Vegan Mac and Cheese with Tomatoes

I’ve been quiet the last week or so.  I’ve been aiming for 100% vegan foods, but to be honest, I’ve been probably more 75 vegan/25 not.  It’s so hard with holiday goodies!  My biggest downfall seems to be cookies/sweets that are not vegan.  Lunches are still meal prepped vegan, breakfast is still vegan and dinners have been pretty close.

I am not a huge pasta person, but had wanted to try making the mac and cheese that I’ve read about.  All in all, it was ok.  I may have needed to blend the cheese mix more, but not sure if that was the only thing.  In many ways, it is a sufficient substitute for the real thing and I do appreciate that it’s not loaded with thousands of calories from processed foods.  I did top with some crushed up potato chips 🙂

• 10 ounces whole wheat elbow macaroni
• 1 small white onion, diced
• 2-3 roma tomatoes, diced
• 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup raw cashews, soaked overnight, then drained
• 1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
• 1 Tbsp cornstarch
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 2 Tbsp nutritional yeast

Instructions

1. Boil macaroni according to package instructions.
2. In a medium skillet over medium-low heat, sautee onion, half the tomatoes and garlic in a bit of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper, stir and cook until soft and fragrant – about 7 minutes. Set aside.
3. Add onions, tomatoes and garlic to a blender with remaining ingredients. Blend until smooth, using the “liquify” setting if you have it to get it really smooth. Otherwise just blend for up to a minute, scraping down sides as necessary, until smooth and creamy.
4. Drain the noodles, set aside and cover (with a towel). To the same pot you boiled the noodles in, add the cashew cheese and cook on low stirring frequently until slightly thickened.
5. Add the macaroni noodles to the cheese, along with the remaining tomatoes and stir. Serve immediately.

Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie-for 1-2 people.

I’m not sure how you can beat an individual size recipe.  Sounds like perfection in my opinion.

Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie

• 1 tbsp + 1 tsp organic canola oil
• 1.5 tbsp powdered sugar
• 2 tsp brown sugar
• 1 tsp maple syrup
• ¼ tsp vanilla extract (3 to 4 drops)
• ¼ tsp nutritional yeast
• a good pinch of salt
• 3 tbsp unbleached white flour
• a good pinch of baking soda (about a 1/16th tsp)
• 1.5 tbsp or more vegan chocolate chunks or chips
• sea salt or maldon salt for sprinkling.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350 deg F .
2. In a bowl, add the ingredients oil through salt. Mix well until well combined and you don’t see big drops of oil floating around.
3. Add 2.5 tbsp flour and sprinkle baking soda on the flour and mix well. Add a tsp flour at a time to make a thick batter mixture. Usually 3 Tbsp works out perfectly. Depending on the measurement of the wet ingredients, you might need a tsp less or more. The mixture should be thick batter, or stiff batter.
4. Fold in the chocolate chunks. Drop mixture on parchment lined baking sheet and flatten slightly. Sprinkle salt on the cookie and press in.
5. Bake at 350 deg F for 11 to 13 minutes till the edges just about start to turn golden. Tap the baking sheet and let it cool. The cookies will be soft right out of the oven, but will cool to be fudgy within 5-10 mins. Cool completely before storing.

 I adopted this recipe from http://www.veganricha.com/2016/03/chocolate-chunk-cookies-for-two.html

I thought when I put the dough in the oven on a sheet of parchment, that that was MAYBE 1 good size cookie for 1 person.  Then I checked it:

 It got ginormous.  I took it out of the oven and let it cool for a little while.  The cookie essentially was like a shell when I did eat it.  There was no “filling” really, or density to it: it was quite thin. I also must have put too much salt in, or I’d skip the salt on top next time.  It was a little salty for my tastes.  All in all, I thought it was pretty decent, and will make it again!

Tempeh!

I bought some tempeh to try out.  It definitely has a unique look!  I decided to try Kung Pao Tempeh.  It was delicious!

Kung Pao Tempeh

• 8 ounces organic tempeh
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1 teaspoon grated ginger
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 2 teaspoons agave nectar or honey
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Dash of salt
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon arrowroot or cornstarch
• 1/2 small onion, sliced
• 1/2 cup peanuts
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1  yellow bell pepper, chopped
• 1 can of water chestnuts, drained

1. Place a small colander or steamer basket over a small pot of boiling water. Slice tempeh into 4 pieces and place in steamer basket. Steam for about 10 minutes.
2. While the tempeh is steaming, whisk together the soy sauce, ginger, agave, garlic, sesame oil, and rice vinegar in a bowl. Slice the tempeh into bite size chunks and add to the marinade. Let it marinate for as long as you can (at least 10 minutes).
3. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet or wok over medium heat and add the tempeh.  I used my hand to “strain” the tempeh out of the marinade. Cook, tossing around a bit so they don’t stick, until golden brown.
4. While tempeh is cooking, whisk the cornstarch into the remaining marinade and add it to the pan, along with the peppers, red pepper flakes, water chestnuts and peanuts. Stir gently (tempeh will crumble if you don’t) and serve. I decided to serve with rice noodles and mixed these in with the peppers/flakes/chestnuts/etc.  Rice would be good too.

I adapted this recipe from http://healthyaperture.com/blog/post/inspired-vegetarian-kung-pao-tempeh

I would definitely make this again!  I have about 3 more meals worth to eat and think it will make good leftovers.  I had no idea what to expect of how the tempeh tasted.  It was alright, but I would probably cut it smaller than I did tonight.  I tried to keep it super classy on a paper plate. 🙂

Chickpea Enchiladas

I wanted to have meat tonight.  BUT, I really don’t have any meat options at home, so I figured out a good alternative.

Chickpea Enchiladas

1 T. oil

2 T. minced onion either fresh or dried

1 heaping T of refrigerator minced garlic

3 T. chili powder

2 t. cumin

2 C. cooked chickpeas

2 C. salsa

1/2 Jar of Jalapeños-optional

Vegan Cheese-I used Lisanatti Almond Mozzarella Style, which grated and melted well

Corn Tortillas

Heat oven to 350 degrees.  Heat oil, onion and garlic for about 3 minutes on medium in a saucepan on the stove.  Add cumin and chili powder.  Heat for about 1 minute.  Add chickpeas and salsa and let simmer for about 5 minutes.  Turn off heat and let cool about a minute.  Put in blender/food processor and puree the mixture until its a consistency you like.  Put about 1/4 C of the blend on the bottom of your baking pan.  I used a 10×7 ceramic baking pan and fit only 6 rolled up.  Get your tortillas and start scooping the bean mix into the tortilla, wrapping the mixture and placing the tortillas seam side down in your pan.  Put as many tortillas filled up as you can, then top with cheese and jalapeños.  Cover with foil, and bake for 20 minutes.  Let it cook about 2-3 minutes with foil off.  Once it’s out of the oven, top with cilantro and salsa, then eat!

This recipe called for black beans, but I didn’t have any cooked.  Depending on the refried beans, you probably could have used that.  It also called for tomato sauce.  I didn’t have any so I used salsa.  Last, the recipe I adapted recommended adding cilantro to the mix and cheese to the inside of the tortillas.  I didn’t have enough cheese to do that, and I was just in a rush.  So, it is what it is.

Sweet Potato Hot Dish

Minnesotans call them Hot Dishes.  Wisconsinites call them casseroles.  Either way, they’re usually amazing.  I made a sweet potato hot dish that is NOT completely vegan, but could be very easily.

4 sweet potatoes, cooked

1/2 C. vegan butter, melted

1 15 oz. can of coconut cream-only used about 3/4 of the can

1 t. cinnamon

1 t. nutmeg

1 t. vanilla

3 EGGS! scrambled in a bowl

Heat oven to 375 degrees.  I had already baked the sweet potatoes, so I peeled those.  If you want to boil them, that’s fine too.  Mash those up, then mix the butter, coconut cream and spices in.  I used my KitchenAid for easy mixing.  I used 3 eggs in mine, it called for 4.  Fold in the eggs, put into greased casserole dish, and bake for 40-45 minutes.

The original recipe also called for 3/4 C. of brown sugar, but that seemed a little overboard to me, so I didn’t include it.  It was really sweet already with the coconut cream.

EGGS-Here’s my thing about eggs.  I really like eggs.  I used to eat 4 egg whites or 2 whole eggs per morning.  I really like them.  I don’t really have a problem with them.  No, it’s not technically vegan, but I consider them fairly natural if you don’t add a bunch of crap to them.  As I said, if you want to omit them, I think that would be fine.  

Vegan Chocolate Oreo Cake Recipe — Love from, Bella

Hello my lovelies! Apologies for not blogging as much this week but it has been my first week back at college – erggh ikr! Yesterday after I finished clearing up from dinner at around 8 o’clock I decided that i wanted something sweet to eat so I went to the shops and bought some Oreos […]

via Vegan Chocolate Oreo Cake Recipe — Love from, Bella

I have to make this….

Vegan Recipe Trials!

Pictures below!  I hate having to scroll for recipes!

Black pepper Chickpeas

• 1 tsp oil

• 1 15 oz can chickpeas, drained, washed

• ½ tsp freshly ground or coarsely crushed black pepper

• ¼ tsp or more salt

• ½ tsp dried thyme or 1 tsp fresh

• ¼ tsp dried rosemary

• ¼ tsp dried sage

• ½ tsp garlic powder

This was pretty straightforward.  I used my own cooked chickpeas (not canned).  You combine all this stuff, sauté for a minute or two, then bake for 20 minutes at 400 degrees to get them semi-crunchy.  I put foil on the pan for easy clean up.

Roasted Red Pepper Lentils

• 2 tsp olive oil

• 4 T. dried minced onion

• 3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

• 1.5 to 2 roasted red peppers

• 8 oz. tomato sauce

• 2 tbsp tomato paste

• ½ tsp garlic powder

• ½ tsp ground mustard

• ¼ tsp each of dried thyme, oregano

• salt to taste

• ¼ tsp black pepper

• ¼ tsp red pepper flakes

• 1 cup water

• 8 oz. red lentils, dried

• 15 oz. diced tomatoes with liquid

• Fresh basil

This was a little more by the seat of my pants.  Put oil ingredient through water in the blender.  I put this sauce into a pan, with the lentils and diced tomatoes and simmered until the lentils were soft ~20 minutes.  This recipe was originally intended to be creamy pasta.  I adapted it for what I had.  I’ll eat this with the chickpeas for dinners this week.  Will probably get 4 dinner servings out of this.  After making it all, you really don’t need to have the chickpeas with the lentils.  The chickpeas are good enough on their own 🙂

Black Fig Vinegar Brussel Sprouts

• 1 pound brussel sprouts

• 2-3 T. black fig vinegar (balsamic would be fine)

• 2 T. olive oil

• Salt and Pepper

Cut the base of the sprout off, then cut in half.  Mix with vinegar, oil and spices in a bowl or pan.  Bake for 45 minutes in an oven set at 350.  I only had black fig vinegar at home (a clearance find from world market!), but balsamic would work great too.

I also roasted the red peppers and tomatoes during the brussel sprout time.  I’m embarrassed to admit I’d never roasted tomatoes or peppers before.  The tomatoes were AMAZING!  I ate them off the roasting pan.

I got inspired this afternoon somehow and made a bunch of food.  Maybe because I didn’t do much for Thanksgiving?  Whatever the reason, almost everything came out as expected!

I pulled up the organic carrots that I grew over the summer.  I left them in the soil through a couple freezes to get them as sweet as I could, with still being able to dig them out.  They’re so cute!

Black Friday Breakfast + PB Banana Oatmeal

I eat this nearly every day.  It is by far, one of my favorite breakfast options, vegan or not.

PB Banana Oatmeal

1/2 C. Old Fashioned Oats

1/2 Frozen Banana…Fresh is OK too

2 t. natural peanut butter

Stevia

Combine oats, frozen banana and water in a bowl. Barely cover all with water. microwave for 2 minutes.  Add peanut butter and stevia afterwards.  Let cool slightly.  Eat!

Sometimes I will put protein powder in.  I’ve also used frozen blueberries in the past.  You can also make this as overnight oats…just put it in a jar and put it in the fridge overnight.  If you are trying to avoid sweeteners, just skip the stevia.  I use Kal Stevia.  I’ve had this stevia for about 2 years and still haven’t used up the container.  I use the little dab amount that the scoop provides.

Getting past ripe bananas at a local convenience store or grocer, then freezing them, is super cheap.  I rarely buy fresh, greenish-yellow bananas, because I think they’re better overripe and frozen.  I have more options to use them, and without a time crunch!  Before I freeze them, I peel them, then break the banana in half and store them in a ziplock in the freezer.

I slept in late this morning, had some black coffee, shopped online and went back to make my usual oatmeal.  When I started learning more about changing to a more plant-based diet, I started analyzing my current general intake.  Thankfully, I don’t have to change my breakfast a whole lot.  I love peanut butter…but I also love bananas just as much.  This breakfast is sweet enough that I can usually bypass whatever sweet treat someone at work brought in, and filling enough that I’m not trying to scramble for something around 10 am.

Some other breakfast options that I’ve thought of that would work for me are:

granola with nut milk

toast with vegan butter

smoothie

frozen waffles with peanut butter

I’ve really tried to tackle this vegan thing by thinking of meal options throughout the day. I’ve watched YouTube videos of people snacking on lettuce all day, or eating salads for dinner on the regular.  I don’t think that person will be me.

What’s your go-to vegan breakfast, lunch or dinner??

Vegan Peanut Pad Thai

Sounds so yummy!

Making the switch.

It’s been about a month since I started thinking about going plant-based.  Again, it took me quiiiiiiite a while to consider giving up ALL THINGS ANIMAL!  It just seemed a little excessive.  When I truly think of my diet/intake now though, I can’t say it’s all that exciting.  I eat the same breakfast (vegan, not planned), pack a lot of the same lunches (easy to make vegan), and cook dinner once or twice a week only.  Once I started Pinteresting different vegan dinner ideas, I got more confident that I could successfully switch.

A couple of things I’m still trying to figure out:

• Where to buy vegan products, i.e. tempeh, silken tofu, etc. in Minneapolis
• What to do for holidays/time away from home and accommodating a different diet
• How much protein to eat to maintain muscle/build muscle at the gym

Are you vegan?  Have you figured out some good dinners that are easy to prep?  What about vacations?  Any sources to find information about protein intake necessary on a plant-based diet?

Cheers!

ao.