Spicy Peanut Tofu Sandwich with Vegan 'Slaw

Like Liz Lemon, I'm a sucker for a good sandwich. And since going dairy and egg free, I've been craving a good sandwich. I get tired of veggie burgers, you know? This did the trick! I never liked coleslaw either, but with the veganaise, it's super yummy. 

The "Coleslaw"
Ingredients:
A bag of coleslaw mix (it's just cabbage and carrots)
1/2 Cup Veganaise
1 Tbs Non-dairy milk, I used almond
1/2 Tbs Vinegar
Pinch of salt
Pinch of Black Pepper

Just mix all together, that's it!

Now for the tofu sandwich...

Ingredients:
1 block firm or very firm tofu
Garlic
Olive Oil
2 Tbs Natural Creamy Peanut Butter
1 Tbs Soy Sauce
1/2 Tbs Rice Wine Vinegar
Sriracha (This is what makes it spicy! Add as much or as little as you want, start with less and add more)
Chopped green onions (optional)
Chopped Cilantro (optional)
A rustic, whole wheat bun or roll. This is a hearty sandwich, you want a hearty bread.
 


Drain and bake the tofu (recipe to bake the tofu here: http://greenveggiespirit.blogspot.com/2013/01/baked-tofu-quinoa-wraps.html)

Heat some chopped garlic in olive oil and throw the tofu in there.

Add peanut butter, reduce heat, you don't want to burn it. Add Soy Sauce, vinegar and Sriracha. Stir until melty and delicious. If you wish, add chopped green onions, cilantro, or both. I chose both.

Slice up a roll!

Add the 'slaw

Maybe a little more...

And eat, enjoy!

From my heart to yours, happy Saturday :)

Vegan Hot Chocolate (with stone ground chocolate)

This stone ground chocolate is SO GOOD. I'm addicted! I'll never go back! It's delicious to just eat alone, but the checkout guy at Trader Joe's mentioned he put it in hot chocolate, and I've been thinking about it ever since...

Here's what you need:
1 cup Almond Milk (or soy, or hemp, or coconut, or oat, or sunflower seed...)
.65 Oz of stone ground dark chocolate, check the ingredients to make sure there's no milk, if you care. .65 Oz is one quarter of one of the wheels that come in the package.
1/2 Tbs Agave Syrup
Dash of Cinnamon (this just gives it that Mmmmmmmmm taste)

Here's the chocolate. This is amazing.

Start warming everything in a saucepan, stirring the whole time. Chocolate will melt, it gets creamy, and you are in heaven!

Yum yum yum

Now to catch up on the "Once Upon a Time" episodes I've missed!

Enjoy :)

Avocado "Fries"

Easiest recipe ever!

Ingredients:
Avocado, not super ripe
Bread crumbs
Tiny bit of oil, I have the spray olive oil from Trader Joe's.

Preheat oven to 350.

Spray a baking sheet.

Slice up the Avocado.

 
Put some breadcrumbs on a plate and roll the Avo slices in the crumbs. Bake at 350 for about 7 minutes. Serve with ketchup or maybe next time I will get fancy and make a Veganaise Aoli or something ;)

These were really, really yummy. Enjoy!

Mushroom and Spinach Tacos

Ingredients:

Mushrooms, sliced (doesn't matter what kind, I chose crimini)

Spinach, about 2 handfuls, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, or 1 if they are pretty big, chopped 

Extra virgin olive oil

Corn tortillas

Lettuce (I had butter lettuce, it was soooooo good!)

Salsa (can be homemade, but I'm a busy girl, so I just bought some fresh salsa)

Pinch of black pepper 

Sauté the garlic up in the EVOO. I swear to this day that eating garlic every day is why my parents are so healthy. Boosts up the immune system, that stinking rose!

Add the mushrooms and sauté about 4-5 minutes, keep the heat at medium. Add chopped spinach. And a sprinkle of black pepper. You don't even need salt, trust me.

Take off heat after another 3-4 minutes. Warm tortillas and layer up. Mushrooms, salsa, lettuce.

Yummy!

Eat up! Maybe with a glass of Pino Grigio, if that's your thing ;) sure is mine!

Now if you'll excuse me...I have a glass of wine and a handsome man waiting for me!

Much love, everyone! 

Baked Tofu Quinoa Wraps

Good morning!

So now that I'm working a real job again (at least I hope so!), I like to find easy, portable lunches. Here's one I found a basic recipe for and made it my own, which typically means easier and with less ingredients.

I'll start with the baked tofu. I didn't think it ever mattered to drain the liquid out or not, turns out it DOES! Anyway, get some extra firm tofu and place the block in between a paper towel. Put something heavy on top to press the liquid out.

So you start with this plain, blah block of tofu.

And here's my creative way of putting weight on it. You can use a book or recreate my balancing act :)

Ha! Ok preheat your oven to 400 degrees. After the Tofu has been under some weight for 30 minutes, cut into cubes and sprinkle with some extra virgin olive oil and some pepper or garlic powder if you'd like. Bake for 30 minutes until brown and delicious. I always wondered how to make restaurant-like tofu, well this is it folks! Yummy yummy yummy.

Ingredients for Wrap:
Your Baked Tofu
Cooked Quinoa (cook according to package)
Hummus (any flavor you'd like)
Green Onions
Spinach (mine is missing this because I forgot to buy it, but add it in for that extra crunch and iron and all the goodness spinach packs!)
Whole Grain Wraps (Got mine at Fresh and Easy, but Trader Joes has awesome wraps too)

MMmmmmmm Hummus... (I'm saying that the way a healthy Homer Simpson would say it)

Add Quinoa and Baked Tofu. See that lovely brown on the tofu? That's what baking will do, along with giving it an awesome texture.

Protein packed lunch!

Some Salt and Pepper bakes chips and I'm set! Happy Lunching!


From my heart to yours, stay healthy!

:)

Snackable Baked Chickpeas

Super easy, yummy, healthy, protein filled snack :)

Ingredients:
A can, or more, of Garbanzo Beans/Chickpeas, preferably organic and preferably canned without salt.
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Spices (I just used a tiny bit of salt and black pepper but you can use any spice blend you like!)

Preheat the oven to 400.

Drain the Chickpeas, wash the water over them for a few seconds to get out the film that's left over from the can.

Some of the little skins will come off, just toss those. Then drain and dry pretty well on a paper towel or regular towel. More skins might come off, just throw them out.

Put into a baking dish with some Olive Oil, toss to coat the beans, just a little.

Bake at 400 for 35-45 minutes or until crispy. Coat with spices, let cool and snack away!

Not bad for a 98 cent can and some spices! Happy Snacking :)

Apricot and Arugula Grilled Cheese

Happy New Year! Among my resolutions this year are the usual, to run more, more Yoga, less sugar, etc. And BLOG MORE! So hopefully my recipes get healthier as the year goes on, but right now I wanted to share my favorite recipe (well, one of my favorites) for Grilled Cheese. I mean, we all know that basically anything can go on a grilled cheese, but something about this combination is just magnificent. Try it!

Ingredients:
- Thick sliced bread. I used Whole Wheat Tuscan style from Trader Joe's, but any thick, harder slices will work.
- Cheese. I used Grass-fed Aged White Cheddar from Trader Joe's.
- Apricot Jam
- Arugula. Fresh and Organic from the Farmers Market! 
- Butter or Vegan Butter. No margarine please. And you don't need much, just a very thin layer on each side.
- Patience! This takes longer to make. Let it. It's worth it ;)
- A good red wine. This is just my recommendation for most meals, I'm sure this would go well with White Wine too....

I'll explain this, even though I don't really need to. Spread the Jam on your bread, slice up the cheese and then place in a buttered skillet. Keep the heat low and turn often. Keep an eye on it, it takes a few minutes for the cheese to melt because the bread is so thick, don't skimp on this! You want crispy bread and melted cheese, trust me.

When the cheese is all gooey and delish, open the Sandwhich and stuff some Arugula in there.

I think it wants a close up...

Super simple, super yummy, and something about the Apricot, Cheddar, and Arugula all together just makes me happy :)


From my heart to yours, Happy 2013!!