Chewy Ginger Cookies

Because Gingers Totally ROCK!  :)

This is my take on a great recipe out of a really wonderful book! The Vegan Cookie Connoisseur. Check it out! It was chilly here today so I wanted a spicy warm cookie for desert! ENJOY!

Ingredients
3/4 cup Brown Sugar
1/4 cup Sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 tablespoons Dark Molasses
1/3 cup Canola Oil
1/3 cup Almond Milk
1 3/4 cup Flour
1 teaspoon Baking soda
3 teaspoons Ground Ginger
1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/2 cup Turbinado Sugar (to roll the dough balls in)

Directions
Pre-Heat the oven to 350

mix all the wet ingredients
sift in the dry ingredients
mix together thoroughly
roll into balls and dip in the Turibando Sugar
bake for 12-15 min

ENJOY

Vietnamese Rice Noodle Salad with Crispy Tofu

Vietnamese Rice Noodle Salad with Crispy Tofu

                                               A big thank you to my foodie photo taker :)

Dressing

·         3 tablespoons chili-garlic sauce

·         1 tablespoon soy sauce

·         1/4 cup fresh lime juice (about 2 depending on how juicy your limes are)

Salad

·         1 (12 ounce) package extra firm tofu

• ½ cup soy sauce

• 1 (8 ounce) package thin rice noodles
• 1 medium cucumber, sliced in thin half moons
• 1 small red onion, thinly sliced  
• 1 cup julienned carrots
• 2 cups mixed greens
• 1/4 cup thinly sliced cilantro
• 3 tablespoons of veggie oil

Topping

·         1/4 cup peanuts, chopped

·         3 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro

·         zest of 1 lime

Directions

1.      Mix up the dressing, Just add all the ingredients into a jar, put on the lid and give it a shake

2.      Pour the ½ cup of soy sauce into a shallow dish, cut the tofu into planks, let the tofu marinade in the soy for however long it takes you to do the next few steps (don’t forget to flip them)

3.      Cook the rice noodles according to the package then place them in the fried to cool off

4.      Slice the cucumber, red onions and carrots, prepare the greens and slice the cilantro.

5.      Now being to heat a pan over medium/high heat with the oil.

6.      When the oil becomes hot, add in the tofu and fry them on both sides until crispy, then drain them on your brown bag (doesn’t recycling feel good)

7.      Time to build the salad, now make a bed with the greens and top that with the noodles and the remainder of the veggies, then sprinkle the topping on.

8.      Serve the tofu and dressing on the side.

That’s it, it took me about 30 minutes and dinner was on the table, the tofu was crispy and delicious. This cold salad was perfect for a summer dinner and made a mountain of food so a great potluck dish! I may have to bring this to the next book club. J As always let me know if you have any questions or suggestions! Don’t forget to spread the Vegan Yogi love and tell your friends about this yummy blog!

 

 

 

Artichoke Season

                  
I Love this time of year because there is always amazing food fresh from the earth, One I am particularly fond of is Artichokes! I love this little thistle, but if you want to cook them fast and eat them fast then you really need to take a lesson from my mom. Yes most people boil them but that can take over an hour to do. My very smart mother taught me the best way ever. Give this a try, you can find huge artichokes at super low prices right now at Whole Foods and Trader Joe's.

Prep
Cut off the stem
cut off the top
trim the points off of each leaf using a kitchen scissor
open the top a little and run the choke under some water (they are grown in the sand so this will take care of any sand that hitched a ride)

Cooking
Place the chokes in a microwave safe bowl and fill it with about 1 inch of water
now top with plastic wrap and pop it in the microwave
you want to do 3-4 min per choke if they are big (like softball size)
just check them by opening the plastic wrap and tyring to pull out a leaf, if they come off easy they are done
I use tongs and flip them over and squeeze and extra water out

EAT
I like to serve these little green gems with melted Earth Balance or...... Vegan Mayo!!! I know but it is sooo good.

Well I hope you enjoy some of the great veg this time of year has to bring! Let me know what Veg you are enjoying this time of year too!

          

Easter Brunch

Easter was low key for me this year, but none the less I still wanted to make a nice brunch. I also wanted to make Hot Cross Buns. This is something I grew up eating on Easter, I have learned that they are not really all that popular but I really wanted to make a vegan version of them! Also I tried a recipe from PETA it is a wonderful frittata, I did not take any pictures of it but it was really yummy and I will make it again for sure! Of course no brunch would be complete without a delish mimosa! I made mine with a great peach mango orange juice from Trader Joe's, it was a nice twist on a old classic! Enjoy the fun pictures and give the recipes a try. I can't wait for the next brunch party with friends I will be making the frittata!

Hot Cross Buns
    2 Cups Flour
    1 teaspoon salt
    1 teaspoon allspice
    1 teaspoon cardamum
    2 tablespoons sugar
    1/2 cup chopped raisens
    2 tablespoons orange peel
    3 teaspoon yeast
    2 teaspoon sugar
    2/3 cup warm water
   
Directions:
Put flour, salt, spices, 2 tbsp sugar, rasisn and orange peel in a bowl.  Leave in a warm place.
Mix yeast, 2 tsp sugar and water.  Leave yeast mixture to rise.  Stir yeast mixture into flour mixture.  Knead, and let rise for 2-3 hours.
then knead and roll into buns and leave in a warm place to rise for another hour. Cut a cross in the top of each bun and Bake 10-15 minutes at 425F.
(Makes 12 big ones or more if you make them small)
Once the buns are cooled you can add some frosting or a glaze that fills up the cross that you have cut. I made an orange peel glaze (see below)

Orange peel glaze
1 tablespoon orange juice
1 teaspoon orange peel
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1/2 cup to 3/4 cup of powdred sugar (depends on how thick you like it)
Blend it all togather with a wisk and then pop it in the fridge for about 30 min.
To apply the glaze I just scouped it into a small plastic bagie and cut the corner off (ghetto piping bag) then fill in the cross cut on the buns.
(this glaze is also really good on a lemon bunt cake or on cinnamon rolls)

Bacon,’ Potato, and Green Onion Frittata

1/4 cup olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
4-5 green onions, chopped with the green and white parts separated
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 medium potatoes, shredded
2 tsp. salt, divided
1/2 tsp. pepper, divided
2 lb. firm tofu
2-3 Tbsp. soy sauce, to taste
4 Tbsp. nutritional yeast (optional)
2-3 Tbsp. faux bacon bits (try Bacos)

• Preheat the oven to 350°F.
• In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and the white part of the green onions and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the garlic and heat for another 30 seconds. Increase the heat to medium-high and add the potatoes, 1 tsp. of the salt, and 1/4 tsp. of the pepper. Cook for 10 to 15 minutes, flipping the potatoes regularly until they are well-browned.
• Blend the remaining salt and pepper, the tofu, soy sauce, and nutritional yeast in a food processor until they are creamy. Fold in the faux bacon bits, the green part of the green onions, and the fried potatoes and pour the mixture into a large, oiled pie or tart pan. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until the center is firm.
• Allow the frittata to cool for 10 minutes then invert it onto a serving plate

Smokey Temphe Sando's and Portland Food Cart's

Recently I took a whirlwind trip home to Oregon, it was wonderful and when my sister and nephew picked me up at the airport we rushed in the rain down to the wildly popular food carts! I was so excited I have been wanting to visit the super trendy and popular street corner lined with little trailers packed with good food, much of it Vegan! Sallie and I decided to eat at Buddha Bites, We wanted to try a few things so we picked the Smokey Temphe sandwich and a wonderful quinoa tabbouleh salad. I can not say enough how amazing this food was, I ate sooo much and was mesmerized by all the full flavors! So the pictures below are of my trip with Sallie and Brogan to the food carts and then below you will also find my recreation of the Smokey Temphe Sando. I want to eat this every day for lunch it is easy and delish!

aftermath of the sando

It was raining so hard we had to eat in the car

To make the Sandos you will need:
1 loaf of bread, I used a sourdough baguette
1 package of Temphe (I used the Trader Joe's brand,  )
1/4 cup of Brags Liquid Amino's or Soy Sauce
1 tsp of liquid smoke
1/2 tsp of garlic powder
1 tomato
2 tablespoons of Vegan Mayo (the very best is )
1 ripe Avocado
3 large green leafs (I used green leaf but I think butter leaf would be yummy)

How to build the perfect Smokey Sando

• first remove the Temphe and and slice in half so you have 2 large thin slabs
• mix the Liquid Amino's (or soy sauce) liquid smoke and garlic powder.
• marinade the temphe in the sauce for however long you want just don't forget to flip it... :)  I think mine sat for an hour or so (however long it took me to go to a yoga class and come home)
• then heat up a skillet with 1 tablespoon of canola or veg oil (I don't like to use olive oil when I am cooking at a high temp) cook the Tempe at medium high heat, flip them till each side gets a little toasty then add the remaining marinade and let it soak in until it is all dry in the pan. then they are done!
• cut the baguette in half then slice open you will have 2 like foot long sandos
• broil the bread till it is toasty
• now build the sandos, put the vegan mayo on the bread, you can also use Hummus instead of mayo if you want. (I may have gone a little heavy on the mayo on mine :)
• then layer on the veg and top with the Temphe. Voila! Cut the sandos so you end up with 4 nice size sandos!
• I served these with a summer potato salad and fresh fruit!

One more Cute Pic :)

Well this one is super funny!