Vegan Mofo Day 3..... Breakfast Burrito anyone?

     I guess this week is all about breakfast. Do you miss eggs? Well, I don't because I never liked them. Pre-vegan days I would have to smother them in cheese and salsa to choke them down. Now I can enjoy what looks like eggs, but no cheese drowning needed to endure them. Yes, I am talking about Tofu Scramble. If you are new to the vegan world or just curious what vegans eat here you go. I do hope you try them. They are amazing!
     I myself love firm or extra firm tofu. This might be from the serious hard scrambled eggs I used to have my grandpa make for me. He like runny scrambled eggs, which just made me sick. He used to tell me eat a plate of rubber since that is what hard scrambled eggs were. Very funny Grandpa. The seasoning I use for my tofu scramble is the best in the world. You can find the recipe here on Bryanna's blog. My daughter hooked me up with Black salt, which adds an eggy taste. It is shockingly good. I made my scramble for my mom with the black salt and she could not believe it wasn't eggs.
     Tofu scramble is so easy to make. Press your tofu to get rid of some of the liquid, break it up into a pan, sprinkle with seasoning, a bit of  black salt if you choose, and a touch of soy sauce or water. Stir until heated through and serve it the way you like it. My way is as a breakfast burrito. I have a bit of country potatoes and salsa wrapped in this delicious beauty. I hope you try this fast and easy vegan dish.

Now doesn't that look yummy? Your omni friends will never know! :o)

How do you start your day & how do you end it?

Planning a wedding is very stressful. I have been cooking, eating, and even taking pictures, but have not had the time or should I say energy to post. I am also back to work 3 days a week, 4 hours a day. I know it may not seem like much, but when you don't move very well and you have to leave for work an hour and a half before you need to be there, just to find a parking place, the day is long and tiring. So for your enjoyment :o)

"Breakfast of Champions"

Here we have Susan's fantastic "Mini Crustless Tofu Quiche", fresh mango's, blueberries, and hash browns. Our family loves these quiche. If you have not tried them, what are you waiting for? Go for it and you will never turn back. I added cooked broccoli to them this time and they were gone in a matter of minutes. I can't even explain how good they are and this is coming from someone who has always had a great dislike for eggs. Give them a shot. No eggs equals incredible yumminess! Here are 2 of the best salads I have had all summer.

"Quinoa Spring Salad"

The first one is Quinoa Spring Salad from Dreena in her book Viva la Vegan on page 71. She had suggestions of amounts and ingredients. I used 3/4 cup roasted red bell peppers, toasted pine nuts, and left out the parsley, cilantro, or basil because I did not have any. It calls for 3-4 Tablespoons of a simple vinaigrette. I once again looked to Dreena and used her simple dressing on pg 57. What a fantastic dish! I can't say enough about it. I took it to a dinner with the ladies from my church and it disappeared almost instantly. Poor Brandie, she was so sad when I showed her the crumbs that were left.

"Cowboy Coleslaw"

Salad #2 is Cowboy Coleslaw from Alanna. I of course had to fool around with the recipe and it was a hit. Thank you Alanna for sharing it with us. Here is my adapted version:

COWBOY COLESLAW
2 cups grated carrot
2 cup thin-sliced red cabbage
1/4 cup chopped green onion
1 apple, peeled and grated
2 tablespoons toasted sunflower seeds

DRESSING
2 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, white or red
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon agave nectar
salt and pepper to taste
Gently combine the cabbage, carrots, and apple. Whisk together the dressing and add to your salad mix. Add the toasted sunflower seeds just before serving.

"Dreena's Tofu-Lovin Sandwich"

Have any of you seen the August issue of VegNews? Dreena has a couple wonderful recipes in there. Potato-Spinach Salad with Pine Nut Dressing, which I have not yet made and Tofu-Lovin Sandwiches, which are wonderful. The tofu is lightly fried with balsamic vinegar and tamari and mixed with garden goodies. Here I had it on sprouted grain bread, corn on the cob, and broccoli. DH loved it and mixed it with his green salad the next day for lunch. This recipe is very light and refreshing on these hot summer days. Thank you, Dreena for another wonderful recipe.

"Veggie Pizza"

A good old stand by! "Veggie Pizza" cheeseless of course. I love the mixture of roasted veggies, pineapple, and olives. So, so, good! This is a wonderful way to eat your gifts from your garden! If you have never had a cheeseless pizza you don't know what you are missing.

"Bumbleberry Crumb Pie"

What a better way to end a post than with dessert. Julie has graciously asked me to test, yet another one of her soon to be famous pies for her upcoming book. Friends you won't be disappointed. The lovely pie is a mixture of different berries ( I added extra fresh blueberries), with a whole wheat and oat crumb mixture. The smell, the taste, the drooling, and the final product with a side of Soy Delicious Vanilla. Thank you, Julie!

Melody's Far East Spicy Tofu and Green Beans

Hi everyone! I have to talk about Melody's fantastic recipe for her Far East Spicy Tofu and Green Beans! Melody asked if anyone wanted to help her by testing a new recipe. I jumped at the chance. It is so much fun to do this. I love the idea of not having to think about what to cook. It is like opening your cookbook and whatever page you stop on you cook. I love to do that. Anyway back to her dish. The family loved it. It is very easy to prepare and has ingredients that most of us keep on hand. There is Sriracha in it so it is spicy! I used the lesser amount suggested and it was perfect for our family. I had some bean sprouts that needed to be used so I added them to her recipe. The sauce is so good that next time I might double the recipe. DH even ate the tofu! He tries so hard and is doing very well I might add. Sorry I can't give her recipe out, but I can tell you how good it is and show you pictures. Here is the link to Melody's post, her pictures are wonderful as is her dish I am sure. http://melomeals.blogspot.com/2007_02_18_archive.html

First batch of tofu after frying.

Simmering away! Smells so good!

(Sorry this picture is so dull looking. This plate is actually bright yellow, the green beans vibrant green and the tofu is a pretty golden color . Sometimes my camera freaks out. Weird since the same camera took all the pictures)

Served over brown rice with pineapple on the side. The pineapple works perfect with spicy foods. We also had a green salad with a new dressing we found, Follow Your Heart Miso and Sesame Dressing. It worked perfect for this meal.

A big thank you to Melody for including me in this recipe testing.

Great fun, great food!

Eggless "egg" salad, vegetable soup

Hi everyone! First I would like to thank everyone for their congrats to DH for his scholarship. He was so thrilled to see all the post from you. I too am very proud of him. I would also like to thank everyone for their help with seitan recipes. I have had some great tips and hope to try some of them in the next couple weeks.

Thanks to vegan cyclist I found a great site, Compassionate Cooks. You can get some great recipes from Colleen on her site. She also has a blog, which you can link to from her site. You have to pay a small fee for the majority of her recipes, but she does list a few under the DVD site. I tried her Eggless "egg" salad and it is fantastic. I left out some ingredients because I used what I had on hand . I love it. Because this is one of her free recipes I will post it here, but be sure to check out her web page and blog. She has fantastic information on many of the issues we deal with. Below is the recipe. Her essays or papers, or comments are very well written, easy to read, understand, and they are informative.

Here is the "Eggless Egg Salad" with some simple homemade vegetable soup

and fresh fruit salad.

Eggless Egg Salad

1 ½ pounds tofu, firm
½ cup eggless mayonnaise

2 red bell peppers, chopped finely (I left out)
4 scallions (white and green parts), chopped finely
1 small carrot, finely shredded
3 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley (I left out because I forgot to put it in)
2 stalks celery, finely chopped
1 tsp. onion granules
¼ tsp. turmeric
4 tsp. pickle relish
1 ½ Tbsp. prepared mustard
1 ½ tsp. sea salt
1 ½ tsp. garlic powder
Black pepper, to taste

In a large bowl, mash tofu with a fork or potato masher (alternatively, you may wish to finely cube the tofu). Add remaining ingredients and mix well. The resulting savory treat is wonderful as a sandwich spread, served on crackers, or as a side salad.

If you let this sit in the fridge overnight the flavors marry really well. DD loves it too.

Vegetable soup

6 cups of cabbage shredded

2 carrots sliced

2 onions chopped

5 cloves of garlic minced

1 cup fresh or frozen green beans

1 28oz can of tomatoes ( I crushed up the tomatoes and left out the juice)

1tsp dried basil

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp dried oregano

8 cups of "no Chicken Broth"

I sauted the onions, carrots, and garlic. Added the broth, cabbage, tomatoes, green beans, and spices and let simmer for a couple hours. No rules just good eats.

Hope everyone has a good weekend. I will visit all soon!. Thanks for stopping by and saying hi.

Tofu Fish Sticks, Coleslaw with Pinenuts

I feel accomplished! I feel thrilled! Yeepee! I make scrambled tofu all the time. I make cookies and muffins with tofu all the time, but never, and I mean never, have I been so adventurous to make baked, broiled, grilled, or fried tofu. I had put TOFU FISH STICKS, from Jen's cookbook, Vegan Lunch Box, on this weeks menu, but had not yet built up the courage to really make them. Granted I do eat tofu cooked by others, but was nervous about cooking it myself. While blogging I found Made in Alaska's blog. Her blog was my inspiration. Thanks Alaska! She gave me the courage and directed me to another recipe for a tofu fish marinade to try. Well tonight was the big night. Though determined, in my mind I was thinking, "Will the family eat it?" "What will I do if they won't?" and finally "Who cares!" I am making TOFU FISH STICKS! I had the time of my life doing 2 recipes at the same time. Jen's recipe, which you can find here : http://shmooedfood.blogspot.com/2006/01/tofu-fish-sticks.html and the other one I adapted from the Tofu Fish Sandwich recipe in, Cookin' Southern Vegetarian Style. . Both were a big hit, but the marinaded ones were the favorite. Needless to say I made ten good size pieces and only 2 are left. BB, our daughter, loved them. DH tasted them and said her prefered the marinated ones. Me, I ate 5 of them, which included both kinds. What can I say they were so good! The light ones are from Jen's recipe. I also made coleslaw, which looks very bland without carrots, next to spud puppies, and yellow squash. I do like Jen's breading better, but the marinade gives them a delicious taste. Next time I will join the two together. YUMO!

As far as weight watcher points Jen's recipe is 1 point per ounce of tofu fish stick. The other is 2 points per ounce.

Here is the recipe for my adapted version of Tofu Fish Sticks

Marinated Tofu Fish Sticks
Adapted from Cookin' Southern Vegetarian Style

Marinade
8 oz of firm tofu
1/4 cup tamari or soy sauce
2 teaspoons of kelp granules
1 teaspoon of dry mustard
1 teaspoon of granulated garlic
1/4 cup canola oil

Mix all the ingredients together. Slice your tofu into pieces around 1/2 an inch thick. Place them in the marinade cover and refridgerate for at least 2 hours.

Preheat the over to 400 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper (Don't you just love this stuff) and lightly mist with olive oil. Place the cornmeal on a plate. Take the tofu slices out of the marinade and place in the cornmeal one at a time. Once well coated place on them on the cookie sheet so they are not touching. Bake for 15 minutes, turn and bake 15 more or until they are crispy. Mine did not want to crisp quickly enough so I turned on the broiler and watched them carefully for about 2 -3 min. Enjoy!

Weight Watcher points 2 per ounce.

(OPPTIONAL) Next time we make these, which my daughter says will be often, I will use this marinade and Jen's breading (it is to die for).

Coleslaw with Pinenuts

2 T. soy creamer

2 T. vegan mayonnise

2 t. sugar

1/2 t apple cider vinegar

Mix together until well blended.

Slaw Ingredients:

3 cups shredded cabbage,

1 carrot grated,

1 apple pealed and grated

roasted pinenuts

Add to the sauce, mix well, refridgerate for a couple hours before eating so the flavors can meld.