VBLT

Now, I'm not going to insult your intelligence by telling you how to make a BLT. It's just that, I went to a restaurant recently and ordered a Vegan BLT for the first time since I have been vegan, vegetarian even. In fact, I'm still not sure that I have actually EVER had a BLT before this experience. Regardless, If you are like me and haven't realized this is available, slap yourself. You might as well do it now, because THAT'S how dumb I felt when I had a VBLT and realized how unbelievably good they can be. I couldn't believe I hadn't been making them on a regular basis. If you're curious, I WILL say that I recommend smart bacon and veganaise. Surprise yourself and just do it.

P.S. More recipes to come soon, just gotta bite the bullet and go grocery shopping... :/

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Jamaican Jerk-Spiced Tempeh with Fried Plantians

Level of Difficulty: pretty easy
Pots/Pans Used: 2!

Ingredients

1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp agave nectar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp dried thyme
1 8 oz pkg of tempeh
olive oil
plantains (opt)
cinnamon (opt)

I got the vegan cookbook, Fire & Spice, over the holidays and finally decided to make something from it. This recipe is inspired by the Jamaican Jerk-Spiced Tempeh Nuggets recipe, but I changed it up slightly to make it more "lazy cook-friendly". Pair it with some yellow rice and fried plantains and it was THE perfect dish. It's really filling AND takes less effort than you would think. I just about doubled the spice measurements from the cookbooks but if you aren't keen on spice, you could always tone it down or experiment with similar flavors that are less spicy.

First, you might want to start preparing your rice if you're having it. Next, heat some olive oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Crumble the tempeh into the pan and let it brown on both sides. Meanwhile, combine all the ingredients from garlic powder thru thyme in a bowl. Spinkle the spice mixture over the browned tempeh and let it get thoroughly coated. Continue to mix it up for about a minute and it's done. Set it aside and heat more oil in the pan on medium-high heat so that you can fry up for plantains. I cut my plantains into slices then press or smash them down with a fork. Once the oil is really hot, add your plantains to the pan. Be careful that they don't burn. Once they're nicely browned and crispy on either side, place them on a paper towel so that the oil can drain. Sprinkle some cinnamon over top. Serve your rice, tempeh and plantains all mixed up together on one huge plate and eat your heart out!

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Mushroom Bruschetta

First I wanna say "welcome!" to the batch of new followers. I seriously appreciate you all so much. As you can see, I've been updating the site a bit to make it a little more user-friendly. Hope you like it!


Level of Difficulty: As usual :)
Pots/Pans Used: one

Ingredients

2 cloves garlic, minced
1 pkg baby bella mushrooms (or your favorite vairety), sliced
2-3 TBL Earth Balance
1/2 onion, chopped
crusty bread slices of your choice
balsamic vinaigrette
olive oil
basil

So this recipe arrived onto my menu when I got home from the grocery store and realized I had bought everything to make bruschetta but forgot the tomato. So.... I improvised. Now, tomato bruschetta is delicious, but this one is just as good if not better. It's definitely hardier and any mushroom lover will be able to appreciate it. Please, tell me how it works out for you.

Okay...
Slice your bread and put it in the oven at 350 for about 10-15 minutes so that it can get nice and crisp. Heat some olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat. First toss in the onion and garlic. Let the onion get translucent and then add the mushrooms. Once the mushrooms are nicely seared, add the Earth Balance. Let it melt and coat the mushrooms and onions. Then, add as much dried or fresh basil as you want (I used dried because I didn't have fresh. However, fresh would be ideal for this recipe). Spoon the mushroom mixture on top of the slices of bread. Drizzle some balsamic vinaigrette on top. That's it!

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Argentine Milanesa

Level of Difficulty: easy
Pots/Pans Used: 1


Ingredients

1 pkg of 4 Gardein chick'n filets
3 TBL water
1/4 cup lemon juice ( plus a lemon for garnish)
1/4 tsp oregano
whole wheat bread crumbs
flour
3 TBL oilve oil
pinch of salt

My mom grew up in Argentina, so when we went back to visit when I was seven, all I remember eating was milanesa with a side of papas fritas and a fanta. I ate that probably three times a day and I now find myself missing it occasionally. It only seemed right to try and veganize it. Basically, milanesa is a very thin cut of usually beef (but sometimes chicken or veal), battered and shallow-fried in oil. Lemon and oregano are popular ways of seasoning the meat. Now, my version is very loosely based on milanesa (you'll know what I mean if you google image search it) but I assure you, the flavors and yumminess still remain.

In a bowl, combine the lemon juice, water and oregano. Take each chicken breast and dredge it in flour, then the lemon juice mixture and then coat it in bread crumbs. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Fry each chick'n breast a couple minutes on either side until golden brown. Place the breast on a paper towel to let the oil drain. Sprinkle the chick'n with a pinch of salt. Serve with your favorite veggies and slices of lemon.

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Dynamite Sushi Roll

Level of Difficulty: Seriously easy... don't be intimidated!
Pots/Pans Used: one!

Ingredients

nori seaweed sheets
sushi rice
1 cucumber, peeled and julienned
red onion, minced (only need a tiny bit)
1/2 cup vegan mayonaise (If you use veganaise you're gunna have to trek to whole foods. Otherwise, I found this brand which is available at most health food sections of Publix)
1 TBL vegan cream cheese ( I prefer Tofutti)
1 tsp hot sauce
sesame seeds
capers
soy sauce, wasabi & ginger (optional)


for assembly you will need:
bamboo mat
plastic saran wrap

While home last weekend, I went to Sublime in Ft. Lauderdale with my mom and good friend, Scott. We ordered the dynamite sushi appetizer and it kind of blew all of our minds. Completely inspired, I made it the very next night. I tried to come as close to it as I could without having the Sublime cookbook. In my opinion, the spicy mayo really makes this sushi... and I am so NOT a mayo person. Now if the task of making sushi seems daunting, you've got it all wrong. It's so much simpler to make than you might realize. If you don't believe me, watch the video I linked to below before committing to making the sushi plunge. There's barely ANY cooking involved and you will definitely impress all of your friends.
Start by cooking your sushi rice (directions should be on the bag. I made 2 cups worth). Once cooked, let it cool so that you can handle it. In the mean time, you can prepare the spicy mayo topping. In a bowl, combine the vegan mayo, vegan cream cheese and hot sauce and set it aside. Cover your bamboo mat with a sheet of saran wrap. Here is an instructional video on how to assemble your rolls. The only difference is that you should sprinkle the sesame seeds on top of the rice before you add the cucumber. (For the record, I really wanted to make a video myself but I don't have an awesome camera or an editing program... maybe in the future?)

............Congratulations! You just made sushi!!! See? not hard at all. Now spoon a dollop of the spicy mayo on top of each roll. Sprinkle the red onion, capers and additional sesame seeds on top. Serve with a side of soy sauce, wasabi & ginger.

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Oreo Truffles

Level of Difficulty: anyone can do it
Pots/Pans Used: one

Ingredients

1 package oreos (yes, they're vegan. Or you could use a cookie of your choice of the healthier variety)
2 tubs plain Tofutti vegan cream cheese
1 bag vegan chocolate chips (I used semi-sweet Ghirardelli)

Variations: you could try rolling them in coconut (yum!), nuts or sprinkles!

Lemme get one thing straight: this is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO not on my diet and in no way healthy for you. That being said, they are absolutely heavenly. Seriously, this recipe makes a lot so if you don't want the temptation around, just try a couple and give the rest as a gift. trust me, who ever you gift them to will be eternally grateful. Or you could always be selfish and indulge for once. Either way, try this recipe.......now!!

Simple as this: crush the entire bag of cookies. In a large bowl, combine the cream cheese with all the crushed cookies. Cover a baking sheet with a sheet of parchment paper. Make doughnut hole sized balls out of the cream cheese/cookie mix and lay them out on the paper. Using a double broiler, melt the chocolate chips. Using two spoons, spoon the melted chocolate over the balls, until well coated. Repeat with all, placing them back on the parchment paper. Let them cool in the fridge until the chocolate hardens. The hard chocolate shell coating and the surprisingly creamy center is the perfect combination of decadent textures. I have no doubts you will love this recipe!!

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Bean Burgers

Level of Difficulty: So easy, you can do it in rollerskates!
Pots/Pans Used: 1/2

Yes it's true, this recipe was so simple I made most of it while wearing roller skates. I just bought a pair and am using every opportunity to get used to them. I was lucky enough to have my bestie 4 life visiting me over the weekend, Ms. Tess Bath, so I wanted to cook us up something delicious without losing out on any qutality time. I'm so glad I found this recipe! My only real adjustment was that I only used sage leaves for my herbs of choice, but go crazy. This easy recipe can be found here. Forget the whole wheat bun and avocado, the burgers were good enough to eat by themselves! However, I must say it was damn good with some rosemary wedge french fries.

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