Italian Summer Salad

Serves: 6
Prep time: 30 minutes

Mangia!

I made this summer salad this weekend for an Italian dinner and it was such a hit! It's light, refreshing and chocked full of watery vegetables, which are perfect for hydrating in the middle of summer. Serve it as a side dish to pasta marinara and mangia!

Ingredients:

1 can chickpeas, drained
1 can sliced black olives, drained
1 can artichoke hearts, drained and diced
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 1/2 cucumbers, peeled and chopped
1/2 package mushrooms, diced
2 tablespoons olive oil
Smokin' Texas Gourmet Garlic Salt and Pepper, to taste

Directions:

-Place all of the ingredients in a large bowl. Season with garlic salt and pepper. Add olive oil and toss to coat the salad. Season with more garlic salt and pepper, to taste.

-Chill for an hour or two before serving.

Tofu tacos with chipotle lime mayo sauce

Serves: 2
Cook Time: 35 minutes



Zesty tofu tacos with a side of black beans


 

Looking for a quick and easy weeknight meal? Look no further! These zesty tofu tacos only take about 30 minutes to make and they're delicious! Prep your taco fixings and side items while the tofu is baking to save time. Here's what you'll need:

Ingredients:
1 block extra-firm tofu
1 package coleslaw
1 package flour or corn tortillas
Taco fixings (chopped tomato, onion, avocado)
1/4 cup Follow Your Heart Grapeseed Vegenaise
1 tablespoon lime juice
1-2 tablespoons Smokin' Texas Gourmet Smokin' Chipotle Pepper Sauce (depending on desired spiciness)

Directions:
Press the tofu for about 30 minutes to release water. I usually wrap the tofu in paper towels, set it on a plate and the put one plate on top of the tofu (almost like a tofu sandwich). I then place a bowl or other heavy object on the top plate to add weight, which will press the water out of the tofu.

Preheat your oven to 350˚  Fahrenheit. Spray non-stick cooking spray on a cooking sheet and bake the tofu for 30-40 minutes, flipping halfway through for even cooking. This is the most basic way to cook the tofu for this recipe. You can experiment with marinades for additional flavor.

While the tofu is baking, get your taco fixings ready and make the chipotle lime mayo sauce. To make the sauce, combine the vegenaise, lime juice and chipotle pepper sauce in a bowl. Mix and add more chipotle pepper sauce until desired spiciness.

Once the tofu is ready, slices it into cubes. Serve the tofu on a tortilla. Top with coleslaw, taco fixings and chipotle lime mayo sauce. Serve warm and bring on the fiesta!

Stuffed Baked Potato

Serves: 1
Time: 70 minutes

My husband's metabolism and appetite is INSANE. He can eat and eat without gaining an ounce (lucky devil!). At times it can be difficult to fill him up, especially with healthy food. Enter the baked stuffed potato. It's relatively healthy and filling, plus it reheats well. I'll make a couple of potatoes over the weekend and we'll throw them in a lunch bag for a quick, satisfying meal.

 Ingredients
1 medium baking potato
10 ounces frozen chopped spinach, cooked
1/2 cup broccoli (frozen or fresh), cooked
1 tablespoon scallions, chopped
1/8 cup vegan cheddar cheese
Dash salt
Dash pepper
Dash garlic powder
*Rice Milk-optional
*Earth Balance butter-optional

Directions
Bake the potato at 425° Fahrenheit for 45 to 60 minutes, or until done. Slice the potato in half and allow to cool for about 5 minutes. Scoop the insides of the potato into a small bowl, reserving the skin.

Add the spinach, broccoli, scallions, cheese and seasonings to the bowl. Add in rice milk and Earth balance butter, if using. Mash all of the items together.

Fill the potato skin with the mixture and bake in the oven for 10 minutes. Serve warm.

Kale with cranberries and toasted pecans

Serves: 2
Time: 15 minutes



A healthy holiday side that will have everyone wanting seconds!

 I began testing vegan Thanksgiving dishes about a month ago. I've tried casseroles, baked goods and breads. For some reason I haven't cooked up any vegetable sides, but everything changed last night. Challenged to make a healthy and delicious, holiday-appropriate side dish, I immediately started thinking of the in-season green gems that are perfect for a holiday feast. My mind immediately focused on the nutritional powerhouse, kale. This delicious recipe is the result.

Ingredients
8-ounce bag of kale
4 tablespoons pecans, rough chopped
3 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
6 tablespoons dried cranberries
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon Smokin' Texas Gourmet Holiday Spice

Directions
Use a sharp knife to cut out the central rib and stem from each kale leaf. Note: The kale stems are full of nutrients, so keep them in if you don't mind the extra crunch. Place the kale in a large bowl of cold water and allow to rest while you prepare the remaining recipe.

Toast the pecans over medium heat in a dry skillet for about 5 minutes or until golden. Shake the pan often to keep the pecans from burning. Transfer to a plate and set aside.

Place the garlic and oil in a large skillet, and sauté over medium heat for 1 minute or until the garlic is fragrant. Add the damp kale and stir, then cover the pan and cook for 2 minutes longer. Add the cranberries and pecans, and stir. Cook and cover for 2 minutes. Stir in the balsamic vinegar and holiday spice, cover, and continue to cook for 1 to 2 minutes longer.

Serve warm.

Double Fudge Brownie Larabars



Homemade Larabars that are more of a sinful treat than snack!



Makes: 10 Larabars
Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients
2 2/3 cups pitted dates
2 cups walnuts
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
6 tablespoons cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup vegan chocolate chips

Directions
Blend all of the ingredients (except for the chocolate chips) in a food processor. If you want some chunks of nuts in the bars, keep some of the nuts off to the side and rough chop. Fold in chocolate chips (and chunks of nuts if using).

Spray an 8 x 8 glass pan with non-stick cooking spray. Pour mixture into pan. Press and smooth out the mixture over the entire pan. Cover with saran wrap and place in fridge for 15 minutes. Slice into bars and serve. The bars will keep in a tupperware for one week in the refrigerator (if they last that long)!

Recipe adapted from Chocolate Covered Katie

Homemade miso soup

A steamy bowl of miso soup.

Serves: 2
Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients
1/4 cup carrot, thinly sliced
1/4 cup fresh mushrooms, sliced into thin pieces
1 scallion, chopped
1/4 block tofu, cubed
1/4 cup snow peas
2 cups vegetable broth
1 tablespoon miso

Directions

Sliced vegetables ready to be added to soup stock.

Slice the vegetables and tofu and set aside. Add the vegetable stock to a soup pot and bring to a low boil. Add the vegetables (except scallions) and tofu to the vegetable stock. Lower the heat to medium and allow the soup to simmer for 10 minutes.

Put the fresh miso paste in a glass. Add a ladleful of hot broth. Whisk until the miso is entirely dissolved and then add the entire mixture back into the soup pot. Do not allow the soup to boil because the miso will become gritty. Stir in the scallions and serve warm.

Steamed Vegetable Dumplings

Finished dumplings.

Makes: Approximately 40 dumplings
Time: 1 1/2 hours

I was reading about traditional Tibetan momos (dumplings) recently and decided to give them a try at home. I am definitely glad I did! These dumplings turned out absolutely delicious and would be a great dish for entertaining. They're very easy to make, but a little labor intensive so make sure you have some spare time. Enjoy!

Ingredients

1/2 onion
1 clove garlic
1 inch fresh ginger
1/4 pound fresh napa cabbage
1/4 pound tofu
4 whole mushrooms
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon vegetable broth
3 cups all purpose flour
1 cup of water
Soy sauce (for dipping)
Hoisin sauce (for dipping)

Directions
Slice all of the vegetables into very fine pieces. Place the sliced vegetables into a mixing bowl. Add the soy sauce and vegetable broth, stir and set aside.

Next make the dough either using a stand mixer or by hand. Mix the flour and water very well by hand.   Keep adding the water until you make a pretty smooth ball of dough. Knead until the dough is flexible.
Make sure not to let the dough dry out because it will be hard to work with.

Roll the dough out over a lightly floured surface until the dough is quite thin. It should be thinner than a computer disk, but not so thin that you can see through it when you lift it. Use a glass to cut circular shaped discs out of the dough.

Stuffed dumplings and dough discs.

Form the dumplings by add a small spoonful of the stuffing to the middle of each disk. Fold the disc in half and pinch the dough together until you have crescents. Continue until all dumplings have been stuffed.

Formed dumplings, ready to be cooked.

Next steam the dumplings by boiling water in a large steamer. Spray the steamer basket with non-stick cooking spray so the dumplings don't stick. Steam the dumplings for 10 minutes. Serve warm with soy or hoisin sauce for dipping.