No-Bake Breakfast Cookies

Happy Friday! It's so wonderful to be posting on my blog again. It's been, what, two months since my last post?!
I'll give you a little idea of the things that have been consuming my time and driving me slightly insane:

• I recently moved out of my father's house and into my own apartment with my absolute best friend from high school, two states away, in New York! Growing up is rough, but I'm glad to be on my own. Change is a good thing, right? And not only do I live in the beautiful state of New Yawk again, I now live only 2 1/2 hours away from my mother, rather than eight hours!
• My car was almost completely worthless, and just about three paychecks and a week in the shop later... it's drive-able again!
• My grandmother passed away right before I left Ohio, and I spent three weeks with my beautiful mother and my family members (who I hadn't seen in almost 2 years).
• I've been job searching and filling out so many job applications, I think my brain may just explode if I see another one... But I did get an interview at a bakery, and I'm very excited about it!
• The weather here has been teasing me, it's spring one day and then snows 6 inches the next... I can't wait for the real spring!

Despite all of these things, I am back and more than happy to be here again!

Anyway, no-bake breakfast cookies... because there are days that I wake up and actually only want cookies and brownies for breakfast and I'm realizing that it may not be the best idea to give into that all the time. And that's where these cookies come in.

I spent a lot of time searching for recipes for no-bake breakfast cookies and never really found anything that sounded so good I felt like I had to be in the kitchen right now making them. I remembered my recipe for no-bake cranberry almond granola bites and turned it into these cute little healthy, delicious, and guilt-free no-bake breakfast cookies. This time, I used chunky peanut butter and chopped walnuts, rather than almonds. So delicious!

No-Bake Breakfast Cookies
Author: Herbivore Haven
Makes: About 10 Cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds, chopped
• 1/4 cup ground flax seeds
• 1/2 cup natural peanut butter
• 1/3 cup honey OR maple syrup

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, add the rolled oats, dried cranberries, chopped almonds, and ground flax seeds. Mix until just combined; set aside.
2. Add the honey and natural peanut butter to a small bowl. Place the bowl in the microwave for 15 seconds to soften. (If using maple syrup, only soften the peanut butter)
3. Add the softened honey or maple syrup and peanut butter to the dry ingredients and mix until the oats are coated.
4. Chill the granola mixture for about 30 minutes.
5. Roll the granola mixture into cookie forms, making each cookie the desired size. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Read More →

Irish White Bean and Cabbage Stew

Happy Friday! The weather has been somewhat... miserable. If you live up north and it's wintertime, you more than likely already know you better be stockin' up on a lot of soups and stews!

Before I start talking about stew, I wanted to share how the last four days have been. With it being so cold, below zero temperatures to be exact, the pipes to our kitchen sink froze, and not only that but the pipes were backed up. We called a plumber and with no luck, we spent four days without a functioning kitchen sink. Luckily, my dad has a lot of experience in plumbing and fixed it up for us! It was one of those times where you don't really appreciate what you have until it's no longer functioning...

Back to the soup. I love, love, love soups with cabbage. My grandmother makes the best cabbage soup on planet earth, and that's usually what I stock up throughout the winter. Buuut, this winter, I thought I'd try a little something on my own since I'm not living as close to her as I used to.

This Irish white bean and cabbage stew is so, so delicious. It's packed with flavor and healthy vegetables. Not to mention, it's vegan! You can skip out on the barley or replace it to make the stew gluten free. You can even make it in the crock pot! This stew is perfect for cold winter days.

Irish White Bean and Cabbage Stew

Author: Herbivore Haven, Adapted from Fat Free Vegan Kitchen
Serves: 6

Ingredients:

• 1 large onion, roughly chopped
• 3 celery stalks, roughly chopped
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/2 head cabbage, roughly chopped
• 4 carrots, sliced
• 4 small potatoes, diced
• 1/3 cup pearled barley (I used Quaker quick barley)
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon rosemary, crushed
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 8 cups vegetable broth
• 2 cans (15 oz) great northern beans, drained
• 1 14 oz can diced tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon parsley, chopped
• salt (to taste)

Directions:

1. Place the prepared vegetables, seasonings, barley and vegetable broth in a large stockpot.
2. Cover the pot and and simmer until the vegetables are tender, about 45 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients and additional seasonings if needed.
3. Simmer uncovered for at least 15 additional minutes before serving.

Crock pot:

1. Place the vegetables, seasonings and barley into a large crock pot. Add enough vegetable broth to cover the vegetables (start with 6 cups).
2. Cover and cook on low heat for 7 hours.
3. Add the beans, tomatoes, parsley, and salt to taste.
4. Check seasonings and add more if needed.
5. Cover and cook for at least 1 more hour.

Read More →

Favorite Valentine's Day Recipes

Valentine's Day is fast approaching, what?! It seems like just yesterday was Christmas... I've never been one to get too crazy about Valentine's Day, but today, I'd like to share with you some of my favorite Valentine's recipes for some inspiration!

Cherry Cheesecake Pretzel Bites ↑

Cherry Vanilla Puppy Chow ↑

Vanilla Bean Valentine's Cookies ↑

Oreos with Strawberry Cream Cheese Filling ↑

Strawberry Glazed Valentine Donuts ↑

Red Velvet Cake Mix Bars ↑

Mini Red Velvet Bundt Cakes w/ Cream Cheese Frosting ↑

Chocolate Bread Pudding w/ Raspberry Sauce ↑

Red Velvet Rice Krispie Treats ↑

Chocolate Chip Oreo Cookie Mini Heart Pies ↑

I hope you enjoy this list! Share with me your favorite Valentine's Day Treats in the comments!

*Credit where credit is due. I do not claim ownership of any photograph added to this list. I do not claim ownership of any recipe added to this list. Credit is linked to each photograph, as well as each title to the photographs*

Read More →

No-Bake Cranberry Almond Granola Bites

Happy Monday! I'm so glad to be back, let me tell ya. It almost feels kind of weird to be sitting here typing this after not being active lately. I've been doing a lot of work on this little blog of mine, you know, HTML, headaches, and cookin' up some new recipes to share with you. And today I'm talking breakfast, and you're invited.

There's something about no-bake snacks that just get me. I do love baking, but I love no-bake snacks and breakfasts even more. And I love granola even more than that. These granola bites are healthy, simple and oh, so good. They're sweet from the honey and peanut butter, with a crunch from the oats and almonds. They have the classic granola ingredients, but also have peanut butter, cranberries, almonds and flax seeds. No-bake and no guilt, what more could you ask for?

Update: I made this recipe with maple syrup rather than honey, and I fell even more in love! So, so delicious!

No-Bake Cranberry Almond Granola Bites
Author: Herbivore Haven, Adapted from Tina's Chic Corner
Makes: 18-20 Granola Bites

Ingredients:

• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds, chopped
• 1/4 cup ground flax seeds
• 1/2 cup natural peanut butter
• 1/3 cup honey OR maple syrup

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, add the rolled oats, dried cranberries, chopped almonds, and ground flax seeds. Mix until just combined; set aside.
2. Add the honey and natural peanut butter to a small bowl. Place the bowl in the microwave for 15 seconds to soften. (If using maple syrup, only soften the peanut butter)
3. Add the softened honey or maple syrup and peanut butter to the dry ingredients and mix until the oats are coated.
4. Chill the granola mixture for about 30 minutes.
5. Roll the granola mixture into balls, using about 1 tablespoon of granola for each. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Read More →

Cheesy Pasta Bake

Happy Friday! Are you ready for another pasta recipe? Good, this is why we get along so well.

This cheesy pasta bake has all of the classic flavors and ingredients of a lasagna dish, but in a quicker and more simple version.

Cheesy Pasta Bake
Author: Herbivore Haven
Serves: 8

Ingredients:

• 1 (15 oz.) box uncooked rigatoni*
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 cup ricotta cheese
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 (24 oz) jar pasta sauce, divided
• garlic powder to taste
• black pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Cook the pasta per box instructions, to al dente. *Use any kind of tube pasta you have on hand (penne, rigatoni, etc.) Rinse and drain. Transfer back into the pan.
2. Spray a 9 x 13" baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. In the same pan that you cooked the pasta in, toss the cooked pasta with 1/2 of the jar of pasta sauce. Spread cooked rigatoni/pasta sauce along the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Layer 1 1/2 cups of mozzarella cheese, ricotta cheese, and Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle on the top the garlic powder and black pepper to taste. Top with the remaining 1/2 jar of pasta sauce.
3. Bake, covered, at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes or until the sauce on top is bubbly.
4. Top with remaining 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese and let sit until cheese is melted. Serve and enjoy!

Read More →

Pasta with Mediterranean Veggies

Sometimes there are dishes that you want to make 4 or 5 times because they are that good. And sometimes there are dishes that you double or triple the ingredients because you want to eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner for the next two weeks... That's usually how pasta dishes go for me. There's no such thing as too much pasta. It just... doesn't happen.

Penne pasta has to be my favorite kind of pasta. Toss together a few fresh vegetables, fresh herbs, and olive oil in a skillet, add it to the pasta, and top it with a bit of cheese, and you have yourself a warm, cheesy, healthy vegetable pasta dish in no time!

Pasta with Mediterranean Veggies

Author: Herbivore Haven, Adapted from: Vegetarian: 3 Books in 1
Serves: 4

Ingredients:

• 8 oz uncooked Penne pasta
• 1 can (15 oz) navy beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 medium green bell pepper, roughly chopped
• 1 small zucchini, sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 can (14 oz) stewed tomatoes
• 2 teaspoons basil
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to box directions, to al dente. During the last minute of cooking the pasta, add the navy beans.
2. Meanwhile, heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Spray the skillet with non-stick cooking spray. Add the roughly chopped bell pepper and zucchini. Cook for 5 minutes, or until the edges are starting to brown, stirring often. Add the minced garlic; cook and stir for 1 minute. Add the stewed tomatoes and basil. Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and simmer for about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the olive oil.
3. Drain the pasta and navy beans and transfer to a serving platter. Spoon the tomato mixture over the pasta and top with Parmesan cheese and mozzarella cheese.

Read More →

Quinoa and Roasted Corn Salad

After five days of weather that feels like -40, driving back and forth between our old house and new house, and being on the verge of frost bite, we're finally moved into our new home. Well, moved in to the point of having a somewhat functional kitchen, which means I can fix my cooking and baking withdrawals! And there will be a lot of recipes comin' attcha! The first one is this oh, so wonderful quinoa and roasted corn salad.

This quinoa and roasted corn salad is fresh, delicious, satisfying and full of flavor. The recipe came from a cookbook I had listed in my Top 10 Vegetarian Cookbooks of 2013: Vegetarian: 3 Books in 1. I changed up the ingredients a bit and baddabing baddaboom, quinoa and roasted corn salad!

Quinoa & Roasted Corn Salad
Author: Herbivore Haven, Adapted from: Vegetarian: 3 Books in 1
Serves: 6-8

Ingredients:

• 1 cup uncooked red quinoa
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon coarse salt
• 2 cups frozen corn
• 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon vegetable oil, divided
• 1 cup grape tomatoes, quartered
• 1 cup green onions, roughly chopped, divided
• 1 cup cannelini beans, rinsed and drained
• juice of 1 lime
• 1/4 teaspoon sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Directions:

1. Cook the red quinoa, with the 1/2 teaspoon of salt, according to package directions. Transfer cooked quinoa to a large bowl.
2. Meanwhile, heat 1/4 cup of vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the frozen corn; cook for 10-12 minutes, or until the corn is tender and light brown, stirring often. Stir in 2/3 cup of green onions and coarse salt; cook and stir 2 minutes. Add the corn to the cooked quinoa. Gently stir in the tomatoes and cannelini beans.
3. Combine the lime juice, sugar, cumin, and black pepper in a small bowl. Whisk in remaining 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil until combined. Pour over quinoa mixture; toss to coat. Sprinkle with remaining 1/3 cup of green onions. Serve warm, and enjoy!

Read More →