Best-Ever Vegan Chili and Best-Ever Rainbow

Best-Ever Chili

One of my latest "unpacks" from our recent move to the Olympic Peninsula is our moveable dry goods pantry - - beans begging to be cooked, since temperatures have dropped into the low 40's and 30's. I made yesterday an At-Home day, primarily so I could cook a large batch of homemade vegan chili based on "Big Paul's Chili" award-winning recipe with the follow additions, as follows :

I cooked up my own red beans, added V-8 juice for additional liquid, my own dried tomatoes (chopped), as well as crumbling three vegan Sunshine falafel patties (gluten /soy free) into the chili during the last stage of simmering all the ingredients.

It's savory sweetness and chunky texture make for an especially tasty, hearty, nutritious meal to stave off the fall and winter chill!

Ingredients:

3 Bell Peppers (green, red, yellow or orange combo), chopped

2 medium Onions, finely chopped

2 Carrots, chopped

3 Celery ribs, chopped

6 Garlic cloves, minced

2 T Lemon juice

1 small can Jalapeño peppers (mild), chopped

1 (15 oz) can organic Tomato Sauce

1 (28 oz) can organic crushed Tomatoes

1 cup dried Tomatoes, chopped

V-8 Juice for additional liquid

1 (15 oz) can of pitted Black Olives, chopped

6-8 cups Red Beans, cooked or canned (15 oz)

2-4 cups Black Beans, cooked or canned (15 oz)

2-4 vegan meatless patties or soy crumbles (optional)

¼ cup Maple Syrup (or Brown Sugar)

1 T Molasses

2 (heaping) T Chili Powder

¼ tsp Cayenne Pepper

Salt to taste

Olive Oil for sautéing vegetables

Directions:

1. In a large stock pot over medium heat sauté in olive oil the onions, carrots, celery, bell peppers and garlic until soft.
2. Add the tomato sauce, crushed tomatoes, dried tomatoes, lemon juice, chili powder, cayenne pepper, maple syrup, molasses or brown sugar. Stir to mix well and heat up.
3. Reduce heat to medium, and then add in the red and black beans, black olives and optional meatless crumbles.
4. Simmer for 30-minutes to an hour, stirring occasionally. Salt to taste.
5. Garnish options: green onions, sour cream, crumbled saltine crackers
6. Serve with Spoon Bread (see my recipe)

Serves 8-10

Best-Ever Rainbow

After the chili was made and simmering, I made a quick trip over to the Wooden Boat School to deliver a new assortment of teas for the students to enjoy. It was a cold and rainy day. As I came down the hill, I saw the most beautiful, spectacular, breath-taking rainbow I've ever seen, which spanned the entire bay, seeming to rise out of the water at Port Hadlock and arch across the sky to Port Townsend. Here are the images I quickly captured before it faded away:

My Mother's Day Breakfast, Lunch and Family

What a wonderful Mother's Day!

First off, I awoke to the taste of a fresh strawberry dipped in honey on my lips. Sweet!

While I was getting ready for church, my husband cooked up a batch of french toast on our griddle adapting the following recipe he found online at PKU Recipes blog, using Angelina's gluten-free Outrageous Orange Cinnamon Swirl Rice Bread. Yumtastic!

Rice Dream® French Toast

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups Rice Dream Original
4-6 slices whole wheat bread
3 Tablespoons arrowroot powder or 2 eggs
3-4 Tablespoon oleic safflower oil or butter
1 teaspoon cinnamon powder

Directions:

1. In a wide bowl, whisk together Rice Dream, cinnamon, and eggs (or arrowroot).
2. Cut bread into triangles and soak in the Rice Dream mixture until softened (1-3 minutes).
3. Heat portions of the oil or butter in a frying pan or griddle, over medium - high heat.
4. Add several pieces of the soaked bread; do not overcrowd the pan.
5. Cook evenly on both sides for 2-3 minutes or until each is browned.
6. Serve immediately with your favorite fruits, jam or maple syrup.

Right after church, we followed our daughter, Effie, and granddaughter, Sephira, home for Mother's Day lunch. Effie's family loves my spoon bread. Sorry Dirk had to work and was unable to join us. While the spoon bread baked in the oven, Effie warmed up the pre-made Chili Verde she buys from Trader Joe's on the stove top and together we put together a crisp, crunchy salad of fresh greens and vegetables. The combination of flavors and textures were delish!

They day before Mother's Day, Effie and Sephira came out to visit us at Le Roost Lorane wearing matching jackets. A number of years ago, I bought Effie the jacket she's wearing. A while back, one of her neighbors put this toddler jacket in her garage sale; Effie snapped it up, looking forward to the day they would be 'twinsies' - so adorable!

Sunny afternoon.

Such a serious face.

This is priceless!

Sephira Lee clumpin' about in Nana Lee's old hiking boots.

I am so blessed to have such a wonderful family! I only wish my other daughter, Skye, and my grandson, Max, lived closer... so we could enjoy these good times together! I heard they had a great play day chasing giant bubbles and being silly. As Max says, "Awesome!"

A Spoon Full Of...

I had some extra corn grits left over from making polenta the other night, so I whipped up a batch of some good old-fashioned spoon bread and let it bake while I was working late from my home office. It turned out light, fluffy and was incredibly delicious, especially serving it up hot right out of the oven dripping with butter. Here's the recipe I used:

Good Old-Fashioned Spoon Bread


Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup cornmeal
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 cup boiling water
• 3 tablespoons melted butter
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 2 teaspoons baking powder 

Directions:

Combine cornmeal and sea salt in a mixing bowl. Stirring constantly, gradually add the boiling water, and keeping smooth, stir in the melted butter. In a small mixing bowl, beat eggs until pale in color and thick. Add the milk and beat to combine. Add the milk and egg mixture to the cornmeal mixture along with the baking powder. With an electric hand-held mixer or whisk beat to blend thoroughly. Turn the mixture into a generously greased 8-inch square glass baking dish or 1-1/2-quart round or oval casserole or oven proof bowl. Bake at 350° for 30 to 35 minutes, until it is set and lightly browned. Serve the spoon bread hot, with plenty of real butter. Serves 4 to 6. Gluten-Free!

Cook Around the Block Tip:

Let's say you are somewhere without access to measuring cups for some reason, like backpacking with limited cooking equipment, but you have measuring spoons or a tablespoon or teaspoon-size eating utensil. Here are the cooking measurement equivalents for following a recipe calling for cup-size portions of ingredients. Print this out, laminate it and store it in your travel gear or with your camping supplies:

• 16 tablespoons = 1 cup
  
• 12 tablespoons = 3/4 cup
  
• 10 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons = 2/3 cup
  
• 8 tablespoons = 1/2 cup
  
• 6 tablespoons = 3/8 cup
  
• 5 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon = 1/3 cup
  
• 4 tablespoons = 1/4 cup
  
• 2 tablespoons = 1/8 cup
  
• 2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons = 1/6 cup
  
• 1 tablespoon = 1/16 cup
  
• 2 cups = 1 pint
  
• 2 pints = 1 quart
  
• 3 teaspoons = 1 tablespoon
  
• 48 teaspoons = 1 cup