Challenge #92 - Veggie soup with Jerusalem Artichoke

I was given a bunch of Jerusalem artichokes and sage from someone's garden and decided to make a soup with them.  Jerusalem artichokes look similar to fingerling potatoes and are also referred to as sunchokes.  I am also taking this opportunity to try to experiment using no garlic or onion, which worked out very well.  You should feel free to add onion and garlic to the recipe below if desired.
Both my husband and I really enjoyed this soup.  Our dogs liked it too!  My husband had some broth left over from his meal and shared with them. This was really nice as the weather is getting colder.

Ingredients:
1 container Organic Low Sodium Veggie Broth
3-4 carrots (peeled)
3-4 stalks of celery
1 medium zucchini
Bunch of Jerusalem artichokes
Few handfuls of spinach
2 cups water
sea salt (to taste)
Herbamare (to taste)
1 spring sage
2 tbsp tomato powder (you can replace this with tomato paste)

Step #1 - Chop up all veggies.  I kept the skin on  the Jerusalem artichokes.  They are picked below before I cut them up.

Step #2 - Add enough veggie broth to pot or large pan to cover the bottom.  Add sage spring and heat on high for a few minutes until fragrant.

Step #3 - Add in veggies, cover with full container of veggie broth plus 2 cups water.  Add in salt, Herbamare, and tomato powder.  Bring to a boil then simmer on low until veggies are tender.

Before remaining broth and water was added

Step #3 - When veggies are fork tender, turn off heat and add in a few handfuls of spinach. Remove sage spring.  Enjoy!

Challenge #91 - Sunflower Sprout Salad

I love sunflower sprouts.  I often throw them in my salads, but today I used it as my base since I ran out of lettuce and didn't want to go to the store in the snow.  I topped them with my favorite avocado salad which I also slightly altered to accommodate what was in the fridge.

Ingredients:
Sunflower Sprouts
2 Avocado (cut into chunks)
2 radishes (diced)
colored peppers (I used 3 mini sweet peppers) (diced)
1/2 cucumber (quartered and sliced)
Herbamare to taste (or can you sea salt, garlic & onion powder)
1 lemon (I sued the whole lemon b/c they were really small, so you may only need 1/2)

Step #1:  Combine all ingredients but sunflower sprouts, add lemon juice and seasonings and mix.
Step #2:  I added my avocado salad over a bowl full of sunflower sprouts.  My husband had his minus the sprout.  Enjoy!

Challenge #90 - Baked Plantains with Coconut Cream

I recently learned plantains combine as a starch, if you practice food combining!  So here is a quick and simple dessert.  Both my husband and I loved these. If you don't like coconut, you can omit the whipped cream.

Ingredients:
Ripe Plantains
Cinnamon
Coconut Cream (about 1/4 cup)
Vanilla Extract
Stevia (optional)

Step #1 - Peel and dice plantains into rounds.  I cut mine to about 1/2" thick.

Step # 2 - Place plantain rounds on parchment lined baking sheet and sprinkle with cinnamon.  Roast in oven at 350 for about 8-10 minutes or until plantains are fork tender.  You will begin to smell when they are almost ready.

Step #3 - Optional -whipped coconut cream.  Add coconut cream and a splash of vanilla to a chilled bowl.  You may choose to add some stevia if you want it to be sweeter, I decided not to.  I don't have an electric mixer, so I used some good old muscle to whip the coconut cream until thick.  Ok, I got impatient and my husband took over for me.  It takes about 5 minutes to whip.

Step #4 - Remove plantains from oven, place in dish and add whipped cream if desired.  Enjoy!

I plan to experiment more with plantains soon.

Challenge #89 - Ginger Cookies!

As the weather has been getting colder and we are approaching the holiday season, I've been wanting some different flavors like ginger and cinnamon.  I saw this awesome ginger cookie recipe  from Megan at The Detoxinista. 
I made the batch for myself and a colleague who sometimes does not do well with maple syrup, so I switched it for agave.  We both loved them - so yummy.

Happy baking!  These will be making an appearance in my kitchen for Thanksgiving.

I also wanted to share a little tip with you.  I don't really bake, so I don't own a cooling rack.  I have a microwave in my apartment, but the only thing I use it for is to cool things off so the dogs don't grab it off the counter.  Now it has another purpose.  I took the shelf out, put it on 2 plates, and made a makeshift drying rack.  The cookies are pictured on the "rack".