plant based recipe – Lollipopsicle

September 19, 2013

Autumn Rotini

I really like pasta salad, although it isn’t really salad is it? Well either way today’s recipe is a simple plant based pasta that is as tasty as it is festive. I still had a beet and a bunch of gorgeous chard from the bounty given to me by my friend Heidi, so I decided to make a healthy pasta that would reflect the color change that accompanies the season and also tastes great. I used roasted garlic as a base for the sauce, and quickly cooked the chard with the pasta, I utilized some pantry staples and fancied it up with some organic micro greens, instead of the parsley I would normally use. I think it turned out great, and the kids wanted seconds, so that is usually a good sign.

You will need:

1 lb. dried rotini pasta

1 medium beet

1 bunch of chard,

1 handful micro greens if you can’t find these substitute with your favorite fresh herb or even shredded lettuce

1 can of chickpeas drained, rinsed and dried well

1 tsp. smoked paprika

1 head garlic, sounds like a lot but it totally mellows when roasted

2 tbsp. Olive oil

Splash of balsamic

Salt and pepper

Pre-heat your oven to 375, wrap your beet in foil, place in oven. Chop the top off of your garlic then wrap in foil and set it next to your friend Mr. Beet. On a sheet pan place chickpeas, paprika and a pinch of salt, toss them together till the chickpeas are coated with spice, place in oven. Chickpeas will be done after about 30 minutes, they should have a crispy outside and soft inside, check them after 20 minutes to get desired doneness. Garlic should take about 45 minutes, set aside. After about an hour your beet should be done. When they have cooled enough to handle squeeze garlic out of its shell, and dice beet.

Cook rotini in salted, boiling water, for 5 minutes, then add chard, cook another 5 or so minutes, drain. In a large bowl place roasted garlic, oil, balsamic and a pinch of salt and pepper, mix. Add hot pasta and chard, stir well, add chickpeas and micro greens. Serve! Great hot or cold.

September 4, 2013

End of Summer Roasted vegetables Thai style “Pra Ram” with Tofu

First day of 1st grade for Ava today, gotta say I think we were both ready for school to be back in! Haha! Yesterday we took a trip to the Lloyd farmer’s market, we had never been and I wanted to see what it was all about and I also heard that Mixteca catering tamales had an amazing vegan tamales with mole so I wanted to see how they did that (yeah the chef behind those tamales should probably be granted sainthood). The market was small but the vendors that were there were all exceptional, I found some outrageously gorgeous baby eggplants, zucchini, cabbage, and basil! One of my favorite Thai dishes is “Pra Ram tofu” basically steamed veggies, and tofu in peanut sauce, so with all my gorgeous seasonal produce I figured this was a winner. I did roast my veg instead of steaming, I love roasted veggies and I wanted to see if I could put my own signature on this classic.
You will need:
Veggies! I used 4 baby eggplants, sliced length wise, so I could fan them out for presentation.
3 small zucchini, sliced lengthwise, same as eggplant
1 red bell pepper, chopped into large pieces
1 small cabbage or half a larger one, cut into eights (if you want to see an early post with awful photos about my love of roasted cabbage click here
1 medium onion sliced
2 tsp. cooking oil of choice, I’m still totally in love with camelina, I think I’m ready to commit haha!
1 tsp. salt
Pinch red pepper flakes
Pre-heat oven to 375, rub sheet pan with 1 tsp of oil or use cooking spray, add the rest of your oil to the veggies and toss with salt and pepper flakes, roast 30 minutes, check for doneness, some take longer than others to cook, remove any that are done, flip the rest over and continue roasted for 15 or 20 minutes.
The vegetables are all interchangeable, use what is seasonal and fresh in your area, other choices are broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, or mushroom. Another potential opportunity to make it your own!
1 14 oz package of tofu, baked, check out the method here I left off the hoison on this one and cut it into triangles, but you can again choose your own adventure and swap in any protein source you want, but this is a great way to introduce tofu to your family and friends.
For the nectar of the gods, aka Peanut sauce you will need:
1 13.5 oz can of coconut milk
½ cup natural peanut butter, I used chunky cuz I like a lil’ cushion for the pushin…hehe.
1 Tbsp. Red curry paste, I use Mae ploy, find it at the Asian market…great stuff. If you have a bunch of time or you are Martha Stewart feel free to make your own.
2 tsp. sugar of choice, I used palm (coconut) sugar (here again this is a preference thing, you can add more if you like your sauce sweeter, and you can add less curry paste if you don’t like spicy)
2 tsp. Bragg’s, soy or fish sauce depending on dietary preference, I used Bragg’s
A few Tbsp. of water to thin out to get the consistency you want.
In a small sauce pan, add coconut milk, peanut butter, and curry paste, bring to a simmer over medium heat. Add the other stuff, cook a few more minutes on low and tada! Tastietime express is ready for you to take a ride (was that a lil’ Guy Fieri? Sorry.)
Serve with your choice of starch, I used brown rice, but the classic is Jasmine, of course you can use this as an opportunity to branch out and pick your favorite starch, cous cous, quinoa, even noodles! I topped ours with some gorgeous organic basil from the market, mine was the regular variety, but opal basil is more traditional, you can add more peanuts, lime juice, cilantro, I used some black sesame seeds cuz they are pretty, and we eat with our eyes first, right? Then serve! What a wonderful way to welcome fall, and eat your veggies all at the same time. Makes 4 dinner sized servings, and you will have extra sauce that keeps well in the fridge!

August 29, 2013

One pot pasta wonder (Gluten Free Version)

So like many others, I was totally seduced by the “One Pan pasta” on the Martha Stewart blog from June. It basically went instantly viral, its simplicity and sensual photos of dried pasta in water with some herbs and tomatoes were irresistible as is usually the case with anything Martha puts her name on. A lot of bloggers have blogged it as is, and one even deemed it virtually impossible to use gluten free pasta in it, now as with most things in my life when I am told it is “impossible” or “crazy” I go straight for it, is this poor judgment or genius….I’ll take the latter thank you! So this is a plant-based, gluten free version of this simple idea, which actually kinda reminded me of making “Hamburger helper” or “Pasta- roni” for me and my sisters as a kid. I also added some extra tasties, switched out a few things to use what I had on hand, and topped with my mushroom bacon here(this time I used button mushrooms as that is what I had on hand), I skipped the cheese I am on week five of my plant based experiment, but I’m sure some pecorino or a dollop of pesto would be outrageous.

Ingredients:

2 cups Tru Roots gluten free, whole grain pasta ziti (the original recipe used spaghetti)

1 onion, sliced

3 cloves garlic, sliced thinly

1 15 oz can diced tomatoes, I had the Organic ones from Costco in my pantry (original called for fresh cherry tomatoes)

3 cups Vegetable stock, I used this instead of plain water, I bet a little wine would be good too

¼ cup chopped black olives, I used these to add richness that the extra oil would’ve done

1 pinch salt, dried Italian seasoning, and red pepper flakes

10 turns of the pepper grinder, or 1 tsp ground black pepper

In a pot place everything except pasta, bring to a boil (the original called for putting the pasta in too, but since gluten free pasta has a shorter cooking time I boiled the other stuff first), when it is at a full boil add pasta, cook until most of the liquid has evaporated and pasta is al dente about 8-9 minutes.

Top:

I used some chopped “Mushroom bacon”here totally optional, but delicious and some fresh parsley, the original called for fresh basil but I didn’t want to go to the store to get it so I used Italian, flat leaf parsley since I usually always have a bouquet sitting in a vase in my fridge.

So it can be done with delicious results, another ingenious idea, reinvented, in the words of Steve Jobs “Good Artists Copy, Great Artists Steal” Haha! Thanks Martha….or should I thank Pasta-roni?

August 28, 2013

One pan oven roasted fajitas

Some days you just need easy, and tasty! Well this right here is both, this is what “fast food” should be! My family loves fajitas and this is a way to cut down on the aftermath (mess) and get to sit down and enjoy the meal with the fam. Fajitas are a great choice for plant based meals, as they already highlight our veggie friends, I used tofu in ours, but seitan would also be great, of course you could use shrimp or any other meat in this and it would be great, also great for a group you could make a few pans with different proteins to please everyone’s taste!
1 lb. firm tofu sliced into strips (or sub protein of choice)
2 hatch green chilies, seeded and cut into strips, feel free to sub green bell pepper
2 sweet tooth red peppers, cut into strips, same as chilies, again sub red bell pepper if you like
2 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. dried oregano
2 cloves garlic, sliced
2 Tbsp. Bragg’s liquid aminos, or soy sauce
Juice of one lime
1 Tbsp. cooking oil, I used raw camelina
2 Tbsp. Cilantro, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste.
Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. In a 13 by 9 inch pan place all of your ingredients, mix with your hands, until all veggies and protein evenly coated. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Serve with tortillas of choice, I used whole wheat…..but corn would be great. Serve yours with your favorite toppings, I for one recently have been obsessed with Valentina, it’s a red chili sauce from Mexico that is mildly spicy and packs some serious flavor, find it in your international food aisle or at a Mexican market. I think the ease of preparation and minimalist appeal of this recipe will make it a favorite, whether you are a bachelor in a hurry or a busy mom of six (in that case make double…haha!) I think this recipe will become a weeknight staple that is tasty enough to serve at a dinner party.