Hope everyone had a great Labor Day weekend. We went on a picnic to the beach and I packed these great sandwiches. They are super easy to make and you can customize them to your preference. Most people like to use celery in these salads, but I'm not a huge fan of celery so I used green onions instead. I had carrots and red pepper on hand so I through them in. You can add whatever crunchy vegetables you like. 

In addition to making great picnics, this sandwich is also great to pack for lunches as school or work. Make sure that you put a layer of greens between the tomatoes and the bread so that your bread doesn't get soggy during the day. 

Let me know how you like it and what your favorite sandwich toppings are! 

Instructions: 

Drain and Rinse chickpeas. Slice green onions up until they start turning dark green. Chop carrots and red peppers to be roughly the same size of the chickpeas and green onions so that they'll all process the same way in the food processor. Add chickpeas, red pepper, green onions, carrot, dill, and sour cream to a food processor and process until it is the consistency of chicken or tuna salad (or the consistency you prefer). 

Cut the baguette in half and then slice open in the middle. Layer the hummus, greens and slices of tomato, cucumber, and avocado on one side of the sandwich. Add the chickpea salad to the other side and fold in half. 

Serve and enjoy!

I've been on a Thai Curry kick recently. There's something about the combination of the spicy broth and coconut cream that I love. When you take a bite its so spicy and intense, and then the coconut sweetness comes in just enough for your mouth to recover before the next bite.  Plus, with all the veggies I always feel good about ordering it for delivery. 

I wanted to try cooking it for myself, for the challenge of trying something new, but also so that I could have it more frequently and not have to pay for delivery! Surprisingly, it was a lot easier than I thought! I found a lot of great resources on the website, Rachel Cooks Thai, and was able to come up with a great recipe.

One of the main differences I made was using two cans of coconut milk instead of one. Rachel talks about customizing the balance of coconut milk to water based on your own preferences. I made an earlier batch with only one can of milk and more water and I really didn't feel like I could taste the coconut flavor at all. 

Like I mentioned, its a pretty simple recipe to make - heat the coconut milk, add in your curry paste, add more liquid and your chopped veggies, simmer until veggies are soft and the flavors have marinated! 

Let me know what you think! What's your favorite kind of curry? 

Instructions:

Combine the rice and water in a pan. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer for 35-40 minutes or until the water is absorbed. 

Chop all of the veggies and tofu into cubes. Press the excess water out of the tofu. Fry the tofu in a skillet or non-stick pan with turmeric until all sides are crispy. 

Open the two cans of coconut milk and scoop out the solid cream part at the top and put into a pan over medium heat. Stir until the cream has liquefied and begins to bubble. Add the curry paste and again stir to combine. 

Pour the remaining coconut milk into the pan. Add your veggies and tofu and one cup of water. You can add more water depending on how thick you like your curry broth. 

Cook until the veggies are soft and ready to eat. 

​Serve the rice and veggies in two separate bowls. As you are eating add the rice into the veggie bowl to soak up the broth and mix with the veggies - enjoy!

We spent the 4th of July weekend with some friends up in Maine. It was a great weekend getting out into nature and hanging out with friends. There were 10 of us and rest of the group was getting eggs and bacon to have for the breakfasts. Since that would take up a lot of space on the stove, I looked for something that didn't need the stove and didn't add too many cooks in the kitchen all at once, plus it had to be delicious and tempting to all the meat eaters. I decided to make a quiche - I could make it ahead of time and just heat it up in the oven, it was self-contained to one dish, and it was delicious and shareable.

I made the dish the night before we left and it was pretty simple. I chopped up all the veggies and sauteed them on the stove to cook the liquid out. Making the filling is as easy as blending together tofu, non-dairy milk, and spices. I used puff pastry as the dough since that was all I could find last minute. I would recommend a couple other crusts I've used before. The puff pastry did the trick but it was super flaky and messy after it was cooked.

The quiche was a big hit with the group. While they had eggs, bacon, and sausage it eat, everyone went back for seconds on my quiche. After breakfast the first morning there was just enough left for me to eat for breakfast the next day - no more sharing! I'm so glad I decided to make this, it's a great recipe to have in my back pocket and you can put whatever veggies you have on hand. I used kale, onions, mushrooms, and sun dried tomatoes, but some other great options would be broccoli, peppers, eggplant, squash, the list goes on.

Instructions:
If using a frozen crust (like my puff pastry was) make sure it is defrosted. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Chop your veggies and saute them over medium heat. I started with the onions and let them sweat a bit, them added the sun dried tomatoes, mushrooms, and kale. In total you should be sauteing for about 10-15 minutes.

Combine the tofu, non-dairy milk, nutritional yeast, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and Vegg in a food processor and blend until smooth. You can adjust the seasonings to taste.

Turn off the heat on the veggies and add in the tofu filling. Mix until well combined.

Add the puff pastry to a nine-inch pie pan. Pour the filling into the pan. Put in the oven and bake for 50 minutes.

Let cool. Serve and enjoy!

Get ready to see a lot of taco recipes! I've been eating them a lot recently. They're so versatile - almost a mix between a stir fry and a sandwich. You can cook up almost whatever combo you'd like - just throw together whatever you have in your fridge, stick it between some tortillas, and voila - you have dinner! Depending on how much chopping you have to do and what kind of vegetables you're cooking the whole thing takes 10-20 minutes!

Also, you can really play around and have fun with the flavors, combining different cuisines so that it doesn't feel like you're eating the same thing all the time. This recipe has pretty standard Mexican and South American flavors, but in later recipes I post you'll see that you can put pretty much anything in a taco. I like the combination of potatoes and beans for a couple reasons. They both substantial enough to give you something to bite into and leave you feeling full and satisfied. The sweet potato adds a lot of flavor on its own, so you really don't need to add many additional spices. And of course, they're both full of nutrition - protein, potassium, fiber, iron, vitamin A, vitamin C - they're a winning combo!

Instructions:
Add a small amount of water to a medium-sized skillet on medium heat, just enough to coat the bottom of the pan. Add the chopped sweet potatoes and stir them around a bit to make sure they don't stick to the pan. Cook the potatoes for about 5 minutes. You'll need to add more water, a little bit at a time, to make sure they don't stick. Only add enough to keep the potatoes off the bottom of the pan, you don't want the potatoes to be swimming in the water otherwise you'll be boiling them and they won't get any sort of a crisp to them. When the potatoes are almost to the desired amount of softness, add the beans, cumin, paprika, and chili powder. Continue to add water and stir until the potatoes reach your desired softness and the beans are warm.

If you feel like you can take your eyes of the potatoes (you should be able to), then you can make the sour cream while they're cooking. Or, you can turn the potato and bean mixture to low once they're done and make the sour cream then. Break up the tofu a bit and put it in a food processor. You don't need to break it up that much, it just helps mix together better to spread it around the food processor since you aren't adding that many ingredients. Add the apple cider vinegar or lemon juice and blend together. If you would like the sour cream to be more liquidy you can add more vinegar/juice or just water.

I keep my tortillas in the freezer. Right before I'm ready to eat my tacos I place the tortilla on a small pan on high heat - about a 7 or 8 out of 10 - for a couple seconds. Since they still have some moisture from being frozen they don't burn. Watch it until it starts to look dry on the bottom and then flip it over and quickly warm it on the other side. The whole process shouldn't take more than a few seconds.

Top your tacos with the potato and bean mixture, the sour cream, some salsa and greens and anything else you would like to add. Enjoy!

I had some of the best tofu ever when eating out the other day - the firmness and texture were amazing. It was hard to tell that I was eating tofu (they had even sliced the tofu on an angle so that it looked like chicken breast). I asked the waiter how it was prepared and he told me that the chef pressed, seared, and baked the tofu. I had to try to recreate it! It turned out great and was not difficult to make. If you have a cast iron skillet (or other oven-safe pan) you can use the same pan from the stove right into the oven and would probably be ideal.

As I have all winter - I had some carrots on hand and some butternut squash that I had shredded and froze. I added some cooking greens and mushrooms. Feel free to use whatever vegetables you have on hand. Make sure to chop them to approximately the same size so that they all cook for the same amount of time.

I made mine for lunch, so I divided everything into four portions to bring into work with me.

Instructions:
Press your tofu for about 5 to 10 minutes. Slice in fours. Sear tofu for 5 minutes on each side on high heat with a little bit of water or oil. Sprinkle turmeric and ginger on each side. Cook in oven at 400 degrees for 20 minutes, flipping halfway.

While the tofu is cooking - chop and saute the vegetables with water over medium heat. Start with the carrots and squash. Once again, add a generous coating of turmeric and ginger and stir in to cover all the veggies. When they are soft add the greens and mushrooms and cook until the greens are wilted. I generally need to add the greens a little at a time and let them wilt down until I have room for some more.

Serve the veggies over quinoa and top with a slice of tofu. Top with sriracha, if desired. Enjoy!

Another breakfast sandwich! This is a protein-packed breakfast sandwich with both beans and tofu, plus a ton of greens and whole wheat bread. Look at all those different colors too! If you're trying to add some variety into you diet this sandwich is for you - there's a wide variety of nutrients in this sandwich! In my typical fashion there's a ton of stuff loaded on this sandwich, which makes it a little messy to eat. The thinner you slice your potatoes the better they'll fit on the sandwich.

I was trying to find some oil alternatives to use when cooking my veggies, plus a seasoning for the tofu, so I went with the Alex's Ugly Sauce hot sauce I had in my fridge. It did a great job on both ends but unsurprisingly I ended up with a pretty spicy sandwich! I like combining spicy flavors with tofu because the tofu adds a cool and refreshing texture that helps to temper the spiciness. The Vegg powder adds complexity to the flavor of the tofu, helping to counter-balance the spice and add an egg-like feel.

Instructions:
Slice the tofu in half longways and press. Slice onion and sweet potato into thin slices. Heat onion and sweet potato on medium heat with a little bit of water, 1 teaspoon cumin, and 1 teaspoon of hot sauce for about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, place the black beans on one of your slices of bread and mush/spread into the bread using a fork. It's best to add a little bit at a time so that you have room on the bread. Top with some sriracha if you would like (it's a pretty spicy sandwich).

Add the tofu to you pan with the onion and sweet potato. Add the second teaspoon of hot sauce and half of the tumeric, cumin, and Vegg powder. Once the tofu gets a nice crispiness on the bottom, flip the slices over. Sprinkle the second half of the cumin, tumeric, and Vegg powder. Let the other side get crispy and then flip once more.

This is where you have to use all of your coordination skills. Make some room on your pan to add your slice of bread with the black beans on it (make sure there's a little bit of liquid under the bread so it doesn't burn - you can add some cooking spray or a bit of oil if you would like. Add the salad greens. Add the two slices of tofu next to each other. Add the potato slices and onion. Try to spread the potato slices out to make them flat on the sandwich. Top with the other slice of bread.

Once the bottom slice is toasted flip the sandwich over. You may have to use two hands so be careful not to burn yourself.

Slice in half and enjoy!

I make a lot of Asian stir fries with tofu, but I had a lot of local seasonal vegetables, so I wanted to put a different spin on things. I still used a lot of Asian flavors with ginger and sriracha, but I used some different cooking methods and ingredients.
I love roasting squash - it really brings out the flavors and adds a nice sweetness. In this recipe I used delicata squash, which I think is the easiest squash to cook with. It's generally smaller and has a softer skin so it's easier to cut open and you don't have to worry about peeling it. Since I was roasting the squash I thought I would try roasting the tofu as well. Many people don't like tofu because of the texture, but changing up the cooking method (as well as pressing the liquid out of it) has a big impact on the texture. Roasting or baking tofu makes it firmer and dryer and gets rid of the mushy texture that many people don't like about tofu.

I hadn't had any quinoa in a while, so I decided to use quinoa instead of rice. I had purple carrots, so I sauteed those on those stove by themselves. First because I didn't have any more room in the oven, but also because I've learned that purple carrots turn everything else they're cooked with purple, so I needed to isolate them.
This dish has a lot of pieces cooked separately, but they all fit together well. There's a great mix of textures with the fluffy quinoa, soft squash, spongy tofu, and crunchy carrots and pepitas.

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. 
Slice cube and press your tofu. Slice the squash in half. Scoop out the seeds inside and slice into 1/4 inch thick slices. Place the tofu and squash on a parchment paper lined baking sheet, sprinkle with turmeric, ginger, and paprika and roast for about 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, prepare your quinoa. Add quinoa and 1 cup water to a sauce pan. Bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for about 20 minutes or until the water has evaporated. 
Slice carrots and saute on over medium heat for about ten minutes. Remove from the pan and add the pepitas, cooking for about 5 minutes.
All of your items should finish cooking around the same time. Divide the quinoa, tofu, squash and carrots evenly among four plates. Top with the pepitas and any sauce you would like - I used sriracha. Serve and enjoy!

Jay's go-to breakfast choice when we go to brunch is a breakfast sandwich - typically bacon, egg, and cheese - so I like to show him how easy it is to make them at home, and how delicious a vegan breakfast sandwich is! This sandwich has it all - great bread, crunchy tempeh, soft tofu eggs, and melty cheese, plus whatever else you like to add! I'm always a fan of a nice juicy tomato on my sandwich, but it's tough to find a good tomato in New England in January!

I use tempeh to act as my bacon-like item. Depending on how you like your bacon, you can slice your tempeh thinner or thicker. Thin tempeh will make for a nice crunchy, bacony texture. Since I'm not really a huge fan of bacon in the first place, I sliced mine a little thicker. Similarly, you can season your tempeh however you would like. Worcester sauce and soy sauce work great for a nice salty, meaty flavor. I've never purchased liquid smoke, but it's a popular choice for replicating the bacon flavor. Maple syrup works great too - especially if you're making a breakfast dish. I added some Montreal seasoning as well, since Jay likes it so much.

This sandwich comes together really quickly, as there isn't much to cook. You just need to toast your bread and heat up the tofu and tempeh. It all depends on how thick/crispy you want the tempeh to be. It's also a very hearty and filling meal. Just the tempeh and tofu alone are great sources of protein that will stick to your bones and keep you full all morning. Add some veggies on top and you've got a complete meal!

I used Chao vegan cheese from Field Roast on this sandwich. It was the first time I've tried this type of cheese. I've been hearing great things about it but it took me a while to find some in the store. It was really expensive and you don't get a whole lot in the package.  I do have to say though, that the texture of it is great - looking at and tasting the melted cheese you couldn't tell that it wasn't vegan. I got the Coconut Herb varitey, vwhich was very mild in flavor. I think this gives it an edge over other cheese that have a strong flavor that tastes fake.

Instructions:

You can make this dish either using two small saute pans or one large one. If you use one large pan (like I did) separate the tofu and tempeh to opposite sides of the pan.

Crumble the tofu and place in your pan over medium heat. Add the Vegg vegan egg yolk and mix it in well with the tofu. Adding a little water can help with the mixing process, if needed. If you are using only one pan, be careful not to add to much water that it bleeds over to the tempeh side. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Slice the tempeh and add it to the pan with a little bit of water or oil. Sprinkle the vegan Worcester sauce over it. Let it sear for about 2 minutes and then flip it over. If you would like, add some more Worcester sauce or steak seasoning. Jay likes Montreal seasoning, so I used that.

Once the tofu is well mixed and the tempeh has a nice crunchiness to it, add both to your toast and top with whatever toppings you would like - tomato, avocado, greens, vegan cheese, etc. You can melt the cheese by leaving the sandwich on the pan with a lid on - just make sure you don't melt the bottom.

I topped mine with greens and Chao vegan cheese.

Enjoy!

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.

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