Just a quick post to say Yes, I'm still alive! 

Alive under a happily busy and booming job as co-owner of a school. And as a mom. 

It's busy, but it's good. I hope to have many posts added during the summer - I have so many food pics waiting for a post on my desktop! I feel guilty keeping all these delicious meals to myself. 

In an attempt to write a quick post tonight, I was inspired by these pics and my husband saying he never knows how I make sauces. Well, here's one. And once you know one, you know them all.  Super easy, versatile, and yummy. Enjoy! 

Soy-Free Stir Fry Sauce
*I never measure this recipe, but I make it weekly. It is versatile and forgiving. Feel free to dabble and try different variations! Let me know what you try! 

Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients: (makes about 1/2-3/4 cup of sauce... I think, never measured!)
2-3 tbsp coconut aminos (sometimes called coconut sauce, depending on brand)
1 tbsp honey
1-2 tsp white vinegar or rice vinegar
3 tbsp water
1 tsp minced or powdered garlic
1 tsp minced or powdered ginger
few shakes of salt/pepper
1 tbsp corn starch
*optional: hot pepper flakes, peanut butter, tahini, almond butter, coconut sugar instead of honey, omit coconut amines altogether and add chilli powder/paprika to make a yummy sweet n' sour-ish sauce. The possibilities are endless!

What to do:
1) Add all ingredients except corn starch to a jar. Mix well to combine. Taste. Adjust. 

2) Add corn starch and mix well. 

3) Heat a small pot over medium-high, or use your wok and just push your freshly stir-fried veggies aside, and add your mixture. Whisk often until it becomes a little bubbly and starts to thicken. Reduce heat to low until the consistency is just how you want it. Pour onto of veggies and enjoy! 

I'm just going to let the pictures do the talking here. I got a little photography happy with these delicious meal. Also, I'm off to eat the leftovers for lunch. It is super super yummy.  Light, spicy, and filled with flavour. Enjoy!

Spiced Chickpea Fajitas
Time: 10 minutes!!

Ingredients:
1 can chickpeas, rinsed
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
juice of 1 lime
1-2 tsp cumin, chili powder
1/4 tsp salt
few shakes of black pepper and cilantro
1 red pepper, sliced into strips
1 onion, sliced into strips
1-3 mushrooms, chopped

Options:
Spiced Rice
1 cup uncooked brown rice
1 cup water
tsp each: garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, chili, paprika
sprinkle of salt
*Add spices to water, bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, add rice, cover and let sit for 20-40 minutes, or according to package. 

Enchilada Sauce
2 tbsp Earth Balance Butter
1 tbsp Flour
1 tsp-ish each: garlic powder, onion powder, chili, cumin, paprika
1/8 tsp each cayenne pepper, salt, pepper
1 3/4 cup vegetable broth
1 small can tomato paste
*Melt butter over medium heat, add flour. Whisk together, add spices until fragrant. Add broth and tomato paste and whisk until thoroughly combined. Reduce heat once it starts to thicken after a couple minutes. 

Fresh Corn or Flour Tortillas (Here's a recipe for the ones we make!)
Chopped fresh tomatoes, lettuce, green onion, salsa, avocado, guacamole

What to do:

1) Add chickpeas, spices, lime juice, and garlic to a pan over medium heat. Stir to combine and heat thoroughly until fragrant. 

2) Remove from heat and transfer to a dish, or leave on heat and add in onion, mushroom, and red pepper. Add just a splash of oil or water to loosen up the flavour left behind. Stir and cook over medium heat, until glistening and just a touch softer, but still with a crunch. Remove from heat.

3) Assemble fajitas! We put in ours tonight: spiced chickpeas, spiced rice, sauteed peppers/onion/mushroom, tomato, lettuce, green onion, and enchilada sauce. YUUUUM! 

Comfort food? Yes please!

I'll make this one short, I've been so backlogged with photos of delicious food to share but no time in my life to post them! The past couple months have felt like one continuously long day. Seriously, the school has been so busy this year. So many balls to keep up in the air that the food blog had to take a little rest. As much as I hate to let it rest, I always know I'll never let it sit too long. It's my hobby, my passion, my love.

Cooking and eating delicious home-cooked meals with my family - it's nostalgic, it's warm, it's friendly. It's, honestly, what I look forward to at the end of each day. It brings me back to my childhood, seeing the rush of the day in my father's face come to a calm once he decided what he was going to put on our plates for supper. His passion always showed in the kitchen, no matter how stressful his day had been earlier. Once the onions were sizzling, the veggies were chopped, and the pots were boiling, all the stresses were gone. He had completely transformed from the hustle of the day to the calm of being home again. I know I've adopted this tradition for myself, thanks to his influence in my life. Getting in the kitchen at the end of a busy day is the reward to the day. The phone goes down, the emails stop, everything stands still while the warmth of home cooked food awaits. Even with the challenge of an empty fridge mid-week and minutes to figure something out, there is no stress. The kitchen is my calm. 

This exact dinner came out of such a moment. Little to no time left in the day to think over what to make, limited groceries to go from, and leftover roasted red peppers to use up before they went bad. So, with a simple roasted red pepper cream sauce as my inspiration, I took the vegan route and turned out with this delicious mac n' cheese-tasting dish that honestly, was amazing! Creamy, cheesy, easy, peasy. Ready in 15 minutes. So good, enjoy! 

Cashew Mac n' Cheeze

Total time: 15 minutes + soaking time for cashews

Ingredients

• 2 roasted red peppers
• 2 Tbsp vegan butter or coconut oil
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp basil 
• sea salt/pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup cashews soaked in water for 30 minutes or even better, overnight!
• 1-2 tbsp. cup nutritional yeast

What to do:

1. Add the roasted red peppers to a food processor along. Purée until smooth, adding a tablespoon or two of water if needed to help it blend. 
2. Add garlic it to a skillet with the butter or oil. Sauté over medium heat for 1-2 minutes, or just until the garlic is smelling good. Pour in the puréed peppers and add basil. Stir to combine.
3. Allow the sauce to simmer. Turn the heat down to low and let the sauce simmer for 10-15 minutes, stirring often, or until the mixture is thick.
4. Meanwhile, in your food processor, combine your cashews, soaking water, and nutritional yeast. Blend until very smooth. Add sea salt/pepper to taste. 
5. Add the cashew cream to the skillet, stir until the sauce is smooth, and allow to heat through. 
6. Add pasta to the sauce and stir to evenly combine. Tastes great with a little added greens, too!