Goji Berry and Cacao Nib Pancakes

Next time you're making pancakes try these super food cakes that are full of nutrition and flavor!

 For a recipe like this, you're gonna want to soak your goji berries.  Gojis usually come dried, but you can add some extra moisture and plumpness to them by soaking them in water for 10 minutes.  

Save the water and throw a tea bag in for extra Goji nutrition in your morning tea as well!

Use your favorite pancake mix and pour batter onto the skillet.  After the pancake starts bubbling and is ready to flip, sprinkle a small handful of goji berries and cacao nibs evenly onto each cake and then flip. 

 It's that easy to pack more super food nutrition into your diet!

buffalo chik'n salad

A simple way to spice your daily dose of greens.  Just a frozen chik'n patty, some supa dupa greens, and some baby bella mushrooms.  I like it without any extra dressing, cause let's face it, i'll eat pretty much anything if it's soaked in buffalo sauce, or pair it with a vegan ranch or blue cheese dressing.

Ingredients

Serves 1

• 2 large handfuls of dark leafy greens, I've used a baby kale mix here
• 1 frozen "chik'n" patty, such as Boca Burger
• 1 small handful baby bella mushrooms, sliced
• 2 Tbs buffalo sauce 
• Make a your own vegan buffalo sauce by mixing Frank's Hot Sauce with a small pad of butter substitute, like Earth Balance.

1. Cook the chik'n patty in the microwave according to package's instructions.  
2. Pour the buffalo sauce onto the patty and use your finger to coat the whole patty in sauce. 
3. Slice patty into about 8 slices.
4. Toss greens and mushrooms in a bowl and top with the chik'n strips and drizzle a little extra hot sauce if preferred or dress. 

spicy sausage and jack muffin

Sausage and cheese sandwiches used to be a staple of my breakfast routine.  Since going veggie I have experimented with lots of meat substitutes and some are better than others for sure.  Morningstar Farms makes a spicy sausage patty that is one of my favorites.  Here's my vegan take on my old breakfast standby.

Spicy Sausage and Jack Muffin

Serves 1

• 2 spicy sausage patties
• 1 whole wheat English muffin, split
• 1/4 of a large onion
• coconut or olive oil
• 1 vegan pepper jack cheese slice cut diagonally into two triangles

1. Slice onion and sauté over medium heat with a small pour of oil until cooked and caramelizing.
2. Cook the sausage according to package instructions on a skillet or in the microwave.
3. Split and toast the English muffin.
4. Layer each half of the English muffin with a cheese triangle, then half the onions, and a sausage patty.
5. Serve with some vegetables or fruit.

sausage & goat cheese empanadas

Decided to try another variation on the easy empanadas that I posted about before HERE.  This time I used the JR Grands biscuits for smaller empanadas.  Bothe are great recipes but these are definitely better suited as appetizers or a side dish rather than a main course.  The preparation is essentially the same, although this time I used veggie sausage patties and goat cheese!

Ingredients

• 4 Veggie Sausage Patties
• 1 small log or container of goat cheese
• 1 tube Jr's Grand Biscuits 

1. Cook the veggie sausage over medium heat in a nonstick skillet using a wooden spoon to break up into sausage crumbles.
2. Lay out the Jr biscuits on a cookie sheet and use the heel of your palm to flatten them into circles.
3. Apply a light smear of goat cheese to the center of each circle and then add a spoonful of sausage to each as well.  
4. Fold the circle over to create a half moon shape.
5. Seal the edges using your fingers and then use a fork to create an "empanada look" by pressing with the fork all around the edge.
6. Bake according to directions or until empanadas are golden brown.

quinoa salad w. hemp & hummus crackers

Peacefood, a vegan restaurant in the UWS, has a "Fluffy Quinoa Salad" on their menu that always seems to be one of their most popular items.  It's looks delicious, but it's always hard for me to bring myself to shell out $10+ for a salad that I know I can make at home for a fractions of the cost.

For the Quinoa Salad:

It really couldn't be simpler.  I found a box of garden vegetable quinoa at my local store and cooked it ahead of time according to the directions using vegetable stock instead of water.   

Chill the quinoa in the refrigerator until cold.

Assemble a salad of darks greens and whatever extra veggies you like.  Here I used a mix of baby kale and other greens and sliced baby portabella mushrooms.

Break up the chilled quinoa with a fork and toss 1/4-1/2 cup quinoa  with the greens depending on how much quinoa you want. 

Dress if needed, I found the veggie quinoa flavor to be enough. 

For the Crackers:

Use four whole wheat crackers, like Ak-Mak.
Spread a light smear hummus of your choice  onto the crackers.  I used jalapeño & cilantro.
Sprinkle with hemp seeds and enjoy.