recipes

While I love most things green it did take me a little while to jump on the green juice bandwagon.  Oddly enough my parents had a juicer back in the 90s (before juicing became trendy!) and I remember grimacing as a kid when they'd offer me a green concoction. I guess they were ahead of the times because now I have a juicer and kind of love the thing. Yep, I can be a slow adapter but now that I have experienced true green juice goodness there may be no turning back. We've discussed the juicing craze a bit before - including the benefits behind it and the pros and cons that come with the hype. Whether you're curious about juice or you're already hard-core this juice will become your new favorite green juice. It's refreshing and a little sweet. The apple is key to balancing out all the veggies! And, the lemon/lime combo add a hint of citrusy spring flavor. I especially recommend this recipe to those who have trouble with salad-like, pungent juices. I know a lot of people that juice first thing in the morning. I tend to enjoy my juice mid morning or for an afternoon snack.  (I still love my morning coffee, nut butter and occasional muffin...I'm human.) Either way this juice is a nice compliment to lunch or as a tasty stand-alone snack.

St. Patrick’s Day is so close we can taste the green beer. After making your Irish holiday more sustainable, it's time to kick back and relax with a delicious treat. This vegan version of the shamrock smoothie will put those corn-syrup, ridiculously fat-packed shakes to shame. Shameless Shamrock Smoothie:

I don't know about you but I could use some greens after all the Valentine's treats I've consumed for the past week. Luckily, this warm brussels sprouts salad recipe should do the trick. (It's all about balance, right?) And, let's just take a second to pay homage to brussels sprouts. As a kid I remember them as mushy and bland with a bit of an offensive aroma. But, after trying them roasted a few years back my feelings towards brussels completely changed. It turns out they're seriously tasty when prepared the right way. I mostly enjoy them baked and crispy but in this recipe I sautéed em for a change, and they tasted delish. This is one of those dishes that's really simple but the contrasting flavors makes it taste like you put a lot of work into it. Click through for the recipe!

This salad accomplishes two lovely things: 1. It gets me eating raw greens in the dead of winter when I could easily live off comfort food like vegan hot cocoa and muffins. 2. It satisfies the sweet and salty combo that I adore. Kind of like my greatest treat-love dark chocolate covered pretzels do... only this salad is a bit healthier. I used a spinach base but you can easily mix it up with kale, arugula or any other salad greens. The pomegranate seeds provide a sweet bite balanced by the slightly salty sunflower seeds and crunchy edamame. And the dressing, my friends, is not to be underestimated. This salad dressing is so simple yet flavorful that you might want to make it a salad staple. An added bonus? There's plenty of health benefits going on in this simple dish.

It's dessert season, and today you are in for a treat. These vegan chocolate coconut bars would make a great addition to any holiday menu. Or, you could even gift them to any worthy sweet-tooth in your life. This recipe is reposted from  our guest blogger, the lovely Mara Tyler who runs Cheap & Simple Vegan, and is also the managing editor of Healthy Bitch Daily. I was craving some coconut. And some chocolate. And cookies. The result? Something I don’t even think I can describe well enough to tell you how good they are. They’re like a brownie-cookie bar-gift from heaven. I could eat these for my last meal. Click through for the recipe!

Want a soft serve-inspired dessert that's totally guilt free? Helllooooo, Banana Whip. This past summer, my sister-in-law raved about the Bashful Banana in Ocean City, NJ. I enjoyed their banana whip at least twice during the week (on top of soft serve a few times...) This frozen dessert not only satisfied my sweet tooth but I learned it was ONLY made of bananas. I had no clue how this was possible since I had previously put bananas in the blender for smoothies, and it's nothing like frozen yogurt. Don't worry friends, I've discovered the secret. And it's good. AND, this recipe is easy enough to be called a.... Half-assed recipe!

I come from a big family - my parents are both one of eight and I have a zillion cousins (60+) Picture the Irish Catholic/Italian version of the my big fat greek wedding family and you're close to an image of our typical holiday. But, this Thanksgiving marks a first. As we recently moved and aren't a bus trip away from my family anymore my husband and I decided to tackle Thanksgiving on our own. Essentially this means me. He has a lot of good qualities and talents but cooking isn't among them ;) I'm feeling totally liberated and excited at the prospect of being 100% in control of my Thanksgiving feast for the first time in my life. My husband isn't a vegetarian by any means but he'll literally eat anything I put in front of him (alas one of those good qualities I referred to above.) Essentially I have full reign to go crazy with the vegetarian and meatless sides that I consider the best part of the holiday. As a non meat-eater I like the idea of a centerpiece dish - like a tofurky for example - but to be honest I don't go ga ga over faux meats. I find them very hit or miss. And, why does the bird or "bird" get all the attention. anyway? Load me up with side dishes and I'm a happy girl! That said click through for a run down of some of the vegetarian Thanksgiving side recipes that will be making an appearance at our Thanksgiving this year.

Between scary Sandy, dropping temps and more time in sweaters, boots and yoga pants I don't know about you but I'm craving warm and zesty eats. Warm foods with a little kick are so ideal for this time of year I've been playing around in the kitchen with some slightly spicy dishes. This vegan buffalo dip is a keeper. I used to be a big sissy when it came to spicy foods but over the past few years I've started to add a bit in at a time to develop a tolerance. Little things like making the switch from wimpy mild salsa to medium helped. Sure enough I can now tolerate a bit of hot sauce and spicy bloody mary's (winning!) You can control the heat to suit your taste buds. The vegan buffalo dip is easy to make, plus it doesn't scream "quirky vegan" - making it very carnivore friendly. I plan to whip this up quite a few times this football and holiday season.

It's back! My approximate (no chef training) half-assed recipes are back with a vengeance! I've been cooking up a storm with my CSA shares and had a little Asian inspiration last week when I started feeling under the weather. This week's recipe brings you back in time but in a much improved fashion: Ramen Soup. Forget those .49 cent box wonders we relied on for nutritional value in College. After trying authentic Ramen in Fukuoka, Japan, I could never go back to the instant water variety. And for years, I couldn't find a satisfaction in the city of brotherly love. Yet always being a trend-setter,  Ramen is infiltrating Philly in a  huge way. But what if you want to try Ramen from your own kitchen? This recipe uses some of your finest (fall) CSA veggies for a hearty (and filling!) soup. Plus, I'm 5% Asian (accurate by blood test!) so it's at least 5% authentic. Julie's Half-Assed Ramen (or Udon) Japanese-ish Soup: (Check out the recipe, after the jump!)