sugar-free

Zucchini “Noodles” with Sesame-Peanut Sauce

April 19, 2013
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It’s been a week full of tragedy and fear. My heart aches for the families of everyone hurt or killed in Boston and Texas, and my reaction to everything that’s happened (and continues to happen) is to plant myself in front of the news in search of the answers to “What?” and “Why?” It’s not [...]

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Orange-Sesame Coleslaw

February 28, 2013
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I often go back and remake some of my old recipes, and when the original photo is really bad (as are most of my early ones), I take a new photo. Sometimes, however, I go a little bit further and change up the recipe so that it fits my current tastes. That’s what happened to [...]

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Smoky Apple Baked Beans

February 14, 2013
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Happy Valentine’s Day! I know that on this day of love, I’m supposed to offer you a rich, sugary indulgence or at least a romantic dinner for two with aphrodisiac potential, but what, dear reader, do I have in store for you instead? The lowly and much-maligned bean. But wait, could there be any more [...]

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Swiss Chard with Crisp Apples

January 15, 2013
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Before I get to today’s recipe, I have some exciting news: Yesterday I was quoted in an article called “How to Go Vegan” in the New York Times Well column. I was thrilled to have the chance to share my ideas with a wider audience, and I hope that those of you who are trying [...]

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Caribbean Pineapple Black Beans and Oven-Fried Plantains

December 13, 2012
Caribbean Pineapple Black Beans

I know we’re in the “holiday season” when most people are looking for holiday recipes (see mine here), but I wanted to send you on a brief vacation to the tropics with a couple of easy recipes guaranteed warm up your winter meals with a bit of summer sun.

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Two Healthy Vegan Nogs: Chia Nog and Banana Nog

December 9, 2012
Chia Nog

I’m certain that if we didn’t have a kid in the house, my husband and I would never put up a Christmas tree or take the time to stake out the herd of electric reindeer that blazes across our front yard every December. But when you’re a small family, the youngest member sets the traditions, [...]

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Bananas Baked in Phyllo with Date-Sweetened Chocolate Sauce

December 3, 2012
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My daughter and I came up with this recipe one afternoon when we were in the mood for a quick treat and I had some leftover phyllo dough in the fridge. We call it “Wrap Your Banana,” but that sounds more like a public service announcement than a recipe! Normally we just sprinkle it with [...]

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Pumpkin Spice Hot Chocolate

October 20, 2012
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Welcome to Weekend Quickies–quick recipes that won’t cut into your weekend relaxation time. Today’s ridiculously easy recipe is brought to you courtesy of my last recipe, Mary’s Pumpkin Walnut Muffins, and more particularly by the half cup of pumpkin that is left over from a 15-ounce can after you make that recipe. Here’s a delicious [...]

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No-Bake Vegan Strawberry Pie

August 20, 2012
No-Bake Vegan Strawberry Pie

My mother’s strawberry pie is the one dish I remember from my childhood with so much love that I’ve never tried to veganize it for fear of messing it up. The recipe is simple–spread a layer of sweetened cream cheese in a pie crust and pour over it a layer of strawberries in a cornstarch [...]

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Hibiscus-Blueberry Cooler

July 11, 2012
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I was cleaning out the pantry yesterday morning and found a packet marked “Jamaica” that I could barely remember purchasing. (I tend to buy food items that I’m unfamiliar with and then stick them in the closet until I forget why I bought them.) I read the back–”Jamaica is the Spanish name for Hibiscus Pods, [...]

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Carrot Cake Bars

July 2, 2012
Carrot Cake Bars

I love getting recipe ideas from readers! Next to traveling and dining at vegan restaurants, it’s my favorite way to discover new foods. So I was thrilled to receive an email recently from Sharon Starr in San Francisco asking me to figure out the recipe for Whole Foods’ Vegan Carrot Spice Cake, which she described [...]

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McDougall’s Fluffy Pancakes

June 26, 2012
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Dr. John McDougall is one of my personal heroes. After I became a vegetarian in 1988, I dabbled in veganism off and on, trying to cut out dairy and eggs but never having lasting success. When I read John Robbins’ Diet for a New America, I became convinced that my cheese- and egg-heavy diet was [...]

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Chocolate-Cherry Ice Dream

May 3, 2012
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Warmer weather has arrived, bringing with it my craving for ice cream, which seems to go into remission over the winter but comes back with a vengeance when the temp goes over 80. I don’t own an ice cream maker, and I when I get near the vegan ice cream section of the grocery store, [...]

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Tofu-Cashew Mayonnaise

April 19, 2012
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So much depends upon mayo. If you think that’s an exaggeration, try eating a dry sandwich or a tempeh salad with nothing but lemon juice to moisten it. For omnivores, the solution is easy: Grab a jar of egg-based mayonnaise off any supermarket shelf. For vegans, it’s a little more difficult; oil-based Vegenaise* and soy-based [...]

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Strawberry Mini Muffins

April 5, 2012
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Easter is a few days away, and if you’re as concerned as I am about the amount of sugar your children are eating, you may be looking for healthy alternatives to the jelly beans and vegan chocolate the Easter Bunny usually leaves (at least that’s what he usually deposits in my daughter’s basket). These tiny [...]

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Chocolate Chia Pudding and Other Sugar-Free, Flour-Free Desserts

January 23, 2012
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I come from a long line of dessert lovers. When I was growing up, my family ate dessert every night after dinner, and my parents still end each day with a bowl of ice cream (though my mother opts for an artificially sweetened one now). It’s a hard habit to break and one I’m afraid [...]

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Hidden Cashew Ranch Dressing Plus Tips for Eating Salads When You Really Don’t Want To

January 8, 2012
Hidden Cashew Ranch Dressing

We’ve all been there. You’re trying to eat more greens but you just can’t face another lunchtime salad. Maybe it’s because of the prep involved, maybe it’s because it feels like the North Pole outside, or maybe it’s because you’re just sick and tired of chomping your way through a big bowl of raw veggies. [...]

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Thai Salad with Slow-Cooked Tofu in Pineapple Barbecue Sauce

September 12, 2011
Thai Barbecue Salad

One of the highlights of my trip to Portland happened after Vida Vegan Con was over. That Sunday night, I got to meet my friend and long-time reader Maria, whom many of you know from the comments as Moonwatcher. Maria traveled ten hours to visit her son in Portland and timed her trip so that [...]

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Low-Fat Tahini-Chickpea Dressing

August 8, 2011
Low-Fat Tahini-Chickpea Salad Dressing

Today’s recipe is brought to you by the letter D… not D for “dressing” but D as in my husband D, who can’t get enough of this dressing. He’s been pouring it on salads and drizzling it on sandwiches ever since I made it for the first time (we’re now on our second batch). I [...]

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Cashew Carrot Salad

July 31, 2011
Cashew Carrot Salad

I’ve discovered a salad that my daughter will gobble up like candy. In fact, she eats so much of it that she’s almost in danger of turning orange! I’m talking, of course, about good, old-fashioned carrot salad–but with a few updates and improvements.

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Thai Green Curry with Vegetables and Tofu

April 28, 2011
Thai Green Curry with Vegetables and Tofu

I’m not one of those food snobs who think that absolutely everything I cook has to be made from scratch. Though I believe that the results are usually better (and more nutritious) when all the ingredients are homemade, I’m not above using packaged ingredients, such as vegetable broth or canned beans, when the ingredients aren’t [...]

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Pumpkin, Squash, or Cushaw Bake

October 22, 2010
Pumpkin or Cushaw Bake

One Sunday a month throughout my childhood, my family would attend Family Night Supper at our church.  It was a time of community, of fellowship…and of competition.  Because Family Night Supper was a potluck dinner, the ladies of the church showed off their cooking skills by bringing their signature dishes–their congealed chicken salads, artichoke dips, [...]

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Ridiculously Easy Vegan Buttermilk Salad Dressing

October 5, 2010
Ridiculously Easy Vegan Buttermilk Salad Dressing

The question I get asked most by people who are just beginning to follow an oil-free diet is “If you don’t use oil, what do you put on your salad?”  Frankly, getting used to salads without olive oil can be difficult, though I do believe you can train your taste buds to enjoy salads without [...]

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Sea-sational Chickpea Salad

September 8, 2010
Sea-sational Chickpea Salad

Eaten any good algae lately?  Chances are you have, even if you didn’t know it.  Algae, or sea vegetables, are used as stabilizers or thickeners in everything from mayo to ice cream, and even if you avoid processed foods, you’ve probably enjoyed sushi wrapped up in nori or miso soup flavored with wakame.  But if [...]

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Sugar-Free (or Not) Peach and Vanilla Muffins

August 20, 2009
Sugar-Free (or Not) Peach and Vanilla Muffins

I’m one of those people who can’t keep baked goods in the house. I mean this in two ways. If there are baked goods in the house, they’re not around for long because I eat them, maybe not in one sitting, but quickly and compulsively, snatching them straight from the oven to “test” them and [...]

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Apple-Pumpkin Delight

November 11, 2008
Apple-Pumpkin Delight

What if you love pie but don’t like crust? Strange as it sounds to me, I have a daughter who doesn’t like crust–on bread, on pizza, or on pie. Her aversion is not a big deal because she can always eat around it, but since I have my own reasons for avoiding pie crust, I [...]

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Ridiculously Easy Pineapple Sorbet

June 26, 2008
Pineapple Sorbet

Please stop me if you’ve heard this one before: A can of pineapple walks into a freezer…. Sound familiar? If so, I apologize for wasting your time on an oldie but goodie. But, if you haven’t tried this ridiculously easy summer treat, you might want to stay tuned because it’s a delicious way to beat [...]

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Golden Spice Pancakes

January 4, 2008
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Thanks to everyone for your notes of concern. After three days without heat and two without any power at all, we finally got our electricity turned on at 8:00 last night–just in time to save our tropical fish, who were not looking so good. Getting the electrical panel fixed wasn’t a problem, but dealing with [...]

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Kiwano, Banana, and Pineapple Sorbet

December 1, 2006
Kiwano, Banana, and Pineapple Sorbet

Let me start off by saying this: Do not feel that you have to run out and buy a kiwano to make this recipe. Okay, let me back up and re-start by saying, do not buy a kiwano unless you just like its spiny shape and swirly orange color scheme. Hmmm…let me try one more [...]

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Sugar-Free Coconut Chai Breakfast Cake

April 2, 2006

I’ve been very surprised that my most popular recipe is one which I just threw together on a whim: Coconut Chai Breakfast Cake. The recipe is actually a complete overhaul of a coffee cake recipe that included (you guessed it) coffee. I didn’t want to use coffee; though I drink it, I don’t allow my [...]

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