will be tough?  Well, there will be some carryover cooking as the internal temp of the brock doesn't immediately drop the minute you remove the heat source.  Hopefully this helps you to never get brocky-stinky house again!



What's your fave kitchen appliance?  For me, it's clearly the VitaGod because of the versatility but I also have a particular spatula I think I use twice a day minimum.  I am also contemplating a Magic Bullet and an Ice Cream Maker.  I really don't "need" this stuff, but ya know, it's fun to ponder.  What's your fave appliance, or what do you really wanna get your hot little mitts on?


And, in case you missed it, go enter my ProBar Give Away!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  A dozen ProBars just for you!  Wooooo-hoooo!


Stay Tuned For A Fall-Inspired Raw Donut Hole Recipe.  Just a Couple Ingredients & 10 minutes...