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Creamy Lemony Nooch Dressing | Oil-Free & 4 Ingredients

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You’d have a tough time trying to find a day to look in my fridge without seeing a jar of this Lemony Nooch dressing.

I’m telling you now… triple or quadruple this recipe so you can have this amazingness available in your fridge for up to 10 days, and finally get excited to make friends with salad er’yday.

This dressing works with any kind of salad. Greens, beans, grains, legumes, you name it, just add it, and it’s all better.

The best way to use this is to mash your torn up kale leaves in the dressing, and let it sit for 10 minutes in your salad bowl (this softens the kale), then add the rest of your salad ingredients and toss it all up! I try to get a salad in my system on the daily, and this dressing makes it easier than ever!

The nooch, paired with the dijon creates a cheeziness and creaminess without the need for any oil!

If you’re looking for more oil-free salad dressings, here’s a few to play around with.

Feel free to use apple cider vinegar to instead of lemon, and add a bit more maple syrup if you like it sweeter!

Benefits:

  • Nooch (Nutritional yeast) is packed with vitamin B12 (which everyone needs to make sure they get in their diet either by supplementing or eating B12 fortified foods like nooch’ or fortified plant-based milks), and has a cheesy flavour! It’s so delicious to sprinkle on anything, and add to any sauce to get that creamy, cheesy taste.
  • Lemon is detoxifying, great for your skin, high in Vitamin C and helps indigestion.
  • Oil-free dressing means you’re salad will be mega healthy! Oil is a refined fat, without fibre and with minimal nutrients. So if you’re trying to keep your salads low in empty calories, yet nutrient-dense and delicious, try ditching the oil and using these ingredients to create the creamy dressing you’re after!

 

5.0 from 2 reviews
Creamy Lemony Nooch' Dressing | Oil-free & The Best
 
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An oil-free, yet creamy dressing that will make any salad a winner. This is my go-to! Triple the recipe so you have it on hand for easy salad making anytime.
Author:
Recipe type: dressing, sauce
Serves: 2
Ingredients
  • 3 tbsp lemon juice (or apple cider vinegar)
  • ⅓ cup nutritional yeast
  • 1 tbsp dijon mustard
  • 1 tbsp maple syrup
  • 1-2 tbsp water, optional (depends on how thick or thin you like it!
  • * I recommend tripling this recipe and keeping a jar of dressing in the fridge ready to go*
Instructions
  1. Pour all ingredients (except for the optional water) in a mason jar and shake! Or, pour all ingredients into the bottom of your salad bowl, and whisk!
  2. Add a bit of that water if you want a thinner dressing.
  3. *I recommend adding some kale to the dressing in your bowl, and mashing it in the dressing with your salad tongs, then letting that sit a few minutes before adding the rest of your ingredients. This provides a delicious massaged kale base for the rest of your salad. My usual salad for 2 consists of 4 leaves of the massaged kale, tomato, ½ avocado, 1 pear, 2 green onions, 1 head romaine, 1-2 tbsp raisins and sunflower seeds.

Next Level Vegan Lasagna with Creamy Tofu Ricotta

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Plant-based comfort food to the max. Vegan Lasagna. Or is it lasagne? We’ll stick with the first one.

Lasagna. This word usually means the cheesiest, most tomato-y pasta bake you’ll ever have.

Well, this lasagna still brings that, without the cheese.

Your taste buds and comfort-feels will be completely satisfied while the tofu ricotta and roasted garlic hummus come together to create the most decadent party-in-your-mouth lasagna experience ever.

This vegan lasagna is a good dish to serve up after the holiday indulgence. Your palate is probably still craving that comforting meal, but your brain and bod are begging for that lighter, get-back-to-the-greens kind of meal. Ya know what I mean?

Not to mention there’s just something special about diving your fork into the layered masterpiece we know and love as lasagna.

All that’s in between you and this yumminess is…

Mix

Sauté

Layer

Bake.

Easy it up by using store-bought hummus and tomato pasta sauce.

Or, go for it and make your own roasted garlic hummus from this recipe (double it so you have extra, because what’s a fridge without a tub of hummus anyway…)!

Benefits:

–Brown rice pasta is the pasta for you if you’re sensitive to gluten at all. Pasta isn’t something to be afraid of! YES, avoid white pasta (which is completely stripped of it’s nutrients, vitamins, and fibre), but the other options like quinoa pasta, sprouted whole grain pasta, spelt pasta etc… are all great options! 

–Miso Paste is fermented soy that gives the dish a salty, umami taste. It also is packed with beneficial probiotics to help combat digestive issues by balancing out your gut micro flora. Plus it takes this vegan lasagna to the next level.

–Spinach (lots of it) is pop eye’s fave. I mean common’ what’s not to love. It’s packed with plant protein, chlorophyll, and when it’s cooked you’ll absorb higher levels of vitamins A and E, protein, fibre, zinc, thiamin, calcium, and iron!


Next Level Vegan Lasagna + Creamy Tofu Ricotta
 
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Cheezy and creamy tofu ricotta make this lasagne a plant-based comfort food staple, and one that won't bust your belt!
Author:
Recipe type: lasagna, pasta, dinner, lunch
Cuisine: Italian
Serves: 10
Ingredients
  • 1 package brown rice lasagna pasta
  • 2 cups (one large jar) tomato basil marinara sauce
  • 6 large cremini mushrooms, chopped
  • 1 large sweet onion, diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 tbsp vegetable bouillon powder
  • 2 small or 1 large zucchini, chopped
  • 1 cup frozen peas
  • 2-3 cups packed spinach, chopped
  • ½ cup nutritional yeast
Tofu Ricotta:
  • 1 package firm tofu, pressed 15 minutes (or put in 110°F dehydrator for 1 hour)
  • ¾ cup roasted garlic hummus (store bought, or make this recipe)
  • 7 large leaves of basil, chopped
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2 tbsp miso paste
  • ¾ cup nutritional yeast
Instructions
  1. Make the hummus (or used store-bought).
  2. Pre-heat oven to 400°F. While you're at it, press your tofu if you haven't already (I use a plate, then wrap the tofu in a tea towel, then stack books or a heavy bread board on top for 10 minutes at least)
  3. Heat a pan to medium. Add the onions and mushrooms until the pan browns, then de-caramelize the pan with a bit of water. Add the garlic, vegetable bouillon, and zucchini. Let sauté a few minutes (add a splash of water if it's sticking). Add the peas and spinach. Let sauté a few more minutes until the spinach is cooked down.
  4. Bring a pot of water to a boil, and cook the pasta noodles 2 minutes less than recommended on the package (this helps them stay in tact for layering). Rinse immediately with cold water to prevent them from sticking.
  5. Meanwhile, make the tofu ricotta! Crumble the pressed tofu into a bowl with all the other tofu ricotta ingredients. Mix well to combine. Steal a taste. It's delicious.
  6. In a 12 x 8 inch baking dish, assemble the lasagna: First a thin layer of tomato sauce, Second a layer of ⅓ of the noodles, Third, a layer of ½ the ricotta, Fourth a layer of ½ the sautéed veggies, and again, tomato sauce, ⅓ of the noodles, the rest of the ricotta, the rest of the veggies. Finish it off with the last of the noodles, rest of the tomato sauce, and a generous sprinkle of nutritional yeast.
  7. Cover with tin foil and bake for 40 minutes.
  8. Take tinfoil off and bake for 5 more minutes.
  9. Remove and serve. Will keep for up to 5 days in the fridge.

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Perfect French Fries | Crispy & Oil-Free

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Don’t be a afraid of the tater! Especially when they’re perfect french fries made right.

The poor potato has such a bad reputation.

I’m here to tell you: it’s not the potato’s fault, it’s the way humans have prepared it. Fryin’ it up into french fries or chips creates a saturated calorie bomb with all the wrong fats. Hydrogenated fat being the worst of them all.

The reason being,“hydrogenated fats are difficult for the body to “grab onto” and metabolize, and can neither be incorporated into cell structures nor excreted in the normal fashion. Thus, hydrogenated or “trans-” fats tend to remain “stuck” in blood circulation, becoming oxidized and most importantly, contributing significantly to an increased risk for cardiovascular disease and possibly also cancer.” ~ World’s Healthiest Foods.com 

So, we go back to that simple fact that eating a food in it’s whole form is just the bomb dot com.

A potato is actually one of the most perfect foods around… if you eat it in it’s whole form as a potato, baked or boiled without any extra oils or deep fryin’.

Come as you are potato! Come as you are.

Of course, upping the anti and adding spices or healthy sauces to the experience makes the naked spud shine brighter than the best potato chip or french fry you’ve ever bought!

This can be done with sweet potatoes too! But, you might be surprise to know that they’re not much different in nutrition than the white potato!

My favourite way to eat these is in a boat. Get that romaine out, throw a fry in there, then take a dip.

Savoury heaven.

Benefits of potatoes:

  • packed with vitamins, minerals and fibre
  • no saturated fat, sodium or cholesterol
  • more potassium than a banana
  • a great source of vitamin B6 (for mood, brain function and eyesight),
  • magnesium is in these babies to reduce anxiety, plus relieve muscle aches and migraines
  • antioxidants are in there for combat disease and protect your cells from free radicals

 


Perfect French Fries | Crispy & Oil-Free
 
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These fries are crispy and completely guilt-free. Let's fall in love with the potato again in it's whole-food, naked form. This is a go-to simple dinner idea, or a great appetizer dish for a potluck.
Author:
Recipe type: dinner, appetizer
Cuisine: Canadian, potluck, simple
Serves: 2
Ingredients
  • 3-4 Russet potatoes
  • 1 tbsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp paprika
  • 1 tsp salt (optional)
  • (Get creative with your spices! These are good: curry, cumin, onion powder, tarragon)

  • Curry Ketchup Sauce:
  • ¼ cup tomato paste
  • 1 tbsp Dijon Mustard
  • 1 tbsp curry powder
  • 1 tsp maple syrup

  • 1 head romaine lettuce (optional)
Instructions
  1. Pre-heat oven to 400°F
  2. Chop potatoes into thick fry-shape slices
  3. Pour them into a zip-lock bag with the spices and shake shake shake until evenly coated (kitchen dancing recommended)
  4. Spread the fries evenly across a parchment or silicone mat- covered baking tray (if you want em' crisp, don't let them touch)
  5. Bake for 20 minutes, then flip each one over.
  6. Bake for another 15 minutes, or until you can see the golden brown edges puffing up
  7. Mix all sauce ingredients together
  8. Serve in a romaine leaf and dip it all in your sauce!

 

Mashed Potato Butternut Swirl | Vegan Holiday Side

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This vegan holiday side dish will match this Thanksgiving and Fall weather like slippers to your onsie.

Simple, comforting, fun to play with and sooooo good lookin’.

Holiday side dishes are usually packed with butter and cream to make them feel decadent. But, you can easily get the same kind of comfort from this low-fat, vegan beauty!

A perfect dish to bring to your family dinner this holiday season.

Personally, I like to keep the skins on any organic produce I have because that’s where TONS of the nutrients are found. But, if you’d like a brighter looking dish, feel free to peel the skins of the potatoes!

Benefits:

  • Sweet potatoes boost your immune system, smooth out your digestive system, ward of cancer, relieve arthritis, and are packed with vitamins and minerals. There’s a good reason centenarians base their diet around the sweet potato! Don’t be afraid of white or russet potatoes! They have incredible benefits too and are packed with fibre (they just get a bad reputation from the good old fried up version called the french fry, which isn’t so healthy)
  • Butternut squash is a powerhouse of vitamins and minerals. It’s packed with fibre and low in fat, making it a great option for weight loss and heart health. It packed more potassium than bananas and a good dose of B6 for your nervous system.

 

Sweet Potato Butternut Swirl
 
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This is a beautiful side dish to bring to any dinner party, especially over the holidays for extra wow effect. It's simple, fancy looking and tastes like fall.
Author:
Recipe type: Thanksgiving, Holiday, Dinner, Side dish, Dinner
Cuisine: Holiday dinner
Serves: 8
Ingredients
  • 1 small (or ½ large) butternut squash, halved lengthwise
  • 5 white sweet potatoes, or russet potatoes
  • 1 cup unsweetened, plain almond milk (or soy, coconut, hemp)
  • 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • ½ spring fresh rosemary
  • ½ tsp sea salt
  • 1 tbsp maple syrup
  • A bit more rosemary for garnish
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 400°F
  2. Place butternut squash open half down on a parchment covered baking pan.
  3. Cut off the ends of the whole potatoes, then pierce them all over with a fork. Place them on a parchment covered baking pan.
  4. Slide both baking sheets into the oven and bake for 1 hour (or until you can pierce a fork through the squash and the sweet potatoes are oozing with deliciousness). Flip the potatoes half way.
  5. In blender or with hand blender, blend sweet potatoes, rosemary, ½ cup milk, garlic powder, nutritional yeast and salt until smooth.
  6. Pour ½ sweet potato mixture in serving dish, and half into a bowl on the side.
  7. Clean blender, then scoop out butternut squash. Blend squash, ½ cup milk and maple syrup until smooth.
  8. Pour ½ the butternut squash mixture onto the potato mixture in the serving dish. Layer it with the rest of the sweet potato mix you had put aside. Top it off with a layer of butternut squash mixture.
  9. With a spoon, stir several times in a clockwise motion without completely mixing the two colours.
  10. Garnish with a bit more rosemary.

 

Meatless Balls + Mushroom Gravy | Oil-Free Vegan Thanksgiving Main

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Family comfort food to the max.

Happy Thanksgiving to all of my friends across the border! I bring to you… meatless balls! They taste better than they sound. And this mushroom gravy? Well, it’s only 6 ingredients, with no oil, and mega flava flave!

If you’re a fan of Thanksgiving, but want to skip the Turkey this year… this one’s for you!

Thanksgiving (or Thanks’living’ as some vegans like to call it…) is ridiculously easy to make vegan. All of those beloved veg-centric side dishes can easily be veganized with simple replacements:

  • vegan butter vs. dairy butter in the roasted veggies
  • plant-based milk vs. cow’s milk in the mashed potatoes
  • flax egg vs. chicken’s egg in the stuffing

And now you have this recipe to replace the Turkey! The awesome, animal-free dinner is now COMPLETE.

I feel the need to give my American friends a yummy recipe for this year’s Holiday because we just spent 2 weeks on a 6500KM mountain biking road trip all across the US. It was us, our camper, a couple mountain bikes, friends and epic views.

The itinerary was: Whistler –> Moab, Utah –> Sedona, Arizona –> Las Vegas, Nevada –> Morro Bay, California –> Portland, Oregon –> Home to Whistler

Scroll down to the bottom for some photos of the trip that was packed with camper cooking, trail snackin’, 7 hour biking adventures, and crazy landscapes. As fun as it was, it’s always nice to come home. I’m grateful for the adventuring, but also so grateful for the simple, everyday things at home.

What are you grateful for? Focusing on the little things and practicing gratitude is something I feel I do naturally, but over the last couple years I’ve been trying to focus on it even more. Every morning before getting out of bed I tell myself 3 things I’m grateful for. It sets the day off to a damn good start.

You should try this:

Before you roll out of bed, tell yourself:

  • 3 things your grateful for
  • 3 things your excited about today
  • 1 awesome thing about yourself (“I am…”)

After that, you’ll always wake up on the right side of the bed.

OK, back to the recipe!!

This one is inspired by the Rouxbe Cooking School Plant-Based class I finished in the spring. They made a loaf, but today… we make balls!!

Benefits:

  • Quinoa is packed with antioxidants, essential minerals (especially iron), vitamins, and fibre (for smooth digestion and weight loss). It’s one of the most protein rich foods we can eat!
  • Mushrooms are packed with vitamin D, so they’re great to eat during the winter months. A good amount of vitamin D wards off depression and keeps your bones healthy, too.
  • Black beans are stars when it comes to heart health because they’re packed with folate, fibre, potassium, B6 and phytonutrients.


Meatless Black Bean Quinoa Balls
 
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A recipe to replace the Turkey space on your plate. These meatless balls are flavourful and meaty, and the mushroom gravy takes it to the next level.
Author:
Recipe type: Thanksgiving main, dinner
Serves: 25-35 balls
Ingredients
  • • 2 cups of cooked quinoa (1½ cups uncooked)
  • • 2 14oz cans of cooked black beans
  • • ½ cup ground flax meal)
  • • 1 cup water (to soak flax meal for creating the vegan egg)
  • • 1 yellow onion, diced
  • • 4 cloves garlic
  • • 5 cups cremini mushrooms, diced
  • • 1 cup grated carrot
  • • 1 cup walnut halves
  • • 1 cup sunflower seeds
  • • ¼ bunch flat-leaf parsley
  • • 10 sprigs fresh thyme
  • • 4 sprigs fresh sage
  • • 1 to 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
  • • ½ cup nutritional yeast
  • • 1 tbsp sea salt
  • • 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
  1. Cook quinoa if you haven't already. (Bring 1½ cups quinoa and 1¾ cup water to a boil, then simmer for 10 minutes)
  2. Place flax meal into a bowl, add the water, then let sit 5 minutes
  3. Pre-heat oven to 375°F.
  4. Next, heat a frying pan over medium heat, add onions. Let cook for a few minutes, or until they become soft and translucent. If they stick, add a splash of water.
  5. Add the mushrooms and garlic. Continue to cook until the mushrooms have browned and all of their moisture has evaporated.
  6. Place onion, mushroom mixture into a big mixing bowl.
  7. Add grated carrot to mixing bowl.
  8. In your food processor, pulse the walnuts and sunflower seeds until a coarse meal forms, then add this to mixing bowl.
  9. Add all your fresh herbs to the food processor and blend until minced. Add to the mixing bowl.
  10. Add the cooked quinoa and black beans and pulse a few times (still should have some chunky texture to the beans). Add this to the mixing bowl.
  11. Pour the soaked flax egg into the food processor and purée for a minute. This will create an egg-white texture. Add this to the mixing bowl.
  12. Next, add the nutritional yeast, salt, and pepper to the mixing bowl and mix everything well to combine.
  13. Form ½ cup balls with your hands, and place on a parchment covered baking sheet.
  14. Bake for 20 minutes.
  15. Meanwhile, make the mushroom gravy.


6 Ingredient, Oil-free, Vegan Mushroom Gravy
 
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This gravy is good to douse anything with! It's easy, delicious and perfect for any holiday meal.
Author:
Recipe type: Topping, Sauce, Gravy
Cuisine: Thanksgiving, Holiday, Comfort food
Serves: 3 cups
Ingredients
  • • 2 yellow onions, diced
  • • 5 cups mushrooms (cremini, white, or wild), sliced
  • • 3 tbsp white wine
  • • 3 tbsp flour (gluten-free or whole wheat)
  • • 2 to 2½ cups water
  • • 2 tbsp tamari
  • • 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
  • • 1 tsp sea salt (to taste)
  • • freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
Instructions
  1. Heat a large stainless steel frying pan over medium heat (better than a non-stick pan for this recipe, so you get the nice browning of the onions)
  2. Dry-sauté the onions: When the pan is hot, add the onions. Let them simmer for a couple minutes, then add a splash of water to pull the caramelization off the pan.
  3. Sauté the onions until they are translucent and slightly browned, adding more splashes of water if they're sticking.
  4. Add the mushrooms. Simmer them until their water evaporates and they start to brown.
  5. Deglaze the pan with the white wine, stirring until combined.
  6. Then, add the flour. Stir until combined and simmer for 30 seconds.
  7. Slowly add 2 cups of the water. Stir constantly, then let it come to a simmer before adding the rest of the water.
  8. Let cook a few minutes to become a gravy-like consistency, then add the tamari and apple cider vinegar.
  9. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Moments from the mega road trip!