vegan cooking

PROBLEM: An overabundance of random vegetables in the refrigerator and a very empty stomach.

HYPOTHESIS: Combining said veggies with spices and dressings and encasing products in a flatbread wrap will lead to yumminess and satisfaction.

MATERIALS:

1 cucumber
1/2 medium red bell pepper
2-3 stalks of celery
1/2 medium onion (hey, how about the half left over from the artichoke recipe? GENIUS!)
1/2 ripe avocado
1 dill pickle
fresh spinach leaves
veggie lunch meat of your choice (Tofurky Deli Slices are quite suitable, other brands work as well.)
2 tbs yellow or deli mustard
1/3 cup Vegenaise
1 1/2 tsp dill
1 tbs garlic powder
1 tsp seasoned salt
dash apple cider vinegar
tortillas (whole wheat, sprouted wheat, and brown rice varieties are all acceptable)
vegan cheese slices

PROCEDURE:

Chop all vegetables (and fruits, for accuracy’s sake) and pickle into medium-small pieces and place in a medium bowl. Add vegenaise, mustard, spices, and vinegar and combine well. Adjust seasoning to taste. Practice lab safety measures at all times.

Spread filling on flatbread/wrap of your choice, lined with spinach leaves, veggie deli slices and vegan cheese slices. Consume with vegetable root chips.

DATA:

Upon combination, vegetables and spices take on an enticing aroma, however, appear less than appetizing. Researchers are doubtful of its level of numminess.

CONCLUSION: Despite fears of brutal breath, researchers partook in wrap consumption and were highly pleased with results. The cool and crisp filling proved satisfying yet light enough to be a perfect summertime dish. Researchers hypothesized that the products could be formed with many different reactants, and that variation of the formula could be very beneficial. Possible materials include curry powder, jalepenos, lime juice and rind, diced and steamed tempeh, sprouts, hummus, vegan cream cheese, and much more. Researchers feel confident concluding that this recipe, er, experiment’s results are easily repeatable and will be greatly appreciated in the scientific community.

when you hear “collard greens,” i bet the first thing that comes to mind is the traditional southern side of cooked-to-death bitter green lifeless mush that’s been boiled with a smoked ham hock for hours. grossss. the scent of collards always makes my atlanta-born boyfriend salivate, but it makes me dry heave. i guess it’s a southern thing. collard greens are a pretty ancient member of the cabbage family - they sort of look prehistoric, don’t they? they’re such nutritional powerhouses that i couldn’t resist trying to dress them up a little for my own purposes. Simply Vegan, a great book, has a recipe for collards and tomatoes - but i was disappointed. it was sort of bland. so after a little tinkering, i came up with this, and now i make it all the time. the southern man was actually a big fan of this recipe - he even said he liked it almost as much as regular collards. wow.

1 bunch collard greens (look for full, dark leaves without wilting or yellowing)
3 large ripe tomatoes OR 1 can diced tomatoes (any kind - try to go for no salt added. muir glen makes some fire-roasted diced tomatoes that are fantastic in this dish)
1 can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
5-10 leaves fresh basil
1 tsp rosemary
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp oregano
4-6 cloves garlic
1/2 medium onion
4 tbs extra virgin olive oil
2 tbs vinegar (any kind - balsamic, apple cider, etc. i use sherry vinegar because i have it around.)
Bragg’s Liquid Aminos
Nutritional Yeast

to prepare the collards, give them a good rinse and then carefully remove the stalk. you can rip it out, but cutting it is a lot easier. don’t worry, you don’t lose too many nutrients here, but you do take out a lot of the bitterness. that’s a good thing! besides, you couldn’t digest that much cellulose unless you were a cow on Beano.

chop the collards into bite-size (think a piece of romaine in a salad) pieces, soak and rinse well. make sure you dry them thoroughly.

dice the onions and mince the garlic, and saute in the olive oil over medium heat. when sweated, add basil, spices, and collards and let cook until the greens begin to wilt slightly. it may seem like a lot at first, but it’ll cook down considerably.

when the collards have wilted (you may want to add more olive oil at this point), add the tomatoes and garbanzos. you’ll want the tomatoes to cook just until their skins begin to pucker. stir often to get the garbanzos heated throughout.

and that’s it! serve warm, heavily doused in Bragg’s Liquid Aminos and sprinkled with nutritional yeast. anything crunchy is good on this, too - roasted garlic crumbles, dehydrated veggies, veggie bacon bits, etc. shown here with cheesy garlic bread.

this makes great leftovers and is a very unexpected side without the garbanzos, but the addition of the beans makes it a great meal. enjoy!

if you’re like me, you love artichokes. and if you’re really like me, you’re accident-prone. if you are me, you once tried to take an online quiz for a class while steaming an artichoke on the stove and didn’t notice the flames reaching up the side of your best steel pot and potholder until your boyfriend ran downstairs yelling, what’s that smell? then you both looked in the kitchen and screamed, then he grabbed said potholder and tossed it outside, then poured water on it. then laughed at you about it for about a week. i wish i was making this up.

anyway, i love artichokes in pretty much any form, so i’m a big fan of TJ’s Artichoke Antipasto.

i’ve constructed a really ridiculously easy dish with this sauce and tempeh that makes a great main dish or even a yummy side. it’s good cold, too!

you’ll need:
1 jar of artichoke antipasto
1 package of tempeh (any brand will do)
1/2 medium onion
4 cloves garlic
6-10 leaves fresh basil, rinsed and roughly chopped
3-4 tbs extra virgin olive oil
cooked pasta of your choice (i prefer the whole wheat rotelle. you really only need to cook half the package, because it makes what i call “pasta for days.” )

chop your onion and garlic to a medium dice. cube the tempeh, then cut those cubes in half to make it go a little farther.

it’s important to have good help in the kitchen.

in a large saute pan, heat the oil to medium and add garlic and onions. carefully “sweat” them until juicy and aromatic, but not burned. adding a dash of kosher salt can help this process. when they look good and ready, add the tempeh and basil and saute until lightly browned, stirring occasionally. keep the heat on the low side here so you don’t burn the garlic and onion! meanwhile, cook your pasta in a large pot.

when your tempeh’s good and browned, turn the heat down to low and add the artichoke antipasto. at this point you really just need to get it heated throughout, so again be careful not to burn anything.

when your pasta’s done, drain it and return it to the pot. add your tempeh and antipasto and stir together. that’s it! it might not look pretty, but trust me, it’s delish.

i love having this dish with a little bit of roasted garlic crumbles on top, and heavily doused with Bragg’s Liquid Aminos (available at most health food stores).

it’s so easy to make, and makes leftovers for at least a day or two. like i said, it’s good cold as well, so it’s a great next-day lunch. enjoy!

my favorite mexican restaurant is Sharky’s, because not only do they have organic rice and beans, but they serve up some mean marinated grilled tofu. i get their fajita bowl (occaisonally the tacos, sometimes the burrito if i feel like being a hog) several times a month. it’s probably the only “fast” food place i frequent. but it’s not cheap! i figured i’d give it a shot on my own. i had recently received a grill pan (from ikea - $15! seriously, get one. cast iron and not “seasoned.”) and thought it’d be a good recipe to try out on it. i was right - i make this all the time now. i’m sure you can make this using any old pan, or even in a vegetable basket on a regular grill.

ingredients:

1 package of extra firm organic tofu (the super firm high-protein one in the deli case at TJ’s works great)
1 container of TJ’s Chimichurri Sauce
or
1 bunch cilantro
4 tbs olive oil
4 cloves garlic (to taste - i love garlic so i use a ton. get used to it), minced
lime juice
1/4 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp cumin
dash kosher salt
hot sauce to taste
cayenne pepper to taste

1 package TJ’s Fajita Vegetable Blend
or
2 red or green bell peppers
1 medium onion

cube the tofu into 1″ or so pieces and place in a ziplock bag. add chimichurri sauce, or chop about half the bunch of cilantro and place in the bag with the garlic, oil, lime juice and spices. seal the bag and let this marinate in the ‘fridge for at least an hour or so.

when you’re ready to cook, heat the grill pan to medium-high and empty the contents of the bag into the pan. let the tofu cook for just a few minutes, stirring occasionally. then add the fajita vegetables - or chop the peppers and onion into long, thin slices and add them. from there it’s just watching the tofu to make sure it’s browned enough. when you’ve got good grill lines going, you’re set.

i also used my leftover garlic and cilantro to make pico de gallo - a fresh topping like salsa, but more chunky and with less heat. just add chopped tomatoes, lime juice, and green chiles. however, sometimes i’ll add a (de-seeded) habanero or serrrano pepper because i’m insane and like lots of heat.

to mix it up, try adding a splash of tequila and triple sec to the marinade, as well as the hot sauce of your choice to really set your stomach on fire. if you’re like me, you enjoy sweating and crying while you eat and think that the inevitable pain is worth it. my hot sauce of choice is Burn Baby Burn. love it!

serve with beans, pico de gallo and guacamole (avocado’s number is a fave at our place) and whole wheat tortillas. delish!

hello to any and all. this is a new blog i’m starting, in which i will write various ramblings on vegan cooking in general! my original intent is to focus on recipes using products available at trader joe’s, but i’m sure i’ll post other things as well. anyway, stay tuned - great things are in store.