vegan - Skip Jennings

The Lotus Kitchen – Vegetable Stock

Skip Jennings & Gwen Keannelly

My latest recipe, a vegetable stock is from my upcoming book, The Lotus Kitchen, with Gwen Keannelly. It’s a vegan cook book that combines good eats with a yoga practice. The beauty of a good vegetable stock is that you can really use any combination of vegetables and herbs that you like. Some strict vegetable stocks can lack the “richness” of a traditional stock, so we lovingly lace this one with seasoning. You can also modify and add ginger, lemon grass and dried Chinese or shitake mushrooms for an Asian flair. For a Southwest/Mexican feel, add diced jalapeno or Serrano chilies and lots of fresh cilantro.

Peace and blessings,

– Skip

The Lotus Kitchen Vegetable Stock

Ingredients:

4 carrots, chopped
4 celery stalks, chopped (including leaves)
3 tomatoes, chopped
1 medium sweet potato, peeled and chopped
1 scallion, chopped
1 red onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, chopped
Juice of one lemon
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon thyme
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon Herbs de Provence
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 cup white wine
10 cups water

In a large soup pot combine all ingredients and bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat and cover and simmer for one hour. Strain the stock and toss the solids. You should get about 10 cups of vegetable stock. You can freeze half for use at a later time. Or you can freeze in ice cube trays and pop out single servings as needed for sauces.

The Practice: When a recipe requires a lot of chopping we have to stand tall with a strong core. Mountain pose delivers the core strength to face many of life’s challenges. Harness the qualities of the pose while prepping your soup stock. Strength. Power. Longevity. Height. These are the qualities of your divine self. As you stand tall and prepare this dish, connect with the mountain strength that is your life.

Mountain Pose (Tadasana) Instruction: Stand tall at the top of your mat, feet hip distance apart, spread the toes to create a strong base. Draw the shoulders away from the ears and open the arms while spreading your fingers.

The Shift With Skip Radio Guest – Charles Chen

This is the perfect show for anyone who wants to go hardcore healthy and learn to eat raw foods. Our special guest on the ShiftWithSkip Radio Podcast, Charles Chen is going to share with you all about his 7 Day Detox program. Plus, Charles describes first hand how to eat raw (in a fun and exciting way).

Charles was like many people who didn’t like how they felt eating the ever present processed foods, he was overweight and needed a change. Eating raw changed his life and can change yours too!

Listen On-Demand

My segment with Charles Chen is available On-Demand here
Visit Charles Chen’s web page: RawYouth.org

Stay up to date with my latest guests or listen to past shows On-Demand via my radio page.

My Live shows are currently on break, but return January 2015 every Wednesday at 10 AM PST

Vegan Recipes – Vegan Paleo Cookie

Celebrate this weekend with a cookie recipe from my upcoming cookbook, The Lotus Kitchen with Gwen Kenneally.

Skip Jennings & Gwen Keannelly

The Lotus Kitchen, combines delicious and easy to make vegetarian cooking entwined with yoga. This book intends to offer more than a gingerly curated collection of healthy and boldly flavored recipes; it’s a beacon that shines light toward an awakened way of life. A journey that encourages you to explore an engaged and meaningful pathway to empowerment through yoga and enhance your existing practice with thoughtful food preparation and mindful eating.

Vegan Paleo Cookie

4 cups almond meal
½ teaspoon sea salt
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¾ cup coconut oil, melted
½ cup maple syrup
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 cup chopped dark chocolate or 1 cup dried cranberries
½ cup candied ginger

Preheat the oven to 350. Mix the almond meal, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon. Stir in the coconut oil, maple syrup, and vanilla. Stir in the chopped chocolate (or cranberry) and ginger. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets. For a variation, sprinkle a little sea salt before baking. Bake for 10-12 minutes on parchment paper-lined cookie sheet until the edges are golden. Let them rest on the pan for 5-10 minutes to firm up before removing. Makes 3 dozen.

The practice:

Each yoga class ends with the practice of Namaste. The Lotus Kitchen Namaste is performed by placing your hands on your third eye and allowing your hands to drift to Anjali Mudra in front of the heart chakra. Close the eyes and bow down to show deep respect for self, others and our practice.

Meatless Mondays – Recipes from my book Lotus Garden – Seitan and Quinoa Salad

Seitan and Quinoa Salad

For the next few weeks I’ll be sharing recipes from my upcoming Cookbook with Gwen Kenneally. This week we’ll share our Seitan and Quinoa Salad. Seitan is a popular vegetarian meat substitute and has been consumed in Asian countries for generations. It is derived from the protein portion of whole wheat and you’ll find it stands in nicely in a variety of meat recipes. And seitan has more protein than either tofu or tempeh.

2 cups quinoa
3 cups vegetable stock
Salt to taste
1 cup pine nuts, toasted
4 tablespoons red wine vinegar
Pepper to taste
4 tablespoons olive oil
3 cups cooked seitan, finely chopped (recipe follows)
1 1/2 cups green and red grapes, quartered

Bring quinoa and vegetable stock to a hard rolling boil. Remove from heat and cover, fluffing with a fork every 10 minutes until all of the liquid is absorbed and it has cooled down. Whisk vinegar and oil. Add seitan, grapes, pine nuts and quinoa. Toss well and add salt and pepper to taste. Serves 4

Grilled Seitan
8-ounce piece of seitan
Poultry seasoning
2 tablespoons olive oil

Mix olive oil and poultry seasoning. Add seitan and let marinade for 1 hour. Preheat grill to medium heat. Grill for four to five minutes, until slightly charred. Flip and cook the other side for four to five minutes.

The Practice: Quinoa and seitan are each an independently perfect source of protein. They could happily and effectively stand alone but when combined, they offer an explosion of great taste. It reminds us of the saying, “some things are better done with someone else.” Group practice is the same way. We could do Butterfly Pose at home by ourselves, but it is so much more fun with a group of practitioners holding that pose simultaneously in one accord. If you are a home Yogi, it might be time for you to step out of your box and experience the collective.

Vegan Recipe Corner – Amazon Acai Bowl

Amazon Acai Bowl This little recipe comes straight from Charles Chen‘s web page full of recipes, tips of raw eating the Vegan way and more. Charles made his full transformation to healthy just a few years ago and been an advocate of healthy eating and maintaining life ever since.

In this lovely Amazon Acai Bowl all you need are a few essentials and you are ready to go. The contents help burn fat, give you energy and keep you fuller longer. This is the perfect healthy snack.

Ingredients: Strawberries, Acai, Banana, Blueberries, Raspberries, Strawberries, Almond Butter Topped with Apples, Bee Pollen, Raw Honey & Gluten Free Granola! #acai #glutenfree #amazon (at Kreation Juicery Beverly Hills).

If you’re in the area (LA), Charles has a weekly class on Saturdays at Suncafe Organic. Check out the details here on MeetUp.

Vegan Recipe Corner – Dandelion Fritters

This week’s Vegan recipe actually revolves around dandelions and come from Irish chef Darina Allen by way of an NPR segment on her book “30 Years at Ballymaloe”, that I heard this week. I found it fascinating that I had to share. Let me know if anyone tries it or better yet, invite me over to try. There are so many photos, terrific writing, and wonderful recipes, many with stories. more fun recipes in this great book. To order your copy of “30 Years at Ballymaloe” click here.

Enjoy,

-Skip

Dandelion Fritters: Serves 4 to 5

Sunflower oil, for frying

24 to 30 fully open dandelion flowers

Vanilla sugar, for sprinkling

For the batter

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

Pinch of salt

1 organic egg

1/2 cup lukewarm water

First, make the batter. Sift the flour and salt into a bowl. Make a well in the center and break in the egg. Using a whisk, bring in the flour gradually from the edges, slowly adding the water at the same time.

Preheat the oil in a deep-fat fryer to 350 degrees F or use a shallow pan with at least 1 inch of oil.

Shake the flowers, just in case there are any insects hidden inside. Holding each flower by its stem, dip them in the batter (add a little more water or milk if the batter is too thick) and fry in the hot oil a couple at a time until puffed up and crisp — approximately 2 minutes. Drain on paper towels. Toss in vanilla sugar and serve immediately.

Vegan Recipe Corner – Vegan Stew

This week we whipped up a vegan stew that we prep here. The ingredients are simple and straight forward; onions, carrots, potatoes, parsnip and turnips. You can also substitute your own veggies too. Have a terrific weekend.

-Skip

INGREDIENTS
1 onion, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
3 potatoes, chopped
1 parsnip, chopped
1 turnip, chopped
1/4 cup uncooked white rice
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups water

PREPARATION
1. In a large pot over medium-high heat, combine onion, carrots, potatoes, parsnip, turnip, rice, pepper, cumin, salt and water.

2. Boil until vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes, adding more water if necessary.

3. Serve and eat

Vegan Recipe Corner – Ginger Veggie Stir-fry

This week the team has whipped up a yummy Ginger Veggie Stir-Fry. It’s quick, easy and delicious and although Vegan, it’s completely open to modify with the protein of your choice.

recipe-ginger-stir-fry

INGREDIENTS

1 tablespoon cornstarch1 1/2 cloves garlic, crushed2 teaspoons chopped fresh ginger root,divided1/4 cup vegetable oil, divided

1 small head broccoli, cut into florets

1/2 cup snow peas

3/4 cup julienned carrots1/2 cup halved green beans2 tablespoons soy sauce2 1/2 tablespoons water1/4 cup chopped onion

1/2 tablespoon salt

PREPARATION

1. In a large bowl, blend cornstarch, garlic, 1 teaspoon ginger, and 2 tablespoons vegetable oil until cornstarch is dissolved. Mix in broccoli, snow peas, carrots, and green beans, tossing to lightly coat.

2. Heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet or wok over medium heat. Cook vegetables in oil for 2 minutes, stirring constantly to prevent burning. Stir in soy sauce and water. Mix in onion, salt, and remaining 1 teaspoon ginger. Cook until vegetables are tender but still crisp.

Vegan Recipe Corner Roasted Butternut And HerbTart

Our team loves the simplicity of this tart. The best part is that it combines only three vegetables and a few seasonings — and delivers big flavor in a beautiful package.

The secret to this dish is in the layering. Yukon Gold potatoes, onion and butternut squash are sliced paper thin, then arranged layer upon layer in a pan. As you stack, chopped fresh herbs are sprinkled between those layers, then the whole thing is roasted until the vegetables are buttery tender.

The result is a delicious tart that is vegan, yet filling. A mandoline is the best choice for getting the vegetables paper thin. If you don’t have one, use a food processor fitted with the thinnest slicing attachment. And if you prefer, sweet potatoes can be substituted for the Yukon Gold.

___

ROASTED BUTTERNUT AND HERB TART

Start to finish: 2 1/2 hours (30 minutes active)

Servings: 6

1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme

1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano

1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary

1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder

1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

4 large Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled

1 large yellow onion

1 medium butternut squash, peeled and seeded

Olive oil cooking spray

1. Heat the oven to 375 F. Coat a deep 7- or 8-inch round springform pan with cooking spray.

2. In a small bowl, mix together the thyme, oregano, rosemary, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Set side.

3. Use a mandoline or food processor to slice the potatoes, onion and squash as paper thin as possible. Keep the vegetables in separate piles.

4. Arrange a single layer of potato slices, slightly overlapping, over the bottom of the prepared pan. Spritz with cooking spray, then sprinkle a pinch of the seasoning blend over them. No need to season heavily.

5. Top the potatoes with a few onion slices. The onion will break into thin rounds. This is fine. You don’t need a full layer, just a scattering of slices. Top the onions with a single layer of butternut squash slices, slightly overlapping. Use your hand to gently, but firmly compress the layers. Spritz the squash slices with cooking spray, then sprinkle a pinch of seasoning over them.

6. Repeat the layering and compressing in this manner, starting with the potatoes and continuing until the layers reach the top of the pan. You should use all of the potatoes and onion, but may have some squash left. Spritz the top with cooking spray, then sprinkle a bit more seasoning over the top.

7. Cover with foil and bake for 1 hour 15 minutes. Uncover and bake for another 30 minutes, or until the top is lightly browned, the sides have pulled away from the pan and a knife inserted at the center passes easily through the vegetables to the bottom.

8. Remove the sides of the pan and let cool for 5 minutes before cutting into wedges.

Nutrition information per serving: 260 calories; 5 calories from fat (2 percent of total calories); 0 g fat (0 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 0 mg cholesterol; 61 g carbohydrate; 7 g fiber; 6 g sugar; 5 g protein; 500 mg sodium.