Blog Archives

Spicy BBQ Carrot Sticks with Tofu Ranch Dip

1/28/2015

I mentioned in my post last week on the Spicy BBQ Chik'n Bites that I only ended up using about half of the batter and sauce I made, based off of Kristy Turner's Buffalo Cauliflower Wing Pizza. I wasn't sure how long it would last, so I wanted to use it up as quickly as possible. I've been getting a lot of carrots in my vegetable deliveries so I thought this would be a new fun way to use them up - kinda like breaded zucchini sticks. They were a big hit and super simple to make!

I was a little nervous as to how they would turn out since I've never had anything like them, but they were great and Jay loved them - here are a couple of his best quotes:

"Wow, these are amazing!"

"These are the best carrots ever!"

Individually, the carrot stick is spicier than one of the bites I made since they don't have the extra breading or the tofu baked in. They turn out a little bit soft, but still sturdy. These are a great healthy way to add some vegetables to your normal snacking routine, plus you can dip them as much as you want! The tofu dipping sauce is naturally low in fat and calories but high in protein and calcium. I love guilt free snacking!

Ingredients:
About 5 Carrots
1/2 Batter Recipe
1/2 Spicy BBQ Sauce Recipe

Tofu Ranch Dipping Sauce:
1/2 Block Tofu
3 teaspoons Apple Cider Vinegar or Lemon Juice
1 Tablespoon dried Dill
1 teaspoon Onion Powder
1 teaspoon Garlic Powder

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Servings: About 40 carrot sticks

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Slice carrots in half and then into quarters so that you get 8 sticks out of each carrot. Dip the carrot sticks in the batter and then place on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Bake for 20 minutes.

Once cooled to the touch, dip the carrot sticks in the Spicy BBQ Sauce and then place back on the parchment lined cookie sheet. Cook for another 5-8 minutes.

While the carrots are cooking, make the ranch dipping sauce. Combine all the ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth. The proportions I used make a thick dip, so if you want it creamier, add more liquid.

Serve and Enjoy!

0 Comments

The Sidewalk Cafe, South Boston

1/26/2015

0 Comments

Last week Jay and I got some take out from one of our favorite places - the Sidewalk Cafe in South Boston. They recently changed their menu and while they got rid of a lot of their vegetable panini options, they did add a falafel. Falafel is one of my favorite take out foods, but it's so easy to mess up and there are few things more disappointing than a bad falafel! I'm always nervous to take a shot on a new place, but I knew I liked this place so I thought I would give it a go.

Great choice! I'm so happy I have a go-to falafel place to get take out from that's affordable and Jay will always be down for ordering from the same place! The falafel was great. It had a good combo of crispiness and moisture. I especially loved the tahini that the put on it. It was a little uneven in the distribution of the tomato and tahini, which left some of the bites to be a little dry, but overall it hit the spot! The only comment I could have would be to put it in a more traditional pits instead of just a regular wrap Jay loved it too - I've slowly been turning him on to what a great sandwich the falafel is! I can't wait to get it again!

0 Comments

Spicy BBQ Chik'n Bites

1/22/2015

0 Comments

This is a great party/sports game recipe! I made it last week for watch the AFC Championship game with our friends - aka 5 to 10 carnivorous, buffalo-chicken loving boys. As you know if you've seen my earlier posts, I've been working my way through a package of Beyond Meat chicken strips so I thought this would be a great way to finish it off! I made this Buffalo Cauliflower Wing Pizza recipe last year from Kristy Turner over at Keepin It Kind. Jay liked the taste of it alot, but didn't like the consistency of cauliflower, since he seems to hate all things cauliflower. So what happens when you combine that recipe with Beyond Meat chicken? Near perfection!

Everyone at the party loved the bites and were surprised to find out that they were vegan. I even duped a couple of the guys and didn't tell them it was vegan until after they had already had some and told me it was delicious! All of them were eaten and I was the only vegan there! Being a group of buffalo-chicken connoisseurs, the general consensus was that the flavor was more BBQ than buffalo, so I decided to change the name to Spicy BBQ. I'll have to try another version making a more traditional buffalo sauce!

If you don't have a mini cupcake pan you can roll your bites up like you would with pigs in a blanket, but you may not be able to fit as many ingredients in. That was my original plan, but I didn't have enough dough. With the cupcake pan I could keep the bites together without needing any crust on top to keep everything together.

I only ended up using about half of the breading and sauce mix that I made so I saved each one and used them again to create this recipe: Spicy BBQ Carrot Sticks with Tofu Ranch Dip.

Ingredients:
1 Package crescent roll dough or other dough of your choice
1/2 Package Beyond Meat chicken strips
Breading:
1 Cup Almond Milk
1 Cup Chickpea flour (I'm not sure how it would work with other flour since this is the only one I tried)
Garlic Powder
Paprika
Spicy BBQ Sauce:
1/4 Cup Sriracha
3/4 Cup BBQ Sauce
1 Tablespoon starch - corn starch, arrowroot powder, etc.
Salt
Pepper
Tofu Blue Cheese:
1/2 block tofu
3 tablespoons Nutritional Yeast
Juice of Lemon Half
1 teaspoon Miso
1/2 teaspoon Tahini
1 teaspoon Marjoram
1 teaspoon Oregano
1 teaspoon Garlic Powder

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes

Servings: 24 bites

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Combine all the breading ingredients in a shallow bowl and mix together well. Slice the chicken strips into about 24 bite size pieces and coat in the batter. Place in a casserole dish or cookie sheet with parchment paper. Make sure that the batter doesn't run together (like mine did...) or else it will be hard to keep the batter on the chicken when you pick it up. Bake for 20 minutes.

While that is cooking, prepare the Spicy BBQ sauce by mixing all of those ingredients together in a shallow bowl.

Add all of the Tofu Blue Cheese ingredients to a food processor and blend them together. Add more marjoram to taste - it's what adds the most of the blue cheese flavor.

When the battered chicken strips have cooled, dip them in the Spicy BBQ sauce and put them back in the oven for another 5-8 minutes.

While that is cooking, roll out your dough and cut it into about 2x2 inch pieces. Divide the tofu blue cheese evenly among each of the bites. Once the chicken strips have cooled, divide them evenly among the bites. Put back in the oven for about 10 minutes.

Serve and enjoy!!

I submitted this recipe to the Virtual Vegan Linky Potluck

0 Comments

Loaded Nachos

1/22/2015

0 Comments

The other night Jay and I were starving and running errands after work at Target. I knew when I got home I would want to eat as quickly as possible and I didn't want to put too much effort into it, but I didn't know what I wanted to make. Then I saw a bag of tortillas and thought - Bam - that's it! I had a block of Teese vegan nacho cheese that I accidentally opened (I thought it was the mozzarella...) and needed to use. One of the best decisions ever. Jay loved both the cheese and sour cream substitutes. The cheese was buried under a lot of stuff so I'll have to make another recipe that allows you to taste the cheese more.

If you saw my post about Champ's Diner from last week then you know that I don't each nachos very frequently. I guess I was on a kick from my nachos last month and wanted some more! As usual, I went a little overboard on the portions and toppings and made a humongous amount of nachos. This recipe is great for sharing or for a night when you are beyond hungry (I do not recommend trying to eat this all by yourself... in one sitting). There is so much great protein in here! Beans! Quinoa! Tofu! Plus avocado - this one healthy (well except for the chips...) and filling pile of nachos!

Jay and I ate just about half of it for dinner. We were skeptical about how good leftover nachos could be but I couldn't part with my amazing creation, so into the fridge it went. I actually portions of heated it back up in the broiler and it was great!

Ingredients:
About 7oz. of Chips
1 15oz Can Black Beans
1 Block Teese Nacho Cheese
1 15 oz Jar Salsa
1/2 Cup Cooked Quinoa
1 Avocado
1/2 Block Tofu
1 Tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar or Lemon Juice

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Servings: 4 as a meal

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Spread chips out on a cookie sheet. Break apart the Teese nacho cheese and spread/sprinkle over the chips. Put in the oven for about 5 minutes. It just needs to be in long enough for the cheese to melt.

Drain and rinse beans. Add beans and quinoa to pan over medium heat and stir together so that the beans break down a bit and look kinda like re-fried beans.

Combine tofu and apple cider vinegar in a blender or food processor until smooth. Slice the avocado.

Layer the chips and melted cheese with the beans and quinoa mixture, tofu sour cream, salsa, and avocado.

0 Comments

Zucker's Bagels, New York City

1/21/2015

0 Comments

Last post from my trip to New York back in December! We were looking for a classic New York bagel shop and wanted to stop by Grand Central Station so went to the nearby Zucker's Bagels. It did not disappoint for the authentic New York bagel experience. One thing that I love about bagel shops in New York is that they all seem to have some sort of tofu spread. Zucker's had a couple to pick from. I went for the Organic Tofu No-Egg Salad and it was great. It was just like egg salad! I know tofu egg salad is nothing crazy spectacular to vegans, but I've actually never had it before. I've used tofu to make scrambled eggs (check out the recipe!) but not egg salad. It was great!

I'm not New York bagel connoisseur, but Zucker's were great. My sandwich was piled high with no-egg salad, tomato and lettuce. Look how great those tomato slices are! In December! It was awesome, and filling, and delicious. If you have a chance to make it to Zucker's while in New York I highly recommend it! Try one of their other tofu spreads and let me know how they are!

0 Comments

Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, Pittsburgh PA

1/21/2015

1 Comment

Back over Thanksgiving, while I was home in Pittsburgh, my mom and I went down to the Carnegie Museum of Art and walked over to Phipps Conservatory for lunch. Their menu is very refreshing for a cultural institution. It can sometimes be hard to find something healthy and interesting to eat a museum or other such institution, since the restaurant/cafeteria isn't the focus of the institution's mission, plus they typically have you trapped inside since you paid to get in!

I shouldn't have been surprised that Phipps had such a great menu - if you're going to find a healthy and sustainable menu somewhere, a botanical garden and conservatory would be it! It's great to see to see its spirit of conservatism extend into it's food offerings. Check out the great menu below! So many veggie options!

It's a great deal too! My mom and I split the Roasted Veggie Sandwich and the Tomato Basil soup. It was so great. I hadn't had tomato soup in so long, since most places normally add some sort of cream. The sandwich came with two sides so we got the cabbage slaw and the lentil and black bean salad. It was such a filling meal!

I love how much the recycle and compost too! These signs make it so easy to know where everything should go. I wish every restaurant had this set up! It's great knowing that I can count on Phipps for a great meal I can feel good about - I'm helping my body and the planet!

1 Comment

Chik'n and Veggie Macaroni and Cheese

1/19/2015

0 Comments

Yesterday I posted about Chik'n Alfredo Pizza and mentioned how the sauce that I made was double what I needed. I used the rest of the sauce to make this recipe. It was one of those nights where I needed to make something quick and just threw together what I had. That being said, the vegetables I used are totally interchangeable.

I'd just opened the Beyond Meat chicken so I wanted to keep on using it in case it went bad faster once it was open. It was a nice change of pace to the pasta dishes I've been eating recently and reminded me of the chicken and pasta stir fries that dominated so many of my dinners growing up. I've been really impressed at how long this one package of chicken is lasting. According to the package one serving is 6 strips, but I've only been using 6 strips per recipe, which makes it a much more economical option.

As you'll see below, it comes together really quickly. The timing really depends on what kind of vegetables you use and how soft you want them to be. The veggies and pasta cook at the same time, then you add the pasta and sauce to the veggies just to let the sauce heat up, and voila! You'll notice there aren't a lot of spices you add to this dish, because the sauce has so much flavor in it.

Ingredients:
1/2 Butternut Squash Cheese Sauce Recipe
1/3 Box of Bow Tie (or your favorite) Pasta
6 Strips of Beyond Meat chicken, sliced in thirds
1 Cup Kale
1/2 Cup Sliced Carrots
1/2 Cup Diced Onion

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Servings: 2 servings

Instructions:

Cook carrot and onions in a pan with a little bit of water until the carrots have softened a bit. You don't need to add any seasonings because the sauce is so flavorful.

Meanwhile cook the pasta according to the package directions. You'll want it a little al dente because the pasta will cook more with the veggies.

Chop up the kale and add it to the pan once the carrots and onions are just about done. Add the pasta and sauce to the pan with the veggies and stir all together. Cook until everything is warmed.

0 Comments

Chik'n Alfredo Pizza

1/19/2015

1 Comment

In high school my cross country team would go to Olive Garden for pre-race dinners most Friday nights. Chicken Alfredo Pizza was usually my go-to. It was so rich, creamy, and delicious, and with the amount of running I was doing I had no guilt as I downed the thousands of calories. Even if I still ate meat, there's no way that pizza can be good for you. This pizza is a lightened and way healthier version of that pizza and it lives up to the inspiration!

Like I mentioned in my post on Beyond Meat Tacos, I don't like to eat a lot of processed foods, but I wanted to give these Beyond Meat chicken strips a try, and I wanted to see what Jay thought about them. He was really impressed in both the texture and flavor and I think they were a great addition to the pizza. I'm going to try to make some other classic pizzas with chicken - like buffalo and barbeque. I made a buffalo "chicken" pizza last year using cauliflower as a substitute for the chicken and Jay wasn't a big fan of the texture.

I added the spinach, which isn't a normal feature of an Olive Garden Chicken Alfredo Pizza, to up the vegetable ante, and it fit right in (I always try to add as many veggies as possible). Adding the mozzarella is optional. Jay still isn't used to eating pizza without some sort of melty cheese item, so I added it. I think it added a lot of moisture. If you don't use the cheese I would add some slices of tomato or caramelized onions.

Ingredients:
Pizza Dough
1-2 Cups Spinach (or other cooking greens)
6 Strips Beyond Meat Grilled Chicken
1/2 Block of Teese Mozzarella (optional)
2 Small Cloves Garlic

Cheese Sauce:
1 Small Butternut Squash
2 Cloves Garlic
3 Tablespoons Nutritional Yeast
1/2 Large Onion
Ginger Powder
Onion Powder
Garlic Powder
1/4 teaspoon Pepper
1/2 teaspoon Sea Salt

Prep Time: 35 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Servings: 6 slices (I ate two at a time)

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Slice squash into quarter inch thick pieces and place on a baking sheet with parchment paper. Lightly oil the top of the squash, just enough so it doesn't get burnt (if you aren't using parchment paper then oil both sides of the squash). Sprinkle the squash with nutritional yeast (this is not where you use the full three tablespoons), ginger powder, garlic powder, and onion powder. Roast for 30 minutes. Let cool.

While the squash is cooking, prep your toppings and dough. Roll out the dough so that it will fit on your cookie sheet or pizza block. Thinly slice one of your garlic cloves and arrange the garlic slivers on top of the pizza dough. Spray the dough with cooking spray. Set dough aside.

Chop your spinach (or cooking greens) and wilt on the stove with a little bit of water - set aside. Slice chicken strips diagonally. You can cut most of the pieces into 3 smaller ones. If you have time you can slice the cheese as well.

Once the squash is soften and cooled, add it to a food processor or blender along with the rest of the cheese sauce ingredients. Blend until smooth.

While blending the cheese sauce, cook the pizza crust. Increase the temperature to 450 degrees. Put the dough in for about 3 minutes. Flip over and add the garlic slivers from your second clove. Put in the oven for another 3 minutes. You want the dough to be able to hold the toppings, but not be cooked to much.

Once the dough has cooled, spread the cheese sauce over the pizza crust. I only used about half of the sauce I made. I used the rest to make Chik'n and Veggie Macaroni and Cheese. Top the pizza with the spinach, chicken slices, a cheese. Cook for another 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the chicken is warm all the way through. Serve and enjoy!

1 Comment

Champs Diner, Brooklyn New York

1/18/2015

2 Comments

Jay and I were in New York at the end of December and made a point of stopping by Champs Diner in Brooklyn. An old friend of mine works here so it's been on my list for a long time. I typically get overwhelmed when I go to an all vegan restaurant, since I've become accustomed to only having an option or two on the menu to choose from. As you can see, I went a little overboard at Champs.

We started out with the loaded nachos. I haven't had nachos in the longest time, so I figured this was a great place to get my fix in! It's not too difficult to order vegan nachos at a restaurant - simply omit the cheese and sour cream and our left with tomatoes, avocado, beans, onions, etc. - most people aren't too thrilled at the idea of sharing a plate of nachos with no cheese on it. They were delicious. Great ratio of chips to toppings. Jay loved the cheese and sour cream. The sour cream was really thin and smooth, which is one of the main criteria Jay judges my sour cream substitutes on - great consistency. It was not readily apparent what you were eating was vegan - job well done.

Jay went for the grilled cheese. As you can see from the pictures. It was quite decadent. Look at that melty cheese goodness in the photo above! Jay absolutely loved it. It had that amazing quality of being so good you kept on eating it even though you swore you couldn't fit anything else in your stomach. You just couldn't imagine leaving any on your plate and you didn't want the taste to stop.

One of the things I liked about the menu was the ability to add toppings to your grilled cheese. As you can see, Jay went with tomatoes - other options included avocado or jalapenos.
Jay's comments - "it's awesome! So cheesey and melty!" That's high praise coming from a grilled cheese connoisseur.

I went for the Eggs Benedict, since they're something you can really only get if you go to an all vegan restaurant. They were awesome. I don't really know a lot about Hollandaise sauce, but this was great. It had a lemony twist to it, which helped offset the richness of the dish. The tofu eggs were thinly sliced and crispy, so they had a great consistency, although I was expecting more of an egg flavor. There wasn't anything to replicate yolk.

There were enough other things going on in the dish that you didn't miss it too much, but I had been expecting some yolk. I really liked whatever was used for the ham. Ham was one of my favorite breakfast meats before I went vegan, and I always looked forward to baked ham at Christmastime. Vegan ham isn't something you see too often, so I appreciated the thought and the execution!

Vanilla sundae with chocolate sauce and whipped cream may be my favorite dessert after a big meal. It's simple but delicious, with so many different flavors and textures. When I saw it on the menu I knew I had to have it even though it was getting late and we had to head back to Boston (I got it to go). The Brownie Sundae took me right back to my childhood. Everything in it was done perfectly - the whipped cream was light and fluffy, the ice cream was rich and smooth, the sauce was chocolatey, the brownie was moist on the inside with a great crust. The only change I would make about it is the ice cream to brownie ratio. There was way more brownie than ice cream, I would have preferred it to be more balanced.

One comment Jay had about the menu was the descriptions. The menu items were in large part described using non-vegan words. Jay's grilled cheese was said to be a cheddar-mozza mix, but clearly there was no cheddar or mozza in it. We were both very curious about what it was. Is it store bought vegan cheese? what kind? Did they develop it themselves? What is it made out of? Soy? Cashew? Rice? Almond? Tapioca? Same goes for the ham that came with my dish. It was simply described as ham. I've never seen vegan ham at a grocery store or found a recipe for it online, so I don't even know where to start in guessing what it was made out of. Take for instance the Buffalo Chik'n Sandwich - "spicy buffalo chik’n, greens, tomatoes, sautéed onions, ranch dressing on a hero" - what is it exactly? Tofu, seitan, tempeh, TVP? Is it Gardien or made in-house? I think one reason I decided to go with breakfast instead of lunch was that for many of the sandwiches I wasn't exactly sure of what I was getting.

I often hear many non-vegans comment on this - "You say your recipe is vegan cheese or vegan chicken or vegan meatballs, but what is it actually? Why don't you just call it what it is?" I think as vegans we tend to use non-vegan descriptions because we think that it will be easier for others to understand and relate to, but I think it might turn people off because they don't know what they're eating. Thoughts?

Overall we loved Champs Diner. It was tough making a decision on what to pick and there's a ton left of the menu we want to try. Jay said he would go back to New York to eat there again - I'd say that's high praise coming from a non-vegan!

2 Comments

Roasted Acorn Squash

1/17/2015

0 Comments

This recipe is inspired by one of my old roommates, for those nights when you want something warm, comforting, and healthy, but you don't want to put in too much effort. I made it the other day when I was working from home. I didn't have a whole ton of time to spend on prepping food, because I had to get work done, plus I didn't have many ingredients to work with. I had an acorn squash that had been sitting there for a while and I didn't quite know what to do with it. Then I remembered the countless roasted squash (I'm pretty sure the only thing she used the oven for) that my roommate used to make and inspiration struck!

This is recipe is about as easy as you can get. Slice the squash, scoop out the seeds, add some fat and sugar, and roast until soft. My roommate normally put butter on it, but I decided to use coconut oil. I don't generally have vegan butter on hand. I prefer to replace it with something less processed than fake butter.

This recipe hit the spot! Basically just vegetables with a little bit of decadence - perfect for a light lunch.

You could also serve it as a side dish to a larger meal.

Ingredients:
1 Acorn Squash
2 teaspoons Brown Sugar
2 Tablespoons Coconut Oil

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Slice acorn squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Spread one tablespoon of coconut oil over each half of the squash. Make sure to coat the squash evenly to prevent burnt spots. Sprinkle one tablespoon of brown sugar on each of the squash.

Roast for at least 40 minutes. Cooking time will vary based on the size of your squash. I saw many recipes that recommended roasting for at least an hour, but my squash were too small and were starting to burn after 40 minutes.
You should be able to eat the squash with just a fork when it's done.

Serve and enjoy!

0 Comments

<<Previous

Spicy BBQ Carrot Sticks with Tofu Ranch Dip

The Sidewalk Cafe, South Boston

Spicy BBQ Chik'n Bites

Loaded Nachos

Zucker's Bagels, New York City

Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, Pittsburgh PA

Chik'n and Veggie Macaroni and Cheese

Chik'n Alfredo Pizza

Champs Diner, Brooklyn New York

Roasted Acorn Squash

Author

Categories

Archives