Eggless Egg Salad – Recipe

I’ve bought versions of this salad from delis before, and always loved it.  I knew it would be easy to make my own, and this is my result.  The verdict?  This stuff is good.  It’s been a long time since I’ve had real egg salad, but I have to think this is pretty close.  The texture of the tofu really mimics the hardboiled egg white, and the diced avocado (not in any salad ive had, and added at the end) lends a richness like the fatty egg yolk and really takes this salad to the next level.  You can customize this however you’d like – add in some different herbs or veggies (like celery, red onion, even carrot), or leave all the extras out for a very basic salad.

Eggless Egg Salad

Ingredients
1 block extra firm tofu, drained and pressed (I used Westsoy brand)
4 green onions, white and light green parts only, diced
1 roasted red pepper, diced (about 1/4 cup)
2 Tablespoons pickle relish (dill or sweet) or chopped pickle (optional)

1 small avocado, diced

Dressing
1/4 cup Vegenaise
1 Tablespoon dijon mustard
squeeze fresh lemon juice (about 1 teaspoon)
1/8 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
black pepper to taste

Directions
In a small bowl, combine all the dressing ingredients and mix until blended together.

In a separate larger bowl, crumble, crush, or dice tofu.  Stir in remaining ingredients except avocado, and mix in the dressing until well combined.  Let the salad sit for a couple of hours in the fridge so that all the flavors have a chance to blend together.  Just before serving, stir in the avocado.

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Chile Chickpea Burgers

I know it’s very un-Iowan but we just had our first sweetcorn of the summer!  It was absolutely delicious, though, and I’ll be getting some more this weekend.  I served the corn with these Chile Chickpea Burgers – an idea I’ve been kicking around for a while kind of loosely inspired by falafel.  I’ve tried making bean burgers before but they always turned out too bland for my tastes.  I remedied that by adding a can of green chiles and some typical falafel flavors like garlic and lemon.

These chickpea burgers are just a little spicy but you could make them more or less spicy by adjusting the spices or adding hot sauce.  Green chiles are mild so don’t be afraid of using a whole can.  This recipe made 7 patties using a 1/2 cup measuring cup.  It’s kind of an odd number of burgers to have, but they are great as leftovers and we’ve been eating them all week on salads and in wraps, like so:

I served mine with salsa on top but they would be good with guacamole, hummus, or tzatziki too.   I used coconut oil, but you could easily replace with olive or other oil of your choice.

Ingredients
2 Tablespoons ground flax
2 Tablespoons water
2 cans garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup shredded carrots (about 1 large)
1/2 cup old fashioned oats
2 cloves garlic
2 Tablespoons water
1 Tablespoon coconut oil
1 (4oz.) can whole green chiles, drained
3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or more to taste)
2 Tablespoons nutritional yeast
1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice (juice from 1/2 a lemon)
salt & pepper

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350F.

Make your “flax egg” by combining the ground flax and 2 Tablespoons of water.  Let sit for 5-10 minutes until thickened.

Place all ingredients (including flax egg) in a food processor and blitz away until it’s all combined.  You may have to add a little more water – the mixture should be moist enough to hold together but not too sticky.

Scoop into 1/2 cup mounds on a lightly greased (I used olive oil in my misto) baking sheet.  With your hands or a rubber spatula, form them into burger-sized patties that are about 1/2-3/4 inch thick.  Bake on a lower rack for 25 minutes and then gently flip them over.  If they don’t flip easily, return them to the oven for 5-10 more minutes and try again.  After flipping, bake for about 15 more minutes (will depend on the size, I baked mine for 40 minutes total).  You can tell when they are done because they will get slightly golden brown.

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Raw Donut Holes recipe and Blogger Meet-up

Tonight I had the pleasure of meeting Amanda from Organic Eats!  She just moved to my lovely town and I thought I’d help give her the lowdown on some local stuff.  We met up at a local coffee shop, Cafe Diem, for some tea.  I am still getting used to this new schedule (out of bed at 4:45 a.m. but still can’t seem to fall asleep until about 10:30 at night which is not enough sleep for this lady!) so it was a short but sweet visit.  Hopefully we can get together again soon!  I remembered to bring my camera but didn’t have anyone take our picture.  Next time!

I wanted to make her a treat, and yesterday I decided on Raw Donut Holes, which I’ve made several times but have yet to feature on the blog.  The original recipe is from Ani Phyo.  Unfortunately the co-op didn’t have any dried pineapple, though I have bought it there in the past   I ended up scrambling to try to think of a replacement, and I decided to try dried apricots in place of the coconut.  I think they turned out pretty well, they’re pretty much like a Larabar (though considerable cheaper to make). I hope she liked them.

Raw Donut Holes (vegan)

Original Recipe by Ani Phyo (she used to have the recipe on her blog but it looks like she took it down when she did a redesign)

Ingredients
1c raw almonds, soaked for about 4 hours or overnight, drained and rinsed and laid out to air dry for 8 hours or so
1c dates, chopped
1c dried apricots, chopped
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
pinch of sea salt
5 Tablespoons coconut flakes

Directions
In a food processor, blitz up the almonds until they are roughly chopped.  Add dates, apricots, vanilla, 3 Tablespoons of the coconut, and sea salt and mix until they are combined into a wet dough.  Form into 1 Tablespoon-sized balls and roll in remaining coconut.  Store in an air-tight container in the refrigerator.

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Black Bean Pasta Salad – Recipe

I love cold salads in the summertime.  When I worked at The Bakery, we used to make a different type of pasta salad every day and I loved coming up with different combinations of ingredients and flavors.  I saw a recipe for Black Bean Salsa in an old issue of Women’s Health and thought it would be good in a cold pasta dish, and that is how this salad came about.  The Black Bean Salsa recipe had corn, but I skipped it since I added plenty of delicious carbs in the form of whole wheat pasta.  This salad would be really good with quinoa or even couscous instead of pasta, too.  Pasta gets such a bad rap, but it can really be part of a healthy diet if you watch your serving size.  Adding plenty of chopped veggies is a good way to make a smaller serving of pasta more satisfying.

Black Bean Pasta Salad (vegan)

Ingredients
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can diced tomatoes with green chiles, drained
1 small cucumber, diced
1 red pepper, diced
about 4 green onions, diced
1/2 cup fresh cilantro (or parsley), chopped
1/4 cup black olives, chopped
12 oz. pasta (I used whole wheat)
2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 Tablespoon fresh lime juice
2 Tablespoons olive or canola oil
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon mild chili powder
salt and pepper to taste

Directions
Prepare the pasta according to package directions.  While it is cooking, chop all your other ingredients and throw them into a big bowl, including the dressing ingredients.  When the pasta is done cooking, drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking.  Add the pasta to your bowl with all the other ingredients.  Mix it up really well and chill to let all the flavors combine.  Top with avocado, if desired.

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Roasted Veggie Pizza

This was supposed to be a grilled veggie pizza. I bought a bunch of veggies with the intention of firing up the grill and giving them all a good char, but Iowa weather has been cruel the past week and not really conducive to being outdoors, unfortunately. Where is spring!? I fired up the oven instead and roasted all the veggies – three big sheets worth. I’ve used some of them in various things this week – wraps, a couscous dish with Field Roast Chipotle “sausage“, dipped in hummus, and on this pizza with daiya:

And oh boy, it was good.  I even let my husband eat one piece (I’m so generous).  If you’re vegan, lactose intolerant, or just looking for a non-dairy cheese for some other reason, you need to try daiya.

For this pizza – this is totally not a recipe – I just topped a pre-made whole wheat crust with some tomato sauce and the roasted veggies, I added some black olives and the daiya, a little bit of crushed basil, salt and pepper (try it!) and baked it according to the package (crust) directions.

For the roasted veggies, I mixed up some olive oil with a little balsamic vinegar, dijon mustard, black pepper, garlic powder, a splash of tamari and hot sauce, and used a pastry brush to lightly brush the mixture on both sides of the veggies before roasting in a hot oven (450) for about 15-25 minutes (the asparagus was done sooner than the carrots, for example, so I removed that first and put the rest back in).  The amount of the oil mixture you will need depends totally on how many veggies you have, but keep it on the light side, you want the veggies to get a nice caramelization of their own and too much oil will just make them limp.

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TLT(A) – Tempeh bacon, Lettuce, Tomato (& Avocado)

My lunch today consisted of this sandwich (open-faced) with some baked beans and a few Popchips.

There are a few types of vegetarian bacon on the market, this one is new to me and honestly it was only so-so.

It only vaguely smelled and tasted like bacon.  I personally like the taste of this one (also by Lightlife) better, but it is very salty.  Also the tempeh bacon is organic and has a little bit better nutritional profile when you compare the serving sizes.

To make the sandwich I just toasted a piece of bread and spread it with a tiny bit of Vegenaise and mustard.  Then I layered a few pieces of sad lettuce (need to go to the store!), sliced tomato, sliced avocado, and the cooked tempeh bacon.  To make it a little easier to eat, I think I would mash up the avocado next time and spread it on the bread under everything else.

For some reason I’ve always liked eating baked beans with potato chips.  Popchips are definitely a great healthier alternative to potato chips and I have to admit I’m kind of obsessed with them.  If you haven’t tried them, you should!  My sister said she’s had a hard time locating them – I usually get mine at Target.

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Banana Chocolate Smoothie – Recipe

Honestly, this smoothie is more like a milkshake.  Except it’s pretty healthy!  The only sugar is from the banana and the tiny bit of agave syrup I add.  You could also use a juicy date or honey in place of the agave, or even stevia.  I am kind of obsessed with this smoothie lately.  In fact I am working on a long post about snacking, but I got sidetracked tonight when I found a lost doggie wandering in my yard (I live on a busy highway!)  I had to track down her owners and stay with her until they arrived.  So I decided to post about this smoothie instead.  I can’t take credit for the idea – I got it from Girl on Raw.  This smoothie would be great for breakfast or a snack, but I usually have it for dessert!  You could also add some spinach and turn it into a Green Monster.

Banana Chocolate Smoothie (vegan)

Ingredients
1 frozen banana
about 3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk (I used Almond Breeze)
1 teaspoon agave syrup, or to taste
2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder, or to taste

Directions
Toss all ingredients in a blender and blenderize until smooth.

Nutrition Info (with a medium-sized banana): 142 calories, 2.5g fat, 2.5g protein, 36g carbohydrates, 4.5g fiber.

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Rhubarb Barbs – Recipe

This recipe is from Aprille, a smart and sassy lady I’ve known for a long time but have only met once.  Her recipe is a family classic, and she has been gracious enough to let me post my veganized version here!  You can find the original recipe (mine is very close) on her blog.

My dad loves rhubarb and I happen to have a bumper crop.  Is it still called a bumper crop if it happens year after year?  The former occupants of my house must have reeeeeally liked rhubarb, because we have six gigantic plants every year.  Anyway, my dad’s birthday is this weekend and we’re going home to visit, so I thought I’d make these to bring along.  I know my dad reads the blog, so hopefully he is too busy today to take a peek!

I feel like I must warn you -  I’ve made the original version of these bars before, though it was a couple years ago.  Making them this time, I thought surely I had done something wrong.  It didn’t seem like they were going to set up, the crust mixture seemed too wet and the rhubarb mixture seemed too runny.  I kept thinking:  Did I leave something out?  Is the moisture content of the Earth Balance too high?  I put them in the oven and hoped for the best.  Even after I took them out of the oven they looked pretty squishy to me, but sure enough after setting up over night they were ready for their closeup this morning.

Rhubarb Barbs (vegan)

Ingredients
Crust and topping:
1 1/2 cups flour
1 cup Earth Balance sticks, softened
1 1/2 cups oats
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup lightly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup almonds
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Filling:
1/4 cup water
2 T cornstarch
1 1/4 cup+ granulated sugar*
1/4 cup agave nectar
4 cups rhubarb, chopped into about 1/2″ pieces
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions
Preheat oven to 375F.
In a saucepan, whisk together cornstarch and water.  Stir in sugar and rhubarb.  Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until mixture begins to thicken.  Remove from heat and cool.  Stir in vanilla.

In a food processor, blitz together flour, soda, brown sugar, oatmeal, and ground almonds.  Add the Earth Balance and pulse together until the mixture is crumbly.

Lightly spray a 9×13″ baking dish with nonstick spray.  Press 2/3 of the crust mixture evenly into the bottom of the dish.  Pour the cooled rhubarb mixture over the top of the crust and sprinkle remaining crumbs on top of the rhubarb.
Bake for 30-35 minutes or until filling is bubbly and top is light golden brown.
Cool completely.

* About the sugar…Well first I want to tell you that if you don’t like the tart taste of rhubarb, you might want to add a little more sugar here.  I also want to talk a little bit about whether or not sugar is vegan.  Most of the refined white sugar sold in traditional US supermarkets is not technically vegan.  Though it doesn’t contain any animal products, charred animal bones are often used in the filtration process during manufacturing.  For use at home, I usually choose to buy this organic cane sugar, which is refined with an evaporation process that doesn’t use bone char.  For myself personally, I don’t worry too much about the added sugar when I’m eating outside my home.

Any other ideas for what to do with all this rhubarb?!

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Chewy Coconut Cranberry Granola Bars – Recipe

Though I’m not a big granola bar fan myself, my husband eats them almost every day.  I’ve experimented in the past with making my own and it seemed like they were always too sweet, too dry, too crumbly, or had too many ingredients I like to stay away from (like a lot of sugar an oil).  These are a nice balance – they aren’t too sweet and the applesauce keeps them on the chewy side so you don’t have to use much oil.  If you prefer a crunchy granola bar you could try baking them longer, I’m not sure whether they would be too crumbly though, so try it at your own risk!  It might look like the ingredient list for these is a bit long, but you just have to dump everything in a bowl and mix so these come together very quickly.  This recipe could be mix & match – add (or subtract) whatever you’d like (fruit, nuts, chocolate, etc.) as long as you keep the wet:dry ratio the same.

Coconut Cranberry Granola Bars (vegan)

Ingredients
1/3 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup brown rice syrup
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 Tablespoon maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 Tablespoon oil (I used canola)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 3/4c rolled oats
1/2 cup coconut
2 Tablespoons hemp seeds
2 Tablespoons ground flax seeds
2 Tablespoons sesame seeds
1/4 cup sunflower seeds and/or pepitas
1/4 cup cranberries
1 Tablespoon chia seeds

Directions
Preheat oven to 350F.
In a medium-sized bowl, combine first 8 ingredients (peanut butter through salt).  I like to warm these ingredients in the microwave for about 30 seconds so they’re easier to combine.  You could also combine them in a saucepan over low heat.  Mix well.  Add remaining ingredients and stir to coat.  Spray a 9×9″ pan with non-stick spray.  Pour the oat mixture in the pan and spread it out evenly, press the mixture down into the pan firmly with a spatula or wooden spoon (or your hands).  Bake 15-20 minutes or just until bars look slightly dry on top (you want them to still be moist on the inside).  Let cool completely before cutting.

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Quinoa Salad – Recipe

Quinoa is a grain-like seed that is native to the Andean region of South America, and was considered a sacred crop by the Incas. In modern times, it’s often praised for it’s high protein content. Quinoa, unlike other grains, contains all nine essential amino acids, making it a complete protein on it’s own. It’s also rich in fiber, phosphorus, magnesium, and iron. Cooking quinoa is a similar process to cooking rice, but it needs to be soaked first to insure that all of the saponins (a coating that gives off a soap-like flavor) have been loosened.  Packaged quinoa – the kind that comes in box mixes with seasonings, for example, usually has the coating removed prior to packaging.  I get my quinoa in bulk from my co-op so I don’t know for sure and I always soak it just to be safe.  Taste-wise, quinoa has a mild nutty flavor and a texture similar to rice. This salad is a nice alternative to pasta salad and perfect for a light lunch or as a side dish.

Quinoa Salad (vegan)

Ingredients
1 cup uncooked quinoa
1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 large carrot, diced
1 small cucumber, diced
3-4 green onions, white and light green parts only, diced
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup black olives, chopped
2 large handfuls spinach (about 2 cups) chopped
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
splash of lemon or lime juice (about 2 teaspoons)
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste

Directions
1. Soak the quinoa in a bowl covered with cool water for 15-30 minutes. Drain the quinoa in a wire strainer or fine colander, and rinse well. Place the quinoa in a small pot with 1 1/2 cups water. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat. Simmer for 15 minutes, then remove from heat and allow to steam (leave the lid on!) for 5-10 more minutes. Fluff the quinoa with a fork and let cool. At this point I usually get impatient and spread the cooked quinoa on a large plate or baking sheet, so it cools more quickly.
2. Add all the chopped veggies and the remaining ingredients to a medium-sized bowl. Toss them together and let the veggies marinate while the quinoa is cooling.
3. Once the quinoa is mostly cooled (it doesn’t have to be cold), add it to the bowl and mix it all up. At this point you can taste it and adjust your seasonings, but remember that the flavors will intensify as the salad sits. I like to keep the oil down for myself, but you could add more – up to 1/4 cup, if the vinegar is too overpowering for you, or start with less vinegar and adjust to your taste. Refrigerate before serving.

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