Vegan Cinnamon Buns | Healthy Cinnamon Rolls Recipe

Everyone loved these vegan cinnamon buns. I was looking for a healthy cinnamon rolls recipe, and I came across this recipe from Don’t Eat Off the Sidewalk, a great vegan blog. I changed it a bit.

  • Halved the recipe but still used the full packet of yeast.
  • Doubled the amount of filling (meaning I used the normal amount, even though I was halving the recipe).
  • It’s not quite vegan, because I used honey in the glaze… But only because I didn’t have powdered sugar. So you can easily make it vegan again.

Anyway, these disappeared after dinner, so I think they were a success. Here’s my version of the recipe…

Vegan Cinnamon Buns | Pumpkin Sticky Buns Recipe | Healthy Cinnamon Rolls

Cinnamon Buns Ingredients

  • 1 package dry yeast
  • 2 tablespoons warm water
  • 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
  • 2 tablespoons almond milk
  • 2 tablespoons butter or vegan margarine
  • 1/2 tablespoon granulated sugar (I used brown)
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (or allspice, or cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves… a mix is good)
  • 1.25 cups flour
  • 1/2 cup flour
  • nonstick cooking spray

Cinnamon Buns Filling

  • 6 tablespoons brown sugar (I used granulated)
  • 2 tablespoons flour
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 2 tablespoons margarine

Cinnamon Buns Glaze

  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 tablespoon hot water
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • (See original recipe for the vegan glaze)

Directions

  1. Mix the yeast and water and let it sit for 5 minutes.
  2. Mix the pumpkin, milk, butter, sugar, salt, and spices – put it in the microwave for 20 seconds to bring it to room temperature.
  3. Add the pumpkin mix to the yeast water and mix until smooth.
  4. Add the 1.25 cups of flour; mix until smooth.
  5. Use some of the 1/2 cup of flour to dust a surface for kneading. Then sprinkle flour on the dough and knead for 10 minutes, continually adding the remaining flour so that the dough doesn’t become too sticky.
  6. Coat a bowl with nonstick cooking spray and place the dough inside, rolling it around to coat it with the spray as well. Leave in a warm place, covered, for about 45 minutes or until the dough has at least doubled.
  7. Punch the dough down and let it sit, covered, for 5 more minutes.
  8. Make the filling – mix together the sugar, flour, cinnamon, and margarine.
  9. Flour your surface again and roll the dough out into a 10 inch square. Spread the filling out (I used my fingers) all over the dough.
  10. Roll up the dough into a cylinder and pinch the ends closed. Cut the cylinder into slices – the thicker they are, the bigger the buns will be. I made about 14, including the end bits. Spray nonstick cooking oil in a square pan and place the rolls inside. Cover and let them rise for about 25 minutes; they should double in size.
  11. Preheat the oven to 375F.
  12. Bake the rolls for 20 minutes or until golden. Let cool for 20 minutes.
  13. Mix the honey, sugar, water, and vanilla together and drizzle over the buns.

I think these healthy cinnamon rolls would be great warm with vanilla ice cream… Unfortunately I didn’t have ice cream, and now they’re gone. Guess I’ll have to make another batch.

Asian Coleslaw Recipe | Coleslaw Without Mayonnaise | Healthy Coleslaw

This Asian coleslaw recipe is very simple and refreshing. Healthy coleslaw is the perfect way to finish off a meal. It’s also a great accompaniment for fish or steak, or by itself as a snack. If you don’t like the Asian twist, here is my traditional coleslaw recipe. It’s difficult to make coleslaw without mayonnaise, but this recipe fits the bill! It’s a healthy coleslaw.

Asian Coleslaw Recipe

 

Ingredients

  • 8 ounces (half a bag, if you’re using a mix) of shredded coleslaw
  • 1/2 sweet onion
  • 1 finely chopped tomato
  • 1 grated carrot
  • 1/2 cup chopped raw green beans (optional – you could substitute cucumber)
  • 2 tablespoons lime juice
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon cumin
  • 1 teaspoon granulated sugar (brown or white, I used brown)
  • salt and pepper, to taste
  • cheddar cheese (optional)

Directions

  1. Mix together the veggies – cabbage, onion, tomato, carrot, beans/cucumber.

  2. In a separate bowl, make the dressing – mix the lime juice, lemon juice, chili powder, cumin, sugar, and salt and pepper.
  3. Add as much dressing as you like – I used it all.
  4. Serve alone or with cheese and ENJOY!
Because this is a coleslaw without mayonnaise, it definitely has a different taste to it – but it’s a good variation on a classic, I think. I hope you try it out.

Healthy Coleslaw Recipe | Quick Coleslaw Recipe

I spent this afternoon baking sticky buns (update: pumpkin sticky buns recipe), so I had a lot of free time while the dough was rising. I made two batches of coleslaw: healthy coleslaw and Asian-inspired mayonnaise-free coleslaw. The traditional healthy recipe has a bit of a kick – I added mustard, but that’s optional. If you want something a little milder, use less vinegar and more mayo as well.

By the way, I cheated – I used the packaged, store-bought cabbage. It already had carrots in it but I added some nice, fresh, organic ones, too. That’s why this is a quick coleslaw recipe.

Quick and Healthy Traditional Coleslaw Recipe

Healthy Coleslaw Ingredients

  • 8 ounces of sliced cabbage (about 3 cups)
  • 1/2 cup sliced onion
  • 1 grated carrot
  • 1/4 cup light mayo (or vegan mayo)
  • 2 tablespoons dijon mustard
  • 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
  • 2 teaspoons granulated sugar (brown or white, I used brown)
  • salt and pepper, to taste
  • shredded cheddar (optional)

Directions

  1. Mix together the cabbage, onion, and carrot.
  2. In a separate bowl, mix together the mayo, mustard, vinegar, sugar, and some salt and pepper.
  3. Add as much dressing as you like to the cabbage mixture – I didn’t quite use all of it.
  4. Serve with shredded cheddar or alone.
I hope you get a chance to try this quick coleslaw recipe! It’s a healthy coleslaw recipe that tastes great.

Vegetarian Collard Greens Recipe | Healthy Collard Greens Recipe

Don’t these tomatoes look amazing?

I usually buy a large bag of kale each week at Wegmans. This week there was no humongous bag of kale, but there was a curious substitute… a humongous bag of collard greens! I’ve never had them, but I’d heard they’re a southern staple and decided to try something new. I looked up some recipes online and came up with this, a mix of many…

Vegetarian Collard Greens Recipe | Healthy Collard Greens Recipe

Ingredients

  • 1 teaspoon olive oil
  • 1/2 sweet onion, chopped
  • 2 cups of water
  • 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
  • 2 teaspoons brown sugar
  • 1.5 tablespoons vinegar (I like apple cider vinegar)
  • 4 cups collard greens, chopped into 1.5 inch pieces
  • 2 medium tomatoes, chopped (optional)
  • (fake) bacon bits, for topping
  • salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

  1. Saute the onion in the olive oil until tender (about 2 minutes). Use a big pan that you can fit all the greens + the water in.
  2. Add the water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat; add the chili powder, vinegar, and sugar; stir to let the sugar dissolve.
  3. Add the greens and let is simmer, covered, for about 25 minutes.
  4. Serve with chopped tomatoes, bacon bits, and salt and pepper to taste.

I hope you enjoy these healthy collard greens. It was so easy to take the traditional collards recipe and turn it into a vegetarian collard greens recipe. I’m not a vegetarian, but I really enjoy vegetarian food.

Nectarine Tilapia Recipe

Blogger ate my photos! Pictureless post today…

My oh my have I been lazy…

More tilapia! Another marinade, this time with fruit.

Nectarine Tilapia (serves 2)

Ingredients

  • 2 tilapia filets

Marinade

  • 3 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 1.5 tablespoons lime juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon oregano
  • 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
  • 1 tablespoon honey OR 1 tablespoon orange juice (I used OJ)
  • 2 teaspoons minced ginger + juices
  • 1 nectarine, chopped

Directions

  1. Mix together all of the marinade ingredients.
  2. Marinate the fish for 30 minutes to an hour, refrigerated.
  3. Turn on the oven broiler. Remove the fish from the marinade and grill in the oven, about 3 -4 minutes per side.
  4. Meanwhile, heat the leftover marinade and peaches in a saucepan on the stove until the liquid boils. Serve over the cooked filets.