Tofu Green Curry

This a standard favorite Tofu Green Curry, we used to get green curry at a small place in a strip mall not to far away, but after we went vegan we could not get total assurance that it was vegan, language issues. I started making the my own shortly there after!

Here's the recipe:
5 medium yellow potatoes, cubed
2 teeth of garlic, pressed
6 cups water
2 carrots peeled and chopped
1 white onion chopped(if your kids like them)
Boil till potatoes are just starting to soften.
Add one can of lite coconut milk
Stir in 2 tablespoons of green curry paste, (I like the Thai Kitchen, labeled vegan!), and salt to taste.
We made rice noodles for the base, and added roasted Brussels sprouts, and baked tofu that was dusted with smoked paprika.
A pinch of cilantro, pickled jalapeños, and sqeeze of lime and we were good to go.

Keep it simple - Vegan Chili

Ok it's not going to be that hard.... if goes in a bowl and you eat it with a spoon it qualifies! Tonight is chilly time for some chili.... we have a tradition of the making 3 can chili, simple, tasty and fast:
3 cans of your favorite organic beans
1 can of refried beans
1 can of rotel or 1 cup of fresh tomatoes
add a can of fresh, can of posole, or frozen corn if you like.
season with:
2 tablespoons of chili powder
1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon of onion powder
1/4 teaspoon of cumin
liquid smoke if you like
Add 1 cup of tvp or vegan crumbles
The best part of this recipe is when it hot enough it is ready!!
Top with Daiya, Vegan Sour Cream, salsa, cilantro, green onions, chips, tortillas or whatever!

Vegan Miso Soup

Had some left over rice, had some red miso paste, had some frozen collard greens... soups on!

8 cups of water
3 big tablespoons of red miso
1 white onion chopped severely or minced
3 teeth of garlic minced
2 cups frozen collard greens
add soy sauce to taste
Add one cup of rice (if you have some)bring it to a boil and it's ready.
Simple, classic, and healthy

Vegan Black Eyed Pea Soup

Well I have been a lazy sot when it comes to blogging.... I was pretty disciplined for a few years, then last year I made it to earth day then I just gave up.. It's a new year so it's time to dust off the old key board and camera and get back to work!
This month will be dominated by the 31 days of vegan soup... The result of slight challenge from a friend!
JANUARY 1st - black eyed pea soup served on top of rice and topped with sautéed white onions, green peppers, cilantro and French fried onions(yeah those ones in a can)

RECIPE
1 lb black eyed peas - dried, follow instructions on the bag
After they are cooked (about 2 hours) add 6 cups strong veggie broth(or no chic broth), and 1 teaspoon garlic powder.
In a sauté pan sweat 1 rough diced white onion and 3 rough chopped celery. Once the onions and celery are getting soft add 2 bell peppers chopped and turn off heat, and add throw in some diced green onions(not trying to cook these, just warming)
To finish we ladled the soup over white rice, added the peas, then topped with the sautéed onions, celery, and peppers. For a added twist we topped with the French fried onions from a can, which pushed the soup over the top!

Quick lunch tacos and a cat nap!!!

Gabriel the solar powered cat!!!

I am not a big lunch guy...  in fact it is fairly rare for me to eat lunch.  I generally will have a simple snack like, some crackers, a piece of fruit, a glass of water, or bypass all of that and have a snack while making dinner.  When I do eat lunch it makes me very sleepy in the afternoon and I cannot get much accomplished.
When I have evening events I do have to have something to eat in the afternoon.

Keeping it simple, Tomato - Spinach - Avocado

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This was one of those days...  I jetted home and determined that the perfect compromise was to make some quick - simple tacos.  These are just baby spinach, organic roma tomatoes, avocado (they were great this winter!), salt, and chili sauce.
After eating these I packed up a salad to take back to work with me so I had something to eat later!!!!

Pasta with Tomato Cashew Cream

I really like pasta, but have not eaten as much in past few years because of the processed grain. This was a quick and easy dinner with some decent organic tomatoes I found.
I decided to do a Tomato Cashew Cream:
Sauce ~
1 large potato - small diced
1/2 white onion - small diced
1 tooth of garlic
1/4 cup raw cashews
Salt to taste
Simmer the above in sauce pan until the potatoes are soft, about 10 to 15 minutes if your dice is small. Put in blender or Vitamix and blend until smooth and creamy. Add a tablespoon of white wine if you like

Then add and lightly blend
1 cup cherry tomato (small pear red or yellow)
3 fresh basil leaves
Serve with a pound of your favorite pasta
I used spaghetti, but it would be good with bigger pasta like penne, farfalle, or radiatore.
Serve with a mixed greens salad.

Italian Parsley Pesto, Dreaming of Spring!!!

Pushing the envelope, or rather, emptying the fridge is an ongoing challenge. The other night I was making White Bean Cassoulet for the Vegan Potluck and I thought that pesto would be a nice garnish. Well... I did not have any basil, so looked in the veggie drawer hoping to find some kale, but there was not any. DANG.... no pesto, then I remembered that I had purchased some lovely looking Italian parsley for the rabbits (yeah... the real live rabbits that live under my daughters bed). I have never considered making a pesto with parsley, so what the heck!!!
Here's what I did:

• 1 big bunch of Italian Parsley (cut off stems and feed to the rabbits)
• 3 teeth of garlic
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup raw walnuts
• 2 tablespoons of tahini
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 lemon juiced

Put it all in the vita mix/blender and blend until it looks right. The pesto actually turned out really intense in a good way, the pungency of the parsley combined with the citrus and the sharpness of the walnuts and tahini worked well.
My original intention was to pair the Pesto with the Cassoulet, but the other potluckers ate it straight up, with bread, veggies or whatever. None of the pesto came home with us, but the rabbits said I could make it again as long as they get to eat the leftover stems!!!