Quick and Easy Magic Bars (GF and Vegan)

I've taken quite a break from blogging, but now I'm back. I have a ton of new recipes that I need to transfer from the backs of envelopes to a more permanent form. So to start, here's an updated version of my Gluten and Nut Free Magic Bars. 

I was shopping at the local health store yesterday and saw a can of sweetened condensed coconut milk. Oh man, it tastes amazing! I'm going to have to go back and pick up a few more cans to have on hand. The use of the sweetened condensed coconut milk really makes my magic bars easy. It's one whole less pan to wash too. 

You do need to make them a bit in advance so they have time to fully cool before you cut them, but the active prep time is super quick. By the time my oven was preheated, these bars were ready to go. 

If you don't have quick oats, you can run rolled oats through a blender or food processor to break them down a bit. 

Quick and Easy Magic Bars

2 cups gluten free quick oats

1/2 cup (1 stick) Earth's Balance Vegan Buttery Sticks
2 Tbsp SunButter or soynut butter
2 Tbsp sugar

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp salt

11.25 oz can Sweetened Condensed Coconut Milk

10 oz bag Enjoy Life mini chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups finely shredded unsweetened coconut

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 9 x 13" baking dish with parchment paper.
2. In a large microwave safe bowl, heat the Earth's Balance, SunButter and sugar until the butter is melted. (Microwave in 20 sec increments, stirring each time).
3. Stir in the oats, cinnamon, and salt.
4. Press the oat mixture into the baking dish using the back of a cup measure. 
5. Spread the chocolate chips into a layer on top of the oat mixture. Repeat with the shredded coconut. 

6. Carefully pour the sweetened condensed coconut milk over the top. Spread gently with a spatula. 7. Bake for 25 minutes.
8. Cool and then refrigerate for several hours or overnight. Then cut into squares.

Smoothies!

Ben and I bought ourselves a Vitamix Blender for our birthdays. It's awesome. We used to occasionally make smoothies in our old blender, but I had to puree any greens with liquid first before adding the rest of the ingredients. They took way longer to make and never tasted as good as the ones we can make now. Here are some smoothie recipes we've made so far. 

The Silk strawberry soy yogurt is Tommy safe, but he won't eat it plain. But put it in a smoothie and he'll eat just about anything!

For all of the smoothies, layer ingredients in the blender in the order listed. Start blender on low, turn to high and process just until blended. 

Strawberry Banana Soynut Butter Smoothie

Makes 3 servings

1 1/2 cup coconut milk
1 medium banana
1/4 cup creamy soynut butter
2.5 cups frozen strawberries
1.5 cups ice

Berry Banana Oatmeal Smoothie

Makes 2 servings

1 cup coconut milk
5.3 oz container soy strawberry yogurt
1/4 cup quick oats
1/2 frozen banana
1/2 cup frozen blueberries

Blueberry Banana Spinach Smoothie

Makes 2 Servings

1 1/2 cup coconut milk
1 cup frozen spinach
1 ripe banana
1 cup frozen blueberries
Note: This smoothie turns sort of a weird gray/green color, but it tastes delicious

Strawberry Banana Yogurt Smoothie

Makes 1 Serving

5.3 oz container strawberry soy yogurt
4-5 frozen strawberries
1/2 banana

Very Berry Smoothie

Makes 3-4 Servings

1 cup fruit juice
1 cup canned coconut milk
2 bananas
4 cups fresh spinach leaves
2 cups frozen blueberries or mixed berries
1/2 cup frozen cherries
1 cup ice cubes

Shredded Pork Taquitos (Gluten, Corn and Dairy Free)

Welcome to the new year! We had a great holiday season filled with lots of time with friends and family, so I haven't gotten around to posting recipes in a while.

Here's a new one I made tonight. I had a lot of leftover Carolina BBQ Pork and I can only eat so many sandwiches before I'm ready for something different. I decided to make baked pork taquitos. And Tommy LOVED it! It's been a while since I tried a new recipe that Tommy actually ate without any hesitation. I think different varieties of taquitos ("mini burritos") will be coming to our menu soon. These are tasty, relatively easy to make and easy for a toddler to pick up.

If you can use store bought tortillas this would make the dinner super easy. Since I've only found one that Tommy can eat and they're burrito sized and all the way at one specific grocery store I decided to make my own again. I guess I'm just determined to finally master making tortillas. The online pictures and instructions always make them look easy. 

I made a double batch of Gluten-Free Flour Tortillas with 1 cup rice flour, 1/2 cup tapioca starch and 1/2 cup potato starch for the 2 cups of gluten-free all purpose flour blend. I cooked the tortillas two at a time on a non-stick electric griddle set to 350°F and brushed with a little oil. I made a total of 16 tortillas but only 14 fit on my baking sheet. 

I rolled the tortillas out between layers of parchment paper and transferred the parchment paper to the griddle.  These tortillas were by far the easiest I've ever attempted! They actually rolled out and weren't a sticky frustrating mess. I piled all the cooked tortillas up and covered them with a paper towel and they stayed soft and pliable. I was able to roll these into taquitos without having them crack. Super success! Although my belly did get in the way as I was adding the starch to the stand mixer. Oops!  

I used the same nondairy cheese sauce that I used for the Bison Cheeseburger Helper. This time I tried making it in the Vitamix on speed 10 for 5 minutes. But it didn't really thicken as well as when I've made it on the stove-top. At least the cleanup was super easy. I've included the stove-top directions below. 

Shredded Pork Taquitos

14 soft taco sized tortillas
2 cups cooked shredded pork
2 cups shredded green cabbage

1 can full fat coconut milk
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
1 Tbsp Frank's Red Hot Sauce
1/2 Tbsp potato starch

1 tsp salt
1 tsp granulated garlic
1 tsp granulated onion
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp ground chipotle powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1-2 Tbsp oil

Serve with salsa and guacamole

1. Preheat oven to 425°F. Line one large or two medium rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Lightly brush with oil.

2. In a small saucepan combine the coconut milk, nutritional yeast, Frank's and potato starch. Cook over medium heat, whisking continuously until thickened. 

3. In a large bowl, combine the pork, cabbage, cheese sauce, and seasonings. Mix well.

4. Fill each tortilla with a 1/4 cup of pork mixture and roll tightly. Place seam side down on the baking sheet. Repeat until you've used all the fixings. Brush the tops with a little bit of oil.

5. Bake for 18-20 minutes until crispy. Serve with salsa and guacamole.