Raw dinner: kale bites with tomatoes and spicy carrot filling.

Tonight I decided to do a raw dish for dinner. I had leftover pulp from juicing some carrots and other veggies, so I wanted that to be my base. I knew about what type of flavors I wanted, and the result was pretty delicious!! These would also be a great appetizer if you wrap the kale like a little taco with a toothpick. Here is the recipe.

Spicy carrot 'meat' filling


Ingredients:
1 cup veggie pulp (mine was from 2 carrots, half a cucumber and a pear)
1 Tbsp ground flax seed
2 Tbsp walnuts
2 Tbsp nama shoyu or soy sauce
3 scallions, mostly white parts
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
3 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp lemon juice (about half of a large lemon)
1 tsp raw agave
1/2 tsp cayenne
1/2 tsp cumin
dash of salt and pepper
1/2 tsp mustard seed (optional)

Directions:
 Add all ingredients to a food processor or blender. Blend until nice and smooth. Add an additional tbsp olive oil or water if your blender/food processor is struggling.

For the raw kale bites:

Take 2 or 3 stalks of kale and wash. Remove leaves from stems in large, but bite-sized pieces. Pat dry and put in a bowl. Add a few Tbsps of olive oil, juice of 1/2 lemon, and a light sprinkling of salt. Massage with your hands until all of the leaves are fully coated in the marinade.

On a plate, lay out a piece of kale, about 1 tsp of the filling, and a slice of fresh tomato or sundried tomato.

Eat them up!

Roasted butternut squash, stuffed with veggies and quinoa, along side a vegan caesar salad.

Tonight, I made dinner for dad and I! It's been a little while since we've had dinner together, so I wanted to fix up something tasty! We had a butternut squash left over from Christmas dinner, so I know I wanted to use that. Here is dad, posing with the grub!

For easy roasted butternut squash, mix up this savory/sweet marinade!

2 Tbsp maple syrup or dark agave
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp olive oil
1 tsp, each, fresh chopped oregano and thyme
1/4 tsp salt

Whisk all ingredients together in a small bowl, adding olive oil last.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Slice squash in half and scoop out seeds. In a baking dish large enough to accomodate both halves, pour 1/4 cup water. Add squash, flesh side up. Brush on marinade and cover with foil. Bake for 45 minutes to an hour, or until all flesh is tender.

While squash is cooking, prepare filling.

Other ingredients:
quinoa (red or white)
veggie boullion cube
red onion
1 large carrot
olive oil
vinegar
chopped walnuts or pine nuts

In a small saucepan, add 2 cups water, 1 cup quinoa, and a veggie boullion cube. Bring to a boil, and then turn down to simmer and cover. Quinoa is done with liquid is evaporated.

While quinoa is cooking, dice two cloves of garlic and chop 1/4 red onion and 1 large carrot. Heat 2 tsp olive oil to a saute pan over medium/high heat. Add veggies. Saute until soft (about 5 minutes). Season with salt and pepper and a dash of rice wine or red wine vinegar. Cover and keep on low.

When squash is done, sprinkle with pepper and place on plate. Combine the cooked quinoa, veggies and leftover marinade from the squash baking dish. Add 1/4 cup nuts to the mixture. Mix together and fill each half of squash with the mixture!

 Easy vegan ceasar dressing...

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp Vegannaise
1 Tbsp dijon mustard
1 clove garlic, roughly chopped
juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp fresh or dried italian herbs
1 Tbsp olive oil
Dash of salt and pepper 
1 tsp ground flax seed (optional)

Add all ingredients to a food processor, except oil. Blend together. When ready to use, blend in olive oil. Chop fresh Romaine lettuce and coat with dressing. Add an avocado for extra creaminess!

Veggie spirals with sundried tomatoes and fresh herbs.

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I threw together this tasty and simple pasta after work today. I boiled up some tri-colored, veggie pasta. In some hot pepper olive oil, I sauteed up some chopped garlic, fresh oregano and thyme and slices of veggie Italian sausage. I threw in some julienne cut sundried tomatoes, and then added the pasta back to the pan. I let it all cook for another minute or two and then tossed on some crushed red pepper flakes.

Mmmm mmmm, good.

Happy trails.... to you...

So I'm spending the weekend in Austin. It's freezing cold here (like everywhere else in the country at the moment), so I've done very little walking around! Until today, that is. Just thought I would share my wonderful foodie experiences of the day.

I walked for a couple of blocks down Congress St in South Austin. There are about a dozen, or two, cute little shops around, featuring neat antiques, locally made goods and foods. I picked up a few little trinkets, including a great photograph of a Horny Toad, from a guy on the street! (Definitely going on the wall of the camper). The prices of most stores are surprisingly reasonable. Most places were not very touristy, which was also a plus.

After a few hours of window shopping, I wanted to look around for a place to grab a snack. Low and behold, I stumble upon a chili competition! While this doesn't exactly sound like a dream find for a vegetarian, I was in luck. The host of the competition, Jo's Coffee, cooked up a pot of veggie chili just my kind of clientele. The teller suggested I try the 'veggie chili frito pie'... and I'm so glad I did.

A 'frito pie', I found out, is a layer of frito's topped with the chili, with a few more fritos sprinkled on top. I topped with with some raw chopped red onions and fresh squeezed lime juice. Sided up with a Lone Star ("Texas born, Texas brewed"), this gem only set me back $7. The actual chili was quite flavorful, but not too spicy. They used chickpeas instead of the traditional kidney bean, which I thought was a great choice. I sat and enjoyed the atmosphere for a little while and went on with my journey.

My next sweet find of the day, was this little streamliner diner, Hey Cupcake!

Hey cupcake! just sells delicious cupcakes. They even had 3 vegan options, including chocolate peanut butter, spiced orange, and carrot cake (my obvious choice). They even have an option for a free injection of whipped cream into the middle of any cupcake you purchase! For only $2.50 a pop, I'm hoping to stop by this Streamliner every day until I leave. This is definitely a must if you are in the neighborhood.

First meal back!

Sorry this picture is kind of crappy... I was starving! This was the first really solid meal I've eaten in two days. After getting back from New Orleans, I caught a terrible stomach bug! It was no good.

So for my first meal back, I did a vegan 'steak and potatoes'. I made some quick mashed potatoes and mushroom gravy. For the tempeh, I cut it in large pieces and marinated it in some lemon juice, fresh chopped garlic, salt and pepper, a splash of olive oil and some Bragg's amino acids (I'm addicted to this stuff!).

My favorite part of the meal, however, was the roasted onions. They came out fabulously... and I would definitely make them again! I was following a recipe from Barefoot Contessa. Now, Ina Garten is one of those Food Network stars that I literally don't even give her more than 5 minutes to convince me to watch her. In my opinion, her recipes are typically very heavy, and full of butter and meat. Besides that, they never seem to be that creative or intriguing. I am really glad I ran out of stuff to watch while I was sick, though, because I ended up watching her whole episode (including this great recipe)! It was a good companion to the mashed potatoes. The recipe is below. I found that I had to make a second batch of the marinade to coat all of the onions.

Ingredients:

2 red onions

1 yellow onion

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1/2 tablespoon minced fresh thyme leaves

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup good olive oil

1/2 tablespoon minced fresh parsley leaves

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Remove the stem end of each onion and carefully slice off the brown part of the root end, leaving the root intact. Peel the onion. Stand each onion root end up on a cutting board and cut the onion in wedges through the root. Place the wedges in a bowl.

For the dressing, combine the lemon juice, mustard, garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Slowly whisk in the olive oil. Pour the dressing over the onions and toss well.

With a slotted spoon, transfer the onions to a sheet pan, reserving the vinaigrette that remains in the bowl. Bake the onions for 30 to 45 minutes, until tender and browned. Toss the onions once during cooking. Remove from the oven, and drizzle with the reserved dressing. Sprinkle with parsley, season to taste and serve warm or at room temperature.

The broccoli must die!

New Years in New Orleans

After visiting mom in South Carolina, I headed straight down to New Orleans to celebrate New Years. It was a fantastic drive. Lots of bridges.

I got Diego a little booster seat, so he wouldn't be bugging me the whole time. He was a little apprehensive, but ended up really loving it pretty quickly! He napped most of the time.

Christmas goodies!

Mom got me a lovely herb garden for my kitchen! I can't wait for this puppies to get nice and fluffy. Yay for fresh herbs!!

chives, two types of thyme, oregano and rosemary.

She also got me a little strawberry plant. I can't wait to see some ripe berries on this one!

Polish Halupki!

Halupki is a traditional Polish dish that my grandma, my mom and my family make every Christmas and Thanksgiving. For the first time, though, I got my dad's side of the family to try out some polish food! This recipe is traditionally made with ground beef, but my mom and I make it with portobella mushrooms instead! Here is an easy recipe for you guys to try it out!

Polish Halupki.

Ingredients:

1 head cabbage

2-4 cups veggie boullion

4 portobella mushroom caps

4 cups cooked rice

1/2 white onion

1 clove garlic

1 Tbsp Earth Balance or olive oil

Preparations:

Follow directions and cook rice.

Place cabbage in a pot and cover with water. Add 1 tsp of oil and cover with a lid.

Chop onion, portobella caps and mince garlic. Add butter or oil to saute pan over medium, high heat. Add onion and garlic and saute for about 5 minutes. Add portobellas and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

 As the outer leaves of the cabbage begin to soften, cut and remove from cabbage head. You can do this by taking a paring knife, and carefully removing leaves at the base as they soften. Take the leaves and place them in a colander.

Prepare the cabbage leaves by slicing thick stems down to create a unified thickness throughout the

leaf. (I should have taken photos of this step... so ask questions if you need to!)

When the rice is done, add the mushroom mixture to it.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a casserole dish by spraying lightly with nonstick spray. Now it's time to stuff the cabbage! To wrap, place about 1/4 cup of the mushroom mixture at the base of a cabbage leaf. Wrap of the cabbage leaf like a burrito, around the mixture. Make sure not to wrap it too tightly, because the rice still expands a bit.

Line up the cabbage wraps side by side to create a single layer in the bottom of the casserole dish. Add about 1 cup of the veggie bouillon. If needed, add a second layer of the wraps. Add the remainder of the veggie bouillon to the casserole dish. Cover with tin foil and bake for 45 minutes to an hour. (Until the cabbage is tender)

Top with tomato sauce and/or hot sauce if desired. Chow down!

Pizza contest!

While all of the family was in Florida, we had a pizza making contest! We were assigned to teams of two and we worked together to create fun pizzas. We were given 20 minutes each. It was a lot like iron chef! It was great fun. Of course I could only eat two of the five pizzas, but it was still a blast.

Click read more to see what we cooked up!

Kissimmee VeeDub Show!

This weekend was the second annual VW Jingle Bugs Rock show, in Kissimmee, Florida. Mike let me tag along to see what it was all about. I took pictures. Lots of pictures. More food coming soon! Honest!

There were four  Herbie replicas. They're pretty popular.

Read more for lots of pics!

A day at the doggy beach!

Diego and I have been hanging out at Davis Island Doggy Park lately. This day was an overcast, cold and dreary day. We were the only two out.

dingys at sea

Eddie's Carmengia

rusted gate

little Diego on the beach.

Diego exploring.

full beach view.

Pretzel Party! Vol 1.

I tried some pretzel recipes today! Woot! I tried a couple of different toppings for the preztels. Next time, I will try and mix the toppings inside with the pretzels. Here are the combos I tried:

1. Fresh chopped garlic and Earth Balance

2. Curry, cayenne, cumin, honey and fresh ginger

3. Stuffed pizza! Fake cheese and marinara sauce

Everything was so tasty, and not that much work to make. The flavors were not as prominent as I wanted, but I will try some further experiments, and keep you guys up-to-date! The pizza filled pretzels didn't stay together, so they were more like pretzel 'boats'. But no less delicious!!!

Cabbage Casserole... Halupki for dummies?

My family's heritage, on my mother's side, hails from the Ukraine (I think what is now Czech Republic?). As a family tradition, we always eat perogies at Christmas time. We try and make them from scratch most years, but if nothing else, we eat Mrs. T's. I hate to say it, but they come pretty close. Mrs. T's does offer a vegan potato and onion perogie, but generic brands tend to be vegan.

In addition to making perogies, my mom and I have also been making halupki every now and then for the past couple of years. Traditionally, this dish is a baked, stuffed cabbage meal, made with ground beef. Since mom and I have been eating veggie, we substituted diced portobella. Halupki sometimes comes out delicious, but sometimes comes out just okay (Expect a recipe closer to the holidays!).

When I discovered a recipe in the Weight Watchers cookbook with the exact same ingredients, I was very excited to try it out! A mandolin came in handy for this recipe. Just remember, this recipe is easy, but takes over an hour in the oven. When I made this, I shredded the cabbage as the recipe calls for. Next time, I definitely want to try and keep the leaves large. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 tsp canola oil

1 onion, chopped

1 green bell pepper, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

2 portobella caps, chopped

1, 14.5oz can diced tomatoes with mild green chiles

1, 8oz can tomato sauce

1/2 cup cooked rice

1/4 head cabbage, shredded

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9"x13" baking dish with non-stick spray. Set aside.

(Don't forget to get the rice going if you don't already have some made!)

In a very large saute pan, head the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion, bell pepper and garlic. Cook for about 6-7 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook for an additional couple of minutes.

Next, add the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, and rice. Brint to a boil, and turn down the heat. Allow to cook for about 6-7 minutes.

Spoon half of the tomato and rice mixture into the prepared pan. Add the cabbage. Cover with the remaining tomato mixture. Cover with foil and pop in the oven for about an hour and 15 minutes, or until cabbage is soft.

This recipe did not turn out to be a replacement for halupki, but a quick and easy dish that has the same flavors. As I said in the recipe, I would like to try this recipe with large cabbage leaves next time.

Vegan fast food; Eastern European style.

Sorry for the break, but I've been without my camera for almost a week now! So, this is a quick little update for an easy dinner and some new found favorites of mine!

vegan sauerkraut dog with ketchup, dijon mustard and horseradish, cabbage casserole and sauteed greens with onions. 

It's as simple as that. I have been craving dogs, so I got some large size Smart Dogs. Threw one on a toasted bun, along with some ketchup, spicy mustard, horseradish, and a huge helping of sauerkraut.

The first side is some very simple sauteed greens. I took a handful of kale and rinsed it thoroughly. I roughly chopped the greens, while heating about 2 tsps of canola oil in a pan. I added one clove of chopped garlic and one full scallion, chopped. To that I added the greens, 1 tsp of red wine vinegar, dash of pepper, salt, granulated garlic and red pepper flakes. Mix up and saute for about 30 seconds. Take off the heat and serve immediately.

The second side is some cabbage casserole! My next post will contain ingredients and recipe for that.

Three cheers for lazy dinner tonight! Hip, hip, hooray.