vita-vega-vegamin

Pseudo-healthy detox from the 4-day weekend fixin’

Easy Peas-y Pea Soup* with Basil & Thyme (you can make it organic if you want to)

*say it like Jamie Oliver, kay?

1 large onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, smashed and roughly chopped

1 carton veggie stock

1 bag frozen peas

2 basil leaves, finely minced

1 teaspoon dried thyme

extra virgin olive oil

1. Saute onions and garlic till onions are translucent in a pot with a few tablespoons e.v olive oil.

2. Add veggie stock and bring to a boil.

3. Add frozen peas. Bring to a simmer then turn off heat. Blend with hand blender/emulsion blender.

4. Add chopped basil and dried thyme.

5. Serve with a drizzle of e.v olive oil. Voila!

Blueberry Muffins, Vegan-Style: Burstin with blueberries, these muffins are not half bad as the vegan variety. You could also do it non-vegan as well, which yields a very scrumptious version. The secret is in the light wrist action.

1 c whole wheat flour

1/2 c unbleached ap flour

3/4 c brown sugar

3/4 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

3/4 c Earth Balance Natural Buttery Spread

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/3 c plain or vanilla soymilk

2 1/4 tsp Egg Replacer mixed with 3 T warm water

2 c fresh blueberries, tossed in 2 T unbleached ap flour

1. Heat Earth Balance over low heat till melted. Whisk in Egg Replacer, soymilk and vanilla. Set aside.

2. Whisk dry ingredients in mixing bowl.

3. Gently stir in wet into dry ingredients bowl. DO NOT OVERMIX!!

4. Stir in blueberries. DO NOT OVERMIX!!

5. Portion out approx. 3 T batter into 12 muffin cups. Bake at 375 degrees for approx. 30 min. Toothpick should come out clean when inserted.

VOILA!

Pumpkin Muffins

I haven’t baked any sweets in awhile besides the sweet potato pie that my family didn’t have amongst the Thanksfortaking treats. It couldn’t compare to the really fresh Dutch apple pie, plethora of Filipino sweets, leche flan and cream cheese squares that were part of the spread.

This recipe is adapted from Tartine cookbook. It makes a really moist, spiced muffin, perfect with a hot beverage for breakfast. I used to work at Market Hall Bakery and we’d get lowfat pumpkin muffins from Artisan Bakery. These are just as good!

Ingredients:

1 cup organic pumpkin puree

1Tbs + 1/2tsp cinnamon

1tsp nutmeg

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2tsp baking soda

3 eggs

1 2/3 cups whole wheat flour

1 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1/4 tsp salt

1 1/3 cup organic raw sugar + 2tbs for sprinkling

Oven: 325 degreees

1. Sift dry ingredients together in a bowl. Set aside

2. Mix pumpkin puree, sugar, oil, in another bowl. Add eggs one at a time and blend well.

3. Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture. Make sure to not overblend and only combine thoroughly.

4. Portion 1/4 cup of batter into muffin paper lined pan. Bake for approximately 20 minutes or till toothpick comes out clean.