Vegan Jamaica (Hibiscus) Tacos

 

Vegan Jamaica (Hibiscus) Tacos 

We were having a Dia de los Muertos celebration at work, so I made jamaica tacos as the vegan option for guests. 

Korean BBQ Tacos with Roasted Corn Pico

Korean BBQ Tacos 

The key to a great taco is making sure you have the right combination of flavors and textures. Something Crunchy, something soft. Something hot and something cool. 

Cauliflower Tacos with Quick Pickled Radish Relish, Strawberry Salsa Fresca, and Creamy Cilantro Lime Sauce Plus Coconut Cilantro Lime Rice

Forget about farm-to-table, I say straight from the fields to your face! Ha! Yesterday I did a cooking demo at Tanaka Farms! I made Cauliflower Tacos with Quick Pickled Radish Relish, Strawberry Salsa Fresca, Creamy Cilantro Lime Sauce, and Coconut Cilantro Lime Rice on the side. 

It was nice to teach about plant-based/vegan cooking to a non-vegan crowd and then chat with them

Southwest Peanut Butternut Squash OR Sweet Potato Tacos

There are so many ways to fill a taco, without using "meat substitutes." Beans, grilled vegetables, bbq pecans, tofu, corn, or in this case...butternut squash or sweet potatoes.

Eating Vegan on a Budget in a Food Desert Part 1: Roasted Potato Tacos with Radish Pico

Roasted Potato Tacos with Radish Pico

First let me explain how I ended up living in a food desert. I grew up a few miles down the road from where I am currently living in a typical suburban neighborhood. A standard three bedroom house in a post-war tract of homes built in the late '40s and early '50s. Lakewood, California. I grew up in a middle class family. My parents were divorced by the time I was four years old, and I visited my

Vegan 'Surf and Turf' Taco Plate

'Surf" Tacos made with seaweed infused rice, dilly tartar sauce, and radish relish.

This weekend I had the privilege and honor to do a cooking demo and prepare lunch for 300 dedicated community activists at the Crisis in the Oceans event which led up to the People's March on Climate Change in Irvine, California. Speakers included Jonathan Balcombe, Kate Mackey, and Gene Bauer! What an honor to be feeding these fine folks!

Texas Hold 'Ems (BBQ Pecans and Ranch Salad Tacos) from Vegans Go Nuts!

Photo Credit: Susan and Ryan Asato of BigTentVegan.com

Over the last few weeks I have been cooking up a storm. Nope, not at home. But for people interested in learning how to cook vegan! Nothing warms my heart more than teaching people how to cook without animal products and then hearing them afterwards telling me how much they loved the food. Its the best feeling in the world.

Purple Cauliflower Tacos with Quick Pickled Radish Relish

Sorry for posting two taco posts in a row. But, for the first time in my entire life, I am working a schedule which allows me to be home for dinner with my husband pretty much every night. Coming up with dinners that satisfy my need to experiment in the kitchen, and Dan's need for something "yummy" (I swear he eats like a 14 year old!) has proven to be a challenge, lol. But there is one thing we both can agree on, and that's tacos.

Recipe: Avocado Cilantro Lime Vegan Chicken Tacos with Spicy Aioli

Vegan tacos are all the rage right now. I mean, have you seen the amount of press the Taco Scientists behind the crazy popular new book The Taco Cleanse have been getting? It's a good time to be a taco lover. I mean it's a trend I can really get behind. I flipping LOVE tacos.

I also like my tacos messy. Piled high with stuff and dripping wet with saucy goodness. Yesterday was Taco Tuesday, and like any good taco loving vegan, I headed out for a taco lunch with friends. And while lunch was amazing, I was left with a hankering for more. More tacos!

Taco Tuesday! Recipes from the Vegan Street Fair

On Sunday, March 1, the first ever Vegan Street Fair was held on the streets of North Hollywood.  Rain, even hail, couldn't keep the almost 10,000 hungry fair goers from hitting the streets to get tastes of vegan foods from over 40 different food vendors.

Crowd shot at Vegan Street Fair courtesy of Blake Gardner via the Vegan Street Fair Facebook event page.

What an amazing day at the first ever Vegan Street Fair! Thank goodness Dan was there to help, and even my mom got behind the scenes ad helped out for a few hours. My sincere apologies to those who waited in line and didn't get any ‪‎tacos‬. Lesson learned: I should have made twice as much food. I sold out just after 4pm with a line at least 40 deep. I had no idea so many folks would be so into my food.

The Engine 2 Challenge Week 4: It's Over and I am a Little Afraid

Last night marked the end of the 28 day Engine 2 Challenge. I was the only participant still standing after the first week, but I powered on, with the support and encouragement of people who were following along with me here on the blog, on Instagram, and on Facebook.  So now what?  Do I start another 28 day challenge?  Do I go back to the way things were before I took the challenge?  I'm not quite sure yet.

I become obsessed when it comes to stuff like this.  If I decided I wanted to eat this way for the rest of my life, I could.  But do I?  Not really.  The thought of never having deep fried Toffalo Wings drenched in melted buttery buffalo sauce dipped in creamy ranch really freaks me out.  Much in the same way an alcoholic must feel when they decide to give up alcohol, I have an obsessive and unhealthy relationship with food.  (Which makes my career choice as a food blogger and cookbook author a pretty difficult one.)

Recipes from the NYC Vegetarian Food Festival: Spicy Korean BBQ Jackfruit Tacos

Spicy Korean Barbecue Jackfruit Tacos. Photo Courtesy of Vegan Kitchen TV

My book tour for Fusion Food in the Vegan Kitchen ended with a bang in New York City at the fourth annual NYC Vegetarian Food Festival.  I met so many amazing people there.  I met so many people who already had many of my books, and I even met a couple who told me that I helped them go vegan. How inspiring! I am pretty sure there were close to 10,000 people in attendance over the 

weekend.  You can check out some amazing photos, by Drew B. Photography, of the entire event here.

Austin Inspired Breakfast Tacos

Austin Inspired Breakfast Tacos

I am finally home from my book tour! (AKA, my epic journey across America.)  I am planning on writing a complete recap here on the blog soon, but I thought I would sneak in and post this lil diddy until then.  This post serves a few purposes.  One, to prove that it is easy to throw together a great meal in just a few minutes with just about anything you have in the house. Two, to use up the over 200 tortillas I still have left over from the New York Vegetarian Food Festival. And, three, to expose the rest of you to a phenomenon I only just learned about on a recent visit to Austin, Texas, that is the breakfast taco.

Fusion Food in the Vegan Kitchen is Going On Tour!

Spicy Seitan Potstickers (page 43) Photo by Wade Hammond Recipe can be found HERE.

Fusion Food in the Vegan Kitchen is going on tour.  We will start our Journey right here in California, and work our way all across the United States, ending our adventure in New York at the New York Vegitarian Food Festival, where I will be serving up some awesome Fusion Tacos.  I am keeping the schedule posted on the Calendar page HERE (or just click the Calendar tab above) and will update it as each date is comfirmed.  If there is a place you'd like to see me and my book, please leave a comment below and I will see if I can fit it in to the schedule.

Vegan MoFo 2013: Just for Fun Friday!

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Tonight we won't be cooking or going out to eat.  Because Fridays are for fun.  So I won't worry about nothin' and if I'm hungry, I will snack the night away on whatever is leftover from the week.

Lucky for me, I have a ton of stuff hangin' out in the fridge.  I am thinking I may just make a mean plate of nachos with all the leftovers from last night's tacos!  All the talk of taco cleanses had me craving tacos!  So I finally broke down and made some.  Semi homemade style, since my sister and her man were joining us and I didn't want to be stuck in the kitchen all night!

Fusion Tacos with Sesame Carrot Coleslaw (Vegan and Gluten Free!)

Fusion Tacos with Sesame Carrot Coleslaw

Now I am totally and fully aware that you cannot tell that the above is a picture of tacos, however I thought it really showed off all of the amazing colors these fusion tacos boast.  GREEN onions and cabbage, ORANGE carrots, PURPLE onions, BLACK sesame seeds, RED chili flakes, PEACH creamy spicy sushi sauce, YELLOW corn tortillas, and BROWN taco meat.

I am not sure what's gotten into me lately, but I am having so much fun mixing different types of foods together.  Now, of course, mixing Mexican food with Asian influenced flavors is nothing new.  There are fusion food trucks and restaurants popping up all over the place.  But, I haven't seen many vegan options out there.  I've got a few others up my sleeve I will be sharing soon.

Spicy Sushi Sauce tops the Fusion Tacos made with TVP Taco Meat

For the Sesame Carrot Coleslaw:
1 cup finely shredded cabbage
1/2 cup finely shredded carrots
1 teaspoon black sesame seeds
1/4 teaspoon red chili flakes
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons rice vinegar

Toss together all ingredients to coat, and refrigerate until ready to use.

Yield: 1 1/2 cups (enough to generously top 4 tacos)

Nutrition Facts for Sesame Carrot Coleslaw

For the tacos:
4 (6 inch) corn tortillas
TVP Taco Meat  (If you would rather avoid soy, and you don't have gluten intolerance, try Celine's  Seitan Chorizo Crumbles instead!)
Sesame Carrot Coleslaw (recipe above)
1/2 cup finely diced red onion
3 stalks green onion, chopped
Spicy Sushi Sauce

To assemble the tacos:
In a dry frying pan on a grill, cook the tortillas until lightly browned on each side.
Add first, the TVP Taco Meat, then pile on the 'slaw.  Top with red and green onions, then give it all a real liberal squirt of delicious Spicy Sushi Sauce.

Yield: 4 (6 inch) tacos

Enjoy!

A big yummy mess! And proof they are actually tacos!

Tuesdays for Two: Tacos!

TVP Tacos in Red Chile Flour Tortillas with Daiya Cheese, Lettuce, Chopped Jalapenos and Hot Sauce

I know I am a day late (and a dollar short!) but, did you know Tuesday was national Taco day?  So today's Tuesdays for Two will serve just that...TVP Tacos.  I love the simplicity of TVP taco meat, and so many who have tried it (omin, vegan, anyone actually) seem to agree that it really does mimic seasoned ground beef in both taste and texture.

My favorite recipe for TVP Taco Meat is this one, from The Complete Guide to Vegan Food Substitutions (page 117) but if you want to make it even more super duper easy, just use a packet of taco seasoning added to your TVP! 

TVP Taco Meat

1 cup TVP granules
1 teaspoon evaporated cane juice
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or ground chipotle powder)
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup water
2 tablespoons olive oil (or any mild flavored vegetable oil)

In a heat safe bowl, mix together spices and TVP granules.  Stir in oil and water.  Cover tightly with plastic wrap and miccrowave on high for 5 to 6 minutes. 

Alternatively, in a heat safe bowl, mix together spices and TVP granules. Stir in oil.  Add boiling water, stir, cover and let stand for 10 minutes.

Use anywhere you would use a yummy, spicy, ground "beef".

Taco Tuesday...on Thursday!

Taco Tuesdays...we think about it every Tuesday and sometimes we remember to make 'em. Well, this Tuesday got away from us so Taco Thursday it was. Tonight's tacos featured red chile flour tortillas, TVP taco meat, refried beans, lettuce, green chiles, taco sauce, and, yes, more Daiya. (I promise to stop posting about Daiya, as soon as my batch runs out, which I fear will be soon, and even if I buy more, I promise to refrain from posting anymore about it, at least during 'mofo...deal?)