Blissful Bites (54 page)
This rich, creamy, chocolaty treat will make everyone happy! The berry sauce is great when strawberries are at their peak during the summer months, but you can have the mousse year-round.
2 packages Mori Nu silken tofu
3
â
4
cup maple syrup
2 teaspoons vanilla flavoring
1
â
2
cup vegan grain-sweetened chocolate chips, melted down
1
â
3
cup cocoa powder
berry sauce
2 cups mixed berries
3
â
4
cup apple juice
1 tablespoon brown rice syrup or maple syrup
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Pinch cinnamon
1
â
2
cup walnuts, toasted and chopped, for garnish
In a food processor, blend the mousse ingredients until mixed well. Be sure to scrape down edges with a spatula a few times. Refrigerate for one hour.
Place berries and apple juice in medium saucepan and heat over low flame, until berries begin to break apart, stirring occasionally. Add remaining ingredients, except nuts, and stir well. Allow to cool. Pour mousse into individual cups; top with berry sauce and walnuts.
⢠Makes 9 to 12 brownies
Even though these have very little oil, they are not the least bit cakey or dry. Great on their own, paired with
chocolate ganache
on page 235, or made into a brownie sundae with coconut ice cream. Honestly, that is the way I prefer it!
Oil, for dish
1 package Mori Nu silken tofu
1
â
3
cup maple syrup
1
1
â
2
cups coconut palm sugar
1
â
2
cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1
â
3
cup applesauce
2 tablespoons safflower oil
2 tablespoons vanilla flavoring
1
1
â
4
cups barley flour
1
â
2
teaspoon baking powder
Pinch sea salt
Pinch cinnamon
1
â
2
cup grain-sweetened chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a food processor, blend the first seven ingredients until smooth, making sure to scrape around the bowl a few times to incorporate all ingredients. Place remaining ingredients, except chocolate chips, in a medium bowl and mix in the wet ingredients. Stir until well combined, then fold in chocolate chips.
Spray an 8x8 baking dish with oil spray and pour batter into dish, smoothing batter evenly. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes; insert toothpick into the center to test if done. Let cool and serve.
“One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well.”
â Virginia Woolf
ââââââââ
I wanted this book to be more than just a cookbook and serve as a guide in your journey to bliss. In this section you will find sample menus in case all of these recipes alone seem daunting, and some plant-based resources that can help answer any questions you may have. If those resources do not help, feel free to contact me via my website, theblissfulchef.com.
To help you on the quest for seasonal eating and balance in your diet, I've included some sample menus for each season. Since the recipes are listed by season, it is easy to pick and choose a meal, but the list below is made up of recipes I like to serve together. Included are menu ideas for other popular occasions, as well as meals that kids love.
breakfast
coconut bliss granola with key-lime soy yogurt
lunch
love your heart beet soup
spring kale salad with sweet miso dressing
blackened tempeh caesar wrap
dinner
black-eyed pea bbq stew
lemon-roasted asparagus
brown rice
orange-wakame cucumber salad
dessert
springtime lemon bars
breakfast
sweet polenta porridge
or strawberry shortcake smoothie
lunch
chilled corn bisque
curry chicken-less salad wrap
dinner
penne with creamy red pepper sauce
steamed broccoli
dessert
heavenly raw chocolate mousse
marinated portabella steaks with root fries
breakfast
thyme for miso with steamed greens
lunch
tempeh avocado sushi rolls
fried kabocha with peanut sauce
dinner
millet mashed “potatoes”
blanched greens with basil-pecan pesto sauce
maple-glazed tempeh
dessert
coconut-orange bread pudding
breakfast
gluten-free savory biscuits with apricot-blueberry fruit compote
lunch
millet-black bean burgers
blanched greens
dinner
marinated portabella steaks
not-so-forbidden rice salad
perfect winter stew
dessert
wheat-free fudgy chocolate brownie sundae
mango-pineapple tropical soup
marinated portabella steaks
not-your-average cabbage slaw
barbecued seitan burger
un-tuna salad
southwest grilled corn salad
hawaiian tofu and veggie kabobs
strawberry-mint limeade
blackened tempeh caesar wrap with wasabi sweet potato salad
land and sea soba salad with steamed greens
curry chicken-less salad wrap with mac n' kale salad
macrobiotic lunch â brown rice, basic beans, steamed greens, orange-wakame cucumber salad
spring
spring kale salad with sweet miso dressing
blanched greens with basil-pecan pesto sauce
spring green casserole
barley “hato mugi” pilaf
simple lemon-scented basmati rice
summer
fresh green salad with cilantro-lime dressing
nishime
asian millet and quinoa pilaf
fiesta quinoa salad
red quinoa salad
autumn
pumpkin with apricot glaze
sweet potato puree
winter
gingery bok choy-burdock sauté
miso-baked daikon
not-so-forbidden rice salad
strawberry shortcake smoothie
mixed berry couscous surprise
tofu scramble sammich
tofu salad (eggless egg salad) wrap
penne with creamy red pepper
macro “mac and cheeze”
pan-fried tofu with carrot-ginger sauce
chewy trail mix bars
Most of the ingredients used in this cookbook should be available at your local natural food store. If you can't find a particular product locally, you can try these resources below. I've noted the city where they're based along with the phone number and website. You can also replace a hard-to-find ingredient with something similar. Feel free to e-mail me at [email protected] if you have specific questions about substituting ingredients in a recipe.
Eden Foods
Clinton, Michigan
888-424-EDEN (3336)
Gold Mine Natural Food Company
San Diego, California
858-537-9830
Maine Coast Sea Vegetables
Franklin, Maine
207-565-2907
Mitoku
Natural Import Company
Biltmore Village, North Carolina
800-324-1878
Simply Natural/Discount Natural Foods
Hooksett, New Hampshire
888-392-9237
Alternative Outfitters (clothing, shoes, gifts, and accessories)
Pasadena, California
866-758-5837
Bob's Red Mill Natural Foods (grains, beans, flours, gluten-free products, and baking supplies)
Milwaukie, Oregon 97222
800-349-2173
Cosmo's Vegan Shoppe (vegan products, food items, books, body care, and accessories)
Marietta, Georgia
800-260-9968
Herbivore Clothing (clothing, shoes, gifts, and accessories)
Portland, Oregon
503-281-TOFU (8638)
Pangea Vegan Store (vegan products, food items, body care, clothing, and accessories)
Rockville, Maryland
800-340-1200
Ultimate Superfoods (raw/living food and products)
800-728-2066
The Vegan Collection (clothing, gifts, shoes, and accessories)
Los Angeles, California
626-722-8340
Vegan Essentials (vegan products, food items, books, body care, and accessories)
Waukesha, Wisconsin
866-88-VEGAN (83426)
I completely endorse the books and DVDs below. When switching to a plant-based diet, it's important to have resources that are accurate, informative, educational, and transformational. These selections have influenced the way I eat and feel about food, and some have even shown me how my choices affect more than my physical self. I hope you will enjoy them.
Food and Healing,
by Anne Marie Colbin
Hip Chick's Guide to Macrobiotics
, by
Jessica Porter
The Kind Diet
, by Alicia Silverstone
Love, Sanae
, by Sanae Suzuki
The Macrobiotic Way
, by Michio Kushi
Staying Healthy With the Seasons,
by Dr. Elson M. Haas
Sugar Blues
, by William Dufty
Becoming Vegan
, by Brenda Davis and Vesanto Melina
Breaking the Food Seduction
, by Dr. Neal Barnard
The China Study
, by T. Colin Campbell
Diet for a New America
, by John Robbins
Eat to Live
, by Dr. Joel Fuhrman
The Engine 2 Diet
, by Rip Esselstyn
The Thrive Diet
, by Brendan Brasier
Eating Animals
, by Jonathan Safran Foer
Mad Cowboy
, by Howard F. Lyman
The New Good Life
, by John Robbins
The Omnivore's Dilemma
, by Michael Pollan
Thanking the Monkey
, by Karen Dawn
Vegan: The New Ethics of Eating
, by Erik Marcus
The World Peace Diet
, by Will Tuttle
Why We Love Dogs, Eat Pigs, and Wear Cows
, by Melanie Joy
Earthlings
, by Shaun Monson
Food Inc.
, by Robert Kenner
Forks Over Knives
, by Lee Fulkerson
Future of Food
, by Deborah Koons Garcia
Simply Raw: Reversing Diabetes in 30 Days
As the plant-based diet grows in popularity, there are more and more schools, conferences, and online programs where you can learn more. If you want to make healthy eating your next career or want to learn the ins and outs of plant-based culinary techniques, these places to study can give you a wealth of knowledge. Some have master's programs; many have shorter programs and online programs to fit everyone's budget and schedule.
Bastyr University
Kenmore, Washington
(425) 823-1300
Bauman College
Santa Cruz, California, and Boulder, Colorado
800-987-7530
Online programs available
French Meadows Macrobiotic Summer Camp
Tahoe National Forest, California
800-232-2372
Institute for Integrative Nutrition
New York City, New York
877-730-5444
Online programs available
Kushi Institute
Becket, Maine
800-975-8744
Macrobiotics America with David and Cynthia Biscoe
Oroville, California
530-532-1918
Online programs available
The Natural Epicurean Academy of Culinary Arts
Austin, Texas
512-476-2276
The Natural Gourmet Institute
New York, New York
212-645-5170
www.naturalgourmetinstitute.com
The Christina Pirello School of Natural Cooking and Integrative Health Studies
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
800-939-3909
Strengthening Health Institute
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
215-238-9212
T. Colin Campbell Foundation
Certificate in Plant-based Nutrition
866-326-7635
www.ecornell.com
/l-PBN
Online program only
To see a list of my favorite blogs, including some by my food testers, visit my Blogroll on my personal blog at
www.theblissfulchef.com
.