{BLACK BEAN CHILI}

I got this recipe from my mother-in-law and I think she got it from a Cooking Light magazine. I omitted the olive oil, but everything else is the same. We usually just eat it on tortillas instead of as a soup, and I always make the guacamole to go with it because it's just not the same without it!

1 c. chopped onion

1 bell pepper chopped (any kind you like)

2 t. chili powder

1 t. ground cumin

1 t. dried oregano

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 4.5 oz. can chopped green chillies

2/3 c. uncooked barley

1/4 c. water

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 can diced tomatoes (undrained)

1 14 oz. can vegetable broth

• Sautee onions and bell pepper in water.
• Add ingredients in order listed.
• Simmer until barley is cooked (about 40 minutes)
• May require more water (I have never needed more, but we like ours thick)'

Pressure Cooker Instructions:

• Combine all ingredients in the pressure cooker.
• Cook on low pressure for 2 minutes.
• Quick release.

*Guacamole:

Avocados

tomatoes

lime juice

onion

cilantro

salt

• Mix together in a food processor.

*I just put in random amounts- last time I think I used 2 avocados, one tomato, juice from 1 lime, a little bit of red onion, cilantro, and a dash of salt. I also add a tiny bit of stevia (you could use a different sweetener) just to counteract the lime juice and it turns out really good.

{TEX MEX BURGERS}

These are from Dr. McDougall's August 2006 Newsletter.

1 15oz. can cannellini (or great northern) beans, drained and rinsed

1 c. whole wheat bread crumbs

1 4.5 oz. can chopped green chillies

2 green onions, chopped

1 T. egg replacer mixed in 1/4 c. warm water (2 eggs)

1/4 c. cornmeal

lettuce

avocados

salsa

whole wheat buns

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Place the beans in a medium bowl and mash slightly. Stir well.
• Add bread crumbs, green chillies, green onions, and egg replacer mixture. Mix well.
• Put cornmeal in a shallow bowl.
• Form the mixture into 5-6 patties, each about 1/2 inch thick. Dip each side in cornmeal and place on a non-stick baking sheet.
• Bake for 20 minutes, 10 minutes on each side.
• To serve, place some shredded lettuce on the bottom bun, put the burger on the lettuce, top with guacamole and salsa.

*I usually double the recipe and use the extra for lunches. They also freeze and reheat well on a grill.

{MAXIMUM WEIGHT LOSS AND OTHER MCDOUGALL RECIPES}

I was so excited to find these links! Dr. McDougall has great articles and recipes, but his website is not very user friendly (in my opinion). These are links to clickable lists of his Maximum Weight Loss recipes and one for his normal vegan recipes that he sends out with his newsletters. I don't know if the lists are all inclusive so you may still be able to find more recipes on his website, but there are tons on here and it's so much more convenient. I think I'll be using them a lot more now!

McDougall's Maximum Weight Loss recipes

McDougall's normal vegan recipes

*You can read about McDougall's Maximum Weight Loss program here. It's a strict plan to make the pounds come off fast and to get to your optimal weight goal.

{BAKED PENNE FLORENTINE}

This recipe is from Dr. Mcdougall's website. My whole family liked it so I consider that a success.

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cooking time: 45 minutes

Servings: 6-8

8 ounces uncooked penne pasta

10 ounce package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry (I used fresh spinach)

1/4 c. vegetable broth

1 onion, chopped

1/2 c. raw cashews

1 3/4 c. water

1 15 oz. can white beans, drained and rinsed

1 T. soy sauce

1 T. white miso

2 t. lemon juice

1/4 t. dry mustard

1/4 t. cayenne

1/2 c. whole wheat bread crumbs

• Drop the pasta into a pot of boiling water and cook until just barely tender, about 6 minutes.
• Drain, place in a bowl and add the spinach. Mix well and set aside.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Place the onion and veggie broth in a medium frying pan.
• Cook, stirring occasionally until onion has softened. Set aside.
• Mix the cashews in a food processor or blender and process until finely ground.*
• Add half the water and blend until smooth.
• Add the remaining water, cooked onions, beans, soy sauce, miso, lemon juice, mustard and cayenne.
• Process until very smooth.
• Pour over the pasta and spinach and mix well.
• Transfer to covered casserole dish.
• Sprinkle with bread crumbs.
• Cover and bake for 45 minutes, let rest 5 minutes before serving.

*I did all the mixing of cashews through the cayenne in one step in my blendtec, and it worked great. If you are using a food processor, it might overflow if you do it in one step.

*I used the whole box of noodles (13.5 oz.) and then adjusted all the ingredients accordingly. This would have worked fine, except I still put it all in the same casserole dish. I would not recommend doing that. It didn't cook that well in the middle, and although we all still liked it, it would have been better if I had spread it out into one normal size and one half size dish since it was about one and a half times the recipe. Now I know for next time!

*This may be prepared ahead and refrigerated until baking time. Add about 15 minutes to the baking time.

{PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES}

The original recipe for these cookies comes from the fatfreevegan blog, and can be found here. (Thanks for another great recipe!) I found them when I was looking for a new cookie that Loren (and the kids) could take to work to keep them from coveting other people's treats. These cookies turned out way more "normal" than other vegan cookies, and since the only fat in it comes from the peanut butter (and the chocolate chips if you add those--but who's counting?), they are nearly guilt-free, which is good, because I ate about 20 cookies just by "sampling" the dough. I made only a couple of changes to the original recipe (I don't have pastry flour or brown sugar). Here's the recipe I used:

mix together:

1/2 c peanut butter (I use the kind that has only peanut butter and salt--no added extras)

3/4 c evaporated cane juice

3/4 c mashed banana (don't be nervous)

in separate bowl combine:

1 1/2 c flour

1 t baking powder

1 pinch of salt

vegan chocolate chips to taste (I add mine after I shape the cookies--3 per cookie--I pretend it keeps the fat count down, or at least more predictable)

Add flour mixture to peanut butter mix a little at a time until blended. Do not overblend. Drop by tablespoon onto pans. (Add chocolate chips). Flatten with a fork.

Bake at 375 for 10 minutes, or until bottoms are golden.