Vegan MoFo Day 10/11!

Sorry for the delay friends-I was out of town this weekend for a Big Gay Diva Wedding Extravaganza (it was awesome!!!!) so Tuesday I was flying from DTW to LAX and couldn't post & then I got super sick so yesterday I went to bed after my rehearsal & line notes emails. So to make it up to you I have 2 recipes from my being vegan on the road adventuras in Detroit for the wedding. YAY!

Buffalo Tempeh with Cool Slaw(with slight changes) from Appetite for Reduction and my very own pasta salad (modified from my mom's o.g. version).

RECIPES:
Cool Slaw
Dressing:
1/4 cup raw cashews, soaked in 1/2 cup water for at least an hour, up to overnight.
2 tbsp chopped white onion
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp agave nectar
1/2 tsp salt
freshly ground pepper

Coleslaw:
2-3 tbsp freshly chopped dill OR cilantro, your choice!
1 14oz bag of coleslaw mix (Joe just makes his own with cabbage, carrot and red onion!)

40 minutes before serving, add a pinch of salt to the coleslaw mix and let stand. The purpose is to wilt the cabbage some so the dressing adheres and absorbs better.

Place all the dressing ingredients in a food processor and blend for at least 5 minutes. The goal is to obliterate the cashews to remove any grittiness. The soaking of the cashews helps tremendously. Add to the coleslaw mix and and the fresh herbs! Add pepper/ more vinegar to taste. You may wish to chill this before serving as well.







Buffalo Tempeh
Marinade:
1/2 cup veggie broth
1/2 cup cayenne hot sauce (like Frank's Red Hot)
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp dried oregano

Steam an 8 oz block of tempeh for 5 minutes (I cut it in half across the short side to fit it in the steamer). Then cut into a total of 8 triangles. In a shallow dish, just large enough to fit the tempeh triangles in, mix the marinade ingredients and marinate the tempeh for 30-60 minutes.

Preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat and spray with cooking spray. Add the tempeh and cook for 10 minutes, flipping often. After the tempeh has some color, add the remaining marinade and cook down until something of a glaze forms.







Pasta Salad:
1 lb rotini, farfalle or similar pasta noodles, cooked, rinsed and drained.
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 cucumber, seeded and sliced into half moons
1 4 oz can sliced black olives, drained
1/2 small red onion, diced
3 tbsp sundried tomatoes, chopped
3 tbsp capers
1 14oz can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
1 can Trader Joe's Green Hatch Chiles
A good pinch each of dried oregano, basil, parsley, red pepper flakes, paprika
Salt and pepper to taste
Robust Italian Dressing

Put everything in a large bowl and add enough dressing to coat all the veggies. Alex will also add some mushrooms, radishes and anything else she fancies! Even fresh dill!!!! This is a great fridge cleaner!!! Basically these measurements are all made up too (by Joe who like to measure-darn math nerds) because Alex & her mom never really measure anything-they cook by taste. Each time it's different & delicious! :D







REVIEWS:

Alex: these were super easy to make on the road (borrowing my good friend's kitchen) and great to go to the rehearsal dinner with & wedding with as they store easily and can be eaten again and again. Most of the omnis were jealous too!

Joe: these are favorites of ours at home and we have made them multiple times on the road. Great & easy go to recipes for travels.

Vegan MoFo Day 9!

Day 9 brings us an old college fave-ramen! Only not packages and easily made in your Mr. Coffee in your dorm room (I totally did that). Check out our version of every college kids fave...

RECIPE:

2 tsp oil
1 half white onion, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and sliced thin
2 cloves garlic
2 baby bok choy, root trimmed and chopped
4 oz. mushrooms, sliced
2 quarts (8 cups) water
2-3 tbsp Better Than Bouillon No Beef Base (Or No Chicken if you prefer)
1 lb pasta noodles (We use Capellini or Spaghetti) or Udon noodles
In a 6 qt pot, heat 2 tsp oil over medium high heat. Add onions, carrots and mushrooms and saute for 5 minutes. Add garlic and bok choy and saute for 2 more minutes. Add water and stir bouillon. Bring to a boil and add pasta noodles.

Once the noodles are done, about 8 minutes, turn off heat and let it rest for 5 minutes. Add some Sriracha or Sambal (Joe's favorite!) to give it some spice!!!

In the pictures, we didn't have any mushrooms or bok choy, so we had to leave it out :(






REVIEW:

Alex: I love this dish! Ramen rocks & is delicious in a pinch. :)

Joe: I love soup. Anything spicy with noodles, veggies and broth is a home-run in my book, and this quick and simple dish delivers. I STRONGLY recommend the addition of Sambal (1-2 tsp for the pot is perfect). If you want more broth to this soup, you may want to add more water and bouillon. The noodles tend to soak up a lot of liquid, usually leaving your with a bunch of delicious noodles, which is still great.

Vegan MoFo Day 8!

Day 8 being on a Sunday (our day of getting all the chores in our apartment done) we thought it would be nice to have a super quick, easy, and yet delicious recipe for you all: Rice Krispie Treats!!

Yep, that old favorite. So simple, yet so so perfect.

RECIPE:
3 tbsp. earth balance butter
1 package Dandies Vegan Marshmallows
6 cups Rice Krispies

In a pot melt butter over low heat, add marshmallows and push with spatula to melt. DO NOT make the epic mistake of leaving the marshmallows on the heat too long as it will make your treats hard. Once they get melted to the point where they still have some shape but I can smush them down into melted goodness I kill the heat. Add in your Rice Krispies & stir with spatula to combine. Mix well! You want to make sure that they are no dry spots in your treats cuz who wants that?! Transfer to a lightly sprayed with cooking oil 8x10" glass dish & push until flat & even. Let cool for 15-20 minutes. Remove from dish & slice into squares (we use our pizza cutter). Gobble 'em up!







REVIEW:

Alex: Yummy & easy. Great fast go to dessert for parties & picnics. LOVE!

Joe: Alex makes them the best but I love to help by mixing. They taste wunderbar!

Vegan MoFo Day 7!

Today we share Joey's most FAVORITE recipe EVER! His bread recipe:

RECIPE:

3 cups all purpose flour
2 tbsp earth balance butter
1/2 tsp. salt
2.25 tsp. instant dry yeast (1 package)
1 tbsp. sugar
1 cup warm water (110 degrees Fahrenheit)

Dissolve yeast & sugar into warm water. Let the yeast proof for 5 minutes, a thin layer of of foam will form letting you know the yeast is active. In a stand mixer/food processor combine flour, salt, & earth balance. Pulse/stir to incorporate. Turn on machine & slowly add the water mix. Keep mixing until the dough pulls cleanly from the sides of the bowl. Knead for 60 seconds (or 1 minute-oy Joe!). Form into a ball. Transfer to a clean, lightly sprayed with cooking spray bowl. Cover with damp kitchen towel or saran wrap & place in a warm draft free spot. Let dough rise for 1 hour or until it has doubled in size. Punch down, form into a loaf, transfer to a lightly sprayed with cooking oil 9" bread pan. Cover with damp towel or lightly sprayed with cooking oil saran wrap. Allow to dough to rise another 1 hour or until bread begins to reach the top of the pan. Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit until top has nice golden brown color (usually 25 minutes). Allow to cool for 5 minutes in the pan, then remove, let cool for 45 minutes on a cooling rack. Slice & enjoy!



















REVIEW:

Alex: This bread is delicious! I like it so much more than many of the store brand vegan breads & it's very light and fluffy & makes great fluffernutter sandwiches! My favorite parts of making it are adding the yest to the food processor & punching the dough so Joe always lets me do those. :)

Joe: I was sick of eating terrible bread from the grocery stores so I decided to make my own. The only downside to this recipe is that it takes 3 hours from start to finish (but most of the time is sitting waiting for the dough to rise). Some of the best bread I have ever had! :D

Vegan MoFo Day 6!

Day 6 brings us to Appetite for Reduction's (a fave cookbook of ours!) recipes for OMG Oven Baked Onion Rings & Chipotle Lentil Burgers. Mmmm!




RECIPES:

OMG Oven-Baked Onion Rings:
2 vidalia or other sweet (e.g. Walla Walla) onions
1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp. all purpose flour
2 tbsp. cornstarch
1 cup cold almond milk
1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
1 cup whole wheat bread crumbs (we used stale homemade bread we made earlier in the week)
1 tsp. kosher salt
2 tsp. olive oil

Slice onions into 3/4" thick rings. Separate rings & place in bowl. Cover with kitchen towel to keep oinioniness out of your eyes.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a rimmed 12x18" baking sheet with parchment paper, spray with cooking, & set aside.

Into 1 shallow wide bowl dump flour & cornstarch. Add 1/2 of almond milk & stir vigorously with fork to dissolve. Add remaining almond milk & apple cider vinegar, stir to incorporate. In another shallow bowl mix together bread crumbs & salt. Drizzle in oil & mix well.

Dip each onion slice into flour mix, then coat with bread crumbs, then place on parchment paper. Remember use one hand for each bowl so as to avoid the dreaded club hand (or do what Joe & I do & use 2 people!). Spray rings with nonstick cooking spray & bake for 8 minutes. The rings should be varying shades of brown & crisp. Taste to check for doneness. Serve as a side to the burgers below!





Chipotle Lentil Burgers:

1 tsp. olive oil
1 small red onion, cut in medium dice
1/2 lb. zucchini, halved lengthwise & sliced 1/2" thick
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup lightly packed fresh cilantro, chopped (Stems & Leaves)
1 (15oz.) can cooked lentils, drained & rinsed (1 1/4 cups) [note: we used a cooked lentil package from Trader Joe's]
1 cup bread crumbs, divided
1/4 cup chipotles, seeds removed, with adobe sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tsp red wine vinegar
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp smoked paprika

In a medium skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Saute the onions for 3 miinutes, then add zucchini, garlic, cilantro and a pinch of salt. Saute for 10 more minutes, until zucchini is soft.

Put all the veggies in a food processor, chipotle, soy sauce, vinegar and 1/2 cup of bread crumbs. ONLY 1/2. Pulse until mostly smooth, but retaining some texture. Transfer to a large bowl. Add the rest of the bread crumbs and mix by hand to combine. Form the mixture into 6 equal size patties.

Preheat a skillet over medium heat and spray with cooking spray. Cook the patties for 12 minutes, flipping often until nicely browned on both sides. You may need to add more cooking spray/oil if the pan looks too dry.






REVIEW:

Alex: I love this meal! The burgers can get a bit salty though so be careful. I like to load my burger up with avocado slices, onion, lettuce, and pickles. It's a great spin on a classic burger & rings meal. :D

Joe: I would say they are pretty delicious but I would leave the seeds in the next time I make this as I like my s**t spicy! Overall, a great meal.