Category: Beyond Meat

Spicy BBQ Chik'n Bites

1/22/2015

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

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Chik'n and Veggie Macaroni and Cheese

1/19/2015

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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.

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Chik'n Alfredo Pizza

1/19/2015

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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!

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Beyond Meat Tacos

1/12/2015

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I try to eat whole, unprocessed foods as much as possible, but I like to try a new vegan product at least once. I find it exciting when I see advancements in vegan food options and I think vegan meat alternatives are a great way to help those making the transition from omnivore to vegetarian or vegan diets.

These Beyond Meat beef crumbles are so close to the real thing its amazing. Plus they're so convenient. They come frozen and defrost so quickly. You just dump the frozen crumbles right into your saute pan with a little bit of water and they're quickly ready to go. As you'll see in the instructions below, this was a super quick dinner came together in a breeze. The longest part was chopping up the tomato and avocado and putting everything in little bowls!

Cashew sour cream is a great alternative for those trying to avoid soy or if you just don't have any tofu in the house. That's how I found myself the other night, so I decided to whip up some cashew sour cream. Jay loves cashew sour cream more than regular, although tofu sour cream is his favorite, since it's naturally creamier. When I make cashew sour cream I make sure so blend it for as long as possible so that it gets creamier, since it can tend to have more of a grainy texture. Soaking the cashews beforehand can help with this, but I didn't have any time - the crumbles cooked so quickly and we were hungry!

Ingredients:
1 Package Beyond Meat Frozen Beef Crumbles
6 Taco Tortillas (I used La Nina Tortillas)
1 Packet Taco Seasoning (I used Ortega 40% Less Sodium)

Toppings:
1 Avocado
4 oz Cherry Tomatoes
Spinach or other green

Cashew Sour Cream:
1/2 Cup Cashews
1/3 Cup Water
1 Tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Servings: 6 tacos

Instructions:
Slice the avocado and tomato.

Cook frozen Beyond Meat Crumbles on the stove with a little bit of water until it is no longer frozen. Add the taco seasoning a stir until well combined.

Add the cashews, water, and lemon juice to a food processor and blend until smooth.

Heat a second pan over the stove. Place a tortilla on the pan for about a minute, or until crispy, then flip to the other side and repeat.

Tear the spinach and place it on the tortilla, add a quarter cup of taco mix, sour cream, avocado, and tomato. Enjoy!

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Spicy BBQ Chik'n Bites

Chik'n and Veggie Macaroni and Cheese

Chik'n Alfredo Pizza

Beyond Meat Tacos

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