Burgerville's Pumpkin Smoothie, even healthier!

One of the most wonderful things about moving to Portland is the local chain called Burgerville, beloved to all. Yes, I’m seriously speaking positively of what is essentially a fast food joint: They have all the treats and trappings of fast food, yet manage to turn many of the negatives about fast food completely inside out. When you throw out your trash, every restaurant has it divided into three bins: Recyclables, Landfill, and Compost. You read that right: COMPOST. They reuse all of their cooking oil as biodiesel. They offer, among many healthy yet seriously delicious choices, three different kinds of veggie burgers. They source their food locally, and they also include a rotating seasonal menu. So every fall, Portland residents look forward to sweet potato fries, salmon sandwiches, and pumpkin shakes and smoothies (all locally sourced, of course).

Those shakes and smoothies, are every bit as delectable as you can imagine. The ice cream shake is like an extra-custardy pumpkin pie in a glass, while the yogurt-based smoothie is a little tangy and a bit lighter overall.  But what about vegans, or those who are intolerant or sensitive to dairy? I thought I’d try making a dairy-free version at home.

And lo, it worked! I tried it first with silken tofu, which was just okay, then with hemp milk, which (although I love hemp milk in some things) didn’t work so well with the aftertaste factor; it was also a bit thin. Finally I tried coconut milk, and that was the ticket. Coconut milk is becoming my favorite cow’s milk subsititute for many reasons, including the health benefits of its good fat (I do recommend going with normal, not “light” coconut milk here, but do what you need to do).

So if you’ve got some extra pumpkin from your jack o’lanterns, or you’re craving pumpkin pie yet want something healthier, give this recipe a whirl. It would make a great leftover recipe after Thanksgiving, or even be a great addition to a turkey day breakfast!

Did I mention the EASY? It’s easy.

PUMPKIN SMOOTHIE A LA BURGERVILLE, MADE VEGAN

1 cup pumpkin
1 14 ounce can coconut milk
1 banana
1/3 to 1/2 cup brown sugar or maple syrup (depending on how sweet you like)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
6-8 ice cubes

Combine all ingredients in a blender and – take a guess  . . . that’s right, blend until smooth. That’s IT!

Note that you could, instead of the individual spices, use a pumpkin pie spice blend, approximately 1 tablespoon’s worth (you’ll have to taste test as you go). You could also freeze the banana in advance (I recommend doing do in pieces, rather than whole), and reduce the number of ice cubes a bit – see how icy you personally prefer.

– posted by Anne

This is a treat from our collaborative cookbook, “101 Things To Do With Tofu”. Note: FOUR INGREDIENTS total, including the “secret”. Couldn’t be easier! It would be a perfect Valentine’s dessert if, like me, you’re still needing to keep things on the light side. And I’ll bet your sweetheart will be none the wiser. (It’s always fun to see if people can guess the secret ingredient!)It still has sugar, so it’s not exactly a diet food, but using the silken tofu really reduces the fat and overall calories. (There are also “light” varieties of silken tofu, too, if you want to reduce the fat even more.)

VEGAN CHOCOLATE PUDDING

16 ounces silken tofu
½ cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 bag (12 ounces) dairy-free chocolate chips

Process silken tofu in food processor for about one minute. Add in sugar and vanilla and continue processing. Melt chocolate chips on low heat in glass bowl in microwave oven for about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally and checking to make sure chips are just melted and not burning. When chips are melted, add in one spoonful at a time to tofu mixture while processing. The mixture should be the consistency of sour cream. If necessary, add in a little water. Spoon into serving dishes (I recommend parfait  or martini glasses) and refrigerate until chilled (mixture will thicken slightly while chilling). Serves 6 to 8.

Variations: You can come up with endless varieties just by trying different chips. Try milk chocolate or dark chocolate instead of semisweet, or butterscotch, – there are so many different kinds available now, even cinnamon or peanut butter flavors. Mixing some together would be fun, too. Try adding a teaspoon of instant coffee or espresso powder, and/or dash of cinnamon.  In the photo above, I topped it with some cacao nibs. You could do this, or use chocolate shavings, or whatever you fancy!

– posted by Anne

It's not so scary.

“It just doesn’t add up! Fruit = good. Cake = great. Fruitcake = nasty crap.”   — Jim Gaffigan

Okay, I have to be honest, I really have never liked it before, but after reading this from Adventures in Crunchy Parenthood:

Now before you go telling me how nasty fruitcake is, let me tell you a little secret: there are two kinds of fruitcake. The one you are thinking of is the one with all the little candied fruit bits that have a weird flavor. Granted, it does have a weird flavor, but honestly, I love that kind too (don’t ask me why). But what you are really missing out on is REAL fruitcake. The fruitcake most people know today is full of little processed, candied fruits which have a flavoring called citron added to them. That’s the weird/gross/funny taste most people complain about. REAL fruitcake is made with just plain dried fruits and nuts, and can be customized to suit your particular tastes.

. . . as well as this from the esteemed Noble Pig, I decided to try making one that I might actually like, focusing on dried fruits I actually like, like dates and pineapples and such. Lo and behold, it really is a whole different experience! Basing it on the recipe in the first link, I decided to go ahead and make it vegan, since the eggs were the only thing making it not, and flax works really well as an egg substitute in quickbreads, muffins, many cookies and the like. Gluten-free is a must for me, but if it’s not an issue for you, use all-purpose or whatever flour you prefer.

Toddler eyes the fruitcake with trepidation

NO FEAR FRUITCAKE

2 cups dried dates, chopped
1/2 cup pecans
1 cup pineapple
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1 cup gluten-free flour blend, such as Bob’s Red Mill
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 tablespoons flaxmeal or other egg replacement

Heat oven to 300° F. Coat a large loaf pan (9 x 5 x 3) with nonstick cooking spray. Stir the flaxmeal together with 3/4 cup warm water, set aside to let thicken (you can stir it occasionally). Mix fruits and nuts in one large mixing bowl, stir dry ingredients together with a fork in another.  Add to fruit and nuts, toss together. Add flaxmeal and vanilla, stir until well-combined – it will seem dry at first but eventually will be moistened through but very thick. Spread in pan.

Bake about 1 hour 30 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. If necessary, cover with  foil during the last 30 minutes of baking to prevent excessive browning. Remove from pan and place on cooling rack. Allow to cool completely and become completely firm before cutting, usually about 24 hours. Wrap tightly and store in refrigerator for up to two months.

What the hey, I'll give it a try!

– posted by Anne

1 ripe avocado
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup cocoa powder
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups non-dairy milk (hemp. rice, almond, whatever)
5 or 6 ice cubes

Blend all in a blender or food processor on high until smooth. Makes 4 small servings or 2 very generous ones.

As reflected in the recipe, I prefer using non-dairy milks here, and am especially fond of hemp milk these days, as it’s quite nutritious. Whichever variety you use, I recommend the vanilla variety if possible. If you prefer, or don’t have any non-dairy milk on hand, skim cow’s milk would also work.

– posted by Anne