Vegan Pumpkin Bread

This is my double recipe super easy adaptation from "lickin' the beaters: low fat vegan desserts":
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Ingredients:
4 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cup to 2 cup sugar
3 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoon baking soda
1 small can of purée pumpkin
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 cup almond milk
Mix all in a very big bowl and put in a very big greased pan.
Bake for 40 min aprox and let cool for ten min before taking out of pan.
Makes fabulous muffins too. Pretty healthy as treats go I'd say.

Sneaky Mac & Cheese

Boil the water for whatever pasta you are using. Once it starts to boil, I put a small pot on the stove and put shredded cheese in the pot on low/med then put milk (whatever milk you prefer...I've used regular, almond and coconut...coconut is the thinnest so the least "milk" like) in the blender (about a cup?) with about a half a can of chick peas and some defrosted frozen chopped spinach. Blend it all up and add to the shredded cheese that is now melting on the stove. If you like it cheesier, you can add more cheese, if it's not thin enough, you can add more milk. You can also play with the amount of spinach..there is a just right amount that Jack likes where there is enough spinach to make me happy but not too much that he refuses to eat it. Then, once the pasta is ready, I just dump the cheese mixture on top and mix up. I guess you could undercook the pasta and put it in a baking pan with some more cheese and some breadcrumbs on top and bake it for awhile, but I never go that far. 

Beet Chili

A nice trick to "save for winter" is to always make twice as much of something you can freeze, and then pack half away into the freezer for another day.

Below is a nice chili that can be a made, frozen, and reheated when you don't feel like doing a lot of dinner prep.

Meat version: Add a pound of pre-browned ground beef at the tomato stage and cut back on the beans to 1 can each.

Red Beet Chili

4 tsp. ground cumin
2 tsp. dried oregano
2 tsp. chili powder
4 T. oil
6 medium beets (or 5 large), trimmed, peeled, and chopped
1 large jumbo red onion, finely chopped
2 large red peppers, finely chopped
White pepper
4-5 cloves fresh crushed garlic
2 large diced tomatoes
2 cans (15 oz.) black beans, rinsed and drained
2 cans (15 oz.) red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
2 cans (15 oz.) pinto beans, rinsed and drained
2 cups water
1/2 – 1 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

Heat the oil and add the chopped beets, onion, and peppers with the pepper. Cook for 15 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally.
Add in the garlic and spices. Cook for another 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes, rinsed beans and water.
Heat to boiling; then reduce to low and simmer for 30 minutes.
Season with more salt and pepper if needed. The chili is best if it sits overnight.
Serve with sour cream or cheddar cheese, and freshly chopped cilantro.