Chickpea Vegetable Chowder

1 cup chopped white onion
1 cup chopped celery
4 cloves garlic
1 tsp each dried thyme and oregano
2 cups peeled and diced yellow potoatoes
2 cups diced carrots
4 1/2 cups vegetable broth
1 19 oz can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 Tbs fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp each sea salt and black pepper
1/2 cup lightly packed, finely chopped parsley

Cook onions, garlic and celery in 1/4 cup of broth for about 5 minutes.  Add more broth if needed.

Add the oregna and thyme, stir and cook for 1 more minute.

add the rest of the ingredients except parsley and simmer for 15-20 minutes until potatoes and carrots are tender.

Transfer about 1/2 the soup to a blender and puree until smooth.

Stir in parsley and serve.

White Sauce

3 Tbs butter
3 Tbs flour
2 cups chicken broth

Melt butter in sauce pan. Stir in flour and heat for a minute. Add broth stirring until it boils and thickens.

Monica's Peanut butter chocolate bars

 2/3 cup butter melted
 1/4 cup peanut butter
1 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup light corn syrup
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
4 cups quick oats

Topping: 1 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup butterscotch chips
1/3 cup peanut butter

 Preheat oven to 400°. Combine butter through vanilla. Gradually add oats. Press into greased 9 x 13 pan.  Bake for 12 minutes until edges are browned. Cool for five minutes. Meanwhile melt chips and peanut butter in microwave. Stir until blended. Spread over warm bars.
 Cool completely. Refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours or freeze before cutting.

Avocado Dressing (no oil)

1 ripe avocado
1/4 c apple cider vinegar
1/4. c. honey
3 T. lime juice
1 clove garlic
1/4 c. cilantro
1/2 small jalepeno
1/4 c. water or more, to thin to preference
Salt and pepper, to taste


Add all to food processor or blender and whiz up about a minute or until smooth and creamy. Add a drizzle of water (for salad dressing) to make it thinner. Keep it thicker to spoon on top of fish or chicken or pasta

Rice Vegetable Casserole

Ingredients

2 Tbsp olive oil

1/2 onion, chopped

1 clove garlic 

1 carrot, chopped

1 stalk celery, chopped

1/2 c button mushrooms 

1/4 tsp salt 

1/4 tsp pepper 

1/4 tsp dried thyme 

1/4 tsp dried sage 

2 Tbsp flour 

3/4 cup vegetable broth 

1/2 cup plant based milk 

additional salt, to taste 

2 cups COOKED rice

3 oz. fried onions

    

Instructions

1  Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Finely dice the onion and mince the garlic. Add the butter, onions, and garlic to a large pot and sauté over medium heat until the onions are soft and transparent.


2  While the onions and garlic are sautéing, Slice the carrots and dice the celery. Add the carrots and celery to the pot and continue to sauté.


3  While the carrots and celery are sautéing, wash and chop the mushrooms. Add the mushrooms to the pot along with the salt, pepper, thyme, and sage. Continue to sauté until the mushrooms have turned brown and completely wilted.


4  Add the flour to the pot and continue to stir and cook for about 2-3 minutes more, or until the flour coats the bottom of the pot and begins to turn a light golden color. Whisk in the vegetable broth, making sure all the flour dissolves from the bottom of the pot. The mixture should thicken fairly quickly.


5  Once thickened, whisk in the milk and allow it to come up to a simmer again. Once simmering, turn the heat off, taste, and add more salt or pepper if needed. You want the sauce to be slightly on the salty side so that the flavor doesn't dilute too much once the rice is added.


6  Stir the cooked rice into the pot with the sauce and vegetables. Transfer everything to a 2 to 3 quart casserole dish and top with the fried onions. Bake the casserole in the preheated 350ºF oven for 25-30 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbling up around the edges and the fried onions have turned deep golden brown. Serve hot.


Servings: 4 

Maple Salmon

• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 pound salmon

Directions

1. In a small bowl, mix the maple syrup, soy sauce, garlic, garlic salt, and pepper.
2. Place salmon in a shallow glass baking dish, and coat with the maple syrup mixture. Cover the dish, and marinate salmon in the refrigerator 30 minutes, turning once.
3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
4. Place the baking dish in the preheated oven, and bake salmon uncovered 20 minutes, or until easily flaked with a fork.

Pumpkin Bread

• 1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil 
• 1/2 cup applesauce
• 2/3 cup water
• 2 cups white sugar
• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour three 7x3 inch loaf pans.
2. In a large bowl, mix together pumpkin puree, eggs, oil, water and sugar until well blended. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger. Stir the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture until just blended. Pour into the prepared pans.
3. Bake for about 50 minutes in the preheated oven. Loaves are done when toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

For Mini loaves bake at 350 for 36 min.