Another way to spend your hard earned dollar: GET IT RIPE

Get it Ripe, by Jae Steele. This hefty volume is a book no vegan should be without. Jae Steele writes a great cookbook that focuses on REAL FOOD! So many of us, myself included, have had more than our fair share of cupcakes and over processed meat analogs in the passed few years...so I think it is high time we get back to basics and give this amazing vegan author our support. Besides, as a holistic nutritionist, this chick KNOWS what she's talking about.

If Wendy's serves square burgers, why can't I?

Right?

Baked and served on a onion sesame bun, with Indian Spiced Mayo.

Baked Curry and Macadamia Nut Crusted Tofu Burgers with Indian Spiced Mayo
(makes 4 patties)
1 block extra firm tofu, drained and pressed
1 14 oz can of coconut milk
1 cup panko style bread crumbs
2 tbsp yellow curry powder
1/3 cup chopped macadamia nuts (I use dry roasted and salted nuts)
1 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp fresh cracked black pepper

Pre heat oven to 350 F degrees. Prep a cookie sheet with parchment, a silicone mat, or spray with cooking spray. After draining and pressing your tofu block, carefully cut it into 4 equal "steaks." In a shallow dish, mix together all ingredients except tofu and coconut milk. In a seperate shallow dish, place the coconut milk. Create a breading station.

Dip the tofu, first into the coconut milk, and then into the breadcrumb mixture to coat. Repeat with the other 3 pieces and place onto the prepped cookie sheet.

Bake at 350 F for about 30 minutes.


Indian Spiced Mayo
(makes about 1 cup)
1 cup vegan mayo (either homemade or store bought)
1 tbsp garam masala
1 pinch paprika
1 pinch turmeric
salt & pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients together and keep refrigerated, in an air tight container, until ready to use.

No-Fail "Buttermilk" Pancakes

Sunday morning breakfasts are my absolute favorite. Unfortunately for me, I usually have to work on Sunday morning. So, when I had a Sunday all to myself, I made my favorite...PANCAKES!

The recipe is very simple. It is an adapted version of the "Buttermilk Pancake" recipe in the good old red and white Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook.

"Buttermilk" Pancakes
Ingredients (makes about 6 regular sized pancakes)
1 cup all purpose flour
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 scant cup vanilla soymilk
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp vegetable oil
equivalent of 1 beaten egg (I use Bob's Red Mill brand egg replacer in this recipe)

Directions
In a liquid measuring cup, place the lemon juice, then add enough soymilk to make one cup. Let sit five minutes to "sour." In a mixing bowl, mix together flour, sugar, baking pwder, baking soda and salt. In a seperate bowl (or in the measuring cup) mix together the oil, egg replacer and soured soymilk. Create a well in the center of the flour mixture and pour in the wet ingredients. Stir until there are very few lumps. Heat a skillet or frying pan to pretty high. I like to use a nonstick spray when making pancakes. Drop about 1/3 cup of batter onto the hot skillet and cook until edges begin to lift, and the uncooked side is nice and bubbly. Flip and cook an additional minute. Serve warm with a HUGE dollop of Earth Balance and a very generous puddle of dark amber maple syrup.

Vegan Lunch Box: Support Vegan Cookbook Authors!

You probably already know this, but Vegan Luch Box is now available to buy! So go buy it! One can never have too many delicious vegan cookbooks, right?

It's HOT outside...why not make it Cozy Inside?

The Black & White version of Cozy Inside is on sale for 25% off now through Labor Day. Simply VISIT THE E-STORE and enter the following discount code during checkout:

3KKCY3N3

Spicy Mac Salad

Sunday afternoon, my papa came over to see the new place. We barbecued burgers, corns, beans...and had sangria, and really enjoyed the afternoon. My papa loves spicy stuff, so I made this pasta salad for him.



SPICY Mac Salad
Ingredients (makes a BIG ol' bowl)
1 lb pasta of choice, prepared according to package directions
1 recipe dressing (below)12 oz roasted red pepppers, cut into thin strips
14 oz artichoke hearts, roughly chopped
2 cups fresh spinach, chiffonade
10 large fresh basil leaves, chiffonade

Directions
Prepare, drain and cool pasta. Mix together with the dressing. Add in the peppers, artchoke hearts, spinach and basil. Toss until well combined. Cover and refrigerated several hours before serving.

For the Dressing
1 cup vegan mayo
1/3 cup olive oil
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tbsp garlic powder
2 tbsp onion powder
2 tbsp brown mustard
2 tbsp agave nectar
1 tbsp paprika
Sea Salt and Black Pepper to taste

Directions
Whisk all ingredients together. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Brillante Weblog Nominee

So, I have received my first "blog award" nominee. One of the rules is to post the logo on my blog. I searched Google for the logo and I came up with THIS.


I am quite sure that Nikki over at VeganVerve certainly was unaware of the hoax as she has a pretty awesome blog with loads of great food, recipes and quotes of the day/week that certainly is deserving of an award, and I am also quite honored that she selected me to be a nominee. So, thanks to you Nikki.


As far as the following the rest of the rules, and therefore perpetuating the "chain" I won't be nominating anymore blogs for this award.


Instead, I will give you a quick list of just a few of my favorites (there are many more over in the sidebar.) There are so many I follow regularly, it was pretty hard to narrow it down to just 7.



Adventures in the Life of a 9 year old vegan

Everyday Dish

Have Cake, Will Travel

Yellow Rose Recipes

Bittersweet

Cakemaker to the Stars

What the Hell does a Vegan Eat Anyway?

Muffin Cup Quiche

Sunday morning with my dearest girlfriends...what a treat! I made these muffin cup quiches for the event. Not all the girls were vegan, or even vegetarian, but every last one of them got gobbled up, so I would have to say they were a big hit.



I made two variations, a mediterannean influenced sundried tomato and spinach one, and a brocolli "cheddar"version, complete with fake bacon. I used phyllo dough for the crusts. I will give you the recipe for the base quiche mix, and let you know what I added in for the different variations, but seriously, you can make these any old way you want to. In fact, you don't even have to make individual cups. One recipe would fill a premade pie crust quite nicely.

Basic Quiche Mix
Ingredients (makes 12 muffin cup sized quiches)
1 block of extra firm tofu, pressed, drained and crumbled
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp turmeric
1 tbsp yellow prepared mustard
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1/4 cup chickpea (besan) flour
1/4 cup olive oil

Directions
In a mixing bowl, add all ingredients and mush it all together with your hands until well incorporated.

For the mediterranean style quiche I added 2 cups of spinach leaves, chiffonade, and about 6 sundried tomatoes packed in oil, chopped into little pieces.



For the broccoli "cheddar" quiche. I added 1/2 of a medium white onion, diced finely, 1 tablespoon of mello white miso, about 2 cups of brocolli florets, and about 1/4 cup of imitation bacon bits.



For the crust, I used phyllo dough. First, you need to prepare your muffin pans by spraying them liberally with nonstick spray. Following the instructions on the box, I carefully unrolled the package of dough, and, using a pizza cutter, I cut the dough into 8 even pieces. Then I oiled each layer lightly, and grabbed about 3 or four layers for each "cup". I pressed it into the muffin pan, and then scooped some of the quiche mixture into the cup.



I baked mine at 350 for 15 minutes. Checking them at 10 minutes. I am still experimenting with my electric oven, so no guarantees to accuracy of timing and temperature. Take them out of the oven when the crusts begin to brown.

Sarah's Southwest Burgers

This is a Tester from the burger book. I promise to post something other than burgers soon. I promise!

My first home made meal in the country!

Finally deciding to tackle something other than pasta on that electric stove, I made some Garlicky Roasted Reds and Garlicky Ranch Potato Patties for dinner tonight. These are testers for the burger book, but it's been so long, I thought I'd share the garlicky potato love!

These are carb-o-licious...If you are looking for low carb, or low cal...don't make these. They work well for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Furthermore, they don't even need a bun!

Serving Suggestion
No bun, just a schmear of good old fashioned ketchup. If your having them for breakfast, serve with a nice tofu scramble. For lunch or dinner, try to serve with a nice green vegetable to balance out the carb-o-load. Or go crazy and serve with a nice side of Garlicky Roasted Reds (see below) and run a marathon the next day.

Before cooking.

Ready to eat!

Ingredients (makes 4 patties)
2 cups of grated/shredded potatoes (tightly packed)
2 tbsp minced garlic
1 tbsp dried parsley flakes
1 tsp paprika
Sea Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup panko bread crumbs
1/2 cup all purpose flour
2 tbsp ground flax, mixed with 3 tbsp water
1/3 cup canola oil
additional oil for frying

Directions
In a mixing bowl, mix together potatoes, garlic, paprika, salt and pepper. Mix until all of the potatoes are well coated. Add in the panko, flour, flax mixture, and oil. Mix well, using your hands until a nice dough forms. Divide into 4 equal pieces and form intopatties. Preheat a generous amount of oil in a skillet and pan fry about 3-5 minutes per side until golden and crispy.

Garlicky Reds
No real recipe here. You all know how to roast potatoes. For these, I cut up a bag of baby reds into bite sized chunks, spread them into a single layer on a foil lined cookie sheet, with the skins down, sprinkle with salt, pepper, paprika, garlic powder, parsley, and fresh minced garlic. Then I drizzle a bit of olive oil over the whole thing and bake at 350 for about 30 minutes.