recipes

No-mato sauce 2.0: AKA Awesome Sauce (tomato-free marinara, also vegan, corn-free, soy-free)

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David calls this Awesome Sauce. Awhile back, I thought I’d come up with an ideal (for us) nomato sauce. It’s good but requires more work and ingredients than I have energy for most nights, and I don’t have the energy to put much forethought into food prep lately. Sometimes you just get into a rut. Having to be constantly vigilant about ingredients and not being able to eat out if you want a change of pace gets really tedious. So here is No-mato 2.0, AKA Awesome Sauce. This recipe requires a blender or food processor (we used our Nutri Ninja with the 16oz cup), but an immersion blender makes quick work of this too. Fair warning: this sauce is nuclear-pumpkin-safety orange. It’s delicious, but I haven’t been able to make it any redder. Since I don’t care and I think it’s delicious, I’m posting my recipe. Ingredients 1-12 ounce jar …

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Faux Tuna Salad: gluten-free, soy-free, vegan

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We like this on thin rice cakes, cucumbers, chips of all kinds, and Siete tortilla wraps. Makes a good picnic snack or a quick lunch. Ingredients 1-16oz can quartered artichokes, unseasoned 1/3 cup mayo of choice (we like Follow Your Heart Soy-Free) 1/4 cup dill pickle relish or chopped pickles 1 tbsp mustard, any variety 1 sheet nori, crumbled (optional) Black pepper, to taste Instructions Drain and rinse the artichokes, then chop or shred into small pieces in a medium bowl or storage container. Mix other ingredients into artichokes until well-combined. Season with fresh cracked pepper to taste. Notes Nori is optional but makes it “fishier” and tastes salty. We like pickles a lot. You might prefer less relish. Chopped celery is a nice addition. If you eat onions, you might like to add some. Banana flower works well in place of artichokes, if you have access to them. Stays …

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Gluten-free, Vegan, No-Mato Instant Pot Lasagna!

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I have a mild tomato allergy (I get itchy and rashy, but no anaphylaxis), so I just avoid them, even though it makes me sad. It’s better safe than sorry when dealing with so many allergies and sensitivities. This lasagna has been a long time coming. We’ve also used this sauce for pasta, manicotti, and pizza. It’s not a 1:1 marinara substitute, but for those of us who haven’t had marinara in years, it’s pretty tasty. The Sauce: Tomato-Free (No-Mato) Marinara Adapted from Unbound Wellness AIP Nomato Recipe. 2-3 tbsp olive oil 1 cup chopped carrots 1 cup chopped celery 1/3 cup beet powder (I buy Frontier Co-op brand) 1/2 cup chopped non-green bell peppers 1 cup water 1 tbsp salt 2 tsp basil 1 tsp ground thyme 1 tsp oregano 1 tbsp parsley 1/2 tsp garlic powder, or 1-2 fresh cloves 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar, white vinegar, or lemon …

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Rainy Weekend and Snacky Sunday

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It was a rainy weekend in Crescent City, so I did a few things inside the RV while David took a few urgent repair calls. There was another Siete cooking class… I missed out because I was a little too exhausted this week. But look at these adorable gifts! I did make one part of the dish made in class: chorizo refried beans. Two cans of pinto beans blended with a packet of Siete chorizo seasoning. So good with chips! There were naps. I reorganized the cooking gadgets cupboard. We’ve grown a lot since the first time we did this: we love our 3-quart Instant Pot so much that we decided to get a 6-Quart with an air fryer lid. The air fryer broke recently, and we replaced it with an Instant Pot brand air fryer lid. Our two saucepans are in the top shelf behind the blender cups and …

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Date Caramel: gluten-free, vegan, free of allergens (unless you’re allergic to dates, of course)

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We left Arizona last month. We’d planned to stay until the end of tax season, which was extended until mid-May, but by the end of March, we had to call it: it was too hot and we needed to leave early. We’ll be working our way back up to Crescent City, California, because we loved it so much last year. But we’re going slow this time: short hops and staying a week in each place. This gives us time to rest, work, and check out the local area. We had a nice week in Indio, California! We’ve passed through here many times with and without the RV, but never stayed a week. What a treat! Did you know they farm dates here? We stopped at a local market that advertised fresh produce. It was a cramped little convenience store with a bunch of produce— including beautiful juicy-looking dates! We got …

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Foil Packet Dinner: vegan, gluten-free, easy

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We always make two of these, one packet for each of us. Double/triple/quadruple as you see fit. If using an oven instead of a grill, preheat to 400°F. Ingredients (per foil packet) 1 potato, sliced in 1/4”-1/2” slices and rinsed: any kind of potato will do 1/4 cup vegan meat crumbles, lentils, or beans 1/2 of a 6-ounce can of sliced mushrooms, or 8-oz fresh mushrooms, sautéed, or any other veggies you have on hand. Frozen vegetables work well, too. Vegan cheese (optional) Salt and pepper Oil (we like avocado) Instructions On an 18” length of heavy aluminum foil (I love Reynolds Wrap’s nonstick foil, but use what you have), spray or brush with cooking oil, and lay down half the potato in a couple layers, seasoning with salt and pepper. If using vegan cheese, layer 1-2 tablespoons of shreds or half a slice on top of the potatoes. Layer …

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Avocado Chocolate Pudding (vegan, gluten-free, grain-free)

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We recently bought a Ninja Nutri Blender to attempt to make our own nondairy milks. I have celiac reactions to oats, and the oat milk fad has contaminated all the nut milks we usually buy, so we’re going to try making our own. But first… chocolate pudding! I’ve been thinking about avocado chocolate pudding since we shared an amazing cup of it in Chico, California, at Live Love Juice. We’ve made this a few times. It’s best with nondairy whipped cream, but a few chocolate chips and Dandies marshmallows are also fantastic. Ingredients 1 avocado 1/4 cup coconut milk 4 tbsp maple syrup 3 tbsp cocoa powder 1/4 tsp vanilla (extract, paste, etc) Generous pinch sea salt Instructions Blend ingredients until smooth and serve immediately. To save for later, the avocados will oxidize and the pudding will look less delicious. Melt chocolate chips with coconut oil and poor a thin …

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Siete Foods cooking class: baking with Buñuelos!

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We are huge Siete fans around here. I’ve got a corn allergy and David needs to watch his blood sugar, so our taco nights (and there are a lot of them) always feature Siete Almond Flour Tortillas. We buy Dip Chips and Fuego chips in bulk off their website. Thankfully more stores are carrying them now, so we don’t have to order online as often! For the second winter in a row, they’ve been selling Cinnamon Buñuelos, which are my favorite thing ever. Buñuelos are a treat in many cultures, but generally they are some kind of fritter. These are small and crispy, grain-free with cinnamon and coconut sugar. For the second time, Siete hosted a cooking class to benefit an organization doing food work. This time it was No Kid Hungry. For a $10 donation, we got 2 bags of Cinnamon Buñuelos, a chocolate bar, and the recipes. I …

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Instant Pot Shepherd’s Pie: Gluten-Free, Vegan, Tomato-Free

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Have you seen how much we love our air fryer lid for our Instant Pot? We try to make meals that don’t call for a lot of pots and pans, but since we had both instant pots on the counter, we went ahead and used both for this. This can be done without the air fryer step, or assemble in a casserole dish and bake in the oven. Everything is cooked, it’s just nice to brown the top and let the flavors rest. But without an air fryer, I would’ve eaten it without browning, and it would’ve been delicious. Ingredients 2 large sweet potatoes, washed and cut into 1” cubes 1 clove garlic, minced 8 ounces mushrooms, sliced (or one 6-oz can) 1 tsp ground thyme 1 tsp oregano 1 tsp marjoram 1/4 tsp ground sage One 12-oz can lentils, or 2 cups cooked green, brown, or black lentils 1 …

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Cake Mix Quickie! Microwave Mug Cake – gluten-free, vegan

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We really love microwave mug cakes around here. We often make them from scratch (but they’re experimental so we don’t have a tried-and-true recipe to share here yet!), but we really like these Enjoy Life brownie mixes, and it turns out they make amazing mug cakes! Ingredients 4 heaping teaspoons of Enjoy Life brownie mix 1 tbsp coconut oil 2 tbsp water Instructions Mix in a microwave safe mug or bowl (paper bowls work for this, but they can get soggy, and they’re not our first choice). It should be a thin pudding consistency. Microwave for 90 seconds. We have a 1000-watt microwave and 90 seconds is perfect for us. Other microwaves we’ve used have needed 60 seconds or 2 full minutes, so you’ll have to test your own microwave the first couple times you make this. When your cake looks 80-90% dry on top, it’s ready. Let cool for …

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