Alicia's Cheesecake

Baked vegan cheesecake

Today felt like it needed cheesecake. I have been wanting to bake a cheesecake forever. I think it is perfect that my very first cheesecake should be vegan. I used the cheesecake recipe in The Kind Diet. I love this book. I've yet to have a bad recipe, and this was no exception.

Mixing the Cheesecake filling in the blender

It was super easy to make and totally yummy. I put all the filling ingredients into my blender and simply poured it into the crust. I would have to warn that it is much more like a custard in texture than a cheesecake. If I was offering it to my non-vegan friends that is what I would call it. I also cheated. My local health food store had a vegan pre-made graham cracker crust, so I used that instead.

Right after I poured the filling into the graham crust

After realizing just how important and blender and food processor was I went and picked out the Ninja Master Prep Blender and Food Processor. I just love it. It's super easy to use and very quick clean-up. I will probably get a larger food processor bowl eventually, but for now this is perfect. Plus, it was really affordable.

Leftover Lovers

This morning was like any other. My husband wanted some hot cereal, so I started it for him. I'm a leftover girl. I prefer not to have to much sweet in the morning. The risotto from last night was calling my name and I thought it would taste just amazing with a baked sweet potato. So while the cereal cooked, I assembled my breakfast.

My husband is a strict, no leftovers for breakfast kind of guy. He usually wrinkles his nose and looks disgusted when me or the kids choose something savory for breakfast. So you can imagine my surprise when he came in for breakfast and saw my plate and asked if it was for him! Next thing I knew I was assembling a 2nd leftover plate. The hot cereal went to our Nuggets.

My New Favorite Thing To Cook

A little while back I made the Risotto from The Kind Diet. It was wonderful. Having always been intimidated by the thought of making a risotto, I was surprised how easy it was. So for our main meal today, I did it again. I followed the same basic steps, but I had different ingredients. This was flavored more like a pilaf. The carrots were added with the onion at the beginning and were perfectly done by the time the rice was ready. I just stirred in the frozen peas at the end. I had it with sautéed Gardein Scallopini (which I love!) and greens. My family loves this meal. It is very comforting and feels familiar to a bunch of new vegans.

Rich And Creamy Risotto

For dinner tonight, I made the Risotto recipe in The Kind Diet. I had so me beautiful asparagus I got this weekend, so I added asparagus to the recipe.

I have never made risotto before, so I was more than a little intimidated, but it wasn't hard at all, It just needed a lot of attention.

I also made collard greens for the first time. I stir fried them in a little olive oil and garlic. They were wonderful with the risotto.

Lunch Today

We had enough Tuna Salad (kinda) for more sandwiches today. I also made some peanut butter and jam sandwiches. This week I tried Ezekiel bread for the first time. Love the sprouted bread!

Kinda Tuna Salad

Today I made the Tuna Salad (Kinda) from Alicia's Kind diet. It was delicious. I was in a hurry, so I didn't blanch all the veggies, but it was still delicious. We like our veggies crunchy. It didn't hold together as well as traditional tuna salad, but it would be perfect in a pita. This didn't stop us from having it in a sandwich. It was cold and refreshing, perfect for a 90+ degree day.

Two Week Update

It has been two weeks since I started my vegan journey using The Kind Diet. I feel amazing. I'm also happy to report that in addition to feeling great, I'm down 2.4 lbs. Just a note, I spent the weekend with hubby for our wedding anniversary. My old way of eating would have made it very difficult to weigh-in this morning lighter. The foods we would have enjoyed would have been meat and dairy heavy and full of salt and sugar. I would have woke up this morning feeling lousy and bloated. Instead my husband and I found this great little vegetarian place and made good choices the rest of the time and I woke up with energy. I am so grateful to Alicia for writing her book. Yay!

Hubby's Totally On Board

My husband has been getting more involved with the meal planning and has been doing his on research on being vegan and health. He has been intrigued by Brenden Brazier. He just ordered two of his books. From what I can tell, his views are in-line with Alicia's. We will be trying to incorporate more Superhero recipes this week. Weekends will be from the regular vegan recipes.

So excited!

Today's Version of Alicia's Quick Date-Apple-Cinnamon Oatmeal

I love this oatmeal. It's on page 196 in The Kind Diet. I have to heat it a little longer that she says in the recipe, but I'm careful not to overcook it and allow it to sit with the lid on. Today I was out of maple syrup and apples. I substituted agave syrup & cranberries. My family preferred the cranberries. I love the rich flavor the dates give the oatmeal. You'll never miss the brown sugar stuff!

Quick Date-Cranberry*-Cinnamon Oatmeal

Yummy Soup

For lunch today I made Alicia's Magical Healing Soup on pg 251. It was light and wonderful. I didn't have all the veggies, so I made some substitutions. The best one is kale. I love kale in soup. The lightness of the soup was perfect for the warm weather. I also added some white miso paste just before serving.

More Granola (Cereal)

I was informed by my hubby this morning that we were out of the granola and I had to make more. I think the family would say Alicia's Mom's Granola is there favorite recipe so far.

The chocolate event I went to yesterday wasn't as bad as I had anticipated. For one thing the cookies were made from cake mixes and just weren't that appealing to me. There was also less chocolate than originally planned. I had a little dark chocolate with me and in times of weakness, I indulged. Better than the alternative, plus it was wonderful.

Today I'm searching for a Falafel recipe. My hubby has a craving.

Wish Me Luck Today

I will be surrounded by chocolate today from 9 to 4. Before I started The Kind Diet, I volunteered to help at a Chocolate Workshop for kids. Yikes. They'll be cookies, chocolate play dough, chocolate painting & more. I'm packing a delicious vegan lunch and planning on being good.

Alicia's Mom's Granola

This morning I felt like something cool, but filling. So, I made Mom's Granola from The Kind Diet on page 201. This was much easier to make than I had anticipated. I followed the directions, except I substituted dried cranberries for the raisins, my kids don't like raisins. It was really good. I haven't purchased cold cereal in a very long time. This has been hard on the kids, since they love it. This recipe has solved the problem for everyone. We ate it with cold soy milk and it felt indulgent. Lightly sweet, filling and delicious; my kids new fave.

Heat Up The Grill

What can I say, it's getting warm outside and I was in the mood for another burger. Plus, Hubby was fixing the sink, so I wanted out of the kitchen. We grilled these Vegan Boca Burgers up with some sweet potato slices. These were super easy. I sliced them about 1 inch thick, then steamed them with the potato I was going to be using for a potato salad. I steamed them until the were almost done, then lightly sprinkled them with olive oil before putting them on the hot grill. Fantastic.

When we want potato salad in a hurry, I make what I call Rustic Potato Salad. Meaning I don't care what it looks like, but it has to taste good! I cut 1 inch slices of potato, peel on, and steam then until done, but not falling apart. I then plunge them into cold/ice water. Not too long though. Then I loosely chop them and add veganaise, mustard, diced celery, diced pickles, Franks & onion powder. This is endlessly versatile, you can add whatever you want. I don't measure, just add until tastes yummy. Let it sit in the fridge while you get the rest of the meal ready. Yum!

I Just Can't Get Enough of That Lentil Stew!

OK, I might have a problem. I confess to having my third meal in a row that is Lentil Stew. So much for variety. Not to worry, it's all gone. Lunch will have to be something different.

I woke up this morning feeling great. Totally refreshed. This is a brand new experience. I usually have to drag myself out of bed and need at least 1 cup of coffee before actual thought can occur.

The lentil soup felt like the perfect thing to eat this morning, and no coffee was required.

Alicia's Lentil Stew

I had Alicia's Lentil Stew, pg 171 in TKD, for lunch and dinner tonight. I loved it. Totally yummy. I was skeptical about the croûtons, but they sent it over the edge. Fantastic! My family loved it too, especially my daughter.

A bowl of Alicia's Lentil Stew

Vegetable Stock

Today I'm going to make the Legume Stew on page 171 of TKD. I needed Vegetable Stock, so I'm making that first. I love the recipe for stock in the Whole Foods Cookbook. They have recipes with meat in there, but great Vegan recipes too. I am also making Whole Wheat Artisan Bread to go with the soup. I use the whole wheat recipe in Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day. I substitute Agave Syrup for the honey in the recipe. We live in a hot climate so I also cook it outside on my pizza stone in a grill.

My Coffee Cravings Are Gone!

I woke up this morning clear-headed. I think the Coffee Cravings are gone. What a huge relief. I had a small amount of green tea yesterday, but I'm not feeling like having any this morning. We'll see around 3 o'clock this afternoon!

I have never really enjoyed sweet things in the morning, so this morning I opted out of oatmeal, my family enjoyed it, and had Leftovers. Alicia's Fried Rice, and Stir-fried Veggies. Along with scrambled Tofu. I had left over Orange sauce from Alicia's Crispy Tofu and stirred that in. It was perfect.

Leftover Lunch

I'm a huge fan of Leftovers, especially when you have a bunch in one meal. Not too much of anything and tons of variety. I made some extra quesadillas with the remaining cheese and white flour tortillas for the kids and hubby. The kids and hubby aren't as committed to the vegan thing. However, they have OK'd not buying any more. That works. I hate wasting food anyway.

Feeling a Little Better

I felt much less hungry this morning. Though I did nibble on my second piece of banana bread for most of the morning. The tea was greatly appreciated, since my throat was feeling a little sore.