MEXICAN STYLE TOMATO RICE

This is another recipe from my new favorite vegan author...Chloe Coscarelli, and her new book "Chloe's Kitchen".  My husband loves rice, and it doesn't matter how it's cooked, as long as it is rice.  Me....not so much. But this recipe is great and I can see myself making it all the time and adding some black beans to make it a complete meal. This is actually part of Chloe's recipe called LA-Style Chimichurri Tacos, and the rice recipe is part of the ingredients in the assembly of the soft tacos.  But I kept lifting the lid of the pan and talking spoonfuls of the rice.  So here it is....

-2 TBL of olive oil
-1 onion finely chopped
-1/2 tsp of sea salt
-1 tomato finely chopped
-1/2 cup of brown or white rice (i did 1/2 brown and 1/2 white)
-1 cup vegetable broth

Heat oil over medium-high heat and add onions and salt.  Saute the onion until soft.  Add tomato, rice and broth and bring it all to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, until the broth is absorbed. Usually about 15 to 20 minutes, but keep your eye on it. Turn off the heat and add black beans, or chick peas, and cover again for about 10-15 minutes.

Easy and so good :-)

SLOPPY JOES

This was an easy and a tasty conversion of an old favorite.  My daughter Kelley introduced me to Yves brand of meat substitutes, and every one that I have tried have been great.  http://www.yvesveggie.com/
The down side is that I can't find them locally and have to travel to Whole Foods over an hour away.  But I went to Whole Food a few weeks ago, and loaded up....their products can also be frozen until you use them.  As I've said before I am not a fan of fake meat product, which is why I started making my own seitan, but I have to say that Yves has made me a fan. While up north at Kelley's we had the meatless beef strips.  We sauteed them with onions and peppers and piled them onto a crusty bun and it was delicious.  Check out the web site and find what you like and see if your Whole Foods stocks them.......or ask the manager to stock the ones that appeal to you. This morning I saw that they are also offering Asian Ground Round Lettuce Wraps...I have to find some of those! That was my favorite menu item at P.F. Changs.

This recipe packs 11g of protein with just the Yves meat substitute, let alone the other ingredients. (1/4 of my personal daily requirement.)

• 1 pkg of Yves Meatless Ground Round (or the one designed for tacos)
• 1/2 cup of chopped onions
• 1/2 cup of green peppers (I used red and yellow since  hubby doesn't like green peppers)
• 1  7 1/2 ox can of chopped tomatoes
• 2 TBl of quick-cooking oats
• 1 tsp of chili powder
• 1 -2 tsp of Worcestershire Sauce
• 1/2 tsp of garlic salt
• dash of hot pettper sauce (optional)
• whole wheat hamburger buns split
• ****my husband also likes baked beans in his sloppy joes, so these would be considered optional.

CHICKPEA TACOS

We made these tacos last week and they were a hit with hubby.  I tired to make tacos a few months ago using the ground beef substitute, but if you have been following this blog then you know how I feel about the commercial substitutes.  But this one is full of good things and easy to make.  The spices were perfect and I loved the feeling of eating something that used to be unhealthy and is now so good!  I got this recipe from another vegan blog and now I can't find where it came from.  So as soon as I can sort that out I will come back and add an acknowledgement and link to the blog.  (l'll add a picture too the next time we make them)  The original recipe called for 1 tsp of cumin, but I dialed that down a notch to 1/2 tsp....it can be an overwhelming spice, so add more if you like that taste.

CHICKPEA TACOS

-1 TBL of oil or water
-1 small onion diced (about 1/2 cup)
-2 cloves of garlic minced
-1 15 oz can of chickpeas drained and rinsed
-1/2 tsp of cumin (or more if desired)
-1 tsp of chili powder
-1 tsp of paprika
-1 tsp of oregano
-juice from 1/2 lemon (or about 2-3 bottled)
-1 cup of raw spinach or swiss chard chopped small
-box of taco shells or soft tacos

For the fillers chop up some tomatoes, lettuce, jalapenos or whatever you like on your tacos.  Put a little bowl of veggie sheddred cheese, another bowl of vegan sour cream, and another of salsa.

1. Heat oil in large skillet over med heat, then add the onion and garlic and saute until the onion is translucent....about 5 min.  Don't let the garlic burn so you may have to lower the heat a bit. 
2. add the chickpeas, cumin, chili powder, paprika, oregano and lemon juice.  Mash the chickpeas with a fork until they still have some chunks but they have lost the roundness.
3. add spinach and stir to combine.  Cook about 7 minutes on med-low heat to combine the spices, adding some water to keep the mixture from sticking.  You will have to add the water several times.

Adding a package of yellow rice is our favorite side dish with tacos.

BBQ SEITAN ON A BUN

Last month I posted a recipe for BBQ Seitan that I really like.  I used that recipe for a main entree with sides of veggies, and I chopped some of the leftovers into a salad for lunch the next day.  But the next night there was still some left, so I sauteed some onions and peppers very slowly for about 20 minutes then toasted a hogie roll and put it all together for a great sub!  Add some additional BBQ sauce to taste.

BLACK BEAN BURGERS

I am not a fan of frozen veggie hamburgers.  I find that they taste like cardboard, but I love homemade veggie burgers.  They are easy to make and packed full of protein.  The recipes are large enough that we always have enough for leftovers, or they freeze really well.  The key is not to over cook them otherwise they dry out. This recipe is compliments of Colleen Patrick-Goudreau's The Vegan Table. I made them according to the directions, but the second time I adjusted the spices to our tastes.  I put in 1/2 the chili powder, no cumin, and I didn't use the corn.  I haven't tried serving them on a bun yet, but each time I made them I simply served them alone, with oven fried potatoes and sliced tomatoes. They are crispy and delicious!

SPICY BLACK BEAN BURGERS

-1/4 cup of flour
-1/4 cup of cornmeal
-olive oil or canola oil for sauteing
-1 small yellow onion diced
-1 jalapeno pepper minced and seeded.
-1 red bell pepper diced
-2 cloves of garlic minced
-1/2 tsp of oregano
-2 cups of black beans drained and rinsed (about 2 cans)
-1/2 cup of corn kernels (optional)
-1/2 cup of bread crumbs
-2 tsp of chili powder (I used 1 tsp)
-1/4 tsp of cumin (i don't use any.  I am not a fan of cumin)
-1/2 tsp of salt
-2 Tbs of fresh minced parsley

1. Combine flour and cornmeal on a shallow plate and put aside.
2. Heat the oil in a frying pan and saute the onion, jalapeno, red pepper, and garlic for a few minutes.
3. In a large mixing bowl mash the black beans with a potato masher or fork. Stir in the sauteed vegetables, and the remaining ingredients.
4. Add some more oil to the frying pan and heat over medium heat. Shape the bean mixture into 8 patties, (not too thin) and add them to the frying pan.  Cook for about 5 minutes on each side or until they look brown and crispy.

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BBQ SEITAN RIBS

Store purchased seitan is difficult for me to obtain.  I can only get it when I go to Whole Foods over an hour away.  And I am also not impressed with commerically produced meat substitutes. So I went on a quest to make my own seitan and I was thrilled with my first venture!  I can't wait to try some other recipes. The first bonus was that is was so easy to make.....really easy.  The recipe makes about a 8 X 8 pan, and this is enough for dinner, and mucho leftovers to put into other recipes, and chop up into a salad for lunch tomorrow. It also has over 20g of protein which thrills me. This recipe and photo is courtesy of http://www.blog.fatfreevegan.com/2007/05/barbecued-seitan-ribz.html
You can also watch a video of the preparation on http://www.everydaydish.tv/index.php?page=recipe&recipe=106

The Gluten flour can sometimes be found in the flour section, but often it is in the health food section.

-1 cup gluten flour (I like Bob's Red Mill)
-2 tsp smoked spanish paprika
-2 Tb nutritional yeast
-2 tsp onion powder

-1 tsp garlic powder

-3/4 cup of water

-2 Tb of tahini

-1 tsp liquid smoke

-1 Tb of soy sauce

-1 cup of your favorite BBQ sauce....especially homemade

Preheat the oven to 350 and grease an 8 X 8 baking dish.  Mix the first 5 ingredients.  Separately mix the tahini, liquid smoke, and soy sauce.  Add to the dry ingredients and stir well.  Then knead right in the bowl for a few minutes.

Put the dough into the pan and flatten it with your hands.  With a sharp knife and cut into 8 strips, then rotate the dish and cut those strips in 1/2 to make 16 pieces.

Bake for 25 minutes and get your grill ready.

Remove from the oven and re cut the strips carefully.  Brush the top with lots of the barbecue sauce.  Invert the pan on the grill and brush with more sauce.  Watch that it doesn't burn, and when the first side looks brown and crispy turn and add more sauce if you like. When the 2nd side is browned remove to a platter and cut into individual ribs.

Spinach and Mushroom Lasagna

This recipe has the "hubby thumbs up" in spite of the tofu.  As a matter of fact this is one of the first vegan recipes that I  made, and it is still one of his favorites. I am not a big fan of red tomato sauce, so I have adjusted the amount of sauce in this recipe to suit my tastes. The original recipe calls for dry lasagna noodles....in other words you don't have to cook the noodles first like with most lasagna recipes.  You can simply layer the ingredients between the dry noodles.  Certainly makes life easier and the recipes goes together really fast.  But.....I didn't like it as much so the second time I boiled the noodles first and I was happier with the results. Try it first with dry noodles and see if you like it. It makes a typical large pan of lasagna, which fills my rule of having leftovers, and we still have some to freeze.

1/2 lb of fresh mushrooms
1 garlic clove (or 2 if they are small.  you need about 1 tsp of pressed garlic)
2 Tbs of water
I jar of spaghetti sauce (the original recipe called for 2 jars)
2-3 cups of shredded veggie mozzarella cheese (I use one 2 cup pkg)

Filling
10 oz of frozen spinach...thawed and drained
1 pkg of firm tofu (not silken tofu)
1 tsp of salt
1 tsp of nutritional yeast (this adds a cheesy taste)
1 1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp of garlic powder
1 tsp basil
1/2 rosemary crushed (optional)
1/2 tsp of cayenne pepper (sometimes called red pepper)

Oven 350 degrees

Saute the mushrooms and garlic in the 2 tsp of water until tender.  Add more water if they start to dry out.  Remove from heat and add the spaghetti sauce.

Place the tofu and the spinach into food processor and pulse a few times.  Add the rest of the filling ingredients and process until smooth.  You can also do this without dragging out the food processor by using a potato masher on the tofu first, then add the rest of the ingredients.

Spread 1/2 the sauce into the pan. Top with three noodles.  Spread 1/2 the tofu mixture onto the noodles. Cover with another layer of noodles and then the remaining tofu mixture. Add 1/2 the bag of mozzarella cheese.  Another layer of noodles and the remainder of the spaghetti sauce.  Finally the rest of the cheese.  Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake for about 30 minutes.  Remove the foil and bake for about another 10 minutes until the top looks crusty.  Remove from the oven.  Top with some veggie Parmesan if you like.

The lasagna will set up better if you let it sit for about 15 minutes before serving.

Mrs. Foster's Casserole

When I was in 6th grade, my mother was hospitalized and had surgery.  She was gone for several days and my father struggled to feed us kids.  The lady next door, Mrs Foster, sent over a casserole one night for our dinner. We all loved it and my mother continued to make this casserole while I was growing up.  When I had my children the tradition carried on and it became one of their favorites too. My daughter was visiting recently and we veganized Mrs. Foster's Casserole simply by substituting the ground beef for the store bought veggies crumbles.  Everything else was already plant based so it was a snap to convert this recipe.  It only takes a minute to put together and we have always served this with fresh biscuits. I'll post a recipe for vegan biscuits next.  You use only one dish!

13 X 9 Pyrex baking dish
2 cans of tomato soup'
1 1/2 cans of water
1 can of kernel corn
1 small green pepper diced small
1 small onion diced small
2 large potatoes peeled and diced
1 package of veggies ground beef

***You can leave the potatoes raw  and cook them in the casserole, but I have always found that they are not quite tender enough for my taste, so I boil them for 7-8 minutes, drain them, and add to the casserole.
****the veggies crumbles can be left out and the casserole is equally as tasty.  But since my family relates to the old ground beef recipe I use the crumbles.  Saute the crumbles in a frying pan until they are crispy.


put all the ingredients into the Pyrex dish and mix to combine.  Bake in 350 over for an hour.

Daniel's Veggie Pie

This recipe came from our son Daniel, who lives in San Francisco. The actual origin of the recipe is unknown.  I bought two frozen vegan pie crusts, the Wholly Wholesome brand from Whole Foods....several people online recommended these ones and they were great!  http://www.whollywholesome.com/
I usually make my own pastry because it is so much better, and I enjoy the process of making things from scratch.  But in a pinch I tried these frozen crusts and they were surprisingly good.  I let them thaw in their tinfoil containers, then transfered one to my own pie plate and rolled the other one out flat for the top.  I have a wonderful recipe for a vegetarian pie crust and I'll post that another time.   This veggie pie is really good and you could have fun substituting alternate vegetables to your taste.  I personally found that there was too much cabbage and carrots so I have made some suggestions below. Thanks Daniel! (or "Dan" as everyone else calls him...but I'm his mother and he is Daniel to me)

DANIEL'S VEGGIE PIE

2 vegetarian Wholly Wholesome frozen pie crusts, thawed
2 Tbl of Earth Balance Spread or oil
1 yellow onion chopped
1/2 head of cabbage chopped
2 cups of carrots thinly sliced
1lb of soy sausage.  Daniel used Morningstar Breakfast Patties and I used spicy Gimme Lean in the tube
1 cup hot water
1 envelope of vegetarian instant brown gravy mix
2 Tbl of fresh parsley, chopped
1 tsp of salt
1/2 tsp of savory (or sage and thyme) this is optional.  Depends on whether you like the taste of these spices.
1/4 tsp of pepper

Alternate
-substitute 1 cup of the sliced carrots with 1 cup of frozen peas.  I didn't like that many carrots
-add some mushrooms with the onion, cabbage and carrots.
-use 1/4 head of cabbage and add some broccoli.

Heat over to 400 degrees. Saute the onion, carrots and cabbage in butter/oil til browned about 15 min.  Remove to large bowl...at this point add the peas if you are using.  They can be put into the mixture frozen. In a large skillet heat the sausage (if using frozen sausage microwave first and break it up....or if using the Gimme Lean heat in the skillet just like you would ground beef). Add the water and the gravy package and spices.  Cover and simmer for 5 minutes.  Add the sausage mixture to the veggie bowl and mix. Pour into the bottom crust and cover with the top crust and crimp the edges together.  Using a sharp knife cuts slits for the steam to escape. Bake for 30 minutes.  Serve with a salad or sliced tomatoes.

Sesame Noodles

This recipe is from http://www.thepioneerwoman.com/ and combined with the Spring Rolls makes a nice dinner.  Leftovers make a great lunch with a side salad. Easy, easy to make.

12 oz of thin Asian Noodles cooked and drained
1/4 cup of Soy Sauce
2 Tbls of sugar or 1Tbls of agave
4 cloves of garlic minced
2 Tbls of rice vinegar
3 Tbls of sesame oil
1/2 tsp of hot chili oil
4 Tbls of canola oil
2 Tbls of hot water
4 green onions chopped

-cook noodles and drain and put into a serving dish
-mix all the other ingredients together (except the green onions)
-toss the sauce with the noodles and top with the green onions.

Spring Rolls

My daughter and her family were here recently for a visit and I learned that my plant based diet can be controlled while cooking for a variety of tastes and ages.  My daughter was one of the driving forces behind my journey into veganism but she has decided for a variety of reasons that it is too complicated for her life style. But she is happy with adapting a vegetarian diet and I think she will be successful in that direction. Leaving the dairy in her diet is going to make it easier in her household.

My main concern before their visit was if I was going to be bumped off track.....cooking for a five year old, a seven year old, and a son-in-law that is supportive of my efforts but is not heading in a plant based direction. Not everything I cooked was a hit, and I admit that I planned foods that were not too radical to avoid the look of horrors. But I was pleased with the reaction to many items that they tried.

Spring rolls are easy to make and have a low fat content.  We added some Sesame Noodles and dinner was ready! I adapted this recipe from http://www.fortheloveofcooking.com/  where egg roll wrappers were used.  To adapt them to become vegan was easy by substituting the egg roll wrappers for spring roll wrappers.  I found the wrappers in a local Asian food market and then froze them until i needed them.  Hint:  the wrappers dry out very quickly.  Cover them with a damp dish towel while you work and this will keep them from sticking together.

SPRING ROLLS (about 14 pieces)
1 tsp olive oil
2 cups of savoy cabbage chopped thin ( i have also substituted regular green cabbage)
2 cups of shredded carrots
2 cups of bean sprouts
1 can of water chestnuts, chopped (optional...I'm not a fan so I leave them out)
2 Tbsp green onions sliced
1 tsp of grated ginger (i also use bottled ginger juice when I am lazy)
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp corn starch
1/4 cup water
Package of spring roll wrappers (you will need about 14.  Freeze the rest of the pkg)
Sweet chili dipping sauce ( or sweet and sour but I like the bite of the sweet chili sauce)

Heat olive oil in large skillet over medium heat. Wait until the oil is hot.  Add the cabbage, sprouts, carrots, chestnuts (if using) and ginger and cook stirring frequently for 4-5 minutes.  Mix corn starch and water along with the soy sauce and add to the vegetable mixture. Add the green onions now too.  Stir until sauce thickens. Remove from heat and let mixture cool. (about 15 minutes)

Preheat over to 400 degrees.

Place a spring roll wrapper on the cutting board with one of the four corners facing you.  Place 2 Tbsp of the vegetable mixture on the center of the wrapper.  Fold up the bottom of the wrapper over the vegetables: then fold over the two sides: then roll it up like a burrito.

Spray a cookie sheet with vegetable spray.  Place the spring rolls on the cookie sheet seam side down. Spray the tops of the rolls with additional spray.  Bake for 8 minutes and turn them and spray again with vegetable spray.  Bake for 5-7 minutes more.

CAPELLINI POMODORO

CAPELLINI POMODORO

Omg I love this recipe! And I am not a pasta lover usually. I could eat this once a week, and it is so easy to make. Honest. I wouldn't label this a low-fat vegan recipe, but it is a nice treat once in awhile, and a great entertaining dish. The ingredients taste so fresh you'll never open a jar of pasta sauce again. This recipe easily makes enough for 6 people...8 people if you are serving a salad etc.  I usually 1/2 this recipe when just making for hubby and I, then we have leftovers the next night.

-1 pkg of Capellini Pomodoro pasta (or angel hair....capellini is the size between regular spaghetti and angel hair)
-6-8 medium tomatoes chopped
-10 fresh basil leaves (thank goodness I started to grow my own...another post)
-2 to 3 cloves of garlic finely chopped
-3 to 4 Tablespoons of olive oil
-fresh ground sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

1. cook pasta (look at carton...I can't remember how long). Drain and return to the pan
2. cut tomatoes in 1/2 and scrape out the seeds.  Then chop them into smallish pieces
3. Lay basil leaves on top of each other, roll them up like a cigar, then slices them really thin
4. toss the tomatoes, basil, garlic and olive oil together
5. add the tomato mixture to pasta and gently toss while on a med-high heat to reheat everything.
6. serve immediately with a little vegan Parmesan cheese, and Awesome Garlic Bread

FOOD COURT STIR FRY

This is one of my favorite dishes adapted from the Japanese chains in the food courts found everywhere.  Using left over rice made the night before works best but if you don't have any around, cook the rice and let it sit with the lid on the pot for 15-20 minutes before you start the stir fry to allow the rice to dry out a bit. This dish cannot be made ahead of time because the vegetables get limp and mushy if they sit too long. So it should be served immediately....have everyone assembled and ready to sit. The sweet taste of the teryaki sauce makes it a hit with the younger kids. This makes enough for two people so adjust your ingredients to suit. If you don't have a food processor just slice and dice by hand.

-4 to 6 servings of brown or white rice ( if you want extra for something else)

-1/4 head of cabbage sliced thin

-2 carrots shredded
-handful of broccoli chopped small

-handful of sliced mushrooms per serving

-couple handfuls of bean sprouts

-2 T of chopped green onions

-sesame oil (you can use canola but the sesame really adds the nice Asian flavor)

-bottled teriyaki sauce

1. prepare rice if needed (see note above). I always make extra for another recipe the next night

2. using the thin slicing blade of your food processor, slice cabbage

3. change blades to the shredder and put the carrots through

4. spray a non-stick saute pan with vegetable spray and saute the mushrooms and broccoli until tender.  Don't over cook.
5. Heat a wok on medium-high (or large frying pan) and add about 2 tsp of sesame oil.  When really hot add the cabbage mixture and stri- fry quickly for about 1-2 minutes.  Throw in the bean sprouts and stir fry for another minute.  Add the mushroom and broccoli mix and stir quickly to reheat.
6. Put some rice on a plate and make a well in the middle.  Add some of the vegetable mix and sprinkle with some green onions, and put a few tsp of the teriyaki sauce on top or to taste.