Good Vegan and Vegetarian Food

Balsamic Roasted Carrots

Ingredients:

12 lg Carrots (about 2 lb)
1/4 c Balsamic vinegar
2 ts Olive oil
1/4 ts Salt
1/4 ts Pepper

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Cut carrots in half lengthwise. Cut diagonally into 1″ pieces to equal 5 cups. Combine carrots and next 4 ingredients in a bowl. Stir well. Spoon carrot mixture onto a jelly-roll pan coated with cooking spray. Bake for 40 minutes or until carrots are soft and browned, stirring every 15 minutes.

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by Phyllis Wasserman

Now that fall is approaching here in the Northeast, most home grown gardens are starting to slow down. But lettuce is still making a healthful addition to your table. Lettuce is a cold weather vegetable. Most lettuces are very healthy. They are high in Vitamins A, C, and folate, all nutrients that help you stay healthy. They can prevent some problems like colds and heart disease.

When you pick lettuce from the garden, it has a natural sweetness and flavor that is different fom the store bought variety. Lettuce only takes about one month to grow from seeds. It will grow in almost any kind of soil. It has to have at least a half day of sun. Full sun is even better. Plant your last late-summer crop in the first week of August. Then add more rows of seed every two weeks. This way you will be assured of fresh lettuce until the first frost comes.

Always buy seeds labeled for the current year. This way you can be sure they will sprout. Buy seeds that are leaf or loose leaf lettuce. Always plant a few varieties. Fall crops have to be heat-tolerant to make it through the summer months. The seeds will sprout if you water them every day.

You can even grow lettuce in pots. Just be sure they are large enough. Some lettuces will grow in window boxes that are at least 18 inches long.

Don’t wet the seeds too heavily. When they sprout be sure they are kept moist. Use a home-made compost to fertilize the soil. When you mow, add the grass clippings, too. If you mulch heavily, be sure to check the soil every day. Don’t let it dry out.

Leaf lettuce has a mild, sweet taste

Romaine lettuce is more juicy and slightly bitter

Bibb lettuce is light green

Watercress and arugula can also be grown and added to your salad

Here is a vinaigrette recipe to use with your freshly grown greens!

1/3 cup olive oil 1/3 cup white (or red) wine vinegar 1 tablespoon fresh thyme, oregano or basil 1/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard 1 clove garlic, minced 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

In a jar that closes tightly, combine all ingredients and shake well. Serve immediately or store in refrigerator up to 3 days. Shake well before using. Makes about 3/4 cup of dressing.

57 calories per teaspoon

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Gourmet cook and accomplished author. Visit my websites: www.phyllisrecipes.com, www.happypettips.com www.medicineestore.com www.earlybirdspecials.info

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Think of the word pumpkin and images of jack-o-lanterns and whipped cream covered Thanksgiving pies will probably pop into your mind. Pumpkin is traditionally considered a holiday food and is a staple in our kitchen pantries and freezers during that festive time of the year. However, did you know that pumpkin now heralded as one of the ‘Super Foods?’

According to Dr. Steven Pratt, author of SuperFoods Rx: Fourteen Foods That Will Change Your Life, “Well, pumpkin is one of the most nutritionally valuable foods known to man. Moreover, it’s inexpensive, available year round in canned form, incredibly easy to incorporate into recipes, high in fiber, low in calories, and packs an abundance of disease fighting nutrients.”

What exactly makes pumpkin so super? The powerful antioxidants known as carotenoids give this food its super status. Carotenoids have the ability to ward off the risk of various types of cancer and heart disease, along with, cataracts and macular degeneration. Dr. Pratt mentions many other disease fighting super foods in his book as well, but we are most interested in pumpkin because of the year-round availability and ease of use in canned form.

How can we add this wonder food to our diets through out the year? Take advantage of the benefits and great taste of pumpkin with the following delicious Pumpkin Recipes.

Any day Pumpkin Pancakes

2-1/2 cups flour
1 cup of buttermilk
1 tsp. salt
2-1/4 tsp. soda
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 cup of pumpkin

Measure flour into bowl and add dry ingredients. Stir in buttermilk and add pumpkin. Mix Well. Cook on hot griddle or skillet until golden brown.

Pumpkin Spiced Muffins

1/3 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 cup pumpkin
1/4 cup milk
2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. baking soda

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl cream butter with brown sugar. Beat in eggs, then pumpkin and milk. In a small bowl combine flour, baking powder, spices, salt and baking soda. Add to the creamed mixture. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes.

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About the author: Sherry Frewerd publishes ‘Family Crock Pot Recipes’ and ‘Recipes to Live By’, both sites offer free and delicious recipes that your family will love. Visit today at: http://familycrockpotrecipes.com and http://theres-more-to-life-than-food.typepad.com/recipes_to_live_by

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