Mexican Quinoa

Ingredients:

1 T olive oil
3 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
1 can black beans drained and rinsed
1 can chopped fire-roasted tomatoes with juice
1 cup quinoa
1 cup vegetable broth
1 can chopped green chillies
1 cup fresh or frozen corn
1 t chilli powder
1/2 t cumin
salt and pepper to taste
1 half-inch cubed avocado
1/2 cup roughly chopped cilantro

Directions:

1. Saute garlic until lightly browned
2. Add beans, tomatoes, quinoa, broth, chillies, corn, and seasonings
3. Bring to boil
4. Lower heat and simmer for 25 minutes
5. Remove from heat, add avocado and cilantro
6. Serve immediately

We served this as a side dish to tacos but some of the family filled the tacos with this instead of the vegetarian crumbles.  It was tasty either way!


Adapted from One Pan Mexican Quinoa recipe which in turn was adapted from Cook like a Champion.

Vegan Gluten Free Key Lime Pie

Ingredients

We gathered for Christmas week and I worked to make food that was delicious as well as satisfy my omnivore, celiac and vegan family members.  It really isn't as difficult as it sounds.  Everyone loved the Lime Pie!  It was smooth and tart.

Pie Crust:

I purchased a pre-made gluten free pie crust "graham cracker" style from My-del.

Filling:

• Flesh of 2 ripe Hass avocados, smashed (2 cups; may use fresh or frozen/defrosted)
• Juice and zest from 5 limes - (I used regular limes)
• 2 7.4 oz cans sweetened condensed coconut milk

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Pinch salt
• So Delicious Whipped cream, for garnish (optional)

  
• Optional finely grated lime zest and/or thin lime wheels, for garnish

Directions:

1) Grate the zest from the 5 limes.  Careful not to use the white bitter part under the green skin.

2) Juice the 5 limes.

3) Cut the avocados in half and scoop out the flesh.

4) Place the zest, lime juice, avocados, sweetened condensed coconut milk, vanilla, and salt in a blender.  Blend until smooth.

5) Pour the blended mixture into the pie crust.

6) Chill at least 1 hour or preferably overnight.

This recipe was inspired by a Washington Post article which in turn was adapted from a recipe by Lara Ferroni, author of "An Avocado a Day: More Than 70 Recipes for Enjoying Nature's Most Delicious Superfood" (Sasquatch, 2017).

Vegan Gluten Free Green Bean Casserole

We love the traditional green bean casserole at our Thanksgiving table.  This year we made it gluten free (my nephew is celiac) and vegan!  It was not wanting for taste at all.

Ingredients:
2 14.5 oz cans of green beans
1 head of fresh cauliflower
1/2 cup almond milk
1 large yellow onion
8 oz fresh mushrooms
2 T oil
Gluten free crispy onions (found with the croutons at Publix)

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2) Drain the green beans and put in a large bowl.
3) Chop the onion, cut the cauliflower florettes from the stem, slice the mushrooms.
4) Sautee the onion in the oil until soft.  Add to the green beans.
5) Using the same pan, sautee the mushrooms until soft, add to the green beans.
6) Steam the cauliflower in the microwave until soft.
7) Put the cooked cauliflower with almond milk into a blender and process until smooth.  It needs to be the consistency of undiluted cream of mushroom soup.
8) Stir the soupy cauliflower into the bowl with the green beans and other ingredients.
9) Put everything in a 2 court casserole dish (I like Corningware).
10) Sprinkle the top with the crispy onions
11) Put it all, uncovered, in the oven for 30 minutes or until heated through and onion topping slightly browned.

Gluten Free Vegan Chocolate Fudge Peanut Butter Cake

Chocolate Fudge Peanut Butter cake has been a Thanksgiving tradition for my family for many years.  It is originally something like this.

However, we're vegan now and my nephew is celiac so we have to be a little creative sometimes.  For a special tradition like this, I am less concerned about "healthiness" than simulating the flavors we remember.  I'm happy to say that everyone was very satisfied with our results.

Ingredients;
Cake
1 Betty Crocker Gluten Free chocolate fudge cake mix (for a 9"x 9" cake)
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup (1 stick) vegan butter, softened
1 can of aquafaba - the juice from a can of chickpeas.  IMPORTANT:  Use the low salt kind!
1/2 ripe avocado

Topping
1 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup (1 stick) vegan butter
1/4 cup powdered cocoa
1/2 lb powdered sugar (half a box)
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla

Cake directions
1) Heat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Grease the bottom only of the pan.
2) Beat the cake mix, water, vegan butter, aquafaba, and avocado for 2 minutes.  Pour into pan.
3) Bake as directed, below, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

• 8x8" - 44-49 minutes
• 9x9" 38-43 minutes
• 8" or 9" round 43-48 minutes

4) Remove from oven but do not remove the cake from the pan.  Spread the peanut butter over the warm cake.

Topping directions
5) Spread the peanut butter over the warm cake.
6) Sift the cocoa powder, powdered sugar, and salt together so there aren't any lumps.
7) Melt the stick of vegan butter.  Add the sugar/cocoa mixture and vanilla to the melted butter.  Stir until completely mixed chocolate fudge.
8) Pour the fudge over the peanut butter.
9) Best if you wait an hour before serving so the fudge can set

Henna Update

The first time I tried Henna, I used Ancient Sunrise from Henna for Hair.  Three weeks after my original henna/indigo dye it was time to do it again.

Some things I noticed:

• My hair looks redder than it did at first.  Is the indigo fading?  Is it because I spent a week outdoors in the Florida sun?
• The difference between my roots and the dyed hair is pretty noticeable.  Maybe I should try and find a color that more closely matches my own.
• After I dyed my hair, my lymph nodes on my head ached for a couple of days.
• My scalp was itchy for a day or so.

I've decided to try a different henna company this time.  It is Henna Color Lab.  I found them on the peta.org web site certified not to test on animals.  Ancient Sunrise isn't on PETA's list although they told me in an email that they don't test on animals.  Some things I like about Henna Color Lab that led me to choose it this time over Ancient Sunrise:

• Color all in one package - no premixing the henna before the indigo
• Instructions say to leave it on only 2 hours!
• There were more selections of manufactured prepared colors.  I chose a medium brown. 

It still meets my original criteria for repeatable color and cruelty free.

I ordered the medium brown on Monday and it arrived from Portland, OR in Atlanta on Friday.

It mixed up quickly and easily.  I did a skin test with a small sample with no adverse reaction.  I'm hoping the lymph node issue was related to something else.

These instructions just said to partition my hair into 4 sections:  front, back, left, right.

It came with gloves and a shower cap.  However the gloves are not elastic.  They were awful!  The gloppy green mess kept threatening to pull the globes off!  And I didn't have anything else to use, having discarded the nice blue globes that Ancient Sunrise had sent me.  This part of the experience was really really negative because of the gloves!

After waiting the 2 hours, the rinsing was pretty much the same experience as before.  You have to take your time getting dried mud out of your hair.

The end result pleases me.  The hair is a deep rich color.  I believe that it is slightly darker than before.  12 hours later and my scalp is slightly itchy but no lymph node problems.  I got some color on my hairline this time so I'll be working to scrub that away (I think you have to scrub the skin off!).  I also seem to have missed a small spot of gray right in the center of my forehead but probably no one will notice that but me.

They sent a 15% off coupons so I'm going to go ahead and re-order this one right away so I'll have I ready when I need it in 2-3 weeks.

Verdict

Ease	Easier than the previous experience with Ancient Sunrise.  I like only having one package of stuff to mix with water.
Color	Really good.  I'm pleased.
Texture	My hair is soft and has a nice texture.  I believe I read that these results of natural hair dye are cumulative.
Worth a repeat?	Already on order!

A few helpful web sites:

Henna Color Lab

PETA's article on natural hair dye

The Hunt for Cruelty Free Deodorant

Since I started going cruelty free a year and half ago, the biggest thing I've struggled with is finding a good deodorant. I've gone through a surprising number of different brands so I decided to compile them in a list below and go into what worked and what didn't.


Crystal Body Stick
     This was the first option I tried because it seemed to be so highly recommended, and I've used this one for the longest amount of time. It's available at drugstores and grocery stores, which is a plus. I found that while it is a decent deodorant for relaxed days, it doesn't hold up when I exercise. I also got quite tired of spending the extra time rubbing it in every morning. I had my original stick for over a year, but threw it away because it started disintegrating.



     When I started doing a lot of traveling last year, I bought the travel set of this deodorant, which I actually like much better. It works the same, but it is small and doesn't have all the plastic the large one has. This makes it much easier to use and clean. Even though this one is marketed for travel, I don't see the need to ever get the regular stick again.





Crystal Body Roll On
     I found this at my local health food store and thought I'd give it a shot. I thought it might work better and be easier to use than the traditional stick because it cuts out the middle man of running the crystal under the water. The roll on worked OK, but I found that if I used it when I was a little stinky the smell lingered on the crystal and because it was a roller I wasn't able to clean it off very well, so that one went in the trash.

Certain Dri Solid Antiperspirant
     Someone online described this antiperspirant as good for doing aerobics in the desert, and I found that they were indeed correct. This one is easy to find in solid and roll on and definitely does the job. I used this only on days when it was very important not to smell, but even so I quickly got tired of the white residue it leaves. I felt really liberated when I started using the Crystal deodorant and didn't have to worry about deodorant stains anymore, and this one felt like a step backwards. This deodorant also didn't last very long, and it seemed to be very expensive for what I got.

Certain Dri Roll On

     I got the roll on version of Certain Dri as a replacement for the solid one once it ran out. My sister had been using this one and when I complained about the white deodorant marks she suggested I use this instead. I like the roll on much more than the solid antiperspirant, but this one seems to have odd side effects I didn't notice when using the other - I think this one is meant to be stronger but I'm not sure. According to the directions, you're supposed to put both of these on at night when you go to bed then not in the morning. When I use the roll on occasionally, it was generally not a problem, but when I was in Costa Rica and used it every night my underarms started reacting badly to the constant abuse. When I would put this on my armpits would get very itchy which lasted around half an hour. I'll hang on to this one since it's the only cruelty free antiperspirant I've found, but definitely use it rarely.

Stinkbug Naturals Organic Cream Deodorant
     I go the tangerine spice travel size of this cream deodorant in one of my Vegan Cuts boxes. I've never used a cream deodorant before this one so I wasn't sure what to expect. I found this one was actually very easy to apply. It has coconut oil and shea butter in it so it went on very smoothly. It also doesn't leave the white marks I hate so much on my clothes. This one also works pretty well. When I go to the gym wearing this I come home with traces of BO, but nothing too bad. It's certainly effective enough for an average day.
     I liked this deodorant so much, I went on the Stinkbug Naturals website and got myself several different scents and types to try out. The tangerine spice scent is decent, but I found I like the floral lime even more.

Stinkbug Naturals Organic Deodorant Stick
     Since I liked my tangerine spice cream deodorant so much, I decided to try out some of their other options. I got the Tea Tree and Lavender scents of their stick, though I prefer the scent of the floral lime cream deodorant. I used the tea tree one this morning for the first time. It went on very smoothly and doesn't seem to leave those annoying white marks on my clothing. I'll add an update later about how effective it is.

Schmidt's Natural Deodorant - Lavender and Sage
     This one had been recommended a lot when I first went cruelty free, but I shied away from the finger application side of it. Getting the Stinkbug deodorant in my Vegan Cuts box inspired me to try it out, so I ordered the lavender and sage one off Amazon. Schmidt's is definitely not like Stinkbug Naturals. The deodorant is pretty solid and you have to warm up bits between your fingers before applying it. Because of the awkward application, I'm not sure if I'm no good at putting it on or if this one simply doesn't work well, but I started smelling just from everyday activities. I'll keep trying it and maybe when I've had some practice it will work better.

I plan to update this list as I try new deodorants and antiperspirants.

Cruelty Free Stinky Underarms

Since a teen, I've been a big fan of Secret Antiperspirant from P&G.  It stops the sweat and so stops the stink.  I'm nothing if not loyal.  Forty years later, I'm looking for something else to keep me smelling fresh that hasn't been tested on animals.

I'm a professional who works in an office and is frequently in meetings working closely with other people.  It is important that I don't distract my colleagues with an unpleasant scent.  This is non-negotiable.

Consulting the PETA site:  Cruelty-Free Deodorant, we found a number of options:
Antiperspirants - use an aluminum chloride to block your pores to stop the sweat.
Deodorant - perfume to mask the smell of sweat-eating bacteria.
Deodorant Stone - a combination of mineral salts that control odor-causing bacteria.

PETA even has a recipe for a homemade deodorant.

Not all of the options were available in my area but I found that my local Walgreens carries several.  I chose Crystal deodorant.  I liked that it didn't plug up the pores like antiperspirant (not that I had a problem before I just like the sound of that).  I also liked that it actively prevents the bacteria from growing rather than just try to mask the scent.  Crystal says that one "stick" will last a whole year so it's very economical.

I have been using Crystal for about a month this summer.  I live in Atlanta so we have plenty of heat and humidity.  I find that I get wet under my arms now but not usually stinky.  Keep in mind that I'm usually indoors.  However, even outdoors, I don't get smelly very often with Crystal.  I am a little aware that if I get wet under my arms it may show through my clothes but again, I'm just not in the heat that much.

To use Crystal, I run it briefly under a trickle of water.  Then I rub that on my clean skin until it is dry again.  Pretty simple and takes about 20 seconds per arm.  It is so smooth and leaves so little trace that it is hard to believe that it is on there but the results are positive.

Verdict

Ease	Easy.  Takes a few more seconds than solid antiperspirant.  Must have water available.
Wetness	I get wet with sweat under my arms but that's expected since I chose a deodorant rather than an antiperspirant.
Smell	With Secret I was scentless most of the time.  I can't say that with Crystal; however, it is difficult to quantify.  I'm sure I get better results when I wash with soap and water before application.
Worth a repeat?	Yes.  It isn't perfect but I think it will do what I need.  I might try Certain Dri antiperspirant when this runs out next year.

A few helpful web sites:

PETA:  Cruelty-Free Deodorant

Crystal Body Deodorant