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Maple Walnut Chocolate Chip Healthy Brain Cookies

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This recipe is for my all-time favourite chocolate chip cookie (you can sub raisins or carob chips if you are not a fan of chocolate chips).  I was introduced to it in Dr. Neil Nedley's Depression Recovery Program that our neighbouring Campbell River Adventist Church offered in 2010.  These cookies, as part of an overall holistic depression treatment program, pack the kind of brain-nurturing nutrition that the walnut and flaxseed meal Omega3 fatty acids offer as a major ingredient.  This recipe makes a dozen cookies-- you won't feel compelled to eat the whole batch yourself as they are very high fibre and satisfyingly sweet and filling.  Enjoy!

Crank the oven up to 350F/175C.
Process 2 1/2 C. of Walnut pieces into a fine crumble in a food processor.
In a medium size bowl, combine the following with the walnuts above, and mix well:
1/3 C. Flaxseed Meal (I grind my own fresh in a coffee bean grinder)
2/3 C. Wholewheat Pastry Flour
1    tsp. Salt (I skipped the salt, and you could…
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A Sabbath Fellowship Meal

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Today was a gorgeous Sabbath day... and a lovely time of worship and fellowship at our little church in Courtenay, B.C. on Beautiful Vancouver Island.  Our Sabbath meals (every week) are vegetarian (vegan to ovo-lacto vegetarian), and follow an outline that you can find by clicking on the Sabbath presenter's link on our church site's Calendar Page.  Generally, we follow a seasonal rhythm of meals with soup in the cooler months (starting next week) and meals with salads in the summer-y months.  We always have a salad of some sort with our soup meals.  Please join us if you are living nearby, or visiting!  The meal follows the main 11AM worship service each Saturday (food is served about 12:15pm).





There were, of course, also desserts. Today we had watermelon, backyard table grapes and cake. Find some Classic Adventist Potluck Recipes HERE.


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Plum-Banana Breakfast Squares, Vegan and Gluten-Free

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These plum-banana breakfast squares are the result of wanting to use up some of the abundance of a backyard plum harvest.  I will also be making a plum upside-down cake to take to Church tomorrow (but not a very healthy recipe, so it won't be on this blog).

We will use some of these plums today:
I love these little orbs of sunshine.  I call them "Little Golden Plums" although I know they must have a proper scientific name.

You can use any sort/named plum but make sure you remove the stone when prepping them.

Set the Oven for 350 degrees Fahrenheit, or about 180 C.

Make your flaxseed or chia seed egg:

·1 tbsp ground Flaxseed or Chia Seed + 3 tbsp water- whisk up together and set aside until it is the consistency of whisked egg white, creamy and sticky (about 10-15 minutes)
Add the flaxseed/chiaseed egg to the following in your food processor: ·6oz Coconut Milk ·1 ripeBanana, mashed ·1 tsp pure Vanilla extract ·1 cup Almond Meal ·2 cup Oat Flour (use certified gluten-free oats i…
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Is This The Famous Mushroom Gravy Recipe I've Heard So Much About? (Gluten-free, Vegan)

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Is this the very tasty vegan Mushroom Gravy recipe by Shirley Gong (and part of "Shirley's Sauces" this page)?  This mushroom gravy recipe is part of the repertoire of delicious sauces that regularly appear at the meals put together by the Port Alberni Adventist Church.
Good to know: This recipe serves 24 people (medium-size potluck) so if you are serving a family of 4-6, you will want to cut it back to 1/4 of this recipe (divide all following ingredients by 4... ah, math!)
INGREDIENTS:
1/2 c. Vegetable Oil5 Qt./Li. or 2 1/2 pounds of sliced MushroomsOptional: 1 1/2 pounds of diced Onions, to add sweetness1/2 C. Soy Sauce or Tamari Sauce1 C. Apple Juice mixed with 1/2 C. Water and 1/2 C. Nutritional Yeast (if not using Veg. Stock)2 1/2 Qt./Li. Vegetable Stock or Water (if using the above Apple Juice Mix)1 T. each of dried Sage, Thyme and Marjoram (or 3 T. Poultry Seasoning)3/4 C. Cornstarch1 C. Cold WaterSalt and Pepper to tasteMETHOD: Heat oil in pan, sauté mushrooms unti…
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Shirley's Thai Peanut Sauce Recipe

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Here is another one of Elder Shirley Gong's splendid sauces: Thai Peanut Sauce.  Easy to make and delicious!  This recipe makes about 2 Cups of Peanut Sauce, or 16 servings.




INGREDIENTS:
1 - 1 1/2 C. Creamy Peanut Butter 1-  2       C. Coconut Milk or Hot Water 3 T. each of Lemon or Lime Juice, Soy Sauce (or Tamari) 1 T. each of Minced Ginger Root, Honey 3 Cloves of Garlic, Minced (Optional) 1/4 C. chopped Fresh Cilantro, 1 T. Hot Sauce 
METHOD: Bring Water or Coconut Milk to a boil and then add Ginger and GarlicSimmer above for 5 minutes to let the flavour blendMix in the Peanut Butter, Lemon Juice, Soy Sauce, Honey, Hot SauceSimmer until the Peanut Butter dissolves and Sauce thickensMix in Cilantro just before serving. Click HERE to see ALL of Shirley's Sauces (scroll through the recipes

Here is another recipe that goes great with the Sauces:
My favourite Baked Tofu recipe of all time: Sesame Surprise. https://t.co/TNre7zPEpN#TheGreatTofuControversypic.twitter.com/lW8NmkmdCH —…
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Shirley's Sweet and Sour Sauce (with No-Meat Balls)

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Here is another wonderful sauce recipe from Elder Shirley Gong at the Port Alberni Adventist Church. This delicious Sweet and Sour Pineapple Sauce does not have some of the less attractive features of some commercial sauces (for example, no food coloring).  Use it as a sauce alternative for the Veggie and Pan Noodles, also a recipe of Shirley's.


INGREDIENTS
Makes 6 Servings
1/2 C. Brown Sugar (or Coconut Palm Sugar)11 T. Corn Starch1 can Pineapple Chunks in Juice1/3 C. Vinegar or Lemon Juice1 T. Soy Sauce1 small chopped Green PepperMETHOD:

Mix Sugar and Starch togetherAdd all ingredients to a medium saucepan, EXCEPT the pepperHeat slowly to a boil, stirring frequently.Add chopped PepperSimmer 3 - 5 minutes.Add to your recipe.Sweet and Sour No-Meat Balls In a large skillet or wok, add sauce to delicious No-Meatballs <recipe), then simmer for 5 minutes before serving. GUNG HAI FAT CHOY!

Here are those No-Meatballs ------>
How about these No-Meatballs for supper some day this week?…
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Veggies and Pan Noodles with Sweet & Sour or Peanut Sauce

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This delicious recipe for Veggie and Pan Noodles (either spaghetti/soban noodles or thin rice/angel hair noodles) is another generous offering from Elder Shirley Gong of the Port Alberni Adventist Church.  This recipe is great as a potluck dish for our small church potluck (24 servings) but if you make it x4, you will have 100 hearty-size servings.  (Peanut Sauce recipe is below-- Sweet and Sour Recipe is HERE.)

INGREDIENTS:
4 pounds Soban-type or Thin Rice Noodles2 pounds each, julienne: Cabbage, Onion, Carrots, Celery2 T. or 6 Cloves Garlic, Minced or Pressed1/2 C. Vegetable OilBraising Sauce 1/2 C. Vegetable Oil1 1/2 C. Water2 C. or 1 - 14 oz. jar Hoisin Sauce (See Below for DIY Recipe)1 C. light Soy Sauce or Tamari Sauce (not needed if using DIY Recipe)3/4 C. Honey                                          (not needed if using DIY Recipe)1 T. Garlic Powder                               (not needed if using DIY Recipe)Garnish with 1/2 C. Each Dice Green Onion or Fresh chopped Cilantro
…
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Sautéed Apples

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These yummy sautéed apples provide a "sauce" for pudding, etc., can be eaten as-is, or, as I did, made into a sort of mock apple crisp by piling them on top of a food-processed mix of dates and toasted walnuts. This is another recipe from dear Shirley Gong, an Elder at the Port Alberni BC Adventist Church. I hope you enjoy! The recipe from Shirley makes 10 servings @1/3cup each.

INGREDIENTS:
2T. TO 1/4 C. Butter (for vegans, use Coconut Oil)4 pounds firm Apples (Spartan, Delicious, Granny Smith)- peeled, cored, sliced 1/4" thick1/2 C. Cold Water or Apple Juice 1/4 to 1/2 C. Brown Sugar (or Coconut Palm Sugar)1/2 tsp. ground Cinnamon2 tsp. each: Cornstarch, Lemon Juice (Optional)In a large skillet or saucepan, melt butter or coconut oil over medium heat; add apples.  Cook, stirring constantly, until apples are almost tender, about 6 - 7 minutes.Dissolve cornstarch in water; add to skillet, or omit.  Stir in sugar and cinnamon.  Cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.…
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BAKED TOFU: Sesame Surprise (Vegan, Gluten-Free)

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I have to tell you that this BAKED TOFU recipe is one of my favourite tofu recipes of all time.
 My husband and I have been back and forth on the Tofu Road.  We read a lot of health-related articles and watch a lot of (junk?) science on Youtube, so of course, we are well aware of the controversy around soy products... you know where you can go to read that side of the story as well.

Well, here we are back again!  Because we have such great respect for slim heralds of plant-strong health like Dr. Darlene Blaney (recipes on this site),  Dr. Hans Diehl, Dr. John A. McDougall, Lani  Muelrath, Dr. Neal Barnard, and Dr. Walter Veith (see more below the recipe), among many others, some people we actually rub shoulders with on a weekly basis, these tofu-eating crusaders for a healthy lifestyle have won us back again to tofu.  We're sort of like "slacker voters" I guess... we go with who impresses us the most with their pitch for benefits we will receive, and we vote with our forks…
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