Category Archives: Yummy Finds

Jul 11

Vegan Meals from June: part 1

Well I surprised myself, and made it a full six months entirely vegan. I honestly didn’t think that I could make it a month, let alone six. So many things have changed for me health-wise, and I really don’t see myself going back.

I have a bunch of photos to share from my kitchen.

Yep, Pizza Bagels and they are completely vegan!!! I’m so happy that I can find tasty vegan cheese locally.

Cheezy Pasta with Collard Greens. Dylan has been encouraging me to try new veggies that I haven’t made just yet. Collard Greens were one that I wanted to try, and holy moly are they good.

Homemade Vegan Bread, made from scratch of course.

Cheezy Pasta. A few times a week I like to make up a big batch of whatever I feel like at the moment, and then I’ve got meals for a week in the fridge. This cheezy spaghetti was so good.

In the ever enduring quest to find a meal that my entire family will eat, and it also can be vegan, vegetarian, or even omni, Taco Bowls are the winner. I serve them up for lunch or dinner, and usually clean out all of the odds and ends hiding out in the fridge.

Tacos also can be vegan, vegetarian, or even omni, and my family will usually not complain too much about them. This batch was seasoned Chickpea Tacos for me, they were delicious. I think I ate six of them.

When it is too hot to cook, and I can’t think of another meal to make, Snack Dinner to the rescue. This also helps clean out the fridge and pantry. It is also just plain delicious.

Homemade take-out Vegan Lo Mien. This is amazing hot or cold. I made a giant batch and keep it in the fridge for future meals, snacks, or ahem breakfast.

Yummy Kale Greens with Rice & Lentils. Rice and Lentils are another amazingly versatile vegan staple. They pair fantastic with the greens and really fill you up.

While we were trying new things, Dylan and I picked up an Artichoke to cook. I always keep marinated artichoke hearts in the fridge, but I’ve never actually prepared one. I got a tip from one of my buddies at the grocery store, and I whipped up some garlic-vegan-butter while the artichoke was cooking. This was so good paired with Baked Potato Wedges, and even Dylan liked the Artichoke. It was a lot of work though, I don’t quite have the hang of artichoke preparation just yet…

I think I have another three or four posts in this series, and goodness we are already well into July. I’ve been enjoying lots of homegrown tomato dishes, and my gardening buddy hooked me up with some homegrown produce too. Summer is a good time to try out those veggies that you’ve been wanting to try, everything is so good right now.

 

 

Apr 5

Making Peace With: Kale and Tofu

As I’m venturing along on this vegan path, I noticed that I’m still afraid to use some plant-based ingredients. It seems silly, I shouldn’t be scared of plants.  I have even avoided some foods all together, just because I didn’t know just what to do with them. I’ve decided to break out of my comfort zone, and try a few new things.

I started off at the grocery store and checked to see what was on sale in the fruit and veggie aisle. I found Tofu for $2.49, and Kale for $.99 , so I picked them both up. I had a few ideas what to do with the Kale, but with the Tofu, I had no clue.

So I took the Tofu to instagram.

I had a lot of help with recipes, ideas, and even some prep tips too. I also checked out some recipes on pinterest. It is nice having a community online that can help out with vegan meals.

So here’s what I ended up making with Tofu.

Well I decided the best way to try out Tofu was in snack form. Not the healthiest, but it was quite delicious. I whipped up a batch of Not Sour Cream but Tofu and Onion Dip. I loved it!

I added in some of the dip, along with sauteed kale into a spicy burrito bowl. It was amazingly good!

I marinated some of the Tofu in soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, garlic, and wasabi. I coated it in a little corn-starch and made a quick veggie stir-fry. The texture was fantastic, and the Tofu was very tasty.

And then I discovered Tofu Scrambles. Just in case you didn’t already know I am horribly allergic to eggs, and I love scrambled eggs. Going vegan cuts out the possibility of using eggs, and really helps my allergy. Tofu makes a mean scramble that tastes better than any egg.

I sauteed the Tofu along with Kale and Nutritional Yeast. I then proceeded to make this for just about every single meal for a week.

I made a Tofu scramble with Asparagus and Red Potatoes. It was unreal. The addition of nutritional yeast really makes the dish delicious.

The Tofu scramble is a great way to use up pre-cooked veggies in the fridge too. I could eat this dish for Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Snacks, in the car as a wrap, and now I’m hungry.

I nerded out the other day when I found a coupon on the Tofu that was already on sale. Vegan win!

So let’s see what we can do with Kale…

First, cleaning it and chopping it. It needs a good swish under the faucet, and then I remove the smaller leaves, that don’t need a chop. Don’t forget to remove the woody stem. I then roll the Kale into a neat little burrito and get to chopping.

It is very versatile. You can bake with it, sautee it, stir-fry it, use it uncooked, and it blends beautifully into soup. I was surprised at just how much I really loved this green.

I thinned down a bit of vegan scalloped potatoes with veggie stock and rice milk. I added in the Kale and let it simmer. This soup was incredible.

I stewed them in a mixture of veggie stock, garlic, onions, salt & pepper, and lemon juice. I served them alongside a baked sweet potato. It was fantastic.

I added pre-cooked (sauteed) Kale into a burrito bowl. I ate a fair amount of chips and guacamole too. The Kale adds just that little hint of green, and the extra vitamins don’t hurt either.

I made some vegan French Toast and a Kale and Tofu scramble.

I also made it into a snack. I added in raw Kale to a mean and green Tofu and Kale dip. Oh man, this was really good. It was good on toast and crackers too.

I added Kale into a batch of vegan scalloped Red Potatoes. It was so good.

I blistered some tiny tomatoes, and sauteed some Kale for dinner. My kids thought it looked really good, but I couldn’t get anyone to try it… Oh well, more Kale for me.

Since I have tried both of these ingredients out, I have added them to my weekly shopping. I’m now keeping Kale and Tofu in the fridge ready to go! Vegetables are tasty, and not too scary when you give them a try.

 

 

Jan 18

Trying Some New Vegan Finds

As the month of January rolls on, and the veganuary challenge continues, I’m surprised at all of the new things that I’m trying. I’ve been running into a lot of products locally that are “accidentally vegan” and so far I haven’t missed my old friend Cheese Pizza.

I thought it might be fun to share some of the new things that I’m trying out, and let you know just what I think about them. This post is not sponsored, I’m not lucky enough to make a dime off of my blog…

I’ve heard some great things about Nutritional Yeast. I’ve read that it is a great replacement for when you are craving a cheesy dish, but you just can’t have it. I couldn’t find it locally, so I ordered some from amazon, and a book for me too.

How do I say this… “I love this stuff!!!”

You can add in a bit to vegetable stock, and poof you have a tasty cheesy sauce for a delicious Quinoa with veggies bowl.

You can also sprinkle it on roasted veggies, and my goodness it is just awesome. I keep looking for other dishes to sneak this in to, and the B vitamins that Nutritional Yeast provides is pretty nice too.

When I became a vegetarian, my taste-buds changed, and I no longer craved sweets. When I decided to go vegan, I started thinking about chocolate… Finding vegan chocolate anything is not too easy here.

Dylan and I went to Wal-Mart, and read the labels on at least twenty different types of chocolate, and most were Dark Chocolate. I think we only found three that contained zero milk solids. They were a bit pricey too, all were around $3.98 for just one single bar…

So I visited Price Chopper, and I ventured down the baking aisle. That’s when I spotted these babies!!!

These tasty little morsels popped up as an add-on item on my last amazon order, but the price was a bit much for something that I didn’t know if I was going to like. I spotted them at the store for $5.69 a bag, and they had the mini morsels, and the mega chunks. It seemed like a big splurge, but the bag would last me much longer than a bar. I grabbed them, and they are fantastic!

They aren’t as sweet as milk chocolate, but they aren’t as bitter as Dark Chocolate. They have a great balance to them, and just a few keeps my sweet tooth happy. I also like to make a homemade trail mix to keep in my bag, just in case I get hungry while I’m waiting at school pick-up. I use Dried Cherries, or Dried Cranberries, add in Cashews or Almonds, and a bit of the mega chunks, and it is a fantastic snack!

If you didn’t already know, I love junk food. Like really love it! Oh yeah I love Dr Pepper too, like way too much. While I’m doing this challenge I’m also trying to cut down on my soda intake. I’m down to just one a day, and I’m feeling really good about it.

Back to these snacks. This amazing chip falls into the “accidentally vegan” category. And they are awesome!

They also have a few more flavors that are vegan too, but so far the Plain variety and the Sea Salt and Vinegar are my very favorite!

O.k. now I’m getting hungry, time to go and figure out what to make for lunch.

 

Jan 3

December’s Veggie Meals

Let me start off by saying that December wasn’t one of my better months…

Basically, I ate everything that came through the door, and after Christmas, I felt like complete crap.

So I started weaning myself off the junk, and worked my way towards veganism.

Veggie Pasta with Capers and Tomatoes

Vegan Ramen with plenty of veggies

Vegan Snack dinner with Pita Chips and Homemade Hummus

I’m already starting to feel a bit better, and my stomach is my friend once more.

Aug 5

July’s Veggie Meals

July was a delicious month, we had a few fresh veggies from the garden, and a few fresh veggies from a friend’s garden too. I’m still sticking with vegetarianism, and making one or two of my meals vegan daily. I’ve been really happy with the change, and I have lots of yummy photos to share.

For the Fourth of July, James was in charge of the grill. He grilled veggies and corn for me. I also made a pouch of cheese stuffed sweet peppers, they were amazingly delicious.

I made a big batch of Veggie Calzones. I topped mine with Flax seed.

They were stuffed with Mozzrella, Kale, Sweet Peppers, and Black Olives.

My family isn’t a fan of this dish, so I make a little version for me, Cheesy Rice with Broccoli. It is great for lunch or dinner.

We picked a few tiny Roma Tomatoes, and a few Okra too. My gardening buddy brought me over some Cucumbers, so I made him a cherry pie in exchange. I made a Veggie Gumbo with the okra and tomatoes. I also made a cool Corn and Cucumber salad to go along with it.

Growing up as a teen in SW Mo, my very favorite place to go was Gringo’s. It was an awesome (regional) Mexican restaurant. Now that I’m a grown-up living in SE Ks, I try my best to recreate their delicious recipes. This is my version of their Refried Bean Toastadas, with fresh tortilla chips on the side, and don’t forget the Cherry Pepsi, that is a must. It is pretty close, their tostadas are still the best.

I must have had take-out on my mind. I made a big batch of Veggie Hot & Sour Soup,

and a big batch of Veggie Lo Mien

The soup freezes well, and I added a bit of rice to it when I had it for another day’s lunch.

Hello Grilled Cheese.

Grilled Mozzarella Cheese with Roma Tomatoes and fresh Basil. This was one insanely delicious sandwich. If my tomato plants decide to give me a few more tomatoes, I’m going to make this one again.