Mac N' Cheese

As a disclosure I would like to point out that I am for the most part blind, have been since a baby.  Contacts help, but I've been having some problems with my current pair and the eye dr. is taking forever to get me new ones.  So I can see but just not as well as normal so if you see more than normal typos I'm blaming it on my eyes.  I know I normally have typos (I sometimes re-read after posted and is too lazy to fix it) so for arguments sake, I'm blaming those on my eyes too.  =)  I would like to start with an update on Bella Bella (Not sure why or how but she has adopted a nick name that is longer than the original, we barely call her Bella in this house, it's always Bella Bella.  Not that y'all needed an explanation).  She seems to be liking her food.  She doesn't gorge on it and make herself so full that her stomach is as hard as a rock but I think that's a good thing.  She is definitely eating it, so far so good! 

The day before yesterday I tried making some veggie stir fry with ginger sauce but it was not good at all!  I couldn't even eat it.  You know how I am with throwing away food.  So I usually don't throw something out unless I have to.  I tried eating it, but it just wasn't happening.  It called for 2 tablespoons of ground ginger, and I'm thinking it was a typo.  I kept re-reading it thinking I was seeing it wrong.  It was WAYYY too much.  I only put 1 Tablespoon because after I dumped it in the bowl I thought...that's a lot.  But it was too late, it was ruined.  =/ 

Yesterday I was invited to my co-workers super bowl party.  I decided to bring bruschetta and a cabbage salad.  They are both really quick and easy.  I'm totally lame and didn't take any pictures of the food.  I did get some pre-photos which don't really help.  I did manage to remember to take a photo of the salad, after it was mostly eaten.  LoL.  Everyone loved them, so mission accomplished.  I had a few recipes that I roughly used as a guidance.  I didn't really follow one very closely, and I wasn't the best at measuring what I was doing, so these really are just a guideline, don't follow to closely, and adjust to your taste. 

All my ingredients ready to cook!

Le Cuisinier

Bruschetta:

Baguette sliced and toasted in the oven for a few minutes (Feel free to try different things with the bread.  You can drizzle oil and sea salt, or rosemary, or your favorite italian spice.  The bread I got at the store already had sea salt so I didn't make any adjustments)
About 2 fresh tomatoes (I used about 1 can of diced tomatoes, drained.  I highliy recommend using fresh.  I wasn't a fan of the canned tomato taste, but I was in a bind.  Everyone still liked it so feel free to substitute if you wish)
Sea salt (I'm not sure how much I used 1/2 teaspoon?)
Few shakes of black pepper
Olive oil (about 3 tablespoons)
Balsamic Vinagrette (about 1/4 a cup, but I started with less and had to keep adding because it needed more, so honestly I'm not sure, I would start with a few splashes and gradually increase to your liking)
Chopped garlic (I used about 3 large cloves)
Fresh torn basil (I didn't really measure this either, I just kept adding until there was enough to well incorporate all of the other ingredients)

1.  Combine all ingredients (except bread), and mix to combine, top on toasted bread.  Easy as pie! 

Cabbage-Ramen Sald (I'm not really sure what to name this one, I've heard it called asian sald, but that's kind of vague, so I'll go with this)

1 head of cabbage (I used napa, but you can use whatever you'd like) chopped
2 bags of ramen noodles (flavor doesn't matter, you don't use the seasoning) crumbled (not into powder, you still want some big chunks so you get a good "bite" of the salad
1/4 cup of butter
A few green onions sliced
A few tablespoons of sesame seeds

Dressing:  (I can't find my recipe with the measurements. I'll find it and edit the post, sorry!!)
Oil (I used olive)
White vinegar (I used apple cider vinegar)
Sugar (I used agave nectar)
Soy sauce

1.  The recipe I found you heat the oil, vinegar and sugar over the stove, bring to a boil and cook for 1 minute.  You let cool and stir in soy sauce.  When my mom use to make this we never heated the dressing.  I'm not sure if it's because they wanted to dissolve the sugar?  Since I used agave I wasn't worried about that anyway.  I would skip this step next time because I thought it was just time consuming. 
2.  The recipe I found also suggesting melting the butter then adding the ramen and sesame seeds and brown.  I think this is pointles too.  We always added them in raw.  I would again skip this step next time because I didn't feel it was necessary.  Again my mom never did this and I didn't taste much of a difference.  If you do decide to do this, cool the ramen after cooking
3.  In a large bowl mix the cabbage, green onions, ramen and sesame seeds together.  Mix the dressing ingredients together and stir to mix.  Add to the salad and combine to coat.  This is meant to be served room temperature, or cold.  However you prefer.  Room temperature is typically how I enjoy this. 

Pre-baked

Tonight I had the pleasure of cooking in my mom's kitchen!!  Oh how I enjoy that!  I get to use the huge space, with a gas stove and BONUS my dad's vita mixer!  Oh how I need one of those.  This is the third mac n' cheese recipe I've made.  I've been trying a bunch to find my favorite.  So far my favorite is the "cheese" sauce I used for the broccoli, rice and cheese casserole.  Probably because it uses Daiya.  All of my other mac n' cheese recipes didn't use store bought cheese.  I think that sauce would be easy to top over pasta, or anything really that calls for a cheese sauce.  With that said this recipe was pretty tasty.  I don't have any complaints really.  I found the recipe here.  It was definitely didn't have as much of a "cheesy" flavor as say Daiya would.  But it was very creamy and thick like a cheese.  My niece and sister ate it and they liked it.  My mom passed.   I have to say it was super easy to make.  I love that the sauce incorporates a bunch of veggies.  I also loved how yellow the cheese got.  I was suprised by the color, I guess the little mustard goes a long way.  The last mac n cheese I made for christmas I think tasted a lot better after it sat in the fridge for a day, so I'll let you know if the left overs taste any better.  I also topped my bowl with some hot sauce which is a must.  If I was at home I would have added some parma.  They will definitely be topping my left overs.

I meant to add some broccoli to the dish before baking but forgot.  So I just steamed some broccoli on the stove, added a little salt and pepper and added it after.

Sorry not the best lighting

That is the extent of my cooking the past few days.  Although I did have some left over rice and green onions for lunch.  I took this thai sweet n spicy sauce and mixed it with some soy sauce and topped it on the rice.  It was nice and spicy.  If I had the time I would have added some veggies but I was in a rush and that is what was in the fridge.  As always more to come.  See y'all next time!

Laissez Les Bon Temps Rouler!

Veggie Bella

Since I've become a vegetarian turned vegan I have kept feeding my chihuhua Bella her normal dog food.  I didn't really think much of it until recently.  Honestly we haven't bought dog food in awhile because my Husband thought it would be a good idea to buy her a million pound bag from Sam's Club.  Well I guess it was a good thought, but in reality not such a good idea.  Dog food tends to attract rats (if you didn't already know that) and that big OLE bag didn't fit in our locked plastic container.  So you guys do the math.  Plus it would take our little baby Bella about 5 thousand years to finish a bag that big.  I'm not sure the shelf life on dog food but I don't think it would stand the test of time.  Well I take that back with all the crap they put in dog food...it just might.  Of course that is beside the point.  Plus Bella has been gaining a little bit of weight (thanks to my Husband and Uncle for very clearly pointing this out.  I'm sure Bella now has a complex).

So with all of that said, and the dog food finally gone (and partially thrown away...what a waste of bad food) I've finally been putting some thought and research into the food we are giving our dog.  I don't know why these things didn't cross my mind earlier.  I guess everything happens with time.  The more knowledge you have the better decisions you make (or so we hope).  I put a lot of thought and care into the food I eat.  There are a million reasons why I'm a vegan and so why would I forget all of that and not share that with my beloved Bella?

As I'm sure most of you are thinking (and my first thought as well) Can a dog live without meat???  Well Yes....Yes they can!  As long as they are getting all of the nutrients and protein a dog needs (kinda like a human) a vegan diet can be very healthy for a dog.

So I started my journey at Petco in Davis.  I did some research and knew they at least had one brand of dog food that had a vegetarian option.  To my surprise (Not sure why I would be surprised I do live in Davis) there was a whole aisle or two dedicated to all natural dog food!!!  There were sooo many choices!  I should have taken a picture.  Not all were vegetarian per sey but they had a ton of great all natural dog food that anybody would be proud to give there dog.

I settled on the Natural Balance the vegetarian formula.  I was a little nervous that Bella wasn't going to like it.  She is very picky with her food.  But she loves it!!!  I'm very excited to finally say that Bella is finally a veggie puppy!!!  A dog after my own heart ♥!  Now if only I could convert my Husband.  I feel like i've been a tad of a fraud this whole time, but like I said before, it all comes with time.  I'm sure I still have a ways to go until I can really call myself a vegan.  I always tredge lightlty with the word because I never know if what I'm eating/doing/buying is really considered Vegan.  I try my best but what if I'm missing something?  There is a lot still to learn, but I'm enjoying the journey!  Human food will be up tomorrow! 

Laissez Les Bon Temps Rouler! 

Broccolli, Rice, and Cheese Casserole

Today's dinner was SOOOO good!!!  It honestly tasted like the real thing.  Any meat eater would love this.  I found the recipe from my iPhone app, VegWeb.  It was submitted and created by Allychristine.  I made a few minor adjustments

3 Cups Water
1 Veggie Bouillon Cube
Salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 cups rice (the recipe called for white, but I used brown and it was fine, 3 cups is if you used brown, if using white the recipce calls for 2 3/4 cups)
1 Tablespoon of vegan butter
1 Cup of vegan cheese (the recipe called for cheddar daiya, but I had some left over mozzarella that I used)
1 1/2 cups unsweetened non dairy milk (I used rice)
3 bunches of broccoli (This is what the recipe called for, I used frozen and just threw in a few large handfuls)
Few dahses of onion powder (not in original recipe)
Few dahes of garlic powder (not in original recipe)
Few dashes of red chili flakes (not in original recipe)

1.  Preheat oven to 375*.  Grease an 8x8 glass dish.  Add rice, bouillon, water and pepper to pot and cover.  Bring to boil.  Stir then reduce to low and simmer for about 30 minutes until the rice has absorbed all of the water.  The rice might not be cooked all the way. 

2.  Meanwhile melt the butter in a saucepan.  Add the cheese and stir for about a minute.  Slowly add the milk until the cheese melts to desired consistency (you can add more milk if you think it needs it).  I added the onion and garlic powder and red chili flakes to taste.  I didn't really measure. 

3.  When the rice is almost done I added the broccoli to the sauce since it was frozen so it could defrost a bit.  Then add the sauce/broccoli mixture to the rice.  Transfer to the baking dish and bake for about 20-30 minutes until bubbly.  Turn to broil and cook for a few minutes until top is golden brown. 

This will definitely be a repeat in my house.  We served by itself with a dash of Louisiana Hot Sauce.  YUMMMMMM!!  I highly recommend you try this!!

For Lunch I had another tofurkey pizza.  Pepperoni this time.  It was good but I think I liked the roasted veggie one better.  I'm not a huge ranch eater, but pre vegan I loved it with my pizza.  I felt the pepperoni was lacking so I did a quick search for a vegan ranch recipe and found this.  Honestly it is SOOOOOO good!!!  It tastes just like ranch.  I highly reduced the recipe and didn't really measure.  I didn't want as much as the recipe called for.  This totally MADE the meal.  I'm sure I've said this before but my weak spot was pizza pre vegan and I feel I can finally indulge those cravings without any guilt!!! 

It feels good to be back in the kitchen and creating new things.  On a side note I bought an awesome bottle of riesling and it was quite tasty!!  If you like a sweet wine that isn't too strong, try it!!  

Yum!! 

Laissez Les Bon Temps Rouler

Rainbow Swiss Chard

I couldn't wait to share with you the rainbow swiss chard I found at the co-op today!!!  I swear it is like a candy store on the veggie aisle.  They have so many fun things you can't find anywhere else!!  How beautiful is this!! 

I also picked up a sweet indulgence for myself!  Vegan cookie dough!  Oh YES!!!

I'll be back tomorrow!!!

Hello all!

Sorry it's been a few days since I've posted.  I haven't cooked anything blog worthy recently.  Just some more sauted veggies, veggie burgers, left overs. etc.  I'm going shopping today after work so I'm set to make some new stuff!  Stay tuned!!

Laissez Les Bon Temps Rouler!

Two Dinners -- One Post Sesame Green Beans/stir fry & Miso-Ginger Rice

Sorry, didnt' realize it was so blurry, took in a hurry

Hello fellow bloggers (or non-bloggers, we don't discriminate here)!!  Since my last post I've been eating a lot of chili!!  It's finally all eaten and I have to say I enjoyed it each and every time I had it.  It was spicy and filling.  I ate it with and without rice, with cornbread a few times and with some "butter" crackers and liked it all.  I think it would be good too if you were sick.  Its spicy so it will clear your sinuses, and it has a ton of good veggies, maybe just add more broth.  =) 
 Since we've been cleaning out the fridge (again) I've put together two dinners that were based on things I already had in the pantry.  First I made Miso-Ginger rice and Sesame green beans.  The rice I found the recipe here from Whole Foods Website.  I made a few adjustments to the recipe:

I used brown rice instead of wild, because that's what I had on hand
Apple cider vinegar (again because that's what I had on hand) with a little sugar added
I was out of garlic (I know you are thinking, how can you live without garlic???  I'm not sure how but I can say I lived to survive) but had some dehydrated? garlic in my pantry.  I tossed it in place of the fresh, but after it sat and melded flavors with the rest of the dressing I spooned them out. 
I didn't have barley miso, so I used what I had, white.
I also didn't have any cabbage so I just left it out

It was good, but I totally screwed up the rice.  It was my first time making brown rice on the stove and it didn't pan out very well....not sure why I have trouble cooking rice over the stove!!  One day I'll figure it out.  It was just really soggy.  I did end up eating it, but it could have been better.  I didn't keep the left overs because it wouldn't have lasted. 

Far left, dressing for rice, middle sauce for green beans, right chopped veggies

I topped the rice with some sesame green beans, recipe here.  These were delish!!! Loved them and so did Husband.  They are very spicy so beware.  The only changes I made was agave nectar for honey, I didn't have any red bell peppers on hand so I just left that out, and I didn't use the sesame oil.  I also didn't have fresh green beans so I used one can.





Finished Green Onions.  Added some left over chopped green onions from the rice

The next night I had to make dinner on a whim because all of the recipes I planned for this week I was missing ingredients.  If someone didn't steal my visa check card number and spend all my money this wouldn't have been a problem...but that's how the cookie crumbles so I did with what I had.  Plus I ended up with another yummy meal.  

Since Husband and I both loved the sauce I made for the green beans I went with that same recipe and changed it up.  I was out of green beans, but the other day I bought a bag of froxen asian medley vegetables from Sam's Club.  It comes with all my fav. veggies.  Broccoli, snap peas, chestnuts, carrots, red peppers, mushrooms and baby corn.  It comes with a package of sauce, but I just didn't use it for this meal.  I made the same sauce as I did the day before (except I was out of agave nectar, I used just a tiny bit of maple syrup in it's place.  Just enough to sweeten it a bit but without "tasting" like maple syrup.  It still tasted good, but prefer it with the agave.  I doubled the recipe since I had more veggies this go round. 

I cooked the veggies over the stove until warm, then mixed the sauce until slightly thickened like the recipe states.  Before all of this I cooked some vermicelli noodles, and when everything was done topped the veggies on the noodles for a perfect stir fry. 



Veggies with sauce



Yummm

Again be forewarned that this was spicy.  I even preempted with some tums.  The second go round (probably from the lack of agave) it had a familiar spicy taste that I couldn't put my finger on.  Later I realized it had a very similar taste to wasabi.  I'm not the biggest fan of wasabi, but I have had it before and it's very unique.  I'm not sure what would have made this taste like that?  Maybe the dry mustard mixed with the red pepper flakes?  Regardless this was yummy and we'll probably have it again.  It was quick and easy too. 

I got paid so now that I have money back in my account I'll be going grocery shopping soon, with more meals on the way.  I have a ton of recipes planned and excited to share with you!  As always Stay Tuned and

Laissez Les Bon Temps Rouler!

Spicy Vegen Chili

Soo glad it's Friday, even though it was a short week it felt like a LONG week!  The even better part is Husband has the whole weekend off, which never happens!!!  Hopefully the sun stays out!  As I'm sure you all remember the last time I made "chili" it wasn't my fav.  I thought I'd try my hand at a more traditional chili.  I found the recipe here from Whole Food's website.  They have some other recipes on there I want to try too.  It was super easy to make, just a little bit of waiting time while it cooks.  I made the following adjustments to the recipe:

1 Can of Kidney beans
1 Can of black beans
I didn't have Cumin so I used Coriander instead
I also didn't have chili powder on hand so I used slap ya mama
The recipe calls for 4 cups of water but reading the comments I cut down to 2 which I think was perfect so it wasn't so soupy. 
I also added a can of corn

It was really tasty!!  and really spicy.  I used probably a little more than 3 tablespoons of chipotles in adobo sauce.  I also took some of the sauce from the can and added it to the chili.  If you don't want it so spicy definitely cut down on the chipotles.  I loved the flavor it gave the chili though.  I cooked just a little bit of brown rice and added it to my bowl to give it some body.  I also had some cornbread in the freezer, so I defrosted that for the side.  YUMMO!!  Also I chopped my veggies kind of big, if you don't want it so "chunky" you can chop them smaller.

For dinner yesterday I was looking for something quick.  I bought some samosas's in the freezer section at Davis Food Co-Op.

I've never had samosas before so I wasn't sure what to expect but they were tasty!  I read up on the dipping sauce that typically goes with these but I didn't have any of the ingredients on hand, so I just went with what I had, a sweet chili sauce.  Pretty good for being in the freezer section. 

Till next time!

Laissez Les Bon Temps Rouler!