Tie Dye

My camera battery needed charging so I didn't get any pictures of our process, (just the final product) but as a fun homeschool project we recently did a single color tie-dye. I also learned that there are a lot of people out there who have never experimented with coloring fabric on their own.

My son picked the color - purple, lavender and pink are currently his favorites so we went for purple. We picked a onesie for his sibling we will meet this summer, and a shirt for him so we could make them matching shirts. Of course, with tie-dye, there is no such thing as tie dye.

1. To make a circular, almost web pattern, I took the center of the t-shirt, poked my finger through so there was a bit of fabric to twist, then wrapped a rubber band around that area. I did the same thing to the onesie.
2. Anywhere we want the white of the shirt to show is where we added rubber bands. This is a great exercise for finger dexterity and prepping for other fine motor skills.
3. Continue wrapping rubber bands around the shirts until you get a "tube" of shirt - keeping in mind that all the white areas you see will be colored with the dye.
4. We used Rit dye and the washing machine method.
5. Submerse all the material to be dyed in very hot water so it is completely wet.
6. We took a packet of dye, added it to the machine, then added all the clothing to be colored to the machine and let it sit for the recommended 30 minutes for more vibrant colors.
7. Once the color process is complete, you can then either hang the clothing to dry or put it in the dryer.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake (Gluten Free, Vegan)

I have been craving Pineapple Upside down cake for the last few days, so finally decided I needed to take a stab at it. I did got he easy way here and bought a Pamela's Vanilla Cake Mix - I just didn't have the various GF flours to make a good cake batter, so here is my alteration to make this cake mix into an awesome cake!

Ingredients:

Cake

1/4 cup coconut oil

Egg replacer for 3 eggs

1/4 tsp almond extract

1 bag Pamela's Classic Vanilla Cake Mix

2/3 cup pineapple juice (reserved from pineapple rings)

Topping

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup coconut oil

1 can pineapple slices in water (10 slices)

10 cherries without stems (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325°.
2. Melt coconut oil (if solid) in a 9-inch x 13-inch pan in preheated oven.
3. When melted, remove pan and sprinkle brown sugar over oil.
4. Place pineapple slices side by side in top.
5. Place cherries in the centers of the pineapple rings.
6. Whisk egg replacer in a large bowl until frothy.
7. Add coconut oil and whisk until incorporated.
8. Add almond extract.
9. Mix cake mix into the oil/egg replacer mixture.
10. Add pineapple juice and mix until incorporated - in a mixer, turn on med for about 60 seconds.
11. Spoon cake mix evenly over pineapple rings and cherries - do not pour or you will likely make the rings move around in the pan.
12. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean.
13. Let stand for 5 minutes then invert cake onto plate.
14. Spoon any remaining syrup from pan over cake.

Of course, after I made this, I realized as a kid, my mom used to put pecans in the topping as well because my dad loves pecans. I was going to do this too and completely forgot until I had already put the batter over the pineapple, so maybe next time there will be a few pecans in our topping.

Vegan GF Monster Cookies

This is a revamped recipe from this cookie recipe. The differences make for a coconutty, chewy cookie that is not too sweet.

Ingredients:

4 Tbls flax seed

2/3 cup water

1/2 cup coconut oil

1/4 cup grapeseed oil

1 cup peanut butter

2 tsp vanilla

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 cup almond flour

1/2 cup rice flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

2 cups oatmeal

1 cup chocolate chips

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Grind the flax seed in a spice grinder
3. In a large bowl, combine the flax seed meal and water and beat until frothy
4. Add oils, peanut butter and vanilla. Add sugar and brown sugar.
5. In a separate bowl, combine flours, baking soda and salt. (No need to sift)
6. Combine with oil mixture.
7. Stir in the oatmeal and chocolate chips until well combined.
8. Drop by spoonfuls onto a baking sheet.
9. Bake for 15 minutes or until edges are lightly browned.

Cashew Cheese - Cheddar Style (Vegan, Gluten-Free)

Most people when confronted with the change from vegetarian to vegan claim they could never give up cheese. This is not really where I want to get into that statement so much as to offer alternatives to cheese that are not only soy-free, but tasty and will also melt. The below recipe is kid approved - we had a taco bar party and there were at least 10 kids ages 18 months to 6 years. All the kids and the parents loved the cheese, and at long last, here is the recipe to share as requested.

Cheddar Style Vegan Cheese (adapted from The Uncheese Cookbook)

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups water

2 T agar powder (get this from the Asian market or you will pay way too much for it)

4 oz jar of pimiento pieces, drained (this lends flavor and color - if you do not like the taste, you can subsititute 2 T tomato paste

1/2 cup raw cashews

1/4 cup nutritional yeast flakes

juice of 1 large lemon

2 T tahini

2 tsp onion powder

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp dried dill

1/8 tsp mustard powder

Directions:

1. Place the water and agar in a small saucepan and bring to a boil
2. Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring often and making sure to stir down the sides of the saucepan
3. Place in high-powered blender with the remaining ingredients and process until completely smooth
4. Pour immediately into a lightly oiled 3 cup loaf pan
5. Cool in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours to overnight
6. To serve, take a slim knife around the edges of the loaf pan, and turn out of the mold. You can now slice, grate or cube this cheese as you would any other cheese.

Yields One 3-cup brick

As an alternative, for a liquid sauce (great for mac & cheese or topped on baked potatoes) skip steps 1 and 2 and just blend the mixture with approximately 1 cup of water until the cheese sauce is the consistency you want.

Cauliflower Au Gratin (Vegan, Gluten-Free)

Ingredients:

1 medium to large head of cauliflower

1 cup water

1/2 cup cashews

1/4 cup nutritional yeast flakes

juice of 1 large lemon

2 T tahini

1 T onion powder

2 T Dijon mustard (like Grey Poupon)

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp mustard powder

1/4 tsp dried dill

1/4 - 1/2 GF breadcrumbs, or other crusty topping - I used crushed blue corn chips

1/4 cup chopped parsley

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Oil a 9x13 baking dish
3. Wash and chop cauliflower to bite size pieces
4. Place cauliflower in baking dish - try to keep it to one layer
5. Mix next 11 ingredients in a high powered blender until creamy
6. Pour sauce over cauliflower
7. Sprinkle breadcrumbs over the top
8. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes
9. Top with parsley

This is great as a side dish, or can be served as the main course. I served this as a main course over a bed of millet with a large salad.

Serves 8 as a side dish

Serves 4 as a main course

Vegan GF Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies

I was craving Peanut Butter, Oatmeal and Chocolate Chip Cookies but could not find a recipe in any cookbook or on the internet that was vegan and GF or could easily be adapted, so I just modified a traditional Oatmeal Choc Chip Cookie Recipe and came up with this. They are pretty rich and really tasty! This recipe is also soy free - as long as you check your chocolate chips to make sure they do not contain soy lecithin.

Ingredients:

3/4 cup vegetable oil (I prefer Grapeseed for this recipe)

1/2 cup peanut butter

Egg replacer for three eggs

2 tsp vanilla

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 1/2 cups GF All Purpose flour (I used Bob's Red Mill)

1/4 tsp xantham gum

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

2 1/2 cups oatmeal

1/2 - 3/4 cup chocolate chips (depending on how chocolatey you want the cookies)

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large bowl, combine the oil, peanut butter, egg replacer and vanilla. Add sugar and brown sugar.
3. In a separate bowl, combine flour, xantham gum, baking soda and salt.
4. Combine with oil mixture.
5. Stir in the oatmeal and chocolate chips until well combined.
6. Drop by spoonfuls onto a baking sheet.
7. Bake for 15 minutes or until edges are lightly browned.

Rustic White Beans and Mushrooms Casserole

This is from Veganomicon - so many great recipes and this one is really simple and really great on a cold fall/winter day. This is really good as a main dish with a side salad or some braised greens (like bok choy or kale)

Ingredients:

2 cups dried white beans, soaked for at least 8 hours

1 small onion, peeled & sliced in half

1 stalk celery, cut into 2 pieces

1 small carrot, sliced in half lengthwise

1 teaspoon dried thyme

2 teaspoons dried tarragon

1/4 cup olive oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 large leek, sliced thinly

1/2 lb mushrooms

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

fresh ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Drain and rinse beans. Add to stockpot with 4 c cold water. Bring to a boil and simmer for 3 minutes. Skim off any white foam from the top. Cover the pot and lower the heat to medium. Add the onion, celery, carrot, thyme and tarragon. Simmer for about 45 minutes.
2. Remove the carrot, onion and celery (either discard or use in a stock). Lower the heat to low and continue to simmer. The beans should resemble a thick stew, if there's too much liquid, leave the pot uncovered and stir occasionally.
3. About 10 minutes before the beans are done, place the garlic and 2 T oil in a cold skillet. Heat the skillet over medium heat, allowing the garlic to sizzle for about 30 seconds. Add the chopped leeks and saute 1-2 minutes. Scrape the leeks into the beans.
4. Add the remaining 2 T oil, allow to warm, and add the mushrooms. Sprinkle the mushrooms lightly with 1/2 t salt and saute until most of the mushroom liquid has evaporated, anywhere from 8-12 minutes depending on the types of mushrooms. Add the mushrooms to the beans.
5. Turn off the heat and season the beans with the remaining salt and pepper.
6. OPTIONAL - Preheat oven to 350.
7. Top with bread crumbs (or other crumb topping) and bake for 20 - 25 minutes.