ZucchiniFest!!

 Yayy! Over the labor day weekend, I went home to work and see my lovely mother and brother! My mom's boyfriend is the best because he brought me all these AWESOME RAWSOME vegetables! How many people do you know get this excited over something so silly!? Welp, these veggies warmed my heart and sure enough made my labor day a little better!

You see that one zucchini in the corner? THAT ZUCCHINI WENT A LONG WAY. For today, I have two recipes- one of which I already have a raw version- my garlicheezy zucchini fries! This time, I baked them and added a few more ingredients to my raw zucchini fries and they were so yummy! My other one is now my personal favorite- a zucchini pizza crust. Yes, I mean it- PIZZA CRUST made out of zucchini. The key to this zucchini crust is to make sure the zucchini is really dry. My first attempt was a mushy fail- I didn't let my zucchini dry long enough (because I was very anxious and hungry) and sure enough my crust was a wompwompwoommpp. 

Baked Garlicheezy Zucchini Fries

-1 zucchini, sliced

- 1/4 cup vegan parmesan cheese

- 1/2 cup cornmeal

- 1/2 cup flax meal

- 1 tablespoon ENER-G Egg Replacer + 3 teaspoons water

- 1/2 cup nondairy milk (I used soy milk- it's much richer!)

-2 garlic cloves, minced

-1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

-1/2 teaspoon salt

- pinch of pepper

1) Preheat your oven to 425 F

2) Prepare your "dredging"- In the first bowl, put in your soy milk, in your second bowl, put your ENER-G Egg Replacer mixture, and then in the third bowl place all the rest of the ingredients except EVOO in the third bowl, and mix well!

3) Have your baking sheet with parchment paper ready and sprinkle the EVOO on the parchment paper and dredge in handfuls your zucchini fries- first place it into the soy milk, then the ENER-G Egg replacer, then your 'flour' and put it on the baking sheet. You should be able to get all your fries on the baking sheet

4) Bake for 20-25 minutes, rotating halfway through. Let stand for 10 minutes then enjoy!

Zucchini Crust with Pesto

gluten free~vegan

Makes 1 Medium-Sized Pizza

2 Cups Zucchini (Around 1/2-3/4 Zucchini), finely grated

1 Cup Almond or Flaxmeal

1 flax egg

1 Tablespoon Grapeseed oil

1 teaspoon herbes d'provence (or dried oregano)

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 

1 teaspoon fresh basil, minced

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

For Toppings:

1 Recipe Anna's Creamy Vegan Pesto

1/4 cup vegan parmesan cheese

2 tomatoes, sliced (mine are on the bottom!)

a handful of spinach (or even try KALE- so yummy)

1) Place your zucchini (already grated) in a strainer with a bowl underneath, and let it strain for 30-45 minutes! (I know, so annoying sorry guys- but you can snack on your zucchini fries while you wait :]) Sprinkle some salt and pepper on your zucchini.

2) Preheat your oven to 400 F. Place your zucchini in a dish towel and squeeze out the remaining water. Let sit for another 10 minutes. 

3) In a mixing bowl, mix all of the other ingredients together (NOT YOUR TOPPINGS!), then add your zucchini when it is dry to combine. It should be like a dough- kinda sticky, but it isn't too dry! If it is too dry, add some more oil. 

4) Line either a pizza plate-jawn or a baking sheet with parchment paper, and spread your 'dough' into a circular-pizza-pie shape! 

5) Bake for 15-20 minutes- until the crust is a golden brown and the middle is not mushy

6) Take it out, and place all your toppings- I would recommend putting your pesto on bottom, then kale/spinach, tomatoes, then parmesan cheese, and bake on the uppermost rack in your oven for another 5-7 minutes. Make sure your cheese doesn't burn!

7) Let sit for five minutes and enjoy!

Iggy trying to sneak in my grocery bags! Silly iggers

Rhubars & my Chip-Free Diet

it was probably my first weekend off in a while, so Bill and I decided to head to his side of town and visit his family. It was sweet- and I wished it didn't end. His family is so genuine, it's a nice getaway from my crazy family. Before we went, I made some rhubars that I will put the recipe on in just a minute.

But lately, I've come to a revelation. Ever since I found out about the Celiac Disease, I've been eating so many potato chips in an unhealthy, binging way. I've gained the weight to compensate, and starting tomorrow (Monday) I'm going to begin a healthier, chip-free diet! HA! I'm actually serious too. I am thinking about planning my meals for the week and sticking to that meal plan. Hopefully, this will be able to save me some money, and extra snacking , and if all goes well I'll probably post a sample week menu on my blog

Alright, enough of this- here's what I like to call the "rhubar" recipe, breaking it down into 3 parts

1. Rhubarb Compote

5 cups Rhubarb, chopped (like above)

1 cup sugar

zest of 1 lemon

• Place everything in a medium sized saucepan and cook over medium heat- until the sugar dissolves and bubbles
• Once sugar bubbles, reduce heat to a simmer for 10-12 minutes
• Once the Rhubarb is very mushy , either finish it off in a blender or use an immersion blender to get a smoother texture. 

2. Almond Crust

2/3 cup almonds

1 cup GF AP Flour (Any works)

2T sugar 

1/2t salt

4+T canola oil

4+ T unsweetened almond milk

• Spray a 9x13" pan with cooking spray and Preheat oven 350 F
• Put almonds, flour, sugar and salt into a food processor and process until it's a flour-like texture
• alternate between canola oil and almond milk, tablespoon by tablespoon. After 4 tablespoons, check to see if the dough is fully mixed. If not, add another round of each per tablespoon.
• If the dough in the processor begins to form a ball, then it is ready. Place your dough in the baking pan and press it down throughout with your fingers. It doesn't need to go above the sides- only line the bottom
• Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes, then refrigerate. 

3. Rhubars

2 cups rhubarb compote

3/4c applesauce

1/4c lemon juice

1/2c sugar

3T corn starch

1 Almond Crust Recipe

• Reduce oven temperature to 325 F
• Whisk all your ingredients together until incorporated
• Take out your crust from the refridge and pour your filling over top
• Bake for 22-25 minutes

For best results, let it cool down before you cut. Also, I like to keep mine refrigerated for best taste.