Banana Oat Cake

Vegan and low fat healthy dessert.

Serving 6-8 people

Part I:
2 Cups Oat Flour
½ tsp Baking Soda
½ tsp Salt
1 tsp Ground Cinnamon
¼ tsp Ground Cardamom
1 Cup Raw Sugar

Part II:
½ Cup Olive Oil
1 Cup Chilled Brewed Coffee
1 Tbsp Pure Vanilla Extract
2 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
¾ Cup Chopped Fresh Banana

How to:

1. Set oven to 450ºF
2. Sift Flour, Baking Soda, Salt and Spices into a bowl.
3. Add Sugar and mix all the dry ingredients.
4. Mix all Liquids with Banana.
5. Add Wet Mix to Dry Mix and stir with a spatula until smooth.
6. Pour Batter into a greased 10 inch cake pan.
7. Bake cake 40-60 minutes (check by sticking a toothpick in center and it should come out dry)
8. Cool on rack before cutting slices.
9. Garnish with Powder Sugar.

Enjoy with a cup of coffee in company of good friends.

Healthy and Hearty Bean Soup

All vegan and rich with protein and fibers.

Servings: 6 Cups

Part I:

2 Cups Azuki Beans, can be substituted with other red beans

4 Cups Water

3 Tbsp Lemon Juice

2 Tbsp Tomato Paste

2 tsp Chili Powder

1 Tbsp Chopped Garlic

Part II:

2 Tbsp Olive Oil

½ Cup Chopped Yellow Onion

½ Cup Chopped Carrots

¼ Cup Chopped Red Bell Pepper

½ Cup Apple Cider Vinegar

Part III:

¼ Cup Nutritional Yeast Flakes

2 Cups Water

1 Tbsp Salt – or to your liking

Part IIII:

Fine shredded Green Onion and Lemon Peel

How to:

1. Mix all ingredients under Part I in a big pot on the stove.

2. Bring to a boil and then take down to simmer under a lid.

3. Heat up a frying pan, add olive oil.

4. Slightly brown Onion, Carrot and Bell Pepper.

5. Pour Vinegar in pan, take it off the heat and add it all into the Beans.

6. Stir in the Nutritional Yeast, add the rest of water and taste off with Salt.

7. Simmer slowly until Beans are soft but not mushy.

8. Cook time around 2 hours. Beans will cook faster if you soak them over night.

9. Serve with Green Onion and Lemon Peel as garnish.

This healthy and hearty soup will warm you up a cold day. Enjoy!

Roasted Winter Squash Soup

The perfect meal to keep you warm on a cold day

There are so many types of winter Squash with different colors, shapes, textures and flavors. Kabocha is my personal favorite squash for soup, but Butternut Squash is easier to find and more affordable. When making a soup, I do recommend that you cook a larger batch than just for the dinner you have planned. This soup can stay fresh up to one week, because it does not have any dairy, it is actually completely vegan but very tasty and healthy. The soup will probably thicken over night when it is refrigerated, so you can add some water when heating it up next time.
See different kinds of squash here.

Soup recipe:

3 Whole Squash
3 Medium Carrots
2 Medium Yellow Onions
4 Stems Celery
2-3 Garlic Cloves
2 Portabella Mushrooms
1/4 Cup Vegetable Oil
1/2 Bottle White Wine - like a sweet Gewürztraminer or Riesling
2-4 Quarts Water
2 Tbsp Dijon Mustard
2 tsp Ground Nutmeg
2 tsp Dry Sage
1 Orange
2 Tbsp Dry Sherry
Salt & White Pepper to taste

1. Cut the squash in wedges, by first cutting of the top and the bottom, then splitting it in half, scrape out the seeds and last cut each half into wedges. Put the wedges on a sheet pan with skin side down. Roast in 250-300º F until the flesh is tender, it will take a few hours depending on how firm the squash is.
2. Cut carrots, onion & celery in 1.5-2" pieces. Heat up 4 Tbsp vegetable oil in a frying pan and sauté the cut vegetables until light browned. Let the vegetables cool a little and then mash them in a blender together with the garlic.
3. Use a fine grater to take the zest of the orange and then squeeze out the juice.
4. Put the mash in a big pot, add wine, 2 Quarts water, orange juice, orange zest, mustard, nutmeg, sage and a little salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, lower heat and let simmer for an hour. If liquid reduces more than half, add another quart of water.
5. Scoop the flesh of the squash out of the skin with a spoon. Mash it in the blender before adding it into the soup. Let the soup simmer and then taste off to see if it needs more spices. Be aware that the soup will taste much, much better the next day.
6. Cut the whole mushroom in 1/2" x 1/2" pieces, including the stem. Heat up 4 Tbsp vegetable oil in a frying pan and sauté the mushroom, flavor with sherry, salt and pepper. Be aware that the Sherry might light a flame in your pan. Stir the mushroom into the soup or add it on the top when serving.

Enjoy with a glass of the same wine that you cooked into your soup, if you did not already finish the bottle while cooking....