Plant Cheeze & Fries
These recipes are a dream come true for this fry craving crew. Potatoes are actually nourishing for the body, contrary to popular belief. When we add all the oils, butter, cheese and “words we cannot pronounce” ingredients, this is when potatoes get a bad wrap. Those add-ons to potatoes are what mess with your A1C, and blood sugars not the potato itself. Potatoes are actually super high in potassium, amino acids and trace minerals from the yummy Earth soil they were born in. (See more on mighty potato benefits in my footnotes below.)
Let’s get to the recipes! I am including a couple styles in cooking the fries and cheeze sauce. There are tons of recipes out there that use nutritional yeast and nuts in plant cheeze recipes. We are still working through nut issues in our house, so still avoiding them for now. One day it will all be better. nutritional yeast in the vegan world has to many opinions among the food people. So leaving it in the “in moderation” bucket for now.
FRIES RECIPES (2 OPTIONS):
SALTY
2 to 3 medium Russet or Yukon gold potatoes (Sliced like fries or in halves like steak fries)
Sprinkle with sea salt or Herbamare seasoning to taste.
Lay out on a cooking sheet with parchment paper. Oven at 400. Cook for 25 minutes, flip/stir, cook another 20 to 25 minutes to desired crispy.
SPICY (NOT HOT)
2 to 3 medium Russet or Yukon gold potatoes (Sliced like fries or in halves like steak fries)
Sprinkle with the following spice combo:
1 tsp Oregano
1 tsp Paprika
½ tsp Garlic Powder
½ tsp Sea Salt
Lay out on a cooking sheet with parchment paper. Oven at 400. Cook for 25 minutes, flip/stir, cook another 20 to 25 minutes to desired crispy.
NO NUT, NO YEAST PLANT “CHEEZE” SAUCE:
INGREDIENTS:
(All ingredients organic and non-gmo)
2 C Yukon gold or red potatoes
(3 medium or 2 large potatoes chopped in 1 inch cubes)
1/2 to 2/3 C carrot, chopped (frozen makes this quick)
1/2 C water (use water from potato cook)
1/2 Squeezed lemon juice (1 Tbsp)
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp paprika (sweet or smoked)
(I use the sweet or regular. Each gives a different taste.)
1/2 tsp ground mustard seed
1/2 tsp coconut aminos or regular aminos
Optional Other Ingredients:
(Play around with these below. You might find they are the zing you like for your Cheeze sauce.)
1/4 C cooked chickpeas or chickpea pasta for added plant protein. (when adding these, increase water in the blender to desired consistency. Add 1/4 C at a time.
1 or 2 tsp Dijon mustard (tang taste pref.)
2 tbsp cooked red pepper
1/2 C cooked cashews
2 tbsp nutritional yeast
Add a jar of your fave salsa and make it queso cheeze sauce.
DIRECTIONS:
Put the potato and carrot chunks into a pot of water. Bring them to a boil and simmer for 20-25 minutes, until they are soft and easily pierced with a fork. Or steam them if you prefer.
Drain the vegetables and add them to a food processor or high-powered blender.
Add the remaining ingredients and process for 45 seconds to a minute until silky smooth. Add more water from the cooked veggies pot as desired for smoothness.
Enjoy with your fries, on pizzas (we do a quinoa crust), cooked veggies and more!
Type in google for quinoa pizza crust recipes!! There are SO many and it is so easy!!
NOTES AND TIPS:
FE’S NERDY FOOD NOTES ON POTATOES:
The entire potato, inside and out, is valuable and beneficial for your health: potato plants draw some of the highest concentration of macro and trace minerals from the earth. Potatoes are also high in potassium and rich in vitamin B6, as well as a fantastic source of amino acids, especially lysine in its bioactive form. Lysine is a powerful weapon against cancers, liver disease, inflammation, and the viruses such as Epstein-Barr and shingles that are behind rheumatoid arthritis, joint pain, autoimmune disease, and more. Potatoes will be your allies if you’re looking to fight any chronic illness, to fend off liver disease, strengthen your kidneys, soothe your nerves and digestive tract, and reverse Crohn’s, colitis, IBS, or peptic ulcers.
In addition to being antiviral, they’re antifungal and antibacterial, with nutritional cofactors and coenzymes plus bioactive compounds to keep you healthy and assist you with stress. Further, potatoes are brain food that helps keep you grounded and centered. As a kid, did you ever do that science project where you stick some toothpicks in a potato, balance it in a cup of water, and watch it sprout on the windowsill? How many other foods can transform and thrive like that, coming to life before your eyes? That’s the power of a potato, power that’s not to be underestimated, we witness it firsthand as children.
Source reference: Anthony William
In conclusion, all this cheese talk got me to thinking about the first time I tried a fake cheese in a can or in a block, I was not a fan...and I grew to like it. I feel like the same is true of plant cheeze. It does taste different, but the more you eat it, the more you get to know it. Difference is, your body will thank you for the benefits of plant cheeze.
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