Lentil Loaf

My sister was disappointed by all the "flaxseed and almond flour BS" in the lentil loaf recipes she found on Pinterest, so we went back to Mom's recipe cards to get the "old-fashioned hippie" version.

1 c dry lentils (2 c cooked)
1  13-ounce can evaporated milk
1/4 c oil
2 eggs
2 c oatmeal or extremely dry bread crumbs (we prefer oatmeal)
1/2 to 1 c chopped walnuts
1 minced onion
1 c minced celery
1 c grated carrot
1 tsp sage
Salt & Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350F.
Prepare dry lentils by cooking them in 2 cups water over medium heat for 30-40 minutes. Combine cooked lentils with all ingredients and stir together thoroughly.
Divide into two loaf pans or 24 muffin cups.
Bake 1 hour. Serve hot with ketchup or BBQ sauce. Also makes good leftovers or cold sandwich filling.

Whole Wheat Banana Bread

1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup white flour
1 t baking soda
3/4 t salt
1 1/4 cup mashed banana
1/4 cup plain yogurt
1/4 - 1/2 cup walnuts

Preheat oven to 350F. Cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in egg. In another bowl, sift together flours, baking soda, and salt. In a third bowl, mix together banana and yogurt. Alternate adding dry and banana to the butter mix. Stir just enough to combine well. Fold in walnuts. Bake 50-60 minutes in a bread pan. Makes 1 loaf.

Baked Apples

This is written on the same card as Swedish Nuts and Danish, which is titled "from Amy to me & to you". It's like a self-contained, crustless apple pie. One of many of Grandma's recipes that could either be dessert or breakfast, depending on your mood.

1/3 c walnuts
4 T water
4 apples
1/2 c sugar
2 T flour
1 1/2 t cinnamon
1/4 c butter

Core and peel apples - do not slice. Combine sugar, flour, and cinnamon well. Melt butter. Roll apples in butter, then in sugar to coat them. Place apples in cups or baking dish. Sprinkle walnuts and 1 T water on each apple. Microwave 1 1/2 to 3 minutes, or bake 35-40 minutes at 350F.

4 servings. Per serving: 374 cal, 18.2g fat (7.9g sat. fat, 30.5mg chol.), 55.4g carbs (5.6g fiber, 44.4g sugar), 2.5g protien

Gado Gado

This is a Moosewood recipe for a spicy peanut sauce, that I mostly remember eating over plain brown rice. It's something along the lines of the sauce that Noodles & Co. puts on the Indonesian Peanut Sauté dish, but a bit creamier and more ginger than heat.

1 c chopped onion
2 cloves garlic
1 bay leaf
1-2 t grated fresh ginger
1 c peanut butter
1 T honey
1/4 t cayenne pepper
juice of 1 lemon
1 T cider vinegar
3 c water
1/2 - 1 t salt
dash tamari

Cook onion, garlic, bay leaf, and ginger in sauce pan to soften onion. Add everything else. Simmer on low heat 30 minutes. Serve over grains, cooked veggies, tofu.

Note: A quick search for "Moosewood Gado Gado" comes up with a no-cook sauce that gets blended in the food processor. It uses 1 cup of peanut butter but only 1 1/2 cup of water, but it's hard to say which comes out thicker, since this one gets simmered down.

Swedish Nuts

These are seriously addictive, and apparently originally came from my mom's cousin's daughter, aka Cousin Amy. It's on the same recipe card as Baked Apples and Danish.

1/2 cup butter
1 egg white
1/2 cup sugar
dash salt
1 tsp vanilla
3 cups pecan halves

Preheat oven to 300F. Melt the butter in a 9x13" pan. Beat the egg white until stiff. Add sugar, salt, and vanilla. Fold in pecan halves. Spread mixture over melted butter in pan. Toast 30 minutes.

Cranberry-Orange Salad

This is an simplified version of a rather complicated salad that I made for Thanksgiving one year. Now I make this one for everything.

img via: pinch my salt

2 oranges or several clementines
6oz baby spinach leaves
1/2 cup (or more) dried cranberries
4oz chopped pecans

Toast the pecans about 5 minutes at 350 degrees, then set aside to cool. Peel and separate the oranges and cut them into 1/2 inch pieces. Baby spinach usually comes well washed, but rinse if you want to. Toss everything together. Serve with a balsamic vinaigrette dressing.

Crescents

I'm getting ahead of myself, because we don't make these cookies until Christmas, but that's okay. It's another from Grandma.

img via: the bon appetit diaries

2 cups ground pecans
1 pound butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
5 cups flour
1 T vanilla
powdered sugar (at least 1 cup)

Mix pecans, butter, and sugar together. Add flour and vanilla. Knead dough until smooth, then shape into crescent-moons about 3" high. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes at 350 degrees. Cool 1 minute, then roll in powdered sugar. Let cool, then roll in sugar again. Makes 56 cookies.

Pecan Pie

Another recipe from Grandma. The first set of measurements is for a 9" crust, the ones in parenthesis are for an 8" crust.

1 pie crust
3 eggs (2)
2/3 cup sugar (1/2)
1/3 t salt (1/4)
1/3 cup melted butter (1/4)
1 cup dark syrup (3/4)
1 1/2 cups pecan halves

Put the crust into a pie dish. Beat together eggs, sugar, salt, butter, and syrup. Put pecans into the crust, then pour mixture over. Bake 40-50 minutes at 375 degrees.

Sweet Potato Casserole

We made this recipe off the back of the can of Dunbar Yams for years, until one day... there was a new recipe. We ended up calling the 1-800 number on the can, and waited while the lady on the other end rummaged around the office and found it for us. I have to admit that I prefer the pecan topping to the marshmallows some people put on their sweet potatoes, because marshmallows kind of freak me out.

Casserole:
40-oz. can sweet potatoes, drained and mashed
1/2 t salt
1/4 cup butter
1 t vanilla
1/2 cup sugar
4 egg whites
1/2 cup evaporated milk

Topping:
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/3 cup flour
1/4 cup butter

Combine all the casserole ingredients in a bowl and pour into a shallow baking dish. We usually use a square 9" pan about 2" deep. Combine the topping ingredients - I like to melt the butter so it mixes better - and crumble/spread over the casserole. Bake 45 minutes at 350 degrees.

Spinach Salad

This recipe is from our friend Lee Erikson. She's part of our group who gets together every month or so for the "Liberal Vegan Luncheon." Anyway, good simple salad, don't add the dressing til you're ready to serve it or the spinach shrivels and the apricots reinflate and it's just not the same..

2 10-oz. bags baby spinach leaves
1/2 cup cashews
1/4 cup chopped dried apricots
2 apples

Rinse the spinach, chop up the apples, throw everything in a bowl. Ta-da, there's your salad!

3 T sugar
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup garlic salt
1/4 cup celery salt

Mix everything together til the sugar and salts dissolve. Ta-da, there's your dressing!

Sunburgers

Sunburgers are one of these hippie foods that my parents have had around forever but we don't make much anymore, with soy products being much easier to find and cook. There's a fair amount of prep time involved to chop all the veggies and form the patties, but I remember them being pretty good, so make it if you have the time sometime.

1/2 cup grated carrot
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
2 T finely chopped onion
1 T finely chopped parsley
1 T finely chopped green pepper
1 egg, beaten
1 T oil
1/4 cup V8 juice
1 cup ground sunflower seeds
2 T wheat germ
1/2 t salt
1/2 t basil

Combine all ingredients. Divide and shape dough into patties (6-8). Arrange patties on a greased cookie sheet or baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes on each side.

Makes 8. Aprox 125 calories, 11 grams fat each.

Hummus

We love this stuff, it's from Julie Jordan's first cookbook, Wings of Life. Eat hummus with pita bread, carrots, celery, cucumbers, crackers, whatever makes you happy!

15 oz. can chick peas (drain, but reserve liquid)
2 cloves garlic (or more)
1/2 t salt
1 T tahini
juice of 1 lemon (or more)
2-6 T chick pea canning liquid
optional: chopped parsley, shredded carrot

Put everything in the food processor and grind until smooth. Add more canning liquid if necessary to unthicken and anything else to taste. Let sit to blend flavors before serving.

Serves 4. Aprox 121 calories, 3.5 grams fat per serving.

Idaho Chili

An easy potato-based vegetarian chili, good for the winter.

4 cups V8 juice
2 cups water
2 potatoes
15 oz. chick peas
1 cup dried lentils
1 onion
2 carrots
2 T chili powder
1 t basil
1/2 t garlic powder

Chop potatoes, onion, and carrots. Put everything in a big pot. Bring to a boil, then simmer 30 minutes. Garnish with yogurt, sour cream, or chopped onions and tomatoes.

Serves 6. Aprox 295 calories, less than 2 grams fat per serving.