Tag / plantbasedfood

by Chantel Chansa

HOMEMADE MARINARA STASH

I am aware that there are many, awesome tasting marinara out there and this one takes about an hour to achieve its beginning flavor. Many times, you will find those at restaurants on your pasta or pizza. I do not know any restaurants that would share their famous sauce recipe with just anyone. So, my mom stumbled upon this recipe and decided to try it. Let me tell you just how delicious it is. This marinara is one of the many great tasting marineras that can be used on anything that requires a tomato sauce. We use it mostly as spaghetti sauce. We have also used it as a marinara for cheese sticks, pizzas, and pasta dishes, such as lasagna and baked ziti. I have also used this marinara on English Muffin Pizzas. I will post that recipe at a different time but just use your creativity with that one. This recipe has great flavor and great consistency. In my opinion this marinara has the taste of slight sweetness, garlic and onion but all is perfectly balanced. One time I did add about 2 tablespoons of plant-based of heavy cream. This made it rich and creamy but it did take away slightly from my favorite flavor of garlic. I do like it either way but my favorite is without the heavy cream.

This recipe makes a lot and is so easy. Whatever you do not use, you can store in the fridge for about four days or freeze the unused portions in a freezer safe container. Thaw in the fridge is the recommended way but for a quick thaw, thaw in a bowl of cool water. In the first photo, I made spaghetti squash for our marinara and topped with vegan cheese crumbles. Second photo is the beginning stage of cooking the sauce. We have never been disappointed with this recipe. Once you make this marinara, you will make this all the time and will reach for that extra frozen sauce to make that quick meal. This recipe is also traditional, vegan, vegetarian, and plant based. The recipe is below to view or a PDF if you choose to download.

Start to finish time: 1hr 25min Makes: 12 cups

HOMEMADE MARINARA STASH

INGREDIENTS

  • 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 Vidalia onions, peeled, and coarsely chopped ( any sweet onion is fine)
  • 6 garlic cloves, peeled
  • 2 tsp dried oregano
  • 4 (28oz) cans whole peeled tomatoes
  • 4 tsp Kosher salt, plus more
  • 1 1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper
  • sugar of choice to sweeten if desired

COOKING DIRECTIONS

  1. Heat oil in a Dutch oven pot over medium heat. Cook onion and garlic, stirring occasionally – being careful to not let it brown-before becoming aromatic, approx. 3 mins. Add oregano and stir to combine.
  2. Using your hands or a potato smasher, crush whole tomatoes and add to the pot along with the juices; season with 4 tsp salt and 1 1/2 tsp blk pepper.
  3. Bring to boil, then reduce heat and bring to a gentle simmer.
  4. Cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, until sauce is reduced slightly, about one hour
  5. Remove from heat and blend with an immersion blender, food processor or blender until smooth. Place back into the Dutch oven and season with salt & pepper.
  6. Sauce can be stored in fridge up to 5 days in an airtight container or freezer up to 6 months.
homemade-marinara-stash-1Download

Subscribe below if you would like to receive recipes and more directly to your email.

by Chantel Chansa

Carrot Dog Recipe

I love finding different recipes to try that offer veggies, fruits, beans and legumes as the meat substitute. I never would have thought that using carrots as a hot dog substitute and they actually do not taste like a carrot. I was skeptical at first when this recipe was presented to me. Once I tried it, I was in love with this particular recipe. I did try another carrot dog recipe but this one was my favorite and hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

If you are looking for a meat substitute for hot dogs, then this is the best one in my opinion so far. I and my family has tried a few different ones and this one has been the best tasting. Yeah, it may take a while to marinate but it is well worth the time. It does not taste like a carrot because of the marinade but taste more like a hot dog flavor from the grill. Not a heavy smoked flavor but subtle enough to taste the flavoring that a hot dog gives. I have noticed that if you marinate them longer than 24 hours, you’ll have a stronger taste of the soy sauce. Which isn’t bad tasting but just more pronounced in that flavor. You do not have to cook all of them at once, just store them in an airtight container with the marinade and cook as directed.

INGREDIENTS

  • 4-6 carrots peeled and ends cut off
  • 1/4 cup soy sauce/liquid amino acids
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 1 TBSP white vinegar
  • 1TBSP sesame oil
  • 1/2 TBSP apple cider vinegar (ACV)
  • 1 clove minced garlic
  • 1/4 tsp dried ginger
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper
  • 1/8 tsp onion powder

DIRECTIONS

  1. Boil carrots in a pan until tender, 8-10 minutes. DO NOT over cook. Once cooked, drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process.
  2. While carrots are cooking, make the marinade. Add ingredients #2 – 10 to a shallow dish and whisk together.
  3. Add cooked carrots to marinade and shake gently until they are all coated. Cover and place in the fridge. Marinate at least 4 hours, or overnight.
  4. When ready to cook the carrots, heat a frying pan on med-high heat. Add carrots to pan with 1/2 cup of marinade. Turn heat down to low and simmer for about 10 minutes or until heated through.
  5. Serve on hot dog buns with your favorite toppings
  6. ENJOY !!!

Below you will find the PDF to download or print this recipe.

carrot-dog-recipe-pdfDownload

    You can subscribe to get all my post directly to your email.