Yesterday I passed along this week's Change the World Challenge -- to eat vegetarian or vegan for one whole day (or longer) and spread the word as much as possible.
If every person ate meat just a couple of times a week versus almost every meal, we could end world hunger. END IT! Eating vegan is healthier, cheaper, much better for the environment and, oh yeah, nothing needs to die. I'm not saying a vegan diet is for everyone, but even replacing one meat meal a week, makes a measurable difference. If you could repeat this challenge once a week, it would be great -- I'm convinced if you try it, you'll see it's not so hard.
To aid you in meeting the challenge, below are two of my favorite vegan recipes -- dessert first (yum!) and a delicious, easy, creamy risotto!
Vegan Brownies
Boil 1 cup water. When it’s boiling, take it off the burner and add 1/2 cup flour a little at a time, stirring constantly, until it’s thick and smooth. Cool well.
In a separate bowl, mix:
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
3/4 cup cocoa
1 tsp. chocolate extract
1/2 cup vegetable oil (canola, etc.)
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 cup nuts, chopped — walnuts or peacans
1 cup chocolate chips (vegan, non-dairy)
Add water/flour mixture to above ingredients and beat well.
Then stir in 1 1/2 cups more flour and beat until smooth.
Put in 9×13 greased and floured pan and bake 25 minutes at 350 degrees/until a toothpick comes out clean from the center of the brownies.
Vegetable Risotto
Classic risotto is made with an Italian short grain rice — arborio rice – simmered and constantly stirred, so it slowly absorbs the cooking liquid, resulting in a creamy, delicious dish.
2 c sliced fresh mushrooms (button, portabella, crimini — your choice)
½ c onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbs olive oil
1 cup Arborio rice
3 c vegetable broth (1 c reserved)
3/4 c broccoli pieces
3/4 c fresh tomato, remove seeds and dice
1/4 c shredded carrot
3 Tbs basil
2 Tbs parsley
Cook onion, garlic and mushrooms until tender, but not brown. Bring fresh veggies to a boil in 2 cups veggie broth. Add rice and cook until liquid is absorbed, stirring constantly, add 1 cup broth and stir another 15 minutes. Stir in carrots and tomato. Cook until rice is creamy and just tender; stir in basil and parsley and serve. Add salt and pepper to taste.
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Oh my goodness ... these both look so good! And I love desert first (that way there's always room for it). lol
ReplyDeleteHere's another interesting fact (according to a 2008 issue of Body & Soul): “If 10,000 people replaced a beef meal with a vegetarian option just once a week for a year, we’d save enough water to fill roughly 605 Olympic-sized swimming pools”. Imagine the possibilities!
Have a wonderful weekend ... and thanks for sharing your terrific recipes!
Small Footprints
The brownies sound interesting, and I would like to make a creamy risoto without the butter. I was expecting some pureed nuts, like cashews, to add some creaminess.
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