Calzone!

Spinach and tofu calzone from Vegan Planet. Added some Yves "pepperoni" and vegan mozzarela instead of the additional silken tofu it called for. Very yummy!

Italian Take Out

I ordered some Italian from a restaurant down the street, and added my own touch. I reconstituted some Textured Vegetable Protein with Italian seasonings, added it to my angel hair with mushroom marinara, and topped the whole thing with some Vegan parm. A great way to "beef up" my pasta (I need to think of a new phrase here).

Noodles

One of my favorite vegan restaurants, Wheel of Life, has a really fabulous glass noodle dish that I've been wanting to recreate. They use some kind of chicken substitue, but I used my new favorite way to cook tofu instead. I freeze and thaw some firm tofu. Then, I let the spongy texture absorb a diluted soy sauce and squeeze it out a bit. After that, I lightly fry the tofu in some peanut and grapeseed oil (I know...fried is bad, but I think that as a vegan, I don't really get that much fat in my diet...definitely much less than the average American...so I don't worry about doing this from time to time). When it's finished cooking, I take the pieces out and let them drain on a paper towel (to remove excess oil) The result is a seriously amazing little nugget that is just the slightest bit salty.

When the tofu is done, I reconstitute the bean thread noodles by letting them sit in hot water. As the noodles sit, I prepare the rest of the dish by re-using a bit of the oil that I fried the tofu in, and then quickly cooking the onions on a high heat. I add baby bok choy, and some more of my mung bean sprouts and let that cook a bit on a lowered heat. Then I drain the noodles and add it into the veggies along with some soy sauce and a touch of agave nectar. I put the tofu back in and that's it! Pretty simple and seriously tasty. My only issue with this is that I used yellow onions, and they turned out a bit sweeter than I would have liked for this dish. I will try this again with white onions and see if it makes a difference.

French Toast!

I love having breakfast for dinner. I had some stale bread to use up, and a recipe from VWAV I wanted to try. I haven't made French Toast since I went eggless, and this is absolutely just as good (if not better) than traditional French Toast. I deviated from the recipe by adding vanilla extract, cinnamon, and nutmeg to the dredging liquid. (I'm honestly surprised that it wasn't already included) Yum!

Spring Rolls

I made these with rice paper, home-grown mung bean sprouts, yummy FM Thai basil, carrots, cucumber, tofu, and napa cabbage. The peanut sauce on the side came from Vegan Planet, and it turned out great. I made these for a pot luck later in the week and they were a hit! Don't try this without the Thai basil...it just won't be the same without it!

Indonesian Rice

This is Indonesian rice with tempeh from Vegan Planet. It was pretty good, but a bit too bland for my tastes. The greens on the side were a random purchase from the Farmer's Market. I wasn't sure what they were, but I later looked them up and learned that they were amaranth greens (also called "Chinese Spinach"). Probably related to the grain? It tasted kind of like a cross between beets and spinach.

I'm Stuffed!

Made a stuffed pizza with a filling of vegan mozzarella cheese, mushrooms, olives, spinach and arugula. Homemade tomato sauce with vegan parm on top. Very tasty!

Caesar Salad

Whipped up a Caesar Salad with roasted garlic croutons from Vcon and added some marinated tofu (Italian-seasoned) for protein. I also threw in some home-grown alfalfa sprouts.

Lentils and veggies

Tamarind lentils from Vcon with chard, brown basmati rice, and fava beans cooked with shallots.

Pasta with Tempeh and Broccoli Rabe

This recipe is from Vcon and it is seriously tasty. The blurb before the recipe says that the testers found it to be a great balance between pasta, greens and protein. I'm very much inclined to agree here!

Movie Night!

It was a Friday evening after a rough week, and I wanted to veg. So I made a yummy queso dip using sauteed garlic, jalapenos, salsa, and vegan cream cheese. It's probably the best tasting vegan cheese dip I've had so far. I also had some Amy's refried beans as a dip. I was craving pizza rolls, but I've yet to find a vegan version, so I had to make do with Amy's soy cheese pizza on the rice crust. It was ok, but not worth the $6.00 that the tiny pizza cost! I also popped some popcorn on the stove (no bagged stuff for me!). What a great dinner. :)

S'more Cake

Check out this yummy, gooey S'more cake using Suzanne's Ricemellow cream. Love it!

Pasta on the Fly

I was craving mushroom marinara with angel hair that an Italian restaurant in town makes. Unfortunately, the place was closed! I decided to whip some up myself and it definitely satisfied my craving.

Green Tea Cupcakes

I made these for a coworker's birthday. From Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World. The recipe calls for marzipan flowers on top, but I just used almond slivers instead.

Fajitas

Seitan, bell pepper, and onion fajitas with homemade salsa, avocado, vegan sour cream and vegan cheese. The tortilla is something I picked up at Whole Foods called "Mountain Bread." I liked it.