Recipe - Zesty Chickpea Salad

You know the old saying, "Opinions are like a**holes; everybody's got one"? Well, chickpea salad recipes are to vegans like opinions: everyone has their favorite way to make it. I decided this week to come up with my own and I've gotta say... I kinda killed it!

In my pre-gan days I loved tuna salad from a certain deli in Tucson. One of my friends who worked there said that the secret to really good tuna salad is fresh dill. Since then I've been using fresh dill in everything I can sneak it into, I adore it! It is one herb that doesn't get enough love, so I knew it would definitely make it into my chickpea salad. I also like a lot of crunch in recipes like this, so I used celery, green onion, and (the dark horse ingredient) diced red pepper. I love the way the peppers burst in your mouth with each bite, they really add an unexpected flavor here. Finish it up with some fresh lemon, vegan mayo, salt and pepper and layer it on toasted multigrain bread with tomato and lettuce. SO GOOD.

I'll let Johnny's words speak for themselves: "Next time you make this, don't change ANYTHING." "You have to blog about this." "This is one of the best sandwiches I've ever had!" Oh, and we ate this for dinner two nights in a row. Unprecedented in our household! I served it the first night with a simple vegetable soup and the second night with roasted sweet potatoes. I had a ton of leftover cilantro in the fridge, so I made a cilantro pesto to go with the potatoes. Stayed tuned for that recipe in my next post! 

Zesty Chickpea Salad

Serves 6-8

2 cans organic chickpeas, drained and rinsed

2 stalks celery, thinly sliced

2 green onions, thinly sliced

1 red pepper, seeded and diced

2 tbsp fresh dill, minced

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

2 tbsp fresh lemon juice

5 tbsp vegan mayo

In a large bowl, mash the chickpeas until they are nearly all broken up, leaving a few whole. Add in all other ingredients and stir to combine. It's as simple as that!

Tofu Scramble Two Ways

Okay, I really don't know why it took me so long to make a tofu scramble at home. I love eating them out at restaurants (Blue Willow in Tucson makes my fave), but for some reason I was really hesitant to make my own. I guess I thought it would be difficult, but nothing could be further from the truth!

I had some extra firm tofu, spinach and mushrooms in the fridge one night and I was trying to figure out what to make for dinner. I decided to go for it and tackle the tofu scramble once and for all. After consulting a few recipes on the netz, I headed into the kitchen determined to defeat my opponent. And I succeeded! So much so that I made another one just a few days later. These are definitely going into the rotation.

Not only do these scrambles come together quickly, they are really versatile. Like I said, the first time I used mushroom and spinach - a classic combo - and kept the seasonings to what would compliment those flavors. The second time, I planned to add it to a breakfast burrito, so wanted to punch it up a bit. I added lots of diced red pepper, onions, more cumin than the first time. They both came out great! In the future, I think I'll try adding some Mediterranean flavors (kalmata olives, roasted red peppers) and serve alongside hummus, pita, and Greek salad. OR you could mix in Soyrizo, potatoes, and diced tomatoes and serve it with flour tortillas and avocado. If it's good enough for scrambled eggs, it's good enough for scrambled tofu. And don't be fooled into thinking tofu scrambles are only for breakfast. They're full of protein, but they're not too heavy, so it's the perfect fit for dinner. Besides, breakfast for dinner has always been one of my favorite things.

One tip: the drier your tofu, the more it will brown in the skillet. Once you remove the tofu from the package and drain it, be sure to press it for at least 20 minutes to get the water out. I do this by wrapping the block of tofu in a few paper towels and setting it on a plate. Then I place another plate on top and add some heavy objects - canned goods, a jar of pasta sauce - on top of that plate.

Johnny ate both of these right up! I had to coax him into eating the breakfast burrito - he doesn't like tater tots if you can believe it. But even he couldn't deny that the crispy potatoes, tofu scramble, and cool, creamy guacamole inside a warm tortilla was a little piece of heaven...



The makings of a damn fine breakfast burrito. YUM.



Mexican Style Tofu Scramble

(Makes 8 breakfast burritos)

1 tbsp olive oil

1 small onion, diced

1 red pepper, stem and seeds removed and diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 block extra firm tofu, drained and pressed

1/2 tsp turmeric

1 1/2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp coriander

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

Heat your olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and red pepper and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and cook for a minute more. Cut the tofu into large chunks and add to the skillet. Break it up with a spatula so that it resembles scrambled eggs. Add your spices and toss to ensure they are evenly distributed. Continue cooking for about 10 minutes, allowing the tofu to get browned a bit. (A metal spatula works best for keeping the browned parts intact.) If you aren't seeing any browning, increase the heat a bit and continue cooking for a few minutes.

Serve with warm tortillas, tater tots, and guacamole!

Crappy cell phone pic! This is what happens when you are too hungry to take a proper picture.

Spinach and Mushroom Tofu Scramble

Serves 6

1 tbsp olive oil

1 small onion, diced

½ pint of mushrooms, sliced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 block extra firm tofu, drained and pressed

1/2 tsp turmeric

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp dried thyme

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

2 cups fresh spinach

Heat your olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and mushrooms and cook for about 7 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and cook for a minute more. Cut the tofu into large chunks and add to the skillet. Break it up with a spatula so that it resembles scrambled eggs. Add your spices and toss to ensure they are evenly distributed. Continue cooking for about 10 minutes, allowing the tofu to get browned a bit. (A metal spatula works best for keeping the browned parts intact.) If you aren't seeing any browning, increase the heat a bit and continue cooking for a few minutes. Turn off the heat and add in the spinach. Stir in and allow to wilt for a few minutes.

I served mine with roasted sweet potatoes and a toasted Food for Life Brown Rice English muffin spread with Earth Balance. Those muffins are really good, BTW!

Recipe - Vegan Chunky Monkey and Thanksgiving Recap

Hidee-ho! Hope everyone had wonderful Thanksgiving celebrations this year! It was my second year celebrating Thanksgiving as a vegan, but my first one cooking. Last year we went to Connecticut to spend the day with Johnny's brother and his family, so I picked up a few things from Whole Foods. While I am eternally grateful for the convenience and selection that Whole Foods offers, this year I wanted to try my hand at veganizing some of the classics. It is so much cheaper and, generally, tastier to make stuff on your own, don't you agree?

On Tuesday, I began by cooking the cranberry sauce as I knew it would keep well and it was the only component of the meal that was meant to be served cold. I used this recipe from Sunset Magazine as I remembered my sister making a cranberry sauce with Earl Grey tea in years past that I loved. This called for some exotic spices like cardamom pods, star anise, and whole cinnamon sticks so I made my way to Kalustyan's and managed to buy all three for under $10. Man, I love that place! I simmered the spices and tea bags in a water and sugar mixture, then cooked the cranberries in the liquid until they all burst and cooked into a thickened sauce. I was super pleased with the results of that one, it was a positively delicious addition to the meal! I also made up a batch of hummus on Tuesday for an appetizer - we all know how much better hummus tastes after it sits in the fridge for a few days anyway.

Wednesday night I tackled dessert - the Maple Pecan Pie from the new book "Vegan Pie in the Sky" by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero. Those ladies have stolen my heart when it comes to vegan baked goods and vegan food in general. Their recipes are so thoroughly tested and well-written that I never have to worry about yielding a less-than-tasty result. The on-line reviews of this pie recipe were split: some had great success and others had a bit of trouble. I, too, ran into some issues when I let my caramel cook a bit too long. It completely hardened and crumbled, so I blended it up in the food processor and hoped for the best. Luckily, it all worked out and it was a delicious pie! Johnny said it was a bit too sweet for his tastes, but I thought it was just right. (Though expensive to make... we paid $8 for the pecans and it used most of my $7 bottle of maple syrup. Yikes!)

I wanted to have as little cooking to do on Thursday as possible. We spent the morning making our way to the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, only to find that we'd missed all but the last two balloons and Santa. EPIC FAIL. Better luck next year. When we got home, I got to work making mashed potatoes (I baked the potatoes, scooped out the innards, and mashed with plenty of soy milk, vegan margarine, and salt and pepper) and sweet potato casserole (I also baked the sweet potatoes, scooped out the innards and mashed with a bit of maple syrup, a couple tablespoons of margarine, some cinnamon and allspice and about a 1/2 cup of toasted walnuts, then I baked it with some vegan Dandies marshmallows on top. YUM!). Johnny made his famous stuffing using margarine, veggie broth, stuffing mix and lots of chopped apples, celery and onions. Then I just had to heat up the rolls and the vegan mushroom gravy. Our guests brought the BEST ROASTED VEGGIES I'VE EVER HAD that included butternut squash, cauliflower, and turnips. Monica says the secret is to roast them at very low heat for a long time, so I'll be utilizing that method in the future.

Everything came out so wonderfully and I had a plate full of vegan goodness upon which to gorge myself. And thanks to leftovers, I continued to gorge myself through the entire weekend! I was so busy trying to keep everything hot that I didn't really snap any good pics though. Bummer. We also saw the new Muppets movie that night and I must say, it was fantastic. A theater full of adults weeping at the sight of a frog puppet? Yes, please. 

In this brief hiatus between Thanksgiving and Christmas, I'm trying to get back to eating a bit healthier so as not to send my system into complete meltdown. I bought a gigantic bunch of bananas at the grocery store while shopping for Thanksgiving and they started to get a bit brown. I knew they would be perfect in a baked good like banana bread. But instead, I chose to freeze them and make banana soft serve! This stuff seems to be all the craze these days and I know why: it's so easy to make and it tastes divine. You can mix-in anything your little heart desires, but when I think of banana ice cream, I automatically think "Chunky Monkey". By far my favorite Ben & Jerry's flavor, it combines banana ice cream with dark chocolate chunks and walnuts. This version gives you all those flavors, but with about 1/10th the fat and calories. Big time WIN!

Johnny ate a bowl of this ice cream, licked the bowl clean, then returned to the freezer to eat the rest. I was so happy he liked it so much! A much healthier way to satisfy an indulgent sweet-tooth. Have you ever made banana soft serve? What are your favorite mix-ins?

Vegan Chunky Monkey

5 frozen bananas

1/4 cup vegan chocolate chips or dark chocolate chunks

1/4 cup raw, unsalted walnut pieces

Break up the bananas a bit and add to a food processor. Begin blending, scraping down the sides of the bowl as you go. You will have to blend for awhile, 5 minutes or so, but don't overblend as it will start to melt the ice cream. Once everything is smoothe, transfer to a bowl (a chilled bowl would be great here) and stir in the chocolate and walnuts. You can either place this back into the freezer to harden it up a bit, or serve right away. Sprinkle a few extra chocolate chips over the top and garnish with a mint sprig.

Recipe - Ani Phyo's Raw Sweet Corn and Cashew Chowder

Oh my goodness, it's been too long people! The good news is that my back feels MUCH better. I still have no real answers as to what happened or why I was in so much pain, but I am very thankful to be able to move again and breathe without wincing. 


The last few weeks have been busy with social activities, working out with my new personal trainer (oh, my aching muscles) and flying home last week for my sister's wedding! She awesomely included lots of vegan options on her Lebanese-themed wedding menu like spinach afthiad (olive oil pastry stuffed with spinach and onions), garbanzo bean stuffed cabbage rolls, and hummus/ babaganoush with pita chips. My mom, dad, aunt and brother helped her cook the gigantic feast and every bit of it was so delicious! You could really taste the love. 

Early morning cactus. So pretty. 

Back in Tucson, I had so many people come up to me and tell me that they read and enjoy my blog. What a huge surprise! I often forget that what I write gets sent out into the universe for others to read and getting so much positive encouragement motivated me to get back to posting. I have lots of yummy foodstuffs to share with you. I'd like to kick things off with a simply scrumptious soup I made a few weekends ago. I followed this recipe by Ani Phyo who is a rockstar in the vegan/raw world. I'd never tried anything by her before, but I must say, this soup made me a fan! 

I'm not much into raw foods as my body simply seems to respond better to gently cooked foods. But I do like to add in some raw recipes and meals every now and then. The benefit is that so many of the vitamins and nutrients that would typically be lost in the cooking process stay intact with raw foods. I was a bit afraid that a soup with a base of raw corn would be way too starchy, but it wasn't at all. It was crisp, refreshing and nourishing. It's probably more suited for a hot summer day, but it did make for a perfect light lunch on an unseasonably warm autumn afternoon. The markets around here seem to be selling off the last of the summer corn for cheap, so it's cost effective, too!

I made a few changes to the recipe to cut down on the fat (reflected below) and added in some delicious fresh tomatoes. If you try out this recipe, be sure to use a blender and not a food processor if possible. I don't have a blender and my food processor ended up leaking out 90% of the water I put in. I just processed what stayed in and then added in water once it was in a bowl. You could also try using an immersion blender. 

Ani Phyo's Raw Sweet Corn and Cashew Chowder

Based on this recipe

Serves 4

3 ears of yellow corn, kernels removed

1/2 cup raw, unsalted cashews

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 small garlic clove

1 tsp sea salt

1 cup water

fresh cilantro, chopped

1 tomato, diced

freshly ground black pepper

In a blender, combine 3/4 of the corn kernels, cashews, olive oil, garlic, salt and water and process until smooth. Divide the soup into four bowls and garnish with the reserved corn kernels, cilantro, chopped tomatoes, and pepper. Serve cold. (Can be chilled overnight.) 

Recipe - Quick and Easy Summer Meals and Snacks

I have a confession to make... I love to cook. That is such a weird thing for me to write! Growing up I had absolutely no desire to try my hand in the kitchen (though my sister and brother both always loved to cook and are both fabulous at it). When I moved out on my own, I existed on Trader Joe's prepared foods and dinners out with friends. Cooking a full-on meal just for myself always seemed like such a hassle: the grocery shopping, the dishes, the leftovers that inevitably grew mold and got thrown away. Not to mention there was no one there to tell me if my meal was great or sucked - like the whole "if a tree falls in the forest" scenario, ya know? But when Johnny and I moved in together, some dormant June Cleaver-ish part of me awakened and I found myself wanting to cook more. WEIRD.

In the beginning, I relied heavily on recipes. I had a cookbook called "How to Boil Water" and I pretty much needed that level of instruction! There were definitely some failed meals in those early days (most involving undercooked meat which I no longer have to worry about!), but over time I became SO much more confident in the kitchen. Through trial and error, I figured out how to cook a great batch of rice on the stovetop and how to substitute spices if I ran out of something seemingly crucial. Our bank account thanked me for easing off of expensive take-out meals and it's always made me feel accomplished to cook a great meal and actually look forward to eating the leftovers the next day!   

That said, there are more nights than I can count where I go into the kitchen thinking I'll have dinner prepared in an hour, and by 9:00pm I'm still not done. This does not make me happy and Johnny wisely asks once if he can help and then scurries away when I bellow "NO." So I'm going to start making more of an effort to plan one or two easy meals each week that can be ready to go in 60 minutes or less. I have come to terms with the fact that this means I may need to rely on prepared foods sometimes. I love cooking everything from scratch, but honestly we all have days where we've pushed ourselves to the limit in the 10+ hours preceding dinner prep. Routinely adding an extra 2-3 hours to that just so you can feed your pie-hole is no fun.

Here are some ideas for quick meals and snacks that I've been loving for the past few weeks:


Beverages


Johnny is in the early stages of giving up diet soda (yay!) so we tried out an alternative last night. We mixed up some chopped mint, some peeled and diced ginger, a sliced up lemon, and a few packets of stevia with sparkling water and ice in a big pitcher. He was so in love! So much healthier than diet soda and super refreshing for a summer day. 

Snacks

Brown Rice Cakes and Nut Butter

I'm the type that gets home from work and has to have a snack before I start dinner prep. Quite often, I'll turn to chips or crackers and get carried away and before I know it I'm not even hungry for dinner anymore. My nutritionist made a great suggestion: brown rice cakes with nut butter. The portion is controlled and just one is super filling and satisfying. It has that salty/sweet taste that I love and is so easy to throw together. I am a big fan of Lundberg's Organic Lightly Salted Brown Rice Cakes and Brad's Organic Crunchy Peanut Butter (I love everything by both of these companies, actually!). You can jazz it up by topping with jam, bananas or other fruits, raisins... you get the idea.

Hummus and Crudites

Hummus is an institution in my family. For realz. We take that shiz seriously! My mom's hummus is widely regarded as the best in the world, so I'm always trying to recreate hers. It is so easy to whip up a big batch of hummus and snack on it all week or use as a spread on sandwiches and wraps. It's way cheaper than buying the not-as-tasty pre-made stuff from the store, too.

Here's the quick recipe: in a food processor, chop 2 cloves of garlic into tiny pieces (use 3 if you really like garlic!). Add two cans of drained and rinsed chickpeas, the juice of 2 lemons, 4 tbsp tahini, 1/4 cup olive oil and 1 tsp salt. Begin blending and pulsing and get things as mixed as you can. Continue blending and start adding water a few tsps at a time. Don't overdo it, but add as much water as necessary until the hummus is creamy and very well blended - about 1/2 cup. Taste and adjust as needed. You can eat it right away, but hummus is best when it's been chilled overnight and the flavors have really had a chance to mingle. Top with a drizzle of olive oil and some dried mint and serve with fresh veggies, crackers, or whole wheat pita bread. Variations on this recipe are endless - add in some kalmata olives, roasted red peppers, roasted garlic, pickled jalapenos, mushrooms, etc. Just decrease the oil and water a bit if you add any of these.

Meals

Crispy Chick'n Salad with Creamy Dijon Dressing

I came up with this super easy and simple salad one night when I really didn't feel like cooking, but I also didn't want to order take-out. I didn't want dinner to be a big production, so I sent Johnny to the store for some veggies and I broke out a pack of Gardein Seven Grain Crispy Tenders from the freezer. 20 minutes later I had an awesome vegan salad that I loved! Pretty sweet. 

To make this, prepare the Gardein tenders according to package instructions. Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes, then cut into bite-sized pieces. Chop up some lettuce, tomatoes and cucumbers and divide between two bowls. Top with the Gardein strips. In a small bowl, mix together 2 tbsp Vegenaise and 1 tbsp dijon mustard with a small whisk or spoon until combined. Drizzle over your salad and enjoy!

Disclaimer: Johnny was not a fan of the dressing because he's got an aversion to Vegenaise. He's on the fence about mayo to begin with and lots of people are even more suspect of mayo made without animal products. For the record, the ingredients in Vegenaise couldn't be more normal: Non-GMO Expeller-Pressed Canola Oil, Filtered Water, Brown Rice Syrup, Apple Cider Vinegar, Non-GMO Soy Protein, Sea Salt, Mustard Flour, Lemon Juice Concentrate. I can guarantee those ingredients are WAY more appealing than what's in regular mayo! Anyway, if you're cooking this for a non-vegan who isn't into Vegenaise, just sub in some of their favorite dressing.


Soft Tacos

These crazy kids just can't stand still for a picture!

One of my friends is trying to be gluten-free, vegan and sugar-free and I'm also trying to cut down in the gluten in my life. We all got together for dinner and I put my thinkin' cap on. We had a medley of foodstuffs including a watermelon and cucumber salad and some fresh and delicious corn my friends got from a farm that morning (summer!!!). The main course was  soft tacos and they came together in a flash. 


I started with some pintos using the quick method of soaking: boil 4 cups of water, add 1/2 lb of dried pintos, cook for two minutes, then remove from heat and allow to soak for 1 hour. I then drained and rinsed the beans and added enough water to cover, then brought it all back to a boil and simmered for about 1 more hour. (That sounds like a long time, but it's mostly inactive and you can be doing other things while they cook.) I tossed those with some salt, pepper and chopped green chiles. I then cooked up some Yves Meatless Ground with a tbsp of olive oil, 1/2 chopped onion, 2 cloves chopped garlic, 1 tsp chile powder, and 1/2 tsp ground cumin until hot. This all got wrapped up in Ezekiel Sprouted Corn Tortillas, homemade guacamole, salsa and hot sauce. Nom nom nom!


What are your favorite quick and easy summer treats?