Summer Veggie Egg Nests with Carrot, Zucchini and Summer Squash

One of my favorite breakfasts this summer. Wholesome, filling and starts the morning off right. It's paleo friendly, gluten free, dairy free, nut free, and amazing to boot!

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The eggs are "baked" in their little veggie hash nests on the stovetop, making this a pretty easy breakfast. Just a little hand action on grating the vegetables! No need for potatoes. Carrots, zucchini and summer squash work just fine for our "hashbrowns" and each has its own flavor that adds warmth alongside the garlic.

Also these nests are great served on seedy toast with a little mustard. That is the way my three year old likes them!

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Wondering what else to do with all that wonderful zucchini?
Try my Zucchini and Citrus Gazpacho (tomato free) and No Heat Creamy Turmeric Vegetable Noodles.

Summer Veggie Egg Nests
1 yellow summer squash (or another zucchini)
1 zucchini
2 large carrots
4 free-range eggs (for best taste)
1 garlic clove, minced (I've also used chopped garlic scapes)
2 TB coconut oil

1. Grate squash, zucchini and carrots.
2. Add coconut oil to non-stick pan or cast iron skillet (will need a lid). Let melt and add veggies (and garlic!). Cook on medium heat 10-15 minutes, stirring every couple minutes. Stick the lid on intermittently.
3. Make four wells in the veggie hash and crack an egg into each one. Put lid on and wait 5 minutes. The white should be firm to touch and the yolk clouded over.
Serve immediately with some good sea salt and pepper!

Homemade Vegan Butter with Radishes and Toast (Lecithin, Soy, Nut, Gluten and Dairy Free) + the Homemade Life by Molly Wizenberg

The realization that one can make homemade vegan butter is jaw-dropping. No more plastic tubs. No more unpronounceable ingredients. The future is no longer bleak... Exaggeration? Possibly. I'm prone to dramatization. But we're talking truths here. Vegan Butter - although a bit of an oxymoron - is possible and attainable in your own home. And for dairy-free and vegans everywhere, that is a brighter future.

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Most recipes for vegan butter use a lecithin and a gum. I'm sensitive to gums so I tend to avoid those and I wanted to use things I already have in my pantry (and if you've made my coconut milk cheddar, you will too). I've had vegan butter on my To-Do List for quite some time but I didn't get the gumption until I read the Books for Broads March & April book pick:

This radish toast recipe was inspired by  A Homemade Life: Stories and Recipes from My Kitchen Table by Molly Wizenberg. She blogs over at Orangette. Her beautiful stories and witty food humor were incredibly enjoyable. Although not dairy or gluten free, the recipes were elegantly simple, mouth-watering, and inspiring. And that's ultimately what I look for in any book - Inspiration. Parisian romance is a plus.

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Homemade Vegan Butter (nut, lecithin, gum, soy dairy, and gluten free)
1 cup coconut oil *
3 tsp agar agar powder (avilable on amazon)
1/2 cup coconut milk (plain and unsweetened - almond also works well)
1 tsp apple cider vinegar

3 TB grapeseed oil
1/2 tsp salt

*If you don't like the coconut oil taste use Refined Organic Coconut Oil which doesn't have the coconut-y flavor that extra virgin or unrefined does.

1. Put coconut oil and agar agar powder on medium heat in small saucepan until it starts to have a rolling boil. Remove from heat and let cool five minutes.
2. Meanwhile add apple cider vinegar to coconut milk.
3. Pour all ingredients in a food processor or vita mix. Blend two minutes or until completely incorporated. Put in fridge (or freezer for quick solidity).

To make the Radish Toasts:
Vegan Butter (Recipe above)
Black Pepper or Favorite Flaky Sea Salt
2 Bunches of Radishes
Gluten-free Toast (I used Udi's Gluten-Free Whole Grain Bread) but it would also be delicious on one of my favorite recipes from the talented Sarah Britton from My New Roots - this sprouted and leaven-free life-changing loaf.

Toast bread slices, top with butter, radish slices, and flaky sea salt or cracked black pepper.

Enjoy!

Question of the Day: What do you plan to do with your vegan butter?

*Just a note, I've not attempted baking with this vegan butter but as soon as I do, I will let you all know how it turns out!

Chocolate Chip Breakfast Rug

I couldn't decide on a name for this... It was between sweet flatbread or breakfast pan cake but then Witty Husband started calling it a "breakfast rug" and the name stuck. This recipe is one of my husband's favorites.

Here it is fresh out of the oven...

Use golden flaxseeds instead of brown for a butter-like flavor. Grinding the oats and flaxseeds may seem cumbersome but it literally takes just a minute or two tops. Oat flour can go rancid easily and rolled oats are usually cheaper in the bulk aisle at your local grocery store. With both the oats and flaxseeds, this cake has a good serving of fiber. A slice of this sweetness and a cup of tea is a great way to start the day!

Including orange zest in the batter or serving with orange slices guarantees a higher absorption rate of chocolate's antioxidants.

And best of all? This "breakfast rug" is vegan, gluten-free, and dairy free. Raid your pantry for all the ingredients! No need to go out shopping for anything extraordinary when this is so easy to prepare at home.

Variations:
Cinnamon Raisin (add 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon and 1/3 cup raisins)
Orange Honey (subtract sugar, use orange juice insted of milk, use less juice than calls for and add honey)
Use any frozen berries in exchange for the chocolate chips - blueberries, marionberries, raspberries, etc.

Chocolate Chip Breakfast Rug
1 1/2 c rolled oats (gluten-free certified if sensitive)
1/4 c golden flaxseeds
1 t baking soda
1/2 t cream of tartar             (use 1 1/2 tsp baking powder instead of baking soda and cream of tartar)
1/4 t salt
1/2 c applesauce
1 cup unsweetened, dairy-free milk (such as coconut, almond or soy)
1/4 cup sugar

1/2 c choc chips
1 tsp orange zest (optional)

1. In a spice grinder, grind oats and flaxseed. Add to bowl with other dry ingredients.
2. Combine wet ingredients in seperate bowl. Mix the two together.
3. Pour into a 9x13 pan (greased lightly with coconut oil).
4. Pop into 400 degree oven for 20-25 minutes or until bottom is browned and toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Makes 4 large servings or 8 smaller servings.
My toddler eats 1/8 of this recipe and my husband eats 1/4. Depending on my hunger, I eat whichever size I feel like. It's great served cold the next day or tucked in lunches.

Easy Coconut Creamy Pumpkin Soup

The season for pumpkin everything may be over but no one wants to miss this delicious pumpkin soup! Leftover canned pumpkin makes this soup an easy go-to.

I brought this soup to a friend who recently had surgery. It was heartwarming to reconnect and visit with her as she recovers. I hope this soup sees you to some great laughter and satisfied tummies!

This soup is vegan (unless you use chicken broth base) and free of most allergens (nuts, gluten, dairy, soy, corn, tomatoes). It is delicious with crackers, bread, or oat and almond drop biscuits. Even toddlers will enjoy this vitamin A-rich soup! I know ours did.

Easy Creamy Pumpkin Soup
1 onion
3 cloves of garlic
1 1/2 cup cooked pumpkin (or 15 oz can)
3 cups coconut milk (I used So Delicious coconut milk, unsweetened)
1 1/2 tsp sage,
1/2 tsp oregano
Pinch of red pepper flakes (or more if you want it spicy)
1 tsp cinnamon
Vegetable Broth Base

1. Chop the onions. Saute in grapeseed oil on medium for 10 minutes, every couple minutes. Add minced garlic and cook until the onions are translucent and slightly brown.
2. In blender, add all ingredients and blend until smooth.
3. To heat, put on stovetop and cook on medium heat several minutes.

And in other words, I've read a couple of books lately including
 Rethana's Trial (Legends of the Light-Walkers, #2) by Courtney Cantrell,
Widow of Larkspur Inn, The (The Gresham Chronicles Book #1) by Lawana Blackwell,
Heartless by Jaimey Grant and
Collide (A Collide Novel) By Shelly Crane.
All of these books are less than $5 on the Kindle ! I love to support as many authors as I can and when it's this price? Yeee haw!

In need of some cinnamon, sage, or other herbs? I buy my herbs from:  And you can help support Sweet Roots by buying from this link!

Double Chocolate Black Bean Cookies with Sesame

I can't take credit for these delicious and healthy cookies. I used the base from Sarah Britton's Black Bean Chocolate Chili Cookies and did my own take on her recipe. I wasn't even planning to post this until my sister begged me too. Well, begging might be exaggerating - I mean I'm not that cruel. For my take, I used chocolate chips and less sweetener, I passed on the cherries and cayenne (but that would make a delicious addition). Instead, I generously sprinkled sesame seeds over half the batch.

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Sesame seeds are a wondrous little seed. You can see them featured in my bone-building chocolate sesame melts. Sesame is one of the most calcium-rich foods, teaspoon for teaspoon. It's also loaded with trace minerals such as magnesium. Eating magnesium with calcium is important as it acts as a "'glue' that binds calcium to bone’s protein matrix, creating strong, dense bones. (Spry). Eating one ounce a day of sesame seeds can help provide 28% (based on a 2,000 calories diet) of the calcium needed daily (Nutrition Data.com). When incorporated into the diet, these little wonders of joy can help provide a good base to building strong, healthy bones (or mantaining them).

I love sesame seeds sprinkled on eggs, rice, soup, cooked greens and baked goods! Of course, these are optional (hense why I photographed half of them without). You can buy them from your local grocery store in the bulk section or Mountain Rose Herbs sells organic sesame seeds for an amazing price of $4 for one pound.

Black Beans are a great source of iron, protein and fiber. You can read more about this understated superfood on Sarah B's post.

Besides these wonderful nutritients, the cookies are relatively inexpensive and quite easy to prepare. No bowls are dirtied. Only the food processor!

Also if you don't want to turn on your oven (and you haven't used eggs in the batter), this batter makes a wonderful dip for apples or spread on sweet crackers. Or just eaten by the spoonful *wink wink*.

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All in all, these fudgy cookies are a great treat or snack for anyone! Being vegan and void of most allergens.

Doubling the recipe is a good idea so you have enough to share!

Double Chocolate Black Bean Cookies with Sesame Seeds (or brownie dip if you prefer not to bake it)

(This recipe is inspired by my bone-building chocolate sesame melts and mainly by Sarah B's black bean chocolate chili cookies).

1 1/2 cup cooked black beans (or one 15 oz can, drained and rinsed well)
2 Tb coconut oil
1/3 cup + 2 Tb cocoa powder
1/2 tsp course sea salt
1/4 cup maple syrup (or you can use same amount of non-dairy milk with liquid stevia equivalent)
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 Tb chia seeds (or 2 Tb ground flax seed or Sarah says you can use 2 eggs)

1/2 heaping cup chocolate chips or 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. In food processor, add beans and coconut oil. Process until smooth.
3. Add remaining ingredients (except for sesame seeds) and process until smooth (about a minute). Wait a few minutes for it to thicken and the chia to expand.
4. Scoop heaping tablespoonfuls onto stoneware or parchment lined tray and flatten with fingers or fork.
5. Bake for 15 minutes. Let cool for at least ten minutes before removing from pan.

Makes ten or so unless you eat a lot of the batter like we did.