Kimberly Steele's Blog, page 37

Daily Vegan Lunch for 8 Feb, 2013: Cheesy Rice with Kale

Thanks Mom for sending me the link to this recipe from Care 2/Vibrant Wellness Journal. It was super fast and yummy.

INGREDIENTS

(for one bowl)

1.5 cups cooked basmati or jasmine rice

1 cup curly kale or spinach, chopped into small pieces

1 tablespoon nutritional yeast

1 teaspoon vegan butter or olive oil

DIRECTIONS

Smash all ingredients together, don’t worry if the vegan butter stays in one blob. Cook in the microwave for 1 minute, then stir, kale will have wilted a bit. Cook for another 30 seconds, salt to taste.

Daily Vegan Lunch for 7 February, 2013: Tofu Chèvre Pizza

This recipe is adapted from Dairy Free and Delicious by genius chefs Jo Stephaniak and Bryanna Clark Grogan.

This recipe is hard to blend in a blender because it is so thick. I had to use my blending stick/wand thing.

Tastes eerily similar to goat cheese though, texture is dead on.

TOFU CHÉVRE INGREDIENTS

13 ounces firm or extra-firm silken tofu (the contents of one Mori-Nu brand aseptic brick)

2 tablespoons shiro (white) miso

1.5 teaspoons agar powder or 2.5 tablespoons agar flakes

2 tablespoons tahini or 2 tablespoons sesame seeds

4 teaspoons lemon juice

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1/4 cup cashews

4 teaspoons lemon juice

DIRECTIONS

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl or large measuring cup, blend with stick blender. Scoop out tofu chévre into a small pan on medium heat until it bubbles. Alternately, put it in the microwave for 3 minutes, stopping and stirring every minute. Once it has chilled, tofu chévre can be rolled into balls or logs.

FOR A SINGLE PIZZA

1 pita bread, toasted

1/2 cup pizza or pasta sauce heated in microwave and spread on top

Dollops of tofu chévre

Daily Vegan Lunch for 6 February, 2013: Lo Mein Noodles

This is the package of noodles I bought.

INGREDIENTS

9 ounces Asian style noodles, udon, or ramen — makes about 6 cups noodles

Water for boiling

1 cup broccoli florets

4 cups thinly sliced white or green cabbage

3/4 cup mushrooms: I used button because I was in a hurry but reconstituted shiitake would have been tastier

1/4 cup chopped red bell pepper

1/2 cup chopped onion or green onion

2 Tablespoons oil for frying

2 cloves minced fresh garlic

OPTIONAL: chopped carrots, bean sprouts, snow peas, edamame, etc. a.k.a. use what you have

SAUCE

1/4 cup soy sauce

1 teaspoon sesame seed oil

1/4 cup mirin or Chinese cooking wine, can substitute dry sherry

DIRECTIONS

Boil about 8 cups water in a large pot and add noodles. I bought these at the Korean grocery store. The reason I like the noodles available at the Korean store better than regular linguine is that Chinese or Korean noodles are very, very fast cooking, much like Japanese udon. They cook in less than 5 minutes whereas the same amount of linguine would have taken 10 – 15 minutes. Boil noodles for 5 minutes, test for doneness by eating one, then strain them and rinse with cool water, set aside.

Fry the onions until translucent in the oil over medium-high heat in a very large pan or wok. Add mushrooms. When the mushrooms brown a bit, add the rest of the vegetables and garlic. Allow to cook until cabbage begins to wilt, about 2 minutes. Add noodles and sauce mixture, toss to coat.

Daily Vegan Lunch for 5 February, 2013: Kale Salad with Avocado Dressing

INGREDIENTS

SALAD

4 cups curly kale

1/2 apple, chopped

1/4 cup sweet red pepper, chopped

DRESSING

1 avocado, peeled and pitted

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

1 cup water

several sprigs fresh cilantro

1 Tablespoon sugar

Salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

Wash and rinse kale thoroughly. I use vegetable cleaning spray. Shake salt over wet kale and “massage” it by rolling it and squeezing it in your hands like you would wring out a wet washcloth, this tenderizes the kale and makes it much yummier. Tear kale into tiny pieces and set aside. Kale keeps better in the refrigerator than lettuce, which is why I buy a big bunch of kale, massage the whole bunch, and then eat it throughout the week.

Chop anything else you are putting in the salad and set it aside.

Make dressing by combining all dressing ingredients in a blender or food processor and pureeing until very smooth. I believe this type of dressing is also known as “Green Goddess” but don’t quote me on that because I’m not actually sure.

Daily Vegan Lunch for 4 February, 2013: Mango Chia Smoothie

INGREDIENTS

1 ripe mango, skinned, pitted, and chopped

1 Tablespoon chia seeds

1.5 cups frozen bananas

1 apple with skin, chopped

1/2 cup cold water

DIRECTIONS

Process all ingredients in an immersion blender, makes a very thick smoothie — if you like a thinner smoothie, add 1/2 cup more water.

For normal blenders or food processors, replace apple with 1/2 cup apple juice.

Daily Vegan Lunch for 3 February, 2013: Miso Soup

I had some dreams, they were clouds in my miso…

INGREDIENTS:

4 cups water

2 squares kombu seaweed

1 teaspoon dried wakame seaweed

1/2 cup tofu, cubed

1/3 cup onions, preferably green (I ran out and had to use 1/4 cup chopped white onion)

2 tablespoons shiro (white) or other color miso

Add kombu to 4 cups of water on a the stove on high heat. Before it comes to a boil, turn heat down. Remove kombu and discard it. Add wakame. A little goes a long way. That’s why dried seaweed is great — it has a very long shelf life, so you rarely need to buy it, and the quantities used are tiny. Wakame will expand to 20x the size in the soup water.

Add tofu and onions, allowing the soup to simmer until onions are lightly cooked. Add miso last and stir until it clouds the broth.

Daily Vegan Lunch for 2 February, 2013: Salad Maki

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/4 cup green cabbage, chopped fine or shredded

1/2 cup cashew pieces

3/4 cup red bell pepper, chopped

1/4 cup minced onion

1/2 cup cucumber, chopped fine or julienned

1 tablespoon of vegan mayonnaise like Follow Your Heart

1 tablespoon tahini (sesame seed paste — you can make it by pureeing 1 cup of sesame seeds and 1/4 cup oil in a blender)

Seaweed sheets for wrapping, or just eat it in a pita or on regular bread

DIRECTIONS

Combine all ingredients except seaweed sheets, stir well, add salt if necessary.

Divide seaweed sheet in half by cutting down the middle with a scissor.

Dip one finger in water and run it down the bottom edge of the seaweed sheet. Deposit 1 tablespoon of cabbage mixture onto one side of the seaweed. Roll up into a cone, using the wet edge of the seaweed to form the tip of the cone.

Daily Vegan Lunch for 1 February, 2013: Taco Rice

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup walnut meal (finely ground walnuts)

1/2 cup TVP, reconstituted in 1 cup water for 3 minutes

1/4 cup tomato puree, sauce, or spaghetti sauce

1 teaspoon taco seasoning

Oil for frying

Lettuce, shredded

Cooked rice

Tomatoes, chopped

White onion, chopped

Red bell pepper, chopped

Other ingredients that I didn’t have but would have wanted to put on there!

Avocado (I ate all the ones I had the night before, oops) or guacamole

Black olives

Salsa or green mole

Refried or black beans

Fry the walnut meal in a little oil in a pan until the walnuts become fragrant, then add TVP mixture and simmer for three minutes or so until any excess water begins to cook off. Add 1/4 cup tomato puree and taco seasoning, stir and set aside.

Create your bowl by putting rice on the bottom and walnut/TVP meat next, spreading the veggies on the top.

Daily Vegan Lunch for 31 January, 2013: Red Lentil Dal (Indian-style Lentil Stew)

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup red lentils

2 cups water (have 2 more cups of water at the ready to add)

1 veggie broth cube

1 cup broccoli florets

2 small Yukon Gold potatoes, stabbed with a fork and microwaved for 3-4 minutes

3/4 cup chopped red bell pepper

1 carrot, chopped

1 cup green onion or 1/2 cup white onion

Oil for frying

Chili peppers or cayenne pepper to taste

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon garam masala

1/2 teaspoon coriander

1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds (optional)

2-3 cloves garlic, minced

DIRECTIONS:

Put lentils in a large, deep pot with water on high heat. Wait for them to come to a boil, then immediate turn heat to medium. Lentils will absorb water as they cook. Add water as they change color from orangey-red to khaki-ish yellow and soften, we are cooking them down to porridge. You can also make this recipe the same way with split peas, they just take longer and require more water. Keep adding water but don’t add so much that you end up with soup, again, we are going for “oatmeal”. Add the broth cube, carrots, and turmeric to the cooking lentils.

Meanwhile, cook the potato and chop the rest of the vegetables. You might also put some rice in the cooker or on the stove, it is shown here with basmati rice. Fry the onion in a small, separate pan over medium heat. Add mustard seeds to the frying onions if using and chili pepper, which will make your end result hot & spicy. I don’t add it because my husband can’t take the heat. Add cumin, garam masala, coriander to the onion pan, they will become fragrant.

Now comes the moment of truth. Dump everything into the large pot of lentils, including the contents of the onion-spice pan, the microwaved, chopped potato, and the chopped broccoli, red pepper, and garlic. The aim is not to cook the vegetables very much, just to barely heat them through. Stir, add black pepper to taste or salt if necessary, and serve over hot rice or with pita bread halves.

Daily Vegan Lunch for 30 January, 2013: Green Smoothie

INGREDIENTS:

5 cups Swiss chard, washed thoroughly

2 cups organic spinach leaves

1 cup frozen bananas

1 cup frozen berries

1 apple, chopped, with skin

1/2 teaspoon stevia (sweetener)

DIRECTIONS:

Combine all ingredients in an immersion blender until thoroughly pureed. Alternately, juice chard, spinach, and apple in a juicer and blend bananas and berries in a food processor or blender, then add green juice and Stevia to food processor mixture and blend well.