The World's Best Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

Delicious vegan chocolate chip cookies!

My favorite cookies are chocolate chip cookies.  I have tried many vegan chocolate chip cookies and many are just so-so.  However, there was one recipe that I found and tweaked a bit, and I must say that these are truly the best vegan chocolate chip cookies that I have ever tasted.  No wait, scratch that.  I should say that these are, beyond a doubt, the best chocolate chip cookies I have ever tasted.   I find myself buying store bought cookies and they always come up short when compared to these beauties.

You can do a lot with these bad boys, such as add in extra items.  For example, one day I added non-dairy creamer instead of milk (hazelnut) and put some coffee pieces in.  The result was amazing.  You can add whatever type of chocolate chips that you like, but my favorite are dark chocolate chips.  These things are so good that I had to make it so I only make a half batch once a week.  Enough banter, on with the recipe!

Your army of ingredients must be assembled if you want the world's best cookies.

Ingredients:

• ½ cup coconut oil
• 1 cup brown sugar
• ¼ cup almond milk
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup or more vegan dark chocolate chips

Mix the wet ingredients first!

The cookie dough being mixed.

Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix the soy milk, brown sugar, and coconut oil.  
3. Add vanilla, baking soda and baking powder.  Mix.
4. Add salt, flour, and vegan chocolate chips.  
5. Add extra milk if the mix is too dry at this point.
6. Put on parchment paper and slide into the oven.
7. Bake for 7 to 10 minutes.

Let these cool and enjoy with a nice big cold cup of milk of your choice.  

Awesome Raw Vegan Fruit Muesli

Awesome raw muesli

If you are looking for a raw vegan breakfast and want something that is going to make you feel great all day long, this is exactly what you've been searching for!   This meal is quick, easy, and can easily be adapted for one person or many people.  What's great about this one is that you can add what you like and omit the things you do not like.  If you have a lot of people around for breakfast, you can serve this up buffet style, with a variety of fruits and toppings and types of milk alternatives. 

It's a fun little breakfast that is a great way to start a hot day.  The recipe below serves about 3 people.  Feel free to customize it.  I won't get angry if you do.  Promise.

***

Ingredients

•  3/4 cup mixed nuts of your choice, such as cashews, almonds, sunflower seeds, and walnuts.
• Bowl of chopped fruit, such as bananas, grapes, mango, apple, kiwi, cantaloupe, etc.
• Raisins, chopped dates, or dry fruit of your choice.
• Shredded dried and unsweetened coconut.
• Milk alternative of your choice.

Directions

1. In a high powered blender or food processor blend the nuts until they are a fine chopped consistency, but not to the point where you have nut butter.
2. Place fruit mixture on bottom of bowl.
3. Add desired amount of nut mixture.
4. Add desired amount of dried fruit, raisins, etc. 
5. Top with shredded coconut.
6. Add desired amount of milk alternative.  

Instead of adding the dried fruit separately, and if you want the mixture to be sweeter, you can add the dried fruit to the blender with the nut mixture and blend together. 



This makes an awesome feel good breakfast that will stick with you well until lunch.  Also makes a nice end of the day snack when you are not in the mood for something hot and heavy, especially during the hot summer months.

Scrumptious Vegan French Toast

Vegan French toast with fruit compote on top! 

Today you are in for a real treat.  Delicious 100% vegan French toast.  Is your mouth watering yet?

It's hard to find french toast as a vegan unless you are willing to take the time to make it.  Sometimes there is not enough time to spend an hour or two in the kitchen, and with a baby, one may want something quick, but different than cereal or oatmeal.  This is a decently quick recipe that should only take 20 to 30 minutes to complete.

Ingredients

• Whole grain bread slices
• 1 cup of cashews
• 1 and 1/3 cup of water
• 4 oz. tofu (firm)
• 1 - 2 tablespoons of agave nectar (to taste)
• 1 tablespoon of nutritional yeast flakes
• Dash of cloves
• Dash of nutmeg 

Directions

1. Blend everything except for the bread in a blender.  
2. Place the blended liquid in a large bowl or shallow dish.
3. Quickly dip in your bread slices just enough to cover both sides with liquid.  Do not soak the bread.  
4. Place in a skillet or frying pan and cook on medium heat for a couple of minutes or until sides begin to brown slightly.
5. Once finished, remove from heat and set aside.  
6. Top with fruit compote, yogurt, syrup, whipped cream, or cream cheese topping, or whatever you wish

The French toast batter mix.

French toast being made in a "dutch oven." 

This is a great way to make a quick and easy vegan breakfast that is bound to satisfy your craving for French toast.   This recipe makes enough batter for quite a few slices.  Unless you are feeding more than four people, you should have some left over.  Refrigerate the left over sauce and you will have a quick breakfast whenever you get another craving for French toast.  You can also make all the toasts and freeze whatever left over toast you have made for later reheating.

Vegan Hawaiian Style Pineapple Spaghetti with Olives and Mushrooms

Vegan Hawaiian style pineapple spaghetti with olives and mushrooms

I got a little experimental in the kitchen the other day and decided to make spaghetti.  I started out normal, adding the usual suspects: olives, mushrooms.  Then, I peeped into my fridge and noticed that there were some pineapple that needed to be consumed.  I figured Hawaiian style pizza is good, why not Hawaiian style pasta?

This is a pretty easy meal to make, and it does not require much time and effort.  This is particularly good if you have a little one watching and waiting for you to cook.

To start you cook the pasta to your desired consistency.  I like my pasta al dente, but some like it all mushy.  It's truly up to you.

As the pasta is getting all cooked up, you get a big pan out and mix tomato sauce, a spoonful of brown sugar, the cut vegetables, and the spices.  Then at the end, add the drained and dried off pineapple.  I saved the juices for a smoothie. 

I also threw in a bit of vegetarian meat with the sauce.  Everything is optional, and you can add green peppers, onions, or whatever. 

Vegetarian meat being added to the sauce.

Hawaiian style spaghetti - almost done!

Ingredients:

• Tomato sauce (as much as you want, I like to use about 3/4 of the large can)
• A couple servings of noodles.  I use whole wheat.
• Spices:  Oregano, Italian Seasoning, Onion Powder, and fresh cut garlic.
• A couple spoonfuls of brown sugar (for the sauce)
• Vegetarian meat (optional)
• Fruits and Vegetables: Olives, mushrooms, pineapple, green pepper, onion, etc.

Enjoy your Hawaiian style spaghetti.

Vegan Pesto and Cream Cheese Pizza Recipe (Quick, Easy and Frugal)

A delicious vegan pizza awaits!

Tonight's Meal:  A delicious vegan pesto cream cheese pizza with pineapple and olives. 

Since I live a short walk from Trader Joes, many of my scrumptious recipes are made with ingredients from TJ's.  However, that does not mean that you can not make these recipes without setting hoof into Trader Joe's.  For example, the pizza dough can be from any store, or it can be your very own recipe.  There are a lot of good recipes for vegan pizza dough on the internet, but before you leave my site, take a look at this amazingly simple and delicious recipe.

What I really like about this one is that it's insanely quick and it's big enough to share with one or two people.  You do not need to spend hours making a great pizza, and you can create something tasty for a fraction of what delivery costs.  So, let's get our hands dirty in the kitchen.

Ingredients:

• Pizza dough.  I use Trader Joe's whole wheat, but you can use what you want.
• Pesto.  It's hard to find vegan pesto, but it exists.  Grocery outlet sells the stuff I get, and there's no cheese or fish in it.
• Crushed tomatoes
• Toppings (I used olives and pineapple, mushrooms are great too)
• Trader Joe's vegan cream cheese spread (or any other brand)

Vegan pesto!

Trader Joe's vegan cream cheese spread.

A truly delicious pizza.

To make this pizza, just roll out the dough and put it in the oven at the temperature specified.  I like to cook mine for about 5 minutes before adding the toppings so that the dough does not become wet.  When I take the dough out of the oven I spread some cream cheese alternative all over the dough and then add the pesto.  On top of the pesto goes the sauce, and then the toppings.  This pizza is more like a Chicago style deep dish.  There is no cheese on top, but you can add some if you wish. 

Finish baking in the oven and take out.  Let sit for a couple of minutes to cool, cut and serve.  The pizza goes great with a glass of sparking water mixed with a small amount of the left over juice from the pineapple.  Enjoy!

Cost: Under $6, serves 2-3 or 4 with a side salad.

Delicious Vegetarian Peanut Butter and Broccoli Faux-Chicken Asian Noodles

 Tonight's Meal: Vegetarian Peanut Butter and Broccoli Asian Noodles with Faux Chicken.

What a better first post for a cooking blog than a peanut butter filled Asian dish?  Right?  The point of this blog is simple.  I have seen enough food blogs with beautiful pictures that can not be replicated in the real world.  In fact, most of us look at cooking blogs when we want to find a recipe to cook.  Therefore, I have decided to create my own food blog to "keep it real." 

These are real recipes for people on a limited budget who want to cook wholesome and half-healthy meals.  I don't cut back on things such as gluten, but I do try to keep foods close to being vegan.  However, with that being said, some of the stuff I cook will have a small amount of dairy sometimes. 

I was inspired to create a cooking blog when I saw the thousands of blogs out there who are trying to appeal to the imaginary person who has the perfect kitchen and a thousand different plates to take pictures of food.  However, many of us live real lives in small spaces.  Case in point: I live in a very tiny one bedroom apartment in Seattle with my wife and daughter.  As a father I would rather spend time with my child than spending half a day taking pictures for a food blog. 

However, while my pictures will not be the prettiest, my recipes are simple and delicious.  Items can be omitted and replaced with ease.  If you are not a chef, do not worry, there's something here for everyone.  If you are a great cook, you can customize and add to my recipes.  If you are a student, these are simple recipes that you can make in a very small kitchen.  In fact, my kitchen does not have real counters, just a long makeshift stand that was placed in the kitchen by my kind landlord.

Well, enough blabbing, let's get cookin'!

The Recipe:

• Soba Noodles (as much as you want)
• A dollup of peanut butter (1/4 a cup perhaps?)
• A healthy dose of broccoli
• one package of vegetarian style chicken
• One to two cloves of garlic
• Toasted Sesame seed oil (Olive oil works fine)
• A few spoonfuls of hoisin sauce
• Red pepper flakes if you are so inclined (for spiciness)

Now, for the eye candy! 

Soba noodles and a cutting board.

Peanut Butter

A pot of broccoli.

Vegetarian style "chicken."  You can pick this up at stores such as Trader Joes or Winco foods!

Adding the noodles to the peanut butter sauce.

The Finished Product: Peanut Butter Asian Style Noodles with Broccoli and Faux Chicken! 

Directions:

1.  Cook the noodles as directed on the bag. 
2.  Steam or boil the broccoli.
3.  In a small pan, create the sauce.  Start with simmering the oil and garlic together.  Add peanut butter and hoisin sauce to taste.   Feel free to make spicy with red pepper flakes or anything else you have on hand.
4.  Mix the sauce and everything else.
5.  Serve with your favorite sides.  I found that dumplings go well with this meal.

Estimated cost of this meal:  Under $7 for two people.