Author: Susan Jordan

Nature Meditations

Nature Meditations

I decided to experiment with other meditations, other than chakra meditations. I choose to look for meditations in Nature because a few years ago I listened to a great nature meditation and still remember how much I enjoyed it. Alas, I can’t find it anywhere. 

Vegan Mexican Black Bean Soup

Vegan Mexican Black Bean Soup

Mexican Black Bean Soup has been my favorite even before I was a vegan. Now, I leave out the meat and use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth. Start by using one to two tablespoons of vegetable broth to sauté onions, garlic and hot peppers. 

Vegan Oil Free Zucchini Fritters

Vegan Oil Free Zucchini Fritters

Vegan oil free zucchini fritters make a great healthy snack or a tasty side dish with dinner. Gary and I grow zucchini in our garden every year, so I am always looking for good ways to cook and eat them. My favorite way to cook them in my big non-stick frying pan,. I love it and use it for everything. My food doesn’t stick (no oil cooking) and it is very easy to clean. I’m thinking of purchasing a large, non-stick griddle to cook the fritters and my vegan pancakes, but that is for another day.

Get the Ingredients for Vegan Oil Free Zucchini Fritters:

  • 1 med zucchini
  • 1 Tbsp. ground flaxseed
  • 2 Tbsp. water
  • 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 2 Tbsp. cornstarch

Let’s Start Cooking:

I use one zucchini to make about 8 medium size fritters. Grate the zucchini and place in a bowl, sprinkling a little salt over the top. Let it sit for 10 minutes. While that is setting, make your flax egg by mixing ground flaxseed with water. That needs to set for 10 minutes as well. Once 10 minutes is up, grab a handful of zucchini and squeeze out as much water as you can.

Turn on the heat for the frying pan, allowing it to pre-heat before cooking. Next, add the zucchini to the flax egg and stir until zucchini is covered in the flax “egg”. Finally, add whole wheat flour or gluten free flour and mix well. Take a handful of the mixture and make it into patties. Place in the frying pan and cook for at least 3 minutes, or until brown on the bottom. Flip the fritters over and cook on the other side until it reaches your desired crispiness. These patties go nicely with my black bean soup.

Susans Vegan Journey
Grate the zucchini

Susans Vegan Journey
Add zucchini to flax “egg”
Susans Vegan Journey
Add flour and baking powder

Vegan OIl Free Zucchini Fritters Susans Vegan Journey
Make and fry the patties

Enjoy!

This section contains Amazon affiliate links, meaning if you choose to purchase after clicking a link, as an Amazon associate, I may receive a commission on a qualifying purchase, at no extra cost to you.”

Vegan Oil Free Zuchinni Fritters

Vegan Zuchinni Fritters

Susan Jordan
These nutritious and delicious Vegan Zucchini Fritters make a great snack, appetizer, or side dish.
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 6 minutes
Total Time 21 minutes
Course Appetizer
Cuisine American
Servings 2

Equipment

  • 1 grater
  • 1 mixing bowl
  • 1 large nonstick frying pan or griddle

Ingredients
  

  • 1 med zuchinni
  • 1 Tbsp. ground flaxseed
  • 2 Tbsp. water
  • 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1/2 tsp. baking powder
  • 2 Tbsp. cornstarch

Instructions
 

  • Grate zuchinni
  • Add ground flaxseed and water in a mixing bowl. Stir.
  • Put zuchinni in a mixing bowl and top with a small amount of salt
  • Let zucchini mixture and flaxseed mixture set for 10 minutes.
  • Add zucchini to flaxseed mixture.
  • Measure in the four, baking powder, and cornstarch. Mix well
  • Take a handful of zucchini mixture and make into a patty, thinner is better
  • Lay patties in preheated frying pan. Cook for at least 3 minutes. Flip and cook the other side.

Notes

You can substitute gluten free flour.
It is important to  use a nonstick frying pan or griddle and preheat before using.
I find that if the zucchini mixture is cooked, it is easy to turn over without sticking to the pan.
Keyword appetizer, no nuts, oil free, side dish, vegan, zuchinni fritters
Vegan Gluten Free Oat Biscuits

Vegan Gluten Free Oat Biscuits

These vegan gluten free (oil free) oat biscuits are light and fluffy and so delicious. Switching up my whole wheat biscuit recipe, I decided to make it gluten free with oat flour. I had to tweak the ingredients slightly, by using more oat flour, adding 

Starting My Meditation Journey

Starting My Meditation Journey

Since I am starting my meditation journey, I decided to start with 10 minute meditations. I searched on YouTube for “10 minute guided meditations”. Meditation can lower blood pressure, by reducing stress, and quieting the mind. I thought starting with a 10 minute meditation should 

Vegan Pie Cherry Granola Bars

Vegan Pie Cherry Granola Bars

This vegan pie cherry granola bars recipe has been in my cookbook for over 10 years. The basic recipe has two ingredients, bananas and old fashioned oats. Well, maybe 4, I sometimes add a tablespoon of ground flaxseed and a tablespoon of cinnamon. I can add whatever additional ingredients I want. For this recipe, I am adding pie cherries and sprinkling some vegan chocolate chips on top. My favorite vegan chocolate chip brand is Enjoy Life Dark Chocolate Morsels.

If you do not have a nut restriction, you can add 1/4 cup of walnuts, slivered almonds, sunflower seeds, or pepita seeds. If you want to add chia seeds, add one to two tablespoons of chia seeds. We buy a tub of fresh pie cherries every summer and divide them into serving-size containers and freeze them, so I can have pie cherries all year. I love cherry pie and this is a great substitute. I hope you try this recipe and leave me a 5 star review.

Get Your Ingredients:

Susans Vegan Journey

3 very ripe bananas

2 cups old fashioned oats

1 cup pie cherries

1 Tbsp. ground flaxseed

1 Tbsp. of cinnamon

1/4 cup vegan chocolate chips

Let’s start cooking Vegan Pie Cherry Granola Bars

Susans Vegan Journey
Add 1 cup of pie cherries
Susans Vegan Journey
one tsp. of cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Peel and mash three bananas with a fork in a mixing bowl. Add three cups of old fashioned oats. Add 1/2 cup of pie cherries, no juice. Mix well and put into either a silicon pan or a glass 9 x 9 pan. I like chocolate chips, you can sprinkle vegan chocolate chips on the top.

If you can eat nuts, add 1/4 cup of walnuts, slivered almonds, sunflower seeds, or pepita seeds. You may not be a fan of pie cherries. Feel free to substitute raisins or dried cranberries. Add whichever extra ingredients you like, though I would not add cranberries or raisins with the pie cherries. Cook for 25 minutes.

Cool for at least 10 minutes. If you don’t eat all of the granola bars, refrigerate the leftovers. Sometimes, I will heat up a leftover granola bar for 20 seconds in the microwave, because I love the melty taste of the chocolate chips.

If you like easy recipes and chocolate check out my Vegan Oatmeal Chocolate Chips Cookies.

Susans Vegan Journey

Enjoy!

This section contains Amazon affiliate links, meaning if you choose to purchase after clicking a link, as an Amazon associate, I may receive a commission on a qualifying purchase, at no extra cost to you.”

Susans Vegan Journey

Vegan Cherry Pie Granola Bars

Susan Jordan
This pie cherry granola bar recipe is a great substitute for cherry pie. You can have it for dessert, breakfast, or a snack. Its filled with nutritious ingredients.
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 6

Equipment

  • 1 mixing bowl
  • 1 9 x 9 baking pan silicon baking dishes work perfectly

Ingredients
  

  • 3 very ripe bananas
  • 2 cups old fashioned oats
  • 1/2 cup pie cherries
  • 1 Tbsp. flaxseed
  • 1/4 cup vegan chocolate chips
  • 1 Tbsp. cinammon

Instructions
 

  • Peel and mash 3 ripe bananas in the mixing bowl. I like to use a fork to mash them.
  • Add 2 cups of old fashioned oats.
  • Add 1/2 cup of pie cherries. Mix well.
  • Preheat oven to 350 F.
  • Put the mixture in a silicon or glass 9 x 9 pan. No need to use oil in a glass pan.
  • Cook for 25 minutes.
  • Cool for at least 10 minutes. Refrigerate the leftovers.
Keyword dessert, Granola Bars,, no nuts, nut free, oil free, pie cherry, snack, vegan
Vegan Oil Free Banana Bread

Vegan Oil Free Banana Bread

This moist and delicious vegan oil free banana bread is great for a morning snack or for a dessert. My recipe is vegan, oil free, and nut free. I love finding a way to use ripe bananas. As the bananas ripen, the sweeter they will 

Vegan Butternut Squash Lentil Soup

Vegan Butternut Squash Lentil Soup

I love the flavors in this vegan butternut squash lentil soup and was so excited to experiment to find a great combination of seasonings to give this soup a great taste. I also love the taste of the butternut squash. The squash gives this soup 

The Start of a New Way of Eating

The Start of a New Way of Eating

In April of 2021, I suffered a TIA, a mini stroke. I discovered that I had moderate blockage – 50% – 70% in my P2 artery in my brain and that there was nothing the doctors could do for me. The P2 artery is about a millimeter thick, so cleaning it out is not an option. I didn’t want to come home knowing that in a few years, that artery would close up and I would either die or be severely disabled. So, I began an online search to see what I could do to improve my health. Google is a great friend of mine when I want to learn about anything. I found the start of a new way of eating to help me get healthy.

Searching for an Answer for a New Way of Eating

Susans Vegan Journey

I searched online and found Dr. Esselystyn’s book How to Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease. It explains that if you change your diet you can reverse the plaque buildup in your arteries. This requires eating a vegan, whole food, plant based diet with no oil, no nuts, and no avocados. Dr. Esselystyn’s book showed that the very sick people that were in his study and are still on this diet are still alive and healthy 25+ years later.

Susans Vegan Journey

Dr. Michael Gregor’s Book, How Not to Die, talks about different diseases and how eating a whole foods, plant-based diet (or WFPB) can change your life. This is a great book and resource. I’ve read it several times and each time I read it, I find new nuggets of information I had overlooked previously. He also talks about “The Daily Dozen” which I will be sharing in another post.

Dr. Dean Ornish and Dr. John McDougall share similar views and both have written books and created programs you can follow. Also, “Forks Over Knives” has a documentary on YouTube about a whole food plant-based diet and a website full of great information.

Vegan, No Oil… Whaaat?

I bought Dr. Esselystn’s book and began reading. My brother also gave me the How Not to Die book, which I read it as well. Both books are divided into great information and recipes that suggest what foods to eat. I found some recipes that looked good and began making my grocery list.

Gary and I went to the grocery store and started shopping. It took a while because we had to read the label of every food to make sure it did not contain oil or high fructose corn syrup. It was tedious at first, because we had never read the ingredients on food packages this closely! Boy, what a project! We were amazed at how many foods contain oil! With a little bit of hard work we were able to find good variety of foods that fit our new healthy, oil-free diet.

I cleaned out my pantry of any foods that I could not eat anymore, in order to have the space for my new foods. Below are just a few of the items I purchased. I am always on the lookout for new, interesting recipes. There are still a few unusual items out there that I haven’t purchased yet.

https://www.forksoverknives.com/

Finding Recipes

I find that if I Google “Vegan no oil” or “Vegan oil free” for any food category, many recipes came up. Between the recipes in Dr. Esselystyn’s book and what I found online, I was ready to begin my new eating lifestyle and I’ve never looked back. I jumped in with both feet and have been eating vegan, WFPB food ever since. Thinking about eating meat or dairy reminds me of my condition and, the thought of having a stroke takes away any desire to stray off my diet.

I enjoy all the foods I cook. Gary and I made a pact that if we didn’t like a recipe, we would cross it off the list. I like to joke that my recipes are “Gary Approved” or “Grandkids Approved.” That holds extra weight, especially since my grand kids do not follow a vegan diet. My goal is to make food that anyone will like eat. The word “Vegan” does not mean weird food that doesn’t taste good.

I’ve lost 25 pounds and my cholesterol (with a little help from generic Crestor) is now at an overall 141 (my previous high was 254) and my LDL is now only 41 (previous high of 110). My weight has been holding steady after my initial weight loss. My energy is up and I feel great.

This section contains Amazon affiliate links, meaning if you choose to purchase after clicking a link, as an Amazon associate, I may receive a commission on a qualifying purchase, at no extra cost to you.”

Sweet Crispy Chickpeas

Sweet Crispy Chickpeas

I was having a hard time coming up with healthy vegan no oil snacks when I first started this eating lifestyle. Luckily I found several crispy chickpea recipes. Sweet and crispy chickpeas are one of my favorite snack foods. They are very easy to make