simple and refreshing side

Minty greens are a phenomenal side dish for spring or any time really!

Minty Green Beans

H E R E ’ S A V ER SAT I L E S I DE FOR EVERYONE T O

ENJOY. I T WORKS ANY T IME O F THE Y EAR.

1 pound frozen or fresh green beans

2 Tbls olive oil

2 tsp mint flakes

1 tsp garlic powder

Salt to taste

Steam and drain the green beans.

Sprinkle in mint flakes, garlic

powder and salt. Add olive oil and

mix together. For a warm dish serve immediately. You can also serve

this as a cool, refreshing dish by simply refrigerating it for an hour before

serving.

Tips:

􀀍 Onion powder can be substituted for the garlic powder.

􀀍 If you have the time and inclination, you could sauté a small diced onion

and add that to the green beans.

Wow your family tonight...with an easy but incredibly tasty Porta Puttanesca

I traveled all over the east coast and found recipes from wonderful restaurants that were vegan and gluten free. Here is one of my favorites:

Porta Puttanesca

PROVIDED BY ANTIPASTO’ S RESTORANTE ,

CLIFTON PARK, NY

2 medium Portabella mushrooms, sliced 1/8 ” thick

12 oz marinara sauce

4 oz marsala wine (use wine you'd drink!!)

4 oz vegetable stock

1 - 9 oz. can artichokes, chopped

2 Tbsp capers

1 lb pasta of your choice, cooked ( I use Tinkyada Brown Rice

Fettuccine for this http://www.tinkyada.com/)

In a non-stick pan on high heat, combine mushrooms, Marsala, stock,

and artichokes. Bring to a boil. Add the marinara sauce and simmer

for 10 minutes or until the sauce is no longer soupy. Pour on top of

your favorite pasta and toss. Garnish with capers.

ENJOY!

Hummus

I've been making Hummus all month long and decided I needed to share one of my favorite recipes from my book "The Beginners' Vegan Guide".. Enjoy!!

Hummus

PROVI D E D B Y T H E O RCHARD RE S TAURA N T ,

F R EDE R ICK, MD ( P A G E 2 8 )

3 cups chick peas, cooked and drained

¼ cup tahini

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

¼ cup fresh lemon juice

2 tsp chopped fresh garlic

2 tsp chopped fresh dill

1 tsp ground cumin

dash cayenne pepper (optional)

salt to taste

In a food processor, mix all ingredients together until smooth. Use a

rubber spatula to remove and place in a serving dish. For dipping or

topping, use fresh carrot sticks, celery slices, green, red, or yellow bell

pepper wedges, tomato, cucumber or avocado slices, along with pita

triangles. You can also spread hummus over slices of homemade rolls

and top with veggies!

To keep fresh at least 3-5 days, just cover and refrigerate.

Tip:

􀀍 If you desire a smoother consistency you can add 1 Tbls of extra oil,

and/or up to 2 Tbls of water.

Support Local Community: The Inspired Cookie @ Ike's Place

The Inspired Cookie's Heading to the East Bay

Come join us this Saturday, January 9th, as we venture across the bay to share our gluten-free, vegan deliciousness with our friends in Oakland!



You can find us at the East Bay Vegan Bakesale out in front of the Issues magazine shop at 20 Glen Avenue (at Piedmont Avenue, right around the corner from Peets!) from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. We'd love to meet our fellow supporters, meet new ones, and let you discover how vegan, gluten-free cookies don't have to taste like cardboard.

Proceeds from the bakesale benefit the school garden program at Oakland's Laurel Elementary School as well as BAD RAP pit bull rescue.

New Years!

So this blog is about to turn into an amazing factually fun and entertaining, dear-diary kind of platform! Really my only resolution this year is to make The Inspired Cookie connected to everyone! So starting January 1st, the blogs will start, the recipes, the experiments, the guest writers, the Zen of cookie making will be discussed in full! Please post and leave me ideas on what you'd like to read about or what you'd like to see more of. So have a great holiday and I can't wait to get started! Happy New Year!!

Easy & Quick end of summer salad

I eat this salad all year long but generally make it for others around the end of summer begining of fall. It's so simple and EXTREMELY delicious!

(for 2) Ingredients:

3 garnet yams

olive oil

salt

pepper

garlic powder

onion powder

cinnamon

Favorite Vegan hard cheese (cubed and preferably mozzarella or pepper jack)

Organicville Tarragon Dijon Dressing

Baby greens of choice.

In an roasting pan, place chopped yams cover in olive oil, stir well, add all the seasoning generously. Roast on 400 for 25-30 mins till the center is soft (test with a toothpick or fork)

Remove from oven.

Fill your plate/bowl with baby spring mix of choice add the cubed cheese & dressing to your liking and top with the cooked garnet yams.

Ridiculously easy, surprisingly Delicious!

Enjoy!