Care Packages
My care package has arrived and I am so excited to share it with you. My partner was Tanya and she lives in New Orleans so to my delight my treats were centered around New Orleans.
In my package there was this great mug from the famous Cafe du Monde and some chicory coffee. I tried these right away and loved the chicory coffee. I did it au lait as suggested on the side of the bag and it was delicious. I also have to say that this mug is my new favorite.
Annie Chun’s roasted seaweed snacks which were super yummy
Zapp’s sweet potato chips which were light and yummy-my new favorite chip.
Two Justin’s Almond Butter squeeze packets which I have been using in my morning cereal; this morning was Uncle Sam’s oats cereal, apple, hemp milk and almond butter.
Lastly a few other great treats that I haven’t yet tried- Etouffee mix which I plan on making this weekend, Hot Sauce, Creole seasoning, lara bars and a tote.
Thank You Tanya!
And, Thank You to all of you who participated!
Q&A with Hail Merry
One of the new additions to my OpenSky shop are Hail Merry snacks. The pack contains orange cranberry grawnola, choco macaroon, blone macaroon and a meditation card. The choco macaroon is my favorite, it’s like a little ball of happiness. These snacks are handmade, rich with nutrients and low in sugar- snacking couldn’t get much better.
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To tell you more about Hail Merry I did a blog interview with Susan O’Brien- Hail Merry Snacks Founder:
Why did you decide to partner up with OpenSky?
In order to be exposed to a wider group of individuals interested in the healthy, raw, vegan, gluten-free, or natural lifestyle. We find that most people that try our products fall in love with them and become passionate and loyal fans, so we’d like to let more people know we’re around – making great products that they might appreciate!
What was the inspiration behind Hail Merry?
The name Hail Merry was inspired by the game of chess. My kids played a lot of Chess and we went to A LOT of chess tournaments. When I was incubating the brand I would often be at these events and always loved how the Queen was so powerful on the board. I worked in the field of commercial architecture which was dominated my men. So Hail Merry and the Queen icon is sort of a wink and a nod to girl power! I also am a HUGE Madonna fan. I loved how her name is so self-actualizing. With a name like Madonna you have no choice but to change the world and make a difference. The name Hail Merry does that for me. I hope that Hail Merry will one day become a huge force for change in the way we snack in America. The name Hail Merry is definitely provocative and I hope memorable, and yes of course there is always the Catholic connotation. I am Catholic and love and respect my faith very much. The challenge of building this business at times can be daunting and for me the name Hail Merry gives me divine inspiration.
What is my favorite product and why?
This is really hard. You would think that I would be tired of each of these recipes since I have been eating them for over 5 years. I would have to say the blonde macaroons just are simply transcending. They literally melt in your mouth. There is no guilt when you eat them either. They are loaded with fiber, healing coconut oil and vitamins and minerals from the organic maple syrup. As a Catholic I like “guilt free”, we get enough of that already!
Do you have any new products coming out?
YES!! We just launched our new seasoned nut line and we are SO excited. I gave up salad dressing because I only want to eat fats in their raw whole food state, like nuts, avocado etc. (I do consume coconut oil for its healing properties). Instead of salad dressing I put a handful of our seasoned nuts on top! They come in great flavors like:
Chili Chimayo Pecans, Lemon Thyme Pecans, Orange Rosemary Pecans, Maple Almonds, and Salt and Black Pepper Sunflower Seeds. Add some fresh herbs, and lemon juice and your golden!!
Reminder- use the Coupon Code: THIRTYVEGAN today! The coupon is good for the first five four customers who use it and expires on 9/30, so don’t wait!
Easy Peasy Recipe: Cheezy Broccoli Bean Bake
This is a super easy, no fuss recipe. It is great for nights when you need something quick, easy and nutritious to eat.
Ingredients:
- For the Cheeze Sauce:
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- 1/4 cup arrowroot, cornstarch or flour
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1t olive oil
- 1/8t tumeric
- 1/4t dried thyme
- 3/4 cup nutritional yeast
- salt and pepper
- a few dashes of hot sauce
- For the Mashed Potatoes:
- 4-6 red or purple potatoes
- 1/4 cup vegetable broth
- 2t nutritional yeast
- salt and pepper
- For the Broccoli Base:
- 2 cups frozen broccoli
- 1/2 cup frozen peas
- 1(15oz) can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400F.
In a medium casserole dish toss together the beans, peas and broccoli; set aside.
Potato topping: Boil the potatoes until soft. Drain and then mash with the vegetable broth, nutritional yeast and salt and pepper.
Cheeze sauce: Whisk together the arrowroot and vegetable broth. In a small sauce pan over medium-high heat the oil and garlic for 1 minute. Stir in the tumeric and thyme. Slow whisk in the vegetable broth mixture. The whisk in the nutritional yeast, hot sauce, salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer until thickened. Pour over the broccoli base.
Top the broccoli cheeze base with the potatoes and if you would like dust the top with nutritional yeast. Place in the oven and bake for 20 minutes, or until potatoes are lightly browned.
Falling in Love
It’s Fall my favorite time of year and I am so excited to get back in the kitchen. Lately most of my time has been spent in the kitchen working on recipes for my upcoming soup e-book but this morning I decided that I would try out a new recipe.
I have had a hankering for pumpkin and finally made myself some pumpkin pie oatmeal. It was delicious!
Ingredients:
- For the Oatmeal:
- 1&3/4 cup water
- 1 cup rolled oats
- 1/4 cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie puree)
- 1/8 tsp ground ginger
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 2 tsp chia seeds
- For the Topping:
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin seeds
- 1 tablespoon pecan pieces
- 2 teaspoons brown sugar
Directions:
In a small pot over high heat bring the water to a boil; stir in the oats and reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 5-7 minutes until most/all of the water has cooked away.
While the oats are cooking place the pumpkin puree in a small bowl and combine with the spices and vanilla extract. Place the pumpkin seeds and pecans in a small sauce pan and toast over medium heat until just lightly browned and aromatic.
Over the heat stir in the pumpkin mixture. Turn the heat off and stir in the chia seeds. Divide into two bowls. Top the oatmeal with 1 teaspoon each of brown sugar and half of the pecans and pumpkin seeds.
Recipe: Polenta Pizza With White Bean Sauce
Serves 4-6
Ingredients:
- For the Polenta:
- 1 small butternut squash
- 6 cups of water
- 2 cups of corn grits polenta
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup fresh or frozen corn
- 2 heaping tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- For the White Bean Sauce:
- 1 can of cannelini beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 medium tomato, diced
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- pinch of black pepper
- 3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
- Toppings*:
- 1 medium tomato, thinly sliced
- 1/2 small onion, thinly sliced
- 1/2 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
- dusting of nutritional yeast
- dusting of Italian garlic gold
*For the toppings feel free to use whatever you would like; sauteed mushrooms, artichokes, and sundried tomatoes would be great on this pizza.
Directions:
- For the Polenta: Cut the squash in half, deseed and put on a baking dish and place in a 400F oven for 30-35 minutes until soft. Once the squash has cooled enough, scrap out the flesh and set aside. Prepare a large baking sheet with a piece of parchment paper. In a large pot bring the water and salt to a boil and slowly stir in the corn grits with a long wooden spoon. Turn the heat down to low and cook, stirring frequently for 20 minutes. Stir in the remaining polenta ingredients. Continue to cook and stir for 10 minutes. Pour the polenta onto the prepared baking sheet and spread out to a thin even layer. Allow for this to cool in the fridge for 1 hour to overnight.
- For the White Bean Sauce: Place everything in a high speed blender or food processor and process until smooth.
- Assembling and cooking the Pizza: Preheat your oven to 400F. Top the polenta with the white bean sauce and toppings of your choosing. Bake for 25 minutes at 400F and then turn the broiler on high for 3-5 minutes, until the top is lightly brown. Let sit 5 minutes before cutting and serving. Enjoy!
