Zippy Lime and Burger Crumble Soup

Wow, this soup has such a different flavour from anything that I have ever tasted.  The lime is what does that.  It's such a hearty, warming, tangy soup.  Which a person really does not expect when they go to take a bite of soup, but this one quickly rose up among my ranks of favourites.  The boca crumbles were really cool too.  A very nice change of pace.

Tangy “Beef” Soup

Serves 8- 10

Adapted from Kalyn’s Kitchen

1 onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, pressed

3 yukon gold potatoes, chopped

1 medium head cabbage, chopped

1 T ground cumin
1 tbsp Spike seasoning
2 tbsp oregano
4 cups water plus bullion (vegetarian chicken is what I used)
2 T tomato paste
28 oz can diced tomatoes
1/2 cup sliced green onions
2 tbsp corn starch mixed with 2 tbsp waer
3 cups cooked beans
12 oz vegetarian burger crumbles, defrosted
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro (or more)

2 T fresh squeezed lime juice

Heat a large Dutch oven over medium high heat with a bit of water, and sauté the onion and garlic. Add the cabbage after 3 minutes, and sauté until tender, about 5 more minutes. Add through the diced tomatoes, bring to a boil, and simmer for 35 minutes. Add in the remaining ingredients, mix well, and serve with salt and pepper, and parmesan cheese.

Cabbage: Cheap, Healthy, Healing

Ahh, the joys of being sick.  Not.  Sheesh, I felt awful when I got home that day- I think I might have had a quick surge of a fever, because for a couple hours I was shivering like nobody's buisness, and then felt like something set on fire.  And then I had to go give a short improv speech about a quote from Asher Lev.  (Which I got a 100 on.  Not to brag- my grade really needed that, though.) 

But why do you care about that?  You don't.  I just felt like typing that...  But, I think this cabbage worked miracles for me and my sickness.  Once it was finally done cooking, I dragged myself over to the table, and M dished up the noodles and cabbage.  And then I was in heaven for about half an hour.  I dunno how to describe this- how about amazing?  The steam helped my nose, and it tasted quite creamy.  Exactly the thing a sick person is craving when they want a healthy, tastey, nourishing dish. 

This is so simple to put together, too, and was a nice way to use up a leftover pile of cabbage that was lying around.  Plus, the leftovers were as good as leftovers can get, which is quite convenient. 

Oh- if you are like me, your wok does not have a lid.  I use a cookie sheet.  But whatever works for you, I say go for it!

And about grating the carrots, make sure you have a nice grater- preferably one that stands on its own, and use the large holes.  Otherwise, I think you might end up grating all night, and with really orange hands when the carrots are all gone.

Halushki with Egg Noodles

Adapted from Vegan Dad

Serves about 6

1 large sweet onion, halved and sliced
1 leek, white and light green part, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 large carrots, grated

1 small head of cabbage, shredded

1 tbsp basil, chopped

3 Portobello mushrooms, chopped

1 ½ cups boca crumbles
3 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp Hungarian paprika
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp miso paste
½ tbsp corn starch
1 ½ tbsp agave nectar

salt and pepper to taste

cooked egg noodles

Mix together the soy sauce through the agave in a small bowl. Set aside.

Heat a large wok over high heat with a bit of water. Add the onion and leeks, and cook for 3 minutes. Add the mushrooms and garlic, and cook for 2 more minutes. Add the cabbage and carrots and stir through. When the cabbage has wilted slightly, add the sauce and cover for 10-15 minutes, until cooked through. Stir in the basil, and serve over egg noodles.

Pepperoni, Pizza, and Tofu

Yup- lots of recipes today.  But none of them were very labour-intensive, so it sounds a lot more impressive than it really is. 

The pepperoni came from Vegan Dad, a most excellent website.  This is actually his second seitan recipe that I have made, and they have both turned out to be delicious and very realastic.  I was especially pleased with how the pepperoni looked- it almost cute, coming out of it's foil wrapper in a long cylandrical shape...  and the texture was very meaty.  The spices also resemble what pepperoni tastes like. 

I was originally wanting to make sausage, but then M requested pepperoni, so that's how I ended up making this!  And it went great on the potato pizzas that I made from Fat Free Vegan. 

The potatoes hit just the spot today, too; I can never seem to get enough of a baked potato, even if it is a sweltering hunderd degrees outside, and I am still overheated as I type this.  Summer's here for the next three months... and it's HOT.  Ah well.  Anyway, back to the potatoes.  Loaded with vegetable goodness!

And finally, the Mapo Dofu.  This one I adapted from Vegan Ronin.  It looked nothing like what she had posted, but still tasted great all the same.  I have never actually heard of this "mapo dofu", but the picture was just so tantilizing!  And it turned out to be just the thing, too.  I added some snap peas, even though you don't typically find that, because I seemed to be craving those at the moment I made the recipe...  And it turned out to be quite heavy on the onions, but that's OK, because who doesn't love a whole bunch of onions?

Pepperoni

Adapted from VeganDad

8 servings

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup of white or red kidney beans, mashed well

• 1 tsp liquid smoke

• 1 tsp BBQ sauce

• 1 tbsp paprika

• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

• 1 tsp salt

• 1 tbsp sugar

• 1 tsp five spice powder

• 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

• 1 1/4 cups vital wheat gluten

1. Mix together everything except the gluten.  Add the gluten, and continue mixing until it becomes a dough-like substance.

2. Divide dough into four equal portions. Roll each portion into a log and wrap tightly in foil, tootsie roll style.

4. Steam for 45 mins. Cool and slice.

Mapo Dofu

Adapted from The Vegan Ronin

4 servings

Ingredients

• 12 oz tofu, pressed and cut into 1 cm cubes

• 1/2 C burger crumbles

• 1 tsp peanut oil

• 2 tbsp broth

• 1 tsp chili garlic sauce, or to taste

• 1 tsp chili powder, or to taste

• 1 onion, sliced thick

• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp cornstarch
• 1/4 cup water
• ¾ lb snap peas
• 4 green onions, chopped, for garnish

1. Heat oil on medium heat in a wok and add tofu, cooking until lightly browned on all sides (about 10-15 minutes). Remove from heat and set aside.

2. Meanwhile, mix together the chili garlic sauce, chili powder, soy sauce, sugar, cornstarch, and water.  Set aside.

3. Stir fry onions, peas, and garlic in broth until the onions have become slightly tender.

4. Add crumbles and sauce, and heat through..

5. Add tofu, and continue cooking until all veggies are tender and everything is hot, hot, hot!

6. Garnish with green onions.

Potato Pizzas

Adapted from Fat Free Vegan

2 servings

Ingredients

• 1 large baking potato, or two really small ones

• Pizza toppings

Sauce (you will have extra, but it tastes really good)

• 1/2 large onion, chopped

• 2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed

• ½  28 oz can crushed tomatoes

• 1/2 tsp. oregano

• 1 tsp. basil

• salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Bake the potato(es) in the microwave.

Pizza sauce: Sauté the onion in a non-stick saucepan until it becomes translucent. Add the garlic and sauté one minute more. Mix with remaining ingredients, and keep hot.

When the potato(es) is/are done, cut in half spread each face with sauce, and load with toppings. Put them into the oven and bake for 15-20 more minutes at 350 if you are feeling ambitious, or just eat as is.

Dan Dan Noodles

I have never heard of Dan Dan Noodles- until now, obviously.  I think I just liked the name- that's why I decided to make these.  Plus I had some leftover noodles to use.  Not to mention, I was very excited about using the black mushrooms that I had picked up a while back at a Super H Mart (same place I got the 5 spice powder).  And Target was still having their lovely sale on the Morning Star crumbles; all lights were green!  M loves cashews, too, and I knew that she would enjoy this noodle dish so much. 

I also made a simple chickpea, cabbage, and pasta soup yesterday, mainly to use up the beans.  It turned out alright, but nothing spectacular.  I have posted a picture anyhoo, just because I love my camera.
I guess I was kind of on a pasta run yesterday- pasta in my soup, Dan Dan noodles, and I made the Vegetarian Hot Pot again to go with it because that would use up the rest of the noodles.  But I certianly didn't mind one bit!

A little about Dan Dan noodles: Appearently they are noodles in a spicy sauce with a few veggies and pork.  They are Chinese Sichuan cuisine... but whatever, they taste good!  I really have no clue how authentic this recipe is, but I'd call it tasty.

Dan Dan Noodles

Adapted from Vegan-Food.net

4 servings

Ingredients

• 3.5 oz medium rice noodles
• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp light miso
• 1/2 tbsp chili garlic paste
• 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
• 2 tbsp water
• 2 tbsp veggie broth
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 4 dried Chinese black mushrooms, soaked in hot water for 20 minutes and chopped large
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup vegetarian hamburger crumbles
• 3 T cashews
• Chopped green onions, for garnish

Preparation

1. Boil the noodles in a large pot of water for 2-3 minutes, remove from heat, and allow to sit for 45 minutes to 1 hour+, until they stop expanding and are soft.
2. Mix together the soy sauce through the water in a small cup, and set aside.
3. Heat a wok coated with nonstick spray over high heat. Saute the onion, mushrooms and garlic in the broth until the onions soften. Add the crumbles and sauce, and heat through. Add the noodles, and continue cooking until heated through (again).
4. Remove from heat and add cashews and green onions for garnish.

Lions!.. And Cabbage!

After quite a bit of trauma in the kitchen, M and I finally ended up with Lion's Head Cabbage Salad for dinner tonight.  And BOY was it totally amazing!! 
Actually, I got the idea from a trip to my local Target, where they had MorningStar hamburger crumbles on sale.  I decided to get some, since they are quite tastey.  And then the idea for lion's head popped in my head (no pun intended), and I began to do some research.  Just my luck, too, that I happened to have some leftover cabbage and bok choy that needed to be used up!  Anyway, I ended up creating this recipe.  The sauce for the bok choy and cabbage is from FatFreeVegan's Vegetarian Chicken with Simple Five Spice Sauce, since I didn't use that for dipping the chicken in.  I actually have no clue what Lion's Head is supposed to taste like, but this salad sure fit the bill for M and I tonight!

Lion’s Head and Cabbage Salad

4 servings, 176 calories each

Ingredients

Lion’s Heads

• 12 oz burger crumbles
• ½ cup chopped scallions
• ½ cup finely chopped carrot
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 3 cloves garlic
• 2 tbsp cornstarch
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
Sauce (from Fat Free Vegan’s Vegetarian Chicken with Simple Five Spice Sauce)

• 1/2 cup vegetable broth
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1/8 teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon rice wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch
Salad

• A little soy sauce and broth
• 3 cups cabbage, shredded
• 2 cups bok choy, chopped
• Green onions, for garnish

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 375.
2. Mix the burger crumbles through the soy sauce together in a large bowl, adding more corn starch as needed to hold it together. Divide into four balls.
3. Place the balls on a baking sheet coated with nonstick spray, and bake for 10-15 minutes, until slightly browned and collapsed.
4. Combine sauce ingredients in a bowl, and set aside.
5. Briefly sauté the cabbage and bok choy in soy sauce and broth, until just tender.
6. Combine the sauce, cabbage, and bok choy, divide among 4 plates, and top with one lion’s head. Garnish with green onions.