I Scream, You Scream

Ice cream. 

Since going dairy-free, I haven’t been able to find a good replacement for vanilla ice cream. Especially without using an ice cream maker. 

But, this recipe even got my dad’s stamp of approval. This coming from the man who usually tries a plant foods vegan dessert and says, “This would taste really good with some brown sugar on it.” 

I’ll take it! 

I’ve tried making it with just frozen bananas or almost all coconut milk, but I think this recipe strikes a good balance between the two. 

Vanilla Ice Cream: 
Yields: 4 servings 


1 can refrigerated coconut milk 
4 frozen bananas 
4 dates 
2 teaspoons vanilla 


Refrigerate the can of coconut milk and freeze the bananas (peel, slice, and place them in a plastic bag) overnight. 

Put the blending pitcher in the freezer for 30 min. before blending. 

Flip the can of coconut milk upside down and open it. Pour out the liquid on the top. You’ll be using the solid cream. 


Save the liquid for later. (It adds a really nice coconut flavor to smoothies!)


Pit the dates. 


Blend the coconut cream, bananas, dates, and vanilla on high (my blender has three speeds, and I used the highest: ice crush) till it’s smooth like ice cream. 



It looks like this if you eat it immediately. 


A little soft, but still delicious. 


It looks like this after freezing for about a day.  



Much more scoop-able.

Enjoy the ice cream by itself or add some fresh fruit like strawberries.


My friends joke about having a boyfriend named Ben and Jerry's. I guess mine is coconut milk and bananas...

Amy's Energy Bar

Energy bars, granola bars, protein bars… 

Whatever you call ‘em. I like ‘em. 

I am picky about them, though. Larabars are de-li-cious, but they’re sooo sweet from the dates. Clif bars are chewy and give me tons of energy, but I don’t like the aftertaste from all the sweeteners. (The first ingredient is always organic brown rice syrup, along with a few other sweeteners.) And so on...

So I made a list of the things I liked and didn’t like, experimented, and came up with this recipe. 

Amy’s Energy Bar
Yield: 8 bars 

"Wet” ingredients: 
1/4 cup dried fruit sweetener*   
3/4 cup cooked/canned beans*
2 Tablespoons nut butter* 
1/4 cup applesauce 
2 Tablespoons cocoa powder (opt.) 
1 teaspoon vanilla 
dash of cinnamon (opt.) 


Dry ingredients: 
1 1/4 cup rolled oats 
3/4 cup Kashi 7 Whole Grains Puffs (to make it gluten-free, eliminate and use another 3/4 oats)
2 Tablespoons sunflower seeds
2 Tablespoons pumpkin seeds
2 Tablespoons chia seeds 
up to 1/4 cup add ins* 



Blend the “wet” ingredients in a blender till it’s smooth. If the mix gets stuck on the sides, turn off the blender and scrape it off. Try to get it as smoothly blended as possible. 


In a large bowl, mix the dry ingredients. 


Then add the “wet” mixture to the dry ingredients. 


Mix together well with a spatula or wooden spoon. 


Press into a pan (I used a 7 in x 7 in one in the picture, but I have also used plastic tupperware. Any kind of container would work. It will just change the shape of your bars.)

Cover with plastic wrap and freeze for 15 min.  

Cut into 8 bars and wrap each one in plastic wrap. Keep in the fridge. 




*Notes
What does "dried fruit sweetener” mean? 
Any kind of dried fruit. Or the same dried fruit in the form of paste. The paste gives it a smoother texture than whole dried fruit. I like date paste. Sure you can buy it, but it’s very simple to make. A google search led me here. You could do the same thing using any kind of dried fruit. Figs. Prunes. Just keep in mind how it will change the taste. I haven’t tried any others myself, but I plan to! 
Beans: I used garbanzo here, but any kind will do. I have used black beans before as well. You really can’t taste them in the bar. If they're canned, be sure to drain and rinse them. 
Nut butter: I used peanut butter because it was what I had on hand. I’m dying to try it with almond butter though! 
Add ins: nuts, other dried fruit, coconut, dark chocolate chips, whatever your heart desires. I have used currants, coconut, and dark chocolate chips. You don’t need a ton, just make sure to mix it in well. 

This is what it looks like using raisins for sweetener, no cocoa powder, and currants and shredded coconut for add ins. 





Enjoy your energy bars:) 

P.S. I wasn't sure if I was cool enough to name a recipe after myself yet, but I figured I tailored made it so specifically to all my requirements that I could claim it. I hope you don't mind :) 

Maneuvering the Dining Hall

Oh the dining hall… 

So…not your mom’s cooking…so…not helpful, delicious, and nutritious like they try to convince you. 

My first piece of advice: 

Don’t get a meal plan. Many places will let you out for health reasons. They will most likely ask for doctor’s note. It can be a bit of a pain trying to contact all the right people, but you’re body will thank you later. If you can’t get a doctor’s note, try talking to them about your diet and how they cannot accommodate it. Be nice, though. Be respectful and patient when explaining that their options do not provide you with the foods necessary to maintain your way of eating. A little patience and persistence really pays off. 

If, you cannot get out of your meal plan, I suggest using the minimum number of meals possible and use these tips: 

1. Get to know your dining hall. Some of them will have decent options, others will not. Explore your salad bar options for fruits and veggies. Check out the vegetarian and vegan options. Learn which dishes work and which ones don’t. Learn what times are best to get what you need. Even if they’re open all day, they might not have good options for you if you can’t make it for the regular meal times.  

2. Work with what you’ve got. Add rice to your soup or salad. Add vegetables. Add fruit. Take a plain potato and add vegetables. Don’t just look at everything as prepackaged. Sometimes it’s frustrating, but you can come up with decent meals with a little creativity. At my dining hall, we were allowed one take out meal a day, so I stuffed my box full of greens and fruits to make a green smoothie in my dorm.  

3. Work with the people. Don’t be afraid to ask. Ask them if they can make you something without the meat or other undesired ingredients. People are now becoming more aware and understanding of people with special diets due to food allergies or sensitivities. I haven’t tried this, but I have heard that some places will even order food for you. 

I started out with a meal plan at the beginning of my freshman year, but canceled it about a month into my second semester. My dining hall actually had a decent salad bar and some good vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free options. 

Unfortunately, these options are not their main concern and receive little attention. Just because something does not meat or dairy does not make it inherently healthy. Most people simply don’t know how to cook without meat, dairy, excess oils or sugars, refined grains, etc. Many of the vegetarian and vegan dishes were heavy in oils, spices, and salt. I think they tried to compensate for the lack of meat with overzealous flavoring that left my taste buds feeling severely overstimulated. It’s difficult to know all that goes into the dining hall meals. 

At first I thought that these options would fulfill my needs nicely, but I think I was high on the new to college and living on my own-oh look isn’t it so nice not to have to cook! I was determined to immerse myself in a positive college experience, but my positive outlook could not overcome the decrease in my health that came from eating at the dining hall. I tried surviving on their salad bar, but I wasn’t able to get a good variety of nutrients from the limited selection of fruits and vegetables that sometimes didn’t taste like their respective fruit or vegetable. 

As soon as I stopped eating there, I felt better. All the oils, sugars, refined grains made me feel heavy and sick after meals. When I do not eat well, my face gets pale and pasty. I look ill. Immediately after I began cooking for myself, the color returned to face, and I regained energy and optimism. 

Don’t let the dining hall get in the way of maintaining a whole foods, plant based diet.  There are days when you will wonder if it is worth the effort. All your friends seem to be fine eating mystery meat dishes, pizza, and ice cream every night, but take a closer look. Chances are that they will get sick more often and have trouble focusing or sleeping. I promise that you will feel better, have more energy, sleep better, do better in your classes, and enjoy life more when you are feeding your body with nutrients it needs.