Rebelmouse

Monday, October 24, 2011

VeganMofo #10: Lemongrass seitan

If this looks somewhat similar to yesterday's lunch, it's because we had to use up the veggies on Friday so they didn't go bad over the weekend. :-) Today's special item is lemongrass seitan. We use lemongrass that's already minced up in a jar that you can get in the frozen section of the Asian market. Very convenient!

Benny's a complete gentleman to the guinea pigs, knowing he's the newbie in the house. You can see here that he's "bowing" to Bert, who still rumbles at him. They have supervised floor time together and poor Benny is always bullied by the pigs. I hope they will accept him soon enough. At least there aren't any blood drawn! :-)

Sunday, October 23, 2011

VeganMofo #9: Pesto Pasta

My co-worker  made this yummy pasta for lunch. It's got veggies and portabella mushroom swimming pesto sauce.

In pet news, Belle had teary eyes and was getting lethargic so we brought her to the vet. The vet confirmed she had early signs of respiratory problems. Glad we caught it early this time. It was time for her teeth trim. Aside from the usual malocclusion problems, she also managed to crack her front top incisor vertically, which the doc couldn't remove. She said it's best to let it grow out, hopefully correctly. *fingers crossed*

Friday, October 14, 2011

VeganMofo #8: Sweet n Sour Tofu + Blissful Chef's Tempeh Fakin' Bacon

Hi! Thanks for visiting!

Today we bought a fresh pineapple from Whole Foods. Half of it was juiced and the other half ended up in this Sweet n Sour Tofu dish.




The main ingredients were pineapple, bell pepper, onion, and tofu. I can't remember the sauce ingredient because I used a mish mash of what I found online and what I had in the kitchen. I didn't have tomato paste so I used ketchup. There was sugar involved. Cornstarch was called for but I only had tapioca starch, which I don't think was quite right for it, though I've read it was interchangeable (even says so on the box!). In the end, the taste was milder than what I'm used to eating at the restaurants, but it was still good. 

I also had a craving for The Blissful Chef's Tempeh Fakin' Bacon so I made a batch of it. Though her recipe called for 1 packet of tempeh it easily worked for one and a half. She also said to marinate the tempeh in the sauce for an hour, but I stuck it right in the oven and it turned out fine. In fact, the sauce was totally absorbed into the tempeh, giving it that extra oomph!

Thursday, October 13, 2011

VeganMofo #7: Potato-corn-leek stew

It's another clean-out the fridge day. I had some corn-on-the cobs and a passing-its-prime stick of leek. A Google search for some recipes that contain those two ingredients resulted in some sort of chowder. Not feeling like soup, I used less water and turned it into more like stew that can be spooned over rice.

Ingredients:
2 corn on the cob, kernels removed (or use frozen corn)
1 stick of leek, sliced
1 potato, peeled and cut into chunks
1/2 Field Roast classic meatloaf, cut into chunks
1 cup water
salt and pepper to taste (or use soy sauce) (Keep in mind the meatloaf is quite salty so you don't need to add much.)

Fry the leek with water or oil until soft, add the corn, fry for another few minutes. Add the potato and water, bring to a boil and lower heat. Cook for 20 min or so until potato is soft. Add more water if necessary. Add Field Roast and seasoning, cook for another 5-10 minutes so the meatloaf is heated through.

Belle prefers the bunny's pellets. Or maybe she finds it more fun eating out of that bowl?


Wednesday, October 12, 2011

VeganMofo #6: Banana Bread from the PPK

I discovered a bunch of overripe bananas that were overlooked in the fridge. I froze half for a future smooth and used the rest in a banana bread recipe by Isa Chandra.


It turned out really nice in the bread machine. I thought it tasted a touch too sweet (1 cup of sugar!!) so next time I'll reduce that.

What do you do with overripe bananas? I'm on the hunt for a cake or cupcake that uses banana as an egg replacer. If you know of any, please share!

Sunday, October 9, 2011

VeganMofo #5: "Fried" rice cooked in rice cooker

Did you know you could cook a whole meal in the rice cooker? For the longest time, I've only cooked rice in it. But now I throw veggies in and voila, I've got "fried" rice!

Rice cooker "fried" rice
Just dice any veggies you've got in the fridge and throw it in with the rice and water, add a bit of soy sauce or your choice of seasoning, push the cook button and relax while the machine does the cooking for you. Here I've used cauliflower, onion, corn, and cabbage. When it was ready to serve, I garnished it with cut up nori sheets and a sprinkle of roasted pine nuts. I love that there's no oil needed like in regular fried rice.

Saturday, October 8, 2011

VeganMofo #4: Tempeh Burger

DH made this quick tempeh burger for dinner a few nights ago. He simply fried the tempeh in some Braggs and vegetable seasoning. Easy peasy!

Tempeh Burger

While we ate, Benny practiced his yoga poses.

Friday, October 7, 2011

VeganMofo #3: Loving Hut Portland

Passing through Portland last week, we had a chance to stop by the local Loving Hut after a fun day visiting the waterfalls along the Columbia River Gorge.

Upon being seated, we were served a complimentary bowl of soup. It was a simple soup - cabbage, celery, carrot, tofu - but it was a welcoming touch and greatly appreciated after a chilly and wet outing.

Chow Mein
Say Yes Mapo
Guru Fried Rice and Paradise Salad
Their menu is heavy on the mock meat but it's easy to request that they leave it out. For my salad, they offered to substitute the mock meat with tofu and it was yummy!

If you ever visit Portland, Multnomah Falls is a must see. And hike all the way to the top; I nearly passed out from being so out of shape but it was worth it!

Multnomah Falls

Thursday, October 6, 2011

VeganMofo #2: 2-for-1 meals - Prata Pizza & Quinoa Stir Fry

Vegetarian Times had a feature in their recent issue where the recipe of one meal made for a great leftover dish the next day. It got me thinking on how I could turn one dish into two. So I present to you Prata Pizza and Quinoa "Stir Fry" using a veggie medley as the main shared ingredient.

Veggie Medley ingredients:
1 2.25oz can of sliced olives
1/2 bell pepper, diced
1/4 onion, diced
handful of cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
(add any other veggies you like)
vegetable seasoning

Instructions:
Cook the ingredients in a pan, adding oil or water as needed, until slightly softened (5-10 min). Split into two portions for the two dishes.

Dish #1: Prata Pizza
Roti prata or paratha is a flour-based pancake, sort of like puff pastry, that we buy frozen in a package of five at the Asian market. DH likes eating it with curry so we always have some in the freezer. My sister showed me it makes for a great pizza base when you don't have time to make regular dough. This is the brand we usually get:

For the Prata Pizza, take 2 frozen roti pratas and bake in the oven for 5 minutes until it poofs up but isn't browned. Take out and spread on pizza sauce or tomato paste. Top with the veggie medley and put it back in the oven to bake for another 5 minutes. And you've got instant pizza!

Dish #2: Quinoa "Stir Fry"
For lunch the next day, I cooked up quinoa in the rice cooker, heated up the veggie medley on a pan, and mixed it with the quinoa when done. Feel free to add more seasoning or a salad to it.


Dish #3: Pita Sandwich
As a bonus recipe, when I brought the quinoa stir fry to work for lunch, my coworker used some to add bulk to his pita bread sandwich. Add salad, avocado, tomato, and we've got a third dish! (Sorry, no pics.)

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

VeganMofo #1: Soba Noodle Salad

My co-worker shared with us a tasty soba salad for lunch. It's topped with pesto Gardein Chick'n Strips.

Belle said to wake her when the salad minus the soba was ready.