Category Archives: Vegan

Creamy Cauliflower Soup with Ginger and Turmeric (GFDF)

19 Monday May 2025

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Cauliflower soup in a clear bowl with a spoon

3 stalks of organic celery, sliced thin (2-3 mm)
2 small organic carrots, sliced thin (2 mm)
1 large organic white or yellow onion, roughly diced
2 T organic cooking oil of your choice
1 head of organic cauliflower, roughly chopped
5 cloves of organic garlic, roughly chopped
1 T fresh organic ginger, finely chopped or grated
1 T organic dried turmeric
½ T organic ground black pepper (or less if you prefer it milder)
1 t sea salt
1 32 oz carton low sodium organic chicken or veggie broth (use veggie for vegan/vegetarian option)
1 can full fat organic coconut milk
½ cup fresh organic cilantro, chopped (optional)

Sautee the celery, carrots, and onion in cooking oil until partially cooked. Add in the cauliflower, garlic, ginger, turmeric, black pepper, and sea salt. Pour in broth and cover with a vented lid. Cook until the cauliflower is easily sliced with a stirring spoon. Add in the coconut milk. Using an immersion blender, puree the soup until smooth. Serve with cilantro if desired.

Creamy Cajun Veggie Pasta (Gluten Free, Vegan, Organic)

04 Sunday May 2025

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creamy cajun veggie pasta close up with penne pasta, red peppers, zucchini, asparagus, mushrooms, and green onions

This recipe can easily be halved; I was making a huge batch for a potluck. It also works really well with a bundle of kale instead of zucchini or asparagus if you prefer; add the kale with the second batch of veggies.

Organic olive oil
1 large organic zucchini, quartered lengthwise and sliced into ¼” pieces
1 pound organic asparagus, chopped into small pieces with stalks and tops separated
2 organic bell peppers (red, yellow, green, orange- whatever the store has)
1 8 oz package fresh organic white mushrooms (or others of your choice)
6 organic green onions, chopped into small pieces
1 13.5 oz can organic full fat coconut milk
2to 3 T organic cajun seasoning (depending how spicy you like it)
1 t organic garlic powder
1 t organic black pepper
Sea salt to taste (about 2 t for me)

1 12-16 ounce package organic gluten free pasta of your choice

In a large pot, cook the package of pasta and drain. Set aside.

In a very large frying pan, saute the zucchini, the stalks of the asparagus and the bell peppers until mostly cooked in olive oil. Add in the tops of the asparagus, the green onions, and the mushrooms. Continue to saute until mushrooms are cooked. Add in the coconut milk and seasonings. Allow to simmer for a few minutes. Add in the pasta and stir well. Serve.

Cherry Crumble (gluten free, vegan, mostly organic)

04 Sunday May 2025

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Cherry crumble in a glass pie pan

3-4 cups organic cherries, fresh (or any fruit you’d like) (if frozen, defrosted and juices drained) 
1/4 cup organic cornstarch
1/4-1/2 cup organic brown sugar (depending on sweetness of cherries)

1 tsp organic vanilla extract
2 tsp organic cinnamon
2/3 cup Bob’s Red Mill 1-for-1 gluten free flour (or your favorite gf flour mixture)
2/3 cup organic pecans, chopped into small pieces (I used my Cuisinart)
2/3 cup organic gluten free oats
2/3 cup organic dark brown sugar
1/2 t organic nutmeg
5 T organic coconut oil, preferably solid
1/2 t sea salt

Preheat oven to 350F.

Mix together the cherries, cornstarch, and brown sugar and put in a 9” pie tin. In the mixing bowl, mix together the rest of the ingredients, using your fingers to knead in the coconut oil if solid. Put on top of the pie filling mixture in the pie tin. 

Bake for 60 minutes at 350F or until crumble is golden and cherry juices are bubbling. Cover with foil if it begins browning too quickly before the cherries are cooked.

Allow to cool before serving. Tastes better slightly warm.

Asparagus and Red Potato Salad (GF, DF)

02 Friday May 2025

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Vegetarian Option of Asparagus and Red Potato Salad
Vegetarian Option of Asparagus and Red Potato Salad

½ cup organic canola or other neutral oil
¼ cup organic red wine vinegar
¼ c organic minced green onion
2 T organic fresh dill weed, minced (do not use dried)
1 T organic Dijon mustard
Salt to taste
Organic Pepper to taste

2 pounds organic red potatoes, unpeeled, cooked until tender, cooled, and sliced/diced
1 lb fresh (or frozen) organic asparagus, lightly steamed and sliced into bite sized pieces
4 hard boiled organic eggs, diced (optional, omit for vegan option)
6 slices of organic bacon, crumbled (optional, omit for vegan and vegetarian options)

Combine oil, vinegar, onion, dill, mustard, salt and pepper in bowl or jar and mix well. Toss gently with potatoes and asparagus in a large bowl. Cover and refrigerate at least 6 hours or overnight.  Add eggs and bacon before serving if desired.

Tastes great warm, too!

Yield: 6+ servings.

Cream of Asparagus Soup (GF, DF and Vegan Options)

25 Friday Apr 2025

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Creamy green asparagus soup served in a purple bowl with a spoon.

Cream of Asparagus Soup

1 white or yellow organic onion, diced
1 bunch of organic rainbow chard, stems and leaves separated and chopped (can also use kale)
2 organic carrots, thinly sliced
4 cloves organic garlic, minced
½ organic poblano pepper, chopped (or substitute 1T organic dried tarragon for a non-spicy version)
2 bunches of organic asparagus, chopped into pieces
4 c organic chicken (or veggie) broth
2 c or so water
2t sea salt
2t organic black pepper
1 c organic heavy cream (or substitute one can of full fat organic coconut milk and use less water for a vegan, dairy free option)

Saute the onion, chard stems and carrots in vegetable oil of your choice.  When the onions are partially cooked, add the garlic and poblano pepper.  Continue sautéing until the onions are close to done.    Add in the asparagus, broth, water, salt and black pepper.  If needed, add a bit more water to just cover all the veggies.  Bring to a boil and reduce to medium heat.  Continue to cook uncovered until the asparagus is soft heading towards mushy.  Add in the chard leaves.  Turn off the heat and allow the chard to cook in the cooling soup.  After the chard is cooked and the soup is cooled a bit, Add the cream, and then puree with an immersion blender.  Makes about 12 cups.

Roasted Squash Seeds

16 Thursday Apr 2020

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raw organic butternut squash seeds

raw organic butternut squash seeds

Credit for this recipe goes to Kim Lane of Austinmamas fame. I’ve adapted it a bit to meet allergy needs, but the heart of it is the same. The most important thing she taught me was that you don’t wash the seeds. You leave the goop on them. It makes them much more flavorful and is a lot less of a pain!

This recipe works with seeds of any kind from the squash family which includes melons. You can use butternut, acorn, pumpkin, honeydew or cantaloupe. I generally stick to the more vegetable seeds.

Roasted Squash Seeds

Ingredients

Seeds from one or more squash (do not clean!)
A few teaspoons of oil that is safe for you or melted butter
A few shakes of salt of your choice (flavored salts work, too)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 250F.

Take the seeds out of the squash. Remove any huge chunks of squash strings from the seeds, but do not wash or remove little bits. They add flavor! Place the seeds in a pan that will hold them all in a single layer, and lightly coat the seeds with the oil or butter of your choice. Shake a bit of salt over them. Stir until all are relatively coated.

Bake the seeds for one hour, pulling them out every 15 minutes and stirring, pushing them back into a flat layer every time.

Allow to cool and then eat. They can be stored in a sealed bag or container on the counter for a short amount of time, but I rarely have any left since we tend to eat them all while they are warm!

©2020 NaturallyElizabeth.com

roasted and salted organic butternut squash seeds

roasted and salted organic butternut squash seeds

GFDF Blueberry Pecan Crumble Pie

06 Thursday Jun 2013

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IMG_1066 ps

One of the things that I unfortunately had to remove from my diet in January was egg.  IgG sensitivity testing showed that I was reacting to both chicken and duck eggs, and given the foods I was reacting to, that made sense.  I’ve had problems with eggs before, but not when I was gluten sensitive.  This is creating a whole new cooking and baking challenge for me.

For my birthday this year, I decided to go for a pie in part because I haven’t done a lot of eggless GFDF baking yet and partially because Whole Foods had organic blueberries on sale for $1.99 a pint last Friday.  We had plenty of blueberries left for a pie.

This recipe is based on another GF blueberry pie recipe I had, but the idea of a pecan crumble came into my head while I was standing in the kitchen this morning.  It tastes fantastic.  I highly recommend it.  To make the pecan meal, my daughter ground up a bunch of pecan pieces in a coffee bean grinder that I normally use for grinding flax and other seeds.  The meal isn’t perfectly smooth, but it works well for this purpose.

IMG_1072-ps

GFDF Blueberry Pecan Crumble Pie

Makes one 9 inch pie

Crust:
5 tablespoons organic brown rice flour
5 tablespoons sorghum flour
5 tablespoons almond meal
5 tablespoons organic tapioca starch
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 cup organic palm shortening
About 1/4 cup water

Crumb Topping:
6 tablespoons organic brown sugar
3/4 cup organic pecan meal*
1 teaspoon organic cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
5 tablespoons organic palm shortening

Filling:
2/3 cup organic sugar
1/4 cup organic cornstarch
Zest of one medium organic lemon
Juice of one medium organic lemon
5 cups fresh organic blueberries, room temperature

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

To make the crust, stir together the flours, starch, xanthan gum, salt, and cream of tartar.  Cut the palm shortening into the flour mix.  Slowly add the water to the flour mixture until the dough is formed but a bit crumby. You may not need all the water or you may need more depending on the day.  Press the crust into a 9” pie pan.

In the same emptied bowl, cut in the shortening into the rest of the crumb topping ingredients.  You will get a moist crumbly mixture.  Set aside.
Mix together the blueberries, lemon juice, lemon zest, cornstarch, and sugar.  Pour into the pie crust.  Top with the crumb topping.

Put the pie on a cookie sheet as it will very likely bubble over while baking.  Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes.  Uncover and continue baking for an additional 20-30 minutes until the crumb topping is browned and the blueberry filling is bubbling.

*Use a coffee bean grinder or other grinding machine to make a course flour out of organic pecans.

©NaturallyElizabeth.com

Vegetable Lentil Soup

01 Thursday Nov 2012

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While we’re back to warm weather in Central Texas at the moment, I’m sure it will get cold again… eventually.  This made a hearty soup earlier this week when the temperatures were a little cooler.

***

Vegetable Lentil Soup

Adapted from “Easiest Black-Eyed Peas and Lentil Soup” in 1001 Low-Fat Vegetarian Recipes by Sue Spitler

3 medium organic carrots, sliced thinly
3 stalks organic celery, sliced
1 medium yellow or white organic onion, diced
4 cloves organic garlic, minced
2 tablespoons organic olive oil
8 cups organic GF low sodium vegetable or chicken broth*
2 cups filtered water
2 teaspoons dried organic thyme
1.5 teaspoons dried organic marjoram
1 teaspoon dried organic oregano
2 teaspoons sea salt
1 teaspoon organic black pepper
1 organic bay leaf
1-15 ounce can organic white beans or black-eyed peas
1.5 cup dried organic lentils (I used a combination of red and brown)
1-15 ounce can Muir Glen organic diced tomatoes
2 cups packed organic greens, cut in small pieces (chard, kale or collard greens work well)

Sauté carrots, celery, onion, and garlic in oil in large pot for a few minutes until they soften a bit (or stick to the pan… that’s my signal it’s time to move on to the next step).  Add broth, water, herbs, beans, lentils, and tomatoes.  Cook over medium heat until the carrots and lentils are soft (45-60 minutes).  Stir in the greens and allow to cook for 5-10 minutes until the greens are done.  Discard bay leaf before serving.

Makes about 4 quarts.

*If making this vegan, obviously choose the vegetable broth rather than the chicken broth.

©2012NaturallyElizabeth.com

GFDF Lentil and Sweet Potato Soup

05 Thursday Jul 2012

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[Update 7/7/12]

I realize that the soup picture above isn’t the most attractive looking; I used brown lentils in it which isn’t quite as pretty as when I make it with red lentils. It’s hard to make many blended soups look pretty, but this one tastes really good.  One of my sons doesn’t like beans in any other form, but he will willingly eat this soup.  He really likes to add in chunks of leftover baked potatoes to add a bit more texture and substance to it.  We all like to add in smoked sausage.

I often double this recipe so we have lots of leftovers.  It freezes and reheats well.

GFDF Lentil and Sweet Potato Soup

Adapted from Kalyn’s Kitchen

a few tablespoons of organic olive oil
1 large organic white or yellow onion, diced (about 1.5 cups)
4 teaspoons fresh organic ginger, minced
4 large cloves organic garlic, minced
1 serrano or jalapeño or other hot pepper of your choice, sliced thin
1 tablespoon organic curry powder
1.5 teaspoons sea salt
½ teaspoon organic black pepper
1 large or 2 medium organic sweet potato, peeled and diced
1.5 cups organic dried lentils (I use brown or red)
4 cups organic GF chicken broth (I use Imagine or Pacific)*
2 cups water
1 can light coconut milk
½ cup loosely packed fresh organic cilantro leaves

Optional add-ins:
1 pound natural smoked sausage, cut in pieces and cooked
2 cups baked organic white/red/yellow potato, diced

Sauté the diced onion in olive oil in the bottom of a soup pan over medium heat. When the onion is partially cooked, add in the ginger, garlic, and pepper and continue cooking for a few minutes more.  Add in the curry powder, salt, black pepper, sweet potatoes, lentils, broth, and water.  Allow to continue cooking until the sweet potatoes and lentils are soft, about 30 minutes.  Add in the coconut milk and cilantro leaves and cook for a few minutes more.

Remove from heat.  Using an immersion blender, puree the soup.  If you don’t have an immersion blender, allow the soup to cool and blend in small batches in a regular blender, taking care not to burn yourself.

If adding in the optional sausage or potato, do so right before serving.

*Use vegetable broth and don’t add in the smoked sausage to veganize this recipe.

©NaturallyElizabeth.com

Pizza and Pasta Sauce

20 Tuesday Mar 2012

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When my kids were younger, all of them had sensitivities to garlic.  This meant making our own pasta sauce since garlic is part of Italian recipes.  I tinkered around for a while and came up with this recipe which remains our favorite over jarred sauces even now that garlic is no longer an issue.

I usually make a double or triple batch of this and then freeze it in batches of three cups of sauce per one quart mason jar.  When we need sauce for pizza or pasta, I just have to remember to defrost a jar from the freezer.

Pizza and Pasta Sauce

28 oz Muir Glen organic tomato puree
4 teaspoons organic Sucanat*
1 tablespoon organic onion powder
1 teaspoon dried organic basil
1 tablespoon dried organic Italian seasoning
½ teaspoon organic black pepper
1 teaspoon sea salt

Thoroughly mix all ingredients in a pot with a lid.  Cover and cook over medium until it starts to making popping noises.  Reduce to simmer and cook for 20-40 minutes to allow seasonings to meld.

*Substitute brown sugar if Sucanat isn’t something you keep around.

©NaturallyElizabeth.com