Vegan Egg Nog or “Holiday Nog”
Serves 2-3
2 ¼ cups almond milk
1/2 cup raw cashew or macadamia nut butter
1/3 cup maple syrup or agave, plus more to taste
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp cinnamon
Pinch of ground clove (less than 1/8 tsp)
2 tbsp bourbon or dark rum
1 cinnamon stick for garnish
Blend all ingredients in a…
Candice’s Favoutite Things: Spirulina
“So, like, how do you get your protein?” We have all heard this annoying phrase, maybe one too many times in our vegan lives. Well here is another answer you can give along with beans, lentils and seitan!
Spirulina is a fresh water algae; a form of bacteria that has more…
The Edgy Veg Show: Taco Soup
Have you liked the Edgy Veg Facebook Page?
Thought Of The Day: Christmas
This is me during the holidays.. my gift to the ones I love? Food of course! Instead of mass consuming this Christmas give someone something that really matters…
Is your Booze Vegan?
If you are anything like me, you enjoy a glass of wine with dinner or Sangria in the courtyard. But did you know that not all booze is vegetarian or vegan friendly. Naturally, my first reaction was one of sheer panic, but never fear my thirsty friends; thanks to a dear friend of mine, I am able…
The Edgy Veg Show: Raw Vegan Brownies
Sometimes you’re sitting on the couch about to snuggle up and watch a flick when BAM! A craving hits. Your eyes see chocolate, and your baking skills… well they could use a lesson or an entire fire hall. It is moments like this that inspired me to create this super easy super yummy…
What Are You So Afraid Of? Fear and How to Conquer It…
In the past couple of days I have forced myself to be aware of my inner dialogue and who I am being as a person today. I have become very emotional lately when it comes to my career and the goals I have for my future. I find myself putting off what is important because I have a fear of…
Eating Commandments
These days, people are finding that eating has become a complicated task. There is confusing health advice floating around, unhealthy food that claims to be healthy and poison disguised as your favorite fruits and veg. Eating is a right and a necessity and we shouldn’t have to spend…
The OC Juice
No No, not the show we all loved as 14 year old post puberty teens. This Juice will keep you out of the hospital for both medical and cosmetic reasons. High in Vitamin C and Beta carotene this recipe is perfect for flu season!
5 Carrots
3 Oranges
1 inch piece of Ginger
- Wash all your organic fruits and veggies.
- Stick all veg in your juicer, and enjoy!
** Only juice organic vegetables if possible. Especially when doing a Cleanse or Detox
What to Eat (Video) Why You Should Go Meatless
What to Eat? It is the question on everyone’s minds at least three times a day. By showing how our food choices have a more serious impact on our environment than the car we drive, the light bulbs we use or the ways we recycle, the film makes the point that we can all take small steps for positive change.
It’s As Easy as ABC… Juice
This Juice is very high in antioxidants and beta carotene, making it the anti aging juice! So drink up Buttercup!
1 Asian pear
2 apples
1 beet
3 carrots
1/2 cup cabbage
1 handful chard (about 11/2 cups)
- Wash all your organic fruits and veggies.
- Stick all veg in your juicer, and enjoy!
** Only juice organic vegetables if possible. Especially when doing a Cleanse or Detox.
15 Ways to Keep Yourself Busy on a Juice Cleanse
We think about food like… 80% of the time don’t we. When is my next time slot for a meal? What will I have? Is it good for me? What will I have for dessert? Should I go grocery shopping? Our mind is constantly overwhelmed with thoughts of food! My job is food, I have to create recipes, and test to create and recreate. We eat well in our home but we A LOT. Because I have created this time style for myself, I am ALWAYS hungry. Like every 15 mins, so this juice cleanse is especially hard on me as I have conditioned myself to think that I need to be eating all day long. With all this extra not thinking about food time on my hands, I will probably be thinking about all the wonderful things I will be craving. So in lieu of this I have decided to create a list of activities that will keep my hands busy and out of the cookie jar.
1. Read a book. (yes they still exist)
2. Skype with long distance family & friends.
3. Meditate myself into a nap.
4. De-clutter my life, one drawer at a time.
5. Sweat out toxins in a sauna.
6. Deep condition my hair.
7. Get my partner to give me a massage. Or Give him one, meh…
8. Paint.
9. Do lots and lots of yoga.
10. Go for a walk.
10. Practice the harmonica.
11. Find new music.
12. Go see a show and sip on water.
13. Catch up with friends.
15. Go to bed early.
What do you do on a Cleanse to keep busy? Leave me a comment below or tweet me!
Candice’s Favorite Things: Wheatgrass Shots
Wheatgrass, a name we all know and often fear. Just say the word to a close friend and see what happens to their facial expression. Something similar to a post-lemon-sucking pucker will overcome their usually quit lovely face. Yup it tastes like ass, even I will admit that. So why do I continue to take my 2 oz green shot morning after morning? There are many reasons, too many to share in one daily blog, so I will summarize with colourful commentary.
Wheatgrass cleanses the blood, organs and gastrointestinal tract of debris (aka poop). Anything negative, you are feeling usually stems from something off in your gut. So keep that sucker clean. Get a colonic, drink your wheatgrass and eat food that doesn’t suck.
This green shot of yuck stimulates metabolism and the body’s enzyme systems by enriching the blood. Blood is in you to live. Blood loss equals life loss, so doesn’t it make sense to keep that vampire bait flowing healthy, and flowing well?
This is our wheatgrass juicer… it’s fun to play with
We live in a world surrounded by crap. Crap in the air, crap in our food, crap on the Television. And to make matters worse we drink like fish, and get high like birds. This magical tonic strengthens our cells, detoxifies the liver and bloodstream, and chemically neutralizes environmental pollutants.
I believe in grass as food and medicine! Drink it! Life is about prevention not, patch up. You take shots of tequila when you go out don’t you? Plug your nose, and shoot it!
Green Lemonade
3 green apples
3 handfuls spinach
6 kale leaves
1 cucumber
4 celery stalks
1/2 lemon
- Wash all your organic fruits and veggies.
- Stick all veg in your juicer, and enjoy!
** Only juice organic vegetables if possible. Especially when doing a Cleanse or Detox.
It’s Juice Cleanse Season
It’s that time of year! Time for a recoup, time to get re-inspired and time to undo all those terrible things you’ve been doing your body lately. It is time for an all raw, nutrient dense Juice Cleanse. It may seem daunting but really it is just like doing anything else you put your mind to. Stop thinking so much and just effing do it.
This is not just a body transformation for me but also an emotional and spiritual experience. T is going to make the emotional part a bit difficult, as he turns into a Grumpy Gus while he is juicing… But that is all part of the challenge. Having a support system as you embark on such a journey is so so so important. Why bring temptation into your home? If you have a partner that is unwilling to Cleanse with you, I suggest staying in a hotel for a few days. Saunas and steam rooms and hot tubs, oh my 
But seriously, try doing a Cleanse with a loved one, be it family or partner. It has the ability to bring you closer to the ones you love… and the sex is fantastic. Just Sayin’.
But seriously, do something when you are feeling uninspired. Hit the reset button when you make a large life transformation like I have. Sometimes you just need the power of nature to help you along! Juice is a fantastic way of letting your body rest, while allowing it help you tackle the really big decisions. I often feel scared about leaving my job to pursue my dream of blogging. I feel like I made a huge mistake, I feel sick to my stomach out of fear. So now I am grabbing that fear by the balls and saying NO! You re part of me, not taking me over… here, have some juice…
I am juicing all of my juice myself, mainly because I needed routine and this was a great way to ensure I was making time to do this. Just there are a number of companies committed to providing you with Juice Cleanses making your life easier. My personal favorite in the GTA is Belmonte Raw. The juices are all raw, and delivered to your home in glass bottles every morning! Talk about making your Cleanse fool proof.. all you need to do is wake up! Carol (Owner and Executive Chef) Uses only the freshest ingredients and the juice taste soooooo goood! So if you don’t have the time to commit like I do, do that route, Fo Sho.
What are you doing to better yourself today?
German Spaetzle
Serves 2
1 cup of flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
2 eggs worth of egg replacer mixed with mylk ( not water)
1 ¼ – 1 ½ cups of your favorite nut mylk
- Put a large pot of water on to boil.
- In a very large bowl, make an ice bath.
- In another large bowl whisk together egg replacer mixture and 1 cup mylk.
- Mix together flour, salt and white pepper. Add to the wet ingredients and mix until you end up with a smooth, yet stiff dough. Add more mylk as needed. The dough should be thicker than pancake batter, but not as thick as bread dough.
- Liberally salt the water, and then press the dough into the water using a spaetzle press, or colander.
- After you press the dough into the water, immediately stir around with a large slotted spoon or else they will clump together. They will float up to the top when they are ready.
- This takes 2-3 minutes. Do not overcook.
- Take the finished spaetzle out of the water, and place on your ice bath. This will stop the noodles from sticking to each other.
- Reheat the spaetzle in a frying pan with a small amount of coconut oil. If frying isn’t your thing reheat in the oven!
Top these magical noodles with your favorite mushroom sauce and sauerkraut. Enjoy with an ice cold bier or a bottle of your favorite red wine.
Oktoberfest Schnitzel
It’s That time of year! Bust out your stein and clear your calendar It’s Oktoberfest Season! No more will you the the sad vegan resorting to a liquid dinner while your friend munch down on your traditional favorites! This recipe rivals even the BEST German Schnitzel recipes! Why?! Because I used the traditional recipe and made it your all vegan pal! Chow down mein schatz and Zum Wohl!!!
Makes 4 Schnitzels
Cutlet
1 cup vital wheat gluten
2 tbsp nutritional yeast
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp poultry seasoning
3/4 cup vegetable broth
2 tbsp tahini
2-3 cups of vegetable broth
coconut oil
1 onion chopped
Breading
Bowl 1
1 cup all purpose flour mixed with 1 tsp black pepper
Bowl 2
2 eggs worth of egg replacer mixed with almond mylk
Bowl 3
1 1/2 cups breadcrumbs mixed with 1 tbsp all purpose flour
Cutlets
- In a mixing bowl, mix together wheat gluten, nutritional yeast, onion powder and poultry seasoning.
- In a larger bowl, combine broth and tahini and whisk until smooth.
- Mix the dry ingredients with the wet and stir until well combined.
- Knead the dough until it is elastic but not dry. Sprinkle some additional gluten flour if you find you have made your dough too sticky.
- Divide the dough into eight equal pieces.
- Roll each piece of dough until it is a 1/2″ cutlet and then place in casserole dish, covering them with vegetable broth.
- Cook cutlets in broth and onions for 1 hour at 350 degrees, flipping at 45 minutes.
Breading The Cutlets
- Get your three bowls ready.
- Dip each seitan cutlet in the flour/black pepper, then the egg replacer/mylk, then the breading/flour.
Frying
- In a large, heavy-bottomed frying pan, heat 1/2″ to 1″ of oil. There should be enough oil to cover the cutlets completely.
- Fry the seitan a couple cutlets at a time, about 5 minutes or until they are golden brown, flipping once.
- Pat excess oil off each cutlet and place cutlet on a bun, topping with your favorite mushroom gravy, or sauerkraut.
The Hangover Cure: Beet Shots
After a long night out, the last thing you want to do is put together your juicer and make a pulpy mess all over your kitchen. But juice is the fountain of youth, and WILL help that headache and sore body from the poison you filled it with the night before. So what do you do? Do you suffer and put up with the pain for hours, or do you plan ahead? Always ALWAYS plan ahead. it’s easy really…
- Juice a couple beets, and a lemon the night before you go out. To keep the juice nutrient dense store it in a glass jar and refrigerate.
- Wake up after a night of self abuse and walk to your fridge. Take out your pre-made juice and pour into a shot glass.
- Add a few drops of your favorite tincture. My favorite for hangovers include; Milk Thistle, Maca, Oil of oregano and Astragalus.
- Then shoot it and go back to bed! Voila!
The Edgy Veg Show: Raw Brownies
Sometimes you’re sitting on the couch about to snuggle up and watch a flick when BAM! A craving hits. Your eyes see chocolate, and your baking skills… well they could use a lesson or an entire fire hall. It is moments like this that inspired me to create this super easy super yummy Raw Brownie Recipe. I hope you love it as much as I do and feel free to make it your own! Throw in some almonds or coconut. Top it with vegan caramel and chocolate chips!
Can’t see the video? Click here
Easy Seitan Steak
Dry ingredients
1 1/2 cup vital wheat gluten
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1/2 cup garbonzo bean powder (or chick pea flour)
2 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tbsp garlic powder
½ tbsp onion powder
1/2 tsp turmeric
Wet ingredients
1 cup vegetable stock
1 tbsp soy sauce
¼ cup organic ketchup or BBQ sauce ( or both!)
1 tsp liquid smoke
2 cloves of shredded garlic
pinch of pepper
Stock
1 1/2 cup vegetable stock
1 diced onion
4 smashed cloves garlic
2 bay leaves
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp chili powder
1 tbsp dried parsley
1/2 tsp thyme
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp molasses
¼ cup BBQ Sauce
3 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 cups water
- Mix all dry ingredients and set aside.
- In a large bowl, mix together all wet ingredients and whisk until well combined.
- Slowly pour wet ingredients into dry and knead with your hands. The mixture should be dough like, not overly sticky. Knead well.
- Form two “logs” with the mixture and let them sit on the preheating oven for 5 to 10 minutes.
- Mix together your stock in a large bowl.
- Place “logs” into a deep casserole dish and cover with your stock.
- Cover dish and place in oven 350 for 1 hour.
- Flip seitan and continue to cook for 1/2 hour uncovered. If it is still soft, then cook for another 15 – 20 minutes.
- Remove from pan and set aside to cool.
Cooking with Michael
This week I filmed a few Edgy Veg shows with Michael Nussbacher ( co-founder of epilogger). An evening full of onion brutality, watching the rise of seitan, sacrificial wine and absinthe. Oh, and cooking. Between our slurring words we did manage to do some cooking as well. Stayed tuned to find out how YOU can make a carnivore approved Vegan Philly Cheese Steak with a side of Mac and Cheese.
Vegan Thanksgiving Stuffing
½ loaf of day old whole wheat bread
2 cups cooked rice
2 cups vegetable stock
1/4 cup sage
1/4 cup poultry seasoning
1/2 cup pine nuts
2 stalks celery, finely chopped
1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
1 cup mushrooms, chopped
5 green onions, chopped
The Evening Before
- Cook your rice and set aside.
- Tear your bread into small chunks, roughly the size of croutons.
- Add your sage, poultry seasoning and celery to the ripped bread and combine.
- Add rice and mix well. Allow this mixture to sit overnight.
Day of your Feast
- Toast your pine nuts on a skillet and set aside.
- To your bread and rice mixture add pine nuts, onions and mushrooms. Slowly mix 1 and 1/2 cups of vegetable stock into the stuffing, mixing well to evenly distribute the liquid.
- Place the stuffing in an deep baking dish and evenly distribute the remaining vegetable stock over the top.
- Cover and bake at 350-400 degrees F for 1 ½ to 2 hours.
