My friend Angela’s second cookbook, Oh She Glows Everyday, hits bookstores this week and it is loaded with plant-based dishes (like these Strawberry Crumble Bars; recipe below!) that aim to make this style of eating convenient every day of the week– even on holidays and special occasions.
What I love about Angela’s plant-based recipes is that they celebrate whole food ingredients, rather than relying on packaged veggie burgers or processed soy crumbles. This new book covers a little bit of everything, including recipes like Morning Detox Smoothie, Crowd-Pleasing Caesar Salad, Super Seed Crackers, Golden French Lentil Stew, Eggplant Parmesan, Cookie Dough Balls, and High-Rise Pumpkin Cupcakes. Just like her last book, Angela also includes some recipes for homemade staples and tips to make recipes kid-, freezer-, and allergy-friendly whenever possible. I made these Strawberry Oat Crumble Bars from the new book this past weekend (which are made with a delicious homemade chia jam!), and Angela has generously allowed me to share the recipe with you all, too. I hope you enjoy them! —
Strawberry Oat Crumble Bars Serves 12 to 16 Vegan, Gluten-free, Nut-free, Soy-free, Kid-Friendly, Freezer-Friendy (Advance Prep Required) These delicious “anytime” bars are vegan, lunchbox-friendly, gluten-free, and made with a refined sugar-free strawberry-vanilla chia seed jam. (With the chia jam, the bars will be lightly sweet; if you use store-bought jam, they’ll be much sweeter.) It’s hard to resist gobbling them up once you slice them, but I actually find that they taste better the following day, after the flavors have had a chance to meld in the fridge overnight. I also recommend making the chia jam in advance, so it has time to cool in the fridge before you begin making the recipe. Once chilled, the bars firm up (thanks to the coconut oil), but at room temperature they soften and will virtually melt in your mouth while you eat them! Hubba, hubba. Either way, you are going to go crazy over the roasted sunflower seed “cookie” crust. Enjoy these as a quick breakfast with tea or coffee, as an afternoon snack when you need a boost, or warmed up for dessert with a scoop of ice cream (it’ll remind you of a berry crisp!).
Berry Chia Seed Jam Makes roughly 1 1/2 cups Vegan, Gluten-free, Nut-free, Soy-free, Grain-free, Oil-free, Kid-friendly, Freezer-friendly Chia seed jam has been my go-to quick-and-easy jam recipe for years. While not a traditional jam by any means, I certainly don’t miss all the refined sugar of traditional versions when I enjoy this fresh, vibrant spread. You can use any kind of berry you prefer, and have fun changing it up with different mix-ins like lemon juice or zest, orange juice or zest, vanilla bean seeds or extract, cinnamon, cardamom, and any other spices or extracts you enjoy. Since berries vary in terms of sweetness, feel free to adjust the sweetener to suit your own taste with each batch. You’ll be happy to know that chia seed jam also freezes well. I like to portion individual servings into a silicone mini-muffin tray, freeze them until they’re solid, and then pop them out and store them in a freezer bag. This way you can have chia seed jam ready anytime! Simply thaw it in the fridge or at room temperature. If I’m making overnight oats, I will often thaw a cube of chia seed jam in the fridge overnight while the oats thicken. Then it’s all ready for me to enjoy in the morning without any fuss. How’s that for easy? Reprinted from Oh She Glows Every Day by arrangement with Avery Books, a member of Penguin Group (USA) LLC, A Penguin Random House Company. Copyright © 2016, Glo Bakery Corporation. I hope you enjoy the new recipes! — Reader Feedback: What’s your favorite plant-based recipe lately?
