Author: Chef Kim

meatless burger

Buffal-Oat Chickpea Burgers

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Are you looking for a meatless burger recipes? Meatless burgers are all the rage now! And if you don’t trust “lab meat” and need another alternative for a burger, try this Buffal-oat Chickpea burger that you can customize to your liking.  If you’re wondering if you should eat the Impossible Burger, I wrote a post about that.

This burger gets its protein from oats and chickpeas, or you could use any cooked beans, cannellini, black or kidney. The vegetables add flavor but also moisture as the burger cooks.

The flavor profile can change depending on the spices and sauces you add. The recipe is written for a Buffalo burger, but omitting the buffalo sauce and substituting salsa for a Mexican burger or adding mushrooms and smoked paprika for a smoky flavor are great ways to change it up. Or use BBQ sauce instead of the spicy buffalo sauce.

This is your burger, you really can have it your way! I like a little less spice, so I reduce the buffalo sauce and serve it topped with vegan mayo, tomato and microgreens. Yum!

meatless burger
Print Recipe

Buffal-oat Chickpea Burgers

Protein rich plant burgers that hit the spot1 Wonderful topped with vegan mayo, tomato and microgreens.
Prep Time45 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Keyword: buffalow sauce, chickpea, oats, veggie burger
Servings: 8

Equipment

  • food processor
  • Cutting board
  • chef knife
  • baking sheet or skillet
  • 1/2 cup measure

Ingredients

  • 4 tsp flax or chia meal plus 5T water
  • 3 T nutritional yeast
  • 4 tsp granulated garlic
  • 2 tsp granulated onion
  • 2/3 cup old fashioned oats
  • 2/3 cup oat flour
  • 2 Tbsp Buffalo sauce or 1 tsp cayenne powder plus 2 Tbsp water
  • 3 Tbsp water
  • 2 Tbsp tamari soy sauce or coconut aminos
  • 1/2 cup chopped carrots
  • 1/4 cup chopped celery
  • 1/4 cup chopped onion
  • 1 cup chopped cauliflower
  • 2 cans chickpeas

Instructions

  • In a food processor or with a knife, finely chop the vegetables. The vegetables can be anything you have on hand or need to use up. You just need the combined amount, 2 cups, of vegetables in any combination
  • Combine flax meal and water in a small bowl, stir and set aside to thicken.
  • n a large mixing bowl, combine spices, oats and flour. Stir in the water, buffalo sauce and soy sauce. Mix well.
  • Add the flax mixture and chopped veggies. Stir well.
  • Use the food processor to pulse or a fork to mash the beans in a bowl and add the beans to the oat mixture.
  • Mix well pressing everything together to form a firm dough.
  • Use a half cup measure to scoop and make into patties.

To cook:

  • Place skillet over medium heat, wipe the pan with a little oil if necessary, place burgers into pan and cover, cook for 5 minutes, flip and cook another 5 minutes.
  • Burgers should be light brown on each side, cook longer if needed.
  • To bake a larger amount, place burgers on a parchment-lined pan and bake for 30 minutes, flipping half way through the cooking time. Patties can be frozen for quick and easy dinners

Notes

*Flavor profiles:
To change up the burger flavors, omit the buffalo sauce or cayenne and add the followig:
For Mexican burgers, add 3 Tbsp of salsa and 1 tsp of cumin.
For Smokey Mushroom, add 1 cup mushrooms sauteed until dry and add 1 tsp smoked paprika.

Nutty Stuffed Delicata Squash

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This recipe comes together quickly, but will take about 40 minutes to bake depending on the size of your squash. The one I used in this recipe was pretty large for a Delicata. But this recipe works with any size squash.  Delicata is easy to work with because there’s no need to peel this squash, the skin is tender enough to eat and doesn’t really have much flavor.  Just be sure to wash the squash before using.

The filling is a combination of sauteed onions, garlic and nuts. I used almonds and walnuts, but pecans and pine nuts could be thrown into the mix as well. To bind these together we’ll mix equal parts chickpea flour and water, add some nutritional yeast and plant milk and any herbs you’d like to bump up the flavor. Mix this with the onions and nuts and spoon into the squash. Place in the oven and bake until tender.

 

Print Recipe

Nutty Stuffed Squash

Fall flavors come together in this light dinner or lunch fair with sweet squash and crunchy nuts.
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time40 minutes
Course: Main Course, Side Dish
Cuisine: American
Keyword: chickpea flour, harvest flavors, hemp seeds, pine nuts, winter squash
Servings: 2

Ingredients

  • 1 large Delicata squash
  • 1 1/2 cup onion chopped
  • 1 garlic clove minced
  • 1/3 cup almonds chopped or slivered (sub pecans, hazelnuts)
  • 1/3 cup walnuts chopped (pine nuts or seeds)
  • 1/4 cup chickpea flour
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 2 T plant milk
  • 1-2 T nutritional yeast to your liking
  • 2 tbsp fresh herbs to taste rosemary, sage, thyme or go sweeter with cinnamon, nutmeg and clove

Instructions

  • Wash your squash, halve it and scoop out the seeds.
  • In a bowl, combine the chickpea flour, water, plant milk and nutritional yeast.
  • In a skillet over medium high heat, saute onion and garlic until soft and golden. Add the nuts, herbs, a couple pinches of salt and stir to combine. Turn off the heat and pour in flour mixture.
  • Stir to evenly mix. Spoon this into the squash halves. Depending on the size of your squash, you may have extra filling. If you do, cook the filling in muffin tins, it will make a mock mini quiche.
  • Bake at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes or until the squash is tender when pierced.

 

Cauliflower Happiness + 3 Recipes

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I’m sure the cauliflower farmers are happy with all the new cauliflower products out there (pizza, buffalo tenders, tortillas) and the push to substitute this bland low carbohydrate vegetable for potatoes and rice. But we can be happy as well, because it is easy to prepare and is a nutritional powerhouse boasting high amounts of vitamin C and B6, calcium, magnesium phosphorus and potassium, antioxidants and fiber. All this leads to improving memory, inflammatory response, blood pressure, cardiovascular risk and cancer reduction.

I love it and use it as a base for cream sauces, frozen and added to smoothies, and as the star of a crunchy turmeric salad. If you try these recipes, please leave a comment.

Creamy White Sauce / Gravy 

  • 4 cups cauliflower, separated into florets
  • 1 cup yellow onion
  • 1-3 garlic cloves (how you like it)
  • 1/2 cup cashews
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 cup broth or plant milk
  • 1 T white miso
  • 1 tsp Italian seasoning (or thyme, oregano, marjoram)
  • pinch cayenne or black pepper to taste
  • For Gravy: 1 lb mushrooms, sliced

Add the cauliflower, onion, garlic and water to a pot, bring to a boil and turn heat down to low, cover for 10 minutes until cauliflower is very tender. When done cooking, add the mixture to a blender along with the cashews, broth/milk, miso, and seasonings. Let cool a bit so the heat doesn’t blow the top off the blender. 🙂  Blend for a full minute, scrape down the sides of container and blend for another 30 seconds. It should be thick and creamy.  Use this as a white sauce for noodles, over root vegetables to make a scalloped casserole, in a squash lasagna or to make creamed greens.  For a gravy, slice and saute mushrooms and another cup of chopped onions, and pour this sauce into the pan once the mushrooms have cooked and lost most of their moisture. Use the gravy over grains, cooked with lentils, on top of veggie burgers or as a Rague with kale, chard and collard greens.

Cauliflower Berry Smoothie

  • 1/2 cup frozen cauliflower
  • 1/2 cup frozen strawberries
  • 1/2 cup frozen blueberries
  • 1-2 cups spinach
  • 1 cup nut or oat milk
  • add in to your taste, some cinnamon & ginger, or maca & cacao

Blend everything until thick and smooth. Drink Up!

Turmeric Cauliflower Salad 

  • 4-5 cups cauliflower florets in bite size pieces
  • 2 T red onion, chopped
  • 1 rib celery, chopped
  • 1/2 cup chickpeas (optional)
  • 1/2 cup veganaise
  • 1 1/2 tsp ground turmeric,(more to taste)
  • 1 T rice or cider vinegar
  • 1 tsp Dijon mustard
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper

Break up the florets and add to a mixing bowl along with the onion, celery and chickpeas. In a separate small bowl, whisk together the veganaise, turmeric, vinegar, mustard and pepper. Taste this and see if you’d like more turmeric. Stir this into the cauliflower mixture, tossing to coat everything with the dressing. chill and serve. Keeps for 5 days.

Berry Oat Mylk

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Making your own oat mylk is so easy and economical. Adding berries takes it to a new level of enjoyment and can be frozen into popsicles.

  • 1 cup old fashioned oats
  • 4 cups water
  • 2 cups berries, your choice or use cherries, mango, kiwi or pineapple
  • softened dates, depending on the sweetness of fruit. I usually add 5 and adjust more after tasting if needed.
  • Adding spices/herbs that you like add a nice flavor variation (cinnamon, chili, cardamom, nutmeg, mint, basil, etc.)

Combine everything in a blender and blend until smooth and creamy. You can drink it like this, but I prefer to strain out the remaining oat fiber and berry seeds, so I pour the mixture through a nut milk bag or fine strainer/sieve. Refrigerate and enjoy by the glassful, poured over granola or chopped fruit, or freeze in popsicle molds or ice cubes trays for frozen treat..

 

Berry- Spacho

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This is a wonderfully refreshing cool starter or dessert soup. Perfect at the height of berry season or you can use frozen berries that have been thawed.

  • 2-3 cups fresh berries, mixture is nice (strawberries, black, blue or raspberries)
  • 1 kiwi, diced
  • 1 apple, diced
  • 1/2 cup cucumber, diced
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh mint
  • 1 lemon, squeezed
  • 11/2 cup fresh / frozen berries ( these are for blending so frozen and thawed is fine, I like strawberries  and raspberries for this. Blueberries will thicken up because of all the pectin they naturally have, so use more l juice or water if using them.)
  • 2 oranges, peeled and seeds removed or 1 cup juice
  • 5 softened dates
  • 1 cup water
  • pinch of cayenne, optional

In a mixing bowl, add fresh berries, diced kiwi, apple, cucumber and mint. In a blender, combine the lemon juice, fresh/frozen berries, dates, oranges and water. Blend into a creamy sauce. Pour this over the diced fruit and serve or chill. Sprinkle with a pinch of cayenne when ready to serve.

 

 

Frozen Berry Lemon Bars

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  • 1 can chickpeas, you only want the liquid. (Use the beans for making hummus or bake them for a crunchy salad topping.)
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  • 1/4 cup cane sugar, ground fine

Combine the chickpea liquid and lemon juice in a mixing bowl and using a hand or stand mixer, beat until soft peaks form. This takes a couple minutes. Then add sugar and beat until firm peaks form. Set this aside while you make the cashew cream.

  • 1 cup raw cashews, soaked for 2 hours
  • 5 dates, softened
  • 2 lemons, juice and zest
  • 1/4-1/2 cup water

Strain the cashews from soaking water and add to a blender with dates and lemon juice/zest. Add 1/4 cup water and blend starting on low speed until the cashews begin breaking up and then adjust speed to high. Add more water only if you need to in order for it to blend smoothly. Blend until smooth and creamy. Taste and add

  • 1-2 drops of lemon essential oil (only if you need more lemon flavor)
  • 2 Tablespoons of melted coconut oil

Blend until thoroughly combined and creamy. Pour this cashew cream into the meringue, folding gently, rather than mixing. Then fold in:

  •  1 cup raspberries, fresh or frozen ( I like to break frozen berries into pieces)

Line a pan with parchment or plastic wrap. Pour the mixture over a coconut-date crust that has been pressed into a pan and then freeze for several hours. For ice cream bars without a crust, spread into a plastic wrap-lined square pan and freeze.

  • For a crust:
  • 1/2 cup nuts or seeds
  • 1/2 cup pitted soft dates
  • 1 1/2 cups coconut shreds
  • Pinch salt

In a food processor, pulse until everything breaks down into a crumble that will hold together when pressed or pinched.

If you only want coconut crust, increase coconut by 1/2 cup and omit the nuts.

Let me know if you give this a try. I really liked the light refreshing taste and the ice cream- like texture without having to use an ice cream maker.

Berry Chia Jam

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  • 2 cups berries, (raspberry, strawberry, blueberry, blackberry or mixture)
  • 2 T honey or maple syrup
  • 2 T lemon juice, fresh
  • 2 T chia seeds
  • fresh herbs optional – mint, basil, oregano

Blend the berries, lemon juice, sweetener and some fresh herbs if using, until smooth or just a little chunk remaining. Pour into a bowl and whisk in chia seeds. If you prefer seedless jam, strain berry mixture through a fine sieve and grind the chia seeds before stirring into the fruit. Put into jars and refrigerate overnight.

Use this mixture as a topping for non-dairy ice cream, over biscuits or pancakes, to add beautiful color to dessert plates, or stirred into yogurt. Just enjoy the bright flavor and nutritional benefits!

Raspberry Vinaigrette

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  • 1 ½ cups raspberries
  • 1 T raw apple cider vinegar
  • 1/3 cup water
  • 1 T honey
  • 3 T olive oil
  • 1 clove garlic, peeled
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 pinch black pepper
  • 1 T fresh basil, minced or 1 tsp dried

 

Blend berries, vinegar and water together and pour through a nut milk bag or sieve to remove most of the little seeds. Combine and whisk in remaining ingredients until emulsified..  Dress salad greens and enjoy. The vinaigrette will keep for about a week, refrigerated.

Burrito Bowls or Jars

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Make simple sides and build a buffet for making lunch/dinner bowls or lay out a prep area for making meals to grab-n-go.  Layer your choices and enjoy or seal up and refrigerate to grab on your way out.

The dishes just need to work together. For this post I’m serving up burrito bowls  with rice, quinoa or cauliflower rice topped with the fajita beans, fruit salsa, guacamole, cilantro corn salsa, carrot-cashew queso sauce, tomato salsa, romaine and peppers.  Give it a try and let me know how it goes or if you have any questions.

For cauliflower rice: Add 3 cups cauliflower florets to a food processor along with 1 T sesame seeds or cashews, 1/4 tsp salt & pepper, and 1/2 tsp turmeric. Pulse on and off until the cauliflower is “riced” or about the size of rice.

For the Fajita Beans : Combine 1 chopped onion and bell pepper in a skillet and saute to soften. Add a can of pinto, kidney or black beans that you’ve strained and rinsed. Add 2 T of water and 1 T each of chili powder and cumin, stir well to coat everything with spices and turn to low heat to gently simmer and combine flavors.

For the fruit salsa: finely chop or use a food processor to pulse & chop 1 cup pineapple, 1/2 mango, 1 tomato, juice of one lime and 1 jalapeno, seeds removed. Pulse one and off quickly to chop, you want there to be texture, not all mush. (mush tastes good too, though)

For the Corn salsa: use 2 cups of thawed frozen corn or cut corn off the cob. Combine the corn in a bowl with 1/2 cup of chopped fresh cilantro, 1/4 cup diced red onion, diced jalapeno to taste and 1 lime juiced. Stir to evenly mix and enjoy!

For the carrot-cashew queso: Chop 1.5 cups carrots, 1 onion and 3 cloves garlic, and add to 1/2 cup water in a saucepan, cover and cook until carrots are tender, about 15 minutes. Pour the contents of pan into a blender and add 1 cup cashews, 1 cup dairy free milk, 3 T nutritional yeast, 1 tsp each of cumin, smoked paprika and chili powder. Blend for a minute or two until it’s smooth, thick and creamy. Taste and season with salt and pepper and maybe some cayenne if you want it spicy!

Chop your favorite raw toppings and add to the line up. some suggestions are shredded cabbage, fresh cilantro, red onion, bell peppers, radish, cucumbers, crispy lettuce, chopped tomatoes, olives, sliced or mashed avocado, and lime wedges. A few toppings or many work, but having them prepped and ready to go makes for ease in putting meals together.  I hope you’ll try and let me know. 

Cashew-hemp yogurt and fruit

Cashew-hemp Yogurt

Chef KimLeave a Comment on Cashew-hemp Yogurt

I have a hard time paying the price of dairy-free yogurt and then not liking it once I get it home. Do you have a favorite store bought brand? If you like yogurt, but have never tried making your own dairy-free yogurt, I hope you give this easy yogurt recipe a try.

You’ll need to allow time ahead to soak the raw cashews. I typically put them in a jar and fill the jar with water covering the nuts by at least two inches. They will expand a bit. This soaking allows the cashews to absorb some of the water and soften, so that they will blend very smooth. The soaking also releases the enzyme inhibitors that coat nuts and that helps them digest better and you to get the most nutrition out of them.

To culture the mixture, you’ll need a powdered probiotic. Some probiotic supplements will not culture, so if you take a capsulated probiotic powder, you can try it and see if it works. I use Probiotic Eleven found HERE. You can also find packets of dairy free yogurt starter at health food stores.

If you need nut free option, oat milk can be heated and thickened with a little oat flour or arrowroot, cooled a bit and then add starter. Continue as recipe indicates by keeping warm for several hours. You can also use all seeds or canned coconut milk instead of the cashews for nut free yogurt. There are options and they all taste a little different. So try some and see what you like.

 

Cashew-hemp yogurt and fruit
Print Recipe

Cashew-Hemp Yogurt

A creamy, tangy thick yogurt with a perfect protein blend
Prep Time15 minutes
Soaking and culture time10 hours
Course: Breakfast
Servings: 6
Author: Chef Kim

Equipment

  • blender
  • Spatula
  • Jar or covered container

Ingredients

  • 1 cup raw cashews soaked 2 hours
  • 1/4 cup hemp seeds
  • 1/2 cup filtered water
  • 1 probiotic capsule opened or dairy-free yogurt starter

Instructions

  • Strain and rinse the cashews, add to a blender along with the hemp seeds and water. Blend on low speed, increasing speed up to high speed and blend until mixture is smooth. It will likely begin to warm up and may take a couple times of stopping and scraping sides to incorporate all the seeds.
  • This water ratio will result in Greek style thickness. If you like thin yogurt add another 1/2 cup of water and blend until completely incorporated.
  • Add the probiotic powder or starter to the mixture and blend quickly to combine.
  • Pour mixture into a jar and cover. Place the jar in a warm environment, you want to keep the temporary steady at around 110 degrees. This can be done by warming your oven to 200 and turning it off, placing the jar wrapped in a towel inside and turning on the light. Keep the oven closed for 6-10 hours. A dehydrator or insta-pot can also be used to provide a controlled temperature for the culturing the yogurt.
  • After culturing for that time, stir the yogurt and refrigerate to set. It will keep for several weeks.

Notes

I think it’s best to wait until the yogurt is finished culturing before you add any kind of sweetener.  Taste it and decide if you need sweetener. If you eat yogurt with fruit, you may not need extra sweetener. If you do, consider a little dried fruit, or date paste or a couple drops of stevia liquid. Or blend up some fresh or frozen berries and add those to swirl in.