Blueberry Yogurt Cake with Lemon Glaze

Cake:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, divided
1/4 cup cornmeal
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1/3 cup grape seed oil
2 Tbs. Cointreau liqueur, optional
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 large eggs, at room temperature
7 oz. low-fat Greek yogurt
2/3 cup fresh or frozen blueberries



Glaze:
3 Tbs. lemon juice
2 Tbs. light brown sugar
1 Tbs. Cointreau liqueur, optional

1. To make Cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour 9- x 5-inch loaf pan.
2. Sift together 1 cup plus 3 Tbs. flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt in bowl. Beat brown sugar, oil, Cointreau, if using, and vanilla in separate bowl with electric mixer until smooth. Beat in eggs. Alternately add flour mixture and yogurt to egg mixture until combined.
3. Toss blueberries with the remaining 1 Tbs. flour, and fold into batter. Pour into prepared pan, and bake about 70 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes.
4. To make Glaze: Whisk together all ingredients in small bowl. If not using Cointreau, add 1 Tbs. water.
5. Unmold Cake, and poke top all over with skewer. Brush Cake with Glaze. Cool completely before serving.

Notes: White sugar works just as well as brown sugar in this recipe, in both the Cake and the Glaze. Use canola oil if not able to use grape seed oil (grape seed oil is just so expensive). When I cooked the cake it only took about 55 minutes in the oven, but I used a glass pan. It might be different/closer to recipe time if using a dark pan.

Recipe from: "Vegetarian Times" magazine March 2010 (page 68)

Easy Avocado Corn Salad

Thanks to Bethany Davis for emailing me this recipe!

1 can corn
1 can black beans
1 can diced tomatoes
1 avocado, diced
1/3 cup(ish) red onion
1 large red chili, minced or finely chopped

To taste:
lime juice
olive oil
salt
pepper
cumin

Notes: Works well by itself, with chips, or in a wrap (as seen above). This is a very healthy dish. The beans and corn are good complex carbohydrates, got some veggies in there, and healthy fats from the avocado.

7 Layer Bars

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cups graham crackers, finely crushed
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate pieces
1 cup butterscotch pieces
1 1/3 cups flaked coconut
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped
1 1/3 cups sweetened condensed milk




Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt butter; stir in crushed graham crackers. Pat crumb mixture evenly in bottom of an ungreased 13 x 9 x 2 inch baking pan. Layer in order, chocolate pieces, butterscotch pieces, coconut and walnuts. Pour sweetened condensed milk evenly over all. Bake in a 350 degree oven 30 minutes; cool. Cut into bars. Makes 36.


Recipe from www.cooks.com

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

Makes 24 muffins

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 cup oil
3 medium overripe bananas, mashed (1 1/4 cups)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chocolate chips

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease muffin tin(s). In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the sugar, eggs, and oil; whip vigorously until creamy and light in color, about 5 minutes (it's a great arm workout)! :) Add mashed bananas and vanilla extract to the egg mixture. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients in 3 additions, mixing only as much as necessary to incorporate the ingredients, since overmixing will toughen the batter. Stir in chocolate chips, and pour batter into muffin tins, filling only about 2/3 (I recommend using a 1/3 cup measuring device for accuracy).
2. Bake in center of oven until the top is stringy, and a toothpick inserted into the middle of one of the center muffins comes out clean, about 16-18 minutes. Allow to cool in pan for a few minutes then place on a wire rack.

Notes: This recipe was originally Banana Nut Bread, but I felt like having some chocolate at the time I was making it so I put in chocolate instead of nuts. Use the same ingredients above if you wanted to make the bread, only put in about 3/4 cup coarsely chopped walnuts. You will need a 9" x 5" loaf pan, greased. Bake for 50-60 minutes. Allow to cool for 10 minutes and then transfer to a rack to cool completely before slicing. Makes 1 loaf.

Recipe from The Everything Vegetarian Cookbook by Jay Weinstein (page 314)

Corn and Potato Chowder

As a dietetics major and one who eats very little meat, I'm always looking for recipes that provide enough healthy protein without the meat. I ran across this recipe. The corn and dairy form a complete protein, making this a dish that is especially nourishing for vegetarians.

3 cans whole-kernel corn, drained (unless you like the juice then by all means keep it)
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 large onions, chopped (I like big pieces)
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 pound red potatoes, cut into 1-inch chunks
3 sprigs fresh thyme or 1 tsp. dried thyme leaves
1 bay leaf
3 teaspoons salt
1 smoked chili (optional)
4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter
3 quarts vegetable stock or water (it's better with the stock, adds more flavor)
4 teaspoons cornstarch, dissolved in 1/4 cup water
1 quart cream or milk
white pepper and additional salt to taste
2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives (to garnish)



1. In a large soup pot over medium-high heat, heat olive oil for 1 minute. Add the corn, onions, celery, potatoes, thyme, bay leaf, salt, and chili if using. Cook until onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the butter and cook gently, allowing the vegetables to stew in the butter, for about 5 more minutes (looks like picture immediately above).

2. Add the vegetable stock. Raise flame to high and bring to full boil. Lower to a simmer and cook 10 minutes more. Add cornstarch mixture and simmer 5 minutes more. Stir in the cream, and adjust seasoning with salt and white pepper to taste. Serve sprinkled with chives.

Notes: Serves 12. This dish takes about an hour from start to finish. I like big chunks of veggies. If you want to go a little healthier, cut the corn off from fresh sweet corn-on-the-cob. You can also put the cobs in the stew as well and just take them out before you add the cornstarch mixture, gives it a little added flavor.

Recipe from The Everything Vegetarian Cookbook by Jay Weinstein (page 85)