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charlottealvina

~ everyday delicious

Tag Archives: vegetarian

Fiesta Salad

02 Wednesday May 2012

Posted by charlottealvina in Recipes

≈ 9 Comments

Tags

gf, gluten-free, meatlessmonday, recipes, salad, vegan, vegetarian

Fiesta Salad

Continuing our countdown to Cinco de Mayo, here’s an easy and delicious vegetable  bean salad. It’s finished with yesterday’s Cumin Lime Dressing, which contributes a bright flavor to underscore the freshness of this dish.

I brought a bowl of this to an alumnae potluck last weekend, and waited until the last minute to toss in the cilantro so the green would stay vibrant. A beautiful addition to any table, this can be served as-is for a side dish, over spinach as an entrée salad, or as part of a taco salad with Vegan Taco Meat.

Fiesta Salad Ingredients

Ingredients

  • 1 batch of Cumin Lime Dressing (limes, vinegar, oil, cumin, s&p)
  • 1 can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed well
  • 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed well
  • 2 cups grape tomatoes, cut in quarters or smaller
  • 1 red bell pepper, chopped
  • 3-4 green onions, minced to half way into green
  • 2 large ears of corn
  • .5 cups chopped cilantro

Instructions

  1. Make the dressing and let sit for flavors to marry.
  2. Lightly cook the corn to develop sweetness. I microwaved but might be better to boil and blanch. Don’t cook to the extent that you would eat corn on the cob – maybe half that much. When it cools, cut the kernels off with a sharp knife.
  3. Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and mix in the dressing, starting with half and adding to your taste.

Substitutions

  • Kidney beans for either garbanzo or black beans
  • A quarter finely diced sweet or red onion for green onions
  • Cherry tomatoes for grape tomatoes (or diced Romas)
  • Store-bought cumin lime or lime cilantro dressing
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Cumin Lime Dressing

01 Tuesday May 2012

Posted by charlottealvina in Recipes

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

gf, glutenfree, homemade, meatlessmonday, recipes, salad dressing, vegan, vegetarian

Cumin Lime Dressing Ingredients

This is an easy dressing that pairs especially well with Mexican food…because we’re gearing up for Cinco de Mayo! I’ll have a Fiesta Salad recipe that uses this dressing to share with you tomorrow, but it’s also great on a regular green salad.

Ingredients

  • Juice of 4 to 6 limes
  • 3 to 4 garlic cloves, minced finely
  • 1 tbsp white balsamic vinegar
  • .5 cups light olive oil (I’m using half EVOO and half grape seed oil)
  • 2 tsp cumin powder
  • .5 tsp fresh ground black pepper
  • .5 tsp sea salt

Combine all ingredients and mix/blend well. Adjust any ingredients as necessary to achieve a good balance – start with 4 limes and work up to 6, etc.

You may have noticed that my salt in this photo is a beautiful purple color. That’s because it’s the Trifecta Blend from Libertine and includes Alaea Red Hawaiian Sea Salt, Hiwa Kai Black Hawaiian Sea Salt, and Himalayan Pink Salt. All three have different essential trace minerals which are thought to help with chronic ailments from inflammation to depression. Plus it’s pretty, which is said to be good for your eyes ; )

Smoky Cauliflower Steak

27 Friday Apr 2012

Posted by charlottealvina in Recipes

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

gf, gluten-free, meatlessmonday, recipes, vegan, vegetarian

Cauliflower Steak

Last night I used the other half – the middle half – of the cauliflower head that went into cauliflower curry earlier in the week. I had saved these two vertical slices from the middle to try vegan cauliflower steaks, something I first saw on Working Class Foodies (new fav, you must watch them all). I pan fried them this time, but am looking forward to putting them on the grill when we fire it up for the season.

Cauliflower steaks look very dramatic and have a satisfying, filling texture. On their own they do not have a strong flavor, giving you the opportunity to season them however you like. Since I’m so excited about grilling season, I went with a smoky profile for this incredibly easy dish.

I had some alder wood smoked sea salt that I found in the bulk section of Town & Country market on Bainbridge Island. If your local grocery isn’t quite so comprehensive (they have an entire floor of bulk foods), you can order it from Libertine Tacoma and get the most delightful packaging at the same time. And trust me: this is not the only recipe you’ll use it in…

Ingredients

  • 2 vertical slices from the middle of a cauliflower head, .75 inches wide
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • .5 tsp smoked paprika
  • .5 tsp fresh ground black pepper
  • .5 tsp alder wood smoked sea salt

Instructions

  1. Mix the spices and oil into a marinade and spread over both sides of your cauliflower steaks. Let sit for at least 10 minutes.
  2. Preheat your oven to 300°.
  3. Pan fry over medium heat, about 5 minutes per side, until you get some lovely brown caramelization (but not burning).
  4. If you have a pan that can transfer into the oven, pop it right in for another 10 minutes to finish cooking through, flipping once. Transfer to a casserole or baking sheet if your pan isn’t oven-ready.
  5. Serve immediately.

Frequently you’ll see people serve cauliflower steaks with a cauliflower puree or mashed cauliflower on the side to use the remainder of the head. Something to try next time as I’m getting to know this beautiful and nutritionally dense vegetable.

What’s your favorite cauliflower recipe? I’d love to try it!

Cauliflower Curry

23 Monday Apr 2012

Posted by charlottealvina in Recipes

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

brussel sprouts, curry, gluten-free, heart-healthy, meatlessmonday, recipes, sweet potatoes, vegan, vegetarian

Cauliflower Curry

Since I tried fennel for the first time in February (now one of my favorite dishes) I’ve been wondering what else in the produce section has been missing from my life. Last night’s experiment: cauliflower.

Why have I been overlooking it? Maybe it’s because we’ve been so conditioned to avoid white foods. But cauliflower is the exception to that rule. In fact, it’s packed with nutrients: vitamin C and folate for immune defense, phytonutrients to fight cancer, and heart-healthy benefits to boot.

It’s also quite satisfying, with a dense texture that fills you up like bread or meat would. All that to say, I’ll be working cauliflower into my cooking more often moving forward. Here’s how I prepared it last night (the flavor was even better for lunch today!).

Cauliflower Curry Ingredients

Ingredients

  • 1/3 cup Indian curry paste
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 1/2 head cauliflower, cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 1 medium sweet potato, peeled and cut into half-inch pieces
  • 10 brussel sprouts, cleaned and quartered
  • 2 roma tomatoes, quartered
  • 1 can (14 oz) garbanzo beans, rinsed
  • 1/4 cup grape seed oil
  • 2 tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste
  • 1/2 cup water or vegetable stock, plus more as needed

Instructions

  1. Heat oil over medium in a large stew pot.
  2. Sautee onions for 1 minute.
  3. Add curry paste and tomatoes, stirring until incorporated and tomatoes get smashed.
  4. Add sweet potatoes and water or stock, simmering for 5 minutes covered.
  5. Add cauliflower and salt, simmer for another 5 minutes covered. Add a little more water/stock if necessary to keep ingredients simmering and not sticking to bottom.
  6. Add brussel sprouts and garbanzo beans, simmer covered for 5 to 10 minutes until all ingredients are tender but still holding their shape.
  7. Serve over basmati rice.

Substitutions

  • Frozen peas instead of brussel sprouts
  • Carrots instead of sweet potatoes
  • Lentils instead of basmati rice

Quinoa with Sweet Potatoes & Broccoli

18 Wednesday Apr 2012

Posted by charlottealvina in Recipes

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

almond, broccoli, gf, glutenfree, meatlessmonday, quinoa, recipes, sweetpotato, vegan, vegetarian

Quinoa with Sweet Potato and Broccoli

I’ve recently started cooking a few cups of quinoa to keep in my refrigerator for use in salads, etc., throughout the week. It’s an easy way to make a salad more filling and add protein – plus it soaks up all the dressing at the bottom. Yum.

Quinoa holds up better if made a little dry – instead of a 2:1 ratio of water to grain per the instructions, I’ll usually use 3.5 cups of water with 2 cups of grain.

In addition to salads, this recipe below is an excellent way to use quinoa. It’s similar to a stir fry but different enough to be a new trick up your sleeve. Most of all, you have to love the flavor complexity and nutritional credentials this dish packs into just one bowl.

Quinoa with Sweet Potato and Broccoli Ingredients

I found the original recipe online, here’s my adaptation:

Ingredients

  • 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cubed
  • 2 cups broccoli or broccolini florets
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 4-5 garlic cloves, minced
  • .5 cups whole raw almonds
  • 2 cups cooked quinoa
  • 3 tbsp grape seed oil
  • 2 tbsp Bragg Liquid Aminos
  • 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
  • 1 tsp Sriracha

Instructions

  1. Mix the Bragg’s, sesame oil and Sriracha into a dressing and pour over the quinoa. Toss in a large bowl and set aside.
  2. In a small sauce pan over medium heat, cook the sweet potato cubes in enough water to barely cover. Check regularly, remove from heat and drain when they begin to soften. Maybe 10 minutes.
  3. In a large nonstick pan over medium heat, sauté the onions, garlic and almonds in grape seed oil for 5 minutes. Add the broccoli and partially-cooked sweet potatoes and sauté all for another 5 minutes. Don’t overcook – you want the broccoli to stay vibrant green and the sweet potatoes to keep their shape.
  4. Transfer vegetables into bowl with flavored quinoa and toss all ingredients together.

Cacao Banana Pancakes

08 Sunday Apr 2012

Posted by charlottealvina in Recipes

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Tags

banana, breakfast, brunch, cacao, cocoa, pancake, recipes, vegetarian

Cacao Banana Pancakes

Ah, raw cacao powder. Adding this antioxidant-rich and nutrient-dense super food into regular pancakes takes an average weekend breakfast to fancy and healthy new heights. Put some banana slices in there too and people will wonder what you’re celebrating. Or up to. The answer, of course, is awesomeness.

Cacao Banana Pancake Ingredients

Ingredients

  • .5 cups white flour
  • .25 cups whole wheat flour
  • 1 tbsp baking powder
  • .5 tsp salt
  • 4 tsp sugar
  • 3 tbsp raw cacao powder
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 tbsp grape seed oil + more for pan
  • 1 egg
  • 1 large or 2 small bananas, sliced into thin rounds

Instructions

  1. Mix together all the dry ingredients.
  2. Mix together all the wet ingredients and beat until egg is consistent.
  3. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry until fully incorporated.
  4. Heat a pan over medium and spread a thin coat of oil on the bottom.
  5. Spoon a half cup or less of batter into pan and top with several banana slices.
  6. Flip when bubbles dot the top. The second side will cook in a fraction of the time.
  7. Serve immediately, banana-side up, with natural maple syrup if you like.

Cacao Banana Pancake with Extra Bananas

This recipe is not very sweet – best for dark chocolate lovers. Easy to adjust for any palate: increase the sugar by one or two teaspoons and/or decrease the cacao powder by same.

Vegetarian Taco Pie

06 Friday Apr 2012

Posted by charlottealvina in Recipes

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Tags

homemade, pie, piecrust, recipes, taco, vegan taco meat, vegetarian

Vegetarian Taco Pie

Since I had a pie crust in the freezer and some vegan taco meat from earlier in the week, I made an Entirely From-Scratch Vegetarian Taco Pie. Homemade salsa, fresh guacamole, even the vegetable stock for the seitan was homemade. Not only could you taste the love, you could hear the mix tape that it made for you playing in the background.

If I don’t have vegan taco meat already made next time, I’ll try substituting refried beans and Spanish rice, which will cut down significantly on the prep time. I might work in some tomatoes, but I digress. What I’m trying to say is, taco pie, I love you, and I’m looking forward to a lifetime together.

Vegetarian Taco Pie Ingredients

Ingredients:

  • 1 9” Pie Crust
  • 1.5 cups Vegan Taco Meat (or bean substitute)
  • 1 cup Shredded Cheese (recommend sharp cheddar)
  • 1 Onion, diced
  • 4-6 Garlic Cloves, diced
  • 1 cup Mushrooms, sliced
  • .5 tsp Cumin Powder
  • .5 tsp Paprika
  • .5 tsp Chili Powder
  • 2 tbsp Grape Seed Oil
  • Sour Cream
  • Guacamole
  • Salsa

Vegetarian Taco Pie Layers

Instructions:

  1. Preheat oven to 350°.
  2. Prep crust in a 9” pie dish. Not a bad idea to pre-bake it for a few minutes, but I didn’t and it was fine.
  3. In a pan, heat the oil over medium and add the powdered spices for a few minutes to season the oil. Then add the onion and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes. Finally, add the mushrooms and sauté for another 5 minutes.
  4. Layer ingredients in the pie crust: taco meat first, then mushroom and onion mix, topped with cheese.
  5. Bake for 30-45 minutes until crust and cheese are golden brown.
  6. Serve with salsa, sour cream, and fresh guacamole (I just mush up an avocado with a couple sprinkles of chili powder and garlic salt).

Vegetarian Taco Pie

Vegan Taco Meat

05 Thursday Apr 2012

Posted by charlottealvina in Recipes

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

homemade, meatlessmonday, recipes, seitan, taco, vegan, vegetarian

Vegan Taco Meat

In recent weeks, Americans have had a rude awakening about what’s actually in the meat served at fast food restaurants and sold in grocery stores. Pink Slime may be putting the “ew” in news lately, but the real shock is that’s anybody’s surprised. Ground beef and chicken nuggets couldn’t look less like natural pieces of animal, so they are the perfect place to hide the bits that nobody wants to see.

Our widespread cultural approach of willful ignorance about what we put in our bodies is one of many reasons I stopped eating meat. If you want to know exactly what’s in every bite of the protein on your plate, the good news is…you can just make it yourself! And although I wouldn’t categorize this as a “quick and easy” recipe, at least it doesn’t involve an industrial centrifuge.

Seitan is a protein made from wheat that you can season and shape almost any way you want. Here’s a basic seitan recipe, but this week I took it a step further and made my own vegan taco meat. This recipe yields about 4 cups, or eight servings.

Vegan Taco Meat Ingredients

Ingredients

  • 1.25 cups Vital Wheat Gluten
  • 3 tbsp Nutritional Yeast
  • 1 tbsp Onion Powder
  • 1 tbsp Garlic Powder
  • 1 tbsp Cumin Powder
  • 1 tbsp Chili Powder
  • 1 tsp Paprika
  • 1 tsp Dried Oregano
  • 2 tbsp Bragg Liquid Aminos
  • .75 cups Water
  • 4 cups Vegetable Stock + 2 cups Water
  • 1 Head Garlic, rinsed
  • 1 Onion, rinsed
  • 1 tbsp Tomato Paste
  • 2 tbsp
  • .25 cups Grape Seed Oil
  • Salt and Pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. We’ll start by making the seitan dough. Combine all the dry ingredients in a large bowl (gluten, nutritional yeast, onion powder, garlic powder, cumin, chili, paprika, oregano), then combine the .75 cups of water and liquid aminos. Pour the water mixture into the gluten mixture and stir immediately, then kneed when stirring becomes difficult. You want to work this dough harder than you would with bread dough to encourage the protein to firm up for a meaty texture. When ingredients are fully incorporated and worked, set aside for at least 15 minutes.
  2. In the meantime, prepare the broth mixture to cook the seitan dough. Combine the 4 cups of vegetable broth and 2 cups of water in a stew pot over medium heat. Cut your garlic bulb in half and pull out several cloves, putting the rest of the bulb into the broth. Mince the cloves you retained. Remove the ends and outer layer of your onion and put those in the broth. Finely dice the onion and save for later. If you have the head of a jalapeno, that can also flavor the broth.
  3. When the broth boils, reduce heat to a simmer. Take your ball of seitan dough and cut chunks of approximately two inches and put them into the broth. Kitchen scissors are really helpful for this. Let them simmer for 45 minutes. They’ll increase significantly in size and float.
  4. Intermission. This is a great time to make some homemade salsa!
  5. Ok, the seitan is done. Remove the chunks with a slotted spoon and use another spoon to press out any excess liquids. Put the cooked seitan and tomato paste into a food processor and pulse until it has taco meat texture.
  6. Last step. In a large pan over medium heat, sauté the seitan, minced garlic, chopped onion and sesame seeds in the grape seed oil for 10-15 minutes. You can boost the flavor with additional seasonings if you want, plus the salt and pepper to taste. Stir occasionally, but do allow it to brown.

Now you have a flavorful taco meat that has great texture to use in burritos, on nachos, in taco salad, etc. Here’s the bonus: this recipe has no cholesterol and it’s lower in fat, calories and sodium than taco meat made from lean ground beef.

Vegetarian Chili

02 Monday Apr 2012

Posted by charlottealvina in Recipes

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Tags

beans, chile, chili, gluten-free, meatlessmonday, mild, recipes, spicy, vegetarian

Vegetarian Chili Ingredients

This is a nice mild recipe, great for a group with different spice preferences as heat-lovers can add Tabasco, etc. But if everybody that you’re serving likes it hot, double the jalapeno, kick up the chili powder and add some red pepper flakes!

Ingredients:

  • .25 cups Grape Seed Oil
  • 2 tbsp Cumin
  • 1 tbsp Chili Powder
  • 1 tsp Dried Oregano
  • 2 Bay Leaves
  • 1 tsp Kosher or Celtic Sea Salt
  • 1 tsp Fresh Ground Black Pepper
  • 1 Large or 2 Small Jalapenos, finely chopped with stem and seeds removed
  • 12 Cloves Garlic, chopped
  • 2 Large or 3 Small Onions, chopped
  • 2 cans Diced Tomatoes, with liquids
  • 1 can Corn, with liquid
  • 1 can Black Beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 can Pinto Beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 can Kidney Beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 can Garbanzo Beans, drained and rinsed
  • .5 cups Water

If you have a bell pepper of any color, dice it and add with the onions. If you don’t have all four kinds of beans, just double-down on what you’ve got. I’ve also seen people put diced celery in their chili, so that’s worth a try. Garnish with grated cheese and sour cream. Yum!

Maple Balsamic Vinaigrette

01 Sunday Apr 2012

Posted by charlottealvina in Recipes

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Tags

gluten-free, maple, meatlessmonday, recipes, salad dressing, vegetarian

Maple Balsamic Vinaigrette Ingredients

This is one of my favorite salad dressings. It’s a little sweet, a little tangy, and has a little kick. Great on baby spinach with walnuts and feta or goat cheese. Add some marinated beets and you’ll want to host a dinner party just to impress some guests.

Ingredients:

  • .25 cups balsamic vinegar
  • .25 cups 100% pure maple syrup
  • .5 cups grape seed or light olive oil
  • .5 tsp fresh ground black pepper
  • .25 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

Mix/shake all together to emulsify. Better to make at least one hour ahead of time so that the peppers can flavor the liquids.

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