Blackened Tofu with Bok Choy

If you are looking for a quick and delicious meal, than this blog is for you! I took some extra-firm tofu and cut it into 1/4″-1/2″ triangle pieces. I then did a quick marinade (see recipe below). I added the triangles to a cast iron skilled filled with a layer of sunflower oil and then slathered the unseared side with sriracha (hot sauce). After 5-7 minutes I flipped, added more sriracha and continued the process until all sides were blackened.

While the tofu was cooking, I sautéed some bok choy (2 bunches) in oil and garlic. When the bok choy started to cook down, I added the remainder of the tofu marinade. After most of the liquid was gone, I removed the pan from the heat.

Enjoy!

Easy Marinade

• 2 tbls tamari
• 1 tbls water
• 1 tbls agave
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• generous dash of red pepper flakes
• small amount of sesame oil

 

Multi Mushroom Stew

I’ve been visiting northern Minnesota this weekend and it has been a cold few days. I wanted to make a hearty, comforting meal and thought a stew would be perfect. I opted for fresh ingredients, settling on a variety of dried mushrooms, portobello caps, carrots, potatoes, onions and herbs. My parents, who grew up with Dinty Moore’s Beef Stew in a can were delighted by this dish. I encourage you to try this out tonight for meatless Monday! Enjoy!

(source: mesh of Isa’s seitan porcini stew and Rachael Ray’s sliced steak and mushroom barley soup)

• oil
• onion
• 4 large portobello caps
• dried mushrooms
• 1 c boiling water
• 2 cloves garlic
• 3 carrots – cut into slices
• 5 potatoes – cut into 1″ cubes
• 1 c red wine
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 tsp dried rosemary
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp salt
• pepper
• 3 c veg broth
• 1/4 c flour
• 1/2 c water
• 2 tbls tomato paste

1. Bring 1 cup of water to a boil, when this comes to a boil, add to dried mushrooms and cover for about 30 min
2. Saute onion in oil, when soft add sliced portobellos (about 4 large caps)
3. Once the mushrooms are soft, add carrots, herbs and spices, and wine, boil for several minutes until liquid reduces
4. Next add the potatoes and broth to the stew mixture
5. By this time the dried mushrooms should be rehydrated, put these into a food processor and add the cloves of garlic. Process until smooth (you may need to add a little water/veg broth)
6. Add the processed mushroom mixture to the stew pot, bring to a simmer, cover and cook until potatoes are easy to pierce with a fork
7. Whisk the flour with water, add to stew mixture along with tomato paste
8. Let sit for a few minutes before serving

Meatless Loaf

Last Monday I received my weekly e-mail from the Humane Society’s Meatless Monday recipe listserve. The recipe was for ‘meatloaf’ and I thought I would test this out. I was skeptic from the get-go because their recipe did not call for a binder, so I went ahead and added in some flaxmeal/water. Unfortunately the loaf still didn’t hold together well.

If you can get past the dysfunctional consistency, the taste is very delicious. My omnivorous father, who at one point would wrinkle his nose at a dish like this, couldn’t resist sinking his fork in to give it a taste test. His response, “Not a bad loaf, being a vegan one.” I’ll take this as a compliment…plus he did have several bites.

I think this recipe has potential, just needs additional ingredients to help hold it together. Any ideas?

HSUS Meatloaf

• 12 oz package of meatless crumbles
• 1 small onion, diced small
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1/4 tsp dried basil
• 1/4 tsp dried thyme
• 1/4 c ketchup
• 2 tbls oil
• 1/4 c bread crumbs (I used panko, it’s all I had on hand)
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper

 

Mix all ingredients together. Pack firmly into a greased loaf pan (ideally you want a pan smaller than the one below, but I had to make do with this one!)

Cover with foil, and bake at 400 F for 20 minutes. Remove foil, add ketchup on top and bake for another 5-10 minutes. Let cool before slicing.

Blueberry Waffles

My omnivorous friend made a heartwarming gesture by preparing me vegan blueberry waffles for breakfast. It was the perfect way to start my day of vacation.

Unfortunately, this recipe won’t be made again, but I was happy he gave it so much effort. He can’t remember where he found the recipe, but I have a photographic memory when it comes to ingredients. From what I remember this is what it called for:

• 2 c flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 c sugar
• 1/4 c oil
• 1/4 c melted veg butter
• 1 3/4 c non-dairy milk
• 3 tsp egg replacer + 4 tbls warm water
• 1 tsp vanilla

Combine dry; combine wet; whisk wet into dry. Add water to thin out. We threw some blueberries in ours. You can add other fruit, nuts, etc. I think there was too much oil/fat and there wasn’t enough rising action. Baking powder may have helped. The waffles turned out very dense and chewey.

Creamy Kale Soup

I was all over the place with this soup recipe tonight. First, I wanted to make something similar to a beefless stew, then I wanted to make a bean soup with kale and I eventually settled on a brothy-turned-creamy kale soup. The brothy version fell flat so I added a container of Tofutti’s herbs and chives cream cheese. While I am still undecided what my taste buds wanted, this soup turned out pretty good. It reminds me of a wild rice soup, just thinner and with greens.

Creamy Kale Soup

• 1 carton of vegetable stock
• 3 c water
• 1/2 onion
• several carrots
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• several dashes of pepper
• 1/2 c brown basmati rice
• 1/2-1 c lentils
• a bunch of kale
• 1 container of Tofutti herb cream cheese

1. Saute the onion in some oil, when translucent add in the salt, thyme, garlic and carrots. Let these get familiar for a few minutes
2. Add the stock and water, bring to a boil
3. Stir in the rice and lentils
4. Let this cook for about 15 minutes
5. Next, add in pieces of kale and simmer
6. Once everything is soft, stir in the Tofutti
7. Turn off the heat and let the soup sit for a bit

*If you’d like a stew instead of a soup, add in some flour, cornstarch or arrowroot.

Sunflower Carob Bites

I am in love with my local co-op’s raw cacao and goji bites. Unfortunately, they are super expensive. I’ve had some carob powder on hand for quite some time and finally decided to do something with it tonight. I came across a recipe for carob energy bites, wrote it down, and now am unable to find it on-line. I didn’t follow the recipe exactly, but I still like to show where I came across the idea.

On another note, during my search for the illusive carob energy bites, I came across a different recipe.  I think I will try this one in the future before remaking the one below…

not the prettiest picture...

• 1 c sunflower butter
• 3/4 c maple syrup and/or agave
• 1/4 c carob powder
• 1/2 c wheat germ
• 1/2 c oat flour
• 1/4 c ground flax seeds
• 1/4 c ground pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
• 1/2 c sunflower seeds

I mixed the wet, then the dry, and threw it all in the food processor. I am not sure why I did it in such an order. The original recipe called for oat bran, which I didn’t have. I think that may have altered my results. It also called for sesame seeds, not sunflower, whoops. I rolled these into balls and kept them chilled in the fridge until they’re ready to be eaten.

The bites turned out alright. Not exactly what I was looking for, but it will do!

Lemon Bars

Lemon bars are the perfect dessert for spring events. Unfortunately I don’t have plans to celebrate Easter tomorrow, but will gladly share these sweet and tart bars with my friends. I found the recipe online, and it comes from Colleen Patrick Goudreau’s The Joy of Vegan Baking.

Crust

• 1/2 c earth balance butter
• 1/4 c powdered sugar
• 1 c flour

Filling

• 1/2 c silken (I used soft)
• 1 c sugar
• zest from 2 lemons
• 1/3 c fresh lemon juice (I put 2 lemons in my juicer and had almost 2/3 c)
• 2 tbls flour
• 2 tbls corn starch
• sifted powdered sugar

For the crust, cream the butter and sugar. Then add the flour. Stop mixing when the mixture gets soft and crumbly. Press this into a greased and floured 8×8 pan. Bake at 350F for 20 minutes.

When the crust is done, set on a cooling rack and start making the filling. Put the silken into a food processor and blend for a minute or two. When this is creamy, add the sugar. Blend for another minute. Now add the remaining ingredients (except sifted powdered sugar). After everything is well combined, pour this on top of the crust. Bake at 350F for 30 minutes.

Let this sit and cool completely before sprinkling the powdered sugar on top.

Enjoy!

Simple Stir-Fry

After looking through the foods in my fridge, I realized I had everything I needed for a stir-fry. I sautéed summer squash, baby red, yellow and orange peppers, and garlic until soft and fragrant. I then added baby bok choy. When the bok choy cooked down, I added tofu and shirataki noodles. After a few minutes I drizzled some teriyaki sauce that I had on hand. Healthy, simple and delicious!

It’s a Beautiful Morning

I’ve been feeling a bit under the weather the past two weeks, but am recharged and ready to take on the world today! After a nice 3 mile run this morning I made some carrot-orange juice along with a tofu breakfast sandwich. To prep the tofu, I sprinkled a few drops of tamari on each side, then added a little onion powder, black sea salt (which gives an eggy taste) and tumeric (for color). I put this on an everything bagel which was spread with Tofutti’s herb and chive ‘cream cheese.’

Happy Sunday!