Recipes for the Semi-Vegan

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Plant-Based Eating

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Girls Love the Cookies!

The girls love the gingerbread! Recipe in post below.

Gluten Free Gingerbread Recipe

This recipe is Gluten Free as well as Refined Sugar Free.

This study cookie dough makes great gingerbread cut-out cookies and gingerbread houses.

To make the recipe dairy-free, replace the butter with a solid, dairy-free shortening.

Ingredients

yield: makes about one dozen 4-inch cookies, active time 1 hour 30 minutes, total time 8 hours

• 8.5 ounces (2 cups) brown rice flour
• 2 3/4 ounces (1/2 cup) sweet rice flour
• 2 ounces (1/2 cup) tapioca starch
• 1 tablespoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground clove
• 1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum
• 5 ounces (10 tablespoons) butter, softened
• 6.3 ounces (3/4 cup packed) dark brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 3 tablespoons molasses

Procedures

1. 1

   In medium mixing bowl, whisk together brown rice flour, sweet rice flour, tapioca starch, ground ginger, ground cinnamon, baking powder, salt, ground clove, and xanthan gum. Set aside. In bowl of stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream together butter and dark brown sugar until a thick paste forms, about 30 seconds. Add egg. Blend until combined. Stop mixer and scrape down bottom and sides of the bowl. Add dry ingredients. Blend until a thick dough forms. Add molasses. Blend until thoroughly combined.

2. 2

   Lightly flour your countertop with brown rice flour. Turn dough out onto counter and pat into a round. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap. Chill for several hours or overnight.

3. 3

   Preheat oven to 350°F. Remove dough from the refrigerator and allow to stand for five minutes. Divide dough round in half and roll out to 1/4-inch thickness on a generously rice floured countertop. Cut into shapes. Place cookies on parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake until edges are golden brown and aromatic. Repeat with remaining dough.

4. 4

   Cool cookies on a wire rack. Decorate as desired. Store cookies in a covered container for up to one week.

Homemade Tomato Soup - from my friend, Trina

Homemade Tomato Soup

Recipe courtesy Michael Chiarello, The Food Network

Ingredients

• 1 (14-ounce) can chopped tomatoes
• ¾* cup extra virgin olive oil (*I use closer to ¼ cup even for a bigger batch)
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 stalk celery, diced
• 1 small carrot, diced
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
• 1/2 cup heavy cream, optional

Directions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Strain the chopped canned tomatoes, reserving the juices, and spread onto a baking sheet, season with salt and pepper, to taste, drizzle with about 1/4 cup of the olive oil and roast until caramelized, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a saucepan, heat remaining olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the celery, carrot, onion and garlic, cook until softened, about 10 minutes. Add the roasted chopped canned tomatoes, reserved tomato juices, chicken broth, bay leaf and butter. Simmer until vegetables are very tender, about 15 to 20 minutes. Add basil and cream, if using. Puree with a hand held immersion blender until smooth.*

NOTES:

*I don’t have an immersion blender so I use a normal blender or my food processor to blend everything. I leave out the heavy cream and it still tastes very rich. The recipe does not make a lot of soup so I usually triple or quadruple the amounts so that we have plenty left over for another meal.