Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Vegan MoFo #20 Stuffed Mushrooms

                              Easy Dishes Made From Refrigerator and Pantry Staples.

Today is the last day of Vegan MoFo. It went by so fast! I had a lot of fun! It was great getting back into the rhythm of blogging and it really helped me get back to focusing on my health. I'm looking forward to keeping it up!

For my last MoFo post I made stuffed mushrooms. Why? Because it just sounded good. :)

First I cleaned 1 package of mushrooms and pulled out their stems.
 
For the stuffing I chopped and minced some white onion, red bell pepper, celery, garlic cloves and the stems from the mushrooms. I added some season salt, black pepper, dried parsley and panko. To moisten the stuffing I added a little bit of apple cider vinegar and veggie broth.

I then stuffed the mushrooms and baked them at 350 for about 20 min. I had a lot of stuffing leftover so I stuffed 1 and a half red bell peppers with it. The peppers needed about 10 more min. in the oven.

I love mushrooms and stuffed mushrooms are one of my favorite ways to eat them. There is also a bonus for making them in my house - my husband doesn't like mushrooms - which means, I don't have to share. :) But don't worry I always make him something he does like. So it's a win win.

Happy Eating!!



   “The world is round and the place which may seem like the end may also be the  beginning“. - Ivy Baker Priest
 


 

Saturday, September 27, 2014

Vegan MoFo #19 Mushroom Stroganoff

                               Easy Dishes Made From Refrigerator and Pantry Staples.

For weeks I have been craving stroganoff. I finally decided to make it the other day.

I didn't write down what I was doing as I was doing it but I basically sauteed an onion, added some button and crimini mushrooms. I let them go for awhile then added some flour. Once that cooked for a little bit I added (unsweetened) almond milk, some veggie broth and a little bit of balsamic vinegar. For seasoning I added salt, pepper, garlic powder and some onion powder. Once it was thick I tossed in some cooked pasta and after it was plated I sprinkled on some dried parsley.

It was really yummy but I didn't make enough sauce for all of the pasta I used. Oh well, next time I'll know better. :)

Happy Eating!!


"Better a diamond with a flaw than a pebble without one." - Chinese Proverb

Friday, September 26, 2014

Vegan MoFo #18 Mexican Street Corn

                             Easy Dishes Made From Refrigerator and Pantry Staples.

After looking in the fridge, to see what produce I had on hand to make dinner, I pulled out a head of cauliflower, romaine lettuce and corn on the cob.

It was easy to decide what to do with the lettuce.... grilled salad of course!

The cauliflower was simple as well, throw some BBQ sauce on it and roast it in the oven.

For the corn, I wanted to try something a little different. Usually I just boil it, slather on some Earth Balance add some salt and pepper and I'm good to go. Since my grill pan was already out for the salad I thought this was the perfect time to try Mexican Street Corn. I've been seeing it all over the place and it's about time I try it!

While the corn was on the grill, I mixed up some seasoned Vegenaise. In a bowl I mixed together about 1/2 a cup of Vegenaise with 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 1/2 tsp onion powder, 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper and some salt and black pepper. Once the corn was done I smeared the seasoned Vegenaise on it, loaded my plate with BBQ cauliflower and salad and sat down for dinner. Just before eating the corn I squeezed a wedge of lime over it.

I didn't have high expectations for the corn. I don't know why, I just thought it wouldn't be something I would enjoy. I was completely wrong. I loved it! I especially loved the lime juice, It really brightens up the corn. 

Happy Eating!!



"We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths." - Walt Disney  

Thursday, September 25, 2014

Vegan MoFo #17 Quick Salsa

                              Easy Dishes Made From Refrigerator and Pantry Staples.

A few days ago, when I was at the store, I bought tortilla chips but I forgot to get my husband his salsa.

The other night after dinner he was still in a munchy mood. I was in the kitchen cleaning up and he walked in and started pulling out cans from the pantry and dumping them in a bowl. 

"What are you doing?" I asked

"Making salsa." He replied

I watched as he continued, he grabbed the leftover red & orange bell peppers plus the onions that I had prepped for my vegan nachos  and then spices.

After he was done we both tried it and it was really tasty! I even think it would be good heated up as a chili. 

As he was dishing himself a bowl full, he turned to me and said "Hey! You could blog about this, this is vegan!" So here it is, my husbands Quick Salsa.

James' Quick Salsa

1 can diced tomatoes with chilies
1 can black beans
1 can cannellini beans
1 small can diced green chilies
a handful of diced onions
a handful of diced bell peppers 
1 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp garlic powder*
1 tsp onion powder*
1 Tbsp parsley*
1 tsp basil*
1/2 tsp salt*
1/2 tsp pepper*

*measurements are approximate

Dump everything into a bowl, stir and enjoy! :)  

print recipe 

Happy Eating!!


"The only thing I like better than talking about food is eating.' - John Walters

Wednesday, September 24, 2014

Vegan MoFo #16 Vegan Nachos

                               Easy Dishes Made From Refrigerator and Pantry Staples.

I have loved nachos for a very long time. I think it started as a child. My parents would take my brothers and I to a Mexican restaurant in Bemidji, MN. My brothers and I would always get the nacho platter to share between the 3 of us. I don't know how big the platter actually was, but seen threw a child's eyes that pile of nachos was as big as Texas. I have a lot of great memories from my childhood and the memory of my parents taking us to that "exotic" restaurant and sharing nachos with my brothers is definitely one of them!

Now, my love for nachos is still just as strong. I'm always up for trying different versions of my beloved nachos. So when I came across this vegan nacho cheese, I just had to try it!

I followed the recipe exactly and for my nacho toppings I used what I had on hand: diced white onion, red & orange bell peppers, sliced olives and canned jalapenos.

I was delicious! The only thing I would change is to make the cheese itself, a little spicy. I think next time I will blend some jalapenos into the cheese. But even without that it hit the spot and made me very happy. :) 

That night I went to bed and instead of counting sheep to get to sleep I thought of all the different things I could put this cheese on (or in)......broccoli.....quesadillas....grilled cheese sandwiches....baked potatoes....mixed veggies.....asparagus.....artichokes...zzzzzzzzzz



“Home is a place you grow up wanting to leave, and grow old wanting to get back to.”      - John Ed Pearce


Saturday, September 20, 2014

Vegan MoFo #15 No Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies

                              Easy Dishes Made From Refrigerator and Pantry Staples


My father in-law, a couple of days ago on Facebook, shared a photo & recipe of some cookies that he thought looked good. 

After looking thru the ingredient list I noticed that if you use dairy free chocolate chips the recipe would be completely vegan. I found this very amusing because my father in-law always, in good fun, teases me about the way I eat. 

It just so happens that my father in-law is staying with us this weekend. I, of course, took it upon myself to make him these treats and as he was eating one I gently rubbed it in that he was not only eating, but enjoying a vegan treat. :)

You can find the recipe here.

For the nuts I added chopped pecans and I used these chocolate chips.

Happy Eating!!












"I'm not the type to party all the time. I'd rather sit at home, eat chocolate chip cookies and cuddle." - Unknown

Friday, September 19, 2014

Vegan MoFo #14 Mashed Potatoes, Lentils, Rice & Veggies

                              Easy Dishes Made From Refrigerator and Pantry Staples.

The Plan for this dish was to make a lentil shepherds pie.

I got in the kitchen and started to get organized by pulling out everything I would need. I opened the pantry only to find that I was out of lentils. I couldn't believe that I was out of lentils! I always have a plethora of them. It's something I see in the store and say 'Hey, I could use some of those' only to find out that I already had a dozen bags of them in the pantry. So, yes, for the past couple of months I had stopped buying them because it was kind of getting out of hand. 

But, had I used up all of my stash already? I started to search the pantry thoroughly, hoping I would find a long lost package of them.

I didn't find any of the lentils that I was looking for but I did find an almost used up package of a rice & lentil medley.

It wasn't quite what I was wanting but it would do. I decided not to make the pie and just pile everything in a bowl.

To make my mashed potato, lentil, rice & veggie bowl I started by getting the rice & lentil medley cooking. Then I peeled and chopped up a few potatoes and put them in cold water and put them on the stove to boil.

While those two were going I started chopping up my veggies. This time I used onion, garlic, carrot, celery, zucchini and yellow summer squash. Into a large saute pan they went with a little bit of oil. Once they were tender I added some veggie broth, frozen peas and some seasoning (my usual: salt, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder).  I brought it up to a boil and then turned it down to a simmer. I then mixed about a cup of veggie broth with 1/4 cup of flour and added it to the veggies on the stove and cooked it until it was thick.

By now my potatoes were done and I made the mashed potatoes.

To serve, I put a scoop of mashed potatoes and a scoop of lentils and rice in the bowl. Then I spooned the veggie gravy over the top and sprinkled with dried parsley.

Happy Eating!


"Expect nothing. Live frugally on surprise." - Alice Walker 

Thursday, September 18, 2014

Vegan MoFo #13 A Light Snack

                              Easy Dishes Made From Refrigerator and Pantry Staples.

I love winter food and I'm looking forward to all the great food that I'm going to be making in the coming months. But one thing I do miss during the winter is really juicy, fresh fruit.

For a mid-day snack I like to eat an apple and a slice (or 2) of cantaloupe. 

Cantaloupe is one of my favorite fruits. I could seriously eat a whole one in one sitting, if I let myself.

Although it doesn't feel like it here in Las Vegas, summer has ended and fall is here so I'm enjoying my juicy cantaloupe while I can. Soon my afternoon snack will be a bowl of chili and some hot apple cider. :)

Happy Eating!!


“Summer ends, and Autumn comes, and he who would have it otherwise would have high tide always and a full moon every night; and thus he would never know the rhythms that are at the heart of life.” - Hal Borland

 

Wednesday, September 17, 2014

Vegan MoFo #12 White Sweet Potato Fries

                              Easy Dishes Made From Refrigerator and Pantry Staples.

The other day I was craving sweet potatoes and I had it in my head to make sweet potato fries.

While I was at the store, getting ready to pick out my sweet potatoes, I saw that the white sweet potatoes were on sale. So in my basket they went.

To make the sweet potato fries I peeled and sliced the sweet potatoes. Then I tossed them in some extra virgin olive oil and spread them out on a baking sheet. I cooked them for 20 min. in a 400 degree oven. Then I flipped them and baked them for another 10-20 min. Once they were out of the oven I sprinkle them with salt and dried parsley.

I was just pulling them out of the oven when my husband came home from work. He walked over to the stove and popped one in his mouth, before I could tell him what they were. His response was "Well, that was weird." He said that he could tell by looking at them that they weren't regular potatoes but he wasn't sure what they were. I told him and he said "Ok, that makes sense!" popping another one in his mouth.

Happy Eating!!



“There is no sight on earth more appealing than the sight of a woman making dinner for someone she loves.” - Thomas Wolfe

Saturday, September 13, 2014

Vegan MoFo #11 Stuffed Eggplant

                              Easy Dishes Made From Refrigerator and Pantry Staples. 


For dinner last night I was having a hard time deciding what to make. Not feeling very motivated or creative I decided on my go-to dish for times like these. Roasted veggies served with either rice or pasta.

I opened the fridge to take out the veggies, so I could start chopping them, and there, sitting on the shelf were two beautiful eggplants that I had totally forgotten that I had purchased.

If this was a cartoon, the moment I saw the eggplants a light bulb would have appeared above my head.

It hit me that I could stuff the eggplants with the other veggies and it would be way more fun. 

So that's what I did!

I started by slicing the eggplants in half and cutting out the insides, being careful not to cut too deep. I then seasoned the eggplant halves with salt, pepper, onion powder and garlic powder.  In a pan, on the stove, I heated some oil and sauteed my veg; onion, garlic, zucchini, yellow summer squash, red and green bell pepper, and the eggplant that I had scooped out of each side. I cooked the vegetables until they were tender and seasoned them with salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder and turmeric. 

Once the vegetables were done, I filled each eggplant and sprinkled some panko crumbs on top. Then baked them in a 350 degree oven for 45 min.

I served it with some more grilled salad, because I'm totally obsessed with it now! :) 

Happy Eating!


"I doubt that the imagination can be suppressed. If you truly eradicated it in a child, he would grow up to be an eggplant." - Ursula K. LeGuin    

Friday, September 12, 2014

Vegan Mofo #10 Grilled Salad

                               Easy Dishes Made From Refrigerator and Pantry Staples. 



I have heard about grilled salad and I've seen it on other blogs and, while I've been intrigued by it, I've also been a bit skeptical. Could grilling it really make that much of a difference?

I finally decided to try it and see what it's like for myself.

I don't have an outdoor grill so I used my stove top cast iron grill.

 
 I cut a romaine heart in half and brushed each side with oil. I then grilled it for 2 min. on each side.

For the dressing I used the Caesar's salad dressing recipe from Vegannomicon.

I was completely blown away by this salad! It had me feeling like I was eating something way more decedent than a salad!
James really enjoyed it too. After we were done eating I asked him how he liked it and he said, while holding his belly, "It was too good. I ate it way too fast!" :)

Happy Eating!!


 “To remember a successful salad is generally to remember a successful dinner; at all events, the perfect dinner necessarily includes the perfect salad.” - George Ellwanger

Vegan MoFo #9 Potato Hash

                              Easy Dishes Made From Refrigerator and Pantry Staples. 


Potatoes are one of my favorite foods. I love them pretty much any way they come. I especially love them for breakfast. While I have been known to eat this dish for dinner, it's my go-to when I want a hearty breakfast.

Start by cutting up a couple of potatoes (I like to make enough so there are leftovers). Heat some oil in a large saute pan and add the potatoes. Cook them until they are almost done, turning often. Next add whatever vegetables you'd like. I usually chop up 1 onion, 1 red & green bell pepper and mince a couple cloves of garlic.

Continue cooking until vegetables are tender and season with salt, pepper and paprika.

Happy Eating!


"What I say is that, if a fellow really likes potatoes, he must be a pretty decent sort of fellow." - A. A. Milne  

Thursday, September 11, 2014

Vegan MoFo #8 Apple and Walnut Salad

                             Easy Dishes Made From Refrigerator and Pantry Staples.

There are times when I just start to crave, in a major way, a nice crisp salad. 

This time it was just sliced apples, walnuts and sliced button mushrooms on a bed of romaine and iceberg lettuce. Drizzle with your choice of vinaigrette and enjoy!

Happy Eating!!





"The addition of nuts in a salad.... I always find to be beneficial." - Larry David 

Wednesday, September 10, 2014

Vegan MoFo #7 Fall Comfort Food

                             Easy Dishes Made From Refrigerator and Pantry Staples.

On Monday night, while I was in the kitchen trying to decide what to make for dinner, my husband was in the living room watching football. While half listening to the game I started to pull out ingredients that I could make into a meal.

Earlier in the day it had been raining and with the sounds of football in the background it was really starting to feel like fall here in Las Vegas. So it's no surprise that the meal I ended up with looked pretty much like a Thanksgiving diner. As we were eating I told James the only things we were missing were mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie.

For dinner we had a corn flake crusted baked tofu, cranberry stuffing, and a stove top green bean casserole. I plan on sharing the recipes for the tofu and green bean casserole later but I will share how I made the cranberry stuffing, which was my favorite thing on the plate!

I used a box of plain bread crumb stuffing. For the most part I followed the recipe on the box except I substituted vegan butter for butter and I used vegetable broth instead of chicken. I also added a little more butter and broth than directed to because I like a wetter stuffing. 

Start by melting butter in a sauce pan, add onion and celery. Cook until tender. This is were the box said to add the broth and bread crumbs, I added the broth and some seasoning (salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder). Then I stirred in the bread crumbs and half a package of dried cranberries. I then dumped the stuffing into a casserole dish that I had sprayed with olive oil cooking spray and baked it in the oven according to the package directions. 

So Yummy! I probably could have just eaten the stuffing for dinner and been happy :)


"Food for thought is no substitute for the real thing." - Walt Kelly 

Sunday, September 7, 2014

Vegan MoFo #6 Pasta with Roasted Cauliflower

                             Easy Dishes Made From Refrigerator and Pantry Staples.


This dish is so super simple. There is very little hands on time involved. One reason for that is I used the Cashew Spinach Pesto leftover from my tortilla pizzas. 

The most difficult part of the dish is roasting the cauliflower. <wink>
Cut one head of cauliflower into florets. Toss cauliflower florets with a little extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper, and dried basil. Throw them on a baking sheet and pop them in a 350 degree oven for 40 min.

While the cauliflower was in the oven I set a pot of water on to boil. When there was about 15 min. left on the oven timer I started my pasta, today I used spaghetti. Once the pasta was done I drained it and put it back in the pot. I then added the pesto to the pot with the spaghetti and on medium heat I cooked it till it was heated threw. Stirring it to completely coat the pasta. My leftover pesto was a little thick so I did add 2 TBSP of vegetable stock to it so it would coat the pasta nicely.

To serve place pesto pasta on plate and top with roasted cauliflower and enjoy!

Happy Eating!!

"The most simple things can bring the most happiness." - Izabella Scorupco   

Saturday, September 6, 2014

Vegan MoFo #5 Tortilla Pizza

                           Easy Dishes Made From Refrigerator and Pantry Staples.


 A dish that is always easy to put together with things that I have on hand is a Tortilla Pizza.

For this one instead of a red sauce I used a cashew spinach pesto (recipe below). For toppings I used the leftover bell pepper slices from my vegan sushi, onions, garlic, and Daiya Cheddar Style Shreds.

I started by sauteing the onions, garlic and bell peppers in a little oil. Seasoning them with a little salt and pepper. While they are one the stove getting all tasty I make the pesto. Once that's done I take a whole grain tortilla and place it on a baking sheet, top it with the pesto, bell pepper and onion mixture and top it off with the Daiya. 
I used this flavor because it's what I had in the fridge.

Then you stick the pizza a 400 degree oven for about 15 min. Or until the tortilla is crispy and the Daiya is melted.







Cashew Spinach Pesto

3/4 raw cashews (soaked overnight)
1 cup spinach
2 cloves garlic
1/2 TBSP nutritional yeast
1 TBSP fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup vegetable broth
2 TBSP extra virgin olive oil

Put all ingredients in a food processor (I used a mini one) and blend until well combined. Adjust seasoning to taste.

Print Recipe 


Happy Eating!

  
"One of the very nicest things about life is the way we must regularly stop whatever it is we are doing and devote our attention to eating."- Luciano Pavarotti

Thursday, September 4, 2014

Vegan MoFo #4 Vegan Sushi

Welcome to Vegan MoFo day 4! When I fist signed up my goal was to just start posting again. But I've noticed a common thread my past 3 posts have had. They all have been easy dishes to use (or use up) things already in my fridge and pantry. So I'm making that my theme for this month - Easy Dishes Made From Refrigerator and Pantry Staples.  
 
My husband is a big fan of sushi, but we don't eat it very often. One package of nori lasts a long time, so we always seem to have some in the pantry. Rice, vinegar, bell peppers, carrots and sesame seeds are also staples in our house.

As for being simple, the first time I made sushi rolls it took me forever. But the more I've made them the easier it's gotten. There are some great videos on youtube if you'd like a visual on how to roll them.

For these rolls, I cooked the rice in a rice maker. While the rice was cooking I sliced up a green and a red bell pepper and a carrot. This gave me way more slices than I would need for the sushi rolls. The bell peppers will be used in another dish. The carrots I just munched on.

When the rice was done I tossed it with a little bit of vinegar then I got to rolln'. I made 2 rolls, one with the rice on the inside and one with rice on the outside with sesame seeds.
The sesame seed rolls were harder to cut so I left them bigger.

James was pleasantly surprised to come home for dinner and find these waiting for him. Now if we only could get the dog to do the dished we both would be happy :)
 
Happy Eating!


"Make everything as simple as possible, but not simpler." - Albert Einstein   


 
 

Wednesday, September 3, 2014

Vegan MoFo Day 3 Black Bean and Corn Salsa






Today's dish is another quick throw together like yesterdays salad.

In the fridge I had 3/4 of a pint of cherry tomatoes that had to be used up soon. I decided to make a quick black bean and corn salsa.

Take 1 can of black beans and 1 can of corn rinse and drain. Throw them into a bowl. Dice tomatoes and add them to the bowl. I still had a couple of scallions left in the fridge so I diced them up along with a small onion and added the to the bowl as well. Next was a couple of garlic cloves (minced) and a handful of fresh cilantro (chopped).  For seasoning I added salt, pepper and some fresh lime juice.

This isn't very spicy so if you'd like some spice I would add a dash of cayenne pepper or dice up a jalapeno.   

To serve it I spooned it over cubed avocado.

 
Happy Eating!!


"An empty belly is the best cook." - Estonian Proverb

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Vegan MoFo Day 2 - Wild Rice and Spinach Salad





 

 Happy Vegan MoFo day 2! I'm having fun checking out what everybody is doing for Vegan MoFo. In a few days I will share some of my favorite posts from other blogs. It's amazing how creative people are! It's getting me excited to get in my own kitchen!

 Today's recipe uses the leftover wild rice I had from yesterdays soup. It's a very quick and easy Wild Rice and Spinach Salad. My favorite thing about this salad is the the sweet crunch the bell peppers give it.

Like most of my cooking there isn't really a recipe for it. I kinda just look in my fridge and throw things together.

For this salad I started with a generous helping of fresh spinach, tossed in my left over wild rice and then chopped up 1 red and 1 orange bell pepper and a few scallions I also had leftover from the soup. Next I took a can of corn and a can of white beans, rinsed and drained them, and threw them in with everything else.

For the dressing I made a simple vinegrette. Take the juice from 1 lemon add a couple of tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, 1 garlic clove, salt, and pepper. Drizzle it over the salad and toss. Or if your lazy like me, I put the lid on the bowl and shake it :)
 
Happy Eating!


"Rice is great if you're really hungry and want to eat 2,000 of something." - Mitch Hedberg

Monday, September 1, 2014

Vegan MoFo 2014!







I have been very lazy this year.

 After the new year I had all these grand plans for everything I was going to accomplish including spending lots of time in the kitchen making yummy food. All the while taking photos and sharing them on this blog. Then, of course, things got busy. I did make plenty of food but I just never took the time to photograph my meals.

For the past couple of weeks I've been thinking about getting back into the groove of keeping up with my blog. I've missed blogging and I have found it's a great way to keep myself accountable, especially since I'm still working on losing weight. As I was thinking about all of this I was looking through some of my favorite blogs. I saw that Vegan MoFo was starting again, I always thought it looked like something fun to do, so I signed up. It will give me a great reason to really dive in and make some great food....and actually photograph it!

 
So for my first day of Vegan MoFo I made a Wild Rice and Mushroom Soup.

Ingredients

1/4 cup vegan butter
1 onion (diced)
4 cloves of garlic (minced)
1/2 cup flour
2 cups vegetable broth
2 cups water
1 vegetable bullion cube
1 cup unsweetened non-dairy milk (I used almond)
3 cups cooked wild rice
1 1/2 cups brown rice (left over from last nights dinner)
2 celery stalks (diced)
1 package of button mushrooms (I quartered mine)
1 tsp garlic powder 
1-2 TBSP dried parsley
3-4 scallions (diced)
salt and pepper to taste


Directions
(Remember to cook the wild rice ahead of time according to package directions)

In a stock pot melt the vegan butter, add onion and saute until they are translucent.
Add garlic, cook for another min.
Add flour to make a rue, cook for about 2 min.
Whisk in vegetable broth and bring to a boil. Once it starts to boil turn heat to low. Whisk often.
When the broth has thickened add water, vegetable bullion and non-dairy milk. Bring the soup back up to a boil then turn heat down to medium.
Add both rices, celery, mushrooms and scallions. Cook 15 min.
Last add garlic powder, dried parsley and salt and pepper. 

Enjoy!    

Print Recipe





I slip from workaholic to bum real easy.  ~Matthew Broderick